Showing posts with label art. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art. Show all posts

Saturday, December 24, 2016

Awesome holiday running gifts

ER posterized
Today's run (street): 2.5 miles
Yesterday's run (street): 3.2 miles
Thursday's  run (street): 3.2 miles
Last Sunday's run (street): 3.8 miles

It's the first day of Chanukah,  Christmas Eve and of course Holiday, the arbitrary period of time of celebration for Pastafarianism. I finished up business for 2016 on Thursday and worked from home which allowed me to get out for a run in the morning. The day before, when I was still in the office, one of my managers gave me a very thoughtful holiday gift - an Under Armor hat and running gloves. I wasted no time trying them out and wore them on my Thursday morning run.

I was off from work as of Friday and out until January 3rd. That should give me an opportunity to get in some extra running miles. Yesterday's run was similar to Thursday's. I mixed up my route but ended up covering about the same distance as the day before. We were expecting overnight visitors, so I had to be finished up and presentable before they arrived.

Winter running gear makes me happy
This morning I got out early  so I could get in my run before our guests woke up. I dressed for 43° weather and clipped a flashing light to a pocket in my running pants in deference to the still dark skies. I was almost out the door when my daughter mentioned that it had started raining. I took a quick peek outside and confirmed that she was correct. I added a running rain jacket, switched my Zantes for my Cascadias and went out into the dark, wet morning.

I don't love running in the rain but with good gear it's not really a big deal. My jacket kept my upper body dry and I was careful to avoid the puddles that form where streets intersect. I wasn't feeling particularly ambitious and, as the conditions for running weren't particularly good, I ended up cutting it short. I felt that 2.5 miles was more than enough today.

Later in the day we had a family holiday lunch. That included my drinking a Guinness that (surprisingly) didn't put me immediately to sleep. Gifts were exchanged and I was very excited to see that my wife had made me an awesome Emerging Runner collage. She took many photos and images from my posts going back to the start of the blog in 2008. It includes a lot of artwork I'd made, as well as pictures of friends and family. It will go up in our guest room / office / "fitness center" to inspire me, along with the other bibs, pictures and other running mementos.

We have a lot planned over the next eight days and I'm looking forward some rest and relaxation. I'm wishing my friends and family great holidays and great running as this weekend.

Sunday, July 3, 2016

Three runs and a little culture

Selfie in the Scharf black-light room
Today's run (Bethpage bike trail): 3.75 miles
Yesterday's run (street): 4.75 miles
Friday's run (street): 3.2 miles

I'm in the middle of a four day break from work -- five days if you count working from home on Friday.  Although I still have long gaps between my last run of the weekend and the first one of the week, I always try to run whenever I'm off.

On Friday, I got out in very pleasant conditions and covered my usual loop in time to start an early business day. With schools out for summer, the roads were fairly clear. At one point in the run, I passed a team of landscapers. One of  them was using a high powered weed whacker and, as I ran by, I felt the sting of a pebble that hit my elbow. It left a mark, but at least it didn't break the skin. That was the most memorable part of that run.

Yesterday I had a little more time to run, so I broke out of my neighborhood and headed over to the business park. On my way back, I did a loop in a connecting development and ran by a parked car whose occupant was puffing on a vile smelling cigarette. The acrid odor followed me up the road and didn't disappear until I rounded a corner that put me downwind of the source. As I made my way out of the neighborhood, I noticed that the car was gone, but the reek of tobacco remained

I went over to Bethpage  this morning to run the bike trail. Again, my time was limited and I kept it fairly short. I got out early and there were already plenty of walkers, cyclists and runners on the trail. There was even a skateboarder (or skateboarder wannabe) who stood unmoving on his board in the middle of the path, listening to music. On my way back, he was in exactly the same position, still not moving.

The reason I needed to do a quick run was because the Emerging Runner family was going to the Nassau County Museum in Roslyn Harbor where they had two amazing exhibits: Kenny Scharf and Glamorous Graffiti featuring works from Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Futura, Lee and Cash. The grounds of the museum are beautiful and filled with interesting sculptures. There were lots of animals running around, including this fox. If you live in western Long Island, I highly recommend a visit to this place.

Moments later it jumped over a lazy dog
The only Speed Racer I saw today
Artist: Lee Quiñones
Keith Haring originals
I thought I saw TPP
Tomorrow is the Fourth, and we'll be doing all the usual Independence Day stuff. Before that, I'm hoping to get in a few miles. If I get to the track early enough, I may get it all to myself.

Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Atone deaf

It's not kosher to sample this artwork
Today's run (street): 3.25 miles

This seems to be the week for religious observance and celebration. Apparently the pope is in Washington D.C. today (you'd think the news would cover that). Today is also Yom Kippur, a holiday dedicated to self reflection and atonement. I don't personally subscribe to any religious dogma, but I do think there's value to taking a day to appreciate what you have. My kids have the holiday off from school, so I took the day off as well. Not that I've done much reflecting or atoning.

I suppose I did a little of the former during my morning run. It was a cool 64° with low humidity. I miscalculated on my gear and wore a long sleeved shirt with running shorts. I was comfortable at first, but began to regret my clothing choice after a half mile. Fortunately, there was a strong breeze coming from the northeast that kept it tolerable most of the time.

Given the holiday, I had the roads pretty much to myself. I gave thanks for the lack of school buses and maniacs driving sanitation trucks and atoned for not doing speed work on a day that would have been perfect for it. I didn't push too hard, but still ran a little faster than my current normal. The low humidity probably helped there.

Yom Kippur is a holiday where observant people fast until sundown. I broke that rule about fifteen minutes after waking up this morning. Maybe earlier, if drinking coffee is also out of bounds. In between not reflecting and atoning, we took a drive over a nearby college to see a great exhibit by the artist Kevin O’Callaghan. The above picture is an example of his work. In the spirit of fasting, I didn't take a bite.
 

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