A new breed of superhero
September 5, 2006I’m referring to myself, of course.
Yesterday Liz and I attended a four-year-old’s birthday party, which had a superhero theme to which the adults were encouraged to conform. I’m not big on playing dress-up, and my one physical talent of note, long-distance running prowess, ranks quite low on the list of desirable superhero traits — probably somewhere between good penmanship and parallel parking expertise. Nevertheless, it occurred to me that I’ve recently been spending a fair bit of time climbing up and down the walls of our house with a belt sander while wearing a costume of sorts (goggles, respirator, earplugs), which seemed like a step in the right direction. If I added a cape and Spandex, I could be … Sand Man, a superhero with grit!
The photo below (thanks, Mo!) shows the Sand Man chillin’ at the party with his superfriend Nacho Libre.
Also present (in varying sizes and developmental stages) were Spiderman, Spiderwoman, a couple of Power Rangers, and a few ambiguously heroic people I didn’t recognize. They were generally well-behaved, though they exhibited less self-sufficiency than one would expect from superheroes. (Example: Spiderman sitting about three feet away from the utensils, wailing, “Mama, I need a spoon!”)
By the way, one of the unique and just-reconfirmed qualities of Sand Man is that he always completes half-marathon road races in a time of 1:09. (Now true for five of my six attempts; the sixth one was a 1:10.) This is great for those who value consistency, not so great for those who like to see actual improvement.
My Track Record 
I'm only disappointed that you couldn't find your Slow Boys 10th Anniversary t-shirt (the one with the Superman logo on the front) to complete the ensemble. š
I am recalling a former RW co-worker in the locker room post-run, announcing, "I just wish I could go under 1:10 for the half marathon one more time." I replied, "I just wish I could say that."
I love the outfit. I spent a entire summer in Vermont on an extension ladder wearing something looking like that costume. I almost fell from two stories up and wish I had the cape that you are wearing.
You say, "long-distance running prowess, ranks quite low on the list of desirable superhero traits"But what about "Dash"? :^)http://movies2.nytimes.com/gst/movies/trailer.html?pop=y&mtype=real&quality=high&url=httpQ3AQ2FQ2Fwww.totaleclips.comQ2FPlayerQ2FBounce.aspxQ3FeclipidQ3De23142Q26ampQ3BbitrateidQ3D6Q26ampQ3BvendoridQ3D225&title=The%20Incredibles','width=600,height=575,scrollbars=yes
What, no earplugs dangling from a cord around your neck? The neon orange ones really could have pulled the outfit together when teamed with the purple compression shorts.
great powers… great responsibility…
What kind of weirdo dresses up as a superhero?? Wait, don't answer that…
Are 4 year olds INTO these types of SuperHero's or highly embarrassed! Oh, who cares about them…it looks like you had a lot of fun! NOW, try wearing that costume while trying to race sub 1:09 for half.
For those who are curious as to what Peditto is talking about:http://www.cohorealty.com/Camp2000/random9.htm