Location: Minute Maid Park to Hermann Park
Distance: 5 miles
Chip time: 55:36
Splits: [to be entered later, when I get back to my watch]

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I’m running the 2006 Park to Park Run tomorrow morning - a 5-mile run from Minute Maid Park to Hermann Park.  I’m stopping by the Hermann Park Conservancy Office to pick up my registration stuff today, as I drive zoom back and forth between meetings.  I haven’t run all week though, so tomorrow’s race will be interesting.

 My HARRA Spring Ironfoot dreams are already dashed, however, since I didn’t make it to the Buffalo Wallow 6K last weekend.  Oh well.  I’ll just have to set my sights on the Fall Ironfoot Series.

 I can’t wait till Power in Motion starts. 

There are still some bugs I’m trying to work out, but haven’t had much luck.  Most are related to Wordpress 2.0.1 plugins that are only compatible with earlier versions of WP, or just don’t play well with other code:

• I can’t get the recent posts function to work correctly.  First, it was 3 days behind schedule, and now I get a fatal error when trying to access the admin panel.  I’ve uninstalled the plugin but I want to get that function working again.
• My categories still won’t sort in the order I want them to.  I’ve tried all variations of the list_cats() function, and the plugin that’s supposedly WP 2.0.1 compatible, is crap.  ugh.
• My current webhost, Total Choice Hosting, sucks balls. I might be switching to Dreamhost.
• The archives are not working correctly.
• The category links are not working correctly. 
• My race calendar function is not working correctly.

argh!

I’ve been listening to this amazing CD for the past several hours (I’ve hit the ‘repeat all’ button at least three times now) - Moffou by Salif Keita.  The CD was a birthday gift from Moussa, and I popped it into the player tonight. 

The album is really relaxing, beautiful West African music.  I’m really not familiar with African music (Western or otherwise), so I don’t know how this album compares to any others, but the music on Mouffou is a balance of happy upbeats while still being relaxing and serene.  It’s beautiful..  It’s been a while since I’ve heard an album I liked this much.

Salif Keita has a pretty interesting life story.  He’s the direct descendent of the founder of the Mali empire, and was born albino….which is considered back luck in Mandinka culture, so he was disowned by his entire family and community.  He eventually moved with his music from Mali to the Ivory Coast, then Paris, and then all around Europe.  A brief bio describes his music as combining “traditional West African music styles with influences from both Europe and the Americas, while maintaining an overall Islamic style. Musical instruments that are commonly featured in Keita’s work include balafons, djembes, guitars, koras, organs, saxophones, and synthesizers.”

This morning, I saw a woodpecker drilling the hell out of a pine tree.  He was going to town on the tree, and sheets of pine bark were falling to the ground below.  I snapped this picture on maximum zoom level, but still had to blow the photo up even more on my computer in order to make him out. 

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[photopress:dinner.jpg,thumb,alignleft] Spent an evening with the parents in the ‘burbs of Spring Branch.  My mom cooked a very yummy dinner with Korean banchan, grilled fish and miyukgook - seaweed soup traditionally eaten on birthdays.  Yum!

[photopress:lion.jpg,thumb,alignleft]While helping my mom prepare dinner, I noticed a new stuffed animal on the shelf.

Me: What is this?
My Mom: 2006 is the Year of the Dog.  So that’s a dog.  
Me: But this is a lion.
My Mom: No, it’s a dog. 
Me: Dogs don’t have manes. 
My Mom: It was made in Singapore. It’s a dog.
Me: What does being made in Singapore have to do with whether it’s a dog or a lion?
My Mom: It’s a dog!
My Dad: It’s a lion that looks like a dog…[my mom starts to argue]…ok, ok it’s a dog that looks like a lion.  Can we eat now?

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This .gif comes from the Sesame Street website, and was colored by yours truly using the graphics powerhouse MS Paint.  Since one of my horoscopes (read below) refers to my creativity, I decided to use some creative license in coloring this picture.  While Grover is usually a dark blue, this Green Grover represents what would happen if Grover (F1) and Kermit (F1) were to bear a child.  Unfortunately, Green Grover never got over being picked on by the other Muppet kids, and developed an ongoing alcohol problem which explains his bloodshot eyes and red nose.   

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