I've decided to add my blog to Bloglovin in the hope of sharing with a broader audience, so if you're able to click the link and Follow my blog with Bloglovin, that'd be really nice of you!
Showing posts with label blogging. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blogging. Show all posts
Monday, 5 February 2018
Bloglovin'...
Hi everyone,
I've decided to add my blog to Bloglovin in the hope of sharing with a broader audience, so if you're able to click the link and Follow my blog with Bloglovin, that'd be really nice of you!
I've decided to add my blog to Bloglovin in the hope of sharing with a broader audience, so if you're able to click the link and Follow my blog with Bloglovin, that'd be really nice of you!
Monday, 30 January 2017
Sir John de Mandeville hits the Road: Prologue
A year or two ago I mapped my running, walking and cycling against a map of the eastern United States, figuring out that I'd covered a distance almost from Houston to northern Maine. As the miles stacked up I wrote a series of posts about what I would be seeing as I went. I thought about doing that again and decided against it. Virtual adventures are mildly diverting, but wouldn't it be better to do such a trip in reality?
It would, of course. But as things stand, my prospects of doing such a trip in reality are slim to none. So why not prepare a travelogue based on a pastiche of other people's information? Good enough for the New York Times; good enough for me. So that's what I'm going to do, and slap a patina of light hearted fiction over the top of it. Jerome K. Jerome meets Clive James meets Jayson Blair is what I'm going for here.
With that in mind, meet Sir John de Mandeville:
The safe money is that Sir John never existed. If he did, he was the author of a fourteenth century book of travel writings largely cobbled together from other people's books and then passed off as his own. Imagine, if you will, this gentleman making his way through Britain from John o'Groats to Lands End on foot or by bicycle with his trusty squire and giving a travel guide on the way.
The pace of his trip will be controlled by how much I run, walk or cycle in reality, and I anticipate updating this tale about once a month (unless people think it's awesome, in which case, more often).
I hope you're going to like it.
It would, of course. But as things stand, my prospects of doing such a trip in reality are slim to none. So why not prepare a travelogue based on a pastiche of other people's information? Good enough for the New York Times; good enough for me. So that's what I'm going to do, and slap a patina of light hearted fiction over the top of it. Jerome K. Jerome meets Clive James meets Jayson Blair is what I'm going for here.
With that in mind, meet Sir John de Mandeville:
The safe money is that Sir John never existed. If he did, he was the author of a fourteenth century book of travel writings largely cobbled together from other people's books and then passed off as his own. Imagine, if you will, this gentleman making his way through Britain from John o'Groats to Lands End on foot or by bicycle with his trusty squire and giving a travel guide on the way.
The pace of his trip will be controlled by how much I run, walk or cycle in reality, and I anticipate updating this tale about once a month (unless people think it's awesome, in which case, more often).
I hope you're going to like it.
Sunday, 15 May 2016
Life lately
Hi everyone,
Sorry it's been a bit quiet here on the blog these last few weeks. In part, work and SES things have been hoovering up time in an astonishing manner. More seriously, though, I've felt like I don't have any words inside me for a while. It's hard to describe, but I've been feeling kind of rootless, and doing anything much concrete has felt kind of impossible. In a kind of absurd way, I feel like I can't make any impact in the world.
My contract with GMW has been extended, which is good because I need the money, but the work is as valueless as ever. Last Friday the most challenging job of the day for me was being sent out to fetch coffee and a slice of banana loaf, and this afternoon I'm likely to be asked to do some filing. Remind me what a brilliant use is being made of twenty years' training and experience as a lawyer.
And no, finding another job is not going well. I'm too old - and my career is too chequered - to be hired by any law firm (I was actually told this by an HR officer when I was applying for jobs some years ago, and it's surely not the less true now). Honest to God, I have no idea what to do next.
I spent most of the weekend up on the roof at the farm, cleaning the gutters and hammering in roofing nails that had come loose.
I also then spent some quality time with the chainsaw cutting up a tree that last week's bad weather had uprooted.
I was pretty happy with that as activity. That sort of Hank Hill style home improvement work is what I wanted in life, and what I had in the Before Time. And I needed it after skyping with the girls on Sunday. Grace asked me why I didn't come over to visit, and saying that she wanted to help daddy and sit on the couch and cuddle with me, and this all made me miss them even worse than usual. Long distance life sucks on a cosmic scale. After that, the simple but absorbing task of hammering nails and cleaning gutters while trying not to slide off the roof was kind of a relief.
I'm not certain how this week will play out. There's some supplementary rooftop safety training with another emergency service unit this evening, and legal service volunteering tomorrow night, and then SES on Thursday and at the weekend. At least it's practical work. I'm getting less patient with people who want the world to be a better place, but who want someone else to make it so. You think Australia's refugee policies are inhumane? You may be right. But you can make them better by applying to work on Manus Island, or by volunteering to aid new arrivals to settle in. But if your plan of action looks like this -
- then all you want to do is make the hard work somebody else's priority. If you want to talk about a better world, then get in and try to have a subsidy granted to Meanjin. If you actually want a better world, then get some boots and overalls and get your hands dirty.
Sorry it's been a bit quiet here on the blog these last few weeks. In part, work and SES things have been hoovering up time in an astonishing manner. More seriously, though, I've felt like I don't have any words inside me for a while. It's hard to describe, but I've been feeling kind of rootless, and doing anything much concrete has felt kind of impossible. In a kind of absurd way, I feel like I can't make any impact in the world.
My contract with GMW has been extended, which is good because I need the money, but the work is as valueless as ever. Last Friday the most challenging job of the day for me was being sent out to fetch coffee and a slice of banana loaf, and this afternoon I'm likely to be asked to do some filing. Remind me what a brilliant use is being made of twenty years' training and experience as a lawyer.
And no, finding another job is not going well. I'm too old - and my career is too chequered - to be hired by any law firm (I was actually told this by an HR officer when I was applying for jobs some years ago, and it's surely not the less true now). Honest to God, I have no idea what to do next.
I spent most of the weekend up on the roof at the farm, cleaning the gutters and hammering in roofing nails that had come loose.
I also then spent some quality time with the chainsaw cutting up a tree that last week's bad weather had uprooted.
I was pretty happy with that as activity. That sort of Hank Hill style home improvement work is what I wanted in life, and what I had in the Before Time. And I needed it after skyping with the girls on Sunday. Grace asked me why I didn't come over to visit, and saying that she wanted to help daddy and sit on the couch and cuddle with me, and this all made me miss them even worse than usual. Long distance life sucks on a cosmic scale. After that, the simple but absorbing task of hammering nails and cleaning gutters while trying not to slide off the roof was kind of a relief.
I'm not certain how this week will play out. There's some supplementary rooftop safety training with another emergency service unit this evening, and legal service volunteering tomorrow night, and then SES on Thursday and at the weekend. At least it's practical work. I'm getting less patient with people who want the world to be a better place, but who want someone else to make it so. You think Australia's refugee policies are inhumane? You may be right. But you can make them better by applying to work on Manus Island, or by volunteering to aid new arrivals to settle in. But if your plan of action looks like this -
There are things that we who are opposed to torture and cruelty can do. We can vote on this issue by not voting for the two parties championing these monstrous policies. We can counter the media narratives by discussing ‘alternative solutions’ to this global crisis. We can phone our unions and let them know this issue matters, that with that kind of collective support, we can make a difference to governmental policy. Unions are meant to show how we can organise toward a better world. Imagine if there were a general strike on this issue (imagine the increase in union numbers that would result). We can also join or support one of the organisations already involved in fighting detention: Divest from Detention, RISE, the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, Refugee Action Coalition, the upcoming March for Civil Disobedience and Refugees.
- then all you want to do is make the hard work somebody else's priority. If you want to talk about a better world, then get in and try to have a subsidy granted to Meanjin. If you actually want a better world, then get some boots and overalls and get your hands dirty.
Thursday, 31 December 2015
December: That's a wrap!
Hi everyone,
It's nearly 9pm. It's just about a wrap for 2015.
It's been a frustrating couple of days here on the farm. Yesterday the morning was spent unloading the drilling tools that we brought back from Rushworth the other day. Maybe I'm getting cranky because of the heat, but I have an annoying feeling that most of these tools will never be used in reworking the wells on the place. In which case, we've just gone to a lot of time and effort to bring back and set up yet another pile of rusty steel.
The day had its upswing when I went into Shepparton to the Blood Bank. You know how much I love doing that. I know it seems absurd to derive so much happiness from having a vein pierced and getting wired up to a machine, but there you go.
My next donation is my hundredth, which I have oddly mixed feelings about. I hope it can be done quietly. I hate showboating. Besides which, if they didn't supply such awesome cookies, there's no way they'd get me through the door!
This morning saw Michael and I up on the roof of the shearing shed, replacing loose nails (which was most of them) with screws. We pushed on through the morning until midday, at which point it was far too hot to keep going. I may have had a bit too much sun, because my eyes were starting to see in greyish tints, so it was good to get inside and rehydrate.
Everybody laid low in the afternoon, and I typed up my "year in review" post. It didn't really cool down until about 7pm, at which time I took the dog for a walk and let him swim in the two dams that are still fairly healthy. It's about the only way the poor fellow can cool down
Michael insisted on going back up on the roof to do some more repairs at about 8pm and then got stuck up there (he got up without working out how to get down). He's now back indoors and a trifle cranky. We're back up on the roof together tomorrow (happy new year to me!).
Not much more to report, although I'm looking forward to kicking off tomorrow with a run. Definitely the way to get 2016 off to a blitzing start!
Happy new year good people!!
Year in Review: 2015
Hi everyone,
Here we are, New Citeaux's first 'year in review' post.
There's a lot to digest for 2015. In many ways, it's been both a very good year and a very trying year. One might even consider it to be life in a nutshell, no?
It's been another year without seeing the girls, and frankly I feel further away from them than ever. This is not a good thing. In 2016 I'm going to make a point of writing to them every week that I'm away from them. They should never have reason to think that their Daddy doesn't think about them.
The year kicked off, of course, with five months of unemployment. You learn a lot from those times. I'll never look down my nose at anyone on Centrelink again. It's not great to be unemployed long term and stop looking for work, but now I can understand how people can get utterly jaded of the system and think "I'll just send off a crappy CV and covering letter: I'm not going to get the job anyway so what does it matter?" I hadn't really grasped just how demoralising it is.
I also learned that I'm tougher than I thought I can be. I can lob up and do hard labouring under crummy conditions and keep a smile on my face, even when I'm fed up: just hold your tongue and keep an eye on the clock (or the sun, depending on what brings the day to a close).
My word, what a lot of new skills were gained this year! Overwhelmingly through SES of course: chainsaw, general rescue, rooftop safety, flood and storm damage, boat crew and road crash rescue all leap to mind, and I know that's not a complete list. People warned me that SES can take over your life. I didn't expect to be so entirely OK with that. And I didn't expect to find generally giving a damn so rewarding either. A goal for 2016 is to sign up new members for each of the SES, the Blood Bank, and the Red Cross.
I was surprised to find this year that art matters much more to me that I thought it did. A very good friend and I were talking about "what would you take to a desert island". I was trying to be honest and found myself coming up with a list that included (or that in hindsight would have included) -
On that note, readers who are so inclined might like to check out the Arts Party. I'm not a member, and wouldn't be on board with their whole program, but they do seem like they'd bring an interesting perspective to politics
Regular readers will have heard me blither about religion a bit here. I think that writing about that sort of thing has taught me quite a bit, and arguing with people taught me a bit more (I learned that once an argument has become circular, it's almost impossible to get it out of that pattern).
Running and fitness have been as big a part of my life as ever this year, and my weight is now down to about 71 kgs (from a starting weight of 89 kilos). I achieved my primary distance target (Houston to Clinton, CT) and secondary target (South Portland, Me), but I'm about 100 miles from my tertiary target of Kenduskeag, Me. I need to figure out my challenge for 2016!
I want to see the girls this year. A third year away from them is unthinkable.
And I want to keep developing personally in the direction that I've been heading this year. I have a hard time explaining quite what that direction is, but I know for a fact I'm a much better and more interesting person than I was 12 months ago. If that doesn't speak well for 2015, I don't know what does.
Happy new year everyone!
Here we are, New Citeaux's first 'year in review' post.
There's a lot to digest for 2015. In many ways, it's been both a very good year and a very trying year. One might even consider it to be life in a nutshell, no?
It's been another year without seeing the girls, and frankly I feel further away from them than ever. This is not a good thing. In 2016 I'm going to make a point of writing to them every week that I'm away from them. They should never have reason to think that their Daddy doesn't think about them.
The year kicked off, of course, with five months of unemployment. You learn a lot from those times. I'll never look down my nose at anyone on Centrelink again. It's not great to be unemployed long term and stop looking for work, but now I can understand how people can get utterly jaded of the system and think "I'll just send off a crappy CV and covering letter: I'm not going to get the job anyway so what does it matter?" I hadn't really grasped just how demoralising it is.
I also learned that I'm tougher than I thought I can be. I can lob up and do hard labouring under crummy conditions and keep a smile on my face, even when I'm fed up: just hold your tongue and keep an eye on the clock (or the sun, depending on what brings the day to a close).
My word, what a lot of new skills were gained this year! Overwhelmingly through SES of course: chainsaw, general rescue, rooftop safety, flood and storm damage, boat crew and road crash rescue all leap to mind, and I know that's not a complete list. People warned me that SES can take over your life. I didn't expect to be so entirely OK with that. And I didn't expect to find generally giving a damn so rewarding either. A goal for 2016 is to sign up new members for each of the SES, the Blood Bank, and the Red Cross.
I was surprised to find this year that art matters much more to me that I thought it did. A very good friend and I were talking about "what would you take to a desert island". I was trying to be honest and found myself coming up with a list that included (or that in hindsight would have included) -
- Three books, being Under the Sun: The letters of Bruce Chatwin, Albert Camus' Lyrical and Critical Essays and Hemingway's Death in the Afternoon.
- A picture of The Starving of Saqqara
Image from here
- Paper and pens.
- Music (probably Durufle's Requiem and Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue)
- A couple of photos and pictures of paintings (among them, A Woman Out Shopping with Her Pet Rabbit, Santa Monica, California and Lady with an Ermine)
Image from here
Image from here
On that note, readers who are so inclined might like to check out the Arts Party. I'm not a member, and wouldn't be on board with their whole program, but they do seem like they'd bring an interesting perspective to politics
Regular readers will have heard me blither about religion a bit here. I think that writing about that sort of thing has taught me quite a bit, and arguing with people taught me a bit more (I learned that once an argument has become circular, it's almost impossible to get it out of that pattern).
Running and fitness have been as big a part of my life as ever this year, and my weight is now down to about 71 kgs (from a starting weight of 89 kilos). I achieved my primary distance target (Houston to Clinton, CT) and secondary target (South Portland, Me), but I'm about 100 miles from my tertiary target of Kenduskeag, Me. I need to figure out my challenge for 2016!
And for 2016?
I need to find a permanent job (for one thing, my current gig is only till April). Sadly the job market up here is still pretty dire and I think I may have to move away. I'm not fussed as to distance: once the girls left, I kind of became a sojourner anyway. I have a constant feeling of my feet touching the ground lightly wherever I am.I want to see the girls this year. A third year away from them is unthinkable.
And I want to keep developing personally in the direction that I've been heading this year. I have a hard time explaining quite what that direction is, but I know for a fact I'm a much better and more interesting person than I was 12 months ago. If that doesn't speak well for 2015, I don't know what does.
Happy new year everyone!
Sunday, 13 December 2015
Catchup post
Hi everyone,
I'm afraid that this will be a somewhat scrappy catchup post, which will twin with an equally scrappy my-life-recently-in-SES post. I've been writing a lot on preparedness lately and as you can tell have let the this-is-my-life-as-she-is-lived side of blogging go.
Looking back through my photographs, I recall that I became a process server for a morning, delivering VCAT documents to some of my employer's opponents in a proceeding. This job was mainly memorable for the fact that I was able to drop in at a Gloria Jeans in Shepparton after I'd seen all the people I needed to!
The office is now gaily decorated in Christmas colours, of which the most tasteful bit (in my opinion) is the Tiffany-esque tree in the reception area.
You remember the complaint I put in about another group doing 'fundraising' to pay for their Christmas decorations? The relevant officer of the company did speak to me and said that it had been approved by the Board and that he felt it reflected well on the company. I didn't bother arguing the point. I said that in my view it wasn't appropriate and that if it was to be known outside would make the company look bad. He said that it was a "disappointing attitude". I let it go. There are some hills on which I am not prepared to die.
A far more classy Christmas exercise is being conducted by the Tatura Football Netball Club, who are giving a free Christmas lunch for anyone who isn't in a position to celebrate the day with others, for whatever reason. Now, I'm a supporter of the Shepparton Swans, but frankly I hope the Tatura Bulldogs have a killer season in 2016: a team that stages an event like this deserves to have a lot of good karma come its way.
I had to go to Kilmore yesterday for an SES activity. Kilmore, naturally, has a beautiful old bluestone post office. I'd never noticed before, though, that it had once been the telephone office too. What a different time that was!
After I got back to Tatura from Kilmore to drop off the Unit's vehicle, I went out for a quick run which felt great. The picture I snapped doesn't really do justice to part of it though, as I found myself playing chicken with a whacking great tractor on the Tatura-Murchison Road. I couldn't cross the road because of the other traffic ... but I can promise you that as soon as I could, I gave the behemoth right of way!
The Goulburn River continues to look good every time I cross it at Toolamba going to and from work
Despite which, I'm sad to say, the water supply here at the farm continues to be a touch and go situation. Saving water from washing dishes and showering is now a simple necessity for keeping the garden somewhat alive - despite which the less salt tolerant plants are starting to show the strain.
I think that's got you caught up. Life is going on as somewhat normal, but I'll chronicle it a bit more rigourously!
Monday, 2 November 2015
News from today
Hi everyone,
Maybe because the weekend was so packed, today at work actually seemed slower than it was. The impression was misleading I should say: there was enough work to keep me busy practically all day, which I'm grateful for.
Maybe because the weekend was so packed, today at work actually seemed slower than it was. The impression was misleading I should say: there was enough work to keep me busy practically all day, which I'm grateful for.
Weather was calmer and brighter today, although I had a few computer things to do so the only walk I managed was to go and buy the paper.
Some troubling news about the agenda for the next meeting of my team at work: read one way, it suggests there may be terminations from the unit. We'll know next week, but it is troubling. Unemployment is a nuisance I could do without right now.
No more for now. Cup Day public holiday tomorrow. Hopefully I'll get a decent blogpost written.
Hope all your days are going well!
Tuesday, 6 October 2015
Up on the roof!
Hi everyone,
After I prepared that last post, things did in fact get busy. In short, it became my night for volunteering.
First item on the agenda was to head in to the Community Legal Centre that I volunteer at. If I haven't explained before, it's a service where lawyers make themselves available to see people without charge. It's a good service and certainly lets you see areas of legal practice you'd otherwise never think about. Litigation is mostly not an option: a great many times you can actually help someone best by directing them to a non-litigious solution. For example, the person with a motor-vehicle-damage matter is unlikely to have an issue worth suing over (the first thing any litigator worth their salt learns to do is a cost-benefit analysis). So instead, you explain how to draft a letter of demand (or draft it for them) and then explain how best to follow it up so to finesse some degree of compensation from the driver at fault. As it turned out, the people I saw last night were a chap with a family law issue and a young fellow who had been charged with a driving offence. The first of these only needed general advice; the second could only really be advised as to damage control.
I saw something after I'd finished there that I didn't really expect. I stopped at the store to get a few odds and ends that I needed and decided to buy myself some tea for the office. I was kind of startled to see honey-and-vanilla flavoured English Breakfast tea.
Forgive me, but this just seems wrong: to take a full bodied, muscular flavour like that and tinker with it just has "New Coke" written all over it!
I got home and had dinner and watched Foyle's War. At a bit after 11pm was getting ready to have a shave and a shower and go to bed when my pager when off. The wind had taken a full sheet of ridge-capping off of the roof of a lady in Shepparton and wrapped it around her chimney. My SES unit was called out to go and secure the sheet and make temporary repairs to the roof. When the five members who were available got there we established that the sheet was sufficiently intact that we could actually refit it and screw it back down - not a perfect job, but enough to make the roof more-or-less watertight until the householder can have a roofer attend and make a complete repair. I got my rooftop-safety and storm-damage qualifications earlier this year but hadn't needed to deploy them in the field before now. I was both stoked and nervous to be tasked with using them on this job!
I'm proud to say that I did fairly well in setting up the system, getting up on the roof and utilising it. Anthony - perhaps the most experienced volunteer at our unit - needed to jog my memory every now and again where I went blank on the next correct step in the process. Basically, I managed like someone who'd been taught well in training but needed to translate the process into real-world conditions. A few missteps, but overall a fantastic experience. The roof, I should add, was colour-bonded corrugated iron and pretty steep. In the boots we're issued with, it was alarmingly slippery. I can tell you that I was very pleased to have the safety line to rely on.
It was 2am when we wrapped the job up, and I went back to the farm. It was about 3:30am when my head hit the pillow.
Today I was out of bed at the usual time and came in to work as usual. The day itself has been dead quiet again (viz, all the substantive work I had was done by midday), and the boss has tasked me with taking his car and getting the wheels aligned later in the week, which should give you some idea how critical I actually am to the running of our section. To be honest, the best bit of the day has been working through each of the boxes of tea I bought last night.
I may not be rich in dollars, but at least I'm rich in flavour!
Not much more to add. All being well I'll write more later tonight. I'm rolling a few ideas for a farm-oriented post around in my head - perhaps something written from the point of view of the labourer and farm-hand (a chunk of experience with which I am quite familiar). We'll see.
More later.
After I prepared that last post, things did in fact get busy. In short, it became my night for volunteering.
Image from here
First item on the agenda was to head in to the Community Legal Centre that I volunteer at. If I haven't explained before, it's a service where lawyers make themselves available to see people without charge. It's a good service and certainly lets you see areas of legal practice you'd otherwise never think about. Litigation is mostly not an option: a great many times you can actually help someone best by directing them to a non-litigious solution. For example, the person with a motor-vehicle-damage matter is unlikely to have an issue worth suing over (the first thing any litigator worth their salt learns to do is a cost-benefit analysis). So instead, you explain how to draft a letter of demand (or draft it for them) and then explain how best to follow it up so to finesse some degree of compensation from the driver at fault. As it turned out, the people I saw last night were a chap with a family law issue and a young fellow who had been charged with a driving offence. The first of these only needed general advice; the second could only really be advised as to damage control.
I saw something after I'd finished there that I didn't really expect. I stopped at the store to get a few odds and ends that I needed and decided to buy myself some tea for the office. I was kind of startled to see honey-and-vanilla flavoured English Breakfast tea.
Forgive me, but this just seems wrong: to take a full bodied, muscular flavour like that and tinker with it just has "New Coke" written all over it!
Image from here
I got home and had dinner and watched Foyle's War. At a bit after 11pm was getting ready to have a shave and a shower and go to bed when my pager when off. The wind had taken a full sheet of ridge-capping off of the roof of a lady in Shepparton and wrapped it around her chimney. My SES unit was called out to go and secure the sheet and make temporary repairs to the roof. When the five members who were available got there we established that the sheet was sufficiently intact that we could actually refit it and screw it back down - not a perfect job, but enough to make the roof more-or-less watertight until the householder can have a roofer attend and make a complete repair. I got my rooftop-safety and storm-damage qualifications earlier this year but hadn't needed to deploy them in the field before now. I was both stoked and nervous to be tasked with using them on this job!
I'm proud to say that I did fairly well in setting up the system, getting up on the roof and utilising it. Anthony - perhaps the most experienced volunteer at our unit - needed to jog my memory every now and again where I went blank on the next correct step in the process. Basically, I managed like someone who'd been taught well in training but needed to translate the process into real-world conditions. A few missteps, but overall a fantastic experience. The roof, I should add, was colour-bonded corrugated iron and pretty steep. In the boots we're issued with, it was alarmingly slippery. I can tell you that I was very pleased to have the safety line to rely on.
It was 2am when we wrapped the job up, and I went back to the farm. It was about 3:30am when my head hit the pillow.
Today I was out of bed at the usual time and came in to work as usual. The day itself has been dead quiet again (viz, all the substantive work I had was done by midday), and the boss has tasked me with taking his car and getting the wheels aligned later in the week, which should give you some idea how critical I actually am to the running of our section. To be honest, the best bit of the day has been working through each of the boxes of tea I bought last night.
I may not be rich in dollars, but at least I'm rich in flavour!
Not much more to add. All being well I'll write more later tonight. I'm rolling a few ideas for a farm-oriented post around in my head - perhaps something written from the point of view of the labourer and farm-hand (a chunk of experience with which I am quite familiar). We'll see.
More later.
Sunday, 13 September 2015
Guest Blogger: "Why I love running in Pennsylvania"
Hi everyone,
I'm absolutely stoked to bring you a guest-blogger today! This post has been prepared by my good friend Colleen, who tweets at ColleenRunsPA.
About 40 minutes southeast of Hershey Pennsylvania is the town of Bird in Hand where one of my favorite half marathons takes place. Bird in Hand is a small community with a lot of farms in the middle of Amish country. Each year the local community puts on the Bird in Hand Half Marathon, 5k and Fireman’s Challenge. The 5k takes place on Friday night and the half marathon takes place on Saturday morning. The Fireman’s Challenge is for runners who run both the 5k and half marathon. The race’s motto is “The joy of running in community” The entire community comes out to support the race.
The Amish community volunteers and runs the races. Instead of having a motorcycle lead the races, a horse and buggy leads the race. For the half marathon they have to switch out mid way through the race because the horse can’t run as fast and as long as the runners. We run through corn fields and past many Amish and Mennonite farms. It’s the best way to see parts of Pennsylvania that one would never see driving.
The entire weekend kicks off with a hot air balloon festival. There are 7-8 hot air balloons that launch right before the 5k and half marathon. The 5k runs past a few farms and over a lane past several farms. It ends in a large field where there is a large tent. Inside the tent they hold the packet pick up and the pasta/pizza dinner on Friday night. The dinner is followed by a guest speaker and s’mores in front of a large bone fire. The next morning the half marathon kicks off with another hot air balloon launch.
I’ve done this race 3 times and the hot air balloon launch never gets old. It’s beautiful seeing all these balloons taking flight prior to running a half marathon. The race kicks off and we proceed past local churches and farms. The water stops are all in front of Amish farms. The Amish man the water stops and cheer on the runners. As you run you begin to realize how quiet and peaceful Pennsylvania really is. Even though you are surrounded by runners it is very peaceful. I’ve also realized that corn is really tall and I’m really short. It’s amazing how tall the corn here grows. One thing they mentioned this year before the race was to be careful because the roads are open and the corn absorbs the sounds of the vehicles.
As I run I also realize I’m a lucky person to live in such a wonderful state. We have such beauty. This time of the year Pennsylvania really comes to life like no other time of year. The temperatures cool, the leaves begin to change colors and the sun shines in a way that it doesn’t shine the rest of the year. If you ever have the chance to visit take some time to go for a run and take in the beauty of this amazing state.
I don't know about anyone else, but I've definitely been talked into putting this one on my bucket list!
I'm absolutely stoked to bring you a guest-blogger today! This post has been prepared by my good friend Colleen, who tweets at ColleenRunsPA.
About 40 minutes southeast of Hershey Pennsylvania is the town of Bird in Hand where one of my favorite half marathons takes place. Bird in Hand is a small community with a lot of farms in the middle of Amish country. Each year the local community puts on the Bird in Hand Half Marathon, 5k and Fireman’s Challenge. The 5k takes place on Friday night and the half marathon takes place on Saturday morning. The Fireman’s Challenge is for runners who run both the 5k and half marathon. The race’s motto is “The joy of running in community” The entire community comes out to support the race.
The Amish community volunteers and runs the races. Instead of having a motorcycle lead the races, a horse and buggy leads the race. For the half marathon they have to switch out mid way through the race because the horse can’t run as fast and as long as the runners. We run through corn fields and past many Amish and Mennonite farms. It’s the best way to see parts of Pennsylvania that one would never see driving.
The entire weekend kicks off with a hot air balloon festival. There are 7-8 hot air balloons that launch right before the 5k and half marathon. The 5k runs past a few farms and over a lane past several farms. It ends in a large field where there is a large tent. Inside the tent they hold the packet pick up and the pasta/pizza dinner on Friday night. The dinner is followed by a guest speaker and s’mores in front of a large bone fire. The next morning the half marathon kicks off with another hot air balloon launch.
I’ve done this race 3 times and the hot air balloon launch never gets old. It’s beautiful seeing all these balloons taking flight prior to running a half marathon. The race kicks off and we proceed past local churches and farms. The water stops are all in front of Amish farms. The Amish man the water stops and cheer on the runners. As you run you begin to realize how quiet and peaceful Pennsylvania really is. Even though you are surrounded by runners it is very peaceful. I’ve also realized that corn is really tall and I’m really short. It’s amazing how tall the corn here grows. One thing they mentioned this year before the race was to be careful because the roads are open and the corn absorbs the sounds of the vehicles.
As I run I also realize I’m a lucky person to live in such a wonderful state. We have such beauty. This time of the year Pennsylvania really comes to life like no other time of year. The temperatures cool, the leaves begin to change colors and the sun shines in a way that it doesn’t shine the rest of the year. If you ever have the chance to visit take some time to go for a run and take in the beauty of this amazing state.
I don't know about anyone else, but I've definitely been talked into putting this one on my bucket list!
Tuesday, 25 August 2015
Seeking Guest Bloggers!
Hi everyone,
Those of you who read my old blog may remember how my run (and walk and cycle and swim) challenge for 2015 was to cover the equivalent of the distance from Houston, TX to Clinton, CT, with detours through Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Vicksburg MS, a distance of 1940 miles.
On paper, I've just reached Hagerstown, MD (the 1554 mile point). My virtual route from this point would have taken me through Hershey PA, Morristown NJ, Tarrytown NY, Bridgeport CT and finally Clinton CT. But, the miles are rolling by easily, and so I've decided to set a new end-point and to throw in a detour! The new virtual itinerary is:
Why am I sharing this? Because I think it's great to get to know people, and so I'm asking if any of you have ties to any of those areas (or, you know, areas thereabouts), or areas along the way. Maybe they're your home town? Maybe you holidayed there? Maybe great-aunt Harriet lives there. If that's the case, how would you like to write a guest post, to go up when I tick of the mileage that that town represents? It can be any length, and on anything you like - why you live where you do, why you love running (if you do), pictures you'd like to share, anything (as long as it's not, you know, pornographic or deliberately obnoxious). And naturally, links to your own blog/website/business are fine.
Hope to hear from anyone who loves to write!
Those of you who read my old blog may remember how my run (and walk and cycle and swim) challenge for 2015 was to cover the equivalent of the distance from Houston, TX to Clinton, CT, with detours through Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Vicksburg MS, a distance of 1940 miles.
On paper, I've just reached Hagerstown, MD (the 1554 mile point). My virtual route from this point would have taken me through Hershey PA, Morristown NJ, Tarrytown NY, Bridgeport CT and finally Clinton CT. But, the miles are rolling by easily, and so I've decided to set a new end-point and to throw in a detour! The new virtual itinerary is:
- Hagerstown MD (1577 miles)
- Hershey PA (1655 miles)
- Morristown NJ (1804 miles)
- Coney Island NY (1848 miles)
- Tarrytown NY (1893 miles)
- Bridgeport CT (1938 miles)
- Clinton CT (1978 miles)
- South Portland ME (2209 miles)
Why am I sharing this? Because I think it's great to get to know people, and so I'm asking if any of you have ties to any of those areas (or, you know, areas thereabouts), or areas along the way. Maybe they're your home town? Maybe you holidayed there? Maybe great-aunt Harriet lives there. If that's the case, how would you like to write a guest post, to go up when I tick of the mileage that that town represents? It can be any length, and on anything you like - why you live where you do, why you love running (if you do), pictures you'd like to share, anything (as long as it's not, you know, pornographic or deliberately obnoxious). And naturally, links to your own blog/website/business are fine.
Hope to hear from anyone who loves to write!
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