East Bay Bike Path

Terrain: Paved Bike Path

Path: Providence to Bristol via East Bay Bike Path
Time: ~4.5 hours
Mileage: 10/13
Blister Count: 2

 

 

To say we 'pushed' through may be an understatement. The weather called for low 80s and a breeze. It turned out to be more than that. The temperature had to be in the high 80s, mostly no breeze, and hello humidity. 

We met up at India Point Park in Providence at 9:30am. It was supposed to be a 8:30am start, but someone (cough, cough) did not wake up on time. I doubt the hour would have made much of a difference in the weather and our walking. My mother drove Jill, Kate, and I up, while Becky and Aunt Irene carpooled. Aunt Irene and my mother played crew and met us at different intersections along the way with water, snacks, and many thumbs-up.

The park was busy. Kids were playing on the playground. Morning joggers were out on the paths doing their thing, and a group of paddle boarders were taking off on the bay. They looked to be just standing on the water. We made a Jesus reference as we drove by to the parking lot, and decided that was our church for this Sunday. 

Once we all met up and took our pre-walk picture, Becky, Jill, Kate, and I took off for the bike path. Before we even found the right direction and bridge to cross, Becky was firing away with the questions of my dinner the night before and why I slept in. Really, it was just as simple as I didn't hear my alarm. But in an effort not to answer directly, I continued to stuff my face with my breakfast. "You're going to eventually run out of rice cake," she warned me. 

When I finished my breakfast, I changed the topic to my thyroid levels which proved to be a good distraction. We crossed the right bridge - the Washington St. Bridge, not the India Point Park Bridge that I wanted to cross, and continued down through East Providence.

The start of the bike path here is just on the road and sidewalks. It isn't until almost 3/4 of a mile in that it turns to a dedicated paved bike path. The bikers were plenty, walkers few. Some gave us dirty looks as we passed, as if they were offended we were walking on their bike path. Others yelled at us to walk on the other side - yet all the signage said "Walk Left, Bike Right." But maybe we were the only ones who could read. We did pass a few friendly bikers, as well as other walkers and runners, but they were few and far between. 

One of my favorite parts of this bike path is the scenery. Once we pass the Port of Providence, the harbor views are great.  Pomham Rocks Lighthouse sits in the bay and many times the path splits the water. Becky and I were keeping our eyes out for deer, seals, and birds crossing the path. Neither one of us would have done well with that. 

Becky and I eagerly kept our eyes peeled for the mile markers. On this bike path, they are painted on the pavement. At one point, Jill asked us how we knew we were at whatever mile before looking down and realizing she was standing right on the marker. The half-mile intervals were also marked, but they weren't nearly as exciting as seeing the real numbers, or the numbers from the other direction (which really told us what we had left, not what we've done.)  The double digits couldn't come soon enough!

If we were thirsty along the route, we were able to find that too. Our crew kept water on ice for us and we were able to refill our water bottles with cool drinks. A mooring in Barrington said it held beers and around mile 11 we stumbled into Del's for a refreshing drink. They had the air conditioner on I thought it felt great. Jill said it made her feel sick and realized how much the heat was getting to her. 

We sat for a bit to refresh and regroup our bodies. Jill and Kate decided not to continue. Between the heat and hot spots, they were done. Becky and I chose to go on. I'm not sure why. In retrospect, we probably should have stopped here too. But, how much more could 3 miles really be? 

Much more! The last 3 miles were probably the most grueling of the walk. It was around 2pm and all we could see ahead of us was paved path. The afternoon sun beat down on us and the pavement. No shade was in sight. The breeze we were counting on from the water was hot or non existent. Our feet clad against the path and the weather wore us right down. All Becky could think about was bed; all I could think about was having a cheeseburger.

We knew Colt State Park was getting close, but Becky and I hoped that Aunt Irene or my mother would happen to be at one of the intersections before we got there. No such luck.  Jill texted me and said just 1 mile after we passed the entrance to the park, we'd be done. Ha! We laughed as we passed a half-mile marker. 

Becky and I were done. We turned off at Colt State Park and were about to ask my mother to swing around and pick us up when we spotted Aunt Irene's car. I couldn't climb in and sit fast enough! We were beat. 

We met Jill, Kate, and my mother at Agave Restaurant at the end of the bike path. Becky just wanted to head home and catch up on her rest from working the night before. She and Aunt Irene shuttled off. We reloaded into my mother's car and went to find lunch. 

We ended up at Aidan's Pub and ran into cousin Taylor working. They sat us right under the air conditioner which was perfect. We had a small appetizer and then I finally had my cheeseburger. For the hour ride home, I think we all slept - or at least I did!

Misquammy Miles (8/19/15)

Terrain: Road
Path: Misquamicut to Watch Hill-ish & back
Time: 1.25 hours
Mileage: 5 miles
Blister Count: 1

Walked: August 19, 2015

It's been a while since I've walked and I needed to get out as The Walk is looming. A package from Hippie Runners was in the mailbox for me, and email solicitations sent out earlier in the day brought in close to $300. Motivation was set.

I forwent my daily nap and slipped my Fit Flops on - orange this time as they needed to be broken in more before I wear them for 50 miles. I picked out one of my new Hippie Runner bands and set my audiobook on my phone. Off I went. 

My route took me down Shore Rd. to Ocean View Highway.  Not wanting to go too far in one direction and wear myself out, I turned around at the Misquamicut Club and headed back toward Atlantic Ave. 

Generally, I am not a fan of the out-and-backs, but this stretch of sky along Ocean View Highway was worth it. The humidity was starting to settle in and the sky showed it. A layer of pink from the sun about to set sat just above the horizon with a layer of white then blue atop it. Among the weeds in the marsh before the barrier beach the sky was changing and kept me going. 

I made my way over to Atlantic Ave. where I had to dodge traffic, a loose barking dog that the owner couldn't control (fortunately it was just a small terrier type), and tourists cruising the beach. Again, knowing I didn't want to go too far one way, I decided I would turn at the State Beach.

The sun was just about down and more out of fear of deer and raccoons running across my path, I turned at the main entrance to the beach. When I did I saw what I was missing in the sky behind me. The colors popped out of the West and streaked to the East.  

I went up on the pavilion to get a better view, not thinking about my miles any more. It was somewhat blocked so I made my way to the sandy beach and took a bunch of pictures. At some point, and probably too late, I slipped my shoes off and let my toes settle in the cool sand. Is there a better feeling? 

People were still on the beach, lounging, skygazing, and picking up from a long summer's day on the sand. I walked down toward the first path and slipped my FitFlops again. I barely made it across the parking lot when I realized my mistake: I never brushed the sand off my feet before starting again. 

By the time I made it back home, just over a mile or so later, I could feel where the strapping rubbed the sand granules into my foot. I am not used to getting blisters so I didn't really catch on or do anything about the hot spot when I felt it. Needless to say, I had a nice blister form when I got home. 

Not being one for needles of any sort, I let my blister dry out naturally and callous over. I've also gotten all the sand off my feet and FitFlops. Now I should be ready for another walk and more miles!

(I am going to have to keep this in mind on Saturday of the walk when we hit the National Seashore!)

Making a MesS

Hot MesseS made a mess! We took advantage of our creative strengths and pulled together a successful Paint Night, raising over $1400 toward our team goal.

Kate and Jill, artists extraordinaire, led the charge. Jill worked on the logistics and pricing, while Kate found a picture, gathered donated and discounted materials, and taught 40 eager participants to make lilies (or starfish) look good.

Once we settled on a date, Friday, July 31st, we had to find a venue. Fortunately, Paul, who is like a second father to Jill and I, had an in at a local social club. He secured the hall and a bartender for us.

From there, Jill and Kate figured out price per ticket ($45) and we set out promoting the fundraiser. It was slow to start. We depended mostly on word-of-mouth, Evite invitations, and email. As the date got closer and the numbers weren't where we wanted them, we made a Facebook Event page and invited everyone. 

It still took about a week or two to catch on. We needed payment up front to help cover the costs and we limited the tickets to 40. But once, it caught, it spread! We filled up quickly in the two weeks prior the event and had to start turning people away.

The night of the event we met down at the Calabrese Club early. The tables had been set up already. We added tablecloths, and set the stations with water, brushes, easels, and canvases. As people filtered in we put the paint pallets out. We also set up at table for basket raffles, and one for pizza and chips. 

Right on time, people started coming in. Jill gave me a somewhat organized list of who was coming and if they paid. We sold raffle tickets at the door and directed people to the baskets. The bar was open as a cash bar and people mingled about.

Once the seats were filled and everyone settled in, Jill thanked everyone for their support and introduced the team. We weren't painting, just hanging out and being in the background, sometimes causing trouble....

It was neat to see everyone's blank canvas transform into bright oranges, purples, and greens. The main picture was of two tiger lilies with their leaves set on a dark purple and green background. Despite Kate leading everyone with the same direction and painting, there were 40 very different pictures in the final.

That's how I see MS affects us. While it attacks the body and the nervous system in distinctive ways, it manifests differently for everyone. I hope by continuing to raise funds for the National MS Society, we can continue to paint everyone's picture full of bright and vibrant colors.

Breaking Hearts

Terrain: Trail
Path: Arcadia Management Area, Heartbreak Pond
Time: ~2 hours
Mileage: 6.7
Blister Count: 0 (for me)

The months since we met as a team back in February flew by. The weather finally broke and outside from doing short 3-5 mile walks, we haven't done much as a team and distance. We were anxious to pack some miles on.

Jill met me at my house and we went to Kate's. She lives near the woods so we snaked through some back roads and found a parking spot at a trail head. We had a general idea where we were, but no real trail map or plan. I had my GPS with me just in case and Kate had a map of sorts on her phone. 

The summer thus far has been humid, and we were feeling like a trio of hot messes trudging through the woods. Before leaving the car at the lot, we lathered up in our sunscreen and bug spray. Due in part to the humidity, the bugs were crazy. They stuck mostly to Kate, which she blamed on her blue hair. Something about the color must attract them.

It wasn't long before starting down the path that we could see a giant hill ahead of us. It's just a warm up, I told Kate and Jill. It was one of those long, gradual, feel-it-with-every-step kind of hills. If we thought we felt like hot messes before starting, we certainly felt it now! Thankfully there were steps on the other side we could take down. They were nice on our knees.

We took the path down to an old farm road, past a dead end street, some houses, and two horses. After passing Fabio's calling card, we spotted some trail markers and followed those down hill. We had a feeling that hill may kill us on the way back. 

The trail took us down to Breakheart Pond and we did the loop around. It was still early in the morning so the water was calm and yielded nice pictures. We walked around the launch spot to the fishing ladder and stayed mesmerized by it for a few minutes. Due to the dry spring and summer, there wasn't much water running down the ladder. 

Occasionally, I try to geocache while on these training walks. The caches on this loop around the pond I had already found. However, when we passed an old foundation, Jill noticed a Tupperware container among the stones. (I've trained her well!) Nothing was showing on my GPS to be here, so I went down to investigate. 

Stepping carefully to avoid any creatures, namely snakes, from grabbing my toes, I safely made it down. I pulled out the container and before I had the lid fully off, Kate was squealing. I thought there would be a deer hiding behind me. When Jill and I looked at her funny, she spouted out, "Rainbow Dash! My favorite!" Still unsure of what she was referring to, I took the lid off and found what she was referring to. A My Little Pony lay on its side in the box. I found a stamp in there too which indicated it was a letterbox and not a geocache.  

The heat was getting to us enough. We thought we'd be able to avoid it being under the trees, but we were wrong. Our trail antics and conversations were getting a little crazy. Unlike a roadside walk, on the trails we had plenty of distractions to keep us entertained.  We test drove an old tricycle, played with a Frisbee, and discussed the colorful mushrooms along the way. 

This year will be Kate's first walk with us. On the farm road back, she asked us for some tips and what to expect. We mentioned all the people, the crew teams, the hotel we planned to crash at, the soreness we push through, and the fun of it all.

Jill suggested we line our canvas "change of clothes" bag with waterproof bags/ziplocs - nothing like putting wet socks on at lunch. We mentioned the multitude of snacks and pit stops. Find a light water bottle to refill at the stations. We go out to dinner and hit the Jacuzzi at night. Expect blisters and bring scissors to cut the moleskin. 

It was a good almost-7-mile walk and talk. After the walk, the upcoming 50-mile Challenge seemed more real and sudden. Time to really start packing on the miles! 

 

We did this walk on July 11, 2015

Hot MesseS Yard Sale

Whew!

I'm glad that's over! I'd be lying if I said otherwise. However, we did get rid of a bunch of stuff, hung out, and raised just over $350 for our team!

When our team & support met back in February to kick off our 2015 walk, one of the fundraising ideas that came up was to do a yard sale. Then time passed and we mostly forgot about it. Some time in April, Aunt Marylen brought us all back on track.

A flurry of emails went back and forth between us all covering dates, locations, times, & all the details we could think of to successfully have a yard sale. It turned out that we would do the yard sale at my house on a Sunday in June. Not necessarily an ideal time (it is suggested Saturdays are better), but it was a time that worked for us and we made it work.

A few weeks before, I asked everyone to drop off their items to sell so we could get an overview of what we had, price things out, and be ready to go. That didn't happen. I spent those hours napping & catching up on some season finales.

I began to worry that we weren't going to have anything to sell and it would all be a flop. Kate stopped by the next day with a few boxes and I began to have some hope. Later that week when I came home from work, my roommate informed me that my uncle had dropped things off for the yard sale. I peeked inside and the pile was growing. Good, this was going to work after all.

Finally the weekend was here for the yard sale. Aunt Marylen, my mother, and Jill were in my garage pricing things out when I returned from work on that Saturday (Thanks to the price tags Paula donated!). I was ready for a nap, but I stayed and helped them get everything tagged and sorted. Thankfully they had a bunch already done.

We wanted to get as much done as we could on Saturday so we wouldn't have to do it Sunday. Happy to say, most of it was done by the time our stomachs growled. We checked in with our father about dinner. Dad said he was on his way down, so we began making signs. Jill put her inner artist to work while Dad used his mechanical skill that the rest of us lack to put the 5 roadside signs together. Then, it was finally time for some Pizza Place.

Jill crashed at my house that night and we were up early to set up. We borrowed tables from a local fire department and a few friends let us use their pop-up tents. Showers were in the area overnight and lingering in the morning. Our mother popped by and said the signs she put out were already drooping with the rain. A quick fix and a few extra signs, and she was back on the road strategically planting them.

Our sale hours were posted 8-2pm. We knew to expect people early, so we were mostly ready. We set up tables in the garage and then two of the pop-up tents coming out of the garage. The sky began to lighten and we knew it wasn't going to be a wash-out. Our first customer showed up at 7:40am. Not bad. And he bought items...even better! From there on through we had a pretty steady stream of customers & some browsers.

Rachel showed up with some delicious fruit, and Aunt Marylen came with bagels and cream cheese. Aunts Mary & Irene came by with Julie and hung around for a while. Jackie showed up with a burst of energy that we needed mid-morning. A few friends stopped by to make donations. Our mother stayed the whole time and caught up with old friends that stopped by. It was a great excuse to see everyone, and with everyone there, it made the day fly by.

After noon the crowds started to dwindle. We rearranged items throughout the day and moved things out of the garage. Jackie was determined to get more sales/donations so she found my old horse costume. With the help of my mother and sister, she was dressed and ready to go. She galloped out to the roadside and waved people in. The cars that came in afterwards, said they came in because of her. Good to know she still lives up to "Wacky Jacky!"

As the end drew near, I counted out the bank we started with and made sure we were paid back. The surplus was hard to guess as it was all in a Tupperware container. We took some guesses, but mostly agreed that if we made over $100, it was worth it.

All in all, we were successful. We raised over $350, which we split evenly among the team, and we got rid of most items. The things that were left over we were able to load into Jill & Jackie's cars to drop off at a donation bin.

Thank you to everyone who helped, stopped by, donated, and shared our event!! We look forward to seeing you at our next event: Paint Night!

Training - Take 1

Terrain: Road
Path: Misquamicut to Weekapaug & back
Time: 2:15 hours
Mileage: 7.55 miles
Blister Count: 1.9

 

RI Ones Fireman's Memorial Sunday 2015

My legs feel heavy. My hip is sore. My feet are tight. I need to stretch. I need to move.

It's Monday morning, and while I did many things this weekend, it took me a few hours to determine why my legs were so sore. We walked.

Sunday morning after the Firemen's Memorial Parade around the park, Jill and I had decided we'd do a training walk. The calendar / training schedule put out on the walk's website suggested we walk 10 miles. The temperature was in the 80s and the humidity was high. No way were we going to walk in town. The air was stagnant there.

Instead, we met down at my house and set out on our first training walk of the season together by the beach with the sea breeze. We lathered up in sunscreen. I used Jill's as mine was in my car. 70 SPF! I thought this was a crazy high spf, but it turned out I needed it. The sun was shining down the entire walk and it found the spots I missed: back of my neck, forehead where my headband slipped up, and my upper arms when I rolled up my sleeves. Oops.  We filled our water bottles and bid farewell to the cats.

We got to the end of the driveway and then had to decide where we were going to go. Right or left? We went straight.

Eventually we ended up going to the left and headed toward Weekapaug. Though the schedule suggested 10 miles, we knew we were not quite up to that, especially with the heat that was going on.

Breachway

It was quite warm. The mid-day sun was beating down and the sea breeze was still. Jill had a cooling towel with her, but even that was drying up fast. I had rolled up my sleeves and suggested we get Hot MesseS tank tops next. It's going to be a hot summer of training.

As we got walking past the beaches and bars, we decided we could go for about 6 miles. A little bit further down the road, we realized we were only about a mile from the Weekapaug Breechway. We decided to go for it. We were feeling good.

Aside from weekly/bi-weekly personal training with Kellie, this walk was the most activity either of us have done in a while. Jill has been good about doing some shorter walks from her house. I think I've done 2 and I haven't been running which I was last time we trained. But also, because of our training with Kellie, we decided we could continue on.

Overall, the walk was uneventful. We did come across two kayaks parked in the grass on the way back. So obviously, I took a picture. We contemplated the whys and hows they got there. If I parked my bright green kayak in the sea grass, it'd have to be a bit more camouflaged.

We changed up our return slightly. We walked passed Winnepaug Road this time and continued a few streets down to turn down a side street.

We were both feeling pretty fatigued when we arrived back at my house. Jill felt a blister on her little toes - one on top, one underneath, opposite feet. She was wearing her new Hoka shoes. I was breaking in my newest Fit Flops. They are purple and did fabulous! Minor rubbing on one foot between my toes, but it quickly went away. Not a hot spot!

After refueling we were on our way. Me to bed to nap - had just enough time too before meeting Becky for the Avett Brothers - & Jill home to the woods of Connecticut.

Now to do it again....

Monday Musings

So this is what it feels like to be able to move on a Monday? Nice! Though I have to admit, I kind of miss the soreness when I climbed out of bed this morning, or ascended the stairs at work.

Over the last month, Jill and I have enlisted Kellie as our personal trainer to make sure we could be in the best shape for taking on the 50 miles that lay ahead of us.

Beth joined us for the first two weeks and we can't wait until she's back with us. Meanwhile, Aunt Wendy has stepped up and joined us for the hour on the weekends. Last weekend we almost had Becky joining us too. Chatter and laughter make the hour fly by.

Kellie has been great working with us and each of our different needs. I recently had surgery and she tailored exercises for me that wouldn't impact my healing. Initially, I felt like we had to really push ourselves - we were with a personal trainer after all. But Kellie, while she pushes us, she also encourages us not to do more than we can handle and to take breaks. She has a way of being more 'personal' than 'trainer' and the intimidation of the first week has melted away.

I believe doing this has also helped my recovery. After my surgery, I felt exhaustion like never before. I couldn't imagine getting out of bed, nevermind getting dressed or leaving the house. My body and limbs felt like cement blocks. My mind was foggy and I didn't always know what day or time it was.

After our first session, I could barely keep my eyes open but felt motivated that I would get better and get back to 'normal' feeling sooner than later. I brought an iced coffee with me as my 'reward' and I was proud to have made it through afterwards. It also helped to celebrate Christmas after our first session. And by 'celebrate' I mean Beth gave Jill & I our Christmas presents in the back parking lot. Yes, this was in April.

Another factor in all this was the weather. It really hadn't gotten much better since my last post. Sans the snow, but hello wind! The first two weeks we trained with Kellie, we probably would have bailed on walking because of the weather. The idea of training for the walk indoors was foreign to us, and now I look forward to it.

This week, we are supposed to begin our 'training schedule.' It is our intention to stay more on top of the training schedule set forth by the National MS Society. It involves walking 3-4 times per week with gradually longer walks on Sundays. The 18-week 'ideal' program begins tomorrow with a 3-mile jaunt.

My intention is to rise early and head to Weekapaug for a sunrise walk. However, I don't believe the clouds, fog, and precipitation will want to cooperate with me. I may just have to plan a quicker route from my house. I still intend to go in the morning though. It is easier to get things done then, and I won't want to after going to dinner.

While we start really walking this week, we have been busy chatting and planning. Jill took the liberty to assign areas to the team for the long walks based on a rotation of our home towns. I believe the full team right now is 6 awesome walkers - none of whom live less than 20 minutes to each other. I think Kate and I may be the closest?


We will be doing a Yard Sale fundraiser at the end of June, and another event at the end of July. Something small may pop up in August and then the Challenge Walk will be here! When I put it like that, it feels like it is happening tomorrow.

Our first order of shirts came in also. Kate designed the lettering on them. (Go Kate!) They are bright
orange. I think my t-shirt guy, Ben, likes to make sure we won't be over looked. They came out great and I look forward to wearing mine at 5am tomorrow. I won't blend in with the fog!

The next few months are going to fly by. I hope to keep you updated with our progress and antics as we go. Or you can just join us and become a Hot MesS yourself!

Frosty Footsteps

Terrain: Snowy sand, ice, some pavement
Mileage: ~ 6 miles (prior walks)
Time: ~ 2.5 hours
Route: Misquamicut State Beach to Watch Hill (East Beach) and back

Winter in New England has been...well, winter! It showed up in early January and parked itself right on the map over our beautiful region. Frigid temperatures and snow-blazed trails made January and February difficult training months. However, I like to think we made a valiant effort despite the conditions. We are, after all, hearty Yankees and won't let Mother Nature slow us down.

...for the most part.

It was a new year and time to step up our training game. 2015 flew in with great ambition to get out and walk. The first weekend of the y
ear, Jill and I made plans to hit the trails in the morning. One glance at the thermometer and an ear turned to the howling wind, we decided the couch was a much better place to 'train' from. Of course it was very much "If you really want to go, I'll go"  "We should go; we said we were going to" and "We can take this weekend off, but we really need to go next week." The attempt was valid.

And then it snowed. And it snowed. We had Blizzard Warnings. We had Flash Ice Warnings. We had snow plied up beyond mailboxes and stop signs. We had temperatures drop and records broken. We had training to do and we were snowbound.

Finally, the first weekend in February some of us got out. Becky and the pups (Ramona, Eugene, & Roxanne) met me at my house and we scooted over to the State Beach. Not only to our surprise was the lot partially plowed, but there were other cars in it. We weren't the only crazy ones seeking the beach under all the snow!

Our first challenge was getting out of the car. The pups could not wait to bolt out, but we had to attach their leashes first. They had almost an hour ride to get here and I couldn't blame them. If only we were as motivated to get out and go! As soon as we got out, we almost slip. The car provided good balance to catch us because while the lot was plowed, it was still icy.

We gingerly made our way over to the path to the beach. It was all ice and the pups were rearing to run. If they were any larger, we could have just let them lead us like sled dogs. Yet, we made it to the ocean without having to use our rear cushions.

The ocean just looked cold. It was not inviting and it was not glistening despite the sun shining down on it. The beach was white. The only sand was where high tide had been. We could see the frost heaves in the sand and everything was frozen. People played with their dogs or walked with their companions down to the left of us. We headed right, toward Watch Hill.

Before we got to Watch Hill, we had to venture back out on to the road. The rocks and the water were too close to skirt around. It was a pure ice mound the way we went. Our cushions came into use and we were thankful to have them on the slide down. The pups couldn't figure us out.

The road was plowed, even in the dead end. We made our way back onto the beach and out to the Ocean House without slipping again. Pure luck. A quick bathroom break and we were on our way back to the State Beach.

A couple of dead birds were washed up on the shore, and the pups thought it was lunch. Becky's method for protecting the interior of her car was to run toward the pups making as many weird noises as she could. The pups scattered away each time and then test her to see if they could sneak back. The noises won each time. 

Neither direction was very windy, which was nice. I expected it to be blustery and have to protect my face. I had gloves in my pocket that I didn't even need. In retrospect, I probably should have put them on if only to prevent this blister (first blister of training 2015) from carrying my water bottle. It was probably the only 'nice' day all winter so I got away with it. 

The path going back to the car was slightly uphill, or up-ice. It was a balancing act to place our steps in those others had made and make our way more gingerly than before. We managed to get to the car safely and corral the pups from the seagulls.

Somehow it seemed there were more cars in the lot by the time we got back there. I'm not sure where everyone was, but I'm sure they were taking advantage of the nice morning.It felt good to get out and say we did some sort of training. By the afternoon, it was snowing...again.