Visit with Mom and Pop today!

And this Day in Marathon History...

Hallockville Pond - Mt Institute Marathon

July 18th, 2008 - Hawley, Massachusetts

I completed the Hallockville Pond - Mt Institute Marathon with Wuzzam and Tippi.  

The 25+ miles were completed in 5:29:07, and ended with a dip in Hallockville Pond.  

This was my 38th completed marathon and Tippi's 12th.

Hike 2.7-Miles with K2 at Cowles Park. 

2.7-Mile Hike along the Granville Reservoir.

And from the archives...

Lost in Hampden II

Simons Marathon Adventure

July 16, 2000

Another attempt for about a dozen of us rambling from the Town Park in Hampden to Bald Mountain Summit and back for a marathon effort adventure in the heat of July.

Final time was a respectful 5:08:23.

Black Lizard / Vintage Crime #18 for 2026...

"Crossroads of Ravens", by Andrzej Sapkowski, published in 2024.

Crossroads of Ravens (Polish: Rozdroże kruków[c]) is the seventh novel and ninth overall book in the Witcher series written by Polish fantasy writer Andrzej Sapkowski, first published in Poland on 29 November 2024. It is a prequel to both the Witcher Saga (1994–1999) and the short story collections: Sword of Destiny (1992) and The Last Wish (1993). The novel is preceded only by the short story "The Road with No Return", which features Geralt's mother as the main character.

Having been born in 1962, and liking and listening to music from the early sixties onward, I thought it might be fun to attempt a listing of my favorite albums each year since birth.

The initial post for this series of ideas began on December 26th, 2023.  You can look it up....

This time, I present my "Top Albums released in 1969, #21 through #30" 

... from that incredible Year in Music 1969!

21 Jethro Tull                                Stand Up

22 The Mothers of Invention        Uncle Meat

23 Blind Faith                                Blind Faith

24 Creedence Clearwater Revival      Green River

25 Love                                        Four Sail

26 Love                                       Out Here

27 The Bob Seger System               Ramblin' Gamblin' Man

28 Link Wray                               Yesterday Today

29 Pentangle                               Basket of Light

30 Warren Zevon                               Wanted Dead or Alive

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Visit with Mom and Pop today. 

Early walk along Main Street for 2.1-miles. 

K2 and I rolled along 2.2-miles on the Bloomfield Greenway, a 2.5 mile paved multi-use path connecting the Tariffville section of Simsbury to Bloomfield along the former Connecticut Western Railroad. 

We accessed the path across the road from the 1807 old St Andrews Episcopal Church.  Headed north to the intersection with Mountain Road, took that for some climb and returned to our car.  Felt great!

From the Old Marathon Archives...

Lost in Hampden I

Simons Marathon Adventure

July 11, 1999

Around a dozen of us rambled from the Town Park in Hampden to Bald Mountain Summit and back for a marathon effort adventure in the heat of July.

Final time was a respectful 4:47:56.

What Played in Ed's Head -- 

Music listened to for the time-period June1 through June 30, 2026:

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

Difficult Month, Sore Left Hip and All Connective Tissue giving me fits.

No "High Point" at all.

Attended "court" with Pop in North Adams, went well

Visited with Mom in Williamstown after, and then lunch with Pop at Pedrin's.

Today from my Marathon History...

Whitcomb Summit to Windsor Jambs

Marathon with the Bandit

July 8, 1999

Today the Bandit and I completed a Marathon Effort from Whitcomb Summit to Windsor Jambs.

We totaled 4:25:00 running time, with decent conditions.

Spent a long day in Savoy State Forest for the majority of the adventure, with a barely there trail across the Cold River.

Black Lizard / Vintage Crime #17 for 2026...

"One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest", by Ken Kesey, published in 1962.

Having been born in 1962, and liking and listening to music from the early sixties onward, I thought it might be fun to attempt a listing of my favorite albums each year since birth.

The initial post for this series of ideas began on December 26th, 2023.  You can look it up....

This time, I present my "Top Albums released in 1969, #11 through #20" 

... from that incredible Year in Music 1969!

11. The Who         Tommy

12. Yes         Yes

13. Frank Zappa Hot Rats

14. David Bowie         Space Oddity

15. The Allman Brothers Band         The Allman Brothers Band

16. Bubble Puppy         A Gathering of Promises

17. The Guess Who Canned Wheat

18. Spirit Clear

19. Steppenwolf Monster

20. The Kinks Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)

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ArchaeoEd Podcast

Get ready to embark on a time-traveling adventure with 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, S5E1 "Ed's Origin Story at Copan"

Episode 5.1 - "Ed's Origin Story at Copan S5 E1" - ArchaeoEd

Ever wonder how Ed became an archaeologist?  Well here's the story.  The year was 1990 and the place was Copan, Honduras.  A field school experience for the record books!

Visit with Mom and Pop today.

Black Lizard / Vintage Crime #16 for 2026...

"Blindman with a Pistol", by Chester Himes, published in 1969.  Harlem Cycle Series #8.

This was the last Harlem Detective novel featuring Coffin Ed Johnson and Gravedigger Jones, New York City police detectives in Harlem. 

The titles of the complete series include:

• A Rage in Harlem
• The Real Cool Killers
• The Crazy Kill
• All Shot Up
• The Big Gold Dream
• The Heat's On
• Cotton Comes to Harlem,
• Blind Man with a Pistol; all written between 1957 and 1969. 

The final entry in the series was to be Plan B, published posthumously in 1983.