Runnin', runnin'

Kona and I had a nice.super.slow.easy.comfortable.lazy.lovely run this evening. I am guessing it was about 45 degrees out and completely dark. Beautiful, in fact I was a bit over dressed. I took my gloves off halfway through! Kona and I meandered through the neighborhoods and looked at the lights and then ran the big hill in the park to head back towards home.

I have to say that I am a morning person overall. I love to run early in the morning when it is still dark out. There is a certain quiet beauty about the early morning. It is almost like a secret, something people don't know about. They are snuggled up in their beds (which is also a nice place to be) or pouring caffeine into their systems trying to wake up all those cells. It is a darkness that is trying to let go as opposed to the evening darkness that is just going to get darker. I almost forget what being out in that nighttime darkness is like. This time of year, I prefer the evening runs. It gets dark so early (officially 4:55 pm here today) that after work you can throw on the running tights and a favorite stocking hat and head out to look at the lights on foot. I base my running schedule each week around the 10 day forecast on www.weather.com. If there is going to be snow overnight, I run in the morning first thing. I love it when the snow is clean in front of me and all that can be seen behind in the moonlight are my footprints with a set of little doggy prints beside.

I wish I could take a picture of that but it never turns out the same as it looks in real life. If there is going to be a really nice day, I try to sneak in a run after work to catch the tail end of the warmer temperature. I just love to be out there running. I love all kinds of weather, each has its own adventure.

However, today's adventure was not weather related. Today as I was running down the street of a very nice neighborhood, I noticed lots of trailer trucks, lights, cords, people, and yes even fake snow. I am thinking that they may have been shooting some sort of movie or commercial or something at this house. It looked beautiful. There were wreaths in every single window with tiny white lights and red bows. (And these are not little houses, there were A LOT of windows to decorate.) I just kept running as I passed and was glad that they had a nice night to do something like that and that it wasn't the sub-zero, Arctic weather that we get here in Nebraska.

So... see, it does pay off to slide off the couch, lace up the shoes and get out the door.

GO RUN. OUTSIDE. TREADMILLS ARE FOR WIMPS!