After much texting of what we were wearing and where we were standing: I managed to meet up with Jason, Katie, and Erin before last nights 5k. We stood around and chatted for about 45 minutes before the race. The course was packed. It was hard to stay together in the beginning. I had to keep looking around to find everyone. We stayed in a group for about the first half mile. Then I realized it was just Erin and I. Katie caught up a few minutes later and the three of us ran the whole race together. We talked about running and our lives while sweating gratuitously and constantly dodging walkers, runners and strollers. We maintained a comfortable pace and finished in 35:17. Not bad considering we weren’t aiming for a specific time.

We found Jason with his wife and adorable daughter Trinity at the finish. He came in less than 2 minutes after us. I am so inspired by the progress he has made in just a few months. If you don’t follow him you really need to.

Katie, Erin and I decided to have some dinner at an outdoor cafe in the St. Anthony Main area of Minneapolis. We ended up talking for almost two hours. It’s amazing how a commonality like running can forge such easy, fast friendships. I am so glad to have met these women in real life. They are so inspiring and interesting. We also got a few giggles out of the night. There was an incident with a rogue banana and Katie and I were almost attacked by a wheelchair gang on the way back to her car.

If you haven’t met up with your fellow tumblrs, you need to get out there do it. Don’t be scared. I’ve met so many amazing people in the last year. I wouldn’t trade these experiences for anything.