Late last night, I finally finished my novel, all 850 odd pages of it. Oh - I mean, the novel I've been reading, not my own life story :) - "Can You Forgive Her?" Yes - I did forgive her, as did most of the major characters in the book. Her sin was one that modern day readers would laugh at - jilting the man she loved.

Another school day. Today it turned out to be mostly stuff I already had a good handle on, so I fought back manly tears of boredom all day, taking advantage of every break to the maximum degree that politeness would allow.

Trying to stay awake during a class break

By three, looking ahead in the course notes, I could see I already knew the rest of the day's subject matter, and managed to get out of class for the day! So I went hiking in nearbye William B. Umstead State Park. It's a lovely park, with well-marked hiking trails and few people. I was essentially alone with just the birds to keep me company.

In the depths of the wood, just off the trail, I spotted a tiny little cemetery patch. I'd asked about the cemetery on my company's campus, and apparently it's a local thing to have cemeteries everywhere like this.

Later, during the early evening, I plucked up the courage to go running. I've not been in almost a week - a combination of the heat and tiredness is to blame. But I knew I needed it. I was only able to do 8 laps this time, due to the heat, and even after that I was completely wiped out.

After running. I touched up the colors of this pic to make it look more interesting.