Architects in Motion

After sitting on my ass for over 7 months, Christina and I decided that we should run the Great Wall Marathon again this year. So I joined a running group called Architects in Motion. They are a great group and we meet every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and sometimes Sunday to train. It’s been good for me because I’m not the kind of person that was built to be a long distance runner nor do I have the discipline to maintain such a rigorous and time-consuming schedule.

It’s been grueling at times. Ryan, the young kid (he’s 26 and I consider anyone under 30 these days to be a kid) is a machine. I’ve met type A and obsessive-compulsive people before but this kid takes the cake. I wish I had his mental fortitude and discipline.

He’s scheduled some amazing runs. Last week we ran through the historic Old Town in Shanghai. Weaving through dark dank and narrow alleyways dodging pots, pans, and everything you can think of including the kitchen sink (there was one in our way at one point) keeps things interesting. Next Saturday he is making everyone take the subway to the last station and run back on an alternative route, which he meticulously selected. This way, he says, we will be forced to run back and not catch a taxi.

As I said, it’s been tough however, the toughest thing isn’t waking up at 5:30 am or the long 32km runs in the freezing cold. The toughest thing about training is getting into the elevator every morning and smelling the scent of freshly baked bread and pastries wafting up the elevator shaft.

You see our new apartment is right over Paul’s, a French Bakery that makes and bakes some of the most amazing confections, deserts and pastries this side of Paris! The temptation to skip the run, the freezing cold, avoid the aching knees, and sore back and to sit inside this haven of flour and dough encompassed by the warmth of the ovens is overwhelming.

As I take my first stride onto the cold crisp polluted air of Shanghai, I look back at the warm glow of the storefront with the bakers dressed in white filling baskets full of freshly baked baguettes and croissants. I can imagine myself sitting in the corner reading the Shanghai Daily sipping on a cup of freshly brewed Kenyan Medium Roast Coffee and taking a bite of a flakey buttery heart-stopping croissant with orange marmalade jam dripping off the side….

…as I turn on Nanjing Xi Road, a bus full of local commuters pass by spewing some god forsaken black gunk from its exhaust that chokes me. Once the fumes are gone, the scent of steamed buns and oil manifest themselves in the air. Thump…thump….thump…my heart rate matches my stride. I forget about Paul’s and I’m off to meet the other Architects in Motion.