Sweet Blog O'Mine

v. 2.0

  • What’s Your Lifestyle?

    Over the past few days, I've had more than one conversation with people I know about what they imagine their future life to look like, either with or without a significant other.  I think about this quite a bit — I see a bright, open apartment with a yard or roof deck, space to entertain comfortably, a kitchen that allows me to cook with others.  I imagine a very social lifestyle, somewhat like what I have now — having people over, going to outdoor concerts, visiting museums, going to restaurants — even when there are kids (hopefully) involved.  I don't see myself living in the suburbs or keeping to myself.  Maybe this is unrealistic with a family, but I don't think so, and it is what I strive to create in my life.

    It becomes problematic when there are two people in the mix — if they don't share the same view of their ideal lifestyle, there will always be friction.  It's certainly easier on one's own.  But, what I'm realizing is that, family or not, I have the power and the ability to make my life what I want it to be — so stay tuned, folks, there may be some changes in the works.  They won't take place right away, but slowly and steadily, I will add on the the life that I have to create the life I want to have in the future.

  • Relaxation Therapy

    Beach

    I haven't been getting nearly enough down time lately, so when I received a last minute invitation to head out to West Hampton this weekend, I jumped on it.  I took a stupidly early train on Saturday which afforded me a full beach day — and the weather couldn't have been more gorgeous.  Just what the doctor ordered — sand, surf, friends, laughter, and dinner on the grill (which was ever-so-tasty).  Looking forward to my full week of relaxation — up to the cabin in Maine for a long weekend followed by several days on Fire Island — at the end of the month, but have quite a bit to do before then . . .

     

  • Dear Laren,

    I was just writing to remind you that sometimes I like a quiet night at home.  Maybe just one or two a week. Don't get me wrong — I love getting you through triathlons, cocktail conferences, and your ridiculous work/social schedule, but I do need a certain amount of sleep.  And downtime.  That couch you have is quite comfy, and I know you enjoy cooking meals in your kitchen.

    I don't mean to be demanding or anything.  I tried to send you a warning sign earlier this week, with all the sniffling and sneezing, and you let me rest a bit, but then you started right back up again with the workouts and the going out and the not enough sleep thing.

    I truly hope that we can work something out on this front or I may just crap out on you altogether. 

    Love,

    Your Body

    PS — Your Soul says hi, and is putting in a request for weekly yoga in addition to more downtime

    xoxo

  • Mess = Good

    As I sat last night cracking into a bowl of lobster knuckles at Mary's Fish Camp, I once again came to the realization that I don't ever want to date someone with whom I am not completely comfortable stuffing my face with the most primal, messy food around — ribs, lobster, etc.  In fact, I'm starting to think that should be a requirement in the first few dates.

  • Weekend Wrapup

    Kentucky Royale

    Kentucky Royale from Char No. 4

    Cookoff
    Kara (founder of the Great Hot Dog Cookoff), Erik (one of the competitors), and me (just eating)

    Housewarming surprise for Lauren at Dram on Friday night; Saturday morning run, Great Hot Dog Cookoff, @KRey's & Eugene's bday at Dutch Kills, dinner at Jackson Diner; Sunday brunch at Char No. 4 oozing into light dinner at Five Leaves, topped off with Mad Men.  Great weekend, but the last over-indulgent one for a while — time to crack down again on the food intake and get back to my exercise routine!  I've tentatively agreed to do a 10-mile run in December . . . (eek)

  • To Keep You Entertained

    shot_1279734461347

    until I can pull it together to write up my summary of Tales of the Cocktail, I offer this Sazerac picture and my latest posts on Serious Eats NY to keep you entertained.

    Mix It Up: NYC in NOLA – The Sazerac

    Meet & Eat: Katherine Thompson, Pastry Chef

    Mix It Up: Non-Alcoholic Cocktails at Rouge Tomate

    Meet & Eat: Todd Richman, Specialty Spirits Ambassador

    Mix It Up: Tuesday the 13th at Cienfuegos

    Meet & Eat: Kara Masi, Founder, The Great Hot Dog Cookoff (going tomorrow!)

  • Back in One Piece

    Jambalaya

    Rabbit and sausage jambalaya and Creole fried chicken from Coop's Place

    Ramos

    a perfect Ramos gin fizz at the Sazerac Bar in the Roosevelt Hotel

    Absinthe house

    the typical end of every night – congregating outside the Old Absinthe House

    On Sunday I returned from Tales of the Cocktail, an annual cocktail conference in New Orleans.  I'll do my best to give a recap shortly, but for now, pictures are worth a thousand words.

  • Balance

    Sunday, NYC Triathlon; today, heading to NOLA for Tales of the Cocktail. Gotta have some balance in life folks!!  Drink, food, music, fun, friends, and HEAT all await me.

  • Swim, Bike, Run, Nap, Celebrate!

    I'm happy to report that I successfully finished another NYC Triathlon in my goal of under 3 1/2 hours at 3:29:41!  I was thrilled (but not at all surprised) that I cut down the time on my swim — I actually got into a really good groove — but apparently I was futzing around during my transitions and didn't push quite hard enough on the bike!  I'm pretty pleased with the run as well, especially given the heat.  All in all, though, it was a great race.  Here are my times for comparison.

    2010: Swim 20:54 T1 11:39 Bike 1:42:43 T2 6:26 Run 1:08:01

    2009:
    Swim 24:30 T1 10:17 Bike 1:40:57 T2 4:01 Run 1:07:22

    2008: Swim 24:30 T1 10:55 Bike 1:36:47 T2 4:00 Run 1:08:40

    My highlights from the race:

    Seeing Tiffany, with whom I crossed the finish line last year, at the swim start; noticing, for the first time, the distance markers along the way on the swim course; seeing my Mom and Stephen along the course; biking through the tollbooth and enjoying the view over the Hudson River Bridge; playing cat & mouse on the bike course with a fellow Team in Training team member, who, at age 24, was mostly trying to catch me; dancing around to "Can't Touch This," which was playing over the loudspeaker during my second transition (this might account for the long transition time); having April run with me for a portion of the run; hearing people shout out your name (or some variation of it) along the way (I highly recommend putting your name on your shirt); hearing/seeing Rachel from Bespoke Chocolates cheer me on as I was rounding one of the final curves towards the finish; and digging deep and sprinting those last few yards to the sound of a cheering crowd.

    Least favorite?  Having to ride my bike home afterward with a backpack full of tri gear.

    Thanks to you all, I raised over $3,800 for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society!!!  It is a privilege to be a part of raising money for such a good cause, and I can't thank you enough.  I also want to thank everyone for their words of support and congratulations along the way and after the race, and it was a pleasure celebrating with so many of you last night (especially @jasonwomack & @jodiwomack from Ojai).

    I also wanted to send an extra special congrats to Meg, who also trained with TNT and completed her first NYC Tri, Noelle, who did a tri out on the West Coast yesterday, and Chris B., who completed his first tri yesterday in California.  It was fun to have a little training network going on.

    I hope I can count on your support for the tri again next year!

  • The Final Countdown

    In case you're keeping track, the NYC Triathlon is less than 48 hours away!!  First, the #drop10beforetri update — didn't quite make it to 10lbs down, but I dropped 7.8, and feel pretty good about that. Here's hoping not to undo it all in NOLA next week.  I plan to lose the rest (and undo whatever damage I do) when I return.  And now, the TRIATHLON:

    1) If you find yourself available to watch the tri, I'll be on the run course around 9-10 on Sunday (give or take a bit). I'll be wearing a purple Team in Training tank, black tri shorts, a yellow number (TBD) and a Jackrabbit white visor. Good places to watch are along 72nd Street from Henry Hudson Parkway to Central Park West, Cherry Hill before we head to the finish on Dead Road in Central Park, and Dead Road in Central Park near the bandshell off the 72nd Street Transverse. Afterward, I'll be hanging out at the bandshell for a bit, so look for me there. Map and more info here.

    2) Assuming you're not up that early, come join me at the 8th St. Winecellar anytime after 5pm to celebrate what I hope to be a successful completion of the tri.

    3) Regardless, please consider donating to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in support of my race – it's a great cause and I'm proud to be part of their Team in Training. Every bit helps. (Thanks for your support if you've already donated).

    Hope to see you on Sunday and thank you all for your support along the way — I couldn't do this without you all!