And I didn't even throw paint at her

Many of you guessed correctly. Today I saw...ANNA WINTOUR!


Sorry for the bad picture. I was trying to be all stealth. Suffice it to say that she looked much younger in person. And she wasn't wearing her famous sunglasses. I didn't even see them in her hand! And so much for the rumors of her being an ice queen- when she came out of her (gorgeous) brownstone, she was smiling, laughing and handing something off to her driver. Shelby Bryan was with her (to her left, in the parka, despite the 90+ degree day today in NYC). In case you're wondering, public property records list Conde Nast Publications as the lender of $1.64 million for said brownstone.

Training: I swam 1/2 mile+ tonight at practice. I forgot my goggles and swim cap at home and had to duck into KMart to get a spare pair of goggles (Erinn had an extra cap for me). Unfortunately, there seems to have been a run on goggles lately because I had to choose between Spongebob or Dora. I ended up going with Dora because that pair had an adjustable bridge. And I have to say, I was quite pleased with my decision. They were very comfy and I swam well. But when some girl tried to steal my flip flops, I had to yell, "Swiper, no swiping!"

A 50 mile bike ride through a small world

I woke up this morning bummed that I didn't register in time for the Five Borough Bike Tour but feeling like a bike ride anyway. I lounged around for a bit, got dressed and hit the road. I went down the East Side to Battery Park and then back up the West Side. I stopped at Al's bikeshop to pick something up and then went back to the West Side and continued uptown a bit. There's this point at about 90th Street where if you don't know the West Side really well (and I don't), you end up on Riverside Drive rather than in the park.

Scene: Intersection of 104th Street and Riverside Drive. One confused biker (SEL) approaches two confident riders.

SEL: Hey, are you guys going back to the West Side bike path?
GUY: Yes.
SEL: Great, can I follow you? I can never figure out how to do it.
GUY: Sure, no problem. Where are you headed?
SEL: Not really sure, just wanted to ride on the path for awhile and see where I end up. How 'bout you?
GAL: Across the GWB and into New Jersey. It's my first time, I'm just following.
SEL: Oh, the Nyack ride? There's supposed to be a great muffin shop on the way!
GUY: Yes, that's the route we're taking.
SEL: Oh cool. That's fun!
GUY: You can join if you'd like (ok, maybe he wasn't SO welcoming, but he definitely said to follow).
SEL: Cool. I'll see how far I make it.

The group continues riding up Riverside Drive.

GAL: Where are you coming from?
SEL: I was at Al's bikeshop but I came from downtown.
GAL: This is a great bike path, it's nice that it's so convenient.
SEL: Well, it's actually not ALL that convenient for me. I live on the East Side and I don't like to ride in the streets, so to get over here, I have to ride all the way down the East Side to Battery Park and then back up.
GAL: I live on the East Side, too. Where are you?
SEL: I'm in the 20's.
GAL: Oh, me, too.
SEL: Oh yeah? Cool! I'm actually on 24th and X.
GAL: Really? Me, too. Which building?
SEL: The yellow one. Above X.
GAL: That's my building.
SEL: XXX?
GAL: Yes. I just moved in in December. Apt X.
SEL: That's funny. I'm in Apt. X.

So that's how I met my neighbor. Since she wasn't technically a stranger, I decided to join them on their journey to Jersey and off we went. The ride through Washington Heights was packed with riders on their way to the GWB so we rode in a big pack. We distanced ourselves from the others on the ride up the ramp of the bridge. We got to the middle of the bridge and stopped to take in the view. It was incredible. We could see all the way down the Hudson.


From the bridge, we followed 9W/Palisades Parkway North up through Fort Lee, Englewood Cliffs, Tenafly and Alpine. The road was super wide with a bike lane suitable for riding three across. My neighbor, who shall remain nameless only because I have no clue what her name is, tired out around Alpine and I wasn't about to continue alone, so we turned back. We rode all the way back downtown together but she turned off at 22nd Street and I wanted to continue back down to Battery Park and up the East Side (to avoid riding in the streets).


My total ride turned out to be about 49.2 miles and 5 hours 22 minutes. That includes heavy pedestrian and bike traffic from Battery Park up through the 70's (both on the way uptown and the way back down). There were also a few water and scenic breaks, as well as a "catch our breath" break somewhere on 9W. I hope to attempt the Nyack trip again soon, preferably during an "off-hour" when every pre-schooler and his wobbly mother aren't out for a leisurely Sunday roll. And no, Angel, I won't do it alone.

I still can't believe that I had to stop a stranger in the 104th Street intersection to meet a neighbor. What a small world.

WOMENTUM

This morning was the Revlon 5k Run/Walk for Women in Central Park. I headed to the race with Team Apes and today I saw WOMENTUM. What's womentum?

• It's GIRL POWER to the extreme.
  
• It's women fighting for women's health.
  
• It's women coming together to raise awareness for women's cancers.
  
• It's women gathering to recognize those who are battling cancer (support), those who have battled cancer (honor) and those who have lost their battle to cancer (memory).
  
• It's women running to celebrate each other and make the next generation healthier and stronger.
  

And the only competition in this race was against the clock. Beating the cancer before it takes more of our grandmothers, mothers, daughters, sisters and girlfriends.


The run wasn't challenging at all. It was 5k, mostly uphill, in 80 degree humidity and running paths more crowded than you've ever seen them. But the camaraderie of the runners, the cheers from the sidelines and the idea that this race will help to eradicate women's cancers obliterated the obstacles and made the 30 minutes fly by.


We are Team APES (plus Jenn) and we are WOMENTUM.

Vigorous Writing is Concise

Gramercy Park is one of NYC's only "key parks." That means that access is restricted to the residents on the perimeter. And even those people have to follow a strict list of park rules.

I, personally, have always believed in getting right to the point. In 7th Grade, Ms. Mackel made us memorize this William Strunk saying: "Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence need not contain any unnecessary words for the same reason a machine no unnecessary parts..." That said, I'd like to assist Gramercy Park with their signage:

They can thank me later.

Heading to bed early tonight. Team APES is running in the Revlon 5k for Women tomorrow morning and I need to pick up the race bibs at 7am. Here's hoping for my 2nd race and 2nd win! Did y'all see my plaque for winning my age group last week at the biathlon? It arrived today. Just in case you missed the TwitPic:

Yeah. I'm still pretty excited! G'night, y'all!

We didn't start the fire

After our early evening BRICK (Bike (7.5 miles), Run (4 miles), my legs feel like ICK), Paigie and I ran back to her apartment to clean ourselves up and get ready for Matt's fundraiser in Times Square. I hosed off in the kitchen sink (no pictures but it really was quite amusing) while Paigie hit the bathroom. Then she made a quick phone call and I dried my hair (that I washed in the sink). We frantically threw on some clothes and hustled out the door. I'd like to say that it was a record time but there was definitely some lolly gagging. We were, however, clearly oblivious to the outside world because when we opened her apartment door, we were greeted by building management and the fire department (several firemen covered head to toe in black soot and dripping wet). They may or may not have evacuated the whole building, we didn't hear anything. But when we asked what happened, they told us that there was a fire on the roof deck (directly above Paigie's apartment) but not to worry, it was now contained. So we did what any lovely ladies would do and hopped in the elevator with the hot firemen (actually, the ones we got were old and pudgy but we figured they'd have friends waiting downstairs). And boy were we right. Look what we found:


It was slightly amusing though- when we got off the elevator with Tubby and Chunky (the firemen), we were greeted by all of the other residents of the building who were waiting downstairs (you know, the ones who got the memo that the building was on fire and they should leave). It looked like WE were the culprits and WE were being rescued and escorted out. We got dirty looks, stares and glares, even as we kept yelling, "WE DIDN'T DO IT." Then we walked up the block to the subway, humming Billy Joel quietly to ourselves, "We didn't start the fire, it was always burning since the world's been turning..."

MMMBoppin' through Central Park

Gramercy Park is boppin' this week with a visit from teen sensation Hanson. Although if I'm no longer a teen then neither are they. When I passed by there early tonight, there were teenyboppers lined up down the street and around the block. 10+ years ago, I could totally see myself right there with them.

While the next generation danced the night away in the theatre, I joined some hardcore athletes in Central Park for a complimentary bootcamp session with a budding instructor. He had us running and jumping, doing squats and push-ups and lunging through the park. We ended with a barefoot session in the sand volleyball court where we ran suicides (also known as ladders?) and nearly froze our toes. The workout was intense. But you know what made it bad? I couldn't get MMMBop out of my head the whole time! Mmmbop, ba dupa dop, ba dup bop, ba duba dop. STOP!

Goodnight Moon

Today is Tuesday. And that means it's a Group Training Session and run in Central Park. Tonight's was a killer. I don't know if it was the soreness from Sunday's biathlon, general fatigue or the fact that tonight's focus was HILLS. We ran Cat Hill three times over and then trekked across the park to run Strawberry Hill several times. Angel and I bailed about 5 minutes early but waited for the rest of the team for the group stretch. We must have run a total of 5 miles. At least Saturday's 5k will feel like a stroll in the park!

After the training session, we stepped out of the Time Warner Center and saw a ton of people standing on the sidewalk. We looked up and saw what everyone was starting at:


Yup. That's the moon. Hanging out between the buildings on the East Side of Manhattan. It was huge. And bright. And low. One of the best moons that I've seen in NYC. Everyone had their cameras (well, cell phones) out. It's interesting how something as simple as the moon can make even the most jaded New Yorkers stop in their tracks and stare.