Hug Bank

I am officially at the point where marathon training is kicking my ass. I'm tired, sore and crabby. This has been my status for the entire week. I'm not looking forward to next week (it's the Big Run--and by 'Big Run', I mean the 20 miler), because I'm sick of having my ass kicked.

I know, I know, I did this to myself.It's not that I want to quit. I'm not even entertaining the thought. I think the major reason that I'm feeling this way is that I've had a nasty sinus infection for 3 weeks now. The antibiotics I'm on only seem to take the edge off. They're not killing whatever is making me miserable. I'm not even death's door sick. I'm just congested (nose and lungs) and I tire easily. All I want is for this sinus thing to be done with!!

I guess I'm just at the point where I could use a serious hug.

I think that there should be a place that gives out hugs. Like a Hug Bank. Huggers, of course would have to go through a background check. No one wants a hug that makes them feel icky (bad touch! bad touch!!).

There would also be certain scented huggers. For some reason, the smell of onions on your hands is very comforting to me. Growing up, it seemed like Mom's hands always had that smell from cooking. It's not a straight up onion smell, it's combined with other things that she was cooking. It's not that her hands were dirty, it's just the residual from being in the kitchen. It's what Mom smelled like, and after a scraped knee, there was nothing like a band-aid and a hug from Mom! Sometimes my hands smell like that...usually after making chicken soup. Call me weird, but you know what I'm talking about. Maybe be it's cookies, or a special dish--everyone's got their thing.

But, I digress. The point is, whatever was comforting to you...your Hugger would smell just that way. And you could pick your Hugger. You know, there are different types of hugs. You could get a Mom Hug. Maybe a Big Bear Hug. Or one of those hugs that also cracks your back. Maybe Huggers could get overtime, if they were needed for a crying hug. There could be group hugs or quick hugs.

And just for convenience there could be some High Fiver's too. Sometimes you're so awesome you deserve a high five and no one's around. This would solve the problem. High Fivers would also be responsible for Pats on the Back (it just seems logical).

I also think that dedicated Huggers should have some sort of badge. Then you'd know they were safe, and you could stop one on the street if you needed a hug...much like a Hug ATM, if you will.

I think that we could get people to do this job. It would be excellent for senior citizens. Instead of being a greeter at WalMart, they could be Huggers instead. There are voluenteer baby huggers in the NICU, so why can't this be spread to grown ups?

I need a hug.