Marathon Man…

Hi again folks, it’s been a while, I know. I’ve been settling into life back on German soil for a month now, and things seem fairly normal again. In other words, back to less-than-full employment, cooking my own food, doing dishes and laundry, being able to go outside without drenching my clothes in sweat, and trying to figure out how – after recently turning 36, with all that that entails – to make a career out of my odd collection of aptitudes and interests. It’s nice to be home!

Also, back to the freedom to do wacky things I like to do, such as running marathons. Once again – this was the third time – I pinned a number on my chest and ran 42.195 km for no reason other than the inexplicable feeling of accomplishment that comes from having done so. And considering that 90% of my training for this race was indoors on a treadmill, I am fairly happy with the results: I finished with a net time of 3:43’52” – a personal best and just inside my time goal of 3:45.

This marathon was in the once-again-fair city of Dresden, famous for having been so utterly destroyed in a massive bombing campaign by Allied forces between February 13 and February 15, 1945. (Historian Frederick Taylor says: “The destruction of Dresden has an epically tragic quality to it. It was a wonderfully beautiful city and a symbol of baroque humanism and all that was best in Germany. It also contained all of the worst from Germany during the Nazi period. In that sense it is an absolutely exemplary tragedy for the horrors of 20th Century warfare…”⁾

Dresden has been under reconstruction for many years, and the recent completion and re-opening of the magnificent Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady) makes it once again the centre of a stunning historic city centre. This picture was taken from a path along the river, part of the marathon route, which also incorporated cobblestone streets, parks, bridges, fountains – really a lovely course, highly recommended, and the weather could not have been more perfect.

I was not alone in Dresden, though Athanasia could not make it down – my sister Katie and a number of friends came up from Prague to celebrate her birthday, and a number of them – including Katie – ran the 10km part of the race. Since we all started together, I was not able to be at the finish line to welcome Katie across, but was very proud of her for finishing in a quite respectable 1:05! Congratulations Katie, and thanks again for your support…

Finally, I guess that as a) many of you already know this, and b) I have already announced it on a more widely-read blog, I should take this moment to mention that Athanasia and I are expecting a baby, due around the end of February! This is very exciting of course and we are trying to prepare, as much as it is possible to be prepared… thanks to all who have already wished us well in this grand adventure, I’m sure you’ll be hearing more soon…

Ciao for now… – tobias

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