Since being here in Nebraska City and rediscovering the joys of running in warm temps, my next goal is a marathon in warm temps. A getaway during the cold winter months, when the chill refuses to rise above 10 degrees and it’s dark and brutal and I’m so damned sick of chopping ice off my windshield in […]

Hee, hee, just checked the weather in Anchorage and it’s 18 degrees. Yep, 18. Brrrrrr! Poor MM is slogging out a run in tights, long sleeve tech shirt, windbreaker, mittens and a hat. While I’m wearing shorts and a tank. And sunscreen!  Yes, folks, that says 78 degrees! The Lower 48 sure is grand. […]

Today was hot, with a high of 81 plus high humidity here in Nebraska City. Naturally, I ran during the hottest part of the day. It was like running in a cauldron of soup. The air was clammy and moist, I was clammy and moist. Even the webs between my fingers were clammy. Sweat poured off […]

Some days, you just don’t want to run. Maybe your legs are heavy or your stomach is upset or you didn’t sleep well the night before. I had all three today. My stomach was queasy from too much Mexican food, I didn’t sleep well and I had swum a mile, fast (or fast for me) at […]

Anyone see the New York Times article abou Christian Hesch, the runner who was caught cheating? He wasn’t an elite athlete but was still able to make his living off racing, netting about $40,000 a year.  He looks kind of squirrely in this photo, eh? According to the article, he drove down to Mexico, […]

It’s autumn in Nebraska City, even though the temps are close to 70 and Tuesday it’s supposed to reach 80. Heady stuff for this Alaska gal.  Bush outside the Arts Center. Look at those colors, so vibrant and bold! Today fellow residents M (painter) and A (musician) and I headed out the Steamboat Trace […]

Thanks for the encouraging comments from my last post, where I whined about having to run on roads. Really, I should be thankful that at my age (I am a wee bit older than most runners reading this post, hee, hee), I’m able to run and enjoy it as much as I do. So yesterday I stopped my whining, […]

I don’t want to run today. Being here in Nebraska has made me realize something I often forget in Alaska: I hate running on roads. I mean I hate it. The roads here in town are picture-perfect, with a canopy of trees hanging over the streets and old-fashioned houses with sloped yards. Pretty, no? I know […]

This is too cool: I just heard that my essay on running (titled “Running”–sorry, I’ve never been able to come up with catchy titles) won the Sport Literate literary magazine essay award. I am SO stoked. I wish I could include the entire essay here, but I think I signed away first rights when I […]

Life is funny, no? Here I am in Nebraska City for my month-long writing residency at Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts. I never thought I’d find myself in Nebraska. I hadn’t even thought much about Nebraska, actually. Yet I’m loving it. The weather has been awesome, sunny almost every day. Kimmel Harding Nelson Arts Center. […]