Kodo : I want to play drum, now!!

I am here on the teacher's, that I am subbing for, chair. Sitting and typing on my laptop. A hand-me-down 6 year old Apple laptop. I am substituting a music teacher. I have limited knowledge on music, but I can rap if I try harder. Does that count?

According to the lesson plan I need to follow is to watch DVD on Kodo: a professional taiko drumming troupe ( There, I did the googling for you). I was warned by the teacher that this class is a tough class.   He was concerned that they'd make fun of the video because the drummers are wearing diaper look alike coverups. So he instructed me to stay on top of my game.

I was nervous. Ain't gonna lie. 8th graders can be tough to deal with. In their minds they are already in high school, but they feel trapped in the middle school. And middle school sucks for them. I don't know why, because middle school was fun for me.

I began the class by asking the students, how different I am from them, physically. Because our physical appearances are the base of people making judgements. Don't lie, you do too. Of course, they were confused. I gave them couple of examples; I have dark hair, dark skin, short, tiny and have a bit of accent ( guys find it sexy). Then I pointed out to one of the girl: you are tall, have blond hair, fair skin, blue eyes and beautiful voice. Am I better than you are? is my skin color better than yours? Are your blue eyes a better color than my browns?

The answer was NO-collectively. That made me proud and happy. We watched the movie for a while, then I started hearing boys chatting. It got louder. I paused the movie, and asked them to share their conversation with the class. I heard what they were talking about, and thought it was surprisingly interesting that they had the exact same thought I did; we were paying more attention to the drummers muscles more than their diapers.

I initiated the discussion by asking about which part that they are interested in? All of them were wondering if drumming would be such ripped muscles. One of the boys commented, " They have six pack on their backs" 

I am a fan of muscles. I am working on mine. I was wondering if that is the case? They play drum all the time, their arms, back and whole body, in fact, look so great. And perhaps sushi help, too. 

The kids and I had such a wonderful discussion. I told them I will give an A+ report to their teacher. They thank me for letting them appreciate music through different perspectives. Who knew playing music can ( possibly) make one's look like an athlete.

Newton : Challenge What You Know, Prove What You Don't

Most runners know and obey this rule : do not wear, use or consume any new gears, foods or drinks on race day. For non-runners, they need explanations as to why there's such rule. Simply put, anything new is foreign to your body. The brand new shoes straight out of the box can cause blisters, for instance. Or drinking avocado juice for breakfast for the first time on race morning just because your buddy who just started a new diet told you how the juice has given her extra energy to run her marathon in less than 3 hour, a bad idea. Your stomach can reject the smoothie. And it can cause diarrhea. The point of the rule is to educate people, runners in particular, that we need to assimilate and get acquainted with the gears or energy foods and drinks before we use or consume them on the day we need our body to work its best. Especially when one has to run a half or full marathon distance.

But let me narrow down the discussion to the shoe rule.  Shoes are the most important gear for a runner-unless you are a barefoot runner. Shoes play the biggest role in running activities. They are our feet's body guards. They keep our feet safe from all kinds of dangers. On the same token, however, shoes can be the feet's enemies if they are not the right match for your tootsies. According to experts, articles, and many conversations I had with runners, new shoes need to be "broken" or used several times in order to soften the materials, and most importantly to make sure they are the right fit for your soles, before you can wear them for a race. Blisters, purple toes and even loss of toe nails have been repeatedly reported as a result of failure to practice with new shoes prior to race day.

Various Newton shoes under $50 from Amazon.com

I guess what they are trying to say is, if a runner plans to race and needs a new pair of shoes, he or she should give enough time to find the new pair, try them on, make sure they fit well if not perfect, do some runs or walks until both feet and shoes agree on one thing: yes we can run together without causing any profound issues to each other. Kind of like dating sessions, before committing to a more serious relationship or even marriage.

A non-runner friend once questioned the rule. In her opinion, if the shoes fit your feet, there should not be any issue whether you wear them for a practice or a race. I honestly agreed with her. But I told her, I am not an expert. Experts speak based on theirs and many others' experiences that they know of. So somehow, I just follow the rules without ever having a shoe disastrous experience.

Wasn't satisfied with my answer, the friend challenged me with another question, "have you ever run in a brand new shoes for a race?" The answer at that time, back  in the year 2010, was no. I knew where she was going with her question. She wanted to prove that if I haven't run in a brand new shoes and experienced discomforts or adversities, how could I believe, and worst, obey the rule?

Sunday, November 9, 2014. I drove a little over an hour to my friend's house to run a marathon race in her town. I was super excited. Not only I'd run this event with two of my running buddies, but If I could finish it in one piece, I would complete another series of 3 marathons within a month  ( I completed 3 marathons and a 50 mile race within a month back in 2013).

My excitement was cut short as soon as arrived at my friend's driveway. As I was climbing out of the car, I looked down and saw my feet were wearing socks and sandals in place of shoes. Great! I panicked. I giggle randomly when I am nervous or mad. I informed my friend that I forgot my shoes. Again, I know the procedure, I have done it many times before; prepare my race gears the night before. Assign a place for the shoes close to the door, so when I go out, I'll see them, hence I won't forget.
I normally wear my shoes to the race. One time, I ran a marathon in St. Louis, Missouri, I slept wearing my shoes and running outfits. I wanted to have one extra hour snooze. Honestly, I couldn't remember how I forgot to wear or bring my shoes this time.

I wasn't about to give up. I grabbed my friend's pair of Newton shoes. She wears size 9, and mine are 7.5. Hers were neutral shoes. Meanwhile I need support. And I forgot my prescribed orthotic inserts. I could just pictured myself limping around for 26.2 miles due to unfit shoes.

My friend kept asking me if I was going to be ok. I honestly didn't  know if I was going to be ok. But I went ahead and lied. My mind, on the contrary, was constructing a plan on how I was going to inform the medics of how on earth I lost my toe nails. They'd probably chuckle to learn that I forgot my shoes and stupid enough to run with someone else's shoes two size bigger.

At the last restroom call, I was surprised by the unexpected arrival of my monthly period. The gun went off, and we started running. Surprisingly I was able to keep up with my friend who was running some 9 minute per mile pace, all the way to mile 7.  Blessed with the kindness of my other friend's husband who went all the way back to their house to pick up some feminine pads, I was able to take care of my business, and continued running.

Something borrowed-something blue
I am in the middle with my two awesome running buddies
and the NEWTONS at the finish line of
Naperville Marathon 2014

The course had some challenging elevations. I was actually able to tackle them. I ran conservatively all the way to mile 22. I was exhausted, but surprised that I didn't really feel any particular pain coming from the feet. I pushed through the last miles, and finished the race in exactly 5 hours.

No blister, no purple toenails, no plantar fascia pain. Nothing! I was amazed. I ordered my first pair of Newton shoes the very next day, despite lingering concerns that they might cause damage to my feet since many shoe salesperson had told me that Newton shoes are not for me.

I have been wearing the brand ever since. This summer I bought 4 more pairs through Amazon. I am lucky to have my size available with the lowest prices I can afford. Since the shoes I ordered came from various sellers, they came in different time. The first pair is Newton Energy NR in neon green. I tried them on for 6 mile run. They fit well and feel great.

Energy NR II

By the time the last pair arrived ( Motion III in light purple ), I had to do an 18 mile run practice. You'd probably wonder why I didn't just used the pair I have exposed to my feet? Do you remember of the friend of mine who questioned about the rule of " nothing new" on race day at the beginning of this story? Well, I had bragged to her about Newton shoes. How great these shoes are and how they fit my feet so well. This time she didn't asked question, but she challenged me to wear for my 18 mile run practice. Just to prove her theory is correct.

Motion III; arrived on August 15th, worn for 18 miler on August 16th.

Other than high temperature and humidity ( it's summer in Midwest, what do you expect?)  I safely arrived back home after 3 hour and 24 minute run. I don't want to go on details about Newton shoes other than they are awesome for me, because I am not writing this to promote the brand, or paid to promote them. I am writing this to re-learn what I believe that when you hear or read about some information, stories or rumors, be diligent. It is true, we can learn from others' experiences. But it is better to be a challenger to find the truth than be the follower and risking getting lost in the thicket of uncertainty.