romping, eating, sleeping, train-ing, eating, and more

it has been a full weekend. things started out on friday night with a reindeer romp through newark, delaware. rain/snow/sleet had been threatening through most of the day but as of three o'clock the race was still on so i loaded up some warm clothes and headed down to rotten's for pregame yoga (?) and to heckle him about the fact we were finally participating in something i might actually be able to do nearly as well as he could. or better. the thing about cyclists is sometimes their inner runner is buried a bit deeper down than others. i was just hoping my own inner runner didn't decide to spend the evening hunkered down in the nice, warm car we left behind in the parking lot as we set out in our tights and warm - but not warm enough - layers. there was a great contigent of DCCoD'ers at the start and it was great to see everyone though a little strange not too many of them were the ones wearing tights that evening. rotten and the ladies struck out at the start and kept a strong pace through the entire 5K. i enjoyed the race, warmed up enough to shed my gloves and unzip a couple of layers around my neck, and crossed the line just at my pre-determined goal of 30 minutes. it was cold and damp out, and so far my best fitness seems to find me on the cold, but dry, outings. after the race we ran into a couple of rotten's colleagues and spent too much time in sweaty running clothes in the damp cold night. after a frigid changing session in the parking lot during which i pretty much plummeted into the throes of hypothermia, we joined back up with the crowd at homegrown for some much needed food, beer, and laughter. once again i was left feeling psyched to have caught up with folks and for the pretty much unrelenting humor that leaves my sides hurting.


saturday morning we slid into the subi, stopping in at harrington's just as it opened for some coffee and calories, before meeting up with the fam and headed into the big city, york nuevo, for the annual gramercy tavern lunch. the lunch started four years ago when mom and i brought grandmother to the city for lunch and to st. pat's. grandmother grew up in brooklyn and had not been back to the city in ages at that time. it was a really happy day for all of us. each year the attendees have changed slightly but it is all rooted in the lunch at the gramercy tavern, an indulgence that i wish for each of you at some point in life. the service is impeccible, the food - every course - is delicious, and the setting is comfortable. this year six of us headed up and enjoyed two hours of food and drink that left us all feeling a bit like we needed to be rolled back into the street but also full up of holiday joy. i think it is nearly impossible to leave the table without the christmas spirit. laughs, talking, beers, wines, desserts, isn't this, plus people you care about, what it is all about?

i was so happy to be there. i insisted upon going last year, and we had picked a weekend when i would have more energy because it was about halfway through a chemo cycle. i didn't want to miss the trip, didn't want to miss something so important because of the cancer. but in a way i was really scared i might not get to do it again. i never believed it, but i think the fear was there, a tiny bit, deep down inside.

enough of that, though. i enjoyed a quick forray to gramercy park with rotten, watching from the outside as a woman ran around and around and around on the short path on the inside of the park. her very own personal romp. we terrorized a number of local squirrels and pigeons as we circumnavigated the park, wondering what people live in those beautiful houses and i would like any and all of them to know if they ever need a house sitter i am for hire. especially, in fact, if they are never there. we also hit the city bakery for a small dose of hot chocolate and to pick up some sugar cookies that crumble away magically in your mouth as you eat them. just in case we needed any more food at that point, right. we hit ABC to shop the stuff and crush santa by being the two twenty-somethings that just HAD to sit, actually sit, on his lap. he muttered an "uh, no, not there" as we posed for a requisite snap shot - what tourists! - and laughed to ourselves. searching for gifts in the market proved a bit overwhelming but it was great people - er, ugg - watching and just fun to be surrounded by the humanity and the colors.


another highlight of the day must not go without mention. check out this fine mullet-y goodness from the train ride back to metropark. if only you knew how hard i was laughing as i attempted to get the shot off without disturbing the specimen in his native surroundings:


so. another week beginning. the good news is it is snowing in utah (puking, actually) and it is going to be cold in new england for the forseeable future. i am so ready for another hampster adventure. as much as i am savoring each and every day i cannot help but look forward to time in the mountains with the gang. things are exciting.