Monday, April 20, 2009
Race for the Cure 2009 - A Photo Essay
This past Saturday was 2009 Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. Simmonds, Will, and I all participated and had a great time. As usual, there were some pre-race preparations and post-race photos to be taken. It's all explained below...
This is Simmonds and me in the race tshirts the way they were given to us. I didn't much like them, and felt we could do better. We ventured to good ol' Target to buy some new shirts, and then over to Bange's house to make use of her sewing machine and mad creative skills.
Measuring, cutting and pinning - DONE! (With Bange's help of course) I took this picture and the next one with the pins still in before I started sewing. I figured that way if I destroyed the shirt while attempting to sew for the first time since 8th grade, I could still show you what my original design plan was. So here's the front...
And the back... and yes, I came up with the design layout all on my own! way cooler than the original tee I was given, don't you think?
And now to the sewing. It all turned out okay. But there might have been a incident where I sewed the shirt to itself and had to use a seam ripper to undo half my work!!! 
Simmonds seemed to have better luck on her shirt. No seam rippers for her. Lucky duck!
And... the big reveal. Final products from the front...
And the back...
Back at home with Will time for the traditional pre-race tequila shot. (Also, check out the rockin' headbands that Simmonds and I found at Target! They totally match our tshirts! And we made Will wear the pink - yay!)
Oh how I love tequila! This will totally make me run faster tomorrow!
RACE DAY!!!!!! Lacing up the shoes and attaching my timing chip. My wonderful time chip that allows me to tell you that I finished in 29 minutes and 32 seconds. That means my pace was 9:30/mile!!! HappydanceHappydanceHappydance!
The three of us walk toward the starting line. Will felt he needed to take a pic as we were walking. I thought this was crazy, (hence the laughing) but it turned out to be a great pic! Nice photo skills Will!
RACE DAY!!!!!! Lacing up the shoes and attaching my timing chip. My wonderful time chip that allows me to tell you that I finished in 29 minutes and 32 seconds. That means my pace was 9:30/mile!!! HappydanceHappydanceHappydance!
The three of us walk toward the starting line. Will felt he needed to take a pic as we were walking. I thought this was crazy, (hence the laughing) but it turned out to be a great pic! Nice photo skills Will!
The race route went past the zoo. I did not see this while I was running, but apparently Dumbo came out to support the race.
Will crosses the finish line! WOOHOO!
A sweet black lab out to walk in celebration of his aunt
A sweet black lab out to walk in celebration of his aunt
And the masses decend. It's amazing what 40,000+ people actually looks like.
Post-race banana picture. I ran the competive 5k (3.1 miles) in 29:32, a personal best and better than I thought I was capable of at this point. Simmonds ran the route without stopping to walk at all - personal goal acheived! And Will crossed the finish line with a smile on his face (as is evident from the picture above). We deserved those bananas!
Back at home, after the race, Will was testing the set up of the camera and caught this AWESOME shot of Simmonds.
Back at home, after the race, Will was testing the set up of the camera and caught this AWESOME shot of Simmonds.
And of course, the bandannas must come off!
And the scary hair is revealed!
oh... don't forget Will's scary hair.
Race number 2 down for all three of us! Next up... Relay for Life (at least I think that's the next one).
Oh yeah... and for anyone who is interested, here was my official race playlist (not necessarily played in this order, because I forgot to take it off shuffle)...
1. One & Only - Timbaland featuring Fall Out Boy
2. Pain - Jimmy Eat World
3. I Don't Care - Fall Out Boy (Cobra Starship Suave Suarez Remix)
4. Just Dance - Lady GaGa featuring Colby O'donis
5. Emergency - Paramore
6. Boba Nina Nice - Belinda
7. Toy Soldier - Britney Spears
8. Beat It - Fall Out Boy featuring John Mayer
9. I Turn to You - Melanie C (Hex Hector Radio Mix)
10. Piece of Me - Britney Spears (Bimbo Jones Edit)
I am taking suggestions for my playlist for the next race. I need upbeat! Doesn't have to be dance music (Pain by Jimmy Eat World was actually really great on this list) just really upbeat. I feel like I'm dwindling on good running music. Help dear readers HELP!!
Friday, April 17, 2009
Easter Stalker
My parents bought the house that they currently live in shortly after my brother Shorty, who is now 19, was born. A year or two after we moved into the house, we all got up on Easter morning and got ready for church. When we walked out the front door we were surprised to find a small box filled with the green grass stuff that you put in Easter baskets, some jelly beans, robin eggs, a couple chocolate eggs, and a small strip of paper that had "He has risen" printed on it. It had no information indicating who it had come from and as result mom and dad refused to let us eat the candy. (MAD!)
We check with friends and family and find that none of them received anything like this. We also established that it had not come from anyone we knew, or if it did, they're keeping it a secret. Within a few days we've all forgot about our personal Easter bunny. The next year, it happens again, and the year after. We eventually suspected that it was coming from the elderly lady that lived across the street. Mom and Dad eventually allowed us to eat the candy (none of us died.. so that's good). As long as I remember, this happened every year. We'd go to bed Saturday night and wake up Easter Sunday morning to our little Easter box.
A few years ago, the elderly lady we suspected passed away... but the boxes kept coming. WEIRD! By this point I've moved out of the house and basically forgotten about it. Until now.
Sunday I went to church with my parents, as I frequently do on Easter Sunday. Mom and I were sitting next to each other and just before the service began she leaned over and whispered "the Easter Bunny came." Sweet! I'm thinking I have a basket full of robin eggs at the house. I smile and Mom whispers "you know what Easter Bunny I'm talking about, right?" My jaw dropped, my eyes popped open, and as silently as possible, I gasped. I realized immediately what Easter Bunny she was talking about. Mom later explained that Shorty had come home at about midnight Saturday night and the box wasn't there, but Dad woke up at 4:30am and it was!
After church I called Will to find out if he was on his way up for dinner. After explaining that he would be coming soon he said, "So, you wanna hear something weird?" "Of course!" I replied. He proceeds to tell me that when he opened the front door that morning, he found a plastic bag full of candy with a paper tag that said, "Yes! He has risen." My jaw dropped, my eyes popped open, and very loudly shouted "WHAT?!?!" Will and I discussed the weirdness for a moment and I eventually told him to bring the bag to dinner.
When Will arrived I grabbed the bag and ran into the house. I asked mom and dad where their present was... same bag, same candy, same tag!!!!!! We've now begun calling the Easter Bunny the Easter Stalker, though the Doctor pointed out that whoever is bringing the bags has clearly put time and effort into it and probably wouldn't like being called the Easter Stalker. I suppose he's probably right. And to be honest, while it is incredibly WEIRD, I suppose it's kinda cool. Someone obviously cares about us enough to do this every year (in the middle of the night too). And while it makes me crazy not knowing who it is, it makes for a GREAT story (I think I would actually be a little sad if I figured out who it was).
If by chance you happen to be the Easter Stalker (or Easter Angel as one of the girls at work suggested) thanks for the candy, thanks for thinking of us, and Robin Eggs are my favorite Easter candy. :-)