I'll
be running the 2012 Virgin London Marathon on behalf of Mind, the
leading mental health charity in England and Wales. You can sponsor me
by visiting http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AndyCraig and follow my progress on Twitter and Facebook. Read about all of the excellent work Mind do by visiting Mind.org.uk.
Serendipity: n The faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident. First usage attributed to English author Horace Walpole, who wrote in a letter dated 28 January 1754 "this discovery, indeed, is almost of that kind which I call Serendipity, a very expressive word". Often used to describe 15th/16th century explorers such as Pedro Alvares Cabral, who was blown off course while navigating the Cape of Good Hope and inadvertently discovered Brazil.
It was with a similar sense of (mis)adventure that I found myself approaching an unanticipated T-Junction on Monday night's run, guided less by stormy waters and ill-wind than by an inaccurate pre-run reading of Google Maps. As Cabral, Columbus et al all proved though, a wrong turning can often bring the greatest rewards. Thus I ploughed on, buoyed by the strains of Robyn's Dancing On My Own as the signpost ahead increasingly came into focus. I squinted. "Right: Mortlake Cemetery. Left: Townmead Road Reuse & Recycling centre."
Serendipity: n The faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident. First usage attributed to English author Horace Walpole, who wrote in a letter dated 28 January 1754 "this discovery, indeed, is almost of that kind which I call Serendipity, a very expressive word". Often used to describe 15th/16th century explorers such as Pedro Alvares Cabral, who was blown off course while navigating the Cape of Good Hope and inadvertently discovered Brazil.
It was with a similar sense of (mis)adventure that I found myself approaching an unanticipated T-Junction on Monday night's run, guided less by stormy waters and ill-wind than by an inaccurate pre-run reading of Google Maps. As Cabral, Columbus et al all proved though, a wrong turning can often bring the greatest rewards. Thus I ploughed on, buoyed by the strains of Robyn's Dancing On My Own as the signpost ahead increasingly came into focus. I squinted. "Right: Mortlake Cemetery. Left: Townmead Road Reuse & Recycling centre."
Lost: adj Unable to find one's way; not knowing one's whereabouts. Used to describe people such as Andy, who momentarily forgot the meaning of the phrase "go f**king straight on" when running along Lower Richmond Road.
Nevertheless, a swift check of my GPS-enabled 21st century "compass" (read: iPhone) and I was back on track towards Richmond quicker than you can say Santa Maria (albeit via Kew, a diversion which added over two miles to the originally planned route). Robyn soon segued into Over and Over by Hot Chip and my focus was once again firmly fixed on the playlist.
So, to the music. Thanks to all who've suggested tracks for the marathon playlist so far through the blog comments and on Twitter (keep them coming!). These have already made me realise the need for greater diversity than the 100% bleep-and-bass-fest it was previously.
With this in mind, I set out on Monday evening armed with the updated playlist and subsequently reaped the benefits from the very first track. Despite putting myself at the mercy of iTunes shuffle, Ramones' Blitzkrieg Bop proved to be the perfect song for starting a run, cementing its position in the final playlist with its apt refrain of "Hey! Ho! Let's Go!". As I progressed, my morale lifted with every play of a new addition - Biffy Clyro's Who's Got A Match?, Kanye West and Rihanna's All Of The Lights (Thanks G!), A Town Called Malice by The Jam - they each broke up what was fast becoming the monotony of solid electro that I'd become used to, and more importantly, irrefutably justified my faith in this blog to help me through the 26 miles.
A begrudging special mention must go to Dad for mentioning Paranoid by Black Sabbath (seconded by elder brother Jonathan), which presented a 2min 47 second-long argument at around the 7-mile mark for being included on every running playlist to ever be created. Similarly to Turner, whose comment on the first blog when recommending James's Tomorrow resulted in me grinning my way down Richmond's high street thinking of nothing but Samantha Janus's mid-nineties norks.
My quick finish was ably assisted by liberal finger-gesturer M.I.A.'s Born Free (my increased speed possibly a result of having seen the violently ginger-bashing video - don't watch if easily offended). Total distance covered? A comfortable 10.2 miles, my wayward navigation unexpectedly taking me into double figures for the first time, something I didn't think possible in my current shape. An accidental, fortuitous discovery? Perhaps serendipity was at work after all.
