My very first mini marathon!

Hellllloooo. You know me. I did not run a mini marathon. But I did go to one and cheer and hold up witty signs.

Ruble, who could build a spaceship if someone told her she couldn't, ran her SECOND mini marathon on Saturday. We haven't been able to see each other much lately since I've been busy with school and she's been traveling with work, so I headed to Louisville to cheer her to the finish line much like she's been cheering me to the finish line of nursing school. Which is to say she meets me for drinks after every test.

Not the type of drinks we normally have together.

Luckily, Steve has some previous experience as spectator and he came with custom-made Bloody-Mary-On-The-Go Kits, which made spectating a lot more fun.

There were about 18,000 runners, but Ruble was easy to spot with her bright pink shirt and glowing attitude. I swear she sprinted to the finish line and barely looked like she'd broken a sweat. I think she could have gone at least another 13 miles. I also think she's probably thinking about smacking me for saying that.

 

The runners, who were all shapes and sizes, were pretty entertaining, if you like watching a horde of lunatics jaunting past you. We saw Spartans and Elvises and guys in tuxedo jackets with tails and girls in tutus. But none of those people were as awesome to watch as Ruble, who once again was taking a challenge head on and fighting her way through it with grace and laughter and the quiet motivation that comes from the promise of a cold beer.

Way to go Ruble! I am so proud of you!

I got nothin'. Except a need to stay up 3 more hours.

I'm transitioning to being awake a night so I can go do three 7p-7a shifts for school, and I can't begin to tell you the steaming pile of crap this is. All week I've been up working at 8am, and I'm so tired my eyes feel like bouncy balls and I keep losing circulation in my feet, but can I go to bed? Noooo, because I need to sleep all day tomorrow.

It's a good thing I'm not hungry or that little rant up there could have reached seriously bitchy proportions.

Anyway, I went to Indiana a couple weekends ago for that funeral, and I had the most amazing time. I really have the best family, such a funny, smart, loving group of people. I got to meet my cousin Ryan's new baby boy and my cousin Isaac's new girlfriend (she bites him!). I reconnected with my step-sister Christy, who always made trips to farm country a blast. I discovered that my 82-year-old grandma's ringtone is "Who Let the Dogs Out" because she likes the barking. I finally gave my cousins Josh and Kristin that hug they desperately deserved. I toured my dad's new cabin in the woods, a place Ben named "Grampa Greg's Forest Adventure Park." I played volleyball with my cousins Andrea and Tee and my uncle Vince, and we laughed over "Starfish Boob Power" and "Downtown Becky" and the fact that Vince was doing sports with a 24 oz. Mountain Dew in his back pocket. I sat on the back porch with Leiah and Betsy and Andrea while her kids climbed all over her and we lamented about life. I went mushroom hunting and saw a trio of 50-year-old women turn into 9-year-olds on stick horses playing "Shane, Kill and Miss Kitty." Uncle Tony cooked hot dogs on the grill, uncle Vince made a bon fire that could have wiped out a small town, and I got to tease my dad about his soft hands. Aunt Tina got Tony an ice cream cake for his birthday and out of niceness added "and Steve" to it, but then she realized it wasn't Steve's birthday so she scraped the icing off but it was so obvious it became the best part of the cake. Shannon finally let me win Kieron over with loud noises. Becky made me vegetarian lasagna and collard greens. We all crowded into the living room and watched UK make it to the final game. I learned how to make microwave popcorn in a brown paper bag, and Charles got a steam facial in the middle of the kitchen like a real man. Lilly greeted me every morning with arms open wide, a smile across her face, and a waddle in my direction. I swear, that is better than seeing the sunrise, and this group of weirdos that share my DNA are the reason that my heart beats.