Saturday, January 19, 2008

It's Death Time!

First of all, I've changed the music. The brood mood is over. Time for a
high-powered electro-allegro classic from 1984! Remember that year?

I am happy to report the loss of another pound of flesh this morning.

YESTERDAY'S WEIGH-IN.............160.4
WEIGH-IN @ 7 A.M....................159.4
NET GAIN/LOSS..........................-1.0

I now weigh 159.4. This is the first time since November 7, where I weigh less than 160 pounds. Considering that my children are here, I am happy that I've been able to stave off eating extra.

Today was a fun day with the kids. I invented the Wide World Series of Games Competition. It consists of 1 game of Sorry, 2 games of Wheel Of Fortune, 4 games of Bingo, and 3 games of Uno.

Ileana won at Sorry, not even knowing what she was doing! But then I won both games of "Wheel of Fortune". Stephanie won the first game of Bingo, but Matthew responded by winning the next two games. Stephanie won the last Bingo match. Suddenly, all of us (but Ileana) had 2 wins. The first game of Uno went to Stephanie, which put Ileana on the brink of elimination. Ileana then won the second game of Uno, and now the pressure was back on Stephanie. If she wins the next and final game, she'd be the champ, but if anyone else won that would force a sudden death, elimination game. And that's exactly what happened. Ileana won the 10th and final game forcing a game of "five dice", a winner take all throw of five dice. Who ever had the highest roll wins. Stephanie rolled first. 23. Then Ileana rolled. 6 + 6 + 3 + 5 + 6. 26. Ileana was dubbed the first Wide World Series of Games Champion. Her gifts include sleeping with the stuffed puppy dog tonight, and choosing what she wants for breakfast tomorrow.

Hey! This is a blog about running right? Well, it's Blogrunner Time!
Actually.....It's DEATH TIME!

Noise!
Crime!
Traffic!
Pollution!
The Cold!
Headwinds!
Bad Smells!
Abandoned Areas!
Having to stop at red lights!
Drivers w/ Suspended Licenses!
The Insane Incline of the Queensboro Bridge!
Cabbies with more than 15 letters in their last names and barely any vowels!

This is my Queens Boulevard. The Boulevard of Death.

The last time I ran this scintillatingly challenging run was on July 4th, 2006.
It was part of an even longer run. To Hell And Back. That was the course name.
The turnaround point was The JP Morgan Chase Building on Park Avenue near
the Met Life building.

There was a little bit of headwind today. The temperature was 34 degrees but the "real-feel" as the local meteoroligists say, was only 26. Still, I wasn't cold.
I had three layers of sweat-wicking hi-tech fabric on including a nice windbreaker.
I had a polyprolene hat, and Nike HiTech gloves. I was, in a word, "ready".

I started slow, and remained that way. I didn't have the "killer" instinct in me today, but I was determined to do my mileage. As I approached the pedestrian entrance to the Queensboro (59th Street) Bridge, there was, uncannily, a little coffee shop, that seemed like it had been around since the times from when I used to run over this unforgiving steel structure in my heyday. It was called the "Mary Coffee Shop". Funny thing though....no one spoke any English. Thank God I know Spanish. Anyway, I stopped in there for a minute to get a sugarfree Red Bull. At only 10 calories, it gave me the "pep" I needed to get my "attack" going.

As I do my uphill battle, I noticed on the walkway beneath, a spray painting of a website, www.anti-psychiatry.com. I just checked it out. The domain had been suspended. Odd. Definitely looks like the opposite meaning of the sign that I see on the East Bound side of the Tappan Zee bridge that I use to come back after I drop my kids home. That sign reads, "Life Is Worth Living", which is followed by a toll free number and a telephone below, to prevent would-be jumpers from doing the unthinkable.

It felt great to make it into Manhattan today. The pedestrian ramp leads me past the Gentlemen's Club, Scores, and out to 60th street and 1st Avenue. Queens Boulevard has lots of these clubs along the run, Wiggles, Goldfingers and Gallagher's, just to name a few.

1st Avenue north reminded me instantly of my previous NYC Marathons. It is such a good feeling to reminisce about that too. One of the reasons why I like to do the Boulevard Of Death run is just because of that reason; the reminiscing part. When I was 18 years old, this was my "main drag", my "racetrack", and my "stomping grounds". I ran this Boulevard at night, during snowstorms, and heatwaves. All with the same gratifying result: Entry into the greatest city on Earth. Sorry Dad.

But now there are new memories too. As I pass the Pan American Building, I think of Ileana and her dancing during the days when she and I were just casually seeing each other. Then there's the Entenmann's Factory Outlet. Mmmmm, the donuts. This too, is a place where Ileana goes to get food. And it's a MAJOR source of derailment to my diet. Thank God, she's been good of late. As I pass White Castle in Sunnyside, I think of my father, naturally. That was my Dad's FIRST job in NEW YORK back in 1961.

It all ended for pop, when he dumped a cup of hot coffee on a customer who was sitting down at a table, because the customer had pinched his co-workers ass. It must have been a nice ass. Whoops. I digressed. Anyway, the customer chased him all over the store, my father hid in a cool shed (large industrial refridgerators found in fast food restaurant) and finally the guy left. He either quit after that, or after the "black pepper loading" incident. Not quite sure.

The train station at 63rd Street and Lex had no Queensbound "F" train service. I had to go south to Rockefeller Center, and switch track sides. Once on board, it was then I was actually cold. Perhaps it was the front cover of the AM New York newspaper that I scooped up right before heading some 200 feet below to the platform (63rd street & Lex is the DEEPEST of all
subway stations in the world).

Giants versus Packers. Yes it will be cold. Game time temperature (excl. wind chill) will be 4 degrees. OUCH.
What do I think about the game?

In My Heart: Go Giants.
In My Head: The Packers are much too much for the Giants.
Prediction: Packers 27, Giants 20. Each team will have 2 field goals, the Giants will have 1 passing touchdown, and 1 rushing touchdown. The Packers will have no rushing touchdowns, but will pass into the end zone for scores 3 times.

Either way, the game should be better now that I know how to drink responsibly.
A friend of mine, who has been supportive of my goals all along had suggested a light beer, which, as it turns out, is only 64 calories per bottle. This is great! I bought a six pack and will be having a nice time tomorrow. Thanks!

There is a website called:http://www.ratebeer.com/
I will be using this site to rate my beer after the game is over.

Going home, I actually got off a few stops early. Continental & 71st Street, in Forest Hills. From there, I proceeded to run another 1.5 miles to my home. In total, 10.5 miles for today, and 41.1 miles for the week. Here's the statiscal summary of my long run:

Summary:
Date: 1/19/2008 12:00 PM
Type: Long
Course: Boulevard of Death Run
Distance: 10.5 miles
Duration: 1:39:32.26
Pace: 9:29 / mile
Shoe: Brooks Beast 2007 (Blue 2)
Weight: 159.4 lb
Misc: Quality: 6/10, Effort: 6/10
Weather: 34° F, Overcast, Windy
Statistics: Calories: 1266
VO2 Max: 34.4

Splits: (Normal 1 Mile Intervals)
Distance......Time.........Total Time...........Pace
Mile 1........9:07.47........0:09:07.47..........9:08
Mile 2........9:22.81........0:18:30.28......... 9:23
Mile 3........9:17.95........0:27:48.23......... 9:18
Mile 4........9:24.29........0:37:12.52......... 9:25
Mile 5........9:39.36........0:46:51.88......... 9:40
Mile 6........9:39.83........0:56:31.71.......... 9:40
Mile 7........9:30.34....... 1:06:02.05......... 9:31
Mile 8......10:28.40.......1:16:30.45........ 10:29
Mile 9........ 9:10.78.......1:25:41.23........... 9:11
Mile 10.......9:15.15.......1:34:56.38.......... 9:16
Mile 10.5....4:35.88......1:39:32.26.......... 9:12

And now for my diet (this includes dinner and ice cream snack all of which is coming up...mmmm


CalFatSatChlSodCrbFibSugPro
Breakfast
0.2cup, halvesStrawberries, raw1000002110
1Serving - 8 GCRYSTAL FARMS - WHIPPED CREAM - REAL LIGHT 7 OZ AEROSOL CAN2021501010
1cupMilk, nonfat, fluid, with added vitamin A (fat free or skim)83005103120128
0.15cupBlueberries, raw1300003120
11 tbspOlivio Butter Spread80820950000
12 WafflesEggo Buttermilk Waffles180621542026125
0.5Serving - 60 MLLOG CABIN - SYRUP - SUGAR FREE LOW CALORIE 12 OZ PLASTIC BOTTLE18000506000
404165256685031813
Lunch
1Serving - 20 GSMUCKER'S - JAM - STRAWBERRY 32 OZ JAR500000130120
0.663 tbspNestle Nesquik Chocolate5910046151130
1.51 tbspOlivio Butter Spread12012201430000
21 muffinThomas' Light Multigrain English Muffin200200340501608
1cupMilk, nonfat, fluid, with added vitamin A (fat free or skim)83005103120128
512152563290173716
Dinner
0.1cupSauce, pasta, spaghetti/marinara, ready-to-serve191001203020
2Serving - 5 GKRAFT 100% GRATED PARMESAN CHEESE - CHEESE - PARMESAN 100% GRATED 16 OZ SHAKER4032101700004
28 fl oz 240 mL Pepsi® - Diet Wild Cherry Pepsi - cola soda0000500000
2link 3 ozSausage, Italian, sweet, links2501455095840027
1.5Serving - 56 GBARILLA - PASTA - ZITI 1 LB BOX3002000633211
0.528 gramsKraft natural shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese403281001004
649239681398713446
Snack
11 ConeSkinny Cow Low Fat Ice Cream Cone - Vanilla with Caramel15032485293194
1serving 8.3 fl oz canEnergy drink, RED BULL, sugar free, with added caffeine, naicin, pantothenic acid, vitamins B6 and B12130002102001
163324295313195
Water Tracker
Totals
Target
Balance
1728
1969
241
57
65
8
18
20
2
102
300
198
2993
2400
593
242
300
58
26
25
1
78
50
28
80
50
30
CalFatSatChlSodCrbFibSugPro
Activity
Totals0


============================================
Video Review: Shoot 'Em Up

Mr. Smith: You want to know the difference between this BMW and a porcupine?
DQ: I give up.
Mr. Smith: With the car, the prick's on the inside.



If the rest of the movie was this witty, I'd have given it a 10. However, it was a stupid movie, with a lot of action. Someone mentioned this was the best "gun porn" movie of all time. Perhaps. The violence and action intensity was ridiculous. I think the movie could have been called "5,000 bullets" instead. Maybe more bullets than that even. The movie was unreal. And even within its unreality based dark comic theme, it was too stupid to believe it-perhaps that was the intention of the director. Funny. As for the acting, Clive Owen has definitely gone down a notch, but Paul Giamatti can do no wrong. However, he too has diminishing returns. His talents are wasted here. This is definitely a guy movie. DO NOT SHOW THIS MOVIE TO WOMEN. THEY WILL NOT UNDERSTAND! Capiche?

My final review? : 5 out of 10 Gonzos.

I LOVED the line about the "prick", though. LOL.

Finally, it's time for, Where I Am (Virtually) In America Today

I have entered Pennsylvania!

I'm in the area of Easton & Bethlehem!

Taken directly from Wikipedia:

Northampton County's location in Pennsylvania
Easton's
location in Northampton County
Coordinates: 40°41′18″N 75°12′59″W /
40.68833, -75.21639
Country United States
State Pennsylvania
County
Northampton
Government
- Mayor Sal Panto
Area
- Total 4.7 sq mi
(12.0 km²)
- Land 4.3 sq mi (11.0 km²)
- Water 0.4 sq mi (1.0 km²)
Elevation 211 ft (64 m)
Population (2000)
- Total 26,263
- Density 6,165/sq mi (2,380.3/km²)
- Time zone EST (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)
EDT (UTC-4)
Website: http://www.easton-pa.com
Easton is a city in Northampton County, in the eastern region of Pennsylvania, in the United States. The population was 26,263 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Northampton CountyGR6.
Along with Allentown and Bethlehem, Easton is one of three primary
cities that comprise the Lehigh Valley region, the state's third most populous
metropolitan area. Easton is the easternmost city of the Lehigh Valley, sitting
on the confluence of the Delaware River (which divides Pennsylvania and New
Jersey) and the Lehigh River, for which the Lehigh Valley is named. Easton is
the smallest of the three Lehigh Valley cities, with approximately one-fourth of
the population of the largest Lehigh Valley city, Allentown.

Easton is almost equidistant from Philadelphia, which is 60 miles
(100 km) to the south, and New York City, which is 70 miles (110 km) to the
east.
Air transport to and from Easton is available through Lehigh Valley International Airport, which is located approximately 20 miles west of the city, in Hanover Township.
The following picture above is of the now abanadoned Bethlehem
Steel Factory. Another good American company that somehow is probably in the
hands of another country now.....


The city is split up into four primary sections: Historic Downtown, which lies directly to the north of the Lehigh River, to the west of the Delaware River, continuing west to Sixth Street; The West Ward, which lies between Sixth and Fifteenth Streets; The South Side, which lies south of the Lehigh River; and College Hill, a neighborhood on
the hills to the north; home of Lafayette College. The boroughs of Wilson, West
Easton, and Glendon are also directly adjacent to the city; the first and
largest of which, Wilson, partially aligns in the same North-South Grid as the
city of Easton. The greater Easton area consists of the city itself, three
townships (Forks, Palmer, and Williams) and three boroughs (Glendon, West
Easton, and Wilson).

Tomorrow, I plan to do a short run. Perhaps. LOL.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I see a lot of maneuvers in that world series. A lot of cheating. Stephanie should have won, with Matthew a close second! Someone manipulated the games or the die (yes, that's the plural for dice) was rigged.

Lets' go Steffie! Let's go Steffie!

Granpa

DGA said...

Oops! THE DIE (plural) WERE RIGGED. WWERE, not was!
Granpa

DGA said...

By the way....your blogs are becoming Dostoyewski's books. The last one I read took me 2 months.