Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Cold Turkey

... Has got me on the run / My body is aching / Goose-pimple bone ...

In memory of John Lennon, murdered 30 years ago today. I was eating breakfast on the 9th when I heard the news. Stopped the spoon before I could take another bite and the cereal hung there in midair for a moment as I pondered what I had just heard. One of The Beatles, dead. A hard day's night that was.

Which makes running in the cold of winter (I know, it's still not really winter) seem not so bad. Except when you come up empty. What do you report in a blog about finding stuff while running when you don't find anything? I even altered my route to be sure to find a real treasure. You see, I noticed while riding my bike downtown yesterday that the house on Kellogg Street just north of Water Street that is perpetually a mess, with trash and toys scattered across the terrace and into the street, was its usual unkempt state. But lying in the street about two feet from the curb was a small Cowboy Woody figure, from the movie "Toy Story."

I decided to leave it because I was riding, not running, and besides, the kids might actually rescue him. Indeed they must have done. Too bad for me, because I returned home empty-handed. I did spot the back of a cell phone case. Otherwise, nothing but trash. So, I have put on my Christmas wish list a pair of grabber tongs so I can walk sometimes and pick up some of the trash on my running route. At least that's my proclaimed noble intent. We'll see if I follow through.


Today's stats
Temp: 15 degrees F
Distance: 4.5 miles
Weekly Total: 9 miles
Treasure: Nada.

iPod Playlist (shuffle)
Don't You (Forget About Me) - Simple Minds
In the Flesh - Pink Floyd
Choctaw Bingo (Live) - James McMurtry
For You Blue - The Beatles
Winding Road - Bonnie Somerville
Waiting for the Worms - Pink Floyd
When Ye Go Away - The Waterboys
Lightning Crashes - Live
All You Need is Love - The Beatles
Mad Season - Matchbox Twenty

1 comment:

  1. Rob,
    I'm SO glad you wrote about wanting the grabber-tongs for Christmas. For the last several years, I've been thinking it would be a great idea to get one of those "litter sticks" (the name I gave them) that you see ...um..."community service types" using when they're out in the ditches with their orange vests. I see SOOOO many aluminum cans around Macomb, not to mention other stuff. The hippie in me cannot stand to see such egregious litter. I'm even idealistic enough to think that if I helped pick up the park around my house, if there were fewer cans and other garbage all over the ground, maybe people would be less tempted to toss stuff out.

    I've failed to follow through on my plan, though, because, well, it seems like a noble idea, and then when I really think about it, I'm like, "But if I'm trying to exercise walk, then what am I going to do with all the garbage as I'm trying to pump my arms?" Or, "What if I get hit by a car?" That sort of thing.;) Also, where does one purchase a "litter stick"?
    Anyway I love knowing that this kind of thing is on your mind, too.
    AL

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