Saturday, June 27, 2009

Stage 1

I am very happy to announce that Stage 1 of the Beer Run Trifecta was a huge success! Although the pre-run picture below only shows four of us, we had one late arrival who quickly joined in.






We enjoyed a few laughs and some pep talks prior to the start, then we all took off at our own paces. I discovered that Jason runs at a nice pace, and for the first time ever in my running history, I was able to enjoy some conversation while running. I have to say it was rather nice. It totally takes your mind off the run, if only for a brief few seconds.

It didn't take too long before we had all reached our destination. We quickly grabbed some cold beers and shared some stories of our respective runs. We all agreed that we could have done without the exfoliating scrub we received from the windswept sand, but it didn't take too many beers to forget about that!



I am hereby recommending participation in the next stage of the Beer Run Trifecta which will take place sometime in mid-July. Check back for more information. Oh...I almost forgot to send a shout out to our support vehicle driver, Rich Garfield! Thanks, Gar!

Monday, June 22, 2009

Beer Run Trifecta

Two of my favorite activities include drinking beer and going for a run. What could be better than pairing these two activities together...not in that order though. Some are already aware of my "Beer Runs". I like go for a run from my house down into the Forks to 20 Main. I walk in and Sherry, the friendly bartender, will take one look at my attire and say, "Bottle of water and a Bud Light?" It puts a smile on my face every time. After a beer or two, my husband drives down to pick me up. No way I'm running back after a few beers!

Anyway, I have been talking about making this more of a group event, but haven't found many more people who were willing to join in on the fun. Jenny did it with me once, but no one else has since last summer. Well, recently my sister and I had a discussion about this, and she helped to develop the idea of a Beer Run Trifecta. Three different runs, three different bars. Here they are:

My sister's house on Roscoe Rd. in Lewis to The Cobble (approx. 2 miles)
My parents camp on Whallons Bay Rd. in Essex to The Old Dock house (approx. 3.5 miles)
My house to 20 Main (approx. 3.5 miles)

Now none of these runs is meant to set any distance records obviously, it's for the fun, friendship and the many laughs that will inevitably take place. We have tentatively set the date for the first Beer Run this Friday afternoon (6/26) if anyone would care to join us. Keep in mind this is not a race, in fact, my sister is planning on doing a walk/run to get there. Someone else I spoke with might be riding a bike (bad knees). It's about getting a little exercise prior to enjoying an icy cold beverage in an effort to alleviate any guilt about the icy cold beverage.

I am hereby encouraging anyone to join us. The more the merrier! If you want more details, just reply to the post and I'll fill you in!!

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Busy Weekend...continued


It is currently 7:05 on Sunday evening. I have officially survived. I think when I left off the last time, I was about to take a nap in order to re-energize myself to do it all over again. Unfortunately I did not sleep very well during the day, and was dead tired when I headed off to wrestle with the farm animals again. I must have gotten my fifth or sixth wind by then, because I finished my chores in record time. Either that or the animals could sense my fatigue and were extremely cooperative.

I headed home, showered quickly, and we hit the road yet again. We decided that we needed dinner, so we stopped at the Hometown Deli for a 30 pack of beer and some ice cream. Not the most nutritious dinner, I know, but it was necessary at the time.

We got to The Old Dock house with time to spare, and actually got to relax and hang out for a few minutes. It was during that time that Sierra showed up. A complete surprise, because we weren't expecting her. I'm not at liberty to discuss why she wasn't able to join us on Friday night, but she had an acceptable excuse.



Sierra couldn't stay long, because she drove the motorcycle down and didn't want to drive after dark. Soon after her departure, the rest of the crew arrived. Lauren showed up with Bob and Pam, Jenny and Jason arrived right after them, and last but not least were my parents and their friends Bill and Do.








It really was quite a fun evening! Lauren was the designated driver for Bob and Pam, so they relaxed quite a bit, if you know what I mean. My parents even got a few dances in. Laughs were in abundance, for sure.

After we broke down and packed everything up, Davey, Scott, Mike and I headed to camp for the night. Needless to say, snacks were vital at that point!



After we had celebrated the end of an active and successful weekend for a bit, it was time to turn in. That was the last I remember until Davey popped his head in to say he was taking off. Mike and I packed up our stuff to get a greasy breakfast and head to my sister's to pick up Ri.



Once home and with full bellies, it was truly nap time. BAM! I was out for a good 4 hours. Mike woke me up in time to head to Hollywood Theatre for a matinee. Mmmmm...nothing like hot popcorn after a very long nap.

After that, it was time to head back to the farm for one last shift. All went smoothly. I am now showered and not obligated to do anything other than go to bed again. What an incredible weekend. Thanks to all who participated!!!

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Busy Weekend

It's currently 9:14 on Saturday morning, and I'm a little behind the previously posted schedule. Oh well, I figure the worst of it is over. Next on the agenda is sleep, so life can't be all that bad.

Friday evening went off without a hitch. It all started with Ri heading off to a dance for his first "date".




Shortly thereafter, and with bass guitar in hand, Mike headed out the door for NSA's graduation. He was headed straight to 20 for the gig after that.



I enjoyed a little alone time before full on craziness started, then headed down to set up before picking up Ri and the sitter. Ri apparently had the time of his life at the dance, and was quite chatty when I brought him home. Once I had the two of them situated, I headed back into town.

Now I have to tell you something that you probably already know, but being in a band is just plain fun. It's a buttload of work, but definitely fun. I quickly discovered that it's way more fun when your best friend is part of the band. You see, Mike recently rejoined the band after about a five year hiatus. We needed a bass player, and Mike was willing to give it a whirl.



Of course The Ladies were there as well. Lauren was sporting a rather stunning straight hair look...

...and Jenny kept a smile on her face as the designated driver.


We had other faithful friends there as well, and all in all it was a long, but pleasant evening.







I had finally finished the "evening" at about 2:45 a.m. with the daunting task of leaving for the farm in the near future. I set the alarm for 4 a.m. I figured an hour of sleep would keep me going. Well, as you can well imagine, Mike and I were oblivious to any sounds after that point, and I completely slept through the alarm. Luckily my brain is pretty much trained to wake up at 5 a.m. so I didn't oversleep by much, but late enough that I didn't have time to make coffee. Oh yes...an hour of sleep and no coffee. It wasn't pretty as you can see for yourself....


Well, there's nothing like the smiling face of a goat to keep you going, and I did indeed survive.


Tonight should be a bit easier, as we aren't playing as late, and I don't have to work at the farm in the morning. The band will be playing at the Old Dockhouse in Essex, and The Ladies (or at least some of them) will be there. Stay tuned!

Thursday, June 4, 2009

A Weekend Spent in Survival Mode

The month of June has finally arrived, and with it the fun and adventures of summer begin. I'm just letting everyone know (all seven faithful followers anyway) that this weekend should prove to be quite challenging. The following is a schedule of events:

Friday
8:05-3:30 Spend the day touching the lives of elementary school kids
4:00-8:00 Keep Ri entertained until it's time for the babysitter to show up
8:00-10:00 Band set-up and sound check at 20 Main
10:00pm-2:00am Play music
2:00am-3:00am Break down equipment and load

Saturday
5:00am-8:30am Wrestle goats, pigs and chickens at the farm
8:45am-2:00pm SLEEP
5:00pm-7:30pm Wrestle goats, pigs and chickens at the farm
7:35pm Drive as fast as I can to Essex
8:15pm-9:00pm Band set-up and sound check at The Old Dockhouse
9:00pm-12:00pm Play music
12:00pm-1:00am Break down equipment and load
1:00am Drink like a fish because it's almost over

Sunday
All day (until 5pm anyway) Recover
5:00pm-7:30pm Wrestle goats, pigs and chickens at the farm

So anyway, the reason I'm letting you know this is because the other Ladies will participate in the weekend's activities at one point or another. Please stayed tuned, as I will be taking lots of pictures!!!