Fun at work

Yes, having fun taking a break.  Finally getting back to this blog.  Hope to post more stuff on a regular basis.  A few pounds heavier and a few years older but I can still skate. Hoping entering my blogs will help me be accountable to exercise. 

Frostbite Half Marathon 2012

Well I can't believe it has been that long.... looking back at my older post back in 2005.   Six years later I finally get my chance to run in the Frostbite half-marathon.  I injured my knee because of over training that year and I haven't run the full distance until now.  

This  is a photo of me crossing the finish line.  2:17:09 age 50 and I still had some kick left.  It was almost all uphill after mile 10.

I wasn't expecting my wife Beth to show up, but she did, with Michael and Julia.  When I saw her I was only about a hundred yards from the finish line and I was so sore that I was waddling along like a penguin.  I was watching another runner struggle through some serious cramps but I couldn't stop to help.  Beth ran to the middle of the street and waved at me so I would notice her and after that, I knew I would finish strong.  I gave her a high five and sprinted to the finish line.  :-)   I took a few photos along the way with my cell phone and they can be seen in Facebook if your my friend. 

My latest hobby lately has been grad school.  That is why there are no posts after 2009.  Life gets busy and well, ... fewer pics get taken.  I hope to find some time in the next year to start posting on this blog again.  Until then it will be few and far between.

Moon Bat

It was getting close to holloween night and the temperature was warm. The bugs were out and so were the bats. The moon was getting full and it was just over the horizon during dusk when bats come out. There was one bat that was flying all over my front yard eating mosquitoes.

The bat would eventually fly in front of the moon. I thought it would make a cool shot if I could capture it. I used an on camera flash and since I had to use a high ISO setting I figured the flash could reach the subject. I was eaten up by mosquitoes waiting in the same spot for long periods of time. I was using a heavy 400mm VR lens but my shutter speed was high enough to capture action. My main problem was getting the bat in focus. So I guessed at 25ft and fixed it there. I figured out that it was easier to mount my camera on a tripod and keep it concentrated on the full moon. By that time it was a little late and I couldn't track the bat anymore. I thought I would do the same thing the next night but a cold front came in the next day and ruined that idea. Maybe next time. This was the best shot I got.

Prarie Arts

We had fun at the Prairie Arts Festival. Tom Marlin and I ran in the 5k race. The kids parked cars in the church parking lot. It was pretty much the same as it has been for the 10 years I've participated but still fun.

Old School Skaters

I forget everyone's name but the youngest was 39 and the oldest was.. 47. I am not telling you which one is the oldest. I had a lot of fun. July 4th at Hammond Skatepark, around 8am in the morning, there were more older guys than kids. I was a little intimidated but got used to the park after I skated a few minutes. By the time I felt good and confident, I couldn't skate anymore.

Kentucky Extreme Park

I had a great time skating at this park. Thanks to Michael I was able to post some shots of me skating. I wish I would have taken some photos of him taking pictures but as usual, I was having so much fun that I forgot. I am hoping that in the future when I include him I will remember to do that. Sometimes I can be so selfish.