10 Years Later

Sigh.

That's me, sad to be home after a wonderful Thanksgiving at home with family and friends. Even though we were there from Wednesday until Sunday—twice as long as our normal weekend visits—it went too fast, as always.

Aside from spending time with both of my insanely cute nieces, my crazy family and in-laws—God love 'em all—I was able to get in some good time QT with friends.

Like at my 10-year high school reunion. I'm officially old.

Truth be told, I wasn't totally pumped about going. My husband was definitely not pumped about going and I did not give him a choice in the matter. Keep in mind that he went to high school with most of these people, too, and has tried to distance himself from that life as much as possible. I make that strangely difficult for him. But not on purpose.

You see, my group of friends has been friends since high school. Most of us since even before.

And...we're still friends.

In the past 10 years, we've graduated high school, gone to colleges around the country, and lived around the world, from Iowa to Kansas to Michigan to California to South Dakota to New York to Tennessee to Australia to Spain. We've gotten jobs in every vocation; bought houses and pets; become mothers.

The day I left for college. Lots of tears!

We've been in and attended each other's weddings and bachelorette parties. We've upgraded from keg stands to wine, from wild nights downtown to quiet nights where we can sit and talk. We've gone through ups and downs. Some of the friendships have weakened while others have thrived. But at the end of the day, we're all still friends.

 Left: Summer 2002. Right: A few familiar faces on May 28, 2011.

Fun tidbit: One of my girlfriends remembered a time capsule that we all buried on May 17, 2002 in a city park, that we were to open on our 10-year reunion. I think all of us forgot about it, but thankfully she didn't.

Can you spot me?

We opened it at the reunion and it was so fun! Inside was an old Bud Light can (the red and blue one, and our illegal beer of choice back then), an empty bottle of Mountain Dew Code Red (to mix with Vodka), and an empty bottle of Absolut Mandarin (to wash down with Code Red?). Also inside were pictures of our "group," all of our graduation party invitations, notes to each other, and cutest of all, this:

Left: The night we buried the capsule. I must have been taking the pic. Right: The note we left inside.

I just love this because it's so honest, but innocent at the same time. We knew that we may not be best friends anymore, but we'd promise to at least still be friends, somehow. And for the most part, I'd say we are.

All in all, the reunion was a hit. It was like not reunions are in the movies — maybe because those in my class are cool!! I caught up with not only this group of ladies, but other friends from high school that I have really only kept up with from good ol' Facebook. Not a ton of people showed up — probably less than 100 out of a class of close to 400. But it was a good group regardless and fun to see so many. After the official "reunion," we all convened at a bar downtown to keep the party going and a good time was had by all.

Anyway, that's my weekend update in a nutshell!

 

Link up, tell me about yours and any funny high school reunion stories!

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Best. Date. Ever.

I have a pretty baller husband. Date night was scheduled for last Tuesday. Just dinner, nothing fancy.

Until he calls me up and asks if, by any chance, would I like to go to Obama headquarters as our date instead of the neighborhood bar across the street?

Hmm, let me think about that one, oh wait, YES please!

And so it was. How, you ask?

My husband is in the business of event marketing. One of his vendors, who sets up many of his events, was also in charge of some of President Obama's events, such as the DNC and election night. As such, we were granted "honored guest" and "production passes" for the night, which granted us access to pretty much anything.

Upon arriving at McCormick Place, we were ushered into the depths of the headquarters. Security was surprisingly not horrible, but it was semi-cool seeing all the secret service peeps. OK, it was super cool. We went down to "the floor" as they called it, where we got to see where all of the big networks were camped out getting ready to go live, the press back of house (in the basement), where everyone was tracking all of the incoming votes and doing live tweets/blogging; AND the press area on the the floor. In other words, when you saw the folks reporting from headquarters with the stage in the background. We also got a view of the floor before everyone crowded in front of the stage.

 Press on the floor (left); note all of the lights. Press back of house on (right).

After our tour, we got to camp out in the V.I.P room where we had some drinks while we watched the votes come in. Every time Obama got a state, the roars you could hear were incredible! It was such a rush just being in the same room as people who all wanted the same thing.

As soon as Obama got Ohio, we knew it was time to go upstairs and join the crowd. It was a little premature, since it took forever for Mitt Romney to concede the election. Again though, the excitement in the crowd was contagious. There was music, there was dancing, there was cheering. Everyone was respectful as Romney made his concession speech and everyone applauded him when he was done. There was no booing or hateful comments; just respect, which I thought was admirable.

And then...President Obama took the stage.

 That's our President, folks!

I can't accurately describe how purely awesome it was to be there to see him speak. Obviously, I am an Obama supporter. But even if I hadn't voted the way I did, I don't think I could have stood there and listened to him speak without being impressed. His speech was so inspiring, so genuine, so completely spot on. I was smiling from ear to ear as I listened to him.

My favorite part:

This country has more wealth than any nation, but that's not what makes us rich. We have the most powerful military in history, but that's not what makes us strong. Our university, our culture are all the envy of the world, but that's not what keeps the world coming to our shores.

What makes America exceptional are the bonds that hold together the most diverse nation on earth. The belief that our destiny is shared; that this country only works when we accept certain obligations to one another and to future generations. The freedom which so many Americans have fought for and died for come with responsibilities as well as rights. And among those are love and charity and duty and patriotism. That's what makes America great.

I'm not even close to accurately conveying how incredible it was to be there for this historic event. How inspired, happy and excited everyone in the room was. And when the confetti came down—I heard ringing in my ears for hours.

Afterwards, we went back downstairs where we had some celebratory drinks. Campaign workers kept coming down to get bottles of wine, running on adrenaline of 4 years of hard work. Another awesome moment.

We didn't get home until 3:00am, only to get up again four hours later. It was worth it.

And there you have it. The best date I've ever been on, with my husband and the President of the United States.

Bryan and I after the President left the stage.

 How did you spend election night?

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Shock, Drop and Roll

I'm refraining from posting my regular weekend update today, mostly because it was pretty tame. Friday was one of the more miserable days of my life as I couldn't stop sneezing/coughing/blowing my nose. Saturday's highlights included a trip to the minute clinic, followed by Ashley's going away party. I'm sure you can imagine how that went for me based on last week's blog post. Sunday was the Chicago Marathon but I remained captive to my bed, getting up long enough to cook some chili and pumpkin bread.

(Hold on. I'm watching the Real Housewives of New York reunion and I can't even focus.) Holy moly. These yahoos are all hot messes.

Speaking of hot messes, it's the time you've all been waiting for: The Tough Mudder Recap.

One thing is for sure: Tough Mudder is One Tough Mother.

It was everything I knew it would be: grueling, scary and rewarding. It was also everything I didn't expect it to be: physically possible for me to complete and ... fun.

 My husband and I after finishing.

Yes, I said fun. You heard it here, folks: Tough Mudder, "the most challenging event on the planet," was fun. (Nearly) all 11 miles, 20 obstacles and 3 hours 15 minutes of it. Everyone on our team finished and everyone completed and/or tried to complete every obstacle. Even me, who decided before I even started the race that I wasn't completing any challenges that involved heights or that threatened my safety.

I didn't remember that I decided those things before scaling 12-15 ft walls, climbing 20-ft spider webs, hiking up hills at a 45-degree angle, jumping off a 15-ft platform, swimming through ice water or running through a field of live wires waiting to shock me.

This is me, jumping from said 15-foot platform into a cold abyss. What 29-year-old plugs her nose? This girl.

I'd say for me, the race definitely much more of a mental challenge than a physical one. Don't get me wrong: I definitely relied on my male teammates to help me get over walls, I wasn't even close to crossing TWO monkey bars, and I most certainly wouldn't have completed "Everest" without three dudes pulling—no, hoisting—me over the edge.

That's not me, just the obstacle. The pipe was greased, and we were muddy, wet and exhausted. Not easy.

But a lot of it was simply mustering the courage to try something that intimidated me or telling myself to pick up my legs and keep moving. As my teammates and I were running along mile 9 or something stupid, when we were all exhausted and it felt like we were running with body weights—oh yes, that would be the mud caked in EVERYWHERE, combined with the water in my shoes—I let them in on a secret.

"Has anyone seen Finding Nemo?" I asked. "Yes," they all panted. "You know how Dorie says, "just keep swimming, just swimming..." I go on. "Yes," they respond, waiting for my point. "Just keep running, just keep running..." I laughed. And so we did.

This is us at the start of the race. Happy.

I'm taking a page from my teammate and fellow blogger, Beth (pictured above) and going to do a little Q&A:

What was the worst obstacle for you?
Electroshock therapy. Beth said it best that day: You know those cartoons when someone gets electrocuted and you can see their skeleton? That's exactly what it felt like. 10,000 volts of electricity is no joke. That shit hurts. You can literally feel it in your bones.

I ran through at full force, only to have a wire shock me so violently near the beginning, it brought me to my knees. TO MY KNEES, people. And then, I couldn't get up because every time I did, I just got shocked and dropped. Again and again and again. Shock, drop and roll, baby. I fell so hard I cut open my friggin' knee. Enjoy these "official" photos. (Excuse the quality on some, I "borrowed" them from the event site without buying them.)

A close second was the Arctic Enema, where you have to jump into an ice bath, submerge yourself long enough to swim under a wooden plank and then swim to the other side.

That's my "Holy &(*&(^&^ this water is cold!" face.

And your favorite obstacle?
Tough to say. I really liked the ones that involved mud, actually. There was one called the Mud Mile, that required wading through waist-deep mud and then having to climb up a muddy hill...up, down, up down. I liked that one. I also liked any that required climbing/being high up, such as Berlin Walls, Spiders Web and Cliffhanger. I didn't have enough time to be scared of the height, so I just did them, and I felt proud of myself for not crying like a baby.

If you could change one thing about the event, what would it be?
Not much, actually. The course was pretty awesome, as it took you through woods, ravines, rock quarrys, etc. I felt kind of like a bad ass leaping over logs and streams during our runs. But, I think I would make the obstacles closer together. It made the miles go by faster when you didn't have to run a mile to get to another one. On the flip side, we did experience some bottlenecks that made it difficult to keep moving, which you just had to do. Just keep swimming...

Would you do it again?
Tough to say. I was swayed once, I could probably be swayed again. I don't know if it would be easier or harder knowing what I know now. Like Beth said, it'd be hard to convince myself to go through Electroshock again.

Would you train for it differently if you did it again?
Definitely less running, and more cross training and strength. If you can run 4 miles without stopping, you're fine because you never run more than I'd say 1-2 miles at a time. I'd also drop some pounds. I say that not being all "I'm so fat," but more thinking about how many times I had to step on someone, or someone had to pull me up. On Everest, I had no upper body strength to speak of, and I was just dead weight for those guys. (Sorry about that.) In any case, if I did do it again, my goals would be to do some of the physical challenges a little better. Like completing Funky Monkey or Hangin' Tough.

Worst bruise?
I banged up my knee pretty bad when I fell during Electroshock Therapy (see my knee on the right). I'm not quite sure where I got the shiner on my left leg, but the picture below is from more than a week later. I think I was also the most sore of my team. It hurt to smile, breathe and move in general.

Glad you did it?     
Absolutely. As much bitching and moaning as I did before it, I am so happy that I did it. It was the most rewarding experience to date with a great group of people, and I'm proud of myself. I sincerely thank all of them for keeping me going and getting me over the hurdles, both literally and figuratively.

Here we are, minus one, after our finish: GirlsWhoGetAround.Com

One final note: One of my teammates had a Go Pro camera - you know, one of those cameras you can wear on your head? So he has the whole thing on film and once we get an edited version, I'll share it with you. Until then, here are is the official Tough Mudder Seattle video.



What do you think? Would you ever do a Tough Mudder?

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The Birthday Snob

Happy Friday, ya'll! And more importantly, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

Today I am 29 years young. As is per usual,  such thing as a calm, no chaos week doesn't exist in my life and I haven't a spare moment to blog this week.

BUT I've been thinking about all the things I want to blog about. That counts right? Coming up, expect to see some goals for the next year, some reflections on my 20s, and why I think it's difficult to make friends over 30. Oh, and I've got another "To the" brewing, so stay tuned.

It's been a good birthday week. Monday, my husband surprised me with a Kindle Fire and a sweet note. Tuesday, my favorite girls took me to a delicious birthday dinner at RPM. (By dinner I mean 3 bottles of wine + 1 glass each, and some light plates. Oops.) I had lunch and drinks with friends last night, and this morning, my co-workers surprised me with donuts and Champs! They know the way to my heart. For reals.

This afternoon, we are headed to Seattle. That's right. For "the race." Ya'll, I saw the course for this bitch. It's 11 miles long, and there are 20 obstacles, many of which involve mud and jumping into frigid bodies of water and smoking holes. I mean, I just really hope after this is all said and done, I am like "That just happened. I just did that." Wish me luck.

Anyway, not much time  to write, but I just wanted to share this little gem of a photo with you:

 

That's right. That's me. I have no idea how old I am turning in this photo. I'm going to guess 6 or 7 based on the hideousness that is the couch I'm sitting on. That has to be from the 80s. 

In any case, so many things are amazing in this picture. First off: the couch. Second, who braided my hair this way? My mom (God love her) sure as heck didn't. I mean, I did own one of those books that gave you step-by-steps on how to braid, but this looks a little advanced, even for me. Third: nice bangs. Fourth: the Old School Barbie schwag. Fifth: I think it goes without saying that my face is priceless. My dad showed me this photo a couple of weeks ago and when I asked what my issue was, his response was that I wasn't happy with the presents I got.

Some things never change. I have always been, and always will be a birthday snob. And proud of it.

Perhaps the best part of this photo is my older sister, who's cut out of my version, but she's standing there in the original with her arms also crossed and looking at me with pure disgust. Like I said: some things never change.

I should do a {Way Back Whensday} about my birthdays sometime. I had some bomb ass birthdays. One included a cake shaped like a bubble gum machine, with REAL GUMBALLS. Say what?!

Anyway, it's sure to be a good birthday weekend (self-fulfilling prophecy?) Next week, expect great stories from the race (assuming I'm still alive) and a lot of sadness because my BFF is moving away from me. WAAAH. 

Leave me some birthday love!

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Am I Crazy?

Don't answer that.

I've done something stupid. (Again.) I signed up to participate in a Tough Mudder. Not sure what that is? Read on, you blissfully ignorant reader.

Let's start from the beginning. Earlier this summer, the husband mentioned that he wanted to run this race in Seattle on September 29. If that doesn't mean anything to you, just know that my birthday is September 28. I am a big a birthday person. So naturally, I was opposed to this idea, as I wanted to celebrate my birthday with him, here in Chicago — not ringing in 29 with a near-death experience. Next thing I know, I get an email with his confirmed registration with a note from him that says "spectator tickets are available."

Thanks, honey.

I'll spare you the saga of the many conversations we've had since then. Aside from the whole, 'It's my birthday!' thing, I told husband that I didn't want to look like the only a*hole (read, wimp) not participating. He assured that me that of our couple friends who would be there, I would not be the only one not doing it. So I got over it (a little bit) and had basically decided I'd go for the weekend to hang out with everyone. Until the other day, I see that the one gal I had been counting on hanging out with, Beth, signed up. TRAITOR! So, here I am.

I know you might be thinking I had a choice in this matter. Sure, I made this "choice." But this was not a real choice, people: I was peer pressured and I am not happy about.

Sorry if 12 miles and 25 obstacles does not sound like my idea of a good time. Sorry if I'd rather celebrate my birthday sucking down champagne instead of mud.

So, what exactly is a tough mudder, you ask? The web site says "Tough Mudder events are hardcore 10-12 mile obstacle courses designed by British Special Forces to test your all around strength, stamina, mental grit, and camaraderie."

Cool.

I got an email today telling me to "Get pumped and check out the Artic Enema Obstacle Video!" It's descriptor is as follows:

  

"Many athletes use ice baths for recovery, but you'll have a difficult time relaxing your muscles in this frigid dumpster. First you must bravely jump into Big Mudder's floating iceberg abyss. Once submerged, find the mental and physical strength to swim through the ice, under a wooden plank and pull yourself out on the other end before you become hypothermic." 

I'm sorry. Could you repeat that?



How about some 'Electroshock therapy'? No? Not interested? Me either.

"Sprint through a field of live wires — some carrying as much as 10,000 volts of electric shock. Watch out for hay bales and deep mud, or you will face-plant into some electrifying mud. Some Mudders try to stealthily wind their way through the wires without getting shocked, while others barrel forward to get through as quickly as possible."

Anyone feel like burning to death in the "Fire Walker" obstacle? Better freshen' up on my "stop, drop and roll" skills.

"You’ll be running through a trench of blazing, kerosene-soaked straw. You can expect flames at least 4 feet tall." 

Source: ToughMudder.com

What do you guys think? Can I do it? Have YOU done it? Got any tips?

 

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