Around 1:15am this morning I woke up with a nosebleed. I can’t remember the last time I had a nosebleed. It didn’t last long and I was back asleep within 30 minutes. Then, at 5:40am, it happened again. Knowing that I had planned to run later in the day, I decided I would make it an easy run and hope not to have another nosebleed.

It has been seven or eight years since I ran through Cascades Park, in Tallahassee. At one point, I worked in a building adjacent to the park and would run 2 miles during lunch in the cooler months. The City of Tallahassee has put a lot of time and money into the redevelopment of Cascades Park and surrounding areas. The redevelopment includes a 5.2 mile corridor through downtown Tallahassee. I decided to take my new shoes, Saucony Tempus, for a test run. And, decided to try out a new running bra, the Women’s Under Armour Infinity High Zip Sports Bra.

My run started in Cascades Park, I did a half loop through the park, took the paved corridor path to the Railroad Square Art District, ran through the art district and back to the park, finishing with a full loop around the park. Overall, it was a nice run for a humid Tallahassee morning. I was blown away by all the new things I saw on my run. I saw several colorful murals, a 10-foot tall TLH sculpture just outside the park, a concrete skate park near the art district, new apartment buildings, one of my favorite local coffee shops, Lucky Goat, opened a coffee shop along the paved corridor, and lots of geese with their goslings.

I grew up running through neighborhoods in Los Angeles, mostly in Culver City, Venice, Santa Monica, and Mar Vista. My run this morning took me back to the days running in California. I got to smell fresh coffee when I ran past Lucky Goat, saw shop owners in the art district tinkering around and cleaning the space in front of their shops, I passed many walkers, some with dogs, and people with laptops sitting at tables doing work. This is my favorite kind of run, to run through a city, through a community and see it alive with day-to-day activities, and to feel the buzz and life of its people.