Putting in Work Tulsa Style

 

Jogging Through Tulsa and Acclimating to the Heat

I ran through town yesterday, the same as I have on countless Saturdays before. The stifling July heat broke me on a few occasions. I planned to do 10 miles. That’s a full day in the summer. I wasn’t worried that stopping and resting would equate to poor fitness levels. In the past, not being able to handle the heat would have made me think I hadn't run enough to cope. Nutrition is a tricky thing to get right anyway. Today I’m more focused on enjoying the run and taking my wins where I can. I started off feeling great. Ate a piece of toast and a handful of trail mix. Took a GU gel about 3 miles in. I knew the heat would eventually get me. I’m learning that hitting the wall and stopping for a few minutes doesn’t have to mean the day is over. You might have to muscle through a few more miles with sheer grit, but you've got more in the tank. Keep pushing.

The summer training is extremely valuable for those long distances that come later. Hills and heat make tough runners.

My knees were quite sore though. The physical therapist I’ve been visiting once per month said tendinitis is just frustrating to get over. It hangs around like an unwanted relative with nowhere else to stay. Thankfully it doesn’t keep me from jogging. The pain has made me a little surly though. My patience for most things has become very thin. From getting out of bed to answering calls from the general public at work, I’ve had to stop and think instead of reacting with a rude comment. I’ll have to work on that. Besides the irritation of it, I do feel myself getting stronger. Sunday’s, I do leg work at the gym and I can feel the knees getting stronger, if only a little. Squats and lunges are still not a possibility. Maybe in future I can bring back some of the lifts I used to do. For now, it’s too much pressure on sensitive knees.

Another difference between this year and last, is the reduced running schedule I’m currently on. A normal week for me is 20 miles spread across 4 days, Saturday being the longest day. During the end of my training cycle with Runner’s World, it’s more like 30 miles per week. This summer I’ve done roughly 15 miles per week with Saturday being the longest day. Those are rough weekly estimates, but I’m sure I haven’t jogged past 15 miles. The thinking is that if I give myself one extra day to rest the knees, I’ll be that much stronger. 

But there is always the chance that I’m getting softer because of the extra rest. I walked gingerly up the steps to my front door yesterday after my run and laid down on a towel for 10 minutes or so. Then I took a shower, ate some fruit and fell into a hard sleep for an hour. Maybe I need to log a few more hours in the sun.

On Friday I attended the monthly men’s breakfast through my church. I talked to Brett Wilson, a guy that used to bring his kids into my store for their football helmets and pads. He’s a triathlete. We talked nutrition and hydration. I imagine he must be around my age but I didn’t ask. He runs faster than me I’m sure. I saw him at a half marathon on Saint Patrick’s Day a few years ago. Not sure what time he ended up with, but he was moving quick. I’d say around 8:45 per mile. He explained to me that he loved to push himself, endurance sports are the perfect fit. I understood his passion and even agreed with it to some extent. I told him about my energy issues on marathons. He said he’d send me some info that helped him. I think my problem is food and he agreed. The lack of energy is probably a lack of food. Or at least, a lack of the right food. I’ll try to eat more before a morning run this time.

A new jogging cycle starts on Saturday and I’m leading the 10-11 minute pace group and I’m interested in new trends. Maybe this year, the new me is someone who eats more before the run and even during it. For people who don’t usually eat breakfast (me) this is a lot to ask. It means choking down meals when your body doesn’t want it. I started this to some degree last year but didn’t notice any improvement in energy. Like everything with jogging though, you have to try a new routine multiple times and measure the results. That might be my next post. 

 

Crime 101: A Review

 

Crime 101 Is a Character Study on Choices and Balance

Crime 101 is a classic heist movie with jewel theft, double crossing, high speed car chases and an exciting finish. It’s a solid film that doesn’t waste time and doesn’t leave loose ends. It’s focused on making the viewer understand that life is full of choices and when we look for money, we lose. Also, life is about balance, and a chaotic, selfish existence will lead to emptiness. Director Barry Layton did a character study, set in Los Angeles and made it a crime movie.

The basic framework goes like this.

Breakdown

A thief named Mike Davis (Chris Hemsworth) gets his jobs through a fence named “Money” (Nike Nolte) The movie opens with Mike following a crew of high end jewelers on their way to a sale. He robs them in a parking lot but is shot by one of the sellers with a hidden gun. The bullet leaves a trace of blood in the car, an important detail that will help detective Lou Lubesnick (Mark Ruffalo) track him down.

After the initial heist, Mike gives the diamonds to his boss Money. The close call forces Mike to question the next job in Santa Barbara. He tells Money he has a bad feeling about it. Money just tells him to take some time off and instead, recruits a conscientious young motocross punk named Ormon to do the Santa Barbara job. Mike finds out and dumps Money. Then, Money has Ormon follow Mike to get information about Mike’s next job.

Halle Berry is an insurance agent (Sharon Colvin) who prospects high end, risky, clients and sells them insurance on their jewels and weddings. Despite promises from the upper management, they keep using her to close deals and dangle the promise of becoming a partner in the firm. One of her clients is the jewel seller that Mike robbed. Because of her lucrative contacts, Mike tries to recruit her for a new job where they can split the money. She gets offended. He tells her to leave a picture of a beach on her Instagram page if she changes her mind.

Meanwhile, Ormon tries to intercept Sharon after getting a tip from Mike’s tech contact about their relationship. In a thrilling chase scene through the dark streets of Los Angeles, Ormon dodges traffic on his motorcycle while being hounded by Mike. Mike eventually scares Ormon away, for a while. Sharon is denied another promotion at work, it’s clear by now she won’t get it at all. She takes her beach picture for Instagram and Mike shows up. They work out the details on the heist and agree to a split.

Mark Ruffalo’s character, Lou, has developed a theory about the jewel theft along the 101. When the blood sample in the car pings a match to Mike, Lou finds Mike’s foster mother and is able to match a face to a name. From here he develops a plan to ensnare Mike in a bait and switch robbery, with the help of Sharon.

Themes

There are a few consistent themes that run though this movie. All the main characters answer to someone who doesn’t have their best interest in mind, and in some cases are specifically taking from them. Money uses Mike for his talents and then sends an underling after him. Sharon’s boss at the insurance company strings her along so she’ll keep signing wealthy clients. He has no intention of making her a partner. Detective Lou Lubesnick’s is told to look the other way by his superior at the LAPD on multiple occasions. His principles prevent him from lying to help the police department. His wife has been cheating on him for a while and when he asks her how long it’s been going on, all she can say is “Do you really want to know?”

Even Ormon, the young thief with impulse control problems, is following in the footsteps of Mike by stealing for Money the old gangster.

Another theme is the idea of the beach as an escape, to offer balance to an unbalanced mind. This seems like a Buddhist interpretation of life. Even the way the director shows the 101 freeway from above at night. We see the 2 opposite directions of the road, reinforcing the idea of opposite choices. Chaos and order move in different directions. The soft new age voice on Sharon’s sleep app serves a counter to the stress we see in the rest of the film. She seeks peace, and sleep, but it’s not working.

Mike is an empty vessel. We see his struggle to have a relationship with a woman he met when she bumped into him on the freeway. His version of peace is the beach condo he escapes to, the lapping waves serving as a substitute for inner calm. Sharon tells Mike over cocktails that those who lived in chaos seek calm. But in doing so, she exposes her own search for it as well.

Lou joins a group yoga class, where he meets Sharon. He also gets an apartment on the beach when his wife kicks him out. His dress has even changes the last time he meets Sharon. He wears a loose unzipped hoodie while standing in the yoga classroom. All 3 of the characters are caught up in a competitive game of life and they’re looking to get out.

Conclusion

As for the acting, the performances were fantastic. Nick Nolte was underused as the abusive gangster, and substitute father, to young men hoping to make him proud. Chris Hemsworth is more versatile than I imagined. He does vulnerability well, it’s all in the face. I kept thinking of how much this reminded me of Michael Mann’s Heat, especially in the thief/detective relationship between Mike and Lou. In Crime 101 though, we get a fuller picture of the criminal and what makes him tick. Mark Ruffalo plays Lou gentle and frumpy, Popeye Doyle he is not. But his harmless nature fits perfectly with the situational ethics that unfold in the final scene.

I thoroughly enjoyed Crime 101.

 

Nightshade: A Review

Michael Connelly's New Edition: An Island Murder In LA County 

The king of crime fiction, Michael Connelly, has a new character to add to his growing network of cops and lawyers. Most readers know about Detective Harry Bosch and even Mickey Haller (Lincoln Lawyer). Fewer recognize the name Renee Ballard, Connelly's newest detective who always enlists the help of the experienced Detective Bosch. This time Connelly set his visual, story telling powers on Catalina Island a short boat ride off the coast of Southern California. 

Embarrassingly I’d never heard of it before. I had to fire up the google machine. The scenery is breathtaking--beachy, sunny, warm. It’s basically a Conde Nast poster you would’ve seen at local shopping mall travel agency. There is a local native population and a wealthy cohort of mainlanders that pay exorbitant fees to join yacht clubs.  

Story

The novel centers on the Black Marlin Club and the Los Angeles County detective is named Stillwell. Here’s the background: a woman is found dead in the harbor, stuffed in a sail bag and wrapped up in an anchor. Stillwell (Stil) investigates the club (Black Marlin) where the woman worked as bartender and waitress. Because it’s a murder, the detectives in LA have jurisdiction of the case and are forced by their boss to work with Stil since he’s the local guy. We find out a little about his background and why he was banished to Catalina Island after an altercation with another detective, Ahearn. Both are forced to team up to solve the case which causes understandable friction.

The other case focuses on mutilated buffalo. Buffalo are protected on the island. That’s another thing I had to look up. I guess there are roughly 100 buffalo that roam freely on the island. Brought in for a movie shoot in the 1920s. They were just left behind once the movie wrapped. There is some disagreement on which movie the animals were brought in for. It was either “The Vanishing American” or “The Thundering Herd”. Now they’re part of the ecosystem, as well as a tourism draw for visitors every year.

The author gives us drips and drabs of how and why this eager detective ended up in a lovely, but dead end, corner of LA county. He is also dating the harbormaster, Tasha “Tash” Dano. Both were trying to keep it secret but gave up after realizing the lax nature of the law enforcement politics on the island. Deputies help with a lot of the daily work, but Stil is mostly a one man show. He’s the only law enforcement official within miles that is competent.

Television

I started this book thinking that he wouldn’t get enough content by writing stories about what happens on the island. Remember too, this is a new character and a new series that exists in the same space and time as Connelly’s other characters. I read somewhere that HBO is doing a series based on this crew at Catalina Island even though there are only two books so far. People tell me Bosch on Prime was good. I tried to watch it but couldn’t get over the clean looks of its lead character. Maybe I need to try again. The Lincoln Lawyer series on Netflix featured a Hispanic lawyer who dipped in and out of his accent while speaking English. The “Cisco” character landed flat as well. He looks like a B movie actor in a Harley Davidson leather jacket, someone you might see doing cos play at a comic con.

The most promising so far has been the Renee Ballard series on Prime. I love her. She’s gorgeous and talented but too old to be playing this role. The rest is a mix of sensitive male characters (eww) and “hero” gay couples that make the Cleavers look selfish. That and ‘boss bitches’ make it unlikely that I’ll watch again. It’s a little soapy and soft for my taste. It’s not quite the character from the pages, rough and unsophisticated.  Although to be fair, the newer Ballard books focus on cold cases. I think I’ll stick to the books for now. This is always the problem you run into when a favorite character is reimagined by a daytime TV writer. They shave off the edges and brighten everything up. If there is a silver lining, it’s that more people might pick up the novels and dive into the seedy LA crime universe the Connelly examines so well.

The Catalina Island series doesn't have a fan base yet, it seems too early for a TV show. But there are enough similarities between Stilwell and Bosch to make it work. Stilwell is aggressive like Bosch and skates the line between legal and illegal when he’s on a case. There isn’t much depth yet to his girlfriend Tash. I expect this romance to have problems along the way. She was born on the island and hates the city. He’s a LA cop who takes the ferry back constantly to work on cases and argue with his superiors. He still has one foot in Los Angeles. Along with Tash, readers were introduced a few dodgy locals (Baby Head and Mayor Doug Allen) as well, but we didn’t hear the end of their stories. Clearly these guys are going to be regulars going forward.

Conclusion

There is a scene near the beginning when the mayor corners Detective Stilwell about the body the police found in the water. He doesn’t want the news of the dead girl in the paper. Memorial Day weekend is a big event for the island and an ugly investigation would keep vacationers away. It reminds me of that classic scene from Jaws. Chief Brody gets talked into hiding information about the shark attack, after the mayor insists on keeping it quiet with a tourist holiday upon them. The small town politics of Amity Island from Jaws feels a little like Catalina Island in this series. Can’t wait for more.

 

Running in Faith or Faithfully Running?

 

Jogging and Knee Pain: Trusting in the Great Healer

I’m not running as much as I used to. It’s summer, so breathing in the heat feels like trying to inhale air through a wool sock. Do that for a few miles and you’ll want to switch to walking instead. Or when the bottle is empty and you're nowhere near a drinking fountain, a shade tree and a cool breeze sounds perfect. The heat comes into play every year though and I’m as used to it as anyone can be. Some athletes really come alive in the heat. Their performance ticks up and they set new records. That seems strange to me, but I’m cold weather oriented and it’s hard to imagine. I don’t so much enjoy the weather in January and February as have more success. Success is defined as putting more miles under my feet while not collapsing.  

Soreness and Strain

A second reason for jogging fewer miles is my health, knees to be specific. Not sure if I can talk about sore knees as a “health” issue. Soreness isn’t sickness but it keeps me from the goal just the same. The problem started a few months ago. Probably around 4 months ago, I noticed a nagging strain in both knees. These words “strain” and “soreness” aren’t helpful but it’s all I’ve got. My eyes glaze over when anyone starts naming specific medical conditions.  Better to just plug my ears, close my eyes and “La, la, la” away the negativity as loudly as possible. I don't want to think too deeply about what knee pain could portent for my future as a jogger. This might be a superstitious, latent, feeling that naming an illness, is akin to accepting the symptoms that come with it.

Healing and Truth

 I’ll blame my charismatic upbringing for that one. But there is a lot of practicality in refusing to accept fear and pain and disease. It’s how I overcame the plantar fasciitis that sidelined me for a few months in the summer of 2020. Speaking truth over your situation is saying what God says. Christians too often take what’s handed to them and find the best way to cope, instead of claiming the victory that was secured at Calvary long ago. Healing was promised. It’s my job to say it and believe it. That means getting the self-talk right before doing anything else. My mind wants to imagine all the worst scenarios related to my knees. When I start to follow the logic and dangers inherent in jogging, it leads to dark places. 

Faith and Remembrance

It gets difficult to continue in positive, biblical truth when the pain gets worse. But it also helps to remember all the times that other running injuries have crept up and disappeared after a few weeks. Remembrance of a time when God came through in my life is a powerful tactic builds faith within. I didn’t keep a journal as a kid, my writing started in college and I’ve recorded events more often over the years. But I have a strong memory of God’s goodness in my life. I have a lot to be thankful for where health and healing are concerned. 

Physical Therapy 

Dealing with injury is rough for everyone. With running at least, I’m in good company. Most runners deal with injury at some point. After the knee pain became unbearable, I contacted a Physical Therapist who offered a first time discount. She evaluated my run from watching me on a treadmill. Her notes were precise. My form is off in some critical ways. That poor form is causing the strain. I’ll just mention one part. My ankles are stiff. This means I’m landing on my feet with all my weight and not absorbing a lot of the stress with a natural, flexible stride. Do this for long enough and you’ll start to feel it in the knees. I’m grateful for the evaluation, but how practical is it to change running form when I’ve been doing it like this for a decade?

Correct Form

I asked this question in some form while wiping off sweat from my forehead. By doing it “A little at a time” is the response I got. It starts with strengthening muscles and making the ankles more flexible. Not to mention, making a mental note of the correct form during the run. Poor form is hard to fix when you’re trying to remember all 12 ways to a better stride. On a long run, especially, the last thing you want to do is go over a check list in your mind. No one would ever run again. Homework and a grueling run at the same time? Thanks I’ll pass. The gradual approach is more effective. I start with a short list of exercises to do every day. I’ll figure out the distances later. 

Conclusion

The next few months will test my faith. But I’ve been here before. A lot of people probably think it’s silly to talk like this, faith and healing and scripture. But if you can get over the criticism, and eye rolling from dissenters, it doesn’t matter. God is faithful to His Word and He proves it every day. 

“And my god shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19

Humans and Artificial Intelligence: Transforming the Relationship

 

Artificial Intelligence Is Unlike Other Innovation Because It Tries To Replace Our Humanity 

                                                  Joanna Maciejewska @AuthorJMac

I saw this meme posted at the top of a blog headline on Ace of spades. It's a succinct criticism of Artificial Intelligence that captures the current mood of a lot of Americans. We've never been a nation that's afraid of the future, technology or innovation. AI is different because instead of being a helper it's become a boss.

 Cartoons like the Jetsons and even TV shows like Star Trek, sold us on the idea that future tech would make the labor intensive aspect of life easier. This has mostly been the direction of innovation. Robots that did housework and computers that turned machines on an off with voice command, proved practical just decades later. Innovation keeps moving inexorably forward.  How many people ride a stagecoach across the country today? Railroads and planes made horses archaic for travel. No one reads by candlelight anymore. The electrification of cities and homes made it possible to work and entertain well after sundown. Not to mention the impact on factories. Innovation makes life easier by making productivity increase. It’s true for both labor intensive work and creative work.

Old Model New Model

In this old model innovation serves people, in the new AI driven model, people serve innovation. Everything about the human race is unique relative to the rest of Creation. We’re made in God’s image and we reflect our Creator in a myriad of ways. Not all of us can write a song or pitch a perfect game, but we carry the imprint of our Maker. That looks different for all us. I’ve worked with people who have a gift for comfort. They volunteer at hospitals, hospices and care centers. I use the word “gift” because it’s a gift to the ones who are helped by it, a reflection of God's mercy. But compassion and empathy are human qualities built into us. They aren't code. They grow and develop to varying degrees in individuals.

Artificial Intelligence works through a learning/predicting formula.  People are only formulaic on the surface. You can copy much of it, but you can’t replace the essential make up of God’s design. The apostle Paul describes it like this “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made.” Romans 1:20

 It’s hard to define because no one can create life outside of nature. The best we can say about AI, is that it does an amazing job replicating. It’s an artificial product that functions much like the real thing. But it flattens out human irregularity and makes efficient what was never meant to be. We’re attracted to the efficiency of AI. But efficiency is a human invention. It’s a way of ordering our thinking to find the quickest, cheapest and easiest way to accomplish a task.

Efficiency and Flatness

Because of efficiency we get better (smarter) at doing the same task. Nothing is wrong with looking for easier solutions, but efficiency is not a high moral good. It’s just the way we approach life. Modern thinking elevates it to a kind of heroic endeavor, like finding the holy grail. We never get there but we’re moving closer every decade. In the corporate world it looks like replacing old intranet servers with cloud based ones. Then it looks like eliminating your IT staff, the fewer employees you have the less insurance and payroll you’ll need to shell out. Soon you’ll need only a handful of remote workers and eventually, none. AI will fill in the missing bits as the accounting, marketing, IT, human resources and sales departments have been replaced by a learning/predicting formula.

It’s the flattening of everything. Efficiency is flat. Humans are messy and colorful and different and weird. That’s the opposite of efficiency. None of this is to blame the companies for getting lean and trying to compete with others. Directionally it’s wrong though and I don’t pretend to know what to do about it. We might not need giant corporations anymore that hire thousands of employees. But might we also have more freedom to pursue multiple streams of income and have more agency?

Change is Inevitable

I think the AI revolution is two things; it’s one part technology and one part money grab. Tech companies need data centers and new laws that allow their investment to be part of the infrastructure of the future. I won’t call it a racket (not yet at least) but I do think a lot of the doomsday talk about 90% of jobs disappearing is designed seed the idea that AI is going to take over. By getting us used to the notion of this technology that decides nearly everything, we don’t protest so much. It’s “progress” after all. Who are we to complain?

Would God allow His people to live a life as a slave to an artificial form of intelligence like Skynet? No, but nor can I offer an optimistic solution where technology gets back to being a helper instead of a boss. But maybe it's doesn't have to replace creativity. Maybe it can add to instead of subtract from. A lot of people need a roadmap of the future or at least some sense of what to put their focus on. But we’ve never had this. Go back 25 years and try to remember what you thought your future would be. Are you working in the same field, married to the same spouse, living in the same city? For those that are younger, do the same thing with 10 years. How much has changed in any part of your life or the economy around you that you didn’t see coming?

Conclusion

The point isn’t to show you how wrong you are. It’s to recognize that change is inevitable and we can’t plan for much of it. Maybe I’m being too optimistic and yes, ignorance is bliss to quote an unfortunate truth. But the plan for humanity is ultimately up to God. Life gets easier when you let Him direct your steps. It’s a scary time for those who want control, much easier for those who trust in Jesus.  

“Be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and mind through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6

 

Abraham, Sarah and God's Promise In Our Poor Choices

 

A Path of our Own Making: God's Promise to Abraham, Sarah and Hagar

I heard a great sermon last night. Saturday is my usual night for church. I always thought I’d go back to the Sunday morning, traditional, service favored by most people. But I’m as comfortable with the evening option as I was when made the change over 15 years ago. And now I volunteer, a new wrinkle that will made it tougher to go back to Sunday. 

The pastor laid out the connection between Adam and Eve and Abram and Sarah. Both women pursued their own paths by following personal choices and causing additional chaos. Their husbands followed the advice without a lot of thought or argument. Adam with the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and Abraham by sleeping with Sarah’s maidservant, Hagar.

The Altered Path

Chaos happens when we don’t consult God first. Or, when the serpent tricks us through cunning and sends us down a path that’s contrary to God’s plan. We make a mess when we come up with another option that doesn’t have God’s blessing. Frustration builds from waiting for the promise. We can glimpse a future that lines up with our interests, goals and skills, but getting there takes too long.

Most us can identify our skills. Either in relationships or practical smarts, we’ve learned through trial and error how to make a living. Interest is also easy to identify. No one who hates math will study accounting. Theater kids will avoid engineering and hard sciences. Sometimes it’s better to start with the unacceptable options and move toward acceptable ones. But these are basic life skills and interests that we take with us. They aren’t critical to the character we need to walk the long path of faith.  

Anyone following the Lord, will come to place of surrender. Abram had to leave his family into the unknown and trust that God had a better option, an offspring and a legacy beyond his wildest dreams. It didn’t happen right away. Sarah needed to be beyond her natural childbearing years. Only then could the miracle that God promised come about. But doubt creeps in when a promise is delayed, or taking longer than we think is reasonable. Sarah’s idea to let Abram sleep with her servant reflects a typical human way to “help” the divine plan along. “It’s not working like it should after all” goes the thinking. God promised Abram his offspring would be as numerous as the stars in the sky (Genesis 15:5). How then can that be if not through Sarah? She was too old right?

The Messy Path

Abram and Sarah took matters into their own hands and proposed an alternate solution to the offspring issue. It’s easy to look back on this avoidable mistake and think, “How could they misunderstand so completely?” But most of us have taken a path of our own choosing and had to correct the mistake. It could be a relationship that you knew wasn’t right or a risky job that seemed like good money and quickly fell apart. I’ve made both of those mistakes. Even in my error and selfishness, God’s grace brought me back to the true path. The fix for going astray can be painful. Depending on how far you wandered and how long you refused to surrender, getting back is uncomfortable. But God found Hagar in the middle of the desert and gently brought her back to her mistress Sarah, by reminding her of her place.

A lot of us need to know our place. That might be as an employee for a boss that doesn’t value you. For some of us it’s working 2 jobs until a better option opens up. Abram and Sarah’s early years in the desert is indicative of a Christian’s early years with the Heavenly Father. Mostly life moves slow and we wonder if we made a mistake. Was our previous vision of God’s blessing a mirage? Did we misunderstand our own abilities, interests and desires? Did we miss a checkpoint somewhere along the way divert into some unknown territory?

The True Path

 I’m sure Abram and Sarah had doubts over the years that we will never hear about. Their life is a model for the Christian walk. We must surrender our skills and interests and passions to God. Only then can he use our sacrifice and hand it back to us, cleaned up and useful for His kingdom.

How is it cleaned up? Because the interests, passions and skills we gave to God, have been washed of any selfishness ambition. We are becoming complete, as Paul would say, and lacking nothing. The long road of faith is what’s difficult to endure. We get anxious and doubtful and forget our place. How refreshing to know that we aren’t alone. How encouraging to know that others have walked the same path. Psalm 37:3-4 says “Trust in the Lord and do good: dwell in the land and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” By itself it’s a powerful verse of God’s goodness and overwhelming blessing.

Conclusion

But the next verse completes the promise more fully. “Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him and He shall bring it to pass.” (verse 5) It depends on our obedience to His plan. It’s the proverbial “catch” in the language requiring us to do our part. Abraham’s legacy speaks to just how amazing life can be, when we surrender our way to the Lord.

Maintenance for the Good Life

 

Runners Need to Lift Weights for Long Term Consistency

There are no races on my horizon, even though the Oklahoma City Memorial is only a month away. I’m not going to sign up this year. Maybe it’s lazy of me, but I’m looking forward to dropping back to shorter Saturday runs with the weather starting to heat up. Last Saturday morning, the temperature climbed into the 70’s before I finished my 17 miles. Needless to say, I fell apart at around 14 miles and managed to jog lightly to about 15. The last 2 miles were spent walking slowly and stopping to let my heart rate come down.

As embarrassing as it was to flame out like that, it was unseasonably warm and I didn’t have enough salt in my body. Next time I won’t make that mistake.

The good news is that I’m content to make jogging a regular part of my life instead of just going hard for a month. That’s the equivalent of cramming for a midterm literature test by staying up all night. You might have a great race, but you won’t realize long term gains. The consistency of weekly jogging is what I’ve always been after. I’d like to do a marathon again at some point. For now, the idea of a big race sounds like more effort than I’m ready to give. As far as regular jogging goes it’s been quite consistent. I looked at my Garmin records from last year to get a yearly average. Last year I did roughly 50 miles more than this year. That works out to an extra 2 weeks, but it’s very close. I think the culprit, this year, was my long vacation and Christmas and subsequent illness afterward.

The year to year consistency is what I’m going for. I want to be fit more than I want to crush a time standard and set personal records. That’s the legacy I’ve started at least. Even if it’s frustrating to fall short of my marathon goals, they’re less important. This season I’m learning how to deal with nagging injuries and still be a productive runner. My knees give me trouble on occasion, so I’m spending more time warming up and stretching. A lot of this is what everyone does when they get older. We start paying attention to the little things, isometric work, foam rolling and even weights.  

Till recently, that’s meant doing some version of squats and lunges or quad raises. Mostly I just put a program together on the fly and spend about 45 minutes at the gym. Last Sunday I actually did a little research and found a plan to implement. I’ll try this for a month and see if any of my nagging injuries go away. It’s difficult to know what’s best for strength training. There are as many trainers and philosophies on lifting weights as there are gyms in the US. But you have to start somewhere. Any training is better than no training. I’ve spent enough time lifting to have a good foundation. Because I’ve had trouble with my knees I’m careful with certain movements that require a lot of extension.

The program I found on Youtube requires a lot of single leg movements. That’s something I haven’t done much of. The logic makes sense, running demands power from each leg separately and not together. I just never thought to do each movement separately. This program also demands 2 heavy lifts. I guess it surprised me a little. I think of heavy weights as something for football players and gym rats looking to max once a week. But in small doses it’s ideal for running. Who knew? I’ll have to go easy on the squats though. They’re very hard on knees if your form is even a little off.  

There are other ways to get in shape, but none are quite as simple and enjoyable as jogging. It requires you to adjust to the weather and buy a pair of shoes. The maintenance is up to you.

The Volunteer Military and a Lack of Accountability

 

Compulsory Service and a 'United' Country

I’ve had Iran on my mind for the last few weeks. I didn’t think Operation Epic Fury was a good idea, but naturally I want the best outcome for the country. When it comes to war, the best way to ensure our leaders make wise decisions is to raise the stakes. We’ve had a volunteer force for too long. Too few people are connected, through a son or daughter, with loss. The conflict is far away, it affects others. Gasoline has ticked up because of the lack of shipping through the straits of Hormuz. That’s as much as we’ve felt here at home. There needs to be some skin in the game where wars are concerned, or we’ll surely have more of them. The less connection there is between the servicemen and women and the people who live here, the less it feels like a real thing. The US needs to institute compulsory service for every citizen and get back control over the military.

Efficiency and Access

Problems should be fixed in the quickest way possible. Layers add difficulty. In the federal government we call these layers red tape or bureaucracy. In the private sector it’s conglomerates. I’m not talking about efficiency only, but accessibility as well. If you need to update a driver’s license in a state you’ve recently moved, you’ll have to fill out a handful of forms. Make sure you’ve got 3 forms of ID and a recent water bill. God help you if you miss anything.

In the private sector the problems look a little different. If you rent an apartment in the city and need to complain about the air conditioner that doesn’t get cold, who do you complain to? If the property is owned on site, it’s easy. March up to the office, with a disgusted look on your face, and demand to speak to the manager.

 But what if it’s an out of state company? You can send an email and hope for the best. But even then, they’ll likely reply to your complaint with something dismissive like “We own, but don’t manage Crappy Living Inc”. You’ll have to find out who manages the company and send them an email. They’ll likely reply with “We sold off management of Crappy Living Inc to another management company out of New York called Crappier Living Inc. No email is available either. You do a little searching and find a phone number for Crappier Living Inc and decide to call. It’s an automated answering service and doesn’t have an option for complaints.

At what point do you finally give up and buy a box fan?

The lack of connection from owner to renter is a feature and not a bug. The accountability is to the shareholders of these conglomerates, and not the lowly renter. The more you scale up the worse it gets for you. It’s why the service industry is mostly terrible nowadays. Local businesses can be terrible too, but the impact of a bad review is felt immediately on their bottom line. They can’t afford to alienate their people who live in the same community they serve. The line between customer and owner is direct.

America’s Military

How does this relate to the military? America is a big country with a lot of interests and cultures doing their best to find commonality. Taxes and weather can’t be the only points of commonality. Military service should be compulsory for at least 2 years for everyone coming out of high school. When we object to foreign conflicts, we’re basically sending off a worthless email to be ignored. We have no real objection because we have a volunteer army. Technically we have a Selective Service that works like a backstop. That last time we used it was in 1972 for the Vietnam War. But a draft is a last resort. A better option is to have regular training for 2 years and avoid having to use a draft.

There is this idea on the Right that having a volunteer army means having a professional army. Because they want to be there, the thinking goes, their performance is high level. This is just ridiculous. We didn’t have much of an Army to speak of before World War II and still raised an amazing, highly proficient force. It’s called training. You can train most kids for combat. Some jobs are technical and some are physical, but everyone should have a place. It’s the connection that unites us together. The more the citizens of a country hold in common the easier it is to hold off threats to the homeland. Without that sense of duty to a place and a people, the further apart we grow in interests and philosophies.

As a side benefit, we’d have fewer wars. Americans would demand a serious rationale from their government before sending their kids off to a foreign country, the equivalent of stomping off to see the manager with a disgusted look on your face. A military that’s 4 times larger would guarantee a closer link between citizens and their government. Greater involvement means greater control.

Conclusion

 We use our military now like a mercenary force. They’re sent to countless Mid East countries, like Syria, that we aren’t even at war with. Parents with kids in the military today share too much of the burden of the loss. But the fix isn’t to just have a draft and bring in more kids. It’s to have a Pentagon (and leadership) that’s accountable to the citizens of the country for the well-being of the next generation. Having a volunteer force means the Pentagon can continue to send troops across the globe without a lot of objections from families. Their kids volunteered after all. Compulsory service encourages shared sacrifice across the country and is an effective brake on endless conflicts. You want fewer wars, demand compulsory service.

 

The Iran War is a Mistake

 

Get Out of Iran As Quickly As Possible

Despite the many good reasons for war with Iran, the wiser path is to squeeze them financially and let the Iranian people decide to overthrow the clerics. If the people of Iran won't overthrow their own cruel leaders then neither should we.  

Being against a war your country is engaged in requires a thorough explanation. Although the burden of proof should be on the ones prosecuting the war, it’s usually on the one’s opposing it. The Trump administration hasn’t considered the numerous chances for disaster if the Mullahs dig in. China could get involved and make this a very big war, Iranian leaders might hunker down and refuse a deal. Ground troops will be necessary if the US wants any influence over the new government. The US might not have enough munitions to go the full 4-6 week timeline that Karolin Leavitt (White House spokesman) mentioned.  

Why are we embroiled in another Mid East war?

 Last summer it was all about Iran’s nuclear ambition. What is it this time? I’m not one for beating up on team Trump for optics, but this is war. The one thing the American people deserve is a consistent answer on another Middle East war. Don’t tell us that’s Iran is close to getting another bomb either. Last summer we “Totally obliterated” the nuclear facility at Fordow. Those were the President’s words as he assured us it would be a while before Tehran could even think about rebuilding.

And now we have to go back, 9 months later, because they’re still a threat? I don’t think so.

Iran is the enemy of our allies in the Mid East, of whom there are quite a few now. Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait and Iraq: some of them are allies because they’re aligned with Saudi Arabia or because they signed the Abraham Accords.

Why now and not last summer?

The most recent protests in Iran by the people began in the Bazaar with the merchants. Money was stretched thin and prices went up, making life difficult. Those strikes led to larger protests. The Islamic government cracked down hard. It’s difficult to know exactly how many were killed, but it’s in the thousands. Many more were beaten and jailed. The situation on the ground looked desperate for the regime. Their nuclear ambitions were set way back. Their desperate people were fighting back and trying to take over. The US government led by the War Department, thought this was the best time to make a move and topple the Jenga tower that is the Iranian regime.

That’s the real reason. Opportunity in the form of protests, knocked.

But Iran only looks one way from the outside. This is an existential fight for them and they’re in a corner. They took a serious beating last year from Israel in the 12 Day War. Not to mention all of their proxies were decimated, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. But it’s still not likely they just raise their hands and surrender to the Great Satan. After the first wave of ballistic missile strikes from American and Israeli jets, they’ve hunkered down. The Islamic Republic is ready to defend their turf from a ground invasion, said their Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. This might be tough talk and chest thumping. I think it’s more in keeping with their obstinate behavior.  

Does this have anything to do with China?

Yes I think it does. If you know anything about Trump, it’s that he understands the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) to be the biggest threat to the US. One way to take out your enemy is to hit their resources. China relies on oil from both Iran and Venezuela, both by evading US sanctions. We know what happened to Venezuela. They lost their president and their source of income in a matter of days. Trump wants to treat Iran the same way and cut China off from whatever resources Iran can sell them. This isolates China just enough and forces economic tightening in the country. Ironically, this is also the thing that potentially brings the CCP into the conflict. Once you start cutting off opportunities for growth and survival the only thing left is war.

None of this is to excuse China’s behavior in the South China Sea, or their economic warfare against American industries and their spying on American businesses. In the first few months of Trump’s second term, he forced Panama to make a deal with the US for use of the canal. And by extension, Panama kicked China out. Most of Trump’s big moves are designed to roll back the influence of Beijing.

Aren’t there good reasons for this War?

Yes, especially if settling old scores matters. Iran has been a Hydra for terrorism around the world since the revolution of 1979. Victor Davis Hanson said on his Signal YouTube channel that they’ve killed more Americans than any other country, since before the Iran/Iraq war. We lost 241 marines in Lebanon to a truck bomb outside their barracks. After we ousted Saddam from Iraq, Iran helped supply the Shia militias with weapons, IEDs and training. They stormed the embassy in Tehran, during the revolution, and held American hostages for over a year. Yes, we owe them.

Not to mention, the reasons I mentioned regarding China and their belligerence toward American hegemony. But in this case the risks outweigh the rewards. If we wanted revenge on Iran for the marines, we should’ve taken it years ago. This is going back 40 plus years. So that’s not a legitimate reason for a full scale war.

Why I’m against this war 

Our missile supplies are low. The US military is low on munitions thanks to our support of Ukraine to fight Russia. We’ve sent a lot of our ballistic weapons to keep a war going that no one seems to care about. But even if we had an inexhaustible pile to light up sky with, you can’t know what’s happening on the ground. You’ll need to send in ground troops at some point.

For all the talk about not using ground troops, I don’t believe we’ll get out of there without committing troops. Part of the goal is to get a leader that can make a deal with Israel and the US, not to use terrorism against them. This is where it gets messy, changing regimes and sliding in someone you prefer rarely works out. I don’t trust that these protesters in Iran are actually on our side. I bought this nonsense about peoples yearning-to-be-free during the Iraq war. I’m not falling for the everyone deserves democracy anymore. No should be a slave in their own country and it’s tragic how they’ve been treated by the theocracy.

But at some point, peoples have to cast off their oppressors. If they constantly need help from outside armies, I’d say they aren’t ready yet. This current crop of Iranian people are the children of the ones who chose an Islamic Republic over a secular one. If they want to go back to a secular republic, let them. Just don’t help them.   

Conclusion

I think we can still make this a quick war by declaring victory soon. Trump wants unconditional surrender and defines it as, the regime not having enough military capability to threaten their people or neighbors. That’s not really surrender in the classic sense but it’s close enough. But the issue with these open-ended wars is the increasing responsibilities that get pulled in. The mission grows and metastasizes into a tumor that makes us all sick. Then it’s a muddle for years because no one knows how to do the surgery.

Trump famously likes to “Win”. That can be a good thing here if he’s ready to call anything Iran gives him a win. It might not be enough for the Department of War, or the CIA or the ‘conflict bros’ (Lindsey Graham and Tom Cotton). But it’s a lot better than another 20 year war where we sacrifice American lives and get nothing in return.

Let’s not do that here.

I hope I’m wrong on this war and the benefits win out. But the last 2 decades do not give me hope.  

 

 

 

 

Fasting and Prayer

 

Fasting is Connected to Belief in the Greater Works of Gods

I started doing a fast every Monday just recently. Fasting is a Christian discipline connected to prayer and hearing from God. Going without food for a day makes you reorder your priorities. It’s a reminder to my flesh that God is in control of my life and He takes first place. I’m not sure what the ideal amount of time is for a fast. The early churches don’t have a specific recommendation either, but it’s a practice they’re well familiar with. I heard a Youtuber say that “fasting is being empty so God can fill us.”

Instructions

I’m reluctant to even write this. Fasting isn’t something you go around and brag about, as if you’re doing something noble. We should do it in secret and our “Father in heaven will reward…” us. This was Jesus’ admonition to his disciples. Mostly I can get away with fasting in secret. I’ve had a few occasions where I couldn’t keep it quiet. Last year I had a lunch meeting with a few coaches from a local youth football group. This was holy week. I’d decided to fast lunch for 6 days.

We met at Clark’s Crew BBQ for a spread. I tried to get out of the lunch altogether with “Are you sure I need to be there?” questions. My boss had set up the meeting because he knew the coaches and they wanted to do business with us. I had to tread lightly here. This was going to be my account. I made a nice chunk of money off this group. Sitting there and pretending to be full while everyone else stuffed pulled pork into their mouth was going to be difficult. I finally just leveled with my boss and told him about Easter and how I’d made a decision to fast lunch for the week. He told me to order the lunch food to go and have it for dinner later. That was a great idea I hadn’t considered. But I still had to tell the guys at the table I wasn’t eating because of Easter. I had their sympathy.

Costs

The year before, a similar situation occurred. This time my employer catered a full spread for everyone at work. I can’t remember the occasion for the spread, but I had to tell one guy I wasn’t eating lunch for holy week. I have a reputation for eating a lot. It’s been a running joke around the office whenever anyone brings cake or donuts to share. “Make sure you count how many Adam takes” are how the comments typically go. I can’t blame anyone but myself of course. I keep in shape so it’s not a big deal. If I was overweight it would bother me. Needless to say when I don’t eat, people notice. Getting used to having free food offered to me during Easter week, or on my Monday fast day is becoming the new normal.

But I’m learning to press through in prayer when the hunger becomes intense.

In Matthew 17:20-21 the disciples try to cast out a demon from a young boy. They’re unable to do it. Jesus steps in and frees the boy. The disciples ask Jesus why they couldn’t cast it out. He tells them because of their unbelief. “For assuredly I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” 

Scales

Some of the commentary I’ve heard on this passage says that Jesus was talking about “unbelief” as the kind that doesn’t come out except by prayer and fasting. But I’ve always read that as, the demon is the kind that doesn’t go out except by prayer and fasting. As in, this is a high-level super demon and takes a truly devout person to stand up to it. This is probably wrong.

 I tend to think that unbelief is the theme. Faith is the opposite of unbelief. You can’t trust in a God that you only consult once in a while. There are levels to petition prayers. “Lord give me favor with my boss” is a prayer, but so is “Demon be gone”.

The way we’re wired to think about faith is through scales, as in 1 through 10. Low level faith would be believing for favor with the boss. High level faith would be casting out demons, certainly a 10. Maybe because the stakes are lower at work it rates low in our head. What does favor with the boss look like exactly? How is it different from regular treatment? It’s not always clear. Casting out a demon is definitive and the stakes are very high. No one doubts when it happens. But just because our minds work that way doesn’t mean the kingdom of God operates on a 1 through 10 scale.

Conclusion

Jesus is saying, prayer and fasting are the key to getting rid of unbelief for every kind of situation. When faith is like a mustard seed, its roots go deep and it pushes out unbelief. When faith is strong it doesn’t ask about scale or stakes. It doesn’t frame needs that way. It recognizes Jesus as the source of truth. It finds victory in the One who was victorious. You might say that prayer and fasting reorder our focus back to Christ. From that reordering we’re able to find faith when we need it, no matter the situation. The more we fast, the stronger our belief becomes.  

 

 

The Olympic Games and the Super Bowl: The Occult Reigns

Alternatives Like TPUSA's Halftime Show Are the Way Forward

I’ve been watching the Olympics for the last few weeks. It’s in Italy this year, Milan and Cortina. Not only at home but also at work, I’ll find the Peacock channel and let it play. I don’t watch every event, but I catch enough of it to say I’ve seen a lot this year. Not everyone gets to watch TV. Lucky me I guess.

During the opening ceremony the athletes lit a pentagram while fireworks that resembled flames illuminated the background. Flames and torches and ceremonies are part of the Olympics, why did this one feel occultic? Probably because everything in the public eye is anti Christian, overtly so. I can’t tell you where the particular ceremony originates (historically) or what deities they glorify. But nearly all of these world or international events display some form of paganism.

These ‘artistic’ displays are either pagan or just outright satanic. The Super Bowl halftime shows are all slutty performance theater and ominous ritual. They’ve all taken on a darker quality than I can remember. Not that rock and roll from the 80s and 90s was moral, but the veil that used to hide that sinful nature is gone. Even Rihanna’s Super Bowl performance from a few years ago was all red and black. A lot of this imagery feels uncomfortable to me. I can’t always pinpoint why.

For years I brushed off suggestions that these public venues were loaded with satanic imagery. But it’s getting harder to ignore. I can’t tell you what every symbol or dance number means in an artistic sense, but I know a pentagram when I see one. Last year’s summer games in Paris showed a mock version of the Last Supper with drag queens. The excuses always ring hollow. They always follow the same trajectory “You rubes don’t understand the blend of the ancient and the modern, or the sacred and the profane”. It’s art you see? But it’s always Jesus and Christianity that’s mocked. Or in the case of the NFL, traditional values.

This year I had a choice to watch a different halftime show for the Super Bowl. Thanks to Turning Point USA, millions of fans tuned into Kid Rock and handful of country artists for a free show. Like a lot of Americans during the Super Bowl, I was at a party with friends. We shut off the game at the halfway point and put YouTube on. None of us were huge Kid Rock fans, but having an alternative that wasn’t divisive was a breath of fresh air. Kid Rock, for his part, has been talking about Jesus to anyone who will listen the last few years. I assume he’s genuine. I can’t say whether or not his opinions and beliefs are orthodox. But he is shining a light where others are shrouded in darkness. Hopefully Turning Point does this every year. I imagine a lot of artists who don’t get to play the Super Bowl would sign up to play even one song.

Who doesn’t want millions of people to hear their music? I’m sure there is a stigma associated with playing exclusively to a patriotic audience. But those numbers don’t lie. As an up and coming artist, how many fans could potentially buy your music after a 5-minute performance? Besides, if this becomes a regular feature of Super Bowls going forward it will garner bigger names every year. The most important thing is that Christians, and citizens who are just bothered by the anti-American shade of the NFL, have another option. This is the way forward in a lot of national and international events.

 Turning off the TV is always an option too. I did this for a while with baseball and football. Their support of Black Lives Matter and the chaos in Minneapolis during Covid really got to me. But I love sports. Americans would like to have sports and entertainment without all the Satan worship. That probably sounds like hyperbole, but it’s becoming more overt international programing. Sam Smith performed a very evil concert at the Grammys in 2023. How can anyone honestly say that it wasn’t a demonic display? I’m not even going to link to it. Google it if you want to see it.

As for the Olympics, it’s best to just avoid the opening ceremony right now. It’s a shame too because I love seeing all the athletes walk together under their country’s flag. Christians have a reputation as being prudish about immorality and offense content. Every time some raunchy live event happens we get trampled with articles about “satanic panic”. Fact checkers get going, correcting ‘false’ posts about artists. One fact check in particular caught my attention. The Weeknd apparently flashed the word “Satan” on screen at a concert in Denmark. The fact checker was frustrated that online users got the venue wrong. Got that? It wasn’t that artist The Weeknd didn’t flash the word “Satan” at a recent concert, but the time and place were not correct. Unbelievable.

Alternatives are the way forward. Don’t like the artist at halftime, how about another option? The further these sports get from their mission of putting watchable games on TV the worse everyone is. Stay away from preachy messaging and occult laden shows. This isn’t just a grumpy NFL fan talking either. That Kid Rock show pulled in over 6 million views just on YouTube. If nothing else it proves that others would like an alternative. Keep them coming.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Creativity and Critical Thinking: Read and Write

 

Turn off the TV and Read a Book, Or Write an Essay

I unplugged my Roku device the other day and took it to work. Not so that I could plug it in at work, but so that I couldn’t watch it at home for a while. Work is just a holding spot. I’ll get it back when I think I’ve earned it. I needed to cut out distractions and streaming shows have made me a bit lazy. I’m writing less. I’m reading less. I’m studying for this new work assignment less. Time is slipping through my fingers and despite my awareness of it, laziness can still get the best of me. Not that I sit and stare at the screen while episode after episode loads automatically. But my laziness has been enough to force a change. Even if just on the margins, I can increase my creativity just a bit.

Fortunately I’ve started reading and writing more, both are precursors to higher level thinking. This is a new year after all. I need to get back to reading traditional books again. News websites form the bulk of my reading for most of the week. But books aren’t quite as depressing as the daily news, which is often designed to give you the most horrific stories. Elon Musk said that the news tries to answer the question, “What’s the worst thing that happened in the world today?” So less is more where that’s concerned. This is often tougher than it sounds if you’re like me and suffer from a kind of current events FOMO.

An honest question to ask, why should reading some mindless book count for more than watching TV? How can one consider hours of true crime novels to be of higher worth than hours of Court TV? Instinctively I’d say it comes from a more creative part of your brain. Reading forces you to create mental pictures and your comprehension and focus lock in. This is more or less the view of social media. I did some quick, unscientific, research from Quora and Reddit. Both are good for getting a sense of what people think, the equivalent of polling the audience from Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? TV is passive while reading is active. That’s not to say you can’t learn anything watching a show, but you can also zone out and refuse to connect dots.

Reading forces you to pay attention and create your own world. The author will describe much of it, but your mind will fill in the details. Writing takes reading and supercharges it. The world creation that your mind does automatically when absorbing words is only the first step. World creation doesn’t just mean fantasy kingdoms like ‘middle earth’ either. It means the world you present to the reader. If you write fiction you have to write a character that makes sense. I just finished reading John Grisham’s “The Widow”. His description of the title character is needy, forgetful and desperate to be seen as wealthy by those around her. It’s the world according to Grisham in this small Virginia town. He’s really good at bringing the reading into the legal world by explaining terms through characters.  

The world can also be your version of how things should be, or how you understand them. I wrote an article years ago, trying to convince Oklahomans to reject medical marijuana. Signature seekers were everywhere at the time. I couldn’t go into a Reasor’s (grocery) without someone asking me to sign this or that petition to legalize it. Promoters leaned into the “medicine” angle, which was always bullshit. I did a little research on California and Colorado. At the time they were the only states with an extensive record to draw from. Typically, it was a disaster for a lot of reasons.

The world I tried to present was one of carnage and decay if legalization went forward. The trick is to be convincing. You have to know a few things about Oklahoma law for starters, or the world falls apart. For instance, we have a provision that allows a question to go on the ballot with only a handful of signatures. This low threshold allowed the group Oklahomans for Health to put it on the primary ballot and get it passed. It’s not enough to say what you’re for or what you’re against, opinions must come with concrete examples. I think my article holds up today as an editorial against a notoriously bad idea. But I had to first write out some thought problems in my world and knock down what didn’t make sense.

It’s not the textbook definition of world building, but it presents the same challenges of consistency in logic and timelines. Because writing can feel like work I’ll often avoid it. Writing is concerned with critical thinking and reading with creative thinking. TV or streaming shows are neither. Going forward I’ll have to be more disciplined. I can reward myself with a book.

Born to Run: A Review

 

'Born to Run' is an Engaging Story on Endurance Running, Written with Passion

I finished reading Born to Run by Christopher McDougall. Written over 15 years ago, it’s an examination of endurance running, the Tarahumara Indian tribe and what it means about the science of running. McDougall begins by following a mythical runner in Mexico who jogs across the country, hermit like, for the sheer joy of it. This extreme athlete is named Caballo Blanco (White Horse) and tells McDougall about his idea to bring the best ultramarathon runners to the dangerous Copper Mountains for an exclusive race. It’s an unofficial race in the some of the driest, rockiest terrain on earth. What seems like a crazy idea, turns out to have momentum. Caballo convinced a few of the top ultra marathon runners in the US (Scott Jurek, Ted McDonald, Billy Bonehead and Jenn Shelton) to try his makeshift course.

Race in Mexico

Through a series of connections, they all agree to meet in Mexico and run with Caballo and a handful of bashful Tarahumara. This 50 mile race through the Cooper Mountains is the backdrop for a short history of the Tarahumara indians and their inclusion in a notorious ultramarathon known as Leadville in 1993. From that race, the author traces the seeds of barefoot running and the science of how humans do it. Humans are the only mammals that can run and breathe at the same time. Which in theory, means they can outrun prey over a long distance. At least that’s where some of this research takes the reader.

Caballo is the central character whose mysterious life isn’t revealed until the end. We only get drips and drabs of his past. Jenn and Billy are hard partying surf bums, cocky and reckless, that discovered distance running just a few years before. They’ve both stacked up a handful of wins in a short time. Scott Jurek is a legend in ultra marathon running by this point, by far the most recognizable name in the group. Ted McDonald, barefoot Ted, is an eccentric who’s discovered the benefits of running with either flat shoes or no shoes.

the author is himself a runner and joins the group for the race in Mexico while recounting the once in a lifetime experience. The subtext of the book is, are humans meant to run such long distances or is it damaging to the body? The answer is yes, and no. Humans are meant to run if they do it correctly. The damage is minimal when the technique is right.

In the spirit of proper form, Christopher McDougall begins working with a trainer. Most of what he learned remains a fixture in long distance running today. Take quick steps and shorten your stride, keep your heart rate low and burn fat instead of sugar. The point of teaching your body to burn fat instead is that it’s a more consistent source of energy. To get there, you need to stay below your aerobic threshold or heavy breathing. As most runners can attest though, running with a low heart rate is difficult.

Barefoot Trends

Another aspect of author Christopher McDougall’s training is strengthening his feet. Flatter shoes, or huarache sandals like the Tarahumara use, allow your feet to adapt to surfaces better than cushioned Nikes do. Between the tribes and barefoot Ted, the book spends a good deal of time on the benefits of running in sandals or shoeless. I remember there being a barefoot jogging trend around the time this book came out. McDougall makes a solid case for it. But shoe companies still put out ever more cushioning in their latest models. I suspect it’s because most non-runners buy the majority of the shoes anyway. How many ultra marathon runners do you know? It’s still a very niche sport even among fitness enthusiasts. That doesn't translate to big sales.

McDougall also changed his diet and started eating more like a Tarahumara indian. That meant a lot of “fruit, beans, yams, whole grains and vegetables.” He started eating salads at breakfast and became a convert, partly because you can stuff yourself and still have energy for a workout. He started doing pushups and lunges instead of stretching. The increased strength worked to sharpen his balance, and he began to become a better athlete and not just a better runner.

 I like his description from page 212 and 213 on the improvement. “Because I was eating lighter and hadn’t been laid up once by injury, I was able to run more; because I was running more, I was sleeping great, feeling relaxed, and watching my resting heart rate drop. My personality had even changed: The grouchiness and temper I’d considered part of my Irish-Italian DNA had ebbed so much that my wife remarked ‘Hey, if this comes from ultrarunning I’ll tie your shoes for you.’ I knew aerobic exercise was a powerful antidepressant, but I hadn’t realized it could be so profoundly mood stabilizing and–I hate to use the word—meditative. If you don’t have answers to your problems after a four-hour run, you ain’t getting them.”

Conclusion

For all the foot racing history and anthropology this book covers, its best feature is the enthusiasm of the author. Nothing gets people interested in a hobby or lifestyle change the way an honest promoter can. I wasn’t sold on the idea that our early ancestors used to run down prey until it dropped from exhaustion. But Christopher McDougall, the journalist who found a story in the heart of the Sierra Madres and improved his own fitness as a result? That’s the best story of all. It inspires me.

 

  

Gimme Chaos: The Chicago Bears 2026 Season So Far

The Chicago Bears Are the Miracle Team of This Season

The Chicago Bears pulled off another upset in dramatic, heart stopping fashion last night. The late game, come from behind wins are an identity for a team that’s having success with a first year coach and second year quarterback. They might lose their next playoff game and take some needed rest. But even if that happens, this has been a miraculous season. I’ve never seen a team like this and I can’t wait to see them again.

It's been a while since the Bears faithful have been this optimistic about the future.

The Past is the Past

 Lovie Smith’s 2005-06 team got to the Super Bowl and lost to Payton Manning’s Colts. The defense was dynamic; they won the turnover battle in nearly every game. Charles Tillman and Brian Urlacher anchored what’s considered the best defense since the legendary 1986 Super Bowl team. Rex Grossman, who they drafted in 2003, threw for over 3000 yards that year and 23 touchdowns. He did throw it a lot of interceptions that year, 20 to be exact. But they always managed to get over the line thanks to Devin Hester’s incredible 5 kick return touchdowns.

They managed a few wild card births in 2018 and in 2020 but lost both times in the first round. Since then, it’s been a lot of mediocre football. The Bears seemed to have an identity much like the Steelers, historically good defenses and average offenses.

As an NFL team they relied on their defense to score more than other teams. The Caleb Williams led team feels determined to give their fans a heart attack on every close game. Last night was the first round of the playoffs. Bears drew the Packers. Yikes. No Bears fan wanted to play them, even at home. Green Bay has a 51-20 win advantage over Chicago since the 90’s. Why start with the 90’s? Because it’s during the Favre era, and the subsequent dominance of their quarterbacks. Three quality starters to be exact, Favre, Rogers and Love have led consistent winners during that time. Chicago has had more quarterbacks than windy days in January.

Present and Future

So No. I didn’t want to play the Packers. It felt like the Bears snuck away with a win during the last meeting. We split the regular season games this year. Both went down to last tick of the clock. But this team has come from behind in 7 games this year in the 4^th quarter to win. Last night’s victory was easily the most dramatic. Chicago was down 21-3 at halftime while the silent crowd looked on with horror at the ensuing beat down of their beloved Monsters of the Midway.

Jordan Love’s offense ran through the Bears defense like crap through a goose. Bears coach Ben Johnson insisted on going for every 4^th down conversion on offense. What seemed risky was just a way to avoid letting the defense back on the field.

Johnson told the sideline reporter at halftime that he was just maximizing the possessions. It’s not an unusual move. They’ve done this to some degree all season. But last night they were going for it on their own 35 yard line, a seriously dumb idea unless your defense is falling apart. To everyone’s surprise however, the defense made some real adjustments after halftime and kept the Packers to a handful of 3 and outs.

The Rest of the Story

 That still left a sclerotic offense. Three field goals seemed to be all they could muster. Then Deandre Swift caught a pass and finally scooted in for a TD. Suddenly the Bears were back in the game with a 21-16 score. The Packers answered quickly with another touchdown pass to Doubs to make it 27-16.

Bears add another 8 points with a pass to Zaccheaus and a 2 point conversion to Loveland. DJ Moore then caught a touchdown pass to give the Bears a 31-27 advantage. The Packers kicker Mcmannus missed a critical field goal which forced them into needing a touchdown drive in the final minute. The newly energized defense, and the increasing crowd noise, was just enough to dash the hopes of the Wild Card Packers. All of Chicago stood in unison, jangled nerves and bated breath, as Jordan Love tried in vain to complete a hail Mary touchdown pass. Then we celebrated. All of Chicago lost its collective mind as the hated rivals fell for the second time this season.

 Who knew they could beat the Packers more than once in a season?

Conclusion

It's easy to think of this team as chaotic because of their late game heroics. Good teams win by building a lead and then defending it. At least that’s what we’ve come to expect from strategic offenses like Brady’s Patriots and Manning’s Colts. But there is a freewheeling aspect to this offense by its quick, athletic quarterback. He completed a deep pass to Rome Odunze off his back foot, falling away like Jordan against the Knicks. That particular play was on a 4^th down scramble to keep the final drive moving down the field. The game would’ve been over had it been knocked down or dropped. But this team survives on these ‘not done yet’ heroics constantly. You might even call it a brand. For now at least, it’s how they roll.

I’ll take it. I’ll take the heart palpitations, the sweating, the cursing and the crying. I’ll take the nervous laughter and the angry texts to family when they fall behind or turn the ball over. I’ll take the risky 4^th down passes in their own territory and the 10-minute scrambles to find an open receiver. I’ll take the chaos, the energy, the passion and the wins. Let’s Go Bears!