Expedition Everest Challenge Race Photos

We wore these snazzy wrist bands all weekend

that allowed us into the post-race party.

We spent some time at Animal Kingdom on Saturday. Jim took this photo of Everest. We enjoyed many of the nature trails throughout the park.

We had plenty of time to wait before our wave, so we took advantage of the staged photo opportunities. The polar bear's sign says "Good luck! I'll be right behind you!"

Here we are posing in the Butterfly parking lot by the expedition plane. You can see the obstacle course in the distance. Others walked over to check it out, but we were conserving our energy.

They had several costumed characters doing the countdown and playing music while we waited. This guy shook our hands before the race. Jim joked that we were on our way over to the medical tent to introduce ourselves to the staff (to save time in case of any race injuries).

Our bunch of runners started grouping together around 6 pm. Little did we know we would wait nearly 2 more hours to run. We chatted with many nice people while we waited. Team Highlanders was also in a race for the first time.

We were the last wave of runners to start at 7:50, and it was already dark. Many of the first runners had already run past us and gone off to the Scavenger Hunt while we waited. Jim, who had stated several times that we would be walking the course, ran like he was shot out of a cannon after the final countdown.

The fever was upon us!
Jim completed all of the obstacles (cargo net, hurdles, balance beam and crawling) in lightning speed. Here he is flying over the balance beam. I was a wuss and ran around them, which luckily was allowed.

Ahhh, the end is in sight.

Crossing the finish line, our goal for our first race! I had the timing chip attached to my shoe for our team time. We finished 127 out of 175 in our coed division with 3/4 scavenger hunt items correct. We had found the correct location for the clue, but in our hurry we "pulled out" the wrong answer. Drat!

Got our medals, bananas, sports drinks, and, of course,

BAGELS at the finish line.

Time to celebrate...... ain't the beer cold!

Here's my blurry photo while riding Expedition Everest in the dark.

VERY exciting!

Animal Kingdom was beautiful at night with lots of dramatic lighting. Since we were in the last wave of runners, we pretty much had the park to ourselves. We loved riding Kali River Rapids and Everest as many times as we wanted in the dark without any waiting. We had a blast. Kungaloosh!

Equal Opportunity Laughs

Saturday Night Live VP Debate

Just Another Monday Morning

I was thinking about Dr. Mike's hip surgery, which he feels was needed due to 30 years of jogging. I figured that I timed the start of my running "career" perfectly. Thirty years from now, I may be due for a hip replacement anyway, so I may as well run into my 80's. Also figure that the competition in my age group will be decreasing over time!

Dr. Mike rode off into the fog yesterday.

Hope his hip surgery went well this morning at Sinai Hospital. He promised to let us know about his progress within the week.

Chuck DiPaolo sent this nice photo from Florida

with his 15 year-old grandson, Ty.

Special Weekend Outings

On Sunday morning, our group of friends, "Rubes on the Loose", went to brunch at Toby's to see "The Producers". We were celebrating Jim's birthday and had a lot of fun. Thanks to Cindy for reserving tickets for us. The production was excellent (it is playing through November so you still have time to catch it). I spilled some food on my white blouse, and luckily Mary Lou had a detergent wipe to give me. When I went in the Ladies' Room to clean up, it became necessary to remove the blouse and scrub it in the sink. Thank goodness I was also wearing a jacket that I could zip up and wear without a blouse. We joked that I had to return for the spin cycle after intermission, multitasking laundry with musical theater. I saved my program for Tom, a great Toby's fan and blog reader, who now resides in Las Vegas.

Toby's Dinner Theater in Columbia

Sue and Jim

Cindy and Mary Lou

On Friday night, some of the Bagel Bunch ventured out in the evening for a special Japanese dinner in Columbia. It was a beautiful fall evening by the lake. We decided that we all cleaned up pretty good! We enjoyed the delicious food and company, and as always had many laughs. Thanks to Patty for making the reservations for us. And apologies to the poor young couple who was seated next to our boisterous group!

Softcrab sushi roll for Bill

Pat with saki and Don with a BIG beer

Janice and Bill

Gladys and Jack

Patty and Sue

Not too hip

Dear People,

One day to go till my hip resurfacing. I know, shocking at my tender young age. Sure will miss cycling up to Sam's in two weeks and schmoozing with the gang.

The story starts back in the 70s when I started jogging because it was the closest I could get to flying. Seriously, hanging an extra split second in the air with each big loping stride, and with the proper pre-medication, it really did feel like flying.

Now, for you budding radiologists out there, my right hip joint, way back at the start of this illustrious jogging career, was smooth as glass (Image #1).

By last month when I first saw an orthopedist, the joint had become all gnarly (Image #2; note joint space obliterated by fuzzy white scarring).

No choice but surgery. Ouch.

In a conventional hip replacement, the head (the ball on top) and the neck of the femur are removed and replaced by metal. The top part of the piece of metal is cemented into the hip socket, and the bottom part is inserted into the hollow part of the shaft of the femur (right half of Image #3).

In hip "resurfacing", the head is also removed and replaced by metal. The difference is, that piece of metal is screwed into the neck, which I get to keep (left half of Image #3) .

That's it in a nutshell (which I get to keep too). See y'all in November.

Mike

News From Glenn!

hi sue. a quick update. these last two weeks have been a living hell. i finished my chemo and radiation last week. getting healthy is the next step. i'll spare the gory details, other than to say i may be back to human in about a month. i have had zero concentration and zero patience the last few weeks. in three months i go back for pet scan to see if the cancer is gone (no stress here, ha). thanks to everyone for the great card, it inspired me to try to get on the computer and check e-mail's. actually, my fingertips have no feeling and are split/bleeding/sore, so doing the best i can. i miss you all, again, the card was EXTREMELY HEARTWARMING, and cannot wait to see you all again.
Love, Glenn

A refresher course in civics Whether you agree or not, whether you are a Democrat or a Republican, this is a very interesting article and should give everyone in this country something to think about , mull over, discuss.

545 PEOPLE
By Charlie Reese

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered why, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

Have you ever wondered why, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget. The President does.

You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does.

You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.

You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.

You and I don 't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president, and nine Supreme Court justices 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.

I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash; The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes.

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.
What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. For instance, no 'normal human being' would have the gall of any Speaker of The House to stand up and criticize a current President for creating deficits. The President can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the Speaker of the House? The leader of the majority party. He/She and fellow House Members, not the President, can approve any budget they want. If the President vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to do so.

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million can not replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they made it unfair.
If the budget is in the red, it's because they put it in the red.
If the Army & Marines are in IRAQ , it's because they put them in IRAQ .

If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it's because they want it that way (and believe me, they do!).There are no insoluble government problems.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like 'the economy,' 'inflation,' or 'politics' that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.
Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible.
They, and they alone, have the power.

They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses provided the voters have the gumption to ma nage their own employees.
Why don't we just vote ALL of them out of office and clean up their mess!

What you do with this article now that you have read it is up to you, though you appear to have several choices.
1. You can send this to others, and hope' they' do something about it.
2. You can agree to 'vote against' everyone that is currently in office, knowing that the process will take several years.
3. You can decide to 'run for office' yourself and agree to do the job properly.
4. Lastly, you can sit back and do nothing, or re-elect the current bunch.

YOU DECIDE, BUT AT LEAST SEND IT TO YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY AND SHARE THIS INTERESTING ANALYSIS OF OUR POLITICAL SYSTEM WITH THEM. GOTTA ADMIT..MAKES YOU THINK, DOESN'T IT!

GAMES FOR WHEN WE ARE OLDER

Hi everyone, this was submitted by my dear friend, Mary, whom I have known since first grade!

GAMES FOR WHEN WE ARE OLDER :

1. Sag, you're It.
2. Hide and go pee.
3. 20 questions shouted into your good ear.
4. Kick the bucket
5. Red Rover, Red Rover, the nurse says Bend Over.
6. Musical recliners.
7. Simon says - something incoherent.
8. Pin the Toupee on the bald guy

SIGNS OF MENOPAUSE :

1. You sell your home heating system at a yard sale.
2. You have to write post-it notes with your kids' names on them.
3. You change your underwear after a sneeze.

OLD IS WHEN:

1. Going bra-less pulls all the wrinkles out of your face.
2. You don't care where your spouse goes, just as long as you don't have to go along.
3. Getting a little action means you don't need fiber today.
4. Getting lucky means you find your car in the parking lot.
5. An all-nighter means not getting up to pee!

MORE THOUGHTS:

1. Wouldn't it be nice if whenever we messed up our life we could simply press 'Ctr- Alt- Delete' and start all over?
2. If raising children was going to be easy, it never would have started with something called 'labor!'
3. Brain cells come and brain cells go, but fat cells live forever.
4. I used to eat a lot of natural foods until I learned that most people die of natural causes.
5. When weeding, the best way to make sure you are removing a weed and not a valuable plant is to pull on it. If it comes out of the ground easily, it is a valuable plant.
6. The easiest way to find something lost around the house is to buy a replacement.
7. Have you noticed since everyone has a camcorder these days no one talks about seeing UFOs like they used to?
8. In the 60's, people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.
9. How is it one careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire?
10. Who was the first person to look at a cow and say, 'I think I'll squeeze these dangly things here and drink whatever comes out?'
11. Who was the first person to say, 'See that chicken there? I'm gonna eat the next thing that comes outta its butt.'
12. If Jimmy cracks corn and no one cares, why is there a song about him?
13. Why does your OB-GYN leave the room when you get undressed if he's going to look up there anyway?
14. Why doesn't glue stick to the inside of the bottle?
    

BUT MOST OF ALL, REMEMBER:

1. A Good Friend Is Like A Good Bra: Hard to Find, Supportive, Comfortable, And Always Close To Your Heart!
   
2. Never take life TOO seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway!
   

Update on Joe McQuaid

Good Evening!

Sharyn has provided me an e-mail with an updated distribution list, so for those of you who don't know me, I'm Don Williams, the McQuaid's neighbor and good friend. I've been sending out progress reports on Joe, and am happy to report that he's now out of the intensive care unit and back into a regular room. My wife Jan and I visited him this afternoon, and while he's still very weak, he's in good spirits, and could return home as early as tomorrow. Thursday is probably more likely, however. He again has a phone in his room, and can be reached directly at (757) 388-8402. His room number is also 8402, which is on the 4th floor of Sentara Heart. This is a beautiful facility, overlooking part of the Norfolk harbor area, and designed from the ground up as a heart hospital. Hopefully, we will all be able to see him soon.


Have a Nice Evening

Don

Expedition Everest Challenge 2008

I have needed to get into shape for a long time for my health, yet I couldn't find the motivation to stick with an exercise program. I found out about this inaugural event at one of my favorite places, Disneyworld. It involved a 5K run, an obstacle course and a scavenger hunt, plus the chance to celebrate in the Animal Kingdom Park after hours. Turns out that the fear of public humiliation is a powerful motivator for me. I began to exercise in earnest. I am so grateful that my friend Jim agreed to go with me so I couldn't chicken out. Each week our time improved on the 5K walk/run. Last year we didn't get to celebrate his 50th birthday in a big way with all of the health challenges facing him. I hoped that this event would be a milestone for both of us, a chance to celebrate our friendship and our healthier selves.

OK, it's actually here. (What have I gotten us into?) After 6 weeks of training, we arrived at the Disney Sports Complex on Friday morning to pick up our racing packets and shirts. After a small snafu (I was registered on a team with myself instead of with Jim), we opened our goody bags. Surprised to find cookies, energy coffee beans, and a watermelon scented electric air freshener. Here we are at Base Camp Fury 242 on Friday morning. Our luggage had finally arrived at 3 am. When it seemed that we had been here a week with all of the constant activity, we would remember that our luggage had only been in town for hours!

Spent Friday afternoon at EPCOT celebrating the Annual Wine and Food Festival. We enjoyed the rides Soarin', the surprising ending at Spaceship Earth, and Mission: SPACE.

Had the most refreshing frozen margaritas ever on a hot day!

A packed crowd celebrated the closing of the unique Adventurer's Club on Friday night. All of Pleasure Island will be closing after this weekend to make room for something new. This is one time I feel that Disney is making the wrong decision.

We gave the Adventurer's toast "Kungaloosh!" and cheer "Hoopla!" in the parlor before the shows in the library. Felt like a real adventurer by night's end.

We sang the Adventurer's Motto several times. Seemed appropriate as we were headed into uncharted territory for Saturday night's race.

The cast of the Adventurer's Club provided many laughs.

Imagine my surprise finding Scott here dressed in a scout uniform and carrying a cow!

After a talk about the race course, we spent Saturday afternoon at Animal Kingdom Park, site of the race. You can see Everest in the background. By now, I am getting very nervous. Had a delicious lunch at the Yak and Yeti Restuarant where our new friend, Gracie, was our waitress. We ended up in Wave 11 of the race, meaning we started last at 7:50 pm (the first runners began at 7 pm). They played very loud music interspersed with Yeti growls and helicopter sound effects while we waited. Firewalks shot up as the race began, and then we were off running around the parking lot in the dark!

Yeah Team Bluffingwildly! We finished! Had medals placed around our necks! Celebrated by riding Expedition Everest and the water rapids rides many times in the dark. The darkness made the rides seem much scarier.

We did what we set out to do. We not only completed the 5K Race, the Obstacle Course (thanks to Jim, he did all the work in record time) and the Scavenger Hunt in 1 hour, 20 minutes....we weren't even last to finish! Our medals and sweaty shirts are shown hanging above. I am really, truly proud of us. I can't even express how this small accomplishment was life-affirming.

Picture us standing here in front of Mickey with our medals at the All Star Sports Resort (the guy taking our photo forgot to push the button). Kungaloosh!

Free Carwash With Bagel

Hi everyone,

Found my long lost camera cable today.......in the camera bag where I thought it was all along. Thanks to St. Anthony, I finally recognized the cable and can finally post a month's worth of photos. Hope you enjoy them!

Is Dimitri onto a new marketing tactic?

Another Sunday crowd

Everyone is glad to see Glenn out and about in August

Doug and Harold discuss the news

Don gets a birthday spanking from Doug

Gladys and Jack talk with Gene, who is recovering well

Can you believe this is where Don carries a photo of his grandson?

Don and Bill solving the world's problems

Did you know Sam's was located on historic Frederick Road?

Glenn, Max, and Doug coloring in July

Dimitri parks so Doug can't get into his car

Joe is recovering from emergency heart bypass surgery

Doug's very bad parking job

The three Bill's

Made You Laugh

Thanks to Harold's sister, Beth, for this one!

A frog goes into a bank and approaches the teller. He can see from her nameplate that her name is Patricia Whack.

"Miss Whack, I'd like to get a $30,000 loan to take a holiday."

Patty looks at the frog in disbelief and asks his name. The frog says his name is Kermit Jagger, his dad is Mick Jagger, and that it's okay, he knows the bank manager.

Patty explains that he will need to secure the loan with some collateral.

The frog says, "Sure. I have this," and produces a tiny porcelain elephant, about an inch tall, bright pink and perfectly formed.

Very confused, Patty explains that she'll have to consult with the bank manager and disappears into a back office.

She finds the manager and says, "There's a frog called Kermit Jagger out there who claims to know you and wants to borrow $30,000, and he wants to use this as collateral."
She holds up the tiny pink elephant. "I mean, what in the world is this?"

(folks, you're gonna luv this)

The bank manager looks back at her and says...
"It's a knickknack, Patty Whack. Give the frog a loan, His old man's a Rolling Stone."

(You're singing it, aren't you? Yeah, I know you are........)

Happy Birthday, Don!

Don turns 65 at midnight and is looking forward to collecting his senior benefits. He was spending today with his daughter, driving to one of his favorite spots, the dump. This is the point where Bill T. always says, "What did the Lone Ranger say to Tonto when he went to the dump?"
*To the dump, to the dump, to the dump, dump, dump" sung to the Lone Ranger's theme song.

Happy Birthday, Don, you are an original.


The following was written by Loretta Laroche (see favorite sites on the right). I always enjoy her positive outlook on life and thought I'd share it here as we enter the autumn season.

The Fabulous Fall Refresh

The fall is my favorite time of year. My body is shedding the bloat from the summer humidity due to the crisper air, and my thoughts have turned towards planting bulbs and making fires in my fireplace.

The landscape is changing bringing us its’ autumn palette of burnt orange, sienna, and rust, and it’s time to get out the bulky sweaters and afghans. Not everyone revels in the changing seasons, but I have always enjoyed the possibilities that each season brings.

As the leaves wither and drop off, and the days become shorter, we should look within ourselves and see what changes we might want to make.

Could this be the time to shed some behaviors that no longer serve you? Perhaps the cooler weather and the darker days will prod you into becoming more introspective.

Could this be a time when you cozy up in your favorite chair, with a wonderful book and a great cup of tea? Maybe as nature begins to silence its growth you could begin to renew yours by meditating, or simply allowing yourself to become more in tune with silence.

How about doing some cooking? Now that the doors are closed more often you have the opportunity to fill the house with wonderful aromas.

Who doesn’t like to walk into a home that smells like a great big pot of chicken soup or an apple pie that is baking away just waiting for you to take that first bite?

Spend some time writing to friends or relatives instead of calling or e-mailing, or consider starting a joy journal. Get physical by raking leaves in your yard or someone else’s, or take a fabulous hike alone or with a group of friends.

There are so many options available to us as we transition through the year. Take advantage of them and embrace the changes. If you don’t you could end up becoming your own groundhog day.

Not Just a Spoonful of Sugar

I had several medical appointments today. While I am fine, I will be giving up caffeine and soda and foods made with white flour. Kind of zapped my motivation for hanging out in a bagel shop so often! During that seemingly endless time spent waiting on the exam table for the doctor, I found an article about laughter being the best medicine for one's health. The researchers found that even ANTICIPATING that something would be funny reduced levels of three stress hormones:

• Cortisol, a major stress hormone, dipped 39%
• Adrenaline, also known as epinephrine, dropped 70%
• Dopac, a chemical related to the feel-good chemical dopamine, dropped 38%

So now I still have a reason to stop by and laugh. It's good for my health! And if you are feeling stressed, simply think about these good things......

• Bill T's long list of Snapple trivia questions, thrown into any conversation whether related or not..... do you know how many vocal cords a cat has?
• Doug's torn pants or shaving-creamed ears or lost glasses/wallet/keys.
• Gladys and Jack in their rocking chairs
• Bill W's jokes, jokes, jokes
• Laura's new tricked-out Honda
• Dr. Mike's forays into Internet dating
• Don's boxers and kilts and Speedos, oh my!
• Alicia's flowers from her new beau
• Allison's new apartment
• Jean and Paul's trip to Lexington, KY
• Bill S's trip to Gatlinburg, TN
• Patty wanting to smack Doug and Alicia offering to hold him for her!
• Pat enjoying her renovated home
• Lois and Gene winning big money at Delaware Downs
• Glenn in his LAST WEEK of treatment, he's in the home stretch! Come back soon. It will be good for your recovery to laugh with us. We really do miss you.

Catonsville Arts and Crafts Festival

Hope everyone survived the rain and wind of Tropical Storm Hanna yesterday. We were lucky; most just had some power outages, cable and internet loss, and fallen branches. I am posting live from Sam's this morning and can view the preparations for the festival on a beautiful sunny day. The antique cars are pulling into the parking lot next to Friendly's as I type.

• Dr. Mike has a first date on Tuesday with an Internet connection. He feels that dating is like mining for gold in a muddy stream........hope it pans out!
• Gladys drove by the "Loved Ones" lingerie store and thought of Don. Don is hoping to talk Alonyah on a field trip to a lingerie store one day. One should always have dreams.
• Harold is back in town after three weeks of travel, will be in town for two weeks. He is undergoing security clearance for work, so some of you might be interviewed for the process.
• Patty went to a wedding yesterday for Charlie's granddaughter. Despite the weather, the wedding was reportedly beautiful.
• Bill said he is going to the festival with his wife, but Janice will insist on walking ahead of him. Bill won't be wearing a shirt to show off his tatoos and Janice won't walk with him.
• Glenn, we are sending our thoughts and prayers out to you every day.