More Random Thoughts from Bay to Breakers

When I was making my way down Hayes Street Hill, I noticed a house that had a large screen TV on display. It was broadcasting the feed from that house party's Facebook page. I guess the runners wouldn't be able to read it but the people who were walking could catch the messages. I wonder what the people in that house wanted, for participants to check in at the party and post to their wall? What exactly was the point? To show how socially savvy they were? At the pace I was going, I knew I couldn't post anything to FB, too many buttons involved! I had a hard enough time taking photos. I tried to get one of the ladies doing Taiko on the course in the park but all I could get was a blurry mess.

Because it was so hard to take photos, I found myself thinking, I wish I had something like Google Glass. I bet that's not why billions went into designing that device. But the fact that I honestly had that thought and the FB feed I saw made me think about how much technology has become integrated with our consciousness. I bet no one thought twice about the FB TV on the street. Which made me think, with all this technology, it's amazing that people are still willing to use their feet to run for miles. Running 7 1/2 miles isn't about exercise, it's about being part of an amazing experience with other people. People still crave social interaction, it's not enough just to be engaged in social media! Thank God for that, otherwise, I think we would become like the people in pods in the Matrix, not because AI puts us in there, but doing it to ourselves.

There was a man there that had been a tree in Bay to Breakers for 40 years. He's become an institution now, a landmark for other runners to judge where they are in the race. There were a bunch of runners with "Run Forest Run" on the back of their shirts, and I imagined them to be his disciples (Yes, I know the reference to Forest Gump). It was great seeing him at the finish. I was worried he might have a heart attack. I could tell he was struggling up the hill. But something pushed him to go forward. The tree couldn't fall in the middle of the forest because everyone was watching!

The only thing disappointing was the afterparty. I guess race organizers thought it was pretty much unnecessary since most of the participants party along the way. But for people who actually ran the entire way, it was disappointing that there wasn't more support. Every race I've run (and I've run probably close to a hundred), they always give you something at the end to help you recover. A banana, a bagel, something other than a bottle of water. I guess they've heard the complaints before because I overheard someone say that the handful of food trucks at the end of the street was something new this year. Why did they think anyone would want to eat curry bread at 8:30 in the morning? I love curry bread, but it's not my go-to food at the end of running a race. It was a good thing I had a pack of Honey Stinger chews in my Gu pouch to mollify the growling in my stomach. I'm a huge fan, by the way. I think they taste a lot better than the Cliff Bar Shot Bloks, and no hidden caffeine!

I did get hit in the head with a tortilla at the start of the race. I just don't get what that's about. It is such a waste of food. Some traditions shouldn't continue just for the sake of being tradition. What race should I run next? I've offered free media admission into a Spartan race, but the photos of the contestants on the website are really scary. They make me think of concentration camp victims. I guess I'll have to think about that another day--time to get R ready for T-ball! That ends the non sequitur thoughts for the day.

Bay to Breakers 2013

Salmon swimming downstream

 It's a very strange phenomenon when your husband places you in a herd of naked men running for their lives. Let me back up. Stewart grew up in the Bay Area. He left to go to West Point, was stationed all over the world, and went to Harvard Business School after being honorably discharged as a Captain. After having been everywhere, he decided the Bay Area was the best place to raise a family. So his goal from the very beginning of our marriage was to get back to CA and then to the San Francisco Bay. This might make one believe that he knew all about the Bay Area--the history, the traditions, etc etc.

A Nun, a Priest and a Rabbi walk into a bar-OUCH

When we moved here from LA a couple of years ago, Stewart told me about this great race where you get to run over the Golden Gate Bridge. He said people wear costumes like they do in the NYC Marathon and it is a really great time. So early this year, I signed up for this race that Stewart claimed began in SF and ended up in Marin County. What was the name of this race? The Bay to Breakers. I didn't really think about it much but as the race date got closer and I told people I would be running this race, it became apparent from people's reactions that there was something that just wasn't quite right. Some people would say, "really, that's very brave of you." And after the Boston Marathon, when I told people I was worried about the race because the bridge was such an obvious target, they just looked at me like they thought I was missing a few marbles. So I went to the internets and the veil was lifted from my eyes. Instead of a race with incredible views from the Golden Gate Bridge, I had signed up for drunken debauchery, complete with a view of naked men running through the streets!

TREE! In case you don't see the sign, he's run in the Boston Marathon

After I told Stewart what the race was really about, he said I couldn't put the blame squarely on him since I didn't do the research. This wasn't the first time he was wrong about something in the Bay Area, so I shouldn't have blindly believed what he told me. As a lawyer, I should have done my diligence. Yes, it was my fault for trusting the man to whom I had pledged eternal love and devotion. Nice one. To be fair, he did offer to run it for me.

This was a week ago. I started to panic. I didn't want to run by myself in a sea of drunken, potentially naked people. I asked a few friends but then it came to me like a bullet between the eyes. I needed Carol there. Carol was my roommate during my investment banking years. Any female banker, past or present, knows how to hold her own with a crowd of drunken men. Carol is also active enough that I knew I could ask her to run a 12K with no training and she would be able to handle it. And she lives in SF! I emailed her early in the week and, the awesome friend that she is, she changed her weekend camping plans to sign up for the race with me! Thank you Carol!!!!

Had to get Darth Vader

Carol had run B2B before so she knew about the costume aspect of it and wanted to participate. Since she was nice enough to run with me, I thought it would be great if I got into the spirit of things to wear a costume as well. I sent out an SOS to my MOPS group and they came through for me. I picked up the costume on Thursday. It was labeled adult, but I should have known that didn't really mean one size fits all. Sunday morning, I stuffed myself into the purple witch's costume over two other layers and went to the start line. Carol was dressed like a blue character from X-Men, I thought. A witch and a supervillian--we were ready for drama.

Thanks to having a friend there, I was able to run the race with more confidence. We did walk up the upper half of the hill, but the rest of the way we ran. Considering the longest I had run in the past couple of years was 3.5 miles, this was great. The run went really quickly and if I needed a boost I would play Eye of the Tiger again from my playlist. If you've been looking for a running app, by the way, Runkeeper is a great one! I clocked in at the finish three minutes under my goal of 1:30 (I just checked and my actual time was 1:24:53). We saw the Breakers! And Stewart, they are not in Marin County.

Breakers behind us at the end

I was going to take the muni back but I couldn't find it so made the call to the second number written in sharpie on my arm. I walked back to the south side of the park so it would be easier for my friend EY to pick me up. We had a fabulous Manhattan-type brunch at Mission Beach Cafe (I was so hungry I forgot to take a photo of my food!) and then picked up some pastries for Stewart and the kids at Thorough Bread and Bakery (restaurant links included because they are so good and I want you to go there!). Did I mention that Stewart and the kids were waiting for me back at the hotel? There was no way that I was going to get up at 4 AM to take the Bart to SF, so we had spent the night close to the start of the course. I made it back, cleaned up the disaster of a hotel room, and walked to the minivan to drive back to our life in suburbia. Originally we had planned to take the kids to Fisherman's Wharf this afternoon, but I just couldn't muster up the energy. The kids were happy with a banana split from the Ghirardelli on Market Street instead of in Ghirardelli Square, and we were on our way. I told Stewart he should run the race next year--the view from the Golden Gate Bridge is magnificent!

May Fourth Free Comic Book Day

 H and R love comic books. In any given room of our house you'll find classics like Calvin and Hobbes, Garfield, and Sonic and more recent ones like G-Man. This morning I gave H the copy of Superman: Last Son of Krypton #1 that will be given out free tomorrow in comic book shops across the nation as part of Free Comic Book Day 2013. This book is part of the June 14th launch of Superman Unchained, the new monthly series created by comic legends Scott Snyder and Jim Lee.

H was really excited to get the Superman comic. Of course, he was Superman for Halloween two years ago so that is definitely one of his favorite super heroes. The other is Batman, which is what he was for Halloween when he was 4 years old and then again at 6. So he was over the moon when I gave him the other comic book I received from DC Comics-DC Nation Super Sampler #1, which contains a sneak peak at two sensational series from the DC Kids line--Beware the Batman and Teen Titans Go! This second one was more appropriate for his reading level and includes two all-new stories for readers of all ages, based on new animated series coming to Cartoon Network's Saturday morning programming.

I will spare you the details of R and H fighting over the comics, but I will tell you that H immediately went downstairs and put on his Batman cape. I was worried he was going to school with it since he left that way with Stewart who was dropping him off at school. Luckily, I found it on the driveway when I went outside later today. I know there are a lot of books out there other than comic books, but if it gets kids reading, then I think it's a good thing. R wanted to read the comics so he sounded out the words starting at age 4.  They run to the Sunday paper to grab the comic section. I like the fact that they are registering that things like print newspapers still exist. 

I received these comics for free from DC Comics and so can you! For more on Free Comic Book Day, including a list of other titles and participating locations, please visit www.freecomicbookday.com. There is a video of Wolverine explaining what the day is all about, need I say more? Have fun!

From Left to Write: Afterwards

I return to the Blogosphere with an account of Princess E's trip to the ER last week. She has been unlucky the past few months with one cold after another. She had a lingering cough that would act up at night time. Last Tuesday she started coughing during the day. She was wheezing audibly by 6 PM, at which point I called Kaiser. To give you some background, this wasn't my first trip to the rodeo. H had cold-induced asthma as a toddler. R had croup which was so severe he needed to be hospitalized. That is why we own a nebulizer and have facemasks and cords bulging out of our medicine cabinet. Because of our previous experiences with the kids, I, in all my medical wisdom, decided I would ask Kaiser for a prescription for albuterol so Princess E could have a breathing treatment. The nurse listened but ultimately denied my request and told me I should take my daughter to the ER if she got worse.

Two hours later, Princess E was wheezing even more and then threw up violently after I tried to brush her teeth. I figured that meant she was "worse." I drove her to the Santa Clara Kaiser ER even though there was another Kaiser ER 10 min from my house. Stewart and I each had had bad experiences with the closer Kaiser ER and I thought driving to the one in Santa Clara would assure us of a better experience. Ummm, not! The same intake doctor who had been at the closer hospital ER was now at the Santa Clara Kaiser, whaaaat! He didn't seem to think that Princess E was in serious condition so stuck us in the exam room/supply closet. It was very strange. Doctors and nurses would walk in to get supplies while we were waiting for the exam doctor. Maybe they felt bad about this, but all of them felt like they had to pat Princess E's head or squeeze her foot. Hey doctor, why are you touching my kid without sanitizing your hands??????

Finally the exam doctor comes to examine Princess E and says what she needs is a breathing treatment (yeah,
really?). They also order a chest X-ray to rule out pneumonia since she has been sick for so long. Almost immediately after the breathing treatment, Princess E is breathing better. I really don't see why they needed to make us go to the ER when they could have ordered a prescription for her for the exact same thing. Since albuterol is not a harsh drug by any means, letting her have the treatment at home and then having us follow up with her pediatrician the next day would've made more sense to me. All clear on the X-ray, by the way.

Being in the hospital with Princess E made me think of Grace, the main character in the novel Afterwards that I had just read for the From Left to Write book club. Grace thought she knew what was the best for her daughter and (I don't want to spoil it for you so I'll be vague) engineered it medically so that what she wanted for her daughter would be done by the doctors. Grace knew what her daughter needed and made sure she got it. In hindsight I feel like I should have been more insistent with the Kaiser nurse on the phone to get the albuterol, and if she had said no, I should have gotten the script from another doctor. Instead I let myself be cowed by the medical "professional" who didn't know my child or her history. I took Princess E to the ER where she was exposed to a needless X-ray and a plethora of germs, especially from the doctors and nurses who couldn't keep their hands off my beautiful daughter!

Next time, I won't be making the half an hour drive to the "better" ER. If I recognize the symptoms of something she has had before, then I will insist on home care. There is a saying in Korean 엄마손 약손, which translates into "mom's hands medicine hands." I think I know where that is coming from--no one knows a child better than her mother, no one loves her child better than her mother. And love can be a powerful medicine indeed.

This post was inspired by the novel Afterwards by Rosamund Lupton. After witnessing her children's school set ablaze, Grace attempts to find the arson as her teenage daughter lies in a coma in Lupton's suspense thriller. Grace fights for her daughter and believes she knows what her daughter needs. Join From Left to Write on April 11 as we discuss Afterwards. As a member, I received a copy of the book for review purposes.

Moving Stress!

We are moving up the road five miles and the stress of this is actually something I did not anticipate. I thought it would be easier but it's turning out to be worse in some ways. So blogosphere there is my short explanation of the lack of recent posts. Hopefully I will be able to catch my breath in the next two weeks and catch you all up on the crazy that has been a part of this move. Bis dann!

Tape Scape!

Photo by Oleg Alexandrov

My kids and I had the good fortune to visit the Children's Discovery Museum in San Jose when Eric Lennartson's Tape Scape was there on exhibit. It is a really cool exhibit that is a lot of fun. It is made entirely of tape and plastic wrap. I love the fact that it is so simple, yet the kids loved it so much! Not everything has to an electronic gizmo for kids to have fun! Princess E had a lot of fun crawling through the tunnel in the center "pole" but she was too quick for me to take a photo. R said he loved walking on tape. You wouldn't think something made from tape and plastic wrap would be strong enough to withstand hundreds of kids jumping and sliding on it every day but the 100 hours+ it took to construct it made sure it was tough enough for kid action. It was definitely one of the highlights of our visit to the museum.

When H wasn't in school, we used to go to a children's museum or the zoo at least once a month. Now that "real" school has started, we haven't been able to do that as much. The first kid really does get all the perks. We used to do crafts every week and paint but now all that stuff is covered with dust. Sorry R and Princess E! I'm glad I was able to go to the museum with them earlier this month. Tape Scape has been dismantled at the Children's Discovery Museum but check your own local children's museum to see if it is coming to your neck of the woods. SO FUN!

Baby's E Bad Mommy Incident: Saved by Dolphin Organics

Shortly before her first birthday, Baby E suffered from a case of Bad Mommy. I love to drink hot drinks. Imagine the worst. What happened was that there was a cup of just-brewed tea on top of a placemat on the kitchen table. She had just become tall enough to reach the table and pull on anything close to the edge. Of course, I hadn't realized just what that meant. She pulled on the placement and the cup fell on her face and then shattered on the floor. For burns, many people don't know that the burn continues to happen even when the heat source is removed. You have to first stop the burn before you treat it. So I immediately grabbed Baby E and put her under cool water in the shower, clothes and all.

After I was sure the burning had stopped, I changed her clothes. There were some very pronounced red spots on her face and chest. I knew that aloe was the best thing I could put on her. But what to do, it was late at night and I didn't have an aloe plant. Then I remembered that I had received a bottle of Dolphin Organics lotion at BlogHer. I checked the label (which is so straightforward and clear to read and understand) and it had aloe as the first ingredient! I put the lotion on her face and chest. Then Baby E fell asleep. When she woke up an hour and a half later, the red spots were gone. I was completely amazed! The lotion worked like a miracle balm! It was so awesome. Because I saw how well it worked on her, I put some on my arm where I got a sunburn that day. It gave me immediate relief. Amazing! I put the lotion on her for the next week and her skin returned to normal.

I had been meaning to share this story so my readers would know what a wonderful product Dolphin Organics has put on the market. I put it off though because of the Bad Mommy embarrassment factor and, of course, once I got over that so many things had come up that it slipped to the back of my mind. Recently, however, I received a pack of trial sizes of the new product line and it brought back the feeling of complete wonder I had when I went through the experience last year. The kids and I have tried the new products and we give them a big thumbs up! I asked Princess E which one she liked the best and she picked the pink bottle of DO Naturals bodywash (justberry). What I like about it is that it is really thick and doesn't run like some lotions. It stays on the skin so you know it's working! H, with his picky nose, likes the Simply Citrus lotion the best. Honestly, the original formula that we used last year didn't smell so nice, but the reformulated products are very pleasant. If H will use it, then I know it passes a very high standard.



I've suggested to the company that they should put out a natural burn, itch, etc product because there is nothing out there that is completely natural like Dolphin Organics. I heartily endorse this product and hope you will give it a try! I've found some great deals on Drugstore.com (currently on sale) and Amazon and can't wait to get the sunscreen to block the hot California sun.

I did not receive compensation for this post. I did receive product samples but without any expectation of posting. I do not receive commission for links to stores and have provided them as a service to my readers. All opinions are my own!