Expiration Dates

As I’ve mentioned before, I’m a groupon (and every other social couponing site under the sun) groupie. Seriously, I have a pile of 1/2 off this, $25 off that at home that is beginning to reach the ceiling. That fact alone should motivate me to start using some of these “coupons” (that I paid money for…you know, to save money), but it typically doesn’t. It’s the expiration date that always lights a fire under my toosh. And somehow, the last week of August was the expiration date for a number of pieces of paper in that wobbling pile.

On Monday night, I ate Wafels for dinner (http://wp.me/p1Im9i-3L), due to an impending “good until” mark. And last night, the JD and I enjoyed a BYOB painting class (while I’m not sure when the ex. date was for this guy, I realllly wanted to paint the picture they had assigned for last night, so it needed to happen) followed by a few nibbles and drinks at a new-to-us place called Sidebar–which we discovered is not only the name of a bar, but a very term relevant in both of our fields. From dictionary.com:

- a typographically distinct section of a page, as in a book or magazine, that amplifies or highlights the main text (i write these bad boys on the reg)

-  a conference between the judge and lawyers (JD!) out of the presence of the jury

Learn something new every day, right? Okay, you probably already knew all of that. Moving on.

So the painting class was put on by Paint Along NYC (http://paintalongnyc.com/) and was lotttts of fun! The JD and I had went to a very similar class when I lived in Georgetown called Brush and Blush (if you live in the NOVA/DC area I highly recommend checking it out). In Gtown, the class mostly consisted of couples having date night. The JD and I drank wine while painting pictures of wine bottles. It was all right up my marathonwiner-alley and a good time was had by all.

At PaintAlong last night, the art we were mimicking was that of a peacock feather. I was excited. I’m sure the JD was a little less so. Especially when he showed up to discover he was the only dude in attendance (this is why it’s a good idea that these places are BYOB. Wine makes everyone more at ease). I’m sure he was soooo happy that he left work early for that. Isn’t he a doll? Anywho, peacock feathers and soaring estrogen/girl talk aside, we still had a really good time last night . And all the ladies present agreed that the JD was a trooper, but it was the perfect date night place.

Look ma, I can paint!

After scrubbing all the paint off our hands, hanging up our smocks and packing up our paintings, we headed down to Union Square.  Our tums were rumbly and we had $20 to kill on drinks–no problem there. I ordered the hummus platter and the JD, the buffalo chicken wrap. Both were surprisingly good for a sports bar (apparently Sidebar is run by the same people who own the Pourhouse) and I would definitely go back.

By the time we made it home it was prettty late for a random Tuesday night out, and I definitely did not make it up for my 4-miler this morning. Oops.

I’m hoping to squeeze it in sometime before leaving work today and heading out to Long Island tonight. Doable? Here’s hoping. Because I’d much rather get a run in now, than after being in a car for 6 hours tomorrow. I’m heading out to LI tonight so I can meet my aunt to roadtrip it back to Richmond–yep, another round of running on my parents sidewalk-less streets in southern humidity (hopefully, they will have power up and running by Thursday)! A cousin from Atlanta is supposed to be visiting and word on the street she’s bringing her adorable baby boy with her, whom I’m just itching to meet. I can give up CP for a few days for that And hopefulllly the little sis and her bike will also be there, so I can give some of those crucial hills another go (http://wp.me/p1Im9i-28)and have company for a long run (http://wp.me/p1Im9i-2l)!

- Have you been to any painting classes? Know of any other unique classes I should be trying??

- What are YOUR Labor Day weekend plans?

Dinges DOES sound like a dirty word.

But it is in fact, quite the opposite. Dinges defines all of the most tasty and delectable treats you can add on top of a warm, freshly made waffle. At least that’s the definition used by Wafels and Dinges (wordpress, whhyyy can’t I put links in anymore? http://www.wafelsanddinges.com/index.html). Who fed me my breakfast-for-dinner last night.

To be more specific, dinges is apparently a Flemish word meaning “things” or “whatchamecallits.” Works for me. And to be more specific, works for my tum.

After a very long overdue visit to my gym where I did my normal elliptical/weight routine (and for the first time ever, took advantage of the fact that the gym has foam rollers on hand–my body appreciates the fact that I’m finally paying attention to it) I meandered up Broadway in search of the Wafels and Dinges wheels. I had (brace yourselves for this shock), a living social voucher for the Belgian food truck that was on the verge of expiration..aka, it technically expired yesterday, but due to the weekend’s closures they extended the deadline to today.

Never one to let a penny go to waste, I was determined to get my one savory, one sweet waffle and a drink deal no matter what it took. Apparently many other New Yorkers had the same idea in mind. Because I ended up waiting on the corner of 71st and Bway for an HOUR. For waffles. Who in their right mind does that? Penny pinches and waffle lovers I guess, because the line was out the wazoo. People grew impatient after the first 45 minutes or so, to the point where I actually witnessed a woman dropping f-bombs at the poor dudes manning the truck. F-bombs! Over waffles! And here I thought I lived in the friendliest city in the world. Guess some New Yorkers get overly touchy when it comes to grid-shaped dough smothered in spekuloos and other deliciousness?

What is spekuloos? I have no idea. I tried to find out by asking one of the super friendly (even after the f-bombing) men in the truck’s window and the reply was something along the lines of “butterflies and rainbows and sugar and love for your tummy.” Sounded good to me! So I brought home one savory waffle (covered in pulled pork, bbq sauce and cole slaw…yes, you read that right) and one savory (with said spekuloos–amazing, by the way–hot fudge, bananas and strawberries). To try to rid myself of some of the guilt that comes with eating two overflowing waffles for “dinner,” I had half of each and saved the other halves for the JD to try when he got home. We went to bed dreaming of dinges.

This morning I very begrudgingly woke up for a run (waffles are good pre-run fuel, right?) and reenacted the same script I roll through every morning: “Just go back to bed. You don’t need to run today. You don’t need to run any day, because who are you kidding? You are not a runner. You can’t run a marathon.”

I told myself that was all true, and all well and good, but marathon or not I had some pork and hot fudge to burn off, so I pulled on the sneaks and headed out the door.

For some reason, all of my runs lately have been realllly dragging for the first few miles. And today was no exception. I told myself as long as I did 4, I’d be happy and I’d be in line with Hal’s recommended distance for the day. I entered a branch battered Central Park (Irene didn’t do too much damage otherwise), at 96th street and pushed myself through one loops of the Bridle Path. If I had headed home from there I would have hit the 4 mile goal, but as is also the case with my runs lately, by the time I hit 3-4 miles, I finally fall into the groove. So I did another loop around the reservoir and headed back towards home. Once near home, I went beyond the groove and found my runner’s high (Oh, HELLO high, why can’t you visit first thing in the a.m. when I really need your company?) and tacked on one more hilly mile before calling it quits. All in all, around 8 miles covered this a.m. And heading into the 8th mile is when I reallly started to feel good and wanted to keep going. If I wasn’t already crazy late for work, I probably would have (as it is, I already had to text my boss and make up an excuse for being late. It was “the JD locked himself out of the apt and I had to bring him keys.” Thanks for being my scapegoat, babe!). Getting this second gust of wind at mile 8 was a confidence boost…I’m hoping I’ll get it again in a few weeks when I have to hit 15-16 miles (my longest/scariest distance to date).  

But 8 miles for this morning worked out perfect,  since I am going to a BYOB Painting Class tonight (you’ll get full details on that tomorrow morning…this post is already far too long) and expect I’ll want a shorter jog tomorrow morning.

-Thoughts on foam rollers? I’ve been toying with the idea of buying one for ages, but they are pricey. After getting to check it out at the gym last night, I’m thinking it could definitely be worthhh the splurge. On the other hand, maybe I could just use it when I can get to the gym?

- What’s your favorite food truck? I clearly, may have discovered mine last night.

Well that was weird.

I think I speak for everyone on the east coast when I say this weekend was a strange one. The biggest debate coming out of Irene’s visit to NYC seems to: did we over-hype the hurricane? Given the damage that was done both south (my poor fam lost power Saturday and is still in the dark today) and north of here, I think the NY government did what was necessary to keep as many people as safe as possible. We dodged a big bullet. Kudos, Bloomberg! I DO however, think some NYC residents may have overreacted overprepared, given the state of super market shelves and check-out lines all weekend. What are all of those people going to do with 8423094 tons of water and mini generators in their tiny apartments now? Oh, well.

Irene also ruined plans for a friend of mine to visit this weekend, which meant that for the first time in aboutttt 4 months, I had a full weekend, in Manhattan, fully free. But with 90% of stores and restaurants around town closed for most of Saturday and Sunday, the city was a bit of a ghost town. So even though we had little rain (at least during the waking hours), there was essentially nothing to do. Other than run. And drink wine. Both of which I did plenty of.

Since yesterday’s half in the Bronx was canceled, I decided to wake up early Saturday morning and run my own half marathon in Central Park. Apparently, everyone else signed up for the race had the same idea…or at least, every other runner in Manhattan was getting one last run in before the storm, because the park was packed on Saturday. With only runners and bikers, as everyone else was evacuating or locking themselves in their hotels for the weekend. During my 13.1 miles it was cloudy, but not yet raining and a light mist starting spitting just as I finished up. It was perfect.

The rest of Saturday day was spent watching the weather on the news (it was eerie seeing Times Sq deserted and other snapshots of a completely empty city) and out the window, and looking for opportunities to get outside and wander around before the “big rains”  came. By 8:00 cabin fever had already settled in–which was extremely upsetting since we were anticipating being hunkered down by even bigger rains all day Sunday. Saturday night, said cabin fever finally got the best of me and I broke down and opened up a bottle of wine, while settling in to a few hours worth of card games.

And apparently, in the few hours we slept, Irene came and went. When Sunday morning arrived and I flipped the TV back on for some more hurricane coverage, I discovered that NYC had seen the most it was going to see of the big bad cane. Parts of Battery Park and the east river flooded, Central Park and other areas had trees down and a few other hazards, but the UWS looked as if any other summertime storm had passed through.

The JD and I were itching to get out, and went for a long, leisurely stroll around the neighborhood, judging the sissy stores from the badass ones based one which ones were closed and which ones bothered to open. Luckily for our rumbling tummies, Jackson Hole was one of the badass ones:

this place was staying open no matter what Irene said

A veggie burger smothered in mushrooms with a large stack of fries on the side was the perfect post hurricane wine night half marathon lunch. Thank you, Jackson Hole, for not being a sissy.

85940 hours later, when we finally digested our hearty lunches, the JD and I hit the roads again, for a recovery run. Recovery from the 13.1 miles tackled Saturday morning, and the 13.1 drinks imbibed Saturday night. My legs were super stiff and achy at first, but by the end of 4.5 miles, they felt good and despite battling some brutal winds, I was sooo glad to have gotten out there. 35 miles for the week, check! And tonight, I’ll likely return to the gym for some ellipticalling to give the old legs a little breather.

After being hunkered down all weekend waiting for the dark and stormy, this morning welcomed a beautiful, beautiful day (albeit, a little too cool for my liking). The sun is shining and people are back to bustling around with big smiles on their faces. On top of that, despite the praying/panicking some people were doing over the subway system not being fully restored for this mornings commute, it was up and running at 6 a.m. And somehow (perhaps so many people were still stranded on Long Island or in other boroughs), it was even less crowded than usual, and running much faster than anticipated. Not a bad way to start a Monday, kids. So enjoy yours!

- How did you ring in the hurricane Saturday night?

- Did Irene force anyone to get creative with their runs this weekend? I was fully prepared to run repeats of my apartment buildings stairways yesterday morning (though thank gooooodness it didn’t come down to that)!

13.1 Done and Done

So what do you do when a hurricane cancels your half marathon in the Bronx? You run it anyway, the day before the planned race, in Central Park.

At least that’s what I do. And from the looks of CP this morning, so do a lot of other New Yorkers. The outer loop was paaacked today with crowds nearing the size of NYRR races (okay, slight exaggeration, but there was definitely a lot more people than a typical 7 a.m. jog through the park), and so many were decked out in their Bronx Half shirts. I unfortunately was not, even though I made a special effort to walk the 4.5 miles home from work yesterday just so I could swing by NYRR HQ and grab mine non-racing race shirt. But they  were out of every size but the super large manly ones. Apparently, if I’m up for the walk again on Tuesday, they’ll have some restocked for us ladies. I DID manage to pick up my pretty pink bib though!

I did not manage to wear said bib this a.m., though I guess I could have gotten a chuckle out of some fellow runners if I had. Even so…without a tee, without a bib and without a D-tag, I set out determined to run 13.1 miles.

And I did.

Pretty pink bib can go in the folio right? I mean I DID run 13.1...however unofficial...

And even though my watch has kicked the bucket, I’m pretty sure I beat my time on my last half–though there’s no official way to know (thanks a lot, Irene). The last time I remember seeing on the microwave as I left the apartment this a.m. was 6:47. I stretched a bit (which I assume killed a few minutes) and headed down and out of the apartment, and when I finished 13.17 miles, my cell phone said it was 8:50. So regardless of the lack of a d-tag, I’m quite pleased with this run.

Here’s a few other reasons I’m happy with this run, and am convinced that had the Bronx half not been canceled, I would have PR’d:

1. I was not racing. I was trying to take things nice and easy–not just because long runs should be nice and easy,  but I wanted to be 100% sure I didn’t put any unnecessary pressure on my hip. Had this been the Bronx half, I probably would have raced it (intentionally or not), and therefore decreased my time even more…I probably would have also finished with an aching hip and who knows what other pains. So I guess I have Irene to thank for that? Grr…thanks, girl.

2. I’m pretty sure I had negative splits. That was in no way planned, simply how things went. The first loop was pretty standard, but by the second loop I was getting tired. And wanted to be done. So I went up hills as fast as I could with the mentality “the sooner I get through this hill, the sooner I get to the downhill, the sooner I finish.” Etc, etc.

3. I had no tum issues. I won’t go into details, but anyone who’s heard me recap my half marathon last November knows that the tum created some obstacles for me, that I think ultimately affected my time. They also affected my post-marathon party plans. Today, I made zero potty stops during the run, and now, two hours after finishing, the tum is still going strong.

Here’s a few things I learned from this run:

1. I MUST learn how to fuel better for long runs. This went okay, because it’s a distance I’m comfortable with, but I was trying to use it to train myself into fueling during runs. All I managed was to pop like 4 Jelly Belly sports beans and a few sips of water at a fountain about 7 miles in. [Note: sports beans are NOT my fuel of choice, but they were the easiest to carry/manuever midrun, and they happened to be the first thing I saw on my way out the door.] See number 2 up above–I always get the mentality that I just want to finish, and I’d rather bust out a few more miles at the pace I’m at rather than stop for a snack and some H20. I realize this is stupid, and will be more apparently so as my mileage increases. Please tell me how to make myself take more efficient and frequent water and gu/gel/chomp/whatever breaks.

2. Ice baths and NYC bathtubs (at least mine) are not compatible. Again, for fear of doing any damage to my hip, I decided to try to take extra good care of it after this mornings run, and picked up a bag of ice on the way home. I followed all of Sweaty Emily’s tips, because this was my first-ever attempt at an ice bath and I wanted to do it right. However, my teenie tiny bath tub had other plans. I realized for the first time since moving in, I cannot even sit in said tub and stretch out my legs fully. It’s just not big enough. I also realized that not having a stopper for the drain and attempting to use the tub mat to keep the water in does not really work [note to self: get to a hardware store to try to fix that, stat]. And as I cannot control the water temp in my apartment, it was difficult to get it really cold to start. So the ice didn’t last long. But I did what I could to get that poor left hip submerged for as long as the water/ice will last. We’ll see how it feels later today.

Also later today, I’d love some hurricane-style 16 handles. Does anyone know if it will be open past noon? Will anything be open past noon? Irene’s causing a hot mess in this city.

I could go on for a while, but the JD and I are going to attempt a Rite-Aid run before the weather gets ugly. Wish us luck, because yesterday the drug store was so packed/rampaged you’d think the apocalypse was coming.

Stay dry, stay safe, and have an awesome hunkered-down weekend!

Come on, Irene!

So after alllll that whining and wondering what to do in Sunday’s half in the Bronx (go slow/try to PR/wear a poncho/etc) it’s canceled?!!? Due to inclement weather. While the sun is out shining as we speak.

From NYRR.org:

“Sunday Races Cancelled

Due to the cancellation of all NYC events on Sunday, August 28, the Bronx Half-Marathon and the Henry Isola Cross Country Classic have been cancelled. Bronx Half registered runners and volunteers who meet NYRR membership requirements will receive 9+1 qualifying credit toward 2012 marathon guaranteed entry, and registered runners who meet NYRR membership requirements will receive qualifying credit toward guaranteed entry to the 2012 NYC Half. Runners may still pick up their race shirts during registration hours at NYRR. In keeping with our policies, no race-entry refunds will be given.”

Ok, I get that when crazy rain and Night of the Twistersesque rains roll through here Sunday morning I will be very happy about NYRR’s decision to cancel. But as it stands right now…fjsdiofeonl!

Now I must make the crucial decision to try to run long tomorrow or Monday. Perks of running long tomorrow: rest of the [stormy] weekend can be enjoyed gallivanting around the city with my good friend from Bmore. You know, the one that got me hooked on racing (WordPress is being lame and wont let me be suave about inserting links, so here you go: https://marathonwiner.wordpress.com/race-history/)

Sidenote: Irene may also stop her from making it here at all. UGH.

Perks of running long Monday: I can take the weekend to realllllly REST. Nip whatever this hip issue may have been in the bud for good [update: it is feeling significantly better since taking it easy on this week's runs and doing stretches suggested by friends].

What’s a girl to dooooo?!

Anywho. Quick recap on the rest of yesterday…

The birthday lunch with my cousin was lovelyyyyy. We were also there to celebrate her getting a job out in Chicago to be closer to her fiance And now that I’ve fallen in love with the Windy City (again, linkage issue: https://marathonwiner.wordpress.com/2011/08/24/life-aint-a-track-meet/), I’m thrilled to have a place to visit any ol time I want! Congrats again, cous!

The rest of the workday trickled by. Afterwards I rushed home to make it to the bar both the cleaners and laundromat before last call closing time. That’s right. I spent a good chunk of my evening doing domestic chores, but I’m cool with it, because I have a 100% restocked supply of running clothes tossed into neatly folded in my dresser drawers.

And the housework was just done to kill time before meeting the JD for a delicious bday dinner at a hard to find but easy to love place called Antica Venezia. It was sort of in the middle of nowhere, but had awesome atmosphere and amaaaazing food. I tried the Red Snapper, JD the Veal Scallopini, and both of us had our fill of bread and complimentary appetizers galore. Too bad I didn’t have a run planned this morning because I was doing some serious carb loading. The meal was of course served with a delectable glass of Montepulciano (you know this marathon WINEr just can’t resist). And while I was faaaarrr too full to pick out something off the dessert menu, we were so graciously provided some lovely glasses of Sambuca and Limoncello…on the house! Can’t stick a candle in those, but a good sub for birthday cake nonetheless!

While the work is piling up, I’ll likely spend the remainder of today debating what to do as far the weekend, weather and running go. Yoga tonight? Gym tonight? Total rest tonight? Long run tomorrow? Long run Monday? Hurricane party Sunday (replay of Eagle hall during Isabel, anyone)?

26 (.2)

My birthday was always bittersweet for me as a kid because as exciting as it was to have pool parties with all of your friends and restock the Barbie dolls, the occasion also sort of marked the end of summer and the return to the school year. This year, I am sad to see summer race to an end slip away but I am thrilled for fall weather–for no other reason than the obvious, perfect running climate.

Yesterday I hit up the park after work, and had to convince myself that it was still only August and not October. The temperature was still warm but certainly not hot, and there was a continuous lazy breeze wisping around. I was running super slow for fear of doing any damage to the whole hip issue, but I was clogging along with a big dorky smile on my face.

And while the post-work runs in the park have actually been surprisingly nice and enjoyable (minus constantly having to two-step out of the way of roller bladers, tourists, cars, etc, etc.), I’m going to need to stop. At least until the Borders in the Time Warner building actually closes. Because as it is, it’s impossible for me to pick up my bag from New York Running Company and waltz right past the bright yellow signs screaming “books! on sale! you know you want them!” I do want them. I wanted them before they were 50% off. So naturally, when they are 50% off, me and my wallet go in and do some damage. Early birthday present to me? Ooops.

After loading my already heavy commuter bags down with the weight of the entire half-off literary fiction section I finally made it home to finish unpacking from this weekends awesome trip westward and get some cleaning done. The night ended with trying out some stretches suggested by my few blog followers and many FB friends (thanks for going the extra mile Janette!)

This morning those same stretches were repeated after a quick 4-miler to the reservoir and back–but a super special 4-miler as I had a special sub running for the RB–the JD! Yay. This may have been one of the first times we’ve managed to run together before work, as I’m usually up and out with the RB at the crack of dawn and he’s more of an evening exerciser. But late nights at the office (+ dinner plans tonight ) make for an early morning if you want to fit it all in!

I’m definitely looking forward to another day of eating all my meals out..and I mean all of them. My super cheap office started charging for coffee (that has to be a crime in some country), and I forgot to bring my own k-cups in…so birthday latte for me? If I must! Then there’s a lunch date with the cous, and a dinner date with the JD.

Yes. I’m sure you caught on by now. Today is my birthday. I normally wouldn’t feel the need to shout it to the world (especially since 26 is a scary age for me…I’m no longer early 20s, but late 20s. eeks), but I’ve found it particularly nice that I’m running 26.2 miles the year I turn 26. That little deat makes it all a little more tolerable. If only my birthday were November 12…wouldn’t that be cute! And this bday relates to running in other ways…After the JD and I returned from this mornings (another day of perfect running weather) jog I was showered with gifts, all of which can be found on the right hand side of this page. I can check off the bib book and the medal rack from my “Running Wish List”. Thanks babe

Hope your Thursdays delightful, all!

- All this talk about nice running weather, but theres a big dark cloud where excitement should be hovering over my thoughts on Sunday’s race. To those ”planning” on “running” the Bronx Half…are you doing it rain or shine? It was so NOT comforting to see the mayor interrupt the Today Show this morning to talk about emergency weather plans/evacuations/etc. to prepare for this weekend. Clearly, NYRR will cancel the event if its dangerous conditions, but what if it’s just BELOW the line of dangerous and the run goes on?! I’m far more nervous now than I was a few weeks ago…

- What was one of YOUR favorite birthdays?

Life Ain’t a Track Meet

it’s a marathon. Right, Ice Cube?

At least, that was the theme of the last almost-week in the mid-west. And I don’t mean it was a marathon in the sense that I would have liked it to be (aka, running).  But it was an absolute blast.

Bright and early Thursday morning the JD and I were en route to La Guardia to head out to the Windy City. We met his sister at O’Hare and hopped on the [very subway-like, though not quite as efficient] L in the direction of downtown Chicagooo.

Within seconds of reaching the sidewalks, I was in love with the city. It was funny that just the day before, I had asked readers if there was any city more friendly than New York, because Chitown definitely runs a close second.

I’m pretty sure every single person we encountered–from strangers in the L stations, to hotel concierges to businessmen on the street–had a huge smile and a hellohowareyouhowcanihelpyou?

We spent the afternoon doing all kinds of sightseeing–from the beaches, to the John Hancock building, to the bean and memorial park, and every other spec of city in between (photos to come when I’ve had 5 seconds to unpack/catch up on 3 months work of work/run a half marathon on Sunday). And we  ended the evening at the House of Blues–very fitting for being in such a jazzy town. All in all? An awesome welcome.

Friday we were once again up bright and early to make our way to Madison, WI, where all of the real fun was getting started–the wedding! While the bridal party took care of rehearsal day activities, the JD and I did some more sightseeing, this time around the University of Wisconsin. I’m pretty sure I’ll apply here every semester for the rest of my life until I’m accepted. The school had awesome bars right on the waters of Mendota. The campus was gorgeous, and once again, so friendly and inviting!

Before a non-bridal rehearsal dinner at the home of the parents of the bride, [and after an unwanted rest day on Thursday] I laced up to try to get some mileage under my belt. My watch was broken and I was not near a computer (aka, mapmyrun), so I can only guess what I covered based on my time. I ran for the amount of time I’ve been averaging in NYRR’s 10k’s, and given it was hot and I was charting unfamiliar territory, I’ll guess it ended up being about 6 miles. I can live with that.

After a super fun night of family,  friends and foods, we wrapped up Friday night and headed back to the hotel. Where I awoke Saturday morning for some pre-Wedding ceremony CT-ing. At 2:00 we made our way to an oh-so-scenic ceremony right alongside the shores of lake Monona (thank you for the very distinct differences in lake names, WI). Though not in the bridal party ourselves, the JD and I were invited onto the [bridal] party bus that snaked around downtown and onward to the reception–again, waterfront and complete with pontoon boat rides. Every little detail about the day was beautiful, and once the food got flowing and the music pumping…well, let’s just say I did not manage to stay on the wagon as I had hoped, and the night ended with sore feet for all from so much dancing. Wedding = big success.

(Speaking of weddings…everyone log in here: http://nbcmiamihoneymoon.com/2011/voting/?do_login and vote for my bffs Paige and Patrick to help them win a dream honeymoon!!)

Sunday unfortunately turned into another unwanted rest day as far as hitting the pavement is concerned, but perhaps you can count all of the paddling I did as some sort of strength training? The JD’s Wisconsin fam arranged for the whole crew to go tubing down the Wisconsin River by day, and dinner cruising down the Mendota by night (was this a weekend of water sports or what?). I’m pretty sure I ate about 3 months worth of food while on the dinner cruise, but it was worth every guilt-ridden nibble. If the theme of the weekend was not water sports, it was good food [with a heavy focus on lots of cheeeese, as can be expected] and good company.  

Monday morning (after a very painful 6 mile run on the treadmill. yes, this girl who hates treadmills covered 6 miles on one, I think a new record) delivered us back to the Windy City, where we again spent a lot of time just walking around and taking it all in (and did a little detour on the ride in, to the neighborhood where the JD was born…awww). Monday night brought another weekend highlight–a Cubs game at Wrigley field!

I haven’t been to a whooole lot of stadiums in my day, but of the ones I have been to (Shea stadium and Citifield, both Yankee stadiums, both Nationals stadiums, Camden yards and I’m not sure which others) I think it’s my new favorite. It has such an awesome yet old school vibe to it–like yes, this sport really IS America’s past time. From the physical structure, to the music to the menu items, I loved everything about this world-renowned and well-respected ballpark. The game–while not high scoring–was a good one, and bookoos of fun.

Whatup Wrigley!

We hit up one bar afterwards (more to be able to say we went “out” in Chicago than anything else I think) and then called it a night. We all slept like logs. Yet I somehow managed to get my toosh outta bed by 7 to get to the hotel gym for some more CT-ing. I’m trying to hide my disappointment in the fact that I had 3 CT days and only 2 running days in the whole mid-western adventure, but between the constant stream of fun-filled events and a still achy hip, I had no other option.

Tuesday morning everyone left in the caravan had a different departure time so we once again meandered around [a very rainy] Chicago, the group getting smaller and smaller as everyone peeled off. Since the weather was a bit yucky (but hey, no earthquakes or anything, as was reported back home) we did our sightseeing under the shelter of the rental car, but managed to see Navy Pier, the University of Chicago, and more of the outskirts of the city that we missed on our own walking tour. The best part about Tuesday though, was (shock of all shocks) lunch. Which was consumed at Gino’s East, which was where I had my first-ever, authentic deep-dish pizza. It was everything I dreamed it would be and more.

This post is already going on far longer than I had meant for it to (though still expected it to), so to wrap things up, the JD and I arrived home super late last night, I was very much unable to motivate myself for a 6a.m. wakeup call and will now try to scurry through today’s work and hit up Central Park afterwards. Then there’s lot of unpacking and cleaning to do, which I hope will keep my mind off the fact that I have a half marathon to run Sunday in the Bronx. And don’t feel ready. At all. Eeks!

Happy Hump Day!

- Need serious runner commentation here: Has anyone else had this weird hip pain? It’s only on one side, and usually only after a long run. I used to get it now and then and it’d go away, but for the last week or so, it just feels like it’s always there, in various degrees.

- Have you been to Chicago? What’s your favorite touristy thing to see? What’s your favorite deep-dish pizza competitor?

Ouchie Mama

There are many great things about having an RB, but the two greatest are:

1. When you’re alarm goes off at 5:45 a.m. and you convince yourself you’re not realllly a runner and can just go to back sleep and make up those miles some other time, just before you hit snooze you remember your RB is waiting for you 10 blocks away so you better hop to it. Moral of story: having an RB is much better than having an alarm clock.

2. When you realllly don’t feel like running for this reason or that reason, as soon as you jog those 10 blocks to where your RB awaits, you have company. And the chatter helps take your mind off the fact that you didn’t want to be running, and the next thing you know you’ve hit your runner’s high and you’re good to go for another XX miles.

This morning, I failed my RB in terms of point numero uno up there. Sorry RB, I stink. I could just NOT get out of bed. My legs were stiff, my eyes were tired and I just could. not . do. it. and decided to put things off until later in the day. After I dozed back off and woke up a few hours later, I realized “later in the day” was not an option, as I’ve got errands on Long Island after work today. So I dragged my bootay outta bed and laced up for a solo, late morning run. Which means I also missed out on point numero dos above.

It was a gorgeous morning! The rain finally seems to have left for good, the sun was shining but the heat was holding off…everything about this morning said Runners Paradise. Unfortunately, I just wasn’t feeling it. Whatever the reason–those achy legs, the funny hip thing I’ve got going on or overall lack of sleep–I just could not hit that high today.

And I’ve realized that’s okay, for many reasons, primarily:

1. Perhaps the bod is screaming at telling me it’d like me to take a breather, go easy on it for a while. Ok, body. I can do that. Because,

2. Tomorrow is a travel day. And I’ll be traveling out to Chicago with the JD and his fam and really couldn’t guarantee any kind of a workout even if I wanted to, because I haven’t a clue where the day will bring us. Wish granted achy legs, funny hips and tired eyes. Get ready to rest up. Because burnout is one thing I do NOT want. Because,

3. Once I’m back from this long wedding weekend away I am going to finally sync up my schedule with what Hal has laid out in the training plan..though whether or not I’ll be following that novice 1 (vs 2 perhaps?) to a tee is still up in the air. One thing I DO know is, I want more quality and less quantity.

This morning I hit a little over 7 miles (that seems to be the theme this week), but I was miserable for most of them. Meanwhile, in Richmond, I covered a much shorter distance doing mountain hill repeats and loved every minute of it, plus felt like a badass for the intensity of the workout. That’s going to be the focus upon my return. And some shorter mileage in the week before the Bronx Half is probably, no–definitely, a good thing. There you have it body, wish/rest/Hals plan granted!

*Funny update…this was posted on FB this afternoon:

SunTrust Richmond Marathon: Do you have a training group or running buddy that’s helping you keep your eye on the prize? Tell us about ‘em and you will be entered to win a $50 gift card to Roadrunner Running Store. Winner will be drawn Thursday, August 25.

Ironic? I think not. MY marathon ALSO discussing RB’s and the day of choosing a winner is my bday? Hot dog! I want it!

Anywho–another busy day at work ahead, followed by a quick trip out to Long Island to drop off items for a realllllly great cause! New Yorkers/Long Islanders, if you’re around this weekend, it’d be worth your while (and the while of many others) to head to Cedar Beach for the 2nd Annual Lexi’s Beach Bash, hosted by the Alexis Pilkington Memorial Foundation! There will be live music, fun raffles and an auction with lots of cool giveaways

Onward to tackle the day! Not sure what the posting will be like while in Chicago/Madison, but will do my darndest to stay on top of things. If I don’t, make me feel cool and leave comments about how you’re just dyingggg to know what sort of runs I’m logging in the midwest

- Do you push through a run you don’t want to be running or call it a wash?

- [Shameless plug for my city] Is there a friendlier city than NY? No really. People who have never been to the Big Apple associate it with all things pushy and terrifying. But this city is so nice. A friend who was in for the bachelorette party this weekend (from Boston) said she’s never seen so many people so willing to give directions or smile a hello. I have NEVER seen a mom/babysitter/womanofothersortswithababy have to carry a stroller up a flight of subway stairs. Some gentleman always offers first. And the little man at my favorite fruit stand always takes whatever change I pull out of my pocket, even when I tell him I have more! He takes my 25 cents, hands me a plum and tells me to have a lovely day. I love this city. So tell me really…is there a friendlier one?

From Success to Stress

Happy rainy Tuesdayyyyy kids!

So yesterday’s interview went ok. Again, just waiting to see what the inbox presents me with this week and definitely don’t have a whole lotta wishful thinking going on. After it was over it was a little too late to go back to the office (err…at least in my eyes), so I scooted over to the gym. And I am sooo glad I did. It had been way too long since I had some quality cross training time, and I made sure to do some much-needed stretching and strength training. I’m definitely still not where I think I should be as far as those two areas are concerned, but it was nice to get a little taste again.

This morning had me jogging down CPW and to meet the RB at Columbus Circle, as her schedule had her closer to that neighborhood this morning. The run down to the circle was nice–it was misting, but nothing compared to Sunday’s wet, rainy run.

Unfortunately, by the time I met up with the RB, I had an annoying pain in my upper leg/hip and had to move pretty slow for the remainder of the run. We headed right back up West Drive toward our usually meeting point, where I peeled off toward home, leaving poor RB to finish out her run in the park solo. I wasn’t sure how my hip would hold out and didn’t want to risk being too far from home, but I ended up tacking on one extra mile in the blocks surrounding mi casa. The rain held off and it was great running weather. And all in all, I covered just about 7.4 miles. Respectable, yes. But I hate ending at odd increments! So wish I would have known to go the extra .10!

Anywho, today and tomorrow are looking to be crazy busy days at the office…which is a good thing in that I hateeee being bored at work, bad because I have sooooo many more important non-work related things I want to tackle before heading to Chicago/Madison on Thursday! Here’s hoping things get checked off of both very long to-do lists!

- Anyone familiar with Chicago/Madison who can recommend places to get my runnn on while there?

- Anyone familiar with Chicago/Madison who wants to start adding to the list of touristy must-see’s and must-do’s (though I don’t know exactly how much time we’ll have to see and do things outside of all of the fun wedding-related plans!)?

 

Oh, and can we talk for a brief moment how ridiculous it is that mens clothes are so much cheaper to get dry cleaned? I swear so many summer “dresses” have less material than a mens dress shirt, but they cost 483204 x’s more. Not cool, dry cleaners. Not cool at all.

Success!

This weekend was a success in many ways. And a wee bit of a fail in one teeny tiny way.

After an amazing 12-mile run on Friday morning I was a busy bee at work before heading out early for a 2:00 interview. I won’t bore you with the details on that, especially since I never leave an interview with an “omigosh it went so well” feeling. We’ll wait and see what my inbox has to offer…which thus far, is nothing. Immediately following that interview I headed up to Penn Station to meet two of my very bestest gal pals in from Richmond for a Big Apple Bachelorette Weekend! We waited around tourist town for a few while waiting for the fourth member of our very-SATC style entourage to get in from Boston and then we were off to get 80s night started!

Our bride-to-be is a big fan of the Madonna era, so we opted to rock out at Joshua Tree–a place that many assured me would not disappoint when it came to continuous 80s music and boatloads of frat boys. And it did not disappoint. And while most of those frat boys and their just-out-of-college lady friends attend JTree in their street clothes, we decided to shake things up a bit. And got decked out in the greatest array of neon and sequins H&M had to offer. It was hot:

This photo is apparently going on the bar's web site.

I may or may not have been the reason the night came to a close when it did, due to having had a 5:15 wake-up and 1 (or 10) too many dirty martinis. Spoiler: this is the fail of the weekend…the booze.

Saturday was an absolutely gorgeous day that we spent outside and on foot (zigzagging from Midtown to Union Sq. and back all day counts as CT, right?) as much as possible. After putting our feet up at the apartment for just a few minutes of relief, it was time to get ready for night #2. We started out at 44SW, a super cute little place in the Theater District, where a 5th bachelorette joined us from Astoria for the evening. Delicious food, delicious wine and plenty of good girl talk

From 44th we scooted on down to the West Village with one goal in mind: dancing (the bride-to-be’s favorite bar time activity). I don’t know the West Village well, but I know that it’s certainly not hard to find a fun bar, as there are about 12 on every block, so the goal was to just hop and go where the night took us. That mentality brought us to 1849, and funnily enough, Jekyll & Hyde (which I thought only existed in tourist town, aka, midtown). A strange pick for a bachelorette party? Yes. But since said bachelorette is getting hitched on Halloween weekend, it turned out it was a very appropriate place to grab a drink and whip out the iPhones to come up with a plan for the next pick.

We had Off the Wagon on the brain for a while, but somehow or another ended up at Wicked Willy’s. Which was the. best. place. we could have possibly ended up. A live band was playing covers of all kinds of favorites while subbing out names like Caroline or Sue with the bride-to-be’s name and actively enforcing the entire crowd to buy her and the bridal party shots. And they listened. Needless to say, Wicked Willy’s was wicked fun. After fighting with the blanket of rain that was coming down and some cranky cab drivers (what do you MEAN you won’t drive us to the UWS?) we made it home and passed out hard. Big Apple Bachelorette=success.

The rain continued all through yesterday and it was pretty awesome. Why? Because it was the first day in probably the last 842058490583443 that I can remember where I had nothing I needed to do. It felt awesome to just be lazy and relax for a while with no fixed schedule in sight.

Except, of course, for my marathon training schedule. I went into Big Apple Bachelorette weekend convinced that I could celebrate the bride-to-be, the 80s, good friends and good food with water as my toasting beverage of choice. Clearly, that was not the case. Booze taper=fail.

And while lazing on the couch yesterday after my friends departed (miss you ladies already), I knew that I’d enjoy my rainy Sunday much more if I ditched the blanket of guilt. So I laced up my sneaks and headed to the park.

It was only misting lightly when I left the house, but by the time I got to the southern end of the park the marathon training gods decided a little bit of guilt was not enough punishment for going on a bender 2 weeks before a half marathon and 10 before a full. The skies opened up and buckets of rain came down for the entire stretch of the east side of the park all the way through Harlem Hills.

I finished 7 miles soaked. to. the. bone.

I could literally wring out my clothes afterwards.

And while I spent a good 6 out of those 7 miles with an internal monologue that went something like this, “Welp, guess if it rains in Richmond on Nov. 12th you’ll be staying in bed because there’s no way you’d be able to do this for an additional 19.2 miles,” I felt really good once I reached the 7th mile. Rainy run=success.

It was not a fast run. My legs felt like lead. Rain added another 5643 pounds of weight to my shoes and poor choice of running clothes. But finishing a run in a downpour when you really wanted to quit 2 miles in always makes you feel like a bit of a badass. And it got me up to 35 miles for week.

This week is going to be another craaazy one. Leaving work early yet again, for another interview today. And CT is finalllly back on the agenda for tonight. Then I need to knock out as many miles as possible Tues and Wed before taking of to Chicago/Madison for a long wedding weekend with the JD and his fam. Do we think I can make it through the reception sipping solely on water? Here’s hoping!!

 

- Why must wedding season and marathon training fall so perfectly in sync? How do you balance your social life with your running routine?

- What’s your favorite rainy day activity?