a good first impression

Tonight I found out that just three weeks from today marks the beginning of the 13th Annual Oatmeal Festival in Lafayette, Colorado. Until now, an event dedicated to my favorite breakfast treat was beyond my wildest dreams. I'm beginning to like this place.

safe and sound

After a long two days and nearly 1700 miles of driving, the cats and I finally arrived in Denver last night. Along the way we passed the Dairy Queen in Bland, Virginia that marked the end of the Garden Mountain run back in June. I saw the Gateway Arch for the first time as I passed through St. Louis, although the fog prevented me from seeing the top; instead of an arch it just looked like two leaning towers reaching into the heavens. In Kansas, we nearly ran out of gas because the gas stations are spaced 75 miles apart, and I also saw rows of massive windmills that looked like robot soldiers from science-fictionland. Dusk also settled in while I passed through Kansas, and I managed to snap these photos while moving at 75mph...

here comes wool e. claus

Last night, Adrienne and Abby went out to dinner and a movie while Lance and I took care of the kids. We took June and Henry downtown for the lighting of the Christmas tree. There was music, lots of kids, and most importantly for June, Wool E. Bull dressed up as Wool E. Claus...

Lance and Henry in front of the unlit tree...

and voilà...

It was a decidedly small-town event for sure, which made it all the better. Afterward we went to our house for dinner and continued silliness. We'll miss the Kimbrough clan dearly, but it sounds like a visit from them out in Denver isn't out of the question; we'll keep our fingers crossed.

therapy

This morning I went on possibly my last long run before we skip town. I met up with Rob and several other folks from the Carolina Godiva Track Club (the same running club that coordinates the Tuesday night run on East Campus). I've run through Umstead before but never with the Godiva crew. The car thermometer said 27 when I left this morning, but it heated up to 30 by the time we started running at 8:30. We traveled through the woods via single-track and bridle trails, and much of the route was new to me. It turned out to be a beautiful day, and by the time we finished, two and half hours later, it was a balmy 43 degrees. During most of the run I talked with Rob about this or that. I gave him a hard time, as I always do, for his gadget purchasing problem; he's a sucker for any running, biking, or swimming product that is either on sale or promises better results (except for EPO and The Clear, of course). We also talked about the therapeutic effects of a long run, like today's, and agreed that all the stresses of life get washed away, at least momentarily. People often ask what's appealing about running around for hours on end; it's hard to put into words, but if they had mornings like this one, they'd understand.

Rob and me after today's run

construction paper picasso

Each week at PMO (Parents' Morning Out), the kids are read a story and a book-themed art project follows.  Here's a selection of Junie's best; she has a way with glue and sparkles...

along the way

This afternoon at 5:45 I decided it was time to take Junie out for a run.  I quickly changed into my running gear, put dinner in the oven, topped off June's sippy cup with juice, and then loaded her into the jogging stroller.  We started running at 6:02, and by 6:06, we were at Duke's East Campus.  Thirty seconds later my Tuesday night running crew came strolling along, so we joined them for the two-and-a-half mile journey to Duke Chapel and back.  Tonight as we ran through the "tunnel" a train passed noisily overhead.  Then the sound of the carillon and the luminarias dotting the Chapel's lawn welcomed us to the halfway point of our run.  Despite temperatures in the low 40's, June was happy as a clam.  After a short water break, we started back towards East Campus.  Along the way I gave Rob some tips for his first 50k and updated Anne on my family's adventures.  Back on East Campus, June and I left the group and headed towards home.  The lasagna needed to cool, so we took a shower.  Junie put on her pajamas, we ate dinner together, we read some books, we sang some songs, and Junie sailed off into dreamland.

Nothing extraordinary about that story.  It was just the run-of-the-mill Tuesday night here in Durham, but it illustrates what I like most about living here.  In a matter of minutes and with virtually no planning whatsoever, we went from sitting in our living room to enjoying a picturesque run with some of the nicest people I've ever met.  That's what I call easy living.

In case you don't already know, we're moving to Colorado by month's end.  Please pardon the sudden drop off in blog posts, but trying to tie-up a million loose ends is a rather time consuming endeavor. We didn't really know what we were getting ourselves into when we moved here five years ago, but it has been a wonderful place to live.  The barbecue, the Durham Bulls, the trails, the Museum of Life and Science, the YMCA, the parks, and the friends are second to none; we'll miss Durham dearly.