Wow - wildlife!

Marathon training - correction, half marathon training continues. It's Tuesday, and I've already logged 21 miles (10 Sunday, 5 Monday, 6 this morning...)! And let me tell you, this week, even the wildlife are supporting me.

It began in Brookings, SD, where I tackled a new trail for the 10-mile effort. Basically, I got on the bike path and followed faded chalk markers from the Brookings Marathon (held May 10). Along my way, you wouldn't believe how many cottontail rabbits I saw - at least a dozen - and one that even wanted to race me. I knew about the cotton-tail plague in Brookings (hence South Dakota State University's mascot, the jackrabbit), so this didn't phase me. Later during my run, two ducks were getting "friendly" in a pond, if you know what I mean. It didn't matter what the wildlife were doing - the weather was fabulous, and no wind.

On Monday after work, I hit my favorite lake to run, Lake Nokomis (side note, this is where my fiance proposed to me!). It was a gloomy run, meaning the park was almost all but deserted - just the way I like it, except for the absence of dogs - I love running their for all the interesting combinations of canines I spot. But on my jog, I ran into a most likely creature - a painted turtle, just hanging out by a garbage can. I couldn't stop grinning after seeing that rascal. Coincidentally, he popped his head into his home at the sound of my labor breathing!

To top it all off, this morning was another gloomy run. On my way to the Mississippi Landing on S. Lyndale avenue, I surprised not only myself, but a white-tail deer nibbling on tender blades of grass at an apartment complex. Holy cow, of all things to see in Bloomington, MN, I didn't expect to see white tailed deer! Perhaps I should reconsider hunting on the family farm and set up a stand on Lyndale...