~ELDER WILLIAM?!?!~

This guy never stops amazing me! William is my Kenyan friend from Kakamega that is here to run the Utah marathons! See the post below...I truly LOVE this young man. He is awesome, and now this:

William Tete was baptized on Saturday June 27, 2009 and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on Sunday June 28, 2009.

Looks like he will be taking home to Africa more than just medals!

Karibu William! ( Welcome).

~FAST FALLS THE EVENTIDE~

I took a run up the canyon last night just about sunset. I decided to take my camera with me in a backpack just in case there was a chance to take a picture of something beautiful. Then I remembered that I had not taken the summer shots of my running trail. So here they are ( at sunset ). Things have really grown! I can't believe that the time has passed so quickly since I took pictures in the spring of the same trail. Soon I will be taking shots of the leaves changing colors as fall makes its colorful entrance.

Time moved so painfully slow when I was a girl. Now it seems to never go slow enough. The days fly by and then the months are gone leaving me wondering if I remembered everything I should have done and shaking my head thinking... just what the heck happened to all the time I was suppose to have had!


The 4th of July is fast approaching and that means that summer is very quickly going to be a thing of the past. Children will be going back to school and the days will be filled with homework and routines. I guess that is why I enjoy this trail so much. The changes are always the same. Yes, it changes but, you can always count on those changes to bring you something familiar. I like familiar. It's comfortable. Like a pair of scrubs that have been washed a bazillion times and an old pair of socks.

This trail has a rhythm. I pound it out daily as I run. It has a melody all its own and if practiced often enough, one day I will master its song.

Wanna go?

~ROLEX vs TIMEX ~

I just need to vent...bear with me,

Have you ever had one of those days when you just feel like you want to have a good cry, punch the wall or kick the dog? I can't really put my finger on what the problem is but, I just can't seem to keep the blues from creeping in uninvited. I think that it is a combination of fatigue and frustration... the deadly double "F". I failed miserably at work today to keep that "positive attitude" and speak kindly to those who bravely dared to go where no man has ever gone before...challenging me beyond belief with their arrogance and self proclaimed importance. Now I truly do know that surgery can be technically challenging and can even go over it's scheduled time allotments but, what I can't understand it why some surgeons can NEVER seem to start when they are supposed to. If you have block time starting at 0700, how does that not mean 0700? Everyone else is there, and waiting--why is "Lord Doctor" not? Oh, I could compile a book of excuses I have heard. Some of them being quite marvelous. What it really comes down to this...In third grade, we all learned how to tell time. As far as I know it hasn't changed. It doesn't matter if you are looking at it from a Rolex or a Timex 0700 is still 0700.

Wait and see one day God is going to say: " Every one who wants to go to Heaven will have to be here promptly at 0700. If you don't show up on time you will be doomed to live in Hell for the rest of eternity...That is the day I will inevitably have a flat tire and NO one will stop to help because my pissy attitude doth proceed me!

I promise, a little sleep and a lighter day at work and I will be right back to my easy going self again :) Okay, okay...back to myself again!

~RAGNAR...RUN, DRIVE, SLEEP? REPEAT~

What a weekend! Let me just say that I really have never seen anything quite like the Wasatch Back Relay! It is brutally beautiful. The Live wElle teams did an amazing job of showing everyone on the coarse just what great running and wonderful sportsmanship is all about. Talk about a great bunch of gals...It was my pleasure this year just to be driving them from hand off to hand off! 188 miles of road, some consisting of rocks. roots, and ruts. It was hot and then COLD for most of the two days and at the end the rain came DOWN!!! Even in the rain the gals were able to come in almost 1/2 hour ahead of their scheduled finish time. When we left on Saturday they were in 2nd place and in 3rd over all! Not bad for the "sub-masters" class they were running in!

The Live wElle team runs for the Live wElle foundation founded in honor of Kirsten's daughter Elle who died in a tragic accident. Kirsten is the tiny little blonde who I have now re-named Thumbleina, (this girl literally dances over rocks, roots and ruts passing the cars along her way)! All proceeds from this wonderful foundation go into a college scholarship fund for a deserving local high school student.

Next year lets add a "Masters" team girls...and, I won't be doing the driving!!

~OLIVES~

Click on the picture...it is sooooo much better BIG!!!

Lookie grandma count them

One, two, three, six, ten!

Could I eat this one and then this one

and maybe you could take my picture then?

Put one on every finger.
Make sure they fit just right.

I won't eat them until you take my picture

but hurry cuz I might.

I can't help it grandma they are so good,
I love them every one

But I especially like watching YOU

trying to catch ME having fun!

~ZERMATT~

Steve and I are very fortunate to have good friends that love to do things on a whim like we do. Many times we call Mike and Ann sort of "last minute" and ask if they want to go for a weekend with us and they are almost always up for it. Not only are they ready to go on very little notice but they LOVE doing pretty much the same things that Steve and I do. EAT, go to movies, and shop! We have been almost all around the world with Mike and Ann. I think that if we ever decide to go to Asia together we will have accomplished that goal...Ann?

We spent a rainy weekend enjoying the Zermatt resort in Midway. It is really a beautiful place. Now if I can just convince Ann that golfing is a great past time we will be able to take advantage of the wonderful golf courses that are in that area also!!! Steve served his mission in Switzerland and with the clouds hanging low around the mountains and the rain making EVERYTHING so green this weekend he said it looked very much like Switzerland. It still doesn't get him out of taking me there some day soon but, it was a great weekend get away!

~UTAH VALLEY MARATHON~

William Tete arrived in the USA on Tuesday just four days before running the Utah Valley Marathon. His only wish was that he would be able to win the race to show his appreciation to Dr. Denys and his family for giving him the opportunity to come to America and run. This young man lives in Kenya where we met him last November. He has been self taught as a runner and has trained his entire life to do nothing but run. He heard about our medical mission and that we were going to be doing a 5K in the area while there. He came to run in it because he knew that he could win and take home some extra money for his family. He has 8 nephews that he takes care of along with his elderly mother. He eats Ugalie ( a corn meal type of food) for breakfast and again for dinner...that is usually all. If he has anything else it is because it is given to him by someone during his day. He will run close to 20 miles a day as he trains to be a "Kenyan" runner. That is how it is done in Kenya. These young men and women just hope that someone will see them and believe in them enough that they will sponsor them. Most of the runners that came that day to run didn't even have shoes and they left us in the dust like we were standing still. It was pathetic. The little kids could run faster than most of us! Dr. Deny's has taken an interest in William and is sponsoring him here in the U.S.A. Hopefully,William will be able to win a couple of races here and make a name for himself and perhaps get someone here to take notice of his great potential. He is such a determined and motivated young man. We all feel like he is our very own "Marathon Man"! His first race was a little disappointing for him but we were extremely happy. He took 4Th place after a 28 hour plane ride, weird food, no sleep, and strangers everywhere...Not bad I'd say! He only missed taking 3rd by a second...I can't even imagine how proud I would be to even place in the top 10 in a marathon! WAY TO GO WILLIAM!

Just a last minute note:

William will be running the S.L.C. Marathon for anyone interested in getting out there to support him... Hopefully, he will feel better for this one and be at the TOP of his racing potential. I know that he wants so badly to do well for everyone. We just want him to do well for himself. No one deserves it more!!!

Endelea William Endelea!!

(Go William Go)!

~OUCH~

My favorite running trail took a bite out of me on Saturday morning! I fell hard...actually thought that I had broken my hand as it swelled in front of my eyes. The funny thing is that as I rolled around trying to get my lungs to fill again after knocking the wind out of myself I looked around to see if anyone had witnessed my blunder!!! Like anyone would be up at that stupid hour on that trail...the reason I run that trail is because there isn't anyone on it!!! As soon as I realized that I had hurt my hand the thought ran through my head that I might not be able to keep my promise to myself that I was going to get better at golf this summer...I knew I had to try and wiggle my fingers if I could. I COULD! I knew then that my now swollen and BLUE hand wasn't broken. Both knees had taken a beating and my chest was well...let's just say that is probably why I had the wind knocked out of me but, my IPOD was safe, not a scratch! I had managed to nearly break my hand keeping it in tip top working condition. After all how can I possibly run without my IPOD? I thought it was perhaps best to "walk" home from the place of impact so by the time I finally reached home my family was actually starting to worry...then they saw me and didn't know whether to laugh or...laugh...they are a very sympathetic bunch:{ All the way home one thought kept running through my mind which was "you know Joey, as bad as it hurts now...wait til tomorrow and the day after". Age is NOT my friend after a fall. Age is not my friend in many aspects of life I am finding out. It is now Tuesday and I'm still somewhat stiff and sore! My hand looks like an IV gone bad and my knees are just now starting to scab over. Silly me, I think I need to go running again and loosen things up. Maybe on something smooth and flat this time. BORING!