This week's Six Sunday Links again come to you on Monday because this weekend I went home to Long Island and was way too busy eating and sleeping to blog.

Friday night I went out with my parents and sister for dinner at Orto, a restaurant in our town that's been around awhile but I've never been to.

The menu was FULL of things I would have loved to try. But alas, decisions had to be made. We ordered the sun dried tomato tapenade to go along with our bread - perfectly doughy with a crispy crust.

We split two appetizers - a mix of different seafood in a creamy lemon sauce and the butternut squash ravioli which was so rich, savory and perfectly al dente. The spinach served with the ravioli was clearly fresh and cooked perfectly to maintain it's flavor.

I ordered the skate entree - served with pureed cauliflower, bok choy, walnuts and a brown butter sauce. The skate was crispy but a little on the salty side and the cauliflower puree was delectable.

For dessert, we ordered the donuts - obviously. They weren't stellar, but that didn't stop us from eating them.

Orto is definitely worth a trip if you're out on the Island - they have affordable prixe fix menus and allow you to bring your own bottles of wine - though they have a full bar. There's something on the menu for everyone!

Saturday morning I woke up for a run. Ideally, I was aiming for 10 miles to feel confident going into the Decker Half Challenge in Austin. But, my shin has been bothering me and I hadn't run in an entire week - so as I left I told my dad I would probably be gone for around 4-6 miles. My first mile was 8:20 and my shin wasn't bothering me so I sped up, going to 8:12 and then 8:00.

Can anyone explain to me how an 8:00 mile can feel really hard, and then suddenly, I'm running 7:45s and feel 10X better? It's like the curse of the first 3 miles - always so torturous!

Sadly, the great feeling of that 4th mile didn't last and soon I was seriously struggling. At mile 6 my IT band started to act up and I stopped at Starbucks to use the bathroom and feel bad for myself. I still had at least 2 miles to home and I wasn't going to reach my 10 mile goal.

All week I had been feeling tired and unmotivated - it's not like me to just say, "Meh. This sucks, I'm stopping." But that's what I did last Thursday when my alarm went off and I skipped the gym. And when I again skipped the gym during my lunch break. And again when I didn't go to the gym after work. And that's what I did when 6 miles felt hard. I mentally checked out and threw in the towel.

Although this time, my IT band was seriously telling me to stop. I jogged another mile to get closer to home, called my sister, and had her pick me up.

I did some crafts during the afternoon, read my book (All The Light We Cannot See - go get it, NOW!), attempted to figure out how to use my GoPro and watched the sunset at my beach.

That night, my grandparents came over for a delicious meal cooked by my talented father. Artichoke bottoms stuffed with escargot as an appetizer and pasta with shrimp, scallops and peas for dinner. I'm so spoiled!

And of course, Nanny bought SNICKERS BLASTED ICE CREAM for dessert. 5 of us managed to kill a quart of ice cream.

Sunday morning I woke up lazily, met a friend for coffee, browsed at Marshall's (need cute black booties, help!) and devoured a bacon egg and cheese on an egg everything bagel.

I took a nice nap on the couch before it was time to take the train home, grocery shop, and get ready for the week.

Alright, alright, enough about my weekend. Here are the links:

1. Woman With Terminal Illness Runs Her Last Marathon

I definitely didn't make it through this article without crying.

2. Why Writers Run

I can definitely relate to this article! And it also makes me want to take my writing more seriously. I say all the time I'm going to write a book one day - but yet, I never get myself to sit down and start it!

3. Alanis Morisette Updates 'Ironic' Lyrics

I thought this was HYSTERICAL.

4. I Am Not Black. You Are Not White.

Powerful.

5. The New Cool Girl Trap

I thought this was very interesting.

When J-Law speaks out against the Hollywood pay gap and says, “I’m over trying to find the ‘adorable’ way to state my opinion and still be likable! Fuck that,” she is both giving the middle finger to the establishment, and also performing a different kind of likability.

6. Dad Shaves Beard, Scares Baby

This killed me. So cruel but so hysterical. Parenting goals.