Finishing the Week

Out of bed at 04:00. Coffee, a bit to eat, off to the bathroom and out the door at 05:00. 15 miles at Lunken in 2:40. A little slower than I'd like but not too bad.

Happy 100th Birthday Dorothy !

Oh that all mornings could be so nice!

Sunny, warm with a nice breeze and quiet. The only noise being birdsong. I think most of the kids in the neighborhood were still in bed.

Ran a Banklick circuit. 4 and 1 intervals for 90 minutes. After yesterday's run I was kind of slow and a little stiff and sore but as the muscles warmed up things were OK. It's just really nice to be able to get some quality runs in 2 days in a row.

Still waiting for new Buzzy pictures. I'll get them up as soon as Ciara sends them.

Talked with Ian last night (well I didn't, Linda did). He's in Seattle after flying cross country for some kind of training/practice for a "rodeo" he's going to participate in later this summer. I guess it involves dropping troops/equipment and seeing which air crew can be closer to an established ground target.

It's my Great Aunt Dorothy's 100th Birthday today. We're going to drop in for the party at Rosedale Manor this afternoon.

Big Black Snake!

Hah! Got your attention didn't I?

Ran at EI this morning for 2.5 hours. It was cool at the start with a nice breeze and some hazy sunshine. However, as it approached noon it started getting very warm and humid. Of course by then I was pretty fatigued so I probably felt it more. For the first 2 hours I had the trails to myself but as I was finishing up the "advanced" circuit I encountered a family on their mountain bikes enjoying the day.

I saw a turtle.

I did see a black snake. It was about 4 feet long and I took several pictures of it with my phone but I haven't figured out how to get those pictures to this blog. I did send them to Buzzy but I don't know if he got them (on his mom's phone).

Buzzy had a big adventure over the weekend. His dad took him "camping" in the backyard. They made a fire, roasted marshmallows, sang songs and then slept in a tent. It was reported to me that Matt woke up around 4 am and noticed that Buzzy's arms and ears were cold so he took him in the house to finish out the night. It sounds like they had fun. It certainly was fun for Papaw to hear Buzz talk about "camping."

Another Late Afternoon Run

Linda and I spent all morning looking at appliances at various places. By the time we got home for lunch it was already 2 o'clock and the grass still needed to be cut. Since we bought the John Deere rider (with Charie) that's not so much of a problem because Linda rides and I push/trim so we made quick work of things. Then I got to run.

So, I left the house about 15:45. It was very sunny with a cool breeze. I guess the temperature was in the low 70s. I again ran 4 and 1 intervals and tried a different route that included a lot more hills. I kind of like the challenge of hills. Total run time 88 minutes. Not bad.

Thursday Afternoon on Banklick

The most difficult part of maintaining a blog is figuring out how to title your posts. I could write a whole lot more if I didn't spend so much time trying to figure out what to call what I write.

Anyway, I did an easy 8 miler out Banklick and back this afternoon. It was overcast, humid and cool. I wore a long-sleeved shirt which was a little bit of overkill but I hate being cold. Heat I can take even when it hurts performance. I did 4 and 1 intervals for about 90 minutes. I ran a negative split which was my goal. I ran the first 4 miles in 47 minutes and the back 4 in 43. That's the way you want any run to work out: finish faster than when you start that way you always have something left in the tank if it gets tough at the end. You can always sprint to the finish. There's nothing worse than dragging a sorry ass up the last hill and watching your watch to see if you can stop!

Buzzy called this afternoon to wish Linda and I a happy anniversary. He was in good spirits because he got to play his video game. He's only 3 and I don't know if that's a good habit for him to get into but there's probably not a lot you can do about it these days. At least he'll be technologically savvy. Of course yesterday he was coloring and tomorrow he'll be doing something else. His last day of school I think is tomorrow and so far it looks like he won't be going to summer school. He's made a lot of progress in the couple of months he's been in school so I'm not sure it's a good thing that he's not in summer school. It's not like he doesn't have fun.

It's supposed to be a nice day tomorrow so hopefully I'll get another run in before I work this weekend.

I fixed Linda a steak dinner of filet mignon and we topped it off with cheesecake for dessert. It was probably better than going out.

Still Lucky after 32 Years

I'm a lucky man!

Today is our 32nd Anniversary.

Amazing how quickly time passes when you aren't paying attention and the older you get the faster it seems to pass; quite a paradox. You spend your youth wanting to be an adult and then you want your youth back. Well not exactly. I like where I am (what choice do I have) and enjoy what I have without wishing I had something else. I suspect Linda feels similarly. We have 3 great kids and a grandchild we adore. We're healthy. We have what we need and most of what we want.

I have a wife I cherish and respect.

I'm a lucky man!

Sunny Mourning

That's a play on words. Linda's Aunt Ruth died on Friday and today was her funeral. A pretty low-key affair but it accomplished what funerals are meant to accomplish: a reunion of family, a chance to catch-up with others' lives, a new awakening of what it means to be family. With the exception of "cousin" Tom we hadn't seen the rest of the family since Linda's mom died in '95. So it was nice to see everyone again. It was sunny and it was very hot.

Afterwards Linda, Charie and I went to lunch at First Watch. We all had salads. But they were all different and tasty.

I tried to get out for a run when we got home. I could see things starting to cloud up but I left the house anyway. The farther I got from the house the more menacing the clouds, the louder the thunder and the more spectacular the lightening. I was concerned about getting cold and wet but I was concerned about getting struck by lightening. I turned around. What had been planned as a 2hr run ended up being 55 minutes. But all's good.

Things cleared up quickly and its now a lovely evening. The clouds and rain and thunder and lightening are due to return tonight and into tomorrow.