#77 - Two Metroparks in One Weekend

I plan to see all 10 of the area Metroparks in the 1001 days time limit and I knocked 1/5th of them off my list this weekend. I assumed these would be the 1st two as they were the once I was the most familiar with. 1st was Wildwood where I ran the Metroparks Happy Trails 5K this weekend. The race goes all through the park, from the east side by the Oak Grove Schoolhouse built in 1897 to the newer Manor House built for the Stranahan family in 1938 and to the west side near the playground where this kids like to play and climb the huge oak.

For Father's Day we spent the evening out at Swan Creek Preserve. We'd been before to the playground on the south side, but this was the first time we'd come in the north entrance and it was very nice. They have a Yager Center which has a room with a big window facing a pool with a fountain and feeders that attract a lot of birds, and today, two groundhogs. We picnicked by a fountain and the kids played on the playground equipment and swings. They kicked around a soccer ball and my oldest let me help him try out his first non-training wheels bike.

#20 - Back Again to Happy Trails

Last year I started training for the Susan G Komen Race For The Cure 5K held every year in September. I started in March and saw that the local Metroparks system was holding a 5K to help support the trails called the Happy Trails 5K in June, which was about halfway between the beginning and the Komen race. It took me over 47 minutes then. When I did it today, I had another year's worth of training under my belt (OK, there was a 4 month hiatus after the Komen race), but I finished this one in just over 42 minutes. I plan on doing the Komen race this fall and the Happy Trails race next spring. I may do some more besides these two, but these two each year will let me complete my 6 races in the 1001 days I have to complete the list.

#9 - Cutting It Short

I have had the same hairstyle for as long as I can remember - all about the same length and combed from left to right on the top. A hairstylist once told me that my natural part goes from right to left, but I find it easier to style my hair the other way with my right hand. Inspired by my childrens' summer haircuts, I opted for a drastic change. I had the barber use the "#4" guard on the trimmers to take most of it off around the back and sides, then trimmed short on top with scissors. I can still comb it over for work, but I can also throw in a little mousse and spike it up on top. I think it makes my gray temples stand out more, but my wife says less.

#1 - Meditation

I picked this as a goal because my mind is always going a mile a minute. I often find myself with too much to do, sometimes leaving me too distracted to complete or finish projects. I wanted a way to learn to quiet and focus my mind. I picked up a book at the library that offered me the basics and I have been trying to meditate for 10 minutes a day. Most of the time I just try to quiet my mind, but I have used this to focus about upcoming events and to keep me moving forward with fewer distractions. Meditation is supposed to be good for you physically as well, because it can be used to reduce stress and the harmful hormones that the body generates under stress.

#96 - Sanger Library

Sanger Library is the closest library to our house and we go there often. It has a great kids section, comfy chairs for reading to your kids, a kids area made up to look like the storybook world of Denise Fleming, a local author. They have a nice selection of audiobooks and CDs that we sometimes pick from. Their computers are used frequently for free internet service and they have private reading rooms if you need to study. We went to sign the kids up for the Summer Reading Club where they get prizes for logging reading hours (or being read to) this summer. My 7-year-old is going to rack up a lot of hours, as much as he is soaking up books lately.