Mike's Marathon Blog

Doesn’t it always feel like you need a relaxing weekend after your weekend? Last week seems like it was a year ago. Another weekend where I crammed as many things as possible into 48 hours. I suppose it doesn’t help when a quarter of your weekend is spent marathon training.

For our Saturday run, I wanted to show Miriam my dream house. The house is in Newton. We start in Southie.

We ran from A Street, through the city, all the way down Beacon  to Cleveland Circle, past BC, down Heartbreak and finally reached our destination near the corner of Comm Ave and Washington Street…….11 miles away.

It was worth it. This house is amazing! The design, the colors, the landscaping, the driveway, the location. It’s perfect! Miriam looked at it for awhile and finally told me that ‘it was cute.’ My condo would fit into this house’s kitchen. The front door alone is worth more than my car. Cute? Good luck to your poor husband!

Our trek back was a bit slower than the run out. We made our way back up the Newton Hills, took a bathroom break at Trader Joe’s, a Vitamin Water stop at Walgreens, a Fig Newton/Luna Bar breather at CVS, another bathroom break at Dunkins and got back to Miriam’s 4 hours and 22 miles later. It was the 2nd longest distance I have ever run, besides the Boston Marathon. NYC, I am ready for you.

After leaving my house at 8:30 that morning, I finally returned 6 and a half hours later. Yes, time commitment is the hardest and worst part of training for a marathon. I wasn’t home 2 hours when my friends arrived and my Saturday night had already begun. Our original plan was to eat dinner at our house and then head into Boston to watch one of our favorite bands. Luckily we were all feeling super lazy that night and plans shifted from a bar to our living room in front of the TV. Trust me, the new plan got a 2 thumbs-up from me and my feet.

More friends were at our door bright and early the next morning for a fun-filled day of apple picking. I usually despise this day every Fall, but our friends were bringing their baby, so it was far more exciting than Jack and I walking around a field filling a $25 paper bag with dirty apples (I just don’t get it!).

Jackson picking his 1st apple

Jack’s annual picture of her in an apple tree. Why? No idea.

Noel and Jackson

Hey, Mack’s Apples, you can use this pic for the front page of your website if you want.

Everyone came back to our place afterward for some dinner, football, Pumpkinhead (with Vanilla Stoli of course), apple crisp, pumpkin ice cream and pumpkin cookies, which were honestly the best cookies I have ever eaten in my life. The only living being in the house not enjoying themselves was the devil creature that Jacky purchased for a pet. She hates humans, so she was obviously unhappy when 7 of them decided to intrude on her relaxing Sunday. She hates babies the most, so she barked non-stop, well pretty much the entire day, but mainly when Jackson was playing with her toys and her Scooby Doo pumpkin. There was no bloodshed, so chalk it up to a successful get-together.

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GTLS!

The Skateland FUNdraiser was a huge success! I can’t thank everyone enough for coming and especially helping me raise some money for Children’s Hospital Boston. We ate, drank, skated, fist-pumped and raised over $450! Thank you so much!

Awards were given out afterward at The Tap, but I figured everyone would want them publicized on my blog. And the winners are:

Best Snooki Look-alike – Katie Psoinos

Best Guido – Dave Mandell

Best Trick (shoot the duck) – Iris O’Donnell

Best Bronzer – Derek McCluskey (I had a few drinks by the time the awards rolled around. Not sure what prompted him to win Best Bronzer?)

Person Who Didn’t Knock Out Their Front Teeth Skating (this time) – Chrissy Fucca

Birthday Girl Who Didn’t Show Up – Miriam Gorman (Some drunk lady got your tiara, sorry)

Smallest Person on Skates (even counting the tweens) – Joe Kennerson

Tallest Person without Skates – Michelle Carey

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Snooki, JWOWW & Sammi

To be continued…………

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I completely forgot to post this on my blog. For those of you not on Facebook, here are the details for my fundraiser this Friday night:

As many of you know, I am running the New York City Marathon in November. Yes, another marathon! Just like Boston, I will be running for the Miles for Miracles Children’s Hospital Boston team. And what better way to raise some money than to skate around in a circle with some friends…….after many alcoholic beverages, of course!

Things to know for the Skateland FUNdraiser:

– Food and booze at Katie’s house from 5-9.
…- Yes, there will be glutarded food for all you glutards.
– If you cannot make it to Katie’s, we will meet in the Skateland parking lot at 8:45. Do not unlock your car doors until you see familiar faces.
– You cannot enter Skateland after 9 (seriously).
– Cost is $20. This includes everything at Katie’s, everything you need for a fun-filled night of skating and a small donation to the sick kids at Children’s Hospital. If you don’t want to make the $10 donation, then Shannon will skate over your throat at Skateland and may God have mercy on your soul.
– Theme of the party is Jersey Shore, so bring your popped collar, fake tan, blowout, sweatsuit, fist pump and mascara.
– Friday nights are Teen Nights at Skateland, so Genie make sure you bring your creepy, dark lens sunglasses and a few printouts of your Match.com profile.
– You must be at least 5’3″ to enter Skateland. Joe, we will obviously sneak you in the backdoor once we’re inside.
– Remember to bring socks. Going barefoot is allowed, but just remember that Jusczak feet have been in these skates.
– Prizes will be given out. Prizes from the last Skateland trip:
Most Serious/Most Laps/Least Amount of Words Spoken – Erica
Best Trick (shooting the duck) – Iris
Only Person to Bring Their Own Skates – Kaela (can you believe she’s still single?)
Tallest – Michelle

Please let me know if you have any questions. If you did not donate for Boston and would like to sponsor me for NYC, please contact me and I will explain how to donate.

See everyone on Friday!

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As soon as wedding season started, wedding season ended. Our good friends Alyssa and Dave tied the knot this weekend at Zorvino Vineyards in Sandown. Might have been the last nice day of the year (unfortunately). Jacky was the Maid of Honor and gave an amazing speech. I didn’t even have anything to do with it! I thought for sure that I would have to write it. Mainly because speeches like that have to be funny and humor is a male gene. Hey girls, don’t feel bad, it’s science!

I know this is a marathon blog and believe it or not, I am still training for a marathon. I ran about 14 miles before the wedding. I have been running in Boston with my friend Miriam, who is also on the MfM team. We run all over the city and are always on the lookout for Tommy, Gisele and Benjamin. This weekend, we came across a 5-mile race and decided to join. The race had already started, so we jumped in towards the end. We started passing all the walkers and slower runners and thought we were in the Olympics or something. We even crossed the finish line and got our picture taken. It was kind of pathetic, but also provided a small confidence boost (and a laugh).

After the race, we ran down to Castle Island in Southie. I have lived in this area my entire life and find it amazing that I still haven’t seen certain parts of Boston. What a beautiful area down there! You wouldn’t even realize you were in Boston. It has more of a Cape Cod/Maine feel than a city. Miriam kept telling me over and over again that this is such a great place for a date. I ignored it at first, but then started thinking……this was kind of a date! Maybe that’s why she took me down there? The ocean, the beach, the planes flying overhead, the deep conversation, the sweat, the lack of breath, hearts pumping, the romantic music (in our iPods). She’s the one that begged me to run NYC with her too! Interesting. Hey Miriam, where are we running next weekend, a meadow filled with butterflies? Maybe after the run, we can grab some dinner and then watch The Notebook?

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I have mentioned my back pain in a few different posts. It started a little at the beginning of the year and got worse over the course of the summer. At first, it was more aggravating than anything. I figured it was from a 20-year old mattress and running over 40 miles per week. After the marathon in April, I took a month off from pretty much everything. My back worsened. This was obviously not a good sign.

I blamed the pain throughout the summer on golf and lifting heavy objects at work. The pain became a bit concerning when I started canceling my weekly golf league matches. Jack and I spent a few days in Ogunquit in the beginning of August. After sitting in a beach chair all day, I woke up the next morning and could barely walk. I was at Lahey the next morning.

After an initial appointment and a few unconcerning x-rays, I met with a back specialist. He scheduled me for an MRI and I had it done at 11 pm, the night before I left for Texas. I had my follow-up appointment this morning.

I have 2 degenerative discs and 1 herniated disc, all in a row, in my lower back. Degenerative discs, from what I understand, are discs that lose fluid. This reduces the ability of the discs to act as shock absorbers and makes them less flexible. Loss of fluid also makes the discs thinner and narrows the distance between the vertebrae. A herniated disc is a disc that slips outside the normal position. The slipped disc wouldn’t be so much of a problem if it weren’t for the surrounding nerves. The herniated disc sits on the nerve (s), which is the root of all the pain in my back and leg. The nerves are so sensitive, I some times feel it in my lower leg and foot.

I have an appointment with another doctor next week. He will recommend next steps, which will most likely be a cortisone injection. Is this temporary? Long term? Will it even work? I have no idea.

Can I still run NYC? “If you can withstand the pain, you can do anything you want,” said the back specialist. To be honest, I have already tried to back out of the race. Children’s Hospital won’t let me. I don’t have to run, but I still have to raise the money. It’s too late to go into a rant about this, but let’s just say I have a completely different opinion about the Miles for Miracles team this time around and this will undoubtedly be the last time I run or do anything for them.

So, we will see. I can run, I can golf, I can do most things. It simply depends on the day. If those nerves are being pinched, I would honestly pay someone to cut off my leg. Other days, I am training for a marathon. I don’t know how else to describe it. My appointment is next Tuesday and I will know more then.

Now I don’t feel so bad about my handicap going from an 11 to a 17 in 4 months. I’m putting an asterisk on my GHIN card!

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I just returned from an amazing long-weekend in Austin. What a city! This was my second time to Austin and it did not disappoint. If I were to move anywhere in the country, I think Austin would be the place. It’s very laid-back, young, active, hot and has more of a town-feel than a big city. The food is delicious (although I ate more Mexican & BBQ in 4 days than I have all year), the people are genuinely polite and the ratio of blondes to guys is about 10:1.

We arrived in Austin on Thursday (9-02-10 day and yes, as soon as we got to the hotel room I watched the episode when Dylan discovers that his father is alive, has another family and has been in the witness protection program the entire time – amazing). We flew JetBlue. SportsCenter, Saved By The Bell, House, CSI Miami and you’re there! I’m not sure why you would fly any other airline? Our good friend Barry lives in Austin and picked us up from the airport. We had some lunch (Mexican food 1 of 30), sat by the pool, visited his apartment, walked around the city and caught up with Austin’s-own Tito for the rest of the night (their local vodka). And as we were beginning our mini-week in Austin, he jumped on a plane back to Boston for the weekend. What are the odds? Anyway, it was great to see him and at least spend 1 day with him.

How many days per year does it rain in Texas? 5 – 10? Of course, it rains when we’re there. We had a nice little day planned for Friday, but apparently Earl followed us 2,000 miles across the country. We ate and shopped instead. Barry told us about a great diner for chicken and waffles. It was my first time and it will not be my last, let me tell you. I can’t think of a better way to start off your day than a plate of carbs covered in grease, butter and syrup!

Lady Bird Lake is a reservoir on the Colorado River in the middle of the city. The rain let up a bit, so Jack and I decided to take a run along the path that travels around the entire lake. This path alone almost makes me want to move to Austin. To say Austin is a young, active city is a vast understatement. We ran about 6 miles and must have passed about 10,000 people. And these were not obese walkers! They were the most fit, in-shape, athletic people I have ever seen in my life. There were people running, biking, kayaking, canoeing, stand up paddle surfing and this was all in 95 degree weather! And every other person was running with their dog. There was even a section where dogs could run without a leash. It was insane! There must have been a hundred dogs running around, playing, fetching balls in the water. Tula would fit right in, minus the other dogs, the other people, the playing, the running and the fetching balls in the water.

The main reason we were in Austin for the weekend was another friend of ours was getting married. That night was a pre-wedding celebration at The Salt Lick BBQ Pavilion. I’m just gonna quote Adam Richman from Man vs Food:

“My never ending quest for barbeque bliss has lead me to the Salt Lick. Unbelievable! It melts in your mouth. One of the best things I have ever eaten! And the burnt ends of the brisket – a work of true, true poetry – crispy, creamy, chewy, salty, and sweet from the sauce. They were perfect!”

I couldn’t have said it better myself. It was the best meal I have ever had in my entire life, hands down, not even a close second.

Trust me, I was the only guy not in jeans and cowboy boots. People were staring.

The next day we visited a local watering hole called the Barton Springs Pool, which is a man-made section of a creek from the lake and is filled with water from a natural spring, so the water is always around 68 degrees. It was a great place to relax and cool off for a few hours.

We returned to the hotel, met up with an old friend and headed to a ‘hole-in-the-wall’ restaurant for lunch. Burritos and margaritas is pretty much what you’re getting anywhere you go in this town.

Me and Murray. Yes, Murray!

That night was the big night! Buses took us to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center for the wedding (as you can guess, the former first lady played a major role in the beautification of Austin). The venue was so unique, the ceremony was short and sweet, the food was terrific and the 80’s cover-band was entertaining/hysterical (they actually wore Adidas jumpsuits for the last set). It was a fantastic night and totally worth the trip.

Me, Jack and the beautiful bride Nikki!

Now I must fast for the week and prepare my stomach/liver for next weekend…….another wedding.

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I received a letter in the mail a few weeks ago, telling me that I was paired with a Patient Partner for NYC. They give you the option to run for someone when you apply to be on the Miles for Miracles team. For whatever reason, I wasn’t given a Patient Partner for Boston. I think the team was so big that they didn’t have enough patients for everyone? I’m not sure how that makes sense, but that’s what I was lead to believe.

My Patient Partner’s name is Braedyn. He is almost 4, lives in Southern Mass and has been a patient at Children’s for the past 2 years. He originally went because of an undiagnosed lung disorder. They are still searching for a firm diagnosis, but they currently think it’s asthma and a reactive airway disorder.

His mom and I have emailed back and forth a few times and she sent me some pics to post:

Braedyn and his family will even be in NY for the race. His mom said that he’s more excited to see the dinosaurs at the History Museum and ya know what? I couldn’t agree more! I’m excited to have a Patient Partner this time around and honored to run NYC for Braedyn.

What I’m not excited about is my excruciating back pain this summer. Today, and this past week, is the 3rd time that I’ve ‘thrown my back out’ in the past 3 months. I’m 28! I don’t think this should be happening! I can’t golf, I can’t bike, I definitely can’t run! I can barely walk! It’s very frustrating, especially when you’re right smack in the middle of training for a marathon. I am seeing a back specialist next week, so hopefully he’ll be able to help.

And believe it or not, I have been training. I run about 10 – 15 miles during the week and have been doing long runs with my friend/NYC partner on the weekends in Boston. So far, so good minus all the back pain of course. We ran 14 miles last weekend and I felt great. You know who did not feel great? Jacky. I made Jack take the Sunday morning trip to the city to run with us. We told her that we were only going 8. Why would I drive all the way to Boston to run 8 measly miles? It was the longest she had ever run (seriously). Needless to say, she was not very happy with us! Hey, I did the same thing to my friend the week before. She had been running 3, 4 miles. I told her we would try 8. I lied, we did 13. It’s like taking a beginner skier to the top of a mountain. There’s only 1 way down.

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Ah, technology. I am currently sitting on the Ogunquit beach blogging on my new BlackBerry. Life is good. Jack and I are on a mini-vaca in O-Town for a few days. We started off the trip with a night at the local gay piano bar. Interesting does not even begin to describe it.

My cousin called me after dinner and told us to meet her there. I assumed it was just a bar…..not so much. I thought I was in a bad Wicked/Mamma Mia/Sound of Music/Elton John nightmare. This was gay heaven. A piano, a stage, non-stop show tunes and dozens of dudes singing them. Sorry, dudes and my cousin. Let’s just say people were staring. She knew every word to every song, no exaggeration. Show tunes the gays didn’t even know and they know them all!

After an hour or 2 of trying not to go to the bathroom, I had to go to the bathroom. Sucking down drinks was really the only option to avoid the eye-humping. I asked our waiter where the bathrooms were. He said ‘around the corner, first door on your left.’ I made my way through Oz and got to the first door on the left. The sign above the door read PRIVATES. Ummm, I can hold it a little longer!

The place was actually pretty funny and would be a hilarious place to bring a group of people, especially if they are unaware of the Ogunquit atmosphere. Maybe we’ll stop by tonight for The Judy Show. Judy is not a woman.

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