I'd never run in Michigan before

I've been to John's friend's cottage on a lake in Michigan (not any of THE lakes in Michigan), but I'd never done anything remotely healthy there except for maybe adding a lime to my beverage for a dose of vitamin C.

This time, I was determined that I was going to run around the lake.

Sunday morning started off pleasantly, with a boat ride featuring the boat beverage of choice, gin lemonade. Fortunately, I think I was full from the day before and didn't get too crazy. When the boys decided to pass out for an afternoon nap, I laced up my sneakers and headed out. I was a bit worried about getting lost, but I figured it was a pretty small lake, and as long as I was running on a road where I could always see it, I'd be fine.

I started out and was much more full of beer from the day before than I'd realized. The sun was high, and though the breeze was cool, it was definitely warmer than most of my early-morning runs in Chicago. I wasn't really feeling it until I changed my music from the electronica-fueled mix I use for most of my city runs and just let my iPod do the picking. A much mellower mix than I would normally run to presented itself, and it turned out to be just right for a casual trot in the middle of nowhere, Michigan.

I got home today and wanted to see how far I'd gone on my run. I had figured it was probably about 3 miles, though it took me forever because I had to stop at every cul-de-sac and figure out which way was the best way to turn. It was definitely a choose your own adventure run. When I mapped it out today, it turned out that I ran almost exactly 5 miles! Not bad for never having run in Michigan before.