Harbour City Ramblings

When I initially started hitting the streets to train for my very first TC 10k I went out and bought an armband for my iPhone, and proceeded to put together a playlist of songs I figured would get me pumped.

I sifted through all 3900 songs in my iTunes collection and managed to muster up 30 tracks of what I surmised to be my definitive running soundtrack.

Since I am not the world’s largest fan of hip-hop, rap or dance, I opted to leave such genres out. Plus, they really only make up around 8% of my iTunes ensemble. Instead I piled on my favourites- Propagandhi, Metallica, NOFX and Pennywise, to name a few.

My first attempt at a run was short, and as I quickly discovered so was my level of tolerance for that crappy, demotivating playlist of punk and metal.

What I discovered was horrifying…

I am motivated to run by rap music.

I never thought I would admit that. But I scrapped everything except the 1 song that got me running faster, harder, and for a far greater distance than I expected: Jay-Z’s “Empire State of Mind” Sure I kept a large amount of other genres, but otherwise I did a complete overhaul to accommodate my previously unknown proclivity to hear bass pumping through my earphones.

My new playlist has grown on me. I am now 8 runs into my training, and with yesterday’s haul of just under 5 km I am working my way slowly up to 10k without the help of any guitar solos.

Here are the songs that- though some tough to digest at first- keep me pushing toward my goal of completing the TC 10k:

• Saul Williams (cover of U2’s) “Sunday Bloody Sunday”
• Jay-Z “Run This Town”
• Beastie Boys “Sabotage”
• Queens of the Stone Age “No One Knows”
• Iron Maiden “the Trooper”
• Eminem “White America”
• Kanye West “Stronger”
• Lamb of God “Again We Rise”
• Incubus “Vitamin”
• Westside Connection “Bow Down”
• Rise Against “Behind Close Doors”
• Children of Bodom “Needled 24/7″
• Daft Punk “Da Funk”
• Ol’ Dirty Bastard “Shimmy Shimmy Ya”

And the 3 that never fail to make me literally go that extra mile:

• Green Day “Jesus of Suburbia”
• the Offspring “All I Want”
• Eminem “Till I Collapse”

Those are what do it for me, as much as I previously denied it.

It all boils down to matching a song’s rhythm to your pace, and hearing the right song at the right point of your run.

A few times this week I have been about ready to quite and give my legs a half minute of walking- until one of my key 3 songs came on and I couldn’t help but push on. What songs, bands, or specific genres keep you motivated and moving?

Across the pond, along with all the Winter Olympic hype, the hubbub over unseasonably warm weather postponing events, canceling spectatorship, and refunding tickets is really putting a damper on things… for those in Vancouver.

Meanwhile here in Victoria, we are fortunate to share the same record breaking temperatures, but have the ability to fully enjoy it without sitting under the watchful, critical eye of the rest of the world. Who are still writing about Vancouver’s weather woes constantly.

I personally am benefitting from our balmy spring-like conditions, since this year I have taken up a new physical activity, by which I can enjoy the sunshine and all the fresh air my lungs can handle.

I decided last fall that I would partake in my first Times Colonist 10K Race. I wanted to run 10km in the year 2010. It’s a new venture for me, as in the last few years my workouts have only really consisted of yoga, and a particular video game…

Using Wii Fit to… gain weight? Yep.

In the last couple of years have I incorporated a regular fitness routine into my daily schedule. It takes place in my living room, using my TV. And if I really want, I can do it in my pyjamas. Though it isn’t extreme exercise, Wii Fit has enabled me to correct my previously poor posture, evaluate my gait, and gain muscle mass on my slender limbs.

Because of my through-the-roof metabolism I have always struggled to maintain a healthy weight, and gaining it was damn near impossible.

Nintendo’s Wii Fit has helped me to simply tone-up and reach a healthy BMI.

I may be one of the few individuals on the planet who can say they have successfully gained weight with Wii Fit.

With two years of performing push-up side planks, lunges, and various yoga poses in the comfort of my living room, I was ready to take my newly fit self to the streets.

Last Tuesday after starting with a custom-made Wii Fit routine to stretch, I strapped on my Saucony running shoes- which I acquired from my mom late last year when I decided I would run the TC10K- and I headed outdoors.

Tracking my 10K Training Progress

Within the last week and a half I have ran every other day. Using Run Keeper to track my progress, I have successfully covered 17.7 km of ground at a (slow, but progressing) average speed of 8.5 km/hour.

I have managed to cut a minute off of my average pace while bumping up my distance over these first 6 runs. My first run was 2.87 km. Today I completed exactly 4 km. I have set a schedule and plan to increase my distance and pace up until the big day- April 25th, 2010.

Co-workers and loved ones are supremely supportive and have been sharing their own personal running tips, which I have compiled here:

• Maintain good posture; leaning too far forward is tough on the diaphragm. Which brings me to…
• Find a breathing rhythm, and breath deeply; I have learned from past yoga instructors to breath deep into the diaphragm, to picture the oxygen reaching and energizing every part of your body.
• When running down hill ensure your feet stay beneath your body, don’t extend them too far forward, and again… keep your posture upright.
• Relax your arms and hands; keep them lose and hip-level, clenching your fists expends more energy.
• Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate- both well before and far after.

With just under 70 days to go, my only hope is to continue enjoying this new found venture, quicken my pace, build-up my stamina, and make it past the finish line around the 60-minute mark.

Now here’s hoping this brilliant weather keeps up until April.

Every year around this time the writer within me goes into hibernation. Few outdoor activities worth sharing, lack of travels to document in order to reminisce afterwards, overlapped by the hectic holiday season produce one boring blog with little new content in far too long.

For the past while anyone who happened to stumble upon my place in cyberspace, used to share vacation experiences and hometown hum-drums have been faced once again with crickets. But as an excuse for the silence- here is an example of how I have been able to keep busy, and creative, over the holidays…

A Snapshot of the Future

Though I may be one of the few individuals on the planet who has not read ‘the Secret‘ by Rhonda Byrne, I have always bought into the power of a positive mental attitude, with the notion that what energy you put out into the universe, is returned to you.

Future travel aspirations.

These are the mere two things I have in common with a book I have not read.

This past November I received an invitation from my former co-worker, Lynnell, to attend what she deemed to be a trial run at a ‘Vision Board’ evening. Taking the age old idea of making visuals of ones dreams, only made more popular by ‘the Secret,’ and committing to making them happen appealed to me. So I enlisted my mother and we RSVP’ed.

With cash and/or donation to the Mustard Seed food bank, a few old magazines, and future hopes and goals crammed into one’s cranial space, an evening of creativity took place at the Victoria Executive Centre that Thursday, Nov. 19th.

Prior to letting our creative juices flow, mom and I enjoyed an authentic Italian meal at the ever-enjoyable Pizzeria Prima Strada, in the heart of Cook Street Village.

Cut, Paste, Visualize, Repeat…

By the time 6:00pm rolled around, we were ready to make our way to the venue just a few doors from the Blue Fox on Fort St. With the wine and catered spread of local snacks and baked goods to fuel our small group, we embarked on our first ever attempts to design tangible, visual affirmations of what we want in our lives.

Around 3 hours later, after sifting through the heaps of magazines and cutting out anything that stood out, each of us ended up with a unique stack of quotes and photos. From there we had some time to assemble our words and images onto our poster board.

The finished product.

The outcome was huge insight into how varying each person’s wants and desires are, and how different our values can be. Some boards shared similar themes, but not one was alike in style or content. With positive feedback, and the ability to work out a reliable system based on the success of the first Vision Board event, Lynnell is holding a second one at the end of this month. For those who believe that starting a fresh calendar year means another shot at getting through a list of newly set resolutions, this is a fun way to hold yourself accountable to make that happen. I really enjoyed the event and know Lynnell will have plenty of continued success with Vision Board workshops in the future.

A frog once educated me in song form on the difficulties he faced being green.  I admit, he was typically a rather downcast character, often distraught over blending in with ordinary things or his relationship with one specific swine, so I didn’t pay much attention to him. In fact, I find his statement to be completely false.

These days, what Kermit once cursed- deeming his natural shade a constant detriment- is all the rave and practice amongst the masses who are hoping to either master, or cash in on, the art of being green.

For forward-thinking minds wanting to see this world around much longer than the Maya prophecy inaccurately predicts, buying local, seeking out chemical-free products, and expanding their knowledge while raising awareness have become an everyday pastime.

Personally, for years I have been phasing out cleaning, clothing, beauty and other products around my home and replacing them with certified organic and natural items.  Currently I am working on increasing my ability to live off of a local diet, ensuring I purchase products not laden with pesticides, herbicides or other pest and insect controlling substances.  I am also employed by a company who shares in these views, creating dynamic development properties certified platinum by the L.E.E.D standard, utilizing local, sustainable building materials and practices.

There is a growing list of products I now consistently pick-up when grocery shopping which cater to my need to be green.

For the sake of my stomach (and health) I always have on-hand:

• Level Ground Trading coffee – Cafe San Miguel is my favourite blend from this Victoria-based producer of fair-trade, locally roasted coffees. Their newest venture- the Ecotainer, is an absolute blessing to see, as I constantly find myself cringing at the site of conventional coffee cups being thrown into trash bins around town. If you’re not B.Y.O.Mug’ing then this is the best alternative.
• Island Bakery’s organic Sunflower and Flax or Ancient 7-grain bread – Located less than 50kms up north in quaint Cobble Hill, their wholesome breads are hard to beat.
• So Nice soy beverage – Produced in Vancouver, their completely natural and preservative-free soy is a staple of my diet.  I would not switch back to it’s nutrient-lacking-in-comparison cousin milk any day.
• Golden Organics peanut butter – No salt or sugar added, simply pure roasted organic peanuts made a ferry-ride away in Burnaby.
• Nature’s Path granola – Though not produced completely locally, their environmentally sound methods of production, goals to be waste-free by 2010, and an outstanding line of such good organic granola make for the perfect morning brain-boost (or when mixed with the above soy, or yogurt and a banana, you have yourself a work-out fueling snack).

Green reading material is widely available through various means.  Tips on how to bring out the earth-lover in all of us are plastered all over the internet, it has also been the theme of various Expos- such as this weekend’s Organic Islands Festival- and you can learn more how-to’s and benefits at most any spot you will find literature sold.  I would recommend this read- a gift my cousin Ali picked up for me last year- Adria Vasil’s national bestseller Ecoholic, a great resource for some of the best environmentally friendly information, products and services around.

I know Kermit the frog has been around for over 60 years now, but if he wants to maintain this level of popularity he might have to change his way of thinking. If only when it comes to being green.

This weekend was an eventful one, starting with a Canucks win, followed by a small and energetic Gob show, capped off with a family dinner to write home about…  Which, would be pointless.

It’s Tough Being a Pedestrian…

Friday night after the game, we ventured out of James Bay and braved the mean streets of Victoria’s downtown core, with all it’s flagrant criminals up to no good, to catch Gob at Lucky Bar. The show was extremely impressive and the full review follows, but I first need to vent about this jaywalking crack-down debacle of recent headlines.

Twice in the last few weeks I have been harassed by drivers of vehicles who somehow felt compelled to make me believe I was in the wrong for having them stop for a pedestrian… at a crosswalk. Long after I had cleared it and reached the other side of the street, one driver even yelled out the standard and uninspired “Why don’t you look both ways before crossing?” Yes I looked, both ways, a few times over.  Just as I would if I may be crossing the street when it is clearly safe outside of the crosswalk confines.

In fact using my best judgment and crossing mid-block- while keeping a watchful eye out for side-street on-coming traffic, parked cars that may pull-out, cyclists and motorcyclists- often seems safer than the legal but much more limited alternative. Very limited, and did I mention time-consuming? I would have to add another 4-6 mins. onto my work commute to cross only where permitted, and subtract a possible few years off my life with the way some people drive.

From cell phones and iPhones, to life stresses on the mind, to being generally busy. Most people these days simply cannot be trusted to get behind the wheel with their thoughts riding shotgun. Likewise for some people on foot, possibly?  I hate to seem biased, so I’m open to hearing the point-of-view of a driver.

And yes, we jaywalked on the way to Gob…

For $15/ticket- a small and worth-while charge for a set of 3 bands- we were fortunate to catch the event live at Lucky Bar this past Friday, February 27th.

Due to the hockey game we showed up after the first band and made it for my clean-slate, first-time-listen to Vancouver’s Carpenter.  They played an impressive set pulling material from last springs Law of the Land.  The fast-paced and positive punk tunes got the energy flowing in the small venue.

Sometime after midnight Gob hit the stage, and the veterans of the evening did not disappoint.  They are well-seasoned, as evident by their flawless run through better-known hits and some newer material, throwing down a superb set-list of songs from the span of their 15 year career. They could easily fill the slot of opener to larger more popular punk acts in bigger arenas. A bold statement, maybe, but I stand by it.

On the way out the door I picked up a re-usable cloth Carpenter’s bag, while the guys from the band and Gob hung out greeting the crowd.

A great night over-all, I would recommend checking them out if you get the chance.

Asinine neglect?  Post-vacation-disenchantism?  I have no valid explanation for such lack of posts, or why I’m making up words such as ‘disenchantism’ to cover up the neglect of a hobby I had grown so fond of.

As of early 2008 I staked out my lot on Planet Blog and committed myself to utilizing it as a creative outlet.  Observances and musings of day-to-day life, which then turned into travel blogging, and finally crickets.  Or horse-drawn carriages trotting past on the streets out front… Depending on where you live.  Though if I had my druthers, it would just be the crickets. However, onwards and upwards!  A new title (yes, it requires some work!) and a fresh design, an epoch in the scheme of this blog.

Though removed from the title, I cannot guarantee I will no longer “nonsensically ramble,” as I sincerely cannot help it folks.  What I can ensure is a reinstated commitment to posting regularly, particularly of life in this spectacularly stunning part of the world- Victoria, BC.

I have completed my share of traveling abroad for a short while, and I hope forthcoming posts will again touch on issues regarding the tourism-driven community in which I live, as well as a broader range of topics.  So, until next year… (Just kidding!)