Cape Cod #3

Boy, are we glad the weatherman missed this one!! We had the wind that was promised, but rain never came. In fact, it was sunny almost all day today.













After breakfast we went hiking on a trail that's not published on any of the National Seashore maps. Just north of Wellfleet, off Pamet Point Road, sits the Atwood-Higgins House. We parked at the entrance and made our way for about a mile through the woods until we came to the dunes. Just over the dunes we found ourselves enjoying miles of isolated beach. Every now and then, you find the best things hidden in out of the way places. We owe a debt of thanks for this one to Yankee magazine and author Jennifer Kain Defoe, whose husband worked for the trails division of the Cape Cod National Seashore. We also would like to thank whoever invented the self-timing digital camera!


We spent the afternoon lounging on the bay side beach. It was low tide, so I walked out to the water line and snapped a couple of pictures. I was so focused on the pictures, however, I soon found myself overtaken by the incoming tide. Man, that water is cold!!





























Tonight the sunset was really special. We were able to see the sun all the way down over the horizon. No matter how many times we stand there, it always amazes me. The colors were fantastic.

And now, the secret is out... the real reason we come to the Cape. Ben&Jerry's has awesome ice cream, but in all the franchise footprint there is no store quite like the one in North Eastham. Owner Judy Tarr is special to us, and tonight was the first night that we've been able to catch up with her. We'll be seeing her at least once more before we head home. It's really nice to sit and visit over various and sundry forms of frozen dairy treats.

God has really blessed us this trip. Rest, relaxation, good food, family, friends, worship, all kinds of interesting weather, we have tons to be thankful for.

Cape Cod Post #2

Well, they say that if you don't like the weather on the Cape, wait a few minutes. Today we found out the truth. We got the cold temperatures and the strong winds, but not a drop of rain. Hey, we'll take that. We just bundled up (wind chills in the upper 30's) and off we went.

This trip, we've decided to find explore some places we've not previously visited. Yesterday it was the Nickerson Property along Great Pond. Today we found a real gem. The Cove Burial Ground is the final resting place of three Mayflower passengers: Constance Hopkins Snow, Giles Hopkins and Joseph Rogers. All were quite young when the Mayflower sailed from England, and were part of the seven families who left Plymouth Colony in 1644 to settle what is now Eastham, MA.

Next we headed over to Jessica's favorite beach, Coast Guard Beach, on the ocean side of Eastham. The old Coast Guard station (pictured at top) is beautiful, and today, because of the weather, the beach was totally deserted. The picture at left is looking north, the picture at right is the view south toward Nauset Spit.

After lunch, we went to Nauset Light Beach, home of the Nauset Lighthouse. The lighthouse was moved back from the cliff about 10 years ago, and a post marks what once was the center of the light tower at its original location. As you can see, it won't be long before erosion will overtake it.

Later in the day, the wind calmed a bit and Jessica worked on a sand castle. After dinner we hit Ben&Jerry's (again) and called it a day. Hopefully the weather will continue to hold!!

On Cape

We have arrived!! Vacation at last!! It's Sunday night, and we've finally settled in at the house in North Eastham, MA. We flew into Boston Friday morning and drove down to the Cape to spend some time with Uncle Chris and Aunt Pam. The picture at left was taken in their kitchen. Hickory Hill is a most hospitable abode, full of all things yummy, including fish chowder and raspberry waffles. We had lunch with Chris at The Landfall in Woods Hole (dessert was, what else, Coffee Obsession). The went back to Chris' office at the USGS, where we got a first hand look at their latest outreach/education activities. Pam made us dinner Friday night and then we all drove into Falmouth for a cultural treat.



Arts abound on Cape, and Chris is a proud member of the Greater Falmouth Mostly All-Male Men's Chorus. The GFMaMMC is presenting a concert this weekend, and we got to see the dress rehearsal at the Wesley United Methodist Church. Our Falmouth Track Club friend, Doris Beatty, is also a member of the group. We stayed for the first hour or so, and then headed out for some ice cream.



Saturday was brisk and rainy. Temperatures in the 50's with rain and wind. After a breakfast of waffles with fresh raspberries, we headed down to Nobska Point to sit by the lighthouse. There's also nothing like a little shopping around Main Street in Falmouth. About noon we headed down Cape and got moved into the house. Grocery shopping, takeout pizza, Ben&Jerry's and a visit to Nauset light at dusk rounded out the day.





Sunday morning dawns chilly, but clear. The weather was spectacular all day. We went to Sunday services at Nauset Baptist Church to worship the Lord and renew friendships there. After lunch we bundled up and headed across the street to the bayside beach (pictured at left). In the late afternoon we hiked around Great Pond, grabbed some dinner at hit Ben&Jerry's again.








It's getting late now, but I'll try to post a couple more times this week. We're supposed to get a good nor'easter tomorrow and Tuesday, then clear skies again later in the week. I think I hear the Cape Cod Potato Chip Factory calling....

The Perpetual Click

If music is perpetual, then so are life's enduring friendships. Some friendships are like a trusty metronome, the one that went click, click, click, all those years ago in the solitude of a late-night practice room. Just me, my instrument and that metronome. Turn the dial to 112 beats per minute, and off it goes. Go home for spring break, come back, plug it back in and off it goes, 112 beats per minute. Throw it in the closet for the summer and pull it out in September. Plug it back in and off it goes. Never misses. Always there to keep you on track.

I've discovered that some friendships are like that. It's been almost 24 years since I graduated from Furman University. I made some dear friends during my tenure on campus there. Most of these folks I rarely see, but when I do, the strangest thing happens. We can go 5 or 6 years without seeing each other and then when we meet, it's as if we never parted ways. We see each other and there goes the metronome, click, click, click.

Last week a few of us met in an informal reunion at Furman. The occasion was the Furman University Wind Ensemble concert for the South Carolina Band Directors Association All-State Band clinic. The concert was billed as a tribute to the late Dan A. Ellis, director emeritus of the Furman University Bands. My old roommate, Michael Brown (now of US Army Band fame), composed a piece in memory of Mr. Ellis. In "Symphonic Portrait", Michael took several themes familiar to the Furman family and wove them together in a very moving selection for wind band.

Several of the old gang met for a pre-concert dinner at the Thaicoon in the old University Square. We had a wonderful time at the concert and then closed out the evening with coffee and dessert at Ruby Tuesday's in Cherrydale.

Funny thing about that metronome. As soon as I saw those faces, the clicking began. There was plenty of laughter, smiles, hugs and tears as we shared and created memories late into the night. The Rainbow drive-in is still there, along with Capri's and Pete's (I'll have a jumbo cheese, all onion rings with a chocolate peanut butter banana shake). The aroma of Dan Ellis' pipe has faded from the halls of the Daniel Music Building, but, for a few hours at least, it was 1984 again.

"The years are rolling by me, they are rocking evenly. I am older than I once was, and younger than I'll be but that's not unusual. No, it isn't strange. After changes upon changes, we are more or less the same." -- Paul Simon.

I love you all, and miss you very much. I truly do.

(L-R: Jeff Kuntz, Janet Kuntz, Evans Newell, Cindy Newell, Keith Dover, Michael Brown, Ken Cothran, Johnny Tucker)

Rules To Live By

I'm definitely getting older. My baby's birthday is today. Jessica Ellen Newell is 13 years old!! Happy Birthday, Jessi!! You will always be my favorite red-headed child (inside joke).

A co-worker sent me the following list of rules to live by. I thought they were cute, so I decided to put them here instead of filling the universal in basket with junk mail.

1. Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night.
2. Don't worry about what people think, they don't do it very often.
3. Going to church doesn't make you a Christian anymore than standing in a garage makes you a car.
4. Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.
5. If you must choose between two evils, pick the one you've never tried before.
6. My idea of housework is to sweep the room with a glance.
7. Not one shred of evidence supports the notion that life is serious.
8. A person who is nice to you but rude to the waiter, is not a nice person.
9. For every action, there is an equal and opposite government program.
10. If you look like your passport picture, you probably need the trip.
11. Bills travel through the mail at twice the speed of checks.
12. A conscience is what hurts when all of your other parts feel so good.
13. Eat well, stay fit, die anyway.
14. Men are from earth. Women are from earth. Deal with it.
15. No man has ever been shot while doing the dishes.
16. A balanced diet is a muffin in each hand.
17. Middle age is when broadness of the mind and narrowness of the waist change places.
18. Opportunities always look bigger 'going' than 'coming'.
19. Junk is something you've kept for years and throw away three weeks before you need it.
20. There is always one more imbecile than you counted on.
21. Experience is a wonderful thing. It enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again.
22. By the time you can make ends meet, they move the ends.
23. Thou shalt not weigh more than thy refrigerator.
24. Someone who thinks logically provides nice contrast to the real world.
25. It ain't the jeans that make your butt look fat.
26. If you had to identify in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved its full potential, that word would be 'meetings'
27. There is a very fine line between 'hobby' and 'mental illness'.
28. People who want to share their religious views with you almost never want you to share yours with them.
29. You should not confuse your career with your life.
30. Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance!
31. Never lick a steak knife.
32. The most destructive force in the universe is 'gossip'.
33. You will never find anybody who can give you a clear and compelling reason why we observe daylight savings time.
34. You should never say anything to a woman that even remotely suggests that you think she's pregnant unless you can see an actual baby emerging from her at that moment.
35. The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status or ethnic background, is that deep down inside, we ALL believe we are good drivers.
36. Your friends love you anyway
37. Remember to pillage *BEFORE* you burn.

And finally, with apologies to Jimmy Buffett, I note the following: "I'm growing older but not up. My metabolic rate is pleasantly stuck."

Working Man

Cindy and I have been involved for several years with the youth ministry at our church. One of the big things we try to emphasize as a ministry is putting others first and being servants. Early this morning (after running, of course) we took a group of students to a local middle school to spread mulch around the trees and flower beds. The really exciting part is that now have proof that Evans can actually do manual labor.

Here's the evidence. This is Evans and John offloading a pile of mulch. Jessica is in the yellow shirt way in the background. In the picture at the top of the page, she is in the lower right corner (same yellow shirt).

Evans was allowed to drive the truck. Scary.

We had a great time. The students worked really hard, I'm sure the school appreciates the effort. After we finished (there were several groups in multiple locations), we all gathered at a local park for burgers, hot dogs and Johnny's (our youth minister) freshly-baked cookies!! Yay!!

Sweet Home Alabama (or Roll Tide)

This is likely to be a rather lengthy entry, so sit back, grab a huge cup of coffee and read on. It’s been about a week since the Mercedes Marathon, and we are beginning to feel normal again. We got a sports massage yesterday, and after 5 days of not running, we went out and did 6 miles this morning at an easy pace.

I am truly grateful to God for allowing us to experience a wonderful trip to Birmingham last weekend. We made it!! We achieved the goal of a personal best time of 4:12:24, an awesome experience. Cindy overcame her foot injury, battled her way through some IT Band pain, and cousin Lee brought us home (more on that later). God is truly good. He gave us great weather, protected us from injury on a crowded course (see below), and once again taught us the importance of perseverance in life.

Special thanks to the Mckinney family of Birmingham. Uncle Roddy, Aunt Janice and cousins Lee (wife Lara) and Danny. You guys were awesome!! Best family in Birmingham (inside joke for Lara). Lots of carbs and good company! We really appreciated Roddy and Janice opening their home to us and providing the pre-race nutrition, transportation and a nice, warm bed. John and Jessica really enjoyed the televisions and the pool table in the man-cave.

As for the race itself, here is a mile-by-mile breakdown.

Mile 1 9:17 A good start. A little fast, but the streets are so narrow and crowded, you almost have to run faster just to defend yourself.

Mile 2 10:04 Purposely pulled back a little here, trying to find the right feel. The pack is still really thick at this point.

Mile 3 8:59 Not sure the mile marker was in the correct location here. We didn’t feel like we picked up the pace, but look at the time!

Mile 4 10:41 Ditto

Mile 5 10:04 Finally beginning to settle into some semblance of rhythm.

Mile 6 9:38 The Green Springs Ave hill (Red Mountain, will see it again mile 23). I’ve never seen Cindy get angry during a race until now. It would appear our marathon pace is the same as the pace of the back-of-the-pack half-marathoners and for the second year in a row, we were hemmed in while trying to attack this hill. This was almost full-contact road racing. The race organizers really need to find a way to split the two courses sooner.

Mile 7 9:58 And now an editorial comment… for the love of Johnny Kelly, will some race director PLEASE have enough chutzpah to enforce the “no headphone” rule? Twice in this mile, I almost collided with a slower runner who cut me off while I was trying to pass. The reason for the near-disaster? These other runners were wearing headphones and could not hear me when I approached and called out the standard “on your left” warning. The second incident caused me to stop completely and throw up my hands to warn the other runners behind me.

Mile 8 9:16 Finally!! The half-marathon course goes its own way. We got into a good rhythm here. The pack thinned and we start turning some consistent splits.

Mile 9 9:33 SoHo. Home of Tria market. Best in Birmingham. It is to die for!!

Mile 10 8:21 Saw Roddy and Lee, our official support crew this year, for the first time. Dropped the outer layer of clothing by the light of the silvery moon (inside joke).

Mile 11 9:28 Heading down to the greenway by Lakeshore drive.

Mile 12 9:21 We felt like we’d finally hit a good rhythm here. Running through a nice, quiet neighborhood. The fans that were along the route were very enthusiastic.

Mile 13 9:51 Halfway home. Time to get serious. The course really flattens out at this point. A good time to relax and enjoy the solitude of the greenway.

Mile 14 9:24 Lock it down.

Mile 15 9:35 Easy does it, one step at a time.

Mile 16 9:49 Cindy said that the IT Band on her right leg began hurting her about here. There were a couple of severe uphill sections crossing over bridges that likely worsened the pain.

Mile 17 10:11 Entering Mountain Brook here. There is a big hill on Cahaba Road that acts as the welcome mat. Evans found a vacant port-a-john. Yay!! Time to go wee-wee.

Mile 18 9:26 We saw Roddy and Lee again here, and this time Lee jumped in and ran with us until mile 24. Lee is a former track standout at the University of South Alabama in Mobile. He has been fighting some knee pain recently, but plans to join us for the full race next year. Lee was a nice bandit, he didn’t take any assistance from the aid stations. He kept us in stitches for most of the time.

Mile 19 9:45 We passed the Mountain Brook Country Club here. This is funny, on a bright, warm, sunny day there were no golfers on the course. These people must be so rich they just use the course for decoration!! Interesting factoid… land is so scarce in Mountain Brook that we passed several locations where someone bought the lot, demolished the house and rebuilt a custom home on the same location.

Mile 20 9:52 Evans almost hit the wall at this point. His sinuses were draining and making him nauseous. Too close to home to quit though, must keep pushing.

Mile 21 9:26 Two runners ahead of us almost missed a turn here and Lee called out to them to turn around. In return for his good deed, he received an embarrassed look of thanks.

Mile 22 9:52 Heading up Red Mountain for the final time. I remember Lee looking around and beginning the mantra, “We Are…. Marshall!!”

Mile 23 10:24 Up the mountain, it’s the biggest hill we’ve ever climbed. For our Cape family, just imagine the hill in front of Woods Hole Country Club at the CCM, stretched out for almost two miles. Just for fun, Lee ran the final 100 meters of it backwards.

Mile 24 9:04 Kicking for home. Lee dropped out here to get his car. Roddy was here and took some good pictures.


Mile 25 9:51 Cindy stopped for about 30 seconds to stretch her IT Band so that we could have a really good kick at the finish.

Mile 26 8:59 Great last mile!! The stretching helped Cindy’s pain. We felt so strong. The adrenaline took over and we felt very relaxed, knowing that, barring disaster, we would get the PR.

Mile 26.2 2:14 The finishing chute was fantastic!! The crowd was incredible. The announcer noticed our FTC singlets and we heard a few “Go Falmouth!” cheers from the crowd. Cindy even started blowing kisses when the announcer said she was “stylin’ and profilin’!!”



After the congratulatory call from the President, we showered, ate, napped, ate, watched the UNC game, ate... get the point? It's not really about the running, it's all about the food. Next race? Cape Cod Marathon, October 2008, inching closer to Boston. Ashleigh came home for the weekend and brought Michael with her. Jessica has another basketball game tonight. Stay tuned.... more news to come!