First Half

It all boiled down to this. March 21, 2010. After weeks of training, it was finally time to run my first half-marathon! To say I was nervous would be an understatement. (I woke up three times the night before, once to a nightmare that I was nauseous from running. Eek!) John Vaughn, his neighbor Jack, and I ventured to New Bedford early Sunday morning to brave the 13.1 miles with 2,600 other runners. We fueled up with some oatmeal, bananas, and high-quality H20. At 11:12am, we powered off in the perfect weater (60 and sunny, who'da thunk it for March?!). My goals were to a) finish, b) not finish last, c) finish under 3 hours, and d) run the entire way. Well, I accomplished a through c. I finished. I placed 2,263rd (haha, still wasn't last though!). I ran the half in 2:40:44. I have to admit; I took a walk break after mile 8, which meant that I took a couple more before mile 12. I hit a wall and it hit back! It's ok though, I still completed the race and was able to power through the final mile. The last two tenths were a full-out, balls-to-the-walls, last-bit-o-fuel sprint. That finish line could not have come soon enough!

If it weren't for the support of family and friends along the way, however, I don't think I could have made it. Dad, Karen, Brittany, and Christian were there at the beginning, a few places in the middle, and at the end. Zanna and Ronnie from the Inn made sure to cheer on the big hill around mile 3 and then watch me cross the finish line. Matt and Heather drove up from Rhode Island to root me on around mile 11. John Vaughn inspired me to register for the race and kept tabs on my training each week. I really could not have asked for a better group :) We continued celebrating at various New Bedford establishments with fellow Inn-mates Leily, Scott, and Joey.

Once my eyes began to close at the bar, though, it was time to call it a night (not to mention, the shower was beyond calling to me, it was officially yoddeling... and no one likes a yoddeling shower). All in all, it was a fantastic day... minus the 13.1 miles of pain. I'm never doing that again! Well, except for my next half-marathon in June. Oh, and probably the New Bedford half again next March. What the heck? Might as well sign up for a bunch of races in between, right? Basically, the fact is that I'm nowhere near done racing. I'm hooked :)

The crowd before the starting gun... 2600-deep!

I'm the idiot waving on the left at mile 5

Beginning of mile 12--painful but Christian and Brittany running beside me was a huge help (see them on the far right!)

Sprinting to the finish--the last few yards!

Celebrating post-race with oranges and my medal... and impersonating a monkey... a girl with many talents haha

*Photos courtesy of Brittany and Karen. Thank you both for capturing this day! :)

First Beach Day

With the beautiful weather and day of rest before the half-marathon, I decided to head down to Silvershell carrying a book and beach chair. I spent the afternoon reading and watching the kids play in the waves for the first time in 2010. (It is still March, after all!) Nothing like 70 degrees and toes in the sand :)

Flip flops in March are a very good thing.

Erin Go Bragh!

To wish an employee of an Irish pub a "Happy St. Patrick's Day" means something entirely different. I don't believe happy is the correct adjective. Forget hours of merriment with friends gaily singing rounds of "O, Danny Boy" while slinging back Guinness after Guinness and engorging oneself on a boiled dinner feast. Nay. The employee of a pub, instead, gets to serve the hordes (and I mean HORDES!) of merrimakers. (Yes, I made up a word. This is what St. Patrick's Day does to us.)

As workers, we spend our holiday covered in a variety of condiments, mainly mustard. We chastise the customers who order hot tea. We answer the question, "Are you Irish?" a dozen times, each with the same answer (mine being, "I look the part, but no..."). We gulp water between soup runs or while the Guinness settles. We desperately await the elusive final table. We run... and run... and run. We set the records for fastest times eating pizza on a loading dock. We contemplate whether it's worth three to five in the slammer to prove to the customer that he or she isn't always right. We work through the nausea at the thought of seeing another corned beef and cabbage. We curse the walk-ins who blankly say, "I didn't think we needed a reservation." We arrange an 8-top, turn it to a 4-top, then back to an 8-top, only to make it a 6-top, all before anyone ever sits down. We salute each other with a traditional shift's-end shot which quickly leads to a staff-wide buzz from lack of food, dehydration, and overwhelming exhaustion. We inevitably make it through.

Despite my ranting, the Kinsale Inn had a great St. Patrick's Day. I'm sure that as time passes our memories will blur and we'll remember the day as happy.

Scott twirling his leprechaun tails before the madness began

The crowd mid-afternoon (notice the daylight outside the "porthole" on the back wall), already deep enough to require throwing 'bows...

Marshachusetts

Apparently, New England has entered monsoon season. Throughout the region, rain is falling, rivers are overflowing, and trees are swaying. In fact, Massachusetts entered a state of emergency tonight. As I type, I'm watching the news which shows rescue crews tugging homeowners to safety in dinghies. The state has become one massive marsh. The Southcoast has reportedly been doused in 5 inches of rain. Holy umbrellas, Batman!

With that being said, I decided to venture past the Mattapoisett River on my way to work. Guess what... it's flooded. (The ducks, however, could not be happier!)

This is typically not part of the river.