I’ve always liked this, from the great Peter Snell: “When it’s pouring with rain, and you’re bowling along, wet-through, in the dark, there’s a satisfaction just in knowing you’re out there and the others aren’t.” Pretty much every runner who’s ever … Continue reading
Good Grief. In the the spirit of this ancient post, here’s more on the never-ending digging out of my personal mess, I’ve just unearthed a red vinyl hot water bottle marked “Return to DHHC.” DHHC stands for “Dick Hall’s House … Continue reading
It was a wonderful, warm pre-dawn today, with a big waning moon and a beautiful morning star. And my run was virtually pain-free for the first time in a couple of months, even on a some gentle hills. My trainer … Continue reading
When you run in the winter, the idea is to be cold when you step out the door so that you’ll be comfy and not over-heated after a half-mile or so. For lots of runners, including me, this means a … Continue reading
I headed out for a long run this morning. (As I type this I realize how malleable and relative the term is. A few decades ago the same distance would have been short. Ah, well.) What I want to write … Continue reading
Our college coach, the estimable Elliot Noyes had a style and understated humor that still tickles. Or stings. After one of my even-worse-than-normal cross-country performances, he wandered over, got not too close, gave me his sidelong look, and said, “Alvarez, … Continue reading
In the Whites, the rocky trails go straight up the fall line, so stretches are sometimes essentially brooks. [For a good laugh, read this letter from an Alabama hiker to the Concord (New Hampshire) Monitor.] But on Cabot yesterday, the whole … Continue reading
My general reaction to what seems to be a reprieve from prostate cancer has been to try to claw back at least a little control over my own body. I eat way less and much better (mostly veggie). Alcohol is … Continue reading
It’s Bat Day again! My dad’s been gone for a few years now. I think of him often, and my memories are often connected with laughter. Our family and close friends have been cackling over this story for way more than half … Continue reading
My memory is shot, but I’m pretty sure that 50-odd years ago my high school class chose as its motto, Carpe Diem: Seize the Day. Over the last year or so, I’ve been granted something of a new lease on … Continue reading