Weekend Update #21, Kayaking, Sunburns and Movies

My weekend started early (thank goodness)!!!

I went home Thursday and got the Jeep packed and ready. I had to be out of town by 7:00 am Friday, to make it Des Moines in time for the triathlon orientation.

As usual, I made it to Des Moines in record time. It takes about 2 hours if you drive a normal (legal) speed....but it's just so darned boring. I usually make it in much better time!

I couldn't go as fast as I normally do, as I was stormed on the first hour of the trip.

The second half of the journey, I'd finally gotten out of the storm clouds....but they continued to follow me.



The storm literally cut I80 in half. I swear if I'd been driving west bound, I would have gotten rained on. While the east bound lanes were dry. :-)

Every time I drive to Des Moines, I pass this building.


I apologize for the quality of the picture...it was rush hour traffic. I was trying to take a picture in between light posts....while dodging commuters....and not miss my exit.

It's not the greatest pictures...but I call the building the R2D2 building. (click on the picture, so you can see it closer)

Mel and I left for the orientation about 45 minutes after I arrived. (how was I supposed to know the lake that hosts the triathlon is only 5 minutes away!?!?) :-)



We were still a little early for the meeting, so we strolled down to the event area to watch them getting the beach launch point ready.

The meeting was pretty standard. Be there by 5:00 am, wear your designated water safety shirts (which are cooler than hell, by the way!), don't forget your event passes....etc, etc. Swimmers will be instructed to hang onto the nose of your kayaks if they need to rest. If someone looks like they'll take you down with them...paddle away...or take other measures to save yourself.

(smacking them over the head with my paddle will be my other measure!!)

Once back at their house, we picked up Sheila and the three of us headed out for lunch. Mexican...yummy!! Then we went summer clothes shopping.

You see, the previous weekend, we were still wearing long pants and sweatshirts...maybe a tshirt if you were in the sun and not the shade.

This week, 99 degrees (before the heat index). Yuck!!!!

From there we headed home so Mel could take their son to the dentist.

That night we got take out Chinese food and rented a couple of movies. We ended up watching a movie they already owned though....The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Actually, only two of us ended up watching the movie. Mel had drug one of their camping mattresses into the living room so she could lie down and watch the movie.

She didn't stay awake long. :-)



At one point she woke up and asked us if she' d been snoring. She hadn't, and we told her as much. 10 seconds later, she was asleep again...and snoring up a storm!!! :-)

We all got up fairly early Saturday am. Mel made breakfast, banana bars...quite tasty!!!

After breakfast, we loaded up the yaks and headed for a lake south of Des Moines for some paddling...and water rescue practice.


It was a gorgeous day for paddling!!


Mel exploring the banks of the lake. She found an old duck egg....and for some reason, decided it would be a good idea to mess with it. Stinky! :-)


Sheila paddling ahead of us. I was taking pictures and falling behind. :-)


We pulled up on the beach for lunch. Sandwiches and chips we'd bought at the local grocery store.



There was a canoe class going on while we ate. The instructor is the same guy that taught my kayak classes when I first started paddling.


Teaching the class how to get back into your canoe, should it go over.


Mel, deep in thought. Watching the class.

After lunch, Mel and I went back into the water to climb on each others boats, and simulate what it will be like to have swimmers grabbing on, trying not to drown.

We stopped at an A&W on the way home for root beer floats.


Instead of going inside, she just walked up to the speaker and ordered from there. :-)



Once home, we watched some more movies. D.E.B.S. (cheesy, but funny)

Lucy: [on an awkward first date] So, you're an assassin.
Ninotchka: Da.
Lucy: How's that work?
Ninotchka: It's mostly freelance.

and then Underworld, Rise of the Lycans (dark, but good).

Lucian: Were you not afraid of them?
Raze: Yes, but I wanted to live.
Lucian: Are you afraid of me?
Raze: Yes.
Lucian: Well do not be. I will not bite... much.

I made sure I put plenty of sunblock on before we started paddling. But when I put my PFD (life jacket) on, it much have moved the straps to my swimsuit top....because I had the craziest sunburns that night.

Ladies, imagine if you will (guys - those that have worn a bra can imagine as well.....don't deny it, I know you've done it at least once.....there are pictures.....I'll send my blackmail demands later!)......so...imagine putting red paint on the under side of your bra staps. Then put that bra on.

When you take it off...there will be a red stripe, from the top of your shoulder, down to just under your shoulder blade.

That's what my sunburn looks like. 2 stripes, one on each side. About half an inch wide.....from the top of my shoulder to the bottom of my shoulder blades.

And now, every day, I have to put a bra on...and it sits on that sunburn all day.

All. Day. Long.

I snuck out of the house by 6:00 on Sunday am...before anyone was awake. I wanted to be home as close as I could to when Mot was getting off of work.

He'd been home 30 minutes when I got there. I went back to bed, and we both slept until about 11:00.

We got up, found lunch, went to the grocery store, then went home to hide from the heat.

Hiding from the heat got boring at about 2:00...so we went to the theater to see The Proposal.

What is it reviewers sometimes say??? It was "laugh out loud funny. " :-)