Weekend Playlist; Labor Day Weekend

Labor Day; to most it's the end of summer and the beginning of football season.  To some it's the last day to wear white.  To Michiganders it's back to school.  What does Labor Day mean to you?

Just a teenie weenie bit of history . . . Labor Day has been celebrated since the 1800's and was officially made a national holiday in 1894.  Grover Cleveland made making the holiday  official a campaign promise and at the end of the Pullman Strike it had a speedy unanimous vote in congress.  Most cities today will celebrate it with a parade and probably a political speech or two.  Detroit will be visited by President Obama who will discuss efforts to create jobs and boost the economy.  This is the first time he will appear open to the public in our city.  I don't really have an opinion regarding his visit, except that earlier this week I saw that he promised to create 1,000,000 new jobs.  I wonder if that was 551,000 and he rounded up or if it was 1,023,500 and he rounded down.  It seems a bit trite to me that he chose to use 1,000,000.  It takes away from any credibility in my opinion.  Hmmm, what's a number that everybody likes?  I know one million.  All right; enough of that.

No child left inside this Labor Day Weekend.  Get out and get your 10,000 steps.

Arts, Beats and Eats is one of my all time faves.  Now hosted in downtown Royal Oak it has something to offer everyone.  Last year's kids area had a lot of fun stuff to keep them busy, but bring your wallet.  This one is not cheap.  I am happy to see that they are promoting healthy food choices for families this year.  Not that I don't enjoy the junk as much as the next girl.  It's just nice to have choices.

Pure Michigan has a entire page dedicated to one tank trips for the holiday.  They suggest: Frankenmuth,  Henry Ford, Ann Arbor and many more destinations  you can get to quickly.  All of them offer a ton to do for the entire family and offer plenty of outdoor opportunity to get in your 10,000 steps this weekend.

There are 5k's all over the place this weekend.  If you've never raced before a 5k is a great place to start.  You can run, walk, or crawl to the finish line. Running in the USA is a website that lists events by state.

Where will I be this weekend?  My awesome hubby is getting inducted into yet another Hall of Fame this year.  That makes two in one year.  I am so super proud of him.  We will be traveling to Rochester, New York and you can bet we will all get in our 10,000 steps.

FAST FORWARD

October 2nd, The Brooksie Way.  This one is in Rochester and made the list for scenic fall runs.  We ran it in 2009 and it is definitely my most memorable finish line.  My husband and I lost each other at the beginning of the race, but I caught up to him at around mile 11.  Realizing that we could finish under 2:00 we held hands and booked it to the finish line crossing together at 1:58.

October 16th, Free Press Marathon.  We are signed up for this one making it our second appearance in Detroit.  There is also a marathon in Grand Rapids for the western side of the state on the same day