We had to start a little early on Saturday to rally the kids and wrangle them into the car. We all went with Bob to support him in his race, the annual Shamrock Run in Buffalo. It’s an 8k, which is a race length I did not know about (though I conceptually know about eight kilometers). There were about five thousand racers, many already clutching cans at 10:30am. There was a wide variety of costuming, and everyone seemed to be having a blast. We pet a lot of dogs, including two brown bears masquerading as dogs, named Buster and Ellwood.

The race was dedicated to the people of Ukraine, and there were representatives from the Ukraine Cultural Center, and the Ukrainian flag led the race with the traditional American and Irish flags.

There was a little playground at the start and finish line, so the kids were very happy, and the whole atmosphere was cheery.

I saw Bob was right at the start, so I got a couple photos of him about to head off. He forgot his racing watch, so he borrowed my Fitbit to keep on track, and my Fitbit has never been more proud of me.

About 26 minutes after they set out, we saw someone round the corner, coming back. I saw they had lime green socks on, so I knew it wasn’t Bob. His running style was a little different, and he was wearing different shorts. Same jersey, so in the same running club.

Then, coming hard behind the first place finisher was another running club guy, wearing white socks, and the right shorts and with Bob’s running style. It was Bob! He finished second overall! 26:57 was his official time.

We didn’t stick around for the medaling, because we were going to catch the Olean High School basketball game, held at Buff State. They were playing a tournament and are truly an excellent team. And they’re coached by my brother-in-law (who is the husband of Grant’s favorite aunt, Jen)! And they won – it was a close, pretty aggressive game. I haven’t been to a game all year, but it was a really fun one to catch.

I didn’t take any photos at the game, so here’s a bonus photo of Grant sneaking a KitKat.

We drove home, and got cleaned up, because Bob and I had a dinner date with some friends we rarely get to see. It was really lovely. We all had good news to share, so it felt unexpectedly celebratory too. When I got dressed to go, Bob said “You look like the cool English teacher who lets the kids swear.”

I detect no lies.