Runner's Heights: Cinnameg or Nutamon

So, about a yoga before your run? Perhaps that would allow for a little perspicacity in your thoughts and perspectives when you run. I am talking about a tranquil session of gentle yoga, not the gut wrenching, sweat-dripping ardour of say, Bikram Yoga. Well, if I have any of memories of the thoughts and imaginings left, I'll record them in my next batch of musings. However, it seems clear that as you approach your goal to beyond 30 miles a week, you've got to have a strategy to steer clear of injury and possible boredom. Ice packs and radios and ipods help are your frequent friends and accept them into your running life unless you are built with the still mind of the Buddha and the feckless physique of Hercules. And the flexibility of a ballerina...

The metaphor for adaptation has to be Japanese curries. Inspired by creations from India, brought to Japan via trade with the British, the curry has a life and zing of its own in a Japanese dish. And most of all, the Japanese almost serve it up like gravy on any protein matter that you can imagine -- tofu, chicken, beef, pork, and even eel. Did the slithering eel ever imagine that it would depart the ocean only to swim in a pot of viscous curry, not knowing whether the flavour was actually cinnamon or was it actually nutmeg? That's the question most heard among egg nog drinkers...is it cinnamon or is it nutmeg...How about a couple of portmanteaus just for the occasion...cinnameg and nutamon. Take your pick...

Razrpics: Marina Freeway 90 on a Summer Holiday

Runner's Heights: There's a Burrito on this Mahi Mahi

To grovel or not to travel on gravel? That is the question. When you are running on asphalt with gravel (not gravy) on the side, do you switch back and forth to give your legs a little more variety? It's not a bad idea at all, as I have pleasantly discovered. The choice between asphalt and concrete is clear -- I'll take asphalt any day because it is grainier and softer but firm all the same. Besides, I think asphalt might be easier on your sole wear and tear although I am not sure about that. The New Balance 766 seems to have been a perfect match for my feet although I think that my feet would eventually adjust to any shoe, even lead huaraches for that matter. Most importantly, running with a visor is probably easier on your bio-thermal mechanism as it allows better heat dissipation than afforded by the teensy-weensy holes of a baseball cap.

As far as hats and caps go, it seems that thrift stores might have more varieties of caps than your department stores which might be limited by their vendors and customer preferences. So, although finding a hat or cap in a thrift store is more akin to a treasure hunt, your patience might pay off in a stellar acquisition that may cost less than an order of burger and fries. I was at a thrift store today and learned that if a thrift store has a rehabilitation center affiliated with it they need not charge you a sales tax. So, those that don't have to charge sales tax. That's the knowledge lesson for the day. But I still have to figure out the mentality of folks who haggle at a thrift store or maybe they are pushing the concept of being thrifty to being in self-proclaimed penury.

Unresolved query of the day: Which Mahi Mahi burrito is better -- the one at Baja Fresh or Rubio's Mexican Bar & Grill?

Runner's Heights: Enter the Veggie Entree

When your daytime schedule ends up looking like a busy bee's appointment calendar, what do you do? Look to the night owl. I must confess that I have a mental block towards night running. Having lived in big cities for a good part of my life, I always conjure up images of danger and malice lurking just around the corner. Granted that you cannot be a Pollyanna and you need to exercise some circumspection, it is tough to determine how far is the borderline for paranoia. Apart from human and feline predators, there are those SUV's so gigantic that the drivers have done you a favour if they have spotted you through their leviathan driving shells.

An arduous run always sets the stage for a great, guilt-free meal afterwards. And I tried the Boca lasagna and it was indeed tasty with a lot of texture and flavour. As the meatless entrees pick up in taste, body, variety, and flavour, I am sure it has the meat producers worried. Most of these products started out in one corner of the frozen food section in supermarkets -- the health food stores always carried them with pride and panache. But now the supermarkets are devoting up to two, or three, sections in the frozen entree rows and that space is coming at the cost of some other meat-based entree. And the cows might soon start to celebrate less and less aisle space at Kroger's.

Runner's Heights: The Tortilla's Turn

Before you start a long run, it might be helpful to work out on an elliptical machine for about 15-20 mins. The results are amazing and the warm up is relatively quick because you are working both the upper- and lower-body muscles. In fact, on most days that I can find time to work the elliptical machine before my run, I have been able to run longer without any serious injuries. That might be because the possibility of cramping might be mitigated due to the completeness of the warm up. And I usually do not stretch before getting on the elliptical machine. If you go beyond 20-30 mins. on the elliptical machine, you might tire yourself before the run. But, it might work for some...or at least, it's worth a try. Also, I found that a soy protein drink before a run helps immensely in keeping the energy levels up as you lap up the miles. On the other end of the spectrum might be red beans and a corn enchilada right before a run.

At lunch the other day, the basket of tortilla chips unravelled an interesting entity -- a chip with a green matter embedded into one of the edges of the chip itself. While our group nursed their Cadillac margaritas (adding a dash of Grand Mariner gives it that special auto-inspired moniker), we wondered the origins of that anamoly -- was this a mutant tortilla chip or was it a guacamole that wanted to be chip, or was it a pregnant chip after a torrid affair with an avocado. While the margarita glasses veered towards "nearly empty", we pondered over the genesis of this aberration. It was never really solved though the individual who discovered it in that basket did save it. And what did he do with it? He put in on e-bay for all the world to share with a chance to bid on and own a curious tortilla chip. Que bueno!

Runner's Heights: Trade a TV Spot, Senator?

Running is one of the finest metaphors for the unfolding of life itself. Every time that you have conquered one difficulty, surmounted another obstacle, running hits you with challenge after challenge in the form of injury and pain. And if you can't find intelligent and judicious ways to transcend these hurdles, then you are thrust backwards and become an impediment to your own progress. The urge and the desire is to push your body further and more towards the brink of its physical limits while being able to repeat this game over and over until you have pushed the limits in the process. But somewhere in this process, your mind loses touch of what your body can really do and that's perhaps because the human spirit is timeless whereas the body is fettered by the shackles of age and time. So, I am experience this dichotomy first-hand, having naively willed myself to run the same distance and duration every day this week. So here is the body's answer to that: soreness, lethargy, and shin splints that are back with a vengeance of rabid dogs.

As we run in circles around issues and matters that concern the future of the world, it was refreshing to discuss Steven Covey's Circle of Concern vs. Circle of Influence. And we were thinking of how most of us have greater circles of concern than circles of influence. But there are those whose circles of influence are much greater than the circles of concern and they are probably classified by Mr. Covey as "selfish" people who could do more. Who does it remind of you more than the majority of the Senators today? Powerful, yet parochial, they wallow in the mire of their own lobbies belying the hopes and aspirations of the people that look upto them as leaders and guides. Would it be any different if Senators were asked to have their first-borns serve in war by a government fiat? Perhaps, then they would move to line the Humvees in Iraq and Afghanistan with better armour guards and worry less about which interest group that they could gyp for their fatuous re-election campaigns. Their deceiving 15-second TV spots could stock a homeless-shelter kitchen for a month. Easily.

Razor Pics: San Luis Obispo Tops

Runner's Heights: Ah Laike that Ol' Time Creashun

Running in June evenings is a real pleasure thanks to the cool evening breeze making its way by way of the bay. I caught glimpses of the majestic planes parked in the the tarmac of the airport. Some of them have neat tarp held taut over them to guard them from the elements. But a lot of them look like they might be happier kissing the clouds and gallivanting around with the birds in the sky. I took pictures with my Motorola Razor but since I am missing the software, I can't upload the pictures. Bummer! And Motorola charges for the software when I think it should be free for all Motorola phone users.

The Creation Museum was in the BBC news today. The world was of course created in six days and at this museum, that is a foregone conclusion. Now they must create the rationale and heresy, ideologues and demagogues to support their conclusion as facts. All of the world's religions have a creationist myths of their own. So, when you pick a Creationist theory, which one do you pick? Why the myth of the Genesis, of course since from this perspective, alll other creation myths are flawed. So, all you slackers, take notice, grab your prayer books and be amazed at what can be achieved in under a week's time. That Darwin son-begone had a bedeviled imagination...Ah laike that ol' tyme reli-jun!!

Razor Pics: Angel on Centinela

Runner's Heights: The Mango Fandango

An mp3 player and some good rock makes a big difference in getting your running rhythm/pacing back. In my case it is an old ipod flash drive and Derek and the Dominoes followed by Supertramp, Moody Blues, and Bob Dylan. This is the same ipod that I gave up for dead after I machine washed and dried it a pair of shorts in one of my clueless, absent-minded phases. It doesn't hold the charge as long but it holds up long enough to finish an hour's run -- which, in my case, would be a little over six miles. Supertramp with Breakfast in America has those distinct piano riffs that hit the beat as the rubber meets the road. Makes a longish run almost painless, if not downright pleasant.

It's always fascinating to see Bob Dylan so relatively quiet about the politics of war these days. Maybe, he's speaking out and the media is paying little attention or it is entirely possible that he has given it scant thought and is focused more on his own mortality and legacy. In times of world crises, it is logical for people to look up to their bards and pop icons to corroborate their line of thinking. That's why everytime there's a comment or critique by a celebrity about war and the global warming, it gets circulated around the globe a hundred times over, thanks to the impetus of the internet. Which makes me wonder, since it's summer, will there be ever a consensus on which mango is the tasties in the world. Let the polling begin.

Razr Pics: San Luis Obispo Eve

Runner's Heights: Requiem to GM

Back to the good old routine--the 5 miles down to the Creek and back. The run wasn't easy because I couldn't find my usual pace and rhythm--the one-week haitus took my rhythm away. But it feels good to be back. Running is so easy when you are in the proximity of the morning ocean breeze especially when it is also the month of the LA June gloom. I hardly agree that it is gloom but that's what people call it. Personally, I'd call it June bloom. It would be even more worth if I could spot that otter that made a face at me many weeks ago. If anything, I'd like to return the favour--it's not too often that you get to craft a rejoinder to an otter's ridicule.

Well, there is karma and there is karma that affects the makers of cars, as in "carma." Having read the woes of GM, Ford, and Chrysler in the BBC News, it is not hard to think that this is instant carma for their nefarious and malicious trade practices over the last two decades. Giving Americans low-quality cars for their hard-earned dollars, using "patriotism" to urge the consumer to "Buy American" when most of the automobile plants are located abroad, and using tax and farm-equipment loopholes to sell low-performance, environment-polluting, gas-guzzling SUV's to the American people. When all is said and done, GM, Ford, Chrysler will stand out as three companies that have collaborated to hoodwink the American people and destroy the environment that we all live in. When they have lost the war in building the fuel-efficient vehicles that the people really need, they will run to legislators and lawmakers to give them the protection that they will probably abuse again and again. Yes, it will be..."My Altima just sealed your carma"