The Craziest of the Crazy (a review of the running documentary "3100: Run & Become")

It's not uncommon for non-runners to think that runners are just crazy people. Run for fun? Really? Crazy.

I used to think the same thing until I became a runner. THEN, I learned that sure--we're a little crazy. I ran, I trained, and I paid money to run 5K, 10K, a half-marathon. Who does that?! Crazy people.

When I trained for and ran my first marathon, the non-runners who I told about it couldn't even fathom the thought of running 26.2 miles. Crazy.

And now, as a three-time marathoner, I learned that there is another level of crazy runners--they are the batshit crazy runners. These are runners who run even farther than marathon distance--ultramarathons! More than 26.2 miles? I'm out.

But it gets even crazier.

My mind was totally blown when I learned about the Badwater 135, a race of 135 miles through Death Valley in the middle of July, when temperatures are roughly 130 degrees F. Oh, did I mention the 13,000 FEET OF ELEVATION GAIN?

Batshit crazy!

But why do that race, when you can choose the Barkley Marathons? The Barkley Marathons is a race of more than 100 miles that must be completed in less than 60 hours--it's a five-loop course of 20+ miles per loop (the distance varies a bit because the course changes every year--and none of the runners know the course in advance). This race commonly ends without a single finisher.

WHY, on God's green earth, would anyone choose to do this? Because they are batshit crazy, that's why.

And recently, Friends, I learned that there are runners who put "batshit crazy" to shame. They make that level of crazy go way down to the bottom rung of the whole crazy ladder.

I was invited to watch an advance screening of a documentary about a race that I'd never heard of, and when I read about the race, I legitimately thought that the mileage was a typo. It had to be. Or meant to be an ironic title. Or a joke. It couldn't possibly be a real race!

I'm talking about the Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race.

After you pick your jaw up off the floor, envision this: A road race where the runners must complete at least 59 miles per day for 52 straight days to finish. The entire race is on a 1/2-mile loop of a block in Queens, NYC. And it's done in the summer heat!

Is there even a word that describes that level of crazy?!

I'm going to NYC in September, and after I watched the documentary about this race, I said to Jerry, "Oh, I wonder what day the race is? I'd love to go spectate!" And I looked it up online. It read "17 June - 7 August". For a moment, I thought, "Well, which is it?" HAHAHA, my brain couldn't even grasp the concept of the race taking place from June 17 TO August 7!

The documentary that I was kindly invited to screen is called "3100: Run & Become". It is fantastic, and it made me so interested in learning more about the role that running plays in different cultures. Different "levels of crazy", so to speak.

The film is not just about the Self-Transcendence 3100, however. While that is fascinating in and of itself, my favorite parts were about how running fits in to other cultures--the Navajo, Bushmen, and Japanese Marathon Monks.

Here is a quote from the producers regarding these:

"Cameras in hand, we set off on a global exploration of running.  

We hunted on the run with the Bushmen of Botswana. Hunting was recently banned by the Botswana Government as one step in their attempt to destroy this ancient culture. We met a group of Bushmen hunters defying that ban who wanted us to film their ancestral way of hunting. 

We ran with champion Navajo runners versed by their Elders in the spiritual traditions of running. Shaun Martin, a Navajo educator, was attempting to retrace the footsteps of his father, who like many Native American kids was forced into government boarding school. Shaun's dad would routinely escape and walk the 100 miles back to his family's homesite. Shaun was attempting to do that distance in one shot. 

And we embedded with the Japanese Marathon Monks to document their epic 1,000 day running journey where the stakes are literally life or death. Once a generation they pick an Aspirant to do 1000 days over 7 years, in 100 day chunks - up to 56 miles per day. If the Aspirant fails to complete his/her daily mileage requirement, he/she must commit suicide (!). Thankfully this hasn't happened in 100s of years."

Jerry and I both loved the film. My only complaint is that it wasn't longer and more in-depth! Here is the trailer:


The film will soon be available to the public at several screenings around the country. Here is the film's website, where you can see the dates/locations of some of the upcoming screenings. Even if you're not a "crazy runner", I encourage you to watch the film--it's informative, inspirational, and very interesting!

(Photos courtesy of 3100: Run & Become)

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Day 30: How I Did On My Goals for June (and Setting My Goals for July!)

On May 31st, I wrote a post that included a bunch of goals for June--just things to focus on, to give myself something to think about other than the fact that my weight hadn't budged in weeks and I wasn't running much at all.

To recap, here is a list of the goals that I'd set for June:

• 30 days of blogs (various topics)
• Run 30+ minutes per day, 4+ times per week
• Read 30+ minutes per day
• Read one chapter of the Bible every day (by June 30, I should be done with Leviticus, chapter 2)
• Keep spending to a bare minimum
• Write and start doing a specific cleaning routine
• Plan out groceries and dinners every Friday
• Complete 5 more 40x40 bullet journal pages
• Complete at least one more item from my 40x40 list

The first... 30 days of blogging. My goal was to write a blog post every day in June. While you already know that I didn't do that, I did manage to write 12 MORE posts in June than I did in May! So, I wrote 20 posts (including this one) in June. (It felt like more than that! I could have sworn I only missed two or three.) So, I'm considering this goal a success--I wanted to blog more frequently, and I did!

Run 30+ minutes, 4 days per week. Nope! I did run the first week, but then for the next two weeks I didn't run at all. When my Summer Challenge started on the 21st, though, I was fired up to run for that. And since then, I've actually been consistent (you know, for all nine days since it started, haha). I've planned out four runs per week to be able to check off all 51 items on the list by the fall equinox. 

Read 30+ minutes per day. I didn't log this, but I think I have read every single day. I actually finished a book a few days ago! Unfortunately, I didn't love the book, so it was very hard for me to continue to read it. I had started and quit a few books prior to it, so I was determined to just finish it! I was very happy to get through it, though, and then start on a new on that I am completely fascinated with. 

Prior reading (i.e. the book I wasn't crazy about): "Running: A Love Story"

Current reading (love it!): "Coreyography" (a cringe-worthy-but oh-so-clever title for a memoir by Corey Feldman)

Read one chapter of the Bible every day. I actually did make it up to Leviticus, Chapter 3 (which was the goal). However, I didn't read a little every day, as planned. Instead, I would read 8-10 chapters at a time to catch up. I thought the first half of Exodus was really fascinating (in a horrible way) but the second half was extremely boring (it listed SO many dimensions, fabrics, materials, and placements for building things). 

Keep extra spending to a bare minimum. I did pretty well with this one! I will have to look at our final tally tomorrow to see how much we can pay down our debt for this month--but I believe we're going to be able to pay around $600--which is $594 more than last month, hahaha! We definitely had extra expenses, but they weren't random "Oh, I want this!" type things. Every month, there are things we don't plan for, and this was no exception. However, I am happy with my own spending habits this month. 

Write and start doing a specific cleaning routine. Fail on this one. I really would like to get back to the routine I did last year--I loved cleaning! But lately, it feels like a chore again--so, I have been procrastinating things like laundry, dusting, and vacuuming. I'm going to try to make this a priority for July. 

Plan out groceries and dinners on Fridays. I did great with this one! I despise meal planning and writing out grocery lists (I used to love it--but that was when I didn't care about our debt and I wasn't trying to match up sales with coupons, etc. 

Complete five more 40x40 bullet journal pages. I can't remember which page I left off on in May! But I do have some new ones... I think only four. Regardless, it's four more than I had before! ;) 

Complete at least one more item from my 40x40 list. I did this! I went strawberry picking with my friend Emily and we made homemade jam with our berries. It was so fun! I'd like to go berry picking every year.

Overall, I'm very happy with how my June goals went! The only one I didn't make progress on is the cleaning routine; otherwise, I did much better than I would have if I hadn't made those goals.

That said, I'm going to set a few goals for July...

• I want to write and maintain a cleaning schedule, even if it's minimum (just to get the habit down). 
• Continue with the Bible reading.
• Continue with reading another book for 30+ minutes per day. 
• I know that I won't be writing a blog post every single day in July, but I'm going to aim for 4 days per week. I think that will be a good compromise.
• Run four days a week.
• Take you-know-who for a you-know-what every night. (That's code for "Take Joey for a walk every night.) I used to do this with the kids--the kids and I (and Jerry, if he wasn't working) would go for a late-night walk with Joey. We would bring flashlights and just enjoy the summer night. 
• Keep spending to a minimum again (We are SO close to having all of our credit debt paid off, and I don't want to compromise that at all!)

June was a good month! I can't believe that in less than 3 minutes, it's going to be July already. 

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8 Things That Happened When I Quit Running

The year 2017 was a big game changer for me. In January and February, I was at the peak of a 10-month episode of depression, and it was worse than any I'd experienced before (although I didn't write much about it, and I certainly downplayed the severity). I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and my psychiatrist prescribed me a mood stabilizer. The diagnosis, medication, and a big breakthrough in therapy made me feel like I was starting a whole new life.

I stopped worrying about what others thought of me, and I decided that I was going to do what made me happy. I wanted to become the happiest person I could be.

One of the biggest changes I made was that I stopped running.

I had dreaded each and every run for about a year, or maybe more, and I just didn't want to do it anymore. I was tired of it! I would spend my rest days dreading my next run day. When I was actually running, I was doing whatever I could to just get through it, and I hated every minute of it.

So, I quit. Indefinitely.

I had no idea if I'd ever run again, and I really didn't care. I had a bit of an identity crisis confusion, considering I'd been known as "Runs for Cookies" for six years. Who would I be, if not a runner? Would I still blog? Would I have to change the name of my blog? Would I gain weight?

I had a thousand questions with answers unknown, and I dove right in to discover them. From the moment I made that decision to quit running, I felt better. I didn't dread the following day, or the day after. I didn't ever have to run again, unless I wanted to, and it was okay!

Unexpectedly, I started to miss it sometime late in 2017--not the act of running itself, but just the way it made me feel afterward. My body had started to feel "soft", and even though I was back down to my goal weight of 133, I felt fat. There were some things that I hadn't expected to happen in my time off of running.

I am now back at it, although nothing like before. I'm not training for PRs, or any race at all; I'm not building up my distance; I'm not even "training"--I'm just running a few times a week to feel good about myself and exercise my body.

Anyways, all of that said... I've been thinking about the things that hadn't occurred to me when I first decided to quit running over a year ago. And if you find yourself in my (running) shoes, dreading each run and feeling burnt out, maybe it'll give you something to think about, too!

So, here goes: 8 Things That Happened When I Quit Running...

1) I discovered that I am a lazy person by nature. When I quit running, I had every intention to do other forms of exercise--daily walks, bike rides, and just live a very active lifestyle (minus the running). Instead, I turned into a version of my "fat self" (i.e. before I lost 125 pounds).

My activity came in the form of cleaning--I cleaned my house like a crazy person, because my depression had lifted and I finally had the time and energy to do so. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing--my house looked fantastic--but other than the cleaning, I still didn't want to "exercise".

2) I realized that I didn't need running in order to lose or maintain my weight. In fact, I lost quite a bit of weight once I quit running! I was about 160 pounds when I was diagnosed with bipolar, and when I decided to start doing what makes me happy (and NOT doing the things that didn't make me happy), I realized that excess food wasn't making me happy (more about this in an upcoming post). My weight naturally dropped down to a comfortable 130-135 pounds.

3) I learned that food isn't a "reward" for exercise. My blog title, Runs for Cookies, suggests that I earn my sweets by running (and that's exactly what I intended when I chose the title). However, when I quit running, I still loved sweets. And, in the aspiration of making myself happy, I wasn't about to quit eating something I love just because I quit running.

And you know what? I learned that two cookies taste just as good as a dozen. I also didn't need to feel the urge "to run it off" after indulging in those two cookies (or any indulgence, for that matter). I knew that I wasn't OVER-indulging, and that I was making my body (and my soul!) happy.

4) About eight months after I quit running, I started to miss it. Surprisingly, it had nothing to do with my weight. I was at my goal weight, but I felt fat. I wasn't pushing my muscles or my lungs and heart to a level where I felt like I was really working.

When I first quit running, I wouldn't have cared about this. I would have been thrilled to just be at my goal weight and not have to run to get there! But I found that I missed feeling sweaty and a little achy after running. I missed setting goals and making plans to reach those goals.

5) I found that I actually enjoyed the regression in my fitness level... to an extent. When I first went for a run after my hiatus, I couldn't believe how challenging it was. What felt like a 9:00/mile pace was actually approaching a 12:00/mile pace. My body had definitely lost its cardiovascular shape. BUT. This regression made me excited! I realized that it would be a challenge to run a sub-30 5K (where before, it was a typical easy run).

I realized that running "just" three miles was a really big deal--prior to my hiatus, three miles was practically a waste of my time! I felt like a beginner again, which made it exciting to me. Every little improvement was something to celebrate, versus before, when I was mad at myself for not being able to run a consistent sub-8:00 mile as I had for my 2016 10K.

6) I said "to an extent" in #5 because there are certainly drawbacks to the regression of fitness. Runs take more time than they used to, and they certainly feel more difficult. I can't keep up with friends who want a buddy to run with (unless they are slower than me, and, currently, I don't know anyone that fits the bill! haha). I do wonder if my days of shooting for PRs are gone (I don't worry about it, though--I am just genuinely curious). Other than that, the regression hasn't bothered me.

7) I don't care about the running numbers AT ALL anymore. One mile is the same as three miles; a 12:00/mile pace is the same as a 7:00/mile pace--it truly doesn't make any difference to me. When I run now, I don't care in the slightest sense of the word what my pace is! I'm not embarrassed to run slowly, or to be a 35:00-ish 5K'er instead of a 24:00-ish 5K'er like before. Last night, I ran just one mile, and I felt as good logging that mile as I would have if I'd logged 10.

8) Most importantly, running is not my identity. I thought of changing my blog title because, soon after I'd quit running, I felt like it was a dishonest title. But running was a huge part of my life (and I guess it still is, in a way) for such a long time, and I feel like it'll always be a part of who I am.

The difference is, I'm not JUST a runner (or, "hobby jogger" might be more appropriate now). There are so many other things that make up ME, and I wouldn't have discovered many of those if not for taking an indefinite hiatus from running.

---

Over the last several months, I've been discovering a nice middle ground for running. I make time for it, but it's not a very important part of my life anymore. I don't really have any desire to race (although, I did train with my husband for a half-marathon, and learned many things about myself as a runner along the way).

Maybe I will want to race again someday, but for now, I'm good with just running here and there as I see fit. I don't place "rules" on myself as far as distance or days of the week, or anything like that; I run just enough to feel like I'm doing my body some good without forcing it.

My body is not as "tight" as it was when I was running a consistent five days a week and training hard for a race. I'm not fast, and I don't run long distances; but, I no longer work my life around my training schedule. I just fit in a few runs when it's convenient for me, and if I miss one, I know that life goes on. I enjoy dessert without "earning" it, and it tastes just as good.

And my weight? It's followed the same pattern it always has. I hit a depressive episode of bipolar in December (thankfully, a "mild" depression, and nothing like it was before I was taking the correct medication), and I gained 15 pounds (I always gain weight when going through depression.) I was running throughout the entire springtime, and my weight held on to those 15 pounds, so the running wasn't a factor.

I am sure that as my mood improves, the extra pounds will come off, just as they have in the past. (Here is a post that shows the interesting up and down pattern of my weight and how it coincides with my bipolar disorder.)

Right now, I am having fun working on my Cookies Summer Challenge--a checklist of runs (or walks!) that are done for enjoyment and not "training". Last night, I ran at 12:53 AM (so, it was technically this morning) to run at the peak of the strawberry moon!

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Day 25: Grown-up Nightmares

Well, if my blog doesn't look any different... that's because it's not. Haha!

I tried SO hard to make the switch to Wordpress, but after many cups of coffee, an equivalent volume of tears, and nearly tearing all of my hair out, I've decided that Blogger is just meant to be my permanent blogging home. And you know what? I'm good with that.

Having a self-hosted blog on Wordpress seems to be the "cool" thing to do in the blogging world. I wanted to be in that cool kids club, too! But in the 36 years of my life, I've never been one of the cool kids. I'm an outsider--and I think it suits me just fine. (Maybe I should call myself a "rebel" instead of "outsider" because it sounds a little more badass. Hahaha!)

It's not to say I didn't try, though. I watched a ridiculous number of YouTube videos and read through countless tutorials on how to make the switch to Wordpress. I filled half of a notebook with pages of notes. I was ready. I blocked all of my time yesterday out of my schedule so that I could focus and just get it done.

I barely got through the third of about two dozen steps before I just couldn't take it anymore. Tech support might as well have been speaking Japanese to me, because I couldn't understand a word of it. And I was surprised at how expensive it is! Blogger only costs me $15 per year--$10 for my domain, and $5 for extra photo storage.

So, I quit. And then I drowned my sorrows in ice cream and wine.

Anyway, enough of that. Now I remember why I swore I'd never try it again after the last attempt! ;)

---

Sometime around 3:30 this morning, I had a nightmare. I actually kind of enjoy nightmares--it's the same kind of thrill I get when I watch scary movies. The nightmare I had this morning was pretty funny when I woke up, though. I called Jerry at work at 4:00 AM so I could tell him about it before I forgot.

In my dream, Jerry had found a huge amount of marijuana (about 1 pound) in the parking lot at work on the way to his car. He couldn't believe it was just sitting there, and he stuffed it into his glovebox. He forgot about, and then we were driving somewhere the next day (he was driving, I was in the passenger seat of his car). I spotted a police car, and then I remembered the marijuana that was in his glovebox.

My heart just dropped into my stomach, and I was so terrified the cop would pull us over. Sure enough, his lights went on and he pulled us over. I was trying to think of any way at all to get out of having to get Jerry's proof of insurance and registration out of the glovebox. As soon as he came up to the window, he started to talk to Jerry; I interrupted by saying something like, "He didn't realize he was speeding, please don't give him a ticket!"

And then the cop said, "Don't take away his man-card by speaking for him, geez!" (So random, but so funny). Then I started with the tears, hoping that would make the cop feel sorry for us. I told him we were broke, and couldn't afford a speeding ticket. I said anything I could think of to keep him from asking for the proof of insurance and registration.

After a few minutes of sheer panic (meanwhile, Jerry seemed totally calm) he just gave us a warning and didn't ask to see the papers. When we drove away, Jerry thought it was funny how freaked out I was, so he started swerving the car a little in front of the cop on purpose and laughing at me. I was yelling at him that if I'd opened that glovebox, he would be on his way to PRISON--but he still just seemed to laugh it off.

That's when I woke up. My heart was racing, and then I realized it was just a dream. A nightmare! Not like a monster-in-the-closet nightmare, but a "grown-up" nightmare--a fear-of-getting-caught-with-drugs-and-going-to-prison, hahaha.

That dream was totally random, and I have no idea how one would interpret that, but it was funny enough that I called Jerry to tell him about it!

---

Anyway, I've done three runs from my Cookies Summer Challenge list. I ran on the 21st for the Solstice Run (I didn't run at the time of the solstice, like I planned, because I just couldn't get up that early!); then I ran the Night Owl Run, which is more my style (finishing a run after 9pm); and today, I set out for my RUNch (lunchtime run, which was to start between 12 and 2), but I found a penny about a quarter mile into it, so I counted that as my Penny Pincher Run instead.

Below is a photo of all of the change I've found while running over the last two years. Which is pretty impressive, considering I didn't run much at all last year!

I have to say, I enjoy setting out for runs with goals that have nothing to do with my speed (which is a speedy 11:45-ish per mile) or distance (a whopping 1-3 miles). On Thursday, there is a Strawberry Full Moon at 12:53 AM, so I'm going to run from about 12:45-1:15 AM. Since I've become a night owl, that will be much easier for me to do than the solstice, which was at 6:07 AM!

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Jerry is off work tomorrow, and we're going to take the kids to see Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. I love the Jurassic Park movies, so I'm super excited to see it!

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Day 23: Here goes nothing!

Well, I've been reading tutorials and watching a trillion videos on YouTube about it, and I think I am finally ready to switch from Blogger to WordPress.

This. Is. Terrifying.

(This picture was actually from when Jerry and I were in Canada, and we discovered that Canada basically closes at 11PM. We wanted to go out for a drink, or at least get something to eat, but nothing was open!)

I have about 2,100 posts on Runs for Cookies, and I can't even guess how many photos uploaded to it. My biggest fear is that I'm going to lose everything.

I tried doing this switch once before, several years ago, but it just left me a sobbing mess and gave me nightmares for days.

Anyway, I'm just writing this to say that my blog may get a little wonky soon. It may disappear. I have no idea what is going to happen! If all goes well, I'll make a smooth transition to WordPress and you won't even notice (ha!).

I've made SOOO many changes to this blogger template that I'm afraid of what will happen when I try to make the switch. But that is precisely why I'd like to switch over. Because of all these changes I've made on Blogger, I think I've totally slowed down the blog's loading time, and I can't figure out how to undo a lot of the things I did. The html and css stuff is a big old mess. And I don't have the first clue how to clean it up!

I am hoping that by switching to WordPress, I can get a fresh start. I'd like to keep the basic look that I have on my blog now, but that may not be possible. I guess I'll see once I get to the other side ;)

Soooo.... I will try and write tomorrow if I can! Let's hope all goes smoothly. Or maybe I'll chicken out.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

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Day 21: Getting to Know You Questions, Answered

I started this post as a oh-crap-I-only-have-an-hour-to-write-a-blog-post post, thinking it would just take me a few minutes to write. But it took much longer! Oh, well, it was fun to work on. This is just one of those random questionnaires with dumb questions that we answer just for the fun of it.

First thing you wash in the shower?
My face

Are you more of a coffee or alcohol drinker?
Alcohol

Do you plan outfits?
No--I just grab some jeans and a t-shirt or sweatshirt, and I'm good to go

Turn ons?
Guys that play the piano. Swoon! And chivalry is nice, too.

Turn offs?
Guys that are really into superficial things like cars, abs, social status, etc. Especially when they brag about it.

What comes to mind when I say cabbage?
Cabbage casserole--a recipe from my grandma. (You can find it on my blog here)

Do you bite into your ice cream or just lick it?
I don't really "bite" it, but I don't just lick it either. I put a spoonful in my mouth and let it melt, while kind of chewing it softly.

Favorite movie ever?
Forrest Gump

Have you ever met a celebrity?
I think a "celebrity" is in the eye of the beholder. So, the people that I've met that I consider celebrities are: Dr. Oz, Ted Gibson from What Not to Wear, Bart Yasso from Runner's World, Justin Verlander (baseball player), The Hardy Boys (pro wrestlers that I met in the airport when I was in high school), Shalane Flanagan (elite runner), Kerry Sanders from NBC,  and maybe a couple of others. I'm not one to get all googly-eyed for celebrities.

Would you go sky diving?
That's a big, fat, hell-to-the-no.

Have you ever had a near death experience?
Yes, when I was little--I think I was four?--I choked on a piece of cheese for a very long time. I passed out after a couple of minutes, and my babysitter took me next door to get help. My cousin, Kim, ended up saving me.

Best/worst experience on drugs or alcohol?
One time, my friend and I ate pot cookies. We had three of them, but instead of just eating one each, we split the third and ate one and a half each. I had no experience with edibles, and I learned an hour later that one and a half cookies was too much! I started laughing so hard that I couldn't stop, but it wasn't a fun kind of laughter. It was purely physical laughter (my mind was not laughing), and on the inside, I was so frustrated that I couldn't get it to stop. Trying to have a conversation was pretty funny, though... I kept forgetting what I was going to say midway through the sentence, and the same thing happened with my friend. We couldn't follow what each other was trying to say at all. It was ridiculous! That was my first and last experience with edibles, hahaha.

Do you believe in ghosts, werewolves or vampires?
Nope, nope, and nope.

If you could spend one day in someone else's shoes, who would it be and why?

I think it would just be someone who doesn't have bipolar disorder or anxiety. Since I've had these my whole life, I am very curious what a "normal" brain is like. It would be like going on a nice vacation! 

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I went through several phases, but a few of them were veterinarian, writer ("author"), and forensic pathologist.

If you could have dinner with three people (dead or alive), who would they be and why?

Alton Brown (I would love for him to cook!; and I'm sure the conversation wouldn't be shallow, either); Mark (because I really wish I'd gotten to know him on a deeper level before he became sick); and Tom Hanks (no real reason other than that I really like him). 

What sorts of things make you laugh?

Sarcasm; quick wit; seeing other people laugh, especially babies; sharing old stories with friends; stand up comedy (I'm going to see Bill Burr in 10 more days!)

Do you have any pet peeves?

Probably more than I should. But two of the biggest ones are: 1) When people add an 's' onto the name of a store. For example, "I'm going to Kroger's, do you want anything?" The name of the store is Kroger, so there is no reason to add an 's'. Same with Walmart. And Aldi. 2) When people call Chipotle "Chipolte"... inverting the letters l and t. It should be pronounced chip-oat-lay and not chip-olt-ay. I never correct people (because that's another pet peeve of mine--grammar police!) but I always cringe inside my mind.

What was your favorite TV show when you were growing up?

MacGuyver! I was a HUGE MacGuyver fan, and, unfortunately, none of my friends were. It came on at the same time as Alf, and everyone else watched that. Bummer, because MacGuyver was an awesome show! 

What are your favorite TV shows now?

I love Shameless, The Handmaid's Tale, The Good Doctor, This Is Us, 9-1-1, The Resident... and I'll stop there, because that's way too much TV.

What are your favorite movies?

Forrest Gump, The Green Mile, 

Tell me one thing that would surprise me about you.

I really like hip hop music. I look like a middle-aged straight-laced mom, but I love jamming to hip hop! Also, I LOVE scary movies--I like the good old-fashioned slasher films. 

What were you like as a kid?

I was very shy and sensitive. Never fit in with anyone--not girly enough to fit in with the girls, not tomboy enough to fit in with the guys. Total book nerd--I was always reading (I loved Sweet Valley Twins!). Talked on the phone ALL THE TIME when I was a preteen. Boy crazy in 6th grade, but was always seen as a friend--so I was friends with mostly guys. Even now, I get along better with guys than I do with girls. I'm very similar as an adult--I'm not sure where I fit in!

Do you have any pets? Tell me about them.

We used to have so many! Now we are down to three: two cats and one dog.

Joey is our dog. He's a black lab/chow chow mix that we adopted from the animal shelter when he was about a year and a half old. He is SUCH a great dog! Super well-behaved, and the kids adore him. Jerry and I are admittedly cat people and just not dog people, but we are very lucky to have gotten Joey.

Phoebe is our orange tabby cat. She is a female, which is very rare for orange tabbies. We got her when a friend of a friend was looking for a home for a stray cat that she had been taking care of. Phoebe was a bit of a mess--she was missing half of her tail (which I suspect was slammed in a door, because of the way the bones are crimped at the end); and she has a BB from a BB gun stuck under her skin, so she was obviously shot at one point.

She was extremely skittish for a LONG time. But now she is my most favorite pet I've ever owned. She has a special sense that I can't explain, but she knows when someone (usually me) is feeling sad and she comes running. She cuddles and rubs all over me when I'm sad. She's been so helpful when I've been going through bad depressive episodes.

Estelle is our tortie. And let me tell you, she is ALL tortitude (something tortoiseshell cat owners say when referring to the attitude of a tortie cat). She's extremely vocal, so she meows a lot. And she's as dramatic as they come. She likes to play the victim so she gets attention, and poor Joey is the scapegoat. But Estelle is hilarious--we love watching (and listening to) her, because she cracks us up with her antics. (And yes, she always looks pissed off--that's just the way she looks)

If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?

Pizza! No question about it. I could never, ever get sick of pizza.

What is your favorite commercial you've ever seen and why?

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this commercial for Siri with Cookie Monster. He and I are peas in a pod. 

If you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would it be?
Don't care what other people think of you! Do what YOU want to do, dress how YOU want to dress, say what YOU want to say, and don't pay one iota of attention to the people who try to make you feel bad for it. 

Who is your favorite music artist?

Eminem

What is your favorite color?

orange

What is your favorite book?

The Hunger Games. Or World Without End.

What is your favorite drink?

A margarita! On the rocks with a salted rim :)

What is your favorite restaurant?
Not sure if I have a very favorite, but the Mexican restaurant pictured above is definitely one of my favorites! It's El Camino Real in Toledo, and they have the BEST margaritas. The good is excellent, too!

If you had to describe yourself using only three words, what would they be?

Creative, Caring, Empathetic

If you knew today was the last day of your life, how would you spend it?

I would play board games with my family while eating pizza and ice cream

If you could bring back one toy from your childhood, what would it be?

Hmmm, probably the game Dream Phone. I'm sure I could come up with something better, but that's the first thing that popped into my head. I loved bored games when I was growing up!

Okay, I really need to get this posted. Even though it's 1:15 in the morning, I'm counting it as June 21st's post. Happy Summer, everyone!!

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Day 20: Cookies' Summer Challenge Starts Tomorrow!

I posted a while ago about my Cookies Summer Challenge--a checklist of different sorts of runs OR walks that you can do throughout the summer to make exercise a little more interesting. Today is the last day of spring, and summer officially begins at 6:07 AM (Eastern Time) tomorrow morning!

The first run on the list is a Summer Solstice run--where you run (or walk) from spring into summer. So, tomorrow morning, I'll set my alarm very early and head out for a run. I'll start my run at around 6:00 and finish it some time after 6:07, so that I can say that I ran from spring into summer.

Thankfully, the change happens at a decent hour for me! I feel for the west coasters whose solstice is at 3:07 AM ;)  (This challenge is "unofficial", so you can interpret the runs however you'd like; make up your own rules! If you want to run later, there is nobody that is going to police you.)

Anyway, I'm going to share the list here again--it's a downloadable PDF. You can save it to your computer or print it out to keep track of everything. (The lists are essentially the same, but one is worded for running and one is worded for walking).

Here is the link for the list of RUNS
Here is the link for the list of WALKS


I also created a calendar that you can print out and fill in with your planned runs. It's blank except for the runs/walks that occur on a specific day (National Ice Cream Day, for example).

Fill-in calendar for RUNS
Fill-in calendar for WALKS

There is a closed Facebook group for anyone who would like to share (not lurk!) about their runs/walks with others who are doing the challenge. This is about support and encouragement (and bragging rights when you finish each one!).

If you want to share your runs/walks on social media, you can use the hashtag #CookiesSummerChallenge (and if you'd like to tag me, I'm @runsforcookies on Instagram and Twitter, and my Facebook page is Facebook.com/RunsforCookies).

I planned out my calendar last night, and with four days of running per week, it's going to take the whole summer to check everything off the list! I had been hoping to do most of my running on the treadmill this summer to avoid the heat, but this list should keep me busy enough that I won't notice the heat. I've been going to bed at around 3AM lately, so tomorrow should be a real treat getting up at 6AM, haha--but I am looking forward to working on this challenge!

I've decided to host a meet-up in Detroit for any locals, too--we can knock the group run off the list at the riverwalk, while ALSO knocking the beer run off the list by doing it on International Beer Day  :)  (We can celebrate with a beer after we're done with the run). Anyway, that is scheduled for Friday, August 3rd at 7:30 PM. (There is an event page in the Facebook group)

If you join the Facebook group, feel free to create your own event near you to meet up with other runners or walkers who are doing the challenge as well.

By the way, here is a post that I wrote a couple of years ago about running in the summer heat (it applies for walking, too). Hopefully some of those tips will help.

I look forward to seeing/reading about the challenges! Good luck to everyone participating :)

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RECIPE: Broccoli Cheese Soup

I realize that tomorrow is the last day of spring, and it's about as far from "soup weather" as it can get; but Eli ordered broccoli cheese soup when we went out to dinner a few weeks ago, and I've been craving it ever since! So, I made this for dinner today.

I made this using a roux, which is super fast and easy. It's not quite as fast as opening a can of soup, but it doesn't take much more time or effort and it tastes absolutely delicious--totally worth it. (See notes at bottom of post)



Click here for a printer-friendly PDF

Broccoli Cheese Soup

Ingredients:

1/3 cup butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1/3 cup flour
3 cups milk
1-3/4 cups chicken broth
4 cups finely chopped broccoli
1/2 cup heavy cream
8 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Melt butter over medium-high heat in a soup pot, and add the chopped onion. Cook until onion is soft, just a few minutes. Add the flour and stir it into a thick paste.

Stirring constantly, add the milk a little at a time. Stir until uniform after each addition of milk to avoid clumps of flour. After all the milk is stirred in, add the chicken broth and bring just to a boil. Add the broccoli and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer until the broccoli is soft, about 7-10 minutes (depending on how small you chop it).

When broccoli is soft, add the cheese and stir until the cheese is melted. Stir in the heavy cream, and heat through until soup is hot.


Notes:

I like the broccoli to be chopped really, really fine (you could run it through a food processor for 10 seconds or so; I just run my knife through it over and over until it's as small as I like it). You can always leave larger pieces of broccoli--just allow for more cooking time to let it get soft.

I use whole milk and heavy cream in this recipe, because it makes the soup really creamy and rich. I haven't tried it with low fat milk, so I can't tell you if it will work as well. (I am always able to eat less and be satisfied with a smaller portion when I use full-fat, rich ingredients).

To get four cups of finely chopped broccoli, I used three small crowns (I removed most of the stems).


Hope you like it! :)

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Day 17: A Date Night with the Kids

I don't have much time to write a post, but I'll at least share some photos from last night. Jerry and I took the kids out for a fun evening to celebrate Father's Day a little early. First, we met up with Jerry's parents at our favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner. Then, Jerry and I took the kids to a park that we used to go to when we were dating. And after that, we went to an escape room.

Ever since I did the escape room in Kansas City, I am hooked. They are so much fun! I did another a few weeks ago, and then yesterday was my third. I was excited to take the kids to one, because I knew they would really like it. We had leftover money from last month's "family allowance" (money for us to use as a family each month for something fun), so I thought we could combine it with this month's family allowance and it would be perfect to go to dinner and an escape room.

After we ate dinner, we had some time to kill before our escape room reservation, so we walked a loop of the park, which was just down the road from the escape room building. It was nice walking around the park with the family; I can't even remember the last time we all went for a walk together before yesterday.

Jerry used the timer on his phone to take a picture of the four of us. We were all laughing by the time it finally took the picture--a countdown of 10 seconds feels like forever when you're posing for a photo!

The name of the escape room we went to was Escape the Post in Flat Rock. It's inside of the old state police post (hence the jail theme). They actually have six different escape rooms in that building, and the one we did yesterday was the jail cell. It's made for 2-4 people.

(The one I did a few weeks ago was the Sheriff's Office, and I liked that one a lot! It's for 4-6 people. We did not escape that one in time, but we made it to the last clue and had fun trying.)

The escape room was fun, but we finished it really quickly--we were out in 36 minutes! It wasn't easy, and we certainly wouldn't have gotten through it without using our three clues, but I wish it had been longer.

When we were done, we were told to pose in certain ways for photos--I'm not exactly sure what the purpose behind them was, but it was fun! Here, we were told to look bummed that we were stuck in jail.

And in the next photo, we were told to look mad at each other (I think because we were locked in a cell together?). Noah and I fought for the phone, while Jerry and Eli strangled each other. Typical Saturday night for the Foster family.

This next picture cracks me up. I have NO idea what Jerry was looking at! He's off in his own little world, I guess...

It was a fun way to celebrate Father's Day (a day early). If you haven't done an escape room, I highly recommend it--they are super fun and a great way to work as a team!


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Day 16: Jerry's 9-Week Insanity Results

Nine weeks ago, I wrote about Jerry's and my plans for fitness after we had trained for the half-marathon. That was the day that the half-marathon didn't happen because of the torrential downpour we had. We'd trained together for 12 weeks to run the half, but never actually ran it.

My plan going forward from there was to run for fitness and fun, without any pressure. I wasn't interested in doing races, and I wanted to keep my distance down under 10K. I didn't want to get burnt out on running again. I wish I could say that I've being running regularly ever since then, but that would be a big fat lie.

Jerry's plan after the half-marathon was to work on his fitness by doing a full round of Insanity workouts (Amazon affiliate link). The program is nine weeks long, and the only way I can describe it is insane. Insanity is the perfect name for it (and not only because it's insanely expensive!).

Unlike his wife, Jerry finishes what he starts (most of the time, anyway). And I can't even describe how impressed by (and how proud I am of) his dedication to this exercise plan over the last couple of months! It's unreal, and super inspiring.

The Insanity program is part of Beachbody, but I want to stress that Jerry is NOT affiliated with them and he did NOT do any other part of their program. He didn't do their diet or supplements or shakes or whatever it is they push. He actually didn't follow a diet at all; the only thing he did was start the Insanity workout program.

(Insanity is a nine-week program of videos that are done at home, using just body weight--you don't need dumbbells or bands or anything like that. And having watched him do some of these videos, I can't describe them as anything other than insane. They are SO challenging. Running seems like a stroll in the park compared to the Insanity videos.)

The program is six days per week, with Sunday being the only rest day. The workouts start at about 45 minutes each, and then, halfway through the program, increase to about 65 minutes.

Jerry maintains his weight loss much better than I do--he started 253 pounds on January 1, 2010, then dropped to 175, and has stayed roughly in a 10-pound range for the last 8 years. However, early this year, his weight was creeping up. He was inching toward 200 pounds again, and that was a big wake up call to him. So, he wanted to get back in shape and bring his weight back down.

His weight on the day he started Insanity (April 15th) was 198 pounds. I took some "before" photos of him. And then his insane workouts started.

Jerry works a swing shift, which means sometimes he works nights and sometimes he works days. Sometimes he works weekends, sometimes he doesn't. He works anywhere from 3-7 days a week, depending on the overtime schedule. Needless to say, his schedule is erratic. Which makes following any sort of plan very challenging!

I can't even begin to tell you how impressed I am at his dedication to these workouts. On days that he would normally get up at a super early 4:15 in the morning for work, he voluntarily started setting his alarm for 3:15 AM in order to get his Insanity workout in before getting ready to go to work.

And over the last nine weeks, he didn't miss a single workout. Not one!

He wasn't dropping much weight, which made him feel discouraged; but he said he was noticing that his body was changing. He said he felt less jiggling when he was doing the workouts, and he was starting to see some muscle definition. Until the last few weeks, he'd only dropped about six pounds, but you could really see a change in his body. (I see him every day, and even I could see a big difference.) Then, over the last few weeks, the weight started dropping off quickly.

Today was his final workout of the program! I was really excited to take an "after" photo to show him the comparison. He had started 198 pounds, and today, he was 176 pounds--so he lost 22 pounds total. And I am amazed at the change in his body (not just his farmer's tan, either)...

I've been bragging about him to everyone, because I'm just so impressed that he finished all nine weeks without missing a single workout--getting up at 3:15 AM, fitting in his exercise while working 12-hour swing shifts, making zero excuses when he just wanted to sleep in a little (or stay up late), listening to the guys at work rag on him for wanting to get in shape.

He says all of that was worth it. He feels much more confident in how he looks now, but he said he also feels much better mentally. The dedication it took to follow through with the nine week plan was huge, and completing it made him feel really good about himself.

When I asked what he's going to do now, he said he wants to continue the workouts, but on a lesser schedule. He thinks that four days a week would be good for maintaining fitness while still giving him a few days off.

I am feeling super inspired by him, and it makes me want to get in shape, too! (Not enough to want to try Insanity, but maybe just to follow a running schedule without making excuses. That would be an improvement.)

Anyway, if you can't tell, I'm super proud of my husband, and I just had to share his results :)

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