Brew Run Run

The brew run run was a great success. There were about 15 of us at the starting line I think. We picked some more up along the way until we were about 25 of us or so. The weather was perfect. You can look at the pictures and see that everyone was having a very good time. We started a little after one and we were finishing up dinner after eight.

I woke up last night with a smile on my face thinking about how much fun I had. It was hard getting back to sleep. It was like I was really excited for something that had already happened.

It was a good mix of bicyclists and runners. There was even some Uberist activity. We will have to do it again in the summer. In the meantime, anyone can do it as long as the breweries are open, the thirst is abundant and the legs are working.


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Spokane Brew Run Run Design

This design is an adaptation of something you probably have seen before, especially if you run the streets of Spokane. Can you guess where it came from and what's different from the original design? No fair, if I have already told you where it came from!

Springtime in the basement...

Onions, peppers, tomatoes, eggplant. All have sprouted.

Eating Drinking and running.

A question always comes up when I mention the Brew Run Run. “How do I do this running, eating and drinking thing without throwing up?” Well, who says you’re not going to throw up? No. Just kidding. Like many pleasant events, the BRR is easily accomplished without any retching or nausea. You just need to not get too crazy and stick to a plan.

**When it comes to food, gauge where you are and where you want to be**. If you are a little hungry, have a little food. All of the legs of the run this year are fairly close together. No need to carbo load with a plate of onion rings at every eating opportunity (unless you want to). And the eating opportunities are limited. The reason there is a little time built in at NoLi is because there may not be much food for the next few hours. There is popcorn at Budge Brothers. I am going to eat some but not a whole bunch. Why is their popcorn so good? Because they pop it in butter, that’s why. No harmful vegetable oils. It is better to run a little hungry than a little full.

Many of the breweries say they will have a food truck on Saturdays. But, you can’t always count on them to be there, nor, in terms of speediness or portion control, can you always count on them if they are there.

Black Label has a bakery right next door and it looks like some kind of Asian food place will be opening soon. I am guessing Asian because there were four big rice cookers still in their boxes in the construction area.

And don’t forget “beer is food.” At least, that’s what my mom always told me when I was in elementary school. There will be no shortage of this liquid nutrition. 

**When it comes to beer, gauge where you are and where you want to be**. I find running with a slight buzz one of my most pleasurable experiences, in my very limited repertoire of pleasurable experiences. My legs move effortlessly. There’s a song in my heart and probably on my lips. Hops seem to be nature’s advil - working their subatomic fingers, massaging your mitochondria into an intercellular happy ending. But there can be too much of a good thing.

I limit myself to one (sometimes two) beers at each stop. There is no shame in asking for water instead of a beer at a brewery. That kind of hurt typing that, but it’s true. The breweries are in it for the long haul. They would rather you have a pleasant time at their place and come back again and again, instead of you being forever scarred and the centennial trail temporarily marred by drinking beer when you shouldn’t.

**When it comes to running, gauge where you are and where you want to be**. This is easy. If you are going to run this thing, realize walking counts the same as running. So does riding your bike, taking the bus or getting a ride. This isn’t a race. By simply showing up you are a winner (positive affirmation time). I hope we all get to be together at different places, but you may want to hang out at one place longer than the other. Or, you may want to vamoose half way through. You may be starting about the same time we’re finishing. That’s cool. Don’t hurt yourself. Have a good time and see Spokane in a way very few folks get to.

Thanks!

Brew Run Run Details

I set up a Facebook page for the upcoming Brew Run Run. You can find it here.
Also, here's the map for the run with details at each stop.

I will tweet at each stop and then it should go to Facebook.

My twitterfeed is here.

If you can run it, great! You can also bike it, walk it, bus it, or just meet us at one of the breweries.

Slowly getting ready to run ultras again.

Last week, 50 miles. This week, I am planning on 55.

The Christmas before last, Sarah gave me a running vest. I just started using it this year - for commuting to work and some of my longer runs. I think it has made a big difference to stay hydrated and to eat some food on longer runs. I should probably do some kind of review on the vest. It really beats carrying water on your waist.

Here's my route from yesterday's 20 miler. Riverside State Park's trails are beautiful right now.

If you want more details on the route:

Brew Run Run Deux in the works!

Planning on a second-annual brewery run on March 7th. It looks like we will have 7  breweries  to run to in the urban core of Spokane. The route will be around 7 miles. Do you see a theme? I am waiting for some more info from the breweries. I will plan a route and then post it here with times and other info. We had six breweries last year, but Black Label has finally opened and fills a gap of thirstiness that we encountered last run. Of course, you can ride a bike, take the bus or jetpack this event, as well. Here's how it went down on last year's test run:

Freezing Fog Forces Faineance

I have been enjoying the fog while running. It makes things a little more mysterious and interesting. Just what you need for long runs.

A few days ago I took this picture while out on a 12 miler. The Centennial Trail was completely clear of ice until crossing under TJ Meenach Bridge. Then it became a very slippery path. I finally got off below SFCC. This morning I ran home from work. There were occasional icy spots on the pavement and sidewalks. Some sidewalks were more icy than others. For some reason, really new sidewalks are a lot icier than old ones. Maybe they are still in the process of losing moisture still - months after their pour.

I need to get another five miles or so in today. I am using the weather as an awesome procrastination tool. Not near icy enough to warrant spikey galoshes. I will wait as long as it takes or until I am too hungry.

Stairs Appear in a Hole Outside of Town

The best feature in the The Spokesman-Review is the poetry column which appears every Sunday. When it comes to poetry, I've always been a fan and, sometimes, a willing participant. Last year, there was a great poem by John Philip Johnson in the SR. Here it is:

Bones and Shadows

 
By John Philip Johnson
 

She kept its bones in a glass case

next to the recliner in the living room,

and sometimes thought she heard

him mewing, like a faint background music;

but if she stopped to listen, it disappeared.

Likewise with a nuzzling around her calves,

she’d reach absent-mindedly to scratch him,

but her fingers found nothing but air.

One day, in the corner of her eye,

slinking by the sofa, there was a shadow.

She glanced over, expecting it to vanish.

But this time it remained.

She looked at it full on. She watched it move.

Low and angular, not quite as catlike

as one might suppose, but still, it was him.

She walked to the door, just like in the old days,

and opened it, and met a whoosh of winter air.

She waited. The bones in the glass case rattled.

Then the cat-shadow darted at her,

through her legs, and slipped outside.

It mingled with the shadows of bare branches,

and leapt at the shadow of a bird.

She looked at the tree, but there was no bird.

Then he blended into the shadow of a bush.

She stood in the threshold, her hands on the door,

the sharp breeze ruffling the faded flowers

of her house dress, and she could feel

her own bones rattling in her body,

her own shadow trying to slip out.
 

I really liked that!

If you've ever read any of my fiction or attempts at poetry, you know that I enjoy stuff that's a little spooky and a little weird and, hopefully, beautiful at the same time. This poem did it for me.  I researched and found that Mr. Johnson had a kickstarter campaign to raise funds to put out his poetry in an illustrated fashion. I sent in my $7 and eventually received two full-color comic books of his poetry and some cool schwag. This was a lot more than what I was originally promised. I also received a PDF for my Ipad.

A couple of years ago I did some water colors and then hand printed "poetry" on them. Something cool about spending a lot of time painting something only to risk destroying the whole thing with a quick misspelling. I know that these professional illustrators weren't at risk of destroying an entire page of work when hand printing the prose. Yet when I read the hand printed poetry on top of the beautiful artwork, I still feel the risk involved. 

You can check out John's website here.

 

Spokane Running!

In case you missed it, The Road Runners Club of America acknowledged Spokane as the Outstanding Runner Friendly Community of the Year. 

That Spokane is at the top of the charts for running is probably known more by running fans who live outside of Spokane than those of us who live here. I mentioned four years ago that, at Nike Nationals in Portland, the sports announcer noted how Spokane continually qualifies more runners for Nationals than any other city - from anywhere. He called Spokane the "Rift Valley of Running." In a cross-country running magazine, an article suggested that if you have a high school girl who wants to do well in x-country, she should go to high school in upstate New York. If you have a boy, he should go to high school in Spokane, Washington. Pretty amazing.

In some other parts of the country, one never has to worry about ice when out for a run. Here in Spokane, it's a worry for most of us for a good portion of the year. So much so, that many stay indoors to use treadmills once winter hits. Yuck. I have to admit, that when Ike (my son who runs for WWU) is home for Christmas break, he never worries about the ice much. He just keeps running as normal. And he never falls down!

I hate treadmills and I really like being outside. I run year-round, as does Sarah.  Running is, for me, more of a mental health thing than a physical health thing - especially in the winter and spring.

Today, was a very slippery day with freezing fog coating everything. But, as usual, I stayed upright and slipped very little due to my Due North carbide spikey galoshes. I've had these things for at least five years (if I wasn't so lazy, I would do a search of my blog to verify that). I bought replacement carbide tips, thinking they would wear out or become detached at some point. They never have. They beat YakTrax on the ice by a long shot. In the snow, they do well too.

I run with these things probably three months out of the year. I can't  recommend them enough. They are a lot cheaper than a treadmill and a lot more fun.

Cars skid past stop signs into traffic, as you deftly maneuver around the smoldering wreckage. Small children and squirrels look at you with amazement in their unblinking eyes. An ambulance seems to be shadowing you. You can hear the collective "DUMBASS!" grumbled by creeping motorists, as you seem to be making better time than them. Without a doubt, you are having a better time than them.

SPOKANE IS #1!

Ice fishing countdown

My new ice auger is on back order. Until then, ice fishing poetry will have to suffice.






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Bennidito's Car-nage Continues!

Before the big Lincoln Street construction project,  Bennidito's parking lot was a little smaller. Walking to the grocery store, we would always pass cement parking curbs which had been pushed into the street by, what I would assume, were patrons who partook too many beer buddies and the beer to which the beer buddies are buddied. These hunks of precast cement were scattered about the sidewalk and street. Occasionally they would be replaced, only to, once again, suffer the same fate that very night. Apparently, if your SUV is big enough, and your bar tab is big enough, you don't notice the whole curb thing.

Now that the parking lot has been enlarged, it also features a beautifully ornate street lamp. Yellow poles have been wisely placed to protect the street light. Here is the result:

It's a smorgasbord of various broken taillights - both foreign and domestic. I would like to make something out of them. If I did, I would gift it to Bennidito's. Still my favorite restaurant.

But here's the thing, and I don't want to sound like an ass,  but you probably would never bust out your taillights at Bennidito's, if you rode a bike, took the bus or walked to Spokane's best pizza and beer. One of the reasons we moved where we did 18 years ago was so we could easily walk to the grocery store, restaurants, parks, etc. We could only afford a reasonably-sized house because of this decision. And that too, has been a very good thing. When Bennidito's moved into the neighborhood shortly after we did, we considered ourselves even more fortunate.

There are bus stops all around Bennidito's. If you live close by it's walkable. There are places to lock your bike. You could even drive your big-ass vehicle and park it in the very large Rosauer's parking lot and walk up the one flight of stairs to Bennidito's.

If you have too good of a time (which is easy to do, I know) you could easily do more than just hit some inanimate yellow poles while backing out a car or truck which barely fit in the lot when you were sober.

Christmas Eve

Jack really likes books. I have never seen a kid who likes being read to more than him. Robert the Rose Horse is an old favorite. Yes, that is an ugly Christmas sweater/vest. Hope everyone's Christmas was great and it keeps on going for a while!

Holiday Lights

Don't forget to visit the Gaiser Conservatory's holiday light display. Always a beautiful spectacle. There are some changes from years past, including a new water feature. Details are here.







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Morning ride to work.

When you drive to work in the fog of a predawn morning, it's unremarkable at best. On a bike, though, you taste the mist. You feel gradients of temperature on your face. Unfiltered strangeness in a murky sky. There's a light close to its horizon. You want to follow it. But the shrouded trees form a picket. On foot, standing with them, under and in, you know this is where you were meant to be.

3D Downtown Christmas

Some 3D pictures from last night. The Davenport Trees of Opulent Elegant Christmastude and the new holiday light show in Riverfront Park.

I have heard from some that they are unable to do the cross-eyed 3D thing. I was unable to do the "magic-eye" puzzles from the 90s. I feel your pain. Unless you have some 3D glasses on hand, this is probably the only way I can get these pictures to you online.  However, if you do have 3D glasses, I will put some pictures up in a format of your choosing.

The gist of the cross-eyed method is to stare at the two pictures and cross your eyes so a third is formed in the middle of the two. Then relax a little and just look at the middle one. 3D! Here is a link to a more expansive lesson on how to do this.

Click on the pictures of your choice to make bigger:

Portal into the primeval.

Was riding my bike home this morning when I saw what looked like an ordinary pothole, 2'x2.5', in the middle of the street, just north of Manito pond at the 18th and Division curve.

Upon further inspection it looks like it is about 2 to 2.5 feet deep, extending into a little cave, maybe 6 feet long heading toward the pond. The roof of the cave is pretty much the two inches of asphalt. Yesterday, the hole might have swallowed Turkey Trotters on their way to the run. 

I called Dispatch and asked for the Street Department to block off the road and then stopped in to let Station 9 know what the dealio was. When those guys got there to cone it off, the Street Department already had it blocked off.

No sign of buried treasure or even any dinosaur eggs in the cave.  Still pretty cool to see. Usually I only see cavitation like this around broken water mains. There you go.

Update. Looks like the street will be shut down for a while:

Nice little play!

If you are looking for something different to do, check out Stage Left's production of  The Thread Men. I have been wanting to go to this theater for quite a while, and finally Sarah and I got the chance last night. The Thread Men is a one-act play that has a neat plot and some fine acting. It costs $10 to see. I liked this production and the theater itself - a lot.

I have really been getting back into live theater lately. We saw The Glass Menagerie at The Modern Theater (formerly known as Interplayers) last week. I find it very engrossing to be that close to the actors and am always very moved by their courage and their work.

The Thread Men will be Stage Left's entry for Washington State Kaleidoscope Theatre Festival.

If you want to see the transformation from a small storefront to a very cool theater, click here. 

Stage Left, in their mission statement, lets us know that the reason they are doing what they are doing is to make theater a transformative experience for all. I think this is a very noble goal and Spokane needs them to keep hammering away. Please support them and go see a play!

Hello my name is...

 The United Federation of Planets has opened the door for many to serve in Star Fleet.

Juli, here, from the Gamma Quadrant, may seem alien to us Terrans, but back on her home planet, she's a beauty. Juli, thanks for your service. Welcome to Spokane!

Award winning...

Bought this can of steel cut oatmeal. We have a new pressure cooker, and the machine cuts the cooking time down to about 7 minutes. It usually takes significantly longer to make the steel cut stuff on the stove. 

McCann's won a "Uniformity of Granulation" certificate in 1893 at the Chicago Exhibition. And nothing tastes better than uniform granulation.  I know that "they," not "me," won the award, but I feel like this uniformity of granulation is now inside of me, and today I felt proud to be a part of something bigger, something more uniform and granulated. It fueled a 12.5 mile run quite nicely, to boot.

My nephew Joey's love of Halloween

My nephew, Joey, and his girlfriend made an amazing Halloween Haunted House. He says that over 1000 people visited it last night. He was also collecting food for the food bank and there were tons of donated canned goods for Second Harvest. Joey is leaning on the auctioneer's podium. In a few hours there will be a man in a top hat standing there, auctioning off zombies. The zombie holding pen is to the right of Joey.

 You can click this picture. Make it bigger. Cross your eyes, and be 3Demented. "Ooooh Scary!" - Count Floyd.

Joey's efforts made the local news last week too. You can watch the video or read the story here.

Now that it's the day after Halloween, I will give you a little daylight tour without the actors, without the lights and special effects. I am really impressed by the work Joey and April did. They really are artists and worked hard to give something to their community.

 Really big spider meal.

 You don't want to pick any of these apples.

 Really cool fence that they made around the compound.

 Repurposed Santa finds gnome duty delicious.

 Lots of inanimate stuff with real actors mixed in when you least expect it.

 Vampire chickens!

They even have a daycare available.

 

Through the swamp.

 Hanford Swamp.

 Witches enjoying their dinner.

 Must be Chinese food because those look like chopsticks.

Until next year.

The pictures don't really do justice to the project. There are also a lot of tunnels, sound effects, lighting effects and it sounds like about 20 live actors too. Joey was going to zombie flash mob the place later in the night. Very cool!