Oklahoma!

Live theater isn't an obsession of mine. I know some people who live for live theater. I grew up in a musical household, and on classics like The Sound of Music. I was taken to see the Nutcracker and Porgy and Bess as a child. I enjoyed the plays produced at my tiny college.

It's really not until I'm in the theater that I remember how much I love it. It's not until the dance sequences start that I get goosebumps. I haven't spent much time going to theaters because, well, they cost money. However, I had a great treat from my mom this last weekend when she took me to see Portland Center Stage's "Oklahoma!"

The music was wonderful, the singing was great, the actors top-notch. It was fun to revisit a classic that I had seen many times before, because in seeing it again after many years away I was able to laugh anew at some wonderful comedy. This was all presented with a fantastic new twist: an all-black cast. Most people are surprised to hear that, but it was both intriguing and fun to read the director's note, which stated that he could not find anything in the script that would exclude African Americans from that possibility. Further in his research he found that there were numerous all-black towns in the Oklahoma territory, making it completely plausible for the story.

OKLAHOMA! TRAILER from Portland Center Stage on Vimeo.
It was a spectacular take on an old classic that even presented many of the songs in a new light, sung by characters who were most likely freed slaves, not only bent on personal freedom, but also the optimism of  a new land.

Next Girl

Run: 3.4mi/34:00 

That is what I get for taking ten days off from running. Side stitches, low miles, and a sore hip. I went to Portland for a short visit to see someone, and didn't run the entire week. While traveling back home on Sunday I felt pretty sick, and couldn't get a run in on Monday (although I woke up, tried, and then gave up). Yesterday was women's day (holla!) and we had no daycare. I took the opportunity to sleep in.

It's March all of a sudden, and the weather is warmer around here. So much so that I wore flip flops yesterday for the first time in about 4 months.

On Saturday, in San Diego, my mom and I went to Costco and I spied something that I had to try. Out of all the gear that's made it's way into the running community, right behind barefoot running (or minimalist shoes) is the popular topic of running skirts for women. I'm not too much of a skirt person in non-running life, so it's never really appealed to me that much. But I saw this skirt at Costco for $9.99 and I thought it was a good enough price to try it out.

(Unfortunately I can't even find a picture of this product on the internet).

It is super comfortable and fits nicely, and a nice length. I tried it out a little on my failed run on Monday, and I think it's a little iffy for running in Mexico, but I really do love the fabric and the fit. IF you want to go check it out at Costco (or the Colorado Clothing website), beware that it seems to run big. I was hemming and hawing between a Medium and a Large (and you know you can't try things on in Costco), but I bought a Medium and it fits perfectly. I never buy Mediums in running clothes, so that's a good indicator that this runs big.

Also while in San Diego I picked up the new Black Keys record Brothers, mostly because of their hit song Next Girl. Enjoy.

Home

Run: 9.95mi/1:39:50 (Soooo close. That's what i get for guessing my mileage.)

I was happy to wake up and find that it did not rain overnight like predicted. Instead, the rain waited until a few hours after I hung up my laundry to dry. Some helpful people back home (I was out at a friend's house) and a quick trip to the laundromat saved the day.

February 26th is a freakish day because I know three people with a birthday today:
1) My big brother, Joel
2) My new friend in Mexico, Hannah
3) Jenny, a friend I met on the internet, back when I was in high school and only weird people hung around on the internet. Ahhh, those were the days.

On my run today I kept skipping back to this Menomena song. Enjoy.

In the meantime I'm trying to work up the ganas to write a very personal post.

Stink

Run: 3.4mi/34:00

Yeah - that long run this weekend? Didn't happen. I won't go into details for my attempt on Saturday except to say that folded up contacts under an eyelid are no fun when you're out in the middle of nowhere. And Sunday I didn't have the ganas to do it. I guess part of this whole I-Can-Do-Whatever-I-Want Training Plan is ... I can do whatever I want. Or don't want. Hopefully this can get fixed. Soon.

Dear Mexico,
This morning, you stank.
Literally.

I decided that I needed more upbeat music on my run. I have both upbeat and slow music on my iPod, but I took the time to delete all slow, flowy, boring music. I need a kickstart, and that's not going to happen with Jon Foreman. Jon, you know I love you, but not for running.  Instead it's all top 40 hits peppered with some loud rock. Jay-Z, take me away. At some point, I need to find a way to download some cheap music to add to this mix. 

Last night The Friends came over to start working on a puzzle. What kind of puzzle? U.S. Presidents puzzle, because we're nerds like that. We like to combine education and fun, and this was an excellent opportunity. Who's wearing pearls? Abraham Lincoln! Yes, that was actually said last night.

I know you will all wait in anticipation for the finished product. In the meantime, my kids will be coming over to my house in about 30 minutes, and to prevent them from ruining all of our hard work, I have to go lay a blanket over it. Those little hands are so quick.

Taos

I'm surprisingly not sore from running my little heart out the last couple of days. To celebrate that fact, I forgot to set my alarm last night, and I overslept this morning, losing my chance for a run. I only run in the mornings here. It's cooler, there are less people out, and there are less cars kicking up dust.

While in Portland I got the opportunity to go to Everyday Music to look for music (Thanks, A!). Being in Mexico, and with a nearly full computer hard drive, I don't get much new music. I've been meaning to pick up a few things, and never got around to it, so getting the new(est) Menomena album, "Mines" was a happy moment. I finally got to pop it in, and I am very, very happy. "Taos" is a favorite so far, mostly because it means Menomena hasn't lost their guitar-driven hooks and can still rock.

"Oh I'll bet I know what you like
At least think I know what you might"

Procrastinating

Run: 3mi/31:00

I decided I had to get out there and run. I read a blog yesterday that made me think "oh gosh, running is fun", and I was itching to get out there. I still have a pretty sore left quad, but running this morning felt so good. I had to tell myself not to try too hard, to take it easy, and not think about miles. So I did.

I'm spending some time cleaning and packing. The room i'm staying in turned into a pigsty and now I get the joy of figuring out how to fit all of these things I have acquired over the lat 4 weeks into suitcases. One big suitcase will go back with me tomorrow, but some other things my parents will be able to bring back with them in their cars.

I head back to Mexico tomorrow and right back into trying to learn and speak Spanish. The only Spanish I've spoken while being here has been joking around with Stephanie (who speaks better Spanish than I do). It's usually something stupid like "Ven por aca!" and then we laugh like idiots. Yeah, it's not really funny. Just to us.

So, to try to get those Spanish words a-flowin' again, I have to play the lovely Julieta Venegas while I attempt to clean up this mess I call my belongings.

The Art of the Mix Tape

Run: 3.25mi/33:15

I recently received a mix CD from a friend, and it made me think back to the days of mix tapes. Long before the days of buying (or stealing) music online, the greatest option was to record a song off the radio. I had a CD/tape/radio player and I became a pro and knowing when the commercials would stop and when the song would begin. Of course, the only problem with this was not knowing what song would be played next. It was a lot of gambling. I don't remember exactly what I ever recorded off the radio, but it was probably from KISM FM or Z100, and it was probably Lovin' Spoonful's "Do You Believe in Magic" or something from Ace of Base. I'm not saying those were it, but that's my best guess.

Then a few years down the road came the desire to make a mix tape for a friend. Today most people throw together a playlist on itunes, and the computer can tell you just about everything you need to know for fitting all the music on to the disc: how many songs you have, how many minutes you have left to fill, etc.

Not so back in the day. If you wanted a supreme mix tape, you had to know how long those songs were and add up all the time. While some tapes or CDs told you how long the songs were on the packaging, some did not, and you had to figure it out for yourself. I usually ended up with a 60 minute blank tape, which allowed for 30 minutes on each side. If I added up 6 songs, and they were over 30 minutes, one had to be cut. Not a big deal, unless you end up with 4 minutes of blank space at the end of the tape. Not cool. Obviously not planned out. Rookie mistake.

And don't forget the flow of songs. Today we're used to skipping around to whatever we feel like. I do it on my running playlist on my ipod all the time. Don't want to listen to it? Skip it. On a tape, it's a little harder to do, so the ideal is to fill that tape with not only good songs, but songs that go well together.

And finally, the packaging. This was always my weak area. I was never quite as creative as my friends, and I usually, in my very organized way, just wrote down the songs and artists in order.

These days it's the mix CDs, and still, every once in a while, I get out a mix CD from early college and remember when.

Did you ever make mix tapes?

And right now I'd like to take the opportunity to say how excited I am for Duck football tonight. Anybody else watching?

Aye yi yi yiiiii

Run: 4.25 mi/42:20

I picked up the accordion a few years ago. Scratch that, many years ago. I forget how old I am. My last year of college, which would make it the summer of 2005, which was 5 years ago, and that explains how old I am. Aye yi yi is right.

I had great friends who encouraged me, bought me learn-to-play books for my birthday, put up with listening to me play the accordion (bless their hearts), and were mainly just really cool about it. I played in a band for about a year, which was one of the best things I have ever decided to do. But, honestly, for the past year or so it has sat in my room being useless. Useless because I don't do anything with it.

But I got it out the other night to show my new friends. And they liked it. They even invited my accordion to any gathering we have. I might play it this Saturday when we make lunch at the seniors' home (that's my kind of crowd!), and all of a sudden I have this huge itch to play with people. To get people together and play music. Where, oh where, will I find people to accompany an accordion? I need divine help.

Christmas

Run: 5.25 mi/52:55

I feel kinda like a chicken with my head cut off, but not quite. I'm still a few activities away from that, but somehow I've got a lot of things on my mind all of a sudden. Christmas presents to make, organizing Sunday School lessons for while I'm gone, numerous activities to fit in, and planning English class and my English tutoring. It seems like so little, but every once in a while something comes to mind and I think "I have to remember that". We leave here on the 19th, so everything has to be done before then.

A friend posted a link to free Christmas on facebook. Sam Billen was in a band that had a great CD a few years ago, so I was excited to listen to his Christmas music. It is available here. Just download for free!!