Free Beer, a day in Vegas, an attempt to find my stride and a 6year old sent to Jail for lewd behavior

Before I get into my blog nonsense just another friendly reminder about the Barefoot Ted running clinic held the day after Thanksgiving at Rosecrans and the Beach in Socal.  There's a big old link on the top left of this page but I shall post another to be redundant.  I think space is limited so if you wanna make it happen sign up soon. 

http://www.eventbrite.com/event/1041309585/efbevent

I have been wanting to go down to the Stone Brewery for quite some time now.  I am huge fan their of beers especially their Old Guardian Barley wine at 11.3% alcohol.  I recently found out they have tours every day of the week that culminate with a  sampling. It turns out they also have a pretty kick ass restaurant that does a total vegi menu on Mondays.  Free beer and vegi grub?  I wish every Monday afternoon could be like this.

I headed down to the brewery with a couple of friends. The tour was not until 2 p.m. we arrived just before 1p.m. and decided to grab some lunch first.  I could of walked from my car to the entrance with my eyes closed, the smell of beer brewing was enchanting my senses, an irresistible force pulling me into the brewery.

Gargoyles everywhere "I dig it"

The place was pretty damn nice inside.  So we decided we would fit  in better outdoors,  the sun was shining and there were a couple of cute girls wandering about.

I love this concept!

My lunch although I ordered it without cheese and garlic mayo.  I did ask for extra fuego sauce on the side. I also paired it with a Ruination IPA 

Maybe I should have taken the pic before I started eating? I'm also the type of guy who finishes half his beer before he has a chance to cheers his friends, maybe someday I will learn some manors (yeah right). 

11,000 Gallons of beer (I think I'm in love  )

We made it to the tour  in the nick of time.  One of the first things that our tour guide said (beer in hand ) was "This is the kind of job that a useless degree in anthropology will get you." as he explained to us that beer was single most important invention man ever created (duh everybody knows that, although the frisbee may be a pretty close second) A  light bulb turned on in my head.  I got a degree in anthropology and I am a home brewer. Why am I not working at a brewery? Beer consumption in United States has been slowly dropping each year. At the same timeStone Brewery has been expanding every year since it's inception.  American's are moving away from Fizzy Yellow Beer.  Job Maybe? I think a beer sponsorship would be more in order.

Free beer with friends

After the tour we were entitled to a sample a few beers.  We were only supossed to get get four but the dudes working the taps were pretty cool and kept fillings our glasses with the sweet livations.  It was about 3:30 p.m. when we left the brewery.  Kit Karson Disc golf park was near by and we set forth to get a round in before dark.  

while my firnds put on thier appropriate footwear (a pair of Vff kso's, and a pair baseball cleats) I took off my Luna Leadviles in order to play barefoot.  With a slight buzz and a positive attitude my putting was on fire.  (My putting has been atroscious for the past 2 weeks) My drives were on the mark and the breaks were going my way as I easily shot double digets under par on the 18 hole course and was very pleased with results. The sun went down quickly and we headed back home

Tuesday is kind of a blur I spent all morning running around doing pointless errands.  I hit the gym by 1 p.m and didn't make it home till around 9p.m. I think I may have over cooked some of my brain cells in the sauna. I took it easy that night.  The next morning I was flying to Vegas to go speak at some marketing convention.  

Vegas

http://womma.org/summit/speakers/

About two weeks ago I got a call from the "Active" (the Ticket Master of signing up for races)  They were  pleased with efforts I put forth over the summer for Team Jamba Juice and wanted me to explain my experience at some marketing conference in Vegas.  Although I consider myself a gambler I despise placing bet's at a casino.  I'd much rather bet on my own merits.  Those billion dollar casino's were not paid for by giving the customer even betting odds. Regardless I was still up for the adventure.  Active offered me a few bucks and would be flying me out in the morning and then back home that evening.

Everything went pretty smooth.  I got there and consumed a nice overpriced (I wasn't paying) Thai tofu lunch.  I had some time to kill before our presentation.  The conference was just beginning I wandered around for a bit picking up some free shwag, before stumbling upon the opening Keynote.  There was anywhere between 500-1000 people attending the speech, I found it interesting for about 20 minutes, at which point I snuck back out the room.  

Our presentation was held in a room that sat around 100 people Jamba Juice was giving out $5 gift cards to all the people that attended it.   It quickly filled to capacity, standing room only plus another 20 or so people spilling out the door.  Lucky for me Jamba Juice seems to cater towards fit goodlooking women ( there were at least 40 of them in the crowd).  I only had to speak for about 5 mins and then do some Q and A.  I'm about as good at public speaking as I am  at posting blogs,  one second I'll find myself offending the whole room then before you know they are back on my side as my vulnerabilities start to show, then somehow my ego triumphantly pulls it all together, compelling the crowd the into a frenzied standing ovation, roses are being thrown at my feet as the crowd chants in unison "We love you Pat." (yep that's pretty much standard)

After the presentation I was back on plane and home by 9p.m

Thursday the time had come for me to cut back on the amount of glasses of wine I drink each night. 

I got a bigger glass

Yep that's the whole bottle. Check out the high class wine I'm drinking with the twist off cap. $20 a case at Fresh and easy

Friday morning I hit the beach with my buddy Justin to record my stride in slow motion.  Right now my body is not at full strength and I wanted to see how it would feel doing a couple of sprints.  I was also curious to see how this would reflect in my form.

Stride analysis 

I started off doing a pretty fast run but not quite a full sprint I recorded with 2 cameras at the same time, 1 at real time speed and the other at 210 frames per second

Real time speed

Same run at 210 frames per second

Full sprint at 210 frames per second

I sped up to a full sprint taped at 420 frames per second

Tandem running with buddy Justin.  It's interesting that we both got are stride going at the same pace, it was unintentional maybe it occurred because at present we are both recovering gimps.  We are running at your average fast jogging pace recorded at 420 frames per second

a couple steps on the soft sand at a jogging pace filmed at 1,000 frames per second

One step at a sprint (interesting recoil on the foot) 1,000 frames per second

2 steps jogging 1,000 frames per second

My nephews get the entire week of Thanksgiving off.  Lately I haven't really got a chance to spend as much quality time with them as I like.  We decided to start the week  off with Knot's Berry Farm Friday afternoon.  Sunday we head down to San Diego for a few days at Sea World with their favorite cousins are really in need of good time.  Thanksgiving is not about the food! It's about being with the people you love and embracing others who could use a little love as well. I am stoked to be spending this time with my family.

As we drove up to Knot's Berry Farm my sister was explaining to me that her friends family drives all the way out here (about 35 miles) just for their fried chicken. I wonder why it's so good?

Freshness!

The parking lot was full chicken's running freely (a strange sight for urban suburbia).  My Nephew's tried their best to catch dinner, but had no luck.  In actuality they were pretty friendly one of them almost hopped right into the mini van. 

Knot's was fun and not very crowded a few of the rides had no lines which meant you could keep riding them over and over.  I've rode everything more times than I can count.  My favorite coaster is one of the oldest in the park Montezuma's Revenge.

We met some girls sitting at a bench that would later mean trouble for one of my nephews.

I have a way with the Ladies (especially the ones that can't run away) My nephew Lucas was a little too fresh however.

I could tell from the look on her face that she not to into him. "He's just a kid being silly." I told her to no avail.  The authorities were called and charges were pressed. 

Snoopy means business.

Hopefully we can come up with enough bail money in order to get Lucas out of jail in time for Sea world come Monday. Look at that sad face! If you wanna help email me and I'll give you a link to my Paypal account for donations. :)

Last thing, I found this sandal sitting next to dumpster. Could it Possibly belong to my Bizarro world Cinderella? I love the simplicity of it's design and would love to make a pair out of some kind of renewable resource.  

Bonus movies

Playing catch with the camera, almost a fumble

Pathetic attempt at a somersault in slow motion

Running without clothes, the next Logical Step

My Running Philosophy.

I truly believe are bodies are meant to run.  I do not believe we are meant to wear shoes or any other clothing for that matter.  I do think that shoe's can make us faster, but is faster  better?  If it one's intention to run with good form and stay with in the limits of what their body is ready for, barefoot running is the way to go.  It's not about pushing past your boundaries.  It's about listening to your body feeling your muscles work in harmony with each other.  By running barefoot or running naked  (more on this later) we are free to experience pain in places that reflect inadequacies in our form that we may have developed over a lifetime of shoes and clothing incorrectly. 

By letting your body tell you where your running form has become flawed you can learn to run more efficiently  and injury free.

Racing

(Health vs Ego)

So far my ego has prevented me from racing barefoot in all but one race (which I won).  The reason I have spent the last year racing in Luna Sandal's or Vibram Five Fingers, is so I could run reckless (Stupid I know) but with a similar stride as I would use barefoot.  We are taught from children that in athletic competition that we should give 100%.  If your body is at say 90% and you give 100% effort you are destined for further injury.
 When I race with something on my foot I am allowing my body to go passed it's comfort zone.  It makes it more difficult to tell when I am pushing  harder than I should. Testing one's  boundries greatly increases the chance of injury.  Is winning on a Saturday worth missing out on the next 6 Sundays?  Accolades are nice, but glory fades fast sitting on the sidelines not being able to do what I love makes giving 100% seem like the wrong decision.  I do not believe that racing is good for our bodies (when your race speeds exceed your training times).  Running barefoot (or in a minimalistic shoes) is good for our bodies and can lead to long healthy injury free life so long as we listen to our bodies instead of beating the clock or a fellow competitor. Will I continue to race? You can count on it.  Will I continue to be reckless? Perhaps a little I need to find a balance between satisfying my desire to win and my need to stay healthy.  I have learned a lot from own arrogance but  am I smart enough to apply this knowledge in the future, only time will tell.

Training

Nearly every mile I train I do so barefoot (mostly on the soft sand of the beach) For me training is rarely about speed.  I try to keep a controlled pace usually around a a 10 to 11 minute mile for a couple hours at a time.  If not at the beach I hit the rack near by my house barefoot. There I like to run faster around maybe a 6 to 8 minute a mile average for anywhere from 6 to 20 miles.  I almost never run hills (although I like to) and I almost never run on a trail outside of racing (I don't like driving somewhere to go running and I live at the beach).  The funny thing is I consider myself a climber.  The beach has made my core strong and given my legs power. By focusing more on what my body is doing rather tan how fast my body is going my training has become much more effective and enjoyable.  When healthy I like to run around 77 miles a week with about 1 day off every 2 weeks. 

About  two months ago I was trolling around the Barefoot running forum at runnersworld.com Some dude posted  this link www.nuderuns.com.  The thought of doing a nudist run intrigued me.  I did a quick scan through the list of races.  It turns out the only race in Socal is a 5k  at nudist colony that I once worked at.

 It was in the fall of 1997 I was fresh out of High school and had just finishing massage college.  National Nude weekend was coming (I'd never heard of it) and the Olive Dell ranch posted an add my my school requesting a few massage therapists  (what the hell). I didn't want to go alone (but I didn't really want to go with one of my buddies either) The girl I was planning on going with chickened out at the last second. The Friday before  my buddies girlfriend jumped on board (awkward, but nice to have some company).  When we got the nudist colony we were greeted by a couple of friendly naked people who showed around.  It was a pretty small resort tucked away in some secluded hills in the middle of nowhere. Clothing was optional but if you wanted to go in the pool you had to do it in the buff.  There was about 25 naked people strolling about (of every shape and size imaginable) plus a few other massage therapists from my school  (both fully clothed).  I didn't have to be naked but since I had the option ;) my clothes were gone with in the first 5 minutes.  It's was a liberating, strange feeling a cross between exhilaration, freedom and apprehension.  It's fun to see everyone naked  and would have been silly for me to wear clothes.  The vibe is not a sexual, I guess I would describe the bewilderment kind of like a child going to the zoo for the first time but with the realization that you are one of the animals as well.  After the first 20 minutes you hardly realize your naked anymore (other than the need for extra sunscreen).  Anyway I barely worked that weekend I was having too much fun just enjoying the nudist lifestyle and to this day I have only played shuffle board without clothes.  My friend I went with also decided to go nude and by the end of the day classmates had shed their clothes as well. Its hard to act pretentious when you are naked everyone was real nice and it turned out to be a great experience. Being naked is nothing to be ashamed of. Honestly I find it pretty ridiculous that we have laws mandating the wearing of clothes in public.  We have become way to uptight as a society in regards to our bodies.

Dangers of clothes.

Long beach marathon 2006 to perky for my own good

When I run I hate wearing clothes.  Even more important to me than not wearing shoes is not wearing a shirt (although I like wearing Moeben's and Cep calf sleeves).  Working out at the gym drives me crazy, by the time I'm done exercising I feel like I'm carrying an extra 30 lbs of sweat soaked up in my shirt. Over the years my running shorts have gotten shorter and shorter. The less clothes I wear the more comfortable I feel. If it's freezing outside obviously I'll wear more fabric but I love running in 80 plus degrees when it is not needed.  Recently as you have probably have read I  started using a Sport Kilt.  The kilt has given me much more freedom in respect to airflow but is still restrictive, and may cause chaffing when used over long distances. It's time to take my running to the next level

 It always makes me laugh to see naked people in shoe's.  This commercial is pretty freaking awesome

As I mentioned before I feel that our bodies are designed to run  without anything added.  Human beings come in a lot of different shapes and sizes (some of which by our own crappy diets and lack of exercise)  Of course we have certain parts that may flop around If we try to run in the same fashion that we are accustomed to while clothed.  What I am hypothesizing is that certain floppage,  shows inadequacies in our form that we may have never knew existed because of the restraints we have on our dangle-ables.  That maybe by learning to run without clothes at the tempo and stride which is dictated by the way in which we keep these parts of our body under control, we can learn to run in harmony with our entire body and become more efficient runners.  I will warn you that much like going barefoot for the first time after years of wearing shoes.  Running naked should be approached with caution.  I think more so for women than for guys certain muscles will be that were never used before will be called upon, the initial result will be soreness but with practice and dedication it may result in more perkiness and less sag. 

My naked running experience is very limited. My only experience comes from streaking around the block  on a bet and a little bit of running on the beach during some late night skinny dipping. I don't own a treadmill and don't think my gym would be too happy if they caught me in my birthday suit.  I live in a beach town suburbia and don't wish to press my luck with local law enforcement if accidentally ran passed a school.  I'm thinking about posting an ad on Craigslist.  "31 year straight male needs treadmill to use to learn how to run more efficiently while naked"  It will be very interesting to see what kind of responses I may get.  I plan to go back to the Olive Dell Ranch sometime in the next month or two to check out the course for their 5k and see how barefoot friendly it is and get some good training miles in while I'm at it.  If you know any good places to run naked in SoCal please let me know.

Some people love running, some people hate it.  For me it keeps me sane (well relatively sane).  Who knows whether my hypothesis will turn out to be correct.  Somebody has to conduct the research and that somebody is me.  If their are any women their that one help supply some data (lol) whether it be running with me or just reporting back to me their experience I would greatly appreciate it.  This could be the start of naked running revolution, 5 years from now I'll most likely be giving naked running lessons to the super rich celebrities at some hoity toity resort or perhaps I'll find some secluded hot spring in the desert and go primal.  What ever happens I shall enjoy the present and embrace where ever the future takes me.

A year without shoes, A weekend spent going nowhere and other Shenanigans

Javelina 100, 2009

The last picture ever taken of my running in shoes.

As of Halloween it's been 1 year since I last ran in shoes.  It began as an experiment and became a lifestyle.  I have worn shoes about 30 times in the last year, only when mandated by work or society pushing the boundaries whenever I can.

Friday afternoon I found myself spinning my legs on the recumbent bike.  For the past month I've been getting on some type bike everyday.  What first started out at 10 to 15 miles a day, escalated to  20 then 25 and is now closer to 30.  Most of the time I spend reading book's and I have read more literature this month than any other time in my life (including college).  Friday I  fired up my Wii and decided test my rhythm with the Wii maraca's and get a little arm workout at the same time while I rocked out to the likes of Ozomatli and Ray Vega while playing Samba De Amigo.  The game is dirt cheap and a precursor to all the modern Guitar hero games (it's pretty damn fun has a good song list and is a perfect accompaniment  to the exercise bike.  My musical ability is pretty sad at best I can't play guitar but I can play a pretty mean maraca. Time flew by and before I knew It I had peddled over 40 miles.  I was feeling good and my dumb ass felt like boasting.  I proclaimed  to my facebook friends (I think I had 7 but maybe 5 now) that I would ride 200 miles by the end of the weekend. (That was Stupid). I am not a cyclist! I think this mileage is pretty mundane to anyone involved with the sport but it's a pain in the butt for me (literally)  I had never rode over 62 miles in a day but what the hell. I decided to hit sauna for a couple hours I came back home and hit the bike for another 20 miles before bed.

I got up early Saturday morning and rode the bike leisurely for about 45 miles before heading to the gym.  I thought to myself that it would be cool to ride a 100 miles the following day on Halloween since I had entered a 100 mile race the previous year on that day. I was already half to my goal and that meant i could take the rest of the day off. When I got home the gym I pigged out on some Avocado taco's, had a couple beers and sat down to watch some sports.  Feeling lazy I found myself back on the bike.  Change of plans  "How bout I do 100 miles today and 100 miles on Sunday as well" That was my new plan and I would stick to it.

This wench wishes she was as hot as my friend. (I won't use names to protect myself from incrimination)

I'd been spinning my legs all day I ended up hitting the 100 mile mark somthime around 7 p.m. Earlier in the week I told a friend mine I would go with her to a Halloween Party Saturday night.  She had promised her friend she would go and didn't want to show up alone.  I knew I wouldn't know anybody but I was game to make some friends and since I suck with names I could just label people by their costume's.  Anyhow I put my kilt on picked up a bottle of  Old Grand Dad (80 proof boo! taste like water) and was ready to go.  Lucky for me my sexy pirate friend had to work the next morning so she would be my designated driver. Since my kilt only has one small pocket I had to choose either camera, phone or flask.  I decided to error on the side of caution and brought my flask

The party was pretty fun I think the crowd was maybe 75% good looking Lesbians.  I may have been the only straight guy there and I was wearing a man skirt. I was in good spirits and had a great time.  The whole night this demon nurse kept flipping my kilt up (She should of been dressed as a cat burglar the way she was after a peek at my family Jewels)  In stark contrast I kept chasing her girlfriend Mini Mouse threatening that a strong breeze may cause exposure. (I was never going to do it, this girl was so afraid of penis's I think she may have fainted)  Anyhow it wall in good fun and it felt as if the three of were part of Benny Hill Halloween skit.  The night went by fast and I could tell my friend wanted to get home.  We left the party and got to bed by 2 A.M.

Halloween

I was up by 6 A.M.  Halloween morning and surprisingly my legs felt great. I was a little disappointed however, I felt like had pushed myself hard the day before but the only thing that hurt was my back and my butt. From siting on the bike.  I hopped on the bike and went for a nice 25 mile ride.  Knowing I was going to be sitting inside all afternoon watching football I threw my kilt back on as well as the rest of my costume from the night before and headed out to El Dorado for some Disc Golf.

Drive 18 birdie

roller hole 7 par

hole 15 

I threw a nice easy lefty backhand anhyzer, hopped the puddle with a 360 follow through and stuck the landing just in time to regain a visual on my drive as it gently hyzered back to the ground about 340ft  away and 5ft  from the basket for an easy birdie.

Putt hole 2 birdie

I had a good time playing golf, my game wasn't the sharpest but I left the course with more money than I started with.

When I got home It was back on the bike.  I decided to experiment with affects of alcohol on my ride.  During the first hour  I pounded 7 beers on an empty stomach to see what kind of energy vs inhebriation I would get. My legs felt great and my speed actually increased.  My heart rate stayed within normal limits and the pedaling became effortless.  My body is pretty comfortable being fueled on nothing but beer.  I had my laptop set up next to my bike and I was reporting updates to some friends online. My football team won their game and I was having a great start to my Halloween. I had 75 miles to go but time was not on my side. I wanted to go trick or treating with my nephews and that meant I would have to stop riding after 3 and a half hours and finish my miles when I got home.

I headed over to mom's house to meet up with the family just before dark to go trick or treating.  This would be my first Halloween without gorging on Milk Chocolate.  Pillaging candy from kids is a family tradition in my household. Lucky for me I never had to steal from nephews they have always been very generous, but this is not what happened to me as a kid. Let me explain. Every year when I was young I would could come back to my stash each day and somehow It would be smaller than remembered leaving it.  When I was about 10 years old candy was very important to me  (I may have been a little fat kid and definitely did not need the sugar but lets disregard that information for the time being).   I was excited this year because I had obtained a file cabinet with a lock which meant nobody could get to my candy but me. (or so I thought)  I came home from soccer practice one night and my lock was busted (never to work again).  There could only be 2 culprits, my mother or my sister.  Both denied any wrong doings. I believed my sister but felt my mom was still suspect and upon further inspection I found numerous fun sized candy wrappers buried in her bedroom trash can.  I thought about contacting local law enforcement but never followed through with pressing charges.

Pikachu (pokemon) , dude who thinks he looks cool in a kilt, Turtwig (pokemon)

Good enough to score some free candy

Grandma was a good sport.  She stayed home and passed out candy while we canvassed the neighborhood

Where's the dark Chocolate?

Me and my Big sis (yep she loves it when I call her big, That's what little brothers are for)

When we got back we relieved Grandma of her duties.  My nephew enjoys passing out the candy even more  than receiving it (Crazy I know but very sweet).  We sat out in front of the house with fog machine blasting behind us until there was no candy left. If you've read my blog before this will sound redundant.  My family is by far the most important thing in my life and I truly cherish the time I get to spend them and making my nephews happy means the world to me. Spending time with them was by far the highlight of my weekend.

I got back home relatively early by about 9:30p.m. I still had another 25 or so miles left to spin.  My body was spent and I felt more like sleeping than exercising.  This is exactly what I needed!  Pushing past my comfort zone makes me feel like I have accomplished something.  My body had almost nothing left.  I searched my fridge for some fuel.  The best I could come up with was a generic Red Bull (been in my fridge for a year) about 8 ounces of red wine and an avocado.  This bought me about 20 minutes of energy.  I persevered and kept peddling till around midnight.  I had accomplished my goal. I was proud of myself and I was ready for bed.

Final stats for the weekend.

In a 60 hour span I ended peddling over 270 miles which took around 20 hours with an average speed of around 13.5mph I kept my bike on it's hardest setting the whole time which I would equate to the number 9 setting on the nicer bikes at the gym. I also do all my bike riding barefoot (unless I'm at the gym and they ask me to put my flip flops back on) I don't feel that this is the most efficient way to ride but I like to move my feet  up and down the peddles hitting the different nerve endings. My cheap recumbent has help up pretty good I have put around 10,000 miles on it in the last 3 years and it's still going strong.  I bought it at walmart  for $124 it's very compact, only weighs about 60 pounds and is very easy to use.  My gripes are that the seat could by comfier and the adjuster for length should have a pin lock.  Overall I'm been very happy with the bike.  If I was to buy a new bike right now however I'd probably buy this one Stamina 4545

Dia De Los Muertos 

 My favorite religious holiday (says the atheist).  Gotta love all the cool skeletons, and I'm all for taking some time to celebrate and think some good thoughts about the people I cared about that are no longer with us.

Yep I have a special shirt just for Dia De Los Muertos

Finally when I woke up Monday morning I had some sore legs (almost felt like an athlete).  The Santa Ana winds were blowing and the weather at the beach would be around 80 degrees.  No way was I gonna spend a beautiful day like this couped up indoors.  I got all my work done early in the morning and it was time to enjoy the  sunshine

Even the dead couldn't resist going for a ride.

This could surprise you but I ride a "Huffy".  It may be pretentious but everybody knows Huffy's are chick magnets.  It screams "There goes a guy who can afford a $60 bicycle that most people were to embarrassed to ride in public by the time they were 8." I also drive a Hyundai and own a moped, pretty amazing that I am not hounded by women non-stop. :)  I bought my bike on whim about 2 months and for some reason or another never got around to riding it.  

I should have bought the girl's version (that way I could ride it in my kilt)

  Never had I wanted a helmet more in my life than the day I first rode this bike.  The beach is only about a mile (mostly down hill) from my mom's house where my bike was parked. No way do I trust the craftsmanship of the guy who put this bike together (it was me). It felt like my bike would rattle apart by the time I got to the bike path.  On this day the fate's were on my side and the bike held together.  In honor of Dia De Los Muertos I loaded up my MP3 player with music by the Grateful Dead and had a really nice 20 mile ride along the beach.  My legs felt great but unlike my recumbent bike I was sitting on a seat that had to be designed by a vindictive woman or a unic.  By the end of the ride I felt like I could probably sing a pretty good falsetto.

Election Day

2016 will be the first Presidential election I'll be old enough to run in. I figure I got a few years to sow some wild oats (whatever that means) before it's time to get down to business and take this country under my wings. Sneak preview of reforms : Universal health care payed for by a national sales tax.  Defense budget cut in half, money diverted to schools especially to fund physical education to combat childhood obesity and Diabetes. Tax credits for those living a healthy lifestyle.  Gas tax of around $3 a gallon (maybe more)  the only way to get rid of our dependence on foreign oil is not to use it.  Revoke tax exempt status for all churches. Most importantly I will grant equality to women!  No longer shall they suffer from clasps and knots of repression on a hot day.  Even more often than I go without shoe's I go without a shirt.  It's very important to me and women deserve that right as well.  In my opinion boobs provide nothing but happiness, and health to babies.  It's ridiculous that women must obey different laws than men in how the attire their bodies.

Voting Day is the most dangerous of year to drive.  Beware of the countless amount of old people in their Cadillacs trying to see over their steering wheels as they run over puppies and small children while they look for the local polling station.

This graph shows the direct correlation between the amount of accidents that occur from old people driving on voting day compared to every other day of the year  (why would graph ever lie?)

 "welcome united states 2145"

Once again the weather outside was spectacular. I've  kept my voter registration at my Moms house in Manhattan Beach.  My polling station  was at the Belemar Hotel I thought about walking there but figured I'd be safer from the once a year driving octogenarians if I had my car to protect me.  When I got there they had free valet parking (are you kidding me) I couldn't help but laugh, the beach community where I grew up is getting a little to carried away with it's affluence.  That's where I come in the last bastion of hope (or the last of the white trash, call it what you want)  Most of the people that moved to Manhattan Beach building multi million dollar homes either work nonstop to pay the mortgage or are so filthy rich this is their second or third home. (I should know I enumerated this them)  What this means is that the beach is nearly empty during the work week  and I am free to claim it as my own private playground. I put more steps on the sand than anyone else. (sorry about that tangent ) 

Back to the Belemar, after getting my car valet parked I meandered my way through the hotel to the polling station and was met with my 8th grade English teacher (a longtime Manhattan Beach Volleyball player/Bum) He was working the polls and we shot the shit for a little bit about running before it was time to vote.  I am registered as an independent.  I am not a democrat but under our current 2 party system I almost always vote that way because I feel it's the lesser of 2 evils.  I believe Equality should always trump personal liberty.

After voting is was time to hit the beach once again.  I got the socket wrench out and  gave my bike a tune up.  I also found my original bike lock from when I was kid (combo the last 4 digits of my first phone number)

 I added a new bike horn.  I had forgotten my MP3 Player so I rigged a small radio with some magnets and rubber bands.  The weather about 85 degrees when I headed to the beach.

Looks like I'm riding one of Barefoot Ted's Victorian's

The bike felt a lot more sturdy on this day. I hope I can get at least 5,000 miles out of it before it falls apart. When I listen to music on a crappy radio I really appreciate more.  I found myself continuously scanning the dial for any station that had reception.  Half the time I found myself listening to the Mexican stations that dominate the Southern California airwaves (good thing I dig  accordions) the highlight was when out of the blue came Marvin Gaye's rendition of "Ooh Child" one of my all time favorite songs (although I prefer Beth Orton's version).   I rode  about 20 miles before stopping to enjoy a tall can of champagne (Miller High Life) on the beach with a buddy of mine.  I kicked back for about an hour talking philosophy and watching the dolphins ride the waves (tried to get a pic but my camera phone was too slow). By the time I got back on my bike it was about a hour and half before sunset. 

 When the Santa Ana winds blow through Los Angeles they take all our pollution out over the Pacific. It makes for crappy air quality, warm weather, and awesome sunsets. I decided to keep riding until dark and enjoy the view.  The weather is supposed to get even nicer as the week progresses.  Can you guess where I'll be?

No matter how good or bad my day may have gone, I am a sucker for a beautiful sunset, they never cease bring me happiness and I remain optimistic that tomorrow's sunset will be even better.