Tag Archives: fall
Not running
I had a twinge of sadness when I turned on the news this morning and saw footage of the 5th annual Brooksie half marathon. Runners were coming in, and the weather was perfect – cool and clear, leaves glowing in the early morning sunshine. I trained for the first annual Brooksie (named after the deceased son of our county executive). I over trained and ended up with a stress fracture in my foot that prevented me from running it. And I haven’t run since.
Apparently time has gotten away from me. I had no idea so many years have passed. This is the 5th annual run. That means I haven’t run in four years? How can that be? Four years? No way!
I watch runners as I drive back and forth to work or to the grocery store. I think nostalgically of my own running days. My running friends. But then I don’t put the shoes on, don’t head out the door. This weekend is a perfect example. Both mornings were beautiful. Perfect. Did not move from the sofa.
And then this morning, while sitting on the sofa, I read Heather’s blog, a post where she took us on her four mile run. It looked so much like my own favorite neighborhood four mile route. Sort of inspiring…don’t you think. Should I head out? Really? Maybe not all four miles, not right away.
But still…
Are you sure it’s the end of summer?
Scott asked us to define the end of summer in photos. What defines the end of summer for each of us? You can join the fun because this assignment isn’t due until Wednesday at midnight. Tell us what means the end of summer to you! Meanwhile, come along and see my own transition to fall. (Remember to click on the photos to see more detail.)
When I see that first leaf changing on an otherwise green tree I usually rationalize that the tree is sick. Or the leaf change is early because of the drought. It’s not possible that summer is beginning the slippery slide into fall. Certainly not yet.
The first bits of red.
As the light changes, becoming lower in the late afternoon sky, I appreciate the intense color and try not to think about what it all might mean.
The last of summer’s sun.
When the first bit of goldenrod begins to nod along the road and the asters bloom in brilliant purple I can still convince myself that there are weeks of warm weather ahead.
Purple compliments the season.
And when, on my morning commute, I come across the first of these….
The big yellow.
….I still rationalize. Some school districts start early. Don’t they?
.
But when I stopped at my local grocery store this week and the bins of watermelons had been replaced by a giant pile of these…
Getting ready for Halloween!
…well. Even I have to admit that these indicate summer has fled. Fall is here, it’s time to quit fooling myself. Until next year. Because I’ll just know the reason those trees turned so soon is because of the drought.
I’m sure of it.
Say goodbye to summer.
Music filled Saturday with some football too.
Heading to ‘The Big House.’
We had such a great day! Saturday afternoon we parked near the University of Michigan’s Hill Auditorium, then walked thirty minutes south, enjoying the sunshine, the students partying in the street, the crowds, the tailgaters, to the stadium where we sat in a VIP box, guests of the School of Education, to watch Michigan beat Massachusetts.
I’ve never been in a VIP box before. Let me tell you, that’s the way to watch football! Of course I don’t really get football, though I do enjoy a good long run down the field. Don’t tell anyone, but I don’t really care which team passes long or runs, it’s just fun to watch.
For me, a college football game is all about the band. Yes, the band; that group of kids who puts everything they’ve got into providing entertainment and pumping up the crowd.
The band over on the other side kept us in the game.
While other people were chatting before the game I was watching the pregame show. While others went to the restroom at halftime I was watching the band. While others were cheering and booing ref calls I was watching the band across the way in the stand as they chanted, shouted, danced and blew their lips out creating excitement. Yep. Love football…because of the band.
The “M” marches toward the sideline.
In the middle of the fourth quarter we had to leave the game to walk the 30 minutes back up to the main campus. We had symphony tickets. It was the opening night of this year’s season and the Ann Arbor symphony was playing Beethoven.
Hill Auditorium.
As I settled into my seat I jokingly told my Aunt that it would probably be inappropriate to stand up, pump my fist in the air and shout “GO BLUE!” in the middle of Symphony No. 9…right? She thought probably it would not be good. Apparently I was not the only one feeling the dichotomy of experiences that day, as during the introduction remarks the speaker actually commented on how cool it was to watch a football game then walk across town to hear a symphony. Then he yelled “GO BLUE!” And the audience applauded in response.
The program opened with the National Anthem, the second time I’d heard it that day. It was played by the full orchestra and sung loud and clear by the audience. Then most of the orchestra stood up and left, stage left.
The symphony played Twelve Contradances next. Twelve short pieces,played by a smaller, mostly string subset of the full orchestra. Each movement is a slightly different version of music to keep your toes tapping..composed in 1802. As I was listening I noticed a man sitting a couple of rows back from the conductor. He was sitting quietly, not moving, no instrument that I could see, hands folded in his lap. I thought maybe he had played with the full orchestra and just forgot to leave with the rest of them. Then in movement #8 he picked up a tambourine and played it expertly till the end of the movement. When movement #9 began he again sat, stoically, hands folded in his lap for the rest of the piece.
Ah! Perfido, Op. 65 was sung by soprano Laura Aikin who has a beautiful and powerful voice. The music was written to the verse of a poem written by Pietro Metastasio and was all about cruel love.
Symphony and choirs
The last half of the program was Beethoven’s Symphony #9, Choral, or most of us think of it, Ode to Joy. It was played by the full orchestra, and sung (in the 4th movement) by 4 soloists and a huge choir.
The first movement was full and lush, my favorite way to listen to a symphony. The second movement was fun and fast with some amazing oboe, french horn, bassoon and tympani work. The third movement was a sweet chorale and I was beginning to struggle to keep my eyes open.
All that was overshadowed by the drama of the fourth movement. It began with notes you’ve all heard in commercials. Then moved to the cellos and basses, wonderful seamless building of the familiar Ode to Joy melody, followed with the tune repeated in the violas and then the gentle violins. By now we were all humming along as the sound built and built, bigger, more and more lush until the choir stood up and the sound became wonderfully overwhelming.
The crowd was on their feet before the last note hit the ceiling, cheering and applauding. Sort of like at football. We clapped till our hands ached. The artists on stage grinned like kids.
Yes our day was full. Full of joy.
Back yard color
I thought I had missed fall during the week we were out of town. We left when there were still lots of green leaves, and came back to many bare branches.
This past week I went to work early in the morning and returned after dark, either because of work or band events. Thursday I finally came home before dark and realized that we still have lots of pretty colors in the yard.
Katie and I went out to play Frisbee this afternoon. I, of course, took the camera.
She had a blast running around,
…chasing the frisbee……
and ignoring her Mama.
Though sometimes she’d sit in front of a pretty tree or shrub.
If I asked nicely.
So I did.
One mile in
So my training for next year’s ten mile road race starts this week, with me running/walking 1 mile 3x a week. My first mile was scheduled for this weekend.
I finished mowing the grass about 4:30 today and thought, ‘it’s a beautiful day, sunshine, cool, a nice breeze. It’s never going to get any better than this. So get yourself out there.’ I think I have been worried about how it would go, so have been avoiding the run all weekend.
I changed my clothes and got ready to leave. But Katie had other ideas. She figures, if Mama goes, Katie goes. And she has really big eyes when she’s begging. I figured I was going to walk most of it anyway, so I hooked her leash up and off we went.
We ran most of the first quarter – she thought I was chasing her and it was all a game – till she saw her first chipmunk. Then she was all business. We ran and walked the rest of the way to the 1/2 way turn around point. I was pretty proud of her. But on the way back she refused to run at all. Every time I started jogging she just stopped cold. Silly girl. So we pretty much walked back. With 1/4 mile left to go she asked to be picked up. I told her she was a woose. And I carried her a little bit, cause I’m a pushover. I told her that she should realize that I was going to have to go back out when we got home and do this all over again. She said she didn’t care.
So when we got home I made her supper and then headed back out. Ran the 1/2 mile to the turn around, walked a bit and pretty much ran the rest of the way back home. It felt good to be running. It felt really good when I got back back home and could stop running. I haven’t been this sweaty in a very long time.
Guess Katie’s walk was a good warm up. She’s sound asleep now.
Come on Mom!
You want me to look WHERE Mama?
I'll pose but I won't look at you
It’s cold and really windy, but this afternoon the sun came out so Katie and I took advantage of the perception of warmth and went for a drive. Mama took the camera. Katie sighed.
We went to a park that has a children’s play area. There’s a big sign filled with all the rules; one says ‘no pets.’
Not looking at you.
But since there wasn’t anyone around and since Katie can’t read we wandered in anyway.
Are you sure we can be here Mama?
It smells like children! You know I don’t especially like children. They’re noisy. Noisier than me. And that’s saying something.
Hey, there’s lots of places to sniff. Wait. You want me to sit where? Under these weird things? OK. But I’ not going to look at you.
Not looking at you.
Nope just not gonna do it.
Nope.
Darn! You got me!
Now wait a minute. You want me to climb up THERE? Oh yea. I can do that! But I’m not gonna look at you. You might as well face it.
Not looking at you.
Hey Mama this is fun and everything, but can we just go for a walk out in the grass?
I sat good for all your stupid pictures, so can we, can we? Just go nose around all that pretty grass for awhile?
Of course we can baby-girl. Right after one last shot.
Ok. But I’m not looking at you.
Subtly of Fall
Today the temps were in the low 40’s, the wind was howling and the rain was coming down sideways. I miss summer already. Luckily Katie and I got to go to her favorite local park last Sunday while the sun was shining and the air was still warm.
She said it was about time she got to do something fun.
She ran around a lot…
…while I noticed all the subtle colors.
Despite today’s weather we are only beginning the fall season, and haven’t reached our peak color yet.
Still, if you look you’ll see beautiful soft color everywhere.
Katie says…Hurry up Mom! Geeze I have to wait for you all the time!
Coming baby-girl, Mama’s coming.
Great weekend
Saturday husband and I took his Aunt V out to eat for her 96th birthday. She hasn’t been out of her apartment other than for doctor appointments since she came home from the hospital in early summer. She was all dressed up and ready to go when we went up to collect her from her apartment. She’s not walking very well and we had to rest a few times on the way down to the lobby and the waiting car. But she made it and was very glad to get out into the fresh air. It was a beautiful day, sunny and warm. The roses out in front of her building were in full bloom – just for her.
We took her to a small town about 30 minutes away, so she could enjoy the drive. Some of the trees are beginning to turn, the sky was blue and filled with big white puffy clouds. The promised rain never materialized.
After dinner husband told her it was too nice a day to head back home, so we went for a drive. After more than an hour of driving through the country she asked where we were. We were nearing water and he told her we were in Mackinac City. “Really?” she asked! He laughed and said no…then she started recognizing some things, like the Black River where she and her husband once moored their boat, an old hotel where they used to stay. We were in Port Huron, on the eastern shore of Michigan.
More than sixty years ago, as a young wife, she and her husband used to boat from Saginaw down to Port Huron on weekends. She hadn’t been back in many years. Amazingly she recognized quite a bit of the town. We sat at the waterfront and watched boats go by, including a very large ore boat which nimbly slid under the bridge and past us surprisingly fast.
I fell in love with the Great Lakes all over again.
We all had a great time. I’m pretty sure she slept well last night.
Then this morning I met a friend of mine who is in town for a family wedding. She and I used to run together before she moved far away back in 1996. We haven’t seen each other in 13 years, but it was as if we’d never been apart, even though we haven’t been in touch much beyond the annual Christmas card all these years.
We went back to the neighborhood where I used to live and where we used to run a couple times a week after work. As we walked the old route, noticing changes in the houses and gardens, we talked and talked, just like we used to do when we ran. We talked about the way things used to be, the things that have happened in our lives, the way things are today. We both got a bit teary-eyed over losses in each of our lives, we voiced regrets and triumphs and hopes. We passed the house I used to own and commented that it was still a great neighborhood.
After our walk we went out to breakfast and talked and talked. Catching up on so much takes some time! We weren’t finished talking when we were finished eating, so we went for another walk through an old neighborhood behind the restaurant. Another couple of miles under our belt and I don’t think we were finished talking yet, but we both had other things we needed to do.
Sadly we said goodbye and promised that it would not be 13 years before we saw each other again. In fact we just might run the big race together again next August. The first time either of us ran the 10 mile race was together. It’s probably been 20 years but we think, just maybe, that we can do it again.
I hope so. It will give us some time to talk. Because we didn’t discuss nearly everything we have to say! Thanks P. I know you’re reading this. It was so good to see you again. I miss you already.
Safe trip home.
Change Is Hard 