15-321

Mile 954.  Tortoise's favorite walk while waiting for his oil to be changed at Roadrunner.  Why sit and wait when one can breathe clean, crisp air and see the ever changing colors of Confluence Park.  After yesterday's storm, the snowpack has increased on the Pine Valley Mountains, for which the residents of the surrounding valleys are most thankful, and which Lou never tires of seeing.  This view includes the Virgin River as he began climbing out of the park on the Cactus Cliff trail.  The row of trees starting in the middle of the picture and continuing to the right is courtesy of La Verkin Creek, whose path the trees trace.  A fine walk indeed.  Today's walking thought is by Kim Clark ...

Cheerio!

Today's walk was 3.43 miles and had a 3.1 tortoise rating earned by climbing 314 feet in the 1.00 mile uphill portion.  Average elevation was 3133.  This walk burned 511 calories in 1:05:01 hours.

Here are the overall stats so far for 2015:

954.61 miles walked which is 95.27% of Lou's 2015 goal.  On this day in 2014, Tortoise had walked 911.01 miles.

292:50:46 hours walked which is 93.56% of the 2015 goal (which is to walk 1 hour a day on the 313 days other than Sunday in the year).

50,880 total feet climbed, compared with 44,683 feet on this day in 2014.

143,162 calories burned.

87.86% of the year has passed.

Lou has walked 163 consecutive non-Sundays since his 8 missed days May 2-11, Overall he has walked on 266 of the 275 non-Sundays in 2015, a 96.73% consistency rating.  This compares with 262 days walked in the same period in 2014 (a 95.27% consistency rating).

The purpose of the percentages is to have a higher percentage of both distance and of 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.  (If you doubt this, compare Tortoise's walking record up until 2013 with 2014 or 2015 ... for him, it is what it takes to be consistent.  He hopes you find what works for you).

And now for today's walking thought ...

"If we will look to Christ and open our eyes and our ears, the Holy Ghost will bless us to see the Lord Jesus Christ working in our lives, strengthening our faith in Him with assurance and evidence.  We increasingly will see all of our brothers and sisters the way God sees them, with love and compassion.  We will hear the Savior's voice in the scriptures, in the whisperings of the Spirit, and in the words of the living prophets.  We will see the power of God resting upon His prophet and all the leaders of His true and living Church, and we will know with a surety that this is God's holy work.  We will see and understand ourselves and the world around us the way the Savior does.  We will come to have what the Apostle Paul called 'the mind of Christ.'  (1 Corinthians 2:16) We will have eyes to see and ears to hear ..."

-- Kim B. Clark, "Eyes to See and Ears to Hear", October 2015 LDS General Conference

The tortoise is smiling!