Personal Radiohead Top-30 List

I was going to make a list of all the Radiohead songs I know, ranking them all the way from my top favorite to least favorite. To me, this makes sense as this is probably the best band of the century so far, deserving a place in the pantheon of renown rock bands of the past like the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, R.E.M., and Pink Floyd. However, there are still a couple of glitches in my quest: I only know a minority of Radiohead's songs, even though I have six of their seven studio albums and know all of the tracks on these pretty well.

The one Radiohead album I am missing is their first, Pablo Honey. It contains their most famous single, Creep, along with other good songs that I like (and some I don't particularly like). But I haven't heard it enough to form a clear judgement about the material, as I have on their subsequent works: The Bends (1995), OK Computer (1997), Kid A (2000), Amnesiac (2001), Hail to the Thief (2003), and In Rainbows (2007). I am currently exploring the least expensive (albeit legitimate) avenue through which to obtain a copy of Pablo Honey, so it is just a matter of time here. But there is an even greater factor delaying my comprehensive Radiohead songs list.

Much of Radiohead's released studio material comes from EP releases or as singles B-sides. I'm thinking of about 60 songs here, and I have just begun to explore them. Of course, I could just limit my initial top-to-bottom Radiohead list to their full-length studio albums and deal with the rest later. What I'll probably end up doing is eventually to include Pablo Honey as I become more familiar with it, along with a number (but not all) of those "extras".

Here is my personal Radiohead "top-thirty" so far, with their albums in brackets (note that #2 and #3 are different versions of the same song):

1 Reckoner [In Rainbows]
2 Morning Bell [Amnesiac]
3 Morning Bell [Kid A]
4 Faust Arp [In Rainbows]
5 I Might be Wrong [Amnesiac]
6 In Limbo [Kid A]
7 Go to Sleep [Hail to the Thief]
8 Sail to the Moon [Hail to the Thief]
9 Dollars and Cents [Amnesiac]
10 Karma Police [OK Computer]
11 Idioteque [Kid A]
12 There There [HttT]
13 Everything in It's Right Place [Kid A]
14 Scatterbrain [HttT]
15 Planet Telex [The Bends]
16 All I Need [IR]
17 Pyramid Song [Amn]
18 15 Step [IR]
19 Paranoid Android [OK C]
20 Punchup at a Wedding [HttT]
21 Bodysnatchers [IR]
22 My Iron Lung [Bends]
23 Optimistic [Kid A]
24 No Surprises [OK C]
25 Jigsaw Falling Into Place [IR]
26 National Anthem [Kid A]
27 Bones [Bends]
28 Packed Like Sardines in a Crushed Tin Box [Amn]
29 Videotape [IR]
30 Subterranean Homesick Alien [OK C]

----
Now this is an indication of my blog's present condition. Ideally, I would be getting feedback comments saying things like "yeah, I like that song" or "dude, wtf are you thinking, ranking that one that high". I doubt that my good friends from New York and Maryland even listen to Radiohead, so although I DEEPLY value their input, in this case I am depending on a broader input from readers. Which apparently isn't there!

Murkowski Over Miller: So What?

I suppose I should be happy that "mainstream" Republican (or former Republican, that is) senator Lisa Murkowski was able to muster enough votes as a write-in independent candidate to defeat Palin-endorsed Tea Party Republican Joe Miller in the Alaska U.S. Senate race. But how much should I really rejoice, anyway? It seems that for the last two years, Republican senators have pretty much consistently voted in a straight block against ANYTHING on that legislative body's agenda in a cynical attempt to delay and obstruct the duly-elected majority Democrats from being able to claim any credit for accomplishing anything. It didn't seem to matter whether the GOP senator was an ideologue like James Inhofe or a moderate like Richard Lugar. It was in essence a two-year "block party" for all concerned. Murkowski may have been personally inclined toward being a moderate, but she still followed the party leaders' directives and contributed very little of a positive nature during the last two years. So I don't see how her reelection will make much of a difference during the next two as well. Of course, sooner or later the Republicans will regain a Senate majority...and then they'll expect the Democrats to work with them. Yes, Lisa Murkowski will then once again be on the Senate floor proposing legislation and doubtlessly criticizing the Dems for being obstructionists! So I guess I would eventually rather have her in there instead of Miller, who strikes me as being of the same ilk that George Wallace was in the sixties and seventies. Only the targeted demographic scapegoat groups have changed from blacks back then to Mexicans, Muslims, and gays now.

Blog to Stay Active

Well, I was going to lay this blog aside and explore other areas on the Internet, but my friend Barry from New York sent me an encouraging e-mail, convincing me to ride out this period I'm undergoing of aversion to writing. After all, I look at most of the other blogs individuals publish and see huge gaps in their entries, some even spanning months. So I canceled that last entry and am keeping things active here. After all, I can determine how much I want to write and how often according to my standards.

Barry, I do appreciate your kind input and your friendship going back into the 1960s. I would like to increase readership and get a diversity of commentary on it. Perhaps I need to advertise this blog on my Facebook page, which I have rarely ever used.

Obama's Commissions

When Barack Obama devised his commission in 2009 to determine what to do with the U.S. space program, he pretty much already knew what he wanted to do: scrap the ambitious and important plan from the previous administration to set up a base on the moon. So what happened but the commission (surprise, surprise) recommended that the President abandon Bush's plan in favor of some vague future projects to land on an asteroid or Mars. And, incidentally, also contract out all launching rockets, making NASA essentially helpless in trying to launch people into space for a few years. It was just what Obama had wanted all along, since he has never been the least bit interested in space exploration and only promised Florida voters that he would stick with Bush's project in order to win that state in the 2008 election. In the words of that rude-ass South Carolina congressman during the President's address last year, "You lie!"

But Obama had authority to dictate whatever changes in NASA that he wanted since this is a federal agency and he is the president. Now he has another commission delivering its report: how to reduce the federal deficit. And it appears that Obama may have gone just a bit too far with his love of study commissions.

After all, it is Congress that determines the federal budget, with the president able to wield some power with the threat of veto. Almost no one likes the commission's findings, so the outcome can only make Obama appear to be weak and ineffectual.

Maybe our president can learn from this in setting up his future commissions (for which he may just have a couple of more years). Make sure you can control who is on the commission as well as assure that the results of their research conforms to your own preconceived ideas. And then make sure that this all takes place in an area that you can act upon without needing to cooperate or compromise with others who may have conflicting views. If you can accomplish this, then you can once again arrogantly flip off criticisms of your decisions with ignorant comments like the one that we aren't going to the moon because "we've already been there". Well, Mr. President, I've "already been there" in the voting booth, voting for you in '08. Maybe I don't have to go back there either!

16.9 Mile Training Run Today

Earlier today I ran 16.9 miles as I continue to prepare for some uncertain marathon race in the not-so-distant future. My time was 2:39:52. The temperature went from 63 to 77 during the workout, while the humidity dropped from 73 to 43%. Not excruciating conditions, to be sure, but also not conducive for me running up to a marathon distance (26.2 miles) either. Still, I came out of the run feeling better than after recent ones, and the run itself went smoothly. I could have even gone a few miles further, but it seems that there is always an externally-imposed time-ceiling limiting my runs. Something is always coming up that I have to deal with, and this demands that I limit my running even when I want to go further. Frankly, even if the weather was perfect for a long run, I don't know how I would be able to swing it. This leaves me with the feeling of being a bit harassed, and I resent it. Still, I keep plugging away.

Brief Blog Hiatus

I'm keeping the faith with this blog; it's just that I've had other things going on in my life recently. Consequently, the blog articles have been few and far between. Still, I plan to resume writing before too long.

Personal Running Observations

I am sitting in a Starbucks close to home, reflecting on my running. Today I ran a very modest 8.1 miles. Modest in that I have recently attained the distance of 20.54 miles, while this past week alone I ran (hard) in a 13.1 mile half-marathon and did a 15 mile workout two days later. But today's much shorter run left me tired and wondering what exactly I'm doing to my body. I want to run in a marathon race this winter, which entails covering a whopping 26.2 mile distance. But the weather down here in Florida has been fighting me tooth and nail in my endeavors to attain that distance in my training. For example, today it climbed to 79 degrees by my run's end. But just five days ago, the half-marathon race occurred under 39-49 degree conditions, ideal for running. We just can't seem to keep it very cool, at least for very long. I would be quite content just to have it in the fifties for my running, and it does dip into the forties before sunrise. But immediately thereafter the temperature shoots rapidly up. Ugh!

I don't know that it is necessarily in my best interests for me to emulate some of my fellow runners and embark on a year-round lifestyle of marathon training and racing. For one, I really don't know how much of a toll it's already taking on my body. For another, I already know how huge of a chunk of time it takes away from my already limited free time. So I'm thinking of a change in strategy with my running.

I will train to run in a couple of marathons. The first will be in late December or in January next year. Options are the upcoming marathons in Jacksonville, Clermont (the Florida Marathon), Disney World, and Ocala (all in central or north Florida). Then, on February 20 it will once again be time for Gainesville's Five Points marathon event. Last year I ran the half-marathon; this year I'm shooting for the full marathon. After that, I'm tapering down the distance I train for to between 6 and 13.1 miles.

Will I change my mind again later and just stick with trying to run marathons? Maybe, but there's still more to it than just being in physical shape to cover the distance.

I just saw how one of the freed Chilean miners ran the entire New York Marathon last week. Bravo! He sure had a lot of guts to try that, considering the long ordeal he just recently suffered through. But although I don't want to detract from his feat and my admiration of him, for me there's a lot more involved in running in a marathon race just just "running in a marathon race".

The Chilean miner no doubt was entered by another and pretty much transported right to the starting line, after which he was escorted through the race by a party of assistants. He didn't have to worry about getting time off from work to schedule for the race or about transportation to the site and back home again. Or about where he would stay before the race. All of this I have to consider when trying to decide where to enter a race. Even the relatively close Jacksonville Bank marathon presents a problem because, although it is held on an "off day" for me, the previous night I work until late. Other events present similar problems, and usually they arrange it so that an entrant HAS TO stay overnight in the race's city just to be able to pick up the essential racing packet that contains the timing chip and other important items. I can guarantee you that, if these hassles were removed from me, I wouldn't have any qualms about trying to gut out a marathon, be it in New York or anywhere else.

George W. Bush's Reappearance

Lately, former president George W. Bush has been making the media rounds while promoting his newly-released memoirs. I have heard a lot of positive reaction to him as he made his case for the often controversial decisions he made during his two-term tenure from 2001 to 2009. I know of several people who could find a multitude of items to complain about him, but I will spotlight two: his insistence on tax cuts favoring the rich throughout his presidency and the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

When Bill Clinton left office in 2001, he had a right to claim some credit for not only balancing the federal budget during the last few years of his presidency, but also for generating a surplus that cut into the national debt, reducing the interest that taxpayers would pay on said debt. When Bush came onto the scene in 2001, there was a buzz going around in some conservative circles to the effect that the surplus was somehow bad in that by having "extra" money (a falsehood, since as mentioned the cumulative national debt was still staggering), the federal government would begin to invest in private business and thus begin to insidiously control them. Apparently, young Bush subscribed to this theory as he made it clear that having a yearly surplus was a sign that the government was holding onto the people's money (in spite of the overall debt). And that this money should be given back. Hence the continual deficit-spiraling tax breaks for the duration of his presidency and the first two years of Obama's. Congress gave Bush his wish regarding tax policy, but apparently Obama isn't going to be accorded the same respect (even though he wants to keep much of the tax break intact). Not that I completely agree with Obama: We are in an economic downturn and ending this long-term albeit "temporary" tax break now would, in my opinion, just stifle business investment in growth and jobs at a moment when it needed all the encouragement it could get. But although Bush's tax breaks could have initially been justified for the same reason, they should have ended once the economy had rebounded by the end of his first term. Instead, coupled with the unwarranted invasion and occupation of Iraq, our national debt was allowed to skyrocket while Democrats or anyone else criticizing the president's decisions were labeled as unpatriotic and/or anti-business by his supporters, fiscal responsibility be damned. But the moment Obama stepped into office in 2009, those very same people got "religion" and began to preach fiscal responsibility!

Besides draining the country of its money, the unprovoked invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003 and beyond exacted a tragic human toll across the nation due to the deaths and injuries deriving from it (not to mention the much more severe toll inflicted on the Iraqi people). The unprecedented level of international support for America shown after 9/11 vanished, with the U.S. looking more like the bully on the block.

So yes, George W. Bush looked like his typical likable, "regular guy" self during the interviews I have witnessed lately. And I, unlike some others, don't hold him responsible for the 9/11 attacks. But even considering that, he left his two terms with this country in worse shape than when he started. And his many apologists, who equated support for his decisions with national loyalty, suddenly threw that notion out of the window when a Democratic president succeeded him. Obama never was accorded a "honeymoon": Bush was and he squandered it.

Personal Time Management Needs Improvement

Thought for today: If there is anything that I need to change more than the way I manage time, then I don't know what it is. But how do I run my life in a more efficient, timely manner? I first need to distinguish between two general time situations in my life: committed time and free time.

Committed time is that during which I am, as the title implies, committed to certain activities. The most obvious is work-time, but also sleep-time goes under this category. Work and sleep are pretty predictable, inherently cyclic, and can easily be planned for. But spending time with my wife and children also goes under "committed" time and isn't so predictable. This is a "floating" area that I need to be consciously attentive to and flexible enough by rescheduling other planned events to accommodate family opportunities as they arise.

Free time is time that I am more or less free to schedule my own activities as I see fit. Not only do I want to avoid wasting this precious time through sloth, but also I need to distinguish among the more appropriate use of different times as they relate to specific endeavors I want to accomplish.

So at the start of each day, as well as the end of the previous one, I list areas in which I need to engage myself. Then I set up a rough hourly schedule in which I jot out my plans to fulfill those goals I have written.

Even after the main goals I want to accomplish have been fulfilled, I often find myself with more free time and want to avoid simply vegetating in front of the TV set. So there is another tactic I use whereby I set my pocket timer to 20 minutes and devote myself to a particular activity in a frenzied manner until the timer signals the end of that span. Since there are plenty of activities for me to do that don't necessarily carry with them specific objectives, I'll never run out of ways to occupy myself with the "timer" method. The psychological advantage to this is that, if it's something that I don't particularly want to do (like cleaning the garage or doing yard work), I can see an end to it (the 20 minute mark), beyond which I can switch to a more pleasant activity (even if I'm leaving some work undone in that area).

But ideas for better time management are just that: ideas. It is actually implementing them and developing good time management habits that will change this aspect of my personal life for the better.

My Tom Walker Memorial Half-Marathon Run

Earlier today I ran the Florida Track Club's Tom Walker Memorial Half-Marathon. It was the first public running race I participated in since my unpleasant three-mile Melon Run (also put on by the Florida Track Club) on July 4. I had decided to run only in longer events and not place any store on the race administrators' ability to accurately record and post my finishing time and placing relative to the other runners. This local half-marathon event seemed tailor-made to prepare me for the upcoming marathon races I plan to enter.

This morning at sunrise, just before the race's start, the weather was so cold at 39 degrees (remember: I'm a Floridian) that I seriously considered just turning around and getting back in my car and driving home. But I stuck it out and shivered for the ten-to-fifteen minutes before the race's start. I wasn't going to make the same mistake I made earlier this year at the Five Points Half-Marathon and overdress; I wore shorts and a "technical" running T-shirt. Anything more would have created stifling conditions for me as the run wore on. Oh, and to avoid the pointless crowding and jockeying for position among runners at the race's start, I simply resolved that issue by making sure I was initially behind EVERYONE. Then I began my own personal timing of my run as I crossed the starting line a few seconds into the race.

The Tom Walker Memorial Half-Marathon has a distinctive course. On one hand, the entire race takes place away from streets, going completely down a pleasant nature trail on the southeast side of Gainesville. On the other hand, and unlike with other races of this type, the trail in question, the Hawthorne Trail, is paved, wide, and smooth (with no motorized traffic permitted). It was a joy to run down it. Now that I know of its existence, I'll have to take others in my family down it sometimes for bicycling.

Initially, I had planned to follow Jeff Galloway's walk/run principles during this race, but the discomfort of the cold made me want to keep running (to stay warm). Instead, I decided to listen to my body and walk whenever I felt the need. I never did. What began as an intended easy-paced workout ended in a lengthy near-sprint at the end. I finished with a time (by my watch) of 2:01:41. The official time will probably show me going a little over 2:02. That doesn't place me anywhere near the elite runners, even among those within my own age grouping (50-54). But I feel quite satisfied with my performance. And although I didn't employ "walk/run" during the race, this strategy, which I used in my training throughout the long, hot summer, had built up my endurance drastically to the point where I didn't need to use it, at least for this 13.1 mile race. A full 26.2 mile marathon is a different matter entirely, though.

The next race I am considering running in is the marathon taking place in Jacksonville on Sunday, December 19. Alas, there seem to be a few glitches with this plan regarding the logistics of getting there in shape for the race: I have to work at least until 11 PM on the Saturday before and may possibly have to stay even later due to the heavy Christmas parcel season. And the race, I think, starts at 7 the next morning. So I'll have to think about this a little before I commit to paying the entry fee (which now stands at $65).

Mid-Term Elections Reaction

Last night the mid-term elections yielded the generally-expected result with Republicans taking back control of the U.S. House, the Democrats managing to hold on to the majority in the Senate, and state gubernatorial races tending to fall into the GOP's win column. Many voters in Nevada who disliked sitting senator Harry Reid nevertheless couldn't bear to vote for his teabagger opponent Sharon Angle and so the Senate Majority Leader was reelected, much to the surprise of many. As I said, there were many Republican victors, so to whom did ABC's Good Morning America decide to give a spotlight interview? Christine O'Donnell, who as expected badly lost her own Tea Party/Republican bid for the Senate against Christopher Coons. I wonder whether ABC even sought out Coons, who actually is the individual who matters and who will be representing Delaware during the next six years.

In Florida, Marco Rubio, a very conservative Republican embraced by the Tea Party movement, coasted to an easy victory over sitting governor Charlie Crist and Democratic congressman Kendrick Meek. Although he is on the opposite end of the political spectrum, I see Rubio's rise as being very similar to Barack Obama's, who successfully ran for president only four years after winning his Senate race to represent Illinois. Rubio strikes me as being just as ambitious as Obama. In the Florida governor's race, Republican Rick Scott appears to have won a real squeaker against Democrat Alex Sink.

We'll see whether or not the Republicans in the new Congress will at least partially abandon their obstructionist tactics against the Obama administration. I would think that they HAVE TO in the House since they are going to be the party in power with the gavel and will control the legislative agenda there. One thing that always happens when the opposition party takes one or both houses during a president's term will probably happen here: they'll begin to have investigations and hearings on alleged or implied improper behavior within that administration. Don't believe me? It happened with Truman, Eisenhower, Nixon, Reagan, Clinton, and George W. Bush during their tenures in office.

As a post-script to this article, my friend Barry, unable at the time to submit a comment on Blogger, e-mailed me a comment regarding yesterday's article. He considered my analogy in it between the election campaign and competitive sports to be inapt and also questioned that I would wave at those people on street corners supporting candidates or issues that I disagreed with. To the first difference I would say that no analogy is perfect; you can always find some point where it breaks down. But being a "good sport" is a life-lesson that children are supposed to be taught at home and at school. And exhibiting gracious behavior toward one's opponent in the face of fierce competition is a crucial element of that good sportsmanship that later in life becomes a crucial social skill useful in many areas, not just in sports. Areas like, for example, adult personal relationships, the workplace, driving through traffic, conducting business either as consumer or provider, legal matters, and yes...politics (among many others).

As for the "waving"...to each his own, I suppose. I don't think, though, that me waving at someone who supports another candidate as he or she is waving at me is anything more than simple social courtesy. But each of us has our own hands to control as we see fit.

Elections, Voting, Sportsmanship, Duality

As Melissa and I went over our sample ballots to determine (or review) how each of us were going to vote today, I recalled the torrent of dire programming on television I have witnessed in recent weeks, particularly on the politically diametrically-opposed news channels MSNBC and Fox News. I also have a pretty good memory of previous elections when one side seemed to be of the mindset that by taking back control of one or more houses of Congress they would be taking the country back from that awful, nasty other side (who were supposedly screwing everything up).

The Republicans are certain to take over the U.S. House of Representatives in January because of today's elections and the Democrats are probably going to maintain narrow control over the Senate. This will change the dynamics of national government, especially now that the prevailing administration has to contend with the opposition party being in power in one of the legislative branches. I will accept the election results and go on with my life, but unfortunately, many others are in perpetual campaign mode. The day after the 2010 election to them just signals the start of the 2012 election campaign season.

When I drive past supporters of various candidates and referenda, they wave at me and I wave back, regardless whether I plan to vote their way. They are fellow Americans who believe in what they are doing and are participating in the process. I respect them for that. I don't regard the candidates I vote against as the "enemy", but apparently many others do. I don't regard people I know who support the "other side" as being stupid or misled, but I know others with this attitude. I feel that they need to get a sense of perspective on things.

It's fine to get passionate about voting and caring for your candidate and party. But it's also important to exercise some restraint and show compassion and respect for those you disagree with. It's similar in sports: A team or athlete prepares hard for an event. During the actual contest, each side tries as much as possible to defeat the other. But after it is over, both sides come together on the field or court and greet and congratulate each other in a good-natured spirit of sportsmanship. This sportsmanship has all but disappeared in the area of politics, and it doesn't bode well for our future.

If everyone is in perpetual campaign mode, then there will never be any time for the compromises and deal-making necessary to get anything done in elected legislative bodies. We elect people to represent us but then won't stand back afterward and let them do what we elected them to do.

Let's bring back the duality of passionately supporting our candidates and positions while respecting and working with the "other side". We can all be Americans who believe strongly in the correctness of our views and at the same time try to understand in a sympathetic way the views of those who disagree with us. How about starting now?

My 20.54 Mile Training Run

Today I reached a distance running milestone by passing the 20-mile mark. I ran 20.54 miles with a time of 3:21:32. At the beginning, the temperature was 61 (O.K.) and the humidity was 92% (ugh). By the end, the temperature had risen to 77 (ugh) and the humidity had dropped to 51% (O.K.). Overall, the weather conditions, although no longer at excruciating summer levels of heat and humidity, were still unseasonal for early November and not very conducive to distance running. As was the case with my recent 18.39 mile run, I didn't enjoy it very much. I did seem to have more energy at my disposal, which may be partially due to my switch to Gatorade from Powerade Zero. But my legs ached badly toward the end. The recovery didn't go too well either, and I was more fatigued than usual.

I plan to take it easy for a couple of days and then resume running at a more moderate distance. I plan to run in a half-marathon race scheduled this coming Saturday in Gainesville, although I will not try to beat other runners. I'm just going for the experience.