Run Machines Have No Soul

I love running. I love the adrenaline that pumps through my veins as the wind crashes into me face. Running is such an extreme activity that anyone can participate in almost any setting. You don't necessarily have to be good at it, and it doesn't have to be competitive. Running is a chance for me to escape from my current circumstance and think about my life. Running also affords me an opportunity to admire God's creation around me.

Living in the Las Vegas Valley, everyone can attest to our beautiful, beautiful sunrises and sunsets. Depending on the amount of clouds in the sky, our dawns and dusks illuminate our valley with explosions of color that vary from blood red to electric blue to golden orange. I love observing the beauty of our landscape and I think that that is the reason why I love running so much in addition to the health benefits and the personal escape I mentioned earlier.

I've been using treadmills a lot lately due to Las Vegas' excessive heat, and while it is not ideal, it does allow me to get my adrenaline pumping in the comfort of an air-conditioned building, but while running earlier this week, I came to the conclusion that treadmills are soulless machines. That probably seems completely obvious to you, but while I was running outside in the city streets, I realized just how much I prefer running outside.

When I'm outside, my surroundings change, there is a measurable distance between point A and point B. Perhaps what I love most about outside running is that I can choose my end point and my route to that end point. Lastly, there is also a certain danger component involved that draws me toward running outside. On my many runs, I've almost been hit multiple times by cars and have been chased by dogs. I'm not proud of those instances, nor am I boasting about my manliness. It is the unpredictability of running outside that is another factor which causes me to love it so much.

On a treadmill, I can run 6 miles and my scenery doesn't change, I stay in the EXACT same spot. No change. No sense of accomplishment.

Although I'll continue to use treadmills because of their practicality, it will never be able to replace the experience of running with concrete/asphalt under my feet and trees/clouds above my head.

There's a bumper sticker that I've seen a couple of times, sometimes in the form of a t-shirt that reads: 'Drum Machines Have No Soul'.

Run Machines Have No Soul.

LOS ANGELES

Hey everyone!

First off, I just want to say that I'm glad that you're reading this and I'm really excited because this blog is going to be a new journey for me, a new avenue of self expression and communication.

I've been meaning to blog for a really long time, and now that I'm presented with the opportunity to study abroad in Mexico for which I leave in just under 2 months, I thought that now would be be a good time to start blogging on a regular basis in order to get me into the swing of things. While I'm on my journey abroad I will prefer to interact with everyone on here instead of Facebook because I want this to be a bit more personal, plus I don't want to have the temptation to just post short snippets of meaningless text, which Facebook makes so easy.

Alas, here I am starting my blogging experience (exciting, right?), I'm going to begin by describing my experience in Los Angeles at the Anime Expo, but also sprinkle into it little pieces of philosophical banter; two components I hope to incorporate into my future postings.

Let me start of by declaring, Los Angeles is ridiculous.

The city is ginormous, a megalopolis of urban decay, art and breathtaking architecture. I was definitely left with the impression of Los Angeles being an international city; all of the pros and cons of American society, a snap shot of the American dream that people the world over either dream of, or loathe. Los Angeles is a bittersweet juxtaposition of opposites, a city in which multimillion dollar skyscrapers soar into the heavens, yet their grounds are flanked by homeless tent cities. Even though I have lived in Las Vegas my whole life, Los Angeles is far too busy for me, although it is a cultural mecca of sorts, a quality that Vegas is unfortunately lacking.

But enough about the city, lemme tell you about the reason why I was there: ANIME EXPO!

So if anyone knows me well, they know that I strongly dislike (I'm trying not to use the word 'hate') all things anime and manga (especially the latter). Although I have found some notable exceptions to this rule - such as Hayao Miyazaki's films Ponyo and Spirited Away - anime and manga are two genres of art and entertainment that I simply cannot appreciate or enjoy. I love Japanese culture, but I think that sushi and ninjas are far better exports. With that said, going to

Anime Expo was a big step for me in understanding the chaos that IS all things anime and manga. I also did something that I would have deemed insane a few years ago, I cos-played! Cos-playing refers to dressing up as anime and manga characters, something I always made fun of people for. Thankfully I went with a group a close friends who are flippin' awesome and we dressed up as characters from a show that I really enjoy (Avatar: The Las Airbender).

I was surprised by how awesome the whole dressing up experience was and I must say that I have a new found appreciation of the art of cos-playing. I now understand these people (FREAKS OF NATURE) on a deeper level. I admire their hard work and dedication to fully embodying a character that speaks to them. And that was perhaps the biggest breakthrough that I made on my adventure into madness.

I learned that anime and manga aren't just all stupid, mindless works of fiction, but rather many are stories and characters that speak to people. I notice that a LOT of people who are attracted to this genre are the outcasts of society; the geeks, nerds and failures that need an escape - a fantasy world of their own in which characters more brazen and confident than themselves can choose their own destinies.

I still don't particularly like anime and manga, but now I think I understand why people cling to it to such a degree.