Deja vu

I get the feeling I've been here before...

A couple of years ago, Mme Tepeka announced that she'd entered the lottery to take part in the New York Marathon. "But don't worry," she said. "I won't get in. You have to do the lottery for years before you're successful."

Of course, she got in at the first attempt, and so we all trotted off to New York to stand by the side of the road and cheer her on. (Nowhere near as glamorous as it sounds.)

A couple of weeks ago, she announced that she'd entered the lottery to take part in the Chicago Marathon. "But don't worry," she said. "I won't get in."

Of course, she's only gone and been successful again. (This time, we're not being invited to join her. A friend in France also entered and was also selected. The odds of both of them getting in, she's been at pains to point out, are about one in 25. As though they hadn't planned it all along.)

I'm not sure what the obsession is with doing marathons far away. For example, there's a perfectly good marathon in Belfast this coming weekend. So where will we be? In Prague, standing by the side of the road, cheering on Mme Tepeka in a marathon. At least I should be able to get a decent blip...