I’m trying to be positive in my blogging, but lately, I’ve seen so much anger and hatred around the blogosphere and on Facebook and other forum sites, and it’s getting hard to ignore. It’s really frustrating. I’m not naive, nor am I looking at the world through rose-colored glasses, but it’s just starting to get very frustrating to see the vitriol spewed from behind computer screens.<\/p>\n
I suppose that part of it is just the general anonymity of the internet (though it always surprises me when people use their real Facebook accounts to post things – that links to so many places, especially when you’re posting in a public group. I’m sure your boss or your children would love to see the awful things that you say about strangers). But that doesn’t make it any less wrong.<\/p>\n
I have seen two things lately about the runDisney Princess Half that really frustrated me.<\/p>\n
The first had to do with two separate marriage proposals that happened during the race. Both happened in the vicinity of Cinderella Castle, and both were completely unexpected by the now brides-to-be. Their stories are different for sure, but in essence, they were pulled off the course by their boyfriends, who dropped to one knee and proposed. Incredibly sweet, especially since at least one of them was running with the ring box the whole way, likely worried about dropping it!<\/p>\n
One of the girls posted her photo of the proposal in a group on Facebook because she wanted to share her moment. The photo was wonderful. And the majority of people congratulated her. And then there was the person who scolded her. By proposing during a race, her husband-to-be had created a crowd. He had caused a serious slowdown on the course, and that wasn’t fair to the other runners. It had put a big damper on this woman’s race.<\/p>\n
Really.<\/p>\n
Really??<\/p>\n
A woman getting proposed to ruined your race? Who are you?<\/p>\n
First off, the couple was off the course. If people stopped to look, well, it happens. Also, all runDisney races slow up as you run through the Castle because everyone wants to get that perfect photo. It’s probably worst at Princess, but it’s not good at any race. So be it. And people are going to stop to look at anything along the side of the course, be it a proposal or someone falling over with a sprained ankle. It happens.<\/p>\n
Second, this is a once in a lifetime moment for these women! For the rest of us runners, it’s just another race in a list of hopefully many! I think that we should stop being so self-centered and spend a bit more time thinking about those around us. So what if my race was a bit slower than normal? If I got slowed up because of a marriage proposal, I can’t complain about that!<\/p>\n
The second issue is actually related to two races – Tinker Bell Half out in California and the Princess Half. At Tinker Bell, the last finisher was a woman named Jenna Boyd. She was profiled on the Disney Parks blog<\/a>, and they did a little YouTube video on her finish. She powered through and I’m very impressed with her (I’m always impressed with the last finishers).<\/p>\n