Werewolf Run

Ever make plans and then life interrupts them? Thought so. Tuesday being my day off (yes, I actually have two days off, but Sunday’s way in the past now), I decided to loll in bed extra yesterday. When I finally got up and moving I decided to do errands, which included a visit to the office. After lunch it was time for a short nap (had to let that calzone settle) before a long-overdue run. 

Just to show I was indeed out at night.

Then a friend called in need of, well, a friend. Family and friends first. So I spent my afternoon in good company and enjoyed being there for a friend in need. Then it was family time: D3 came for dinner and a few episodes of “The Walking Dead.” Before I knew it, it was 9:15 and I hadn’t hit the pavement. I was gonna stall and put it off til morning. Then I got some prodding.

I think it was a better idea to run last night when it was 40 degrees and not very windy than to wait until this morning. Even now, at 11 a.m., it’s only 32 degrees, according to trusty ol’ Galesburg.com. Wise choice.

I donned some basic grey sweatpants, a running shirt, my awesome Monster Dash running jacket, gloves and a reflective vest and headed toward Walmart. I needed a good, long run. Five miles would be just the thing. Under the light of the waning full moon, it was a lovely evening. Can’t say nighttime running is conducive to finding stuff on the ground, even with the moonlight, but it allows the mind to wander.

I thought of my friend and helping her talk out some hard times. I thought of work and family and relaxation. Then I thought of Halloween and werewolves and monsters of all sorts. Not enough to scare myself, which has been known to happen, but enough to have a little fun. I think the idea of a zombie run like the recent “Run forYour Lives” is a cool concept. Maybe I’ll do one of those next year.

Today’s Stats Oct. 30

Temp: 40

Time: 9:30 p.m.

Distance: 5 miles

iPod Playlist (Shuffle)

Teenage Dream (Kaskade Club Mix) - Katy Perry

The Stranger - Billy Joel

Piano Man - Billy Joel

Never Surrender - Corey Hart

The Promise – When in Rome

Mad Season – Matchbox 20

State of Shock – The Jacksons (With Mick Jagger)

I Guess that’s Why They Call it the Blues - Elton John

The Stoning – John Debney ("Passion of the Christ" soundtrack)

You’re the Storm – The Cardigans

Half of My Mistakes – Jace Everett

Long Day – Matchbox 20

The Fuse – Bruce Springsteen

Today’s Stats (Oct. 26)

Temp: 30 degrees F

Distance: 3.5 miles?

iPod Shuffle

Wide Boy – Nik Kershaw

One Lonely Night – REO Speedwagon

Sleepwalking – Lyle Lovett

Three Women – Rachel Portman (Chocolat soundtrack)

A Dios – Santana

Mr. Pitiful – The Commitments

Dirty Life &Times – Warren Zevon

By My Side – JJ Grey & Mofro

Jack and Diane – John Mellencamp

In the Dark – Billy Squier

Lately – Greg Brown

The Trial – Pink Floyd

Three Miles Short

It seems my calculations have been a bit off. Recent runs I thought were about 3 miles were likely more in the 2.5-mile range. Oops.

Today's Stats (Oct. 24)

Temp: 62 degrees F

Distance: 3 miles

Treasure: Nothing seen today and I didn’t take a bag anyway.

iPod Playlist (On Shuffle):

A Life Uncommon – Jewel

Don’t Let It End – Styx

Don’t Stop – Fleetwood Mac

I’m Afraid of Americans – David Bowie

Nowhere to Run – Santana

Smooth – Santana (featuring Rob Thomas)

Everything is Comin’ Down – Bo Ramsey

We did the dash ... We did the Monster Dash!

“Lookin’ good, sweetheart.”

“Thanks.” Smile.

“Excuse me, miss.”

“Sure thing.” Smile.

“Nice dress.” Smile.

“Excuse me, can I get your picture?” “Sure.” Smile, strike a coy damsel-in-distress pose. “ A man after my own heart.” (Says the guy taking the photo.)

“That dress is so you.”

“Thanks. It’s my color.” Smile.

Guys, if you want to draw attention and get a big self-esteem boost from loads of compliments, wear a dress. Seriously.

Well, you might not want to wear it seriously. But I think it’s easy enough to pull off the look (with a smashing blonde “storybook curls” wig) if it’s October, nearing Halloween, and especially if you’re gathered with a few thousand other runners for the Chicago Monster Dash.

Hello Kitty meets Baby Bear.

I’ll forego the details about Monster Dash – you can read about it here. Obviously it is a Halloween-themed costume race (half-marathon, 10K and 5K fun run/walk). The event starts in Grant Park and circles a path that crosses Lakeshore Drive and follows the lake back past the Chicago Museum Campus to the park where it all begins. That’s the 5K anyway.

What a blast. OK, it’s a pokey throng at the start, but you eventually can find your pace and do what you want. Perhaps. My girls (the famous Buckettes trio) and I went with a group costume – Goldilocks and the Three Bears. While they’re all natural blondes, it seemed odd to pick one of them as Goldilocks and odder still to have three Goldilocks and just one Bear to chase them all. So we turned it around and I took the Goldilocks role and the Buckettes became the Three Bears. We were accompanied by my friend and running mate Ellen, a.k.a. Hello Kitty.

Molly and Melissa work on bear claws.

Costuming was a bear (pardon the pun). I spent an afternoon shopping for a dress but couldn’t find one that both looked the part and fit a man of my physique. Enter my friend Kim, shopper extraordinaire. She found the perfect dress (though the Buck girls thought surely it was strictly a costume dress, not something any self-respecting woman would ever actually wear in public, at least not since the 1970s) and the perfect hair-piece. The storybook curls were a hit all around, though Molly was disappointed that they covered the stylized eye tattoo on the back of my neck (she likes creepy things like eyes in the back of one’s head).

The bear costumes were trickier. We’d hoped to do brown bears – for that storybook look. Unfortunately, brown sweatpants and sweatshirts are none too common. We went with black. Felt provided the clever ears and claws (attached to stocking caps, a hoodie and magic gloves. A little black face paint completed the girls’ costumes, though Amanda and Molly, with their stocking caps (topped with ears) might have been mistaken for cat burglars (at least without the claws).

We arrived at Melissa’s suburban apartment Saturday evening and went about making the bear costumes after dinner. Melissa, ever the crafty one, did the lion’s share of the work, though Molly pitched in with some essential claw-cutting. Amanda and I mostly lounged on the furniture and watched TV. Satisfied that the parts were ready for morning, we hit the sack and planned for an early morning. The 5K didn’t step off until 9:40 a.m., but the costume contest judging was slated to begin at 8. We had to be there for that. Not that we expected to win (though I think we were pretty clever), but we wanted to take in the full event in all its weirdness.

It was chilly when we stepped out of the Soldier Field parking garage – at least for those of us in a summer dress. But it wasn’t terribly cold and it warmed sufficiently by race time. Only my hands were cold, even it was a bit nipply out. (Side note, guys: Chicks don’t dig hairy man-cleavage. Who’d-a-thunk?)

Who ya gonna call?

The looks and comments started right off. As I waited for the girls to use the facilities in the parking garage. As we waited by the Grant Park tunnel for Ellen. That’s where it got good. A guy in a van (park employee, perhaps) calls out, “Lookin’ good, sweetheart.” Melissa already started to say thank you for the compliment when she heard the singular “sweetheart” and realized he was joshin’ me. It never ended. I think I even traumatized some poor little boy who had never seen a man in a dress before. Lucky he didn’t see the guy and gal dressed as Hootersgirls. That dude went all out, sporting a stuffed bra, as well as the orange hot-pants.

Teamwork!

What a great place for costume ideas. We saw Oompa Loompas (a trio who even did the dance as they presented themselves for judging); a variety of superheroes, including the Avengers and the Incredibles, among others; a couple of women cleverly paired to form bikini-clad boobs (with a “Save the Ta-tas” slogan on the back of their shirts); hippies; the Jamaican bobsled team (one of the best group costumes); the Scooby-Doo gang; even a rainbow, a seven-member group in the appropriate colors – Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet – labeled and wearing clouds at their feet (an idea we had considered early on in our planning for the run).

If you’re a runner and you like Halloween, do it. Monster Dash is an awesome event. The course is pretty easy and it’s more fun than any run I’ve done. Amanda noted that it helps that there’s such nice scenery to distract you. The stretch along the lake was gorgeous: The sun was shining on the blue water and there were still loads of sailboats floating there.

I could go on and on. Do the Monster Dash. It’s fun and you get great swag: kick-ass jacket (bitchin’ hoodie for the kids – I want one!) and a stained-glass-style medal to die for. I think I might have to sign up for the Polar Dash and/or the Get Lucky run next year, both sponsored by Team Ortho. In the meantime, I’m thinking of the Dec. 1 Santa Hustle. Check it out.

Today's Stats

Temp: ? degrees F

Distance: 5K, 3.1 miles

Weekly Total: 10.45

Treasure: 1 white satin sash with pink “Princess” button; 1 black and white fleece headband (ear-warmer); 1 fun size Nestle’s Crunch bar; 6 Twizzlers singles.

Race weight: 195.8 lbs.

Time: No idea. Not chipped for the 5K and I stopped for a considerable time, waiting for Molly, who it turns out was well ahead of me. She finished first among our group. D’Oh.

iPod Playlist (On Shuffle):

No iPod today, but the Monster Dash start/finish site was broadcasting tunes like “Werewolves ofLondon,” “Monster” and “Clap for the Wolfman.”

Five-mile Smoke Break

I was about four blocks into my morning run when I saw her cross the street in front of me, maybe half a block away. Royal blue scrub pants and a white shoes cut a quick clip across Seminary Street to the smokers’ retreat under a tree opposite Cottage Hospital. The puffy brown coat had to be too warm for the mild October morning, but I suppose it was cooler when she arrived at work and she didn’t bother to check the temp before heading out for a cigarette.

This picture has nothing to do with this blog. I
simply failed to take my phone on my last run.

I didn’t get a good look at her as I passed on the hospital side of the street, but the sun lit her auburn hair from behind, creating a fiery glow around her head. I craned my neck to watch her for an extra second, then I was out of range and in danger of colliding with cars at the upcoming parking lot entrance/exit.

On my merry way I ran. The possibly pretty girl flitted in and out of mind like any other random thought that occurs while I’m running. That’s one of the great benefits of running: time to think about nothing at all, or about whatever has been distracting you at times when you need to concentrate on annoying tasks like work. Monday found me on my 5-mile Walmart route. It’s a good workout and I know the distance without having to double check it on MapMyRun, the runner’s website.

No bag in hand, I wasn’t bothering to collect cans – I haven’t for a while – and I passed up the glitter-flecked, black magic glove in the gutter, as well. Like I need any more of those. Monday was a day to just run for the sake of running. Of course, that doesn’t leave me much to blog about (that’s the theme of this thing, right?). Whatever. I’ve been avoiding the writing lately and I wasn’t really thinking about a blog. I just wanted to run. I needed to run. Winter fat already is settling in my belly.

So it was to be an uneventful out-and-back to Walmart. I try to vary the return route a little, sometimes snaking through Hawthorne Centre – the former Galesburg State Research Hospital (Galesburg Mental Health Center) – and then opting for Willard or Bateman or Seminary for the bulk of the southerly stretch; other times I’ll opt for a quick return to Seminary Street after passing Walmart, avoiding the Hawthorne Centre maze altogether.

What threw me, mentally, was the appearance of the auburn-haired smoker, still under the tree on the landscaping stone wall, thirty-five minutes later. Who takes a forty-minute smoke break? What employer allows that? Surely she hadn’t stayed the whole time, I thought, but by the same token it seemed equally unlikely she’d taken two breaks in that short time.

Being on the same side of the street this pass, I decided to go out on a limb. Just a little.

“Hey,” I said, throwing up a casual wave with my left hand.

“Hi,” she replied.

And then I was out of range again. No lingering for conversation.

Like the movie “Groundhog Day,” the scenario played out again Tuesday morning. Same Bat-time, same Bat-channel. Only this time I thought I’d look ahead a little.

“See ya Wednesday,” I offered as I ran past.

“I don’t work Wednesdays,” she shouted as I puffed down the street.

Maybe I’m imagining it, but I thought I sensed a measure of disappointment in her voice. Maybe she’ll be there Wednesday, 10-ish, just to say hi. Or perhaps I’ll have to wait until Thursday. Can I run every day just to see if this mystery woman is regular with her smoke breaks?

Maybe.

The above is a work of fiction. Not a great work. Nor even a good work. Consider an exercise. My legs and lungs get their workout, my mind needs one, too. Next up: “Texting in the rain.”  

Today's Stats

Temp: 43 degrees F

Distance: 5 miles

iPod Playlist (On Shuffle):

Looking for the Next Best Thing – Warren Zevon

You’re Only Human – Billy Joel

Weather Report – Ronnie Lane

Rock and Roll Music – The Beatles

Old Brown Shoe – Gary Brooker

Until The End of The World – U2

Don’t Panic - Coldplay

Night Flight – Led Zeppelin

Yer Blues – The Beatles

Mutineer – Bob Dylan

Why Can’t This Be Love – Van Halen

Narrow Way, Pt. 1 – Pink Floyd

Kashmir – Led Zeppelin

Can’t Go Home Anymore My Love – The Factotums

Hymn 43 – Jethro Tull