Well hello there e’ryone!

It’s a little after 12pm and I’m resting comfortably after a busy morning.  I hadn’t planned on meeting my “peeps” this weekend to run but when I remembered that it’s the start of Summer Streets here in NYC I didn’t want to miss out. Basically there are 7 miles of streets in the city that are closed to traffic and lots of fun free stuff to do like rock climbing and zip lining. But best of all lots of runners and bikers come to just enjoy streets with no cars. Lisa’s friend Stacey was joining us for the first time. She’s running her first marathon this fall at the NYC Marathon. She asked me questions and I answered like a seasoned pro runner who also ran NYC as my first marathon. Her big question was how to handle inclines. Gee, after 7 years I still can’t handle them. LOL!

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Boys and Girls meet Stacey…Lisa’s coworker who ALSO expressed interest in running. =)

We started at 6:30am in Brooklyn and within 2 miles we had run across the Brooklyn Bridge. I went photo crazy. I love random beauty in the city. And I’m starting to realize I have an unhealthy obsession with bridges (read this post and this post).

Locks of Love.

Locks of Love.

If you Google: locks on bridges, you’ll learn all about what I learned today. This Wikipedia link sums it up.

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random owl sticker.

This one is my fave of the day

This one is my fave of the day

 

Once we crossed into Manhattan from Brooklyn, we met up with Cindy. We passed a really beautiful firehouse on the Lower East Side.Then we got to where the rock climbing wall was. And passing through Chinatown early in the morning is not exactly fragrant…

stunning!

Engine 39 lookin fine. actually it’s Engine 31 but that doesn’t rhyme with fine. LOL.

 

The run didn't stink....just the block we were on....

Cindy and I Holding our noses on a stinky street corner and NOT because of Lisa. She just didn’t hear my last minute request for the nose pinching pose. Want to go rock climbing wall in SoHo anyone?.

Summer Streets goes for 3 weekends. So we’ll be doing this again next week. Today’s run totaled 10 miles. We stopped a whole lot for pictures and pottie breaks and kept our pace slow but the miles were logged. After my nice hard effort tempo in the rain on Thursday I enjoyed this relaxed run.

The NYC Marathon is just 3 months away! Today was a reminder to myself how important it is to really take in the sights when you’re running. It’s part of the joy of running outside for me and the reason treadmills aren’t my thing. Whether it’s a race or a training run. Don’t come home thinking only about the miles. On November 3rd I’ll be really trying to take in all the sights of the crowds and the crazy signs that people hold up. Hmmm, maybe I need to get a GoPro camera to video the whole thing?!

Question: Do you take pictures when running in races? Do you remember the funniest sign held by a spectator at any of your running events?

It’s Thursday already?!!! Sheesh! This week has flown by. I won’t get into the gory details but it was quite a stressful week. The straw that broke the (stuffed) camel’s back (I never harm animals even in adages) was my most disastrous commute home. I only live 25 miles from my office. It shouldn’t have to take 2 1/2 hours to get home…

OK so it’s pouring rain here in NYC. I had a 5 mile tempo run on my schedule for today. I ALMOST opted to go to the gym but the thought of an hour on the “dreadmill” made me ill. Then I came to my senses.

see the raindrops on the watch?

see the raindrops on the watch?

I ran without music since i figured the rain would short out my earphones. I really didn’t need music. I was feeling great and smiling like a nerd.

OK now to the Information Nation part:

1. When you make a choice and follow through, you won’t regret it and you will always feel good. This is not just with running but in all aspects of your life. It’s empowering.

2. When you run in the rain and have squishy, water-slogged sneakers, stuff them with newspaper to draw out the moisture. (It works for sweaty sneakers too, to take the odors out)

sneaks3. When you eat breakfast with dogs, be prepared for the “pathetic stare”. If you make the choice to share, see #1. (These kids had some of my hard boiled egg. I made the choice to share and I feel empowered. =)

give us some of that!

give us some of that!

Question: Do you like running in the rain? Any tips for drying out afterwards?