Archive for November, 2009
Run to Feed the Hungry 2009
The annual Run to Feed the Hungry is back and I’m as out of shape as ever. This chairty run has become a Thanksgiving tradition right up there with turkey, pumpkin pie and boring Detroit Lions’ games.
Thousands of folks will fill the streets of east Sacramento on Thanksgiving morning and some of us will probably still be out there Thankgiving afternoon struggling to finish.
A few years ago, while trianing (for one day) for this run I drew up the following graph which illustrates how my mood changes over the course of a fun run. It’s as true today as it was 4 years ago.
But it’s for a good cause and it’s cool to exercise once a year. I think you can’t walk right up and register the morning of, but don’t hold me to that. Anyhow, I hope to see you out there and, if I do, please bring 3 gatorades and an oxygen tank. Thanks!
Take the Train!
If you ever have to get from Sacramento to Reno, but you’re not in a real hurry to get there (and who is?) then you might wanna look in to taking Amtrak. That’s what I did this past weekend and I could not be happier… unless I didn’t have to go to Reno in the first place.
Here is a quick list of reasons why:
1. It’s $53 one way, which might sound steep, but subtract what it would cost you in gas and any parking fees you might have to pay with a car and it’s a pretty sweet deal.
2. The train station is kinda cool.
3. There’s a bar on board. Why wait til you get to Reno to start the party?
4. It takes about 2 hours longer than driving. If you think that’s a downside, then you’ve never been to Reno. the less time there the better. If there was a 20 hour train ride, I’d take that too.
5. It’s a real purty ride. The train is slightly off the highway and the views are spectacular…especially when you’ve got a nice dusting of snow on the ground.
6. You can use your computer or sleep the whole time without swerving off the road into a tree. Trains are awesome!
7. As an added bonus, the trip is narrated by docents (one with an awesome mustache) from the CA State Railroad Museum. Via intercom, they point out sites of historical interest along the way. Needing more than just an occassional blurb, I tracked down which car they were in and hung with them for the duration of the trip just drinking bloody marys and listening to their old-timey train stories. And if you’re their boss, I was the only one drinking.
