Silent Running*
The Ocean is one of the best things about living in L.A.
And bright, clear, warm Fall days is one of the other best things about living in L.A.
I run at the ocean from time to time. I drive all the way to the stairs at Ocean Avenue and walk down to the bike path; from there I just go north. North is prettier than south (as far as I’m concerned).
a little hectic for me, even in daylight
I do love the Ferris wheel…
…but the Santa Monica Pier just gets a little chaotic for me.
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So I run to the right where there are fewer people/buildings/distraction. Just ocean, sand, me, and my iPod.
I make a play list for each run. The last one had some guilty hip-hop pleasures like “Battlefield” and one that samples Frou Frou. Then there’s Temper Trap, New Jet, Wolfmother and Imogen Heap.
Sometimes I see dolphins, which is pretty exciting. It’s about a 5 mile run which is just enough time for me to go from pure elation to pure exhaustion. By the time I walk up the huge wooden staircase back to my car I feel totally fulfilled and a little tan. A few new freckles are the bonus.
BUT this morning when I went after yoga, my iPod froze up and I had to brave the run without music, which I don’t think I’ve EVER done. Silent running?! (* Don’t laugh at that movie, Bruce Dern is really, really nice.) That meant either I’d be miserably caught up with my thoughts of how much I wanted the run to be over, my poor Beemer, my pending audition, etc., or I’d be hearing the last song it played over and over.
What I didn’t anticipate was discovering —
a different kind of soundtrack.
Kids laughing, women speed talking/walking, guys playing volleyball, the sounds of the other runners’ deep breathing. I truly surprised myself by finding a way of running in the moment and actually enjoying the semi-silence…
quiet my mind
I never thought I would be able to do it…
and I never thought I’d actually find pleasure in it.
Do you have a playlist online? Mine’s at blip.fm so far — where’s yours?
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2 responses to “Silent Running*”
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You’d be surprised what you hear when you’re forced to listen to what’s around you — this applies to driving with the windows down, too!
I’m totally a city kid so sounds of the major metropolitan area is like music to me. Reminds me that I don’t live in a town, but a living, breathing, organism known as a big city.
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