I Found Flow

I found flow!  Not the obnoxiously chipper Flo of the Progressive Insurance commercials, but the hyper-focused state that drives athletes to their best, and ordinary people to extraordinary levels.  I thought that I’d been there before, but this was markedly different.  In past runs and races, particularly on technical downhills, I’ve felt the laser focus and smooth breathing.  But today I drew back further from all of that, felt removed from myself (think third-person video game view), saw a brightened landscape and enhanced color, noticed my gaze moving further down the path in front of me, and overall just felt euphoric  - all while flying along on a technical trail that should have required my constant attention to each step.  Even as I write this down, it sounds pretty out there or sensational, and I know I’ll risk over-simplifying or pigeonholing it, but it was worth sharing.

I was at a familiar trail with an employee and friend of mine.  He’s a mountain biker, and I’ve always wondered how I would pace along with him as a trail runner; I figured he’d fly ahead on the straightaways and downhills, while I’d catch him on the uphills and more technical sections.  I was wrong, mainly because I underestimated how good of a mountain biker he is (kudos to you Will).  Flying at a 7 minute pace on trails is more-or-less an endurance sprint, and I was cashed after 2 miles, also having crashed to the ground for the first time in at least two years.  We split ways so he could do a bit more distance, in hopes that we’d meet up at roughly the same time at the cars.  I cut my pace, and not a minute later nearly ran into a deer, coming within a few feet.  With my heart racing I brought the pace back up, shortened and quickened my steps, and felt light.  My focus drew out, down the trail, and the light and colors in the woods sharpened.  Breathing was easy, and I felt amazingly calm, almost euphoric.  It was unreal and completely out-of-body, while being 100% present and in the moment. 

A few minutes later I turned a sharp corner into a series of small hills and it faded away quietly.  How’d I get there?  Adrenaline from mild fall and deer   +  clean body / system (no alcohol, and extremely healthy eating last 10 days)  +  pushing pace heavily and then backing away = Flow?  I know it’s too easy to simplify it like that, but I keep trying; it feels like I got a brief taste of the best dish of my life and now I can’t figure out how it was made!  Guess I’ll just keep running! 

P.S.  For an exciting, scientific look into the state of flow, check out Steven Kotler's The Rise of Superman: Decoding the Science of Ultimate Human Performance.  Game changer.

Check out my sister's writing

For the past couple years, my middle sister has been writing letters to our niece, Hadley, to be read in the future - they are extraordinarily insightful, beautiful, and emotional.  They look at a variety of important topics, and have relevance for any person, young or old.  Take some time and read a few (or you may find yourself binge-reading them all!) - as starters I'd recommend "Beauty", "Thinking", and "Risks".

http://www.letterstohadley.com/

Fiverr - for easy graphics (and other fun stuff), on the cheap

A past business partner clued me in to Fiverr.com when we were just starting our new business.  While figuring out a logo for it, he mentioned he'd get it done for $5 and I laughed at him.  A few days later he had a few drafts to choose from, and then we were delivered our logo in four different formats.  I was blown away - the quality was great and it was only $5!

Fiverr is an online vendor marketplace where you can post requests, and various users will submit offers - most of the requests are $5, though you can also choose $10 or more.  I've only ever listed at $5, and have never been lacking offers.  Most users will give multiple revisions, and everyone I've worked with has been extremely accommodating.  I've only used it for graphic work, but there are a variety of services that you can see on the homepage - for a good laugh, read through the "Fun and Bizarre" section on the far right.

With plans to cheer on some friends at a marathon, I recently asked for a caricature of Trump with the text "If Trump Can Run, So Can You!".  Though I waited too long and had to create a make-shift version for the race, the result (for only $5) was pretty great.  I'll definitely be printing it on poster board for a future marathon, and if anyone else wants to use the graphic, feel free!

Fiverr.com - check it out.

5 very different albums worth a straight-through listening

Driving back to Michigan from NJ means around 14 hours each way of generally straight, boring highways (Ohio, ugh).  That means lots of time to explore new music and rekindle love for old albums.  Some artists will have a hit or two, and then you check out the album, and it's disappointing and disjointed - some artists just do a better job than others at creating a cohesive, all-around solid album, oftentimes with songs merging into one another, or carrying themes throughout the album.  Here are 5 different albums that are worth a straight-through listening.

Freelance Whales - Weathervanes.  Shoutout to Brian H. for the recommendation years ago.  This was the debut album for Freelance Whales back in late 2009, and I think their best work.  It's lyric-driven indie pop, with plenty of unique instrumentation.  Laid back, beautiful.

My Chemical Romance - The Black Parade.  "Now come one, come all to this tragic affair!"  This is my favorite roadtrip album, hands-down.  Open the windows, crank the volume, and rock out!

John Mayer - Continuum.  John Mayer has put out a lot of poppy, fluffy music.  But Continuum is a masterpiece.  This is John Mayer having fun with his guitar, incorporating blues and soul more heavily than in the past, and shedding the image you've created of him.

Muse - Black Holes and Revelations.  I'm a die-hard Muse fan - I own every album (most of them on vinyl, while not yet owning a record player...), have seen them live 3 times, and yet still find myself going back 3 albums and 10 years to Black Holes and Revelations for my favorite album.  It's the right mix of songs all with their own merits, some enjoyable themes and political undertones (Bush era), and straight up rock and roll.  

Maroon 5 - Songs About Jane.  Classic Maroon 5 before they went super-pop.  Every song is singable, and not over-produced like so much of their current stuff.  The style and themes run through from song to song, with just enough variety to avoid monotony, but not too much to drive out the consistent feel.

Enjoy!

UPDATE

Four Additions:
-Green Day - American Idiot is maybe the quintessential example of an album that plays-through well. They reference their own songs, they move into each other, and themes come back over and over again.
-Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
-Black Eyed Peas - The E.N.D.
-Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication

Soylent - try it for half off, and support a good cause!

At its most basic, Soylent is a meal replacement drink, but with hefty engineering and modern science behind it.  See the bottom of this post for info on how to try it for 50% off, and support the World Food Program USA.

From their website:

"Soylent™ was developed from a need for a simpler food source. Creator Robert Rhinehart and team developed Soylent after recognizing the disproportionate amount of time and money they spent creating nutritionally complete meals.

Soylent is a food product (classified as a food, not a supplement, by the FDA) designed for use as a staple meal by all adults. Each serving of Soylent provides maximum nutrition with minimum effort."

There are plenty of case studies online of people going weeks and even months on nothing but Soylent - I plan to do a week-long trial in June sometime, with five to six bottles per day, and nothing else consumed except water.  For now, I see Soylent being used for me as a quick breakfast when I need to rush into work, as a simple food source to carry with me during my many Summer roadtrips this year, and potentially as mid-race nutrition for a couple long races I have planned in the next months.

The flavor is bland - think watery soy-milk with a touch of rice - not bad, not good.  But it is easy to drink, and packs 400 calories plus a full fifth of your daily supply of vitamins and minerals per bottle - it is built to be nutritionally complete if you consume five bottles in a day.

Use the link below, and you'll get 50% off your first order.  Typically in these "try it" deals, the person giving you the link (in this case, me) also gets a discount or some freebies, but with Soylent, they are instead donating 4 meals to the World Food Program USA for every person who tries it by referral - that's pretty awesome!

http://soy.lt/r/s51gNuIP4f

Enjoy, and let me know what you think!

Two Spectacular Music Videos

You may have seen these floating around the interwebs and social media; they've both had millions of views.  The choreography and strength on Slip is extraordinary, and the effects and skill on Wide Open are top notch.  Enjoy!

Phillip Chbeeb and Renee Kester, dancing to Elliot Moss - Slip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qk00gbDwGqM

The Chemical Brothers (feat. Beck) - Wide Open (official music video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BC2dRkm8ATU

Collard Greens - recipe

I love southern food.  I've been on a huge kick recently of cooking gumbo, collard greens, and cornbread, probably 10 times in as many months, and each time with various tweaks to experiment.  Here's the most-recent, and best yet, version of Collard Greens.

1C bacon grease (mmm bacon - read my post on bacon grease)

1C canola oil

1/2 medium onion, chopped

4 cloves  garlic, minced

1 large bunch collard, deveined, cut into roughly 1" strips, and rinsed.

48oz (3#) chicken stock

3C water

1C apple vinegar

1/4C Worcestershire Sauce

3Tbsp Sriracha or Frank's Red Hot (some people are maniacal about the proper/traditional hot sauce to use in southern cooking - I've used both, and probably prefer Frank's for this type of dish)

3Tbsp cajun seasoning

1Tbsp red pepper flakes

1Tbsp salt (add more later, to taste)

1Tbsp pepper

First off, a note: with any recipe I post here, most of the time I'm eyeballing amounts.  I like my southern food salty, spicy, and loaded with vinegar, so when I make this recipe, I typically go crazy with the Vinegar, Hot Sauce, and Seasonings.

Prep the onion, garlic, and collard.  In a large pot, over medium heat, add bacon grease and canola oil.  When hot, add onions, and simmer for 4 minutes.  Add garlic, and simmer for 1 minute.  Add Collard and saute until wilted, 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  

Add the remaining ingredients and bring back to a boil.  Turn heat down to low, and let simmer for at least an hour, stirring only a few times throughout.  Test for taste (careful it's hot!), and add additional seasonings, hot sauce, or vinegar as desired.  Serve hot or cold (most people prefer hot, but I love eating these for breakfast on following days, next to a big scramble of eggs and veggies).

Enjoy!