Post Marathon Blues

The night after the marathon, everyone was feeling super good. Emails were flying back and forth, thanking us for the event. And most people said it was well organised, though we knew where the lacuna were. We have a list with things that we should improve on, we will do better next time. "Bask in the post-event warmth" didn't happen for me as you will see below, it was time for me to move on...

• Nov 7th 5 am: Wake up, and curse my life. Shower. Wear the good jeans for comfort. Go to Central Station and climb into Shatabdi. Curse the cockroach, an inevitable train companion. 
• Nov 7th till 1 pm: Listen to music, play Conundra, talk on the phone. Try to ignore nosy seat companion who doesn't believe I am married.
• Nov 7th at Mysore: Attend family function, hobnob, eat a lot, find grandma has lost most of her marbles, feel exhausted, find no one cares about a marathon, move on a bit more
• Nov 8th, 9th at Mysore: Run in the mornings, with a 15 min walk (with mum) at the beginning as its cold. Visit family, visit high school, go everywhere with little cousin, come close to passing on 'Tips for a healthy marriage' many times, resist the temptation. Get mistaken variously for cousin's college friend, aunt, and in one instance, mother. Assure everyone that the last one is a compliment. She is 13-14 years younger than me, after all. 
• Nov 10th 2 pm: Regretfully bid goodbye to younger maama whom I haven't seen in a long while, and drape my legs into a Shatabdi, turned the opposite way. Nap, eat, clutch hurting stomach, listen to music, read Erma Bombeck, make lists, all the way to Chennai. 
• Nov 10th 10 pm: Wait for husband, fail to recognise new car, ride home, try to not act tired. Flit back and forth between T Nagar and home and pack monster's suitcase and a backpack for myself, lie awake till 1 am gripped by various fears and apprehensions. 
• Nov 11th Super Early am Onwards: Wear a nine yards sari (the wedding one), hope I don't have to pee, and participate in Father in law's 70th birthday celebrations. 
• Nov 11th Afternoon: Clutch monster's hand and fly to Bangalore in world's worst aircraft (or close to that, at least). Ride in car to Mysore and directly step into Mehendi function. Allow hands to be painted in haphazard manner. Chat to room full of family in animated manner.
• Nov 12th at various times: Go to wedding location. Move chairs. Smile when people comment on 'matching saris' worn by sister and me. Look for monster every 0.5 hours. Find her playing merrily with cousins and feel less tired. Sit down a lot. Talk a bit. Blink my tired eyes a lot.
• Nov 13th Early am Onwards: Wear a sari, wear and then take off sunglasses as various wedding events transpire. Try to sing. Hang around. Look for monster every 0.5 hours. Eat. Sit down. Go home and expire for 1.5 hours on couch.
• Nov 13th night: Deal with hurting cheeks from smiling too much. Love that I could see my teachers and family and friends that I haven't met in a while. Remember dad. Feel sad. Smile for photographs. Sit down a lot. Eat. Go home and pack, feeling very cranky.
• Nov 14th 4 am: Jump out of bed and bathe. Walk around hoping mum will wake up. Feel reluctant to wake her. Stare wistfully at monster, husband, mum and grandmum sleeping at various locations in the house and step out into the car. Reach Bangalore, hate Bangalore traffic.
• Nov 14th 8:30 am: Feel excited to be back to thinking about work, and research. Love all the presentations at the conference. Feel cold in the room. Judiciously drink half cups of coffee to prevent having to pee too many times. Consider wearing old sweatshirt thats in the bag. 
• Nov 14th 10:45 pm: Spread out reasonably clean sheets on berth and go to sleep. Upper berth. Seat no. 37 I tell the TT. 38 madam, he says. Oh yes. The age is 37.. Seat is 38.. Oh well.
• Nov 14th 4 am: WTF lets their alarm ring for 0.5 hours at a stretch? Seriously. Feel headache grip me instantly. Soldier on to autostand, reach home, change, hug the monster, sleep for an hour.

The rest, is as usual. My nose is blocked with what feels like about a gallon of mucous. Throat is itchy as hell. Head is pounding. Calves are tight, knees wobbly. The house is an unholy mess. The monster has two tests tomorrow but is reading '36 Science Mysteries' and eating Aloo Bhujia one strand at a time. Work at the office is piling up. Deadlines are whooshing by. But no matter. Tomorrow, as she would say, is another day. I square my shoulders, suck in some air, and tell the world 'BRING IT' ...