Thanksgiving...Black Friday...Small Business Saturday...Cyber Monday...and now Giving Tuesday! Some of these names and days may be cringe-worthy (I'm looking at you, Black Friday), but #GivingTuesday is something I can get behind. Now in its fifth year #GivingTuesday is the Tuesday following Thanksgiving and is a movement to connect communities and promote charitable giving. As part of #GivingTuesday I'm really excited to participate in a book drive and fundraiser for First Pages, but there are plenty of great organizations to donate to if you've got some change leftover after Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday.
I realized recently that as much as I talk about the American Tobacco Trail and as often as I go running on the trail that I've never actually written a blog post on it. Clearly I had to fix this. The American Tobacco Trail is the product of a rails-to-trails project converting 22+ miles of railroad track into a mixed use trail. The ATT now runs from Durham to Apex and includes miles of paved, mixed, and compact gravel surfaces. Since the trail is so long and has diverse surfaces and amenities at intermittent trailheads I am breaking this up into a series of posts focusing on a few miles at a time and highlighting special features, parking, and amenities, starting with the New Hill-Olive Chapel trailhead.
Just like there's nothing quite like filling up on turkey and stuffing there's nothing like a three day weekend for getting outside. Last year REI announced that they would close on Black Friday and "#OptOutside" and they encouraged others to retreat from the bustle of shopping and commercialism and embrace some nature. This year #OptOutside is making a comeback with more companies and organizations on board. Just as I opted outside last year with a backpacking trip on Art Loeb Trail and Cold Mountain, this year I'm opting outside because let's face it - do I really need an excuse to get outside? 😉
Giving Tuesday is coming up next week and as part of that I'm hosting a book drive for the non-profit organization First Pages. I recently sat down with Kelly Partner, the founder of First Pages, to talk with her about the organization. First Pages focuses on providing books to children age 0 to 5 and promoting pre-literacy skills in Durham, North Carolina.
Emily and I have been friends for almost 14 years. 14 years! We met as freshmen in high school and roomed together freshman year in college (it was great - so great we decided for the sake of our grades to never live together again, ha!). I suffered through a fire ant attack during her wedding and I've celebrated birthdays and holidays with her and her two kiddos and even took newborn photos of her baby Stella. I adore her and her family, and was so happy to catch up with them for a quick photo session. We raced the setting sun (Daylight Savings is the bane of a natural light photographer with a day job) to get some cute holiday photos. Time is running out, so if you want holiday photos, book your session now!
I don't know why but whenever I sit down to read a fiction book I feel like it has to be a book of substance and that means missing out on a bunch of books that I thought might be interesting but wouldn't make it to the top of my reading list. So in between podcast episodes and zombie stories I figured that I'd try out audiobooks on long runs, road trips, and while multi-tasking.
I was so flattered when Meghan and Chris asked me to take photos of their family again for holiday cards! We met up at Yates Mill for some fun around the mill and historic buildings. Lawson has grown so much in just a couple months and it was so fun chasing him around the park. Meghan and Chris, have fun with your adorable energy-filled toddler and happy (early) holidays to everyone!
What do you do when you're coming down with a cold the night before your half marathon race? PR of course! Don't sleep, don't eat, don't feel mentally prepared, but still go out there and run like there's no tomorrow. Sounds about right. Richmond was a tough race and it will be an even tougher recovery.
