The South. The Heat.

As it turns out, The South is remarkably hot and remarkably muggy in the summer months. No doubt, Southern California has spoiled me to the point where low humidity and steady ocean breezes seem to be the norm. I'm currently staying at Davidson College (30 minutes outside of Charlotte, NC), where I am attending the 2010 Gordon Research Conference in Green Chemistry. I've managed to brave the heat each of the past two afternoons for mid-day runs, experiences which certainly probed my courage and conviction (what with temperatures nearing 100 degrees). On the first day, I followed a path around the perimeter of the college, which is rather small, and into the surrounding neighborhoods. The campus here has an aged beauty, with classic red brick buildings and chivalrous southern air to it. Today, I followed advice given to me independently be two Davidson alums and ran an 8 km cross country train behind the basketball stadium. Since the weather has been rainy, parts of the train were a bit of a chore, but overall it was a splendid run, with cicadas noisily chirping over Korean pop music playing on my iPod. My hydration levels were tested when I dropped my room key in a sunny clearing (literally having to walk back and forth along the the path in direct sunlight for around five minutes while clumsily fumbling for the key without my glasses). However, a prompt return to the shade proved to be revitalizing.



At the end of the trail, I was greeted by a group from the GRC who had come out to a nearby soccer field for a pickup game, which I gladly (if doggedly) participated in. Sloshing around on the wet field, I managed to thoroughly stain my new shoes and to make somewhat of a fool of myself while sliding over, around, and past the ball. The return to my air-conditioned room and an immediate shower were divine.

This, I gather, is southern running in the summer.