Writing Reality

503 square miles, six blocks or so—perhaps one square mile. Most of us are removed from what’s on the other side of the country, never mind the world. Most buy what we are told. And gather information without knowledge, nor proper investigation. Some of us ask questions. Some of us may pry even more. Few of us listen to all sides or at least make the attempt to. I do know this because I reside in a human vessel. I also know this because all our humanness has flaws. As news articles and sound bites roll out, much of it is for distraction. The distraction is to sell an idea, a fear, a persona, or perhaps a product that everyone will need by the time they reach their fifties. To me, all those distractions are a cover up to make others wealthy. Sometimes they can make us wealthy, even unintentionally. Yet, we must not buy into too much of those distractions, for it takes away our health. And then what do you have—once you’ve been raped of your health? When the doctor who delivered me remin...

  Here it was Sunday, and I’d lost track of the days. Remembering the dates, but the actual days—days of driving and entering other time zones. Running twice a day for the past three of the four days on the road. One would think it might be helpful in clearing my mind. However, the distraction of the world and our country’s events weighed heavy. Again, the uncertainty of it all now sat beside me. The ungrateful have arrived into the ruling fray of some form of freedom I had known. The freedom of less oppression aimed at minorities and women is still the fight and it’s battle lines have increased. We’re being sent back to the plow. As I awoke, I knew I wanted to get a solid set of running mileage in before driving nearly 600 miles to Cedar City. With stops it’d be about nine hours on the road. Soon enough, I’d arrived at the light just 250 meters away from the hotel, I waited for the ‘okay’ signal to cross. I knew I wanted to explore more of the park, the bike path on the outski...

  Having stayed the night in Bellevue and gotten good sleep. Too, knowing my drive wouldn’t be more than an eight-hour stint. As I’d be gaining another hour between Bellevue and Thornton, that was because I’d be entering Mountain Time upon arriving in Colorado. Last year was different, I’d then driven from Ames, Iowa to Thornton, Colorado, which had been a 702-mile drive. That day, I drove the first 602 miles non-stop. Yes, one tank of gas in my manual Subaru. All the while grinding in my mind was a line from the movie “The Blues Brothers”— “It’s a hundred and six miles to Chicago, we’ve got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it’s dark out and we’re wearing sunglasses…” That day last year was twelve hours on the road. Thank God for the extra gained hour that day. I digress to the morning of June 7 th in Bellevue, I got up and readied for my residential run before the nearly 530-mile drive. After a nearly seven-mile run, got cleaned up, bought more ice and drained t...

The Iowa morning was quiet. A few cars passed me by as I waited to cross East 13 th Street. I was anxious in a positive way to get to the running path at the park just 1.3 miles away from where I’d stayed that night. Too, I knew I had a short drive to Bellevue, Nebraska for my next stay. And there too were beautiful, quiet, residential roads just about a half mile away from that hotel which I looked forward to running on. I do enjoy having some familiarity in my overnight stays while driving across the country. Such as food places that I’d been to in the past in the same locale. Funny enough, no one would ever know just how friendly a town was if they hadn’t had an experience in the past that sent ripples of warm fuzzies down their spine. Which in turn was what made me look forward to Bellevue. However, before then I discovered more delights in Ames, Iowa. If you hadn’t gone for a good medium mileage run or long walk past the US Agricultural facilities, 3M industrial area and othe...

  As I drove 576 miles from my Ohio hotel to the next hotel in Iowa, the rain cleared from my morning run in Ohio. I drove most the way with my driver’s side window rolled down. I looked forward to the Italian restaurant that resided across the way from the Iowa hotel. As well, the tree lined park that was a 1.3 mile run from the hotel too. The tree lined park in Iowa had a path that was paved and meandered past softball, baseball and soccer fields. There was a brook that ran to its seemingly outskirts of the park where an occasional person fishing could be seen from the path. It’s a walking, biking, running path which rolls along gentle undulating inclines and declines on the outer portions of the park. Across the entrance to the park appears fields of green with trees. I’ve yet to investigate that on any of my runs from 2024. However, I may just do that on another drive across the country in the coming years. I drove briefly from the OH-65 onto I-75 South toward Dayton; then ...

  As I was distracted by work and the events leading up to today—which I’d hate to admit that. Yet here we were as a nation, as a world distracted by spoiled rich men, and their self-advertisements. A recent talk with one of my former superiors in the military mentioned, “We’d be better off having the world ruled by women.” I never expected that remark from them. And I’d never stated such. So, to hear it from a conservative Christian, blew my mind. Today, I’m thinking they were correct, but when will “We the People” ever learn that women should be taking leadership roles for us? I can envision a spark, but not the light at the end of the tunnel for the American people. Truly, even my most conservatist friends have been stating things like, “Why can’t we have an election where two women are vying for the presidency, like in Mexico?” Yeppers. Two of the most conservative people I’ve known, who’d voted only republican up until this last election stated such. My thoughts arrived at, ‘i...

  Finally getting our oldest on the phone. "Mom! Chill! A man faceplanted on the ground. Blood was everywhere. It was so bloody Mom. We helped him."  She continues her hyper mode annoyed I called/texted 6x in one hour when no response was received from them. You know that parenting Mom thingy.  Oldest: "Didn't she tell you? We're doing pictures near sunset." She remarked, annoyed. Me/Mom: "Oh. Wow. Okay. And Thank you for being kind."  That's what I was reduced to. Hours later... Youngest explains now in my hotel room. Me/Mom: "So, what happened?" Youngest: "Mom, I thought he was like praying. He was laying facedown." Me/Mom: "Oh. Did it just happen?" Youngest: "People were passing by. But we didn't see the faceplant. As I approached, I realized he wasn't praying... you know like some religions do at certain times." Me thinking... I guess that ten years in the morning of teaching the kids religi...