Last time before major tuneomatic surgery

So on my trip to Charlottesville, I dropped my tune-o-matic, which cracked its screen :{(- (that's a frowning emoticon self-portrait). So after calling the manufacturer and the mobile company (who shall remain nameless, to protect the guilty) I now have to pay lots of money to send it away for an out of warranty repair/replace operation. Everything else still works, however, and if I keep it in a heavy-mil resealable bag, it stays dry and doesn't slice my finger to ribbons. Apart from that, I've been a bit lazy. A week off, though with hikes at Natural Bridge in Virginia, and some vigorous insect-collecting work out in T-town. So I haven't been completely sedentary. Anyway, it's good to be back and nice to get out for a run. It stopped raining (it was dumping this morning), and a bit warm for Spandex, but I wore it anyway. Down to Chewacla and back.

Playlist
Here Comes Your Man -The Pixies
Emperor Tomato Ketchup -Stereolab
All Your Goodies are Gone -Parliament
Mother's Little Helper -The Rolling Stones
What I'd Say (Parts 1&2) -Ray Charles
For Your Life -Led Zeppelin
History Lesson, Part I -Minutemen

Times
Length 1--> 8:46
Length 2--> 7:19
Length 3-->7:44
Length 4-->8:34
Total-->32:22 Pretty good, still up near that peak of 2 weeks ago. Can I get it down to 30:00? That would be nice.

Happy Birthday, 'Murica!

I got out again, a bit longer this time. I went out this evening before dark, while the air was still good to breathe, before the celebratory pyrotechnics. Again, I rarely indulge in daytime jogging, but with the kids out of the house for a few days, it seemed like a reasonable proposition.
Hopefully the days of post-running ibuprofen will soon end. For now, I AM BACK. Now, to eat my lovely green salad with Chicken a la Yuengling (AKA Yuengling up the YinYang).

The Playlist, featuring Americans.
Fourth of July -Dave Alvin (A natural choice for today's kick-off)
The World's a Mess It's in My Kiss -X
Astro -White Stripes
Bob Wills is Still The King -Waylon Jennings
Sweet Emotion -Aerosmith
Shake Your Rump -Beastie Boys
Get On The Good Foot -James Brown
Plateau -Meat Puppets
What I'd Say Parts 1 and 2 -Ray Charles
Time out, 34:39

Spandex

I am of the opinion that spandex is a potentially dangerous substance. It can provide unnatural ego enhancement in some, and may be a blight on others. That said, I like to wear the stuff on my legs when it gets chilly, which it is getting. I still have legs that do justice to spandex, while my ]torso would look like I was feebly attempting to smuggle a basketball. It keeps me warm, and snug, so I wear some occasionally. Also, I run in the dark, so no one has to see it.

I took a couple of nights off, or rather I spent a couple of nights on, as in, on the job, so I decided to go longer tonight. Tonight's playlist features the letters O-T prominently:

Dirty Water -The Standells. You know what that means. Bring on October!

Sock It To 'Em, J.B. -The Specials. Apparently, they weren't allowed to mention double O seven by name, so they just called him J.B. He's got you doing the bossa nova, he's got you doing the scratch!

Making Flippy Floppy -Talking Heads. I totally heart Talking Heads.

Bang a Gong (Get It On) -T. Rex.

Emperor Tomato Ketchup -Stereolab

Let's Spend The Night Together -The Rolling Stones, or, as Ed Sullivan would have it "Let's spend some time together".

Marie Jose -Ryco Jazz. Vibrato + Zairean Soukous + Scooby Doo references = WIN!

What'd I Say, Parts 1&2 -Ray Charles. Another influence from my Dear Old Dad, who was a fan of RC from way back in the day. I got to see him performing with the Modern Jazz Quartet some years ago. I remember Ray playing and just bouncing as if he only needed to keep one toe on the stage. I can't help but think of John Belushi as Beethoven, though.

Old Fowl Ska -Roland Alphonso

Coumba -Orchestra Baobab, another gem from one of David Byrne's monthly playlists.

Nansi Imali -Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Back before Apartheid crumbled, before Paul Simon made them world famous, there was the Indestructible Beat of Soweto.

Total Time: 50:49, enough time to go down to Chewacla SP and back. A personal long since starting back in the whole jogging thing