this has been a great week and also a nice way to end the year. we took the week off and the kids and grand kids came to see us and there was a houseful with lots of noise and activity. it was trying at times, but only because my grandpa skillset (musicans call it your “chops”) was a bit rusty and when they moved away last february the house was pretty grand kid proof. they have aquired some new chops of their own. i fully realize these are not the most  talented and itelligent boys on the planet, i was just amazed at how they have developed since the last time i saw them. i miss having them around every day like we did so i can see them develope.

friday we took nine adults and 6 grandchildren between the ages or 5 months to 5 years old to the fort worth museum of science, which has an omni theater, and saw “happy feet”. it was raining so hard on the way over there i was expecting to see someone in the neighborhood gathering pairs of animals and putting them into a huge wooden box-like thing. after the movie and a good while playing with the exibits in the museum, we then took the crew to eat bar-b-que and lord, that bar-b-que was good.  the movie was delightful too and with a few exceptions, where various parents and/or kids had momentary meltdowns, the experience was a success. we pulled it off and a good time was had by all. 

this week i got a new schedule and the volume went up to around 30-35 miles a week and included strength training recommendations. those include functional things like walking lunges and lots of core stuff added to the usual. for today’s long run we ran around white rock lake. it’s not convient to go over there very often, except for a race, but it’s a great place to run and this was the longest run in dianne’s life to date.

i’m playing a new years eve gig tonight. that hasn’t happened in a long time. it should be interesting for many reasons, but one of them is the fact that we will start playing at 9:00pm. i’m usually ready for bed around 9:30-10:00. it’ll be another endurance event in many ways. sorry, i won’t be able to take pictures. whatever you do tonight to celebrate the coming year, have fun and be safe. see you next year!