A Wonderful Evening - Can you guess who we met? If you're a James Bond fan, you'll appreciate this

I had the most amazing evening yesterday. A good friend was kind enough to invite me to dinner at the Post House. It is, from what I now fully understand, a true New York Steakhouse and institution. What I didn't realize is what a quiet but solid celebrity magnet it is. Let me say at the outset that I don't consider a big celebrity "gawker". Having lived in and around the New York area for the last 20+ years, I won't say I'm immune to the thrill of celebrity sightings, it's just I have always felt in nice to keep an appropriate and respectful distance when people are just doing what they do. I know that if (and it's not my reality) I was someone well know for something, I would want my privacy respected.

All that being said, we were sitting in the Post House enjoying a fantastic meal when - and here's the fun part - I'm not going to name names - a very well known actor came in to dine with a friend. Here are some hints; he was in the Sting, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, the Way We Were. Those are all movies that squarely place him as more of a 70's - than an 80's, 90's or current icon. I will only say that my friend sent him and his companion drinks, made a gesture that was clearly from one of his films. He responded in kind and cheered us as well. And we left it at that. No dogging him for autographs or pics. No staring. Just cool to see someone so recognizable being so, well, regular. So can you guess who it was?

But for me the highlight happened after this. Naturally upon sighting this actor, we started talking about movies. After a few minutes, the rather distinguished gentleman (think Sean Connery these days) who was seated next to us with a companion, leaned over and asked me a question. He said "sounds like you guys are movie goers"..I said that I am with some frequency. He then asked what I thought of the latest James Bond installment, Skyfall. I shared that while I thought it was good, with all of the hype and marketing, I liked it but was a little let down. I mentioned that amongst the Daniel Craig films, I'm pretty partial to Casino Royale. In fact, I like that one for so many reasons - Daniel Craig's performance, the locations (especially Venice which we recently visited) and most of all because unlike so many of the films, this one contains the really core elements of the book - a High Stakes Card Game, An Unrelenting Torture Scene, A Girl that turns out to be a Double (I'm assuming since it's out six years already, I haven't spoiled it for too many) and then Bond's realization that he was played. Both even end with him saying "the bitch is dead".

What I've never written about here is my James Bond fanaticism (is that the right word) since 1983. I think much of it is because - probably like many others - these movies became time holders for certain events in my life...

I remember seeing my first Bond movie, Live and Let Die in 1974. It was on the first Wednesday I spent with my Dad after he and my mom temporarily (but later permanently) separated. What a treat to have dinner out with my Dad, see a movie and then he bought me my first Mad Magazine, which coincidentally had a spoof of what, at the time, were the 8 James Bond movies. I still have the magazine -was just looking at it in fact - and the memories.

In 1983, I was on my post-high school graduation trip to Israel. One of my favorite memories was going into Haifa to watch "Octopussy" in this incredible open air theater where the top of the theater moved back to reveal the night sky. And then coming back to our farm where I was staying for a month and having one of the best nights there. To this day, when I hear All Time High by Rita Coolidge, it brings it all back.

And I think of the summer of 1987 - one of my favorites. Timothy Dalton, who I believe was incredibly under-rated as Bond was in his first outing, The Living Daylights. We had a house in Ventnor New Jersey (about two hours away from home in Philly). I would listen to the full soundtrack including those great Aha and Pretenders songs all the way down there. There was also the time that my car died on the road down there. I was so poor as a college student that my car overheated since I hadn't taken proper care of it. All this to the sounds of Aha singing the Living Daylights. Those were the days!

Of course the closest I come to living the Bond lifestyle is driving my 1974 Kharmann Ghiaa which bares some resemblance to an Aston Martin. Did I buy it and love it because of that? Absolutely. Not ashamed to say it.

Anyway, I got to share all this and more with my neighbor. After asking my opinion, he went on to tell me his name who I instantly recognized from both the movie credits and books I've read. As a hint, he is Cubby Broccoli's step son and the Producer of Skyfall as well as several of the other films. He also wrote several of them. Go ahead, hit your Wiki. All write, if you read this far, I'm just going to tell you - I was sitting next to Michael Wilson of Eon Productions. What an honor....

So, I didn't gawk but I was in heaven sharing what those movies have meant in my life. He was, simply stated, a pleasure to speak with. No, I didn't ask for an autograph. He did ask what I did and I shared my business card. I left it at that. Sometimes great evenings and special opportunities like that are best left on the high note.

If he happens to read this, happy to share that it was such a thrill for me. Since it's my birthday tomorrow, guess I got an early present. Naturally, I'm listening to Chris Cornell's "You Know My Name" as I write this....

Winter Training, Campaigns, Heart Rate Training and Garage Band (which of these things doesn't belong?) Actually they all do..

Hi All,

Well, way too long away from the blogosphere but lots of exciting things to catch you all up on.

First, in Teens Run Westchester land, we're on the cusp of starting our Winter Half-Marathon Training Program. We have a couple small things to nail down but bottom line it's going to happen. While we had hoped to launch early December, we may end up just waiting for the New Year - just depends on a few variables. Bottom line, super excited about doing a Pilot Program that will give 25 to 30 committed teens the chance to work with some great adult mentors and run in one of our New York area half marathons - the exact one is still a surprise. You'll know soon enough.

I've also been thrilled with the response to our first ever year end campaign - if you haven't seen (but I'm sure you have) my posts on it, surprise! here's another shot. Please go to this sight and make a donation and/or create your own fundraising page and post it to facebook, twitter and all that other good social media stuff. Just go here:

http://wwwteensrunwestchester.causevox.com

In another bit of somewhat old but worthwhile news, I am still so appreciative that Bethany Lee, a terrific blogger on health, exercise and generally healthy living, did a wonderful story on Teens Run Westchester. While I appreciate that there's some nice stuff about me (my mom really liked it), please check out the stuff on our organization. It's very cool. You can find it here:

http://projectwhitespace.com/interview-robert-grabel-and-teens-run-westchester/

In terms of me and my running, some great stuff to share and some stuff where I have to change my habits a bit. I've been doing lots of reading on running recently and came across a great book simply title "Running" by a guy named John Stanton. Info is here:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7735857-running

By the way, John is the owner and founder of the Running Room, a great running and accessory store in Canada. His methodology has some similarities with Jeff Galloway but he's more about a ten minute run/one minute walk as opposed to specific intervals like Jeff. Anyway, he has excellent section in his book about using heart rate to time and measure your abilities for your longer, easier runs as well as your tempo and speed work. I've been doing a lot of self-monitoring on that but have gotten a bit too comfortable doing it on the treadmill. So, as I look outside on this unseasonably beautiful day (it's 60 degrees here in Yonkers), I've committed myself to getting outside and taking my crazier dog- who needs to run off some energy - outside for a good run. We'll see if this heart rate stuff works as well on the road.

Finally, on an unrelated note, I am having such a blast jamming these days. I'm back to the old addictive state of playing that I used to have back when I was a teen with measurable hair. My next goal is to figure out garage band and get my songs on there finally! If anyone knows how to use that, happy to pay you for a good tutorial.

Enjoy the day wherever you may be!

Lessons Learned from my 11th Marathon (and third Philadelphia Marathon)

It's about 10:00 on Sunday night and I've just come home from a long weekend centered on my running in my third Philadelphia Marathon. That's me coming into the finish line in the picture above. I'll cut to the chase and say that of all the marathons I've done, not my best time and not my worst. Same for the three marathons. First time I did it, it was my 2nd marathon so my time was up there. Last year I did it and closed in on 5 hours. This year, 5:30. Given that I had two "interruptions" of about 10 minutes each, I was not at all bummed. More on that below


Another cool part of this marathon is that despite the size of it - it seems to be getting bigger every year (especially this one with another 3,000 NYC Marathon Refugees) - it maintains a lot of hometown feel and personality. The Mayor is there to shake hands. The announcer is great as well and as I was coming in, he was kind enough to read my "Teens Run Yonkers" shirt and tell the crowd that it's a great organization. Bonus.

Anyway, I had so many thoughts - and thought I had the makings of such a clever blog post - you can be the judge of that - that I just immediately came home and hit it.

First, as you may recall from last weeks posts, I was almost going to be sitting this one out. Had some injury which fortunately healed itself. But that almost injury and almost miss, kind of changed my attitude about doing this marathon. First, I decided that 1) I wasn't going to stress about time, hitting a big goal etc. Not that there's anything wrong with going for that. I just felt like if I'm going to be lucky enough to do this, I'm just going to enjoy the ride. 2) In connection with that, I decided I was not going to push it in terms of my feet and my heart (the real one with blood and stuff). I was determined to go out with a good but manageable pace. I had been training my long runs Jeff Galloway style - Run Walk Run Intervals. I was happy with my two 20 milers and felt ready.

So that was the attitude I was going in with. As they say, best laid plans...

This blog would get way too long if I describe the two issues I was managing through. Suffice to say - and some may not like this - that I really "became" a runner today in the sense that I was determined that nothing was going to stop me. That's not to say that someone who complete's their first marathon (if you're reading this and that's you) has just as much - if not more - to be incredibly proud of. I just mean that as someone who's now done 11 of these (and a bunch of half marathons, maybe 10), I did the stuff that I used to hear about "those crazy runners" doing.

With that in mind, I'm compiling a quick list of DO's/DONT's that were a part of my learning today. Granted, you may have read this stuff in runners world or all kinds of columns, but I felt like I lived some of this stuff today. So, here goes


1. DO eat and drink what you typically drink before a long training run. DO eat whatever you typically eat the night before. DO consider the effects coffee may have on you. DON'T try any new pre-race food. DON'T drink coffee or caffeinated beverages before if you usually don't. DON'T get experimental with your pre-race meal.

2. DO use the facilities (cleanest ones you can find within radius) as close to race time and locale as possible. DO use the on-site stuff if you have to. DO bring some money just in case you have to bribe a restaurant or deli owner for use of their facilities.DON'T assume that anything you're feeling pre-race is simply going to go away IT DOESN'T!

I'm not going further on the above - I'm sure you know where I'm going with it

3. DO take the time to be sure you're giving your toes and feet adequate attention while you're training. DO be sure that you're giving any toes or feet that are experiencing pain, proper rest rest and relaxation. DO spend the extra money to buy socks that are supportive and protective. DO carry some bandaids or something to wrap stuff, should you need it. DON'T SKIMP ON SOCKS THINKING THAT SHOES WILL TAKE CARE OF THE WHOLE THING

4. DO take the time to learn what kind of running shoe you need i.e. neutral, stability etc. DO spend the extra money - or better yet buy them on ebay - to buy shoes that fit you're running style. DON'T ASSUME that all shoes are equal - they're not.

5. DO take the time to talk to other runners that are around your pace. Enjoy the moment DO take the time to tell another runner if watching their courage has inspired you to continue despite having some challenges DO spend some time with the music off to appreciate the cheers and encouragement of both your fellow runners and especially the folks that are out there to give you gatorade and water - remember, they do this for you so you can have a great race. DON'T get to the start line, stick the headphone in your ear, run 26.2 miles with no human interaction -what's the point of that?

So if you haven't figured out some of what I managed through, feel free to reach out. I felt like some of it was a bit - well lets just say - not for a wide audience. Much happier providing some ideas than sharing that stuff. Anyway, thrilled to have done another and yes, there will be a 12th in my future. Stay tuned - hope you had a great weekend

Stop or My Mom Will Shoot - and other great movies

See, got your attention, right? With a catchy title like that you had to read this. Truth is, not a lot to share....Just a couple quick notes -

First, thanks to a bunch of folks that wrote some nice notes of encouragement for this weekend's Philly Marathon. Great to hear from you and appreciate the good sentiments...

Second, in reference to the post from Wednesday which mentions Rocky Balboa/Sylvester Stallone. In no way did I mean to imply that I am in a league with that sort of creative genius. I'm totally serious - and will again wear my heart on my sleeve - and tell you that I love those movies and have seen them all way too many times to even begin to count. Maybe it's being from Philly, maybe its the brilliant training montages. Whatever it is, any time in my life that I've had the chance to live a "Rocky" moment, it's special. But then again, the guy did make "Stop or My Mom Will Shoot". I guess that's why he went back to making action films. Even the Expendables- or maybe even Oscar - look like an acting tour de forces after some of those early 90's clunkers.

OK, there's really no third but since I feel like writing a little bit more - if you're still reading this I guess you want to read a bit more - I am really loving playing the guitar again in a way I haven't before. Still at the Neil Young thing, a good bit of Matchbox 20 and even a little Radiohead for good measure. So, for lack of anything really interesting to say, I'm sharing a picture of my six friends (guitars)

A man can not live by running shoes alone! Have a great weekend

Game on! Back to the Philly Marathon for #3 - And some Seinfeld Trivia for old times sake

For those of you who were following my slightly sad tale of being really bummed, a happy (almost) ending. The ending will be when I finish the marathon.

I say bummed because given what's been going on the world - between hurricanes, blizzards, scandals and probably some stuff I'm not even thinking of - I don't have a right to be sad as it (was) hardly tragic. Nevertheless, what I thought was a stress fracture turned out to be much, much less. In fact, it was - let's call it - an irritation that many runners get.

I don't want to be graphic as my daughter really thinks this whole thing is "gross" but I have what typically results in one buying shoes with a wider toe box that have some room to move. Truth is, it's not that big a deal but when you're seventeen like she is, many things to the left of cool, fall into the category of gross. Anyway, my foot feels 100% better -- In fact, I went to a podiatrist on Monday who was, without meaning to be, hilarious.

He looks at my foot and doesn't really do any sort of double take. Asks a couple questions. Does four x-rays. We come back in the "little room" (as distinguished from the bigger waiting room) as Seinfeld always likes to distinguish. Anyway, he checks me out, tests it for hotness to the touch (it wasn't) and asks "so what do you want me to do?" I said when I made the appointment I was really looking for answers as to what it was. Now I feel fine and think that it was the (unmentionable) reacting badly to a long run in a narrower shoe - followed by another run the next day. So now I'm just looking for clearance. The doc asks "so did you train for this - how long?". I explained that I've been prepping/training for three months including two 20 mile runs over the last few weeks.

Then I felt like I was in a Rocky movie. If you saw "Rocky Balboa" (also known as Rocky 6), there's a part where Marie, the girl that he had helped in the very first movie, but all grown up with a son, says "Fighter's Fight". Here's the scene for your enjoyment and inspiration - I hope my blog doesn't get nailed or pulled down for it


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lizg14PXbPQ

I know I'm digressing here but if you're looking for inspiration - something, anything - check this out. I'll embarrass myself here and say that I can't watch it without shedding a tear.

Anyway, the Doctor says to me "Are you a runner?". I say yes, not a fast one, but a committed one. He turns to me and says "If you're a runner then you have to run it". I love it! I said are you totally serious and he says it again. Cleared for take off! That was a moment that I'll look back on with a lot of happiness.

So, looking forward to doing my third Philadelphia Marathon. The other thing I've learned from this is a lot more appreciation for the simple joy of running in a race. There is something really special about it that is just indescribable. While days before I'm usually sitting here thinking of all kinds of calculations and visualizations, I'm doing nothing. I'm always thinking about time goals and stuff like that. All I've got on my mind is that I am so lucky to be getting to do something I was so looking forward to doing and completing. That's special to me.

Feelings like this are what I associate with running and definitely the reason that Teens Run Westchester is so important to me. Looking at a goal and realizing the privilege we have as healthy people to do something - not just a marathon - but anything we want to take on, is such an awesome and brave act. Yet, so many tend to shy away from that. If we can use running to teach both teens and their mentors the value of this, that's something pretty cool.

So since I got all serious there for a few minutes and haven't done any Seinfeld trivia, I'll bring it back to the Doctors, one of Seinfeld's favorite topics. Here are a couple trivia pieces from the show.

In one of the fairly early episodes, George ends up at the hospital because he thinks he had a heart attack. What actual problem did he have? What did he do instead of immediately having the hospital provide care? What somewhat famous and oft-forgotten candy is mentioned in the episode.


In another episode, Jerry, George and Elaine all go to have messages with Jerry thinking that his friend, a doctor, can get them insurance clearance. What's the friends first name? The doctor/friend has a poster of a boxer in his office - who is the boxer? What happens to the friend as a result of writing the notes?

Enjoy!

Little bit of procrastination today - I guess that's what saturdays are for...

What a beautiful day for a run. But I am still restraining myself -really, really challenging. Instead I am enjoying learning about all the wonderful remedies for bunions - who knew such a closet industry existed?? There's the bunion bootie which is very much for runners - I'm not grabbing that one just yet. And if I did I really wish they would have thought of a cooler name for it. I mean bootie? Please - there's just too many weird associations whether its the thing your mother made you were when you were a newborn or - let's just say - much less innocent usage of the word. So none for me yet thanks.

But then there are a whole new world of shoes (running and regular) which are recommended. One thing is for sure - I'm going to be having a bit of a fire sale on ebay for all my slightly narrower running shoes; races, flats etc. Clearly the idea when you go this route is lots of support, minimal minimalism, extra width. All that kind of stuff. Anyway, there's plenty of literature.

Bottom line, I felt pretty good today but stuck with the increasingly boring bicycle. Oh well, I finally have a doctors appointment on monday and will find out what the deal is. Bottom line, I'll do whatever is recommended but am really wanted to do Philly. Patience, patience....

Other that, lots of reading, lots of guitar and - a little unusual for me - a little spell of procrastination. I could barely get off the couch to write this and do a few other things. My guess is I'll either have a super lazy saturday or it will end up incredibly productive. Stay tuned and enjoy your weekend...

Still off my feet and on the bike - but making the best of it!

OK, I'm not going to continue on my Neil Young rant from yesterday. OK, maybe just a little. Like I said, the bright spot - or the lemons to lemonade of this foot injury thing - is finding other activities to take up that running time. So, yesterday instead of running, I spent an hour jamming to this song called Driftin Back, a 27 minute jam. It actually starts out with some lyrics but they really just serve as an excuse for an extended two chord jam - I cranked up the distortion on my hollow body guitar and lost myself for the next twenty minutes. Nice break from work! And I've almost completed three books while riding the incredibly boring stationary bike.

I truly must be 1) aging 2) getting smarter or 3) neither of the previous. I have now not run for nearly a week AND have actually scheduled an appointment with a podiatrist on Monday. This is unheard of me. I am shamefully fearful of all doctors - yes, there I've said it. I will avoid them at all costs. So you know, if I'm going, something's up. Reality is, this injury isn't so bad. The maturity comes in with the knowledge that running on it-especially 26.2 miles could be mind-bendingly (is that a real word?spell check says NO) stupid. Therefore I have to know what I'm dealing with.

Anyway, in Teens Run Yonkers land, lots of exciting things going on. We have a nice little funding proposal factory going on and have gotten three solid foundation requests out over the last couple of days. As I noted yesterday, I'm really psyched to be planning Winter/Spring Training with that culminating in one of four different half marathons I'm in touch with. If you're reading this and either want to volunteer or know of others that might want to, please send them our way.

In the meantime, if your electric is on and you've been fortunate enough to get gas, remember to not take these things for granted anymore - I know I'm not going to. And if you're still without it, wishing you a speedy return to life as usual. Stay safe...

Rust Never Sleeps and Lemons to Lemondae

After a long hiatus, happy to be back to sitting and writing. I'll share that over the past couple of weeks, like many of you, I have my hurricane sandy stories which fortunately were very manageable. We simply lost power and were fortunate to have alternatives which worked for us. And of course, its been sad to hear of all the challenges still faced by lots of folks I know in the area. Hoping we see some movement forward soon.

As I write this, I am listening to Neil Young's Psychedelic Pill, the latest in his seemingly never ending stream of work. I'll share that I've been going through a major "Neil Young" phase after getting about half-way through his self-penned autobiography "Waging Heavy Peace" and I've just found his approach to work, life, creativity and lots of other stuff very refreshing, honest and a nice fit for me now (if not for the future).

At the same time, my musical connection to him has roots in both the past and present. While I don't discuss it much in this blog, another love of mine (next to family, running, reading, Seinfeld and lots of other stuff) is playing the guitar, bass and attempting to sing. When I first started learning to play the guitar many years ago - it was when I was 15 putting it way back in 1980 (yes, really!), playing his stuff was one of the first and easiest ways to get started. I have vivid memories of teaching myself Hey, Hey My My (Rust Never Sleeps). And of course Like A Hurricane was one of those never ending 15 to 20 minute jam songs that made just about everybody feel like they were capable of doing anything on a guitar. AM/G/F - doesn't come any easier!

Then in 1990, looking for a job and anticipating moving to NYC, his album "Freedom" featuring Rocking in the Free World was my constant companion as I headed to interviews. There was another song called Crime in the City which was one of the best story telling songs I've ever heard.

And to the present - with my wife doing some consulting up in Toronto, Ontario where Neil Young has national hero status - it certainly seems like the moment. I feel kind of re-inspired to play and write some music in a way that I haven't been in awhile.

So this is typically supposed to be a bit more focused on running. For Teens Run Westchester, I'm super excited about getting back into action, again, after a bit of a break. Thanks to some recent funding, we're looking to work with and mentor a team of 25 teen runners to prepare them for a half marathon this spring - this will be a first for us and I'm really excited about the opportunity to both train for a new race and the chance to train through the winter months. While our runners will need some warmer clothes, hitting the road with some snow and breezes is really invigorating once you get into it.

From a personal perspective, I am quite bummed. While doing a long run (20 miles) this past Friday and then a short recovery run on Saturday, I am pretty sure I suffered a stress fracture. While my daughter intelligently reminded me that self-diagnosis based on youtube videos and internet wikis probably isn't the best way to know, if I'm making the choice not to (without even my wife telling me I'm crazy), there's something going on. So, I called the doc this morning and am awaiting the call back. I'm very bummed as I was training for the Philadelphia Marathon which is next Sunday and felt very good and ready - except for this. Oh well, I guess with age I am getting a bit smarter and more mature. If in fact it is a stress fracture, everything I read said to get it looked at it immediately and be prepared that I may have to start liking the bike and water running for about 90 days. But that is a heck of a lot better than my typical inclination which would be to run next week, potentially suffer some serious damage and then be away from running for a really, long, long time!

Well, if it the above, lots of time to get back to music, maybe even finally understand how to record it on garage band, perfect my biking and swimming and finally do a triathalon. Now that's turning the lemons into lemonade!

There is no TRY - There is DO. And Teens Run Westchester Runs This County!

Just a quick note:

If you read yesterday's post regarding the quasi rebranding, you saw that I compared it to the "New Coke" debacle of 1985. Of course, I was being somewhat sarcastic given the somewhat smaller following that Teens Run Yonkers has....

Nevertheless, it was both inspiring and surprising to actually hear from folks that really liked the Teens Run Yonkers name and particularly the anacronym TRY. While it was kind of cute/cool, I was actually never a huge fan of "try"ing. A now well worn cliche is that old saying from Yoda (star wars- not a fan but like the quote):

There is no TRY - there is only do.

I agree. We're all about helping folks commit to doing as opposed to trying. Trying is running 11 or 12 miles and stopping. Doing is running the whole 13.1. Or in marathon speak, trying is doing 21, 22 or 23 and bagging the rest. Doing is running, walking, crawling, rolling or doing whatever it is you do to hit the 26.2

As for Teens Run Westchester, I'm confident that moving from Teens Run Yonkers to Teens Run Westchester will let us DO MORE for many more (throughout the county). And so with that, we launch our new line

TEENS RUN WESTCHESTER - WE RUN THIS COUNTY!

PS - The idea behind using the name Teens Run Westchester was to always encourage separate parts of the County i.e. Yonkers to go by their individual city name. So Teens Run Yonkers lives on! And Teens Run (for example) New Rochelle, Mt. Vernon or wherever is waiting to be born....

Teens Run Yonkers IS Teens Run Westchester

(Said sarcastically.....

Clearly this is the biggest branding news since 1985 when Coke made their famous blunder of introducing "New Coke". Anyone remember that? Wasn't long before they fully recovered and reintroduced Classic Coke along with (just) Coke. Which of course was the new formula Coke which the population had largely rejected as too sweet and unCoke like. But I digress...

My point was that as of today, Teens Run Yonkers has formally embraced and is moving forward as TEENS RUN WESTCHESTER. You will notice that on nearly all formats including this re-titled blog (now Teens Run Westchester Daily Runner), our website which can now be found at www.teensrunwestchester.org , our twitter account which is now https://twitter.com/TeensRunWest (apparantly westchester was too long!). Next will be facebook but I'm very worried about losing our likes! Hopefully it's manageable.

Oh and I almost forgot, I also set up as a more formalized cause at causes on facebook - you can find that at http://www.causes.com/causes/797757-teens-run-westchester?utm_campaign=home

So, all of this is part of our soft re-launch. In all seriousness, given that our incorporation was Teens Run Westchester, our 501c-3 tax exemption is titled that way and that we are now exploring opportunities beyond Yonkers borders, this is an exciting change for us. My hope is that by working with all ares of the County, we can further deliver on our mission of using running to encourage success, leadership and healthy lifestyles through strong mentoring relationships.

Still a bit more to do in terms of this name change, but if you're looking for us, this is where you'll find us. Happy hunting - and running of course

Some Teens Run Updates - and what happens in Vegas

Well, I'm not sure why, but it was nice to see that some folks checked into our blog today. I do check those things you know...

Anyway, lots of exciting and cool things going on. First, it was a great weekend for Teens Run Yonkers - or should I say Teens Run Westchester. We'll get to that in just a second. Our mentors and teens had an awesome time at the Aqueduct Run which was part of the 2012 Aquefest - if you haven't already been inundated by my posts and links to that, once more for your enjoyment, here are a few cool things from that event:

our facebook pictures: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.492576070760876.120679.130787670273053&type=3

by the way, do not look and then move on without liking us!

Also, some cool info on the Aquefest itself: http://rivertowns.dailyvoice.com/news/aquefest-celebrates-old-croton-aqueduct-0

There was a great crew of runners out there and everyone did an awesome job on a nice trail course. I have to say that after checking out the course a few times on my own, I think I've discovered why so many runners use that as a core part of the training. It really does make you use some muscles that you typically don't on the road. I did a nice 6+ miler on there the day before the run and really felt it. Anyway, it was a great experience and hopefully we introduced the program to some new folks. And they were introduced to one of Westhchester's undiscovered gems.

The other big, but for now sort of quiet switch, is that we'll be moving Teens RUn Yonkers towards its legal and formal identity of Teens Run Westchester. Just in the process of re-setting some of our infrastructure - website, database etc. towards that end. I think it will be a good switch for us and open us up to new partnerships, volunteers and overall opportunities.

That's it for now -

Oh, almost forgot - looking forward to an upcoming weekend of Las Vegas with my fraternity brothers; always a good time. You may recall I did a few posts awhile back about the many things you can learn that are of value from the fraternity experience. I'm honestly not sure if this weekend will add to that discussion - - but I'm sure it will be fun and um...memorable. But you know, it has to stay in Vegas. Well, at least I've got you thinking

Keep going till something (anything) works - and some Seinfeld Election Trivia

Sometimes you just have to keep going till something works. This rule works in running and - I'm hoping giving today's challenges - that it works in the business and nonprofit ruling. I say that because today was one of those days where I came in just determined to do all the right stuff; long-terms, mid-term, short-term priorities. A little social media fun and some other odd-and ends.

I have to say that as someone who doesn't relish the administrative end of things, I've been a little proud of myself. Ever since receiving our 501c-3 tax exemption -which was really exciting - I've had a new focus on being sure that we (Teens Run) doesn't just have a good program but that we've got solid tools and infrastructure. So, one of the reason I've been blogging a bit less and posting a bit less (my KLOUT score has taken a big hit!) is because each morning, I've been focusing on board development, database systems, administrative filings (DID I CATCH YOU SLEEPING??? - me too). Yes, this stuff is a bit of a snooze but to have this organization be a long term and sustainable one, this is the stuff I'm paying attention too first.

So in that sense, I just couldn't make anything happen today. First, I wanted to have us connected to an online donor system. I couldn't quite get that started because to so, I had to send - not fax or scan - paperwork to Guidestar so I'm officially listed as a non profit. Then I wanted to get us connected to BoardNEt to help us find some new board members - well, again, they don't recognize my tax exmept number yet.

Well, at least I was able to do a bit more posting about our upcoming event on Saturday - OK, shameless plug, here it is again -
http://www.meetup.com/Teens-Run-Yonkers-mentoring-our-next-generation-of-leaders/events/84408412/

And the blog post is working so far. Oh well, some days you just got to keep moving forward and this was one of them. Still smiling!

On a lighter note, looking forward to the debates...I know this will be one of the more controversial things I write here but I would love to see Romney at least do one or two things right. I mean if not what are all these media folks going to talk about - the same stuff they've been already and b) it would be nice to think that the Republicans (regardless of your affiliation) haven't nominated an absolutely clueless individual. I mean I want to be believe everyone has redeeming features, Mitt included (regardless of what he plays on his iPod) OK, no more politics

Well, why not. On the subject, some Seinfeld Trivia....When Morty was impeached as President of the Condo Del Boca Vista, who cast the deciding vote? And why? Further, what was Kramer's downfall while running for the same office? Remember, Morty was going to try to get him elected to yield power from behind the scenes?

Should be an interesting evening...break out the popcorn

Long Runs sometimes are just - long

Well, who knows what could happen next?? In an attempt to get myself more organized and prioritized correctly, I completely flipped my day around. I was finding myself getting way to "social media-ized" and paying way to much attention to my klout score. And I felt that I wasn't getting enough important structural and foundational work done for Teens Run Yonkers.

So, I decided to categorize everything I needed to do into 1) long term work i.e. activities like program plans that help create the foundation for a much stronger and better program, identifying proper donor systems 2)medium term work - activities that will drive our work for the next year to two years i.e. identifying multi-year funders and 3) shorter term - this tends to be the fun stuff such as email follow up, this blog, tweeting, finding meet up partners. And to really challenge myself, I hit the long term stuff first in the day. Since I started my day late (I decided to squeeze in my long run - more about that in a second) I am writing my blog at 6:00 PM even though I had been writing it at 8:00 or 9:00 - so we'll see if the audience is way, way bigger. Hmmmm

Anyway, my long run. Terrible and not fun. Unfortunately that's the way some of them are. Given that it was pouring rain outside, I decided to do it on the treadmill. I used to sort of beat myself up (mentally) if I did that feeling like I was taking the easy way out by running in my (semi) dry basement. Here's the thing - I like running in the rain -for maybe five to seven miles. That's a fun challenge. My marathon training schedule had me down for 14.

You want to try something challenging? Try running on a treadmill at an easy pace for 14 miles. It's not your legs that will wear down - it's your brain from the boredom. I usually try to keep it interesting by popping on a movie and I did so this time too but somehow it was just such a drag. With all the upcoming focus on Alfred Hitchcok - two movies "The Girl" and "Hitchcock" are due out in the next few months, I decided to watch one I hadn't fully watched before. I chose "Marnie" with Tippi Hedren and Sean Connery - it's OK but really kind of long. Anyway, what a long 14 miles that was....

The system does seem to be working though and I felt like I had a pretty productive day -so can't ask for a lot more than that.

Well, reading through this, it's one of my less cheery blogs...Sorry about that. If you read all the way down to here, I'll just say have an awesome weekend and I'll make it up to you Monday - have fun!!!

Teens Run Yonkers is a registered 501c-3!.....Not like the Human Fund (alert: Seinfeld Trivia)

Just a quick note to share some incredibly exciting news for Teens Run Yonkers anyway. As of September 11, 2012, we are a registered 501c-3 charitable organization! This was an unexpected surprise as our attorney had cautioned that this process could take up to a year. We filed on July 29, 2012 - less than two months! Wow! So a big thank you to the Pro Bono Partnership of Westchester for all their help. And thank you to Groundwork Hudson Valley for serving as our fiscal sponsor in the interim.

Speaking of registered charities -- and since I haven't asked any Seinfeld trivia for awhile, what was the dollar amount of the grant that Kruger and Company gave to George's oh-so-philanthropic Human Fund? And while we're at it, name the Executive Director of the Susan Ross Foundation and at least two items that became part of the endowment for the Foundation.

The End of Etiquette? Know Anyone Looking for An Internship?

I really wrestled with the decision whether to write this post or not. In writing - well what I'll be writing about - I realized I must be crossing over some line from whatever I used to be to being the type of "old timer" that complains about stuff like this....

So, it's 10:37 and I am now into the 37th minute of waiting for an intern candidate that had enthusiastically assured me how much she was looking forward to meeting with me for a 10:00 interview. And I was equally enthusiastic. Of course I will not reveal her identity as I am not spiteful - once on the blogosphere that could hurt her other chances for opportunities.

In any event, the candidate attends a local quality college, has an impressive GPA, has won numerous scholarships, is part of an honor society, deans list - you get the picture. Her well written cover letter intelligently outlined why she would be an asset to our organization. And as an added bonus she was available to work regular hours during the week. Perhaps it was all just a mirage? Any of you who work with unpaid interns - yes, this is an unpaid internship - know what a find someone like this can be.

After agreeing to our time, I also specified how to find our office and gave my number just in case she is lost. I have noticed that people don't have the easiest time finding our office.

So here I am - after skipping over starting some other more specific projects where I wanted the benefit of time - in the 45th minute of the hour.

My question is why? Specifically why have I not heard from her. My hunch is that in the interim between setting this appointment and today, she found an opportunity she chose to take. I get it and that happens. And I'll be candid, this isn't the first time this has happened. And my guess is that it won't be the last. As I discuss this topic with other folks at non-profits, we sort of take it in stride and just accept it that it comes with the territory.

But does it really? Is there any reason - especially in the nameless, faceless and way easier world of "thank goodness I don't have to pick up a phone anymore" a candidate for either an internship or volunteer can't just email and take a pass. How much more respect would I have for anyone with the guts to write a note that simply says "Dear Mr. Grabel, Just wanted to let you know that I'm going to pass on our meeting today. I've found an opportunity that I'm going to take and didn't want to take up your time. Thanks anyway, Ms. Candidate". By the way I timed myself and that would have taken less than two minutes to write.

Who am I writing this to? Am I trying to start some new movement? No. I guess in reality I'm sharing some frustration. I guess in line with what we do at Teens Run Yonkers, I'm really questioning what we're teaching young people. Also, my hope is that if you're one of the 22 to 25 people who look at this blog (yes, I do look at blogger stats)- AND I WOULDN'T MIND A FEW MORE - you consider what I'm saying. If you're considering volunteering or interning somewhere, show those folks the same courtesy you would a potential employer. What do you have to lose - well, about 2 minutes of your time. What do you have to gain? Well, the respect of that organization and if you ever decided you have an interest, an open door (or at least not a completely closed one)

Finally, and here's where I'll sound old school - what are they teaching students these days? We're looking at colleges for my daughter right now. All I can say is that for the bucks they're asking for, I hope they're throwing in Etiquette 101. In today's economy, why would you choose to show such disregard and disrespect for individuals that you may not only encounter again - while we're all more networked than ever, it's a pretty small world - but someone if treated kindly would be a contact and advocate for you? Am I old fashioned?

Anyway, sorry for my semi-rant for the day but in today's day and age of weapons of non-stop communication, I just don't get this behavior. Oh well, this too shall pass.

Anyone know someone looking for an internship?

Back to Philly - Marathon #11

A relatively quiet day on the blogging front after a week of lots of fun, exciting post Yonkers Half Marathon excitement. I am excited that Teens Run Yonkers Board Members have decided to start a bit of a campaign to increase both awareness of the program and raise donations. Over the next two weeks, they will be highlighting our activities and asking for contributions as we begin our new season. I'll be doing that myself as well but will reserve that for my facebook post. Nevertheless, very cool and eager to see how that goes...

The other news for me on the more personal - but still running - front is that yesterday, I signed up for my 11th Marathon - doing the full Philadelphia Marathon for the 3rd time and am determined to be in the high fours (a.k.a. sub 5). Remember, I never said I was fast - just consistent. I don't know what it is - the fact that Philly is my hometown, that it was where I did my first half, the course - who knows. Nevertheless, I just like that marathon. I think it's kind of a good barometer for my progress too.

Philly was the 2nd full marathon I completed back in 2008 (there was another 20+ pounds of me then too)and it took me 6+ hours. Last year, I was pretty close- I did it in 5:10. According to Runners World, if I follow their smart coach training, I should be able to do it in 4:50 based on my most recent race times. So, I'm going to make a really determined and conscious effort to follow their training schedule - which has me doing my first long run at 12:39. Like I said, I'm not fast but it's almost harder to do it that slow than to try to do it fast. But I'm really going to try to follow it in a focused and disciplined way - more than I usually do anyway.

I think there must be some element of luck involved as well. I had been thinking about signing up for a few weeks and was kind of figuring on going on the site "one of these days". I was meeting with an amazing person who had done similar work to TRY in Philly this past Wednesday and she told me that the race was entirely sold out. This motivated me to go on the site and it turned out that the Half Marathon was in fact completely sold out! At the same time, there was 1,000 spots left for the full so I immediately signed up. Definitely feels good to be right back to training for another one! Will keep you all posted on my training progress

Easy is hard - And Hard can be Easy; our Video

A couple random thoughts -

First of all, technology wise, these days I'm feeling like it's amazing how challenging it can be to do the things that people find easy. And sometimes, the things that seem challenging are incredibly easy with the luck of good accidents - or just information.

In the category of the former, I made a very conscious decision that Teens Run Yonkers needed to connect to the social media world in a more consistent, strategic and focused way. Since I'm lucky to have contacts in both the for-profit and non-profit world, I was particularly impressed by how some of my friends -that are leaders in those industries seemed to have the magic touch. So, I took the time to read things like Socialnomics (book on social media), read blogs, asked for help and studied how exactly all these things - well more specifically facebook, twitter, linkedin, blogs etc - link. I was sure there must be a formula for the right number of tweets per day, when to connect your twitter posts to facebook (and when not to) and all kinds of other "rules" I was convinced existed. You know what? (and I'm not disparaging anyone who is providing techniques or workshops on this stuff because I'm sure there's value in it) but for me, there's just doing. So, I've been trying it all. Honestly, I'm not sure where it's all leading but blocking out an hour to do this stuff is no big deal. And at the end of the day, getting thoughts out on paper can never be a bad thing.

On the flip side of hard to easy, I was filling out an application to go to a free nonprofit workshop. One of the last questions or requirements was to make a one minute video of yourself saying why you'd like to be included - and simply put the url to the video. I was stopped in my place. While, I certainly know how to make an iphone video of myself and did so after a few takes, I had no clue how to get that video hosted. Fortunately, one TRY's more tech saavy mentors pointed me to a video on youtube instructing you. It turns out to be ridiculously easy - there's an option right on the camera that with a touch of a button, allows you to send it to youtube.

I'm not sure there's really a moral to this story other than 1) sometimes you just have to do something to learn how to do something and 2) don't be afraid to ask for help - chances are the answers in front of you and it just takes a nudge to find it

And speaking of our film director/tech saavy friend, one more shameless plug for checking out our Teens Run Yonkers video - for me, it's even more inspiring than watching all six Rocky's back to back - these guys and gals are the best:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWRGRAod0no

One Thing A Day to Fight Obesity

Sometimes you get lucky and blog posts almost write themselves. Today was that sort of day. The combination of two interesting bits of information that crossed my path this morning really got me thinking. First, there was the news blurb I heard on Q104.3 on the way in to work. It was that most Americans will be obese within the next two decades. Here's the story as it was written up in the Huffington Post

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/18/us-obesity-2030-americans-obese_n_1893578.html

This amazed me for so many reasons. First, it just has me wondering when - or if ever -we'll find that all the current interventions, including programs like Teens Run Yonkers are making a difference. Obviously programs like TRY focus on exercise as one degree of the healthy habits that are necessary for young people to avoid and/or fight the trends in obesity.

But consider the growth of programs that focus on more fresh foods (i.e. farmers markets) food education such as that of my former employer Spoons Across America which teaches kids how to make fresh, healthy foods and the recent and growing celebration of chefs that are cooking up delicious but healthy foods.

Most interestingly - and not to get too political - with all of the attention that Michelle Obama has showered on this issue through the Let's Move effort, we've yet to hear of the impact. Having worked for organizations that you think would have benefitted from the attention, (and this is personally speaking) I'm not clear how, when or where the national attention manages to help organizations that are right here in the communities that are impacted.

And so - as this story would have it - we're not catching up, we're moving backwards. A quick read on this article gives lots of the resulting spillover effects i.e. hypertension, diabetes and heart disease. The list goes on. By the way, since it's my blog, I will state outright that I don't believe efforts like Mike Bloomberg's Stop the Soda Campaign - though now approved - will help one bit. Locking down, overcharging or reducing access without educating individuals doesn't solve problems, it just leads to other ones and/or creative solutions i.e. 16 oz refills.

I mentioned there were two interesting items. The other was Seth Godin's blog this morning. I have noticed that when I've included them, I've received dire warnings from blog central that I am not supposed to be reposting his stuff - so I won't. His basic notion though today was the idea of doing one thing every day. Do one thing that will change the trajectory of your business. Do one thing that will help a nonprofit (here's the link to TRY's donation page if you're so inclined http://www.teensrunyonkers.org/donations.html. Or do one thing today to help yourself to better health. Now that's some logical thinking.

Maybe it's idealistic but that might be a good start. Get everyone to pick one healthy habit - walking, running, eating five or six fruits and vegetables a day - if we all did that, and could pass on the word to one more, well, we might start getting somewhere. I'm going to keep on thinking as I'm convinced this isn't about throwing money at the problem, it's about inspiring action everywhere we can..

Our next run - Brisket - What's your favorite holiday meal?

So what next? Well, literally, a 5k Trail Run on October 6th along the Yonkers section of the Croton Aqueduct. I'm really excited that the Friends of the Croton Aqueduct have asked Teens Run Yonkers to head up a great run that will go along 3 miles or so of this beautiful trail. We'll be starting at the Shonnard Place entrance and continuing on up to Hastings. This should be a nice change in pace from during lots of running on the street. We're also going to be looking at participation in a few other local races over the next few months.

OK so having nothing to do with running or marathons etc, I was thinking about Rosh Hashanah. I was having a conversation today, discussing the holiday and the first thing that will always come to my mind when it comes to these holidays: BRISKET. Yes, brisket. For those of you who may be less familiar, here is the wikipedia definition:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brisket

Pay special attention to the line in there that says:

The fat cap often left attached to the brisket helps to keep the meat from over-drying during the prolonged cooking necessary to break down the connective tissue in the meat. Water is necessary for the conversion of collagen to gelatin.[1]

If that doesn't whet your appetite, what will?

But not to make fun as we are observing the holiday, I thought it might be interesting to pose the question - for those that are celebrating - what was your "most memorable"
holiday meal as a kid. I'm sure we could all share some pretty funny stories.

But in all seriousness, wishing everyone a wonderful and happy new year

Notes from Sunday's Yonkers Half Marathon

As much as I've said it before to many, still well worth writing in my blog that Teens Run Yonkers participation in the Yonkers Half Marathon was nothing short of amazing and inspiring beyond what I could have ever hoped for. Watching 21 Teens and Running Leaders line up at the start line as a team - unified in purpose, confident in ability and exciting about their challenge was a thrill. But to see them at the end - OK in reality I came in after many but was so happy to run in with Avery, one of our hardest working and dedicated teens was great - seeing them so excited for their accomplishment
was exactly why we do this.

The minute you step over the finish line - one you never imagined you could cross - tells you the world about yourself. It tells you that you set a goal, an amazingly challenging goal that was important to you and you made it happen. And as important as our mentors are, your dedication to this was what made it happen. That is something you have forever and I'm confident it's the message these folks walked with - in addition to the t-shirt and medal (OK they're pretty cool too!)

I could write a lot more - and perhaps tomorrow when I'm better rested I will. To sum it up thought, what one of our teens wrote on their Facebook page said it all - he wrote

"today was the greatest day of my life - I finished the Yonkers Half Marathon. But my legs hurt"

The thing I love is that 1) that's a "good" hurt 2) that will go away in a day or so and most importantly 3) that feeling of it being the best WILL NOT go away. It will stay there and be a constant motivator!

There's tons of pics on our Facebook page so please check those out at:http://www.facebook.com/pages/Teens-Run-Yonkers/130787670273053?ref=hl

We were also thrilled to be a featured story in the Yonkers Daily Voice: http://yonkers.dailyvoice.com/news/teens-run-yonkers-group-building-future-leaders

and had our picture in the cover story for the race: http://yonkers.dailyvoice.com/sports/hometown-pair-set-pace-87th-yonkers-marathon

A little running update - A great book to check out - And some good Seinfeld Trivia at the End - What more could you want from this blog?

So, just a couple of random thoughts....

First, had a good almost last run before the Yonkers Half Marathon with our crew yesterday. Excuse the self-helpiness of this but, we did a little bit of a positive visualization thing....We ran the final three miles of the route - down Nepperhan toward City Hall, a left onto Broadway, Valentine and then back down towards the Library. The only difference is that we headed back up a nice hill towards Neppherhan as opposed to heading back to the library. Everyone kept up a nice pace and felt good at the end. What more can you ask. One more light one on Friday and we're good to go.

I've actually kept up some nice mileage this week - about 40 up through today which includes a 12 miler, 10 and an 8 miler. Not sure how smart that is but I'm just kind of going with it. Definitely eased it today with just four and will do about the same tomorrow. In general, feeling very good these days --

On a very different note, just wanted to share a book idea. If you're ever looking for ways to change your thinking or do some really powerful brainstorming, take a look at Thinkertoys by Michael Michalko; here's the Amazon Link:
http://www.amazon.com/Thinkertoys-Handbook-Creative-Thinking-Techniques-Edition/dp/1580087736

I've been trying to re-think some of what we do with Teens Run Yonkers and this book has some really fantastic and creative exercises for helping you reframe your thinking. Whether you're in a business, nonprofit or really any setting, these are some excellent ideas.

And since I haven't done any Seinfeld Trivia for ages - and I'm talking about great books, does anyone remember the episode - still one of the earlier ones- where Elaine is editing a book by an important writer named Rava? What publisher was Elaine working for at the time? What was Rava's boyfriends REAL name and what did he spend his time doing? Finally, there is a statue involved in this episode that looks just like one that George destroyed as a kid - he was pretending it was a microphone and pretending to sing what song?? Finally, when he broke it, his parents looked at him like he had smashed something pretty important. WHat was it??

Archie Bunker (anyone remember him), Politics and yes, Running

When I started the Teens Run Yonkers blog, I made a very conscious decision to NOT utilize this site for ideas beyond our approach of using running as a motivator and teacher for encouraging success, leadership and healthy living. And I was sure that I would never talk about politics. I know I'm dating myself when I reference the '70's show All in the Family. Anyone out there remember that one? If you do, you remember the main character, Archie Bunker, the classic bigot of his day. One of my favorite lines from the show was from his wife Edith who used to say, "you know the rule - never talk to Archie about three subjects; Religion, Politics or anything else!". Bottom line, it almost always gets you in trouble.

So today I'm going to break that rule but only because I believe it's relevant to what we are modeling for today's youth who are, in fact, tomorrow's leaders....

Very simply stated, I continue to be incredibly frustrated, disgusted, and I guess plain old disappointed at the way we as a country, people, and society take such a short-sighted view of leadership. Now, I'm not stating any preference for either party but it just amazes me that everything about our election cycle is driven by day to day news and needs. On one hand, before Obama "won" this months fundraising war, I was getting daily notes from my good friends Michelle (Obama), Joe (Biden) and Stephanie (Cutter) - this must be the new technique of making them my good old buddies asking for money. Every day, there was a fundraising "state of emergency" that said if I could just give $3.00 this month, life as we know it would continue. By the way, I do find it interesting that when Romney was raising more, it was all due to special interests and gave him an unfair advantage - now that Obama won August, seems like its OK to have raised more than your opponent.

But let me not play favorites. You know the Romney team couldn't wait to sink their teeth into the job's report that came out the day after Obama's speech. Why? Simple. Less jobs #s last month = Bad, bad president. Good jobs #s last month = Pure accident and most likely something like the sugar high bounce Obama seems to have received. Bottom line, it's all about the sound bite that is driven by the news cycle.

To put this in more everyday terms, I have a daughter starting college next year and started a college fund for her 17 years ago. Imagine me trying to make a decision that could impact where she goes to school (how much savings I have) based on what Apple stock did in the 3rd quarter of 1994 (around the time she was born). Essentially, that's what we're doing these days...

So what does this have to do with running, helping teens or anything remotely related. Just this....What are we modeling for youth - or maybe just each other -when we can't think further than the next day, headline or sound bite? Shouldn't our elections - or perhaps even closer home - the decisions we make - be based on long term results? I really believe one of the things we need to be teaching and demonstrating is how we lead and build for the future. And the future isn't what's in tomorrow's paper, next weeks Time magazine or in next months unemployment numbers. It's what we want to look like 10, 15, and 20 years and beyond.

Summer Vacation - After 11 Years, Live Life the Best You Can

So what did I do on most of my summer vacation? Well, happy to say I spent a good bit of it running - OK realistically, run/walk/running, with the teens from Teens Run Yonkers. I say run/walk/run because truthfully, at 47 and typically running 6 or 7 times a week, trying the Jeff Galloway method of running was the best way I figured out how to maintain my knees, joints and the rest of me. And I actually manage to shave just a few seconds off my miles and smile a bit more at the end of the run

Anyway, we had an excellent summer and thrilled to say that we have a team of 20 runners and mentors that will be participating in this Sunday's Yonkers Half Marathon. We'll all be doing the run at a variety of paces but that's really the beauty of it. What we constantly repeat is that your pace is your pace -and the goal is for you to give 110% of yourself every time you're out there. And these teens did. I'm incredibly proud of all the work our teens and mentors put out in the lead up to this event.

I always believe that when you do a run through some adversity - weather, challenges etc- it really builds you up. We actually had that experience this weekend when about a 1/4 way through our taper run on Saturday, the sky conveniently exploded. While I had said at the outset that although it looks like rain, let's just get out there and if it comes down, your call, no one quit. Teens and mentors all soldiered on through a really wet and dreary one - but they finished. Nothing like going home nice and soaked after a tough run.

I'm also excited that we built some cool new things into our program. We had an 8K kickoff run with our parters Yonkers on the Move; it was a great way to start off the season. We had Commitment Day a few weeks ago...Thanks to our friends and partners at Modell's, every runner that made the commitment to continue forward to the Yonkers Half Marathon got a new pair of running shoes to complete their training. In July, we had our first Mentors workshop and followed up with an even better attended one in August followed by a group dinner. And, for the first time ever, we gave our participants a survey to see how they feel about exercise, goals and other stuff before the race and how they see it after. All in all, some fantastic developments.

Like most today, I'm thinking about my life 11 years ago today - it was vastly different. And I still remember it like yesterday. I do feel like the best tribute we can offer to those who passed on that day is to live the best lives we can and make every day count. I'm doing my best and will continue to do so. Hope you are doing something positive to do so as well.

Today's Run: The Good, The Bad, The Humid and Really Ugly (and I'm not talking to or about a chair)

Sometimes you go out on a run and it's pretty simple - you just run and finish. Other times, like today, things happen; good things, bad things, annoying things, amazing things, etc. That's the way it was today.

In fact before I even sat down to write this, with Clint Eastwood fresh on my mind -like everybody else- I had decided to title this post "The Good, The Bad, The Humid and the Ugly". And that's a fairly apt description of today's run. Overall, I haven't had such a frustrating run since doing the Miami Marathon and being totally bake by the humidity.

So last night I got it in my mind that I should do a long(er) run (10, maybe 11 miles). I was doing this as I couldn't join our runners today for our 7:00 run and for me, I really feel its important to not just say but do. While they may not know (or even care) that I run the days they do if I miss a session, I care. Tonight we're celebrating my daughter's 17th Birthday - (that makes me, well, never mind...). Anyway, I woke up at 5:30 ready to run, weather be what it may.

I stepped outside and got a punch in the face a.k.a. humidity. But I didn't care, I was doing what I was doing. That's GOOD. Got to be like that. In fact, I looked at it as an opportunity to practice Jeff Galloway's calibration of slowing down for each 10% increment above 60 degrees. So, intelligently, I started off by holding myself back and going slower than my typical early pacing.

But somewhere between intelligent and mile 4, it had 1) gotten even more humid - or I was just becoming aware of it do to the drenching of my shirt 2) it started to drizzle and 3) I was just not feeling great. But I continued. In fact, I'm happy to say I continued until I got to Hastings (my original goal). And I was excited because I had been wanting to map out a route for Teens Run Yonkers to run in the October Acquefest. So it was very cool to be able to get on to it right from the tip of Hastings.

So more GOOD. Running on the trail was great - in fact, it was beautiful..In fact, at about 2 miles I had what I would call one of those "running moments". You know, the sort of stuff they always put in the Runners World Magazine and call it the Rave Run - really cool scenery, nature - all that stuff. And I actually came across a family of deer staring at me. Very cool. Kept going and going and ended up mapping out a good 5K for us to do.

That's when the BAD and UGLY started. As soon as I got off the trail and ran about another mile, something about my legs just cried out NO MORE!! So I walked. Stopped for what was now my 3rd bottle of water. Tried to run a bit more. No go.

Not to belabor it, I was clearly drenched, dehydrated (I never drink 4 bottles of water on a 10 mile run) and just felt like words I shouldn't include on a public blog.

Lesson's learned: Pay attention not just to temperature but humidity and conditions! If you must go out in 85% humidity (the read according to weather channel) go out Killer Slow. And sometimes you just have to accept the bad run and find the one good thing in the experience like learning a new route and seeing some deer. THE END

Picking up where I left off....

Just picking up where I left off, it has become very much like a cliche that life is like a marathon. Even for nonrunners, it's become very commonplace to say things
with that theme. For example, after something doesn't go quite right, you may hear "no big deal - in the marathon of life, that's not even a mile" etc. This way of
thinking has really become linked with success. Especially looking at comparisons of sprints vs. a long run marathon. Absolutely no disrespect to fantastic athletes like Usain Bolt (trust me, if I had his talents, there's a pretty good chance I might have stumbled on to a different path), but sprinting is often compared to a quicker turn endeavor as compared to a longer term venture i.e. launching a business.

But I digress. Overall, I think it's easy to accept the idea that having young people participate in the training and ultimate participation in training for an endurance event can be a teacher and motivator for setting goals, success, leadership and health. That I'm still quite clear on and no doubt should be the ongoing mission of Teens Run Yonkers.

But back to Seth (Rogin's) point, what's the question we're responding to? Here are a few possibilities:

How do we make a real impact on the growing number of unhealthy young adults (a.k.a. increasing rate of youth obesity)?
What factors contribute to low or under achievement in our schools? and what can be done to change that?
What activities offer the best alternatives for teens engaging in positive activities as opposed to ending up in trouble?
What are the best venues for encouraging teens to set and achieve big goals especially if they haven't before?

One thing I can share - and this is why I think a blog like this may be very helpful - is because once there's a strong mission in place, it becomes difficult to reframe
the question without having some part of the answer in your head (i.e. mine!). I'd really welcome your thoughts on what we as a community can do to encourage
our teens to lead healthier bigger (in the impact) sense of the word. I clearly recognize that running a race or a marathon is not the cure all. What I'm trying to
better define is how Teens Run Yonkers can make it's best and most effective impact.

As an example, right now, we typically recruit a large number of students that run with us throughout the school year. Some stick with it through the summer and
a large number, unfortunately, don't. It's understandable and something I'm not sure how much power we have to change. The focus has been on our teens
running in the Yonkers Marathon which is a wonderful way to connect our young people to their City. This is a powerful idea.

At the same time, for example, would it be better to be an after school program with a focus on a run in May? Or, as we're chartered to work throughout
Westchester (yes, we're legally Teens Run Westchester) would it be more impactful to work throughout the county. And if so, it would have to be a broader
as opposed to more intensive approach.

These are some of the questions I've been playing with. Again, your input is welcome.

Making a good thing better --- Please share your ideas!

With just a few weeks left in Teens Run Yonkers core season (from March right up to the Yonkers Half Marathon typically mid-to late September), I was already starting to block out a few minutes a day to think through what to do improve upon the program.

I was initially going to just make it a practice to take 10 or 15 minutes and free-think on Evernote - sort of a running journal to myself of what can be done to have a more significant and sustainable impact on both the volunteers and teens we work with. As I was doing it, I realized that in this day and age of social media, what better way to drive change than invite others ideas. So, without much further adue (is that the right word?), I'll share what I had started to write; in fact, here it is...


I like Seth Godin's thinking. Before moving from this model which I've come to believe is good but can be much better and more effective, it might make sense to better (not necessarily re) define the problem (or question). This was right out of one of his recent posts. I'm not linking it here because I've come to realize that linking contest on here can get your posts pulled. And what a drag that is. So, I'll simply say thanks Seth...

I basically started Teens Run Yonkers because I liked what I saw in Philadelphia - Young people (students mostly) I'm guessing, being supported by adults as they completed the marathon. What was the connection I liked? Why did it speak to me so much? This is what I really want to think through

First off, I loved the idea of teens (students whatever) participating in a big, goal-oriented event like a marathon. Even today, when I train for one, there is such
a quality of process to it; the long term goal - visible but far enough out of sight that you recognize the dedication you'll need to accomplish it. Then the pure logic
and metaphorical quality of the training so much like life.

STOP

So, that's literally where I stopped before I cut and pasted my Evernote note into my blog. I know this is very early stage but I'd welcome your thoughts. As you can see, I was thinking through what was the specific thing I saw when seeing this program in action that had such a strong connection for me. Feel free to share:

what drives you when you're passionate about something?
especially if you're an entrepreneur - how you go about continuing to share the quality of your business or venture.
anything else that you think might be interesting, motivating, curious

Welcome to the next phase of Teens Run Yonkers (and this blog too!)

Fraternities and Philosophy - (what, more of that fraternity stuff?)

A few weeks ago - no doubt after July 26th - I posted a bit about a wonderful reunion dinner one of my fraternity brothers generously took his time to put together. Thanks again for all the great work Dave Sumka (yes, naming names!).

Since then I do find myself thinking more about this all too brief experience (it was actually just two years) of being away at college and sharing great experiences with a group of terrific (young at the time) guys and the women that were kind enough to tolerate us. At the time you're thinking that this is a chunk of your life, it's a lot of fun and in the end, how much can it really matter? I mean after all, it's just a fraternity, right? Some goofy rituals, lots of beer and/or whatever your drink of choice, parties, some sports, cool sweatshirts and jackets etc, etc.

Again, pardon me using this blog to philosophize a bit but I'm finding that the more I think about it, well, the more it is (or was).

For some reason - have no idea what made me start thinking about it as I was riding a stationary bike this morning- but I ended up thinking about something that was written in my pledge book. For the uninitiated amongst you (and I don't think this is super proprietary as others do it)that may be reading this, that's a book that you get filled out by various individuals connected with the house...It's a way you get familiar with those associated with it.

In any event, I found myself thinking about these words "Rob, be your own man". This was written to me by my Big Brother (a brother assigned to mentor you as you pledge) Brian Schwab - yes, again naming names. Brian might have written that to me when he was 18 or 19, probably barely knew me at the time as we had just met but the reality is, for me those words were pretty profound and I often find myself thinking of them. And have for the 20 years post him writing them to me.

While I've certainly had my ups and downs in life - fortunately more of the former than the latter - I've always tried to do that. Be my own man. Choose the path that I think is right and follow it.

And I consider myself incredibly fortunate. I'm not going to get into a big "yea America" or "free will" discussion (though my wife has been reading a ton of Any Rand and yes, I love Rush). I did find myself thinking how lucky I've been to have had that suggested to me and then have done so. I've tried various careers, jobs and now find myself at a place I consider the best yet, running an organization - Teens Run Yonkers - that means the world to me. We are lucky to get to choose that path.

So let me close by making the same suggestion to all of you ...Be your own man - or woman and create that path.

Thanks again Brian (and TEP)

Saturday 8/4 - Great Day for a 10K

This past Saturday was an amazing day. We held our First Annual Teens Run Yonkers 10K in Tibbetts Brook Park and it was a hot one. I'm not sure what the temperature was when we fired off the starting gun (OK, it was actually an app on my phone designed to sound like a gun) but it easily seemed like we were in the 90's.

The course that day was a deceptively challenging one - three miles up the new South Trail Extension to Tuckahoe Road in Yonkers. What you never exactly realize till you have the fun of running back the same way is that about 1.5 of those first miles is completely uphill. Not a steep elevation but slightly worse (depending on your perspective) just a long one. Once your over that it's a bit windy but at least well shaded which was the reason for the choice.

Anyway, despite the weather conditions and the challenging course, our runners and Running Leaders, did a fantastic job. Our top two finishers, Will Lewis and Alonzo Lockly finished in 48 and 55 minutes respectively (7 and 8 minute miles) and the balance of the group all finished a few behind but still with excellent times. Please note that the writer of this blog can only imagine a 7 or 8 minute mile and it would be on a cool day on the flattest, fastest surface imaginable. And it certainly wouldn't have been for six miles.

But speed isn't the point. Every runner gave a 110% effort and in many cases, surprised themselves with their results. And that's the idea. Effort over outcome. Achievement that occasionally surprises. It was all there.

Afterwards, the team celebrated with trophies, t-shirts, bagels, bars and water.

Most important, the excellent showing for the race made it clear that the team is well on its way to doing a phenomenal job for our goal of running in the Yonkers Half Marathon on September 16th.

Congratulations to all!

Pictures can be seen on our Facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Teens-Run-Yonkers/130787670273053?ref=hl

My Galaxy 3 Adventure - I miss the pay phone in my fraternity hallway....

Sometimes - days like today - I am amazed by technology. But sort of sadly amazed. Not to go into the long story but yesterday, against my better judgement, I bought a Droid phone, the Glaxy 3. Now, with all due respect to those who already have and love this phone, I knew going in that it was going to take some customization as it has a lot more bells and whistles and requires more patience than the iphone. But I spoke a salesperson who convinced me that transferring my music from itunes and the iphone was a two step process that wouldn't take more than 10 minutes. Not so much.

For those of you considering this move, you should know - and the blogosphere convinced me I'm not crazy - that this doesn't work without additional software, cost and hassles. I refer to the following as a few examples:

http://support.doubletwist.com/doubletwist/topics/galaxy_3_will_not_show_up_on_double_twist


http://support.doubletwist.com/doubletwist/topics/air_sync_galaxy_s3

and there are others...

Anyway, you may be asking what this has to do with running. Well, only that I can't wait to go to get out the frustration of this. Also, makes you think how and why would ever spend so much time on this kind of stuff when we used to live without it so easily. I guess I'm just waxing nostalgic for that pay phone we used to have on the wall at my fraternity house. We waited, made our phone call and moved on....

Out of the box - is well, out of the box - and fun - Seinfelds Personal Trainer

One of the most boring cliches- in my humble estimation - is the term "out of the box". You know, stuff like "oh, let's really try to think out of the box". How many corporate meetings have you hear that at?

Well today, I'm happy but slightly embarrassed to have to use that term. Tonight, we had a wonderful Teens Run Yonkers training session and a lot of it was due to willingness to think out of the box. The reality of what we do is that we are always looking for new volunteers - great and inspiring adults that are willing to commit the time to help train - and sometimes simply be there for our teen runners as they train for races. A truly valuable, and hopefully rewarding endeavor...

Many times when I advertise, I get runners interested in spending time with young people. Sometimes, I attract people that are great with teens and are eager to run a marathon for their first time, just like our young people. And once in a while I find myself speaking with someone with some skills that fall somewhere in between.

A few weeks ago, I was talking to a potential new volunteer (names left out to respect anonymity). This individual let me know that he had a fitness training background and was presently on a no carb diet. Honestly, I'm thinking to myself, as I heard the no-carb part, what is he doing here? I mean everyone knows long distance running=carb intake.

Yet, the more we talked, the more I appreciated his enthusiasm for what we do. And the more I wanted to include him and wanted to figure out a way for him to be a part of it. We came up with the idea of having him do some strength training/core training before the run.

Well, after a few weeks that went by due to a variety of circumstances, this gentleman joined us tonight for our training....Huge Hit!(in my estimation). Typically, we start off with some stretching and warm-up. Not tonight. We kicked off with team push-ups, balance push-ups and finally some squat thrusts that I'm embarrassed to admit my 47 year old body Just Said NO to. But all in all it rocked! And what a great way to kick off a run.

So, truly out of the box on adding something new. And well worth the cliche!

Good night!

Oh right, Seinfeld related. Ironically, I was watching Seinfeld this morning while doing a treadmill tempo run (I'm evening things out from my Teens Run on the tmill and not feeling too guilty about it), I was watching the one where Jerry's parents employ a personal trainer for him. Little bit of multi-program trivia for you. Who was the trainer and better yet, who plays him? What other TV show did that actor make famous? And what spoof movie was the actor in? And, what is the final exercise that the trainer has Jerry do that doesn't end well?

Cross Training - Swimming or Something Like it - The PoolBoy and A Fundraiser

If for no other reason than to re-prove that I can consistently post, I am posting again. What a sad reason but of course all the social media webinars and everything else (inars) tell you that consistency is the key. So if you're reading this two days in a row, WOW!!! this is working

Anyway, from the running perspective, I'm a little proud of myself. After my running streak, I had definitely gotten to the point of not believing in the value of rest or cross training days. So now, it's a big deal if I actually DON'T run. So today (and Sunday too) I didn't run. Sunday, I rode in the stationary bike. I have to say that has to be one of the dullest things you can find to do for 45 minutes. Even with music. Even watching Seinfeld re-runs for the xxxthe time. Boring. But I did it. And today, I actually went to the gym that I belong to but have rarely use. I almost did this strength training class but got there 10 minutes late so the fitness gurus said it wouldn't be a good idea so next time.. Instead, I went on the stairmaster for an hour. I think it's a tie with the bike on which is dulller. But I did it and sweated off 655 calories according to the thing that counts the calories. Clearly I need to mix it up.

After that, I did "that which I am the worst at" - I swam. OK, let's call it what it is; I was in water doing stuff for 10 minutes. Maybe at points it looked like swimming but I'm really not sure. All I know is that I really have to learn to like it as I'm starting to feel triathalon in the bloodstream. And my feeling is that if I can extend the time that I stay busy doing something in the pool that's up and back for longer periods of time, well then, I've got to be on my way. Along the way, I asked the lifeguard for the most embarrassing tip. I said, "so, when you're pulling your head out of the water, are you supposed to be blowing out or sucking in?". SO now that I understand that I'm supposed to blowing out - or blowing bubbles into the water - and then sucking in air when I come up, maybe it will be easier. Or maybe it won't. Stay tuned for Thursdays return to the pool to find out!! Same bat time, same bat channel.

Speaking of swimming, in one of the later season Seinfeld episodes, a pool boy from the health club Jerry belongs to latches on to him and clearly wants to extend the friendship. What is the pool boy's name? Where does he first encounter Jerry outside of the health club? WHat is the end result of this short-lived friendship?

Finally, and beware of the shameless plug, but again the social media gurus have told me I'm supposed to consistently be campaigning....So, we're in the midst of our Teens Run Yonkers Summer training and really trying to set out kids up for success. If you want to consider making a donation - and are actually still reading this, then click here to learn more https://www.causes.com/causes/213858-teens-run-yonkers-try/actions/1670578?utm_campaign=home . Thanks!!

OK I'm back...Just one of those days - Summertime - Why Fraternities matter

So I'm having one of those days where it just seems impossible to get in a groove. The day started off wonderfully with me getting two - not just one - but two parking tickets for parking in front of my home. This actually makes the trifecta when you include the one I got while doing the responsible thing and returning a library book. Yes, I put money in the meter for a 15 minute stint at the library, returned my book, realized I needed to take care of a minor personal matter and the guy must have been waiting for my meter to turn red. I couldn't have been in there any longer than 16.4 minutes. But there it was $45 ticket. I won't post how much today's gems were. Suffice to say that since I'm now parking in front of my house instead of my driveway, and that's why I was ticketed - since it's rarely an issue, forgot that there's opposite side Monday - it added a nice little chunk to the overall renovation cost. I keep trying to look at the bright side of these? Some help please? OK, yes, no points...I'm still healthy? Sure. Why not? For my Seinfeld crazed friends of course this brings up two wonderful episodes.....

The Library Cop. Truly a favorite. Easy one here Dave (Krell if you're reading this) - what's the name of the Library Cop? What does Kramer make the analogy to (that's like a guy who sells ice cream with the name ___________?

And of course there's several episodes involving parked (and parking cars) What famous actor/director decides his days of filming in New York due to the aggravation George causes due to his inability to park cars? And who is substituting for? That gentleman notes that parking cars is as easy as what? It has to do with dressing...

Anyway, it's been a fun and pleasantly exhausting summer. We have a great group of teens that are running both in the AM and PM as well as Saturdays. So I've been getting plenty of running by hanging with both groups; so that's seven runs a week there plus my own training. Last week, was able to hit 55 miles. I've come to realize that I have to use the off days as cross train days or I may be unable to walk by the end of this summer. And that would just be no fun.

On an unrelated note, had a wonderful time this past Thursday. While not something that comes up a ton, I spent two fun filled (perhaps too fun filled) years at University of Maryland as a member of Tau Epsilon Phi Fraternity. While I ended up transferring (that's worthy of a blog itself) to Temple University in my hometown (Philly) I always loved that school and that time of my life. Through the joy of facebook I ended up reconnecting with a whole bunch of my old friends/brothers at a steak dinner they had been having for a few years. Since then, have reconnected with several and now are in touch.

While that dinner has been in MD, one of the brothers here in the tri-state thought it would be fun to have one that was a bit more for the locals. What a great idea..While I fit a bit old having to say that I went there in 83 and 84 (think Reagan, Pink Shirts, or just everything from Rock of Ages), it was great to see some folks I had been to school with and a whole host of brothers I had never met. Yet, I realized that despite the fact that we were there, we seemed to have shared lots of similar experiences. Very cool.

What I also realized looking back is how much that time shaped me. No soapbox or over sophistication intended here. Several brothers mentioned the fact that the fraternity had a lot to do with "the men they became" and I'm guessing - intentionally or not - same here. Thinking of my work in the nonprofit world - and not to pat my own back - our fraternity's motto was about chivalry and service to others. While I my comments after today's tickets probably weren't too high on the chivalry scale, I do hope that we do at Teens Run Yonkers is providing a valuable service to the community. I also realize how strongly that sense of service was demonstrated by several members in the house who did important volunteer work.

One of the other things that really stood out was the value in respecting and honoring others differences. It was funny looking back on how many of us came from different backgrounds as well as likes and even dislikes. Yet, somehow we were able to come together around common ideals. With a daughter in her senior year in college and spending lots of time with high school teens due to my work, I fear that this thought process isn't demonstrated. Too often I'm told of prejudices around the simplest differences and the rifts that result. It's sad. We were in school at a time when we didn't worry about that stuff - if you were in the same house as me, that was good enough. We're friends. That simple...Nowadays, not always

Anyway, too often fraternities (and I imagine sororities) get this bad rap for not promoting any good - or at the worst end of the spectrum being a paid friendship network. Hey, I still would have done this if we had facebook and linkedin back then. To tell you how long ago I pledged, the payphone in the hallway was one of the primary means of communication! But seriously, there are lots of good things to be learned by being a member of the greek system. And sometimes you don't even figure that out until 25 years later!

Catching up - MY 220 Day Running Streak - Hawaii - NHL Free Agency - Seinfeld and the Mets

Well, it's been a long while since I posted. Why? Not really sure - just feeling perhaps too relaxed and not terribly prolific. But lots going on.

First off, yesterday, I reached my milestone 220th -is that the way you say it - 220th? - day of running. Or simply put, I ran every day for the past 220 days. Today actually made 221. Definitely something I am proud of. If you remember way back to older blogs, my original goal had been to run for 110 days straight which had been a 10% improvement over the previous year's record for me. So, I had hit that mark 111 days ago and sort of just kept going. Somewhere in there, I re-set the goal to double it to 220 days straight. And honestly, toward the end it got extra fun and challenging....


We (my family and I) were on vacation in Phoenix/Hawaii from June 19th through June 30th. We stopped over in Phoenix just to break up our trip there. So, we ended up landing mid-day and as you may know, it's broiling there in June -probably 110+ degrees and running in that heat at that time just wasn't quite ready to happen and I figured I'd hit the gym - yes the tmill - later in the day. So we went to dinner with family and got back around 9:00. Guess what? Gym closed. It's still hot and now it's dark and my wife is of course calling me crazy for trying to do this. I came up with a relatively creative solution and ran around the garden - which was lit up and there was a formal party being held- around 20 times (or as I clocked it around 2 miles). I was definitely getting some interesting looks from some of the well dressed folks. No one offered me a martini to cool down.


Running in Hawaii was both incredibly challenging but beautiful. It was challenging because we rented a beautiful home that was set on the side of a cliff. The house was part of a community that was elevated (a.k.a. many hills) above Honolulu. So going out was super tough because there were these huge cross winds smacking me in the face for the first two miles or so just to get out of the community. But at least it was downhill. Getting back was easier as there was no wind but it was going back up these same hills. I did three or four different routes but probably my favorite but toughest was one that took me up and down the most incredibly but hilly road that paralleled the beaches - seeing that at the sunrise was definitely one of my best memories. All the runs were great and I was typically doing 5 to 8 miles per day.


On the way back we stopped in Phoenix and had my chance to experience real running in the heat. I got up around 6:00 AM and saw a bunch of women running outside so decided to go out as well. I realized quickly that I was running with Alpha Phi Sorority 5K - if I had taken a right after my first 3 miles I could have gotten a nice t-shirt; but I decided to keep going. Anyway, definitely a good warm-up for the summer experience to be running in 90+ degree weather early AM.


So what next in terms of this streak? Well, I may have to stop here. Since I've been back I've developed some sort of light but annoying flu or something like it. I've been coughing been a bit achy, etc. That sort of thing. I've been running through it but keeping it a bit shorter and lighter. At the same time, I have no doubt that some reasonable rest and relaxation would go a long way towards helping me. I definitely need to be as healthy as possible as we just kicked off Teens Run Yonkers Summer Programs yesterday and I want to be around for all of that. So, we'll see. I had originally intended today to be the first break day but I couldn't sleep past 5:45 and well, just did it (as Nike says) for 4+ miles. Stay tuned


In other news - excited as I just finished collecting petition signatures to be the District Leader for Yonkers City Council District 3. This involvement is new for me and looking forward to seeing if I could make some sort of meaningful contribution in this process. I feel like lots of folks complain about the state of politics and how things are run. But better to see what it's like and see if you can be part of good change as opposed to just moaning and groaning.

Finally, I've had sports on the mind a good bit. First off, and doubt this is of major interest to many but I've been very addicted to following the off season free agency trades for the NHL. I guess this marks a new level of fandom for hockey. I typically take a break from thinking hockey for the summer but now that I've got "The Hockey News" app on my phone, in my free moments, I find myself feverishly checking where such and such player is going. I'm still floored by how the Minnesota Wild can offer two players (Parise and Suter) nearly 200 million over 13 years (?) and still be in business. I have to understand this cap thing better. And don't the rest of these players feel really bad about themselves? If I'm the guy getting $800,000 a season (which I'd take in a heartbeat) how does it feel that someone else is getting like 10x what you are.

Anyway, it all reminds me of the Seinfeld piece where he talks about how fickle we are as fans. It is amazing how one minute we're in love with a player, he ends up getting traded (he's essentially wearing a new shirt) and we hate his guts? It's pretty crazy. I don't remember the rest of this but it really does but me out that the Rangers lost Ruslan Fedotenko and Brandon Prust as I think it'll come but to haunt them. But I digress

If you're still reading this, stop and go enjoy the day, your family or get back to work -