Renewing the Mind--Again

“Being Irish, he had an abiding sense of tragedy, which sustained him through periodic bouts of joy.” WB Yeats

I read through one of my usual blogs today (hard at work obviously) and that quote popped up. The funny lines always conceal a dark truth. Forget the Irish part of it, some of us wear sadness like a raincoat. But not just sadness, more that life is out to screw us; an impending sense that trouble is just around the corner.

Tragedy can play out in compulsive grumbling, but mostly it’s a personal view of life where the arc of the future is forever descending. The Yeats quote sums it up perfectly. We all experience joy on occasion, but for the tragic person it’s like an intermission to an exhausting opera.

A tragic person sees life like a pinball game. Everyone doing what they can to keep the  ball banging around and slamming into bumpers that light up and slides that move it quickly through a maze of buzzers and sounds. Others are just better at punching the flippers and keeping the game going, they can go long stretches on one ball. Some of us never quite figured out the timing of the flippers or just figured we weren’t lucky. The ball rolls through the middle slot every few seconds, as we angrily jam another couple of tokens in the slot.  For some it’s win big and score high. For tragic people it’s lose and score low.

Why do some do so well while others suffer to just keep the ball going? Pinball is a game, a contest designed to separate winners and losers. Life doesn’t work this way despite our penchant for comparison. We don’t all play the same game.

At some point the persistent feeling of coming up short feeds an already low self-esteem a steady diet of negativity. The sense of loss permeates everything from sports to finances. When the Bears miss the playoffs it’s because “We can’t pick any good players” or “We always fall apart in tough spots!” The fortunes of our teams run parallel to our own. The weather is cloudy and cold on our day off, you’ll probably get sick too because of your allergies. You didn’t have the grades for a 4 year University and had to settle for a junior college. The car you bought cost more in repairs than the sticker price, now you’re upside down. You didn’t have insurance either when you hit the curb and smashed into neighbors’ mailbox. Then you failed a sobriety test after the accident.

 “Hey, You’d drink too if your team lost, and your college rejected you, and you were always sick!”

Blaming people and events and upbringing creates a barrier, nothing positive gets through. But small victories build gratitude. When gratitude picks up steam it builds even more gratitude. Suddenly loses aren’t quite as grim. They don’t carry such ‘eternal’ weight. They don’t determine our worth as individuals.  

 A teacher once showed me how to study for test. She said condense the material into chunks and celebrate after I’d memorized a chunk. Celebrate could mean getting a snack or taking a break. I thought it was silly but I did it. Breaking up large amounts of information into manageable study units worked great. I didn’t celebrate, seemed a little like getting a trophy for showing up, but I did acquire a better way to learn. It’s a great way to approach life too. An appreciation for victories no matter how small replaces that negative feedback loop of failure, with one of success.

That’s the practical part, the listing of things so you check them off part. You need to change your mindset as well, which is much tougher. It’s never finished either. Renewing your mind is a lifelong journey that begins at the cross. You need to understand how God sees you and let His truth transform the image of yourself, rooted in failure and tragedy.

Open the Bible and read a chapter or two. If that’s too big of a chunk then study one verse. Here is a good one “For I know the plans I have for you” says the Lord, They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jerimiah 29:11 NLT).   

The point of all of it really is that life falls into place in the order that it should. Important things like family relationships and spiritual growth become central. Most important, you’ll understand that sense of foreboding for what it is, lies (malarkey?). You won’t see life as a pinball game anymore with some just better equipped to play. It won’t be a contest you’re destined to lose. Hope replaces tragedy when you put in the work and focus on renewing the mind.

The Ross Era

I was a little surprised the Cubs went with David Ross. Like most new manager hires, no one is really sure how they'll do. Everyone in Chicago loves the guy. He had an amazing run as the Cubs catcher in 2016 during the World Series win; he won a World Series with the Red Sox as well so he is a winner. I would rather he got his experience somewhere else first. This is still a team loaded with talent.

Here is the article.

I wanted Joe Girardi. He was also a catcher with the Cubs in 1990 and again in 2000. After he quit playing he was hired by the Yankees to manage the team. He won the Series in 2009. I just think his experience is unmatched. And he is an Illinois kid too. Not that it matters a lot but he grew up in Peoria and attended Northwestern. I thought he had the best shot.

The biggest issue the Cubs are going to have is how to hold on to these players (Bryant, Baez) when their contracts are up in two years. They'll probably have to trade at least one of them or risk loosing farm talent for the next few years. They are a rich team (relatively speaking) but they need to start winning again. Big salaried teams need to justify their price and missing the playoffs for the last two years isn't good. I remember looking at the fivethirtyeight website at the start of the season. It's a stat heavy website that compiles data on everything from sports to politics. It predicted that they would  finish 3rd in their division this year. I thought it was nuts at the time, "Big data is a scam!" They led all year, won more games and had the best shot at the playoffs. The Cards couldn't keep up, the Brewers fell behind. 

Then they finished 3rd, as predicted.

I've been watching the Nationals run through the playoffs this year, ticking off victory after victory. They lead the series 2 games to 0 over a much better Astros team. Astros are better in almost every category, starting pitching, bullpen pitching, overall hitting and even total wins. But in baseball the team that gets hot in the playoffs usually wins out. It isn't over yet but I like Washington's chances. Their next 2 games are at home in DC.

Hopefully next year the Cubs with their new, very green, manager can get hot like in 2016.
.

Fall Jogging

It’s getting chilly in Tulsa, the good kind of chilly; the kind we welcome after a long hot summer. But just because the first night below 40 degrees hits in mid-October, it doesn’t mean the chill is here to stay. We’ll have plenty of warm afternoons and cool mornings until December arrives. Even then we tend to move slowly into winter like an elderly man climbing steps. No matter though, the snow melts pretty quickly on average. I’m looking forward to colder weather running again. If nothing else the heat makes it difficult to get your weekly miles in. Getting up and running in the cold is no treat for the first mile, but when your extremities warm and your muscles loosen up you put in more distance for less effort. I don’t run in anything below 30 degrees though.   

This past Sunday’s weather was ideal for joggers. I was surprised to see so few of them out considering the temp of 45 degrees with full sun is almost perfect. I managed 10.25 miles and felt like I could eek out another couple of miles if I had to. I usually manage to go between 8 and 10 on Sunday (my long day) but I’m always ready to crawl to the finish when the temps are hot. My biggest mistake this time was not wearing a thicker shirt. When it gets sweaty the cool air blows through the wet fabric making it feel like I'm running through a spring storm. A little chill in the air is ideal though.

I carried a bottle this time. I’d seen others run with a contoured squirt bottle that wraps neatly around your hand. I bought one when I was in Colorado and only used on that disastrous trail run. I had yet to bring it on one of my longer runs even though it’s perfect. The idea being ‘stay hydrated and avoid frequent stops at drinking fountains dry mouthed and overheated’.

This is probably a silly concern but I was afraid I’d get irritated with the swinging motion of a heavier bottle in one hand and nothing in the other. I couldn’t exactly change my mind after a few miles and throw it away either. But it worked out great and I didn’t need to stop along the way. I didn’t even notice the swinging motion after a while. Besides, I’d rather have the water when I need it. I can’t believe I didn’t get one for those hot days in the summer. Oh well, next year.

I’m not signed up for any half marathons yet. I would do the Route 66 one in mid -November but I have a commitment I can’t get out of. I’m working during the Tulsa Run, which is only a 15K but is a popular event around here. As long as I keep my schedule of running 3 days every week I’ll never be too out of shape for a race. I don’t see doing a full marathon anytime soon though. I know the amount of work it takes to get into 26 mile shape, and I’m not interested right now.

The fall is the best time to run in Oklahoma. It’s the first time I made real strides in my overall distance and it’s the best time to make new ones.  

More Hokey Please!

That’s it, no more! I’m not making fun of the Hallmark channel anymore. I won’t poke fun at their predictably jolly Christmas stories with ‘happily ever after’ endings. I definitely won't mock the thin plot lines and sappy romance leaking through the screen like hot coffee through a paper cup.  They’ve found a niche in making low budget family movies and turned it into gold for two months out of the year. They've also tapped into a growing discontentment among viewers over dark, twisted TV shows and movies. 

 I just noticed a list for new Christmas movies this year; a cause for celebration among some, including my mom. They’ve made 40 new films, 40! That’s impressive, even for factory films shot in studios and patched up over the course of a week. They’ve gone from a family friendly station with very cheesy programming to a Christmas only network, basically. The cheese is still there in heaping portions but the holiday specials bring in a lot of viewers for the network. Their model for raking it in looks an awful lot like a retail store. Make sure the good stuff is available for November and December and churn out new product in the spring and summer.

 The actors are mostly B and C who’ve had bit parts in other movies. You’re bound to see a familiar face in at least one of the snowy town sets, “Isn’t that the one from?” or “Didn’t they play the doctor in?” Hallmark is getting wealthy though and going after bigger stars like Danny Glover and John Cusack, both of whom were in a big budget Christmas film in 2017. Candace Cameron Bure is practically an ambassador for the network.

Most of the stuff I read about Hallmark doesn’t really get at why it’s raking in money on Christmas films like a hustler on a pool table. So here is my theory. People are sick of bad news and dark, horrific subject matter in TV and films. The biggest box office movie right now is about a guy who loses his mind becomes a psychopath. OK so the title is Joker , as in DC Comics but from the reviews, it’s a very different sort of movie. Nothing against making gritty depictions of urban decay, but I like my narratives to have a redemptive arc, or at least the notion that evil gets punished. I haven’t seen it yet so maybe I’m being unfair. Some of the Netflix shows have the same issue, dark cities with unspeakably cruel villains, moral cowardice and a flawed hero. 

I’m not trashing movies with heavy themes. I love great drama and even sad stories some of the time. I even like violence and righteous killing, but TV and films overflow with them like a septic tank in a suburban yard. Is it any wonder there is an increase in light hearted movies with predictable plots and fairy tale endings?

The national news is worse because it’s real life and anxiety and depression are on the rise. A couple of the sources I looked at found that because of things like 24/7 news but also everyday issue like health, finances, relationships and safety. I’m sure constant connectivity (alerts, and status updates) from social media plays a role in anxiousness.   

 The news is basically awful all the time. Not that positive things don’t happen, but news is kind of tilted toward the bad, the negative, the reckless. Positive well-lit feature films might offer a reprieve, or at least a smidge of sunny optimism in their canned, studio way. We know the story is loose and predictable, we know the acting is lame but we don’t care. I realize I'm giving Hallmark a heavy load in assuaging America's anxiousness with a bit of hot cocoa and warm blanket, but the number of viewers to their Christmas extravaganza goes up every year. At least some of those viewers are in the 'I can't take anymore darkness' category.

Real life is messy and corny yarns give us just the right amount of relief. We don’t need to feel guilty or sad about the outcome. The director isn’t making us feel bad about the environment or driving a gas guzzler or persecuted religious groups or poor indigenous tribes or voting Republican or owning guns or eating meat. They just want you to watch and root for the guy to get the girl, the town to get a new firetruck (or courthouse) and the long lost siblings to reunite on Christmas Eve. All of this needs to happen in sweaters.

The best part is, no grisly murders or rapes, no nuclear bombs or assassinations and no face eating zombies.

 I don’t usually watch Hallmark, but maybe I’ll start.