More Mud.

You are all invited to join the fun next year. Book you plane tickets now.

It all began as a nice peaceful morning. We managed to eat a quick breakfast while waiting for the race to begin. I'm hooked on those Zone bars.


We decided there should be some evidence of what we looked like before hand, so here it is:
I'm standing with Chris and Russel, the other C310K mud runners.

Then there was the race. We ran through mud pits for 6.2 miles and look what happened. Wow.


Once in a while a picture really is worth 1,000 words, and I believe this might be one of those cases. This expression says it all. Thanks Chris!


-chc

I'm Number One! ... Hundred and Eight...

That's right, I finished the race-- 6.2 miles of mud and obstacles, and I'm still alive to tell about it. I even came in number 108 in my division! Wahoo! That's number 683 overall, thank you very much.

I know this doesn't sound very impressive, but it isn't that bad when you consider that we weren't exactly running our hearts out. It was a "fun run" more than anything else. Come on, how often to you get to swim through pits of mud and climb through tunnels on an army base? In the end we all had a great time. I'll definitely do it again next year.

Check back in later this week for pictures. I promise they'll be entertaining!

-chc

Now We Are So Happy, We Do The Dance of Joy!

Di, Di, Di, Di...

There are only a few things that can compel me to do the dance of joy. It so happens that one of those things is extra sleep, which is something I'll be getting starting tomorrow. By some miracle my hours have been shifted so that I now begin work at 10am and go until 7pm. This sounds like a good deal to me because I usually work 9 to 7 (or 8) anyhow. Where's the catch? Do I get paid less? No. Do I have to work weekends? I don't think so. I'm failing to see the down side of this deal, so I'm going to keep doing the dance of joy until reality sets in and someone decides to rain on my parade.

-chc

You win some....

...And some you don't.

I'm not going to write much about it because it's just too painful. I've got to tell you that overall I have a lot of hope for the future of Irish football. That doesn't make the loss to USC any easier, though.

Seriously. It pains me. In the words of my sister, "I don't want to talk about it." I actually had to end a few conversations early today to save myself from the gut-wrenching feeling that starts to creep in. I think John Vannie over at NDNation said it best:

"The 34-31 win by the Trojans is not a disaster for Notre Dame football program. It is because this victory would have been so sweet that the pain of defeat will remain with Irish players and fans alike for the rest of their lives. USC's offense conjured one more big play than Notre Dame could afford to surrender, and there is regrettably no consolation prize for such a marvelous effort."

That's all I have to say about that. If I type much more about it I probably won't be able to sleep tonight.

-chc

I must be tired.

I just typed out a nice long post, but I accidentally hit the "paste" button instead of "copy." Now it's gone, and I can't remember what I wrote. Actually, I'm just too lazy to type it again.

In honor of Nora's return to the family website I'd like to finally post the picture that I owe her. It's a year old, but it's better than nothing.


I also came across an interesting sign for Hansen's. Does anyone know what this means? I'm sure I don't...

Thoughts? Questions? Comments?

-chc

Thank goodness for coffee

A quote from my coffee cup this morning:

"Our lives are inspired by the dreams we have from the earliest stages of our youth. When you combine passion and hard work, then success is always possible. While no road is ever straight, dedication and persistence will always lead you to your dreams." -Arte Moreno (first Hispanic owner of a major league baseball team)

Well said, Artie. Well said.

Tomorrow I'm going to a Habitat for Humanity build with half of my crew. I think it's great that they encourage employees to do service projects together (and during the workday no less). Not very many companies do that. I remember watching specials when I was little about this particular group of volunteers. I always thought that I would want to join them someday, and here I am. They even have the same t-shirts I saw on TV all those years ago. I'll let you know how it goes...

-chc

The Trip Concludes

I was down in South Bend for the final leg of my midwestern tour. I spent the middle of the week helping Leah move into her new apartment. We even found a great (and comfortable) futon for her:


After that I had a few days with the FTT (Film, Television, and Theater) Department reunion before the big football game. Steve, Walter, and my Dad came into town for the weekend. Of course Ryan, Lisa, Andy and Jennifer were there as well, which made for a great weekend. I even had a chance to hang out in Nora's dorm room and watch A Goofy Movie!

Of course, the football game was really intense. It's just too bad it didn't go our way in the end. Here are the pictures:

Charlie, Aunt Sue, and Steve


Charlie and Steve in front of Touchdown Jesus


Charlie, Lisa, Ryan, and Jen at the game. Field seats!


With Jennifer and Andy


The Dome is still there. Ryan and I couldn't help posing for a picture or two.


What would a trip to ND be without a visit to the grotto? I love that place.

Thus my vacation concluded. To all my friends and family, it was great to see you! I'm sorry I didn't take pictures with everyone--don't feel badly if your photo didn't make it into my updates. I somehow managed to erase a bunch of pictures with Mom, Dad, and Nora. I guess I'll need to do better with the photography at Thanksgiving.

Until next time...

-chc