Saturday, September 3, 2011

Fruit Loops

You know the day – the one where you wake up and distinctly know there has been a shift. The air is cooler than it’s been in months. The light looks just a bit different coming through the window. Summer is being kicked in the butt by big sister, Autumn. Autumn says, “Move over, bitch. You’ve been around long enough this year.” And Summer, feeling dejected and used up, starts to slither away.

I couldn’t be happier. Bring on the crockpots, the throw blankets, the hot tea in the afternoon, watching the Broncos lose.

September is my favorite month in Colorado. The nights are quite cool, but the days are still warm. Thunderstorms are generally a thing of the past, yet snow hasn’t started t move in. Each and every day has about the same temperature: 75 to 80 degrees, the sun shines, there is little wind. It is like crack for cyclists and runners. It takes absolutely no motivation or will-power to hit the road. You look outside, feel the air and are simply DRAWN to go.

About a mile from my house. I know, totally sucks.

I nearly hit my head on the ceiling jumping out of bed for an early morning ride. Big cup of coffee, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a nice dump and we were out of here.

This is a good time to tell you that I never promised I was taking a week off  in this post. I just told you it was suggested to me, but I’m not doing it. I am however, taking a self-imposed 7-10 days off from running to give my body a break. This is a VERY big deal for me. I have not done this in the past three years unless I was injured. Please be proud of me. Now back to your regularly scheduled program.

We did a 30 mile ride up to Lyons, Colorado called the Fruit Loops. It is called this because you are required to go out 15 miles, sit down on the side of the road where someone has stored a box of Froot Loops, eat a bowl (you have to bring your own spoon, bowl and milk), then head home.

 

Just kidding. That would be really stupid. In fact, it is just two separate loops that you take once you hit the foothills. Someone really cool coined the ride “Fruit Loops.”

fruitloops

Ken and I did the ride at a nice clip (1:40) and got home in time to see Sam dig into his bowl of Cap’n Crunch. Next weekend we will do the Cap’n Crunch 50 miler if I can find someone to hide the cereal.

I then made a  pumpkin cheesecake, and got all this major loot at the farmer’s market for  $7.00. (1 cantaloupe, 3 tomatoes, 10 small potatoes, 1 green pepper, 3 zucchini, 1 cucumber, 1 onion). No shit.

P1100791

We gathered the kids and headed up for a short hike outside of Boulder. Everyone around here needs a divorce from technology. Seriously. Sometimes I wish I just lived in a cabin in the remotest of mountain areas where there were no cell phones, internet, nothing. But, who am I kidding? I would miss Target and Wifi and Starbucks and end up driving 50 miles for these things, thereby wasting a lot of time and gas so it is better to stay here and just try to unplug every once in awhile I suppose.

I look so good with hair in my face.

bethheil

A teenager very happy to be on a hike with his family:

samheil1

heilemmadad

Here is a picture I tried to take of a tandem recumbent bike (never seen one of those before). One of the riders, a lady, had only one leg and was moving herself with her arms and her one leg. My timing sucked and I didn’t get the photo, but use your imagination.

recumbent

I love it when people do not allow themselves to be limited. If I lost my legs or arms or both I KNOW I would find a way to still move my body and be the best I could be. Easy for me to say since I have all four limbs, but I just know myself and this is what I would do.

Then you could call me Matt or Bob or Ilene or Art. Or, if I was between two slices of bread you could call me Patty.

What’s your favorite month of the year where you live?

Do you sometimes hate technology or get overloaded with it? How do you handle it for yourself and your family?

What’s your favorite no arms and no legs joke? (if you think that kind of thing is funny. If you don’t, sorry to offend you).

What’s your favorite thing about Fall?

SUAR

PS: The winner of the YMX by Yellowman running shirt is #157 Colleen from Running 1 mile, 13.1 times. Email me at beth@shutupandrun.net for your prize!!

28 comments:

  1. What do you call a person with no arms or legs stuck in a fence?

    Barb!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Favourite month - October. Crunchy leaves, crisp cool air, Thanksgiving (in Canada), MY BIRTHDAY, pumpkin muffins, hoodies, tea any time of day... LOVE FALL! I just wish it lasted longer.

    That photo looks like something straight out of the Lion King.

    Awesome job on the Froot Loop ride!!

    Hey, are you giving someone the finger with your left hand in your pic at the top right of the blog?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Marlene - hahahah! I was waiting to see who would notice! You are the winner!

    ReplyDelete
  4. My favourite months are September, October, November, for the same reasons you gave. Sunny cool days, sometimes with frost at night. Low humidity. Nice to be outside.

    That was a nice sunset, moderately colourful on my scale.

    The periodic divorce from technology thing is really important. It's good to unplug, essential even. Most people here are plugged in 24/7 and they never stop. They never get a chance to rest, to be, to discover who they are when they aren't kowtowing to their corporation. You could do without Target, and you could easily learn to make better coffee than Starbucks at a fraction of the price. But the internet, now that's a tough one. I like to take some time every now and then to just sit and relax. Sometimes reading, sometimes not. Reading for pleasure. Cats are very good at helping humans do this. Playing games (non-electric) with your kids is good too.

    ReplyDelete
  5. OCTOBER rules because its my birthday month, Halloween is happening along with pumpkins and corn mazes!!

    Totally agree with you on THE CHANGE. Just got back from a great 20 miles through Hygiene up to 36 and back down Nelson through Hygiene again. Got a bit chilly heading East and it was kinda strange to not be hot and sweaty when we got back.

    JessicaH

    ReplyDelete
  6. What you call two guys with no arms and no legs next to the window?

    Kurt n' Rod.

    I like all seasons…probably because it's all the same where I live :P

    What I love about Fall…back to school for the kids!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I wanted to cry this morning when all my Colorado friends Facebooked the "change" arriving! It is so hot and dry here in south Texas!!!! Good thing we travel to Colorado springs in 6 days!! A whole week of fantastic fall and family. and a bronco game !

    ReplyDelete
  8. I live in New Orleans and I basically hate the weather all the time and long for a cold, crisp, fall day in New England. But since I'm stuck here (darn job and spouse!), I guess February is ok. The flowers are blooming and it's not quite hot yet.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Couldn't agree more, Colorado is the place to be, every day, but fall is the best! Love Lyons and the drive to Estes, my of my day trips when I need to get away.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I spent 8 hours at the pre-state xc meet today, I couldn't believe our luck to hit the first day of what is hopefully no more 90 degree days!!!! The kids ran great (aside from mine who had a major asthma attack...grr) but yeah, about that windless September....

    ReplyDelete
  11. Call me Patty O'Furniture! (a woman with no arms and no legs on the front porch)

    I'm not a huge fan of fall, but I do love the coziness of it and all the activities that come along. So I'm excited to be in New England for all the fall-ness: apple cider, pumpkin flavored everything, the leaves changing, and NO HUMIDITY!

    ReplyDelete
  12. "...1 cucumber, 1 onion). No shit." By "No shit" you meant your dog did not shit on the ground and cause public embarrassment this time?

    ReplyDelete
  13. I am in South Florida ( Aka The Swamp) so we don't get much relief from the heat and humidity until mid-December. So the coolish weather, plus hubby and munchkin bdays, and Christmas and all the joy eggnog brings me = my favorite month :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. I enjoy the cool mornings of fall, I'm not going to lie. But call me crazy, I prefer the hot summer months any day! I love the summer, I love sweating, I love the hot sun...

    :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Love this post. I'm a fall girl, too.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I just did a whole post about fall! YOur fall looks way cooler than mine right now, though. It was 100 degrees yesterday and today in KY. Ugh. I miss my MI fall, with football and cider and donuts. I did however, have a FANTASTIC run today on a road that will be awesome and beautiful once the leaves change. It was shaded too!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Colorado looks totally beautiful. It is warming up here (never really got cold). Not looking forward to summer - will have to start getting up early to run.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Feeling the change here in CA too. My sister and I were talking about it just today actually. I have two favorite months.. March and September. :)

    I love Fall. My most favorite months where I currently live is September to May.. if it snowed here I would have to minus out the snow months but here it is like Fall for 8 months straight which freaking rocks.

    The only sad part is that only a few tree actually change leaf colors which is something I miss about living in Utah.

    Awesome job with your farmers market purchases!! What a steal!!

    ReplyDelete
  19. I go back and forth between Sept. and May. Both are gorgeous here, maybe Sept. a bit more so. But May is followed by my favorite season and Sept. means the temps are going down, which depresses me. I'll just stop rambling now.

    Looked like a spectacular ride!

    ReplyDelete
  20. 110 highs for 60 days and low's barely cracking 85. It dropped 15 degrees this weekend as a front moved in (that's all we get here, just fronts) and I felt like a damn Kenyan this morning. Love this time of year.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Did you stop at the Stone Cup for coffee? Used to be the post office when I lived there. I loved all the pictures.

    ReplyDelete
  22. I live not far from you, and I agree. September-October. Although if I am perfectly honest, I like Colorado year round, even dark frigid January.

    I, too, have that desire to disconnect but a strange desire to spend $50 at Target. Maybe as a second home or something.

    I took a bike ride, too, but only to the local brewery, so not sure if it counts as exercise.

    I think I need to go walk up some steep hills now. Could the weather be any more perfect?

    ReplyDelete
  23. I like PA because we have a clear change of 4 seasons and I enjoy them all for different reasons. But if I had to choose I usually enjoy fall the most due to the still warm days, the wonderful smells, beautiful leaves and all our fall festivals!

    Love seeing your fam out enjoying nature! Unplugging is really important.

    ReplyDelete
  24. I love Spring here in AZ.
    My favorite thing about fall is the start of everything pumpkin! Pumpkin bars, yumm.

    What do you call a guy with no arms and no legs in the water?

    Bob

    ReplyDelete
  25. I'm a fall fan too! Fall in New England is just beautiful - October being my fave.

    Great job on the Fruit Loop ride!

    ReplyDelete
  26. Peg: I LOVE the Stone Cup. One of my faves. Did not go there yesteday, but have been there many times.

    ReplyDelete
  27. I don't know if I have a favorite month but I love the holidays and I prefer cooler weather.

    ReplyDelete
  28. I actually like the hot summer, it's my fave. but I do run indoors in the summer! But I do have to say that here in Houston, Oct has the best weather. It's generally dry (but then this year it's been dry all year), the sky's are clear and blue and beautiful, the weather is still warm-ish but the evenings get "crisp". However I hate cold, so while we don't have a "real" winter here, I don't like the fact that summer's over. :(

    ReplyDelete