Thank You

First of all, I would like to say Happy Halloween to the family. I am going as an old man, because I am sore and hobbling around, complaining about my stiff knees. What is everyone else going as?

I want to thank everyone for their support running up to the race. Get it? "Running" up to the race? Seriously though, thank you to Elizabeth and Jean Cedric for trekking down to watch, even though Christopher was not able to run. Luckily, I ran slow enough to stretch out the event. Elizabeth, thank you for waking up so early and accompyning me down to the race. You are a great coach and motivator and there was lots of silliness to keep it lighthearted. Christopher, thank you for the motivation to get the whole thing started. I think overall, the project has been the best decision I have made in DC. My favorite quote from Christopher this weekend was right after the race. He is giving me a big hug and tells me, "Next time, we will train a little harder and more consistently and get that time down."

An extra special thanks to Deborah. I have never seen somebody so supportive. In the grand scheme, the race was a small feat, but Deborah realized how important it was and supported me like I was running across country. She was a gracious host of my family (for the second time) and made an amazing dinner on Saturday, took time to drive people around, and introduced Lizzie and JC to her parents. After the race, Deborah was there to make sure I drank enough water and again treated me like I had completed the marathon. I am extremly touched by the love and support and she means everything to me.

I apologize for the long post, but I was very happy this past weekend. Thank you, family. Thank you, Deborah. I am not sure what comes next, but the energy at these events is amazing. I am considering a ten miler, there is the Cherry Blossom run in the spring. Deborah and I are also considering a 100 mile bike ride, but we will see. Please check out Elizabeth's photos, there are some good ones.

The birthday lady in the backyard, with the new bird feeder

IMG_0565
Originally uploaded by Papa, aka Don.

I don't mean to bump Elizabeth's superb Washington photography down a notch, but I thought it was about time to show the blog readers that the backyard bird feeder has come into its own. It was installed on Saturday, near to our stone Aslan, who will now perhaps enjoy some company from other members of the animal kingdom. If you click on the photo, I believe it will take you to the series of seven I took this morning. They all show the backyard in early autumn. I call it early because few leaves have fallen as yet.

Meanwhile, kudos to Andrew for knocking off the 10K race with such ease, and to Elizabeth, Chris, Jean-Cedric, and Deborah for providing the essential family support to our athlete. Great photos, Elizabeth. It must have been a beautiful day in Washington.

Runner #3186

Andrew pulled off the Marine Corps 10K this weekend, looking very strong as he crossed the finish line. Jean, Christopher, Deborah and I were there watching, which was quite fun. As it turns out, there’s something wonderfully luxurious about sitting at your ease on the bleachers as people run by at mile 26 in the marathon (or kilometer 9 in the 10K.) Here’s a slideshow of the full weekend doings, which included a beautiful walk on the Potomac and a very tasty meal chez Deborah in addition to the race - - - > SLIDESHOW

The OCA Trail

Jean and I did a great bike ride yesterday, along a part of the length of the Old Croton Aqueduct, which is now a NY State Park. The aqueduct was NY city's water source from 1830 until 1880, carrying water from the Croton river to two reservoirs, one in front of what's now the New York Public Library, and one in the Great Meadow in Central Park. It was constructed as an above-ground tunnel, sloping gently southward at a rate of 13" per mile along the Hudson River to New York City. Now the roof of the tunnel is a linear state park, a woodsy conduit for bikers, hikers, and dog-walkers. We took the Metro North train to Ossining (home of Sing Sing prison!) with the bikes and then rode back to Van Cortlandt park in the Bronx, about 24-26 miles total. On this satellite aerial view you can see the northern-most tip of Manhattan at the base.







I think "aqueduct" would be a great spelling bee silver bullet--did anyone else know that it's spelled with an 'e' in the middle?

On another subject, Emily has some great news to share!

Our people looking cute in Dallas

Mom, looking very excited about something... turning 60, maybe? Or the challenge on the football field?

- - - - - - > > > Linky

This has been bouncing around our office this morning; a really interesting graphic display showing animated global birth and death rates and carbon emissions by country.

Breathing Earth

Chris and Jean-Cedric

Chris and Jean-Cedric
Originally uploaded by Papa, aka Don.

At the Texas State Fair in Dallas on October 7, Chris and Jean-Cedric hold up their prized tickets to the big OU-Texas football game. They watched OU go down to defeat.