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Mile 954.  Greetings from this evening's turnaround point, the Hurricane city power plant located up a hill from my office. Round trip distance was 2.03 miles, with 141 feet climbed in 1.02 miles along the way, for a 4.8 tortoise rating on the uphill portion of this walk.  The rest of the path was flat or downhill.  Lou burned 300 calories in 34:22 minutes doing this.

Please click below for a map and today's walking thought by L. Tom Perry ...  

Cheerio! 

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2014 Stats:

954.41 miles walked, which is 95.35% of my 2014 goal.

300:48:47 hours walked, which is 96.11% of my 2014 goal

46,726 total feet climbed 

151,235 calories burned
92.33% of the year has passed

I've walked 63 consecutive non-Sundays since my last missed day on September 20, and overall have walked on 276 of the 289 non-Sundays thus far in 2014, a 95.50% consistency rating.

The purpose of the percentages is to have a higher percentage of distance and time walked than of the year. This tells Tortoise that he is on track. Yes, this is more numbers than you are likely interested in, all Tortoise can say is he's really good at setting high goals and having them slip away because he doesn't do them every, every day.

And now for today's walking thought, originally presented in October 1993:

" ... the Lord has blessed us with symbols of purity to keep us on the right course to choose the right. I was reminded of one of these at a baptism of one of my granddaughters a few months ago. In the little program that preceded the ordinance of baptism, my granddaughter read a poem, which had been written by her mother for this special occasion.

"'My mom bought me a white dress,

Not red or pink or blue.

She said it was a special dress

Like very other few.

There has been just one before,

A dress now put away,

That I wore some time ago

Upon my blessing day.

As a little baby clothed

In my first white dress,

My dad held me in his arms,

There to name and bless.

So pure and clean was I just then,

With time to grow and learn

About the Father’s plan for me.

My glory I must earn.

"'

Now I’ve reached the age to judge

The wrong road from the right,

And I am here to be baptized

In this dress of white.

So once again I’m free from sin.

The path is clear to me.

I’ll grasp the rod and hold on tight,

I vow with certainty.

Just as mud would stain my dress,

Sin would stain my soul.

The key is to repent or bleach,

For whiteness is my goal.

"'And if I try my very best,

Then richly blessed I’ll be,

Wearing inside God’s holy house

White dress number three.

So today I make this pledge:

I’ll strive to choose the right,

Through this sacred baptism ordinance

In my second dress of white.'

"I suggest that each of you find or create reminders to help you and your loved ones choose the right when a choice is placed before you. There is power in a tie tack, a CTR ring, or a white dress hanging in the closet if we associate them with our desires for purity and righteousness. Even more important than physical reminders is to have the conviction deep down in our hearts to live the kind of life that will cause us to make the right choices."

To watch, listen to, or read this message from this cheerful soldier and beloved former Boston Stake president in full, please visit https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1993/10/choose-the-right?lang=eng   #ShareGoodness

The tortoise is smiling!