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.  

 

 

 

 

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!

 

We Came We Saw We Left: A Family Gap Year--Book Review

 

The Family That Travels Together Learns Together

Years ago my girlfriend bought me a book years ago called Naked Economics: Undressing the Dismal Science. Its author is Charles Wheelan, a lecturer at Dartmouth and all around statistics geek. One measure of how well someone knows their topic is the extent to which they can explain it to a novice. Yes…me. It’s is the best book I’ve read on the mechanics of banking, paper money and how it explains almost everything relating to exchange. He writes simply. That’s the best thing you can do.

The Gift of Books

I was in Barnes and Noble doing some Christmas shopping, for others naturally. I searched the travel section because I love the genre thought others might enjoy it. We Came We Saw We Left: A Family Gap Year caught my attention on the upper shelf. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m a sucker for a good cover image. It’s an aerial view of a bus kicking up dirt on a backcountry road and a view of the ocean. Based on where the family traveled, I’d say it’s in South America, but who knows? It gives off a remote vacation vibe. I wanted to go there. I wanted to read the book. The gift giving would have to wait.

The title is dopey. I’m not a title snob at all, but you have to give me more than “We Left”. I get that there’s a subtitle about this being a vacation trip with the family. But a little more of a theme would help. Like, “We Came We Saw We Survived”, or “We Came We Saw We Grew”. Better? Maybe not much, but it’s just non-descript and leaves me with a blank space about the nature of the trip. At least “We Came We Saw, Yada Yada Yada” would have been funnier.  

The Gift of Travel

Ultimately not a big deal however, the author created an fun and interesting read. I didn’t realize until after reading the little blurb on the back that it’s the Naked Economics guy, Charles Wheelan. Once an author makes an impression there is a good chance I’ll read them again. I bought it right there. Actually, I searched my library app for a free copy and free availability. Who could have predicted? It was available. So No I didn’t buy it.

A lot of what’s interesting about the story is how they were able to take a 9 month vacation around the world with the whole family. Charles and his wife have 3 kids. The oldest daughter was in her last year of high school. The other two, one daughter and a young son, were old enough to travel with the family and appreciate it. At least appreciate it in that teenager sense, where their own friends and interests still outrank a trip with the parental units. The idea for the gap year trip came from Charles and his wife Leah, who did a similar trip as newlyweds. If travel brings you joy then travel. It’s not for every person and certainly not every family. But the Wheelans place great importance on experiences in foreign places. Making a priority for the family is admirable.

The Gift of Accounting

They rented their home for at least part of the trip to their cousins. It solved two problems right away, a caretaker for the dogs and money for expenses. The couple planned the trip with tight budgeting and started saving in advance. It sounds like Leah was the gatekeeper of the finances. Nine months can get expensive with all the flying and apartment renting they did. At one point Charles mentions avoiding Europe altogether because of the cost. But they did travel through South America, Australia, Africa and Asia.

Along the way came the usual travel problems of illness and missed flights, lost goods and bureaucratic silliness. Katrina, the oldest daughter picked up a flesh eating bacteria on her ankle that antibiotics didn’t help. The other two, Sophie and CJ take online classes but struggle to keep up and turn in the work. The Wheelans struggle to stay on top of the kids’ education while distractions abound. I’d expect this to be the most difficult aspect of bouncing around the world. Kids need routine when it comes to homework. Then again, without friends and school activities filing up the week, they should have more time. But it’s vacation too.

The Gift of Learning

My favorite story was of the family’s trip to the Amazon. In a series of dangerous trips up the river and through caves, they took chances and learned how to support each other. It felt a bit like a metaphor for the whole idea of taking a gap year. From the finances to the planning and the diversions in between, there is a lot that goes into a global adventure and it’s not a guarantee you’ll enjoy it. You might also get robbed or violently ill from eating something your body couldn’t handle. Living from country to country like this isn’t for the faint of heart. But that’s also the point of doing it. You might find a new passion for surfing in Australia or hiking in Patagonia. Adventure means leaving what’s comfortable and striking out. If you’re up for it, it might make you a life long globe trekker. It’s what Charles and Leah discovered after their first year of marriage.

Conclusion

I talked to an Irishman just the other day about the travel habits of Americans. He asked where I visited when I flew to Ireland with my brother and friend. I rattled off a list of cities and regions. “How long were you there?” he asked. I told him 10 days and he shook his head. “You can’t see it like that”. What he meant was, don’t move around so much. As Americans we do too much on vacation. That’s the stereotype at least. It holds up here with the Wheelans as well. Obviously they enjoyed it, so it doesn’t matter what I think. It’s my only critique of the trip. They covered too much territory for a 9 month trip. Likely the kids will develop an appreciation for travel though and make it an essential part of their children’s education. Well done guys.  

 

Limiting Football On TV: Or Being Cheap With the Programing

 

The High Cost of Too Much TV: Learn to Say No

 I missed the Bears game last week. I followed the game on one of those YouTube channels where a fan tells you what’s going on in the game in real time. It’s not as good as watching the game, but it’s at least a real time broadcast. I don’t think I can even listen on the radio for free anymore. The last time I tried it I had to log in or sign up or get some app. Whatever the requirements were, I didn’t want to mess with it. As for the NFL ticket or game package on TV, I’m not about to shell out that much. I’m pretty sure it’s around $500 to see every game. I’m a fan, but not that much.

Football and TV

Even my brother only gets the red zone. He can certainly afford to buy the full package, but he won’t fork over that much either. I might be exaggerating the price a little, but I’m sure it’s in the $500 range. While at work earlier this summer, I talked with my coworker about the package. Despite his lifelong interest in the Denver Broncos, he refused to pay it as well. YouTube might have overshot the interest in the plan. Then again, I don’t know how much they bought it for. At least I have Prime. I can see all the Thursday games and one black Friday game every year. This year the Bears played the Eagles on black Friday.

I’d rather the NFL got rid of the Thursday games. At least with black Friday it’s only one week per year they do a Friday game. The teams don’t get the full rest they need on Thursday and it shows. It’s usually the sloppiest game you’ll see all year.

I can’t back this up with any kind of data, it’s a ‘feel thing’. Sloppy play means a lot of false starts and poor routes, missed tackles and on-field fights. If your team looks out of sink it’s probably a Thursday game. More Bears games would be nice, but I can’t justify the high price of the TV package. Anyway I don’t have YouTube premium or whatever they call it. The MLB network package worked out well for me this year. At the beginning of the season it was around $150 for the year. I didn’t get every Cubs game but probably around 75% of them. But I didn’t buy the package until May, which means I missed a whole month. By then it was only $60 through Prime. I used that month to find out if the Cubs would be worth watching 3 nights a week. They were. This upcoming year I’ll get the package again, but I’m not sure if buying through Prime is the same thing as just buying through MLB network.

Can’t imagine it’s any different but I never checked it out.

Reading and No TV

Sports are basically the only thing I’ll pay for. Prime is the only streaming service I have. It’s the crappiest one as far as shows and movies, but I’m not paying for Netflix or Hulu or Disney. You have to decide which one you want and forget the rest. TV shouldn’t be this expensive. It used to be free after all. Just adjust the rabbit ears on the top of the screen and hope it doesn’t short out on you. But then again, we do have a lot of options nowadays that didn’t exist before. And the vast number of shows and films made every year is staggering. But at some point, you can’t watch everything. You need to be choosy for the sake of your mental health if nothing else.

Free time can make people lazy. I’m certainly in this camp, but I’m trying to make better choices with my time. Books are better for your brain than movies. I don’t have a study to reference but it’s obvious right? There is something about reading that inspires writing too. I’ve noticed this while reading. It’s like there is some section of the brain where reading and writing thrive and even work on the same frequency. TV has a way of turning off some creative part of your brain. As much as I like sports, I’m more selective with how many games I watch per Sunday. Bears weren’t on today in my area. I turned it off. Not like I didn’t want to watch football either. But if I watched an early game, I’d probably watch a later game. And then I’d watch some of the Sunday night game, while talking on the phone to my cousin. On a warmer day I’d be outside raking leaves and being productive.

Conclusion

Circling back to the NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube, the high cost almost ensures you’ll watch more football. When you pay a steep price for something you want to get the most out of it. I’d feel obligated to keep the channel on all day. That’s something I don’t need. For now I’ll watch what I can and read more books. This wasn’t meant to be New Year’s resolution post, but it’s sounding a lot like one. I guess that’s OK, we’re in the season for it. Merry Christmas and go Bears!

Immigration and Populism in the West

 

The Future Of the West and Populism: The Disaster of Unchecked Immigration

I started reading a book called the Guns of August. 

It’s supposedly one of the best books on World War I. So far it’s giving a lot of background on the monarchies running most of Europe before the war. So many of them were related. Since the Middle Ages, kings and queens married off their kids to the kids of other rulers. After a few hundred years, Western Europe was made up of a handful of families. How much the world has changed since these monarchies lost power? World War II was the beginning of the end for most of the European dynasties. The families were able to keep their titles, but power shifted to elected governments. Obviously it’s different from country to country, but that model certainly carried the day.

The current global order with look different in the next few years as populism reasserts the need for sovereignty, after being nearly lost by mass immigration.

Global Order

The struggle is between a global order and a nationalist/populist surge. The global order got going after World War II with the Bretton Woods meeting of business and government leaders. The purpose of the meeting was to establish a way to stabilize trade and institute a rules based order on currency exchange. Partly to counter the instability of Communism, they believed economic alliances and free trade was key to stability.

In that same vein, European coal and steel industries came together in a multi country alliance after the Treaty of Paris (1951). Once those initial 6 countries (West Germany, Italy, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands) were in a common market, additional countries (Portugal, Spain) joined the alliance. It’s been called the European Union since 1992, and includes all of Western Europe and even a few Slavic countries (Slovakia, Bulgaria).

Whatever the benefits to international organizations, the global order runs roughshod over the sovereignty of nation states. America still maintains a lot of independence in real terms, but big decisions aren’t voted on by the public. Immigration is the biggest of all.  

Cultural Stressors

 Europe, Canada and America have all made the same mistake since at least the 1980s. They’ve taken in too many immigrants from other parts of the world for mostly economic reasons. Often the cultures are very different. This isn’t a moot point either. North African Muslims think very little of females, same with Pakistani Muslims. Rape of white girls in England is a terrible problem in a lot of the cities where large populations of them live.

In America the problem is just one of rampant crime. When you don’t know who is in the country it puts a strain on everyone, law enforcement included. I’m not saying we don’t have crime or violence without illegal immigration either. But in the last 20 years or so the lack of attention to the border has become a problem. It’s really because illegal immigration benefits the globalist model that it’s been impossible to stop. The laws on emigrating to another country don’t matter if no one enforces them in the first place. The population never got a vote on immigration. After so many years of open borders, rampant crime and Visa abuses, a strong populist party began to form.

In America Republican populism pushed Trump to the presidency. In Britain it’s unclear how strong the populist sentiment is. Tommy Robinson might be the most effective spokesman for the Right, despite the mainstream media calling him a racist. He gets tossed into jail for the smallest slights. Cleary the British government fears him. Will Nigel Farage be enough of a blunt instrument to deport illegals and slam the door shut on further immigration? He seems more opportunist than agent of change, but we will see. Populism can easily go Left wing as well. It’s not a sure bet that it stays on the Right.

New York City just elected a Socialist mayor from Uganda, but in other ways the global order is in retreat. The idea that nations should decide their own fate is back in style. The question is, will Right wing populism be able to bring back sovereignty and order? Has the slide into runaway immigration gone on for too long? Can America claw back cities like Dearborn, MI and Minneapolis, MN from Muslim control? Whoever decided to turn these places into Mogadishu in the heartland should be thrown out of the country. Or at the very least, be forced live there and have their kids attend school under Sharia norms.

Disastrous History

Mass immigration will turn out to be the biggest disaster of the 21^st century. Immigration as an idea isn’t a terrible thing for a country, but without assimilation it will be a problem. I’d be in favor of a moratorium for 20 years on all immigration. This of course, while deporting those here illegally on a scale that dwarfs the recent waves of people coming in. There was a time when I would be worried about being thought of as cruel toward immigrants. After all, America has seen large groups of immigrants arrive since the early 1800s, why pull up the drawbridge for newbies?

Because we’ve been conned. The tech bros in Silicon Valley pretend that their special kind of talent can only be found in the Asian continent. They get H-1B visas for a lot of their technical help instead of hiring Americans. It’s a con, because they don’t have to pay them as much or keep them as long. Some companies will offshore the jobs connected to the visas. Why don’t Americans have the supposed skill anyway? We spend more on post-secondary school than most countries in the world, by an order of magnitude. We have around 350 million people in this country. H-1B visas are a cost saving measure for the tech industry and nothing more.

Another way we’ve been conned on visas, is believing that Americans won’t do certain jobs. I’m sympathetic to this argument to a degree. Certain industries, lawn care, construction, agriculture are labor intensive and don’t pay well at the bottom level. When unemployment pays better than cutting grass, people find ways to get fired. Add in SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) fraud and you’ve just eliminated 2 very big expenses for your family. Employers are rightly put off by all the lazy Americans.

 But only with alternatives can it be said that Americans won’t do a job. Employers can say a person won’t work if there is another who will work for less. It’s not a real choice. If no second person existed to give the work to, you’d have to make accommodations with the first one. Illegal immigration changes the calculation by introducing a second person. And when you start to add other industries (trucking, restaurant and hotels) Americans get pushed out of everything except retail and marketing.

This is a two part problem requiring curbs on both immigration and unemployment. The goal is to get Americans off the dole and into the labor market. The Trump administration has gone after illegal immigration and continues to deport in large numbers. The next phase is to cut into the wasteful unemployment system and get people working again. This is much tougher because it requires getting reps to vote for less money. 

Conclusion

The monarchies in Europe thought their control would only increase before World War I, but after 1918 most were gone, replaced by republics or revolutions. Since Word War II we’ve seen a global order run by international institutions and dollar dominance. But populism is on the rise, as is nationalism. The excessive movement of people across borders has displaced native workers and caused resentment among citizens. The best case scenario is for politicians to take up the cause of their voters, both in America and Europe. Globalists want unchecked immigration; populists want enforcement of laws. No one wants revolution or civil war. In 10 years the world will look very different. 

 

Justice Run 2025: Half Marathon Version

 

A Race For Everyone: Justice Run Fun

Running is becoming a family affair. Last weekend was the 4^th time I’ve completed a race at the Justice Run. This time it was only a half marathon. The full seemed a little out of reach for where my training is this year. That turned out to be the best option after all. I finished just over 2 hours and 16 minutes. Slower than I’d like, but at least I finished running the whole way. I’m starting to set my expectations a little lower on some of these summer runs. I know it’s not summer, but the heat hasn’t relented enough for me to feel like keeping a quick pace. I tried to eat a little more in hopes that my energy levels wouldn’t dip so much. I’m not sure how much it helped, but I’m in a phase right now where I’m trying different things.

Recovery Tools

For the second time after a race, I got a vitamin cocktail IV at one of the booths. It’s perfect for quick recovery. For whatever reason I get very wiped out during these races and nothing feels better than a full bag of nutrients right into the blood stream. I was getting chills sitting there in the chair. The IV bag is quite cold apparently. They offered me a blanket and I declined. Not because I wasn’t cold, but because I thought I looked pathetic enough on a chair with an IV bag dripping into my veins. I wasn’t interested in looking even more like a hospital patient.

Instead I shivered--like a man!

While the color started to return to my face and recovered, the 5K run began. That’s important because my nephew and 2 nieces ran their first race along with another family (the houses) we know well. My brother and me and my mom all walked over near the finish line to cheer them on. At this point I was full of energy and happy to be on the other side. Emily managed to cross the finish line first. That took us all by surprise because she is the youngest. The rest of the kids passed the line about 5 minutes apart. Bella first and then Christian. All of them had a great experience and can’t wait to do it again. We talked about doing a Turkey Trot at Thanksgiving since they’ll all be here. I’m not sure if this will come off but I do hope so. Turkey day has a way of making people relax and watch football instead.

The seeds of running were planted.

Habitual Tools

There is something about listening to people cheer as you cross the finish line that keeps you coming back. You get a medal and a tee shirt to remember the day. You start to learn how fast you can run and still maintain a constant pace. The more races you do, the more you learn. It’s fun to strategize and improve. Mostly it’s good for you and builds habits that can last a lifetime. Later that evening we had steaks on the grill, another tradition that we all look forward to.

I was happy the race wasn’t rained out. Two years ago it rained heavily the night before and washed out the running trails. The organizers pushed the start time back a few hours hoping for a little more light and little less water on the track. It worked out despite the later start. The first 30 minutes were sloppy but the water drained off enough to make it passable. This year it looked to be a repeat of that. Friday night brought monsoon level rain to Fort Worth. Flash flooding was a problem that night across the region. Fortunately, it didn’t stop the race. Pooling water wasn’t a problem on the path either. The worst part was probably the humidity it brought with it. Living in the south means getting used to the heat though.

Conclusion

But it's finally on the way out. Colder temps are on the way and despite being uncomfortable in the early part of the race, it allows me to go longer. I realize that I write a lot about the weather in these running blog posts. But it plays such an important part in how my body performs that I always feel the need to mention it. The goal is to learn to run despite the conditions. In that regard, I’ve got a way to go.

 

Weekly Running: Grateful for the Journey

 

The Complete Picture of Jogging and Gratitude for the Growth

My running schedule is nearing the end of the summer/fall session. This season I’ve been acting as a run lead for the 10 to 11 pace group. There are two of us. We take turns sending out the email on a weekly basis telling the others where to meet and sharing the route map. Mostly it’s been hot this year. We’re 3 weeks into October and we run consistently it weather above 70 degrees. For long runs this is tough. This late October season usually consists of cool mornings below 60 degrees. We’ve had maybe one or two weekends like that. That’s been the trickiest part to this late season, getting the hydration right.

In a lot of ways, warmer temperatures are wonderful for running. I love to wear tank tops when it’s warm. Those are the first things to go when it gets chilly. Figuring out the best way to dress in the winter is much tougher. Too many layers and you’ll sweat to death. Too few and you’ll be uncomfortably cold for the duration. I think the running schedule has a total of 4 more weeks before the end of the cycle. This one culminates in the Route 66 Marathon. Most of the participants sign up for this. It’s local and quite popular.

I’ve been going to Texas to do the Justice Run for 3 years in a row. The first two years, I did the full marathon. Last year I attempted the full and finished with a half. I ran out of steam near the midpoint and decided to call it early. The run is set up as an out and back for half marathoners, the full marathoners run the loop twice. It’s easy to bail if you feel sick or exhausted after the first loop.

This year I’m not even going to attempt the full marathon. I’m not ready. Frankly just the thought of doing such a grueling run in the heat makes me nauseous. Will it be warm in a week? If the previous few weeks are any indication, absolutely.

But to keep up the streak of consecutive runs, I’m still signed up and ready for a fourth year. I get to see my brother and his family anyway. Any distance is worth it. It’s like a little vacation anyway, and doing the run means I don’t miss any training.

As for this week, today was my last big  group run before my race and I was supposed to run 18 miles. I managed 12. This wasn’t a surprise, as I’ve been sick most of this week. Wednesday I went to La Fortune park for my usual 6 miles. After only a couple of miles I wanted to walk back to the car. 3 was my total and I barely got that in. After that rough start I decided to take the rest of the week off and let the allergies run their course. Considering the week, I’m fine with 12. I’ll do a few short ones this week before I leave for Texas however.

Everything in me wants to make excuses for why I’m not prepared to do a full marathon, but I feel like I’m at a plateau in my training. I’ve been on the same running plan for the last 4 years or so. I run more miles throughout the week than most people in my group. How do I know? I’ve asked them. One of the benefits of being in a group like this is comparing and contrasting your efforts to that of others. I’ve picked up advice about food and clothing, weather preparation and target heart rate. Jogging is thought of as a solo sport, but it can also be done in a community. It’s where growth happens.

In the interest of growth, I could add more miles to my weekly runs. But without waking up an hour earlier, I don’t have the time. There is an element of balance to everything in life and if I never run a full marathon at less than 4 and half hours, I can live with that. My purpose with jogging has been, from the beginning, to maintain a healthy lifestyle and keep the weight off. Races are a way to keep me accountable, but my race time doesn’t sum up my effort. I know how much I’ve improved. And when the progress stalls, or plateaus, I have to rest in that effort.

Excuses won’t get me closer to my goal of completing a marathon while running the whole distance. For now at least, I’ll take my wins where I can and be grateful that I can run at all and feel God’s presence whatever the weather. Little reminders of where we’ve come, whenever we feel stuck, can bring us out of a mental funk. Gratitude works to reset your mind and put order back into our daily lives. It’s true in running and it’s true in life.

 

Of Carbs and Cooking: More Spaghetti Please

 

Spaghetti Dinner for One: Best Meal of the Week

Had a full dinner tonight. 

Spaghetti remains a favorite meal for me. Of course there isn’t a lot of food I know how to cook. The issue I have with anything that needs to be cooked after work, is the lag time between preparation and eating. I’m hungry when I begin the prep. That leads to snacking, a lot. If the meal takes 30 minutes, I’m half full on whatever I munched on during the wait phase. It’s a problem of self control. I could force myself to wait for the food to cook and count the minutes before the water boiled. Then dig out the noodles to see if they’re soft enough to drain. And finally, wait for both noodles, sausage and sauce to simmer together for 5 minutes. I haven’t mastered patience yet.

The weekends are a little different however, I can cook before I’m really hungry and not have to fill up on crackers or potato chips.

But whether I’m making spaghetti on a work night or on an Sunday afternoon, most it will get polished off during the leftover phase. And yes, leftovers are just as good as a meal straight from the pan. I don’t make the garlic bread anymore unless I’m serving a handful of people. Not because of some no bread diet or anything, I just don’t crave it like I used to. Anyway, the consistency of reheated garlic bread is similar to a dishwashing glove--rubbery, chewy, tasteless. It’s completely unlike the noodles and sauce which warms up nicely and doesn’t surrender taste. Where does my love for spaghetti come from? It’s not like we used to eat a lot of it as kids. But then, I don’t know what a lot would be. Certainly not once a week, like with pizza.

Wherever my fondness for the classic Italian dish comes from, it hasn’t wore off yet. I’m as committed to having it once a week as am to getting in my miles when jogging. The carb heavy meal actually works well for work outs too. Carbohydrates are quick sources of energy because they turn into glucose quicker than do fats or proteins. The glucose is stored as glycogen for an efficient fuel source during a run. I didn’t need to hear that something I already enjoy is good for energy, but it certainly helped. Right about the time I found out about carb loading is about the time I started doing a spaghetti meal every week. Before that I had laid off making it quite so often. 

I’d burned out a little. Running brought me back.

Obviously I love homemade food but don’t have enough time to cook a lot of different meals. Tuesday through Friday are packed with events, men’s groups and training in the evenings. Mondays are typically free. On the weekends I like to relax. I realize I could cook more often on Saturday afternoons or Sunday evenings, but I like to lay around a little too. Plus, we’re in football season and I’ll always try to watch a few games on TV. I don’t watch it all day, but I’ll catch at least one NFL game and maybe a Saturday night one as well. I tend to doze off though. It’s a wonderful feeling to snooze for an hour or so just because you’re tired enough to do so.

For now at least I’ll keep my meals simple.

I should probably mention the biggest drawback to cooking, I’m not good at it. Even spaghetti is only “cooking” in the most basic sense. I doubt cooks would call it that. It’s closer to warming food up. It’s not like I’m making my own sauce or anything. I brown the sausage and add it to an already simmer pot of marinara (or meat sauce) from a jar. In recent years I’ve switched to the Rao’s brand. It’s more expensive but tastes better than the Prego I used to buy. I like the Johnsonville mild sausage instead of the ground chuck from the grocery store. Here I’m also not sure when this changed, but I prefer sausage. It also doesn’t render into a greasy pool in the frying pan like fatty beef either. Once the water boils I dump in the noodles. This part is tricky. Sometimes I put too many noodles in and have to save them for the next meal. It’s not easy to tell how much I’ll need though. Is a handful or two handfuls? Well, at least they’re cheap.

I probably cook my noodles slightly beyond the ‘Al dente’ standard because I can’t abide even a hint of crunch. And I always use the spaghetti noodles and not pasta penne or bowties or any other variety. Once it’s sticky it’s ready. Then comes the low heat marinade process. By then I’ve usually eaten handfuls of cashew pieces to take off the hunger urge. Once the pan cools, I sit down to eat.

 Cooking? Maybe not, but it’s close enough for now.

Reflections of the Creator

 

Creativity Reflects God in Everything We Do

The summer is coming to a close and with it, the need to spend time mowing the lawn and watering the flowers. It doesn’t take that long of course, but it’s one more time suck away from writing. My Cubs games are another one. I paid for MLB network this year thinking I might only watch a handful of games. Turns out, I have the opposite problem. The team is playing well and looking to make a deep playoff run. That means it’s hard to turn off. The biggest reason for not writing as much is the 3 nights per week of personal training I do. This is new since June. I’m busier than I was at the beginning of the year by orders of magnitude.

New Realities

But even with the new responsibilities I could squeeze in a 700 word blog once in a while. Something has shifted in my attitude toward writing and I can’t pin it down. When I started the blog over 10 years ago it was a way to keep myself accountable to the process and improving in the craft. Putting it online is more about having to look at how long it’s been since my last post. Currently I’m only putting a new one out every 3 or 4 weeks. 7 to 10 days used to be the longest stretch I allowed myself without feeling like a slug who watches too much baseball. I’d scribble something out just to complete the empty space on my wall. Now I can' hardly manage that.

A lot of my favorite pieces over the years are thrown together bits of opinion that formed a semi coherent article. That sense of responsibility to the page has drifted away like a helium balloon. It’s still up there somewhere above my head on a very long string. I haven’t cut the string and let it float away just yet. When you start something creative it isn’t easy to just cut it loose. Maybe I’m stretching the meaning of the word “creative” here, but in the most basic sense the articles are mine. The ideas, thoughts and opinions presented on the site went through a filter in my brain and came out as an expression of me. Some were clear and concise, others were muddy and needed a good wash. But the quality isn’t really the point.

Old Examples

It’s how the ideas define you, how they’ve changed and what still remains core to your identity. Not what opinions have been consistent across time, but what intangibles still color your work.

 I’ll use PJ O’Rourke because he’s was a favorite of mine for so long. He was consistently funny and irreverent in a playful way. I was too young for the National Lampoon years and even much of what followed. But his journalism for Rolling Stone and even the books he wrote in the 90s put a smiley face on some very dull topics. His mixture of 60’s hippy and witty libertarian was the perfect attitude for the kind of journalism he pursued. He missed on a few of his books late in life, but I never held it against him. 

His opinions changed over time with the culture, but his writing was always smart and funny. He enjoyed discussing politics and culture, and always found a way to infuse his trips with humor.

I think the recognizable part of a person’s work is what it makes it unique. This is true in all realms of creativity. It provides the color. I was never a big Van Halen fan but I always knew his guitar the second a new song hit the radio. Kindergarten was as far as I got in studying music. The nice way to say it is, music wasn’t a good fit for me. I was kindly asked to try something else by my teacher after a few sessions with a recorder. But even with my unsophisticated understanding of music, Van Halen is easy to pick out. This isn’t to say that all work is brilliant, just that’s it reflects its creator.

Conclusion

A lot of this unique style is unintentional and imbeds itself into our work. The nature of creativity comes from the ultimate Creator though. Even when we don’t acknowledge Him, we are His handiwork as Paul says in Ephesians. Our creative acts are an outgrowth of our Father in heaven. In this, we reflect our maker. If I didn’t write another word on my webpage again, I hope that the small collection at least reflects the God who created me. I hope that’s the color of my writing. 

For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10 (Holman)

Responsibility, Busyness and Stress: Learning to Manage

What have I learned about being busy?

Busyness is just a feeling. It’s possible to manage multiple tasks and become more efficient. Like anything else, responsibility is a learned habit. You need reps.

The Seasonal Thing

This time of year is hectic. With fall sports just around the corner, it’s a rush to get everything out the door in time. Youth football starts on the same weekend around the state. For the bigger leagues at least, that means everyone needs a uniform in the same time frame. Production ramps up, hours increase and stress is high. The number of orders being turned in for July and August is tough to keep up with. Phone calls demand attention as customers stream in the door to shop or pick up orders they’ve placed online. Emails fill up the inbox. Waiting to respond will elicit a nervous phone call. “Did you see my email?!!”

Youth football is different from baseball in one major way. The organizations are big, 350 to 400 kids in the larger ones. Everyone in the organization gets the same jersey. They play other grades in the same league. The jersey is reversible in case they play another grade in the same organization. The entire league starts play the week before Labor Day. The trick is getting the jerseys back and sorted before the first game. Rosters are an issue though. Not everyone is on a roster when I need them to be. That means I have to do a second and a third order for the ones who are late.

Most of my stress at least, is this particular variety. No one wants to miss the window for uniform handouts and these manufacturers need time to make them and ship them back out. The trick comes from getting the rosters (with numbers) for the jerseys in enough time to place an order. It’s tight. Some organizations are better at it. They’ve got a process in place that’s as smooth as it could be.

July and August constitute email flurry month however I’ve always got a lot of late kids to add after the fact. Late is defined as beyond the first deadline, which is drawn somewhat arbitrarily around the 4^th of July.

The Current Thing

With all the busyness I’m constantly worried I’ll miss something critical. I’ve learned to focus as much as possible on the current thing.

 Finish it first, then move on. But take as much time as you need. Quick work is sloppy work. Incomplete orders always become a bigger issue than they would have, had I just taken two minutes to review before clicking send. I could write books with multiple volumes on this topic alone. If you’re predisposed to be fast and beat everyone to the finish, mistakes will happen. They’re the proverbial bald tires you never bothered to change before your last lap. For me, it’s usually a critical item or note to the factory about color changes or name spellings I forgot to mention. A lot of these orders go to factories in non-English speaking countries. To say they’ve made some hilarious (if not costly) mistakes, is to state the obvious. Instructions must be specific.

The Visible Stress Thing

Despite the hustle, I remind myself to take deep breaths when angry. I can get short and nasty with coworkers and customers when irritated. No it doesn’t happen often, but it’s unprofessional and customers can feel your anxiety. Situational stress is something you get better at working through the more you’re exposed to it. Confidence in the face of disaster is a skill that’s closer to stage acting than changing your feelings in the moment. It’s artificial, but it’s also better than the regret from a loss of control. Rushing around increases the chance you’ll add to the problem. Slowing down the situation helps to get you to a place where you can think about what to do.

We’ve had multiple issues with the aging software in recent months. We’re using two different platforms for the retail store and they don’t work together. Every week is a new problem. It’s a little awkward when the customer is in the store and I’m trying to troubleshoot or look for a payment to do a refund. If I’m not sure what to do, I’ll write down as much info as I can and try to resolve it later. Usually if I think about it for a while the answer will be obvious. But it’s less obvious in the moment, when you’re under the gun. I can’t say why this is, but my thinking is somehow short circuited by the immediacy of the task. I’m sure others struggle with this too. The good news is that it’s possible to overcome it with effort.

The Sleeping thing

On a few nights last week I had trouble sleeping. Thoughts of the coming day, deadlines and tight shipping schedules bounced around in my head. Normally I head to the gym in the morning but with the loss of sleep I missed more than I meant to. I rolled back over to try and make up for the loss. Sleep is key, the gym can wait.

This is a season anyway. Every job I’ve worked has had a busy season. With other retail jobs it’s always the last 2 months of the year. In school it was the finals week and the subsequent research papers to finish. I’m a fitness trainer as well. January and February see a surge of new members. Membership leads to new clients for the trainers on staff. Most can double their work load if they want. If I’m not careful the schedule can get out of control.

The solution is to plan ahead as much as possible. It sounds simple enough, but clients change their plans constantly and you either work around it or lose them. The closer you stick to the scheduling the better the sleep. You’re not opening up the app and changing dates around for people if you lock them in. I’ve had to say “NO” more often. Not a week goes by without at least one person canceling or trying to get a different time. I’m always polite, but I sleep better now.

Conclusion

 I’ve never dealt with this many emails and text messages in my life. Between the two jobs it can be overwhelming. But I work with others who manage twice the number of accounts and people that I do. They also coach their kid’s soccer team and volunteer at their church. They make it to sales meetings and pack a lot of their own orders. Seeing others thrive with so much responsibility is an encouraging picture of what’s possible in a hectic environment. For someone like me who is trying to put everything in order, it’s a comfort to know that so many can. I imagine I’ll look back on this period of life and smile at how easy it was, and how busy I thought it felt. We should go from strength to strength after all. Responsibility is a habit we learn. No one is born with it.  

Fall 25 Running Cycle Kickoff: New Roles

 

Jogging with Friends and Taking on Extra Responsibilities

Today was the first day of another group training cycle with Runner’s World Tulsa.

This is always the longest break between sessions. The spring session ends in April right before the Oklahoma City Memorial marathon. There aren’t any Saturday runs again until mid-July. It's best to put your own plan together for the off season or face hot temps with an out of shape body.

The Price of 'Leadership'

I was asked to be a run lead this year. We get a voucher for new shoes and if you’ve seen the price of running shoes lately, you wouldn’t refuse either. I’ve been a De Facto leader the last few years anyway. I memorize the route every week and show up through any type of weather. The one exception was near the end of the cycle, just last year. Tulsa had a brutal storm come through. I checked out on that one. I’ll run in the rain, but those conditions were nuts. I talked to someone from the group the next week about it. Very few people showed up and the ones that did--cut their distance to just a few miles.

The thinking from Runner’s World is this, we don’t cancel because races don’t cancel. You’ll have to run in difficult conditions so get used to it.

The second marathon in Fort Worth that I ran had a similar storm the night before. It was bad enough for them to push the start time back a few hours. That seemed like the best option. Marathons are fund raisers after all. Without tornadoes and lightning it’s not likely they’ll cancel. About the best you can hope for is a delay. We did eventually start and finish the race. The course was soaking wet and sloppy, but also clear. On sunny days it’s packed full of pedestrians walking the path and getting in the way. A clear, albeit messy, track was a silver lining to a race that a lot people didn’t show up for due to poor weather.

A summer rain on a Saturday morning isn’t the worst thing anyway.

The Price of Being Out of Shape

The summer heat is rough on new joggers especially. Starting early helps, but eventually it slows you down if you aren’t acclimated. I’ve spent the last few months staying in running shape. I’m not in the kind of condition needed to run a marathon yet. I’ll run more during the season and get my mileage above 20 for the week. But I kept at it all summer. Conditioning your legs to hold up in the heat and your lungs to breathe will pay off. I told someone today that I enjoyed the heat. It’s only partially true. I enjoy the results that come from training in the heat. There isn’t a good way to replicate that on a treadmill.

Whether jogging indoors or outside, I’m busier this year than ever before.

 I have a full schedule of clients for my personal training position. For the last couple of months I’ve been doing part time work through a gym. This is in addition to my regular 9-5 at the sporting goods store. I’ve had this idea about working sales and doing personal training on my own at some point. I mean working for myself of course. For now I just need to experience practicing with various groups and putting together work out plans for them. Gyms are good places to find a mix of people of all ages and stations. Some need rudimentary functional exercise and others need a high intensity challenge. Others are retirement age and hoping to increase muscle endurance. It allows me to do a little research and practice techniques and sharpen my methods.

Conclusion

For now at least I don't have time for anything else. In previous years I would've have passed on the chance to be a run lead. But it’s not a lot of responsibility and I’ve been halfway there, responsibility wise. Besides, it feels like I’m in a season of new responsibilities across the board. From the new accounts I’m managing to the new people I’m training. It’s all moving toward larger roles. I won’t make more of it than that. It’s just an interesting development that I’ve noticed. Some people collect responsibilities the way others collect seashells. Organization is practically their love language. Not me. I’ve never been one to take on projects or teams on a voluntary basis. That’s probably more a function of not wanting to be bothered, than about some lack of organization. Maybe that’s finally changing.

I am finding out that I prefer to be busy than have a lot of free time. Weird.