Almost Heaven,

West Virginia.

Charleston, to be exact. I can't say I felt about the conference in West Virginia the way I feel about Mexico (never really been but I'd sure like to go), or Alabama (where the skies are so blue), but it was good to get out of town for a bit.

Most striking, perhaps, was that WVA's biggest city has 50,000 people, down from 80,000 not that long ago. So, yes, they've got some trouble. Still, it was beautiful there and I do miss the mountains. I went running twice while in the capitol city, which was fun because of the whole just-take-your-shoes-and-you-can-explore-the-city thing. However, I was reminded of a few basic running-while-traveling rules:

1. Ask the hotel where to run, don't just "set out" - sadly, this is particularly important if you are female.
2. Make sure the key card fits securely in the mini-pocket of your shorts.
3. Pay attention to the culture, do cars notice pedestrians? Accelerate at them?
4. If possible take a trail. Roaming around the urban core can be enlightening from a "policy perspective" but does not lend it self to an easy run.
5. Don't worry about judgement from others too much. Maybe people in the area don't run, maybe they run better than you, either way, at least you are out there.