Category Archives: Outlook

Running Down the Coast

By Katy Durbin

Marathon running is meant for pros. But for those of us who are not pros and who house a vaguely masochistic streak, marathons can also be a good lifestyle choice. Pain aside, long distance running increases your stamina and energy and gets progressively easier the more you do it.  It’s one of the best ways to see different parts of LA in the shortest amount of time, and, in my opinion, a pretty good way to kill a Sunday.  Most importantly though, intense running sessions are great for justifying an addiction to snacks. So, of what does marathon training consist? Oh, you innocents.

Running long distance begins with a few weekly runs of 5-ish miles, and one big run every Sunday for punishment. 🙂 Generally, the Sunday runs are over 13 miles, the longest being a 22 mile stretch that starts at Dockweiler Beach, goes through Santa Monica and Venice, and loops back around to Dockweiler. This route takes approximately 4-5 hours to accomplish. So let’s talk about this one.

Photo by Chris Goldberg on Flickr

We start at a Dockweiler bathroom coated in the kind of graffiti you want to see more of, a nice inspiration for the hours ahead. For the most part, this run takes place along the beach. It’s reliable because there are water fountains along the course so you can run out of fluids without freaking out. We all bring some form of electrolyte sugar, whether in gummy, goo, or powerade form. Most don’t realize that once you break the 14 mile threshold, you risk running low on sodium and minerals, as those are also lost through sweat. Sugar is a simple carbohydrate and, therefore, can be easily digested. Ingesting sugar will ensure a steady stream of energy, and reduce the risk that you will hit what is colloquially known to runners as “the wall”, or the point where your body stops burning excess calorie and instead breaks directly into your fat stores. “The wall” feels like death, so sugar is recommended.

Photo by Gerson Repreza on Unsplash

Anyway, we go up through Venice Beach, passing tents full of vendors and their wares, each offering both sub-par and over-par paintings for sale, as well as an assortment of odds and ends. Graffiti coated pillars rise from the sand; muscle-strapped men and women work out on gym-equipment; people run by with miniature parachutes strapped to their butts (I assume this is a new-fangled workout routine). Yes, yes indeed: this is my favorite beach in Southern California.

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Growing Communities through Aquaponics

By Jackie Hernandez

As an (untrained) anthropology enthusiast, I sometimes find myself pondering the roots of our food culture and how it affects our lives. Why do we get (or not get…) chocolates, of all things, on Valentine’s Day? When did quinoa become every Angelino‘s best friend? And most recently, how can I use food culture to help others? This last question came about as I realized how much food affects our mood, our health, our appearance, our environment, our wallet, and arguably,  our effectiveness in school and work. Yikes! Food is a huge deal. Plus, food and eating bonds people together and is a form of cultural expression…. For example, as a Californian, I really related to this video while studying abroad in Australia… (skip to 1:40)

I feel, girl, I feel.

Despite being aware of the importance of food, I know I fall into bad eating habits sometimes, like skipping breakfast or relying on processed foods. I also know that there are many people who are in far worse eating situations, due to lack of healthy alternatives. For them and for myself, I started to take an active interest in urban gardening and how it has the potential to change the way a community eats.

For example, one man in South Los Angeles named Ron Finely started planting vegetables in “parkways”– also known as “that little strip of grass between the sidewalk and the road.” His hard work eventually made it possible for families to plant certain foods in public spaces, giving them easier access to healthy foods, not to mention, a new community-bonding recreational activity. I wanted to do the same. Of course, I hadn’t attempted gardening since the third grade, after a field trip to a Los Angeles tree sanctuary in which each child got to take home a tree seed, a seedling planter, and their best intentions to grow a new life. Unfortunately, my young sprout perished in its planter, thanks to a massive pine tree that heavily shaded my apartment window. Ironic, I know.

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Positivity Overload

By Dominique Murdock

Photo by Matthew T Rader on Flickr

So there I was… three months away from the beginning of the fall semester at USC, with no money to travel, no apartment to live in, and quite honestly….no real acceptance letter from my dream graduate school. What I did have, however, was the power to think, see, believe, and manifest the things I wanted for my life, into my life. Though I’ve never gone too long without life’s necessities, I’m certainly no stranger to sacrifice. What keeps me resilient though, in those bleak times of struggle, is the sheer drive to be better, see more, and experience things people (at least from where I come) would have never even fathomed.

Before we fast forward this story and kick it into high gear, I want to explore just what it means to “think, see, believe and manifest.” No, these aren’t just cliche words people tattoo onto themselves in barely recognizable languages. Nope… actually they are mantra words, or sacred utterances believed to possess spiritual power when audible, regularly repeated, and present constantly in thought. The idea behind these mantras is that you can literally acquire all the things you want for your life by simply keeping positive.

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