#17 Boston - Dead Mice and Codeine - September 30, 2006

Well, there was that little marathon I ran this past weekend - 26.2 miles aka 42.157 kilometers - through the streets of Toronto and along Lake Ontario - without any doubt the most physically demanding and the most emotionally rewarding activity I have ever done. There is nothing comparable to seeing that finish line, forget about the fact that at the 34 KM mark you wanted to lie down, just lie down, and still be able to dig deep and get a sprint out of that weary body of yours, running the final yards with the same gusto as the first few steps you took that morning, and a big smile on your face.

It now seems completely surreal, as if it happened in a movie, and I am left merely an observer. Four months of training, learning, stretching that wretched IT band of mine, carbo-loading, carbo-unloading. And it all comes down to this moment. I finished!

I sailed into town two days prior to the blessed event, with some inexplicably sore calves, muscles that pinched and pulled for no apparent reason, and a slightly elevated anxiety level. The best marathon host in the world, my most enchanting friend Ruth, had pretty much set every wheel in motion to make me feel comfortable - including several pints of ice cream in her freezer that were just waiting to be inhaled. The pre-race days were pretty low-key - a scrumptious lunch with my friend Pat Adams at the Latitude Wine Bar and Grill in the Annex (http://www.dine.to/latitude), a visit to the Marathon Expo to pick up my bib number (#1456) and plenty of stretching and couch time.

Marathon Day - Rise and shine at 5 AM. At 5:45 AM, a cab arrives to take me to downtown Toronto to the start of the race. It is still dark, and only a few lonely runners, equally anxious, nervous, sit on the steps of a nearby office building. Small talk. Tales from the road - "is this your first marathon?" - "You'll do fine....". This is part of the ritual - words of encouragement, stretching, focus, focus, focus. Last nervous words, and in darkness, at 7 AM, the gun goes off to the cheers of the crowd. Marathons, just like half-marathons, have a casual feel to them (to me they do at least) - no sense in running out of the gate like a bat out of hell. Nice and easy, slow and even pace - there are 42 KM to go.

Conversations with strangers - the mother of Toronto Blue Jays pitcher A.J.Barnett, followed by a very spunky 60-some year old grandmother, who was running this one (her 18th) for her newest grandson Liam, who she promised playing rights to her finisher medal; my new friend Jennifer, who was the biggest cheerleader of them all, and while running had a word of support for pretty much everyone, struggling or not.

Milestones - small ones, big ones. At 10 KM, the Kenyans fly by, as if it was nothing to sprint the whole distance. A happy crowd jogs along, sunshine instead of the expected cloudy rainy day - the kilometer markers come quickly, quicker than mile markers; at mile 12, the half-marathon runners say goodbye, the marathon crowd continues along the lakefront and into a somewhat swampy area littered with dead mice, past a charming little marina. Water stops every 3 KM, I walk through them, however the longer you run, the more your knees lock up when you walk. Running feels better, despite the exhaustion. Every 4-5 KM a band, rock'n roll, steel drum bands, harpists, Bulgarian dancers, Asian dragons, nice distractions. Every race bib has the runner's name on it, spectators yell it out, "You can do it Petra, almost there". At 28 KM a sharp pain, a blister on one of my toes bursts, brief check, decision not to worry about it, keep running. The two Tylenol taken at 23 KM help.

At 34 KM, I just want to lie down, the mental games start, math exercises in your head - "Come on Petra, you can do this - just 8 K left, that is five miles, you can run five miles! Just make it to the next water stop at 36 K, you can drink a little water there, walk a little, it will do wonders." At 36 K repeat, you see an ambulance racing by, keep going, people in clown costumes on giant stilts on the side of the road, just keep running. 38, 39 K, oh my god, I think I might be able to finish this, just 3 kilometers to go, that is just about the distance from home to work, you could even walk it if you want to. No I am not walking, I am holding on, even if my legs fall off, I WILL FINISH. You turn to your right, back toward Toronto's CN Tower (the space-needlish thingy - http://www.cntower.ca/portal/ ), one more left turn, there is the finish line. At this point you are so emotional, ohmygod, ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod, and you just sprint, you run as hard as you can, because you are there. You are between laughing and crying, you are elated and you just want to run in circles.

My friend Ruth is waiting, camera in hand, and I just fall into her arms, laughing, crying, still unable to comprehend. We sit down, running shoes come off, change into the Teva flip-flops quickly, aaahhh, soft, cushiony. Blood pressure drops, I am cold. I dress in warm clothes, grab some food and get my crusty self into the subway and home. I wash off the layer of salt on my body, stretch, ice, call friends and grab a Tylenol with Codeine, and drift off to a VERY nice nap.

Pat, her husband Larry, their daughters Essie and Catherine take Ruth and me out for a superb dinner, I only have to go down to the street, and they drop me off right near the Golden Leaf Restaurant in Toronto's Chinatown. Fantastic food, and I only have to sit there. Niiiiiice. Monday is spent on the couch, more ice, more ice cream and several episodes of the British spy series "Reilly, Ace of Spies" with a deliciously devious Sam Neill. A Monday night pedicure got the feet feeling much better and by Tuesday, I was able to walk off a curb without any major assistance (just kidding.....).

I have been welcomed back to Boston by my office mates, friends and running club colleagues with so many congratulations, gifts, notes, flowers - it has been quite wonderful. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I am now officially part of the "marathon club" and have some bragging rights, for about a week or so. Then I promise I will come down to Planet Earth. In the meanwhile, I am sitting on my lazy butt, tell the tale of my first marathon over and over, and have a nice beer here or there.

My friends, again, thank you for your support, maybe some of you will follow in my footsteps, and for the rest of you, at least have a drink on me.

Love ya,

pet:)

#16 Boston - The Carbo-loading Experience, September 22, 2006

I knew that there had to be a reward for all the hard training for the marathon - there could not just be the soreness afterward. Carbo-loading also known as - scarfing down tons of pasta and bread in the days before the big race - helps to boost the body's glycogen supplies, which then help the muscles to perform most optimally. As one website described it "the more you got socked away, the longer you'll last". And apparently this magical process works even better if you have already been eating a carbohydrate-rich diet - which is good, since my diet consists to a large degree of carbs. I am ready to go!

With that said, Greetings from Toronto, Canada (http://www.torontotourism.com/visitor), where a somewhat tired German future-marathon-runner-to-be is trying to keep her eyes open (she got up at 4 AM to catch a flight) and last through lunch. I am enjoying the wonderful hospitality of my friend Ruth, who is a radiologist at the Hospital for Sick Children (http://www.sickkids.ca/default.asp), and who not only used to be a colleague at MGH, but a fellow ski enthusiast. Hi Ruth! (She is at work, while I am comfortably loafing around her apartment...) I will be shortly heading to lunch to meet up with another friend of mine, the lovely Pat Adams who resides here with her family. Pat and I go waaaayyyy back, actually quite a few years. We met during my stint in the environmental movement in the good old Berkeley days. I have to put in a plug for Pat's nonprofit, Probe International ( http://www.probeinternational.org/ ), who has made its mission to "expose the devastating environmental, social, and economic effects of Canada's aid and trade abroad." It will be great to reconnect - last time I was here was about four years ago, and I am sure her daughters are now as tall as I am.

I am looking forward to the next few days here, resting up before the big day, and enjoying the sights and sounds (Toronto is a most marvelous city, if you have never been here). This afternoon I will visit the Expo for the marathon and get my bib number ( # 1456) and maybe some cool marathon gear. Tomorrow is movie day, I brought a whole bunch of them, and we will keep my feet off the ground as much as possible. There is a spaghetti dinner (of course!) for all the athletes on Saturday night, followed by early bed time. The marathon starts at the ungodly time of 7AM, so hopefully we'll be all done by lunch time.

It has been quite a week I must say leading up to the marathon, actually even the weekend before was quite crazy (self-afflicted, of course). Starting off the hoopla was a drive to Cape Cod (http://boston.homah.net/imatges/usama1.gif), to Yarmouth to be exact, where my cousins from upstate New York had settled for a couple of weeks and needed to be checked up on. It was very nice to see them, in particular the kids - 2 1/4 year old Liam, who is a little monkey and Dawson, barely six months old and just the cutest darling. Frank and I headed out for a little walk with Dawson in the baby carrier, and walked for quite some time through the woods behind the cranberry bog (http://www.cctrails.org/). There are tons of trails, and poor Frank received a botany lesson from my very excited self, and as usual was good for a few interesting stories of his own.

Sunday, in a complete reversal of direction, Denise and I headed to New Hampshire to Casa Simmons, Rick's house, for some out- and indoor activities. It was time for one of my last training runs, a little 4-miler. Phoebe and I jogged it out on the Rockingham Recreational Trail (http://www.windhamrailtrail.org/) with a couple of swimming breaks for the pup, and Rick and Denise headed off on their bikes in the other direction (who knows where, I don't keep track of these people). Jogging duty done, we went for a wonderful lunch at a most charming place, I think it was called the Windham Depot Kitchen or Cafe. We sat outside where the fall decorations were already in place and had some deliriously delicious sandwiches. Fueled up, we hopped in the car, sang a few Barry Manilow tunes or so, and then went apple picking!!

This turned out to be far less exciting than I had hoped for, let me tell you. I had visions of standing on a ladder for an hour, plucking apples and doing a little work, but it was remarkably un-exciting. The "apple-picking" trees are so low, that you can just walk along and pluck them in no-time. The whole thing takes 5 minutes. Sheesh!! How's that for a thrill? Well, ten pounds or a peck later, we headed home, did some more singing in the car and then proceeded to Casa Simmons again to begin production of the previously pictured apple pie.

And that was just the weekend! Actually during the week I was not good for much, a cold struck me down (not sure if the source of the bacteria was my boss, who has been spreading an epidemic around the office or cute little Dawson, who I just had to kiss despite his runny nose. Oh well, I forgive both of them, in particular my boss, who just gave me a promotion. I get to now slap "senior" in front of my lofty title of clinical research program manager. Exciting, eh?

Friends, it is meanwhile mid-afternoon, I have returned from my two errands and am now heading for the couch for some serious nap time.

Think of me on Sunday, when you are still snoozing.....

pet:)

#15 Boston - Paper in my Shoe - September 15, 2006

I got new running shoes this week in preparation for the great race coming up, and when I took them out for a spin on Wednesday, I thought, hmmmh, this is a nice pair of shoes, but the left one does not feel quite right. It did not take me too long before tonight's run to figure out the root of the problem. You know those cardboard thingies they put in new shoes, so they don't get squashed? Yep, exactly - still in there!! Another vintage Petra moment, and needless to say the run tonight went much better. Aside from my incompetence in putting them on right, these are kickass shoes - Ascis Kayano - not the cheapest shoe on the block, but such a pleasure to run in. Aaaaaaaahhhh!

The marathon is a week-and-a-half away and I am tapering nicely, running a little 3- or 4-miler here or there, some stretching, some strength training and my IT band exercises. The knee is feeling better every day and I will have a last little check-up next week at the Sports Medicine Clinic. My stomach on the other hand has been giving me a little excitement this week, the medication I was on for my reflux problem made my hair fall out (not in huge clumps mind you, but noticeably), so my doctor decided to take me off the stuff. While we are trying to figure out what alternative options we have, my stomach got quite excited about his regained permission to produce acid and has been happily doing so - heartburn!!! It should settle down in a few days; until then I am forced to eat a healthy diet for once, and definitely lay off the whiskey (blimey!).

As to Boston, the fall has been creeping in a bit here in New England, the temps are definitely more moderate, and aside from a couple of storms courtesy of some hurricane hanging out in Florida, the weather has been exquisitely pleasant. As every year, I pretty soon will be consumed by a panic attack because I am afraid to miss the display of fall foliage up in the White Mountains and there is serious planning going on. We'll see what we can do! I will do my best to behave nicely and distinguish myself from the crowd of leaf peepers who descend on the poor little state of New Hampshire and creep along the freeways at provocative speeds of 20 miles per hour.

Well, you know mostly what happened last weekend, I-Pod disaster and all, but after that was said and done, things definitely started looking better by the minute and I ended up in a pretty chipper mood. Sunday morning started out with a road race - the Run for Hope (http://www.fourseasonsrunofhope.com/), a 5 K race benefiting the Massachusetts General CancerCare for Children. This department at MGH takes care of 2500 children annually, if you can believe it, and this is a really neat road race along the Esplanade with some pretty snazzy raffle prices. You will be surprised to hear that I did not run the race, but was a volunteer, a road marshal as a matter of fact. It was a tad tricky, as I had to point the slower runners in one direction with my right hand, and the already-retuning fast folks in another direction with my left hand. There was some fancy hand action going on, I am proud to say!! Seems I was definitely the right woman for the job!

Following the race, my running buddy Chris and I hoofed it (actually we drove) back to Cambridge to my place and then to the East West Grille, just a short block from my house, with very decent, Italian-oriented food, nice ambience and flat screen TVs so that we could see the New England Patriots game (http://www.patriots.com/). Yes, my friends ,football season has started and our home team barely won this one by the seat of their pants. But hey, we'll take it! We tuned out after the first half, which was abysmal and not worth watching. Enough time was left to spend the rest of Sunday in quality fashion, relaxed, with some good food, a good movie, and of course, good friends.

The week has plodded along nicely, and even better, ended!! Nothing extraordinary to report (really), some big projects got done, some issues got resolved and we're moving on. Tomorrow I am heading to the Cape to see my cousins from upstate New York, who have been squatting there and need to be checked up on, and Sunday we are heading to New Hampshire for some apple picking.

Adding a little entertainment at the end, courtesy of http://www.worcestermass.com/ - enjoy your weekend!

Petra
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How To Identify Where A Driver Is From (see, we made the list....)

One hand on wheel, one hand on horn: CHICAGO
One hand on wheel, one finger out window: NEW YORK
One hand on wheel, one finger out window, cutting across all lanes of traffic: NEW JERSEY
One hand on wheel, one hand on newspaper, foot solidly on accelerator: BOSTON
One hand on wheel, one hand on nonfat double decaf cappuccino, cradling cell phone, bricks on accelerator, gun in lap: LOS ANGELES
Both hands on wheel, eyes shut, both feet on brake, quivering in terror: OHIO, but driving in BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
Both hands in air, gesturing, both feet on accelerator, head turned to talk to someone in back seat: ITALY
One hand on 12 oz. Double shot latte, one knee on wheel, cradling cell phone, foot on brake, mind on radio game, banging head on steering wheel while stuck in traffic: SEATTLE
One hand on wheel, one hand on hunting rifle, alternating between both feet being on the accelerator and both feet on brake, throwing McDonald's bag out the window: TEXAS
Four-wheel drive pick-up truck, shotgun mounted in rear window, beer cans on floor, squirrel tails attached to antenna: ALABAMA
Two hands gripping wheel, blue hair barely visible above windshield, driving 35 on the Interstate in the left lane with the left blinker on: FLORIDA

#14 Boston - Return of the I-Pod - September 9, 2006

And I am not talking return as in triumphant, such as the little I-Pod that got lost and found its way back to me. Oh no! We are talking return as in shameful, back to where all the other useless Apple thingies go when they have sufficiently annoyed and stressed out a poor little runner, who just wanted a few little tunes in her ear.

It has been that kind of a week and that kind of a day, and now that the evil instrument and all its accessories have left my house I feel much better. Maybe some day I will buy another one or some cheap knockoff, but for now I am done, D-O-N-E. The darn thing had taken up every spare minute of mine over the past two weeks, wreaked havoc on both my home and work computer, and has outlasted its welcome big time. I will enjoy my marathon pure, look at the historical neighborhoods of Toronto, chat with other newbies and soak up the whole experience rather than closing myself off behind walls of music. All I could think about today was David Henry Thoreau's quote "Simplify, simplify, simplify."

I am not going to delve into the details about my misery all week, but rather tell you a bit about the past weekend, which thankfully was a holiday weekend and provided some much-needed R&R. You must excuse the cryptic style, my right contact lens has either slipped off to the side or fallen out, and I am writing this little update with one eye closed. I think I might have to head over to the Mass Eye and Ear Infirmary for some visual help in the not too distant future.

Friday night - ran 8 miles with my colleague and friend Miguel along the Charles River Esplanade, iced knee, all was good.

Saturday - baked cake (Italian Hazelnut Tart) for party later that evening - excellent result. Still the best German baker at 10 6th Street in Cambridge, MA. Met up with my newly PhD'd friend Josephine to cruise through the Cambridge Antique Market for some window shopping therapy. Re-fueled at Carberry's near Central Square - brightly orange painted spot with fabu pastries and a sighting of the world's tallest female college student. Head over to Rebecca's in Brookline (http://p.vtourist.com/971060-Suburban_Idyll-Brookline.jpg) for farewell party for Chloe who has returned to her native Paris and who can now expect a slew of visitors fairly shortly.

Sunday - peeled Petra out of bed for 20-mile run - longest run for marathon training. Completed 20 miles in rain - arrive muddy but happy at 10 6th Street. Iced knee, ate entire bottle of pain killers (just kidding) and got ready for Red Sox game at Fenway Park. Rain delayed game for 3.5 hours, started at 5:20 PM and took place in the pouring rain. Red Sox stunk big time and the world's two biggest idiots with a combined IQ of, let's say 50, sat in the seats in front of us.

Interesting tidbit: The Red Sox always announce at the beginning of the game that there is a "safety" phone number patrons can call in case "someone is hindering their enjoyment". Shall I list the things that were hindering our enjoyment? The bloody rain for starters, which was relentless, the two dodos in front of us, the beer prices (expected, but still in the hindering category) and the fact that "cotton candy vendor man" never made it to our section. The Red Sox looked like a bunch of amateurs and made us sit there until it was dark. Only after my favorite part of the game when the entire ballpark sings the Neil Diamond classic "Sweet Caroline", did Renee and I take off.

Monday - Labor Day. Celebrating it by staying away from any activity resembling labor. Baked gingerbread and headed for Joanne and Marc's home near Boston College. Lobsters are being humanely killed in kitchen without Petra's presence. I opt out on the lobster race and chose not to meet my food in person before eating it.

That was the weekend pretty much. No museums this time. As of Tuesday evening, when I did my last official "longer" run of six miles, the tapering period prior to the marathon has officially begun. In those last two to three weeks one has to relax, run much less and make sure to arrive on marathon day with well-rested legs. My left knee would not have it any other way. The sports medicine doc will see me again the Monday prior to the big event and I might get one more cortisone shot to make sure the inflammation has subsided. I am looking forward to the actual marathon, but also have been somewhat anxious. This has been a huge part of my life for the past three months - a big commitment. It is now time to do lots of stretching and strengthening exercises and the occasional run (in my case on the elliptical machine, which is kind to the knees).

Wish me luck on send good vibes my way on September 24th when I will cruise through the streets of lovely Toronto. My friend Ruth will have to fill her freezer with ice cream and stock up on movies - that is all we will do post-race!!!

It is Saturday night, and I have to say Goodbye now. "Sean of the Dead" is in the DVD player and from what I have seen so far, it is pretty funny. Add a bottle of Smthwick's (thanks Elaine, muchas gracias) and I will be ready for bed in no time.

I am adding a funny bit for your enjoyment at the end (a classic, but one of favorites)

All my best from a very sunny and warm Boston (where it is 10:15 PM and still 71 degrees).

pet:)
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Apple and GM

At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated, "If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25.00 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon".

In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release stating: If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics:

1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day.

2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car.

3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull over to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and! reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.

4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.

5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive - but would run on only five percent of the roads.

6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "This Car Has Performed An Illegal Operation" warning light.

7. The airbag system would ask "Are you sure?" before deploying.

8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.

9. Every time a new car was introduced car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.

10. You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the engine off.

#13 Boston - Ever Heard of Euchre? - September 1, 2006

Neither did we until the lovely Miss Denise Schubert decided to introduce us to this card game she learned in Indiana (http://athletics.uchicago.edu/campus/euchre/rules.htm), and that some of the players at the JJ House on Saturday night still did not understand after having played several rounds of it. I myself had been sidelined at that point by a margarita and a beer, and lay on the sofa drooling and snoring away. Later on that evening, our friend Ruth arrived with her two dogs, Annie (Phoebe's mom) and Addie (Phoebe's half sister) and to not appear a complete dud, I scraped myself off the couch and participated in a game of Hearts. This was a first for me and I really did enjoy the game, even came in second, having scored 0 in every game I played. Denise, the card shark, beat me by three lousy points - I think a rematch needs to be scheduled as soon as possible.

As the photos indicated, it was a lovely partial weekend we spent at the Cape. Saturday it was early rise and shine, pack Renee and Denise in the caah and hoof it down to the Cape, Mario Andretti style. Just in time for breakfast, which took place at the JJ House, one of the cottages next to Rick's family home. The house and cottages are located most scenic at JJ Pond (John Joseph, or in my confused mind, John Jacob (as in Jingleheimer Schmidt)) in Harwich. Rick's family had congregated there and aside from the adults a cheerful gaggle of grandchildren welcomed us with a body-paint demonstration. In an attempt not to have tiger paint on our faces, Rick, Stephanie, Renee and I took a spin over to Nauset Beach for a long walk along the Atlantic Ocean which left at least Renee and me soaked. The tide was coming in and guess who was wearing jeans?? Oh well, a little sand has not hurt anyone, quite amazing though that you will find sand grains weeks after you have been to the beach in places where they really shouldn't be. Not that that's a bad thing....

Lunch quickly followed, after which everyone headed down to JJ Pond for some general frolicking, floating, pyramiding, sharks and fishies, and a seriously long coaxing effort so as to get the dog to jump off the dock. Lots of fun it was, since I stayed away from anything that resembled a canoe or kayak, instead I had Phoebe drag me to shore where I landed like a beached whale. Not only were we served a fabulous dinner of pork loin (marinated in several kinds of brandy I believe), fresh corn, rice and a killer salad, we also got handed margaritas the minute we sat down on the porch - life definitely was good. So good actually, that when we headed for the liquor store to buy some "serious beer" I started to laugh at the sight of my own arms, which left the rest of the gang quite worried. Post-dinner activities were held around the fire pit, with Rick's dad hamming it up by playing the guitar and singing some pretty wicked songs about cheatin' husbands in Kentucky.

I also can report that for the first time ever I had "smores" by the fire. Now I can become a US citizen! A girl scout tradition that started in the 1920s, the recipe was first published in 1927 in the handbook "Tramping and Trailing with the Girl Scouts". S'mores stands for "some-mores" (as in "gimmesome-more"). For my friends overseas or those who have lived under a rock, here is the recipe: You put a marshmallow on a wood stick and roast it over the fire, until it is nice and light brown. It then gets sandwiched on a graham cracker with Hershey's chocolate on it. The heat from the marshmallow will melt the chocolate. Yummmm!!

Of course I had to look up the story on marshmallows - apparently they have been around since ancient Egypt. There is the mallow plant (Athaea officinalis) which grows wild in marshes, and some smart soul back then discovered that if you squeeze it, a sweet, sticky substance surfaces. Honey was flavored with the extract, and the delicacy was so special, it was reserved for gods and royalty only. Over the centuries it grew in popularity, manufacturers experimented with different production methods and these days they are "jet-puffed" - cooked, air-infused and packaged in less than 60 minutes - and apparently Americans purchase more than 95 million pounds annually.

Meanwhile back in Boston - Sunday was marathon training day - 15 miles this time, of course in the bloody pouring rain., along the Charles River Esplanade, almost all the way out to Watertown, and back. Despite the downpour, it was fun, the temperature was perfect, and thanks to all the stretching and strengthening, I felt pretty good and strong. Of course when I arrived at home, soaked as can be, I felt wiped. Despite my best efforts to maybe call some friends, I just sat there under a blanket, with the heater blaring, and a hot chocolate. Bedtime was early that day, and well deserved.

Not to forget Friday, when Ellen, Patrick and I, instead of going to Ryles Jazz Bar, hoofed it over to the Bukowski Tavern - 99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall!!! Their selection of beers is unbelievable, and my choices for the night were "Two Brothers "Ebels" Weissbier" - a dark wheat beer and the Harpoon Munich Dark. Tasty!

Nothing too exciting yet this week - no wait, I bought an I-Pod on Wednesday, and am now ready to load music for my long runs and work on a play list for marathon day. There is nothing like having a few good tunes in your ear if you have to run for 5 hours. A new era has begun!!!

Finally, last but not least, last week I forgot to mention yet another episode of "white trash life" when I took the train back from Salem to Boston, and found myself surrounded by the World Wrestling Federation fan club. There was a wrestling show at the Fleet Center that night and boy, were these people ready for it. Featuring the WWF uniform, jeans and black t-shirts with "Two Words - Suck It" and "Hustle, Loyalty, Respect" written on it, it was a rowdy bunch and even the women seemed to emit testosterone. I for one was scared of quite a few of them.

That's it - Everyone have a very happy Labor Day weekend!

pet:)