Come what may; I want to run - 2 Samuel 18:23
What's on Your Reading List?
Add my book. Order directly from Wipf & Stock Publishers or from Amazon, Bookshop, and Barnes & Noble
More News in 2024
Honored to have my book
COME WHAT MAY, I WANT TO RUN
included in Martha Hughes's list of
favorite running books.
Tune in to her podcast
Martha Runs the World episode no. 275
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Tune in to my interview about suffering, toughness, and resiliency in the Running for Your Life podcast.
When I'm not running or writing, I'm painting. I am pleased to announce my first solo art exhibition in the month of February.
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Nature: Mountains, Trails, Sand, Water, Water, and National Parks.
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Here's more about my painting journey.
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BIG ANNOUNCEMENT 2023
My debut memoir - Come What May, I Want to Run: A Memoir of the Saving Grace of Ultrarunning in Overwhelming Times - is available for purchase from Resource Publications, an imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers, Amazon, Bookshop. and Barnes & Noble.
Listen to my latest interview on my memoir and my writing process on the Like A Bigfoot podcast. Listen to more interviews here.
I'm honored and humbled to be recognized as one of
12 Superwomen of 2020 by South Jersey Magazine
More News:
December 2022​
I'm happy to announce that I am a Contributor on Patient Worthy, an online publication dedicated to rare diseases, education, and patient advocacy. My first piece was published on December, 6, 2022.
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You can read about my eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) journey, and how I advocated for myself and healed my EoE with a diet I created free of preservatives, additives, food coloring, hormones, steroids, pesticides, and insecticides, here. I am currently writing my EoE journey memoir/cookbook with recipes to benefit anyone suffering from EoE, adults and children alike, and for all who want to eat foods free of chemicals. Readers from all over the world reach out to tell me that how I healed myself with with my diet, The Miriam Diet, gives them hope. Many have asked for my recipes and a cookbook.
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August 2022
After losing my adjunct professor gig to the pandemic in 2020, I retired early andI began playing with acrylic paint on canvass. I've been painting since July 2021. You can view some of my paintings here.
I am also an ordinary ultrarunner. I have finished eight 50-mile ultras, three 100 mile ultras, six 24-hour, one 48-hour ultra, and one 60-hour ultra. I also ran several virtual ultras and marathons during the Covid-19 pandemic.
I began running ultras after watching Leslie Stahl interview elite world-class ultarunners Dean Karnazes and Pam Reed on 60 Minutes in 2004. I have been running ultras since 2005. Prior to running ultras, I completed nine marathons, eight half-marathons, one 10 miler, and five 5Ks. I have been running competitively since 1989. Here is my ultrasignup results page.
I am a published author, freelance writer, interviewer, and book reviewer. You can read my publications in the Memoir and Writing Life tab. In my blog you'll find interviews with ultrarunners, such as Jacob Moss, Kevin Hoegler, Dean Karnazes, Camille Herron, Bart Yasso, Charlie Engle, Pamela Chapman Markle, Catra Corbett, Gene Dykes, and Peter Morgan.I write book reviews, and articles about gardening, the national parks, spirituality, cancer caregiving, and more.
I am/was a cancer caregiver to my husband. During the pandemic in 2020, I created a GoFundMe campaign - Ultra Care for Cancer Caregivers. To learn more about the inspiration for this campaign and to donate, visit GoFundMe - Ultra Care for Cancer Caregivers. To nominate a cancer caregiver to be a recipient of the fund, contact me.
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I am also a cancer survivor. In 2024, I was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer. I had a successful partial mastectomy. I am cancer free. I documented my cancer journey on my website blog. You can read about it here.
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My article, The Ascetic Life of the Ultrarunner, is published in the fall 2018 issue of Spiritus: A Journal of Christian Spirituality.
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I am a featured speaker in The Ultra Running Summit Series. In this online interview series hosted by Erik Bromell, I, along with other endurance athletes, including elite ultrarunners such as Ann Trason, share how we train our mind, body, and soul for endurance events, and much more.
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In 2017 Ron Meyer, host of Blessed2Play, interviewed me about my ultrarunning, faith, and overcoming adversity. Click here to listen to the interview. Since then I have been interviewed on several podcasts including The Ultramarathon Mindset, Tough Girl Challenge, Talk Ultra, and many other podcasts. You can listen to all of them here.
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Before retiring, I was an academic for over 30 years. I have a M.Ed. in Second Language Education, and a M.A. in Theology/Ministry. I am ABD in Christian Spirituality. I taught college academic ESL, first year writing, theology, and religious studies. I am the author of English for Pharmacy Writing and Oral Communication.
I have been published in Women's Running Magazine, Running Competitor, Ultrarunning Magazine, Ultrarunning World., Chicken Soup for the Soul - Running for Good, How to Survive Your Freshman Year, and in other publications. You will find my articles in the Memoir and Writing Life tab.
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l love the outdoors and nature. My husband and I love our national parks. The National Parks link and National Parks II link will take you to our hiking adventures in 31 of America's beautiful national parks, so far! I really want to be a park ranger!
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In 2012, I endured an unexpected surgical error and medical nightmare which almost cost me my life. What helped me to endure this unimaginable adversity was my years of ultrarunning. I wrote about the experience in Come What May; I Want to Run: How Ultrarunning Saved my Life. You can also read about my experience and what the scholarly research says about the role of faith, spirituality, and scripture in patient healing and resiliency in my peer-reviewed article, Spirituality, Suffering, Meaning, and Healing: Research Findings and a Patient's of Overcoming a Medical Challenge, published in International Journal for Human Caring.
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I'm training for ultra no. 42 in 2025 - The Old Six Day 72-hr ultramarathon on a 5-lane track.
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Thank you for visiting my website.
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