Thursday, May 10, 2007

So much for spring -

Of course, we went from two weeks of beautiful 70-80 degree weather to humid and sticky. Speaking of the weather, I had a conversation with a conservative friend of mine the other day and he truly believes that we humans are having no more than an insignificant effect on the global weather patters. In other words, there is nothing we need not do any longer because what we are doing isn't affecting the weather. Cut down the jungles, pump tons of green house gasses into the atmosphere, generate heat, and create waste as much as you want - it's insignificant. I'm open minded enough to consider this - I am just waiting for the follow-up data to support the claim.

Wednesday, May 9, 2007

Such a fun run

Recently the local Catholic Parish Elementary School (Blessed Sacrament) put on a 5K fund raiser run. It was mostly a bunch of middle-age moms and dads that run recreationally - but there were some professionals in the race too. Of course, we didn't see much of them after the first 100 yards. The local neighborhood roads were closed for an hour and a half as the run took place. The parish Monsignor and school principal were there to support the runners and a host of volunteers cheering and directing along the way. Why mention this? Because it was a great example of what makes DC such a small town. This was a small-town Americana event. It was idyllic. The run provided everyone with a great way to kick off a perfectly beautiful weekend and see each other outside the normal confines of church, school, and soccer. The course took us past our local grocery store, barber shop, and pharmacy which are reminders of what small-town life is like. The neighborhood kids walk to the pharmacy for nickle candy and a soda. The local grocery store on Brookville Road still maintains monthly accounts for those that live in the neighborhood. Simply give them your number and they will bill you monthly.

Start a 5K or 10K run in your community. America needs to see more of each other and needs the exercise.