County Cross-Country Meet (2006)

Here is the setting for this mornings High School Cross-Country County Championship. We arrived at 8:30 AM. Since Judy's race wasn't until 9:45, Jane and I walked around the park where the course winds around this small pond. The day was perfect, cool temperature, plenty of sunshine and the Fall foliage was peaking with eye-popping reds, yellows and oranges. The first race was for freshman only and we heard the distant echo of the starter's pistol and eventually the young runners started spilling out onto the field that overlooks this pond. We then hurried back to the starting line to see the Varsity girls race that Judy was competing in.


The starting line. Stalls were painted on the grass indicating where each high school team was supposed to assemble and wait for the start. Obviously, this was just before the race. Once all the teams are in place there is quite a crowd. The object, I think, is to head to the front of the pack when the starter's pistol is fired so as not to get trapped over the first half mile and expend energy running around people. I've included a nice time sequence of the girls coming toward where I was poised with camera below.

Bang!


I see them pretty well, but don't hear much yet.



Now I hear the footsteps and breathing as the girls start to pass close to where I am. See if you can find Judy in this picture. I assure you that she is there.



This is the finish line. The runners pass behind the blue shed before appearing for the the final 40 yards to the finish line. Sometimes there are two or more kids neck-and-neck just straining every fiber to reach the finish line. It is really exciting here. People are screaming, yelling, clapping and jumping up and down. Elderly ladies are elbowing teenagers out of the way to to get a better view, cameras are snapping pictures. It must be thrilling for the runners to finish the race passing through this riotous crowd. Judy placed 28th overall and the girls team placed 5th. The coaches made several comments to us that they were real happy.

Popeye Doyle's Easy Method Driving School

Tomorrow is Judy's County Cross-Country Championship Meet. The top seven runners from each team will go on to the next race in two weeks at a more challenging Regional Meet; the top runners from that race go on to the State Championships. Judy ran both Regional and County Meets last year and did very good--I think she'll likely improve this year. This morning we went out to see the course. Judy met with her team and jogged the course, while Jane and I went for a one hour run around the nearby community. After a short day at work we both came home early to get ready for tomorrow morning--the races start at 8:30 in the morning. I've been resting since I got home; Jane just got back from shopping--got Astro's food and also bought a bunch of candy and ingredients to make chocolate-chip pumpkin muffins to bring to the meet tomorrow morning. Jane is such a good mom! I'll have pictures and race results tomorrow.

Both Elroy and Judy had driving lessons today. They went out for 1-2 hours of driving with an instructor from their driving school, "Popeye Doyle's Easy Method Driving." I don't remember much of my experience learning to drive. Most of the kids I knew in high school took Driver Ed after school and then went out with a teacher a few times. Three of us would crawl into the teacher's car and take turns driving around Finneytown. This one time as we were pulling out of the high school parking lot, the kid who was driving "peeled out"....tires screeching, a little of smoke from the skid marks, the teacher gasping. It was comical at the time and has stuck in my memory. Anyway, I suppose I also went out driving with one of older brother or sisters but really don't recall. I went to the police station in Mt. Healthy or White Oak--I don't remember exactly where--to take both the written and driving test. After the driving test I remember the officer telling me...."okay, you passed the test, but you should really get more experience driving before going out by yourself...you're not very good." Or something to that effect. Funny, but Jane gives me basically the same message any time I'm driving and we're out together. Well, Judy and Elroy should do better, they get about 10 hours with Popeye Doyle and another 60 hours with Jane and I. Sixty hours in the car with a new driver.....Oh! Boy!

Airing Out at Airlie Center

I haven't made a post in about a week. Either Elroy or Judy have been using my laptop for homework and I haven't had access. Okay, so I also didn't have much to report. Jane and I went to a work-related meeting last week at the Airlie Center in Virginia. We were there from Wednesday afternoon through Friday morning. Airlie Center is a great place for a getaway meeting; it's located in a pastoral setting just far enough away to be trapped there. My top three events of the meeting were (1) on Friday morning on the way to breakfast, the weather had turned cold after a warm spell and the ponds on the grounds on this morning were steaming. I assume the cold air meeting the warm pond water was generating a wispy fog rising from the surface of the water---whatever the reason it was remarkable to see; (2) a Thursday night walk at this country retreat away from the city lights allowed a impressive view of the starry night sky; lastly, (3) a six mile run through Manassas Battlefield Park.
Oh yeah, the food was as good as buffet food gets and the facilities were better than expected. Alright, the presentations were good too, I got alot out of the experience. We were pretty wiped-out Friday night when we got home and had our usual busy weekend including a great 10+ mile run Saturday morning. The run took about 2 hours and we enjoyed every minute. The weather is really starting to turn cooler, the leaves are almost at their peak for Fall colors. This is the best time to be running through Rock Creek Park. One of my favorite pictures from the Airlie Center is of the Airlie dogs, one of which is below. Give him floppy ears and he would look like Astro.

Brookside Garden

The afternoon was sunny and very warm; Jane and I took a quick stroll through Brookside Gardens to stretch our legs and kill time. The sun was so bright that taking pictures was difficult but I managed to get a few that I was happy with.

A Day At The Races

We had an exhausting day yesterday, mostly due to standing outside watching a cross-country invitational race on an overcast and cold-rainy day. The 3 mile course snaked through a local regional park. Although muddy after two successive days of steady rain and lots of runners tramping the coursewalk miring the low spots into muck, it was an almost perfect course and day for running. The temperature was cool, the course seemed to be comprised mostly of gently rolling hills. There was a wooded section that I didn't see, but was told by one of the coaches "wasn't too bad", which likely translates to straight uphill but not a steep grade . Anyway, the leaves on the trees were just beginning to turn the muted yellows and reds of early fall, contrasting nicely with the bright colors of all the team uniforms. It was impressive to see how powerful the runners appear as they go by early in the race, the fatigue and pain that shows on their faces toward the end and the steely determination as they sprint to the finish line. Judy, our reason for being there, had a very good race finishing 23rd overall and second on her team.

The Absolute Funniest Moment in My Life

This is one of those stories that can only happen to me. Okay, so I'm downstairs in front of my dresser getting dressed for bed. There is a mirror behind the dresser that I'm usually standing in front of when I change into my pajamas. It only shows my upper body and sure I check myself out occasionally. I work out, and besides I'm getting older, and like many older men am battling male boob syndrome, so a breast exam every now and then is not unusual. So I'm liking what I see, there is still some muscle tone underneath my nascent male boobs--that's good. I little more work on the bench press, lose a couple of pounds and I'll be like my hero AHNOLD.

You know AHNOLD, the govenor of CAL-I-FOR-NI-A.

Well I'm in mid chest-flex when I'm startled by this rap on the rear basement window. This particular window, if one was crouched down and intent on peeping, has a perfect view of my dressing area. Now, it's 8:30 at night and pitch-black outside, and I'm squinting my eyes to try and make-out what had made that noise and I see, faintly illuminated by the lights from inside, my daughter's face. A face that is now lit up like a little kid catching Santa Claus placing presents under the tree on Christmas eve. That grin, I'll never be able to forget that grin. I immediately start thinking to myself, this is bad, there's no way I can explain my way out of this. I was caught in the act of admiring myself, which as everyone knows is one of the worst possible crimes a parent can commit in front of one's children.

After I hear her start running toward the back door, I trudge up the steps, go quietly to the bathroom, close the door and try to brush my teeth in silence. Keep a low profile, see what happens. It doesn't take long. By this time she had flown into the house and was breathlessly telling this revelation to her mom and brother. I don't know, maybe it took one or two translations or a few minutes for the witnessed event to actually sink in, but then I heard the their combined howls of laughter. This was bad and getting worse. I knew what was coming next. Taunting. Hey muscle man, I heard. Why don't you come out and pose for us. Well, I'm not really sure what they said I was momentarily paralyzed with shame but soon after was overcome with just how funny the whole situation was. I couldn't stop tearing and laughing.

This all happened yesterday evening. As I'm finishing up this post tonight it's later than I usually stay up. The kids and wife are in bed. So I'll post this story, change into my pajamas and get ready for bed.....umm, but I did have a good workout today. Maybe one quick look.

Water World

I was able to take a few pictures of the aquarium this evening. I have recently hooked-up a CO2 supply that has a very nice effect. Under the influence of light and CO2, the aquarium plants do what plants are supposed to do; take-up CO2 and give-off oxygen. The oxygen forms little bubbles on the leaves, a process called pearling among the planted aquarium crowd. It is pretty cool, you should be able to make out the bubbles of oxygen on the surfaces of the leaves. Also I got some really nice pictures of the dwarf gourami (the blue-orange speckled fish)
and a rummy-nosed tetra. These a really pretty fish with a bright red head, a silvery body and the tail has black and white stripes. Enjoy the pictures.

Rosey Gets a Pimple Popped

Rosey had a runaway pimple on her chin, according to the mobile-vet. Jane and I have not been happy with our normal vet and tried this mobile service. Anyway, the prescription was tough love. Jane had to popped Rosey's pimple. Rosey was very good, I don't think it bothered her as much as the rest of us watching. Jane used a needle sterilized with hydrogen peroxide to lance the fluid-filled swelling under her chin; a fair amount of liquid (thankfully, not pus) flowed out. We also found out that she has some fungus growing on her claws that we (by we I mean Jane) will have to scrub occasionally. Gosh, getting old isn't fun for people or animals.