Blog Master G

For those of you not distracted by the baby news in my last post, you may have noticed that another kind of being is also growing right under our noses — the kind that only a mother could love. Or at least only those with appreciation for the finer things in life.

Yes, the 4th Annual Anderson Brothers Mustache Growing Competition is now underway, and Pete is already putting me to shame, at least in terms of the quantity and quality of dedicated blog entries. To date, he’s racked up an impressive collection of ABMGC IV-related entries:

• ABMGC IV: It’s Almost Time
• ABMGC IV: Some Motivation (includes a must-see video)
• ABMGC IV: Ready, Set, Grow!
• ABMGC IV: Week One Update

This is my attempt to make up for that, or at least to demonstrate my commitment to the competition.

First, it should be stated that due to extenuating circumstances, the ‘stache I began growing on Thanksgiving Day, per the rules of ABMGC IV, needed to be shaved on December 1. Pete and some fellow participants had already begun to grow, so I let them keep the 11/25/2010 start date to my 12/1/2010 date. After all, my competitors will need all the help they can get.

For those of you just joining us, here’s a highlight from last year’s competition to whet your appetite for the kind of awesomeness you’re in for:

And here’s an earlier rendition of one of my 2009 stages of growth:

I can only hope that this year’s ‘stache will be as awesome as The Kip.

So there you go. The groundwork has been laid, the air is thick with anticipation (and upper-lip hair growth), and the 2010 Anderson Brothers mustache showdown is set for Christmas Eve right here in Saratoga Springs, NY.

Finally, I leave you with my official 12/1/2010 evidence of shaving photo:

Mustache on.

OK, this is getting ridiculous. It’s time to freakin’ blog something already (and there’s big news herein for those of you who read to the end). In the 10 years since I started blogging, this has probably been the longest dry stretch of not blogging (3.5 months since the last post), so it’s time to get my ass back in gear a bit. People are starting to wonder if I even still have a blog, and some have asked if I’ve moved it to another secret location. Nope, things have just been nuts and the blogging fell out of my routine. So here I am.

A lot’s happened since my last post in the summer — more than any single blog post could ever do justice, but some highlights… another banner summer, including a great Travers weekend with lots of friends in town, a Tom Petty concert, and a party we hosted. My bro and his girlfriend also moved cross-country to NYC from Sacramento, so we’ve had some awesome times since the summer, including at the track with Mini Hulk and at some swank New York City parties. Of course, it’s also ABMGC season — the 4th annual Anderson Brothers Mustache Growing Competition is now underway — so stay tuned for some updates on that front, too.

Where running is concerned, I’ve been taking it easy the past month-and-a-half since running my last marathon, the 2010 Mohawk-Hudson Marathon on 10.10.10 (my 5th), after which I developed Achilles tendinitis again. I did manage to run a record number of monthly miles during our crazy August (216.22) and set a number of PRs this year at just about every distance, but I had a disappointing marathon time because I happened to be sick the day of the marathon, and spent the whole race coughing, missing my Boston qualifying dreams by a lot. But there are always other marathons, and Team FG and I had a great time training this year.

The past 4 months have brought sadness — we attended two funerals, first for Jen’s great aunt Liz and yesterday for aunt Carolyn in Poughkeepsie — but mostly joy.

We’ve been to California, where we attended Ben and Lyndsey’s wedding in San Francisco and caught up with family and friends. We had another wedding — Dan and Margarita’s — the week after. Both were tons of fun, and we wish both couples the best!

We’ve been doing lots of research on buying (building) a new (bigger) home here in Saratoga Springs and selling our current home. Why? Drum roll, please…

We were ecstatic to learn on Friday, August 13 (yes, shortly before this photo was taken) that we’re having a baby! The due date is April 25, 2011, and we can’t wait to meet Baby Anderson. This coming Monday we learn the baby’s gender, and we couldn’t be happier.

Amidst all this, I’m also wrapping up my second term of MBA classes, which I started taking over the summer, so that’s my last excuse for falling out of the blog routine.

Happy Thanksgiving, happy holidays, and hope not to be such a slacker around here!

The summer of grilled pizza.

With about 7 weeks to go until the 10.10.10 Mohawk-Hudson Marathon, training is in full swing. My friends in the Saratoga Stryders have fondly nicknamed me FG, short for… well, you can probably guess, but let’s just say the “F” part starts with an “F” and ends with an “ing.” And the “G,” of course, is yours truly. It’s a nod to the killer training plan I put together, based on the 18/55 plan from Advanced Marathoning, my marathoner’s bible — and the fact that the members of Team FG are cursing my name during most of our grueling long runs.

The plan calls for three 20-milers. This is our peak mileage week, with 55 on the schedule and our second 20-miler this weekend. I have 31.57 of those miles checked off already, including the 11.12 I just ran this morning. Tomorrow’s run called for 11 with 7 at 15k to half-marathon pace. With a tough Stryders hill workout last night and the 20 on Saturday, I wasn’t thinking that I’d do the speed portion of the 11-miler, but when I set out this morning, I was just feeling good, so I went for it, averaging 7:10 in miles 4 through 10 — not quite half-marathon pace, but 5 seconds faster than goal marathon pace, so I feel good about that (plus, I hadn’t done any lactate threshold runs lately, so I was glad to get it in):

Three weeks ago tomorrow I felt some pain in the right arch of my foot come on. Turns out it’s all the symptoms of plantar fasciitis. I’ve spent the past several weeks stretching, icing, and ibuprofen-ing. I even took off 4 days in a row last week (Monday through Thursday), yet still managed to log 29.77 miles in the off week.

The pain is mostly gone, but I can still feel it a bit, especially when I do speed work (like last night) and/or wear my minimalist shoes, like my New Balance 801s that I wore last night. They have nearly 200 miles on them and I fear they may already be kicked. Ditto for my Saucony ProGrid Kinvaras, which I love but which apparently aren’t really designed for pounding the pavement in the long miles.

Even though they’re way expensive, Newtons rule. I’ve decided you can’t really put a price on comfort and staying injury-free, so my second pair of Newtons, the Neutral Performance Racer, arrives today from Running Warehouse (I managed to score a 15% off coupon and save $20+ off MSRP, but coupon link seems to have been taken down since I ordered yesterday):

My first pair of Newtons, the Sir Isaac Guidance Trainer, kicked some ass and have lasted for 343 miles, more than I get out of most shoes. The new pair should be even better, as they’re in the performance category and have less weight in the heel, which I don’t even use. Plus, the Newton customer service rocks. How many shoe companies can you email a photo of your wear pattern to and receive detailed feedback in return from the director of customer service?

Here’s what my Sir Isaacs look like now:

Newton’s customer service guy told me he’s seen tons of wear patterns and that mine is “one of the best.” I assume he means most awesomely severe. He gave me some pointers about reducing the wear on that outside edge, including doing barefoot drills, so I’ve done that twice this week — in the final 1/3 mile of my 12-miler on Tuesday, and in the final 0.45-mile of this morning’s run. The barefoot running helps work on natural form, which the Newtons help promote.

Seven weeks of training to go… assuming I can get past this PF pain, I’m feeling really good about nailing my 3:10 Boston qualifying time in October. I’ve racked up some big PRs in my past three races:

• June 13, 2010: Lake Placid Half-Marathon – 1:29:23 (6:49 avg. pace)
• July 11, 2010: Boilermaker 15k – 1:02:24 (6:41 avg. pace)
• July 24, 2010: Saratoga Silks & Satins 5k – 18:56 (6:06 avg. pace)

Thanks to Team FG for pushing me hard! Let’s do it!

Homemade Burrito. Mmm., originally uploaded by Blog Master G.

Anderson brothers burrito showcase.

In other news, Pete’s hilarious weekend recap:

peterandchase.blogspot.com/2010/08/horsing-around-in-sara…

Burrito Polo Party Horns, originally uploaded by Blog Master G.

From Friday – the Anderson Brothers burrito photographic showcase begins.

Today marks the day 7 years ago my lovely bride and I got married in Poughkeepsie, surrounded by friends and family. What an unforgettable day. And what an amazing 7 years it’s been.

We’ve had so much fun together over the years and I’m so lucky to call Jen my wife that I always struggle with what to write in posts like these (maybe that’s why last year, for the first time, I neglected to even publish an anniversary blog entry, as I’ve done every other year of our marriage; I was even feeling guilty this morning when I realized I neglected to do so last year).

So I thought I’d let my Dad, an incredibly gifted writer, share some memories from this day 7 years ago on my behalf — this is a snippet from a hilarious and touching email he sent both of us today (at midnight on the dot, our time):

After I left Gabe with his private last-minute reflections, I wandered to the back of the chapel, and got a glimpse of you, Jen, surrounded by your entourage of adoring maidens, and you looked so beautiful.  I thought I was catching a glimpse of some kind of Cinderella or Snow White fairy tale about to unfold.  The ceremony was exquisite, intimate, smart, touching, and brilliant.  My heart was in my throat most of the time, and floods of memories came streaming back to me as I watched you two get married.  This was truly one special day — two amazing people embarking on a journey together filled with hope, love, respect, joy, humor, and deep mutual caring.  Life doesn’t really get any better than this.

I couldn’t have said it any better myself — and life continues to be excellent year after year. Jen and I are fortunate to have such a great family and to be surrounded by so many awesome friends.

I love you, Jen, and here’s to the next 7 years of marriage and beyond!

Jen described it best this weekend: “This is the summer I’m falling in love with Saratoga again.”

We had another action-packed weekend that was so much fun and so non-stop we barely had time to sleep. And we really appreciated our little city that much more.

We got things started off right Friday evening with a little get together on Sarah and Eric’s patio. Alexis, Anne, and Tom cruised by as well, and we enjoyed drinks and snacks on a warm summer evening — at least until the bugs came looking for dinner.

Saturday morning Jen headed to work at the library and I ran 6+ miles with the Saratoga Stryders. Then I set to work on a number of projects around the house, including the booking of our next trip to California in the fall that we’re excited about. I met Jen at lunchtime and we hit the Farmers’ Market, where we stocked up on some goods and ran into a number of friends. That afternoon I joined Jen at the library to do some consulting work and reading. I love the library more and more every time I go, and always question why I don’t spend more time there.

We enjoyed a nice evening at home together watching the new Alice in Wonderland, which we downloaded to our TiVo via Amazon VOD.

Sunday morning brought another early day and a 6am wake-up call. I headed to the Saratoga Battlefield to meet a bunch of my Stryder friends (Charles, Hugh, Cole, and Sean) for a 12-miler in the hot and humid historic rolling hills, where the battle that marked the turning point of the Revolutionary War was fought.

After a quick stop at home, Jen and I packed a lunch and some beers, then headed to Fish Creek for an afternoon of canoeing. We rented a sweet canoe from the Kayak Shack at Fish Creek Marina.

We spent an hour-plus paddling upstream against the wind, dodging power boats and wake boarders (and their wakes), and admiring some of the stately homes perched on the hills above the lake. After reaching our goal of crossing beneath the 9P bridge by the Saratoga Lake Marina Park, which was abuzz with people enjoying the perfect day, we turned back and began our return journey with the wind at our backs. On the return trip, we leisurely drifted through some lily pads and hung out with the ducks while enjoying our sandwiches and the sunny day.

We capped off the banner weekend with some tailgating at Saratoga Polo, where we watched the Shamrock — owned by John Walsh from America’s Most Wanted, who was there in the flesh — come from behind to beat the Palm Beach Exotics in overtime.

Today my little bro turns 30. I think that’s got to be the sure sign that I’m no spring chicken myself. I still remember the day Pete was born. And the world hasn’t been safe since… from his kindness, his wit, his humor, and his charm.

This entry won’t be as in-depth as last year’s brother birthday tribute, but suffice it to say that I’m super-psyched that Pete and his girl, Sierra, depart California tomorrow morning and begin their trek to New York, where they’ll be our neighbors just three hours to the south.

I seriously can’t wait to live in the same state as my bro once more. We will dominate. Love you, bro, and happy birthday!

We can only hope that this disaster will be a wake-up call that we need to seriously rethink our extreme dependence on oil as an energy source.

As Mark Morford writes in Behold our dark, magnificent horror:

As if oil wasn’t woven like oxygen into every single aspect of American life, as if fully 30 percent of domestic transportation fuel didn’t come from the gulf, as if shutting down a fraction of those wells wouldn’t re-devastate the economy, as if petroleum and coal weren’t powering the very energy plants that deliver the electricity that charges the iPhones that allows everyone to Tweet their angry complaints through all the various energy-sucking server farms the size of a small country.