Dare to Dash?

On Saturday Paul and I competed in the Warrior Dash, a 3.2 mile run and obstacle course that takes place at various locations throughout the country. Run by Chicago based company Red Frog, Warrior Dash combines a 5k with a festival atmosphere of live music, beer and food vendors, awards and lots and lots of mud.

We teamed with 4 of our friends on Team Booby Trap and competed at the Wisconsin location which included crawling under barbed wire, climbing over rope bridges, barricades, wooden walls, mud pits, swimming through ponds and jumping over fire. You can view the course here. From start to finish the race was about an hour long, with approximately 600 people racing every 30 minutes or so, the obstacles would get congested but the running or walking in-between allowed for people of various fitness levels to participate at their own pace.

Participants are encouraged to compete in team costumes and there were some good ones: ballerinas, super heroes, 80's disco and many others. Everyone racing were very friendly and always willing to help someone who had fallen or had trouble completing the obstacles. It was absolutely the dirtiest I have ever been, from the murky water hazards to the multiple mud pits there is no way to avoid getting wet and muddy. Upon race completion, you get a medal, t-shirt, fuzzy warrior helmet and a free beer! We jumped in a pond, tried to clean off the mud and finally just ditched our shoes, drank our beer and listened to the music.

There is camping available at many of the Warrior Dash locations, however we stayed at our team members cottage in nearby Lake Geneva and relaxed after the Dash at a Cheap Trick concert. We plan on doing the Warrior Dash again next year, maybe I'll see you in the mud pit!

Downtime and Imagination

It's actually warmer this evening in Chicago than it was all day today while the sun was shining, perfect for long walks. I have a busy weekend planned, tomorrow I will be attending the Family Farmed Expo during the day, then enjoying dinner and cocktails at a friend's condo downtown before ending the evening at the St. Pat's Fest at the Irish American Heritage Center. Sunday I will be enjoying the shops and leisure of Lake Geneva Wisconsin. As a result of my busy weekend I am enjoying a Friday night at home, drinking wine, watching House Hunters and taking walks with my dog.

My favorite time to walk my dog is at dusk. I've blogged about my love of walking at this time of night before and never get tired of what I see, where we walk and what I imagine. "B" and I, (short for Beagle, although her name is Eloise) and I walked and walked this evening. Past the school down the street where children and their parents were arriving for an event, past the house where the 4 boys were playing basketball in their driveway with the garage lights on, past the park where the man walked with his wife and little boy. I like to make up stories in my head as I glimpse people in their homes. Tonight it was the old woman I always see in her condo, she often wears a green sweater and is always sitting in a chair facing the TV with a card table in front of her. I imagined her drinking whiskey, watching Aliens and enjoying curry takeout before she goes to bed at 3 am.

A few weeks ago I watched the movie Date Night with Steve Carell and Tina Fey. It was a fun movie about a middle age couple, stuck in a rut, kids, work, dinner out once a week at the same restaurant... who have the time of their life one night after a case of mistaken identity. One of my favorite scenes was early on in the film when at dinner the husband (Steve Carell) asked his wife (Tina Fey) to imagine what other couples in the restaurant where thinking and saying. It was obviously a tradition they did every time they dined out and reminded me that it's common, this need for us to project our impressions and to imagine. My ex husband used to ask me to do this often in restaurants, but not because he wanted me to make up conversations or stories about strangers but because I have hearing like a bat and could tell him what a couple was saying from across the room. I prefer to imagine but eavesdropping is just as much fun sometimes.

Do you ever make up stories, maybe imagine that people's lives are more exciting, tragic, or even boring than they are?

"Mom Look What I Made!"

While in Door County we went to a wonderful art studio where you can create just about anything you can imagine. Located on a rural farm there are multiple studios you can explore including painting, mosaics, metals, glass and pottery. The first day we were there I created a mosaic bone with hooks to hang near my back door for the dog's leash and collar. The next day we were there I created a gift for my sister's baby shower which I am hosting in 10 days. We spent about 3 hours each day at the studio and after you complete your art the works are glazed and fired over night to be ready the following afternoon. There are farm animals wandering about, a place to purchase lunch and other activities for both adults and children.
I had such a great time finding my inner pre-schooler and am quite proud of my art.
For more information check out the Studio's website here:
http://www.handsonartstudio.com/