From that day on, if I was ever going somewhere, I was running

Who recognizes that line? Hint: I once wrote a blog post about how life is in fact, NOT like a box of chocolates.

So anyway, I am still in l-o-v-e with running. Sadly, on Saturday I made the grave error of going hiking in my running shoes. This blog really isn't about running so much as how I almost wasn't able to do it much this week. Story below…

Heather J (or “Crooked J” as we are now calling her…inside joke) and Heather M (HM) and I met up for lunch at the Hole (Kelly’s 19th Hole), and then headed out to hike. We stopped at the store for fortification, as everyone knows that when you hike with Crooked J, HM, and Drea (who sadly missed the hike due to some…uhhh…"illness"), you must bring beer to be enjoyed when you reach the top. That, plus apples, ‘cause we’re not completely unhealthy. In my hand at the store was a can of Bud Light Lime, but then I saw that the Heathers had colorful cans of Four Lokos. Being an innocent, sweet young lady, I had no idea what these drinks were. But being a total second-guesser and apparently a follower, I decided I too should try a Four Loko. We each got a different, delicious (that's my sarcasm color) flavor. This was a great decision.

When we arrived at the trail head we noticed a woman staring at us with a smile that I can only say was “dreamy.” Not “Oh wow, she’s sooooo dreamy” dreamy, but “I’m not residing in my own head right now” dreamy. After minutes of dreamy staring while we changed shoes and grabbed our packs, she commented that she hoped we didn’t mind some water, because the trail over the creek was really wet. HM asked, "more wet than it was 2 months ago?" More dreamy smiling and staring. Pshaw, there's probably like a puddle or something equally lame down there. Off we went, confident in our mental wellness and her mental illness.

The trail we decided to take was about a 2 mile trek down to the beach (yes, this necessitated a hike up to the car). Along the way down, we came across the most charming abandoned house. If anyone needs a crash pad or a place to, like, torture and maim someone, this is the place for you! We even took pictures so that someday we can design our dream houses around this special place. Behold, natural light, and it's furnished!

You can enjoy your bathroom and nature at the same time! *Those are leaves in the commode.

We got to the home stretch and had to cross a little creek. It was a bit damp, but there was some wood there that we walked across. We got a good laugh out of the “lots of water." Self-righteous laughs all around...and then proceeded to step ankle-deep in total swampy mush. Yes, the path was, in fact, more wet than it had been 2 months prior. Halfway through the swamp I wanted to turn back, but what was the point, the damage was done. We reached the beach without our shoes getting sucked off, quite an accomplishment really, and proceeded to artistically photograph our precious Four Lokos.

Aren't they beautiful? You know what they say about ugly things coming in pretty packages...or did I just make that up? Then we made our first (12th?) major error…we opened said drinks and proceeded to drink them. Soon I was flat on my back, where I spent the next 30 minutes (1 hour?) staring up at some tree branches and talking nonsense.

See? I took this beautiful photo from the ground.

I think at one point I must have gotten up for some photos (which are too hideous to post), and I vaguely remember some conversations about sugaring and other intimate topics. Although HM did some funny dancing and some yoga on the beach, and Crooked J was...well...the same as usual, actually, they handled their Loko significantly better than I did. When I was finally ready to tackle the uphill return to the car (so after, like, 2 hours), we began. I am not the fastest hiker in the best of situations, but when full of insanely strong drink? Embarrassing, that’s all I can say. Oh nope, I’ll say one other thing: Did you know it’s possible to get a hangover within a couple of hours of consuming an alcoholic beverage? I didn’t, but what a new and exciting discovery! I was so, so, so sick all evening, though I valiantly made the trek to HM’s for some more time with the ladies. Moral of the story? You'd have to be loco to drink Four Loko.

The other moral: hike in hiking shoes. This way you don't have to go buy new expensive running shoes due to the fact that your beautiful Asics are currently air drying for 2 days after the swamp and subsequent hand-cleaning. And no, I couldn't wait 2 days for them to recover, as I had a catastrophe the next day, remember (see below blog)? I needed to run or I may have instead eaten my feelings, and no good could come of that, as my most edible feelings tend to come in the form of pizza, popcorn, and chocolate. Unfortunately, the Sauconys that I bought could not compare and in fact caused toe numbness, calf pain, and heel blisters. Bright side, the store takes them back within 30 days, so I got to exercise my feelings rather than eat them and then I got my money back just in time to wear my now slightly-smelly-and-much-less-beautiful-but-still-super-comfy Asics. All is well in the world when I've got my sneaks, my girlfriends, and no more same-day hangover.