2.03.2011

The risk faced by those who must go to Ciudad Juarez to process their immigrant visa applications is very real - and a very real deterrent to many living in the US or Mexico who wish to seek legal immigration. It's nice to see Mother Jones address this issue:
Dying for a Green Card: "Why does the US force legal immigrants to get their visas in Juárez, Mexico's murder capital?"

Image: source.

Yay! Serious Eats gives a shout out to bakeries in JP (I used to go to Blue Frog a lot but found it sort of unreliable - some things were far better than others. Canto 6, however, is pretty reliably delicious).

Some interesting info on running and preventing injuries. I was particularly glad to see some arguments against the pervasive opinion that running destroys your knees, which occasionally worries me. I definitely don't know enough to weigh in on the "natural running" and barefoot v. "big bulky shoe" debate, but, as I've said many a time, I do love my pretty-minimal Mizunos.

“Do not ask for fulfillment in all your life, but for patience to accept frustration. Do not ask for perfection in all you do, but for the wisdom not to repeat mistakes. Do not ask for more, before saying “Thank You” for what you have already received.” source.

4 comments:

Renai said...

I had a LOT of knee pain when I first started running, but kept reading that it isn't running that hurts you- it's running incorrectly. I've adopted a lot of the form adjustments from "chi running" and my knee pain is totally, completely gone.

Shorty said...

Hi Renai, thanks for your comment. I think I need to change my running pattern/style but I'm not quite sure how. Right now, for instance, I'm having knee pain on my right side and its creating back pain on my right side. I went to acupuncture yesterday and am headed to Bikram this weekend, and really hope those help me sort out the pain. What is "chi running"?

Renai said...

I had something similar going on- knee pain was causing hip pain. I actually got to a point where I couldn't even run a mile without having to stop and walk. Really awful. Chi Running is a running style that focuses on a forward lean and landing on your forefoot rather than your heel. It comes across as pretty woo-woo and I can't stand their book marketing- but it has really worked well for me. http://www.chirunning.com/ I'd suggest picking up a used copy of his book on Amazon.

Shorty said...

Huh, I will definitely check it out! I found a used copy on Powells.com. I'm hoping to be a runner for the long term, so am really looking for ways to stay healthy while upping my miles...

I know that I land pretty hard on my feet, my feet turn in, and then i roll in further as I come down....So I get the sense there is lots of room for improvement, although it seems daunting to retrain my body.