Brookfield Zoo RunRun

I'm so excited that I'm going to do the Brookfield Zoo RunRun again this year!  Last year it was the first 5k I had ever done, this year it will be the third time I'm doing such a thing, and I'm hoping to beat my time from last year's.  I'm also hoping to beat my fundraising from last year.  I raised $40 for the CZS Conservation Fund last year, and this year my goal is to raise $100. 
The reason I think this is a worthwhile cause, can best told as a story about something that happened the first year I was a member at Brookfield Zoo.  One day, as I wandered through the Habitat Africa Forest, I noticed this beautiful animal standing in her habitat. The okapi is a graceful member of the giraffe family, who looks like a cross between a zebra and a gazelle.

The signage was very clear that she is a shy animal, in fact so rarely seen that she is a symbol of cryptozoology (the search for animals whose existence had not been proven). I stood watching her for several minutes while she just stared at me. I whispered how beautiful she was and talked to her for several minutes, and slowly she walked up to the edge of her habitat and began rubbing on her cage as if she wanted me to pet her. Obviously I could not, in fact, pet her, but at that exact moment I fell in love.  Sadly, the okapi is on the endangered animal list.
From when I first read that she was endangered by habitat destruction, I knew I wanted to do something to help these beautiful animals thrive in the wild.  They, like most zoo animals, aren't meant to be confined to the small areas that zoos are forced to accomadate them in.  One of the interesting things about the okapi is how they protect their young.  The mother actually spends very little time with her young as she hides her infant and then leaves it so that predators are more likely to follow her than to find her young.  But in order for her to behave as she does in the wild, she needs a large space so she isn't to close to her infant. 
For a long time I didn't really know what I could do to help with conservation.  I didn't know that the Chicago Zoological Society had a conservation fund.  I read about the Zoo RunRun in my membership magazine several months later.  It probably wouldn't have stuck in my head as something I could do, except that by then I was walking on a regular basis with my friend Leah as part of my weight loss efforts.  Leah had mentioned to me on one of our walks her desire to run a 5k, just days before I read about the Zoo RunRun, and so events collided, and together with our friend Pirate Dr. Nurse Katie we walked the 5k last year in 45 minutes.
Please help me save the African habitat of the okapi, as well as the habitats of the more than 16,000 animals on the endangered list by donating to the CZS Conservation Fund on my fundraising page http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/tinazastrow/brookfield-zoorunrun-2012.

Well That Was Fun

So, I'm kind of digging steampunk right now. Do you know about this? It's like a cool, techy, vintage style with awesome little details (gears and dials and such) and I love it. Anyway, I found this fun dressup game where you can personalize the little lady and dress her in supercute steampunk stuff which amused me for hours until I had her every detail right (you can't see her stocking, but yeah I had to pick just the right ones). Here she is...

Now you go play, and then show me what you came up with.

Another edition of "Things that made me laugh"

So I haven't compiled a list of things that made me laugh lately, but I have a few things stored, and I'm stuck awake at four in the morning (on a work night thank you very much for trying to kill me) with an ear infection, so... I guess now's as good a time as any to share.

"Now I'm running three times a week, and wishing it could be more. I'm still terrible at it, mind you -- it's like watching a fat bird trying to escape the tyranny of its own legs" (This made me laugh because that is EXACTLY how I think of my runs) -Cracked.com

From the same Cracked article as above (and also exactly how I thought about exercise until recently). "Exercise was forever cemented in my mind as 'that weird thing pretty people do with their limbs sometimes.'"

This may only be funny to an historian, but I love it. "Formosus was found guilty on all charges, of course, though the trial practically screamed for an appeal. The late pontiff's only defense was mounted by a cleric kneeling behind his throne, who answered Stephen's seemingly rhetorical questions ("Why did you usurp the papacy?!") for Formosus by explaining, "Because I was evil!" Historians do not relate whether the cleric set up a pulley device to make Formosus' jaw move up and down while he spoke for him, so we must assume that he did." Cracked.com. Honestly, if historians failed to relate something awesome, just assume it happened. History is awesome enough that this is fairly foolproof.

"Hitler. Stalin. Ivan the Terrible. We all love these guys. Which is to say, we hate them and everything they stand for, but we're secretly glad they existed. Otherwise we'd have to learn about the cultural and political tensions behind world history, as opposed to boiling it down to 'there was a bad guy who made crap happen because he was evil.'" More Cracked.com

"True, he wasn't as good as Mozart, but if you don't see a difference between "not as good as Mozart" and "a talentless bum," your standards might be a bit high." Cracked.com again.

From the same article (even the same section) as above "If your idea for murdering your most hated enemy is "I'll scare him to death with a gho-o-o-ost, woooooo!" you're less a murderer than a writer for Scooby Doo."

Not funny, but awesome enough to share- "Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving in an attractive and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, screaming 'WHOOOO-HOOOOO! What a ride!'" -uncited on Pinterest

I'm Going To Become "Interesting"

Oh people, I’ve discovered the best plan for a weekend away. In Ohio there is a place called The Wilds. It is as close to a real safari as one can get without going to Africa (way outside my budget for now). I want to go. There’s no hotels nearby, but I’ve planned out an amazing stay for when I get the money together (maybe early next spring?). I’ll go on a Saturday and I’ll start with a zip line across the park, followed by a sunset safari, which is a guided safari in an open transport. That night I’ll stay in a yurt. In the morning I’ll get the transport pass and check it out at my own speed. It won’t be cheap. Probably close to $500 since the people I usually share vacation costs with aren’t interested. But, it’s going to be so worth it. Check out my life list- item 18 is “zip line (preferably over something awesome)”, item 24 is “go on a (photo) safari”.
Maybe, if all works according to plan I’ll call next year, the year I really got to work on my life list.
3. Visit the White House, Supreme Court, and Capitol Building (planned for Sept. 2012)
5. Go to all fifty states (trip to Minnesota rescheduled for spring 2012)
10. See Gettysburg (planned for Sept. 2012)
16. Weigh what my doctor’s height/weight chart says I should weigh (working on it)
17. Become fluent in another language (working on it)
18. Zipline (preferably over something awesome) (spring 2012?)
24. Go on a (photo) safari (spring 2012?)
43. Make a pilgrimage (to me, my trip to DC counts- so planned for Sept. 2012)
44. Learn to swim well (working on it)
47. Be present at a birth (planned for Feb 2012)
48. Be able to intelligently, knowledgeably discuss the top five world religions (Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, Judaism and Islam) (working on it)
53. Go rock climbing (not on a wall) (looking into learning on a wall so I can get off one)

That’s more items in one year than I’ve scratched off in the 29 years before- assuming I get them all done. Plus, a lot of those things were written to make me a better/happier person, so hopefully I’ll be happier. Because the last post I wrote (but didn’t post) was about being sad most of the time.

Things That Made Me Laugh

From Cakewrecks () with the caption “There is about to be some SERIOUS nerd rage going on in here.”


“The fact that they were both already soaking wet FROM THE OCEAN in no way detracted from the insult of being splashed on by a sibling.” –Motherhood in NYC

“Our research for this article has informed us of the existence of sauerkraut pie. Will you stop at nothing, Germany?” –Karl Smallwood

"Don't try to pass a 2,700 page bill—even they didn't read it! You and I didn't have time to read it. We're too busy trying to live—send our kids to school. That's why I am only going to allow small bills—three pages. You'll have time to read that one over the dinner table.” –Presidential Nominee Herman Cain

This picture with the caption, “The empty middle is where you taste irony and things that are so close you can taste them.”
-Karl Smallwood


“Obesity is still worse for your health than trying to ride a bear that is riding shark.” –cracked.com

“Let’s say you’re a governor of Illinois in a room with a former governor of Illinois on your right, and a former governor of Illinois on your left, chances are the room you’re in is jail.” –John Stewart on The Daily Show (6/28)

Things That Made Me Laugh

"And so, in conclusion, I'm sorry I couldn't find a Barenaked Ladies/Nathan Fillion mash-up cake, since I'm told that many of you believe a Barenaked Fillion would make your entire year." (ummm...true story!) -cakewrecks

Yeah, I can't post the whole thing, and the whole thing is funny. Just go read this epbot post.



Before the wedding on Sunday we were taking our pictures and when all the bridesmaids lined up to get a picture with Chris he said "I kind of feel like Santa with all these pretty ladies lined up to take a picture with me." It was a good day!

"Note: Today's post contains a word that starts with "p" and rhymes with "Venus." Parents, please parent accordingly." -cakewrecks

Things That Made Me Laugh

Apparently I laugh often, and need to share what I find funny, because this is the third time I’ve written a post where I did nothing but quote funny things out of context hoping you’ll find them amusing too. This time almost everything funny is from the archives of a blog I just found (clearly since I enjoy it, but don’t know this person I have to catch up via archives). Enjoy!

“I’m pretty sure “poetic license” is when you blame Robert Frost for all of your own personal shortcomings. Which I try to make it a point to do at least three times a day.” Reply to a comment over at Motherhood in NYC

When swimming, “I like to stay on the surface. Where there are no sharks.” Motherhood in NYC

“Maybe it’s because I stood in bread lines in the pre-Atkins Soviet Union, but I just refuse to get in line.” Once again Motherhood in NYC (this time about trying to get a replacement social security card)

“I said ‘I’m writing about something that I will not discuss in real life.’ And she said ‘What?’ and I don’t know what kind of CIA-trained operative could withstand THAT kind of cross-examination, but I cracked instantly” Motherhood in NYC

“I’ve never seen an episode of Veggie Tales. I think we just get the carnivore channel.” I have no idea where this came from. Somewhere on the internet? Claim it if you wrote it!

“Poison Ivy, a supervillainess who can grow plants and make men fall in love with her (essentially, the superpowers of an attractive woman with a garden).” Cracked.com’s BatBattle

“My daughter was about 12 and we sent her to a multi-day seminar. One of her homework assignments one evening was to step into an elevator and face everyone while saying, ‘I suppose you all are wondering why I called you here.”’ Messing with people is always entertaining!

“I can’t even blog about my husband slowly throwing away my comfy cotton briefs and leaving me with a drawer full of hanky pankys.” Commenters are fun!

“You probably want to wait to paint until after they seal it, otherwise when they do their thing, they’ll ruin your thing with the thing.” –my mom’s boyfriend

“Be wery wery quiet. I’m hunting seamstwesses.” -Kristin’s AIM status this week as she deals with an alteration problem with her dress for Jamie’s wedding (next week).

Things That Made Me Laugh- Part 2

The cracked.com article that refered to Hitler as "Voldemort Von Tiny-Stache" (not the whole article, really just the reference)

From the same article... "Only an IDIOT would forget about the Italian Renaissance, when art and poetry flourished as the nation of Italy remembered all the cool stuff Greece came up with back in the day. Even if your history class dropped the ball, TMNT was there to pick that ball right back up and throw it in your face"

"My name is LightningBolt Tesla. You killed my father. Prepare to die."

A conversation I had with one of my small children today...
(Me) Why did you just bite your thigh?
(Avery) Because it hurted.
(Me) And that's a good thing?
(Avery) Indeed (flashes a gleeful grin before she runs off to play)
She's three.

In Honor of Kristin's 28th Birthday

I will continue my photo challenge. Challenge Two is "a photo of you with the person you've been closest with the longest". Obviously (since I'm doing it because of her birthday) my person is Kristin. We had a great time tonight. We went out to a pub (actually my favorite place to eat!) here in town, got supper, and participated in the Wednesday Night Pub Quiz. It was super awesome for several reasons. 1. It was Kristin's birthday, and both her brothers came out with up, which was nice because I know she's been wanting to spend more time with them. 2. The meal was fantastic. 3. I enjoy the group of people we were out with a great deal. 4. Out of 18 (we think) teams, we came in number FIVE!! So now we have to do it again so we can try to beat that. Go Team Meese!!!

This picture is from my birthday in 2009 (when I turned 27). I had just graduated AU and was unemployed (meaning I'd been out of work since the school year started September 2008), so I didn't have a lot of money. So for my birthday Kristin and I went to Jamie's apartment after the fireworks and spent the night with her. Then on my birthday we went to Krape Park and played there for awhile before Kristin made grilled pork and potatoes for my birthday dinner.

Things That Made Me Laugh

- "My 6 year old is awesome, but she lives in a one-bedroom bedroom and she’s not allowed to go outside without a grown-up. Plus, she can’t reach the booze cabinet, and all of her clothes have unicorns on them. Non-ironically." (The Bloggess)

- Me: I taught myself to swim today
Chris: That was fast
Me: Turns out it was more a lack of stamina than a lack of knowledge problem
Chris: I have a lack of keeping myself from drowning problem
(An AIM conversation we had last night)

- "Normally, dangerous foreign substances that get inside our body are recognized by antibodies, which then bind to white blood cells to tell the immune response it's "go time." Think of white blood cells and antibodies as the Batman and Robin of disease fighting." (Cracked.com)

Finally- Days 27-30

Well, thirty days of song certainly became more than 30 days! Anyway...
Day 28. A song that makes me feel guilty- Alyssa Lies by Jason Michael Carroll. It's my job to protect little children and it's one aspect of my job that I take extremely seriously. I don't ever want to find out that any child ever under my care, my protection, has been hurt by those who are supposed to love them. I don't know that "guilty" is the exact right word for how this song makes me feel, but it reaffirms my conviction to care for the children in my life.

Day 29. A song from my childhood- "Step By Step" by New Kids on the Block. Seriously, I loved these guys when I was a kid. I had the "action figures" (yeah, they were dolls), they used to date my barbies. My room was decorated in NKotB posters. I loved them. This was my favorite of their top singles. (I should mention that this was 1990, I was eight.)

Day 30. Favorite song at this time last year- You know what's funny? It's actually a song I used above that I used to love but now hate. "15 Minutes of Shame" which I now hate because I listened to it way to much when I loved it. I'm not posting the video again though.
Bet you can't wait to see what's up next!!

30 Days of Song- Playing Catch-Up

Oh my word, I missed a lot of days lately!!
Day 25. A song that makes me laugh- I wish that there was a youtube video of this song, or that playlist had a version of this song. It’s called “Use Your Words” by Stuart Stotts. Sadly, I can’t find it. Instead, here are the lyrics.
Johnny knocked down Haylee’s blocks
Pachia bit Renee
Carlos took off both his socks
Vang won’t let Sam play
Holly ripped the dress up clothes
That Kayla tried to wear
And Nick scratched Emma on the nose
I think there’s no blood there
I roll up my sleeves and wade back in
Time to say my favorite phrase again.

Use your words I say it every day
Use your words in a thousand different ways
Use your words that’s my constant theme
If I have to say it one more time I’ll scream

Ryan’s lying on the floor Jose starts to spit
Galen’s kicking at the door Tasha tries to hit
Most days it’s not like this but sometimes it’s quite bad
I’d be so happy if they could just say to me “I’m mad.”
I’ll keep trying until it all comes real
And they can say exactly how they feel.

Don’t hit
Be gentle
Stop That
I’m done

I come home from work at night and I read the daily news
Stories of international fights just give me the blues.
If only we teachers were the ones who ran the earth.
We’d all know exactly what world peace is worth.
I’d tell the world leaders one and all
What they should have learned when they were small

Day 26. A song I can play on an instrument- sadly none. I used to play the clarinet in elementary/middle school, but I stopped at the end of seventh grade and haven’t played more than a few notes ever since. Unless you count singing as playing an instrument, then I can sing almost anything I can hear once or twice as long as it’s somewhere between second soprano and second tenor range.

Day 27. A song I wish I could play on an instrument- many things, as I often wish I could play an instrument properly. Forced to pick, I would say…either “The Imperial March” or “The Star Wars Theme”.

30 Days of Song- Day...Whatever I'm on now

Cause I'm not going to bother looking it up since I know the question.
Song I want played at my funeral- Kellie Pickler's "Going Out In Style"


So today I went to Jamie's wedding dress fitting. It was super fun, but the plan was to go to the fitting, then do some mother's day shopping (not me, I'm done, but Kristin wasn't), then lunch. After that I suggested going to see Jamie's new house (she's moving as part of getting married, they're renting in Winebago). The next thing any of us new, we were at her old apartment (in which much fun has been had) packing things up because she's moving in a week. After that Kristin and I plopped on her bed and made Jamie try on all her clothes so that we could make her get rid of stuff that didn't look good on her. Which was great because we made score cards (like in ice skating) and rated her clothes' performance!

30 Days of Song- Day 23

A song I want played at my wedding- I am a giant dork. My processional music would clearly not be "The Wedding March" (since I don't like it), instead I would probably pick "Theme from The Inner Light". Just after 4 minute mark the music changes, that's when I (the bride) enter).

Also, my first dance would be to the Theme from Enterprise.

30 Days of Song Day 22

A song I listen to when I'm feeling sad. Here's the thing, I don't really know what this means. Because does it mean a song I listen to when I'm feeling sad and I want to wallow in that? Or a song I listen to when I'm feeling sad and I want to lift my spirits? Just in case, I'll share both...
If I want to really wallow in "sad" I like "Tonight I Want to Cry" but I LOVE "Puff the Magic Dragon" by Peter, Paul, and Mary. I know that's a weird choice, but it's a song that reminds me of my dad, because he really liked both the group and the song. In fact, a few months after my dad died I was in the baby room, just me and like three babies (all over a year, I think) and this came on the radio and I sat down and cried (right there at work, even Kristin's only seen my cry like twice!) and the babies crawled in my lap and gave me baby hugs. One even patted my back!

(Also, this is the song of my childhood. If you spout nonsense about it being about drugs in my comments, I will stab you with a spork.)
If I want to lift my spirits I listen to Queen. Science proves that you can't listen to Queen and be sad. I like both of their most popular songs- "
We Are the Champions" and "We Will Rock You"

Also- "Eye of the Tiger"

Fun Times & Day 21

I got off work early today and went to pick up the menus for Jamie's shower. I had been told they would be ready tonight, so I drove 25 minutes to pick them up. Only to be told they weren't ready and I can go get them TOMORROW night. Uh...gas costs $4.39 (at best) in my town, I don't really want to be in my car for almost an extra hour. When I go back tomorrow, I'm going to try to convince the nice manager that he wants to comp me some corn chowder for the hassle.
After that, I met Sarah for supper at Panera and then a shopping trip to Michael's. Dinner was great, they have this new chicken chowder I really liked. I had fun shopping with Sarah too. I'm a terrible shopper, I like it so much that sometimes I forget that others might want to wrap it up, so I wondererd through the whole store at a snail's pace (we were in there an hour and a half!) picking out wedding stamps (to make cards for my friends). Plus somehow, buying things for my class and some stuff to make a necklace for Kristin's mom for mother's day. Yet, despite the fact that I had fun, I might have had more fun if we had done what we usually do (hang out at McDonald's) becuase then we just sit and talk, and it feels less like trying to run errands and "fit in" hanging out.
30 Days of Song- Day 21
A song that you play when you're happy- I am generally pretty happy if there's good music on, but one of my favorite not-angry songs is "Haven't Met You Yet" by Michael Buble. The music is so bubbly and happy, and even the message is a happy one. I don't know, I just really like it.

Day 20

A song you listen to when angry-
Before you click play, remember what I told you yesterday- I have been cheated on, more than once, all of my best "angry" songs are angry break-up songs that are generally about cheaters.
Taylor Swift's "Better Than Revenge"

30 Days of Song- Day 19

A song from my favorite album- I think this is one of the things that we're losing. No one has a "favorite album" any more, instead we download singles from iTunes or other sites and create our own cds with songs with a sense of unity and order that appeals to us as individuals. That said, I'm going to pick another favorite song, but I did pick a song from which I downloaded most of the album. Carrie Underwood's "Songs Like This" (actually I'm surprised that more "kick is cheating behind to the curb" songs, because this is actually an issue I have dealt with more than once. And indeed, my response is ALWAYS a swift kick out of my life.

Can We Slow This Ride Down A Little?

Because my weekends are goingby in a whirlwind of crazy and have been for weeks, and will continue to do so for months to come. Yesterday for instance I had brunch with the Olsons (my favorite family), drove to Aurora for a stampin' party with Sarah (hosted by another high school friend), and worked on stuff for Jamie's wedding shower.
Today, my mom and I took Nick, Nataly, and Mandy to the zoo for Nick's second birthday. Wait, just in case you didn't catch that, let me say it again- NICK'S SECOND BIRTHDAY. Like, seriously? Because I'm pretty sure it's been about six months since I graduated from AU and he was two weeks old when that happened, so...somebody screwed up their math, and for once I don't think it was me! But we had a lot of fun at the zoo. We got to see the rhinos (Nick was scared of them), the okapi (Nick loved her), the bison, the lions (they were awake, which is rare), and a bunch of other things. Then I spend $37 on hot dogs for lunch for five people! Also, when we were looking at the camels, the tram went by and the guide said "Over here on the right we have Christina, a breeding female [camel]." I was standing on the right between the tram and the camels. Awesome. We also went to the farm zoo (which we'd never done before) and the kids and I petted some goats. Then Nataly said "I want to go back to the grown up zoo" so we left. I would show you pictures, but when I'm done with the song thing, I'm going to do a picture challenge, so you'll have to wait.
30 Days of Song (Days 17 & 18)
Umm...did I mention how busy I was this weekend? So I didn't post the yesterday. Sorry.
Day 17. A song I hear on the radio alot- I actually don't listen to the radio very much, because my commute is litteraly four blocks, and if I'm going anywhere else, I listen to my mp3 player, but I do feel I've heard Lady Gaga's "Poker Face" quite a bit lately, so I guess that's my answer.

Day 18. A song I wish I heard on the radio- Again, I don't listen to the radio much, but one song that I really enjoy that I wish I did hear on teh radio is Katy Perry's "One of the Boys".

Alphabet Tag

Attached or single? Attached. To my cat.
Best friend? Kristin.
Cake or Pie? Ummm…why is this a question. Cake AND Pie. Duh.
Day of Choice? Thursday
Essential Item? My own pillow- I have to take it with me whenever I’m sleeping away from home, even at a nice hotel with big fluffy pillows with handy labels “soft” and “firm”
Favorite color? Blue. And green. And yellow. And purple.
Gummy bears or worms? Worms- I like to jiggle them and bite off their heads, but then since they’re worms, pretend they’re still alive and have conversations like “Ha! You almost got me, but I am awesome, and I LIVE!!” and then I bite off their other head and laugh. I am troubled.
Hometown? Elgin.
Indulgence? Chocolate. And fresh fruit. I would pay a lot of money for fresh fruit, especially in like March when all I’ve seen for months in the produce department is apples and oranges and bananas. This is why I bought 10 kiwiw, 7 mangoes, a box of strawberries, and a pint of blueberries last week. And then ate them all in one day.
January or July? July, it’s my birthday and the BEST holiday EVER (Fourth of July, not by birthday)
Kids? No thanks. I have enough. (Actually I stole that answer from another blogger, but I’m leaving it, because while I have none of my own- I do have enough kids, and I don’t really want anymore.) (All of my kids are students. I have no actual kids.)
Life isn't complete.... until you’ve scratched some things off the ole bucket list (see mine on the page labeled “life list” because why make a list about what you want to do with life, about death).
Marriage Date? September 27, 2025.
Number of Brothers and Sisters? One brother. One sister-in-law whom I like better than the brother.
Oranges or Apples? I think I already established my fruit preferences.
Phobias? Running out of good quality literature.
Quote? We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. (If you don’t know what that’s from- I quit.)
Reasons to Smile? Life is awesome, even when it’s not.
Season of Choice? Ms. Dash Table Blend. LOVE IT! Also, fresh basil or chives in the summer.
Tag Seven People? No.
Unknown Fact? I’m secretly shy. That isn’t so much of an unknown fact, as I keep trying to tell people, but no one believes me, so it’s an “unbelieved fact”.
Vegetable? As of this second- grilled zucchini with onions, salt and pepper.
Worst habits? Biting my nails, and an inability to stop thinking about food.
XRay or Ultrasound? Never had either actually. I had my very first ever antibiotic in the fall of 2009 (when I was 27), although I think I need some more right now (minor infection of the gum/tooth)
Your favorite food? I pretty much like everything actually. I especially like new foods, or exotic foods.
Zodiac sign? I used to be a cancer. I don’t know what I am since they changed them, nor do I care.