Lucy's Running In The Sky With A Spiderweb

It's been a little over a year since I entered the halls of matrimony and, in my speech that day to my new dopeness wife CVSW, said that life was like a highway and that now, since we had just gotten hitched, wherever the road would take us, at least we would be able to use the HOV. lane. Despite the passage of time, T,H,E K,I,D still insists that I plagiarized that speech citing that it was simply too creative to have been my own. While I agree with T,H,E K,I,D as to the creativity and hilarious nature of my speech, I assure you that his accusation is completely unfounded. And the most interesting thing about the speech was that I came up with it no more than 3 hours before I spoke those words to my beloved. You see, dear readers, with the minutes slowly ticking by before the wedding was to begin, I found myself wanting a little time to myself before I would be unable to get any for the rest of the day. I decided to go on one last run as an unmarried man and it was during that very run that the inspiration hit me. I had forgone my stupid Apple iPod and was alone with my thoughts when in ran that brilliant line I spoke that night.

Looking back on that day, I have come to realize that many, if not all, of my creative/interesting ideas have come while I have been running. Not being familiar with the inner workings of the human brain, I can't give any biological reason why this is so, but, so it is. Maybe it has something to do with the temporary escape from reality. Maybe it has something to do with being too exhausted to think about any of your real-world responsibilities and obligations. No matter what the cause, whenever I am running (on a treadmill or outdoors) I seem to be at my most creative. If you're like T,H,E K,I,D and doubt my assertion, just ask Ringo Starr or Gwen Stefani. They'll back me up!

In a recent interview, Ringo Starr, member of the Beatles whose music inspired the Vegas show, Love, my papa's favorite Vegas show, told reporters that the inspiration for his newer songs has always come to him while he has been on the treadmill. Reasoning that it is healthier to run instead of staying up late at night smoking, Starr said that, "When it's time to record, I find that getting on the treadmill brings on the endorphins, and the songs just start coming. I wrote a lot of songs on the treadmill". In a similar vein, Gwen Stefani used running for the inspiration to many of the songs on her solo debut album, Love.Angel.Music.Baby (L.A.M.B.). In an interview with MTV, Stefani recounted the hardships she faced while producing L.A.M.B. and how scared she became at times that her efforts would all be for naught.  Having completed each of the tracks except for the song that would eventually become Rich Girl, Stefani found that the last song was simply not working. She had the words, but the tune simply would not come to her. Unable to work out the kinks with this last track, Stefani turned to working out...of herself! It was that simple decision that helped finalize L.A.M.B. As the article notes, "Eventually, during a brainstorm while running on her treadmill, Gwen got it". Since its release, L.A.M.B. has gone multi-platinum and has sold over seven million copies.

In past posts, I have written about the enormous benefits that can be derived from running. Of course, there's the health aspect. And the loss of weight aspect. But beyond the obvious lies a wealth of advantages which are within each runner's grasp. Running can make you smarter. Running can make you a better employee. Running can help decrease your stress levels. Running can strengthen your relationships with others. And, as I've just explained, running can help you find the inspiration that has been missing for all too long.

As the day is just beginning and I am preparing for my morning run, I leave with these departing words: I hope I have inspired you to be inspired!