It is said in the cold North: the man who passes the sentence should swing the sword. If you would take a man's life, you owe it to him to look into his eyes and hear his final words. And if you cannot bear to do that, then perhaps the man does not deserve to die.

But it is not everywhere so, not in all lordships. For most, your fate is sentenced by one, your punishment given by another. And so here we are, with mere days remaining. You are sentenced, and now I must see it served. So you will come to me and I will take you into the woods. There, you will become one of the Monkey’s watch. As the cold and darkness descent, you will be ready, you must be ready, though none can be ready. And you will say this oath “I shall wear no crowns and win no glory. I shall live and die on the trails. I am the sword in the darkness. I am the runner in the hills. I am the fire that burns against the cold, the light that brings the dawn, the horn that wakes the sleepers, the shield that guards against the monkeys.” And this may be time to pray to the old gods and the new.

Remember, the man who fears losing has already lost.

Monkey is coming.

As a reminder -

- Bring food, be it meat or mead, bread or salt, chips or pies! As I have said, we honor the laws of hospitality and ask that you bring some food and/or drink to share with the rest of the monkeys post race at our banquet fit for kings and lords, queens and ladies. As always, I am planning at least 12 home-made monkey pumpkin pies from the squash the jack o monkeys squashed.

- make sure to thank all the volunteers who will be out supporting you during a Monkey of Fire and Ice!

- It is not too late: if you realize you won't be able to make it to Monkey, please let me know so I can offer your spot to one of the foolish fools on our foolish wait list.

- Packet pickup will be at the Gordon JCC on November 22, 2014 between 2pm and 4pm. The JCC is located at 801 Percy Warner Blvd, Nashville, TN 37148. This is less than 2 miles from the race start/finish area. Here is a map to the GJCC: http://tinyurl.com/MonkeyPacketPickup . Packet pickup will also be available race morning adjacent to the starting line.

- For those of you who want a post-race shower but are checking out of your hotel room, you can return to the JCC located at 801 Percy Warner Blvd, Nashville, TN 37148. They will need you to show your bib and bring your own towel and soap. They may also charge you the $10 guest fee.

- What is Monkey may never die, but rises again, harder and stronger.

- Yazoo Brewing has confirmed that they will provide us drinks after the race to those who are of the correct drinking age. Yazoo is good brew, local and tasty. If you want to enjoy some, please bring your ID with you to the race. You don't have to run with it, but once the beer is available after noon, you will need your ID. If you want to tweet your grand appreciation for this, use these tags: @YazooBrew and @yazoobrewmaster

- Your registration info is posted on the Monkey's website AND here: http://www.runningahead.com/events/Monkey/participants. Please take a look to make sure it is correct.

- Stop whining about the weather. Winter is coming.

- Help us support the parks! We plan to have swag for sale at packet pickup and then post-race, with all proceeds going to support the Friends of Warner Parks, the charity that keeps MonkeyVille spectacular. All this swag has already been bought, so anything you contribute you may consider a donation as far as I’m concerned. This year, we will have original and unique Hatch posters, extra Silipint cups, singlets and prior years' shirts. Posters and cups are $10, shirt prices will vary depending on which one you like. Cash appreciated. And cheap!

- The Twitter Monkey hashtag: #MonkeyMarathon. You can also Tweet @hhFlyingMonkey, if'n you want.

- The website lists information about where there is lodging near the race and restaurants where you can dine over the weekend. In addition, if you have further questions, feel free to holler or to put out a query on our message board: http://www.runningahead.com/groups/HHFMM/forum . If you post there, please don't mind the monkey business.

I prefer my history dead. Dead history is writ in ink, the living sort in blood.

Monkey is coming
Trent