A Day in the Big Apple

Yesterday I woke up ridiculously early, and couldn't get back to sleep.  So we were on the streets searching for a bagel shop first thing. We found an excellent one around the corner from our hotel.

Paul and I in Times Square - practically the only folks out aside from the street sweepers, around 6:30 am. 

Oh yeah, a sesame bagel with lox.  I would eat these all day.  And never get tired of them.  I totally plan to eat another for breakfast before we leave. 

The expo opened at 9.  We walked down (around a 10 block walk) and were there when the doors opened. 

After grabbing my number and shirt: 

The expo was huge!  We spent over an hour walking up and down the aisles, adding to our goodie bag.  I did buy a short sleeved technical running shirt and some gloves.  I had Paul buy a bright orange pair of arm sleeves for me as a Christmas gift (I'm always on the lookout for orange running gear so that hunters can see me).  Here's an overview of the expo: 

Walking back to the hotel.  Paul on bottom left, Hell's Kitchen flea market on the road straight ahead. 

We didn't get very much downtime before heading back to the expo.  See, Paul wanted to score the tickets for the Blues Traveler concert, and we had to be there at 12:30 sharp. This time, instead of walking, we rode the shuttle.

Paul got his tickets, and then we went to go hear Deena Kastor speak.

After she spoke, she did signings, so I had her sign my race number: 

Then, finally, around 2 pm we grabbed lunch.  I went for the Cuban food at a place called Havana's. 

We had plans to meet up with a college friend for some pizza, but he kind of flaked out on us (hmmm...he hasn't changed much since college ;-)).  Good Girl Gone Redneck was kind enough to recommend some pizza places to me, so we walked over to John's.  Sadly, the wait there was 90 minutes, so we decided to pass.  We just went to a place called A Slice of New York.  I had a piece of eggplant parmesan pizza and a slice of spinach florentine pizza.

It was great, but the slices were too huge for me to finish. 

So much energy in this city, but, back to the hotel early to rest up before Sunday's race.

I'm Not in Virginia Anymore

Paul and I had a very early morning.  We caught the 7:30 train out of Lynchburg, which is about a 90 minute drive from us.  So it was an early start.

The train was fun.  Much like an airplane, only roomier, and with no seatbelts.  Riding along this morning, we watched the sunrise up over the mists in the valleys, the leaves of fall practically at peak color.  I found the clickity clack of the train and the intermittent, muffled whistle very soothing. 

How fabulous, to just sit and do nothing.  For hours.

The train passed through my old high school stomping ground, Old Towne Manassas. 

Here's a view down through the cars: 

It was just outside of Washington D.C. that we ran into trouble.  Apparently, further up the track, there was a minor wreck of a freight train. 

This caused delays, and we were paused off and on for around 90 minutes.

Thankfully, we had back issues of The Office, Season 6, to watch, along with internet, magazines, and books.  So it wasn't too bad.  We eventually had to switch trains because of the accident.

Passing through Washington D.C.: 

Finally, a good 2 hours later than expected, we pulled into Penn Station.

And promptly began to unknowingly walk the opposite direction from Times Square.

By 13 blocks or so.

Wheeling our luggage. 

This ended up causing us to walk 25 blocks out of the way, pulling our luggage the whole way, in the middle of rush hour.

So that was interesting.

This seems to be a theme with Paul and I - these epic walking detours in random cities.

I still have nightmares of the time we thought it wouldn't be very far to walk from West End Dallas to Deep Ellum.  Rather late at night.  It was an terrifying enlightening detour.

Ah, finally, we found Times Square! 

The view from our hotel: 

We promptly dumped our gear in our room and headed out for dinner.  We were starved!

We found an unlikely place called Ellen's Stardust Diner. 

Crammed full, music loud, service slow.

But great food (I had a reuben) and the entertainment!

All the wait staff are Broadway wannabes, and they sing and dance on the tables through your meal.

This girl was actually on the rail behind our booth singing: 

And to cap off the night?

Yeah.  You know it called me in: 

Hiking the Kelso Sand Dunes

Today is Memory Lane Friday, a weekly blog carnival where you can blog about your memories and link up.  This week does not have a theme.

Six years ago, prekids, we were on a road trip and had one last day to play before flying out of Las Vegas.  So we decided to camp out in the Mojave desert. 

The Mojave is desert just like you'd imagine.

Acres of sand, small brush, dry arid heat, and blue skies.

Mysterious.

After choosing a camp, we headed out to find a hike, and decided on the Kelso Sand Dunes.

These sand dunes are huge. 

That little black dot in the middle?  Me!

Hiking up sand dunes is not an easy matter.  Every step you take buries your ankles in sand.  Your shoes fill quickly, and then you have to decide....shoes on and full of sand, or barefoot on the grainy, burning heat?

Temps were at least 100* this day, but it didn't stop us.

I look at this picture, and it just seems surreal that I was ever there.

Paul wore his snake gaiters in case we encountered any rattlesnakes.  We didn't, much to our disappointment.  Not that we're idiots who would've messed with a snake.  We just would've liked to have been distant observers.  Did you ever watch Venom ER?  I was really hoping to encounter Sean Bush, the snake doctor, out there prowling for snakes or performing a rescue.

If you have to endure the bite of a rattlesnake, at least you can be lucky enough to be treated by such a cute doctor, right?  ;-)

The thing that makes the Kelso dunes really unusual is that they are 'booming' dunes.  I can't remember exactly, but I think there is only one other set of dunes that boom.  What happens is that when you slide down them, they make a booming sort of trumpeting noise.

So fun!  If you enjoy hiking and are ever out in that corner on Nevada and California, it's definitely worth a side excursion.  It'll be an unforgetable hike!

Want to participate in Memory Lane Friday?  You can link up here:

Next week's topic is "Something You Hated".

You Can Take Your Green Beans and...

Every night I cook dinner.  It's generally well balanced and varied.  Most of the time, it's even healthy.  Paul mostly eats whatever I cook without complaint, and without comment.

Pierce usually picks at his food and eats one or two things.

Cort generally eats the fruit, if there is any, and screams and throws everything else to the floor.

My dear, dear Reid eats everything on his plate, every time.  And he doesn't object to seconds.

There is one thing, though, that Paul does.not.like.

Every time I make it, he comments about it.

And I say, "I know you don't like it, but you don't have to eat it".

And he says, "Well, it's just not my favorite"

The thing is, I just love it.  So two or three times a year, I make it despite how Paul feels.  Just so I can eat it.  Comfort food.

What is this dreadful, despised dish?

It's your standard green bean casserole.

That's right folks, in this case, green bean casserole does NOT mean love:

I can understand why he doesn't like it.  In fact, I don't know many people who are as enamoured by green bean casserole as me.  Actually, when I think about the ingredients, it does sound kind of gross.  But I adore green beans, and the casserole just pulls green beans into a sort of comforting goodness.  Perfect for crisp fall days. 

Lucky for Paul, I only torment him with the dish a couple of times a year.  And, in every case, there are other options on the table for him to eat.

Do you make any meals that you know your spouse hates, or am I the only one?

Will You Buy Me Cars? Mine is Scratched.

We've had the gunk going around the house.  I was stricken a little over a week ago, and as the days have progressed so has my misery.  This weekend it became clear to me that I had developed a sinus infection.  Granted, with time and a heavy dose of Neti Pot, these things can correct themselves.  However, what I don't have is time, with the NYC marathon quickly approaching.  And last time I tried to ignore a lingering sinus infection while running a marathon I returned home with pneumonia.  So I didn't want to repeat that. 

I was able to get a doctor appointment with the second place I tried, but would have to bring all 3 boys.  With Cort and Reid having the same gunk as me, I didn't want to spread germs on a babysitter.  Taking all 3 boys to the doctor with me causes anxiety.  I never know what will progress.  I loaded up with sippies and a pb+j (cut into tiny pieces) and off we went.  Pierce brought in his Cars book.  It's one of those books that has a steering wheel attached and plays various tunes.  While I worked to provide insurance and such, Pierce immediately settled in with an elderly lady on the couch.  It amazes me, how friendly he is.  I never strike up conversations with strangers.  What would be the point?  But Pierce?  He's right there every time.  So he quickly began teaching this lady all the tricks of his Cars book, while I squirmed uncomfortably, hoping that he wasn't disturbing her.  Granted, he's kinda cute and sweet, but some people just don't like kids, and I want to respect that.  Next thing I know, he's announced to the entire crowded waiting room that this lady is going to buy him a new copy of Cars, the movie, because his is scratched.  My face flushed with embarassment, and at the same time I tried not to laugh.

Thankfully, we got called back then.  Cort and Reid were in the double bob stroller, but they were getting restless.  Pierce was romping back and forth through the halls.  Is it any wonder, when they took my blood pressure, it was 137/90?  They must make allowances for moms who bring in 3 kids to the doctor when sick, because they didn't say anything about the elevation.  They were also kind enough to allow me to forego the scale.

In the examination room, Pierce declared himself sick and climbed on the table.  The twins ate their pb+j, doled out piece by piece.  The doctor examined me, and wrote a prescription for a Z Pack.  We survived and headed straight to the pharmacy, where Reid attached himself to the pharmacist and refused to let go.  Seriously, he ran straight to her, held up his arms to her, and yelled.  Apparently, he was saying, 'PICK ME UP' in Reid-speak.  So she did.  But then he clung to her as if he'd never let go and she couldn't put him down and so he settled in for a good snuggle.  Thumb in mouth, head on her shoulder, as though she wasn't some stranger he'd just met for the first time, but instead a long lost friend.  When I see him like that - turning to a random person for love - I feel terrible.  I want to just scoop him up, tell him I'm sorry I don't hold him enough, and never put him down again.  Because he is the most laid back of the boys, he seems to get the least attention.  I need more arms and more laps.  In fact, Cort is the only one who snarls his nose up at strangers. 

The bottom line is, we made it through the experience, and hopefully the medicine will clear up the gunk in no time.  I truly hope I don't need to return to the doctor in a very long while!

Fitness Recap, October, and some Legitimate Worries

My marathon is less than a week away, and I'm nervous.  More nervous than usual, because I have been having foot troubles.  It all started in the middle of my 20 miler.  This was my last big training run.  It was going well, and I was cruising along at the 15 mile mark when I felt it.  Pain in my right foot, manifesting itself around my ankle.  I hadn't misstepped.  I didn't trip.  There was nothing in particular to mark the moment.  I continued running, and around mile 18 the pain let up.  There was no swelling or bruising afterwards.  So I forgot about it. 

That week I ran a couple of 5 milers.  Then I set out to do a 10 mile run.  And around mile 5 I ran into trouble.  Big trouble from the foot.  Such big trouble, I stopped after only 6 miles.  This is truly something I never do. 

Since then, I've been tending the foot.  I actually feel like this is the same issue that plagued me just before the San Francisco marathon in 2007, but that it is just manifesting itself slightly differently.  At any rate, I've been doing arnica gel, ibuprofin alternated with bromelain to reduce inflammation, and ice buckets.  The injury is deep inside the heel of my foot, so regular ice packs don't cut it.  What works is a big bucket filled with Epsom salts and ice.  It's so cold that it hurts in your bones when you stick a foot in, but after 20 minutes it sure does help.  I also (gulp) took an entire week off.  Granted, I was supposed to be tapering anyhow - but I certainly didn't plan to not run for a week!  I hope that this has helped the injury to heel.  I have been running again the past couple of days - light 3 milers - and I can feel it but it hasn't been a huge issue.  I'll continue to ice up until the race (do you think hotel ice buckets come in size 7 1/2?). 

At any rate, my monthly mileage total has been less than expected because of the week off.  Total came in at 106.  I have tried to compensate a bit by resuming weight lifting and ab work (and partly because I'm getting totally stir crazy with running such low mileage). 

We leave on Friday to take the train up to NYC.  I've waited so long to do this marathon, I really hope that my foot will hold its own come Sunday.  I've never DNF'd (did not finish) a race before, and I certainly don't want NYC to be a DNF.  Stay tuned!

Muffin Tin Monday - the Halloween Loot

Today is Muffin Tin Monday, and I confess that I didn't follow the theme.  Maybe next week!

Instead, I used a mini muffin tin to display Pierce's Halloween candy.

A fun way for him to pick his candy.  He gets to pick one treat after meals.  He tends to go after the lollipops.

I was dismayed that he didn't get a single Reese cup.  Not one!  What is the world coming to?  Now I'm going to have to go buy some on Halloween clearance.

Here are Reid and Cort in their costumes: 

And here is Pierce in his.

Howdy, Partner! 

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