My kind of marathon

Marathons are inherently stupid.

Seems like everyone I know is currently training for a marathon or half-marathon or triathlon or some such nonsense. I don't get the appeal. The first marathoner, some Greek dude who brought news of victory at the Battle of Marathon (hmmm, coincidence?), dropped dead when he finished. How does that inspire people to follow suit? "Wow, you mean I can feel excruciating muscle pain, have my body start to eat itself, get bloody nipples, lose control of my bowels AND maybe die at the end? Sounds awesome, count me in!"

No, my friend. Not for me. Now a TV marathon, on the other hand? Pure awesomeness. That's how I catch up with The Real World (well, not any more, but back in the day), The Hills, Top Gear, Reno 911 and whatever other cable shows I forget to tune into regularly. And especially No Reservations. Not the awful movie with Catherine Zeta-Jones (who pulls off an Alba-esque job of horrible acting in that one), but the brilliant food/travel show with Anthony Bourdain.

Traveling to exotic locales (Iceland, Vietnam, Romania and Ghana in past seasons) armed with nothing more than acerbic wit and a sense of adventure, Bourdain gives us a glimpse of how the rest of the world really eats. And warthog anuses aside, a lot of it looks really, really good. From the teeming megamalls of Singapore to the meat markets of Paris to the street vendors of Sao Paolo, it's an absorbing, eye-opening reminder of what makes food great -- simplicity, creativity and the company of good friends. And booze. Oh yeah, he drinks. A lot. But how else would I have gotten turned on to caipirinhas? (Look it up and try one, they're yummy.)

Now's the perfect time to catch up on Tony's travels. Travel Channel is airing an episode a day this week (usually at 1 p.m., set your DVR), punctuated by a Season 4 marathon starting at 9 a.m. Monday (Peru, followed by Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Greek Islands, Hawaii, U.S. Southwest, Uruguay, Colombia, Saudi Arabia, Laos, Egypt, Tokyo and Spain). The marathon's followed by an end-of-summer clip show at 10 p.m. which promises to show the silliest moments, biggest and baddest foods and most exciting experiences (Beirut, anyone?) from No Reservations. If you're new to the show, this is a good way to get acquainted with it.

And really, what better way to spend Labor Day then to sit on a couch, do absolutely nothing and watch people eat all day? God bless America!