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Here comes the sun!

Perhaps it’s a function of feeling somewhat at home now, but we’ve gotten away somewhat from the true “taste of New York” blog posts that were so prevalent last fall.  There’s still no shortage of interesting tidbits to share (and we do often on “the Twitter”), but the last month has been a bit slow because of the STINKING RAIN.

In case you haven’t heard, New York was the victim of semi-historic rain levels during June.  According to this Times article, the final tally was 10.06 inches of rain in Central Park during the month, good for 2nd all-time.  Needless to say, we were in desperate need of some rays.

Cue a holiday weekend, the celebration of our nation’s birth, and the perfect time for the sun to reacquaint itself with our lovely city.  It was an absolutely gorgeous weekend, and we were able to make the most of the long awaited respite from the rain.

We kicked things off Friday night with a birthday party for our friend (and new father) John Ellis down at the Ellis apartment.  On the list of things John loves most in life, his new son, fine wine, and red meat are all at the top of the list.  So he was clearly in a great mood (as were the rest of the guests!) on Friday night, as we were treated to a great sampling of all three.

On July 4th, we took advantage of the sun with a run in the Park prior to our Independence Day festivities.  We met a group of 6 others and ate burgers at a spot right on the Hudson.  With Lady Liberty overlooking us from a distance and a picturesque sunset behind the Jersey skyline, it was a perfect preamble for the fireworks show.

We watched the display from the 22nd floor rooftop of a friend’s apartment in Tribeca.  The display, though somewhat distant from our vantagepoint, was nonetheless quite a show - the explosions of light in the sky perfectly framed by the Midtown skyline.

As the evening ended, we realized this was the last July 4th firework show we’d watch sans child for a LONG time, which got us very excited.  It also seemed like a great time to provide a baby bump update, as the stomach seems to grow a little bit each week at this point.

As you can tell, Tracy’s pretty excited about the little one - we’re not too sure, however, what the guy behind her thinks!

All in all, it was a fantastic weekend and one we will not soon forget.  Now if we can just get this sun to stay around for a while…

Bon appetit!

Anyone care to guess what high-end Manhattan restaurant the above is from?

Bet you wouldn’t guess Popeye’s Chicken!

That really is Popeye’s, after a bit of a makeover courtesy of Fancy Fast Food.  The site shows off “extreme makeovers of actual fast food items purchased at popular fast food restaurants. No additional ingredients have been added except for an occasional simple garnish.”

Check out some more pics here.

American Idol, 2025

My buddy Brent is absolutely killing it with his new blog.  If you’ve ever wanted to know what goes through the mind of a pediatrician (especially one who was selected for an ultra competitive fellowship for Pediatric Cardiology), on a day to day basis, you have to check it out.

Suffice it to say, it’s not the sort of weighty stuff you might imagine.  But it is awesome. Here’s a sampling of some video gold that Brent posted today:

Juke Box Hero Kid

What makes you run?

The Marathon training has begun in earnest this week - I’m on Week 1 of an 18 week prep.  After looking at a number of plans and asking for advice from an expert marathoner, I’ve decided to use an Intermediate plan from marathon guru Hal Higdon.  The plan actually seems pretty realistic and I’m hopeful I can stick to it.

On a separate note, the fundraising is going tremendously well and I’m currently at about 75% of my $3500 goal.  Many thanks to the multitude of generous donors, some of whom I know are regular blog readers.  I can’t thank you enough.  For those who wish to donate, you can do so here.

Finally, now that I’m in full training mode, I need to figure out some new tunes to add to my running mixes.  I made a nice mix a couple months ago that includes some upbeat tunes from bands I like - Phoenix, Angels and Airwaves, Killers, etc.  But I need some killer workout songs to help me through the long runs.

So I put the question out to the you - what are some great songs to run/workout to? Leave the answers in the comments.  Thanks for your help!

(Verrazano Bridge - start of NY Marathon)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/36665622@N00/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

Images from Africa

Last soccer post for a bit, but too good not to share. Images from South Africa, courtesy of the best photo blog on the web, Boston.com’s Big Picture.  Go here to see all the shots.

The beautiful game, at its purest

Love the smiles!

Images from NC

Included within: baby bump, lake fun, sparklers, lots of quality time with family.

In other words, a whole bunch of awesome.

A Love Story

I never get tired of telling the story. 

I think this is mostly because the story itself is so unbelievable.  It’s like a fairy tale.  Or a cheesy romantic comedy.  And yet it’s real. 

The story begins with two college kids, one young lady and one young man, in December of 1978.  Our duo found themselves doing what many college students tend to do on a typical evening.  Both were enjoying an evening out with their respective friends.  At some point that evening, the young man spotted the young lady across the bar.  History knows not whether it was a casual glance or the culmination of a littany of guarded glances throughout the evening.  What we do know is that in a moment of inspiration that would make Cupid smile, our young man turned to his best buddy and stated simply, “You see that girl over there; that’s the girl I’m going to marry.”

It was a silly claim, thought the friend, one full of bravado and perhaps induced a bit by the activities of the evening.  But our young man knew what he was saying.  He made his way across the room and spoke to the young lady.  Though they had never met before this December night, the two found that they had many mutual friends at school, and the friendship which blossomed that evening carried over into the days thereafter. 

In fact, the two became inseperable quite quickly, and were distraught when the young lady had to leave over the Christmas holiday to return to her home in New Jersey.  They had only known each other for a couple weeks, and yet they couldn’t imagine spending the time apart. 

So, they didn’t.

The young man discreetly followed his new love all the way north to her home.
He was following not logic but relying instead on instinct.  His heart had not changed since the moment he first saw her.  Remarkably, her heart was singing the same tune.  At the dawn of 1979, mere weeks since their first encounter, our couple was engaged. 

It was  six months later that the union was officially celebrated with a wedding at a church on Franklin Street, not far from the site of our couple’s first meeting.  The date was June 23, 1979 - exactly 30 years ago today - and a lot has happened in the intervening years since the couple tied the knot.  Yet the love which was ignited on the fateful December night remains. 

It’s the longevity of this love, juxtaposed against the speed in which it came into being, which makes the story so unique. 

I’ve never heard any other story like it.  It’s like a fairy tale.  Or a cheesy romantic comedy.  And yet it’s real.

It’s the story of my Mom and Dad.

Happy 30th Anniversary, you crazy kids!