This is my live Academy Awards Blog. It starts about a half hour into the show because I just thought of it...
By the way I am publishing it before I actually proofread it so there will be plenty of spelling and grammer mistakes that I will correct later...or maybe I wont.
Enjoy
8:55 - Paul Rudd and Melissa Mcarthy come out and do something that looked like it should have been funny but honest to god I have no idea what they said.
8:56 - My wife actually says "Why is she so fat?" That's nice honey.
8:59 - Reese Witherspoon's boobs look like they are trying to eat her dress.
9:00 - The clamoring in my house for Les Miserables to win every Oscar including Best Animated Short, Best foreign documentary and the Cecil B DeMille Award reaches a fever pitch.
9:04 - Cinematography.....Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...Oh Thank God one of the Doobie Brothers won.
9:07 - Visual Effects goes to......More people nobody knows or cares about!! Hooray!!
9:10 - That guy really didn't get that his time was done did he?? Dude, That music means Shut the f' Up
9:14 - The Costume Design winner looked like she had to walk in from the parking lot.
9:20 - What the hell is Halle Berry wearing??? That looks like a costume that people in movies about the future wear.
9:24 - Did I need to hear Goldfinger? Let me answer that for you...No. No I didn't.
9:30 - Live Action Short goes to.... Les Miserables!!! Wow! I did not see that coming.
9:40 - 10:10 - I had to get my clothes ready and take a shower so I missed whatever minor awards were given out and, apparently, a big musical montage.... I feel all empty inside.
10:11 - Mark Walberg has to stand up there and pretend he is enjoying interacting with a teddy bear. It always surprises me that the directors of the show think that will be funny.
10:14 - Did he just say there is a tie???? I would be pissed if I was one of those two. That is kind of like getting "Participation Tropy" You didn't actually win because everyone got one.
10:18 - Christopher Plummer looks like a corpse.
10:19 - My wife just said about Anne Hathaway "Look how her dress does the nipple thing" What does that mean?
10:21 - Anne Hathaway and her nipple dress won!!!!
10:32 - The editing guy apparently had a seat in the parking lot next to the Costume Designer chick.
(as a side note how cool would it be to be handed your oscar by Sandra Bullock?)
10:34 - I hate hate hate the song Skyfall. So boring.
10:43 - I didn't realize how many freakin pictures were nominated for Best Picture. Nicole Kidman was the 10th person to announce 3 films that were nominated. That can't be right. Can it??
10:46 - Kristen Stewart bravely limps on stage and then sounds like she's stoned.
10:47 - Oh My God! Nice wig on the guy who just won for doing something for Lincoln. He looks like if he took off his glasses the hair would come with it.
10:52 - The two old men from the Muppets balcony brought two of their friends with them and they all decided to carry an Oscar.
10:56 - Ah...the In Memoriam portion of the show. We always love this part. A lot of sound editors and production designers this year. Too bad more famous people didn't die.
11:00 - ...like Barbara Streisand. She annoys the living crap out of me.
11:02 - My wife and I think that if Cher and Jennifer Anniston had a kid it would be the 2013 version of Barbara Streisand.
11:03 - Bunny
11:04 - Our Bunny comes to feast on human flesh.
11:07 - Catherine Zeta Jones is going to be my 3rd wife. (after my current wife and Diane Lane)
11:12 - OK. What the hell is Life of PI about?? I am tired of thinking it of it as the tiger on a raft movie
11:15 - Skyfall wins best son......Zzzzzzzzz
11:23 - OK. The time has come for the big ones
11:24 - Tarrantino wins for screenplay. I am going to come right out and say what an insufferable douche bag I think he is.
11:25 - ...aaannnnnddd he proves it again.
11:27 - Two awards and another commercial. No wonder these things last longer than a Yankees/Red Sox game
11:32 - I just realized the combined age of Michael Douglas and Jane Fonda is 412.
11:33 - Ang Lee wins Best Director for the tiger on a raft movie.
11:35 - Two awards and another commercial. Oh My God!! This is an excersise in torture.
11:42 - Jennifer Lawrence Takes Best Actress and promptly falls going up the stairs. What a bittersweet moment that must be.
11:44 - "Meryl Streep's dress looks like it is made out of cement". ...Kristen Day
11:47 - Meryl apparently doesn't beleive in suspense.
11:50 - Jack Nicholson ladies and gentlemen!!
11:51 - Why oh why are we listening to Michelle Obama and her stupid hair?? And what was the point of her ramblings??
11:55 - Argo takes the big one. I stongly feel that anyone who looks as good as George Clooney should not be as rich as he is. You get one or the other. Not both.
That's it. The damn thing is finally over. Remind me to never do this again. I am going to hate myself in the morning.
Til next time.
Monday, February 25, 2013
Saturday, February 9, 2013
Motivation...or lack thereof
So I clicked on the BAA website and I got a sobering slap in the face. There are 64 days until the marathon. 64 DAYS!!! Holy crap!! I have just over 2 months to train and raise money for this year's race! After regaining my senses I wondered to myself how the hell did I let it get this late without getting some donations or getting really serious about my training??? One of the things I hate about myself is that I have a tendency to get complacent and lazy. Just ask my wife...she'll tell you. I go through times in my life when I am motivated and a man of action. ...and then....well...right now I am in one of those other moods. I have lacked any kind of motivation to get things done. I have no idea why this is the case. I don't know whether it is the stress at work, the Patriots loss in the AFC Championship game (to Ray Lewis no less), the fact that I am getting older and more crotchety with each passing day, the debt ceiling, my continued inability to create cold fusion or my hatred of sweet gherkins but I can't seem to get going with anything around this year's marathon run. I have had a hard time getting out running this time of year because the only time that I can run during the week is after dinner and it is dark and cold. (and yes, I will have some delicious smoked Gouda cheese with that whine)
So I need help. My wife does what she can to motivate me (which mostly consists of telling me to get off my fat, lazy ass and go for a run) but I think this year I am going to need more. So I am asking anyone that reads this post to take a minute to post a comment urging me to get going. I don't care if it is inspirational and uplifting or slightly mean or downright offensive and insulting. I just need to have a fire lit under me. I need to be motivated to get out on the street and I need to be motivated to do more fundraising. As of right now I have raised exactly...well, let me check the big board....oh yeah...the tally right now is a big fat ZERO. That won't do. Not for Max and not for NF Inc Northeast.
I will try my best to do my part. I hope to post here more often and really start to get the word out to get donations. So you should get used to hearing my shameless plugs for money. I will be more annoying than PBS during the 475th airing of the 25th anniversary concert of Les Miserables (by the way, how GOOD was that concert???) I am going to be the Jerry Lewis of NF fundraising, I will be more cloying than Sally Struthers trying to get you to throw a sandwich at some poor Ugandan kid or Sarah McLaughlin mewling about a mangy dog that looks like it just spent a coke filled weekend at Michael Vick's house.
It will start today! After I shovel the 214 feet of snow in and around my driveway..side rant here...My frickin snow blower broke!!! The biggest snowstorm in 20 years and my God forsaken snow blower breaks!!! I'm out last night at 10:00 doing the first pass at the snow and I run over something in the driveway that gets stuck in the auger and I think it ended up either breaking or dislodging a belt. Why does God hate me so????...end rant. Anyway after I shovel a million pounds of snow I am going to run on the treadmill for at least an hour. By the way if you read my last post I included a list of things that were the Devil's Work. I count treadmills among them now.
Help me...Motivate me and let's kick this thing's ass together. Remember I need to raise $4,000 and I want to finish in less than 5 hours. Not much time to do either but let's give it a shot.
Til next time...
*****UPDATE *****
I did it!!! I cleared about 250 tons of snow from my driveway (by the way my snow blower only had a hunk if wood jammed in the auger. Once I got it out everything worked like a champ) I cleared some of the snow off the roof and I got on the treadmill and ran for an hour. The treadmill said I did a little over 5 miles but it seemed like it should have been longer than that. My thanks to Jason Bourne for keeping me company for that excruciatingly looooong hour.
So I need help. My wife does what she can to motivate me (which mostly consists of telling me to get off my fat, lazy ass and go for a run) but I think this year I am going to need more. So I am asking anyone that reads this post to take a minute to post a comment urging me to get going. I don't care if it is inspirational and uplifting or slightly mean or downright offensive and insulting. I just need to have a fire lit under me. I need to be motivated to get out on the street and I need to be motivated to do more fundraising. As of right now I have raised exactly...well, let me check the big board....oh yeah...the tally right now is a big fat ZERO. That won't do. Not for Max and not for NF Inc Northeast.
I will try my best to do my part. I hope to post here more often and really start to get the word out to get donations. So you should get used to hearing my shameless plugs for money. I will be more annoying than PBS during the 475th airing of the 25th anniversary concert of Les Miserables (by the way, how GOOD was that concert???) I am going to be the Jerry Lewis of NF fundraising, I will be more cloying than Sally Struthers trying to get you to throw a sandwich at some poor Ugandan kid or Sarah McLaughlin mewling about a mangy dog that looks like it just spent a coke filled weekend at Michael Vick's house.
It will start today! After I shovel the 214 feet of snow in and around my driveway..side rant here...My frickin snow blower broke!!! The biggest snowstorm in 20 years and my God forsaken snow blower breaks!!! I'm out last night at 10:00 doing the first pass at the snow and I run over something in the driveway that gets stuck in the auger and I think it ended up either breaking or dislodging a belt. Why does God hate me so????...end rant. Anyway after I shovel a million pounds of snow I am going to run on the treadmill for at least an hour. By the way if you read my last post I included a list of things that were the Devil's Work. I count treadmills among them now.
Help me...Motivate me and let's kick this thing's ass together. Remember I need to raise $4,000 and I want to finish in less than 5 hours. Not much time to do either but let's give it a shot.
Til next time...
*****UPDATE *****
I did it!!! I cleared about 250 tons of snow from my driveway (by the way my snow blower only had a hunk if wood jammed in the auger. Once I got it out everything worked like a champ) I cleared some of the snow off the roof and I got on the treadmill and ran for an hour. The treadmill said I did a little over 5 miles but it seemed like it should have been longer than that. My thanks to Jason Bourne for keeping me company for that excruciatingly looooong hour.
Sunday, January 20, 2013
I Have Nothing to Say
It is my understanding that the purpose of writing this blog is to get people to read it and as a result they will learn about NF and Max and as a direct result of THAT they will donate a few shekels to NF Inc Northeast and help to make Max's, and every other person afflicted with this indiscriminate disorder's, life better.
It sounds simple enough, right? All I have to do is sit down once a day and bang out a few hundred words filled with humor and intelligence and witty observation and people will say to themselves "My what a smart and funny young man. His cause seems worthy of some of my hard earned money". The problem is that I really have nothing to say. Since starting this blog I have developed a real admiration and respect for the people that write blogs everyday. Everyday they have something to write about, some opinion to express or some story to tell. I got nuthin'
Don't get me wrong I think about it everyday but the thought of stringing together enough coherent sentences to make it worthwhile for anyone to read seems way harder than running a marathon. I think about all the different blogs that I see and it seems like I am not even smart enough to rip off their ideas.
I could go on a rant about how tired I am of hearing about Lance Armstrong and as disgusting as I find him I also find Oprah Winfrey equally as reprehensible for trying to turn her interview with him into a two part extravaganza that will get people to watch her network. (by the way, has anyone told her that she is no longer relevant?) I could opine about Notre Dame's Manti Te'o and how I could care less of whether he had a girlfriend or not. Somebody should tell him that most people stop claiming to have imaginary girlfriends sometime around the 10th grade. ("She's from Canada. You wouldn't know her")
Maybe I could breakdown the AFC Championship game and what the Patriots have to do to get past the Ravens. Here's my analysis. If the Patriot's offense can score more points than Baltimore I can virtually guarantee you that they will return to the Super Bowl. That is my mortal lock. Go right now and bet the house on that.
If sports isn't you thing, maybe you would want to read my reviews of current movies. Well, I have been to the movies exactly once in the last 6 months. A couple of weeks ago I went to see Les Miserables and I loved it. I sobbed like a 12 year old school girl and I will NOT apologize for it! Anyone who doesn't get at least a little misty when Anne Hathaway sings "I Dreamed a Dream" has no soul. My advice to you though, don't expect a real uplifting film. This is a beautiful but long and very very sad film. By the way Sasha Baron Cohen was badly cast in this.
If sports or cinema doesn't float your boat then maybe a list. I see a lot of blogs with lists. Best this or worst that. I think it has something to do with lists being easy and quick to read. OK. I'll give that a shot. Anyone who has spent anytime around me has heard me refer to many things as "The Devil's Work" These are things so heinous and such a blight on human existence that they could only have come from the Satan himself. So here is a top ten list of things that are the Devil's Work:
10 Speed Bumps
9 The Real Housewives of Anywhere
8 Microbrewery Beer
7 The Beatles ( C'mon...The most overrated band in the history of music)
6 The Westboro Baptist Church
5 Pumpkin Flavored Anything
4 Twitter
3 Grapes with Seeds
2 Brownies with Nuts
1 There's Something About Mary
Or maybe I just ask for donations. Please donate to NF Inc. Northeast. If you do you will feel better about yourself and good things will come to you. You will feel better, your family will love you more, your friends will respect you, you will be regular and all of your hopes and dreams will be within your grasp. How can you pass that up???
See...like I said...I got nuthin' to say.
Til next time...
It sounds simple enough, right? All I have to do is sit down once a day and bang out a few hundred words filled with humor and intelligence and witty observation and people will say to themselves "My what a smart and funny young man. His cause seems worthy of some of my hard earned money". The problem is that I really have nothing to say. Since starting this blog I have developed a real admiration and respect for the people that write blogs everyday. Everyday they have something to write about, some opinion to express or some story to tell. I got nuthin'
Don't get me wrong I think about it everyday but the thought of stringing together enough coherent sentences to make it worthwhile for anyone to read seems way harder than running a marathon. I think about all the different blogs that I see and it seems like I am not even smart enough to rip off their ideas.
I could go on a rant about how tired I am of hearing about Lance Armstrong and as disgusting as I find him I also find Oprah Winfrey equally as reprehensible for trying to turn her interview with him into a two part extravaganza that will get people to watch her network. (by the way, has anyone told her that she is no longer relevant?) I could opine about Notre Dame's Manti Te'o and how I could care less of whether he had a girlfriend or not. Somebody should tell him that most people stop claiming to have imaginary girlfriends sometime around the 10th grade. ("She's from Canada. You wouldn't know her")
Maybe I could breakdown the AFC Championship game and what the Patriots have to do to get past the Ravens. Here's my analysis. If the Patriot's offense can score more points than Baltimore I can virtually guarantee you that they will return to the Super Bowl. That is my mortal lock. Go right now and bet the house on that.
If sports isn't you thing, maybe you would want to read my reviews of current movies. Well, I have been to the movies exactly once in the last 6 months. A couple of weeks ago I went to see Les Miserables and I loved it. I sobbed like a 12 year old school girl and I will NOT apologize for it! Anyone who doesn't get at least a little misty when Anne Hathaway sings "I Dreamed a Dream" has no soul. My advice to you though, don't expect a real uplifting film. This is a beautiful but long and very very sad film. By the way Sasha Baron Cohen was badly cast in this.
If sports or cinema doesn't float your boat then maybe a list. I see a lot of blogs with lists. Best this or worst that. I think it has something to do with lists being easy and quick to read. OK. I'll give that a shot. Anyone who has spent anytime around me has heard me refer to many things as "The Devil's Work" These are things so heinous and such a blight on human existence that they could only have come from the Satan himself. So here is a top ten list of things that are the Devil's Work:
10 Speed Bumps
9 The Real Housewives of Anywhere
8 Microbrewery Beer
7 The Beatles ( C'mon...The most overrated band in the history of music)
6 The Westboro Baptist Church
5 Pumpkin Flavored Anything
4 Twitter
3 Grapes with Seeds
2 Brownies with Nuts
1 There's Something About Mary
Or maybe I just ask for donations. Please donate to NF Inc. Northeast. If you do you will feel better about yourself and good things will come to you. You will feel better, your family will love you more, your friends will respect you, you will be regular and all of your hopes and dreams will be within your grasp. How can you pass that up???
See...like I said...I got nuthin' to say.
Til next time...
Sunday, January 13, 2013
A New Beginning
Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends...
It is January of 2013 and I have officially begun training for this years exercise in pain, agony and stupidity. I am of course talking about the Boston Marathon and I have sent in my application and received confirmation from my good friends at the BAA that, yes, in fact they are going to let me run this year despite my less than ideal body type.
I have fully recovered from last year's ungodly hot run and I am looking forward to making this year the best one yet from not only a time but also from a fundraising standpoint. Last year I was overwhelmed by the donations that I received. I set a goal of raising $3,000 and I was thrilled to receive over $3,700. This year I am going raise the stakes and see how people respond. This year the goal will be $4,000 and I am confident that it can be reached and surpassed.
As far as time goes...well...I think we all know where this is going (or at least you would if had read this blog over the last couple of years) My goal this year is to break the ever elusive 5 hour mark. For some perspective the first year I ran I finished in 5:55:21. That was followed by times of 5:21:29, 5:33:20 and last years brutal 6:03:42. To shave 22 minutes off of my best time is, at best daunting, and sometimes, it seems downright impossible. However, I am going to work harder than I ever have and I WILL break that 5 hour mark. It is up to you to break the $4,000 mark.
Now I want to say a little bit about why I am doing this at all, my son Max. As a lot of you already know my oldest son was born with a genetic disorder called Neurofibromatosis. It has caused him a wide variety of problems including a number of tumors that have grown on the surface of his skin, a larger, more complex tumor that has grown on his elbow, some learning disabilities, some fine and gross motor skills problems and an inoperable brain tumor. He has done remarkably, inspirationally well despite all of the things going against him. He is now 16 years old and a junior in high school. He gets pretty good grades (much better than I did in high school) and he is now a licensed driver. (Yikes!) He is very heavily into the FIRST Alarm Robotics team (and now he can drive himself to the lab...Yay!!!) He is now looking at (gulp!) colleges. He originally wanted to go to WPI for video game development but we are also looking at Fitchburg State for the same discipline. He continues to surprise us every day. He is a smart, funny, weird and always inspirational figure in our family.
I know every parent thinks this but I truly believe Max is destined to do great things and by raising money for NF Inc, Northeast I think we can all make that happen.
As always ANY amount of money is greatly appreciated and you can donate in one of two ways:
If you want to visit NF Inc. Northeast you can visit them here.
Also take a look around this blog for some surveys and other fun stuff that I will post over the next couple of months. Take a read of the book that I am writing and feel free to let me know your thoughts and opinions. I have posted the first several chapters on this blog.
Thanks for listening and please come back and visit often.
Til next time...
It is January of 2013 and I have officially begun training for this years exercise in pain, agony and stupidity. I am of course talking about the Boston Marathon and I have sent in my application and received confirmation from my good friends at the BAA that, yes, in fact they are going to let me run this year despite my less than ideal body type.
I have fully recovered from last year's ungodly hot run and I am looking forward to making this year the best one yet from not only a time but also from a fundraising standpoint. Last year I was overwhelmed by the donations that I received. I set a goal of raising $3,000 and I was thrilled to receive over $3,700. This year I am going raise the stakes and see how people respond. This year the goal will be $4,000 and I am confident that it can be reached and surpassed.
As far as time goes...well...I think we all know where this is going (or at least you would if had read this blog over the last couple of years) My goal this year is to break the ever elusive 5 hour mark. For some perspective the first year I ran I finished in 5:55:21. That was followed by times of 5:21:29, 5:33:20 and last years brutal 6:03:42. To shave 22 minutes off of my best time is, at best daunting, and sometimes, it seems downright impossible. However, I am going to work harder than I ever have and I WILL break that 5 hour mark. It is up to you to break the $4,000 mark.
Now I want to say a little bit about why I am doing this at all, my son Max. As a lot of you already know my oldest son was born with a genetic disorder called Neurofibromatosis. It has caused him a wide variety of problems including a number of tumors that have grown on the surface of his skin, a larger, more complex tumor that has grown on his elbow, some learning disabilities, some fine and gross motor skills problems and an inoperable brain tumor. He has done remarkably, inspirationally well despite all of the things going against him. He is now 16 years old and a junior in high school. He gets pretty good grades (much better than I did in high school) and he is now a licensed driver. (Yikes!) He is very heavily into the FIRST Alarm Robotics team (and now he can drive himself to the lab...Yay!!!) He is now looking at (gulp!) colleges. He originally wanted to go to WPI for video game development but we are also looking at Fitchburg State for the same discipline. He continues to surprise us every day. He is a smart, funny, weird and always inspirational figure in our family.
I know every parent thinks this but I truly believe Max is destined to do great things and by raising money for NF Inc, Northeast I think we can all make that happen.
As always ANY amount of money is greatly appreciated and you can donate in one of two ways:
- First - Go to my CrowdRise Fund Raising page here and leave your inspirational words of encouragement (or scathing insults) along with your generous donation.
- Second - Make out a check to NFNE and send it to NF Northeast - 9 Bedford Street - Burlington, MA 01803
If you want to visit NF Inc. Northeast you can visit them here.
Also take a look around this blog for some surveys and other fun stuff that I will post over the next couple of months. Take a read of the book that I am writing and feel free to let me know your thoughts and opinions. I have posted the first several chapters on this blog.
Thanks for listening and please come back and visit often.
Til next time...
Thursday, April 19, 2012
06:03:42 - Melting in the Marathon
There is no way to accurately convey just how freaking hot it was on Monday but I'll give it a shot. The day started for me at around 6:30 AM because that was about the time that I finally said to myself "Well I'm not going to sleep anymore so I might as well get up" I felt pretty good when I got up and I put on my awesome shirt that my wife Kristen battles over every year. (believe me when I tell you, every year she has the worst time with the shirt and every year it comes out looking awesome)
...and if that weren't enough...
I had the pleasure of riding in with two "real" runners and two of the nicest people on the earth.
Everybody was psyched, even though the weather was shaping up to be everything they warned us about, and we headed off to Hopkinton.
Hopkinton was everything it always is. It was crowded and hot but everyone seemed to be ready for the challenge. I am happy to report that my normal bathroom break did not happen on the side of the road just shortly after the start but in a port-a-potty in this vast city of dreams.
The race started off great and I quickly settled into a rhythm. I was very careful not to start out too fast (a mistake I have made before and would have been deadly this year) and my calf was feeling pretty good…for about the first 2 ½ miles when I started to feel it. I thought “holy crap…I have a loooooong way to go and I can already feel this?!? Not good.” But as it turns out my calf (thanks to my newly purchased calf sleeve) was the least of my problems on Monday.
Hopkinton turned into Ashland and Ashland turned into Framingham and Framingham turned into Natick and the sun continued to get hotter and hotter. The crowds were amazing. Because of the nice weather they came out by the thousands. There were very few spots early on where the street wasn’t lined with wildly cheering spectators, as always, offering a variety of drinks, snacks and, on this day, a hose to cool you off. The best sign I saw was one that offered “Twizzlers, Vaseline and hugs”. I thought “what else do you need in life”.
The best part of running the Boston Marathon, for me, is the crowds. They are more supportive than you can imagine and they are and endless source of distraction and entertainment. In east Natick I made a spectacular reception of a pass from a teenager while holding my water bottle and a wash cloth that I was using to wipe my face. The energy I used to make that once in a lifetime catch probably added 45 minutes to my finishing time but it was a remarkable catch that was commented on and cheered by everyone that saw it. So…you know...totally worth it!
While we are talking about Natick I can’t fail to mention this is my favorite part of the run. This is where my family always is, cheering wildly. This year, my amazing wife Kristen, as she does every time I run the marathon, got my family and our neighbors, the Molinaro’s out to Natick where I was greeted with frozen towels, a frozen gel thing to wear around my neck, a healthy slathering of sunscreen and pictures. Take a look at this video and tell me that this isn’t a pit stop that even NASCAR would be proud of.
After that I went through the spray tent at the Natick fire station and headed off on my way. Natick turned into Wellesley and the girls at Wellesley College didn’t disappoint. They were as loud as they always are and they always provide a nice pick-me-up heading into the halfway point. While headed through downtown Wellesley I was surprised by a gentleman that came from the sidelines and started to run next to me. As it turns out it was the music teacher in the Millis school system, Mark Femino. He ran next to me for about ¾ of a mile keeping me company. It was an unexpected and pleasant surprise that was a highlight of this years run.
Not long after Mr. Femino and I parted ways I began running next to a gentleman named John who I found out was a school teacher in Boston and we kept each other company / motivated each other for most of the rest of race. As Wellesley became Newton I was pleasantly surprised that my body, particularly my legs, was doing pretty good. Usually by the time I reach the hills in Newton every step is an exercise in torture. My feet hurt. My legs hurt. My back hurts. Pretty much everything from the neck down hurts. But this year everything was ok. My legs and feet were tired but I wasn’t in agony. The only thing that was starting to give me trouble was the muscle just above and on the inside of my knees. They were beginning to spasm. This was a problem that I had the last time I ran but this year it started much later in the race and it wasn’t nearly as bad.
So here we are…cresting Heartbreak Hill and heading down the hill into Brookline and the heat has really taken its toll on me. Even though throughout the day you couldn’t go ½ mile without someone spraying you with a hose or offering you ice or offering you water, it was too hot and I had been out there for too long. My body really was starting to break down. I could only run for ½ - ¾ of a mile at a time before I had to stop and walk due to my spasming leg muscles or my hamstrings, which were now starting to give me trouble, or just from sheer exhaustion. Everything began to take on that hazy summertime feeling when it’s so hot that everyone is operating in slow motion. Even the spectators were starting to thin out and the ones that were there looked almost as hot and tired as the runners did.
As Brookline quickly became Boston, I now was sure that I would finish. Yeah I felt like crap but I only had a couple of miles to go and I knew that Max and the rest of my family were waiting for me on Boylston Street. When I saw the turn for Hereford Street I called my wife and told her I would be there shortly. As I rounded the corner from Hereford to Boylston Street I was out of gas. The finish line looked impossibly far away but I kept going. I have never walked across the finish line and I wasn’t about to do that this year. I got about half way there and I saw Max running out to meet me with a huge smile on his face and that gave me just enough strength to bring it home. Here is how it looked from the sidelines.
After telling Max to slow down a little we made it across the finish line. It took me just over 6 hours. I want to feel like that is a horrible time but I think I am more proud of that, my worst time, than of my best.
Well that is my marathon tale for this year. Thanks to everyone that supported me along the way. Thanks to everyone that donated. You all rock and you inspired me to finish what I started. I can’t tell you how much inspiration you’ve given me over the last couple of months and I can’t thank you enough,
Thanks go out to my wife Kristen who has almost as difficult day on marathon Monday as I do. She drags a whole slew of people from Hopkinton to Natick to Boston and back again and it always touches my heart that she does it. This year was especially heroic because she wasn’t feeling 100 % and…MY GOD IT WAS HOT. Thanks Kristen…I’m glad I’m on your team.
Til Next time…
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| Awesome. Just Awesome. |
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| This is what she made for Max |
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| This is me, Katie O'Connel and Jonathan Steeves This is about as close to them as I will get all day |
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| Where I saw this dude. |
Hopkinton was everything it always is. It was crowded and hot but everyone seemed to be ready for the challenge. I am happy to report that my normal bathroom break did not happen on the side of the road just shortly after the start but in a port-a-potty in this vast city of dreams.
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| Behold the Glory of my Kingdom of Poop |
The race started off great and I quickly settled into a rhythm. I was very careful not to start out too fast (a mistake I have made before and would have been deadly this year) and my calf was feeling pretty good…for about the first 2 ½ miles when I started to feel it. I thought “holy crap…I have a loooooong way to go and I can already feel this?!? Not good.” But as it turns out my calf (thanks to my newly purchased calf sleeve) was the least of my problems on Monday.
Hopkinton turned into Ashland and Ashland turned into Framingham and Framingham turned into Natick and the sun continued to get hotter and hotter. The crowds were amazing. Because of the nice weather they came out by the thousands. There were very few spots early on where the street wasn’t lined with wildly cheering spectators, as always, offering a variety of drinks, snacks and, on this day, a hose to cool you off. The best sign I saw was one that offered “Twizzlers, Vaseline and hugs”. I thought “what else do you need in life”.
The best part of running the Boston Marathon, for me, is the crowds. They are more supportive than you can imagine and they are and endless source of distraction and entertainment. In east Natick I made a spectacular reception of a pass from a teenager while holding my water bottle and a wash cloth that I was using to wipe my face. The energy I used to make that once in a lifetime catch probably added 45 minutes to my finishing time but it was a remarkable catch that was commented on and cheered by everyone that saw it. So…you know...totally worth it!
While we are talking about Natick I can’t fail to mention this is my favorite part of the run. This is where my family always is, cheering wildly. This year, my amazing wife Kristen, as she does every time I run the marathon, got my family and our neighbors, the Molinaro’s out to Natick where I was greeted with frozen towels, a frozen gel thing to wear around my neck, a healthy slathering of sunscreen and pictures. Take a look at this video and tell me that this isn’t a pit stop that even NASCAR would be proud of.
After that I went through the spray tent at the Natick fire station and headed off on my way. Natick turned into Wellesley and the girls at Wellesley College didn’t disappoint. They were as loud as they always are and they always provide a nice pick-me-up heading into the halfway point. While headed through downtown Wellesley I was surprised by a gentleman that came from the sidelines and started to run next to me. As it turns out it was the music teacher in the Millis school system, Mark Femino. He ran next to me for about ¾ of a mile keeping me company. It was an unexpected and pleasant surprise that was a highlight of this years run.
Not long after Mr. Femino and I parted ways I began running next to a gentleman named John who I found out was a school teacher in Boston and we kept each other company / motivated each other for most of the rest of race. As Wellesley became Newton I was pleasantly surprised that my body, particularly my legs, was doing pretty good. Usually by the time I reach the hills in Newton every step is an exercise in torture. My feet hurt. My legs hurt. My back hurts. Pretty much everything from the neck down hurts. But this year everything was ok. My legs and feet were tired but I wasn’t in agony. The only thing that was starting to give me trouble was the muscle just above and on the inside of my knees. They were beginning to spasm. This was a problem that I had the last time I ran but this year it started much later in the race and it wasn’t nearly as bad.
So here we are…cresting Heartbreak Hill and heading down the hill into Brookline and the heat has really taken its toll on me. Even though throughout the day you couldn’t go ½ mile without someone spraying you with a hose or offering you ice or offering you water, it was too hot and I had been out there for too long. My body really was starting to break down. I could only run for ½ - ¾ of a mile at a time before I had to stop and walk due to my spasming leg muscles or my hamstrings, which were now starting to give me trouble, or just from sheer exhaustion. Everything began to take on that hazy summertime feeling when it’s so hot that everyone is operating in slow motion. Even the spectators were starting to thin out and the ones that were there looked almost as hot and tired as the runners did.
As Brookline quickly became Boston, I now was sure that I would finish. Yeah I felt like crap but I only had a couple of miles to go and I knew that Max and the rest of my family were waiting for me on Boylston Street. When I saw the turn for Hereford Street I called my wife and told her I would be there shortly. As I rounded the corner from Hereford to Boylston Street I was out of gas. The finish line looked impossibly far away but I kept going. I have never walked across the finish line and I wasn’t about to do that this year. I got about half way there and I saw Max running out to meet me with a huge smile on his face and that gave me just enough strength to bring it home. Here is how it looked from the sidelines.
After telling Max to slow down a little we made it across the finish line. It took me just over 6 hours. I want to feel like that is a horrible time but I think I am more proud of that, my worst time, than of my best.
Well that is my marathon tale for this year. Thanks to everyone that supported me along the way. Thanks to everyone that donated. You all rock and you inspired me to finish what I started. I can’t tell you how much inspiration you’ve given me over the last couple of months and I can’t thank you enough,
Thanks go out to my wife Kristen who has almost as difficult day on marathon Monday as I do. She drags a whole slew of people from Hopkinton to Natick to Boston and back again and it always touches my heart that she does it. This year was especially heroic because she wasn’t feeling 100 % and…MY GOD IT WAS HOT. Thanks Kristen…I’m glad I’m on your team.
Til Next time…
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Marathon Eve...(or the eve of disaster) and the Rocking continues.
Well...Here we are. It is the day before the marathon and, if you listen to the BAA, if you decide to run this may be the last night you will ever see. Due to the projected high temperature of around 85 degrees they are strongly suggesting that those who are not real men should not even get out of bed tomorrow for fear that as soon as they step foot into the sun they will burst into flames and burn the state of Massachusetts to the ground. It seems that the race organizers are really nervous about people who are not "experienced marathoners" running this year.I, however am going to go and give it my best. Now I am not a compete moron I am going to modify my approach to this years race. I am going to have to give up my goal of finishing in under 5 hours and focus just on finishing without causing myself permanent damage. The heat is just another thing to worry about as I head off to Hopkinton. I am still very concerned about how my calf is going to hold up. I bought a calf sleeve today and I am hoping that this will help me deal with what I am sure to be a long afternoon.
On the bright side my donations continue to come in and as of right now I am at $3,684 and according to my good friends at Firstgiving that is 123% of my goal and that ROCKS.
While we are on the subject lets take a look and see if there is any more people out there who rock.
As it turns out the Monaghan family rocks
When I posted on Facebook that I was within $16 of my goal and I asked if anyone wanted to be the one to push me over the top, an old friend of mine John Sibley replied with just one word..."Done". He rocks.
A month or so ago I played in a trivia contest with Lori Saywer. We won so it is obvious that she rocks at trivia and she rocks in general.
Kristen and I have some old friends that we don't get to see nearly enough but the one thing I know about the Corriea family (that would be Angie, Joey, Joey, Evey and Sam) is that they Rock.
The Millis school system continues to impress everyone with their rock-i-tude because I got donations from 3 more people. That would be Amy Day (no relation), Gayle Kendall and Susan Donelan. There really is no disputing how much they rock.
The aforementioned (I mentioned her in another post) and lovely Donna Cabibo and the equally lovely Brian Hoell both rock.
While we are discussing the amazing people from the Millis Theatre Group let me mention Peg and Joel White as well as the wonderful Karen Motekaitis who, you guessed right, Rock.
I have another friend from the theatre group that I am still waiting to have an over-act off with. His name is Bob Orsi and he rocks.
My sister-in-law has a friend that she works with named Joan DeRubeis who most definitely rocks.
There is a woman named Laura Hill that donated to my run. I don't know who she is but I do know that she rocks.
I have friends that are named Lydia and Melita and they are going to run the marathon this year as bandits (shhhh... don't tell anyone) I won't give out there last names to protect them from the marathon police. But I will tell you that they rock.
Finally there is my wife's friend and co-worker Joe Valle. He was given $50 by someone whose husband died. She gave Joe this money simply because the husband always liked him. Joe turned around and donated that $50 to my marathon in honor of that man. His name was Talbot Smith and he rocks. That story rocks and so does Joe.
That's it. I have to get some sleep, I have a long hot day tomorrow. If I don't burst into flames I will give you the low down on how it went.
Til next time..
On the bright side my donations continue to come in and as of right now I am at $3,684 and according to my good friends at Firstgiving that is 123% of my goal and that ROCKS.
While we are on the subject lets take a look and see if there is any more people out there who rock.
As it turns out the Monaghan family rocks
When I posted on Facebook that I was within $16 of my goal and I asked if anyone wanted to be the one to push me over the top, an old friend of mine John Sibley replied with just one word..."Done". He rocks.
A month or so ago I played in a trivia contest with Lori Saywer. We won so it is obvious that she rocks at trivia and she rocks in general.
Kristen and I have some old friends that we don't get to see nearly enough but the one thing I know about the Corriea family (that would be Angie, Joey, Joey, Evey and Sam) is that they Rock.
The Millis school system continues to impress everyone with their rock-i-tude because I got donations from 3 more people. That would be Amy Day (no relation), Gayle Kendall and Susan Donelan. There really is no disputing how much they rock.
The aforementioned (I mentioned her in another post) and lovely Donna Cabibo and the equally lovely Brian Hoell both rock.
While we are discussing the amazing people from the Millis Theatre Group let me mention Peg and Joel White as well as the wonderful Karen Motekaitis who, you guessed right, Rock.
I have another friend from the theatre group that I am still waiting to have an over-act off with. His name is Bob Orsi and he rocks.
My sister-in-law has a friend that she works with named Joan DeRubeis who most definitely rocks.
There is a woman named Laura Hill that donated to my run. I don't know who she is but I do know that she rocks.
I have friends that are named Lydia and Melita and they are going to run the marathon this year as bandits (shhhh... don't tell anyone) I won't give out there last names to protect them from the marathon police. But I will tell you that they rock.
Finally there is my wife's friend and co-worker Joe Valle. He was given $50 by someone whose husband died. She gave Joe this money simply because the husband always liked him. Joe turned around and donated that $50 to my marathon in honor of that man. His name was Talbot Smith and he rocks. That story rocks and so does Joe.
That's it. I have to get some sleep, I have a long hot day tomorrow. If I don't burst into flames I will give you the low down on how it went.
Til next time..
Friday, April 13, 2012
You Have GOT to be kidding me!!!
So here I am just a few short days from the marathon all worried about my calf muscle., I'm worried that I won't be able to run very well on it and I am seriously worried that my goal of breaking the 5 hour mark will go by the wayside. But...I'm trying to stay positive. I think to myself...well, I'm just going to go out there and give it my best.
If that weren't bad enough lat night I woke up somewhere around 2:00 AM feeling like I caught my son Anthony's stomach bug. I spen the next 2 1/2 hours holding back the inevitable. Then some time around 4:30AM my body said "OK you need to find the bathroom now!!!" and then I proceded to...well...I'll spare you the details but lets just say dinner made an encore appearance. So I eventually got back into bed and tried to go back to sleep but at this point it felt like every last joint in my body was filled with shards of broken glass and my head felt like it was filled with angry, stinging wasps. So needless to say I didn't sleep for the rest of the night.
Now as you know I just started a new job so not going into work was out of the question and I limped my way in at 7:30 after discovering that, apparently, everything in my body had turn to liquid. So I sat at work not knowing which is a worse image of me for my co-workers. Is it just calling in sick on my second week when I am alreading taking Monday off or is it the image of me gently weeping in my office because I'm so tired I am hallucinating and every inch of my body feels likeI have been abused by a pack of rabid gorillas that have been taught to fight with baseball bats. Needless to say I meekly limped out of there at about 9:30 this morning and I have been in and out of sweet sweet unconciousness ever since.
So there you go...I have 2 days to get better. My wife came home from work this afternoon and brought me Powerade so I won't dehydrate and saltines so I would have something in my stomach. She's so good to me. :)
What does this mean for the marathon? Well I am kind of banking on feeling better by then and I have told myself that I will either finish the race or they will cart me off on a stretcher. I was sent a couple of quotes from another member of the NF marathon team that I really like and I will leave you with them
Anyone can run a marathon in 3:00:00 hours, but it takes a real man /woman to stay out there for 6:00:00 hours.
Champions aren't made in gyms
" Champions are made from something they have deep inside them - a desire, a dream, a vision. They have to have that last minute stamina, they have to be a little faster, they have to have the skill and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill".
Muhammad Ali
The Greatest
Thanks to Jeff Brown for these quotes.
Til next time...
If that weren't bad enough lat night I woke up somewhere around 2:00 AM feeling like I caught my son Anthony's stomach bug. I spen the next 2 1/2 hours holding back the inevitable. Then some time around 4:30AM my body said "OK you need to find the bathroom now!!!" and then I proceded to...well...I'll spare you the details but lets just say dinner made an encore appearance. So I eventually got back into bed and tried to go back to sleep but at this point it felt like every last joint in my body was filled with shards of broken glass and my head felt like it was filled with angry, stinging wasps. So needless to say I didn't sleep for the rest of the night.
Now as you know I just started a new job so not going into work was out of the question and I limped my way in at 7:30 after discovering that, apparently, everything in my body had turn to liquid. So I sat at work not knowing which is a worse image of me for my co-workers. Is it just calling in sick on my second week when I am alreading taking Monday off or is it the image of me gently weeping in my office because I'm so tired I am hallucinating and every inch of my body feels likeI have been abused by a pack of rabid gorillas that have been taught to fight with baseball bats. Needless to say I meekly limped out of there at about 9:30 this morning and I have been in and out of sweet sweet unconciousness ever since.
So there you go...I have 2 days to get better. My wife came home from work this afternoon and brought me Powerade so I won't dehydrate and saltines so I would have something in my stomach. She's so good to me. :)
What does this mean for the marathon? Well I am kind of banking on feeling better by then and I have told myself that I will either finish the race or they will cart me off on a stretcher. I was sent a couple of quotes from another member of the NF marathon team that I really like and I will leave you with them
Anyone can run a marathon in 3:00:00 hours, but it takes a real man /woman to stay out there for 6:00:00 hours.
Champions aren't made in gyms
" Champions are made from something they have deep inside them - a desire, a dream, a vision. They have to have that last minute stamina, they have to be a little faster, they have to have the skill and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill".
Muhammad Ali
The Greatest
Thanks to Jeff Brown for these quotes.
Til next time...
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