How is it, that it is already the last day?  I say already, because we are all chomping at the bit here in camp, waiting to start with our designated wave of fellow runners. Only three days ago, I felt as if  had been running forever and that the end was as far away as Christmas.

It is amazing how sometime in the night, such a bedraggled, dirty, smelly, blistered group of individuals are able to summon up the strength, smiles and wherewithall to get it all together one last time for the push home.  All unnecessary food, gels, tablets even toilet paper, are discarded as we all prepare to make this last leg, the lightest.  We went off in waves of three groups from the slowest to the fastest.  I was in the middle group and determined not to be passed by any of the top runners.  Hey, I still had some pride and competitive spirit left!  It really is quite marvelous to know that each step forward is one less you have to take and that a hot shower, soap, lovely scented soap, shampoo, for goodness sake conditioner and a razor to mention just a few of those marvelous man-made items are waiting to revive and transform me back to a somewhat normal looking woman.  I ran, walked, ran, ran, stumbled, and felt the tears start flowing as the finish line banner swayed in front of me.  My friends, old and new, stood clapping, cheering and hugged me close when I crossed over.  Incredible!  Three desert races completed and a life-time of images as the prize! 

I ate several pieces of pizza, schmoozed with friends, cheered like mad as each runner came in and proudly looked at the people around me who had been such an integral part of my life for the past seven days.

The outdoor shower was better than imagined, the celebration dinner a marvelous feast and washed down with several yummy alcholoic beverages.  We watched a video of "The Last Desert Race" which took place in Antarctica this past November and a fabulous slide show of all that transpired and was captured on film this past week by the camera crew.  We smiled, laughed, ooo'd and ahhhed and let the reality of what we had endured settle on each of us.  Awards were given out and each recipient was applauded with much enthusiasm.  I am so very proud to know these people.  I know for certain, that each of us comes home a better person.  I for one, am more tolerant, humble and eager to live, not merely exist.

In this race, as with the other two, I have experienced more emotions than I have in my entire lifetime.  Thank you Mary and RacingthePlanet, for making it possible for those of us who choose to do so, to push beyond the comfort zone for seven glorious days.

See you in Antarctica.  Cheers, Jacqueline 

Hello sports fans, so today was another marathon  distance and what I learned today, is that man is not meant to walk 14 km on salt flats.  It was positively miserable,  horrible, and beyond anything I have ever experienced on a physical level.  This is how you  can envision it on your end.  Put on a pair of sneakers, and walk for 14km on a coral reef.  Through in some blisters, acute Achilles tendonitis, keep walking and well that’s what it was like.  Horrendous!  Oh  yeah throw in the heat, rain at the end of the salt flat, push the whip button on the blender and that was what I pulled out of the suffer bag today.  At the beginning of each day, I take my emotions and pain sensors and toss them in my back pack.  I find it best not to feel just plod onward from checkpoint to checkpoint..  I think today has taken a toll on everyone.  Tomorrow is the long day and the first leg is 15 k and rated very difficult.  YUCK!  Someone kindly remind me why I am doing this???????  By the way, I really, really smell, miss my lipstick and was thinking of ice cold lemonade and lemon Italian ice all day.  I don’t want to see salt again for a really long time.  It is beautiful here as the terrain varies constantly.  Okay must go and sleep as I believe I start earlier as I am not in the top 20.  yeah, but the rear view is often what motivates me onward!

More on Friday morning after I finish running like forrest gump.cheers, jacqueline

Hello sports fans, today was misery, agony, one fall and enough pain for me to realize I just traveled from the land of discomfort to the land of pain.  The salt flats at the beginning of the day were grim.  One could only carefully place one foot in front of another.  There was no flat solid ground.  It was horrendous.  I took one fall which was disappointing as I was hoping to stay vertical for the entire race.  Thanks to 1,950 mg of Tylenol I crawled through the dunes, rocks and  up multiple 50 meter dunes, to camp.  I was just in the medic tent and suggested that they amputate my left foot which would save them a ton of Tylenol.  They diagnosed my ankle as having acute Achilles tendonitis and yes, that  infamous ultra blister is working its way to full bloom under my left toe nail.  About 5 minutes after I arrived in camp the winds picked up and everything had to be battened down.  We have had our daily dose every evening of high winds.  The heat during the day is intense although I;m not certain as to the temp.  to give you a sense of how hot it is, I usually drench my buff at each checkpoint put it around my neck and ten minutes out its already dry.   One of my tent mates dropped out yesterday so it’s just me and four men.  Life is good!  Im loving the experience the e-mails are encouraging, hilarious and a delightful treat at the end of the day.  I have been thinking about cold fruit most of today.  Pineapple, blackberries, oranges and mango.  Jen the thought of your dark chocolate killer cake is quite the incentive considering I gave up all sweets two months ago.  Ashley what does the ocean say?  Claire, Martin and Harold are kicking my butt! They tirelessly zip by me each day at some point, and are as hilarious as you remember>  many thanks to all for taking the time to right.  Im a bit disappointed in myself today but will certainly dig  dwon deep for my mojo tomorrow.  Another 14 k of salt flats tomorrow in the thi\rd stage.  My gators were trashed the first day so al this salt and sand is managing to torture my feet.  Yuck.  Someone remind me once again why I am doing this??

More tomorrow, cheers, jacqueline. 

Hello sports fans,  marathon distance yet again today.  We started out with a 13K that included about 15 water crossings.  Sometimes one was up to their knees in water or in my case since I m shorter than some of these guys, up to my waist.  The water was icy cold so that one couldn’t even feel ones feet after the first crossing.  My goal was to stay vertical and most definitely not let the back pack pull me backwards, especially if the photographer was there!  I loved the first 13K as it was through a gorge, temp wise, cool and the terrain rocky which is my favorite.  Also it makes time go by faster as one concentrates on the terrain.  After the gorge we climbed, up, up to heaven, said hi to God and then came back down.  At least that’s what it felt like as once again at high altitude, one was sucking whatever air the guy in front of you left you.  Each time you thought you  were at the top you realized it was just a false horizon and you had to keep climbing up.  we then literally ran down a sand dune. Must go as they are closing the computers down.  Claire missing your company immensely although I bet you had some instant mashed potatoes right about now.  Five guys in my tent three of which are doctors so they just talk about drugs and doing spleenectomys for the first time out in the field with someone holding open a medical manual.  That gives me immense confidence.  Thanks for the four e-mails Ev great to hear news from home.  The day is done.  Yesterday I came in 58^th today 38^th so I was quite pleased.  Its really knarly, hot and definitely much harder than Gobi or the Sahara .  Will write more tomorrow.  Must eat …yet again!

Cheers, Jacqueline

Hello sports fans, this has to be quick as they are shutting down the computers soon.  Today was incredibly challenging. 26 miles and the start was all undulating hills up to an elevation of 11,000 feet.  No one ran those hills, I for one thought that the registration fee would cover oxygen.  Each step meant taking a breath an trying to breathe out you r nose.   It is so dry here that all liquids that you intake immediately get absorbed by the slight wind blowing or just the air.  The first checkpoint was after running 13km.  my arms and hands were swollen, it looked like I had edema.  I couldn’t feel anything in the tips of my fingers.  I didn’t think I had altitude sickness as I had no headache and wasn’t nauseaous.  One of the medics thought it was the pack cutting off the circulation under my arm.  I tried tightening it differently but the swelling didn’t go down until almost the finish.  The day was grueling.  I had oatmeal for breakfast, water, electrolytes and three espresso hammer gels.  It worked though and got me through. I want to run each day with no injuries, no sickness, no turning around to see whos behind me and how far.  The people are awesome and with us being such a small group its easy to get to know everyone. I am in a tent with five men, one is a trama surgeon, one a neurologist and one a general practitioner.  So im in great hands.

Must go, will write tomorrow.  Thanks for all thee-mails.  Oh yeah, its really hot here during the day.

Cheers Jacqueline

Hello sports fans,  After 23 hours of traveling, I arrived in Calama  with ALL of  my luggage and some new friends.  It’s amazing how easy it is to spot another runner, the atti5re, the backpack and the conversation.  It’s actually hilarious as only with  other endurance racers can one spend hours talking about the weight of ones backpack, type of electrolytes, running attire and freeze dried foods.  Our hotel was positively lovely with the out door shower with hot water the most welcome feature.  Today I checked in and was quite delighted that my pack only weighed sixteen pounds without water.  So far I haven’t got sick which is great as we are at our starting camp site which is about 11,000 feet and in the midst of winds which are gusting about force 2 or so.  The temp is in the high 80s and its very dry.  So this is just a blog to check in say hi and let you know that we are all chilling waiting for dinner which will be made for us tonight.  The clocks out here will also be moved back an hour which is marvelous as it means an extra hour to sleep.  I am quite excited about the start, feel strong, happy and excited to feel the desert moving beneath my feet.  Until tomorrow, saying goodnight from the Atacama Desert

Cheers, Jacqueline

Afer today no more suits and high heels for awhile.  What a treat to know that  I won’t have to blow dry my hair every morning,  pick up clothes at the dry cleaner, answer e-mails, voice mails and bill time!    

I realize that I have gone to an absurd extreme to experience seven days of this type of bliss.  However, I  like the idea of going on this “type of vacation” as I don’t have to pack day and evening attire, shoes for each outfit not to mention matching accessories!  The desert really doesn’t care what you look like, and either will your new best friends!

Last night I went to REI, an outdoor sporting goods store to pick up a few last minute necessities.  The young sales clerk tallying up my items greeted me by saying “Hello Ms. Eastridge, how are you?”  I was shocked.  He knew my last name and I didn’t even know his first name!  I said, “How do you know me?”  He said, “You come in here all the time.”  Okay, now that’s really bad.  Apparently I am spending more time at the sporting goods store than any number of ladies clothing stores or even my local grocery store.  Note to self, upon returning from Atacama, do not venture into that particular store for at least one month! 

I can say “taper” I just really stink at tapering.  Always have been as I feel like my body is downshifting into first gear and won’t be able to get into fifth or sixth gear come race day!   23 hours of travel time will be a mild form of torture for me.       I hope the movie is good!. 

See everyone soon!

Song of the week:: “Circle in the Sand” By Belinda Carlisle

Tip of the week:   Hydrate, sleep and  take “before” pictures of your feet !. : >)

Book of the week:  “The Kid Who Climbed Everest” – By:  Bear Gyrlls

Cheers, Jacqueline

..but take out the jelly beans and what a difference a few ounces makes!

It’s amazing but in the next seven days, I am certain that I will be spending an inordinate amount of time, packing and unpacking my backpack.  This for me, is always a surprise as I’m the type of traveler, who packs the night before.  The items go in, the lid closes and voila!  So, the time is once again here, to lay out everything on the floor, put it in the pack, weigh it, take it out, sift, sort and substitute and repeat the procedure over and over again until the numbers on the scale promise that the pack won’t have my knees buckling after the first mile.!"     

I load up with all kinds of visuals these last few weeks.  Images that I can draw on when I’m fatigued and feeling whiny and wimpy.  There are a few favorites, one of which is the image of kids running.  Every day on my way to work, I drive by a school for kids in kindergarten to seventh grade.  I am always amazed to see these kids running...almost all the time!  I mean, even in the winter with all their heavy clothing and backpacks, they are always running to school.  There is this one hill that they have to ascend before coming down the other side where the school is, and they even charge up this hill!  When exactly do we stop running and choose to walk everywhere sometimes even paying an exorbitant amount of money to go on vacation and run marathon plus distances for seven days?  Okay, that’s one image.  I also watch some of favorite movies like "Braveheart" and "Gladiator" "Man vs Wild" etc.  Hey, it works!

It’s Murphy’s Law, that right before a big race, the tenacious cold germs have managed to find a new home... inside me.  Last week, they settled in and making me wheeze through my work-outs because I felt like a cement block was sitting on my lungs.  The steam room is a blessing, as I truly feel that hanging out there afterwards, was instrumental in me sweating out all those uninvited, invasive little germs.  Lots of fresh citrus and working with my door closed to keep all my co-workers colds at bay, is the final stratagem this week.

 One wants to just say, “Beam me up Scottie… and put me down ever so gently at the starting line in Atacama.”  In a perfect world, that’s what one would wish for.  However, I’ll just hope that good karma keeps me from injury, more colds and of course, that both my luggage and I show up…on time.

Don’t forget to pack the little things like “body glide” and "sun block" which can make the difference between a great day and one filled with oaths, tears and chaffed burnt body parts.

 See everyone soon!

 Song of the week:: “Crazy Frog” By Axel F

Tip of the week:   Relax and enjoy this last week of training : >)

Book of the week:  “We Die Alone” – By:  David Howarth

 Cheers, Jacqueline 

So, on Sunday morning I awoke realizing that I had lost an hour of training while sleeping! Yup, it’s daylight savings time here which means, that for many of us, it’s still dark when we get up for work…and those of us training for Atacama, need to fly to the west coast to gain that hour (plus two) back! Wow, way too much trouble. I’ll just muddle through somehow.!"

Last week was quite productive and saw much headway in my preparation for the race. The shoemaker had finished affixing the Velcro to my sneakers (for my gaiters), the mail man delivered my freeze fried food and shirt, which is now at the tailors where the patches are being sewn on. Mind you, I want to make certain that they are sewn on proper and will not fall off during the race. My recurring dream is, getting lost, having no identification on me and wandering the desert like Moses for the next forty years! Although, being a woman, I would ask for directions.
Valentine’s Day for me was the best it’s been in a decade! My firm informed me on that day, that they would sponsor me for my race! Now that was splendid news and will positively bode well for The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (“CHOP”) for whom I am once again raising money. Besides, I had given up all sweets at the end of January so this news eased the pain of not being able to indulge in scrumptious hazelnut dark chocolate truffles!
In addition, at the end of February, I gave up alcohol!   So the dilemma was, what to give up for Lent. How about running, training, going to the gym, just to name a few things?!

Now, it's a little bit challenging to go out with friends, that is WHEN I go out with my friends, and watch them indulge in libations and all kinds of yummy high carb sinfully delicious food and deserts while I toss back, yet another cranberry juice. It’s this kind of deprivation which will ultimately drive me to the finish line where I plan on having a very large bowl of coffee ice cream and the first cold beer handed me!

Last week I was contacted by a company I had reached out to regarding their new hydration system. They asked if I would test the system as it had never been used in an extreme environment for such a lengthy period of time. Really cool! New Balance also contacted me and said they were sending me some of their clothing to test. This will be great! I will be a test subject in the desert with really only one purpose…to finish so I can indulge in everything I’ve given up these past few months!
Okay, so remember, now is the time, to be careful, stay healthy and put off going to any concert that will involve moshing!

About four weeks before a race, I start reading real life inspirational stories. It’s a way of preparing my mind to push my body to attain my goal. No TV, just good old fashioned reading and absorbing the experiences of others, as I know I will glean something, and that something will be what I remember when it gets brutal out there. I will list a few of my favorites in each blog leading up to the race.

So with only nineteen days to go, or if you are living on the other side of the world, eighteen days! See everyone soon!

Song of the month: “Tattoo” By Jordin Sparks

Tip of the month: Coconut Water is a great recovery drink. It’s isotonic with the same electrolytic balance as our blood.

Best book while training for the Gobi last year: “The Long Walk” By: Slavomir Rawicz

Book of the week: “It’s How You Play the Game” – By: Brian Kilmeade

Cheers, Jacqueline

Training is challenging enough without having to now contend with Super Bowl Sunday. For those not familiar with this popular US game day, let’s just say that leading up to this huge sporting event, retail sales for flat screen TV’s and recliners escalate. This is the most watched television program of the year. So much for the US being in a “recession!"   Here is a cliff note description of what will happen this Sunday: 

  1.  Pizza sales will be 50% higher than on any other Sunday during the year. 

  2.   Fifty-eight possibly hilarious 30-second commercial spots will be shown and they cost $2.7 million each.

  3.  Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers will be playing at half-time. 

  4.  Sandwiched in between the ads and entertainment, the New York Giants play the New England Patriots.

These two testosterone driven football teams (American football), will hit the field and proceed to entertain the rest of the country for several hours. In other words, the players will run, hit, grovel and sweat, each team striving to be the winner and earn the title of being Super Bowl Champions. During this time, we, the spectators, drink and eat non-stop for several hours before, during and after the game. Hmmm, this is most definitely not part of “my” training program. I mentally checked and rechecked, and am absolutely certain that spending a day in gluttony, with less than sixty days before race day, is not part of the program. So, my challenge is to stick to Sunday’s training regime, watch the game, cheer, yell and encourage my team across the goal line all the while keeping my distance from the food that once consumed will instantly turn into poundage which I will ultimately have to lug across the desert! Will let you know how it goes. 

It's been sheer luck, that where I live, we have not been hit with snow storms…yet. Although it’s cold, I can still run outside. Will begin running with the pack in another week as well as wearing it while working out on the elliptical machine.  I ordered my Montrail Hardrock running shoes,. a full size larger. They were magnificent in both the Sahara and the Gobi. Also ordered my gaiters, which when they arrive will once again be affixed to my shoes by my trusty shoemaker. He is a “the king” of shoes in my eyes and has taken a keen interest in affixing my gaiters to my shoes as he has never before had such a request. In both races, his work endured seven days of sand, water and rocky terrain.

So from the East Coast of the US, here's hoping that my running tights fit on Monday morning!  

Song of the month: “Do It Well” By Jennifer Lopez

Tip of the month:  Chocolate milk is a great recovery drink right after a run. It has the perfect 4 to 1 ratio of carbohydrates and protein that have been proven to increase the recovery rate.   

Gear of the Month: Under Armour Cold Weather Gear

Cheers, Jacqueline

... are some of the words in the song “Ring of Fire” sung by Johnny Cash.  Yes, one definitely needs to be “bound by wild desire” to be so utterly committed to training for an ultra on any level. I said goodbye to 2007 with a great 10 mile run on New Year’s Eve and entered 2008 with my rowing friends in a boathouse on the river around which I have spent countless hours rowing, dragon boating and running. It is a warm feeling to be surrounded by individuals who are also driven by their own personal athletic desires and “get it,” meaning, a person’s desire to push so very hard, seek out the challenges and thrill of the endorphin rush one experiences when the goal is achieved.
I view the desert race as a reminder of my good fortune, being healthy, aspiring to pursue and achieve my dreams. I have already logged several miles rowing on the river. Yes, it is winter but the feeling or lack thereof in one’s fingers and face is a stark reminder that one is alive and perhaps indicates the need for a lobotomy.   I  asked someone I recently met, an avid athlete for many years, if he was going to start working out more in 2008 as due to his personal life and work, he had not been able to do so as much as he would have liked in 2007.  He responded by saying, “Working out is not something that one just does. It’s a lifestyle.” So true. My day would seem incomplete, if I was not able to engage in some type of physical work-out for at least ninety minutes.
Only 79 days until Chile.  I am truly excited.  The allure of yet another desert is powerful. It takes a whole lot of something to say no to going out for drinks after work, having three not four slices of my favorite macaroni and cheese pizza (oh thanks “Piece of Pizza” guys in Ardmore for always inquiring as to how my training is going) and pushing myself through that fourth hour of training on the weekends instead of calling it quits.  All this I don’t do just so I won’t offend anyone walking around in my swim suit on the beach in the summer, although that is certainly considerate of me don’t you think?.
Training for January means more steep grades, steps, bleachers, making the quads scream and longer runs on the weekends. Swimming, rowing, weightlifting and a rock climbing rope skills class make the training days that much less tedious. Huge emphasis on core strength. Before I even brush my teeth, 500 sit-ups. That ensures, my stomach got some kind of attention other than the food I am going to fill it up with during the day. This will be the last month in which I will take one day a week off from training. Come February it will be seven days a week and then in March, back to one day a week off and a taper before the race. A new Raidlight pack will need to be purchased this week as my last one endured training and two desert runs before coming apart..

Song of the month: “Destination Unknown” By Marietta (From the movie “Top Gun”)

Tip of the month: When running on a hill, look at the ground in front of you. It’s a mental victory, as the ground you see under you will appear flat making the ascent easier.

Gear of the Month: CW-X Conditioning Wear

Cheers, Jacqueline

Happy St. Nicholas Day and December Snow

Last night, it snowed almost all day here in Philly!  It was the second snow of the season and cold enough so that the night glowed with the whiteness of the surroundings.  I ran along the river which mirrored back the lights of Boat House Row.  I thought about those brave thirteen men who had just finished racing through the “ Last Desert .”  Several of them I knew from the Sahara and Gobi and I am so very proud of each of them!

Two weeks ago, my friend Jen and I went out rowing in a double.  It was 28 degrees and I had to question our sanity.  Rowing in 28 degree weather is everything you imagine it to be.  Very cold!  Very, very cold!  Numb is what we were within moments of starting off up the river.  So numb that your fingers feel as if they are permanently curled around your oar.  Fast forward to the end of our row…pure exhilaration!  That’s when ruddy cheeks and calloused hands are testimony to what you have just done and a cup of coffee and breakfast tastes positively scrumptious!  Jen, who is much more skilled than I in the shell, tirelessly goes out with me, always patient and never wavering in her confidence in my neophyte skills.  She sits behind me, letting me stroke, which I think she does just so that she can make faces at me the whole time. 

Becoming obsessive about work-outs is the only way I remain committed to my goals.  No two training days for me are alike.  That would bore me.  I allow myself one day off a week right now and add as much variety to each workout that my imagination will allow.  If the weather is foul, I don’t run outside.  No need to slip on wet leaves or ice, spending the next six weeks nursing broken bones.  Swimming is grand and a welcome change to always working out in the vertical position.  I also have the ever-present behemoth rowing machine staring at me in my living room to remind me that there really is no reason to not exercise.  I have taken to rowing on it steadily for an hour or more while watching a movie.  I get a couple of DVD’s from the library, preferably action films that I have seen before so I don’t need to hear every word to follow along, pop it into the machine…and just row.  This month I will continue to try out different brands of cold weather gear and to see if Mary Jane’s Outpost has come out with any new freeze dried meals.  After experimenting with quite a number of foods for both the Sahara and Gobi , I have found her meals to be the best tasting, most generous in portion size and a generous selection of meals that a vegetarian like me can enjoy. Her outrageous Outback Oatmeal fueled me each morning before my run in the desert and her eco pouches are also environmentally friendly.

So, the work day is over for me, and I am headed home to see if St. Nicholas perhaps left me an Icebreaker zip top or pair of gaiters!

Song of the month:  Promentory by Trevor Jones (Soundtrack from the movie “Last of the Mohicans”)

Tip of the month:  Tie the shoelaces on your running shoes, to the outside instead of directly in the middle.  Less pressure on your dorsal ridge.

Attire of the Week:  Black Diamond Gloves

Cheers, Jacqueline

Hello sports fans,

Well here on the east coast we have been favored with summertime weather until a week ago.  No kidding, it's been in the high seventies to low eighties  which has been bliss for all runners, bikers, rowers and me, training for Atacama.  Now we are in the first week of November and this morning it was 35 degrees and only going up to the mid fifties.  That means running with gloves on which is better than running with socks on which I did while running through the snow storm in the Gobi.  Cute, especially since they were Injini toe socks   For me, dragon boat season is over which means that the seasonal callous on my butt can heal, and my running can again get back into full swing.  I have decided to add a few other races to my 2008 calendar.  There is a 24 mile swim at the end of April in Tampa Bay, Florida and a team of three guys decided to take a gamble on me and asked me to be part of their team for the 450 mile Primal Quest race in June.  This means training regardless of the weather, six days a week, run, swim, bike, weights and whatever else constitutes getting fit.  Right now, it's two hour workouts during the week and 3 plus hours on the weekend.  Hoisting beers/vodka falls under the category of "weight workout and although not encouraged, it isn't "verboten."  This would be the workout of choice on the day off.  Gosh, I just love being my own coach

Having said the above, my social life has dwindled down significantly.  I left the gym last night at 10pm, that's when it closes and I really wondered at how long my resolve to continue this would last.  I keep up with family and friends by sending out 10 second "I'm alive" e-mails and voice mails.  Fortunately, my friends are great and check in to make sure I haven't drowned, ridden off a cliff or come into contact with a moving vehicle while running.  For me, workouts are a solitary event.  Most of the time while running in the desert, I'm on my own, so I try to simulate that by training in similar fashion.  Swimming and running especially are great opportunities to think, figure out why you are where you are in life and get out all that negative energy stored up over some ridiculous thing you wanted to happen but didn't.  It's great, as it really helps to put alot of things into perspective and it makes one great at monologues which in useful when in the desert and your tent mates actually want to go to sleep instead of sitting up chatting

Have a sixteen year old down-load music onto your Ipod.  Thanks again Katie  Positively first class!  Instead of tunes you are used to listening to, suddenly Shock Value and Dancetereia is chiming in your head and you find yourself lengthening your stride and breaking into a wild dance to the amusement of all the cars sitting at a red light.  Okay...so that only happened once.  Being corney, I make sure that Tom Jones and Elvis tunes are mixed in.   Hey, don't knock TJ, he does a great rendition of Prince's song "Kiss."

So, here we are in November with the impending holidays taunting us.  I have no sound advice as to handle the plethora of food we will be indulging in not just on Thanksgiving day, but the three days thereafter for us here in the USA.  I suppose one could hop on a plane to another country that doesn't celebrate this holiday, and come home Sunday night.  Expensive alternative, but with airplane food being what it is, you can be certain that you will come home five pounds lighter.

Must go back to work, as the job is the reason I can go on these expensive forays through the desert.

Shoe of the month:  Asics Gel Nimbus - 1/2 size larger than what I usually wear.  Nice and light with ample cushioning

Song of the month:  "Sandstorm" by Darude (No lyrics)

Running attire of the month:  Helly Hanson

Cheers, Jacqueline