How to enjoy cold weather

Stevie and I spent last night at the Skytop Lodge, an old school resort out of Dirty Dancing in the Pocono Mountains of eastern Pennsylvania.  The night's stay had been a present from Stevie's father for her birthday yesterday.

We stayed in one of the stream-side cottages next to the main building, and at the end of the night, I came up with the brilliant idea to roll around in the snow in my boxers.  You, know, because what better way to deal with 3 degree weather, right?

Then I sprinted back to the room to get into the hot shower.

Me: This is what they do in Scandanavia!  Back and forth between the sauna and the snow!
Stevie: Yeah but we're not in Scandanavia!

What can I say, I'm a man of extremes.

This morning we woke up to a temperature of 0 degrees.

While not the coldest temperature I've ever experienced, (that would be -22 in 2004 when I was a ski instructor in Maine), it was certainly the coldest temperature I've ever experienced while running.

I did 1.5 miles and could have gone longer, but had to get back and change before the breakfast buffet was put away.  Heaven forbid.

We rounded out the day with a walk around the lake and some reading in the main lodge.

Don't tell Stevie, but I hope summer never comes.

The perfect eulogy

Birthday dinner and drinks at Eulogy last night:

It's only a party when Fran starts licking people

Eulogy is a Belgian tavern in Philadelphia, one of my favorite places in the city due to the presence of some 300 beers on their menu.

A month ago I made a reservation for twenty people, fully expecting to call them back later and let them know the number was actually much smaller.  But people from all areas of my life - running, camp, high school, college, theater - came out of the woodwork to help me celebrate.  We had people packed to the rafters and could barely fit everyone, and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Eulogy's slogan is "live the eulogy you want."  The night was one for the books, and I can honestly say if I die tomorrow I would be proud of the eulogy I receive.

Why I don't mind turning 30

I once read an article about an interesting poll in which senior citizens were asked to name, in order, the favorite decade of their lives.  The overwhelming majority chose their present decade (i.e. their seventies) as their favorite.  Second on the list?  The decade preceding their current decade. At the bottom of the list?  Their twenties.

When asked to explain the ranking, those polled agreed that with age comes knowledge, confidence, and an overall improved quality of life.  On the other hand, while those polled might have been thinner and better looking at 25, it was also a time of little money, uncertainty and stress, words that could easily describe my own twenties.

I did, however, pack my twenties with exciting experiences, enough to know without a doubt that I never wasted my time on this earth.  When I ran my first marathon six years ago, I finished in 4:29, and was immediately seized by this thought: not bad, but I can do better.  Funny how I have the same thought when I think about my twenties as I prepare to leave them behind.

Exactly one week from today I will turn 30.  I don't plan to greet this day with a lament on losing the glory days of my youth, because I know that my life is about getting better.  Getting stronger. Stronger in character, stronger in confidence, stronger in my knowledge of the world, stronger in my relationships with those I care about.  At nearly thirty years old, I am better than I was ten years ago, and in ten years I hope to be better than the person I am now.

When I reach my seventies, will I prefer that decade over any other?  Hard to predict, obviously. But as for my thirties, I can't wait to see what is in store for me.