One Hundred Forty-Nine

August 28, 2014
8.00 Miles in 1:18:46
Mood: Resorting to the indoors for material.
Soundtrack: The Gist / Dave Dameshek Football Program / Judge John Hodgman

I had to resort to the unusual tactic of using an indoor subject for my photo today. This rare event is a combination of not finding anything good to shoot outdoors while running at night combined with the fact that this is a pretty epic grouping of soda can boxes. I feel like this should still count as something seen on my run, as I had stopped into the local grocery store for a drink from the water fountain and saw this, so it was still technically "On my run." Plus, if someone is going to the trouble to recreate the Broncos logo with Coke products, I feel obligated to post a photo of the result those efforts. One minor bit of constructive criticism would be to use an orange Fanta box for the Bronco eye rather than a red Coke box, but I feel like I'm picking nits at that point. This picture was easily better than anything else I found outdoors this night the highlights of which included a pithy saying on a Chiropractor sign and a Sears sign with the "R" burned out so that it looked like it read "Sea s".

I had intended to go a short distance on this outing and then rest a few days prior to the Broncos 7K race, which will be the next post on this blog and (not-coincidentally) my next run. Then I ended up going eight miles which just goes to prove I'm not always so good at reigning myself in.

This run turned into a night run because it was raining heavily all afternoon, and I really wasn't in the mood to get soaked on my run. Ironically enough, towards the end of this run I was running down a dark sidewalk and plunged my left foot into a deep puddle which ended up splashing my entire leg and soaking my sock and shoe. I ended up with that squishy sock feeling for the final mile and a half, which is what I had been trying to avoid by not going in the afternoon. Stupid puddles.

One Hundred Forty-Eight

August 26, 2014
8.71 Miles in 1:22:11
Mood: Wanting to ride a slide
Soundtrack: Jordan, Jesse, Go!

Even though I walked up this person's front lawn and got a very close inspection of this bench...I still can't tell if these giraffes are painted on or were completed using sidewalk chalk. The intricate detail makes me think that it was done with paint to be more lasting and permanent, but something about the look makes me think it was a talented chalk artist.

I think it's more romantic if it's chalk. Something this cool destined to last for only as long as it manages to not rain. The ephemeral nature of the thing lends it coolness that doesn't exist if it is painted on and will slowly fade over years and decades. It's not fine art, but something about a mural of three giraffes existing on slats of a bench is pretty cool to me. I support this person who displays it on their porch. In any event it was more artistic than the goose statue I saw on another porch while on this run or the pair of fawns I saw in another front yard, or especially the goofy tiny burro statue pulling a tiny cart with flower planters that I saw in yet another yard. Yeah...I came across quite a sampling of yard art this outing.

In addition to these glorious works of art, I also visited the world famous East Elementary slides. By world famous what I mean is that my friend Keely told me about them, which I think counts. Keely DOES live in the world, after all. These slides are tall, twisty, and majestic, and I almost went down the tallest of them at about the five mile mark of this run even though I was impossibly sweaty and not accompanied by any minors. I managed to refrain, although I will be bringing my kids to this wondrous playground soon so that they (and more importantly I) can ride the slides. Perhaps I'll get a photo of these cool slides at some point on a run so that the reader can realize the glorious majesty of these playground slides. They're pretty impressive.

I shall now toot my own horn...I went over 100 miles for August on this run, meaning that my goal of running at least 100 miles every month in 2014 is now 2/3rds complete! Feeling pretty good about that one!

One final thing...The map from this run looks like how a second grader might draw a map of the state of Florida. Just a dumb thing I noticed, which is sort of the whole point of this blog, so I thought I'd say something.

One Hundred Forty-Seven

August 24, 2014
7.30 Miles in 1:08:58
Mood: Incredulous
Soundtrack: The Film Vault

I'm still dumbfounded that anyone would ever name anything "Here Comes the Sundial". Sundials as a rule are rather stationary. I understand that it's a benefit concert to raise funds to renovate the park's sundial, and I understand that the title of this concert is a play on words making reference to the Beatles "Here Comes the Sun" while also referencing the fact that it's to make money for the sundial...still, the title of this concert makes it sound like the sundial is stalking you and the concert's title is a warning to watch out before it's too late and the sundial pounces. Sort of a surprised and alarmed shout of, "Watch Out! Here Comes the Sundial!" Maybe I'm thinking this one out too much, I do that sometimes.

It was a beautiful day in the Cherry Creek area and my final Sunday training run in front of next Sunday's Broncos 7K Run which looks likely be chronicled in this blog as Post #150. A fitting significant run for a nice round number. I parked in the Cherry Creek Mall parking lot for this one, and then ran all around some extravagant neighborhoods with enormous trees and houses that look like castles. It's probably pretty nice to live in one of those mansions, but then again, it's also a lot more vacuuming. I'm happy to just run through, and harbor no resentments against the castle dwellers...makes for interesting scenery on the run and I'm not really into class warfare. I'm perfectly happy in my townhome, I really am.

It was a pretty nice day, even if it was a little morose. It was only morose because I was listening to the Film Vault and they were doing their Top 5 Robin Williams movies to honor the recently deceased comedian/actor. Robin's death bothered me more than I ever imagined it would, so I was a little more sad than usual as I listened, even as I was on a gorgeous run. Most egregiously, Anderson and Bryan didn't list Robin Williams' performance as Adrian Cronauer from Good Morning Vietnam...which is one of my favorites. They also didn't list Dead Poets Society, so I think they were being overly hipster in their selections. I mean, Anderson picked Popeye for crying out loud. Just terrible.

So, to recap: Just say no to class warfare, Just say yes to Good Morning Vietnam, and watch out for sundials.

One Hundred Forty-Six

August 22, 2014
7.46 Miles in 1:13:19
Soundtrack: Judge John Hodgman
Mood: Non-Adventurous, as in staying in close proximity to home.

When I go night running, sometimes I do so reluctantly. My reluctance comes from the fact that it's harder to find good subjects for photos late at night and a night run usually leads to a late bedtime and a short night's sleep. Friday night was busy, so I didn't get out for a much desired run until almost 9:30. I wanted to get a decent run in, but I also wanted to be close to home in case I ended up wanting to cut it short. There have been many times that I've thought about cutting a run short, but rather inconveniently have run myself five miles away from home leaving me no choice but push my way home. I didn't want to do that on this run, so I found myself zigging and zagging along the roads that are in rather close proximity to my house, as you can see from the serpentine nature of the map below. This was fully intentional the entire time, and ended up being fully unnecessary as I went over seven miles for what ended up being a rather standard distance run for me.

I found a tremendous photo op in the dark. It's great to have the pressure off to find a good picture early in the run, and before I had even gone 2 miles, I came across this nude lighted statue in the front yard of somone in Littleton. I've noticed this yard before, as it's packed with flowers and statues, but there is so much going on in their yard it's hard to focus on one thing, so I've never included a photo of their home before. However, as I ran past at night, I was amused and delighted by the fact that they have such a powerful lighting system trained on this somewhat too large for their yard statue. It's really bright at night, and I instantly knew what the picture for this run was going to be. As I zigged and zagged my way home, I the burden of finding something in the dark was lifted and I was free to focus on the silly judge podcast show I was listening to about whether or not a father had the right to tease his son for not joining their family in the swimming pool. That kind of freedom is why wars are fought! (The freedom to concentrate on a podcast AND the freedom to pester one's child, that is.)

One Hundred Forty-Five

August 21, 2014
6.53 Miles in 1:01:26
Mood: Like a latter day Adam and Eve...meaning only that I unwisely took a bite from an apple
Soundtrack: Judge John Hodgman

The concept was so good! A neighbor with a tree full of apples graciously putting out a sign inviting folks to eat of the tree. Who doesn't love free food? Here is a tree that is filthy with fruit, and the homeowners were practically begging me to have some.

I'm a big fan of apples, as I tend to eat at least one a day, if not more. I eat them more for the taste and less for the idea of keeping the doctor away, as a daily apple has always felt like an insufficient medical plan to me. Still, as a regular apple eater I feel I have a good handle on what constitutes a "yummy" apple. This tree and sign combination seemed to me a wonderful opportunity.

Although I usually wash apples prior to consumption, I found it unlikely that many pesticides were being used on this particular tree, seeing as how this tree was in a neighbor's front yard rather than in a commercial orchard, so I decided to go for it. I plucked the most perfect apple I could find, took a few photos of it, then immediately took a bite from a fruit that had only moments earlier been growing from the tree.

This moment is when the good times ended with the free yummy apple experiment. Turns out that the people who crusade for truth in advertising might have a case on their hands in regards to this yummy apple sign. The apple was uncomfortably tart, not overly juicy, and mostly disgusting. Perhaps, as an apple snob, I am being overly harsh, but one bite of this fruit was sufficient to disinterest me in continued munching. I threw the rest away in sadness at an opportunity gone sour (literally) and continued on my run. The dream of friendly tasty community fruit had died a sad death. I still appreciate how warm and welcoming this unknown neighbor is in regard to giving away from the bounty of their tree...unfortunately that bounty is repugnant.

One Hundred Forty-Four

August 19, 2014
8.58 Miles in 1:23:58
Mood: Sneakily running under cover of darkness
Soundtrack: Jordan, Jesse, Go!

I am aware how weird it is to be running outdoors at 10:30 at night. I'm also aware that there are other weirdos/creatures of the night that are sharing the streets with me as I do so. Due to the darkness and the fact that I am moving faster than the average pedestrian I have a tendency to sneak up on people late at night and suddenly be right upon them. I believe that to suddenly have a six foot three person immediately in your vicinity and running towards you when you didn't see them coming could potentially be unnerving. Basically, I believe that when I run at night, I regularly freak people out.

I created one of these freakout situations Tuesday night, as I was running right by the High School shown in the picture above. (Heritage High School, if you care.) I approached the main campus from the large athletic field west of the school building. That field was completely dark on this particular evening, so my approach was undetected. Suddenly, I burst from the athletic field onto the quad where what appeared to be a young High School student was standing looking out into the parking lot, apparently waiting for a ride. She turned to look in my direction and saw me rapidly approaching her. No one else was nearby, and as you can see from the photo...this particular school is a little creepy looking at night. A look of panic gripped her face and she stood motionless like a deer pondering an oncoming truck. Just like that deer, you could tell that she wanted to flee, but her terror prevented her from doing anything other than standing perfectly still directly in the path on the oncoming horror.

Fortunately for this girl, I had no evil intent in my heart, and I ran right past her and on towards the eagle statue in the courtyard which was well lit and was the first and only good thing I saw of which to take a picture for the blog on this dark night run. I wonder what went through her mind during this particular set of events. At first, it appeared that she thought her doom was imminent, and then less than a minute later, the likely cause of her impending death was taking cell phone pictures of the scenery late at night like a weirdo. I'm sorry, young lady, I never intended my weirdness to freak you out. Hope you're recovering well today. Night runs can lead to some weird situations.

One Hundred Forty-Three

August 17, 2014
7.23 Miles in 1:07:50
Mood: Thankful to be awake so early
Soundtrack: Lord Huron - Lonesome Dreams / Caroline Smith and The Good Night Sleeps - Backyard Tent Set

Sometimes one just needs to wake up early and experience the early morning life. It's hard to pull yourself from bed, but once you do, it's like the world is a different and better place. There is little better than an early summer morning in Colorado. Crickets chirping, the blaze of the dog days still hours away, the sun just peaking up on the eastern edge of the world.

It was a glorious early morning and I found myself at Wash Park for the sunrise. For a change, and to my supreme surprise and pleasure, my camera phone did a spectacular job capturing the beauty of something happening in the sky. As cool as this sunrise picture turned out, to be at a nearly empty Wash Park at 6:30 in the morning and staring out over Smith Lake as the reflection of the giant morning sun shone in the water was a very peaceful and fulfilling moment. These are the times I'm thankful to have recently become a morning person. I used to night owl it up with the best of them, but morning is truly where it's at. Either that, or I'm just getting old.

This run took me through Cherry Creek North and through the stoops of some wonderfully overpriced shops with fun art in their windows. I also found a path alongside a little stream which is blanketed so heavily with trees that it makes you feel like you are no longer in the middle of the city less than a tenth of a mile from a shopping mall and more like you have somehow discovered some urban jungle thought to have been lost to the ravages of time. My shoes also needed to be retied, so as I headed back towards Wash Park, I stopped on the steps of a ritzy church to tie my shoes and received a few odd looks from people heading in for the early service. I didn't care, because I don't think they were meant to be rude, merely confused as to what it was I thought I was doing. Nothing was going to ruin the positive vibe of this run, as I was feeling really good about being awake and alive on this glorious Sunday morning. Yeah, it was a good run.

(This run also took me past the Historic Weckbaugh Mansion at 1701 E Cedar Ave in Denver. This building was built in the 1930's and looks like The Great Gatsby's Denver home. It's large and ridiculous, but also cool to stop and gawk at. It's significant enough that I was able to Google it and get all sorts of historical info on it. I have a feeling I might run past it again just because it's pretty and in a wonderful neighborhood for running through.)

One Hundred Forty-Two

August 14, 2014
7.79 Miles in 1:15:46
Mood: Enjoying the sunset
Soundtrack: Judge John Hodgman

I experienced cramping and slowness for the second consecutive run, but even so it was a lovely night. I had spent the afternoon at a company event at the zoo and although it rained briefly, it was generally a lovely time and the rain had cooled the city so that by the point I arrived home in the early evening the world felt about perfect for a run. I said goodbye to my kiddos who were enjoying the final moments of summer vacation prior to going to the first day of school the next day and took off down the road.

I'm so used to people having weird things in their yard that when I spotted this big horn sheep in someone's front yard, it didn't even seem weird. I've reached the point that I am delighted by weird things but hardly ever surprised anymore. Yeah, a neighbor has a big ram in their yard because of course they do...

I stopped in at Target while on this run because I needed a new deoderant as I had just finished up my last stick at home. I noticed that Target had a promotion on the brand I like, if I bought three sticks, I could get a $5 Target Gift Card. This was slightly inconvenient, as I was planning on running about another 3 or 4 miles when I left target, but it was a good deal and I'm a cheapskate, so I grabbed three sticks, checked out, and then figured out how to wedge the bag into my running shorts which made for a bulky final few miles. However, I made it home and now my deoderant needs are set for quite awhile. Yay me!

One Hundred Forty-One

August 12, 2014
7.66 Miles in 1:17:36
Mood: Slooooow
Soundtrack: Jordan, Jesse, Go! / Dan Lebatard Show

Night running sometimes leads to quicker times because of less heat from the sun. Or, it can be like this run where for no apparent reason I'm cramping and sputtering and running really really slow. Oh well, better a slow run than no run.

I took off on this one with no particular agenda and found myself in Highlands Ranch, aka one of my least favorite places. Although, if you're going to go to "The Ranch", hitting up the AMC 24 Movie Theater Industrial Complex isn't the worst place to go. This theater is ridiculously large with acres and acres of parking. 24 screens showing great films such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and something which just looks atrocious called Let's Be Cops. I'd never heard of Let's Be Cops, but viewing the movie poster alone dropped my IQ thirteen points. So many screens, so few things worth putting on them, welcome to modern America!

I ran a significant East Bound stretch on the north edge of Highlands Ranch and was mesmorized by the Super Moon. I was hoping to get a picture of it, but as always, trying to take a picture of the moon with an iPhone camera is like eating jello with chopsticks. You can sort of do it, but it doesn't work so well and the results aren't pretty. Just know that the greatest portion of this entire run was staring at a giant moon on the Eastern horizon.

One Hundred Forty

August 10, 2014
7.65 Miles in 1:10:43
Mood: In a good groove at Wash Park
Soundtrack: LCS Hockey Show

How cute is this picture? Grandpa and his grandson getting ready to go fishing at Wash Park. I had to stop and steal a quick photo. It was heartwarming in a Normal Rockwell type way. The world may be full of heartache and evil, but it's also full of grandfathers teaching little boys to fish, so not all is lost.

It was a lovely day at Wash Park, and things seemed to be right with the world. The sun was shining, but not too hot. People were smiling and nodding as they passed each other in the park, I felt strong and healthy throughout the run, and I even managed to not fall and bloody myself on pavement throughout the duration of my run. That last bit has proven to be more difficult than I'd ever expect in the last month or so, and my elbows appreciated the improved ability to balance as I exercised.

In addition to circling the park, I also made my way down to DU and found a restaurant with a giant DU Pioneer logo statue. I wanted to get a picture of it, but the restaurant hadn't opened yet, and it was on the second floor outdoor patio, and I felt weird being the sweaty guy trying to head up there before the restaurant was open just to take a picture of an enormous Pioneer guy in a coonskin cap. However, perhaps as I think on that guy a bit longer, eventually I'll build up the courage to try and get up there for a picture.

One Hundred Thirty-Nine

August 8, 2014
6.83 Miles in 1:03:41
Mood: Exploratory and Nostalgic
Soundtrack: The Film Vault

Growing up I would attend the Cherry Creek Reservoir Swim Beach on pretty much a weekly basis. I built innumerable sand castles and splashed in the disturbingly dark green water a LOT as a kid. Although I made many good memories there, if I'm honest, I had a pretty terrible attitude about the place as I got older and kept going back there. The water smelled nasty, we went during the summer so I was always hot, and attending this spot was one of my mother's greatest joys in life so naturally as a teen I had to hate it. Teens routinely hate what their parents love for no real good reason other than just to be annoying teens, and I rebelled in this very stereotypical and irritating way.

So this week my wife took our kiddos out to this same beach from my youth and while there called me at work asking if I wanted to drop by when my shift ended. It had probably been 20 years since I had been there, so out of curiosity combined with the chance to get in a run in at a spot where I don't usually run, I sped there after work, parked just outside the park so that I wouldn't have to pay nine bucks to get in, and ran straight from a shopping center parking lot on Parker Road to the swim beach.

I remember the beach feeling a lot bigger than it does now. I saw my kids splashing and having a great time in the water and remembered that despite my largely negative view of the place, it wasn't really so bad. The water still was that odd shade of green, and I cannot speak to it's smell as I didn't get close enough to get an olfactory sense of the place, but I was happy to see the kids having fun. There are some new bathrooms, but largely the place feels almost wholly unchanged from what it was like when I was a kid. Huge swaths of nostalgia overtook me as I was chatting with my wife and my buddy Doug who was there with his kids as well. It was strange to have a place be so familiar and yet feel like it was from another time. I'm not sure I could ever grow to truly love the swim beach, but at least running around the reservoir was a truly lovely experience.

I never circumnavigated the entire reservoir as a kid, and one thing that really shocked me when I began to do so on this run was just how much larger this body of water was than I ever realized when I was younger. The swim beach is just a small corner of the entire lake, and there is a LOT more going on than I ever imagined. I also was struck by just how cool running right by the dam was. There is an ENORMOUS control tower which I grew up seeing, but never really realized just how large it looks when you're standing right next to it. Plus, as you can see from the picture, running on the gravel trail with the lake on one side and the rock covered dam on the other is rather picturesque and markedly different from my usual run.

I'm not sure that I'd incorporate this particular route into my regular routine, mostly because it's a good distance from home, but it was a cool run to get under my belt, and the non-Swim Beach parts of the reservoir are pretty excellent. Glad I did it, and I might do it again at some point...even if the idea of liking anything associated with Cherry Creek Reservoir makes 16 year old me just red with disgust.

One Hundred Thirty-Eight

August 7, 2014
8.11 Miles in 1:17:06
Mood: Anticipatory with notes of excitement and dread.
Soundtrack: The Mediocre Show

Only hours ahead of the Broncos kicking off their preseason, I took off to get in a few miles ahead of the game. I have a love-hate relationship with preseason football. On one hand, FOOTBALL! On the other hand, it's a meaningless game where the good players barely play and the teams are only passively trying to win. I usually find myself excited about it until it actually starts, and my enthusiasm quickly fades as the starters get replaced with guys who will be delivering freaky fast subs for Jimmy Johns once September hits.

I was still at the enthusiastic stage when I left for this run, and whether there was a pending game or not, I'm pretty much always going to take a picture of your front yard if the path to your door is guarded by lion statues in Peyton Manning jerseys with Broncos helmets taped to their foreheads. That's just a personal code kind of thing...it's how I live my life. Needless to say, only a few hours before kickoff, I was even more excited about this ridiculous lawn decor. It was truly glorious, and I salute the Bronco fan who was able to drum up this much enthusiasm for an exhibition game.

Even though I came across this peach of a landmark to photograph, that wasn't even my favorite moment of the podcast...that came when two girls in their early teens flagged me down. I had to shut off my podcast to hear what they needed at which point they very earnestly and enthusiastically asked me if I had seen five boys and a baby girl. I answered that I had not, and almost immediately they shrieked, "THERE THEY ARE!" and ran away back up the street from the direction they had come. I turned to look, and saw nothing. Needless to say, I have no clue what had happened, and still am a little confused as to what exactly was going on in their silly heads, but man, it was fun. Confounding, but fun.

I feel like right before I go, this is a good time to mention that the Broncos defeated the SEAHAWKS 21-16. Granted, this doesn't really serve as much in the way of sweet revenge, but it did apply a tiny bit of salve to the wounds I carry from the event in New Jersey to which I only want to refer to as "The Groundhogs Day Massacre" in passing conversation. That name is about the only appropriate way in which I can refer to THAT game. That sad, sad game. The one with Roman Numerals in it. *Sigh*

One Hundred Thirty-Seven

August 5, 2014
5.39 Miles in 52:13
Mood: Trippy
Soundtrack: Jordan, Jesse, Go!

I was able to get the "This Runner has been Accident Free for ____ Straight Days" sign progressed all the way up to 16 straight days before I had to reset it to zero. Yep, after biting it on July 19th for the first time in my two years as a dedicated runner, I have now made violent contact with the pavement for the second time in less than three weeks.

This particular accident came a little over four miles into this run. It happened in a nearly identical manner, just clipped my foot on a crevice in the road and fell like a sack of hammers onto my right elbow. My arm was finally getting back to normal, and now it has an ugly wound on it and it once again is all ganked up and painful.

When I fell, I started to get a little mad. Weird reaction, but I was ticked that gravity did such an efficient job in hurting me. Then I started to get a little woozy. It had been raining and cloudy at the start of the run, but by the time I fell the sun had burned through and it was super hot and muggy (by Denver standards). I was sitting in the curb bleeding from my arm, a little light headed and hot, and I wanted to just pull myself together. I managed to drag myself to a lovely patch of grass under a tree and I just lied down under the tree in the grass. I was just hanging out there feeling dizzy and in pain.

After a few minutes, I had recovered well enough to finish up the last mile plus of the run. I had been planning to go a shorter distance even before I fell, and I didn't head straight home, but rather continued with the odd back and forth style that characterized this run. The strategy behind this was to never get too far from home, but still get a decent distance in. Not a whole lot of straightaways on this run. Perhaps this is why I fell?

Anyway, I'm hoping to go a lot longer than 16 days without falling from this point. We'll see how that goes. As for today's photo...it's just a sign on a home on Noble St that signifies the house number. Naturally, I really liked it. We're a month away from real NFL games, and the horrific mockery of those wonderful games begin this week with the preseason opening on Thursday against THE SEAHAWKS. Although it is certain that that game will not mean anything, it would be nice to get a win in it just because. Go Broncos and stay vertical out there, people!

One Hundred Thirty-Six

August 3, 2014
7.39 Miles in 1:08:45
Mood:
Soundtrack: LCS Hockey Show

Easy like Sunday morning! While listening to the host of the LCS Hockey Show act very much unlike his usual gloomy and pessimistic self (he's deeply smitten with a new love who was amusingly also on the show), I found myself very happy for him and also found myself very much in love with Sunday morning runs. Wash Park is always a love of mine as it's one of the best places on Earth, and I took a lap around said wonderful place in between starting at Observatory Park and also hitting up the DU Campus a few times. A wonderful place to run, and there is something about a Sunday morning run which is better than all other runs. I'm not even sure why, but there is a peace on a Sunday morning that I don't get at any other time. It's the best.

As for today's picture, it's just a statue on the campus of the Univeristy of Denver. Nothing all that exceptional about it, but I should note that someone had placed an ugly bumper sticker on it. I took the sticker off before taking the photo because I wanted the photo to look nicer and also I just wanted to right a wrong. Putting bumper stickers on statues is wrong, kids. I felt a little like a super hero. A lame, lame superhero who's power is the ability to overcome vinyl stickers.

One Hundred Thirty-Five

August 1, 2014
7.38 Miles in 1:12:16
Mood: A Mood to Follow
Soundtrack: The After Disaster

It was a lovely day, and just to do something I'd never done before I ran fully around the baseball field at DeKoevend Park. Without much of a plan, I started following white arrows that someone painted on the dirt path with a chalky substance. I thought it might make for an interesting adventure to just go wherever the arrows went. Then, about forty-five seconds after I began following the weird arrows, I passed the middle aged man who was drawing them. I still am not sure what he was doing, but I did pass even more of his arrows further on down the trail, which was weird, because it made it very unclear where he had started chalking out arrows on the path. One of them was placed about a mile away from where I first encountered his arrows and it said to turn around...or more literally, it was a hand drawn U-Turn arrow with the initials "TA" written inside of it, so I assume it was intended to say "Turn Around". Although I had been following the arrows to that point, I didn't want to turn around, so I willfully disobeyed the chalk instructions.

One Hundred Thirty-Four

July 31, 2014
7.40 Miles in 1:10:06
Mood: Struggling
Soundtrack: The Mediocre Show

Sometimes running is a slog, even with a full night's sleep and several days rest I was hurting on this run. I hate it when I have to push so hard just to get through a normal run, but it makes me appreciate the times when it comes easy and feels wonderful. Nothing in life is always easy, not even the things we really love.

I am not a huge fan of graffiti, but this particular message makes me laugh. It's sprayed on the backside of an Albertsons grocery store where there is hardly any foot traffic due to no walking paths a plethora of trees and some thick grass. It clearly hasn't bothered "Big Brother" as it's been there for several months with no signs of being removed any time soon. I enjoy a paranoid person who puts their message of fighting the power in a place where no one is going to see it. Kudos to the artist for using two separate colors to really make the message pop. I know I'm going to be more careful to not let the man bring me down as a result of reading it...and they say that if a writer can get through to just one person that their efforts are not in vain.

Not much more to say on this outing other than I struggled a lot, but I also saw an amazing sunset that I might have used for today's photo if my camera didn't so greatly disappoint me in trying to capture the magnificence. The human eye puts an iPhone camera to shame, which is really a bummer because the view I was afforded of the setting sun as I ran the path along C-470 was truly spectacular last night. Oh, and one final thing...this particular map looks like a one earred bunny, doesn't it?