Strawberries and ships

The men o' yon forest, they ask it of me

How many strawberries grow in the salt sea?

And I ask of them back with a tear in my e'e 

How many ships sail in the forest?

Dead sexy, baby!

That verse from “I Once Loved a Lad” struck me this morning. Usually some line or other catches my fancy as the songs play randomly while I run. Most times it’s just a clever turn of phrase or a double entendre or something, maybe an astute observation I either hadn’t thought of or didn’t think anybody else had. For some reason, though, today this “what’s best” banter spoke to me beyond the usual.

I think it was the notion that there are a great many wonders in this world and everybody has their favorites. As my father is fond of saying, “If everybody liked the same thing, there wouldn’t be enough to go around.” So it is good that some prefer the forest and strawberries and others the sea. For the record, I lean toward the forest, particularly in the mountains. And yet, I once dreamed of a Navy career, subs perhaps.

A little background on the above: The song appears on “Princess of Flowers,” a solo CD by Margaret Davis. Formerly of Galesburg, Margaret is the daughter of Knox College professor Rodney Davis. My close friend and former deskmate Janet Klockenga wrote The Register-Mail’s first story about Margaret when her band Avalon Rising released its self-titled debut CD. I did later stories subsequent releases by Avalon Rising, a spin-off group, Broceliande, and Margaret.

My favorite disc by this bunch of medieval troubadours is “The Starlit Jewel,” a collection of music from the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. The group put music to the songs and poems written in “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings.” Some of it is just fun – pub songs and the like – but some are truly beautiful tunes.

As for running, I stayed indoors today, er, Wednesday. It was cold, below freezing, and I resorted to my lazy ways. But at least I finally ran. Skipped Monday and Tuesday for personal reasons. Meh. Let me tell you, though, I found two goodies in the past four days despite running indoors. Sunday night on my way home from work I spotted a fuzzy-looking blob on the sidewalk at the corner of Prairie and Main, by Norwest Bank. It turned out to be a purple “PleasureWigs” wig. Kinda sexy. Now I just need to find a cutie to wear it… 

While biking all over creation on errands Wednesday I picked up a decent pair of gloves. How warm they are remains to be felt, but they’re in good condition – fleece-type gloves. I’ll test them after I wash them.

Let me just note that’s one more reason to bike and walk/run. You don’t tend to find cool stuff when you’re driving.    

Today's Stats

Temp: 28 degrees F outdoors

Distance: 3.1 miles

Treasure: 1 "Pleasure Wig" (purple, short), found Sunday night; 1 pair gloves (brown, “Chereskin” brand).

iPod Playlist (shuffle)

When the Walls CameDown - The Call (God, I love these guys. RIP, Michael Been)

Floating Back (live) - The Call

Narrow Way, Pt. 1 - Pink Floyd

Ladies Man - Joni Mitchell

Poor Poor Pitiful Me(live) - Warren Zevon (Zeve kicks it with the 12-string!)

Beautiful - Christina Aguilera (Included on a mix for my oldest daughter - true for all three.)

Station Call - Wynton Marsalis

I Once Loved a Lad - Margaret Davis