The Issue is Snow, Failure, and Material

Ahhhh, Springtime in Alaska -- overcast with freezing temperatures and more snow comin' down. Springtime?!? Yup, last day of April and roughly halfway to Summer and in blows this storm to give the land a fresh covering of the white stuff. Most of it had melted away over the past week or so, and this will also melt away rather quickly, but for now it makes this part of central Alaska a Winter Wonderland once again. Anything's possible here... this could happen anytime at all throughout May even. It made work a little interesting this morning, that's for sure. It's amazing how all through Winter, people know how to safely drive on snow -- so few weather-related accidents. So the question is -- why can't they also drive safely on snow this far into Spring? Before my shift ended at 9 a.m. this morning, I worked two accidents that were likely caused by PEOPLE DRIVING TOO FAST ON THE SNOW. There were two week stretches in Winter when the number of snow-related accidents that I was on scene for was zero -- no EMT, no ambulance needed, cops took care of it and that was it. Just doesn't make sense that I had two calls this morning to tend to the wounded... or at least make sure those involved had on scene medical care just in case... plus a safe ride to the hospital to be checked out for further injuries. Well, then again, if everyone drove carefully AS THEY SHOULD, I'd be out of a job. Not really but I'd surely not be needed as much as I am now. Thanks, Henry Ford!

I'm so tired now after working the Overnight Shift and then going for a run almost immediately afterwards. I thought about running outdoors in the snow but when I checked the trail after work I found it to be too soft even with these cold temperatures. When it's not freezing, the trail's mushy... when it is freezing, it's still too mushy right now. Mushy, mushy, mushy. Oh well. So I got back in my truck and headed to the University, to run indoors once again. Oi. If only I decided to be a road runner... but my stubborn unwillingness to change keeps me off the roads. This I don't really mind, though because after all, I'm not really a "runner." I don't dress like a runner, I don't have a runner's mentality. I'm a hiker and a mountain climber who runs to help stay healthy. Being a hiker and a mountain climber, I've chosen to run on a trail and I'm gonna try to keep it that way until the day I run the London Marathon... if I ever do.

Anyway -- I'm not sure if I'm tired enough for sleep or if I'm good to stay awake today. Working the Overnight sometimes gets me all confused on when to Catch My Zzzzz's and when to Be Up.

Whatever. All's I know is I failed for the month of April to pass my Total Running Time for March. Idiot. Stoopid idiot. Well... at least I ran and at least I accomplished the miles that I did in the name of better health. I'm gonna have to keep that in mind.

almost outside today but with the temperatures hovering around freezing, the trail's too mushy for running... so still indoors.

Wednesday Morning Run: 19 minutes 45 seconds

+5 sec

XXXXXXXX++++++· 00 sec ·++++++XXXXXXXX

Run Time April: 3 hours 51 minutes <-failed to pass March March: 3 hours 57 minutes February: 3 hours 11 minutes

I was quite tired when I hit the track about an hour ago. Running after working a 12-hour shift usually goes okay. Running after working the 12-hour Overnight Shift, well, this time it wasn't that easy. Maybe I've also been tired from all this running that I've been doing in the past week. Compared to the rest of the month, my frequency has been severely increased and perhaps that's taken a bit of a toll on me. I made it around the track as many times as I needed to in order to reach my 19:45 goal... I made it semi-just fine.... but thought about quitting quite a bit. What made it worse is that I've pretty much written off eclipsing my March Total Time. Kinda close. If I wasn't in sub-par condition I could easily go do 7 minutes later and beat March... but I dunno. So what's happened is for April -- I failed. Not happy with that. Not at all.

Running tunes came from the album of the day...
	Material Issue Destination Universe 1992
What Girls Want When I Get This Way (Over You) Next Big Thing Who Needs Love Destination You Everything Ballad Of A Lonely Man Girl From Out Of This World So Easy To Love Somebody Don't You Think I Know The Loneliest Heart Whole Lotta You If Ever You Should Fall

Twas a time long ago, in this galaxy, not that far, far away, when I listened, for awhile, to the once great radio station known as KJQ in Salt Lake City. They were "Utah's Modern Rock Leader" at the time, playing everything from Adam & The Ants to Zwan. Okay, well Billy Corgan's band Zwan wasn't around yet... The Smashing Pumpkins were barely on the national scene... but anything "alternative" from A to Y, that was what KJQ played... no stoopid automated corporately chosen playlists -- real music, real DJ's, real care for spinning the songs that the listeners wanted to hear... definitely one of the best stations of it's kind in America. And Material Issue was one of the countless bands and artists they were playing at the time. It was on that station when I first heard them and what is perhaps/probably their most popular song -- Valerie Loves Me. Good stuff... all like 3 minutes of it. And that was the entire extent of Material Issue that I ever heard until a few days ago when I pressed play on this album, their second effort from 1992.

I'm not so sure I dig this that much. It's not bad, I suppose; a whole bunch of the songs worked just fine and dandy for my running playlist but otherwise I'm not that that impressed. It's almost something I could see myself blaring on the stereo with the windows wide open while cruising down the Garden State Parkway on the way to the Jersey Shore for a couple days of surfing, beer drinking, and relaxing with friends. Yeah... it's got that fun feel to it: a bit of Cheap Trick, a bit of The Replacements... but the image of the summertime roadtrip works a LOT better with the cassette in mind, the one that's kept in the tape case covered with surfing and Grateful Dead stickers. Ahhh... Jersey. Okay, this really has nothing at all to do with the music anymore so it's time to say -- done. Good tunes. Nothing to spend a ton of time writing specifically about but there are some pretty good songs on here.

find a dload @ Infinite Foolishness
(sorry, the link is dead)

From Chicago, Illinois...
Material Issue -- "Valerie Loves Me"
from their debut album in 1991