December 4

AM: 11 miles easy/moderate

PM: 5 miles easy

Ran the back stables loop for the first time in a while. Around the parking area near where Military Road crosses over Beach Drive, I had a stare down with one of the biggest birds I've seen in the wild. A plump, dark-colored bird, it looked like a cross between a peacock, emu, and a vulture. As it started to scamper away from me toward the creek, I thought, "There's no way this thing could get off the ground." Proving me wrong, it took to the air a fluttered across Rock Creek. Too weird. I've tried to look around DC audobon websites, and I still can't figure out what this creature was.

After work, I ran a new loop that uses a cut-through on top of the Farmingham Drive hill to go through some neighborhoods to get to Connecticut Ave. Cold, rainy, and tired legs made this run less than fun, but Christmas decorations this time of year at least add some charm to otherwisw dreadful runs in the dark.