California Dreaming: It’s finishing that makes a winner.

Several months ago I came into contact with two wonderful volunteers by the name of Sandi Gaertner and Joel Rubnitz who were part of a team coordinating the Silicon Valley Duck Race. It seems like a lifetime ago when we first chatted and discussed what was going to happen in the upcoming months. And now here I sit blogging after the event. It is in moments like this that I realize how quickly time passes by.

The Duck Race moved up to the top of my list of favorite appearances because I have never met such a large group of volunteers who were so genuinely appreciative for my presence. My cheeks burned from smiling so much when I walked out to my car. What exactly is a duck race, you ask? The Silicon Valley Duck Race is a fundraising event for many local non-profit charities. Participants purchase (adopt) a duck and a portion of the proceeds goes to the charity of their choice. 15,000 ducks raced to the finish line. Don’t worry- there were no ducks harmed in the making of this race… they are specialized rubber ducks designed for racing. It was quite a site to see! More than $20,000 in prizes were given out to the people sponsoring the top 57 finishers. Between the games, jump houses, food, face painting, live music there was no possibility anyone didn’t enjoy the day under the warm California sun and the natural beauty of Vasona Park. There was something for everyone and it was all for a great cause.

The families were so gracious and the kids were simply adorable. One little boy came running up to me practically out of breath and motioned for me to “come here” his chubby little hand pressed against his mouth, eyes gleaming about to tell me some big deep dark secret. I plop onto the grass as one of my shoe falls off. I shrug my shoulders and smile, turn my head to the side, and put my hand up to my ear ready to receive this important story he is about to share with me. “I… I… um, I…” (giggles and giggles) “I have a hearing problem! Ahh!” And he runs ten feet away whips his head around from behind his dad’s leg and smiles proudly for his recent confession. I assume he has an actual hearing impairment and I say quite loudly, “Well who cares about a silly little problem like that when you have a face as cute as yours?!” He beams from ear to ear. Some people walking by slowed down to see why this girl with a tiara is talking so loud. He boldly steps out from behind his dad and runs back to my side again motioning to “come here!” to hear his secret. “I went swimming and now da waataw is stuck in my ewa” Oh. Great, now I was yelling at a child with swimmers ear. Another little girl tugged on her mom’s T-shirt and says, “Mommy, why is that lady wearing a crown?” the mom tenderly bends over and says to the six-or-so year old, “Katie, she’s a princess! Do you want to take a picture with her?” She thoughtfully looks me up and down, scrunches her nose, and casually says, “Um, no.” and turns around and walks the other way. I can appreciate the honesty. An adorable baby decided to throw up on my black shirt. Everyone gasped and relentlessly started apologizing. I smiled, took a napkin rubbed some off, halfway rubbed some in and said, “Naaaah, it’s okay! We all do it, and it kind of accents my shirt.” If a little vomit bothers me, I’m getting in the wrong profession becoming a Pediatrician…

Next stop was meeting Devin Setoguchi from the San Jose Sharks. I proudly stood by and watched the crazed fans go wild when he arrived. I kind of enjoyed watching from the shadows because I could sit back and watch how truly excited these Die Hard Sharks Fans were. It was a while of “Devin!!! You’re the greatest! Devin! You rock! Devin! I’m your biggest fan!”… and then a crooked head turn as their eyes would land on me and say, “Who are you, the duck queen?” Sure, I sure am if you would like me to be. : ) For those who DID know who I was, I signed autographs and talked with the kids. I heard about pets, and favorite toys, and siblings, and everything in between from my little darlings. Then, Devin and I got to ride around in an old “Yellow Taxi Cab” to the waterfront where we got to climb through the marsh into the middle of the stream and count down the “drop” of the ducks.

Devin Setoguchi and I before our old fashioned taxi ride!

We even got to get the crowed pumped up by starting a “quack”-off. Naturally, I was all for this wonderful idea, but I am not too sure how comfortable a “Shark” is quacking… I am certain I was much more excited about this than Devin was (think Anaheim Ducks). With the throw of Devin and my arms in the air, the 15,000 ducks were released down the noodle-lined river. We had to be careful not to touch any of the ducks as they sailed past us. After the majority of the pack made it through we had to pick out the “stragglers” which jumped the barricades and got stuck off to the sides. As I picked a duck up from the side near the audience, a brown eyed little boy shrieked, “That duck is a loser! He didn’t win!” Automatically I became defensive of my poor little sidelined friend and without even thinking I blurted out, “It’s finishing that makes a winner! He’s going to cross that finish line and that’s what matters.” A wave of laughs from agreeing parents trickled down the crowds of people. That was my lesson for the day.

Thank you to the countless volunteers who made this event such a success and for those who were so gracious the entire day