These shoes are a fonDO.

One of the downfalls of liking food so much is the inevitable need to exercise. Getting older, a slower metabolism from, well, not going anywhere ever... that doesn't help either. But, ultimately, one needs to exercise. I of the crazy clown feet have a million excuses -- "my feet hurt" "my hip hurts" "my heel hurts" -- all legitimate, but mostly fixable. So inspired by Lisa Z's post last week about Running Fit, Brad and I hit the store up last Saturday afternoon.

I've always had problems buying shoes. When I was little, my mom had to take me to Buster Brown -- the only store that carried shoes that fit me -- where I remember very little selection. And so started my love/hate relationship with shoes. The feets are disproportionately long, super narrow, and ridiculously flat. 30 years have helped me hone the art of finding non-clown shoes, but it's still drama I'd rather avoid. This is why I LOVED my experience at Running Fit. I walked in, said I needed shoes to walk on the treadmill. The sales girl measured my foot, checked out my non-arch, and went back to get relevant boxes. No staring at shoes on the rack for an hour, no struggling to decide which wouldn't make my feet look gigantic, and, most wonderfully, no look of horror and doubt when asking for a size 10. She just went back and got what she knew I needed -- and after I tried on the first pair said "You need a bigger shoe" (egads!)... But she was right. Who knew? I'd say it took less than 15 minutes and zero stress. And, having walked in my new shoes for a few days now, I'm still super happy. Perhaps this is the exact motivation I needed -- I want to walk on the treadmill JUST so I have an excuse to wear my fancy new shoes!

My shoes thank Lisa for sending me to them.

My feet are addicted to sitting on the couch.

Now, back to culprit of my needing-to-walkness... Food! I confess, I'm a little bit of an Ann Arbor snob -- I love all our restaurants and the charm of Main Street. Yes, we have a Mongolian BBQ, but for the most part, we have a lot of unique little restaurants. Upon learning Main Street would be receiving a Melting Pot, my brain said "Ugh! A chain?!" but my belly said "Oh la la! Sign me up!" Brad and I have been wanting to go for weeks, and we finally made a date with Rachel and Don and headed over there last Friday.

To start, I had the most amazing drink -- the Love Martini... Peach Schnapps, rum, cranberry... Delicious. They also have quite a decent wine list, including a full page of sparklers (Sex, too!), and other fancy cocktails. Ultimately, you go to the Melting Pot for the cheese, right?? Brad and I got the Wisconsin fondue, with cheddar and blue cheese. Hello? Yum! Why do they not give free refills of fondue?!? Sadly, the cheese ended and it was onto the "food" portion. Honestly, I could do without the food. It's hard to find a cooking method my guts can handle, and I'd really rather just eat more cheese, BUT it was still fun, and the tempura shrimp was a delicious surprise. Next up, and almost as lovely as the fondue part, dessert. Mmmm. The four of us shared the cherries jubilee and peanut butter chocolate fondues. PB/choc fondue plus banana? O.M.G. Why are there only four slices of banana? Come on, Melting Pot! Don't be such a scrooge! Give us more banana! Anyway, it was a great time, and the perfect double date night with our awesome peeps. All in all, I am glad AA got its own Melting Pot.

Special specials to check out:

Sunday Early Bird Special
Every Sunday from Noon to 4 p.m.
Receive a FREE chocolate fondue with the purchase of any "Entree For Two" or $14 off our Big Night Out from noon to 4 p.m.

Happy Hour Specials
Monday-Thursday 4pm-6pm
Receive 1/2 off cheese fondue, $2 off glass wine pours, $2 off specialty martinis, and $1 off all beer.

Score.

Finally, I leave you with my favorite new find. Gummie cherries!!! And they actually taste like cherry. YUM.