The Finish Line

"At least make it a challenge for me."
-THOR, 2011 motion-picture

Twenty-five years ago today

May 18, 1986
Sunday

I woke up at 6:45AM by a phone call from Mark Landreth.
"I'll be over in twenty minutes."
I said, "Okay."
I was scratching my head, thinking that was a surprise. Then I remembered that it was Bay-To-Breakers run day. I was getting dressed and ready when he arrived with his eighteen year old brother, Phil. I really didn't expect his brother to come along. Oh well…he's pretty nice. Phil has brown hair versus blond (like Mark).

I drove in my car to San Francisco and happened to find a free parking space. It was Bay-To-Breakers Day. I saw David Vigil (from my office) dressed only in Calvin Klein underwear for this fun-filled run. Everyone gets all dressed up foolishly (except for the three of us).

The three of us (Mark, Phil and I) successfully ran the Bay-To-Breakers run. Phil and I made the finish line in an hour. Phil and I were at the finish line at about 9 o'clock or 9:05AM. Mark stopped to use the restroom, so he came through a bit later. It was fun hearing Huey Lewis and the News' "The Power of Love" via someone's ghetto blaster speakers as we ran.

The water squirt bottle helped and we squirted other runners as we were running. The three of us took the bus back to the starting line. The bus seemed to take longer than the running of the 7.5 miles.


We returned to Harbor Bay where we munched out at the Deli on Bay Farm. Then we went to my house and watched a little wrestling on TV. Mark and Phil eventually left.
I gave a cordial farewell by saying, "Well, I guess I'll see you guys at the gym tomorrow."
They laughed. We were all so tired and a bit uneasy (leg-wise) from the run.


I slept after they left. When I woke up I went to mom's house and hung out there for a good while. I slept again. I played with my niece, Ashley. I picked her up over my shoulders so she could peek over the neighbor's fence to see the ferocious dogs that we heard barking.


I ate a hamburger with some juice and munched on cookies and milk before I returned to my pad. I was exhausted. I napped again.


Steve Green telephoned at 8:30PM. I persuaded him to come over to my place. Steve arrived at 10PM while I was watching a movie called "Brotherhood of Justice". It was about high-school kids who formed a sort of vigilante group to relinquish drug dealers. The group idea didn't work out too well. It was a dumb ending.
Steve said, "You know…I called David. He got all that he wanted on his car. It's done."
"Oh, that's great," I said, but not really caring.
Steve started to call Ric Green when he suddenly began to 'get on my case'. He wasn't even at my place for five minutes and he calls Ric to yap away.
I asked seriously, "I mean—can't you tell me what you were going to talk to him about?"
Steve was smug, "I don't have anything to say."
I thought that was ironic as I'd just heard him tell Ric that he had a lot to talk about and that he'd call him back later.
I thought, "Oh boy, Ric's friend, Rick, was right. They're like two women gossip columnists or something…whatever."

Before we went to bed Steve studied some of his Biology. I was restless all night long. My legs were sore—or not sore—but tingling over my great accomplishment of the Bay-To-Breakers run.


Oh yes…I telephoned my coworker, Dave Vigil, to tell him that I'd seen him.
"I yelled out to you…but you didn't hear me with all of the commotion."
David bragged, "I finished the race at about forty minute's time."
It took me sixty minutes to the finish line.

"All new things will turn old one day."-as heard while watching
"Detective Dee & the Mystery of the Phantom Flame"
2010, epic mystery film