Much like Gibbons' visit of a couple of weeks ago, this last few days was both relatively predictable and thoroughly enjoyable. As is often discovered in these get-togethers, not a whole helluva lot changes. We are more aided by technology, and some minor dynamics change (a kind of volatile stage Lucy is working through was taking its toll on momma and I felt a little less free than I expected I might), but the cast of characters remain the same.
To recap...
Things that change:
- Life circumstances of those involved (marriages, children, jobs, places we live, income)
- More history from which to draw obcure references
- We eat better
- We drink higher quality beer
- Technology (e.g. watching episodes on the computer, ordering pizza online, engaging those not there via 'conference call')
Things that remain timeless:
- Buffoonery
- Silliness
- Basketball
- Non-Stop Excitement
Highlights of the long weekend:
- A stellar day of 96 degree frisbee golf, followed by a swim in Silver Lake, followed by football by the lake, followed by another dip in the lake
- Long-awaited TT commentary, which may be actually funnier than we thought it was at the time.
- A way-cool bike ride touring the area from Wirth Parkway to St. Anthony Main.
- High-quality beer.
- Experiencing a wonderful variety of tasteful while still managing to return to pizza for every other meal.
- Having Lucy meet and dig my friends.
Many many other enjoyable things occurred, as they will in nonstop excitement, and I am sure they will be recounted at a later date.
Thursday, July 28, 2005
Thursday, July 21, 2005
As Only I Can Do It (alternately titled "What Was I Thinking?")
There I was, at the beginning of the week, thinking that I'd make sure to go to bed at a reasonable hour during the week, to make sure I have a bit of "sleep capital" accrued before the visit of two friends. Also, I'd make sure to do a pretty deep straightening of the house, & organization of finances prior to the weekend.
Somehow, I found myself with very little of the house cleaning done, sitting on the couch last night at 1:56 am, watching a PBS documentary on the life of Bob Newhart.
Christ.
Somehow, I found myself with very little of the house cleaning done, sitting on the couch last night at 1:56 am, watching a PBS documentary on the life of Bob Newhart.
Christ.
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
Hanging on a Weather Vane with My Hand Cut Off
Good God, but when it rains in the world of my finances, it pours. It's an uncanny cycle: I work so hard for so long to gain some vague sense of financial stability, with some concept of a long-term plan to pay off my debts once and for all, when all of a sudden, I am hit from all sides with a string of sudden expenses that make me feel not unlike Luke Skywalker when Darth Vader is flinging all those toasters and iron rods into him in their first confrontation.
Kuña-i is back at her mysterious malady best. She'd inexplicably lost 10 or so pounds in the last couple of months-and we're about $500 into a series of tests and scans that are on the way to revealing something that may end up being a tumor (hard to say where expenses will go from this point). Now, just yesterday, I found out that the motherboard from my computer fried itself (a description from the Geek Squad folks that sounded more like something from "Back to the Future" than a real-life issue-something about capacitors leaking). So, had to invest in a new $500 CPU yesterday. There's been some other, sub-$100, things in the past week that have piled on and made it all worse.
Of course, my computer's been out of commission for about a week, so I've been unable to check Quicken-all these extra expenses have been getting shoveled onto a credit card, so as not to incur an overdraft charge from my bank. Making a lump payment from my bank account to cover a series of credit card expenses "when things get stabilized" is always a lot more difficult in practice than in theory, and I fear that my hopes of being all paid off once and for all my next year's tax return are in some jeopardy.
Oh well, I was planning on a bit of "spare no expense" in the upcoming non-stop excitement get together, and I don't plan to alter that approach. In the end, it is just money-easy come easy go. But God DAMN it, I'm in the midst of some fuckin' "easy go."
Kuña-i is back at her mysterious malady best. She'd inexplicably lost 10 or so pounds in the last couple of months-and we're about $500 into a series of tests and scans that are on the way to revealing something that may end up being a tumor (hard to say where expenses will go from this point). Now, just yesterday, I found out that the motherboard from my computer fried itself (a description from the Geek Squad folks that sounded more like something from "Back to the Future" than a real-life issue-something about capacitors leaking). So, had to invest in a new $500 CPU yesterday. There's been some other, sub-$100, things in the past week that have piled on and made it all worse.
Of course, my computer's been out of commission for about a week, so I've been unable to check Quicken-all these extra expenses have been getting shoveled onto a credit card, so as not to incur an overdraft charge from my bank. Making a lump payment from my bank account to cover a series of credit card expenses "when things get stabilized" is always a lot more difficult in practice than in theory, and I fear that my hopes of being all paid off once and for all my next year's tax return are in some jeopardy.
Oh well, I was planning on a bit of "spare no expense" in the upcoming non-stop excitement get together, and I don't plan to alter that approach. In the end, it is just money-easy come easy go. But God DAMN it, I'm in the midst of some fuckin' "easy go."
Monday, July 18, 2005
The Fever Breaks
Good God, it's been hot. We just finished a string of nine 90 degree+ days in a row, culminating in a 97 degree scorcher yesterday. It's rough for those of us without central air, and a below-average ability to find comfort in temperature extremes.
I had ambitious plans of getting some recording done, as well as some deep cleaning (or, failing that, simply some deep straightening & organizing) prior to the Mixdorf/Levendusky visit. Unfortunately, when the temperature raises to a certain level, all you (or me, as the case may be) are really are motivated to do is just sit around and sweat. I really think that is probably the primary reason behind the slower pace of traditional southern towns, as well as a good probable explaination of how the "fiesta" came to be.
I come from a long line of prodigous sweaters. Sharon can not/will not ever truly understand, as we begin our annual "should the window unit air conditioner be on and, if so, how high should it be set" battles. She asks how I can be so cold in the winter (turn the heat up!) and so hot in the summer. I simply tell her that her body temperature is regulated by her womb, but she doesn't seem to accept that explanation.
We did manage to get out of the house a lot this weekend, though in each case into scorching hot outdoor activities. Among those activities, we made it out to the Minneapolis Log Boom event at the Mississippi River near our house on both days. It was the World Championships for Logrolling and potentially a really cool set of events, but it was spread out along a long stretch of unshaded riverfront land, with nary a cloud in the sky. Nasty, NASTY hot.
Sunday morning I also ran in the "Otter Trotter," a 5-kilometer race along that same stetch of unshaded land. It was at 8:30 am, but it must have already been in the mid-80s by that time. The hottest race I'd ever run, I'd guess. My time was NOT that hot. Unless I do a drastic change in training (and, perhaps diet), my best 5k times may be way behind me. Although I run distances twice what I ever would have dreamed doing back in college, my times in a short race like this are about a minute-a-mile slower. Just a totally different type of training-combined with the fact that I'm carrying about 15-17 extra pounds. Both make a big difference. 1996 Dan would have finished about third or fourth in the event out of 106 runners. 2005 Dan finished 27th.
I had ambitious plans of getting some recording done, as well as some deep cleaning (or, failing that, simply some deep straightening & organizing) prior to the Mixdorf/Levendusky visit. Unfortunately, when the temperature raises to a certain level, all you (or me, as the case may be) are really are motivated to do is just sit around and sweat. I really think that is probably the primary reason behind the slower pace of traditional southern towns, as well as a good probable explaination of how the "fiesta" came to be.
I come from a long line of prodigous sweaters. Sharon can not/will not ever truly understand, as we begin our annual "should the window unit air conditioner be on and, if so, how high should it be set" battles. She asks how I can be so cold in the winter (turn the heat up!) and so hot in the summer. I simply tell her that her body temperature is regulated by her womb, but she doesn't seem to accept that explanation.
We did manage to get out of the house a lot this weekend, though in each case into scorching hot outdoor activities. Among those activities, we made it out to the Minneapolis Log Boom event at the Mississippi River near our house on both days. It was the World Championships for Logrolling and potentially a really cool set of events, but it was spread out along a long stretch of unshaded riverfront land, with nary a cloud in the sky. Nasty, NASTY hot.
Sunday morning I also ran in the "Otter Trotter," a 5-kilometer race along that same stetch of unshaded land. It was at 8:30 am, but it must have already been in the mid-80s by that time. The hottest race I'd ever run, I'd guess. My time was NOT that hot. Unless I do a drastic change in training (and, perhaps diet), my best 5k times may be way behind me. Although I run distances twice what I ever would have dreamed doing back in college, my times in a short race like this are about a minute-a-mile slower. Just a totally different type of training-combined with the fact that I'm carrying about 15-17 extra pounds. Both make a big difference. 1996 Dan would have finished about third or fourth in the event out of 106 runners. 2005 Dan finished 27th.
Friday, July 15, 2005
PrairyErth: The Recommendation
So, I'd been intending to finish the book I'm reading, PrairyErth, before officially recommending it to my closest friends, but I can wait no longer. Truth is, I'm still a little under half-through; it is a slooow read-one I'm tackling almost exlusively on my bus-ride in & back (an event in which I have probably been averaging less than three times a week for the past month). But if slow, to say it is engaging and delicious is to undersell it. I say this now: this is clearly the best work of non-fiction I have ever read, and it's not even close.
I've never read a book quite like it-it is some sort of combination of historical study, geographical study, ethnography, and philosophical exploration. William Least-Heat Moon, the author essentially spends three years exploring every inch of Chase County, Kansas-the county to the south of Council Grove's Morris County. Though many images and characters in the book evoke certain personal feelings, I swear-my personal connection to that part of the country does not play into my opinion of the quality of this book. I dearly wish there were more books of this sort, exploring other counties in the country. But in Chase County (total population probably under 3,000), a place that many people would assume is relative void of anything of interest, Least-Heat Moon explores all these different aspects of place and makes fantastic, mind-blowing connections, telling very human and compelling stories, with a writing that is of as fine a quality as I have ever seen.
I wish for there to be more WLHM's in the world, and I guarantee one of the most enlightening, philisophically and intellectually stimulating reads in which you will ever embark. PLEASE READ THIS BOOK. I don't want to ever finish this book, and probably won't until mid-September, but I beg and plead for you to begin it. (with your psycho reading style, Mixdorf, you might just finish it in consecutive weekends).
Trying to give much more detail about the book would fall short: please read the editorial reviews from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/039592569X/ref=dp_nav_1/002-8421614-8365666?%5Fencoding=UTF8&n=507846&s=books
I've never read a book quite like it-it is some sort of combination of historical study, geographical study, ethnography, and philosophical exploration. William Least-Heat Moon, the author essentially spends three years exploring every inch of Chase County, Kansas-the county to the south of Council Grove's Morris County. Though many images and characters in the book evoke certain personal feelings, I swear-my personal connection to that part of the country does not play into my opinion of the quality of this book. I dearly wish there were more books of this sort, exploring other counties in the country. But in Chase County (total population probably under 3,000), a place that many people would assume is relative void of anything of interest, Least-Heat Moon explores all these different aspects of place and makes fantastic, mind-blowing connections, telling very human and compelling stories, with a writing that is of as fine a quality as I have ever seen.
I wish for there to be more WLHM's in the world, and I guarantee one of the most enlightening, philisophically and intellectually stimulating reads in which you will ever embark. PLEASE READ THIS BOOK. I don't want to ever finish this book, and probably won't until mid-September, but I beg and plead for you to begin it. (with your psycho reading style, Mixdorf, you might just finish it in consecutive weekends).
Trying to give much more detail about the book would fall short: please read the editorial reviews from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/039592569X/ref=dp_nav_1/002-8421614-8365666?%5Fencoding=UTF8&n=507846&s=books
Thursday, July 14, 2005
Afternoon of N.S.E
Gibbsy Knickerbock is in town for a couple of days and will swing by to pick me up from work at 1:00.
We plan an afternoon of basketball or some other sweaty endeavor (it's been in the 90s and humid for about a week), and then the tossing back of a few & some kind of supper.
Good times are almost ensured.
We plan an afternoon of basketball or some other sweaty endeavor (it's been in the 90s and humid for about a week), and then the tossing back of a few & some kind of supper.
Good times are almost ensured.
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
News
Actually, about the news. Just some ruminations a few days following a trip down to Iowa this last weekend. I am always brought up to & beyond speed with respect to the current state of broadcasting after spending a day or two at my parents. The TV, which is perpetually on, is usually tuned to cable news (a type of network which came about more or less, mercifully, after my upbringing in a "cable house") during the majority of the daytime hours, and those vapid, sugar-coated suburbs to the cities of programming: the morning shows (e.g. Good Morning America, the Today Show). Haven't sat and actually watched more than a minute of them for years, but I trust that if there is still a particle of cheese to be extracted from any headline happening worldwide, Katie Couric is still there to interview someone willing to dole it out, the morning after.
Again, the whole phenomenon of the cable news network has pretty much grown to the point it has generally outside the scope of my day to day experience. I am only aware of it through its influence on other areas of our society, including talking points for political discussion. And the growth of the format has seemed to parallel a couple of disturbing trends in journalism. The less disturbing of the two is sensationalism. It is only less disturbing in that the root of the problem is so obvious-quest for ratings and appeal to the least common denominator. It has, nevertheless, convinced me that the amount of cable news (or really, any news) an individual watches is in direct proportion to the amount of skew that person in judging the relative importance of issues in the world. To "Joe Woodbury," where does "shark attacks" fall within the list of the top 10 issues facing society today?
The other, far more insidious, trend is that of either lazy journalism or (worse) advocacy journalism presented as a traditional news broadcast. Indeed, we seem to be moving in a direction where many "journalists" themselves knowingly or otherwise perpetuate a stream of bias and propaganda into their broadcasts. Disappearing fast, it sadly seems, is the purity and sanctity of The 4th Estate.
Again, the whole phenomenon of the cable news network has pretty much grown to the point it has generally outside the scope of my day to day experience. I am only aware of it through its influence on other areas of our society, including talking points for political discussion. And the growth of the format has seemed to parallel a couple of disturbing trends in journalism. The less disturbing of the two is sensationalism. It is only less disturbing in that the root of the problem is so obvious-quest for ratings and appeal to the least common denominator. It has, nevertheless, convinced me that the amount of cable news (or really, any news) an individual watches is in direct proportion to the amount of skew that person in judging the relative importance of issues in the world. To "Joe Woodbury," where does "shark attacks" fall within the list of the top 10 issues facing society today?
The other, far more insidious, trend is that of either lazy journalism or (worse) advocacy journalism presented as a traditional news broadcast. Indeed, we seem to be moving in a direction where many "journalists" themselves knowingly or otherwise perpetuate a stream of bias and propaganda into their broadcasts. Disappearing fast, it sadly seems, is the purity and sanctity of The 4th Estate.
Thursday, July 07, 2005
RoJ Comments Part Deux
1. Luke: What do you remember of your mother?
Leia: Not much, she died when I was very young (YEAH, LIKE 30 SECONDS AFTER
I WAS BORN)
2. So, they got rid of the "jub jub" song from the Ewoks, which was never particularly popular. But did they have to replace it with a something that sounds like some long-haired dude using an acoustic guitar & a series of synthesizer pedals to have a New Age performance in a mall?
3. The Ewoks: not as annoying as I remember.
4. Darth Vader: Remove my mask.
Luke: But you'll die. (WHAT? HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT?)
5. Luke built himself a lightsaber? What the fuck? Perhaps "Jedi training" includes a number of technical courses.
6. Strange, the Ewoks were going to EAT the landing party until they were awed byThreepio floating. In the midst of all the revelry at the end, let's not forget that the rebels are celebrating with a bunch of beastly little cannibalistic savages.
7. Actual conversation last night:
Sharon: It would be weird to grow up never really knowing who your father is or that you had
a sister.
Dan: Particuarly so, if your father was Darth Vader.
8. I love the co-pilot alongside Lando-the alien with the groovy orange 70's shirt and vest and the funky laugh.
9. Funny...FUNNY during the Vader-Luke confrontation. The whole scene alternates multiple times between Luke saying, "I won't fight you, father," then fighting him for about 30 seconds. Again and again, "I won't fight you father," then "hack, hack hack, slice." I have a theory that he actually defeats Vader because he blows his mind. His brain, which is perhaps more machine than man at this point, starts just steaming-I'm surprised we don't see white smoke coming out of the side of his helmet as he continues to get these confusing and conflicting messages from his son.
10. How can Vader, who surely has heard once or twice that "there are always two Sith, never more never less" not put two and two together and conceive of the idea that the Emperor is wanting to replace him with Luke? Especially when the confrontation is so similar to the Anakin-Dooku battle he himself was involved in years prior.
11. Likewise-moments ago, the Emperor asked Luke to put an end to the defeated Vader. Considering the Sith are evil and known to usurp one another from time to time, is it really wise for him to take his eyes off Vader as he attacks Vader's son?
12. It would be funny if, after the death of the Emperor, Vader & Luke became the two Sith.
13. I see they replaced the ghost image of the older, bald guy who was supposed to be Anakin with Hayden Christensen in the final scene. I wonder if the bald guy got pissed. Anyway, when did they do that? These movies were re-released long before Revenge of the Sith came out-that was quite a sneak preview into Anakin in his prime.
14. And finally, with respect to the ghost images; why does Anakin get to appear as his 27-year old self, but Obi-Wan has to come back at Alec Guinness' age? Hardly seems fair. Would have been interesting, too, to see Yoda in his prime. Perhaps he once was, like, 5'8" but just shrunk and shrunk over his last 800 years or so.
Leia: Not much, she died when I was very young (YEAH, LIKE 30 SECONDS AFTER
I WAS BORN)
2. So, they got rid of the "jub jub" song from the Ewoks, which was never particularly popular. But did they have to replace it with a something that sounds like some long-haired dude using an acoustic guitar & a series of synthesizer pedals to have a New Age performance in a mall?
3. The Ewoks: not as annoying as I remember.
4. Darth Vader: Remove my mask.
Luke: But you'll die. (WHAT? HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT?)
5. Luke built himself a lightsaber? What the fuck? Perhaps "Jedi training" includes a number of technical courses.
6. Strange, the Ewoks were going to EAT the landing party until they were awed byThreepio floating. In the midst of all the revelry at the end, let's not forget that the rebels are celebrating with a bunch of beastly little cannibalistic savages.
7. Actual conversation last night:
Sharon: It would be weird to grow up never really knowing who your father is or that you had
a sister.
Dan: Particuarly so, if your father was Darth Vader.
8. I love the co-pilot alongside Lando-the alien with the groovy orange 70's shirt and vest and the funky laugh.
9. Funny...FUNNY during the Vader-Luke confrontation. The whole scene alternates multiple times between Luke saying, "I won't fight you, father," then fighting him for about 30 seconds. Again and again, "I won't fight you father," then "hack, hack hack, slice." I have a theory that he actually defeats Vader because he blows his mind. His brain, which is perhaps more machine than man at this point, starts just steaming-I'm surprised we don't see white smoke coming out of the side of his helmet as he continues to get these confusing and conflicting messages from his son.
10. How can Vader, who surely has heard once or twice that "there are always two Sith, never more never less" not put two and two together and conceive of the idea that the Emperor is wanting to replace him with Luke? Especially when the confrontation is so similar to the Anakin-Dooku battle he himself was involved in years prior.
11. Likewise-moments ago, the Emperor asked Luke to put an end to the defeated Vader. Considering the Sith are evil and known to usurp one another from time to time, is it really wise for him to take his eyes off Vader as he attacks Vader's son?
12. It would be funny if, after the death of the Emperor, Vader & Luke became the two Sith.
13. I see they replaced the ghost image of the older, bald guy who was supposed to be Anakin with Hayden Christensen in the final scene. I wonder if the bald guy got pissed. Anyway, when did they do that? These movies were re-released long before Revenge of the Sith came out-that was quite a sneak preview into Anakin in his prime.
14. And finally, with respect to the ghost images; why does Anakin get to appear as his 27-year old self, but Obi-Wan has to come back at Alec Guinness' age? Hardly seems fair. Would have been interesting, too, to see Yoda in his prime. Perhaps he once was, like, 5'8" but just shrunk and shrunk over his last 800 years or so.
Wednesday, July 06, 2005
RoJ
So, in our viewing of the full 6 episodes in chronological order, we are currently up to Return of the Jedi-and at a point about halfway through. So far, I would have to say that it is the worst of all six in terms of everything from plot & development to amount of cheese. That said, I realize that we have yet to see what I consider to be a wonderful piece of cinematic work, which is the rag-tag fugitive fleet's attack on the 2nd Death Star (the whole-"it's a trap" sequence).
A few ruminations from what we saw last night:
1. Sharon noticed a few places where it seemed like there was CG animation on some of the added scenes for the latest release. I thought that all the added scenes were originally made and just offered now as sort of a "director's cut." One that comes to mind now is that extended (and very lame) musical performance in Jabba's palace by that pot-bellied thing with the lips on the end of its snout. It just screamed "Pixar."
2. What purpose did it possibly serve for Leia to bring Chewbacca in as a fake prisoner? If the whole point was about gaining admittance to the facility, why doesn't she just do what Lando did. Somehow, inexplicably, he got in and is just lurking around in the background for the first few scenes. Following that exchange, she then had two rescues to perform, rather than one. That requires a lot of explanation, unless we are to assume it was the most boneheaded plan in the history of the Republic.
3. Not paving any new ground here, but what an incredibly underwhelming end to Boba Fett. No veneange for that supposedly monumental scene where, as a child, he sees his father killed by a Jedi. No successful use of all his gadgets. Just "whump" and down in the pit (unless we are to believe that he activated his rocket from the pit and escaped when we weren't looking).
4. Many things that seem to require some sort of explanation in Luke's visit to the palace. First, why did he not devise a plan with Leia ahead of time? Second, why did he send R2-D2 into the palace with his lightsaber and enter it himself, later, unarmed? Everything we see from the Jedis in episodes I-III give you every reason to believe he could have gone in there with his lightsaber, defeated everyone within the place with one hand tied behind his back, and walked out with Han. This should be no problem at all for the Son of the Chosen One!
5. When C-3PO says, "Master, you're standing on..." wouldn't a person of reasonable intelligence assume the intent of the phrase was to warn him. Perhaps even to warn him that he was standing on something away from which he should move? Not so easy a piece logic, it appears, for the Son of the Chosen One.
6. Why not use a mind-trick on the Rancor?
7. For that matter, why not use a mind trick (or Jedi reflexes and some hand-to-hand combat-or some telekinisis, for God's sake!) on any one of the guards coming to get him out of the Rancor pit. Or on any of the guards that are with him out on the execution skiff.
8. Not to be undone in the stupidity department, they leave Luke's arms free during the attempted execution, so that he can conveniently do his diving-board trick. They leave his arms free! A Jedi knight! Sheesh!
9. Again, probably not paving any new ground here, but Good Lord, Luke doesn't look nearly as coordinated, limber, or artistic as all the other Jedis we see in his use of the elegant light saber. He's just hacking around like a blindfolded 5-year old going after a Star Wars pinata. They're not clean kills at all. Everyone he slices is still alive enough to scream as they fall off the skiff.
10. What the hell happened to the whole Jedi ethic thing? His friends are safely aboard the skiff. Jabba is dead. Escape is theirs, but as a final "fuck you," he finds it necessary to instruct Leia to fire a cannon onto Jabba's yaht, causing it to explode and destroy any who might have happened to survive the earlier hoopla.
A few ruminations from what we saw last night:
1. Sharon noticed a few places where it seemed like there was CG animation on some of the added scenes for the latest release. I thought that all the added scenes were originally made and just offered now as sort of a "director's cut." One that comes to mind now is that extended (and very lame) musical performance in Jabba's palace by that pot-bellied thing with the lips on the end of its snout. It just screamed "Pixar."
2. What purpose did it possibly serve for Leia to bring Chewbacca in as a fake prisoner? If the whole point was about gaining admittance to the facility, why doesn't she just do what Lando did. Somehow, inexplicably, he got in and is just lurking around in the background for the first few scenes. Following that exchange, she then had two rescues to perform, rather than one. That requires a lot of explanation, unless we are to assume it was the most boneheaded plan in the history of the Republic.
3. Not paving any new ground here, but what an incredibly underwhelming end to Boba Fett. No veneange for that supposedly monumental scene where, as a child, he sees his father killed by a Jedi. No successful use of all his gadgets. Just "whump" and down in the pit (unless we are to believe that he activated his rocket from the pit and escaped when we weren't looking).
4. Many things that seem to require some sort of explanation in Luke's visit to the palace. First, why did he not devise a plan with Leia ahead of time? Second, why did he send R2-D2 into the palace with his lightsaber and enter it himself, later, unarmed? Everything we see from the Jedis in episodes I-III give you every reason to believe he could have gone in there with his lightsaber, defeated everyone within the place with one hand tied behind his back, and walked out with Han. This should be no problem at all for the Son of the Chosen One!
5. When C-3PO says, "Master, you're standing on..." wouldn't a person of reasonable intelligence assume the intent of the phrase was to warn him. Perhaps even to warn him that he was standing on something away from which he should move? Not so easy a piece logic, it appears, for the Son of the Chosen One.
6. Why not use a mind-trick on the Rancor?
7. For that matter, why not use a mind trick (or Jedi reflexes and some hand-to-hand combat-or some telekinisis, for God's sake!) on any one of the guards coming to get him out of the Rancor pit. Or on any of the guards that are with him out on the execution skiff.
8. Not to be undone in the stupidity department, they leave Luke's arms free during the attempted execution, so that he can conveniently do his diving-board trick. They leave his arms free! A Jedi knight! Sheesh!
9. Again, probably not paving any new ground here, but Good Lord, Luke doesn't look nearly as coordinated, limber, or artistic as all the other Jedis we see in his use of the elegant light saber. He's just hacking around like a blindfolded 5-year old going after a Star Wars pinata. They're not clean kills at all. Everyone he slices is still alive enough to scream as they fall off the skiff.
10. What the hell happened to the whole Jedi ethic thing? His friends are safely aboard the skiff. Jabba is dead. Escape is theirs, but as a final "fuck you," he finds it necessary to instruct Leia to fire a cannon onto Jabba's yaht, causing it to explode and destroy any who might have happened to survive the earlier hoopla.
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
Ah, The Cramps, My Old Friend. We Meet Again.
Well, I planned to run like a combination of 50% Roger Bannister and 50% Louis Pasteur, but I finished it like 100% Juggernaut.
I elected not to make a bannana holster (not like it sounds or otherwise), and moments before beginning the race I ditched both my water belt and shirt. I decided to run like I used to in the good old days, stripped down & free. I think it was the right choice and, regardless of how this post may look a little farther down, I'm really happy with how I ran. I sort of had some minor goals of beating my 2003 time, beating three hours, and finishing running strong; none of which I achieved, but I think my underlying hope was just that my "in-shapeness" was in the same universe as it was in my previous 25Ks and that I could finish the race and not embarass myself. Both of those goals were achieved, and I feel that my insane <4 week training theory was more or less validated.
Of all my theories, the ones I did employ were walking up the big hills and eating a section of bannana at each of the aid stations-both of which were aimed primarily as a means by which to stave off my old friend, The Cramps. It's something I'd really like to talk to a doctor about someday-is it possible I'm just a really easy cramper? I have had runs in which I feel like I have an awful lot of leg strength left (namely, the marathon, and my three 25Ks), but I end up cramping. It is immensely frustrating. Perhaps in this case I could attribute it to not having a long enough conditioning program-and maybe I am a bit chronically dehydrated, but I'd like to find out for sure. Cause it took my theory from being New England Journal of Medicine-worthy to merely being "maybe on to something." I was actually quite pleased at how relatively comfortable the run was through the first couple of hours. The miles just rolled away-and (perhaps as a result of beginning the race with the "walk-the-insane-hills theory") I have to say it was much, much easier than the first time I ran the race, two years ago. It was somewhere between miles 11 and 12, having just summited a particularly long & steep climb, when I felt the first little *ping* in my calf. Oof-that wasn't going to begin now, was it? I adjusted my stride a little, to have my feet come more straight down, and to not push off so hard at the top of little minor hills, and actually managed to not feel anything of that sort again until well over mile 13. It was at that point when I was struck again-big cramps this time, one in each calf on two successive steps (quite a co-incidence, in retrospect)-*PING!, PING* Argh! It actually made me stumble and almost fall. From that point on, I was back in a familiar savage ballet, constantly adjusting my stride and speed much like Data adjusting resonant shield frequency in order to ward off a series of random frequency phaser blasts. I found that I had no problem running downhill so, with the amazing amount of energy I actually still had, I would just fly down the hills, trying to make up for lost time I was currently losing during the uphill walks and would be eventually losing on straightaway walks. The cramps got more frequent and more serious-often striking me when I had a little stumble and was forced to land in a way I had not intended (a frequent occurrence, as you're running through thigh-high grass during a pretty big stretch near the end, plus with all the roots & rocks & such). I (predictably) eventually lost the ability to run along even flat surfaces without seizing up, and when I eventually crossed the finish line, I fear I was the very pitiful sight I had hoped I would not be.
Again, though, it was all about the cramps. I've had many, many much shorter runs where I just wanted to collapse at the end. Here, I picked up my medal, walked on over to my car, and drove on home. I was even able to mow the lawn later in the day.
My time? 3:01 and something. I did have a great time during most of the run, and I do love trail running, and I'll do it again.
I elected not to make a bannana holster (not like it sounds or otherwise), and moments before beginning the race I ditched both my water belt and shirt. I decided to run like I used to in the good old days, stripped down & free. I think it was the right choice and, regardless of how this post may look a little farther down, I'm really happy with how I ran. I sort of had some minor goals of beating my 2003 time, beating three hours, and finishing running strong; none of which I achieved, but I think my underlying hope was just that my "in-shapeness" was in the same universe as it was in my previous 25Ks and that I could finish the race and not embarass myself. Both of those goals were achieved, and I feel that my insane <4 week training theory was more or less validated.
Of all my theories, the ones I did employ were walking up the big hills and eating a section of bannana at each of the aid stations-both of which were aimed primarily as a means by which to stave off my old friend, The Cramps. It's something I'd really like to talk to a doctor about someday-is it possible I'm just a really easy cramper? I have had runs in which I feel like I have an awful lot of leg strength left (namely, the marathon, and my three 25Ks), but I end up cramping. It is immensely frustrating. Perhaps in this case I could attribute it to not having a long enough conditioning program-and maybe I am a bit chronically dehydrated, but I'd like to find out for sure. Cause it took my theory from being New England Journal of Medicine-worthy to merely being "maybe on to something." I was actually quite pleased at how relatively comfortable the run was through the first couple of hours. The miles just rolled away-and (perhaps as a result of beginning the race with the "walk-the-insane-hills theory") I have to say it was much, much easier than the first time I ran the race, two years ago. It was somewhere between miles 11 and 12, having just summited a particularly long & steep climb, when I felt the first little *ping* in my calf. Oof-that wasn't going to begin now, was it? I adjusted my stride a little, to have my feet come more straight down, and to not push off so hard at the top of little minor hills, and actually managed to not feel anything of that sort again until well over mile 13. It was at that point when I was struck again-big cramps this time, one in each calf on two successive steps (quite a co-incidence, in retrospect)-*PING!, PING* Argh! It actually made me stumble and almost fall. From that point on, I was back in a familiar savage ballet, constantly adjusting my stride and speed much like Data adjusting resonant shield frequency in order to ward off a series of random frequency phaser blasts. I found that I had no problem running downhill so, with the amazing amount of energy I actually still had, I would just fly down the hills, trying to make up for lost time I was currently losing during the uphill walks and would be eventually losing on straightaway walks. The cramps got more frequent and more serious-often striking me when I had a little stumble and was forced to land in a way I had not intended (a frequent occurrence, as you're running through thigh-high grass during a pretty big stretch near the end, plus with all the roots & rocks & such). I (predictably) eventually lost the ability to run along even flat surfaces without seizing up, and when I eventually crossed the finish line, I fear I was the very pitiful sight I had hoped I would not be.
Again, though, it was all about the cramps. I've had many, many much shorter runs where I just wanted to collapse at the end. Here, I picked up my medal, walked on over to my car, and drove on home. I was even able to mow the lawn later in the day.
My time? 3:01 and something. I did have a great time during most of the run, and I do love trail running, and I'll do it again.
Friday, July 01, 2005
LIke a Cross Between Louis Pasteur and Roger Bannister
So will I approach my race tomorrow with equal parts science and training.
I'll put the condensed, intense training schedule to the test, of course-but I'm also going to be really working hard to incorporate some planning & science into my performance:
- The concept of "negative splits" (in a nutshell, starting out more slowly than my body tells me I should with the idea I will more than make up for it with more energy later on).
- Actual prescribed (not specifically for me, but for millions in an issue of "Runner's World") pre-race-day and race-day menus.
- Walking the biggest, steepest climbs to ward off cramps.
- Taking smaller steps when climbing hills (which I've always done), but also in going down hills, which I've recently read zaps your energy more than you realize. Sounds kind of obvious, but when you're out there running, you really want to fly down those hills.
- Better pre-race hydrating.
- Actually creating a "bannana holster" out of duct tape and affixing it to my water bottle belt. I will keep a fresh bannana there and, God willing, it will still be in condition to eat at around mile 10.
In the end-it will be a lot about guts and the work I've put into up to this point, but I'm interested to see if any of these other "edges" translate to any discernable benefit out on the trail. I'm excited, a little nervous, and also hoping that following the race, I'm in condition to care for my daughter for the remainder of the weekend (Sharon's working all three days).
I'll put the condensed, intense training schedule to the test, of course-but I'm also going to be really working hard to incorporate some planning & science into my performance:
- The concept of "negative splits" (in a nutshell, starting out more slowly than my body tells me I should with the idea I will more than make up for it with more energy later on).
- Actual prescribed (not specifically for me, but for millions in an issue of "Runner's World") pre-race-day and race-day menus.
- Walking the biggest, steepest climbs to ward off cramps.
- Taking smaller steps when climbing hills (which I've always done), but also in going down hills, which I've recently read zaps your energy more than you realize. Sounds kind of obvious, but when you're out there running, you really want to fly down those hills.
- Better pre-race hydrating.
- Actually creating a "bannana holster" out of duct tape and affixing it to my water bottle belt. I will keep a fresh bannana there and, God willing, it will still be in condition to eat at around mile 10.
In the end-it will be a lot about guts and the work I've put into up to this point, but I'm interested to see if any of these other "edges" translate to any discernable benefit out on the trail. I'm excited, a little nervous, and also hoping that following the race, I'm in condition to care for my daughter for the remainder of the weekend (Sharon's working all three days).
Thursday, June 30, 2005
Mark My Words...
But you know that story that's come out about this new Iranian President potentially being a former captor during the Iran hostage crisis?
There's something real fishy about the emergence of it.
Pretty funny timing, pretty darn coincidental, and a pretty good darn way to get the US populace, with flagging support for anti-Arab military action, all whipped up again.
There is more to this story than meets the eye.
There's something real fishy about the emergence of it.
Pretty funny timing, pretty darn coincidental, and a pretty good darn way to get the US populace, with flagging support for anti-Arab military action, all whipped up again.
There is more to this story than meets the eye.
Tuesday, June 28, 2005
Back on the Wagon
Upon further consideration of the rapid improvement of my per-mile time (decreasing by 30 seconds per mile on a seven-mile run over each of the first three weeks of the training), coupled with consideration of how much hard work I've put in during this intense (albeit brief) training stint, I have decided to give it a shot. The race, that is.
It was last Thursday, right before my most recent sevent-miler, when I discovered that Sharon & Lucy would not be able to attend the race. I think that took a lot of wind out of my sails-I really like it when they can be there. I understand the whole concept of running for yourself, but that's what training is all about. Besides, I had my fill of that angle when I did the marathon while Sharon was in South America. These days, it's really nice to have support during the run.
Nevertheless, I'll lace 'em up next Saturday. I got a taste of things to come this last weekend, as I tried to put myself through as grueling a preparation day as possible, while not destroying myself a week before the actual event. On a humid day with temperatures between 90 and 95 I took to the trails at French Regional Park, and ran for just over two hours. Running on any trails as preparation for trail running is better than nothing; you are constantly going up and down hills (often without even being aware of it), you are conditioning your arches, and you're working thigh muscles by high-stepping it over grasses. It is no Afton, but French does have some hills-in particular one actually named "Challenge Hill." It is a monster, and by the time my run was done I had taken it four times; the last time very slowly with my body soaked in sweat, my tongue lolling out, and my arms hanging nearly useless at my side like those of a T-Rex.
The totally running time was nearly an hour less than it will be Saturday, but I ran the entire course (where on Saturday I will walk the biggest hills), and the temps were insane (where on Saturday I will be running at 7:00 am). Knock on wood-perhaps the experiment will prove to be a success, after all...
It was last Thursday, right before my most recent sevent-miler, when I discovered that Sharon & Lucy would not be able to attend the race. I think that took a lot of wind out of my sails-I really like it when they can be there. I understand the whole concept of running for yourself, but that's what training is all about. Besides, I had my fill of that angle when I did the marathon while Sharon was in South America. These days, it's really nice to have support during the run.
Nevertheless, I'll lace 'em up next Saturday. I got a taste of things to come this last weekend, as I tried to put myself through as grueling a preparation day as possible, while not destroying myself a week before the actual event. On a humid day with temperatures between 90 and 95 I took to the trails at French Regional Park, and ran for just over two hours. Running on any trails as preparation for trail running is better than nothing; you are constantly going up and down hills (often without even being aware of it), you are conditioning your arches, and you're working thigh muscles by high-stepping it over grasses. It is no Afton, but French does have some hills-in particular one actually named "Challenge Hill." It is a monster, and by the time my run was done I had taken it four times; the last time very slowly with my body soaked in sweat, my tongue lolling out, and my arms hanging nearly useless at my side like those of a T-Rex.
The totally running time was nearly an hour less than it will be Saturday, but I ran the entire course (where on Saturday I will walk the biggest hills), and the temps were insane (where on Saturday I will be running at 7:00 am). Knock on wood-perhaps the experiment will prove to be a success, after all...
Friday, June 24, 2005
Experiment Complete and Insane Heat
Well-my experiment was to see if I could squeeze 12 weeks of training into slightly less than four weeks and the results are in: I can't. My 7-mile run times went from 1:11 to 1:08 to 1:04 in consecutive weeks, which is nothing to sneeze at, but which is also slightly worse than the per-mile time I ran in my last (13.1 mile) half marathon. That was two years ago, a week before my last Afton Trail Run, during which I had major cramp problems. It just doesn't seem like I'm on track to being able to do this race the way it needs to be done. Not totally closing the door yet-if I knocked another 3-4 minutes off that 7-mile pace in the next week...who knows...
Yesterday I took the day off and worked hard pretty much the whole day. It was 95 degrees, and I took on two of the hottest possible jobs I possibly could have. The first was lining the insulated interior walls of my attic with plastic sheeting. Later, I started a fire and burned all the extra woody plants, sticks, and old removed brush remnants that can't be composted. It burned huge & hot. It was so hot, in fact, that this morning when I removed the lid, there were still orange embers (about 16 hours after the snuffer had gone on).
Normally, we use sticks & stuff that fall from our trees as kindling in our patio fireplace, but we really had an excess of material here. Our two options were either to bundle it and have it out for trash day or to burn it. Here's a good question for the assembled: which is the more environmentally responsible alternative, burning sticks or having them go to a landfill?
Yesterday I took the day off and worked hard pretty much the whole day. It was 95 degrees, and I took on two of the hottest possible jobs I possibly could have. The first was lining the insulated interior walls of my attic with plastic sheeting. Later, I started a fire and burned all the extra woody plants, sticks, and old removed brush remnants that can't be composted. It burned huge & hot. It was so hot, in fact, that this morning when I removed the lid, there were still orange embers (about 16 hours after the snuffer had gone on).
Normally, we use sticks & stuff that fall from our trees as kindling in our patio fireplace, but we really had an excess of material here. Our two options were either to bundle it and have it out for trash day or to burn it. Here's a good question for the assembled: which is the more environmentally responsible alternative, burning sticks or having them go to a landfill?
Wednesday, June 22, 2005
A Switcheroo in the Works?
I have been leaning Zephyr and Sharon has been leaning Minneapolis (actually, to be more accurate, she's been leaning only towards not rushing into anything).
With all the energy focused on cracking to code on this issue, one of the primary ways for me to process my observations & experiences these days has been to view them in light of "things I love/things I hate" about my neighborhood & my city. With the exception of the amazing trails and the coffee shop (and, to some extent, the diversity) things to hate about my neighborhood have been piling on like a defensive front line on 39-year old Dan Marino. But things to love about the city, and my city in particular, continue to accrue like pictures of Orlando Bloom in teen magazines. Perhaps the only thing I know for sure is that I'm done, done, done with my neighborhood. From unidentified teens cutting through our yard in the middle of the night and leaving our gates open to roaring/booming/speeding cars, to the neverending chain of loud, annoying ice cream trucks that parade through our neighborhood to prey upon families that neither understand nor care about nutrional basics, I feel I've had it.
But, in continuing my background work surrounding the whole relocation issue, I've started to identify a couple (and believe me, there's only a couple) of neighborhoods in the city that might be somewhere we could be happy, that still have a few properties within our price range. You see, in our search for a place to live among peers, this sad reality has become evident: Our peers all have far more money than us. It's one of those great mysteries of life: How the "liberal elite" got so damned wealthy. They should all be working as teachers, social workers, and coordinators at nonprofit organizations. Instead, they must be Head of Acquisitions for the Walker Museum or on the Board of Directors for the Minnesota Zoo. The one eqaulizer of sorts is that we will have around $90,000 of equity to put into any purchase-but we're still on the outside looking in with respect to those "No War in Iraq" sorts of neighborhoods with coops, coffeeshops, active neighborhood organizations, and surrounded by green space. A lot to ask for-but we're still looking for our next move to be our last. One place I'm sort of looking right now: Bryn Mawr. Just west of Downtown, at the northern end of the chain of lakes (though across 394), nearly surrounded by greenspace with Bryn Mawr Meadows, Basset Creek, the Cedar Lake Trail, and Theodore Wirth Park, as well as a really progressive, sort of artistic demographic makeup. http://www.bmna.org
With all the energy focused on cracking to code on this issue, one of the primary ways for me to process my observations & experiences these days has been to view them in light of "things I love/things I hate" about my neighborhood & my city. With the exception of the amazing trails and the coffee shop (and, to some extent, the diversity) things to hate about my neighborhood have been piling on like a defensive front line on 39-year old Dan Marino. But things to love about the city, and my city in particular, continue to accrue like pictures of Orlando Bloom in teen magazines. Perhaps the only thing I know for sure is that I'm done, done, done with my neighborhood. From unidentified teens cutting through our yard in the middle of the night and leaving our gates open to roaring/booming/speeding cars, to the neverending chain of loud, annoying ice cream trucks that parade through our neighborhood to prey upon families that neither understand nor care about nutrional basics, I feel I've had it.
But, in continuing my background work surrounding the whole relocation issue, I've started to identify a couple (and believe me, there's only a couple) of neighborhoods in the city that might be somewhere we could be happy, that still have a few properties within our price range. You see, in our search for a place to live among peers, this sad reality has become evident: Our peers all have far more money than us. It's one of those great mysteries of life: How the "liberal elite" got so damned wealthy. They should all be working as teachers, social workers, and coordinators at nonprofit organizations. Instead, they must be Head of Acquisitions for the Walker Museum or on the Board of Directors for the Minnesota Zoo. The one eqaulizer of sorts is that we will have around $90,000 of equity to put into any purchase-but we're still on the outside looking in with respect to those "No War in Iraq" sorts of neighborhoods with coops, coffeeshops, active neighborhood organizations, and surrounded by green space. A lot to ask for-but we're still looking for our next move to be our last. One place I'm sort of looking right now: Bryn Mawr. Just west of Downtown, at the northern end of the chain of lakes (though across 394), nearly surrounded by greenspace with Bryn Mawr Meadows, Basset Creek, the Cedar Lake Trail, and Theodore Wirth Park, as well as a really progressive, sort of artistic demographic makeup. http://www.bmna.org
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Pilseners & Such
As every one (with emphasis on the "one") of my readers may be aware, I am a Pilsener guy. I'll drink anything, and enjoy most of it, but at the end of the day, I'll take a good ol' golden that goes down smooth. Much of the low-quality macro-brew variety fit into this category, and I actually find them more enjoyable than one would expect, but I am just starting to try and delve into some more upscale brews of this variety.
An interesting website: www.beeradvocate.com. The creators are two guys from Massachussets who've reviewed an enormous amount of beers. The membership of the forum are generally superserious drinkers, and quite harsh critics of beers from the most common to the most rare. It is rare for any beer to end with a consensus of > four on a five-point scale for ratings (and the site even gives you standard deviations from the norm as part of the rating rollup). I had registered, once upon a time (I thought), and logged a few reviews, but my registry seems to have disappeared. I registered again and have thought that it might be a good way for me to preserve my "research" for some posterity, and for some painless method of being able to look back and reference what I thought about different beers, if I forget down the line.
For Father's Day, Sharon bought me Pilsener Urquell, which touts itself as the "world's first pilsener," invented in Czechoslovakia (sp?). According to some reviews of the beer (which were solid but not outstanding), it is "the best non-Belgian pils," which would seem to direct me towards NW Europe for my future direction of exploration in this realm. For my part, I like the Urquell, though I do not have an experienced-enough pallette to break the beer down into a review like "Lively nose, pretty, floral, lightly spicy dandy, with a dash of honey. Neat hops on the tongue, with a long, welcome stay on the palate. Light bodied, dry, hoppy finish. Satisfying sweet hop taste that ends in a soft and silky dry bitter aftertaste." Not sure if those reviews are something I will be capable of someday, or if they're total bullshit.
Anyway, BeerAdvocate is an interesting site-one to which I would recommend a membership. Perhaps we can compare notes down the line. Favorite beers (both style and specific beer), anyone?
An interesting website: www.beeradvocate.com. The creators are two guys from Massachussets who've reviewed an enormous amount of beers. The membership of the forum are generally superserious drinkers, and quite harsh critics of beers from the most common to the most rare. It is rare for any beer to end with a consensus of > four on a five-point scale for ratings (and the site even gives you standard deviations from the norm as part of the rating rollup). I had registered, once upon a time (I thought), and logged a few reviews, but my registry seems to have disappeared. I registered again and have thought that it might be a good way for me to preserve my "research" for some posterity, and for some painless method of being able to look back and reference what I thought about different beers, if I forget down the line.
For Father's Day, Sharon bought me Pilsener Urquell, which touts itself as the "world's first pilsener," invented in Czechoslovakia (sp?). According to some reviews of the beer (which were solid but not outstanding), it is "the best non-Belgian pils," which would seem to direct me towards NW Europe for my future direction of exploration in this realm. For my part, I like the Urquell, though I do not have an experienced-enough pallette to break the beer down into a review like "Lively nose, pretty, floral, lightly spicy dandy, with a dash of honey. Neat hops on the tongue, with a long, welcome stay on the palate. Light bodied, dry, hoppy finish. Satisfying sweet hop taste that ends in a soft and silky dry bitter aftertaste." Not sure if those reviews are something I will be capable of someday, or if they're total bullshit.
Anyway, BeerAdvocate is an interesting site-one to which I would recommend a membership. Perhaps we can compare notes down the line. Favorite beers (both style and specific beer), anyone?
Monday, June 20, 2005
Action-Packed Weekend, As Always
Saturday was a daddy-daughter day, as Sharon was working "Carp-Fest" up at the Coon Rapids Dam. Lucy & I had a leisurely stop at the coffeeshop, then headed on up to check out the fest. It went well, until she saw momma there and realized that she was only going to get to see her for a few minutes. There was a major flip-out which put an immediate damper on our experience and pretty much facilitated a trip to the parking lot. The blowout was of such intensity and length that Lucy fell asleep in the car within five minutes of leaving the lot. Once we got home, the rest of the day was fun & joyous. There was some watching of the WNBA over a burrito lunch, a hike, a monkey bath (kitchen sink bath), some housecleaning, and a sleepless hour of "down-time" upstairs with much laughing & hugging. Lucy is starting to get a lot more physical (in a good way) in her interactions-climbing on me, bouncing on me, etc., which brings me no end of joy.
Sunday, Father's Day, was a good day, as well. We started with an Old Country Breakfast-although I ate well and much, my days of patronizing that place may be nearing the end. Partly because the converging lines on the graph of my quantity-quality food index may have just crossed one another, but also because (as a vegetarian), I can only eat so much yellow food in one sitting. When I walk out the front door of that place, I feel like I could shit cubes of starch. Also-I have begun to feel just a bit out of place-when I look around the establishment when we're there (once or twice a year), I realize that you could cram about six of me in the ass of any other given patron of the place. I'm reminded of the thing that foreign tourists remark as the most notable thing about Americans after visits to our country, and I guess I've just started to get a little sensitive to issues of overconsumption in any form. For me, the food was good fuel, though, as our plan for the day involved going up to the 5,000+ acre Elm Creek Park Preserve (where Sharon normally works) and having Sharon & Lucy play on the playground and at the beach while I ran myself silly on the trails. It was a hot day-87 degrees, with not a cloud in the sky-and I started out at 12:30 pm-for some running in the hottest part of the day. A sort of necessary masochistic training day for my upcoming race at Afton. No matter what I do, I cannot adequately prepare for that insane day in the time I have before me, but yesterday was about as good as I can do. Running on dirt or wood chips is not all that different than running on asphalt. Running through sporadically mowed grass or other vegetation, especially over the course of many miles, is an entirely different experience. Muscles I call the "high-steppers" get a unique, burning workout, and you realize why it is that after all your training it is still possible to get cramps on race day. I think there was actually more of that type of running yesterday than I will see at Afton but, of course, far fewer and less steep hills. It was a hot, exhausting, and brutally fun workout, nevertheless. I have no idea how far it was, but it was nearly two hours long. I'm thinking (due to the heat and my numerous stops to check my small, sweaty, disintegrating map) I covered not more than 11 miles before treatign myself to a plunge into the swimming pond.
Prior to that run, I had only just recovered from my bike/run day on Thursday, and I seem to be perpetually exhausted. Perhaps that is the price for my condensed, intense training schedule. Due to only having a total of four weeks of training, it's going to be a fine, fine line between the traditional multi-day pre-race "taper" and getting in the maximum amount of workout days. Still not sure how that will work-but it would be nice to actually feel rested and recouperated for the race itself.
Weird, though, that I've been feeling sleep-deprived, also, although my sleeping schedule is no worse than usual, and probably better. I've been so exhausted the last number of nights that I've not had the energy to record, do Quicken, or even take care of simple tasks past 8 pm. I've only had the energy to pop in Fellowship of the Ring and watch in segments before nodding off. I made it to just before Frodo left Hobbiton Friday night, to Amon Sul the next night, and to "Legolas, get them up" last night. Just plain exhausted. Connexion between that & my running? That would be weird...
Sunday, Father's Day, was a good day, as well. We started with an Old Country Breakfast-although I ate well and much, my days of patronizing that place may be nearing the end. Partly because the converging lines on the graph of my quantity-quality food index may have just crossed one another, but also because (as a vegetarian), I can only eat so much yellow food in one sitting. When I walk out the front door of that place, I feel like I could shit cubes of starch. Also-I have begun to feel just a bit out of place-when I look around the establishment when we're there (once or twice a year), I realize that you could cram about six of me in the ass of any other given patron of the place. I'm reminded of the thing that foreign tourists remark as the most notable thing about Americans after visits to our country, and I guess I've just started to get a little sensitive to issues of overconsumption in any form. For me, the food was good fuel, though, as our plan for the day involved going up to the 5,000+ acre Elm Creek Park Preserve (where Sharon normally works) and having Sharon & Lucy play on the playground and at the beach while I ran myself silly on the trails. It was a hot day-87 degrees, with not a cloud in the sky-and I started out at 12:30 pm-for some running in the hottest part of the day. A sort of necessary masochistic training day for my upcoming race at Afton. No matter what I do, I cannot adequately prepare for that insane day in the time I have before me, but yesterday was about as good as I can do. Running on dirt or wood chips is not all that different than running on asphalt. Running through sporadically mowed grass or other vegetation, especially over the course of many miles, is an entirely different experience. Muscles I call the "high-steppers" get a unique, burning workout, and you realize why it is that after all your training it is still possible to get cramps on race day. I think there was actually more of that type of running yesterday than I will see at Afton but, of course, far fewer and less steep hills. It was a hot, exhausting, and brutally fun workout, nevertheless. I have no idea how far it was, but it was nearly two hours long. I'm thinking (due to the heat and my numerous stops to check my small, sweaty, disintegrating map) I covered not more than 11 miles before treatign myself to a plunge into the swimming pond.
Prior to that run, I had only just recovered from my bike/run day on Thursday, and I seem to be perpetually exhausted. Perhaps that is the price for my condensed, intense training schedule. Due to only having a total of four weeks of training, it's going to be a fine, fine line between the traditional multi-day pre-race "taper" and getting in the maximum amount of workout days. Still not sure how that will work-but it would be nice to actually feel rested and recouperated for the race itself.
Weird, though, that I've been feeling sleep-deprived, also, although my sleeping schedule is no worse than usual, and probably better. I've been so exhausted the last number of nights that I've not had the energy to record, do Quicken, or even take care of simple tasks past 8 pm. I've only had the energy to pop in Fellowship of the Ring and watch in segments before nodding off. I made it to just before Frodo left Hobbiton Friday night, to Amon Sul the next night, and to "Legolas, get them up" last night. Just plain exhausted. Connexion between that & my running? That would be weird...
Friday, June 17, 2005
O Beautiful Day, Haute Couture, Redd Foxx, and Wiped!
Had the latest in the Dan Hylton Summer Thursday Series (burning through some of the tons of vacation time I accrued over the last number of months on consecutive Thursdays) yesterday. Sharon's mom watched Lucy while we biked into downtown to explore St. Anthony Main and the Riverfront District.
Clouds and rain, or at least skies that threaten rain, have dominated the past two months in Minnesota. Yesterday, however, was the first in what looks like about week's worth of cloudless, sunny skies that we are in for. The timing couldn't have been more perfect for a bike ride. We've hardly been on our bikes at all in the past couple years, since Lucy isn't totally sold on the idea of riding in the bike trailer. As one who is accustomed to plodding along at a runner's pace, it was a really nice change of pace to cruise along at about three times that speed. We took the parkway south from our house, through the northern portion of Theodore Wirth (many of the trails of which have been redone in the past year-so it was really smooth sailing), and then onto the new "Bassett's Creek Cutoff;" a diagonal connector from the Grand Rounds to the Cedar Lake Trail-the nation's only "Bicycle Freeway" into downtown Minneapolis. Wonderful, wonderful, and again wonderful, the ride.
Our goal was to bike into downtown (around an hour's ride), then spend a few hours exploring St. Anothony Main. Mixdorf, if you are not aware of that area, you should be. It really seems like just your style. The "Haute Couture" in the title isn't really all that accurate, though I suppose compared to my normal lifestyle it might be considered such. But it is a really pleasant, vibrant mixture of scenery, greenery, and eateries; right along the banks of the Mississippi. It's been part of a huge HUGE revitalization of northeast Minneapolis (it's come a long way since my first week in the Twin Cities when all the riders of a bus I was on suddenly ducked following gunshots over by the Red Owl grocery). There's a lot of upscale urban condos, cool riverside restaurants & bars, and a 1.5-mile heritage trail celebrating the early history of the city that extends along both banks and across the Stone Arch and Hennepin Bridges. After our coffee stop on the way in and meal downtown, we actually didn't have time to explore the Heritage Trail (or the various parks interspersed along the way) in depth at all. I'd love to get back there-throw in a tour of the Mill City Museum along the trail on the downtown side, and you've got yourself a nice-long day of engagement. Anyway, in my time there it was really striking me that it was very Mixdorfian. Seems like if you were living in the Twin Cities, you might just choose to live here. In any event, consider this added to the list of possible activities for you & me during your visit. Potentially for you me & Cory-I think he'd get a kick out of hanging out in that area, as well. During our day we had (as planned) much discussion on Zephyr, and a little on the prospect of another child. Nothing necessarily resolved, but good discussion and good company, as always when we hang out.
Well, considering that was 20+ miles of biking on a hot, sunny day, it is no wonder that I did not feel all that much like running my seven-mile route last night. Nevertheless, I am committed to "stay on target." I ran and it was TOUGH, and I got WIPED. I did make it, and felt really good about myself and was treated to my best metropolitan wildlife sightings ever (one of my best wildlife sightings ever, period). Nearly three miles north of my house, along Shingle Creek, I saw it; a red fox, who paused just long enough to convey a sense of "I can't believe I just let that happen," before bolting off into the woods. About 50 or 60 feet away, there can be no doubt of what it was, and it was awesome.
Clouds and rain, or at least skies that threaten rain, have dominated the past two months in Minnesota. Yesterday, however, was the first in what looks like about week's worth of cloudless, sunny skies that we are in for. The timing couldn't have been more perfect for a bike ride. We've hardly been on our bikes at all in the past couple years, since Lucy isn't totally sold on the idea of riding in the bike trailer. As one who is accustomed to plodding along at a runner's pace, it was a really nice change of pace to cruise along at about three times that speed. We took the parkway south from our house, through the northern portion of Theodore Wirth (many of the trails of which have been redone in the past year-so it was really smooth sailing), and then onto the new "Bassett's Creek Cutoff;" a diagonal connector from the Grand Rounds to the Cedar Lake Trail-the nation's only "Bicycle Freeway" into downtown Minneapolis. Wonderful, wonderful, and again wonderful, the ride.
Our goal was to bike into downtown (around an hour's ride), then spend a few hours exploring St. Anothony Main. Mixdorf, if you are not aware of that area, you should be. It really seems like just your style. The "Haute Couture" in the title isn't really all that accurate, though I suppose compared to my normal lifestyle it might be considered such. But it is a really pleasant, vibrant mixture of scenery, greenery, and eateries; right along the banks of the Mississippi. It's been part of a huge HUGE revitalization of northeast Minneapolis (it's come a long way since my first week in the Twin Cities when all the riders of a bus I was on suddenly ducked following gunshots over by the Red Owl grocery). There's a lot of upscale urban condos, cool riverside restaurants & bars, and a 1.5-mile heritage trail celebrating the early history of the city that extends along both banks and across the Stone Arch and Hennepin Bridges. After our coffee stop on the way in and meal downtown, we actually didn't have time to explore the Heritage Trail (or the various parks interspersed along the way) in depth at all. I'd love to get back there-throw in a tour of the Mill City Museum along the trail on the downtown side, and you've got yourself a nice-long day of engagement. Anyway, in my time there it was really striking me that it was very Mixdorfian. Seems like if you were living in the Twin Cities, you might just choose to live here. In any event, consider this added to the list of possible activities for you & me during your visit. Potentially for you me & Cory-I think he'd get a kick out of hanging out in that area, as well. During our day we had (as planned) much discussion on Zephyr, and a little on the prospect of another child. Nothing necessarily resolved, but good discussion and good company, as always when we hang out.
Well, considering that was 20+ miles of biking on a hot, sunny day, it is no wonder that I did not feel all that much like running my seven-mile route last night. Nevertheless, I am committed to "stay on target." I ran and it was TOUGH, and I got WIPED. I did make it, and felt really good about myself and was treated to my best metropolitan wildlife sightings ever (one of my best wildlife sightings ever, period). Nearly three miles north of my house, along Shingle Creek, I saw it; a red fox, who paused just long enough to convey a sense of "I can't believe I just let that happen," before bolting off into the woods. About 50 or 60 feet away, there can be no doubt of what it was, and it was awesome.
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
Worse than Willfull Ignorance?
If there's anyone out there who reads my The Oliopolis but not Pat Mixdorf's Avagadros Number, please check out his wonderful essay on the differences between him and our president.
Most progressives in this country are well aware of the path of destruction left in the wake of Bush's trademark intellectual laziness, Pat covers the topic with great clarity and wit (though, not to misrepresent Pat's characterization, he does also believe The Prez to be an evil turd). I would really like to see how Pat would take on a deconstruction of perhaps an evil more unconscionable type of character, epitomized by our Senate Majority Leader, Bill Frist.
Where in Bush, we have this sort of willful ignorance and pretty simple arrogance, in Frist we have a man who by all counts is highly educated and intelligent, yet purposefully champions a number of misguided or evil causes through deliberately deceitful means. A wonderful example is his video diagnosis of Terri Shiavo (sp?). A HEART SURGEON making a NEUROLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS after WATCHING VIDEO in order to appeal to a radical social conservative group of voters with whom he hopes to curry favor (a diagnosis-that she could respond to visual stimuli-by the way, which has now been proven to be erroneous). He is trying to alter Senate rules in order to confirm a fringe element of conservative judges (and a fringe element to be our UN ambassador), supports numerous White House initiatives that do not pass ethical or intellectual muster, and actually went so far in his pandering to the radical right that he refused repeated requests for a roll call vote that would have put senators on the record in a FAILED (you read that right-failed) attempt to pass legislation to apologize for our nation never having passed anti-LYNCHING laws. Thus, of course, protecting identities of the mostly southern, all-conservative senators that shot fillibustered and eventually killed the bill. What an absolute bastard-and one I believe could be considered to be far more evil than George W Bush. Which is worse-to never have a soul or to sell it?
Most progressives in this country are well aware of the path of destruction left in the wake of Bush's trademark intellectual laziness, Pat covers the topic with great clarity and wit (though, not to misrepresent Pat's characterization, he does also believe The Prez to be an evil turd). I would really like to see how Pat would take on a deconstruction of perhaps an evil more unconscionable type of character, epitomized by our Senate Majority Leader, Bill Frist.
Where in Bush, we have this sort of willful ignorance and pretty simple arrogance, in Frist we have a man who by all counts is highly educated and intelligent, yet purposefully champions a number of misguided or evil causes through deliberately deceitful means. A wonderful example is his video diagnosis of Terri Shiavo (sp?). A HEART SURGEON making a NEUROLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS after WATCHING VIDEO in order to appeal to a radical social conservative group of voters with whom he hopes to curry favor (a diagnosis-that she could respond to visual stimuli-by the way, which has now been proven to be erroneous). He is trying to alter Senate rules in order to confirm a fringe element of conservative judges (and a fringe element to be our UN ambassador), supports numerous White House initiatives that do not pass ethical or intellectual muster, and actually went so far in his pandering to the radical right that he refused repeated requests for a roll call vote that would have put senators on the record in a FAILED (you read that right-failed) attempt to pass legislation to apologize for our nation never having passed anti-LYNCHING laws. Thus, of course, protecting identities of the mostly southern, all-conservative senators that shot fillibustered and eventually killed the bill. What an absolute bastard-and one I believe could be considered to be far more evil than George W Bush. Which is worse-to never have a soul or to sell it?
Monday, June 13, 2005
The Awakening of the Panther, Burned!, and Balance to Force
The Awakening of the Panther:
So far, my "desperate training" has been a success, as has been validation of my theory that I have a storehouse of unspent "running capital." I went from running 3-6 miles/week to running 27 miles from last Monday through Saturday. I was a little sore after the first day, but not after that. Each of the three seven mile runs on which I went got successively easier and faster, as (I believe) my muscles & body more or less remembered their previous form & flow, and settled in. Oh, and remember me mentioning that my previous time in running was 56-54 minutes for 6-7 miles? I was daft. The distance is a full 7 miles, and the only previous recorded times I had for the route (in the midst of my duathalon training, as I recall) were 1 hr 8 min & 1 hr 5 min. Well, on that particular route, which I ran on both day 1 and day 4 of my training this time 'round, my times were 1 hr 11 min & 1 hr 8 min, respectively. So, I'm hardly off that time at all. I'm gonna feel pretty good if I end up breaking 1 hr. Really, really good if I am breaking 8 minute miles (<56 minutes) by the end of my training.
Burned!
Had the afternoon with Lucy yesterday. I did a great job with sunblock on her (totally sunny day and about 85 degrees) in a 2 mile round-trip up to a Mississippi River playground and swimming pool. I also put sunblock on my own neck and tops of shoulders-the only places I recall battling sunburns in the past. Suprising: the low number of times I go around in a tank-top these days. Unfortunately, I totally missed my upper back (exposed due to the low plunging neckband) and sides under & behind my shoulders (similarly exposed). I ended up totally fried in this unique places to the point where it actually made laying down for sleep uncomfortable. I think it's actually been so long since I've had a bad burn that it was pre-"society freaked out about UV" era. Will definitely be wearing a T-shirt for my next couple of runs, but as Sharon reminded me, the elevated amount of heat my body will give off during the run definitely promises some level of torture.
Balance to the Force:
Watching Anakin's fall hit effected both Sharon & me emotionally, but the extent to which it affected Sharon was actually quite surprising. We were just getting ready to embark on viewing of episodes IV-VI, when she made come comment to the affect of, "It's just so sad and tragic, knowing where he came from and seeing how far he fell. Not that you can really have any sympathy for Darth Vader, but it just seems like a waste-he was that child that was so altruistic, had all this potential, and it was all for nothing." To which I replied, "But, of course...he does end up bringing Balance to the Force and Peace to the Galaxy." "Huh?" "You do remember how episode VI ends, right?" She did not, and after I gently reminded her that Anakin did indeed kill Vader & the Emperor in one fell swoop and effectively put an end to the Sith forever, she was much happier.
So far, my "desperate training" has been a success, as has been validation of my theory that I have a storehouse of unspent "running capital." I went from running 3-6 miles/week to running 27 miles from last Monday through Saturday. I was a little sore after the first day, but not after that. Each of the three seven mile runs on which I went got successively easier and faster, as (I believe) my muscles & body more or less remembered their previous form & flow, and settled in. Oh, and remember me mentioning that my previous time in running was 56-54 minutes for 6-7 miles? I was daft. The distance is a full 7 miles, and the only previous recorded times I had for the route (in the midst of my duathalon training, as I recall) were 1 hr 8 min & 1 hr 5 min. Well, on that particular route, which I ran on both day 1 and day 4 of my training this time 'round, my times were 1 hr 11 min & 1 hr 8 min, respectively. So, I'm hardly off that time at all. I'm gonna feel pretty good if I end up breaking 1 hr. Really, really good if I am breaking 8 minute miles (<56 minutes) by the end of my training.
Burned!
Had the afternoon with Lucy yesterday. I did a great job with sunblock on her (totally sunny day and about 85 degrees) in a 2 mile round-trip up to a Mississippi River playground and swimming pool. I also put sunblock on my own neck and tops of shoulders-the only places I recall battling sunburns in the past. Suprising: the low number of times I go around in a tank-top these days. Unfortunately, I totally missed my upper back (exposed due to the low plunging neckband) and sides under & behind my shoulders (similarly exposed). I ended up totally fried in this unique places to the point where it actually made laying down for sleep uncomfortable. I think it's actually been so long since I've had a bad burn that it was pre-"society freaked out about UV" era. Will definitely be wearing a T-shirt for my next couple of runs, but as Sharon reminded me, the elevated amount of heat my body will give off during the run definitely promises some level of torture.
Balance to the Force:
Watching Anakin's fall hit effected both Sharon & me emotionally, but the extent to which it affected Sharon was actually quite surprising. We were just getting ready to embark on viewing of episodes IV-VI, when she made come comment to the affect of, "It's just so sad and tragic, knowing where he came from and seeing how far he fell. Not that you can really have any sympathy for Darth Vader, but it just seems like a waste-he was that child that was so altruistic, had all this potential, and it was all for nothing." To which I replied, "But, of course...he does end up bringing Balance to the Force and Peace to the Galaxy." "Huh?" "You do remember how episode VI ends, right?" She did not, and after I gently reminded her that Anakin did indeed kill Vader & the Emperor in one fell swoop and effectively put an end to the Sith forever, she was much happier.
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