Cav's Place

For a long time, I tried to avoid such Sunday updates. Then I was no longer able to avoid them. Then I stopped even being able to finish them by midnight, editing the posts days later in order to add what was left. And, more recently, the rule seems to be to post what are basically just placeholders, only the beginning of the posts. And this is another such situation, so I’ll start what’s basically yet another placeholder, limited just to this first section, from the early hours of May 11, when I ended up eating dinner between 3:45 AM and 4:30 AM, and got in bed at 5:35 AM… And then I had to get up to pee several times, so my body seemed to want to get rid of all fluids instead of accumulating some before the run… But the last time I woke up was at 3:45 PM, and then I had a relatively early lunch and just after 8:30 PM I was back in the kitchen, and even though dad had also cooked, which left me with some things to wash and clean, and he also kept coming there to get things to make himself a salad that he didn’t even mean to eat that night and stressing me out as a result, I managed to eat dinner between 12:50 AM and 1:30 AM, putting peanut butter on all of the slices of bread. And I also made the tea for the morning while working on dinner, and after dinner I took one of those pills against gas. On the other hand, I started feeling some crap in my chest as I was working on dinner and occasionally had to cough, and something didn’t feel right in my abdomen either.
Either way, after dinner I shaved and got ready for the morning, putting the cereals, baked almonds with Himalayan salt and raisins in milk chocolate into a bowl, so I’ll just have that bio (organic) “Greek” yogurt to add, selecting the two apples that I meant to eat, since they were small, also setting aside the protein bar, gel and liquid magnesium that I meant to take with me, putting the number on the t-shirt and splitting the other things that I was taking between the bag and the jacket. I again chose to not go to the toilet one more time, since even so I got in bed at 3:40 AM, but my mind and heart were racing and I was still awake a few minutes before 4:30 AM, when I went to pee again, just in case, so it’d have been better to use part of that time to leave some more in the toilet.
I did fall asleep eventually, but I got an hour at best, probably less, before the alarm rang, at 6 AM. Then I ate what I had prepared, unsurprisingly only wasted time on the toilet despite feeling like I had plenty to leave in it, and took all of the supplements, one pill of each in case of the iron and that one for joints, but I took the last iron pill with me. I also ate three of those wheat things, with bio (organic) honey between them, took one more pill against gas, and drank most of the tea. After forgetting to set it aside before going to bed, I did remember to take a Smecta Go with me as well, and eventually stuck to the plan and also took that gel, despite thinking that I shouldn’t while I was getting ready. And I left at 8 AM, wearing the full running gear and one armband, and dad drove me to that spot that’s close to the metro station. The forecast for the period that interested me, between 9 AM and 11 AM, listed a steady 16-17°C, but it was cloudy and windy.
I reached Constitution Square just before 8:30 AM and wandered around a little, checking whether there was anything to take and only seeing some apples offered by an energy company, so I took one and put it in the bag. Then, without even the slightest attempt at a warmup or any stretching exercises, I entered the Sport Expo area, took the second iron pill, took off the jacket and put it in the bag, and a little after 8:40 AM I was in line to leave the bag at the wardrobe. However, there seemed to be two lines for the half marathon runners and I placed myself in the shorter one… Only to hear a little later that it was supposedly the line for those who didn’t have the sticker with the number placed on the bag, but there was no sign to state that, the only way to know being to hear the guy who was occasionally telling that to the first few who were in that line, and as I advanced and he got to me as well he took off that sticker, which I had placed on the bag, and put it on the straps, saying that it was likely to come off if placed directly on the bag. That was indeed a problem in previous years, when I used safety pins to make sure that it stayed on, but this time around it seemed fine, what he did likely causing the bigger problem, since the way he wrapped it around the straps made the number very hard to see, and I told him that, but he said that it was fine. So I left it like that and moved to the other line, hesitating for a moment but eventually cutting in and handing over the bag.
After getting back out of the Sport Expo area, I initially meant to have another look around while making my way to the toilets, but I spotted a few more toilets in front of the press and staff tents, with just a few other runners around them, so I only had seconds to wait before being able to use one. Admittedly, there were none of those portable sinks in that area, but I washed my hands when I passed by the other toilets on my way out of Constitution Square. However, even if that saved me what would have otherwise been quite a few minutes of waiting in line and I started to make my way to the start area a little after 8:50 AM, I still found it packed when I got there, the chances to advance appearing frustratingly low at first. But others were obviously trying to do that as well, and some of them were bolder and had more success, so I eventually found some “trains” to follow, eating that protein bar while doing so. And, after it initially looked like I was going to have to settle for stopping in the group which had gathered around the 2:00 pacemakers, since the start time was approaching and nobody seemed to manage to push farther ahead, some did eventually find a way and I ended up passing the 1:50 pacemakers as well, the start catching me between them and those for 1:45, and possibly even closer to these latter ones.

The plan for this post obviously included writing about the actual race as well, but when it was clear that I won’t manage to make myself do that, I decided to leave it for another time and at least add the rest of the day, since even so it was only in the early hours of Saturday when I added this section, starting right after crossing the finish line, when the final sprint caused that pressing need which had put me in a desperate situation at an earlier point but which had since subsided to a more manageable level to return with a vengeance, to the point that, after struggling to hold it in until I received the medal, I really feared that I was going to shit myself right then and there, getting quite desperate and needing to put everything into fighting it, so at first I couldn’t even keep walking to the finishers’ area, and when I did manage to get there I meant to just rush right out and to the toilets. But that meant one of those nasty portable toilets, where everything gathers and you’ll most likely get splashed by some of it if you use them for that purpose, so I wanted to avoid that if at all possible, plus that leaving the finishers’ area would have probably meant being unable to get back in and take anything. So I tried to give myself some time, just carefully walking around for a while, and the feeling eventually subsided once again, to some extent, and after taking three apples I even dared to eat a piece of orange and drink a large cup of water and two of the other drink, asking for a refill in case of the second, so I won’t waste yet another cup, and then I took two bottles of water and ate another piece of orange before walking out of that area.
I obviously feared that the problem would return each time I put something in, but when I saw that it didn’t, I felt more at ease and started to look for what else was being offered, noticing biscuits at the Mega Image area. But I wanted to wash my hands before taking some, so I initially moved along, going to retrieve my bag from the wardrobe… And having to wait a long time for it, since the volunteers were unable to find it, most probably just because of how that other guy had placed that sticker. The thing is that I knew where it had been placed and when I looked there I thought that I could see one with the sticker placed in that manner, and even that I could make out at least part of the number, so I was pretty sure that I had spotted it and wasn’t concerned… Until, after a long wait, I was given someone else’s bag, the number being one digit off, which I noticed after taking a couple of steps. So I returned it and they continued to look, and while I still thought that I could see mine and when I said that I hoped that it hadn’t been handed off to someone else as well I was assured that it hadn’t happened, it was taking a really long time and I had the new camera in there, so I was getting stressed out and started trying to work up the courage to ask to be allowed to have a look myself.
After they eventually found it, I took out the camera, went to that area that’s next to the final straight and saw that over half an hour had passed since I had finished, which made me push myself to just ask someone to take a picture almost right away. The guy was apparently foreign, since he replied in English, but I just repeated the question in English and he took a few pictures, and while I wasn’t exactly content with any of them I just moved on, and the one that I decided to keep will be the only one that I’ll keep from that day, since I don’t care about any of the official ones that can be found automatically.
I then washed my hands and went to take what was being offered to the finishers, starting with two croissants. I don’t want those, but I knew that dad would, so I went to that tent and, after being given two identical ones, I asked whether they had different kinds and the guy replaced one of those with one of the other kind. Then, at the next tent, I was offered a choice between some new high-protein products, vanilla or cocoa pudding or plain yogurt, and I obviously picked yogurt, which I could also keep for later, which I did, while in case of the pudding they were just pouring into cups, so it had to be eaten there. Either way, there was a contest there as well and I hovered around there after taking the yogurt, showing that I was interested but without butting in and specifically asking to participate, and they just ignored me, so I eventually walked away. And, while those biscuits which I had spotted were the main reason why I had wanted to wash my hands before taking anything, I’m pretty sure that it was only after that when I walked past the other tents to get back to the Mega Image area and take and eat two of them. Then I returned to one of the tents that I had walked past, where they were offering sandwiches, taking one and then sitting down and eating it… And more clouds gathered and it suddenly felt cold as I sat there, so I put on the jacket and rearranged everything in the backpack before finally walking out of Constitution Square a couple of minutes before noon.

To move on to the last section, which I added Saturday afternoon, I’ll say that, even though I didn’t really need more for Kaufland’s campaign and therefore didn’t actually bother to look, I still grabbed two plastic bottles with the deposit symbol on my way out of Constitution Square and one more on the way to Carrefour Unirii, then I put everything in a cabinet when I got there, grabbed an expiring product and wandered around until the employee seemed to have finished placing more products in that area. But I wasn’t interested in anything else, so I then meant to just buy that product… Only to suddenly once again feel that I was just about to shit myself just when I was at the self-checkout. Since I was no longer running and that problem hadn’t returned after eating, drinking, sitting down or getting back up, I had assumed that I was safe and won’t really need to use a toilet for that purpose before getting back, so I hadn’t even taken that Smecta Go, but just after scanning that product, as I was about to pay, it came so suddenly and with such force that it really felt like I won’t be able to hold it in anymore, so I quickly asked for the transaction to be cleared, out loud but without even turning to the employee who was at the computer, and went back, taking the product with me and holding on to a freezer as I made every effort to hold it in, just barely managing to make it past that moment. But I knew that I had only bought myself a few more moments, so I struggled to make it to the upstairs exit, where it was very fortunate that I had just recently realized that the store actually has a toilet, hiding that product on a shelf on the way and dashing in, relieved to find the single stall unoccupied, a guard having just walked out.
Well, this next part will be quite gross, but I’ll write it anyway, because I don’t want to just say that I solved the problem and move along when I just barely managed to pull down the tights and underwear and let it rip before even being able to sit, so I ended up soiling the toilet seat and even the lid and could only hope that I had managed to hold the jacket and t-shirt out of the way of the spray. It was only after the worst of it was out that I managed to take off the jacket, initially hanging it on the door handle while I did my best to clean up the mess with toilet paper, finally sitting down after being satisfied that I had done a good enough job. After that, I noticed that there was something to hang clothes from, so I moved the jacket there and then kept trying to see whether any of the spray had reached any of my clothes, finding a tiny spot on the t-shirt that might or might not have been shit, but fortunately nothing else. So, after I was finally done, I tried to wash that spot a little, then thoroughly washed my hands, retrieved that product and bought it, adding it in the backpack after retrieving my things from the cabinet.
I then took the metro to Obor, and when I got out it was so windy that I was really thankful that the run had been in the morning. Not that the wind hadn’t been a problem then as well, but at that point I could barely walk against it as I made my way to Penny, where I put my things in a cabinet and just bought pizza dough. Then I retrieved my things and went to Kaufland, putting those three bottles in the recycling machine, then spotting two cans with the deposit symbol in the garbage bin that’s just before the store entrance and going back to put those in as well. More recyclables seemed to have appeared in that same bin by the time I walked past it again, moments later, but I just kept going, putting my things in a cabinet, washing my hands, and just buying toilet paper, since a 30% discount on toilet paper and paper towels was in effect that weekend and I could still find some of a kind that I can get, and which I knew should also have the additional 10% discount if the store card is used. So I took five packs, which was what I needed in order to use all of the vouchers received for the recyclables that I still had if both of those discounts applied properly, but I wanted to make sure, so at the self-checkout I initially entered four, adding the fifth after checking the total and confirming that the discount was, in fact, 40%.
After retrieving my things, I continued to Carrefour, needing to take the time to at least make everything fit into two small cabinets, since all of the large ones were locked and the toilet paper obviously took a lot of space. And it was for nothing anyway, since I didn’t get anything from there… And I initially just walked away, only realizing that I hadn’t retrieved my things as I was on my way to that mall’s exit, so I went back for them. And, I’d say as a result of that, I ended up just missing the metro, entering the station when it was there but being blocked on the stairs by the flood of people coming up, so I could only watch as the doors closed and it left, and the next one came over ten minutes later. Either way, I picked up a few more recyclables with the deposit symbol on the way to and from the metro station.
I got back at 3:50 PM, put what had to be refrigerated in the fridge, ate the recently expired walnuts with pepper that I had, getting some 850 calories from those, even did the day’s squats, changed, and left again at 6:30 PM, with the recyclables with the deposit symbol, which I put on the cabinets while I quickly checked the nearest Penny, then retrieved on my way out. The problem was that it was the last day of that campaign, so I had to put them in the recycling machine from Kaufland and also use the voucher that evening, but there was quite a line when I got there and the employee was saying that the machine was going to shut down at 8 PM, along with the store, insisting on that when I corrected him to say that the store closed at 9 PM. And he also said that they were out of crates, especially for glass, so when the remaining space in the last one will fill up, that will be it for the day. That made me worry that I won’t be able to put in what I had and wondered whether I should try to rush to the other location. But that was too much of a risk, so I waited for my turn and was relieved that the machine didn’t stop as I rushed to put in what was accepted, quickly setting aside what wasn’t, and also one last plastic bottle which should have been accepted, and splitting so what I had found was on one voucher, which I needed to use that evening in order to make sure that I reached the maximum amount allowed during the campaign, if it will actually work without the app, and dad’s recyclables were on another, which I didn’t need to use just then.
After putting what I was left with in a cabinet and washing my hands, I entered the store and saw that the bread that I was interested in only had a 30% evening discount, and I scanned the label to confirm that, and that toilet paper was sold out at that location by then, so I couldn’t use those vouchers to get more of it either. But I got two packs of paper towels, a few peppers for dad, which had an evening discount, and some carrots, after spotting a price label that listed a 90% discount in a pile of discarded electronic labels, since the one that was placed there looked damaged and still listed the full price. And, after using a price checker to confirm that discount, I took that correct price label and placed it next to the damaged one, so others will know of the discount as well. Then I wandered around and wasted time, meaning to take a glove when I went back to the bakery area and ending up with two, so I put one on and stuffed the other in a pocket, but that bread’s discount hadn’t increased and I didn’t want anything else, so after eventually checking that bread’s price one more time I finally made my way to the self-checkout. Then I retrieved those leftover recyclables and arranged my things a little, and I think that I managed to walk out before the store closed, obviously at 9 PM. And, after discarding the glove which I had pointlessly used, I ended up coming back here with the other one still in my pocket.
I got back for good at 9:25 PM, put the new purchases in their place, went to the toilet, albeit leaving very little in there, and showered. After that, I wrote the placeholder for that week’s second post and then went to the kitchen, washed what was to wash, and made pizza. Until I was almost done, I thought that I might be able to take a first bite just before 3 AM, to be able to say that I started eating at a normal time, then take it to my room, but as it became obvious that it’ll be impossible I slowed down, did things properly, also moved something, and finally took the last pill of that supplement for joints and once again another pill as well, just in case, before eating, between 3:40 AM and 5:20 AM. I got in bed at 6:10 AM, after dad got back.

The ICJ ordering Israel to halt its attack on Rafah is a good sign, but as long as it’s unenforceable, Israel doesn’t care, the US and UK continue to support them and the EU is too afraid to do anything about, well, anything, it doesn’t matter all that much in practical terms. Even the arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas officials alike that the chief prosecutor of the ICC is requesting may not make that much of a difference even if they will be obtained, which is far from certain. After all, such a warrant exists for Putin and that didn’t make the slightest difference.
Still, these developments do show that some wheels are turning and the international community is, at every level, less and less willing to turn a blind eye to the atrocities committed by Israel, offering some hope that there may come a time when the horrors inflicted upon the Jewish people in the past will no longer be seen as acceptable excuses and justifications for them behaving in a similar manner. And more EU states recognizing Palestine may indicate that the developed world is, finally, starting to care for those who are now, and who have been for several decades, the victims.
Of course, right now it’s all talk, statements of intent at best, and it remains to be seen if and when that will turn into real action, into enforcement, into actually stopping both Israel and Hamas and offering real aid and support for regular Palestinians, who have for so long been suffering and dying under the uncaring eye of “the West”, caught between Israeli oppressors, Hamas terrorists and a corrupt and unelected Palestinian Authority… And, if that day will ever come, how many of them will still be around to see it, and in what condition, both physical and mental.

I was saying that I may replace what should have been my usual post about Eurovision with one about FalastinVision this year, as part of my boycott of Eurovision over the fact that they didn’t ban Israel alongside Russia and Belarus, so I’m doing this now, though I must begin by stating that I did make an attempt to watch at least parts of the recording of the event, but it was simply painful, so I eventually skipped to the results… Which were surprising. But I guess it depends on what the voters actually looked for, and what languages they understood, because the winner makes it clear that the international audience didn’t have the biggest impact. In fact, it doesn’t seem to have had the biggest impact even among the public votes. So I won’t comment about the results, just listing the actual position between parentheses for each song, with those that were tied on points being listed in the order they were presented in the stream, assuming it’s correct, since I don’t know what the tiebreaker was.

For such a “protest” event, I expected a lot of rap and some folk, and my expectations were largely proven true, but there were a few other entries as well, and those tended to stand out, be it in a good or a bad way. But the folk songs also did, at least for me, two of them in a very good way. On the other hand, I had problems ranking the rap songs, so ask me again and I may order them differently, but they’ll stay in the same section of the classification, behind the four that I consider to actually be good songs, or relatively good in case of the fourth, and before those that bother me, or bother me more, because of the sound but usually not only that. Either way, since there were just 15 songs in the final, I’ll write a brief comment about each, listing them according to my classification.

1. (8.) Duo Pepe och Mary – Túnicas Blancas is just a lovely song that grabbed my attention right away and I couldn’t really consider any other one for the top spot. That’s pretty much all I can say; it’s way above the sort of thing you’d expect at such an event.
2. (6.) Ellen Upstairs – The Mothers Pray is folk, and in this case even quite obviously recorded at home and in a rather poor quality, but it still shines in spite of that. And the lyrics are also powerful. It’s the other entry that stood out for me and in plenty of ways it may be more deserving than the lullaby above, but I’ll leave it second.
3. (10.) Johanna Kroon – Visa till Palestina is another folk song, but it’s just a lovely piece. And an English translation of the lyrics is available, and if it’s accurate then it strikes me as even more remarkable that such a clear and, if I may use the term, extensive message was weaved into such a lovely song. But it could do with more of a structure, a chorus, which would have also added to the length, since it’s all too short. It’s clearly one of the best entries even so and I’m tempted to say that it should have been second and could have even challenged for the top position, but as it is, I just can’t place it higher.
4. (11.) General Knas – Calling Out for Peace actually doesn’t sound bad, the problem being that the lyrics are written in this “reggae” style that may be difficult to understand. Still, it’s an interesting, professional entry that also stands on its own as a song, regardless of the message. And that change of voice definitely catches your attention.
5. (14.) JC Bigfoot ft. EMA – They Are Human would have been an unremarkable rap song, performed by a guy who doesn’t even seem capable of rapping properly, without those female vocals, but those do add to the value. And the lyrics, which are by far the primary focus in such songs, are quite accurate and meaningful. So it’s not exactly something to listen to, but it deserves its place.
6. (5.) Lil Moe – F Is Real is another rap song, but I must frown at the pretty much completely digitized vocals. Then again, I guess there were no rules against it, and it probably makes the song much more listenable. But what’s relevant is the message, which makes me wonder why the English translation appears in the video, but isn’t also listed on the page. Either way, while entirely understandable, I do find myself hesitating a little before the harshness of the message and wondering about the precise meaning of certain parts. Plus that it’s another song that’s too short, even if it manages to squeeze a proper structure into that short duration.
7. (2.) Vendetta – Leve Palestina is another rap song with completely digitized vocals, which may perhaps make it somewhat more listenable, but the problem is that no English translation of the lyrics is available. Seriously, the lyrics are pretty much the whole point of rap and this event was meant for an international audience, so this is baffling.
8. (1.) Nour Badra – F.T.R.T.T.S. is a rap song with a reasonably listenable sound, but the point of such songs is the message and I’ll just assume that it’s the reason why it won, but no English translation is provided and I’m not going to bother to look for one elsewhere. And it’s not like I’d have boosted it that much because of the lyrics, in fact I might have even penalized it, depending on the details, so I’ll just leave it here.
9. (4.) The Accidental Rapper, Leen, Aziz Abushark, Abood Aladham – Press Vest is another rap song, but in this case the chorus detracts from instead of adding to its value. I guess that sort of sound makes sense in this context, but I really don’t like it, and the fact that it starts that way almost made me pretty much shut it out before the rapping started and I realized that the lyrics definitely deserve attention, and that’s what should matter in such songs. But I can’t not penalize it for that chorus, even if I recognize that it’s not just an entirely subjective matter, but probably goes against what one should favor at such an event.
10. (9.) Frida och Mariam – Folket i Gaza is another entry that relies on the lyrics but has the serious problem of not even having an English translation posted, so the message is completely lost for an international audience. Otherwise, it doesn’t sound bad, but it’s not something I’d care to listen to either. So it’s just sort of there; doesn’t bother me, doesn’t catch my attention.
11. (13.) N I T E F I S H & Ellen Flowerhill – BDS – Baby Yes isn’t something I’d care to listen to, and a certain part of the lyrics also makes me frown. That said, there also good points, and that beat can rattle your teeth, so it’s not exactly a forgettable song.
12. (3.) Mohamad Walid – Alt Er Dekket av Blod is just too weak, the vocals simply don’t have the strength for such a song, and the fact that they’re digitized makes that even stranger. Plus that it relies too much on just repeating that slogan, which is debatable in itself. And that’s a pity, because the rest of the lyrics would deserve more attention… Which makes me wonder why the English translation is once again only available in the video and not also on the page.
13. (7.) ASAT – GAZA is another folk song, and the voice is passable at best, so nothing notable in any way. But the message, while entirely understandable, does make me raise an eyebrow, seeming to go a little too far, even if it may not explicitly spell it out in full, so I’d rather discard it.
14. (15.) Refractory Period – Claws simply doesn’t belong at this event. An explanation that’s supposed to make a connection is provided, but I don’t buy it, and I take issue with the original idea behind the song… Which isn’t that good in itself, in terms of sound, either, so I have no qualms about throwing it almost all the way down to the bottom.
15. (12.) AfterpartyAngel – Angels Can’t Be Killed is an atmospheric but also, if I’m not misusing the term, psychedelic song, which makes me pretty much ignore it. It’s the sort of thing that I forget I’m listening to even while listening to it, and I definitely can’t pay attention to any lyrics or message, so all of that is completely lost… Not that I can find much meaning there even if I simply read the lyrics.

I did also listen to the entries that didn’t make it into the final, but only quickly and some time ago, so while there definitely were some that I’d have wanted to see in the final instead of some that did make it, I couldn’t actually make a proper list at this point and this post is a week late as it is, so I’ll just end it here. I guess I could do what I do with my personal posts, editing it later in order to add that part, but I have no idea how long it’ll be before I’ll manage to do so and, either way, this is probably enough as it is. And I hope that next year something like this will no longer be necessary…

While this new post from this series is once again very rushed, it does at least deserve the title, since I only recently stumbled into all three bands, and in fact only the first one, Birds of a Feather, isn’t a new band in itself. The genre may also not be quite what I normally include in these posts, but the fact that I like the sound shouldn’t come as a surprise either. So I’ll start by pointing you to Fragments, which is their most recent song, while the second pick will be Fly Away. That’s not that old of a song either, and I could and probably should have selected something significantly older as the second pick, plus that a song that features only male vocals is highly unusual for them, at least based on what I listened to, but that one stuck with me, and it took me a while to realize that the reason is that it reminds me of Antichrisis, or perhaps more specifically of the songs released by Sid after the band split up. But this paragraph should be about Birds of a Feather, and despite, or perhaps just because, this second pick isn’t exactly a good example of how they sound in general, I do encourage you to listen to their other songs, because they really deserve more attention. And I’ll also take this opportunity to wish Ryan a speedy and complete recovery, since he seems to be quite ill at the moment.

The second band, Glyph, only recently released their first album, so both of my picks, Honor, Power, Glory and When the World Was Young are from it. This is power metal and all the vocals are male, so that comment about the genre not being what I mostly focus on in these posts but the fact that I like the sound not being a surprise either applies to them as well. And, while there are moments when the vocals could be better, I can say the same, if not worse, about plenty of established bands, and their overall sound is surprisingly good and polished. Or maybe it’s not so surprising, seeing as the band may be new, but its members are experienced, and I guess that it could even be called a supergroup. Either way, they’re an easy recommendation if you have any interest in the genre.

The other new band, who also only recently released their first album, is Tierra Vacia. If the fact that they’re a Christian band and that’s very obvious in the lyrics bothers you too much, you’ll probably want to move along, but the sound is quite nice, at least on some of the songs, my picks being Rumble and Weeping. Since that theme does make me frown a little as well, I won’t comment on their potential and don’t expect to look them up again in the future, but at this moment and just referring to their sound, they caught my attention enough for me to want to include them here. However, I’m editing this in the early hours of Monday to add the fact that rushing this post meant not paying that much attention to the lyrics and, while I can ignore anything else that might bother me, if I’d have noticed the line against abortion from Weeping, which I take particular issue with, I’d have at the very least picked a different song to link to. But now I’m leaving things as they are, just adding this notice, which should also serve as a warning.

I’ll start what’s basically just another placeholder for a post, initially limited to just this first section, the rest only being added Friday afternoon, from the early hours of May 6, when I ate dinner between 3:30 AM and 4:20 AM. However, in the early hours of May 7, after shaving, selecting the apple, putting the cereals in a bowl, thinking that I’ll just have the yogurt to add, and making the tea for the morning, I ate dinner between 1:30 AM and 2:30 AM. Liza was going to the litter box pretty much constantly, which was also going to make sleeping quite a problem, and I was starting to worry that she might be struggling to pee as well, but those “trips” have once again started to be “productive” since then and dad’s yet to take her to the vet, so I’ll leave that for a time when I’ll have more to say and get back to that night, when I got in bed at 3:30 AM and, despite a concerning e-mail sent by dad, I managed to fall asleep pretty quickly, and I also got back to sleep particularly quickly after each of the three times when I woke up, also going to pee on two of those occasions.
I got up when the alarm rang, at 8 AM, rather worried that I was drenched in sweat, which had also been the case the other times when I woke up that night, and my left foot was burning as well… And minutes later the UPS kicked in, and the fact that it actually beeped and an alarm started outside made it pretty clear that the reason was an actual outage, but it just logged “electrical noise”, which happened again a few minutes later, though by then I was in the kitchen and didn’t hear whether it beeped again or not. But there was an obvious outage, lasting almost a minute, at 8:30 AM, just after I got back to my room, and at that point I went back and unplugged the fridge, to be on the safe side. Then I had the usual stuff, also adding the baked almonds with Himalayan salt into the yogurt and cereals, having realized that I had forgotten to put them into the bowl at night, and the sweet thing consisted of two more of those somewhat nicer biscuits, with added honey. I also took the supplements, wasted some time on the toilet, which was rather surprising despite the early hour, since it felt like I shouldn’t have that problem, plugged the fridge back in, and left at 9:45 AM, wearing the full running gear, which obviously included the new shoes once again. The reported temperature varied between 17°C and 21°C, depending on the source, and it was about 22°C when I was done. And on the way to the park I realized that I had forgotten to pee one more time before leaving, and I might have had time to use the toilet from the park, seeing as I took it easy and still waited for about one minute in order to start right at 10 AM, but just as I turned towards it another guy was about to enter, so I gave up on the idea, and it didn’t matter anyway.
The time was 47:12.79, with sector times of 4:20.42, 5:00.56, 5:46 (5:45.72), 4:22.09, 4:56.07, 5:43 (5:42.81), 4:28.19, 4:59 (4:58.37), 5:49.00 and 1:49.56, making for lap times of 15:06.70, 15:01 (15:00.97) and 15:16 (15:15.56). On the tenth day of taking those supplements, I definitely aimed to stay well under 48 minutes, but the first sector’s time didn’t look good, making me worry that I won’t even stay on that pace on the first lap, which led to wondering whether I should try to switch to 16 km. But I pushed more from sector two and that sector’s time was better than expected, and so was sector three’s, leading to a pretty good lap time. However, I assumed that I’ll get slower after that first lap, so I pushed even more on lap two, on sector two I was running like I had the finish in sight, and while that resulted in a particularly good time, halfway through sector three I was just about done, so I thought that from then on it was a matter of just getting to the end and wondered whether I’ll manage to limit the losses well enough to stay under 48 minutes after all, continuing to 16 km obviously being out of the question. But the time for sector three of lap two was a pleasant surprise, leading to a lap two time that was also really nice. Then, after losing less than I thought I would on sector one of lap three, the target became to get under 47:30, which seemed pretty certain after the next sector, which I once again surprised myself by covering in less than five minutes. And the next sector was also a few seconds faster than I thought it’d be, considering how tired I was, which led to aiming to get under 47:15 at the end, which I managed despite thinking that I really didn’t still have that in me. So I guess that those supplements were having an effect, this being the best time in exactly six months, but I wouldn’t call it good enough for a last run before a race…
I felt tired at first, my joints and muscles seeming to have a hard time to get going, but that kind of fatigue seemed to become less noticeable as time passed. Otherwise, my right knee gave some warnings at one point, but they quickly went away. But a certain pressing need was already making itself known on sector three of lap one, and after the start of lap two it got worse. It gradually lessened after that, but it definitely remained noticeable all the way to the end, even temporarily increasing in intensity at some points over the course of lap three. And, even at that temperature, I felt the heat and sweated a fair bit. On the other hand, on sector two of lap two I hesitated and might have stopped for just an instant when I had to avoid a woman who was pointing to something on or across the lake and then didn’t know which way to move when she noticed me, and on sector one of lap three I slowed and had to go very wide until I passed a little kid on what I believe was a tricycle who was moving towards me.

After getting back, I ate a banana, a large doughnut, with added jam, and an “egg salad”, with an entire bag of salted snacks instead of bread. Then, at 3:15 PM, I left again, but I wasn’t sure that I had closed the door to my room, so after locking I unlocked again and checked, then spent some time trying to put both backpacks on properly, since I had some old clothes and shoes that dad wanted to throw away in the large one, so it was past 3:20 PM when I actually walked out of the building… And quite some time later, when I was well on my way to Obor, when I realized that I had forgotten to take those other things that I take to Kaufland, and also that their campaign that was supposed to double the amount received for recyclables with the deposit symbol, under certain terms, ran on an actual calendar week, not a “Kaufland week”, Wednesday to Tuesday, so it had already started and I should have taken those as well, along with the unused voucher that I still had. I even stopped for a moment and considered turning back, but eventually decided against it. And I just picked up three plastic bottles with the deposit symbol on the way, shortly before reaching Obor. There were more recyclables in that area, and at least some of them probably also had the deposit symbol, but those were the ones that I could reach, through a fence and over a stream of particularly large ants, some of which ended up on me, so I did my best to brush them off and walked away, hoping that the small brown spot that I then saw on my sleeve was just regular dirt and not something worse.
Either way, I went straight to Kaufland, put those three bottles in the recycling machine, then washed my hands and tried to wash that spot from that sleeve a little as well, though it didn’t really work. The plan was to look for more of that food that dad likes to give Liza, since all pet food was discounted by 30%, which made it slightly cheaper than it had been at Auchan for the whole of April, so I was wondering whether I should put the difference as from “my” money, since I had bought a lot of it from there but I’ve been keeping it in my room until dad gives her more of the other kind, only giving her one when it was obvious that she was having problems, to see whether it made a difference. But I just found 31 of that kind left and took all of them, so I couldn’t have gotten the others then as well, meaning that I still bought the entire quantity at the best possible price. And then I saw that the discounted price for the food for my mother’s cats wasn’t actually listed as a discount, even if the labels were red, maybe because it had been discounted to the same price not long before, so I thought that the 30% discount should apply to those as well and took a box of the one kind of the three that my mother asks for that was still available. And then I also grabbed two expiring products, after taking some time to look through what was available, and at the self-checkout the discounts did apply for all of the cat food and I also used the voucher received for those three bottles, after which I arranged the purchases in a bag… And grabbed a bottle with the deposit symbol from a trash can, but there were lines at the recycling machines, so I walked away with it.
I put the purchases and that bottle in a cabinet at Carrefour, then just got some expiring yogurt, beeping dad and asking him when he called back whether he wanted another expiring product, but he said that he didn’t. Then I retrieved my things from the cabinet, gathered some recyclables with the deposit symbol that were at the top of some trash cans from that mall, wanting to make full use of that campaign, washed my hands again, had a quick look through the farmers’ market, few sellers being there, and continued to Auchan, needing to leave the purchases and the recyclables in a cabinet that didn’t lock, none of those that did being free. But the fact that green onions had a 75% discount was a nice surprise, and it seemed highly unusual for Auchan, so I got two bundles, then the water for dad and, after stumbling into the new location of the non-refrigerated expiring products, some walnuts with pepper, an employee finishing with the customer whom she had been helping, walking over and entering the products even if I had been specifically standing in line at what had been the unmanned checkout. She did let me pay, so I also used the small amount that was on the store card, but I had pulled out all of the store cards and then couldn’t remember what I had done with them, seeing a stack of cards with one for Auchan at the top on the checkout but assuming that it was a stack of Auchan cards, as they tend to have there, so I dug through my pockets for a few moments, until that cashier handed me those cards and told me to take them when the next customer came. And then I retrieved what I had in the cabinet, put all of the purchases in the large backpack, and struggled to put it on. And on the way back I grabbed some more recyclables with the deposit symbol, and also checked a Mega Image, leaving the large backpack and the recyclables next to the cabinets and then struggling once again to put that backpack back on.
I got back a little after 7:50 PM, with 22 kg, and it definitely looked like Liza’s problem was advancing and affecting peeing as well, since she barely seemed to squeeze out a few drops, so I was counting the days, but when I later pressed dad again he repeated that we are the only priority for the moment, and we’re all waiting, since that came after I had told him that I could wait to replace that lost filling until next week, when he’ll get paid, pointed to Liza and said that something else’s more urgent. But I did tell him that I still had some money and the next day he said that he had talked to the vet and asked for them, to cover some initial tests… But then she started leaving both things in the litter box again and, even though she’s struggling and something’s obviously wrong, dad changed his mind again, telling me to take back those money, and he’s yet to take her anywhere.
To return to that evening, I put the purchases in their place, did the same for what dad had brought, drank the last drink taken after last year’s Dream Trek that I had left, even if it had supposedly expired back in March, did the day’s squats, washed, and ate the pizza which had been brought by dad in the morning, which was actually some three quarters of an entire pizza, not just some slices. And since I ate that late in the evening, finishing somewhere around 12:30 AM, I was stuffed, so I really should have just made the salad and eaten the pizza as dinner, with the egg salad counting as lunch, but as it was, I eventually managed to also have dinner, between 3:20 AM and 4:05 AM, even if it felt like too much. And I got in bed at 5:20 AM.

After seeing that no visits were recorded the previous day, in the early hours of May 9 I started eating dinner at 3:05 AM, but still finished at 3:40 AM, though I then got in bed at 5:25 AM. And in the afternoon I went to pick up the race kit, I believe leaving at 5:15 PM, though it might have been a little earlier. Either way, I had dad’s metro card, but also took the recyclables with the deposit symbol, as well as those other things that I take to Kaufland and that voucher that I had forgotten two days earlier, since I was going to Kaufland first.
I picked up four more recyclables with the deposit symbol on the way, then used the recycling machine, splitting what I had, so the vouchers will be easier to use. One bottle wasn’t working and, when I asked, the employee who was there said that 99% of the time those aren’t accepted, so I kept that one for another time… And as I was walking away I glanced in a large crate where some other recyclables were dumped and saw two full paper bags that actually had recyclables with the deposit symbol in them, so I took one and told another man who was also looking there at the time to take the other, but for some reason he just dug through it a little and then left it there, so I took both, as well as some more recyclables from another crate, and put those in as well, once again splitting them. And I have no idea why all of those recyclables had been discarded, since only two didn’t work, the employee telling me that one of them had been left there for that reason and then telling someone else that the brand of the other one wasn’t in the system and won’t be accepted, which proved true. However, I had arrived there with 47 recyclables, including the four picked up on the way, ended up putting in 80, and was left with three which weren’t accepted, and the rules state that the maximum amount that can be gained in that campaign is 50 RON, which means 100 recyclables. But it remains to be seen whether that will actually happen, since that employee told someone else that the additional voucher only worked with the digital card, in which case I won’t be able to make use of it. Either way, I then went to put those other things in the bin as well and washed my hands.
After taking the metro to Izvor and walking to Constitution Square, I got the race kit, and this time around I wasn’t asked anything when I gave the QR code to be scanned, the only question being about the size of the t-shirt, when I moved on to the place where those were handed out, even if you need to select it when you register. However, since the signs for the kits for the half marathon and 10 km races were next to each other, I wasn’t sure that I had received the correct bag, so after having a quick look in it I was standing around and kept glancing in that direction, hoping to see which box was used for which runners and what was written on the boxes, but I couldn’t see what was written on the box that my bag had been taken from and otherwise there didn’t seem to be a rule, and others were putting bags into those boxes that those who were handing them out were taking them from, so in the end I shrugged it off and walked away. And the kit did contain liquid magnesium, which was great, and should probably be enough to confirm that it was the correct one. Either way, I then placed the bag on some planks that were stacked outside of the “Sport Expo” area as I took the large backpack off in order to put that one on underneath it… The problem being that it had been raining and the water had pooled on those planks, so when I picked the bag back up, it was soaked. At least the material doesn’t easily allow water to seep through, but I had to wear it with that side away from me, and some water still dripped from it.
After that, I went to Carrefour Unirii, putting the large backpack in a cabinet, even if I had just those few recyclables in it, and entering with the one with the race kit, but then just walking out and retrieving that backpack. Then I took the metro to Obor and first checked Auchan, entering with everything and then needing to ask an employee to open the gate. And then I went straight to Kaufland, also meaning to put the few other recyclables with the deposit symbol which I had picked up on the way in that machine, and make another attempt for those which hadn’t been accepted at the other location, but none of the machines worked, and an employee came but nothing changed, people who had asked said that they had been told that it’ll take an hour, and when that employee was asked he said that they’re waiting for a technician, so I gave up, went to the toilet, and entered the store 8:35 PM, getting some things. Those didn’t include any bakery products, since it does seem that the evening discount is limited to 30% in that specific location, but included just a handful of the olives that were on sale that were already in a box, so I didn’t have to pay for that as well, though I was wondering whether the self-checkout would scan that, since the QR code on that label was different from that of the others that contained much larger quantities and the scanners from the store couldn’t seem to scan it. But at least they scanned a lettuce with root that didn’t seem to have a price label, so I saw that it had a pretty good evening discount and took that as well, then calculated which vouchers to use and used them at the self-checkout, having no problems with those olives either.
After arranging the purchases in a bag, I glanced at the recycling machines when I stepped out, but they still didn’t work, so I just continued to Carrefour, putting the bag with the purchases and another plastic bottle with the deposit symbol which I had picked up on the way in a cabinet and entering the store at 9:35 PM, getting the bio (organic) “Greek” yogurt that I wanted and a few other things, including two beets, after asking an employee where they were and finding just a handful left after he pointed me to them. I also wanted some tea that I meant to drink for a couple of days before the half marathon and which doesn’t seem to be available in any other hypermarket or supermarket that I go to except Carrefour, but I once again forgot to look for it. Either way, I was fast enough that the closing announcement only came as I was arranging my things, after retrieving what I had in the cabinet, despite needing to ask the guard to open it, since it acted as if the code was incorrect, and having to wait for her to finish talking to someone before she came to do so, though she then opened that cabinet without even asking what I had in there.
When I got to the metro station, I initially kept going, meaning to check the Mega Image that’s across that road, but it closed at 10 PM, so I just wasted a little time. Then I took the metro back… Only to once again forget to walk this last remaining part of the route, so I never actually walked it these days. And the bottle with the deposit symbol that I picked up after making that turn, on top of being dirty, had the same shape as that one that I had been told isn’t accepted 99% of the time. But I got back with ten recyclables with the deposit symbol, at least six of which should be accepted, and I only needed eight more in order to get to the 100 that’s supposed to be the maximum for the campaign, if it will work with the physical store card as well. Or eight if that older voucher, which had been received for nine recyclables, also counted, so if what matters is when you use it, not when you receive it. But, even if it didn’t, it meant still needing at most 11, so the plan to start gathering discarded bottles after the race wasn’t necessary anymore.
Either way, I got back a few minutes after 10:30 PM, washed that bottle a little, put most of the purchases in their place, ate an orange, a piece of cake and lunch, did the day’s squats, and went to wash at 1:15 AM. I was done at 2 AM, then I dealt with the bread which I had purchased for myself from Carrefour, used the worse leaves of the lettuce, also took another pill once again, just in case, and started eating dinner at 4:50 AM, being done a few minutes before 6 AM and getting in bed at 6:35 AM. However, it seemed that another tooth got a little chipped as I was eating, and I apparently forgot to take the second pill of the supplement for joints, so I took three the following day.