Day 41 - Only Fools Run at Midnight

I took the ferry back to Juneau this morning, but instead of taking the fast Fairweather vessel I took the slower, bigger Malaspina. The Malaspina moves at about 15 knots as compared to the 30 or 32 knots at which the Fairweather travels. Also, the Malaspina is much bigger with more space and amenities on the ship. There is a huge movie theater, a bigger cafeteria, and berths to spend time in or sleep in if you are going to be on the ferry overnight. I spent most of the ride on the top deck under the solarium. It's pretty neat because it is either a great place to sit when the sun is out and also when it isn't so sunny because there are large heaters that are fairly warm. I got cell service on the top deck so I sat up there and listened to the Cardinals game and tracked the World Cup on my phone.

After we docked in Juneau, Lisa Cone took me back to UAS. I spent the afternoon doing laundry and picking upa few groceries. It was really cold and rainy yesterday so it was not a good day to go out and do anything. Around 8 o'clock I went out to dinner with some people from the office and then I went off for the highlight of my day.

Tonight was the Only Fools Run at Midnight 5K. The race benefits SAIL (Southeast Alaska Independent Living) which is an organization that helps adults with special needs find independent living arrangements and job opportunities so that the can be a bigger part of mainstream society. There were about 10 or 12 people from the office who ran so we all met early to hang out and take pictures (the less dedicated runners/walkers also wandered over to a nearby bar to "carbo-load").

One of the coolest features of the race is that nearly everybody dresses up and attaches themselves to a giant rope to run as centipedes. There were some pretty elaborate costumes. The best costumes won prizes like whale watching trips, plane tickets to Glacier Bay, and signed items from the pride and joy of Juneau, AK - Carlos Boozer. If only I knew the prizes were so good I would have tried something a bit more creative that the dental theme.

Of course, even neater than the costumes, was the fact that we got to start the race at 11:59 PM and run through the streets of Juneau at midnight. Everyone dresses themselves in glow sticks so all you can see during the race are streaks of neon. It was a really neat experience and the t-shirt is definitely a great souvenir.

Off to bed since it's really, really late. Not much going on tomorrow. I'm hoping for good weather so I can spend some time outside...