I won the lottery! + Marathon plans

I just got the following email:
-------------------------------------------

Dear Mark CHRISTIANSON
[ID-No: 12913 ]

Congratulations!  You have been selected in the lottery to run the 2012 Tokyo Marathon.
-------------------------------------------

I guess foreigners get to run every year. This will be my 5th year in a row.

I have to apologize to the 270,000 Japanese runners who failed in the lottery again this year. Only 30,000 can run, and the odds are 10:1 for getting in if you are a Japanese citizen.

Why not just let all 300,000 people run? I guess the streets of Tokyo may not be able to handle a mob of that size.

In any case, I feel very fortunate that I can run in this fun race again!

Please leave ideas for costumes as a comment below  : - )

Last year, my time was about 4 hours 53 minutes, and that was one of my slowest times ever. This year, I still want to try to beat 4 hours...if my knees don't hurt too much and if I can lose some weight...

This weekend I have a half-marathon in Arakawa and we will see how I feel running 21km at this point.

Also, for the full Tokyo marathon in March, I wonder if I can do a fundraiser. Anyone want to sponsor me with a donation to Red Cross or some other charity?