Run DMZ

The way it works each Thanksgiving is I select a place for our annual "Black Friday" family hike, only I don't announce it until that morning, or maybe the night before. Then I grab my camera and watch as the walk unfolds. At least one child will complain profusely the entire time. Two, if both of them go. But this year was different in a few respects. I let everyone sleep in until 10. Normally, we'd be done and already at brunch by then. My first two choices were ravaged by the wildfires. So I picked a place I knew would be open and would impress a nephew visiting us from landlocked Arizona. I could already 'picture' the snapshots of everyone walking along the cliffs just as the last vestiges of marine mist released their grip along the rocky coastline at high noon. Then someone "misplaced" my camera while I was making one last trip to the bathroom. They thought it was really funny to watch me freak, then pout. So, what you have are an opening shot ...

I love running on the Balboa Park Bridal Trail, but I rarely did because it was just a little too creepy. Then I started to warn other women to be careful down there after a tourist was raped around 9 in the morning. Another runner even saw the attack but waited until he'd finished his run to call police. Most of our summer hill repeats that aren't done on the 6th Street hill are done in these woods, and I'm delighted to see the city's made some much-needed improvements to make if feel a little safer. Not sure I want to see the dirt covered with gravel, but I'm eager to check it out in a couple of weeks when I'm in the park for a special orientation for newcomers to the track club's marathon training program. Here's the article: Park volunteers blaze a new trail [Photo courtesy of the Union-Tribune's Web site]

No, not the alcohol-induced variety. The one where all of the kids and company have cleared out and you survey the damage, to the house and to the wallet, and you decide no aspirin can alleviate this. Only a little Windex and a lot more shopping will do. It was a good four-day weekend, one we shared with a young nephew in the Air Force, currently stationed in Arizona. We hit a coastal trail for this year's traditional post-turkey family hike, but I left my camera behind by mistake and now am awaiting photos I took with the phone cam to magically arrive in my inbox. They won't do justice, though, to the glorious day we had to walk the beach at low tide and then climb to the top of the Torrey Pines Preserve. Hours after the college kids had left very early this morning for Northern California, I was doing a 'test run' of a 5-Miler I'd just created using Stepwhere.com. It's still very much a work in progress, but numerous homeowners along Christmas Card Lane alread...

They asked me to wake them at 3:30-3:45 a.m. to start their 10-hour drive from UC-Davis to San Diego. Only when I called, they weren't just already awake...they were about 10 miles away! I guess I oughta be upset they drove all night, and with a missing tail light. But right now I'm not. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, everyone. Whether it's a holiday for you or not, be grateful for everything you have in your life instead of stewing about all that you don't. (Wordless Wednesday will resume next week.)

We held our Saturday run this morning at Los Penasquitos Canyon Preserve. There was initial confusion, since my message with a change of start and notice to carry water was supposed to be forwarded to everyone but didn't get done by the group's leader; so, some people initially went to the wrong starting place and some ran a long way on the trails without hydrating. We all kept to the "easy side" of the preserve in which no one could get lost, though that leader I just mentioned did forget a turn and went the extra mile. Some of us wore signs on our back that said "Running Today for Ryan Shay." Today was the day to run 5.5 miles in the 28-year-old's honor. The distance is where he collapsed and died during the Olympic Marathon Trials earlier this month. I'd by lying if I said I thought of Ryan Shay the entire hour we ran. I did when another group of runners saw our shirts and asked about him. But otherwise, I was chatting it up with new and longtime ...

Here's something for everyone to chew on. Earlier this month Duke University researchers released a scientific model they've created to help women decide when its optimal for them to give birth, depending on their career and life aspirations. One tidbit that's getting plenty of feedback is this snippet from the official news release : The model suggests that, especially in cases where both family life and career are important to the woman, having a child much earlier may be a better long-term solution than waiting until she is more established in her career. "It may seem surprising to suggest having a child at a younger age, even if the woman places no importance on having a child until a certain age," Vernik said. "But the model takes into account the fact that taking a maternity leave has less impact on the future career of a woman who is a student or in the beginning of her professional life. This woman’s child will also be older and slightly more independ...