A Cold Winter Day

It was frightfully cold the morning I took these, but the eagles eating breakfast helped me forget about my freezing fingers.

It was amazing to watch this guy test the ice, he would put a foot out, press, press, press then step forward.

Warrior Dash 2013 - Hastings, Minnesota - Just do it!

For the last year my feet and I have struggled, it started May 2012 with a stress fracture to my right foot.  Because of that fracture I didn't get to run in the Minnesota Warrior Dash (my son took my place).  I did get to participate in Dirty Girl, Tough Mudder and various 5K's later in the summer though my feet hurt every single time.

Today I got to tackle the MN Warrior Dash.  It's held at Afton Alps ski area and much of it is uphill, the cardiovascular portion of it is tough because of that. The rest of the course was great, fun obstacles.

Last year's t-shirt and medal on the left; this year's t-shirt and medal on the right.

These feet, right here, I'm finally doing something right.  Earlier this year I broke two toes on the right foot (two different incidents), and still my feet were hurting most days.  I finally went to my doc, who verified I had recently broken two toes and told me that I have arthritis in my feet.  She recommended ice and naproxen.  

Since then I've also started taking TriFlex Sport (Glucosamine, Chondroitin and more) and increased my fish oil.  I made it through the dash without ANY foot pain, even though my fitbit One shows I logged over 10,000 steps and 74 levels (flights of stairs).  I'm so happy I think I'll do the happy dance!

Dennis's 2012 medal and MY 2013 medal/bottle opener - it's a shame I don't drink beer, lol.

Warrior dash

I got to wait at the sidelines because of my foot. :(. My son, Haden took my place. And they're off.





Waiting at the finish line.

Bootscootin'

Stumbled across a couple of rows of boots on fence posts.

The mice think they are no longer country mice, now they have boot homes, lol.

Quaint Little Church

Driving down a backroad of Minnesota we saw the cutest little church and the sun was just right.  Dennis pulled over and I grabbed the camera (Canon 5D with a wide lens), walked towards the fence and shot.  Not happy with how far away I still was when I got back to the car I grabbed the 50D with the 400mm lens on it. . .

Hands down the 5D has much better color to it, but how I love being so zoomed in.  If you didn't know, the 50D has a cropped sensor so zoomy is more zoomy. . .but I wonder, maybe I should use the 5D with the full sized sensor then just crop a little?  Thinking. . . Typically when we're on the road I keep things like this, or I take my wide shots with the little point and shoot, so I'm not switching lenses incessantly.

we found cancer

We "need" cancer because, by the very fact of its incurability, it makes all other diseases, however virulent, not cancer. ~ Gilbert Adair

October 18th will never be just another day for me.  That is the day that I heard the words, "We found cancer".  That is the day my life fell apart, and indeed, the day I began to rebuild it.

~ You can see the explanation behind this project by going here or see the all posts in this category by going here.

boots

Some days you just want to hang it up, that's when you really need to keep going.

~ You can see the explanation behind this project by going here or see the all posts in this category by going here.

Red Wing Shoes. . .for giants?

I have been to Red Wing, Minnesota many times but only this trip did I notice the shoes.

They are spread throughout town, outside different stores.

I imagine they chose shoes, over cows (New Glarus, Wisconsin) and lions (Appleton, Wisconsin) because they are home to Red Wing Shoes.

Although, I don’t understand why they didn’t choose crocks, since they are also home to Red Wing Pottery.

Maybe the crocks would catch the rain and snow.

Bet, you can’t tell which ones were my favorites.

I’m sure there are more yet to be discovered.

An unlucky outing

We decided to go to Wabasha Minnesota and take a look for some eagles. Unfortunately, they didn’t get the memo. This is the closest we got.

When I tried to get a little closer, he took off.

Oh well, better luck next time.

I tried sneaking up on the Pileated Woodpecker, but he took off too. It just wasn’t a good day.

Red, White and Blue

I don’t expect to see Bluebirds in the winter, so imagine my surprise when I found a whole posse of them in a park in Red Wing, Minnesota.

So bright! I figured their colors would dull for the winter like Goldfinches do.

I think they look beautiful against the snow! What a fun surprise. :)

The Basilica of Saint Mary (part 2)

Continuation of my exploration of The Basilica of Saint Mary. If you missed Part 1, it's over here.

Many angels, candles, and stained glass. . .many confessionals.

A couple preparing to marry. See how huge the place is?

All of these (like the ones in part 1) were taken with the Canon 40D, 50mm 1.8 lens, handheld, with no flash, ISO 640 and shutter speeds of 8-15.

The Basilica of Saint Mary (part 1)

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

First up let me say that I feel like big fuzzy pink something-or-other has taken up residence in my chest.  Yes, my grandson was so sweet and special to share his cold with me and breathing has become an effort.  Well, when you can't breathe, not enough oxygen gets to your brain, so you can't think so well either.  Luckily I prepared this post yesterday, before the oxygen deprivation began.  But if the elephant doesn't remove his tail from my lungs and lift his big furry pink butt off my chest I will be slow making the rounds.  Please forgive me.  Now on with the show.

Recently, I had the opportunity to admire The Basilica of St Mary, in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, up close and personal.

It’s 100 years old this year and was the first Basilica in America, and it’s on the National Register of Historic Places.

But I really don’t want to overload you with words when I have so many photos to share. I tried to weed it down, but there were so many I liked or so many features I wanted to share. The place is huge! And beautifully intricate! And old!

I loved the shadow on the wall - see it?

All of these were taken with the Canon 40D, 50mm 1.8 lens, handheld, with no flash, ISO 640 and shutter speeds of 8-15. Yes, I hate using a tripod so much that I handhold as low as possible, even if I have to hold my breath. When I first started I was lucky to shoot at 30 without the tripod, now I can go down to 8. I don’t think I’ll ever top that.

Oh, btw, Happy Halloween!

UPDATE: Part 2 is located here.