Trail Running

Tonight I went to Ridley Creek State Park after work.

The plan was to do the little trail loop (about 1/4 mile) off of Area 17 to warm up and then tackle the exercise court. The loop part was easy. It's pretty much flat there with just enough roots to make you have to pay attention but not enough to discourage.

The exercise court (a circuit of body weight exercises) proved more intimidating than I should have let it. Partly because I can't do a pull up to save my life and partly because other people showed up who seemed to know what they were doing and I felt like I was in the way. I have to figure out how to look or act like I know what I'm doing since I plan to go back.

Frustrated by what I felt was not enough of a work out I decided to tackle the longer trail loop. This was about 1.25 on the yellow trail mostly. Much more up and down than the smaller loop. A steep up and down and then one longish climb. Steep and longish are of course relative to one's experience and skill level on trails. I am a newbie.. you can do the math. Still I'm proud of having done it. It's all about just doing things this year.

On the way home, I marveled at how a mile in the woods is more fun than a mile on the road.

-Keep smiling and keep moving
Paula

Haverford Heritage Trail - 3/26/16

Sara and I went on a 'urban hike' today. We did go through some woods and traveled on off road trails in sections but the primary surface was paved roads and sidewalks.

Total mileage 6.5 give or take

I created our route starting with the Haverford Heritage Trail. Page two of the brochure found here shows the entire 14 mile trail. The trail is not fully traverse-able right now because the Darby Creek Trail is washed out in spots. So we did the route marked in blue in this photo.

From Ardmore Avenue and Golf View Road we wandered into the center of the map to visit my old house on Grasslyn Avenue. Hey, this was a heritage hike after all. ;)

From here we headed out to Eagle Road to pick up the Pennsy Trail which takes off behind the YMCA formerly the bubble gum factory for those that remember these things. I closed my eyes to see if I could still smell the bubble gum. Mostly all I could smell was chlorine.

I'm fairly certain the Pennsy Trial is new. Ok new is a relative term. It wasn't there when I lived in the area 40+ years ago. If it had been I'm sure I would have discovered it. The Pennsy Trail connects the Y to the Skatium.

We turned off the trail at Manoa Road to follow the Heritage Trail. The trail is nicely done. It connected us to all sorts of historic spots. Being the old fashioned dork that I am I printed out the descriptions to take with us. Yes, I know we could have looked them up on our phones but that uses data and battery unnecessarily (IMHO). Sara patiently listened as I read off the descriptions at various stops. Go ahead laugh. I'll wait.

Our tour took us past; The Glen; The Grange Estate; Old Manoa Road; Powder Mill Valley; Gunpowder Magazine; Lawrence Cabin (relocated); Nitre Hall; Beechwood Station/Park/Bridge; Leedom/Dickinson Mansion; Old Haverford Friends Meeting; St. Denis Church/Cemetery; Mary Kelly Ott House.

The spots were in various states from functioning structures (The Grange, St Denis Church and the Mary Kelly Ott House) to crumbling remains (the gunpowder magazine). I was grateful for the directions and descriptions or we wold have missed a few of the stops.

The trail is well marked in a variety of ways depending on what was available.

The Leedom/Dickinson Mansion fascinated me. I wondered if the folks who lived in the more modern houses surrounding knew what it was. There is no sign and it appears that someone does live in it.

We arrived back at our cars about 2.5 hours after we left them. We had mapped out another 3 miles but decided to save that for another day. With all the stops to check things out that 3 miles was going to take us farther into the afternoon than I wanted to go today.

The Haverford Heritage Trail is a great idea. More communities should do this!

-Keep smiling and keep moving
Paula

Inspiration

If you apply the theory of six degrees of separation, I know a woman who crossed the finish line of the Georgia Death Race yesterday. And she didn't just finish she was second female across the line!

Maggie doesn't know me from Adam, I'm sure,
but I remember her from the first
 Misery Loves Company 50 Shades of Sore event. 

Because I am connected to some MLC folks on Facebook who are connected to Maggie on FB, I was able to get caught up in the frenzy of following her progress in yesterdays event.

Following an event and people like that inspires me. I know I'm not alone in that feeling. It's magnified when you kinda sorta know the person who has just achieved greatness. Maggie is NOT "just like me" or the other way around but because she is real to me -- not just a celebrated name -- her success is a reminder that we can all do the things we want to do. We just have to remember how much we want to do them.

And we have to remember that we don't have to want to do all the things either. Be happy. :)

Meanwhile, I'm doing well with operation reboot. This week was great until Friday. I did not miss any days of activity. Friday is a normal rest day and I came home feeling horrible. Everyone at work is sick and I think I got it.

Stuff happens. I'm using the time to sleep and to prepare and organize various projects. It's all good.

Keep smiling and keep moving

Paula

And Now For Something Completely DIfferent

So this post has nothing to do with hiking, running, walking, planks or things like that.

On Wednesday, April 6th, 6:30 - 7:30 I will be giving a presentation at the Media Upper Providence Library. The session titled, Opening Doors:No Strings Advice for Home Buyers and Home Sellers is ..well it's just what it sounds like I hope. A stress free learning opportunity for home buyers and home sellers.  

If you know me, in real life, you likely know that I work for the local REALTOR Association. I wear several hats there but the one that applies to this presentation is Association Ombudsman. Go ahead, try saying it three times fast! What it means is that I am responsible for making sense out of real estate. I take phone calls and emails all day long from buyers, sellers and real estate licensees with questions about real estate; from contracts, to transactions to relationships. I also get calls from people who are in dispute over real estate issues. And regardless of the type of call I find there are common threads. I often say to myself if they had only known or asked (fill in the blank). The thing is most people don't know what they need to know or ask. 

This presentation is for buyers and sellers only to learn some of the things they didn’t know they need to know about buying and selling a home. It's not a learn how to do it yourself class. My objective is to leave attendees with a better understanding of the process so they can achieve what's best for them. People who attend will walk away with a list of things to consider and resources for additional help. 

So if you or someone you know is, or will be, interested in buying or selling a home now or in the near future, please share this information with them. The event is at the Media Upper Providence Library at its temporary location above the Media Firehouse, 11 S. Jackson Street, Media, PA.

There is no cost to attend but registration is required. Click here to register online or call the library at  610-566-1918.  Here is a link to a flyer.