Nell's adventure begins... and this is just the beginning.

Moving at 37 is strange.  Moving cities for the 3^rd time (including college) is even stranger.  It seemed like taking on an adventure when work will foot the move and job security is in place was only logical.  And to move to Austin!  It is the fun hip city in which everyone wants to move to.  Right? 

Pack up the 2 year old!

It turns out… 2 year olds do not hinder fun or hip.  He received nothing but smiles dancing in a bar on 6^th street.  Okay, yes, it was the Driskill hotel bar, in which most people thought he was staying in, not visiting someone but it counts.  And yes, he did dance to the acoustic band.

So, while Austin is known for its hip music scene and laid back, not as judgmental as the deep south of where you take your kid attitude, it also has an incredibly large running scene.  At any time of the day you can head to Town Lake, Lake Austin, or “The Rock” and there are runners.  Head downtown to the trail running east/west through the city on any given Saturday or Sunday morning between 6am and noon, and the trail is packed full of runners.  A one mile boardwalk just opened up to extend the experience from a trail around the lake to on the lake.  Well, the lake that is a river (Colorado River) referred to as a lake.  I figure when I am able to tell you exactly where is the cut off between Town Lake and Lake Austin, I’m a local.

There are many running groups but I fell into meeting some individuals not that different than how I discovered my amazing group of girls that I miss so very much in Atlanta.  By posting on a neighborhood website asking if anyone was interested in running and not only run but specifically run in the wee hours of the morning.  I was a solo runner until I met Scarlett posting on the neighborhood website looking for someone to get my post baby working mom out of bed at an early morning hour I would NEVER thought sane prior to motherhood.  She was the only one to email me in response to my post.  Not only did Scarlett get my butt out of bed, she is responsible for making me become JUST LIKE HER.   I am the Austin version of the girl who will meet you without fail.  I owe Scarlett for that. 

I’m currently in the process of developing deep lasting relationships with some amazing women in Austin.  I still miss my Atlanta running friends though.  They had become a staple in grounding me to take on my day.  I'm stronger and more confident because of them.  I like to think I carry their spirits with me through the streets of Austin.  Around the lake…

 

- Nell