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I have not done a blog post about one of my runs in a while. Actually, I probably should look and then I might see that I just did one and forgot, but this was kind of the way I talked myself into running this morning: run so you can blog about it.

I just started a new job with awesome hours: 7 am to 3:30 pm Monday through Friday. Not such great hours for finding time to run, but I’ll have to work that out. I started Thursday, so I had only missed two days when I ran Saturday. I ran up to Herkimer County Community College (HCCC) the back way (I know I blogged about that once). Today I had determined to run up to HCCC the front way, which, incidentally is part of the Dare 5K run in August. I have declared my intention of participating in that run and even invited a nephew to join me. I thought I’d better get on the ball with my training.

I started running down German Street toward the college and passed a man walking. We exchanged greetings. Half a block later I stopped briefly to pet Nicky, one of the neighborhood dogs I often encounter. At first Nicky was more into sniffing than being petted.

“Don’t you like to be petted today?” I asked.

“He’s on a scent,” his owner told me. “He loves to be petted.”

Nicky graciously allowed me to pet him.

“You even stopped special for him,” his owner approved.

“I always do,” I said.

Meanwhile the man walking had passed us, so I ran by him again.

“I always stop to pet dogs,” I explained. He understood.

Up the hill I went. Near the bottom someone had spray painted the one mile mark. Good to know. At the Dare Run, I’ll have a mile warm up before tackling the hill. I looked at my watch. I’d been running about ten minutes. If I was doing a ten minute mile, I was right on schedule. Of course, I have no idea how fast I run. I set out to run for a specific length of time. Periodically I get in the car after my run and see how far I ran that time, but I have not done that in a while.

Love the view from the college. I looked down over the village and tried to pick out buildings. Was that my church? Was that 5S or the Thruway? No time to stop and ponder, though; I kept going, and ran down the back way. I passed two girls running up.

“Good job, you’re almost there!” I encouraged them.

One waved and one said, “Good morning!” I ran on.

Of course I stopped at the spring for a drink. That is almost always my reward for making it up the hill. As I turned onto German Street, I saw another runner.

“Are you going up the hill?” I asked. I didn’t catch what he said, but he was headed in that direction.

I made it back home with a little voice in my head saying, “I love, love, love to run!” Tabby walked my cool down with me. A great beginning to another beautiful day in the Mohawk Valley.

I felt oh so cultured Thursday night when Steven and I drove to an artists’ reception at Remington Gallery in Ilion Free Public Library. We had never been to the library in Ilion, so that was a welcome expansion of our literary horizons.

The exhibit is of Recent Works, pastel and stained glass by Marjorie Balder and Joan Balder Cook. I enjoyed the art work very much. We did not meet either artist, but I read the brief biographies that were on display. The stained glass lamps were lovely; Meyda Tiffany has got nothing on Marjorie Balder Cook. We spent some time admiring the pastels as well. I especially liked some small ones, maybe 2″ by 2″. We also partook of the very elegant refreshments that were offered.

After we’d enjoyed the art, we spent some time looking at the books, always my favorite things. I found a regency romance by one of my favorite authors. Yes, I know, very shallow and girly of me. Well, what’s wrong with that?

The exhibit will be on display through July and may be viewed during regular library hours, as long as the room is not in use. Remington Gallery is a graciously furnished room that is available for meetings. The room is also available for other exhibits of area artists. Stop by or call the library, 315-894-5028.

Of course it’s old news that libraries offer more than books. I personally am more interested in the books than anything else. However, I have been known to check out DVDs and videos, or get on a computer (before I got my own). In Massena, many years ago, our theatre group took advantage of the library’s meeting room. This was the first artist reception I’ve attended at a library, and I enjoyed it very much. When we used to live up north we went to the occasional art opening at St. Lawrence University. That too made me feel oh so cultured. But then I had to go elsewhere for my romance novels. Let’s hear it for art exhibits at libraries!

For more information about Ilion Free Public Library visit midyork.org.

When our friend Tracy visited, we thought we’d like to go someplace fancy for dinner, so we went to Karma Piano Bar and Restaurant, 158 E. Main St., Frankfort.

We heard music right away and saw the piano, but we did not see anybody playing it. It was Tracy who noticed the keys were depressing themselves. I had never seen a player grand piano before. Some sheet music with a picture of Ray Charles was on the piano, so we though maybe Ray Charles’ ghost was playing.

The dining room was crowded, but they found us a table. We ordered drinks and perused the menu. Tracy especially liked the smell of Steven’s coffee. The waiter also brought a basket of bread with a dish of seasoned olive oil for dipping. That was a welcome sight, because we had worked up quite an appetite deciding where to go.

We decided to order all appetizers, one my my favorite meals. We picked Sicilian Rice Balls, which I had never heard of but which sounded good, chicken tenders, mozzarella sticks and kalamari. Everything was delicious. It got a little noisy after a while, because the dining room was crowded and everybody seemed to be having a fine time. No matter, we had a fine time too. We left with plans to return, perhaps to sit at the bar and enjoy a cocktail.

You can reach Karma’s at 315-894-8683, or by visiting their website at http://www.karmapianobar.com.

Wednesday our friend Tracy visited. “While I’m there,” she had said when planning the visit, “we have to go to Hummel’s.”

Hummel’s Office Plus, on Albany Street in Herkimer, carries a full line of office supplies plus a Hallmark Gift Shop. It was the gift shop section Tracy particularly wanted to check out. At a previous visit she had found a magnetic mail box cover with cardinals. She wanted to buy another one for a friend.

“Hmm… where do you suppose mail box covers are?” Tracy mused as we climbed the stairs to the gift shop portion of the store.

“We can ask somebody,” I suggested. “They’re very helpful here.”

Tracy said that it was more fun to wander the whole store looking for them, but a clerk overheard what we were looking for and took us right to them. Alas, no cardinals. The clerk, who truly was helpful, wrote down the information for the company that made the mail box covers, so Tracy could potentially find what she wanted online.

We wandered the rest of the gift shop anyways. Steven pointed out various things he had sent his sisters over the past year. Tracy and I admired some earrings. Tracy liked some sculptures. We did not see anything we had to have, though, so we took our leave with many thanks.

Normally I would have spent some time in the office supply section as well. Their selection of notebooks may not be as extensive as I’d like, but the pen section is excellent. I hesitate between rollerballs and ball points, or try to find something with green or purple ink. To me, you can’t have too many pens.

Hummel’s corporate headquarters is in Mohawk. They have retail locations in Rome and Utica as well as Herkimer. They also do a thriving online business. You can check out their website at http://www.hummelsop.com.

Tuesday Steven and I finally patronized an establishment that has fascinated me for a long time: Voss Bar-B-Q on Oriskany Boulevard in Yorkville.

I have driven by this small walk up eatery many times. It sports a neon sign with a hot dog and a large milk bottle on the roof. There is almost always a line of people at the window, no matter what the weather. I understand it is considered something of an institution in the greater Utica area (doesn’t that sound metropolitan? The Greater Utica Area). People wait with anticipation for opening day, and people who have left the area make sure to go there if they ever return.

We had tried to go there once before but were unable to find a parking space. The obvious popularity of the spot made me all the more intrigued. I was very happy on Tuesday when we managed to find a space. The line was not even too intimidating. We both ordered hot dogs and coffee. I always figure if they have a hot dog on the sign, they must be pretty proud of their dogs, right? We were given a magnetic letter B and stood aside to wait.

I got mustard, onions and sauerkraut on my dog. Steven had mustard, mayonnaise and relish. They were pretty good. In general I like my hot dogs more burnt, but with the business they were doing, I don’t believe they had time to achieve the level I like. The buns were buttered and grilled. They were YUMMY! Yes, I have to put it in capital letters with an exclamation point. We asked if we could share a picnic table with another couple, to which they graciously agreed. It is all outdoor seating, and I could have used a little more shade. No matter, it was a fun lunch, and a real Mohawk Valley experience.

Voss is open April through November. You can find The Voss’ Appreciation Society on Facebook.

Monday Steven and I went to the used book sale at Frankfort Public Library, 123 South Frankfort St.

The library is in a stone building located near a park. The book sale covered two tables. Several boxes of free magazines were on the floor. I almost got excited when I saw the name A. Scott Berg, my favorite biographer, on three books. Alas, it was three copies of Kate Remembered, which I recently bought at a rummage sale (which I may have mentioned in a blog post). Excitement returned when I found a hard cover copy of Murder for Christmas, an anthology which I have in paperback and read every December. A glance at the table of contents confirmed my hope that the hardcover contained stories not found in the paperback. I informed Steven that he was buying it for me, to which he graciously agreed.

While I perused the rest of the library, looking for something to borrow for free, Steven decided to purchase a DVD of Zorro and an old fashioned post card. Having thus spent all our cash at the library (we only had three bucks between us), we hurried back home to the fans. I mean the electric fans, although I guess you could say that our dog is our number one fan.

It was so hot Monday I actually though of not venturing out at all and writing my whole blog post about the temperature and humidity. It doesn’t sound like much fun, although I like to say, “Everybody talks about the weather but nobody does anything about it.” I say it in a really air-headed voice. One time my dad pointed out to me, they do so do something about it: they stay inside with the air conditioning or they put snow tires on their car, depending. I stand corrected.

Come to think of it, going to the library is a great thing to do on a hot day. You can sit in the air conditioning and read about Antarctica. Or do what I did and buy a a nice book about murder to read next Christmas.

Franklin Public Library is open 2 to 8 pm Monday and Wednesday, 11 am to 8 pm Tuesday and Thursday and 3 to 7 pm Friday, 11 am to 2 pm Saturday. Closed Saturdays June through August. Movies are offered Thursdays and Fridays at 6 pm. For more information call 894-9611.

Sunday evening, Steven and I walked, dog and lawn chairs in hand, to Myers Park in Herkimer to enjoy a concert by the Symphony Syracuse Brass Quintet.

Steven had seen the article in the Telegram on Thursday and suggested we attend. The program would feature Sousa marches, Ragtime and other popular themes.

“I love Ragtime,” I said.

“I like other popular themes,” Steve said.

We were glad the weather permitted the concert to be held in the park. The quintet played in the gazebo. There was already a good sized crowd when we got there, but we found a nice spot for our chairs.

The music was wonderful. It was a little hard to hear the quintet member introducing the pieces, which was too bad because he was very knowledgeable and it’s fun the hear the stories behind the songs. They opened with what he described as “the number one dance hit of 1587.”

The first half of the concert featured Baroque and Renaissance music. Once piece was the Hornpipe from Handel’s Water Music. This was recognizable as some royal sounding music used numerous times in movies and on television, none of which readily come to mind. If this was an audio blog or pod cast I could say, “You know, the one that goes bah BAH bahm, ba ba ba bah bahm.” Then you would have to listen to me sing. Never mind.

The quintet closed the first half with an antiphonal piece, which they spread out on the gazebo to play. The piece was introduced as “the Baroque version of Dueling Banjos.” During intermission we walked around and chatted with a few people we knew. Tabby, of course, was convinced that every person there was anxious to pet a cute little dog.

For the second half of the program, the group jumped to the late 1800s in this country for Ragtime. The term means ragged time, or syncopation. They started with Scott Joplin’s The Entertainer. It made me want to see The Sting again.

The trombone player introduced the next piece, The Junk Man Rag by Lucky Roberts, because it makes copious use of that unique trombone move, the smear or glissando.

“We do it a lot,” the player said, “because we can.”

This piece sounded familiar, and had my toe tapping. It is a later rag, and you can easily hear it as a precursor to another favorite sound of mine, jazz. The quintet also played a Gay ’90s Medley and a medley of George M. Cohan songs. I had to stop myself from singing along.

They closed with a piece originated by the Canadian Brass, a group which broke all the rules. They mixed Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus with “The Saints Come Marching In” and called it “The Saints Go Hallelujah.” I bet that’s a mash up the writers of Glee never thought of. What a fun piece! Many people were clapping along.

After a standing ovation, the trumpet player said, “I heard my dad yell ‘Encore!'” They obliged with a Sousa March. The Phillip Sousa Marching Band, we were told, were the rock stars of their time. It made me want to stand up and march. At the end we all stood and clapped again. Some people whistled. I yelled “Bravo!” Steven and I have a little controversy. I say you go “woo-hoo” only at rock concerts or in bars. For concerts and the theatre you yell “Bravo!” I did not hear any woo-hoos, and I believe I was the only one yelling “Bravo!” but it was a very appreciative crowd nonetheless.

The concert was the final even of the General Herkimer Days Festival, which began July 8. I’m sorry to say it was the only event I attended, but I’m very glad I did attend. I’ll be looking for more concerts in the park.

I promised a second post about the Boilermaker, so here it is.

I had run the Boilermaker once and felt that was enough, but it did not work out that way. Cindy, a friend and co-worker of my sister, had run the Boilermaker in the past and was inspired by my feat (and my feet) to start running again. She declared that we would run it together. How could I refuse?

As it turned out, when it came closer to the day, my would-be running partner decided she had not trained hard enough and would wisely sit out. But her boyfriend, Dave, was registered and ready for what Cindy called the Boilermaker Experience.

See, Dave is a serious runner. He runs to run. I know a lot of people run the Boilermaker to improve their time. They are more concerned about the athletic aspects of the event. I am more concerned about the fun aspects of the event. In the first place, the sheer number of runners makes running your best race difficult. I hesitated about running the Boilermaker for a long time, because running in the midst of that mass of humanity did not look that fun to me. I’m glad I eventually ran it, though, because it is, in fact, a great deal of fun. All those runners may make it difficult to set your own pace, but it is a great bunch of people out to have a good time. You can’t help but appreciate being part of something so big.

I daresay I could run a better time if I did not wave back to the people who encouraged me, call out remarks about the more amusing signs, and in general enjoy the scene. This is what Cindy meant when she spoke of the Boilermaker Experience. My assignment was to make sure Dave 1) sang along with a band, 2) ate a popsicle, and 3) high-fived a a kid.

I made sure Dave did all three. He even had to back track a few steps to high five a couple of kids. He told me he enjoyed it very much. In return, Dave made my Boilermaker experience a little easier. He drove us there and knew a good place to park, and he got us through the crowd so we got our lunch and beer, which I did not do on my first Boilermaker. Cindy and some members of my family found a great place to sit and be spectators. I even got to pause for a quick kiss with my hubby, which is a thing I saw a lady do the year before and was quite envious.

I should mention, too, that the Boilermaker offers a full weekend of entertainment. Friday featured an expo, where racers can pick up their packets and a number of goodies donated by local businesses. My first year all I did was pick up my packet and find the Information Booth for more details of exactly where to go on Sunday. The second year I was able to take a little more time to walk around the booths. All sorts of businesses and non-profits turn out. Saturday offers a walk and a pasta dinner.

You can find out all about the Boilermaker on the Utica Roadrunners website: http://www.uticaroadrunners.org. I encourage everyone to come out and watch or run. Next time I hope to be there myself.

This weekend I am sadly missing one of the all time greatest things Utica has to offer: the 15K Boilermaker Road Race. Of course, I am missing it for a very good, family reason, but the fact remains. Missing it.

I was never really aware of the Boilermaker as I grew up in Rome, when I only ran when forced to by circumstances. After I joined the army and learned to love running, my father suggested I run the Boilermaker, but nothing ever came of it till I had left the army and gotten fat and sedentary. For a couple of years, while I ran sporadically to keep my qualification to the National Guard, I kept saying, “Oh, I’ll run the Boilermaker one day.” Finally in 2009, several years out of all armed forces, I decided to do it. I started training in March, and I ran it. I registered late and had to pay an extra $15. A co-worker said, “That’s fifteen bucks that’ll say: ‘I ain’t quittin’!'” As they say, true dat.

What a fun race! Yes, it’s long and yes, it’s hot. There are hills. Quite frankly, nothing to frighten someone who ran in Monterey, CA or who trained by running up to Herkimer County Community College (I did both). And what support! Every step of the way there are people cheering you on. Bands are playing. People are waving signs and ringing bells. Somebody hands out popsicles. Every mile there are people handing out water or ice cubes.

If the spectators ever get boring — and I never saw them do that — the other runners will entertain. My first year I saw a man in a super hero costume complete with cape and a girl with a martini glass on her head. At least, it may have been a cosmopolitan glass. I drink martinis. While running through the golf course I had to sprint briefly to catch up with a fellow whose shirt said, “Slow and steady still gets us to the beer at the end of the race.” I just had to let him know he had inspired me. Kind of ironic: I sprinted to admire “slow and steady.” I like that.

I could go on and on about the Boilermaker. In fact, I think I will. I see my word count is over 300 and I like to keep my blog posts short. I will make tomorrow’s post about my second year running the Boilermaker. And just wait till 2012.

I thought I might be able to make it a weekly thing of taking a walk and watching a monster movie and, of course, blogging about it. Unfortunately, TCM did not cooperate with my plans and only showed the monster movies during June.

We did go for a walk Thursday, though, and rescued a cute little dog. I guess rescued is a strong word. Helped find her way home is closer.

This was actually the second cute little dog we encountered on the loose. The first was less than a week ago. We were on German street about to cross Main when a little foxy looking dog started across from the opposite side, making straight for Tabby. I thought I had seen the dog once when I was driving by, under a nearby bush. We found the bush, but the house it was in front of looked deserted. We went to the house next door and Steven rang the bell. No one answered, but soon a lady came out of the garage.

“Do you know this dog?” I started to ask, but it was clear the question was unnecessary, as the dog ran happily up to her.

The next day we happened to walk by that house, and the little dog was on a leash.

“He won’t get away this time!” the lady called to us.

Thursday we were on Gray Street when we saw a yorkie in front of a house. She started across the street towards Tabby. We walked over so she would stay near the house she apparently came out of. This time I rang the bell which no one answered. Then we heard a voice calling from the back of the house. Angel, which we found out was the dog’s name, was less inclined to go running to her owner. She wanted to play. But eventually she went back where she belonged, and we continued our walk.

It was a good long walk. We utilized the paths over what used to be the Hydraulic Canal (not drainage ditch), which I mentioned in a previous post. As we headed back home, we passed some teenagers walking perpendicular to us.

“Bellinger Street and Bellinger Ave.,” one girl remarked. “I never knew.”

It is kind of a weird quirk of this area that we have both streets and avenues of the same name. Ilion and Herkimer both do it and I don’t quite understand why. These are small villages. Could they really not think of enough street names? Of the two, I think Ilion is worse because they do it with numbers as well as names. Come on! Numbers are infinite! Why would you need to reuse them?

This has turned into one of my longer posts, especially for being just another one about taking a walk. Well that can only be a good reflection on the area I have decided to call home. Do you suppose other places offer the same infinite variety? Try yours and report back.