Hold My Beer, Part 2

Well well well … race photos began trickling in yesterday.

I love it when folks keep their word.

Also true to the organizers’ words, the photos — usually priced at $19 for one photo and plus plus plus dollars for packages, are free to all who participated.

I don’t know how they can do that inasmuch as participation in the 25k, the 10k and 5k totaled over 6,000 participants, and I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop as I’m suspect of their generosity but, in the interim, I’ll take em.

It’s not a lot, just one or two as I’m leaving the start line, one along the course (I never saw the photographer) and an awesome looking poster, which I’m using as my official race photo on the side bar.

Looks like I'm approaching the turnaround.
Still looking strong, not sweating

Inasmuch as no additional photos have rolled in, and there’s nothing showing the finish line, I’m guessing that’s the gotcha — the other shoe. If we want more than the three provided for free, we’ll have to pay the standard regular over-priced cost.

I’m satisfied with what’s been provided.

Also true to word, to keep the Black cat from crossing my path, I did indeed walk backwards to the car yesterday, when heading out for the morning’s workout.

Walking up to the trunk of the car, I stood there and banged on the car to make noise so the Black cat would know to move if in the area. Then I walked backwards around to the passenger side door to load my gear; then walked around the car to the driver side, walked backwards to that door and didn’t care if any neighbors happened to spot my new ritual.

If anyone observing is so bold as to ask, I'll say "You don't want to know".

Hold My Beer

I seriously thought about being a no-show at this morning's 5k when, heading out to package pickup on Saturday, a Black cat came out of nowhere and crossed my path.

Having composed myself, pushed through and gotten out on the road, I was just a few miles from the complex when a tire ran over something that flew up and sounded like metal when it hit the ground.

I was anxious about continuing on after a second omen, but told myself, if there was tire damage, I could take care of it once I reached my destination.

Fortunately, whatever bad omens were plaguing me gave up at that point. Hotel check-in was fast, I got a great parking space at the hotel, and there were no hiccups at package pickup.

It was blue skies, perfect weather, good energy and a drone watching us at the Start Line this morning.

I’m over 45, so ...... safe

Mission Inn Museum come to life

Using trekking poles on the inclines, meant I had to pass on a lot of great photos during the race, but I did pause to capture the butterflies going and then coming back around when they pulled way ahead of me and then looped at the turnaround.

If anyone is looking for Waldo, I think I spotted her.

Official race photo, as I crossed the finish line, is supposedly to arrive via email later (we’ll see), but the organizers came through with results in record time.

The Overall shows I finished 49th out of 481 in the 5K — that’s male and female, all ages and 39th out of 348 women — that’s young and old.

Would have been nice had they broken us down further by age groups, so I could see how I did against my peers. But then again, maybe not, because those little old ladies had wings. They were flying, leaving me in the dust.

At any rate, inasmuch as my normal daily step count is between 3,000 and 5,000 and today’s count racked up to 10,926, I finished a little stiff and sore from pounding the pavement, but nothing that a little soak in Epsom salt didn't take care of.

One young lady was unconscious when dragged across the finish line by two big burley dudes.

Dragged instead of carried because, had she been conscious, she would have wanted it that way to get credit for having crossed the finish line.

The two guys whisked her away out of sight rather quickly and I later heard sirens, which I assume was fire department medical emergency.

I was surprised to not see a medical emergency team near the finish line, as is usually done, because that’s usually where the body give out and participants collapse.

The new organizers did a great job this time, but I guess they’d not taken into consideration someone might get hurt.

Hope she’s going to be okay, and I hope the two guys who were assisting her remembered to pause her watch.

That’s not a joke.

The first thing she’s going to do when she opens her eyes is check her watch/fitbit to see how she was doing before she collapsed.

That’s what runners do.

"Because that’s what’s important" said one in the group above, when I complemented them on their shirts.

Note to self: I need one of those shirts.

So anyway, though no photo of my crossing the finish line yet, I did get my medal to go along with a few extras I’d been given on package day.

The extras being Legacy Awards — a hat and pin for having participated in the race for the last three years.

I’ve participate for more than three consecutive years, but three is what the organizers are recognizing.

I don’t wear hats, but wanted the world to know I’m no rooky, so I attached it to my waist band (yellow item in Photo No. 2 above).

I was also entitled to go to the Beer Garden after the race, enjoy the after party, collect a free beer.

I don’t really like beer, but I would have done just to mingled with other participants, except I was anxious to get home to an Epsom bath.

Hold my beer for next time.

Risky Business

Yesterday was Friday the 13th and I didn’t freak out and stay indoors in order to assure safety from any mishaps.

Am I superstitious?

Why yes ... yes I am.

I admit to avoid walking under ladders, throwing salt over my left shoulder, and there was once a black cat here on the complex. One day, when it happened to be headed in a direction that would take it across my path, I turned around and began walking backwards so the cat would not be technically crossing my path but my back.

Having planned to leave the complex at 11:00, headed for Macy’s in Rancho to replenish moisture cream and go athletic shoe shopping BEFORE I realized yesterday was Friday the 13th, once I saw the date it took me until 1:00 to work up the courage to overcome superstition and head out.

The drive was brown knuckling all the way and, arriving without incident in the parking lot, I was rewarded with a Summer Pikachu as I stepped out of the car.

Needing a black pair of trainers, because the current pair has been worn to excess, I walked into a sale.

Unfortunately, the black ones were not on sale, not available at another store and, I am told, not in stock to be shipped to me, so I settled for the red white and blue (looks pink here but trust me, it's red) -- on sale at minus $30.

I still need black trainers so I’m just gonna test that out-of-stock theory and see if I can’t find them online.

Later, leaving Macy’s, I caught another Summer Pikachu.

So all in all, not an unlucky day.

There was a Farmer’s Market in progress in the area. However, not wanting to push my luck, I headed straight for home.

On another note, I’d like to thank the UK for giving our Orange Idiot-in-Chief the welcome he so richly deserves.

Ease of Matter

Would you believe, I finally received email notification on the status of my eye glasses.

That’s twenty-four days after the eye glasses were ready to be picked up, and six days after I got tired of waiting to be notified and called THEM.

Better late than never, I guess; and I do feel less culpable knowing it was not just my blocking the automatic notification telephone number that held the process up because, inasmuch as the vision center is emailing me now, they could have emailed me before.

After giving it the old college try, I’m not happy with the eye glasses, but I won’t be taking them back to the vision center to be adjusted. I’ll hang onto them as backup and begin the process all over again as a way obtaining a second opinion on the prescription.

Much as I don’t want to go back to the optometrist that provided the Sarah Palin eyeglasses, because it’s a long drive to Upland and because there’s a guy there, not sure of his position but, when I was last there having a frame repaired, he was snobby, rude, dismissive, looks like I'm going to have to suck-it-up and head that way.

I’m sensitive to “snobby, rude, dismissive” because I’m never quite sure if it’s because the individual is just an a-hole or is treating me thusly because he's racist.

At any rate, I'll fortify myself and give snobby, rude, dismissive another shot because I’m much more satisfied with the expensive glasses they’ve provided in the past, that have served me for so long, than I am with the less expensive ones provided by my medical provider’s vision center.

“You get what you pay for”, right?

Would you also believe, the morning after positioning the elephants on the counter, facing the front door, the first payment of that windfall finally kicked in.

Coincidence?

I think not.

Because it took two years for the company to track me down, advise I’d left money in the plan when I quit 19 years ago, considerable back payment is involved in this first payment. So much so that not only can I pay off what little debt I’ve incurred, but pay off the monumental vet bill granddaughter racked up in a life-saving operation for her Jack Russell Terrier (my great grandson Patches), with plenty left over to keep my beloved Saturn going, or purchase a new vehicle should it come to that.

I’m not a materialistic individual, so while I await the recertification period for management to let me know whether or not I must relocate, as the increased income renders me ineligible to continue to live in this restricted-income complex, or whether I fall under the “grandfather clause” and income does not apply, the only other indulgence I see happening as a result of this windfall is, instead of the less expensive store brand eggs, I’m upgrading to the more expensive Eggland’s Best, which I’ve always preferred but previously had only indulged myself when on sale.

Other than that, I’m just going to sit here and bask -- for the first time in my life, in what in mystical circles is known as Ease of Matter -- not having to worry about money, not having to think about money, not having to budget every penny, financial needs met with plenty left over to spare and to share.

On tap for today is more creativity. I saw a woman in the market with a graphic tee I admired. Unable to find it online in my size, I’m going to try to locate the graphic's image, capture it, print to a transfer sheet and iron-on to one of my Duluth tank tops.