My friend, the Gorilla

Yesterday was a fairly normal day. I woke up at an hour that is too early for even the sun to be awake, ran out the door in an outfit that I'm convinced doesn't match since I put it on in the dark, and spent the day at my desk typing away and answering questions for the masses. Ate a delicious lunch, played with my pup, and headed to the gym. Even the gym was a normal experience. Stinky old men huffing away on the treadmills, arrogant teens lifting weights in their bottle-opening Reefs because they're "too cool" to wear appropriate work-out footwear, and me...sweating profusely while watching Wheel of Fortune (I kick ass at WOF). Everything was going according to plan until I noticed a strange, dark figure approaching the elliptical to my right. Needless to say, I did not expect what I saw. A gorilla. Well, not a real gorilla per say, but a person in a gorilla costume, working out. I was fortunate that I hadn't just taken a drink of water otherwise the laughter that I left out certainly would have been followed by a splash. Noticing my reaction, the gorilla starts a conversation that went something like:

Gorilla: "Hey."
Me: "Hi there."
Gorilla: "This is a pretty mean workout."
Me: "Looks like it."
Gorilla: "Did you go to Ironman this weekend?"
Me: "Yes."
Gorilla: "Did you see me?"
Me: "No."
Gorilla: "I was 72nd."
Me: "That's really good."
Gorilla: "I know. Well, see you later."

The way he said "Well, see you later" made me think of how Jim Carrey says it in Dumb and Dumber. "Big gulp, huh? Well, see you later!" Quite funny. I thought the girl on the treadmill next to me was going to fall off. Really, she couldn't control herself. I almost had to slap some sense into her.

I'm half expecting to see myself on Candid Camera at some point, or maybe even Punk'd. If Ashton Kutcher was in that gorilla suit, I'm going to be pissed.

Ironman Weekend

...and so it begins. Yesterday I started to notice the plethora of out-of-state license plates, the confused look behind the wheels, and the insanely rock-solid bodies that are now walking, running and biking through the streets of Coeur d'Alene. That's right, it's Ironman time. What an absolutely incredible feat. While I was working out at the gym yesterday and thinking how ridiculously tired I was, I had to laugh at myself when I realized that my daily workout is equivalent to about 1% of what these athletes go through. I can't even imagine having the endurance, adrenaline, and will-power to complete this race. Hats off to those who do possess the strength to even try it, let alone those who cross the finish line. For those of you who are in the area, I encourage you to cheer on the 2,200 athletes who have dedicated countless months of training for Ironman Coeur d'Alene.

While I agree that any Ironman athlete deserves a great deal of respect, it astounds me to read about people who have overcome even bigger obstacles to be a part of this weekend's race. One man will be participating in Ironman Coeur d'Alene from Baghdad. In 110 degree heat. Lt. Commander Craig Sylvester will be competing for the third time in Ironman Coeur d'Alene, despite him being stationed overseas. He will swim in a pool with standing water at 90 degrees, bike the 112 miles on a stationary bike, and run the 26.2 miles in Baghdad's Green Zone. What an incredible person. And then there's another gentleman, a double amputee who is making this race his first Ironman challenge. An unfortunate accident put Mr. Scott Rigsby in prosthetics for the rest of his life, but he is still determined to finish his first Ironman and be the first double amputee to do so. Out of all the excuses to NOT participate, he probably has the greatest one, yet he is still going through with it. Someone with that perseverance makes me look at my life much differently. Yes, Raechelle, you CAN go to the gym today. A sore toe is not an excuse to be lazy.

R.I.P. Macie

Well it's really too bad that my first post has to be such a sad one. But I've already cried on both my mom's shoulder and then my wonderfully patient boyfriend, so i suppose this is the next best place to turn to. Today my mom stopped by at work and informed me that our adorable little sheltie had passed away. A totally random tragedy since just yesterday i saw her and she was doing just fine...her normal, shy, innocent self. I gave her a little pat on the head not knowing it would be the last time i would ever get to do so. Mom said that she was acting really funny this morning and took her to the vet to get x-rays. The vet called with the bad news saying they couldn't even stabilize her enough to do that and tried CPR twice to revive her. No such luck. Apparently her uterus had ruptured, and after that there's not a whole lot to do.

It's weird though, thinking about the next time I visit my parents and how I'm not going to hear her frantic barking until she realizes it's me...how I'll never see her tucked away in her safe-place (mom's closet) ever again...and how my mom won't have Macie to follow her every step in the garden. I know she's just a dog. But really...it is so unexpected and so shocking that it hit our family like a ton of bricks. So...R.I.P. Macie...