New record average mile time tonight over a 5-mile run. Wouldn't have believed this 2 months ago. I pushed hard and did 8:30 avg. mile times tonight.
Running as a gift.
No matter what, though, I keep up my running. Running every day is a kind of lifeline for me, so I'm not going to lay off or quit just because I'm busy.
~Haruki Murakami, WHAT I TALK ABOUT WHEN I TALK ABOUT RUNNING
This rings true for me now, as well. Though it would have surprised me in the past if someone had told me I would one day feel this way. It is a lifeline. It's my new connection to things. My way of keeping track of time, and cleaning out the rusty and crowded pipes of my mind. My thoughts are becoming stronger. Clearer. More focused. Anyway, it's hard to describe, but now, running has become kind of like my "church."
As Murakami says, my own "little void" where I am alone, and nobody can bother me. And I let my thoughts sort themselves as they come and go, and I work through them with my body itself, rhythmically pounding the pavement on a winding journey of its own, cutting directly into and through--and then bursting out of--the thoughts as everything merges into a kind of physiological connection, distilling, separating, and ordering things.
So many things seem to fall into place much more effortlessly after a run. It's like a mess of cards have been reshuffled, organized, and put into their proper boxes. Something like that.
Tonight's Run:
Distance: 5 miles
Theme Song: "Sound of e (Murphy's New Club Mix) - Desperate Deejays
Playlist so far:
"Under the Pressure" - The War on Drugs
"Somewhere" - Soundgarden
"Owner of a Lonely Heart" - Yes
"Rose Garden" - Lynn Anderson
"Napalm Love" - Air
"Lips Like Sugar" - Echo and the Bunnymen
"Truth Hits Everybody" - The Police
"U Can't Touch This" - MC Hammer
"Tap Out" - The Strokes
"When Day is Done" - Django Reinhardt
"Sunrise, Sunset" - Bright Eyes
"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" - Devo
"Take No Prisoners" - Megadeth
"For Whom the Bell Tolls" - Metallica
"Air Cal" - Com Truise
"Surfing On a Rocket" - Air
"Andy's Chest" - Lou Reed
"Only Shallow" - My Bloody Valentine
"Love Love Love" - The Mountain Goats
"まいご" - Joe Hisaishi / 井上あずみ
"Easier Said Than Done" - MxPx
"Just Don't Give a F**k" - Eminem
"It's up to You" - The Specials
"Searching" - Quarion
"Searching With My Good Eye Closed" - Soundgarden
"Looking for Love" - The Cars
"I'm so Free" - Lou Reed
"Don't Pass Me By" - The Beatles
"Don't Cry Wolf" - The Damned
"Don't Swallow the Cap" - The National
"Sound of e" (Murphy's New Club Mix) - Desperate Deejays
Saturday's long run.
My plan is to end up here, at Yahiko Shrine in beautiful Yahiko Village, Niigata.
Serious long run this weekend. Here's the route and distance.
Wish me kick-ass-ness! Thanks for reading!
~KafkA
(Thanks for stopping by. If you missed the last installment of MARATHON BLOG, number 19, you can find it HERE. If you want to know why I am keeping this blog, and the inspiration for starting such a record on the blockchain, you can find the first MARATHON BLOG post HERE.)
Graham Smith is a Voluntaryist activist, creator, and peaceful parent residing in Niigata City, Japan. Graham runs the "Voluntary Japan" online initiative with a presence here on Steem, as well as Facebook and Twitter. (Hit me up so I can stop talking about myself in the third person!)
