A New Milestone

My boyfriend may be in Costa Rica this weekend doing all sorts of fun things that are bound to get him killed–from unlicensed scuba diving to waterfall repelling to dining with cannibals, only one of which I made up–but my solo New York City weekend promises to offer something perhaps even more exciting: my first ever 30-mile week.

I realize a 30-mile running week means virtually nothing to any experienced competitor, but for this novice athlete, it marks a major milestone in my drive to become a marathoner. Initially logging just 4.5 miles during my first seven-day stretch as a runner in January 2011, I’ve since boosted my stamina more than six-fold in a little over a year. I’m not really one for late-night infomercials, but a six-fold stamina boost sure sounds like the kind of thing you’d pay for with four easy payments of $19.95.

“I would like to have a product that was available for three easy payments and one f-ing complicated payment! We ain’t gonna tell you which payment it is, but one of these payments is gonna be a bitch. The mailman will get shot to death, the envelope will not seal, and the stamp will be in the wrong denomination. Good luck! The last payment must be made in wampum.”

– Sir Mitch Hedberg (1968 – 2005)

What’s that?  You demand at least one Mitch Hedberg joke be included now in every future blog post? Done and done.

Of course, my planned 30-mile accomplishment is fully dependent on my completing a scheduled 9-mile long run tomorrow, which is fully dependent on my ability to decline what I expect will be a very compelling argument from my roommate to go out for drinks after a screening at the TriBeCa Film Festival tonight. Go ahead, Liz. Give it your best shot.

Now I usually end (or start, or pepper throughout) my posts with gratuitous photos of anonymous puppies, but since there will soon be a new addition to my nuclear family, I might as well share the good news – and photographic evidence – here. Much to my sister’s and my insurmountable jealousy, my kid brother is now the proud owner of his very own golden-doodle, Keira (right).

She will never replace our one and only (dog) love, Ellie, but I’m excited to watch her try.

What’s in store for you this weekend? If you live in NYC and don’t want me to have to run 9 miles all by myself tomorrow, I’ll give you one good guess.