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Four to six weeks later my prize arrived - a framed poster of Mickey and his main squeeze Minnie sitting on the hood of an old Chevy. I think they were both wearing Converse shoes and shooting thumbs-up signs.

My winning is notable for a couple reasons; first, I didn't and still do not like nuts of any kind or in any form. Peanuts, cashews, almonds, I hate ‘em all. Second, it is notable because I didn't and still don't particularly like Mickey Mouse or Disney films in general. Yet, I wanted to win.

Where am I going with this, you might ask. Discussion on childhood obesity? Political debate on the conglomerate culture of Chevrolet and Disney invading today's youth? Retro shoes?

Actually, what I'm getting at is why I want to do another marathon and hope for a better time. I won't ever win a marathon, but I want to do the best I can do. I want to see if I can qualify for Boston, or break four hours, or rely less on aid stations. I want to see if I can run my ass off and still feel like going for a run in a couple of days. I want to earn that medal, and I don't need to win to do that. 

So I guess that even though eternal optimism can cause us to gorge on chocolate in the hopes of winning some grand prize, it might help us in other areas of life as well - like athletics. Without the belief that better is possible, or that picture in our heads of us crossing the finish line or finally earning that Ironman tattoo, we're really all just running around out there.

So dream big, enjoy the ride, and if you end up doing less than your best, congratulate yourself for getting out there and be consoled with the fact that you do not have to figure out how to decorate a room around a poster of Mickey Mouse sitting on a Chevy.

Happy Training.

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