Hagrid and the Harry Potter Books and Movies

 Robbie Coltrane, who passed away in October, 2022 from multiple organ failure, was the actor playing the role of Hagrid the Groundskeeper at Hogwarts Academy, where series protagonist Harry Potter atttended throughout its seven-year imaginary run.  Hagrid was known to own a three-headed sleepy guard dog he called Fluffy, which by nature was benevolent but terrified Harry and his pals by his ferociousness when aroused from sleep. In the first book titled Sorcerer's Stone, Hagrid would let on to Harry that he was on 'secret business but would carelessly keep giving away his secrets to young Potter-eventually the kids would figure everything out without the groundskeeper's accidental assistance.  That book bothered me, especially with its so-called "explanatory" ending that only confused me...The Order of the Phoenix, the fifth book, likewise made little sense regarding its premise.  I mean, what really was at stake with this white globe of a prophecy that pronounced death on either Potter or Voldemort?  Anyway, I appreciated J.K, Rowling's great writing in all seven volumes.  I read the first four books in this series by regularly stopping off at Books-s Million before work, purchasing a large flavored coffee, and sitting there reading several pages at a time.  Book Three, The Prisoner of Azkaban,, and the next one, The Goblet of Fire, were loaded with interesting material that the movie versions skipped over.  When i look at the daily listed television schedule, i look for Harry Potter movies.  In spite of what all they left out, to me they were well-acted and directed cinematic masterpieces.My favorite characters?  Draco Malfoy, Professor Lupin and Horace Slughorn. And Emma Watson did a wondrous job portraying Hermione Granger on the screen. But it was that time travel sequence near the close of Prisoner that won over the movie series for me. they're showing it again on Pluto channel this afternoon starting at four...

I am a Runner in the Mold of Martinus Evans

 Martinus Evans wants us to come on out, feel it,and declare openly, "I am a runner!", even if we're a bit reticent on signing up and taking part in races.  I remember how I would use our spacious back yard to design feasible, relatively flat running paths in order to enhance my  endurance.  After 2009, i would get home from work.  Rebecca and Will, at home, greeted me.  but then I'd dress up for a short night run and then go out and tackle it...I did this more or less regularly for several days.  Then, in 2016 after David Bowie's passing in January from liver cancer, I rediscovered his vast catalogue of excellent music and put past albums I liked on my mp3 player.  Then I'd go out into our back yard and spend time (and dry-hacking) running back and forth for months, thoroughly  unpleasant from my irritated throat and esophagus but still able to cover the longer runs (and enjoying David's musical treasures).  And now here we come to mid-spring 2026 and the back yard is now even more open and available.  I'm still struggling to regain my running endurance after surgery and some cancer treatment, and I've found a champion in Martinus Evans, who has informed and encouraged me through his recent book that I just checked out from my public library...and the audiobook version on their Libby app.  Now that I've finally recovered enough to finish a Depot Parkrun 5K and get scanned and posted online, it's time for me to reclaim my identity as a runner.  Running a little during the day will doubtless challenge me, but my intention at this stage is to wear the good Brooks running shoes I've been using and jog on the uneven grass, challenging my mind and body to grow.  Then once Saturday morning rolls around again...it'll be May 2nd...I can strive to maintain progress walking the Depot Parkrun 5K course,throwing in some small jogging stretches at the end.  The worst case scenario? I'll poop out during the race and have to cut it short.  But now I think it's a foregone conclusion that I'm a runner.I'm back in business with my early morning rising, coffee brewing, home exercise and blog writing.  Now it's time to return to the back of the house and rile up sweet Peewee Daisy (who wants to get riled up) after I flick on the air conditioning...

Wednesday's Final Book Sale, Mentally Preparing for Upcoming Parkrun 5K

 Retirement for me has given way largely to a lack of time management structure in my daily life, with medical appointments providing a sense of having to be somewhere by a certain time.  Otherwise the day has opened up...that is, until the day before yesterday.  The Alachua County Friends of the Library Wednesday  finished their twice-annual used book sale, hopefully (for them) clearing out their warehouse offering books for a dime each.  Melissa drove us down there near Main Street and downtown Gainesville, and we walked an uncomfortable distance from the car and back.  The foreign language book section had already been completely cleaned out.  I quickly found some Junior-level novels and a copy of Marilyn Ferguson's 1980s' fad best-seller The Aquarian Conspiracy practically lept up at me from the display...it sure has declined in influence and availabilityover the years.  I remember once going to the public library decades ago, picking up a copy, and comfortably sitting down with it, reading for a few hours.  Now it's again in my possession...no telling where I'm going with it.  Tomorrow morning will be the weekend again, Saturday and (at 7:30) time for yet another Depot Parkrun 5K event.  If things go according to design (that is, Lord willing), we'll be there as I try to cover, mainly walking slowly, the park's four-lap course and then get scanned and posted.  My main aim is to show up and give it all a good effort while maintaining civility among the event staff and participants without trying to "beat" anyone.  Just enjoy listening to the loud, silly birds and keep trudging on ahead.  I exercised a bit today, but feel that progress at improving my endurance hasn't been as forthcoming as I have hoped.  Recognizing that there is a huge mental component to giving up during races (Martinus Evans and Andrew Huberman concur), I have decided to take it all one step at a time and to extend my efforts tomorrow long before my mind convinces me to stop.  Well, sleep a bit tonight, get up early enough tomorrow, and keep a positive mental attitude toward things.  And you, too...

Reading, Running, Training, Optimism, Baseball

 I have been enjoying living through the past few days, without pushing an agenda about rising early before dawn and pushing myself to engage in "constructive activities" of the sort that the late personal development coach Jim Rohn would assiduously  promote on his podcasts, many of which I listened to on youube...and still do sometimes, with some anxiety.  I am no bigshot personal achiever, content for the most part with developing new, positive habits that fit into systems that take care of me and my loved ones...no loud publicity necessary!  Martinus Evans is a self-identified runner who pushes this notion, and advises his readers to see themselves as runners, no matter how little or slowly, no matter how embarrassed they fear they would feel under the often critical public observations of others.  I have a humble praise report about my meager running experiences today...I ran back and forth, very slowly, from one end of my back yard to the other...no one saw this but myself, timed at two minutes.  Come this approaching Saturday morning at Depot Park...just a few blocks south of downtown Gainesville, my plan is to cover that Depot Parkrun 5K's course by walking and running the four prescribed laps though that park while enjoying the often very funny and loud bird calls like grackles, crows and red-winged blackbirds.  Still, I know in advance that, compared to the other participants, I will be very slow, with that volunteer tail-walker most likely making a prominent example of himself. I already told Melissa that I won't care how slowly I navigate the Parkrun...only that finishing it is at the top of my  priority list..  I am now feeling the frustration of my feet and legs quickly tiring as I move my body forward, either by walking or light running. Progress in training can seem awfully slow in coming. Martinus Evans has proven to be a genuine inspiration, and I wholeheartedly agree with his disdain for eliitists within the distance running community who seek to marganalize my efforts,passing their own judgments on me as being unqualified for consideration as an athlete.  Well, the die has been cast, for from now on, if the Lord tarries about lovingly taking me back home with Him, I am indeed an athlete in the mold of Mr. Evans. I checked out the hardcopy edition of the  2023 book titled Slow AF Run Club and listened to the Libby Audibooks version, which I just checked out from my local public library. Earlier yesterday Melissa and I went to the Friends of the Library book sale, final day.  All books were ten cents, and I left there with 5 interesting books for a total of 50 cents, hauling that weight to our car. Well, that's all for now.  I'm getting ready to enjoy some evening MLB baseball. Have a good night...

Just Finished Reading Slow AF Run Club by Martinus Evans

 Back in 2023-24 my running and walking endurance and speed had increased to the level that I successfully completed a 26.2-mile Marathon and a number of half-marathons.  My eating habits had naturally changed to the point where I had abandoned the notion of binge dieting and instead found it easy to space, by hours, between meals.  I never stopped loving food and never was remotely in danger of having an eating disorder. During those two years my dear boy Will accidentally died and we had to deal with the grief of that loss, of which I am still going through.  I made a quick decision during summer, 2024, to retire from USPS and the process went smoothly.  By 2024's end, coinciding with my peak time of physical fitness, I was being scanned...and a biopsy removed...to diagnose a serious case of prostate cancer...it would be surgically removed on 3/6/25.Still, I was in good enough shape to run 5k's such as at the DepotParkruns.   My weight crept back up into the mid-100's.  Then on 10-21 I received a preliminary diagnosis of brain cancer, confirmed 3 days later during tumor removal surgery as being of the aggressive glioblastoma variety.  Since my recovery from Dr. Koch's surgery, I received radiation and chemotherapy both of which produced side effects that interfered with my level of physical fitness.  So far in 2026 I have experienced a drastically reduced ability to run or walk continuously  for moderate distances like 5K (3.1 miles). I have been training at home on my own with running in place.  Each Saturday morning I walk laps, one at a time (two lately), at Depot Park.  i am optimistically showing up for Saturday morning Parkruns with the hope of getting in four walking laps, covering enough course distance to be scanned and posted online.  Recently at our Millhopper Public Library I checked out a running guide by Martinus Evans titled Slow AF Run Club, published in 2023 by Penguin Random House.  Read in person by the author, I got it on my Libby app and just finished listening to the entire audiobook.  Evans has a compelling, helpful message as he reveals his experiences of returning to an activity he feels too many people avoid out of fear of being watched or ridiculed. I've recently weighed myself at 200 lbs...that seems fat.  Aside from properly hydrating before and during runs, Evans has parts in his book where he lists and describes different types of rest and recovery, something he thinks highly of. I say, get online on your library account,put a hold on Slow AF Run Club, and get down to reading it!  As for me, my training continues, and this coming Parkrun should reveal me covering the course to completion...  

Cancer Chemo, Martinus, Baseball TV includes Florida, Carbs and Hydration for Training

 Yesterday Melissa drove me down to UF Health Davis Cancer pavilion for my periodic Avastin anti-cancer infusion.  First I had a blood lab draw, after which I gave a urine specimen.  Then Melissa brought over an Opus hot latte coffee.  First I waited for the test results to come in, after which the nurse connected the IV line to the incoming infusion.  While sitting there waiting for it, I listened to some Amazon Prime Music on my Android.  Then I tuned in to my public library Libby app, which played the audiobook Slow AF Run Club, written by Martinus Evans.  It's a good, compelling piece of literature about running, and how you can swing it if you stick to the author's suggestions, backed by his own life experiences.  He says he's completed some eight marathons and more than 100 other races, simply by going through the prescribed courses without ever trying to pick up the running pace.  For the neighborhood I live in, I can see me running around the block "slow as F" and then applying that standard to longer road distances.  I'm already doing a tapered version of this in the back yard, trotting back and forth between the east and west privacy fences.  While at the doctors', Melissa got me hooked up receiving the 2026 regular season live schedule featuring visual coverage of the Florida teams Tampa Bay Rays and Miami Marlins.Today I plan to review the rosters of Tampa Bay, Miami and Atlanta...should be fun.  Speaking of running slowly (for long distances} Martinus impressed me discussing pre-run carb-loading, along with his wise emphasis on proper hydration.  It makes me want carry a long a little bottle of Propel fitness water, easy AF to tote as I go..for this early morning, I was faithful in getting up just before three, when I did some bathroom business and ran in place for 16 minutes before writing this.  And now, another good day to look forward to...

Back from Daytona Beach, Training to re-enter Long Distance Running Picture

 Today Melissa and I finished up our overnight stay at the Hampton Inn in northern Daytona Beach...then she drove the both of us back home.  Right now it's 5:55 PM. Today is the start of a new week, with its five weekdays.  It reminds me of my old, grueling high school routine, going back to the spring of 1971 when I was stuck (and not doing very well) in the ninth grade at Davie's Nova High School. The air outside back then was beginning to stink of smoke caused by a local drought and wildfires spreading across the South Florida Everglades.  Today, though it all seemed clean out on the beach.  I exercised, running in place for 36 minutes.  It's late in the afternoon now, and I've exercised for ten minutes so far.  Tuesday afternoon I am scheduled to be at UF Healh's Davis Cancer Pavilion to undergo some more IV chemotherapy for brain cancer.  Right now our living room tv is showing an old, melodramatic medical series, on which the actors are portraying characters full of troublesome life and relational issues..there's plenty of stuff on it that feels wrong to me1.i am continuing to listening, on my own public library's lLibby app, an audiobook from Martinus Evans titled Slow AF Run Club, in which the author humorously and frankly lays out his own experiences about returning to SLOW long distance running and presents several practical suggestions how I (or anyone interested in running) can get going with it.  I have a long history of running, both with training and participating in public races.  I have entered and completed two 26.2-mile marathons, along with 19 13.1 half-marathons.  With the lengthier distance, I have little interest in adding to my "accomplishments".  I simply want to return to my  old ability for lasting reasonably long distances dating back to the year 2010,  Consistently sticking with daily training can build up compounded positive effect over the next few weeks and months.  I'm still counting on progress in my  ongoing struggle against cancer. May this spring and summer bode well for you and yours...

Going to Beach with Melissa Today

 This morning would be the birthday of my late father and son.  Daddy would be turning 100 while Will would be 36.  Melissa and I are planning to stay overnight at a Daytona Beach Hampton Inn and then return home Monday.  After Saturday's double-lap walk through Depot Park, I got up early, around 4:30, and did ten minutes of running in place on the living room rug floor before brewing some coffee and writing this. Earlier yesterday evening I listened some more to a library audiobook about running and the first chapter of an annoying Hardy Boys adventure story...it reminded me of an old South Park episode titled "Mystery of the Urinal Deuce" when the gay lads keep "getting a clue" You know,  Joe and Hardy each sound like their privileged brothers, the only missing words being their "clues"that no one ever holds them accountable for . Later this morning, Melissa and I have a reservatioto at a Daytona Beach hotel, where we hope to enjoy the ambience of our room balcony and the poolside.  It sure would be nice to recover some walking and running fitness on that sandy beach, too.  The beach looks like the perfect location to practice running softly.  

Checking Out Library Audiobooks, Exercise, TV, News

 This morning I avoided getting up super-early, and ended up getting a pretty reasonable night's sleep.  During the course of the day, I did some 32 minutes' worth of running-in-place...add to this that I walked a couple of inner-perimeter backyard laps.  Now it's around 7:45 and darkening into the evening time.  My intention is to throw on a light "Mister Rogers style of sweater and sit around on the front or back porch.  Baseball is on the TV schedule and I'm looking forward to enjoying some of it.  Tomorrow morning they're holding another Depot Parkrun 5K.  I'd like for Melissa to drive me down there, and it sure would be cool if I were to manage completing the entire four-lap 5k course,without any attempt to be fast.  I've also been trying to check out on Libby an audiobook version of D.S. MacHale's fantasy nove Pendragon1: The Merchant of Death.  So far I haven't been successful with this clearly-flawed app, and that book remains unloaded.  I do have a couple of old Hardy Boys adventure books ready to read, along with the original Foundation novel from that classic old Isaac Asimov series.  I think tomorrow morning during the 'race' I'll try listening in to a story.  Well, tonight I'll be tuning in to our MLB Channel to watch a couple of live contests...their presentation has been very good so far since the 2026 regular season began late last month.  I'm tired of all the war news and how our politicians and media hounds are trying to manipulate my emotions while offering little-to-nothing of value.  So, I wish you and yours a great day if you're "down under' and a wonderful, blessed weekend...

New Book Series, and My Reactions to Streaming MLB Channel at Start of Season

 Now that I finished reading Joshua Khan's dark fantasy novel Shadow Magic and began Martinus Evan's SlowAF Run Club after updating my public library registration, I have been looking for new books to read.  D.J. MacHale is the author of the young adult Pendragon fantasy series, and I got the first installment, titled The Merchant of Death, which is now on my Chromebook.  So far I'm enjoying reading it and can somewhat relate to the personality and life circumstances of its chief protagonist Robert "Bobby" Pendragon, who is starting out at the start of high school enjoying more popularity than I could ever muster in this so-called real world.  His uncle soon intervenes and Bobby finds himself whisked away on a motorcycle, fearing that he might never return. I liked the characters and could relate to the story's modern, suburban American setting.  I'm looking forward to many more hours of enjoyable reading here.  Regarding TV, I've been watching our subscribed MLB Channel and generally enjoying the live game coverage.  It does annoy me how much the announcers tend to criticize the newly-implemented ABS challenge system that makes the umpires' balls and strikes calls more equitable.  When I first click on a game, I have to get past a little disorientation as I try to find out who's playing, who's at bat, what inning it is, how many outs are leftin the inning, who's at bat and pitching, who-if anyone- is on which base-the superimposed strike zone, and the short countdown timer that seems to rush the pitcher into quickly letting go of the ball.  Since the challenge system has become less subjective, to me it shouldn't upset a batter, manager or pitcher whenever they strike out walk a batter.  That part of the game I like. As for the teams and blackouts, in Florida "my two" cities, Tampa Bay and Miami, have all their games visually blocked, but I can hear their audio coverage.  When I signed up for comprehensive live baseball coverage on MLB Channel this spring/summer, my aim was to get to know each team in a more complete way, including who their players are and what they are like.  I think this is likely to happen the more I watch, and it is a very good sign.  I also dig "being" at the 28 assorted ball parks spread over America and Canada...it "kind of like" feels like tourism, especially when the cameras focus on the crowds.  Today, it being Thursday, the available MLB games are limited, so I'll get my schedule set and enjoy what's coming up...

Run Club Author Evans Providing Fitness Hope and Workout Information

 I woke up at at little past one this morning.  I had to linger in bed for time to "catch up", but eventually it did and I set out, in the living room, to do some 12 minutes of running-in-place.  The air conditioning in the house was mostly on, but I took some of the "off" time to brew a pot of coffee.  Yesterday I took some time to switch around running-in-place with walking back and forth through the house, using the initial training formula of Slow AF Run Club author Martinus Evans' suggested timed ratios of running to walking at a ratio of one to three, building up to a total of twenty minutes leaving pace out of it...I worked my way up to ten minutes.  Later today my plan is to go a little further with the Slow AF workouts, without going overboard with them...I'm enjoying reading through this funny, helpful book. Melissa earlier gave me a good report on my most recent MRI brain scan.  It's still something I need to be cautious interpreting, since these tests can easily quickly turn toward the worse.  I have to be reasonable about my own medical expectations, especially regarding the detection and growth of cancer in my own brain. Living onward for a multitude of years is something I'd like to be a part of, and being effectively active during that hoped-for span places high on my list of priorities...especially concerning running and walking long distance endurance events.  Completing race events of 5k to half-marathon length, regardless of finishing times, are goals I'd like to attain as 2026 progresses into the spring,summer, and fall months. I've already experienced a severe, seemingly random brain cancer diagnosis bomb dropped on me from last October, with the brain surgery and subsequent chemo and radiation treatment side effects having their own negative effects on my athletic endurance and general fitness level.  Let's see if this morning I can't at least approach the exhortations of Mr. Evans, who believes that factors limiting running and walking distance attainment are more than 90% mental in origin.  I say let's get mental with it all and crush it...

Just Checked Out Running and Beatles Books from Library

The other day I finally completed my reading of Joshua Khan's childishly dark and forgettable 2016 fantasy novel Shadow Magic and promptly wrote a mainly negative blog article review on it.  Now I'm ready for more books.  I persuaded Melissa yesterday to look in my old wallet for my ancient, dilapidated public library card.  We eventually found it and went on down there.  After discovering a thick, very heavy volume claiming to discuss every Beatles song ever recorded and released, I found a book about running for absolute, rank beginners by Martinus Evans titled Slow AF Run Club.  We checked both out for 4 weeks and renewed my library registration.  I started reading Evans and found his unapologetically Earthy language did not interfere with his book's compelling message, which claimed that running is 90% mental and that his goal with the book was to light a fire under readers' asses and have them get up and start running, with speed playing no factor in the process.  That really hit the spot with me, for I couldn't care less about running a fast race...only getting through them no matter how slowly.  Evans has a training protocol that mixes light, limited running with more time-extended walking, interspersed with rest and recovery breaks.  His simple plan is something I'd like to get started with soon, and I'm on board with his notion about how much of a role the mind plays regarding how runners limit themselves.  I'm 69 and a half and firmly believe that light, light running is the way to go for me. And my future running aspirations are pretty much set in stone: let me get to where I can cover the distance, and then on race day show up, finish and walk away with the medal. Or the Parkrun postings on Saturday mornings..

The Beatles were such extreme head cases that I was somewhat turned off by their combative attitudes toward each other during their studio recording sessions, lead by George Martin.  I watched on YouTube, on its Film Retrospective channel, showing how different famous rock albums were recorded, and how disruptive and chaotic the sessions tended to be, mainly with acts like the Beatles and Rolling Stones often on drugs, carrying on with their fighting.  And then I saw a show about the making in 1970-71 of Led Zeppelin IV and was impressed (and surprised) by how that band was depicted as being professional, not at all subject to runaway egos. So this Beatles book stands at home as couch reading, not a reading endeavor project per se but rather as something I might look at based on the topic...

Early Rising, Day Planning

I woke up and got out of bed this morning a little past three...did ten minutes of running in place while brewing coffee.  Now I'm sitting here looking ahead to the coming day, just a little past four.  One item on my agenda is to go down to my local public library branch, update my card and account, and check out one or two interesting books.  Unlike the case with 2nd and Charles a few weeks ago, I have no intention of picking out books out of desperation because I'm too tired and can't find a place to sit.  i do know that this is now post-Easter and we're now back on the regular calendar. It's a foregone conclusion that further exercise for me today will tax my ability to accomplish it.  If i do more back-yard inner perimeter laps, then I know what to expect.  And my eating will be measured and recorded., with the notion that spacing of meals and snacks is to be recommended. Yesterday evening i did watch a YouTube video listing and explaining 7 simple habits I could easily adopt...probably would be better off writing them down and implementing them, 1 by 1.  i want to install and begin using a smartphone app that identifies wild bird species by their songs...this afternoon on the back porch sounds like a good time to get that going.  And hydrating a lot more, that sounds good. Life is good, and I am a person in charge of my own happiness...

Just Finished Reading Shadow Magic by Joshua Khan

 During Anita and Jim's recent visit to Gaineville, we tried looking around the used bookstore 2nd and Charles.   There was such a dearth of interesting books or magazines...and I was feeling physically exhausted...that I almost jumped at the opportunity to buy a 2016 juvenile-level fantasy novel by Joshua Khan titled Shadow Magic. It took me a while to get going reading through it, especially when I quickly discerned how depressing and hopeless the setting, characters and social order were.  Imagine that the "good" place, called Gehenna, is where the dead are brought back to life.  Society is worse than the Taliban and women can be put to death for simply invoking magic. Lilith Shadow rules over Gehenna although she is suffering through a 3-year engagement to an entitled little creep of the opposite ruling house named Gabriel and trying to solve the mystery of recent assassinations and attempts.  The novel's hero is a rough little boy named Thorn...he and Lily hook up and are pretty much on their own to solve the mysteries and save the day. In the background is a scary (but principled) man named Tyburn: he is the official executioner, and no one wants to find themselves on his bad side.  Let me explain my reactions.  I found nothing in the story's setting attractive or stimulating to my imagination, which was the case in The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Twilight by Stephenie  Meyer, and Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling...J.R.R.Tolkien's two sagas The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings also stand out.  Rick Riordan wrote the Percy Jackson series bringing classical mythology to a modern-day level, and until filmmakers ruined it for me by over-dramatizing it, I enjoyed the occcaional tongue-in-cheek repartee. But not with Shadow Magic. On the book's jacket he is quoted as saying,"I defy you not to love this story." 

Well, I stand defied. 

I had little trouble reading through Joshua Khan's narrative, but found it all pretty boring...it didn't matter to me what happened to anyone, including the so-called "good guys", who I would no doubt have disliked in real life.  So I don't recommend Shadow Magic and only bought and read it just to be able to say I read a book.  i won't buy or read the next one. No, I think I'll just bide my time and choose something else with a special, appealing nature to it...

Baseball, Early Rising, Reading, Media Junkie, Gratitude, Exercise

 Yesterday evening I enjoyed watching the MLB premium channel for the regular lineup of contests, minus those being visually blocked for including Florida teams like Tampa Bay and Miami.  It's fun to follow the flow of an inning, with the pitcher scrambling to get in his throws before the timer expires.  My favorite action involves fly balls that compel fielders to chase the dropping ball, sometimes resulting in collisions and comedic falls.  So far I've been impressed with the pitching and general play of the Texas Rangers,  especially with regard to attaining and maintaining middle-and-late inning leads against Baltimore.  Philadelphia provided some late-game excitement against Washington when centerfielder Brandon Marsh bravely chased down and caught a deep fly ball that came close to escaping the ball park...that play ended the game.  Today I'll be checking out the schedule to see what's available. This morning I, too, bravely rose out of bed to run 10 minutes in-place and brew a pot of coffee.  There's still that Shadow Magic novel by Joshua Khan I have as a reading project.  The narrative still seems uninteresting to me...the gloomy Gehenna setting is something that I would like to thoroughly avoid, and I simply cannot relate in any fashion to the characters.  Still, this is a good habit I'm working on. And speaking of the news, I expect our presidential media whore to monopolize TV coverage while he continues his prima Donna life's mission to transform my already-humble existence into a reality TV episode.  Let's just see if I can't stay at home and live a peaceful, grateful life away from the manipulation while watching my eating and hydration.  And making progress with my fitness efforts would be quite fine, too.  So how about sitting placidly outside and/or watching YouTube self-improvement channels... 

Question about Scariest Stephen King Villain

 There was an open question posted on my Facebook news feed: which Stephen King villain character is deservedly the scariest?  The comments varied, but the one that resonated with me the most was Randall Flagg, the murderous manipulator from his epic The Stand.  Donald Trump, who speaks and acts like he thinks he's the Supreme Dictator and expects his lapdogs to obediently follow suit, to me seems to pattern his entire presence on the King antagonist.  In that novel Flagg takes advantage of a deadly pandemic in order to establish absolute tyranny over a stricken planet.  i wonder just how far he is willing to go as he attacks civil order here, vulnerable internationals, and even entire nations.  "Our" Trump mentioned in passing that Cuba is "next"...I wonder what unprovoked violence he is about to inflict on a place that, in a more peaceful, reasonable world, could have become a very prosperous, attractive tourist destination.  When I was growing up, Fidel Castro and Krushchev were scapegoated for being America's Cold War antagonists.  But now that they're gone, the Playground Bully seeks only to incite passions and fury. When is he going to turn against his own people? He's already been vilifying our erstwhile allies in the last several days.Where are Hegseth, Noem and Bondi going on all this?  It makes me want to switch to all-day, live Major League Baseball.  I recently watched the Dodgers play Arizona, the Yankees play San Fran, Milwaukee play the Chicago White Sox, the Rockies versus the Marlins, the Reds against the Red Sox, and Philadelphia against the Chicago Cubs.  In viewing the MLB Channel, I'm getting to know each team by their players and staff. 

I can't stand our so-called leader going off at the mouth with his brash, offensive remarks and dismissals: he sounds just like the guy on Twilight Zone (Sounds and Silences episode) who wouldn't shut up. Now it's 4:30 AM and time for me to sign off and get our sweet Peewee Daisy all riled up....

Up and At it Early Again Today

 Over the past several weeks I accustomed myself to waking up (and staying up) two or three hours before sunrise.  I would take care of bathroom business, adjust the air conditioner/heater, and brew a pot of coffee. Then, as was just the case, I would exercise by running in place on the living room rug for ten minutes.  And then I would pull out the computer and write and post the new day's blog article.  And now, to today.  Melissa, always the expert, knowledgeable nurse and loving woman that she is, has brought up that I appear to be suffering from a deficiency of potassium in my diet, only particularly alleviated by an increased consumption of bananas. This evening I tried going to bed at an earlier, more consistent hour.  The intent tonight was to get up around two or three...and stay up.  Now it's nearly 6:15 and still nighttime, after my bathroom, exercise and brewed coffee. I probably could use a good brief shower and hair-washing and rinsing on this, Thursday March 26th. I watched a good rerun of the old The Prisoner episode Dance of the Dead on my Tubi channel, as well as the Star Trek movie The Voyage Home.  On the home news front, it looks like our president is frightening his own followers with the stock market plunge, a Congressional deadlock in place against paying TSA workers, spiralling gas prices and no end in sight to the missile war between the USA and Israel on one side and Iran on the other.  Personally, I would like, in a more humble way, to work some of my habits by reading Shadow Magic some more and go for longer walks.  Walking around the block at least once would be pretty cool, too.  And some of the personal development podcasts that YouTube presents seem pretty attractive as well.  This includes the late Jim Rohn, Andrew Huberman, that doctor who wants me to walk, and a half dozen others who usually have something significant to say..

Fresh New Day Lies Ahead, Possibility for new Routines

 I fell asleep on the narrow living room couch last night and woke up around 1 AM, feeling itchy and irritated.  By after three I was procrastinating getting up, but just before four I finally arose, and after running in place on the rug for 8 minutes, here I am on this chilly morning! Yesterday I had a pretty eventless chemotherapy infusion session at the UF Health Davis Cancer Pavilion, taking care now to avoid excessive eating. Spending a lot of money to do Dunin' Donut mobile app order seems to be taken off the table, too. We're expecting some good company to visit  us tomorrow.  I'll see if I can't put in a solid block of reading Khan's monstrosity novel Shadow Magic for today, March 18th.  Maybe all the unlikable characters (and I don't like any of them) will get wiped out and I'll be spared the anxiety of a suspenseful plot development.  Averaging about 20 pages of reading per day should keep me on pace to finish the book by month's end, and that is very possible considering how quickly I tore through the first four Harry Potter books at Books-a-Million 25 years ago.  And how about all those Stephen King/Richard Bachman novels? Of course, I tended to like those stories, and King has always been a master at character development.  Melissa has expressed expectation of me finlly getting my updated voter registration card in the mail today (or soon)...let's see if this can happen without me having to come out of retirement.  Yes, I'm tired of Trump on any level, and may the Iran ordeal settle down.  Our president seems to be content settling into Netanyahu's errand boy role, and the USA might get sucked into an expanded conflict against Hezbollah on "Bibi's" behalf.  Well, let's just see what today will bring: hopefully more and better sleep...

Early A.M. about Awards, War, ''allies", Exercise, Day Ahead

 One of the funniest commercials I've seen lately has a man standing behind a loud microphone on a lit-up stage, in front of a large audience, demonstrating his prowess at being able to access files online, only he seems completely unable to key in the proper password.  He awkwardly glances around, chuckles and grins as the AI-on-duty repeatedly notifies him of his failures, to the consternation of those standing around who will ultimately decide his public-relations career fate. Very funny...and a little sad. Yesterday evening Entertainment Tonight was obsessing on the previous evening's Academy Awards, and how Michael Jordan won best actor for the movie Sinners and ate an In-and-Out hamburger holding his trophy in the left hand. I am determined to stay away from celebrities and their overhyped shows that merit avoidance.  Yesterday I worked on reading a few more pages in Joshua Khan's tedious, depressing juvenile fantasy novel Shadow Magic.  I can't wait to be done with it, to say the least.  This afternoon I have an appointment for some chemotherapy infusion at the UF Health Davis Cancer Pavilion, preceded by a blood lab draw, urine sample and IV line.  Looks like Trump is trying to get other countries to pitch in and help the USA with the Straits of Hormuz, and they're coldly snubbing him in response.  Today it will stay cool outside with nighttime temperatures to dip solidly into the thirties.  May all go well with my family, especially Melissa, Amy, Anita and Keith, regarding their health and feelings.  I'll be returning to bed soon, hopefully to get some good sleep.  I'm not sure what to make of this prolific bombing campaign instigated by the current commander-in-chief, but I think that those countries that are turning their backs on us will have something to answer for what I'm inclined to believe is a wartime betrayal of America and our soldiers.  I think that many of them are rooting for us to lose, so that they can later smugly claim they "told us so".  Well, I at least am confident that I did right in changing my party affiliation.   The late Jim Rohn, in one of his podcasts, made a big deal about urging listeners to spring up out of bed hours before sunrise with purposeful behavior.  I did so this morning, running in place for 8 minutes after I started brewing coffee.  Now I'm finishing this blog article.  Soon it'll be back to bed and loudly growling, snorting and barking Peewee Daisy, with whom I plan to be exceedingly sweet and gentle...

Looking Forward to Day Ahead

 It's a little past 7:30 in the morning on the 16th, "Hump Day for the month of March, as we are passing through it.  I have further medical procedures lined up in the next few days, and chemotherapy infusion and an MRI figure into the picture.  I brewed the flavored decaf coffee and ran in place for my routine 8 minutes...now this blog article.  Were this still the ninth grade and 1971 for me, I guess I would have already begun to suffer the stench of the smog coming from the Everglades fires which that drought brought some 55 years ago.  Yesterday they ended that TPC tournament with an underspoken, anticlimactic short winning putt at the 18th hole by Cameron Young, who to his credit refused to kiss the trophy and kept a reserved, taciturn expression before the press afterwards.  As for how today will unwind, i'd like the donut drivethrough, some reading progress, study foreign languages, and exercise along with some temperance regarding eating.  And some more sleep should fit the bill as well.  I think I'll listen to some stuff from the late Jim Rohn, too. And see if I can't fit in some material from Andrew Huberman and Rob Dial...