Eye of the Tiger

Today I ran the furthest I have ever run. Ten miles in fact. It was the Soldier Field 10 mile race that went from Soldier Field to 53rd in the south side. You could not have asked for a more beautiful day. It was sunny and breezy. Megan and I were running partners. Raisa, Lauren, and Robin kept pace with a faster crowd.
I was really nervous going into it because I did not have the chance to train as much as I would have liked. Megan and I, however, kept a brisk pace for our under five feet legs and ended up finishing it in less than two hours. And considering we had to make a pit stop at the Leprecans, I think we maintained a good pace. Megan and I ran onto Soldier Field through the entrance the football players enter through. (The very same field the Super Bowl winning Saints have played on.) We high fived on the jumbotron while crossing the finish line. I think after today I would like to train for a half marathon. What is two and a half more miles? I would like to do it here and here.


After the race we all went to Bagel on Damen for sandwiches and had a victorious picnic in the park. We all got medals. A special thanks to Robin for picking up our race packets and feeding us pasta the night before.

I wish I could move like him.

Seriously, how does one grow up to become this guy? How do you raise a Francis Farewell Starlite? Do you just play him a lot of Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding, and Peter Gabriel performances and then send him to school in New York City with a backpack full of tap shoes and dreams?

Music Video - "Darling, It's Alright" - Francis and the Lights from Francis and the Lights on Vimeo.

The Top (Music Video) from Francis and the Lights on Vimeo.

Ladies that Brunch

Breakfast at Lula Cafe. Nom nom nom.

Sweet Summer Style

We just went through most of season 2 of "True Blood." I resisted it for a good while and the snippets I did catch weren't that appealing. But, I so wanted to like it. If for anything, because I loved Alan Ball's "Six Feet Under" so, so much.

Plus it is a show about vampires. In Louisiana! Who am I to deny it? We rented the first season and it was addicting. I love Sookie Stackhouse. I must concede that she is a much better role model for the ladies than some vampire obsessed heroines. Her character has boatloads of southern moxie. She uses good manners like armor and sticks to her own moral code. With quotes like this, "You might be a vampire, but you will respect me and treat me like the lady I am," she makes me want to speak more southernly.

Don't get me wrong, Buffy Summers is hands down, the best hero around. And "True Blood" is quick to drop the chosen one's name on a regular basis, making it all the more endearing.

The show is pretty darn over the top sexy. But, if you take it like a comedy it is corny in a good way. I also like how Alan Ball tackles big subjects like God and mortality. They have 2,000 year old vampires, so why not?

I want to incorporate more Sookie fashion into my life.

Movin'

I think this is my tenth move in less than ten years. You think I would have learned to acquire less possessions in my quasi-nomadic existence. But, no. I have so much stuff. Most of the stuff are books, comics, and photo albums. I come from a family of collectors. And it is hard to resist those collecting impulses.

I'll have to wait until I am settled in one place for a good, long while before I can collect anything heavy. I hereby solemnly swear that for the rest of my graduate career to fully take advantage of the CPL in lieu of buying books. They are just too heavy to keep moving.

I am purging a lot of my stuff and making Goodwill boxes. It feels good and bad all at once. Good to lighten my heavy load. Bad because I wasted money on objects that I don't need nor want anymore. I am breaking the bad habit of impulsive buying and getting a lot more choosy. It mostly feels good.


I really like this Apartment Therapy checklist and am going to the hardware store to get some spackling paste.

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