Bonita Springs Film Festival

My multi-talented husband often takes video when he's out paddling. When he heard the theme for the Bonita Springs Film Festival's short film contest was Bonita beaches, he knew he had to enter. His film was chosen as one of the top 20!

So, a couple weeks ago we had an excuse to get all dressed up, walk the red carpet, drink champagne, and watch those films on the big screen. I left volleyball practice a bit early, changed at his ceramics studio (which is now on Etsy!) and off we went to the festival.

Not bad for a 20-minute primp after a full day of work and volleyball practice!

It was a fun event. There were hors d'oeuvres passed around, complimentary champagne, fruit, and cheese plates. I wasn't sure if the festival was truly "black tie" but Matt wanted to wear his suit so I agreed to match him.

We fancy.

The screening lasted about 3 hours. We watched a reel that showed a snippet of every film entered into the festival, and then we watched all 20 finalists in full. It was so cool to see Matt on a real movie screen!

Excitedly awaiting the start!

There he is, 20 feet tall!

His film did not win - there were some really talented filmmakers in the mix! - but it was really a special experience. He's debating entering next year. He's not as inspired by the theme (historic Bonita) but I think he has a taste for fame.

Of course we voted for his but some of the other films were seriously great!

Here's his movie if you're interested. It's about 5 minutes long and features him and his race team surfing in the waves churned up by Hurricane Hermine.

Have you ever entered into a film festival?
When's the last time you got dressed to the nines?

ABK

Friday...Seven? & A Race Discount

I don't know what the linkup "theme" is this week so I'm not linking up. But I finally caught up on as many blog posts as I could and I just wanted to write a little something before I return to my regularly scheduled posts. (That means I won't have a "weekly recap" on Sunday because I literally have not run this week.)

1. Let's start there. I literally have not run since the Tuesday before we left for Chattanooga. We were so busy while there that I just couldn't be bothered; I was there to cheer on Matt, not get my run on. After the 10 hour drive home, I've been so sore and tired I just want to rest.

We did climb Rock City the day after the race, so that kind of counts as a workout.

This video shows Matt, me, and Quack making our way through "fat man squeeze", a super narrow rock tunnel.

Volleyball has started this week, so I'm getting my "workouts" in that way. My upper body is in so much pain!

2. That said, Saturday I have a 5k that I plan to run for fun and to support my colleagues who are running it. As I mentioned before, this is their first race ever and I just want to enjoy it with them!

3. It's avocado season! Our tree is dropping avocados like crazy. Last night I made curry and topped it with some slices. We have so many we have to give them away or they'll go bad; even refrigerating them doesn't help because we have about a dozen a day to go through!

Florida avocados are huge and flavorful; they're basically twice the size of the Haas variety.

4. Matt does not understand what "rest and recovery" means. We got home Monday from Chattanooga and he went out for a paddle on Tuesday and Wednesday.

I don't know, this is just an excuse to post more pictures of us from Rock City.

5. I voted! Mailing in my ballot was a lot less fun than going to the polls but at least I know that even if volleyball goes late on November 8, my vote has been counted!

CONFIRMED!

6. Kristina and I were chatting about A1A a few weeks ago. I wanted to run it with Elizabeth but the price and travel factors were deterrents. Still, we considered it. I love it so much that to me, the cost is totally worth it; you get what you pay for. Kristina messaged me to make me aware of a 20% off code they were offering, and then just this Thursday she hooked me up with a comped race admission in exchange for a blog post about the race! I mean, I can't say no to that.

You guys know I was disappointed to miss this race because I've run it twice now and have loved it both times; I'm so glad I can run it again this year!

So I plan to pay half of Elizabeth's race entry (as a birthday gift to her - she and I share a birthday!) and that way we can both run it. I also have a code to share with all of you for 15% off (once the 20% deal ends this week), so if you're in Fort Lauderdale in February and want to run an amazing 5k, half, or full, use ALI at checkout!

7. Matt put together a surfing video when hurricane Hermine was bringing in some fun waves a few months ago. He entered that video into a film festival and was chosen as a finalist!

His film will be shown on the big screen at a real movie theatre and he has a chance to win $1000. We'll dress up and walk the red carpet. Seriously, how many talents can one person have?!

So that's life after Chattajack. What's new with you?

ABK