My bad boy



This is my new bike :-) - my first one since the BMX I rode to and from piano lessons. BMX had a steel thingamajig onto which I'd clip my piano pieces. My new bike is a 2009 F7 Cannondale hardtail. It has disc brakes and is a pretty decent entry-level mountain bike. Notice the hottt color scheme. It's a small men's because the small women's came in pink and I'm not really a pink bike kind of girl. P has the same bike, in a patriot blue large. Last week-end we went to Target to get helmets and gloves, and on Monday we went for our first ride around town. We just rode through the streets and on the boardwalk to the 7-11 two towns over because we had to catch the train back to New York as I had midterms that evening. I liked it. The only problem is I have a really hard time carrying my bike up and down stairs. I think it might be too tall for me. Also, my butt hurt like hell and my legs were sore. But, whatever. This is my first real attempt at an active lifestyle. P said we could ride the trails by the reservoir, pack a picnic basket, romantic shit like that. So we'll see.

Today is the ing nyc marathon, which runs through 5 boroughs, 26.2 miles, ending in central park. I stood by the roadside in 4th avenue, brooklyn just as the women were getting off the verrazano bridge, went to get a tea from the chinese bakery, and whoosh! - the lead pack went by. Paula Radcliffe, 2-time winner, and Kara Goucher, NYC native and rookie and two other women crossed the block in about five strides. The men were no better - blink and you miss them! I think runners are beautiful, all muscle and sinew, the human form at its best. But what I love about this race is the mix of people - runners of all shapes and sizes. Incidentally, the hosts mentioned a lot of the elite women are in their 30s and beyond. This is really inspiring to someone like me who's never been physically active - it's not too late to start. This is a very tough course by the way - lots of uphills and with today's winds, really hard. Anyone who finishes it or runs it at all is amazing. I took a bad picture but look closely - it's 38,000 people from all over the world running through the streets of crooklyn!

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Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Smells like teen spirit


I've been a fan/stalker of Ms. Sarah Brown's blog for years. Finally, her humor in book form via teenage angst-filled diary entries compiled in a neat little package. I bought Cringe today and I've already read half of it. It's like reading through all my Corona notebook journals tucked away in a box somewhere in my parents' house. The obsessive chronicling of daily outfits ("gray peter pan shirt, green-and-blue checkered culottes"), the pining after boys next door, the irrational parental hate, etc. It's all coming back to me now.

I think I started a journal in second or third grade. It was all about Paolo, who lived a few blocks from me and whose older sister I was busmates with. He played basketball and looked like a puffer fish, which I found very charming. I made up stories about how we'd ride our bikes to the park together and get ice cream. Oh my God.

To the face that launched my bicycle countless times, I think of you and cry. I think of you and smile. I think of you and laugh. I think of you and scream. I think of you and jump up and down. I think of you and want to see you again. I think of you and wonder, do you think of me, too?

This and other gems like I HATE HER!!! BYE! and I Find Myself Collectively Insane and much, much more.

A couple of things

The other day, during lunch hour, we spied a long, ship-like yacht cruising along the Hudson River. On board were a helicopter just getting ready for takeoff, two boats, and tons of people who looked like they were having fun. We squinted and saw it was called The Highlander. The writing on the helicopter was too small to see. But if we had been able to read it, it would most probably have said "Forbes". The Highlander has a crew of fourteen and is capable of worldwide sailing. Besides the two boats and the chopper, it has two BMW motorcycles on board, too, just in case its high-profile guests fancy a spin. Eighteen 14-oz tins of Beluga caviar are served every season on the Highlander. So, yeah. Just another playground for the rich and famous.

My new favorite beer is Negra Modelo, It's a dark Mexican beer that is actually a Vienna lager. It's best to drink it super cold with a soft chicken taco on the side.

Last week-end I helped to babysit not one but two! kids - a toddler and an infant. At first I was a little worried because I know zip about children, but by the end of the week-end I not only changed diapers for the first time ever, I also changed enough to be able to do it with my eyes closed. On Sunday morning at 6 am when I woke up because the toddler started screaming and got into bed with us, I lost what little maternal instinct I have. But when I was pretending to fall asleep in the faint hope that he would, he drew the blinds open and declared, "It's a beautiful day!" and that made it so.

Before

Before P: Cheerios? For breakfast? Just Cheerios?

Now: I have eight boxes of cereal on top of my fridge, including but not limited to Froot Loops, Banana Nut Crunch and Raisin Bran. When they go on sale at the Rite Aid, I get excited. 2 for $4!

Before P: Breakfast - $3.50 + Lunch and coffee - $10 = broke by end of the week

Now: We brownbag PB+J sandwiches or turkey+provolone wraps and tapioca pudding. None the richer but at least I'm trying.

Before P: Whatever's on TV for entertainment including America's Next Top Model

Now:

Conclusion: Now is better.

What your time's worth

I took the rest of the summer off from school and two weeks off from work so since last week I've been waking up mostly after noon (gasp!). I had no big plans this year. I opted out of a glamorous fabulous week-end with my peeps to save money, so I've been splitting my time between Crooklyn and Jersey.

Last week I hung out with P and family. We went to the movies (Hancock) and visited various stores (Raymour and Flanigan, Costco, Shop Rite, Target, etc), some several times, and played poker and rummy with the kids. At night we went for walks on the boardwalk and had kiddie scoops on sugar cones (mint chocolate chip, vanilla peanut butter, coffee, banana). Pretty much epitomized the words "relax" and "chill," which I don't think I've ever used as much I have been.

Took a day in between for a doctor's visit, during which I was simultaneously cleared of breast cancer, told I might have adenomyosis, and strongly encouraged to have a baby. My doctor is a short Filipino woman ("ang Pilipino magaling sa kapa!") who has pictures of children tacked all over her walls next to numerous certificates, plaques and awards. When I told her I was single and didn't plan to get married soon, she said, "Just have a baby! I don't care if you're not married!"

Speaking of weddings, my college roommate got married last week underneath a tree up a hill in a park. She had ordered a dress online but there was some kind of shipping problem, so two days before her wedding she bought what will go down in the books as the cheapest wedding dress of all time. She looked radiant.

The rest of the week flew by. Went to the beach a couple of times, even went in the water in the midst of riptide currents. One sunny day we checked out Allaire State Park. We rode the steam train as everything else was closed and saw some deer grazing on the open field. Early one morning (by this I mean before ten) I took a walk to Ocean Grove, where the famous Nagles is, by myself and checked out the shops. Ocean Grove is a dry town, meaning no alcohol is served there, and was a popular Methodist camp meeting town for years.

All in all, a pretty good vacation, if I may say so myself. Bonded with the kids via Family Guy. P and I snuck away for a late walk one night and saw fireworks in the distance, just close enough to see and far enough so it seemed like we were the only ones watching them.