march 31/RUN

4.25 miles
river road, north/south
45 degrees

Overdressed. When I checked the temp, it read 45 but feels like 34 so I added a layer, which was a mistake. Lots of dripping sweat and a flushed face. My goal today was to try and take it easy with a steady 10 minute pace. I was mostly steady, but ran faster than that. I need to figure out how to slow down again; my new shoes make me want to run faster than I can sustain for long runs.

I chanted in triple berries to keep steady and to lose track of words and ideas: strawberry/blueberry/raspberry. It worked. I don’t remember what I thought about.

For some of the run, it felt hard to keep going and for some of it, it was easy. I think it’s time to experiment more with ways to distract myself — or to lead my mind in directions other than, this is hard, I can’t keep going, when can I stop?

overheard: I think I heard something at the beginning of the run that I wanted to remember but I lost it when I started chanting in triples. I do remember hearing something at the end: Two women walking, one to the other — it feels so good to have the sun on my face!

10 Things

  1. a speedy runner in white down below, on the winchell trail — beside me, then ahead of me, then gone
  2. soft, shimmering shadows
  3. a LOUD siren coming from behind, then an ambulance speeding by on the river road
  4. empty benches
  5. the view from the sliding bench: uncluttered, the sands gleaming so white that it looked like snow
  6. soft, dry dirt — no more mud
  7. one car then another then another passing by on the river road
  8. dried flowers hanging from the pink sign reading, Someone was taken by ICE here
  9. a slower biker riding on the grass between the river road and seabury
  10. the chain is still strung across the top step of the old stone steps, blocking the way down to the river

holes

Arts and crafts fun. This morning I did a test run of a yarn grid for Holes 1. A 9 x 9 square of cardboard with 1/2 inch slits all around. A long piece of blue yarn1 which I wound through the slits. A poem under the yarn grid: circles/dark holes encasing the words: off center era.

Assessment:

  • I need an exact-o knife for more precise cuts
  • the blue yarn is too thick and makes it impossible to read; try dark thread instead
  • make sure that the thread is long enough before starting to wrap it around the notches
  • follow this order: cut notches, place/attach (glue?) poem to cardboard, make sure the thread is long enough then wind it around
  • question: if I’m using thread, can I use a thinner frame, like cardstock instead of cardboard?

Here’s a picture of my test poem — should I call it, “(i’m in my)”?

a blue grid over found text, a black dot in the center then three dots scattered around it reading "off center era"
(in my) off center era

Okay, I tried it with thread and it works better, I think, but I need to be neater with it. Although, I do like the color of the blue. . . . For the larger Holes series, I need the black thread. In Holes 1, the Amsler Grid is straight, but by Holes 3, the lines will be much more crooked and warped. Black thread is much more effective for this warping.

(in my) off center era

A few more thoughts: It looks like I’ll need to take the circle-encased words and place them over the grid to be legible — the easiest way to do that is with the words as cut-outs, although I could also try weaving the thread under them (but that sounds difficult and beyond my limited skill and ability as “barely not blind.” Also, more thread is needed for back-up. And, should I create a frame around the holes poem that covers the ends? It could be a basic frame, either purchased or made, but I like the idea of creating some texture and/or a collage — maybe the black mesh fabric I bought, or ___? It needs to be something related to the holes poems and the act of reading? I’ll keep thinking about it. Would it work to have the words of the found poem on the frame?

update from yesterday’s post

First, yesterday I mentioned a discussion of three types of freedom that I was having with FWA at the dog park: I was looking for my PhD advisor’s book that discusses it. I can’t find my copy yet, but I found it online:

Second, yesterday I also mentioned that I was picking up 2 books from the library: Sea of Grass: the Conquest, Ruin, and Redemption of the American Prairie and a found poem collection by Annie Dillard, Morning Like This. More on both of these tomorrow.

  1. Finding a long enough strand of yarn took at least 3 tries. I thought I had a long enough strand then it would run out half way through and I would have to unravel what I had already done. Something important to remember for the official grid: make sure the yarn/string/thread is long enough before you begin! ↩︎