Frazzled on the Fourth

The 4^th of July is normally my all-time favorite holiday, but this year’s celebration was slightly tainted. 

It all started on Sunday, July 1st.  Hubs and I were headed over to the local water hole (i.e. the park district’s outdoor water park facility) to meet up with his brother’s family.  As we drove over, I noticed the sky to the west was looking dark, with black, heavy clouds bearing down on us.  I sent a quick text to my sister-in-law to see if they were still planning on coming, but when we pulled into the parking lot we saw they had beaten us there.  My sister-in-law was already at the front desk checking to see if the pool was going to remain open or not.  It wasn’t.  Waiting in the parking lot, we could see the guards scooting guests out of the gates.  As one particularly frantic family hurried past us to their SUV, we could hear the mom explaining to her kids that a big storm was headed our way.  

On that ominous note, Hubs and I headed back out of the lot.  Since we weren’t going swimming, we decided to drive over to Walgreens to look for a Redbox movie.  Hubs had agreed to attend a party later in the afternoon at one of his co-worker’s houses, but with the change of plans-- decided to leave right away.  The party was, as he explained it: “Just a bunch of guys throwing bags.  You wouldn’t like it.”  That being said, I was going to sit at home with the dogs and watch a chick flick.  Unfortunately (and later I would think fortunately), there were no good movies available. 

As we turned to walk out of the store, the lights started flickering.  That is when we realized that it had started raining.  And it was raining hard.  It was a downpour mixed with hurricane force winds.  Through the sliding glass doors, we could see the trees in the parking lot being blown to 90 degree angles, coupon papers were whipping across the blacktop, and the street lights were rocking back and forth- suspended from their wires over the intersection.

So we did what any normal, crazy people would do—we ran for our car.  In the 30 seconds that we were probably outside, we got completely soaked.  It felt like we had gone swimming after all.  The 2 minute drive home was just as intense with limited visibility, but we made it.  After another crazy rain-dash into the house, we both breathed a sigh of relief.

The thunder and lightning started shortly after we made it inside.  And the day, which had started out in the mid 90s, had plummeted quickly into the 70s.  I hastened to shut off the air conditioners and remove my wet clothes.  I was freezing and ended up wearing my favorite old pair of sweatpants and a Wheaton College sweatshirt that I found in the hidden recesses of our walk in closet.

When Hubs came upstairs to change out of his wet clothes, I took a moment to peak out our master bedroom windows.  I was just in time to see our neighbors big trash can blow down the street.  The rain was hitting the windows in sheets and the wind was the fiercest I’ve ever seen.  I turned to Hubs and asked him if he thought this was a tornado—Should we be in the basement?  He said we were fine… and then the power went out.  And then the quarter-sized hail started.  And then a hefty branch on our tree out front proceeded to twist off.  And then 3 trees fell in our backyard.

It was a mighty storm.  I believe the weatherman later reported that our town had 85-90 mile per hour winds.  It wasn’t hard to believe because stepping outside our house was like entering into a war zone.  There were branches, limbs, and debris everywhere.  In fact, we couldn’t even see the grass in our backyard- not with the 3 fallen trees and all of the branches.  We later discovered there were 2 power lines down on our street alone, with hundreds more down across the area.   We were lucky in that our house and car escaped damage.  Many weren’t so lucky.

It took us 2 days to pick up our backyard.  We had to use a chain saw to cut up all the timber.  I actually found sticks that had been shot into the ground like arrows, buried 3-4 inches into the soil.  Thankfully, although the garden took a beating, most of the plants survived the onslaught.

The hardest part for us, was that we lost our electricity for 3.5 days.  We finally got it back at 3:30pm on the 4^th of July.  And of course it was in the high 90s each day we were without it.  Unfortunately, we ended up losing a lot of the food we had in our fridge, but we were able to save everything in our deep freezer with the help of ice bags.

Overall, it was hot and gross.  As much as I want to be environmentally friendly and eco-conscious, I am so glad I have air conditioning and fans.  We also own a generator now and I am grateful for that as well. 

Race Day- The Final Chapter

This is way overdue, but I want to make sure I wrap this up properly.  And so here goes...

Once I had crossed the finish line, I was completely pooped.  My legs were shaking and I felt completely spent.  I was elated, but physically wiped out. 

After greeting Hubs and my friends, I suggested we sit down under a tree, so I could catch my breath.  It was good timing because the event's MC was just about to announce the raffle winners (all participants were automatically entered).  Unfortunately, my BIB number wasn't called, but I enjoyed the downtime and we were at the perfect location to watch the rest of the competitors cross the finish line and greet their loved ones.  There were some really poignant moments. 

After the raffle winners were announced, the MC moved on to the division winners.  A large whoop went up from the crowd when the overall winner was announced, Jennifer G. with a time of 1 hour and 7 minutes.  Amazing.  The girl was flying. 

By the time that was all done, Hubs was ready to go and so was I.  I was HUNGRY, which was crazy because all I had been doing was drinking and downing energy gels.  Still, I wanted sustenance and consarnit- I had earned it.

We headed over to the transition area, which was mostly empty at that point.  I pulled all of my stuff together and shoved it into my reusable grocery bag.  Then, with Hubs carrying my bag and my friend pushing my bike- we made our way across town to the parking garage were coincidentally, both our cars had been parked.  Walking across downtown Naperville, wearing my medal and my tri headband, I felt like a victorious queen.  As ludicrous as it was to be walking through the shopping district in my bathing suit and a medal, I loved it.  Complete strangers were congratulating me and cheering me one.  It was a surreal moment. 

At the parking garage, we said goodbye to my friend and headed off to find food.  For some reason I couldn't shake the idea of a spinach and feta omelet.  Hubs hadn't eaten much all morning, so he was up for whatever.  Half an hour later I was eating the best spinach and feta omelet in the world.  I had splurged and ordered hashbrowns as a side, in addition to some assorted melon.  I don't even remember what Hubs ordered, I was so fixated on my own plate.

With the food gone, we headed over to our newest niece's baptism lunch.  We had missed the actual ceremony, but had promised to make an appearance afterward.  We showed up just in time for the buffet line to be opened.  Needless to say, we skipped the line and focused on our niece.  She's the cutest little butterball- 98th percentile in weight.  So precious. 

After about half an hour of small talk, my head was starting to hurt.  A half and hour after that, I felt like I had a full blown migraine.  I made eye contact with Hubs and indicated I needed to leave.  I must have looked pretty miserable because he popped right out of his chair and announced we were headed out.  It was a long, miserable car ride home.  When I finally made it through the door, I went straight to the couch and laid down.  As far as I can remember, I spent the rest of the day on the couch.

I later learned I was probably suffering from dehydration sickness.  I thought I had been drinking enough water, but obviously not.  It was a rough end to a great day.  The next morning though, I did feel a lot better and I was only slightly sore.  I wasn't quite ready to jump right back into my normal workout routine, but I did go out and walk the track.  It felt good to be walking and stretching out my muscles.  I think it was Thursday then, that I was completely back to normal with my exercise.

*Note for next year--Drink way more water and Gatorade.  Then, when I think I've had enough- drink a bit more.  
*Another note for next year-- Take swimming lessons.
* Yet another note for next year-- YOU CAN DO IT!!!!