Fast and Hilly

That was the course description of the 5K I ran in this weekend, and I have to agree on one thing... the course was hilly. The first half was basically all downhill, while the remaining half was all uphill. I finished but my time isn't anything to be impressed by, but there is always next time. The Jingle Bell Run is in two weeks and hopefully my time will come down some.

November 23, 2008... Note to Self: YAY for 3-day work weeks.

Bargin Barstools

Keith's requirement - has to have a back
Sara's requirement - to be able to keep my arms and legs instead of selling them to pay for the barstools (and to match our table).

As we found out, these two requirements don't go together. Barstools with backs aren't cheap. However, due to my bargain finding abilities, Keith and I (mostly I) found a winner.

After spending a Saturday morning searching for barstools, we (mostly I) came home frustrated. I wasn't about to pay $100+ for a barstool, and we needed two. After doing an internet search that afternoon, I discovered that JCPenney has barstools, and BINGO I think I had found a winner. The barstools had backs and they were on sale for half off so my arms and legs were safe. The only problems were that they were online only and on backorder (This was early-October). Good news - They could be returned to the store if we didn't like them.

I decided to take my chances and ordered two, only after I did a quick google search for coupon codes for JCPenney. I found one for free shipping... SCORE!

Anyway, the barstools arrived today. The backs are in tack. They match our table perfectly. My arms and legs are still attached. Oh, and I put these together all by myself. I even sat in them and they didn't go crashing to the floor.

November 17, 2008... Note to Self: Google is my friend.

Recap of our Chicago - Madison - Milwaukee Trip

Here's a quick recap and some of pictures.

Keith and I left Raleigh around 8 am Friday morning and landed in Chicago around 11 am where we were greeted by Anna and Jimmy. We headed to the hotel to drop off the car and bags and that's where our adventures began. We ate lunch at Ed Debevic's then headed down The Magnificent Mile (said in my best Oprah voice) to the Hancock Building where we had drinks and took in the skyline. We then headed to Navy Pier then back to the hotel for Happy Hour. After Happy Hour, we went to Zanie's Comedy Club.

Now for Saturday... We played in the Bean and went to the Planetarium. After the Planetarium, Keith wanted a Chicago -style hotdog so we ate lunch at Portillo's before we made our way to Madison.

Now for Sunday... we took in all things Madison like the University of Wisconsin - Madison, the Capital, The Old Fashioned, and Cave of the Mounds.

Now for Monday... we headed to Milwaukee so Keith and I could fly back home. Before the flight, we toured the Miller Brewery and had lunch at Mader's. The tour was great, but here's my thoughts on beer...ugh.

November 16, 2008... Note to Self: I'm no spring chicken anymore. 3 miles is tough.

The Tail of Bruno

On Wednesday morning, right before I left for work, Bruno and I had an adventure. Every morning, Bruno waits for me at the back door. On the back door, we have a shade. On this particualar morning, the shade was up so the pull string for the shade was hanging to the floor (like how most shades work).

Bruno sees me coming towards the door and he begins to wag his tail ,which in return causes him to hit the string. The string goes flying and in a split second, the cord has wrapped around Bruno's tail. Bruno then starts to panic. He's yelping, I'm screaming (trying to figure out the best approach to set Bruno free) and I'm trying to push him back to the door so the string isn't as tight. I finally manage to get him calmed down and he's sitting right beside to the door. I tell him to stay so I can run into the kitchen to grab some scissors.

Bruno sees me take off, he goes back into his state of panic and he's flopping around like a fish out of water. Finally, the string breaks and Bruno is set free.

So that's the tale of Bruno's tail, and here's a picture of Bruno and his new bed. I felt sorry for him and caved when I saw this.



November 15, 2008... Note to Self: Beware of shades, strings and Bruno's tail.