Mud, Cheese, and meeting the troops.

This weekend was one of those ones where you get to Monday and actually feel like you are getting to take a break. I was booked solid. Friday, we had to hurry downtown to beat the protest marchers who stood in all the busiest intersections to shut down afternoon traffic. (Yeah, on a Friday when people just want to get home from work and chill...great way to build support for your cause by keeping people jammed bumper to bumper while they wait for you to get the hell out of the way.) Denise and I had tickets to see Richard Cheese. 

For those not familiar with the name, he does lounge singer-style covers of modern music by artists like Metallica, Nirvana, Taylor Swift, and Snoop Dogg. Zombie fans will remember his remake of the Disturbed hit, The Sickness that played during the mall montage in the 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead. The opening act was "iPod on a chair". We were not too surprised when a man walked out and gave us the opening act as pictured above. Yep...an iPod on a chair.

Once the band came out, a real swinging vibe was laid down and we got to sit back and get ready for the reason we came. Richard Cheese did not disappoint. He gave a solid two hour show including a pair of encores. For the second encore, they were out of music, so they covered "Easy" by the Commodores and he did the guitar solo with his mouth. You know how we have all imitated a killer lick in that gawdawful way we have where we try to impersonate the sound of a guitar? Well, RC brought it to another level.

All in all, it was a great night that we capped off with a stop at Lardo's and then a gourmet ice cream shop. And we were even home before midnight! Which was great since I had to be up early on Saturday for my first obstacle course run of the season. The Survivor Mud Run was a pretty easy start to the season. I will think back on it fondly when I am in the middle of the Spartan course this year doing my burpee penalty after failing at an obstacle. (And yes, I am a realist and know I will fail at at least one. The hope is to not fail at more than 6...last year's number.)

Before the race I was able to say hello to some of our troops who had one of their APC rigs set up. They were even kind enough to give me a bit of a tour and explain some of the particulars. One of their team was not on duty and an active participant in the race, so he got my ticket for my free beer that I always give away. (Sober since 1994!)

As 9:30 am drew near, I tried to stretch out a bit. It was cloudy and just a wee bit chilly. So the old bones and joints did not want to get loose. Not that it makes that big of a difference with the slow pace I "run" at, but still...nothing worse than a cramped hamstring at the halfway point.

I took my spot at the rear of the pack and waited for the countdown. Once I hit the trail, I was actually passing a few people. I see a lot of people walking these courses. To each his (or her) own I guess. But for me, it is called a Mud Run, not a Mud Walk. Now, for those out there that I saw who were well over their suggested weight-versus-height ratio...mad props. You walk on and rock on! I will be the one cheering you on. But when I pass the 20-somethings who are half my weight and hear them actually complain...I got nuthin' for ya.

The good news is that I finished in a respectable (for me) 45-ish minutes. My only gripe was that one of the "mud pits" had asphalt for its base. My knees and elbows look like I fell off a motorcycle...and landed on my knees and elbows. Still, it was nice to get the first one out of the way.

Sunday was all about yard work. We are building a tiered garden on the side of the house with all sorts of fresh fruits and veggies. So I logged in over 20,000 steps on my Fitbit. Woo-hoo! I love the weekends.