Countdown to the Gay Games - Music for a 25K

Week 9

It has literally been raining all week making running a difficult prospect. But I am happy to say that this week, mid training, I am up to running 25K. In celebration of this and my new found love of the iPod, I created a playlist for my run. If you have any great recommendations for new songs, let me know.

The Letting Go - Melissa Etheridge
Yeah, it's about breaking up but it's a great stretching song. And y'all know how I like that misery shit.

Halfway Home - Bill Bonk
Almost Ran - Josh Canova
These two songs are total chill, pass the time, remind your legs that it's going to be a long run kind of songs. I also think it is ironic that one of the first songs is entitled halfway home when essentially i just left the house.

She's No You - Jesse McCartney
At this point in my run, I'm at the Northpoint watertower and getting my first look at the lake. I like the hook to this song and I sort of fashion that this cute boy is singing to me.

Let Go - Frou Frou
"Cuz there's beauty in a breakdown"

Soar - Christina Aguilera
This really should have been a gay anthem but I think it got eclipsed by the other songs on the Dirrty album. I'm at about 2.5 miles now and my legs are burning so when Xtina sings "spread your wings and soar", I say "how far".

They (Eye in the Sky Mix) - Jem
Domino - Thunderball
Ready, Steady, Go - Paul Oakenfold
It's time to start putting it into gear as I reach the boathouses. Depending on the time of day, the marina is hopping with people and I'm beginning to really find my groove and pace. Jem is awesome and I thank Tray for introducing me to her music. Domino has a groovy lounge feel, sort of like the music they play before all the clubbers get really going. Ready, Steady, Go ramps me up for what's to come.

Come On - Andy Hunter
From the Alias soundtrack. It is one of the songs they play when Sydney Bristow is kicking ass. I'm at about 4.5 miles now and it is an easy place to start slowing down but this song puts me over the edge. Running past Bradford Beach, it's boy watching time and I sort of fashion myself kicking a little ass too.

What About - Janet Jackson
This was the song that made me want a career as a backup dancer for Janet. Alas, I went to medical school. But the angry lyrics and pounding beat are strategically placed on this run to get me up the Lake Park hill. People passing by see me focused and mouthing all the words "you didn't fuck up she only gave you head".

Since You've Been Gone (DeFranco Remix) - Kelly Clarkson
Baby Boy (Junior Vasquez mix) - Beyonce
Apart - Dangerous Muse
Hex Club Mix - Britney Spears
Sorry (Paul Oakenfold Mix) - Madonna
Harder - Manny Lehman
Chris Cox Megamix - Britney Spears
Past 5 miles and 45 minutes, the running gets easy. The legs go into automatic and it's just a matter of putting one foot in front of the other. This section gets substituted often (thanks J&R for loading me up from the get go) but it essentially is filled with mindless dance mix and electronic stuff to keep me going at a good pace. For the next three miles, my thoughts wander. Notables though would be Dangersous Muse's retro 80's sexually ambiguous sound. Also Madonna's song Sorry just makes me crazy. It reminds me of dancing at ARQ in Sydney. Harder reminds me of my early days on the dance floor - Manny never lets me down, even today. As the runs get longer, this section will expand. Suggestions?

Canned Heat - Jamiroquai
Transitioning to the final third of the run, it's somewhat important to slow it down a bit or I won't be able to walk tomorrow. I'm a total freak because I first heard this song on the Center Stage soundtrack and I've always loved it.

You're A God - Vertical Horizon
Don't Look Down - BBMak
On A High - Duncan Shiek
Breathe - Michelle Branch
Why Can't I - Liz Phair
The wind down starts at mile 9. These songs have slower verses but tend to crank just a little bit during their choruses. I'm passing Alterra coffeeshop staring down all of the intellectuals. The Lafayette hill poses a challenge but it's probably a good time to walk a bit anyway.

I'll Take it From Here - Jonatha Brooke
On Saturday Afternoons in 1963 - Ricki Lee Jones
This Woman's Work - Kate Bush
The Water is Wide - Karla Bonoff
These are the slow songs. Jonatha Brooke is such a great lyricist, I wish I could write like she does. I tend to slow way down during these songs until I am home stretching out my aching muscles.

Noche de Toxinas - Kinky
Occasionally, the run hasn't been going well and I'm hurting on the home stretch. Newberry Street can seem like it goes on forever at this point. So I built in a kicker in case I need a bit of a lift to make it home.

Countdown to the Gay Games - Unity

Week 7 and 8

So things are starting to smooth out a bit in the training. The running is getting a bit easier though I wish that the weather would even out. Between the rain and the colder days and my schedule, finding a good time to run is somewhat difficult. I made a decision to change up my route this week and run up in the northeast suburbs. Unfortunately this bypasses the lakefront (and the cute boys) but, cute boys aside, the scenery is much more interesting to pay attention to. I also made the decision to run with the iPod. Holy shit - I love it. I actually created playlists and everything for running the different distances and some of the songs are strategically placed at distances where I know I have a tendency to slow down. Listening to the music also gets me out of my head and keeps me from overthinking things. I don't have an overthinking problem do I?

There are pros and cons to doing things differently or thinking about things differently. Though listening to music keeps me on track and brings me into the 21st century, I don't want to listen to music on race day. I want to pay attention to the course, the other runners, the spectators, and my thoughts as I run. Will I be able to run the race without music if I didn't train without it? Though the new course seems to be motivating, I really like running the lakefront because I get to see other runners like me instead of suburbanites pulling over their SUV's to take a cell call. Which is the better strategy? Can I achieve what I set out to do with one strategy if it differs from what I am supposed to do? Will a strategy that gets me through today, hurt me in my final goal?

I think sometimes strategy can get in the way of things or can make us lose sight of what we are really working toward. Recently when discussing the efforts of the Wisconsin fight against the proposed amendment against same sex marriage, an exhausted person said to me "this would be alot easier for straight people to swallow if it weren't for all of the gay men who are only about parties, drugs, and sex." To which I sort of had to laugh (after being mildly offended). It makes me think about what is going on in the Castro in SF. Now that many gay couples are beginning to sprout families, they want their old digs, the Castro, to be a "cleaner", more family friendly place. As if your ability to be visible as a gay parent would be even possible without the early visibility of places like the Castro. When strategizing our lives, I fear that we are our worse enemies. Those against us are unified in their strategy while we still need to be reminded of the definition of unity. My response to that tired person (and oh so tired comment) was "you sound just like they do. You sound just like the people you are trying to convert. You want them to see gay people as equal yet you don't believe it yourself."

To me, this marriage fight isn't about the right to marry. Hell, I fight for it and I'm not exactly sure that I would enter into marriage with my BF unless it meant better health care benefits. It's about equality - having the same rights as everyone else whether you want them or not. Because that's what rights are for. They should be there whether we need them or not. The monogamous gay couples should fight for free anonymous AIDS tests and needle exchange programs because someday they might need it. Circuit boys should fight for marriage equality because that Winterparty trick just might stick around someday. Gay men should fundraise for breast cancer research just like Lesbians raise money for AIDS research. The Castro daddies should fight for keeping the Castro the way it is because their kids should have a place to explore and discover themselves the way they did. We will never achieve equality if we don't first start seeing each other as equals. And we need to be united on that front.

Week 6

Where in the World Is...

A recent survey done for National Geographic found that 6 out of every 10 Americans aged 18 - 24 couldn't find Iraq on a map. I think it is incredibly interesting that we are sending these same Americans to a country and they don't exactly know where they are. One third in this age group couldn't accurately point out Louisiana.

Are we missing major steps as we inundate our youth with news and reports and current events without giving them the basic information about the world we live in? Have we become so isolated and undereducated? Fewer than 3 in 10 thought that it was even important to know the locations of countries in the news and only 14% thought it was important to learn another language.

I agree with President Bush that no child should be left behind because he might not be able to find his way home.

Will America fall at the hands of its own sheer stupidity and indifference?