ATHLETIC!
Taken two weekends ago at the Philadelphia Dragon Boat Festival. This was the winning boat in the first race: they were simply amazing and beat their competition handily, but I don't know the name of their team. The Super Uber Dragon Slayers or something like that I suppose.

My team was less about winning and more about the pleasure of being on the river, being together and raising a little money for charity (Ronald McDonald House): in other words, we lost every heat we paddled in. It was totally fun anyway! I think we are partly handicapped by our name which is The Dragon Ladies. A coach who once came out to watch a practice and advise us urged us to stop being so lady-like and really get down into it but I am afraid that is simply not the team zeitgeist. (At one meeting I jokingly suggested that we change our name to The Dragon Bitches, but only one person laughed, so you get the idea!)

Still, winning the races or not is almost beside the point on a morning as beautiful as this one was. It felt like a crown of laurels, just being there on the river in the glorious glow of morning light.

P.S. Sorry for the lag in posting. The whole family has been sick with a terrible cold virus (possible even an early flu) going down with it at staggered intervals, toppling into illness like feverish dominoes, one after another. My cold then evolved into bronchitis, just for a little extra fun and variety. On the mend now (knock on wood!)