NY Day 3

Sunday was kind of a boring morning. I woke up at seven since that family just didn't know how to shut up. God bless them, I love them, but please let me sleep past 7:30 on a Sunday, I don't think it's asking too much. I wanted to be at church to be honest.

So Jimmy came back with a poppyseed bagel for me and we watched some NXT wrestling and did some online puzzles. We didn't leave until 1:30 and I was ready to get out about three hours sooner. Alex and Gina picked Jimmy, Peter, and I up. We drove through the Bronx and down the West side of Manhattan to Calle Ocho, a nice Latin restaurant located inside a hotel. I ordered a chicken dish with scrambled eggs, avocado, beans, pico, and crispy tortillas. It reminded me of Chilequiles in its own way. Just a total variety of random ingredients that somehow came together well and made for a satisfying meal. But then again after barely eating the entire day, aside from one bagel, I would have eaten almost anything at that point besides Indian food. One of the highlights was the plantain chips and guacamole. I think we had about three orders total. There is something so addictive about good guac. And of course, the free sangria is not to be missed!

Eight of us came and I met Jose, Theresa, and Christine. I have to say Christine and I got along very well, until I found out she was a Yankees fan and a dope smoker. Definitely cute... but then again I have a girl who is a lot more than just cute.

We left the restaurant around 5. Alex Jimmy and Peter drove me to the 2 subway line so I could head back to LaGuardia. After the bus ride and going through security, I settled in the Admirals Club. Of course, what is this Admirals  Club serving for free afternoon? You guessed it...  free guacamole! And I was pretty much ready to overdose on guacamole at this point.

My flight was delayed about three hours but I landed around 12:30 a.m. and got home an hour later.

NY Day 2

After having eggs in the house, I headed outside towards Manhattan and into a ton of rain. My destination was the NYC history museum on the upper east side of Manhattan. I had been wanting to visit this museum for a long time, but on a rainy day, this seemed like the right time.

The highlight was definitely the beginning of the tour. The exhibits that explained the history of the city and the videos were informative, well organized, and intriguing. But outside of that, most of the exhibits just didn't appeal to me. Activism, women's rights, street art, and silver? Sorry, just not interested. 

However, they did have a hallway that profiled Martin Luther King's history of work in New York City as well. But one of my favorite things about this museum is that it takes an open and honest look at the problems currently facing the city as well as the problems that are expected to challenge the city in the future. Come to think of it, that's what I expect from New York at it's best, open to the people and addressing the issues honestly and head-on.

The rain was coming down harder and I decided to head back to the Bronx where my friend Gina was supposed to pick me up and take me out for pizza. But still being hungry and having an extra two hours on my hands, I decided to grab a couple of tacos from a small stand across from the 103rd St station at El Aguila. I ordered two tacos with carne asada and a cactus agua fresca. Fantastic. Plenty of juicy steak, fresh toppings, fresh guacamole, and a good spicy salsa. I'd never drank anything with cactus before, but I really enjoyed it. It's a little bit of a dive, but it is worth trying.

I waited for Gina to come back and she never did, so I said screw it and I went on my way. I decided to get an early dinner at the Meatball Shop, a place I've been wanting to try for a few years now. One thing I didn't expect was the dark, rustic atmosphere. They had a well stocked bar, that came across as very classy. I took a seat at the window so I could watch the street traffic. My server did a great job of explaining the menu and offered a couple of recommendations. I started with their special, which was a pork and lamb meatball, topped with their pesto sauce. Such a satisfying experience. I could really taste the garlic and fresh herbs in the pesto, and the olive oil was an excellent quality. The meatball itself was very tender; the pork gave it a traditional taste, while the lamb gave it that gaminess that made it taste so unique. I then got four traditional meatballs for nine bucks, along with spicy meat sauce, shredded Parmesan, and some foccacia. This was the dish that convinced me that this place will be a regular stop when I'm in Manhattan. The balls were fair size, but not overly large. they were tender and they still held together very well. The sauce was bright red, full of flavor; it tasted like my Italian grandmother's in Brooklyn, God rest her soul. The only issue was I didn't detect much heat. The crispy foccacia helped absorb any extra sauce. Also, the side salad was very light, with spring greens, some thinly sliced apples, and a lemon vinaigrette. Just a fantastic meal for a fair price. 

I then headed into midtown at Times Square to the Opry City Stage. I had tickets to see Lee Roy Parnell, and I was surprised the venue was only about a third full. I took a seat by myself and drank a couple of Blue Point toasted lagers. Credit to them for having this beer on draft. I also had smoked wings for an appetizer, and I could really sense the strong smoke flavor. These are some messy wings, with a bold, heavy BBQ sauce. But they are still really good. If you're going to eat here, I'd recommend getting some kind of smoked meat, whether it's wings, ribs, etc. 

The show itself didn't impress me too much. Lee Roy only played about three of his hits, and he could have played a whole lot more. And he spent most of the time flirting with Lisa Stewart, who's now his backup singer. She recently got divorced, so I'm wondering if he's a reason why. If it wasn't, well, they did a good job of hiding it. After the show was over, I went downstairs to Floors 2/3. They had a cover band called Nashville Attitude who would play 3-4 songs live, then they'd take a break and a few country videos from past and present would play on the monitors. I drank the Broadway to Broadway, and these aren't cheap cocktails, everything is $16. Thankfully, because I had purchased a ticket for the upstairs show, I got a 20 percent discount. The merchandise is pretty good, nothing that really knocked me out, but the management is doing a good job at making the OCS feel as authentic as possible.

I thought about a slice of cheesecake at Junior's, but at 12:30 in the morning, I decided to head back to the Bronx.

NY Day 1

I knew this wasn't going to be the easiest trip ever as soon as I saw the weather report for the weekend. Rain... Followed by rain... With a touch of rain... And then... More rain.

And that bad weather affected my trip early on, as my flight to New York was delayed an hour to start. I left work 90 minutes early, but with that much time, I could have grabbed dinner on the way.

Stop number one had to be Katz's, especially since I hadn't been there during my prior two or three trips. My order didn't take long to figure out: pastrami, Swiss cheese, and mustard on rye with a Dr. Brown's black cherry soda to drink. Oh and a hot dog was my appetizer. The pastrami is thicker cut than most places because they hand carve it and don't slice it with a machine. And the meat is so full of flavor and so juicy. It's still the best Jewish deli in New York and probably the entire country.

I then headed uptown and west towards Rockefeller center.  Though it wasn't in my plans, I just happened to leave the subway station right where the NHL store is so I figured I would take a peek.  The store had a 50% off sale on selected merchandise, and sadly the Rangers jacket that I wanted to get was not 50% off. And I really wasn't willing to pay $85.

So then it was off to Times Square for the NFL Experience. I was pretty surprised to only see three other people in the exhibit at the same time that I was.  The first thing I did was sit in an interactive NFL theater which had seats that actually moved and jolted and jumped. Safe to saytm pregnant women should not be in the theater at any time.

There are also interacted football drills such as quarterback tossing, the vertical jump, and blocking drills. But the thing that bothered me the most was that I was not able to post anything on social media.  There was in a interactive exhibit that put me in a Jets uniform where I was doing dances and it was ridiculous that I couldn't put it on Facebook or Twitter.

I did buy a framed Jets photo that highlighted the best players in team history: Namath, Martin, Klecko, Chrebet, Gastineau and others.  I'm still debating if I'm going to keep it or donate it to the Virginia Jets group in a raffle.

Hungry again, I know it's shocking, I went to the lower east side to try Artichoke pizza. Now walking in, I felt I was in a trendy joint, just a counter and a kitchen. Customers stand against the wall to eat or take the pizza to go. In one word, I would have to say this was disappointing. I tried their trademark spinach and artichoke pizza and it tasted like I was eating Alfredo sauce on a pizza crust.  The pepperoni and sausage was pretty good, but it could have been a little hotter. But their tomato sauce was incredibly bright and flavorful.

On that note, it was time to head to Queens. On the R train, well, I got a full dose of NYC. There was a 300 pound black evangelist and after he finished, a mariachi band broke loose. Meanwhile I had to see a subway ad about a perverted project about trannies as if it's somehow good to embrace something that isn't real anyway. I really what makes someone want to "change"their gender, especially a kid. I don't care about being politically correct, it's just wrong.

Ok let's move on. The Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria was my next stop, although I got lost and walked down Steinway St for 10 minutes in the wrong direction at first. There were a lot of displays about the history of TV's and recording cameras and standard cameras. But for me, the highlight had to be the tribute to Jim Henson. There were original puppets of Kermit, Big Bird, Prairie Dawn, Rowlf, Janice, and others. Inside a final theater,  I watched a half hour of Muppet Show scenes. I was genuinely surprised how funny some of those scenes still were.

After seeing the lameness that was the history of video game design, I figured I'd had enough. I charged my phone at Starbucks maybe half an hour; and I knew that phone was on its last legs. From there, I hopped on the R train to Roosevelt, and then took the 7 to Citi Field.

Mets vs. Diamondbacks and I was alone. My friend was sick, or at least she said she was. But I took comfort I my vodka lemonade and Mex burger with cheddar and jack cheese, bacon,  guacamole,  jalapenos, and chipotle aioli. Jacob deGrom dominated, striking out 13 as the Mets won 3-1. I really regretted not bringing a hoodie or a warmer jacket along. All day long, I was expecting rain, and turns out what I needed was a jacket.

The Stranger setlist

Seen the Lights Go Out On Broadway
The Stranger
Vienna
Allentown
Moving Out
Pressure
My Life
Angry Young Man
Stiletto
Scenes from an Italian Restaurant
New York State of Mind
Rosalinda's Eyes
Don't Ask Me Why
Shout
Uptown Girl
River of Dreams
Keeping the Faith
It's Still Rock n Roll to Me
You May Be Right
Only the Good Die Young
Piano Man
Big Shot
Carry That Weight/The End

Fast year

1) It's already past Cinco de Mayo. It really feels like New Year's Eve just happened.

 

2) I'm glad I work at a company where my boss and the campus president have my back. Even if it isn't the stable job I've ever had, having the support of the people of a higher rank means a lot.

 

3) I realize that I'm no wine expert. I went to a wine festival in Norfolk this past weekend and after about my sixth sample, the only categories I had in mind were red and white. I don't know anything about tannins, tasting notes, finishes or any of that. Of course I probably tried close to 50 wines! At least I had a really good time though.

 

4) I think I'm realizing that when I'm mentally stressed and drained, I become very anti-social. I certainly don't mystery people, but part of me just doesn't want to have to put on a happy face when I really just want to do nothing.

 

5) I was going to go to Cincinnati on Wednesday to see the Mets play the Reds. But after seeing what an abomination the Mets have turned into over the last three weeks, why would I waste my time and energy on them? Instead I'm going to retreat into the mountains for a day do some hiking and I pray that a time of self-reflection will be beneficial for me.

 

6) I never thought I could see myself falling for an attorney, because I despise lawyers. I guess it's hard for me to respect people who make a lot of money based off how convincing the lies that they tell. But I don't know, maybe something will actually happen here.

Atlanta, Part 3: The Showdown and The Aftermath

So I took the 10 bus from the Arts Center into Cobb County. From the bus stop, I walked about ten minutes to the apartment where I was renting a room for the night. I quickly changed clothes and began my thirty minute walk to Lot 29. Of course along the way, I stopped to pick up a couple of large Budweiser cans.

I got to the lot after passing a couple of auto repair shops and apartments, and seeing that beautiful sea of orange t shirts, just gave a warm fuzzy feeling in my stomach. I met up with a few friends and we drank and drank and drank. I think I drank a full six pack actually. I didn't even have dinner, I think that was two chicken wings and three pieces of raw broccoli from a veggie tray. Nutritious huh?!

We began our march into enemy territory screaming "Let's go Mets!" Our seats were in left field, the Coca Cola corner. Every time the home team stayed with that disrespectful disgusting chop, I would do the Broken Matt Hardy "Delete!" I would scream that word at the top of my lungs. And a few other people behind me joined in. 24 hours later, I still barely have a voice.

The game was shit. No score forever. Mets grab a 3-0 lead in the eight inning and then choke it away. 3-2 in the top of eighth and I knew it. Knowing what I know, I walked out in the eighth inning.

I had to hurry as I had essentially  drained both my phone batteries and was down to 3% power. Thankfully I found my way back without an Uber. I got back and met my host, Shiam. Not to mention Chess, her two year old Pomeranian. That dog loved belly rubs. Couldn't get enough attention, but then again, what dog can?

I remember drinking a bottle of water in the kitchen and petting Chess. I remember Shiam and I talking about our life basics. But I have no memory of getting into the lightless bedroom or even falling asleep.

Then next thing I knew, I woke up at nine, I was pretty certain to miss church. Shiam didn't get out of her room until around 10:20. It was a rainy day so I knew there wouldn't be a game and even if it was, it would be delayed. So I asked her to drive me downtown and she did so.

I had lunch at Max's coal fired pizza. That might seem a strange marriage, pizza in Georgia, but I can't get coal pizza anywhere in Virginia and after plenty of  meat and potatoes the prior day, I thought I would go in a little different direction. Not a good idea. Google said this place opened at noon, by 1145, there was already a 15 minute wait. I got a seat at the bar once I convinced the guy to move his damn backpack off the otherwise empty seat. The lemon pepper chicken wings were a fine appetizer. I could really taste the fresh lemon juice and there was plenty of parmesan cheese as well. A little Italian parsley would have added a little extra freshness and made the dish look a little prettier. As for the pizza, I got the fresca, basically a non meat Greek. The pizza really disappointed me. It in no way reminded me of a coal cooked product and here's why I say that. The bottom of each slice was soggy. I would pick it up and feta cheese, red onion, and mushroom would fall off the side. The crust was very thin, but there were so many toppings that keeping the slice together was just not going to happen. It was basically impossible to fold the slice. And it should've been cooked a little longer. One of the trademarks of coal pizza is a little bit of blistering on the crust and another one is a distinctive smoky flavor. This pizza had neither.

I planned to go to the Georgia Aquarium, but with my patience short, I didn't feel like waiting. After twenty minutes in line, I joined a completely disorganized mess of people trying to get in. There were lines for will call, security, and people who needed to buy tickets. But there was no clear marking, no organization. It was raining hard by this point and I'd just had enough. I knew I was feeling irritable and I was not even close to being over the disaster of Saturday night.

So I took off for the airport. It took about ten minutes of trudging through the rain to find a subway. As I stepped onto the downward escalator beginning my descent to the Marta Gold line, I was so thankful to inside. I sat in the Admirals Club for about three hours, drinking red wine and munching on snacks like cheese, pita chips, and roasted red pepper hummus. I did make a stop at the Varsity for a frosted orange, even though part of me wishes I also got the onion rings. And I made sure to stop by the Atlanta Braves restaurant and flip it off.

Atlanta has a few good features, but outside of Sweetwater and maybe visiting the DDP Yoga performance center, I really have no desire to go back.

Atlanta, Part 2: The Good Part

I wound up sleeping on the floor of the Atlanta airport, although I'm not sure I was ever really out of it. I went into a state of semi-sleep from midnight to about 3:45 in the morning, and I probably woke up three times in that span. I knew the Admirals Club opened at 4:30, so I was just waiting my time, and anticipating the doors unlocking. Right at 4:30, I went inside. I was able to to get a toasted bagel and some fruit as well as a much more comfortable chair to sit in. I only wish they had a shower so I could have gotten myself a little cleaner. But nonetheless I finally changed my clothes and cleaned up the best I could before getting on the Marta train to head downtown. The thing with these trains, it's just like being in a homeless shelter. They only left the station every 20 minutes, the outside of the cars look like they were designed in the 1950s, and I will just say the characters on board are not exactly reminding me of upstanding citizens.

I took the train to Five Points, which is the only place that four rail lines converge. Yep, there's only one place you can get a transfer. This is not the most thorough subway in America. So I decided rather than wait for a different train and take it one stop east, I just walked over to the Georgia State Capitol building. Unfortunately I could not take a tour, as they are not available on the weekends, which is just absurd. They had a statue of Jimmy Carter outside and a replica of the Statue of Freedom on top of the Capitol dome.

Around the corner, they also have a replica of the Liberty Bell with flags from the 13 original colonies arranged in a circle, a nice touch of American history. I then took the train to the Midtown station. I had seen enough of downtown, I didn't want to spend any more time there. This was a much more modern area, I found a Caribou Coffee, which I have not seen in maybe 10 years, and got a chai tea. I really thought they were out of business.

My next stop was Piedmont Park which is known as the Central Park in the south. Actually it reminds me a lot of Prospect Park and Brooklyn with different fields, different events, and so on. The truth is there is only one Central Park. I walked through a fantastic farmers market, where I sampled everything from green juice to potato soup to strawberries to scones to Neapolitan pizza to peach tea to green salsa. The were maybe two dozen vendors, and pretty much all of them or fantastic. I had to get a container of strawberries, I cannot remember the last time I had strawberries that had this much flavor to them.

Back downtown, and over to the Canteen food vendors shop, in the shadow of Georgia Tech university. Actually I should take a second and mention the area. I'd never seen an Amazon store. But they have a store composed of three kiosks and two guys on staff. I guess people place their Amazon orders and go pick them up at the store. Funny, I thought the idea of shopping at Amazon was so I didn't have to leave the house to complete a purchase.

Anyway, Fred's Meat and Bread has a stall inside of the Canteen. They also have a bar, a bagel shop, and a Mediterranean stand. The girl who took my order was getting her first day on the job, so I told her it was cool, we were both first timers. I ordered a mushroom cheesesteak and it was one of the gooiest, cheesiest sandwiches I've ever had. There was a good ratio of meat to bread, and plenty of provolone and aioli. The old Bay fries were delicious, but man, I could only get through half an order. They were spicy, they were thick cut, and there were just so many of them. About halfway through, I gave the rest of the fries to a couple of college guys.

From there, I grabbed an Uber to Sweetwater brewing, on the North side of Atlanta. Now because there was the Sweetwater 420 festival going on all weekend downtown, I thought maybe the brewery might be a little bit slower. Not exactly the case. There was a small outdoor festival with a band and sponsors. I pushed my way to the bar. I noticed they had mostly pale ales and a few wheat beers. I tried about six or seven beers and there wasn't one beer that didn't taste really good. Obviously, the 420 extra pale ale is iconic, and one of the best beers I've ever had. The Goin' Coastal is an IPA with pineapple flavor. So darn good. The tropical lover has flavors of mango, papaya, and passion fruit. This wasn't my favorite, a little too fruity for me. The wheat beer with the lemongrass would be ideal on a hot day, especially a lazy hot day. But one of their specials was the New England hazy IPA. This was a juicy flavorful IPA that I got to sample on my tour, and when the tour ended, I immediately ordered a draft of it. Basically I ordered three beers, and was charged $15. I had a fantastic experience. I'm really starting to think between Coca-Cola and Sweetwater, beverages are the only good things to ever come out of the city of Atlanta.

Atlanta, Part 1: The Preview

Well, it's going to be near a 48 hour trip to the F town. Maybe Atlanta's nickname is the A town, but I find that one a little more fitting. Three primary reasons: the traffic, the baseball, and CNN.

My initial plan had been to fly through Charlotte to Atlanta first thing Saturday morning and land around 9 in the morning. The fight to Atlanta was wide open, but the problem was getting to Charlotte. The flights from Richmond and Norfolk weren't completely booked, but with several standby passengers lasted, the odds would not be in my favor. Locally though, the Newport News flight was booked even, 50 seats, 50 passengers. And I was the only standby passengers listed. So if just one person didn't show up, I was in. But if I got bumped, getting out of Virginia would have been incredibly difficult.

It was quite the decision, each having pros and cons. In the end, I decided to be a little more uncomfortable, but take the safe bet, and leave Friday night. The result is twofold. I will have to sleep overnight in the airport, as I don't want to spend the extra hundred dollars for a hotel room. But I will also be able to get an early start on my day. And there's a lot to do. It starts with my first trip to the Admirals Club at 4:30 am.

Restless Heart setlist

Let the Heartache Ride
Fast Moving Train
That Rock Won't Roll
Why Does It Have To Be
A Tender Lie
Mending Fences
Tell Me What You Dream
Why Not Me/Liza Jane/Family Tradition/Mercury Blues/Mountain Music
Wichita Lineman
When She Cries
Eldorado
Hummingbird
I'll Still Be Loving You
The Bluest Eyes in Texas
Sharp Dressed Man
Big Dreams In a Small Town

Feels Like Spring

1)      I signed up for Hello Fresh. I never planned to do a home delivery meal service before. But when I found out I could get 4 meals and it would essentially cost $15, I thought I’d give it a try. But before I made the purchase, I decided to take it to social media to ask if anyone else had experiences using those services. One of my friends said she could get me 3 free meals since she was already using, Now how was I going to pass that opportunity up? So I’ve placed the order for 3 meals and I expect them to arrive next Wednesday. I will post how it turns out and I look forward to giving the service a try.

2)      This past weekend only verified what I already know I have to do. I used to criticize women who just couldn’t get out of a relationship that was going nowhere. Well, now I know exactly how it feels.

3)      Restless Heart concert tomorrow night! I have been a fan of theirs for 30 years, but this will be my first time seeing them live. Now granted, their peak was probably between when I was 5 and 11 years old. But they had so many great songs including six straight #1’s. The songs I’m most excited to hear are “A Tender Lie,” “Fast Moving Train”, and “The Bluest Eyes In Texas.”

4)      I have the opportunity to help lead a football seminar for the Virginia Jets Fans group on Saturday. My responsibilities include presenting the information about rule changes, challenges, and penalties as well as compiling and playing the videos.

5)      Chris Stapleton is about the only redeeming thing left in country music. It’s pretty much him, Zac Brown Band, and maybe Midland.

6)      Someone cursed me out on Twitter for having a narrow mind. I told them in response to have a wonderful day and God bless. But I take having a narrow mind as a compliment. I do have a narrow mind. Straight is the path to heaven and narrow is the way.

7)      Despite his talent when he performs, I have no more respect for Finn Balor as person. I watch wresting as an escape from the issues of the day. And for him to throw sexuality and that perverted rainbow so blatantly out there, it is offensive to my sensibilities and has no place in pro wrestling. I will not watch another Finn Balor match until his gear no longer has the perverted rainbow.

8)      I am amazed by my lunch on Tuesday. Particularly, the ability that one has to screw up a cheeseburger. If you can’t make a cheeseburger correctly, you probably should not be working in a kitchen. But to make matters worse, this was a burger made by senior student in my school’s culinary department. The $4.00 Stratford burger. It had minced onions in it, some kind of red spice, maybe it was Hungarian paprika. But then it was cooked to death. It was like I said, “Cook it to well done, and then cook it another 20 minutes.” It tasted like overdone meatloaf. And we’re graduating students who are making this kind of crap? That doesn’t exactly say a lot about the caliber of cooks that we’re sending out into the world.

9)       My indoor garden is coming along with mixed results. The Thai basil and dill are sprouting beautifully. The thyme is coming along ok. But the Genovese basil, curly parsley, and mint have about as much life in them as Steve Wonder’s hopes of winning a NASCAR race. Thankfully, the Miracle Gro company is sending me free replacements. I just wonder what I can with all this Thai basil.

10)  This Honest Amish beard oil really is making my beard feel softer and smell better.

To you

I have been trying to find the right words to say for weeks to you now. I realize that there are no perfect words. Almost nothing I can say will cushion this. I just have to say it. I am not interested in pursuing this further.

We had about six or eight weeks that were really good. New Year's Eve was very memorable and it as fun. That cold we went through in Manhattan and Queens was insane. We have quite a few things in common and bonding over those have provided me with a lot of laughter and fun.

But you knew how I felt. I hesitated to get back into a long distance situation. It has failed for me before and I see no reason that it won't fail again. When you visited in February, and the time came to say goodbye, I knew for sure that it was not what I wanted.

You have pushed me really hard. In many ways. But the most disturbing was asking to move in with me after three months of knowing each other. I wouldn't move in with a girl if I knew her for less than a year, and even then, I would not be sure I would want to do that, certainly not before getting engaged. You wanted me to rescue you from a crappy living situation in Queens where you have two lousy jobs and had a flooded bathtub. You want me to reach down and pull you up. But then what do I get back from you? This is the same situation I was in five years ago and I do not desire go back into it again.

And then there's the sexual aspect. You've pushed me harder and harder to a level that I am not comfortable with. And I'm still not. There is so much more to making a relationship last than hobbies and a physical connection. I've given in and given in just to make you happy. I am no longer willing to do that.

Most of all, our values. You clearly believe in things that I do not and I believe in certain things that while you say you would make an effort to understand where I'm coming from and who I am, I don't believe that you are sincere. It's just what you think I want to hear. And through a lot of heartbreak and rejection, I have a pretty good radar for when someone is being real and when they're full of it.

I give you a lot of credit for this though. You have been very affirming, very considerate, and very giving. About as much as anyone I've ever known. But I know inside of me that I do not have that same spirit in me towards you. If I was that giving, it would be out of obligation, not out of desire. We both deserve better than that.

This wasn't supposed to get to this point. You're really not supposed to be here. Not now, not anymore. It's over.

Conflicted

I twist around and turn around and then I give in.
You end up in control of me, it's really a sin. Don't know what you're doing to me, but I know it's a crime.
Why must you make me cross that line?

Race is now run

I have now run my third 8k race and my first outside of Chicago, IL. The day before was a time of preparation but a little bit of fun. I worked half a day, having a salad for lunch and then we had happy hour in the office. I was pretty sure I would have one or two glasses of wine. Well that turned into four along with a Corona and two shots of Fireball on ice. I felt rather relaxed, but by no means did I feel a hangover or headache coming on.

After relaxing for an hour or so, I left at 4:30 to drive an hour from Newport News to downtown Virginia Beach at the Convention Center to pick up my race packet. The drive was typical for daylight, there was a three mile backup just to get through the tunnel. But I got to the Convention Center and got my packet. As an 8 k runner, I got a bright green long sleeved t-shirt. I would have liked a tech shirt, but that's for the crazy runners. I explored a few of the vendors, but there was nothing I felt like I needed to buy.

So I drove straight home and had a salmon fillet with smashed potatoes. I got maybe six hours of sleep and got up at 5:15. The temperature was just above freezing, so I put a Jets hoodie on over my racing shirt and a neon green winter hat on my head. I ditched the hoodie before the race, but I'd need the winter hat for the whole race. I parked about ten blocks south of the starting lane, but it was free and the ten blocks gave me a chance to start warming up. I downed a pre workout drink and it felt like a shot of adrenaline. I felt alert and awake, even though the cold had me shaking just a little.

I probably had about an hour between my arrival and the race. Most of that time I spent stretching and doing a few quick jogs. It actually took me a while to find the starting line; I guess I just had to walk one block west. I was pretty surprised to be placed in the first corral with the fastest runners; by no means did I believe I was worthy of that spot.

At 7:45, the airhorn sounded, signaling our start. I played "Born to Run" to get me started before switching to "Mama Said Knock You Out." After the first mile, I played "Keep On Chooglin'" by CCR. Two things I love about this song. One, it's eight minutes long, so it covers me running a mile. Two, Doug Clifford's drum is perfectly synchronized for me to at 8.0 mph. It's my pace setter.

The first two miles, I was feeling fine, my biggest issue was the numbness in my right hand because of the cold and the steel Ipod in my hand. It took until about mile 3 and switching the device to my left hand for my hand to start to feel normal again. But of all the body parts to not be doing well in a race, I guess hand is a pretty preferable one. I never had an issue with my calves and barely had a side stitch, aside from about halfway through the race, but it didn't last more than a minute. I think it was because I didn't start out springing. I made it a point to find a pace that I could maintain for about four miles after I spent the first mile getting going.

By about the 3.5 mile spot, it was becoming a struggle. I grabbed a cup of water and threw as much of it in my mouth as I could. I wasn't in pain, but I just didn't know if I could maintain running around 8.0 mph, if not faster, for another mile. The longest stretch of the race was running from 2nd St up north to 37th, before running one block east to the boardwalk and then finishing with a six block stretch and ending just before 30th St. On the long run north, by the time I got to about 31st or 32nd  St, I wasn't looking at street signs. I was just praying I would see runners in front of me start to turn right. It could not happen fast enough.

Eventually they did start to turn. I think I was playing "Rock n Roll Is King" followed by Eye of the Tiger." When I made that turn onto the boardwalk, I could see the bright green and white sign that signaled the finish. Those six or seven blocks looked so far away. But after running over 4.5 miles, there was no way in hell I was going to stop. I knew I'd regret stopping. I wanted to kick in a sprint, but I just couldn't seem to get it going. I was letting out screams. I could feel my shins starting to pound. Finally, I found the extra gear. I sprinted out maybe the last 15 seconds, crossed the finish line, and crouched against the metal guardrail to catch my breath.

I grabbed my finisher's medal, water bottle, banana, Shamrock cookie, and drawstring bag before collecting my dry bag which had my phone, keys, and hoodie. Then it was downstairs to the beach and the celebration. I wolfed down a bowl of Irish stew and even had a couple of mini brats which Smithfield was providing for us. As for the Yeungling beer, well, I more than exceeded four. I went through about seven. One regular, one light, and five golden pilsners. A band called Moer played some great jamming music, mostly R&B , but a little bit of country and pop.

Oh and as for my finishing time. It wasn't my fastest race by any means. I finished at 37:49, about 7:37 per mile. Out of over 7,300 runners, I finished 387. As for my division of 35-39 males, I finished 21 out of 329. One of the things I've noticed is that a lot of runners start fast but cannot keep it up. At the 2 mile mark, I was running at 15:36, or 7:48 per mile, good enough for 474th overall, and 28th in my division. But I came back hard at the end to drastically improve those numbers.

So what's next for racing? I really don't know. I'm sure I'll do the Crawlin' Crab 5k in October. I will definitely get another race in by July. With my cruise in late August, training will be especially difficult then. Ultimately, I want to complete a 10k, which is 6.2 miles. I know I can do that, I've done it a number of times on the treadmill. The key, again, is finding a pace I can keep. But I believe I can build up more speed. And if the Lord has it for me to run this race again, I'm definitely going to beat 37:49.

Seven days left

Well I hit the peak of my training and now I get to start dialing it back a little bit. Last Monday I ran 6.25 miles in just under 49 minutes, or 7:48 per mile. That was a heavy pace, but I got through it without too much difficulty. The next day I did 30 minutes on the elliptical and then on Wednesday I ran 5 miles in 40 minutes. So that pace was about the same as Monday's. After taking a day of rest on Thursday I ran 5 miles again, and I did it two minutes faster on Friday. That was where I ran a little bit faster. As I remember I ran 8 miles per hour for two of the miles before getting incredibly fast for the last mile. I think I picked it 9 miles per hour for the last minute. I did beat 7:30 a mile on that last run. And then today I ran a 5K in 25 minutes and 30 seconds, I purposely ran a little bit slower.

At this point I think the key is going to be finding a pace that I can maintain to start off for at least the first half a mile and maybe even the first mile. I want to run at least 7.5 miles per hour throughout the whole race because that would enable me to run the race in under 40 minutes. My ultimate hope would be to be able to run at 8 miles per hour throughout the whole race, but I don't know if I quite have that in me right now. I know I can pick it up as I go. But I feel like I'm in a pretty place of physical condition; about the only issue is needing to ice my left shin down. I only have one tempo run left, and that's for 20 minutes on Tuesday. But I'm going to run that one pretty hard to make sure that I can maintain that fast pace. The one thing I will definitely do is rest my body on Friday. Some people like to get a workout in the day before a race, for me I prefer to just rest and if I do anything physical, it would just be stretching myself out.

MLB Predictions

American League

East

NY Yankees    96-66

Boston             88-74

Toronto            80-82

Baltimore        76-86

Tampa Bay      74-88

Central

Cleveland        90-72

Kansas City     82-80

Minnesota       81-81

Detroit             76-86

Chicago           75-87

West

Houston           94-68

Anaheim          84-78

Seattle             79-83

Texas               78-84

Oakland           72-90

National League

East

Washington     91-71

NY Mets         83-79

Philadelphia    78-84

Atlanta            75-87

Miami              62-100

Central

Chicago           93-69

Milwaukee      84-78

St. Louis          82-80

Pittsburgh        76-86

Cincinnati        72-90

West

Los Angeles     90-72

San Francisco  84-78

Arizona            82-80

Colorado          80-82

San Diego        72-90

Playoffs

Wild Card Games

Boston over Anaheim

San Francisco over Milwaukee

Division Series

Houston over Cleveland

NY Yankees over Boston

Chicago over San Francisco

Los Angeles over Washington

LCS

NY Yankees over Houston

Los Angeles over Chicago

World Series

NY Yankees over Los Angeles