The Long and Winding Road of a Weekend

Very little of what I expected actually happened this weekend. That is not a bad thing it's just a fact.

I had the day off work on Friday to go to the doctor for my treadmill test. That was planned and I'm happy to say all is well and doc was happy to clear me for any and all activity after that. I was so excited after that I accepted an invitation to join Misery Loves Company on a trail run on Saturday. I spent the rest of the day running errands and odd tasks "knowing" that after the trail run Saturday I would be wanting to lay low until my shift at Back on My Feet 20 in 24 with Tootsie from 9:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.

HA! Goes to show what I 'know'. On Friday afternoon we received messages that BoMF and the City decided it was best to cancel Saturday and make the event a 12 hour run on Sunday only from 7 am to 7 pm. The weather was awful all week and was expected to peak on Saturday with severe thunderstorms rolling through in the evening. I think it was a wise decision but there are some comments floating around FB that there is more to this than what is being said since this event has always taken place in hot, humid weather. It's summer in July after all. I don't recall the severe thunderstorm, high wind threat in past year though. As it turned out the storms did roll through around 10 or so shutting down the Electric Run 5k and delaying the start of the Taylor Swift concert at the Linc.

Making a Difference

I'm generally not one to hero worship. There are people that I respect and trust in my life. There are people I know personally and from afar that I admire. But I never identified anyone as a 'hero'. Today it occurred to me that if asked "Who would you like to spend a day with and why" my answer would be Anne Mahlum.

Anne founded "Back on My Feet" (BoMF)in Philadelphia in 2007. My initial attraction to Back on My Feet was it's mission - to use running to help those experiencing homelessness build their self esteem and self sufficiency so they can become employed again and move on with their lives. If you are a runner - or a regular walker or exerciser - you know the effect consistent application of these activities can have on your psyche. Before long you start to feel better (even when you don't realize you needed to) about a lot of things and can see the world a lot more clearly and positively.

The simplicity of the BoMF concept blew me away from the first time I heard about it. I was initially proud that it started in our city. But it didn't start by itself. BoMF was Anne Mahlum's vision. She's since been recognized by multiple groups including CNN Heroes and ABC News Person of the Week. Awards don't really impress me though.