"High Points" along trails during May 2026... 

• Difficult Month, Sore Left Hip and All Connective Tissue giving me fits.
• Only "High Point" is the Hawk Watching Site in NEFF/Phelon Forest, Granville, Mass.

This has been a Great Marathon Day in my History! 

Two completed marathons on this day in my past!

In 2001, I completed my 25th marathon at Nipmuck, in 4:27:17.  

This was a 35th place, and my 5th completed Nipmuck.

Then, on this day in 2012, Wuzzam, Tippi and I completed a Tunxis Marathon in 6:26:10.  

This was my 47th Marathon, and Tippi's 16th.

Non-Black Lizard / Vintage Crime #14 for 2026...

"The Friends of Eddie Coyle", by George V. Higgins, published in 1970.

Physical Therapy.

Marisa Anderson at the Space Ballroom (Front Room), 295 Treadwell Street, Hamden, CT 06514.

J Evil and I attended the Marisa Anderson show with roughly 35 or so others at the Front Room of the Space Ballroom.  I believe five compositions were played from Anderson's latest project, "The Anthology Of Unamerican Folk Music (Vol. 1)".  Each song performed throughout the evening was explained to the audience, its background, inspiration, and meaning.  Excellent Show!

The Marathon Archives:

A great marathon day in my history!  Two throwbacks...

On this day in 1998, I completed the my 4th Nipmuck Marathon in 4:28:33, a 41st placement.  

This was my 20th finished marathon.

Also on this day, in 2009, I completed my 7th Nipmuck Marathon in 4:37:03 (19th place).  

This was my 42nd marathon overall.

The Marathon Archives:

...on this day in 2010, I ran the Nipmuck Marathon for the 8th time.  

It was my 46th marathon completed, with a time of 5:07:28.  

This was good for 34th place overall.

Visit with Mom in Williamstown and Pop in Adams.

On Drive Home, I stopped briefly at the Burnett Cemetery (aka South County Cemetery) in Florida, while doing some "old trail" research.

From the Marathon Archives:   

On this day in 1994 I completed my 3rd marathon - Nipmuck.  

It was my first Nipmuck Marathon completed, and my time was 4:02:00, good for 23rd place.

Also, on this day in 2005, I completed my 27th marathon - also Nipmuck, with a time of 4:48:13.  

This was good for 29th place.

MRI Scheduled for Left Hip and Back, Rocky Hill.

ArchaeoEd Podcast

Get ready to embark on a time-traveling adventure with the legendary archaeologist, Dr. Ed Barnhart!

Let's unearth the stories of the awe-inspiring civilizations of the Americas. 

These are the tales that only get a fleeting mention in western history books.

ArchaeoEd, S4E8 ""The Ancient City of Poverty Point" - ArchaeoEd"

Episode 4.8 - "The Ancient City of Poverty Point" - ArchaeoEd

3,500 years ago, Poverty Point was a thriving city of over 5,000 people in the bayous of northern Louisiana.  

Despite not having agriculture or even ceramics, those people built North America's 2nd largest pyramid-mound.

Rock and Roll Heaven claimed another today...

.Willie James "Blood" Ulmer (February 8, 1940 – June 3, 2026) was an American jazz, free funk and blues guitarist and singer. He played a Gibson Byrdland guitar. His guitar sound has been described as "jagged" and "stinging". Ulmer's singing has been called "raggedly soulful".

Willie James Ulmer was born in St. Matthews, South Carolina, United States on February 8, 1940.  He began his career playing with soul jazz ensembles, first in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1959 to 1964, and then in the Columbus, Ohio, area from 1964 to 1967. After moving to New York in 1971, Ulmer played with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, Joe Henderson, Paul Bley, Rashied Ali, and Larry Young.

In the early 1970s, Ulmer joined Ornette Coleman; he was the first electric guitarist to record and tour extensively with Coleman. He has credited Coleman as a major influence. Coleman's reliance on electric guitar in his fusion-oriented recordings owes a debt to Ulmer.

His appearance on Arthur Blythe's two consecutive Columbia albums, Lenox Avenue Breakdown (1979) and Illusions (1980), was followed by Ulmer's signing to that label. That resulted in three albums: Free Lancing, Black Rock, and Odyssey, which was the inaugural release of Odyssey The Band with drummer Warren Benbow and violinist Charles Burnham. The trio was called "avant-gutbucket" by music critic Bill Milkowski to describe the music as "conjuring images of Skip James and Albert Ayler jamming on the Mississippi Delta."

Ulmer formed Music Revelation Ensemble around 1980, co-led with David Murray for the first decade and lasting into the 1990s. Later versions of the band included Arthur Blythe, Sam Rivers, Pharoah Sanders, and John Zorn. 

In the 1980s he co-led the quartet Phalanx with saxophonist George Adams. Ulmer has recorded as a leader, including blues-oriented albums produced by Vernon Reid: Memphis Blood, No Escape from the Blues, Bad Blood in the City, and Birthright.

As leader:

Tales of Captain Black (Artists House, 1979)

Are You Glad to Be in America? (Rough Trade, 1980)

Free Lancing (Columbia, 1981)

Black Rock (CBS, 1982)

Odyssey (CBS, 1983)

Part Time (Rough Trade, 1984)

Live at the Caravan of Dreams (Caravan of Dreams, 1986)

America – Do You Remember the Love? (Blue Note, 1987)

Blues Allnight (Bellaphon, 1990)

Revealing (In+Out, 1990)

Black and Blues (DIW, 1991)

Blues Preacher (DIW, 1993)

Live at the Bayerischer Hof (In+Out, 1994)

Music Speaks Louder than Words (DIW, 1995)

Plays the Music of Ornette Coleman (DIW, 1996)

Harmolodic Guitar with Strings (DIW, 1997)

Reunion (Knitting Factory, 1997)

Forbidden Blues (DIW, 1998)

Memphis Blood: The Sun Sessions (Label M, 2001)

Blue Blood (Innerhythmic, 2001)

No Escape from the Blues: The Electric Lady Sessions (Hyena, 2003)

Guitar Music (Dernière Bande, 2003) – with Rodolphe Burger

Back in Time (Pi, 2005)

Birthright (Hyena, 2005)

Bad Blood in the City: The Piety Street Sessions (Hyena, 2007)

In and Out (In+Out, 2009)

Black Rock Reunion (American Revelation, 2009)

Blues Odyssey (American Revelation, 2010)

Live at Birdland (American Revelation, 2010)

Freelancing Live (American Revelation, 2013)

With Music Revelation Ensemble:

No Wave (Moers, 1980)

Music Revelation Ensemble (DIW, 1988)

Elec. Jazz (DIW, 1990)

After Dark (DIW, 1992)

In the Name of... (DIW, 1994)

Knights of Power (DIW, 1996)

Cross Fire (DIW, 1997)

With Phalanx:

Got Something Good for You (Moers Music, 1986)

Original Phalanx (DIW, 1987)

In Touch (DIW, 1988)

Phalanx Live (American Revelation, 2013)

With Third Rail:

South Delta Space Age (Antilles, 1995)

As sideman:

Rashied Ali, Rashied Ali Quintet (Survival, 1973)

Karl Berger, Conversations (In+Out, 1994)

Arthur Blythe, Lenox Avenue Breakdown (Columbia, 1979)

Arthur Blythe, Illusions (Columbia, 1980)

James Carter, Out of Nowhere (Half Note, 2005)

Ornette Coleman, Celebrate Ornette (Song X 2016)

Ry Cooder, The End of Violence (Outpost, 1997)

Jayne Cortez, Borders of Disorderly Time (Bola, 2003)

Joe Henderson, Multiple (Milestone, 1973)

Hank Marr, Sounds from the Marr-Ket Place (King, 1964)

David Murray, Children (Black Saint, 1985)

David Murray, Recording N.Y.C. 1986 (DIW, 1986)

John Patton, Accent on the Blues (Blue Note, 1969)

John Patton, Memphis to New York Spirit (Blue Note, 1996)

Rochester/Veasley Band, One Minute of Love (Gramavision, 1985)

The Roots, Phrenology (MCA, 2002)

Juma Sultan, Whispers from the Archive (Porter, 2012)

Jamaaladeen Tacuma, Show Stopper (Gramavision, 1983)

World Saxophone Quartet, Political Blues (Justin Time, 2006)

Frank Wright, Blues for Albert Ayler (ESP Disk, 2012)

Larry Young, Lawrence of Newark (Perception, 1973)

From the archives....

I completed my 11th marathon on this day in 1996 at Nipmuck.  

I ran a 3:56:50 in the race, which was good for 15th place.

Old News Department...

On this day in 1997 I completed my 15th marathon - Nipmuck.  

It was the 3rd time I completed Nipmuck, and my time was 4:31:44, good enough for 42nd place.

Also, on this day in 2013, I completed my 51st marathon - Hawley Berkshire East.  

I had Wuzzam with me for this one, which was a real beast.  

We had a total time on feet of 7:45:15, which was the longest either of have ever been on our feet moving through the forest.  

It was most likely more than a marathon distance.  

By several miles...  (or more).

I have spent much time in the woods... observing, thinking, letting my mind go blank, researching, mapping, praying, enjoying....   Old Henry may have gotten it way before me:

“If a man walks in the woods for love of them half of each day, he is in danger of being regarded as a loafer; but if he spends his whole day as a spectulator, shearing off those woods and making the earth bald before her time, he is esteemed an industrious and enterprising citizen.”

― Henry David Thoreau

From the Archives...

McLean Game Refuge & Holcomb Farm Marathon

May 30th, 2009 - Granby & Simsbury, Connecticut

Wuzzam and I completed a McClean Reservation Marathon in roughly five hours.   

This was my 41st marathon completed.  I recall it being a fairly easy day for us.

Rambling on Greylock and within the Glen has been a favorite pastime of mine...  early stories of the original wanderer's....

X Ray for Left Hip and Back.

On this day...

Vermont City Marathon

May 28, 1995 - Burlington, Vermont

I achieved my Boston Qualifier today at Vermont City in Burlington, Vermont.  

I was able to dip under the age group setpoint of 3:10 with a 3:08:00.

At two-miles I was at 16:40, which was pretty far off my necessary 7:15 per mile to achieve the sub 3:10 finish time.  

This means I ran 7:05 pace for the final 24.2-miles.