Crackerjackmack’s Weblog

this morning i did a new route, to expand my repertoire of routes in the city, and to get in 6 miles. man, it totally fucking rocked. well, most of it did. first of all, treading new terrain helped keep me fresh and helped the miles pass quicker. and it was all new groups of homeless guys, delivery drivers, and garbage men, heh. the part that got tough, and i expected it, was going over the actual bridge. now, i loves me some brooklyn bridge. it’s beautiful, scenic, charming – and i’m telling you, watching the sunrise on the way over and letting manhattan wrap itself around me on the way back was fucking awesome – but it’s uphill on the way over and then of course, uphill on the way back. i admit, i cheated a little on the brooklyn side and didn’t go all the way over because i couldn’t face it. but it’s a pretty steady climb up the arc of the bridge, starting from city hall. and hills are where i most often find myself engaging in negative thoughts and considering stopping. i gotta work on that. because once i turned around and started on the flat ground, i immediately felt like i could go on and on. actually, the second half of the run, after coming off the bridge, really felt very strong. i’m learning how to work the mental game this week and last, which is pretty great, because next week i start really adding on the miles. i will need to work the mental game pretty hard.

now i gotta start mapping out routes all over the place! i will also need that as i start adding serious mileage. to keep things fresh, but also to fight off the temptation to stop when i’m just running near my apartment. that’s too easy, better to get my ass away from this hood and avoid that.

i’m a big ol’ Red Sox fan living in nyc. that’s a big enough deal. when i wear my cap, it sometimes feels like taking my life into my own hands. (a silly phrase really – isn’t our life always in our own hands? would you trust your life to the hands of others? i sure as hell wouldn’t.) anyway, i also tend to be sharp-eyed about seeing others in the boston gear. makes for good bonding with strangers. so, the other day, i was on a bus headed up first avenue with my sox cap on. for a few blocks, a double decker tour bus was riding alongside my bus. i noticed a little boy up on the top, rocking HIS red sox cap. i caught his eye and when we both noticed the caps, we broke into these huge ass grins. then he waved at me, and i waved back. totally the most adorable thing EVER!!! i’m grinning now just remembering.