Strawberries*, four walnuts**, iced green tea***. Just the pep i need to shoot more stuff for Ebay.


*This is a supplement to my usual breakfast of pb toast & coffee, which occurred 30 minutes prior.

**I don't love walnuts, but I like them enough to eat a few, and they are good for you. I have resolved to eat four walnuts per day.

***I probably never have to buy green tea again. When I was told by a nutritionist to drink two cups a day, I thought great! I already have a decent supply on hand. I make a pitcher of iced green tea every few days. It's great on a long run too. I fill one of my water bottles with water and the other with tea. I much prefer it to Gatorade, which is blucky.

Staten Island HALF! We did it yesterday, starting at 8:47am yesterday morning! We woke up at 4am so we went to bed at 8pm. Pure crazy. There was a course time limit of three hours, which I didn't so much fixate on during this race. The finish line was in the baseball stadium for the Staten Island Yankees. That was super duper spectacular and a great incentive to get there. And orange ribbon on the medals a la the IMG NYC Marathon. Way cool and another great incentive to finish within three hours. I was super proud of the way I ran this one. Faster than the Philly Half and faster than the Bronx 10-miler. And can I say, I've raced all five borooughs this year! Brooklyn 4-miler, Queens 10k, Manhattan 5-miler, Bronx 10-miler, Staten Island 13.1-miler. Wow and wow. And also wow.

My medals pictured above are from the 2014 @NYRR Five Borough Series! Very proud of myself. In fact, I'm wearing my Staten Island HALF again today. We're going to Champs to celebrate! Appropriately named.

So this is happening. Again. Who do I think I am, Deena Kastor? She broke the masters record at our ‪#‎RNRPhilly‬ three weeks ago. She is my hero. Well, at least we get to take a free boat ride.

On the other hand, race number pickup is always exciting @NYRR. I like that they give you clear bags to show off the fact that you'll soon be running a race!

I picked up our numbers yesterday at NYRR headquarters on E89th. The race gels are "latte" flavor. I might just try that during the course. I've never tried the gels before. Perhaps I am a tiny bit afraid. In other news, I drank my first three half-cups of Gatorade in my whole life on the course in Philly. Gatorade is super gross. But I think it helped.

We rocked Philadelphia! And we have medals to show for it!! 13.1 glorious miles.

I already ran last night, so I initially declined Sheryl's invitation to run together tonight. I never run back-to-back days. But that was precisely why I changed my mind this morning and said yes. What would it be like to run back-to-back days? Could I do it? Probably. And I would feel so proud of myself when I accomplished it. And why would I want to miss out on running with Sheryl? She's a friend from the neighborhood and she runs somewhere around my pace. She could push me to go faster! And we're running five miles to the Pepsi sign and back. That's totally iconic. And you know how I feel about iconic runs. I love them! Well as it turned out, it was one of my fastest runs. Sheryl, in training for the NYC Marathon, has gotten fast. And wow, can she keep a steady cadence. It's amazing. I learned a lot. We had lots of fun, took some pics that were way too sweaty to post (it was hotttt out there tonight), and took in the beautiful sights over the Pulaski Bridge to Long Island City. This is her photo of the Gantry Cranes at night with the Empire State Building shining bright. Isn't it a gorgeous view?

You can file this under helium balloon anomalies. On June 30, the last of our New Year's Eve balloons fizzled. It lasted a full six months. I think it was from Dos Caminos on Park Avenue. I guess we should remove it, but I doubt we will.

We did it! We ran a mile for every year we've been married.  We had a awesome time in Philly celebrating our 13th wedding anniversary. And we have medals! It was such a fun race and vacation! [image via Philly Rock n Roll Half]

 

Looking up Broadway towards Times Square, January 2012

The days are getting longer, it's true, but it's always brighter than daylight when I get out of work. I like it. It's comforting.

The Griddler by Cuisinart, around $99, has reversible plates
It's a combination panini press/griddle

I did a mini survey on FB, asking my friends if anyone owns/likes/dislikes this panini press? Or if they had another they loved, to let me know. Well thank you FB! Lots of people responded in favor of the Griddler. We've had the George (Foreman grill) for 11 years, and it is finally breaking. So sad. We use it so much for sandwiches (especially the simulated mozzarella in carrozza pictured above), heating up bagels,heating up Vietnamese sandwiches, grilling tofu sausage, making things on tortillas. We totally need a replacement, and fast.

Do you want to know the thing that finally broke on our George? The On Button! We then pulled the physical button out (it was rubbery plastic) and have been using a chopstick -- jabbing it into the "On Hole." But now the hole isn't lining up with whatever's underneath. I would love to excavate to deeper layers to get to the "Essential On Button," but fear electrocution. Thus a new model is in order. Really, I'd love to simply get it fixed. But you can't get anything fixed these days. Sad you have to throw the whole thing away. Whatever.

Summers get mighty hot in Brooklyn. The melting was gradual. But relentless. We tend to like Winter better...

I took this shot of the Williamsburg Bridge from the East River Ferry back in June.
Now it is my bridge of triumph! And my November Sale icon.
I love this bridge!

I had a major running milestone today! I ran the whole Williamsburg Bridge and back today! Touched down in Manhattan, slapped the sign and ran back! Plus another personal record -- I ran 5 miles!

I am making progress with Tina Louise. (Yes, *that* Tina Louise. Ginger from Gilligan's Island and I go to the same Y. Near the UN.) Yesterday, as I turned the corner from my locker bank towards hers, she did not give me the stink eye as she has for the last three years. She even gave me a half-smile! Perhaps it was involuntary, but still. I walked toward the pool a little bit giddy thinking Ginger just half-smiled at me.

I am definitely cracking her shell. By averting my eyes, giving her not-knowing-glances and the like.

(day-glo) tabula rasa(s)


My Rowenta. Just look at her. Ain't she purdy? Two paintings my Matt Murphy.
Important plant. Lamp with silk shade I made. Found on the curb in Jamaica Plain
(Boston). Matching chair found on the curb in (on?) Beacon Hill.
Orange chair from Brimfield.


My beautiful Kenmore workhorse. And 2 serger friends. And "Lucky E" shrine.
And my diploma. It's in Latin. Desk from Harriet ♥. Art from Sandy. Thread scissors.

And here are the *Outfit Flashcards* which I've been working on for 2 days.

For my two days off from work (our office was closed for the holiday), I decided it was time to get my wardrobe super-organized. It was time to wear more than 10% of what I owned. It was time to make *outfit flashcards* and take the mystery/confusion out of getting dressed in the morning.

As it turns out, I am very pants-centric. So each pair of pants gets its own card. Pants in pen. Outfit options below in pencil. I haven't even thought about skinny belts, shoes, sparkle barrettes, necklaces, cardigans. Just the core stuff. Accessorizing, I have determined, can be whim-based.

So yes, I did a triathlon today. I do it most days a week, in fact. Here were my splits.* Nothing strenuous. It is Friday after all.


18:00 WALKed 6 1/2 "avenue blocks" & 8 "street blocks" (that's 1.134 miles, 2000 steps)
11:46 RAN 1 mile on the treadmill
8:30 SWAM 1/4 mile

transition 1: 10 minutes**
transition 2: 6 minutes



*Note: some negative splitting in the pool
**Gotta work on this

Outfit of the day! Another new one! Shoes, scored last year from Endless.
They are still stylish and comfortable. Yes, comfortable. Amazing.

One day this week, my usual fruit shake guy had a line 10 people long. Figuring the line moves at a rate of 3 minutes per person (fruit shakes are all made by hand), I moved on to scour 6th Avenue for another fruit shake guy. Just 2 blocks away, I found my new favorite, a fruit shake girl. She is so friendly, and makes my papaya-watermelon-honeydew small shake for the same 3 bucks. Ahh, total happiness.

But this is all prelude to my shopping score. Wait, should I even be telling you what store I went to? Or should I keep that secret... I'll keep writing and decide when I get there. So on my way to my new fruit shake cart, I passed another location of a store I frequent near Grand Central. It hasn't been good for 5 years, but I keep trying, because I found a great tissue t with a deep V and puffy half sleeves by BCBG Girls for only $12. And wore it out for a fun evening with my husband at Grand Central (drinks at that bar that overlooks the concourse, now closed, what was it called? Charlie Palmer's Metrazur). We took a lot of pictures and had lots of fun. That's my reason for liking the store so much.

So I step in to this other location, and it is nothing like the one at Grand Central. It is all totally organized, the sales help is super-friendly (shock), and the merhandise is completely different. I was giddy. I got 2 dresses and a top. And should I tell you what I paid, or would that cheapen it?

The dress is so super duper. Wrap dress, with ruffle sleeves, neckline, hem. It looks like a Marc Jacobs. And it has a Japanese shippo print (one of my favorite prints of all time) in black, white and pink. Score! Happy!!

Birthday shoes I bought for myself a few years ago match perfectly with my
brand new gingham button-down.

New outfit today! Feeling good!!! Also note: pants are grey (and also brand new)! I am not even wearing any black at all today. My mom would be amazed.

I love checked shirts. I love how they look on everyone. Yet I have been shopping for one that is flattering on me (and not too boyish) for a good 5 years. Excited to have found this macro gingham check print yesterday at Anthropologie.


photo take at Broadway beach, newly repainted at the 39th Street block

I've read too much Weather.com and now am thoroughly freaked out by Hurricane Irene. 120 mph winds in NYC??? Yikes is all I can say. I wonder how garbage gnome will be in the storm? And also, who gave us garbage gnome? And why has he stuck around for so long?

Maybe there's a metaphor here. Just keep smiling and you can weather any storm. Okay, I'll take that as garbage gnome's message to me.

You should have seen last year's candle. It was a right angle. I suppose we should be thankful or something.

I dreamed last night that we bought the building next door for $6050. My landlady thought that was exorbitant, but I said, yes, we'll offer the asking price. She was surprised. We got it immediately. No bidding war either. It was three floors, but only 700 square feet, because they removed the upper floors, and installed many narrow three-floor-high windows, giving the place a spacious feel. All I could think was, we need to buy a ladder, because I will need to make curtains pretty quickly. Chiffon sheers. White maybe. There was also a back patio, with a river, populated with friendly happy boaters, cutting diagonally across the back.