Tag: fun

fitness and nutrition, travel

Hakuna Matata 10 Miler

2chicksandapen

And now for the April installment of my year of races. (For previous posts in this series, check out this, this, and this!)

I hadn’t really even considered including a runDisney race in my year until a friend at work told me she was signed up for a 10 miler in April of this year. Shockingly, registration was still open when I went to check. (Little did I know that most Disney races sell out in the first few hours.) I thought about it, loved the significance of a race celebrating the 30th year of the Lion King, and dove in.

One of the runners in our CrossFit friend group has done several runDisney races, including races from the Princess weekend and the Dopey challenge, which is four days of back-to-back runs, culminating in a full marathon on the last day. Her pics always looked so fun, filled wish costumes and glitter and runs through the iconic parks.

Little did I know what a wild, thriving subculture the runDisney community is. There are tons of online groups to discuss training and strategies for registration, entire companies devoted to specialized costuming for runners, podcasts all about the runDisney season, speculation about themes, medals, and on and on.

By the time I arrived at Walt Disney World in April 2024, my friend from work had decided not to run for family reasons. I was at Disney, alone, as an adult. Thanks to our generous extended family that lives nearby, I had brought our kids to the parks many, many times. Still, it had been many years since I stayed on the Disney property. I was so excited to be there I was about to burst. Armed with all my research on runDisney, I checked in to the Pop Century resort, ready to go.

This post is mainly to discuss the race. I will share a separate post about my time at Disney in the near future. After I left my luggage at the resort, I made my way over to the expo on the Disney bus.

The expo and swag pickup was as dazzling as you might imagine. A whole crew was waiting for runners with signs and cheers. All the signs were up for photo ops, not to mention characters. There were tons of great vendors at the expo. I bought my new racedots (bib magnets) and some scented cooling towels. I grabbed the bus back to the resort and checked into my room. I spent the rest of the afternoon resort hopping on the skyliner. I had some great food at Riviera and the Caribbean Beach resort, then went back to my room to get my race gear ready.

The first thing to know about a Disney race day is that it starts VERY early. The first bus left my resort at 2:45 am. Thankfully, I am an early early riser by nature. I was also super nervous and excited. I had read sad stories about people sleeping through their alarm and missing races. I set a Disney official wakeup call as well as multiple alarms. I get up around 2 and was on the bus by 3.

The ride to the start line dropoff is about 20 minutes. Then, you join thousands of other runners for the half a mile or so walk to the corrals. In the holding area, there are more characters to get photos with. There is also prerace entertainment. It’s an energetic atmosphere. Finally, you make your way to the corrals.

One of the challenges of these races for me is that they are not as “back of the pack” friendly as I would like. Unlike most of the other races this year, the runDisney races have a hard cutoff for pace and will sweep you off the course if you are too slow. There is all sorts of anxiety about falling behind, getting put onto the sweep bus, and so on. There are an infamous group of people known as the “Balloon Ladies” who are runners carrying literal balloons at the very back of the race. They maintain a 16 minute mile pace. Once they start, you cannot fall behind them or you will be swept.

There are a couple of other things to keep in mind: the 16 minute pace clock starts once the Balloon Ladies cross the start line, so if you are quite a bit ahead of them, you have a buffer. Normally, I wouldn’t worry too much about keeping that pace, but the other cool thing about Disney races is, of course, Disney being Disney, there are character stops on the course. These are mainly photo ops with little interaction. Each stop has official photographers as well as a couple of cast members whose whole job is to keep the photos moving as fast as they can.

I found an online source that leaked all the characters and their spots on the course, so I knew where I was going to stop. My goal was to stop for at least a couple of characters. I also had a chat that let me know where the Balloon Ladies were as well as my watch pacing. And, with the fireworks and a bit of fanfare, I was off.

This race wasn’t much about the pace (aside from not getting pulled onto a bus.) There was so much energy. I was running through Epcot World Showcase. Hollywood Studios. I stopped for photos. There was Disney music piped in. Video screens gave you hints of characters on the course. Cast members from the countries in World Showcase came out to wave hello as the sun rose. It was pretty surreal, actually. We ran through cast member areas, resorts, and parking lots. The course was sometimes packed, sometimes not.

The first character I stopped for was actually someone super new that I didn’t even know. But, the line was short so I just ran through the queue, stop, smile, snap and go. There were characters from old old films like the Rescuers (which had a long line early in the race so I didn’t stop, sadly.), and new characters I didn’t even know. I stopped for a few: Tigger, beloved by one of my running friends, Meeko the raccoon that we took as the name for one of our family cats, Abu from my daughter’s favorite princess movie, and my favorite Disney princess Mulan. I took side photos of other characters since I didn’t think I could wait in line. But I was proud to have stopped for those handful and stayed in front of my pace goal. Maybe the happiest moment was seeing Mickey himself, waving at the runners from a platform over the finish line. I totally felt like a little kid when I stopped for a pic with Mickey waving. I did it!

I will say, this race was hot and humid. I took my cooling towel and medal and snack then skipped all the other photo opps to go to the bus back to my resort for a desperately needed cold shower.

All I can say is I am such a fan of these races. To sum it up, it was totally overstimulating but I loved it. The vibe is positive. It’s a totally different group of people than other races. Many of these people are just casual runners or doing it as Disney fans. There are lots of walkers and run / walk / runners. People get excited about medals, themes, and registration. It’s a lot of fun! I plan to do this one again in future years, and hopefully even do a multi-race challenge for the Springtime Surprise weekend someday.

Uncategorized

Wavelength

2chicksandapen

“Let’s play wavelength.”

A two-hour road trip with two of my favorite teens. Passing the time with music and games and giggles. I had no idea what this game was but I was all in from my perch in the back seat.

“You pick a number from 1-10 and then the person tries to figure it out. They can ask for 5 descriptions then they have to guess.”

There were three of us. The odd girl out played the role of the confirmation person, making sure that the numbers didn’t lie. Meaning, the two non-guessers had to actually share the number in advance to be sure it was all on the up and up.

The first example was pretty easy. She flashed her fingers behind the head rest.

Then the guesser started firing questions:

-office supply

-trip itinerary

-fast food order

-ski resort

-school subject

For school subject, one description was “PE class, but first period of the day.” The guesser said aloud…”PE is awesome, but first period means you’re sweaty all day so that takes it down a bit. That’s about a 6.”

For trip itinerary, I said “a road trip to the beach on a 3-day weekend.” The guesser then reasoned aloud again: ”I love the beach, but a road trip means it’s a closeby beach I’ve probably been to before and a 3-day weekend means I won’t be there long. That’s a 5.” 

After 5 clues, the guesser chooses the number.

These two teens and I have known each other for more than a handful of years. Still, I was surprised how often they guessed each other’s numbers. Even with time passing and a couple of years in age and experience separating them, they are still on each other’s wavelength. 

Me in the mix was a little different. For example, when I asked for “school supply” one of the girls said a mechanical pencil with a certain type of lead. I immediately guessed 2 since I hate mechanical pencils. Then the clue giver changed her clue to a colorful flair pen, which moved my guess up to an 8, which was much closer to the target number. It really is about knowing each other and being on a similar wavelength. 

As we enter this time of family, road trips, and togetherness, it might be fun to see who is on your wavelength.

–

adventure

Our DIY Key Lime Crawl

2chicksandapen

A recent friend adventure was my 50th birthday trip to the Florida Keys. It was a grand time with some amazing gal pals. We did so much, it’s hard to know how to slice and dice and share it all. With that in mind, here’s the first of what’s likely to be several posts about our extravaganza.

When you think of the Florida Keys, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Jimmy Buffett? Kokomo? Well for some of us in our little group, our eyes lit up at the prospect of all the key lime pies we could try.

As I got further and further into my research, I learned that pie is only the start of the key lime culinary culture of the Florida Keys. Key lime cocktails, taffy, ice cream, soap, lotion, and more could be a part of our key lime caper.

We knew it would be a trip with indulgences. But I didn’t want to go overboard. So, before we boarded the plane, I asked my fellow key lime lovers if we could share the first slice of any pie we tried. If one of us found one we truly loved, we could go back and have a second slice. It was a deal.

Even though I had done my research in advance, I was surprised at how varied the different pies could be. The first one we tried, at the Blonde Giraffe, was extremely tart. This version had a few fat squiggles of whipped cream on top. Not much of a crust. You could also try their dark chocolate drizzled version. Gotta say I felt like an amateur when the extreme tart made me wince. We got two slices and neither were finished between three of us sampling.

Thankfully, things improved from there. Each slice was different. We worked to become key lime connoisseurs. How tart? How sweet? What about the crust? Whipped cream or meringue on top? A couple of slices almost had the consistency of ice cream.

Which brings to mind the many other key lime items we tried. Key lime ice cream. Key lime taffy. Key lime cocktails for the drinkers, complete with a graham cracker crust rim. I read about key lime french toast but we didn’t make it to that place. Key lime pastries. Each unique.

We didn’t settle on a clear winner. But we all had fun sampling along the way and weighing out our choices. As for me, I favor somewhat tart custard (and don’t mind if it’s almost like a frozen pie.) I am a sucker for a thick graham cracker crust. And whipped cream beats meringue, but not by much.

Funny side note…when we first made the plan to go to the keys, my key lime-loving friends and I looked for a key lime crawl. Even with all the bar tours and tiki boats, we couldn’t find one. So, of course, we made our own unofficial one. Next time you’re traveling, make your own unofficial tour of a local food, drink, or whatever you all enjoy! New Orleans? Gumbo (or Po’ Boy, or beignet, or hurricane, or so many other things) crawl. Philadelphia? Cheesesteak crawl. The only limit is your imagination. Share ’em, score ’em, debate the merits and pick your faves. A great way to dive in to local culture, cuisine, and add a bit of fun to your next adventure.

adventure

NYC By Day Part 1

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Just one day in NYC. Just one day. Less than 24 hours to cram it all in! It’s not my first time in the big city but first time cramming a bunch into one day sure is. So much fun on this day I thought I’d write a post but it will end up being multiple posts. Go figure.

The U.S. Open it is. That’s the main point of the trip. A duo trip on a whim. The duo turned into a trio. Then a foursome. United by a love for tennis. An adventure of a lifetime. A quick easy trip to squeeze into a work week. Why not?

The one and only Coco makes the women’s semi finals. Yes! I couldn’t be more excited to see the showdown live. The 48 hours prior to the semi finals was where the anticipation built. The outfit plans. The snack preparation. Hoping the flights were on time. Will the weather be good? So much anticipation. A short window of excitement on the horizon. Ready. Set. Go!

4 am alarm goes off. Normally I’d be mad but not today. Today I sprung up and rose quickly. Fun little carpool excursion to the airport and off we go on leg one of the adventure. The discount airline flight was surprisingly easy and we made it to the Big Apple without incident, but did have many giggles. And the approach views were just perfect as well. The Statue of Liberty was impressive from above.

Once on the ground we explored a bit. That included a stroll over the Brooklyn Bridge. A first for me. This was an amazing experience on a beautiful day. Helicopter tours overhead. Jet skis, boats, cars all bustling below. The sights. The sounds. The ambience was all spectacular. A moment of reflection think about the chaos of 9/11 and the mass exodus on that same bridge. What a feeling.

Next our exploration took us through Chinatown and Little Italy by foot. Great exercise but also a cultural experience. The smells. The businesses. The building styles. The signs on the windows and storefronts. The graffiti. The hustle and bustle of city life. The people. The languages. The lifestyle that is so different from my day to day. Observing folks pull their groceries home in a cart. The Amazon deliveries packed on carts to go city blocks from a hub parking spot. It’s an experience in itself just to be immersed in this part of city life. The outdoor markets had fish both dried and fresh out of the water. Oddly placed next to fruit sitting out in the heat of the day. Some bins without ice and on the floor of all places.

As our day began as the sun rose in the city there were so many experiences to share that I’ve opted to make this a series of posts. This way I can give you my 50 foot of NYC in 24 hours without missing a beat.

Stay tuned.

travel

Out and About

2chicksandapen

I was recently out and about in a neighboring town. Wasn’t much of a planned itinerary but one that called for lunch at a local spot. Only Yelp reviews to help find the way. 

2Dog was the quaint little place my map was headed to. On a side road, not visible to those that pass the main drag daily. The outside decor had me curious and the inside didn’t disappoint either. From the cute salt and pepper shakers on each table to the decorations in every nook and cranny of the interior. Oh so many to share.

The cork wall. A creative flair I liked. Of course it also accented one of many cute salt and pepper shakers that I did photograph. Not sure what the other patrons thought of my actions but it was worth sharing thus I documented the experience with photos.

The bottle cap trim work in the background of some odd looking shakers. Another creative wall theme. As cute as the decor was, it was nestled in and old house thus requiring one to squeeze a lot into a small footprint while keeping the original charm.

Fireplace were repurposed. Old charm remained with accent pieces and some stone or pebble creation added for flair.

Food was good too. I mean that is why I went in the first place. This was a classic dish I often order for brunch. Shrimp and grits. In this case I opted for the sauce on the side as it had barbecue flavor whereas I would normally get a Cajun spin on the dish. Nonetheless I was unsure of the taste. A bit sweet for my liking but a good quality meal and the price was decent. 8.5 out of 10 on the food score.

A quick visit to the restroom and boom! This crazy naked lady is watching you. Talk about up front and personal. She might have been a bit odd and creepy for my liking but she was definitely going into the documenting pile. Of course the signage on the restroom doors were even cute: Dick and Jane. 

Another giggle as I passed the men’s room on the way out. Many more photos were taken but I will leave you with this. If you are ever in Gainesville, GA give this place a try. It’s only open for short times daily but it’s worth a try. If not in this area of the country, check out a small town restaurant you have never been to. I’m sure the experience will be worth it and it’s always great to support a small locally-owned business.