Mina Samuels's Blog, page 7
November 10, 2010
Run Like a Girl on Amazon
The book doesn't come out until March, but if you like to be the first girl in your 'hood to have the latest thing...you can pre-order Run Like a Girl now online and it will arrive on your doorstep in late February, likely before it even hits the bookstore shelves.
November 4, 2010
Running the Old Fashioned Way
I've been running, a lot, again. Pretending to myself that three ramped up weeks of training will be adequate for the Africa adventure of running 200 miles in six days. I am not totally dumb though. I am smart enough to be scared! But this article by Christopher MacDougall (author of Born to Run, a book much beloved by me) provided a new source of inspiration and calm.
MacDougall reminded me that what I'll be doing is really just running the old fashioned way, that is, through the veld at a moderate, continuous pace, what was in "olden times" just enough to keep the animal you're chasing in sight until it keels over, because it doesn't have the benefit of being able to breathe and sweat at the same time, as we do. And luckily for my vegetarian self, I get to leave out the hunting part. But what I get to keep is the social part, which was, as he points out, an essential key to such running.
So what I'll actually be doing is hanging out with friends for some long hours, while we happen to be on our feet.
Excellent. Any more takers?
MacDougall reminded me that what I'll be doing is really just running the old fashioned way, that is, through the veld at a moderate, continuous pace, what was in "olden times" just enough to keep the animal you're chasing in sight until it keels over, because it doesn't have the benefit of being able to breathe and sweat at the same time, as we do. And luckily for my vegetarian self, I get to leave out the hunting part. But what I get to keep is the social part, which was, as he points out, an essential key to such running.
So what I'll actually be doing is hanging out with friends for some long hours, while we happen to be on our feet.
Excellent. Any more takers?
November 2, 2010
Just Out of Sight
Conversation at breakfast this morning...
Why are we here?
Here, as in, our purpose, our raison d'etre, in this world, on this planet, walking the earth, having an egg white fritatta for breakfast.
As my partner said, it's one of those questions with a perpetually elusive answer. Every time we think we've come to a tentative conclusion, found a possible answer, it--the answer, that is--ducks around a corner, just out of sight again, so that we have to pursue the same or a new line of reasoning again, until...wait...there...just beyond our field of vision or understanding...we glimpse the answer again.
Frustrating. Provocative. Energizing.
Even without the answer, we know when what we're doing is NOT our reason for being here, right? We know when we are killing time or covering over time or filling the minutes until...until what? Until the next thing that's more "real" than our present state of being?
Sometimes we use our sports in this way, as fillers, as cover-uppers, as paste on pain patches to help us forget other things, as means to an end, not an end in themselves. There's nothing wrong with that. Sports are so much better fillers than too many other things.
Yet, don't lose sight of the other way we use our sports--as a pure source of joy in itself, a way of being, of connecting with ourselves and the energy of others and, I'll say it, the energy of the universe.
Why are we here?
I don't quite know, but let's make the most of it!
Why are we here?
Here, as in, our purpose, our raison d'etre, in this world, on this planet, walking the earth, having an egg white fritatta for breakfast.
As my partner said, it's one of those questions with a perpetually elusive answer. Every time we think we've come to a tentative conclusion, found a possible answer, it--the answer, that is--ducks around a corner, just out of sight again, so that we have to pursue the same or a new line of reasoning again, until...wait...there...just beyond our field of vision or understanding...we glimpse the answer again.
Frustrating. Provocative. Energizing.
Even without the answer, we know when what we're doing is NOT our reason for being here, right? We know when we are killing time or covering over time or filling the minutes until...until what? Until the next thing that's more "real" than our present state of being?
Sometimes we use our sports in this way, as fillers, as cover-uppers, as paste on pain patches to help us forget other things, as means to an end, not an end in themselves. There's nothing wrong with that. Sports are so much better fillers than too many other things.
Yet, don't lose sight of the other way we use our sports--as a pure source of joy in itself, a way of being, of connecting with ourselves and the energy of others and, I'll say it, the energy of the universe.
Why are we here?
I don't quite know, but let's make the most of it!
October 27, 2010
Why Do Women Athletes Have to be Celebrities?
Jill Smoller, the head of the Sports/Entertainment Division at the William Morris Agency took some heat today at a lunch hosted by the Wellesley Centers for Women on the topic of Women and Sports. She talked about the need for women athletes (unlike male athletes) also to be celebrities, if they are to garner the attention necessary to get the much sought-after endorsements, which are many athletes primary livelihoods. The example she used was one of her own top-knotch clients, Serena Williams, who, she says, needs to get out in the media for much more than her tennis skills, if she is going to be noticed and command the attention (and sponsorship) that she does.
Serena's soon-to-be-announced new sponsor?--OPI. Yes, I mean the nail polish company. Serena, known for her long nails on the court, engaged in a specific strategy to highlight her personal affection for a good manicure to woo that sponsor. And Jill Smoller (who, one imagines, was instrumental in that media strategy) says that's exactly how it needs to be for women. She pointed out that corporate America (aka the sponsors) still requires that women athletes be attractive and feminine.
There was an audible rumble in the room. But as others astutely pointed out, let's not be too quick to blame corporate America, because until we women start to value women athletes more (by going to their games, by demanding more women's sports coverage, by holding out for Nike basketball shoes that are named for a woman basketball star and not a man, and by generally valuing a broader range of athletic women), then there's no reason for corporate America to change.
We have market power. We just aren't using it! Why not?
This called to mind an article I once read about a union organizer who continued to shop at WalMart, though that act went against all his union politics (Walmart being quite renowned for its union busting and oppressive supplier policies). Why did he do it? Because shopping at WalMart was easy and cheap.
Indeed. It's a lot easier to accept the status quo, than it is to change things, especially if changing things means personal, though possibly temporary, deprivation (as in, I won't buy Nike products because the company doesn't support women athletes at the same level it does male athletes; or, I'm going to a WNBA game by myself, instead of the usual NBA game with my boyfriend/husband/partner/lover/father/brother/etc...because he won't come to the women's game with me).
Instead of rumbling at Jill Smoller's possibly incendiary comments, let's make change!
Serena's soon-to-be-announced new sponsor?--OPI. Yes, I mean the nail polish company. Serena, known for her long nails on the court, engaged in a specific strategy to highlight her personal affection for a good manicure to woo that sponsor. And Jill Smoller (who, one imagines, was instrumental in that media strategy) says that's exactly how it needs to be for women. She pointed out that corporate America (aka the sponsors) still requires that women athletes be attractive and feminine.
There was an audible rumble in the room. But as others astutely pointed out, let's not be too quick to blame corporate America, because until we women start to value women athletes more (by going to their games, by demanding more women's sports coverage, by holding out for Nike basketball shoes that are named for a woman basketball star and not a man, and by generally valuing a broader range of athletic women), then there's no reason for corporate America to change.
We have market power. We just aren't using it! Why not?
This called to mind an article I once read about a union organizer who continued to shop at WalMart, though that act went against all his union politics (Walmart being quite renowned for its union busting and oppressive supplier policies). Why did he do it? Because shopping at WalMart was easy and cheap.
Indeed. It's a lot easier to accept the status quo, than it is to change things, especially if changing things means personal, though possibly temporary, deprivation (as in, I won't buy Nike products because the company doesn't support women athletes at the same level it does male athletes; or, I'm going to a WNBA game by myself, instead of the usual NBA game with my boyfriend/husband/partner/lover/father/brother/etc...because he won't come to the women's game with me).
Instead of rumbling at Jill Smoller's possibly incendiary comments, let's make change!
October 26, 2010
Running in Africa
Of late you may have noticed a theme about trying new things...well...here's one more--my partner and I have decided, somewhat spontaneously (aka precipitously and at the last minute) to join a fundraising run and hike in Kenya and Tanzania. We are embarking on this adventure to promote AIDS awareness and raise funds to build the first and largest, public children's hospital in Sub Saharan Africa; a continent where child mortality is a modern day atrocity we need to address.
Starting on November 21st (yes, I do mean in a month!), we are going to join Toby Tanser, CEO and Founder of Shoe4Africa and our long-time friend Rodney Cutler (who we met through running more than 15 years ago), on a run from Mombasa to the base of Kilimanjaro (200 miles in 6 days), and from there hike up that mountain.
Shoe4Africa is a fantastic organization, committed not only to building this children's hospital in Kenya, but also to the empowerment of African women, as the key to the future. Indeed!
I would be deeply honoured if you would sponsor us in this undertaking, and contribute to this important Shoe4Africa initiative.
Starting on November 21st (yes, I do mean in a month!), we are going to join Toby Tanser, CEO and Founder of Shoe4Africa and our long-time friend Rodney Cutler (who we met through running more than 15 years ago), on a run from Mombasa to the base of Kilimanjaro (200 miles in 6 days), and from there hike up that mountain.
Shoe4Africa is a fantastic organization, committed not only to building this children's hospital in Kenya, but also to the empowerment of African women, as the key to the future. Indeed!
I would be deeply honoured if you would sponsor us in this undertaking, and contribute to this important Shoe4Africa initiative.
October 20, 2010
Sumo For Girls...
In an interesting twist of fate, at the same moment that women are fighting to get ski jumping approved as an Olympic sport for us (NY Benefit to raise money for the campaign is tomorrow night!)--it being the last male-only bastion in the Olympic games--Sumo wrestling is making a bid to become an Olympic sport. The rub--new sports are not allowed in unless they have men's and women's competitions. (Ski jumping was "grandfathered," and therefore not subject to that now-rule.) So...the International Sumo Federation has put its weight behind women's sumo wrestling--not the usual bedfellows. Here's more from the New York Times today.
October 19, 2010
The Invisible Skin
A grey morning and my first great run since August (who knows if it really was--but in my mind and body, that's what it felt like). Shorts and a long sleeve shirt pulled halfway over my hands, my favourite combination. The morning damp and cool, but once I shake off the shivers and get going, I'm encased in my invisible heat skin--that gorgeous warm envelope that develops during a good workout on a chill morning. And inside, energy reserves that feel deep and solid. A rare morning. I take note.
October 18, 2010
A Moving Kind of Girl
I think of myself as a "moving kind of girl," to quote Lois, a woman I interviewed for Run Like a Girl (which, by the way, is moving along nicely toward its pub date of March 2011--yippee). To that end, as you know, I've been exploring new "moving" possibilities, some alternative ways to stir the blood around and, hopefully, get a little stronger for my first loves (and yes, I do mean that to be plural--I am not a monogamous athlete)--running, cycling, xc skiing and more.
This line of "research" has led me to quite a few fitness classes, some of which you've heard about already. There's more--my research is becoming exhaustive, if not plain exhausting. Added to the list are: Zumba and Pole Dancing. Yes. I have just owned up to taking a pole dancing class.
So, research results are...
First, pole dancing. Not for me. I'm not saying it's not a workout--it certainly can be. There's no doubt that pursued diligently, it will lengthen and strengthen. But how strange it felt to be dedicating my workout to learning moves for the Bada-Bing Club, or whatever the strip club on the Sopranos was called. As I understand it, the workout should make me feel more sexy. Not in my case (though I will not speak for other women's experience on this topic). Quite the opposite in fact. I felt like I was training myself to be even more of an object than society already imposes on women.
What the workout did do was force me to ask myself what made me feel sexy? Running fast, check. Blowing off a group of guys on the bike, check. High heels, check. Rubbing my crotch again a pole, not so much. Good things to know.
Who we are is how we move--I need to move in the ways that define me, not the way men's fantasies define.
Next fitness class adventure was Zumba--a mish mash of latin dances, which are fitness-class-ified.
The pros: I love dancing. Latin dance is especially fun. Causes spontaneous smiling. The tunes are groovy.
The cons: A gym is still a gym (it's just not my thing, as hard as I try, there's something about the smell). Hybridizing dance and workout adulterates both and improves neither. Reminded me how "stiff" I am (as in, in the middle of a workout should I really be thinking to myself--this would be better after a glass of wine?).
So, sadly, I didn't find my new BFF workout in either of these alternatives.
But I did remember how fun dancing was (note to self, must seek out dancing opportunities); and once again came face to face with the question of what makes me feel good and feel good about myself.
ps. I ran the morning after the Zumba class, and the crisping autumn air, the trees on the verge of turning and the gorgeous feeling of my legs carrying me along filled me with an enormous sense of pleasure and belonging.
Not that it's a surprise, but sometimes the biggest benefit of trying new things, is the all important reminder of how much we love the old things. What keeps life interesting is the constant dance of balance between staying open to possibility, and being true to ourselves. Sometimes the latter can mask staleness and rigidity--"Oh, I know I wouldn't like..." And sometimes the former can mask insecurity or fuzziness--"Everyone else is doing it, I should do it." But what do you really want?
Know who you are and do what you are. And know that may change.
This line of "research" has led me to quite a few fitness classes, some of which you've heard about already. There's more--my research is becoming exhaustive, if not plain exhausting. Added to the list are: Zumba and Pole Dancing. Yes. I have just owned up to taking a pole dancing class.
So, research results are...
First, pole dancing. Not for me. I'm not saying it's not a workout--it certainly can be. There's no doubt that pursued diligently, it will lengthen and strengthen. But how strange it felt to be dedicating my workout to learning moves for the Bada-Bing Club, or whatever the strip club on the Sopranos was called. As I understand it, the workout should make me feel more sexy. Not in my case (though I will not speak for other women's experience on this topic). Quite the opposite in fact. I felt like I was training myself to be even more of an object than society already imposes on women.
What the workout did do was force me to ask myself what made me feel sexy? Running fast, check. Blowing off a group of guys on the bike, check. High heels, check. Rubbing my crotch again a pole, not so much. Good things to know.
Who we are is how we move--I need to move in the ways that define me, not the way men's fantasies define.
Next fitness class adventure was Zumba--a mish mash of latin dances, which are fitness-class-ified.
The pros: I love dancing. Latin dance is especially fun. Causes spontaneous smiling. The tunes are groovy.
The cons: A gym is still a gym (it's just not my thing, as hard as I try, there's something about the smell). Hybridizing dance and workout adulterates both and improves neither. Reminded me how "stiff" I am (as in, in the middle of a workout should I really be thinking to myself--this would be better after a glass of wine?).
So, sadly, I didn't find my new BFF workout in either of these alternatives.
But I did remember how fun dancing was (note to self, must seek out dancing opportunities); and once again came face to face with the question of what makes me feel good and feel good about myself.
ps. I ran the morning after the Zumba class, and the crisping autumn air, the trees on the verge of turning and the gorgeous feeling of my legs carrying me along filled me with an enormous sense of pleasure and belonging.
Not that it's a surprise, but sometimes the biggest benefit of trying new things, is the all important reminder of how much we love the old things. What keeps life interesting is the constant dance of balance between staying open to possibility, and being true to ourselves. Sometimes the latter can mask staleness and rigidity--"Oh, I know I wouldn't like..." And sometimes the former can mask insecurity or fuzziness--"Everyone else is doing it, I should do it." But what do you really want?
Know who you are and do what you are. And know that may change.
October 13, 2010
Mary Carillo Won't Ask About Nails or Hemlines
I saw Mary Carillo speak at a WISE breakfast. No TV weather bunny, she defines smart, straight talking. Listening to her speak is like standing in a brisk breeze--refreshing and invigorating. Two things she talked about particularly struck me.
One--she's lived her life very much following the first rule of improv--always say "yes." (A rule I learned recently in an acting class I decided to take on a whim.) When asked why she had done such an incredibly wide range of broadcasting, Mary answered, "Because I say yes!"
Note to self--the right answer is "yes."
The second thing I loved was her attitude on women's sports. She detests, for example, that women tennis players, but not men, are now allowed to be coached mid-game. Worse still, a lot of those coaches are the players' "daddy." "The men don't do that," Mary says. (And can you even imagine some male tennis player's mother getting in on his game?) "A lot of the women tennis players need to take their sport more seriously. We only have our athletic bodies for so long. We ought to use them to the fullest while we can. I am not going ask Serena about her nails or hemlines. I want her to play more tennis!"
Oh yes.
If we don't take ourselves seriously, why should others?
One--she's lived her life very much following the first rule of improv--always say "yes." (A rule I learned recently in an acting class I decided to take on a whim.) When asked why she had done such an incredibly wide range of broadcasting, Mary answered, "Because I say yes!"
Note to self--the right answer is "yes."
The second thing I loved was her attitude on women's sports. She detests, for example, that women tennis players, but not men, are now allowed to be coached mid-game. Worse still, a lot of those coaches are the players' "daddy." "The men don't do that," Mary says. (And can you even imagine some male tennis player's mother getting in on his game?) "A lot of the women tennis players need to take their sport more seriously. We only have our athletic bodies for so long. We ought to use them to the fullest while we can. I am not going ask Serena about her nails or hemlines. I want her to play more tennis!"
Oh yes.
If we don't take ourselves seriously, why should others?
October 12, 2010
Olympic Equality--the fight continues
Ski jumping is the only discipline in the Summer and Winter Games in which the International Olympic Committee (IOC) does not allow women to compete.
The rationales?
1) The field isn't deep enough. Lame--the field will get deeper once it's an olympic sport. Opportunities to engage in a sport are necessary to build it's base (as I'm sure most of the other sports in the Olympics have proven).
2) Ski jumping might shake up our delicate "woman parts." Whatever--because men don't have any delicate parts? No need to say more.
3) Because women, being naturally lighter, might actually give men a run for their money in the sport. True--but not a reason the IOC gives, of course.
What can we do to change this situation?
Well, for starters we can attend the Join the Journey benefit next Thursday night, October 21, in New York to raise money and awareness for the campaign to get ski jumping into the Olympics.
Cool--a thing we can actually do to advance women's sports.
The rationales?
1) The field isn't deep enough. Lame--the field will get deeper once it's an olympic sport. Opportunities to engage in a sport are necessary to build it's base (as I'm sure most of the other sports in the Olympics have proven).
2) Ski jumping might shake up our delicate "woman parts." Whatever--because men don't have any delicate parts? No need to say more.
3) Because women, being naturally lighter, might actually give men a run for their money in the sport. True--but not a reason the IOC gives, of course.
What can we do to change this situation?
Well, for starters we can attend the Join the Journey benefit next Thursday night, October 21, in New York to raise money and awareness for the campaign to get ski jumping into the Olympics.
Cool--a thing we can actually do to advance women's sports.
