People, mainly non-runners, often ask me “what do you think about while you run?” My response is a no brainer–EVERYTHING. From those small obsessions over what my friend said 3 weeks ago to what I’m feeling or even planning my week, runs are a great time for me to get lost in a stream of thoughts that I end up forgetting once I’m cooled down. My favorite time to log my thoughts are my Sunday runs; these are typically the days I run alone as well as my easy (what is easy, lol) day. Without further ado, I will demonstrate the thoughts throughout my 8 mile “jog” (7:40 pace).

Walking out the door:

Which route should I run today? Back Bay might be a good idea… oh wait I did the whole loop yesterday and have to run parts of it through out the week. Damn city for kicking us out of Corona del Mar. Ooo maybe I can run to Corona del Mar! That would be nice, it’s really pretty outside. I can see people, maybe I’ll meet my future boyfriend. 

Begins running

(Watch begins vibrating every second) Crap I forgot to take off the pacer. Ugh I’m already .04 miles in. Now I’ll have to reset it and I wont get the actual mileage logged. Why didn’t Garmin think this part through. 

I hope I don’t run into anyone I know. I mean if it’s a runner cool, but I need to keep my streak of not bumping into people from high school going. PCH is so busy, this is perfect. Make sure your form looks good, Mr. Future Boyfriend might be passing by. Okay, do I really want a boyfriend? That reminds me… J***** actually never ended up texting me back. What a jerk. Yeah I definitely do not want to get into dating. Guys suck. 

(Under PCH Bridge) Wow, it’s noon and this guys still sleeping here, I thought they left by the time the sun came up. Newport wouldn’t be too bad of a place to be homeless in. Wow, my pace is really good today, I wonder if I can go faster. No, Ashlee… today is supposed to be easy. But 7:20 feels easy right now. Wait tomorrow might suck, I bet we’ll go 7:10. It’s actually pretty hot right now. I should have taken my Enduropacks before I started. Water sounds good right now. Slow down Ashlee. It’s funny I never see people actually come out of these houses. I’m pretty sure a girl from my high school lives here. I hope she doesn’t come out. This song is too slow. I need something that will pump me up. Is it bad that I’m listening to music today? Will it hurt my performance? I should have  made Raquel bike next to me instead. 

Hm. I need to plan my week. I start my new job on Tuesday. Gosh what am I going to wear? I need to shop today. Mushrooms! I am totally going to kick them to spread more! Crap, car! Now I’m going to look like an idiot crossing the street just to kick these mushrooms and then cross again. I wonder if the Rodrigues’ will be outside when I pass their house. Funny that I’ve never seen them sitting outside their house. It’s so pretty. I haven’t talked to Ryan in a minute. I wonder if he’s running again. Ooo that’s a nice shirt, I wish I could take it. That’s sorta gross. How could someone forget their shirt right here. It’s not even that close to the beach. Weird. Maybe they don’t like America. Wow! That view is beautiful! There are so many people out today. Funny they’re out partying on a yacht and I’m here running. I wonder if I’ll be able to afford a yacht. That’s a ton of girls on the front. I wonder what they do. Could running get me to afford a yacht? Wow. The lot is full. Maybe I should run on the beach. Ew there’s way too many people that’s a terrible idea. I wonder where all these cars are going to park. That blows. I should see if Taylor’s going to the beach. 

That guy is SO tall. Lol those people are literally asking him if he plays in the NBA, how embarrassing. Crap. I’m totally assuming he does too. Ashlee, you can’t just assume things like that. (Smile and Wave) Did I really just do that. I mean, maybe he does play in the NBA. His clothes are super cool. I wonder if he noticed me. When I turn around I’ll ask him if he lives around here. Maybe I’ll ask him if he makes a lot of friends for being so tall. There he is! Okay, I’m going to do it. No, wait. That’s a terrible way to hit on someone. I’ll just stop at stretch for a few minutes at Inspiration Point and see if he’ll come up to me. Take your sunglasses off, you look like a bug. This is totally an attractive stretch. Yeah, he definitely doesn’t notice me. Well this was a waste of a stop. Here let me stretch closer to him and act like I’m about to start running. Fail. Here let me run his way one more time. He’s definitely not Mr. Future Boyfriend. Now I have to go the longer way so I don’t pass him again. Stopping was a bad idea, I feel kind of heavy. (Looks at watch) Crap. 8:10 pace, I need to pick it up. This hill isn’t helping. It’s supposed to be easy. Just relax. Coach never sent me my program for the week. I’ll text him when I get back. This song is really good. That sounds like Nelly. I need to remember that when I’m done. I bet it’s him. Should I just run to Crystal Cove and have Raquel pick me up? Oh wait she wasn’t even home. That’s annoying. 

It’s getting really hot. I thought it was only supposed to be 75 today. This is like 80. I can’t wait to have water. Which reminds me. My Enduropacks spray is really low. I need to order more. Okay I need to make a to-do list when I get home. I need to find out the day track starts in the Olympics. Have we pre-recorded it? I think we’ll be in Mammoth. I should call Sadia. How do you work this bluetooth? Screw it, I’ll text her later. YES! One more mile. At least I don’t have to go under the bridge this time, but I wonder if the homeless man is still sleeping there. I’m too hot though, I just want to be done. My quiz is due tonight. Okay, I need to make sure I stretch when I get back, do core, and then I’ll finish my work. I wish I could hire my intern to do my online class. Wow that would be so bad. Well I’d need an intern first. Another thing to add to my list. This class wasn’t a good idea. I should have just finished next summer. Ew. That would be terrible. I’m glad I’m getting it over with. I think I’m going to finish before the light. Do I walk across the street? That will look so lame, I don’t want to look like I couldn’t finish my run. Who cares, they don’t know you just ran 8 miles. Actually it looks like I’ll finish just after crossing. Perfect, I can go underneath the hole. I can finally have water! I should have ran earlier. Whatever, I never get to sleep in. I wonder what the temperature is. Now I need to stretch.