Texts from Maya Angelou

"Thunder thighs was always a term of endearment. All to nibble on when you were a munch. Now they are thunder to achieve the goal."

--Mom

Moonwalking to the Finish Line

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

Kudos to Scott and his restraint because I sure as hell did not have any last night.

Homegirl started early. My car on the 6pm train to Boston turned into a bit of a bar scene. Booze was flowing at every seat either in celebration of the holiday or in anticipation of facing relatives...or both. For some reason, I have an unbelievable ability to make random aging businessmen guys fall in love with me on trains and planes. Last night was no exception. When it came time for one of my fellow passengers to disembark at Rte. 128, he grabbed my hand, stared me in the eyes and boozily cooed, "You are my train girlfriend." Thank you, Sir.

I was home sweet home by 9:45pm and Benny B and Scooter came over shortly after. We were missing our other friend Sami and the gusto to go out hard like we usually do but we forged on like the champions that we are. Scott was smart and went home in preparation for a run this morning. Ben and I picked up the vodka.

Oh, honeychild.

After Ben left, I raided the fridge in an attempt to curtail the impending poison. Let's just say that the situation was so severe that — for the first time in the history of the world — I did not finish a piece of pie. This morning...oh boy. I was going to post another "rough" picture but it was way too rough. When I stumbled downstairs in search of nausea-reducing carbohydrates, my mom asked me why there were tons of scrapes all over the front patio. Memories of a late night outdoor Michael Jackson dance off with Ben and his sister Lily came flooding back. My shoes apparently murdered the bluestone. This is what attempts at a moonwalk and spin look like:

But the point of this story is that I RAN TODAY. This is probably the most exercise I've enjoyed on a Thanksgiving outside of my usual pie-to-mouth bicep curl routine. I did it, Scott! My half marathon schedule suggested 2-3 miles today. And well, it was a struggle but I completed three loops of the Brookline reservoir (approx. 2.73 miles total). A beautiful way to spend the raw day:

That iPhone photo looks like a freaking painting! I was more concerned with not dying getting the mileage in over consistent running so I ended up doing a walking loop with my mom, a loop and a half running and the rest at a slow run/walk/run pace. Feeling pretty good and sassy, I also decided to chug up my hell hill of a driveway and work that ass. My new shoes and I are in a bit of a fight but I think we can work it out.

Anyway, I hope everyone has a healthy and happy Thanksgiving. Thanks for your support. I am thankful for everything life puts on my plate. Even if it's dry stuffing.

Dance it out, Michael.

Why I'm in it...

I just got back to New York from an amazing weekend at the old school, and thanks to three days of nonstop merriment and mirth (let's stick with the euphemisms for now), tonight's 40-minute training run was a little more difficult than it probably ought to have been. Not that we ate and drank our way through New Haven or anything.

Celeste's entry about Jenn made me want to post a little about my own source of inspiration for this whole crazy enterprise: my mom. One of the things I love about Mom is the drive with which she turns ideas into reality. When she hit forty, she decided to rekindle some teenage dreams of athletic stardom and announced she was going to train for a marathon. A first go at the Disney race turned into a second and a third go. Our novice runner became a mentor, a team captain, and finally a coach. And a triathlete. And a certified triathlon coach. And then she took her abundant gifts and started sharing them with a most remarkable group of young people she pulled together from the student body of the high school at which she teaches. They became the first high school marathon team in New England and they're going strong for the second year in a row at Providence. A collective of nine newbies is now thirty-strong. I cannot wait to join them in May.

I'm running this race for myself (the old and the new Scotts), for Celeste, for those we've lost to cancer and those who are fighting with all they've got, and most of all, I'm running for Mom. She brought out the burgeoning athlete in the lazy schlub. For that - among many other things - I'll be forever grateful.

The Chaloff gang at the finish line of the Boston Marathon.

Jamie Chals kicked some ass.

From the rooftop, shout it out: BABY, I'M READY TO GO...

So maybe it wasn't the best idea to partake in several rounds of hookah last night after an open bar...

Nevertheless, I wanted to kick off the official first week of training today with one of my favorite courses, the southern tip of Manhattan. The route takes me from Houston and FDR on the East Side down past the Staten Island Ferry, Battery Park, and up the West Side Highway back to Houston Street. It's a great seven-mile loop best enjoyed at night (and ideally with a good breeze coming off the East and Hudson Rivers), as the Williamsburg, Manhattan, and Brooklyn Bridges are all lit up. Dumbo, Liberty Island, and Jersey City provide a really beautiful backdrop. As the song goes, "these lights will inspire you." 

Interjection: about two weeks ago I got an email from Mom at 7 a.m. with the subject line "I LOVE THIS SONG." In it, in all lowercase letters, were the lyrics to the chorus of "Empire State of Mind." I concur, Mom; these streets will make you feel brand new. I love New York and I love my Mom. Who was apparently awake at 7 a.m. listening to Jay-Z.

Pre-run, I was feeling pretty good, armed with new gear (see right): a runners' watch Mom got me, a shoe wallet,

and plenty of cold-weather garb from the big sale at EMS last weekend.  As it wasn't nearly cold enough for anything more than a tee-shirt and shorts, those very exciting purchases will remain in the EMS bag on my floor, hopefully not needed until February. Though I felt a little bit of the heel pain that's been bugging me the past couple of weeks around my left arch, I felt good tonight averaging a pretty comfortable 7:35-7:40 mile. As I couldn't figure out how to work what appears to be a very simple Timex, this isn't 100% accurate. Let's hope I can learn how to use this little mutha and not have it start flipping out and flashing neon indigo around the South Street Seaport next time.

I'm really looking forward to the big Team in Training kick-off this week and to the first run with Celeste and my teammates. For now, we shower and eat. See below.

Till next time...