Liberty Bowl vs. Athens-Big Fork Marathon

I'm as big a Hog fan as there is, but I just haven't caught the fire to go to Memphis this weekend and watch us take on the Pirates of East Carolina. Instead, some running friends of mine mentioned that they're manning the aid stations at the Athens-Big Fork Marathon on an old postal trail on Saturday morning up in the Ouachitas in southern Polk County.

I'd never heard of that race, so after googling it, I found a website with this official warning:

"This event is NOT for trail-newbies." and "If you are not an experienced trail- or ultra-runner (or adventure racer), we happily invite you to one of the other UTS runs, BUT NOT THIS ONE. To further make their point they state, "This is a difficult event on a difficult trail that presents many opportunities for one to get lost, injured, exhausted, or incapacitated--with sparse access for rescue." To discourage the masochists they warn..."Please do not be enticed into trying this run because of the difficulty warning--it is merely an honest attempt at preventing the run organizers from having to find and rescue someone ill-equipped for the event. Then they even go so far as to say, "If you cannot find the Big Fork Community Center without further instructions--please disregard this race."

After I read that, I only had one question...where do I sign up?

I called the folks at the Hampton Inn on Poplar in Memphis and cancelled my room. I hope to be in my easy chair by kickoff on Saturday with an icepack on this tender hamstring rooting the Hogs on to victory.

I've always thought this part of Arkansas is as pretty as anywhere in the state:

This week at the Capitol

No legislative meetings will be held at the Capitol, and outside of the Daisy Bates Commission (today at 11:00 a.m. in Rm. 149), there will be no meetings held at the Capitol. All holiday festivities have concluded, and the only official item on Governor Beebe's calendar this week is an economic development announcement at 10:00 a.m. this morning at Century Industries in Little Rock. Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas.

Lottery Commission Oversight Committee meets this morning

For the first time since the State Agencies Committee took up the ISP to consider repealing the new scholarship lottery amendment, the legislative committee with oversight of the Lottery Commission will convene. The committee meets at 10:00 a.m. this morning at the Capitol and will hear a report from lottery director Ernie Passailaigue before reviewing proposed rules for the Arkansas Challenge Scholarship. Here's the agenda.

Survived the White Rock Marathon in Dallas with a 3:25:11

Good temps paved the way for a good time in yesterday's White Rock Marathon in Dallas. It was a personal best for me and a good way to end 2009. I hit the half at 1:41 and was glad to see the fog not burning off by that point. I knew I'd have to maintain a 7:49 pace per mile from that point to hit 3:25 and needed a little help from the weather.

I scoured the 'net for some music for my iPod other than Fleetwood Mac and Springsteen to get me through the latter miles...the speaker suggested Turbo Lover by Judas Priest (gotta love growing up in the 80's).

Another one that made me chuckle was the song on this video that some guy sent me (who I apparently upset) when I pursued adding regulations to combative sports in the spring -- this singer needs some anger management. If you think these songs are humorous, you'd get a good laugh from my iPod. Time to hang up the running shoes for a while and focus solely on the upcoming fiscal session, which convenes on February 8.

Live blogging a legislative blogging seminar

I'm here posting and talking live from the NCSL Fall Forum here in San Diego, where we're discussing how technology can be used for the benefit of legislators and other government officials. Unlike other similar programs I've done, just about everyone here in the audience has some sort of Internet presence...mostly on Facebook (at least). One of the most fascinating presentations came from Jon Heining, legislative counsel in Texas, about legal pitfalls from blogging. There are all sorts of things to watch out for, from constitutional issues to defematory posts to political missteps that'll become a part of your permanent record, all with the punch of a button. Other presenters include Sen. Pamela Gorman (AZ) and Rep. Fiona Ma (CA).

Here's a link to the live blog of NCSL's The Thicket, being posted by Karl Kurtz, who's next to me on the podium here.

National Conference of State Legislatures Fall Forum

I'm here at the NCSL Fall Forum in San Diego getting ready for a presentation on legislative technology and blogging. The legislative effectiveness committee also meets today, which is chaired by Robbie Wills, and I serve as vice chair. I'm also a member of the Sentencing and Correction Policy Task Force, which convened for the last two days to discuss the budget impact of prisons and sentencing changes in the states. Here in California, because of the three strikes law, spending on corrections has more than quadrupled over the last 15 years, which has cut into all other types of crucial spending, including education. It's also an issue that we've begun to study in Arkansas, and it's interesting to see statistics of inmates locked up for violent offenses vs those non-violent offenders, parole violators, etc.

I'll be blogging the technology presentation live at 3:00 pm this afternoon Arkansas time.

Texarkana earns Preserve America community designation

Here, I present Mayor Horace Shipp with a certificate noting that the City of Texarkana, Arkansas has earned the Preserve America Community Designation, which encourages efforts to preserve and educate about local heritage. Since its inception in 2003, about 800 communities have received the designation, but no others locally.

Best campaign dog ever has gone to dog heaven

It's been a tough weekend in the Harrelson household. Our black lab of 13 years has moved on. I got Libby two weeks after I graduated college, so this one saw a lot. Here's the Four States Fair Parade earlier this fall. Camille already wants another one.

Jodie Mahony dies in El Dorado

Former longtime Arkansas Senator, House member and all around Arkansas politico Jodie Mahony passed away after a long bout with cancer Saturday at age 70. He was a mainstay on the Democrat-Gazette's Top Legislators lists.

From the governor:

"Jodie Mahony never quit. As a legislator, he fought until the end for causes important to him and to the betterment of Arkansans. When term limits dictated that he could no longer serve, Jodie joined the House staff and remained a key advisor on education issues. And when the doctors said that cancer had won, Jodie fought and stayed with us far longer than anyone expected. To his final days, you could find Jodie in the Capitol, still upbeat, still working the halls, and still fighting. Arkansas has lost an outstanding man who exemplifies public service in our State."

I was honored to serve one term with Jodie in the House and learned lots from him in that short time. He carried legislation around in a box and never wanted to chair a committee -- it got in the way of the real work -- shepherding large bills through the legislature, which required hours of debate in all corners of the Capitol. He was knowledgeable in every issue, but he was the go-to person on all aspects of education. Jodie leaves behind his wife of 40 years, two sons and three grandchildren.

Funeral arrangements have been set. Visitation is Tuesday at Young's Funeral Directors in El Dorado from 4 to 6 p.m. The memorial service will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at First Presbyterian Church.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Joseph K. Mahony II Scholarship Fund at the South Arkansas Community College Foundation, 300 South West Avenue, El Dorado, AR 71730, or the First Presbyterian Church of El Dorado, 300 East Main, 71730.

Beebe appoints Bill Bowen to Arkansas Supreme Court

Governor Mike Beebe has named Bill Bowen of Little Rock to the Arkansas Supreme Court in place of the retiring Justice Annabelle Clinton Imber. A special election next year will determine who serves the remainder of Imber's term, which ends in 2014. Bowen, 86, started his legal career as a tax attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice in the 1950s. He returned to Arkansas and spent 17 years in private practice before becoming involved in banking. The UALR School of Law has been named after him.