Well, consider me honored!

My blog is about 2 months old and my friend Sarah has bestowed upon me the Sugar Doll award! Isn't that cool?

So, in order to fulfill my award status, I need to do the following:

• Thank the person who awarded me: Thank you, girl! I'm a faithful reader and you always inspire me. We've known each other a long time even though we've never met and it never ceases to amaze me how parallel our journeys have been.
• Link to Sarah's blog: go check it out!
• Share 10 things about myself: since this is a NYC marathon blog I'm going to make my 10 about the race.

1. This will be my first marathon but it's not my first time at the rodeo. I unsuccessfully trained for a marathon in 2004. I got as far as getting in two 20-milers in and decided the week of the race to not do it. We had found out that week that my husband had a heart condition (which has now been fixed, thank goodness) and I used that as an excuse not to go but to be honest, if I felt better prepared emotionally and physically nothing would have stopped me from doing that race. I look back and it's one of my biggest regrets but that experience I think is helping me this time around. I am following the beginner program for a reason -- the two 20-milers (and I had a 3rd scheduled) was way too much for me. If the race had been 2 weeks after my first 20-miler, which went awesome, I would have been fine. The wear and tear on my body getting the 2nd in put me in a bad place. Doing NYC will be my redemption and I will hopefully finally erase that feeling of failure that I've carried all these years.


2. Yes, I did get the idea to do this for the North Shore Animal League from Beth Ostrosky Stern when she did it a few years ago. I listened to Howard daily and heard a lot of the details of her training. What can I say? She inspired me. The day of the marathon I went online to see what her finishing time was and I was happy for her. When I didn't get into the regular lottery for NYC this year I went to the NSAL website and saw that they were accepting applications to run the marathon I jumped on it. I had to wait about 2 weeks before I knew I was accepted and I was so nervous. I don't think I've ever wanted anything worse since I was a kid. When I got the email notifying me of my acceptance on the team I cried. There are other charities I could have run for, there's still some taking runners, but if I was going to go this distance and do it for a charity it had to be for animals.


3. My least favorite day of the year is when we move the clocks ahead. Conversely, my favorite day of the year is when we set them back. This year we set the clocks back the night before the marathon. I'm seeing that as a very good sign. Not that I'll get any sleep anyway but when I get up at 4 am that morning it will really be like 5 am. Love that.


4. I already know that I have absolutely no idea what I'm in for -- not the training, but the race itself. It has been described as a race like no other and the people I know who have done it all agree. I have no idea what it's going to be like to be part of a crowd of 40,000 (my largest race was the Disney 1/2 marathon and that was only 15,000) and to run through the 5 boroughs of New York City. I've run lots of races in other states, even other countries, and as long as the course is marked and there are people to follow, not knowing the route or the area never bothered me. Somehow, I feel like this is going to be way different. It's amazing and terrifying at the same time.


5. I always run with music but when I get to the really long run stage of my training I'm going to try to do what I did last time and run for at least the first hour without it. It's agonizing the first mile but -- if it works like it did the last time -- I can usually clear my mind and just run like a machine and the time goes by incredibly fast. When I do add music it's like starting a whole new run. I plan on putting together a great playlist for the marathon with lots of NY-themed songs in it, especially Empire State of Mind, from which this blog was named.


6. I don't have any tattoos but I always said that if I ever ran a full marathon that I'd get one. I'm not sure that I'll follow through but my plan all these years was to get a small star on the bottom of my foot with "26.2" in the center. The irony would be, of course, if my foot got horribly infected from the tattoo and I'd never be able to run again but I won't think about that for now. I may decide after the race that the memories and the medal are enough but, yeah, I think the only event ever worth immortalizing on my body would be finishing a marathon.


7. My husband is my greatest supporter. He knows how much this means to me and his belief that I can do this means the world. I'm not sure if he knows what he's in for -- by the end of my training I'll be cranky, tired, and completely focused on myself and the race -- but I know that he'll be there for me. When I cross that finish line my victory will be mine and for the animals my fundraising will help but his love and support will be what got me there.


8. I am vain and I will be pissed if my race photos do not come out well. They usually never do, so it wouldn't be a surprise, but I feel like I'm owed a good picture for once. My race photos usually fall into 3 categories: I look like I'm about to kill someone, my tongue is sticking out, or I look fat. When I run, I usually am happy so I don't know why I always look so angry. I honestly NEVER am aware that my tongue is sticking out but I have photo after photo documenting that I do. As far as looking fat, I've taken pictures before a race and after a race and I always look so much bigger in the official photos. Bad angle? I don't know. But, for once, I would like a frame-worthy photo.


9. I am using this race as an excuse to get monthly (and, by the end, bi-weekly) massages. I'm justifying it under "injury prevention" but truthfully I just want them. Why should the elite runners get all the fun?


10. I am terrified I will fail. I am actually relieved to have the added pressure of not letting my fundraising supporters down because I don't want them to feel I duped them into giving money to a charity and not following through on my part. Because I failed once before, this fear is all too forefront in my mind. Having friends and family to account to is a big motivator. I'm used to letting myself down, I've done it my whole life, but I don't like to let other people down, especially ones who have believed in me enough to fork over their hard-earned dollars for this cause. I will crawl to the finish line if I have to. If I screw up on my training I will still line up with the 40,000 other starters and do what I have to do to get through it. I've made excuses before, gone too easy on myself before, but I don't have that option this time around. And I'm glad.