A Tree Blooms in Bertram

Spring is always welcomed in the upper Midwest. The long winters make this seasonal change so inviting. Sadly, an Iowa Spring is also a very unpredictable season with mercurial temps and weather - 70 degrees one day, sleet, and frost warnings the following day. 

As the days grow longer, the sunlight is welcomed, but deceptive. More than once we'll blast out the front door anticipating a comfortable stroll to the mailbox, only to be greeted with the bone chilling reality that we left our winter coats in the closet. The price of optimistic thinking, I suppose. 

These are not like the lovely waves of Spring I remember from my days in the Carolinas with Azaleas, Box Woods, and Redbuds in a cacophony of warmth and color.  

But in the very least, gone are the mounts of snow to be replace by a blooming pear tree, an albeit brief harbinger for the scorching summer ahead.  I'll take it this in all it's glory, and await the arrival of the Orioles, Blue Birds, and Grosbeaks. 

Comma Day!!!

Well, I gotta say a tiny punctuation mark isn't quite as rewarding until it sits between a 1 and three 0s.  Last Saturday I got to insert that comma where it has been earned.

        1,000 Consecutive Days - Running at least two miles! 

            

800, A Painful Distance

Two times around a track is a hard distance. For a 400 you plan to start at 90% and finish at 93-94% (assuming 100% is an all-out sprint). An 800 is different. Start at about 85% and guage the competition and how you feel. Stay with the lead if you can, and/or hold back just a bit to take prisoners and finish strong. 

Tonight was not Ike's best (2:03), but he left it on the track, and he continues to improve his racing intelligence and maturity. As he grows into his body and gets the next level of coaching and competition, he'll be a beast. I'm very proud of him.  

Find a Penny

I wonder

See a penny...

Pick it up?

Good luck?

Bad luck?

Heads up.

Tails down.

"Like a bad penny"

Do you stick around?

I do.

And you know what?

Today, I'm a penny richer.

How 'bout you?

Carbo Loading

Athlete of the week for the track team. Ran a great 800, but was pinched-out from a break away finish. You'd think a half mile event would spread out, but not in this heat. Proud that Big Dawg is figuring out pace and timing for a half mile race, AND he's stepping into his game. He's just going to get better.

Golf

Crowded at Altmaier Disc golf course today. Actually, it looked busier than Brown Deer Golf Course.  This got me wondering... do you scream "FORE!" If your disc drifts out of the fareway... or do you scream "INCOMING!"?

Signs of Spring

April 1 may be a day of fools, but I disagree. Today was the opening day for the  Major League Baseball season.  "Play Ball!"  Perhaps the only fool is a Cubs fan, but they too will enjoy the first pitch. Why not?  Right now they're tied for the division lead. 

The other sign of Spring is the return of our raccoons. This guy has decided that, after eating any scraps in our bird feeder, it makes for a very comfortable bed. 

His brother, sister, mother, father, cousin, (or neighbor) swings (acrobatically) between a tree and our other feeder. It's an impressive display that even PT Barnum would be impressed with.

Spring must be here. Hooray!