operation 110: day three
i woke up saturday morning whip-tired: i've probably averaged 5 miles of walking per day over the past two days, and my throat is a bit rough from all of the hollering at fenway the night prior. thank christ the marathon isn't today.
sarah and i met my parents in the hotel lobby--they arrived the night prior while we were at the ballgame. we had lunch in the prudential center and caught up on the news of the day. afterwards, sarah left for the afternoon; my parents and i went to the marathon expo at the world trade center.
we took the T to the expo. let it be known that some of the finest $1.25 that you can spend in boston is to ride the subway with my small-town mother. admittedly, i was somewhat disappointed in the expo: it was extremely crowded and hot. after 30 minutes, i simply didn't want to be there anymore. i was also a shade disappointed in the lack of autograph opportunities: yours truly enjoys meeting the legends of the sport, and of the few that were there this afternoon, i had met all of them in austin earlier this year (which may very well be a testament to conley and the austin marathon crew).
we reunited with sarah at our hotel for a, due to traffic, wicked long cab ride up to the north end for a nice italian dinner. i was up front and chatted with our cabbie... he was "former marathoner, turned chain smoker." he related to all the great running stories of the 70s, and admitted to his fall from grace through weed and cigarettes. on one hand, i was happy to stir conversation with him; on the other, i couldn't help but feel a little sad for the guy. usually in the running world, you meet folks that have turned their life around "in the other direction," so to speak. i mentioned how boston legend bill rodgers had a fall from grace (drinking, smoking, etc.) before he sobered up and won 4 boston marathons, to which the cabbie said "that's very true, but ol' billy wasn't smoking for 10 years before that." well, no matter what walk of life, the cabbie was friendly and courteous--you can't front on that, regardless of how many miles you may or may not be able to run.
the restaurant was top notch: i had a asparagus and artichoke pasta dish that was precluded by bread and a very unique, ultra-spicy olive oil. we talked about all sorts of things: college, families, etc... i found out all sorts of random stuff, like why my middle name is alan (my paternal grandmother was a fan of actor alan ladd). a walk through the north end wrapped up the evening, stopping at a pastry shop for a quick dessert.
we bid sarah farewell at park street, she was going out to party in cambridge. my parents left for their hotel, and i returned to mine. my running roommate, tracy, was now checked in; he was 10 minutes away from going to bed. that sounded like a fine idea to me. four hours later, sarah came back to the room while we were sleeping. much to her dismay, she wasn't sure in which bed slept her friend, and in which bed slept the dude she didn't know. ha!
sarah and i met my parents in the hotel lobby--they arrived the night prior while we were at the ballgame. we had lunch in the prudential center and caught up on the news of the day. afterwards, sarah left for the afternoon; my parents and i went to the marathon expo at the world trade center.
we took the T to the expo. let it be known that some of the finest $1.25 that you can spend in boston is to ride the subway with my small-town mother. admittedly, i was somewhat disappointed in the expo: it was extremely crowded and hot. after 30 minutes, i simply didn't want to be there anymore. i was also a shade disappointed in the lack of autograph opportunities: yours truly enjoys meeting the legends of the sport, and of the few that were there this afternoon, i had met all of them in austin earlier this year (which may very well be a testament to conley and the austin marathon crew).
we reunited with sarah at our hotel for a, due to traffic, wicked long cab ride up to the north end for a nice italian dinner. i was up front and chatted with our cabbie... he was "former marathoner, turned chain smoker." he related to all the great running stories of the 70s, and admitted to his fall from grace through weed and cigarettes. on one hand, i was happy to stir conversation with him; on the other, i couldn't help but feel a little sad for the guy. usually in the running world, you meet folks that have turned their life around "in the other direction," so to speak. i mentioned how boston legend bill rodgers had a fall from grace (drinking, smoking, etc.) before he sobered up and won 4 boston marathons, to which the cabbie said "that's very true, but ol' billy wasn't smoking for 10 years before that." well, no matter what walk of life, the cabbie was friendly and courteous--you can't front on that, regardless of how many miles you may or may not be able to run.
the restaurant was top notch: i had a asparagus and artichoke pasta dish that was precluded by bread and a very unique, ultra-spicy olive oil. we talked about all sorts of things: college, families, etc... i found out all sorts of random stuff, like why my middle name is alan (my paternal grandmother was a fan of actor alan ladd). a walk through the north end wrapped up the evening, stopping at a pastry shop for a quick dessert.
we bid sarah farewell at park street, she was going out to party in cambridge. my parents left for their hotel, and i returned to mine. my running roommate, tracy, was now checked in; he was 10 minutes away from going to bed. that sounded like a fine idea to me. four hours later, sarah came back to the room while we were sleeping. much to her dismay, she wasn't sure in which bed slept her friend, and in which bed slept the dude she didn't know. ha!
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