Inspiration redux

So this weekend I held a big-ol' pitty party for myself -- after spending all day Saturday in the office (except for the quick ride home and back for some parts), working and working on my dad's bike, I woke up Sunday and just wanted to go back to bed. I played with Kate for a bit, until she and Kim went out to see Kim's family (doing much better but health issues still lingering -- thankfully no more hospital!), and then, sure enough, I curled up into a fetal position and woke up several hours later.

Then I dragged myself to the couch, and wouldn't you know it? NBC was showing coverage of the NYC Marathon. Paula was just coming apart at the seams, and Meb was just about to drop the WR holder, and, well, I was riveted. Sure, it sucked that they had commercials, but that just allowed me to jump over to the MLS playoff game ...

Anyway, something in my head sort of snapped while I was watching the bizarre split screen images of Central Park. I haven't been feeling well on the bike, nursing some lingering issues from a very long season, but I hadn't yet gotten the gumption to do any other physical activity. Until then. So I laced up, headed out, and had a wonderful 2-mile run to the lake and back.

And then I did it again yesterday, during lunch.

And today? I feel great. I'm ready for NEXT. Not sure what NEXT is, but I'm ready for it. I still have some lingering bike-related things going on, but I know I can work through them with some off-bike rest and relaxation. And with some relatively heavy travel on my plate in the next few weeks, having the option to run is a good antidote to the do-nothing blahs. Who knows? Maybe I'll even get going on some core exercises like Kim?

* Speaking of bike-related issues -- my hand has been messed up since I crashed at Outdoor Demo at Interbike, more than a month ago. I watched as my right hand crashed into a rock, splaying my index finger outward at an odd angle. I don't think it's broken, but I've had swelling off and on around the knuckle where the finger connects to the hand for nearly 5 weeks now. Unfortunately, it gets re-injured every time I shake someone's hand! Anyone have any experience with this? Best way to heal?