The following is a recently discovered draft of Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy; lost to the world for hundreds of years, it is apparently an even more extreme and terrifying version of his hellish Inferno. Dante clearly deemed this work too harsh for his audiences and, in good conscience, hid it away from civilization. It has been translated for your browsing pleasure – proceed with caution.

 I write to you now, dear reader
Of the trials and tribulations of Marathon runners
Who compete far behind the pack of leaders

They make a perilous trek over 26.2 miles
In such unbearable, sweltering heat,
It pales the sands that run alongside the Nile.

Through nine layers of hell they descend
And struggle to place foot in front of foot
Until they have reached the journey’s end.

In the first circle lie those who worshipped the ancient gods.
Their presence at a modern-day event
Struck this author as more than a little odd.
 

In the second circle lie hordes of shoppers
Who are blown to and fro by purchasing passions
And are stopped from stealing by the vigilant eyes of the Coppers.

In the third circle lie those prone to gluttony,
those who load up on endless amounts of carbohydrates
in amounts that shame even the likes of teenagers like me. 

In the fourth ring lie the tight of purse,
Who, after they pass up on treasure troves of swag,
Are more than likely to think back and curse.

  
In the fifth circle we come upon the wrathful and sullen.
They are the complainers who, the moment inclimate weather reports come in,
Decide to abandon their Marathon dreams all of a sudden.

Circle eight is full of unspeakable and innumerable terrors,
That only the most able and bravehearted of men
Can endure without succumbing to their inner tremors.

Luckily, I know two just such heroes......

 
Now, you stout-hearted reader, we come to the end,
And a terror and tragedy so unspeakable
That merely putting it to writing causes my heart to rend.

My father and I both happily retained our health,
And such a collection of memories
To outweigh any other in their wealth.

The man remains, in all regards, a mighty champion,
And I know as well as I do my own name,
That he shall someday find his hopes restored again.

So now, my dear reader, before I ramble on and on;
I leave you with this piece of wisdom and warning:
STAY THE  #$%@&  AWAY FROM A 90 DEGREE MARATHON!!!!!

Admittedly, 365 days is a bit longer time period to cover than I think the Beatles intended (if you don’t get the reference, shame on you), but it works really well for my purposes here.
As the end nears for this school year, I’ve been reflecting more and more on the life changes that have taken place in the last 365 days; needless to say, I’m very far removed from where I was. 365 days encompassed:
1.) My graduation from high school with all the fanfare and formalities that accompany such an occasion.
2.) My second time running the back half of the Boston Marathon with my Dad.

       – As a side note, round 3 comes next Monday as I join my Dad at Wellesley College to finish his NINTH marathon with  him. Best of luck to him and the rest of his E-Streeters, God knows they need it!! Blog (and hospital bill) to follow.
3.) An entire year spent with my girlfriend, an anniversary I was happily able to celebrate at home on Easter break last week. Here’s looking forward to even more to come!
4.) The passing of both a grandmother and a grandfather, whose presences are missed every day.
5.) The horrifically awful collapse of the Red Sox, the strike of the NBA, presentation of Lord Stanley to the Boston Bruins among choruses of “Black and Yellow”, and the rise of Tebow Mania amidst another brilliant Patriots season.

And now, to quote from Tenth-Avenue Freezeout (another reference ignorants should be ashamed of), “This is the important part!”

6.)  Acceptance to and attendance at Holy Cross!!!!!
As I walked around campus these last few days and saw all the touring groups or talked to the throngs of people that packed the Admissions Office during my Tuesday afternoon shift there, I was reminded of just what an exciting time this was for me last year. Admittance to Holy Cross, and my eventual decision to attend, rank among the most pivotal moments of my entire life; the “it’s what got me to where I am today” chestnut is a bit of an understatement here, seriously. To all the people going through this very process as we speak, two things: number one, congratulations on even making it this far, the hardest part is behind you. Number two and more importantly, know that wherever you decide to go is bound to be the right choice for you, it’s all what you make of it. Thankfully, Holy Cross was the perfect choice for me. I couldn’t imagine a place that’s better suited for me to call my second home, I can – not – wait to see what the next 365 days bring.

“I read the news today, oh boy.”

             Any 62 year olds you know of that crowd-surf? No? Run across a stage and end in a full-out power slide? No?? Jump atop pianos and twist themselves every which way around a microphone stand? No??? Play a three hour concert with 40 years’ worth of literally legendary material to draw from? NO???

              Clearly then, you’ve never been to a Bruce Springsteen concert. I was extremely lucky last night to sit in on all of the above (and MUCH more) with 18,000 of my closest friends at Boston’s TD Garden. After a studiously harrowing weekend bookended by a calculus test on one end and an organic chemistry test on the other – with only the fantastic Hunger Games movie placed in between to lighten the load – I was badly in need of a break.             

               Thankfully, Bruce and his “Heart-stopping, hard-rocking, pants-dropping, earth-quaking, booty-shaking, history-making, LEGENDARY,” E-Street Band were in town to provide that break with the power of rock’n'roll. Accompanied by my Dad and his group of lifetime friends (nicknamed, of all things, the E-Streeters), I made the drive into Boston for the concert and an outstanding dinner in the North End beforehand.

Bruce and his E-Streeters

Me and my E-Streeters

                I’ve actually been extraordinarily lucky to have been to more than a few Bruce shows, and this always draws puzzlement from friends. “You’ve seen him HOW MANY times?” and “Why bother seeing him more than ONE time?” are usually the favorite responses. Truth is, people, seeing Bruce in concert can be a life-changing experience that can border on the supernatural, hence the significant proportion of concert-goers last night who have seen him north of 25 times in the last 30-40 years. With a stunning and ever-growing catalogue of songs and the single greatest onstage presence in the world, Bruce creates an absurdly high level of energy at each and every one of his shows, leaving everyone in attendance both physically and emotionally drained but with a smile on their face.

Big-Man and the Boss

Hello, all, after a restful and (if I may say so) well-deserved Spring Break.

There were no exotic destinations for yours truly, just the comfort of my own bed and the gourmet cuisine that is home cooking. To prevent myself from remaining on the couch for the entirety of the week, I entered into a local road race series that has been a longtime personal favorite of mine. After a truly epic town line race with running friends of my Dad’s on Saturday morning, I hit the streets of Lawrence Sunday afternoon to race in the annual Claddagh Pub 4-miler. The course is an out and back loop with a truly daunting hill comprising the entire second mile. In the past, this hill has always been a pain to run on; funnily enough, after months and months of mountain-climbing just to reach my 11:00 Montserrat, the hill really wasn’t that bad this time.

Seriously, I don't plan to look this good while running.

The rest of the week passed pretty quietly, with two minor events. The first was a trip to the dentist, to whom I would like to say: Yes, my gums do in fact tend to bleed when they’re poked with an iron hook, thank you very much. Second, and I HAVE to mention this, was the release of Bruce Springsteen’s utterly  outstanding and amazing album, Wrecking Ball. Seriously, if you haven’t listened to it yet, put down whatever you’re doing and fix that.

Then, the day before classes resumed, I returned to race the well-known streets of my hometown for the annual Hynes Tavern 5-miler (if you’ve noticed a pattern in that the races are sponsored by local bars, know that they’re Irish themed races based around St. Patrick’s Day… no more need be said). I was fast enough -or stupid enough?- to place in my age bracket for both races, and hysterically, the prize for both was a high quality beer mug. Again: Irish races.

Actually.....Strike that. I might.

After a fantastic week home, though, it was good to be back up on the Hill again. There’s more races featuring even bigger hills to practice for, let’s not forget. As I climbed up to my dorm carrying my bags and such, the hills almost seemed a warm welcome back. The Organic Chemistry test waiting for me at 8am this morning…..That’s another story.

 I genuinely don’t normally talk about the weather this much anywhere outside the blog, but it’s been so incredible this year that I’d be remiss not to at least mention it every now and then. In a manner typical of the winter we’ve had this year, the snow only finally decides to show up on the very last day of February (Happy Leap Year everyone, people with February 29th birthdays can actually celebrate now and mean it). I have to say, despite the long wait and the unreasonably high possibility that either myself or someone I know will fall and break a bone just trying to get to class tomorrow, this campus is absolutely gorgeous under a layer of snow. Of course it’s only in the 48 hours before we all leave for Spring Break do we actually get to enjoy it. The kid on my floor with the sleds: beware. Your room is about to be broken into and your sleds about to be used while we still can. You’ve been warned.

Very quiet around here lately, been wrapping up the longest continuous stretch of school without a break that I’ll have to endure the rest of this year. A fantastic way to change the scenery (and I deeply regret the fact that I haven’t taken advantage of it before now) was to catch the weekend shuttle from the Hogan Center into Boston. My friends and I got dropped off literally at the corner of Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market; those of you from around here know what a fantastic area that is, and I want those of you who aren’t to know that I could eat at a different restaurant every meal there for two weeks and not go hungry. Seriously.

It was a blast exposing my friends  from New York to the neighborhood, with the highlight coming in the trip to Mike’s Pastrys in the North End. To anyone who has ever eaten a cannoli in their lives EVER and enjoyed it, this place is Mecca. No understatement. These guys could pay me to do ads for them, if the hundreds of people who were already in line there before 5:00 didn’t all feel exactly the same way. If you think I’ve begun ranting here, I challenge you to go for yourself and not do the same….

Very excited to go home this Friday for Spring Break, it couldn’t come at a more opportune or well-deserved time. Very much looking forward to picking up Bruce Springsteen’s new album Wrecking Ball over the week, it should just further prove to everyone why he’s called The Boss (I can apparently do ads for HIM too).

Talk to you guys soon, hope you all enjoyed Winter Break/ hope you have a good Spring Break!!

Well, we’re almost out of this freakishly mild winter, the kind of season that just doesn’t happen around these parts. It’s only just now that I’ve begun to process the fact that Mother Nature may not actually be cooking up some blizzard that’ll deposit 27ft of snow on the area, and we may actually get out of this one without a scratch. Students from out of the area: Count your lucky stars.

In the meantime, I’m a good deal of the way into the Spring semester, which, I begin to realize, is positively flying by. Seriously, as fast as Fall semester – the first semester ever on a college campus – seemed to go by, this one is progressing at twice that speed. Spring break is only two weeks away! I’m doing absolutely nothing special for it, by the way; trips to Malibu or Bermuda can wait until down the road, and that’s fine with me.

This past week was heavy on Las Vegas and love – but thankfully no Las Vegas love. The former came in the shape of the annual Freshman Dance in the Hogan ballroom, with a Las Vegas Casino theme. Imagine a typical high school dance party, but with three poker games and a roulette table thrown in for atmosphere. Due to a tremendous amount of luck and with the help of some generous/down-on-their luck friends, this guy was able to chalk up $160,000 Holy Cross dollars (which has the same retail value as Monopoly money, but still…)

Not many times in my life have I experienced what sports were like in three of the four major sports in Boston pre-21st century. The infamous gaffes of Bill Buckner, the Curse of the Bambino, and the just all-around atrociousness of the Bruins and Patriots all disappeared with the coming of the new millenia, and over the last decade Boston has thrived as one of the most successful and eventful sports towns in history.

As millions of citizens were sullenly and brutally reminded of tonight, however, not every ending can be Adam Vinatieri 49-yard field goals or Papelbon 3-0 strikeouts. I am gracious and humble enough in defeat to admit – straight out – that we lost to a better, more well-executed team in the Giants. The fact that this time was a sequel staggers me even more, but, as I said, I concede. We lost.

We’re not hopeless in defeat though. Tom Brady still remains entrenched in the pantheon of all-time best athletes (and still has a Brazilian super-model to return home to), New England has learned how to “Gronk” at every significant acheivement, and sales for Adele’s mega-hit album 21 will literally explode in the Massachusetts area to help fans deal with their grieving. And, let’s be honest people, from season-start to season-end, it was a heck of a ride. For that, Belichick and company, I will always and forever be eternally grateful.

To add some perspective though, these are things that will remain unchanged come Patriots’ win or loss:

• 1.)     I have to wake up tomorrow at 7am and trudge through the week, just like billions of others.
• 2.)    The economy still remains in shambles and American soldiers remain fighting away from home.
• 3.)    Sick and dying people remain so in hospitals and care centers all around the world.
• 4.)    All in all, the circle of life goes on unchanged.

There is, on the bright side, always next year.

And more importantly and immediately: pitchers and catchers report for training in two weeks. I can already hear “Sweet Caroline”…….

I’ve been a high school graduate for just about 8 months now. All during high school and the preceding elementary and middle schools, every day meant a 7:00 wake-up for an 8:00 start to the school day, which went until well after 2:00  -  a pattern that I’m sure is repeated in every household with under-18s across the world.

8 months only, and yet during that time the prospect of waking up at 7:00 for a 6-straight hour school day has become completely foreign and horrifying; you’re counted among the unfortunate ones around here if you have to drag yourself out of bed for a 9:00 class more than once a week. Two back-to-back classes is seen as a tragedy, and three or more falls just short of receiving a Medal of Honor.

That said, the classes are also considerably more interesting. Courtesy of Montserrat, my transcript is able to include a class entitled, “The Devil Made Me Do It;” the first homework assignment for said class was a 10-minute youtube video on the history and evolution of none other than the Prince of Darkness himself.

If  someone had told me 8 months ago I’d be having 3-hour (MAX!!) school days filled with classes dedicated primarily to stories about Big Bad, I’d have thought them absolutely mental. Now, I honestly wouldn’t trade a minute of it for anything high school had to offer. It’s the little things like that that sneak up and surprise you, and they’re the reason returning to college after a month and a half felt like coming back to a second home.

Hope everyone has a good second semester, can’t wait to have a Hell of a time.

Off the bat: I have nothing against Tim Tebow as a person. He seems a genuinely nice guy, I have no problems with the religion thing, and he himself has not actually encouraged any of the press thrown his way.

But enough was enough. He played 18 games this season and won only 9 of them, but for all the press the man’s gotten you’d think he was the second coming of the God he prays to after every touchdown. The attention has created a hilarious SNL skit, an equally hilarious Jimmy Fallon (as David Bowie) song, and a new victory move here replicated by yours truly.

All that came to a crashing and guiltfully satisfying halt last night at the hands of poster-boy Brady and his steely-eyed, grey-sweatshirted coach. References to Darth Vader and other arch-villains abound whenever Bill Belichick is brought into conversation with fans from outside the region, but the man knows how to coach a football team probably better than he knows how to breathe.

I’ve grown up in one of the most unbelievably dominant sports towns in history, and I’ve been forever spoiled by it. It’s with a great amount of pleasure (and a tiny bit of guilt), though, that I admit that games like last night’s are what I live for. Just watching a team show up, execute with stone-cold precision, and walk off the field again leaving Tebow’s reputation – and probably his ego – in shambles, without ANY showboating or drama, is what sports should be all about.

Here’s to the weeks ahead……

Undoubtedly one of the better benefits of college thus far, watching younger friends/ family members trudge back into school mere days after New Years – all from the comfort of my living room couch.

This week though, that became a much-too-familiar space, and one that I didn’t have much of an alternative to. Wisdom teeth surgery sidelined me the better part of this entire week, and I was in an anasthesia  induced haze the better part of Wednesday and Thursday.

Can’t say how thankful I am I was able to recover from the comfort of my living room couch rather than my dorm room bunk (no offense intended to the roomies), it truly made a long and annoying procedure much more bearable.

That said, however, certain areas of college life have been making their absence felt, and I’m itching more and more to get back to life on campus. I’ll take that as a good sign.