It's July 1st, do you know where your resolutions are?

Half of 2012 is behind us. HALF. Um, what? If that realization sent you scrambling for your resolution list, you're not the only one. I also happen to click another year older on the odometer of life right around now so I get a tad overwhelmed with self-evaluation this time of year.

What does that really mean? Panic. And what happens when I panic? I run.

In the fight or flight response to stressful situations in my life, travel always wins. Secretly I believe that if I'm on the move the calendar can't catch me.  In my mind, I'm living blissfully in the 20-something range for eternity, with perpetual permission for making bad decisions and little to no responsibility for grown up obligations.

Sounds nice, doesn't it?

I realize it's not exactly reality. But that hasn't stopped me from momentarily pulling energy out of distracting local nonsense and putting it into google maps and the topography of a western adventure. As part of that preparation, and to give myself some sense of accomplishment going into this halfway mark, I set up a little challenge: run my age, before I turn my age. The number of miles and days to go are about the same. It's a reasonable goal, but only if I don't procrastinate. If I can slowly whittle away at the miles, I'll not only have checked at least one box on the life to-do list before hitting my birthday, but I'll also be physically ready to check off some athletic endeavors after hitting the road. The only thing worse that feeling older, I imagine, would be to feel slower. I'm trying to preemptively minimize the magnitude of total breakdown about life that is likely to occur somewhere out there on the road.

So last night, "wild and crazy" Saturday night that it was, I got a head start and ticked off four miles. It was a beautiful sunset run. The sky slowly drifted from dusty rose to deep blue. The earth still radiated the heat of the day and the cool night air mixed in as I ran through the blending currents. Like a little reminder that I need both....stability and fleeting breeze...responsibility and adventure...the ease of life here and the constant challenge to strive for more.