Friday, December 30th was the last work day of 2016 for me, and I felt the need to do something special to close out 2016. A final small celebration of how 2016 had turned out pretty well, despite its inauspicious start. So, on the way to the office, I pulled into Chick-fil-A. Now, stopping at my favoriteRead more
Bear with me while I talk about running again, but there’s a point. As many of you know, I took up running later in life, eight years ago at age 40. And because I tend to go all in on something that hooks me, a year later I ran my first marathon. Now, that marathonRead more
I love to run, and I love classic rock. Therefore, I love to run while listening to classic rock. Long-time readers of this blog already know I spend way too much time tailoring music playlists for my races. My playlist for the 2016 Kiawah Island Marathon was no different – 44 songs, 21 of which were byRead more
While I fancy myself more Batman than Superman (my Flash days are long behind me), I do have my own Kryptonite: heat and humidity. So, back in late May, when I decided to train for another crack at a sub-twenty minute 5K, the weather in the Midlands of South Carolina looked to be the fly inRead more
If I was a drinking man, this might have been me in 2016: Sitting on this barstool, talking like a damn fool Got the twelve o’clock news blues And I’ve given up hope for the afternoon soaps And a bottle of cold brew Is it any wonder I’m not crazy? Is it any wonder I’m saneRead more
As we pulled into the church parking lot, the old smokestack caught my eye. I made a mental note to take a picture of it before before we headed back out. The family and I exited the car and made our way around to the back of the church and entered the small fellowship hall. It was timeRead more
I am a great starter. Need someone to run the first twenty miles of a marathon? No problem. Need to tear apart an old Jeep in hopes of rebuilding it? Give me a wrench. Want to paint the master bathroom? Let’s go to Sherwin Williams. Oh…Wait…You want a finisher? Well, hold on there, pardner. Finishing isRead more
NaNoWriMo. That’s a weird word. I bet you’re asking “What in the world is NaNoWriMo?” NaNoWriMo is short for National Novel Writing Month. This is an event/contest put on each November by the folks at NaNoWriMo.org, a non-profit organization whose mission, according to their website, is to empower and encourage writing and vibrant creativity around theRead more
The one year anniversary is approaching of one of my recent experiments – Hagar, my pet chameleon. Thankfully, this latest shot at reptile raising has been much better than previous attempts – geckos Skynyrd I and Skynyrd II didn’t even scare the one year mark, collectively. Maybe I learned something from the original lizards, but I think veiledRead more
A couple of weeks ago, I visited my grandparents’ house. Mom’s side. I say house because my grandparents weren’t there. This year will mark the 20th anniversary of my grandfather’s death, and my grandmother lives in a nursing home. Dementia stole her mind several years ago. The house has been vacant for many years andRead more