Celtic

My Cross Country Runner’s Rant:

I recently posed this question to the Minnesota High School Athletic Association: “Why do the “boys” run a 5 kilometer Cross Coutry race in competition, and the “girls” run a 4 kilometer race? The distance amounts to a mere difference of about 1/2 mile. Surely it is not the "weaker sex" argument. Local star Janis Klecker, and my personal hero, Joan Benoit Samuelson can attest to that.
If you answered “tradition”, well then I respond that in a blink of an eye they (Minnesota High School League) switched from the 2 mile in 1970 to the 3 mile distance mid season, and then again later to the 5 Kilometer. I was told that this was the National High School Federation's decision. So I wrote to the NFHS and received this response:

“The NFHS staff, at the direction of our member state associations, does not provide individual rule interpretations. All requests for an interpretation should first be directed through the proper channels at your school. If necessary, the state high school athletic/activities association should be contacted. Each state high school association adopting NFHS sports rules is the sole and exclusive source of binding rules interpretations for contests involving its member schools. The NFHS will answer questions from state association staff when they need assistance. This is done to better serve our member state associations and to ensure consistent interpretations throughout your state. Therefore, I would ask that you follow this procedure and should you need to contact the state association, you may locate the contact information at www.nfhs.org, State Association Listing.”

There you have it.

Pumpkin lites

The first use of the term "Jack O' Lantern" was in 1663, and used to describe flickering lights in marshy areas that move as you approach.. .always out of reach. Said to be a demon soul carrying coal, condemned to wander the earth.
(Scotland, Northern England).

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Speaking of lights... I used to decorate a shock of corn and pumpkins with orange lights just outside my front door. A few ornaments, plastic spiders and lights, that is about the extent of my Celtic Celebration. Then one year, the day after Halloween, I noticed that the lights were out. I examined them to find that they had been snipped by a prankster. In the midst of my corn stock, on my wooden front porch, sparked a live wire.

A little bit of soap....

Soap Deville.

St. Alban's Bay - rower in a a red rowboat

Everything is brought about by nature

"Some things are rushing into existence, others out of it. Some of what now exists is already gone. Change and flux constantly remake the world"

- from Meditations, Marcus Aurelius.

New Hope and Leavenworth

Fort Leavenworth and Fort Snelling both were established by Colonel Henry Leavenworth, but Fort Snelling was originally called "New Hope". August 1819.
In 1820 Colonel Leavenworth was transferred to the Southwest where he established other military posts- the one pictured still bears his name. Command was transferred to Colones Josiah Snelling - hero of the night Battle of Tippecanoe.

Lake Minnetonka was first discovered (by white men in 1822) by Fort St. Anthony residents Joseph Renshaw Brown and William Joseph Snelling, the young son of Col.Josiah Snelling. This is the legend.

Things learned along the way....

Ugly pumpkins

Early in the morning, at the break of day.

Saturday morning at St.Alban's Bay

Train - Train

Walking along the railroad line. Taking digital shots and drinking bad coffee. The trains are creaking, backing up, backing forth to get in que. A crazy man in a railroad suit shouts to me to stop, or he will report me to Homeland Security. He is about 75. A retired railroad employee, I surmise and a self-appointed security specialist. I assure him that I am only taking artistic photos, but his tirade continues.
I retreat.

Hot Blue

Lake Susan, Chanhassen @ 9am

“Its Deja Vü all over again” - Yogi Berra*

DAMN YANKEES! A brief revisit to the play based on “The year the Yankees lost the pennant” A 1954 novel by Douglass Wallop


Joe Boyd was a struggling salesman with mediocrity seemingly a goal, but he loved the Washington Senators. He identified with their hapless struggles. His wife Meg spelled the situation out clearly. "If the only Senators had a decent long ball hitter, they might win the pennant.. Damn Yankees!"
As Joe lay in bed one night he was fixated.
“I would sell my soul if the Senators could beat the Yankees”
In an instant the devil named Applegate appeared and granted Joe his wish. He became the baseball phenom “Joe Hardy” and walked onto the playing field to lead the Senators to an amazing winning streak, and into the championship...

Calvin Griffith’s Washington Senators left the Minnesota Twins a legacy

* I will close with a few more Yogi Berrisms:

• Nothing is like it seems, but everything is exactly like it is.

• The future isn't what it used to be.

• You can see a lot by just looking.

Gray's Bay Oct. 4, 2010

Twin Cities Marathon mile 15

15 miles. The lull before the final miles. At this point the race positions had already begun to establish themselves. The winning male and female had taken up comfortable leads. The dead calm, sunny and cool conditions told me that the leaders were not going to fade. The spectators were thinly spaced along River Road, with flanking columns of pink flamingos. The obnoxious blue thundersticks that rumble at the finish line were not yet present. The runners were still quite cheerful.
Winners: Sergio Reyes- 2:14, Debra Buzunesh (Ethiopia)- 2:27