I make questionable choices

It has been ridiculously hot here in Cincinnati over the last week. Averaging in the mid 90s. Yesterday and today the temps topped out at over 100F. Don't worry though, the humidity is somewhere in the upper 80% range. So you take a shower, get all clean and fresh, walk outside, and immediately start sweating and feeling gross and sticky. It's lovely.

A normal person, a smart person, would probably stay inside, limit activity and enjoy all enmities modern life has provided. I prefer to dress up in a chicken suit and run around downtown assaulting people with brochures and candy and follow that up with a run right about the time that temps reach 100 degrees. I don't think it needs any explanation.

Okay, I'll explain. Tuesday we had our official kick-off for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's Run Like Hell. As a volunteer I had the privilege of taking part in the event on fountain square. I took one for the team and put on the chicken suit. I've dealt with hot and uncomfortable before. I used to be a baker. I spent 6 hours a day standing in front of an open oven. That was hot. The very next day I dealt with hot temps as I'll explain in a moment, but none of them compares to putting on that costume.

There is nothing quite like the feeling of sweat pooling in a rubber beak right in front of my mouth and breathing hot air into a rubber mask that goes right back into my face. I also had a choice in the mask. I could either breathe clearly, or see clearly...out of my left eye. I had to alternate, because doing both just wasn't feasible . On the bright side I think that confirms that I'm not claustrophobic.

How would you choose to follow up a day of running around in a chicken costume? I chose to go for a run in 100 degree heat. I went to my first Team In Training workout on Wednesday after work. I knew it was hot outside, but I work in a basement office all day with no windows. I have absolutely no sense of what it is like in the outside world while I'm working. I finally overheard someone talking about it as we were walking out to have our run. 101 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. Brilliant! Let's go run. Maybe it was the chicken suit experience that toughened me up, or maybe it was just the experience of having a group to run with instead of running alone, but it wasn't so bad.