I loved reading J.R.R. Tolkien's classic three volume fantasy series Lord of the Rings, and I also love watching the three-movie film adaptation thereof. There are however some problems I have with Lord of the Rings, mainly concerning the movies.
When I sat down to watch the first movie The Fellowship of the Ring, I was very eager to see how the movie would portray my favorite character Tom Bombadil. Who, you might say, is that? Well, if you didn't read the book you wouldn't know: director Peter Jackson and his cohorts apparently thought that THREE WHOLE CONSECUTIVE CHAPTERS of the book could be dispensed with, completely omitting any reference to this puzzling character and his interesting domain, which was located between the Shire and the town of Bree. Go figure...
Then there is the matter of the great ring itself. Whoever possessed it and kept it on their person never physically aged, as neither Gollum nor Bilbo Baggins did. Once Bilbo relinquished it to Frodo, though, he quickly aged, and by decades. But with Gollum, he was deprived of it for many years but DIDN'T AGE! H-m-m...
And what about the way the movie series treated the treacherous wizard Saruman? In the first movie, he was so powerful that he could control the weather from many miles away. But once the Ents flooded out Isengard in the second movie The Two Towers, he was just left alone in his tower without any power. In the book, he escapes with Wormtongue to stir up trouble later in the Shire, something also completely ignored in the films.
The Nazgul, or "Riders in Black", never made much sense either. In The Fellowship of the Ring, they were confined by land on horseback and allowed themselves to be swept away by an enchanted elvish river. And one man, Aragorn, was able to fight off the entire lot of them with an also-unexplained short respite of time following this feat. Later, in The Two Towers and the final book/film The Return of the King, the Nazgul return but are much more powerful and imposing, flying around on their powerful demonic dragons. Yet, in a scene at the end of the movie (but not in the book), they discover the whereabouts of the ring but retreat too easily.
There is something in the films that was a bit unsettling to me, something that I had alluded to in a much earlier blog article. Did you notice that the elves, Gandalf, and Aragorn all spoke the King's English? Other "good guys" like common hobbits and dwarfs spoke in in brogues like one would find in Scotland or Ireland. But the bad guys like Sauron or the orcs? They spoke with common Cockney-like accents. This gave an elitist, aristocratic connotation to the conflict between good and evil, and I objected to that.
Finally, I object to the way that Jackson and Co. tried to get around the aforementioned three chapters that they left out of the first movie by finally reintroducing the characters of Merry and Pippin in the most improbable setting of a maze-like cornfield miles away from Frodo and Sam's starting point for their trek. They could have done better, I think.
Still, I love Lord of the Rings and consider the film version as the best thing in cinema to come out this century so far. I wonder, though, how much they are going to alter the wonderful story The Hobbit when that movie is released. I shudder at the thought...
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Title Series Format Change Suggestion
I have noticed over my lifetime (or at least my sports-following portion thereof) that for most of a sports season, there is relatively little interest among the general population. Even with initial playoffs or crucial regular-season-ending contests, the die-hard fans may get all pumped up with excitement but folks who usually don't follow sports still aren't in on what's going on. But once we get down to the final championship event(s), then suddenly interest explodes among the population. The Super Bowl, World Series, and NBA Championship Series stand out in professional sports in this regard. I couldn't get a reasonable discussion going with most people about these sports during the regular season, but come that final time in the season when it's down to two teams fighting it out for the title, then it's quite easy to talk about it with just about anyone.
As for my suggestion, I don't know what more could be done to improve professional football; college football obviously needs a playoff system to give that final game a greater sense of legitimacy. Due to the physically demanding, violent nature of the sport, football titles are decided by single games. In other professional team sports, though, a best-of-seven series is usually played. Currently, the National Basketball Association championship is being played out in a series between the Miami Heat and the Dallas Mavericks, with the latter leading three games to two so far. The first to reach four wins the championship. But why not change it so that one team, with a minimum of four series wins, must take a two-game advantage over the other in order to claim the championship? This wouldn't change a lop-sided mismatched series, which for all practical purposes needs to be finished and dispensed with. But what about those nail-biting close series, often ending up tied 3-3 with a climactic final game to decide it all? Oh, that last seventh game is a big attention grabber, to be sure. But then it's over. Imagine instead that the two teams are closely matched (like Miami and Dallas currently are) and neither has enough of an edge over the other to muster up a two-game edge. We could then go on for weeks with a great series, with one team finally winning by, say, something like a 20-18 margin.
They should drag out that final series and squeeze as much interest as possible from it. My proposal would do just that. I wouldn't recommend it for just any playoff series (remember, public interest isn't that great early on). Just for the championship series when everyone is getting in on the excitement.
Just think of all the beer commercials this would generate: we could get our economy "afloat" again...
As for my suggestion, I don't know what more could be done to improve professional football; college football obviously needs a playoff system to give that final game a greater sense of legitimacy. Due to the physically demanding, violent nature of the sport, football titles are decided by single games. In other professional team sports, though, a best-of-seven series is usually played. Currently, the National Basketball Association championship is being played out in a series between the Miami Heat and the Dallas Mavericks, with the latter leading three games to two so far. The first to reach four wins the championship. But why not change it so that one team, with a minimum of four series wins, must take a two-game advantage over the other in order to claim the championship? This wouldn't change a lop-sided mismatched series, which for all practical purposes needs to be finished and dispensed with. But what about those nail-biting close series, often ending up tied 3-3 with a climactic final game to decide it all? Oh, that last seventh game is a big attention grabber, to be sure. But then it's over. Imagine instead that the two teams are closely matched (like Miami and Dallas currently are) and neither has enough of an edge over the other to muster up a two-game edge. We could then go on for weeks with a great series, with one team finally winning by, say, something like a 20-18 margin.
They should drag out that final series and squeeze as much interest as possible from it. My proposal would do just that. I wouldn't recommend it for just any playoff series (remember, public interest isn't that great early on). Just for the championship series when everyone is getting in on the excitement.
Just think of all the beer commercials this would generate: we could get our economy "afloat" again...
Friday, June 10, 2011
Haze Reprieve Gives Way to Outdoor Run
This morning I experienced a reprieve from the stinky haze permeating the air over Gainesville when the wind shifted to an easterly direction. This gave me the opportunity to do some road running for a change, instead of the indoor treadmill. It was great to get back outside on my old course, covering 8.15 miles in 1:16:41. Of course, this was at my monotonously regular running pace!
Speaking of the haze, I reported that it is primarily due to a large forest fire (about 5,000 acres) in Levy County, adjacently to mine. But I suppose I should step out a minute from my pity party and count my blessings: Arizona has a monstrous, uncontrollable fire on its hands that is about to enter New Mexico. And there is a fire raging in Miami that is 50,000 acres in size!
But at least for my area, there is rain forecast for the next few days. But whether it will fall on that fire is problematic: don't large brush fires interact with the atmosphere and actually alter the weather, keeping rain away from them? I thought I heard that on TV once, or maybe I just dreamed it...
Speaking of the haze, I reported that it is primarily due to a large forest fire (about 5,000 acres) in Levy County, adjacently to mine. But I suppose I should step out a minute from my pity party and count my blessings: Arizona has a monstrous, uncontrollable fire on its hands that is about to enter New Mexico. And there is a fire raging in Miami that is 50,000 acres in size!
But at least for my area, there is rain forecast for the next few days. But whether it will fall on that fire is problematic: don't large brush fires interact with the atmosphere and actually alter the weather, keeping rain away from them? I thought I heard that on TV once, or maybe I just dreamed it...
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Starbucks Crowds Me Out
The Starbucks store on Newberry Road that closed down recently shouldn't be affecting me, since I had pretty much stopped going there long ago. Unfortunately, though, the customers who used to do business there have gone to other Starbucks. Including my favorite, the Magnolia Parke location. Lately, I have had repeated experiences of walking into this Starbucks with the intent of sitting inside for my coffee and some studying, and then turning about-face and walking right on out when it was apparent that all seats were taken.
That's too bad, because I have begun to frequent some of Starbucks' competitors, places that actually provide seating space for their customers.
That's too bad, because I have begun to frequent some of Starbucks' competitors, places that actually provide seating space for their customers.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Running Away From the Haze
The smoky haze primarily originating from a large forest fire in Levy County SSW of us has made running outdoors not a very advisable option for me. Especially when I have the alternative of running on the treadmill at my local YMCA. Monday, which started out hazy but then turned into a very rainy, stormy day for Gainesville (but unfortunately NOT for fire-ridden Levy County), I ran on the treadmill for 9 miles and felt pretty good afterwards. Today, with no rain in sight, I struggled through the haze to my car, coughed a little on the way and rushed into the YMCA holding my breath. Then I ran another 8 miles on the treadmill.
I could run on the treadmill like this all summer if I had to, but doing so makes the eventual transition to road running more difficult. I just wish that fire was gone.
By the way, I have decided at least for the immediate future to cross-train on non-running days at the YMCA with weight training and their elliptical machine. Tuesday I performed 330 reps on six different weight machines that exercised my upper body and abdomen. I used the elliptical cross-trainer for 40 minutes. Then, at home I did some work on our portable step-exercise machine. What I'd like to do is add some leg-strengthening weight training to this routine. I have heard that such training can be valuable in preventing injuries of the kind I experienced this past January (IT band).
I could run on the treadmill like this all summer if I had to, but doing so makes the eventual transition to road running more difficult. I just wish that fire was gone.
By the way, I have decided at least for the immediate future to cross-train on non-running days at the YMCA with weight training and their elliptical machine. Tuesday I performed 330 reps on six different weight machines that exercised my upper body and abdomen. I used the elliptical cross-trainer for 40 minutes. Then, at home I did some work on our portable step-exercise machine. What I'd like to do is add some leg-strengthening weight training to this routine. I have heard that such training can be valuable in preventing injuries of the kind I experienced this past January (IT band).
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Simple Faith
I tend to look askance at organized religion. Simple religious faith should unite people, not divide them with all kinds of special rules, stipulations, and rituals. Each organized religion says they have the only prescription for spiritual growth and the "good" afterlife based on their own preciously-held rules, names, and catch-phrases. If you talk to any true believer in one, to be sure, they will tell you that behind the utterances and ritual one must "feel it" in the heart as well. Maybe, but a Christian will still insist on the rituals as the required public expression of salvation. And a Muslim will point to the phrase in the Qu'ran that converts to that religion must utter to gain favor with Allah as a true believer.
I tend to have problems with religious people who get completely entangled in their own particular faith's doctrines and subdoctrines, especially elements thereof that assign exclusivity to that religion and consign nonbelievers to suffering after death. Instead, I respect...no, I ESTEEM those who may be members or part of the culture of a particular religion but themselves practice something I call "simple faith".
Underlying simple faith is the idea that life is a mystery, and so is death. What death is like, we don't know. And if there is any special meaning or power behind our lives and our "reality", we don't know either, based on what we can detect with our senses. But if there is, then we can entertain a hope that death is a transition from one type of existence in one reality to another, and that "God", if you will, is a protector and guide to help us on our way, both in this life and thereafter. Having this simple faith can help its possessors to feel empowered to make something of their "earthly" lives with some feeling of confidence that it is meaningful and that all is not lost with death. If you want to call God whatever name your specific religion uses (or forbids), then go ahead. Just don't get hung up on names, unless of course you just have as an agenda the desire to set yourself apart from others with the aim of somehow feeling superior to them.
I tend to have problems with religious people who get completely entangled in their own particular faith's doctrines and subdoctrines, especially elements thereof that assign exclusivity to that religion and consign nonbelievers to suffering after death. Instead, I respect...no, I ESTEEM those who may be members or part of the culture of a particular religion but themselves practice something I call "simple faith".
Underlying simple faith is the idea that life is a mystery, and so is death. What death is like, we don't know. And if there is any special meaning or power behind our lives and our "reality", we don't know either, based on what we can detect with our senses. But if there is, then we can entertain a hope that death is a transition from one type of existence in one reality to another, and that "God", if you will, is a protector and guide to help us on our way, both in this life and thereafter. Having this simple faith can help its possessors to feel empowered to make something of their "earthly" lives with some feeling of confidence that it is meaningful and that all is not lost with death. If you want to call God whatever name your specific religion uses (or forbids), then go ahead. Just don't get hung up on names, unless of course you just have as an agenda the desire to set yourself apart from others with the aim of somehow feeling superior to them.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Illegal Immigration Issue
Concerning the illegal immigration issue...
Proponents of strict enforcement of American immigration laws are often hammered as being "racist" or anti-immigrant. I have read and heard countless exhortations by well-meaning people (including President Obama) who, like me, want reasonable immigration reform that is realistic and compassionate toward those here without documentation. One of the arguments I hear, though, is patently condescending: we are a nation of immigrants, those currently here without documentation are the same as all of the others who passed into this country while following the law, and if you don't like the largely uncontrolled, primarily-Mexican influx then you must be racist or at least xenophobic (and therefore in need of this patronizing rebuke).
I remember in the not-too-distant past how refugees to the U.S. from Indochina often encountered hostility from some of the "natives": they were seen as "outsiders", supposedly taking away people's livelihoods by working cheaply or setting up competing businesses. But these were admitted into the country within the parameters of immigration law, with many more never making it into the United States. To the ones opposing those refugees, a rebuke about us being a nation of immigrants would be right on target and not condescending. After all, they came here within the confines of the law and were a true continuation of our admirable tradition of enhancing our national diversity through immigration.
Now I have no doubt that there are xenophobes among those clamoring for strict immigration enforcement. They are particularly strong among those who want the millions of illegal immigrants rounded up and summarily deported, even those who have been here for many years. But I can see that those arguing for strict enforcement have some good points without automatically attributing their motives to prejudice.
It is important to provide an avenue for legal residence to those currently in this country outside the law for a number of reasons. For one, they need to be able to rely on police protection and feel that they are not under the yoke of those who would exploit their vulnerable undocumented status to their own nefarious ends. For another, this is America, dude! You know, the land of the free! And when I interact with others in this great land, I want to feel that they, like me, are free to exercise all of their constitutional rights and to hold their leaders accountable. Only with the type of reasonable immigration reform proposed by our present and previous presidents, representing both major parties, can this be achieved.
But please, let's can the condescending lectures, O.K.? I also think our national borders need to be made more secure. That doesn't make me a bigot.
Proponents of strict enforcement of American immigration laws are often hammered as being "racist" or anti-immigrant. I have read and heard countless exhortations by well-meaning people (including President Obama) who, like me, want reasonable immigration reform that is realistic and compassionate toward those here without documentation. One of the arguments I hear, though, is patently condescending: we are a nation of immigrants, those currently here without documentation are the same as all of the others who passed into this country while following the law, and if you don't like the largely uncontrolled, primarily-Mexican influx then you must be racist or at least xenophobic (and therefore in need of this patronizing rebuke).
I remember in the not-too-distant past how refugees to the U.S. from Indochina often encountered hostility from some of the "natives": they were seen as "outsiders", supposedly taking away people's livelihoods by working cheaply or setting up competing businesses. But these were admitted into the country within the parameters of immigration law, with many more never making it into the United States. To the ones opposing those refugees, a rebuke about us being a nation of immigrants would be right on target and not condescending. After all, they came here within the confines of the law and were a true continuation of our admirable tradition of enhancing our national diversity through immigration.
Now I have no doubt that there are xenophobes among those clamoring for strict immigration enforcement. They are particularly strong among those who want the millions of illegal immigrants rounded up and summarily deported, even those who have been here for many years. But I can see that those arguing for strict enforcement have some good points without automatically attributing their motives to prejudice.
It is important to provide an avenue for legal residence to those currently in this country outside the law for a number of reasons. For one, they need to be able to rely on police protection and feel that they are not under the yoke of those who would exploit their vulnerable undocumented status to their own nefarious ends. For another, this is America, dude! You know, the land of the free! And when I interact with others in this great land, I want to feel that they, like me, are free to exercise all of their constitutional rights and to hold their leaders accountable. Only with the type of reasonable immigration reform proposed by our present and previous presidents, representing both major parties, can this be achieved.
But please, let's can the condescending lectures, O.K.? I also think our national borders need to be made more secure. That doesn't make me a bigot.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Hot Weather and Smoky Haze
The last couple of days have been stifling-hot, with temperatures climbing in the afternoon to the upper nineties. To compound the effect, a thick smoky haze from many area fires has descended upon the Gainesville area, making issues of breathing second-hand smoke from cigarettes a moot point. There is no way I am going out in this horrible weather to run, so for a while at least I am hitting the indoor treadmill at my local YMCA. Hopefully, some rain is forthcoming and we'll eventually begin to see the typical summer afternoon showers that make living here enjoyable, or at least bearable. But for now it's almost uninhabitable!
I have noticed that the haze is much worse during the evening hours, but I can now detect it throughout the day...
I have noticed that the haze is much worse during the evening hours, but I can now detect it throughout the day...
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Orlando Visit
I went with my wife today to Orlando, where she had to go to do a mandatory part of the Masters-level class she is currently enrolled in online. Melissa attends the University of Central Florida, but does the bulk of her academic work online from home. Today, though, we were in eastern Orlando at UCF. What is it about this very crowded, noisy city that makes me want to quickly return to Gainesville in a way that ultracrowded Manhattan didn't on my visit there?
I believe that my problem with Orlando is its vast, sprawling nature wholly dependent on street traffic, in combination with lots and lots and lots of people. When I let Melissa off for her class, I drove around trying to find a place to get a good cup of coffee and study. I drove through the UCF campus, where no-parking signs were everywhere (unless you had bought a permit) and some for-pay parking garages, of which I felt no desire to avail myself. So although there were some places I could have gone at UCF, I ended up passing through the campus and back out on the main highway. I found a nearby Starbucks, but every table was taken. I skipped the local fast food places like Burger King and McDonald's, which was probably a mistake. Finally after driving around for several miles, I came across a Dunkin' Donuts that was right off of Colonial Drive. It was a big place, with an even bigger crowd of customers. But I did manage to get a seat and studied some amid the enormous din there. It was awfully unpleasant, though.
If you exclude my theme park experiences there, I don't like to visit Orlando. And I don't like anything to do with driving down its congested streets, full it seems of crazy drivers. Nothing personal, but to me it is an ugly, noisy, overcrowded sprawl. Probably like Los Angeles in miniature! If you like that kind of environment, then go for it! I won't be hanging around, though...
On the other hand, to be fair about it, if I actually lived in Orlando and had roots in the area, I might have a different take on it. But just passing through as a visitor is no fun!
I believe that my problem with Orlando is its vast, sprawling nature wholly dependent on street traffic, in combination with lots and lots and lots of people. When I let Melissa off for her class, I drove around trying to find a place to get a good cup of coffee and study. I drove through the UCF campus, where no-parking signs were everywhere (unless you had bought a permit) and some for-pay parking garages, of which I felt no desire to avail myself. So although there were some places I could have gone at UCF, I ended up passing through the campus and back out on the main highway. I found a nearby Starbucks, but every table was taken. I skipped the local fast food places like Burger King and McDonald's, which was probably a mistake. Finally after driving around for several miles, I came across a Dunkin' Donuts that was right off of Colonial Drive. It was a big place, with an even bigger crowd of customers. But I did manage to get a seat and studied some amid the enormous din there. It was awfully unpleasant, though.
If you exclude my theme park experiences there, I don't like to visit Orlando. And I don't like anything to do with driving down its congested streets, full it seems of crazy drivers. Nothing personal, but to me it is an ugly, noisy, overcrowded sprawl. Probably like Los Angeles in miniature! If you like that kind of environment, then go for it! I won't be hanging around, though...
On the other hand, to be fair about it, if I actually lived in Orlando and had roots in the area, I might have a different take on it. But just passing through as a visitor is no fun!
Friday, June 3, 2011
Dallas Does It Again
A few days ago I wrote how the National Basketball Association Dallas Mavericks made an incredible late-game comeback against their playoff opponent Oklahoma City, after I had given up on the game to watch another TV show. Last night they did it again, although I was at work during the game and unable to watch. Their victims this time were the Miami Heat, their opponent for the NBA Championship series. After Miami had easily handled the Mavericks in game one, the buzz around the sports media was that the Heat were too hot for anyone to handle. And it looked like that last night, too. Midway through the fourth quarter they were easily handling Dallas, 78-63. Then the Mavs stormed back, with their stars Nowitzki, Kidd, and Terry leading the way. They pulled out their comeback with a 95-93 improbable victory, and on the road. The next three games will be home games for Dallas, so they now have a real opportunity to do damage to Miami's presumed cakewalk to the championship.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Bummed Out on Negative Personal Narratives
I am really tired of being expected to sympathetically listen to other people as they emotionally spew out their very personal hyperjudgemental rancor about others. I don't know how to change this: these people seem totally focused on the negative aspects of certain relationships they have and tenaciously refuse to consider the bigger, more complete picture that includes the positive. I have come to the conclusion that this negativity is at best a form of manipulation of me as a hostage listener and is at worst a psychological disorder, with negative feelings and their open expression feeding on themselves and demanding more and more.
This isn't just one person, either. I see it all around me in various settings. It tends to make me more susceptible to spiritual feelings only in the sense that it appears that demons have a hold on these very negative people. All I want to do when around them is escape.
I am 54. That isn't young. I would like to look forward to my remaining future years as a time of happiness, health and positive relationships. But not around these people, the way they currently are! It matters not what shortcomings they see in others: I have only one option, which is to tune them out...
This isn't just one person, either. I see it all around me in various settings. It tends to make me more susceptible to spiritual feelings only in the sense that it appears that demons have a hold on these very negative people. All I want to do when around them is escape.
I am 54. That isn't young. I would like to look forward to my remaining future years as a time of happiness, health and positive relationships. But not around these people, the way they currently are! It matters not what shortcomings they see in others: I have only one option, which is to tune them out...
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Spoon June
Spoon is a Texas-based multihyphenated modern-indie-alternative-rock band that has been around since the nineties. Unfortunately, I only have their music that has been released since 2002. They are very good, with strong perscussion/guitar/keyboard interaction in their songs, along with group cofounder, singer/songwriter Britt Daniels' idiosynchratic raspy voice as lead vocal. Even if you don't normally listen to this genre of music, you may have heard their 2006 hit I Turn My Camera On on a TV commerical a few years back.
I Turn My Camera On was the song that made me notice this talented and creative band. Their material, like that of Regina Spektor and Radiohead, is all eminently listenable and there are several tracks on their albums that I have come to like a lot. In fact, I have recently begun to solely listen to my collection of Spoon's music (in shuffle mode) on my MP3 player while running (succeeding Regina and Radiohead for this honor). June looks to be a month full of Spoon listening...
The following is my personal "Top 25" list of Spoon songs. Please keep in mind that I don't yet have their early albums, though. I do have Kill the Moonlight [KM], Gimme Fiction [GF], Get Nice! [GN], Ga Ga Ga Ga [GGGG], and Transference [T]. I have put the above-indicated abbreviated forms for the corresponding albums next to each song.
Here's my list:
1 My Mathematical Mind [GF]
2 The Ghost of You Lingers [GGGG]
3 Don't Let It Get You Down [KM]
4 Goodnight Laura [T]
5 Merchants of Soul [GF]
6 Someone Something [KM]
7 Don't You Evah [GGGG]
8 The Mystery Zone [T]
9 My Little Japanese Cigarette Case [GGGG]
10 I Turn My Camera On [GF]
11 Stay Don't Go [KM]
12 The Way We Get By [KM]
13 You Got Your Cherry Bomb [GGGG]
14 I Summon You [GF]
15 Small Stakes [KM]
16 Paper Tiger [KM]
17 Is Love Forever? [T]
18 The Underdog [GGGG]
19 Jonathon Fisk [KM]
20 Sister Jack [GF]
21 Well-Alright [Dark Was the Night compilation]
22 Who Makes Your Money [T]
23 The Delicate Place [GF]
24 Dracula's Cigarette [GN]
25 Tasty Fish [GN]
I Turn My Camera On was the song that made me notice this talented and creative band. Their material, like that of Regina Spektor and Radiohead, is all eminently listenable and there are several tracks on their albums that I have come to like a lot. In fact, I have recently begun to solely listen to my collection of Spoon's music (in shuffle mode) on my MP3 player while running (succeeding Regina and Radiohead for this honor). June looks to be a month full of Spoon listening...
The following is my personal "Top 25" list of Spoon songs. Please keep in mind that I don't yet have their early albums, though. I do have Kill the Moonlight [KM], Gimme Fiction [GF], Get Nice! [GN], Ga Ga Ga Ga [GGGG], and Transference [T]. I have put the above-indicated abbreviated forms for the corresponding albums next to each song.
Here's my list:
1 My Mathematical Mind [GF]
2 The Ghost of You Lingers [GGGG]
3 Don't Let It Get You Down [KM]
4 Goodnight Laura [T]
5 Merchants of Soul [GF]
6 Someone Something [KM]
7 Don't You Evah [GGGG]
8 The Mystery Zone [T]
9 My Little Japanese Cigarette Case [GGGG]
10 I Turn My Camera On [GF]
11 Stay Don't Go [KM]
12 The Way We Get By [KM]
13 You Got Your Cherry Bomb [GGGG]
14 I Summon You [GF]
15 Small Stakes [KM]
16 Paper Tiger [KM]
17 Is Love Forever? [T]
18 The Underdog [GGGG]
19 Jonathon Fisk [KM]
20 Sister Jack [GF]
21 Well-Alright [Dark Was the Night compilation]
22 Who Makes Your Money [T]
23 The Delicate Place [GF]
24 Dracula's Cigarette [GN]
25 Tasty Fish [GN]
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
The Swing Voter Bloc: Fools
Please, somebody explain to me the American voter. In 2008, Barack Obama won the presidency with a majority of votes cast. He also won the state of Florida over his Republican opponent John McCain. Two years later, in statewide races for the U.S. Senate and Governor, teabagger Republicans Marco Rubio and Rick Scott won their races, respectively, putting into office candidates with a diametrically opposite view of how to govern than Obama. Now just a few months after they took office, public opinion polls have Governor Scott with an approval rating under 30%. And he's only been doing what he said he was going to do when he was voted into office!
Now polls are showing President Obama ahead in Florida against the GOP, and incumbent Democratic Senator Bill Nelson has a commanding lead for reelection next year. Huh? I thought the tea party reigned supreme here now!
What is wrong with voters? What I see here isn't a thought-out shift in political philosophy that is reflected in the polls. Instead, it looks as if we, as a collective body of voters, are suffering from mass attention deficit disorder and vote strictly on emotional impulse!
Sure, there are those who stick to their own political perspective and consistently vote in accordance with it. I'd like to believe that I am one of them. But a frighteningly large portion of the electorate seems, at least to me, to be a bunch of silly, easily manipulated fools. Sometimes they vote as I vote on election day and sometimes the other way. But they are still fools regardless. No wonder candidates are now advertised and sold nowadays like sports cars, beer, and laundry detergent!
Now polls are showing President Obama ahead in Florida against the GOP, and incumbent Democratic Senator Bill Nelson has a commanding lead for reelection next year. Huh? I thought the tea party reigned supreme here now!
What is wrong with voters? What I see here isn't a thought-out shift in political philosophy that is reflected in the polls. Instead, it looks as if we, as a collective body of voters, are suffering from mass attention deficit disorder and vote strictly on emotional impulse!
Sure, there are those who stick to their own political perspective and consistently vote in accordance with it. I'd like to believe that I am one of them. But a frighteningly large portion of the electorate seems, at least to me, to be a bunch of silly, easily manipulated fools. Sometimes they vote as I vote on election day and sometimes the other way. But they are still fools regardless. No wonder candidates are now advertised and sold nowadays like sports cars, beer, and laundry detergent!
Monday, May 30, 2011
St. Augustine Memorial Day Outing
Today I took my family for a Memorial Day outing in St. Augustine, which is about 75 miles east of Gainesville. We split the time up between the beach and the old city (St. Augustine, founded by Spain in the late 16th century, is the oldest city in the U.S. in continuous existence). For the beach part, we went to Anastasia State Park, one of the nicer parks I've been to. While in the pretty turbulent ocean, I practiced swimming, concentrating mainly on trying to improve my breaststroke form. This was interesting as the waves were pretty strong around me, quite a different experience from my local YMCA pool. It was a pretty good workout, though. But I think I prefer swimming pools to the ocean, at least when they are actually open and have available lanes.
The old city was the same as I have come to know it from several previous visits spanning the last 25 years. We browsed through different stores and had dinner at Meehan's Irish Pub and Restaurant, not to mention some coffee and chocolate from other stores. We didn't buy much merchandise, preferring instead to simply enjoy each other's company as we leisurely browsed around and took in the surroundings.
Our day together was full of laughs and good feelings, elevating my spirits and making me look forward to the busy week ahead of me.
The old city was the same as I have come to know it from several previous visits spanning the last 25 years. We browsed through different stores and had dinner at Meehan's Irish Pub and Restaurant, not to mention some coffee and chocolate from other stores. We didn't buy much merchandise, preferring instead to simply enjoy each other's company as we leisurely browsed around and took in the surroundings.
Our day together was full of laughs and good feelings, elevating my spirits and making me look forward to the busy week ahead of me.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Theme Park Weariness
From late 2002 through 2006 I was an avid thrill ride fan, enjoying theme parks like Busch Gardens, Universal Studios Orlando, Disney World, Wild Adventures, Cypress Gardens, and Dollywood. Before this time I had been afraid to ride any roller coaster, and any ride that flipped me over or dropped me quickly? Forget it! It took my two fearless children to shame me into gutting it out through some scary rides, and before I knew it I was hooked on them. But my children have since been growing up and now have other interests. The rides never did take hold with my wife, so it often seems that I am the only one left with a real desire to visit a theme park. And even with me, I am not 100% on board with it, either.
For one, just to get to one of the relatively close parks involves some tedious long-distance driving for 100-140 miles. That, simply put, is not a fun ride for me! Then, when I'm finally at the park, there is the chronic problem of having to wait in long lines just to enjoy a ride that often lasts only a couple of minutes. On top of that, it seems that usually several of the rides are in disrepair at any given time, and some of them are my favorites.
So when I read about some of the new rides coming out at places like Busch Gardens, Sea World, and Universal, I wonder to myself whether I really want to invest the time, effort, and expense to go try them out. Shoot, I haven't even tried out any of the rides at Sea World, but I don't see any visits there in the foreseeable future.
Years ago I saw a promotional show on TV about Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia. They had a wonderful steel coaster called Alpengeist (similar to Tampa's Montu), and a man who liked this ride so much he had ridden it more than 500 times rode it again for the cameras. I bet that dude probably lived across the street from the park!
When I occasionally go to South Florida for family reasons, I check out a place in Dania called Boomer's, which is primarily a large arcade building with a whopping giant wooden roller coaster towering over it. I just drive over there during my visit, park my car for free, buy my coaster ride ticket, and walk right up and get on the coaster with nary a wait nor hassle.
Why can't other places be like that? They wear me down.
For one, just to get to one of the relatively close parks involves some tedious long-distance driving for 100-140 miles. That, simply put, is not a fun ride for me! Then, when I'm finally at the park, there is the chronic problem of having to wait in long lines just to enjoy a ride that often lasts only a couple of minutes. On top of that, it seems that usually several of the rides are in disrepair at any given time, and some of them are my favorites.
So when I read about some of the new rides coming out at places like Busch Gardens, Sea World, and Universal, I wonder to myself whether I really want to invest the time, effort, and expense to go try them out. Shoot, I haven't even tried out any of the rides at Sea World, but I don't see any visits there in the foreseeable future.
Years ago I saw a promotional show on TV about Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia. They had a wonderful steel coaster called Alpengeist (similar to Tampa's Montu), and a man who liked this ride so much he had ridden it more than 500 times rode it again for the cameras. I bet that dude probably lived across the street from the park!
When I occasionally go to South Florida for family reasons, I check out a place in Dania called Boomer's, which is primarily a large arcade building with a whopping giant wooden roller coaster towering over it. I just drive over there during my visit, park my car for free, buy my coaster ride ticket, and walk right up and get on the coaster with nary a wait nor hassle.
Why can't other places be like that? They wear me down.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
About My Chinese Study and Reading of Late
I am currently adding about 2,500 Chinese characters to my personal vocabulary, doing this in a painstakingly methodical fashion. Much of this involves looking up words in dictionaries and adding them to a "grand notebook" that I have constructed, holding new words learned along with where I encountered them. I am also inserting Japanese transliterations of the characters that they have incorporated into their language.
All of this takes a lot of time, but it is interesting that, when I have free time, I do a lot of writing that involves little actual thinking. And when I am involved in something else, I can mentally multi-task and practice my newly-acquired vocabulary from memory. Hopefully, this all will lead to me being able to more fully enjoy exposure to Chinese (and eventually Japanese) by being able, as I currently already am with Spanish, to pick out, either from reading or listening, the gist of what is being expressed in that language.
One result of this increased emphasis on foreign language study has been to reduce my time in reading fiction. Usually I am working on one or two books, but lately that has slowed down. Now, at certain times I still pick up a book, concentrating now on getting through Stephenie Meyer's interesting Twilight saga. Yes, this series is primarily targeted at teenage girls, but I enjoy it, too! I am currently beginning Eclipse, the third book. By the way, I have carefully avoided the movies made from this series, preferring instead to give my own imagination a workout, thank you.
All of this takes a lot of time, but it is interesting that, when I have free time, I do a lot of writing that involves little actual thinking. And when I am involved in something else, I can mentally multi-task and practice my newly-acquired vocabulary from memory. Hopefully, this all will lead to me being able to more fully enjoy exposure to Chinese (and eventually Japanese) by being able, as I currently already am with Spanish, to pick out, either from reading or listening, the gist of what is being expressed in that language.
One result of this increased emphasis on foreign language study has been to reduce my time in reading fiction. Usually I am working on one or two books, but lately that has slowed down. Now, at certain times I still pick up a book, concentrating now on getting through Stephenie Meyer's interesting Twilight saga. Yes, this series is primarily targeted at teenage girls, but I enjoy it, too! I am currently beginning Eclipse, the third book. By the way, I have carefully avoided the movies made from this series, preferring instead to give my own imagination a workout, thank you.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Workout Room Supplants Swimming
As many articles that I have recently written about swimming, you might come away thinking that I am a hard-core fanatic about the subject. This is not so, though. What I have been trying to do is TURN myself into a fanatic, because I have reasoned it out and believe that swimming is a very healthful and potentially enjoyable form of physical activity that can endure with my passing into the "golden years" of life. But transforming that conclusion into reality is another matter...
This week I completely skipped out on swimming, substituting my YMCA pool sessions with intense workouts in their adjacent "wellness center". I found that doing weight training and using the elliptical cross-training machine gives me a better workout than swimming. There is no competition for access as I have to endure at the pool. It also doesn't matter what the weather is like outside: I am pretty much guaranteed a seventy-something degree environment that is nice and dry, without the need to spray on sunscreen. And like with running, after my indoor workout I am hot and sweaty but don't have the pool water to wash off of me. Also, I don't need to deal with that water seeping into my body through swallowing and sinuses.
Today I had a great time in the workout room. I looked out at the pool, where one of the local elementary schools had sent some of their students to play today. It was packed, and the swimming lanes were reduced for the occasion. But managing to get a lane wasn't enough: the swimmers had to endure large beach balls continually drifting over into their paths. I saw one swimmer doing several meters with a ball riding his back! I said to myself, "Isn't it nice to not be there right now!"
My main issue with swimming is access. The other problems are either resolvable or are things intrinsic to the activity that I have to adapt to. But I don't see that access issue improving in the near future and, besides, I have for now quite an acceptable alternate with the weights and elliptical trainer. Not that I've given up swimming, but something has to change to make it less of a hassle for me.
This week I completely skipped out on swimming, substituting my YMCA pool sessions with intense workouts in their adjacent "wellness center". I found that doing weight training and using the elliptical cross-training machine gives me a better workout than swimming. There is no competition for access as I have to endure at the pool. It also doesn't matter what the weather is like outside: I am pretty much guaranteed a seventy-something degree environment that is nice and dry, without the need to spray on sunscreen. And like with running, after my indoor workout I am hot and sweaty but don't have the pool water to wash off of me. Also, I don't need to deal with that water seeping into my body through swallowing and sinuses.
Today I had a great time in the workout room. I looked out at the pool, where one of the local elementary schools had sent some of their students to play today. It was packed, and the swimming lanes were reduced for the occasion. But managing to get a lane wasn't enough: the swimmers had to endure large beach balls continually drifting over into their paths. I saw one swimmer doing several meters with a ball riding his back! I said to myself, "Isn't it nice to not be there right now!"
My main issue with swimming is access. The other problems are either resolvable or are things intrinsic to the activity that I have to adapt to. But I don't see that access issue improving in the near future and, besides, I have for now quite an acceptable alternate with the weights and elliptical trainer. Not that I've given up swimming, but something has to change to make it less of a hassle for me.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
I Don't Get the Sport of Bicycling, I Guess
Many years ago, I was seated in the middle of one of those obnoxious small groups that tend to plague my existence on Earth. It was at someone's house and there were several married couples informally sitting around the living room "shooting the bull". One woman, her proud husband right beside her, beamed that she had purchased a bicycle and was going to ride it and enjoy it (my words), but her hubby, who was a mechanical engineer by trade, had pointed out to her that something called "gear ratios" or the like was a little off kilter with the bike. So she didn't ride it and, boy, wasn't she glad! I sat there dumbfounded: I don't think I ever spent more than $115 on a bicycle and I sure as all don't think that I ever gave a hoot about its mechanical details. I would get on a new bike, ride it around, and if it felt good, then it was a winner, pure and simple.
I have piled up many miles just riding my bicycle around town over the years, but I am not into the culture and expense of maintaining the activity to the level that others insist upon for themselves. For example, I am not going to shell out a couple of thousand dollars just for a bicycle. Nor will I wear that tight, stretchy bicycling clothing that may be good while on the bike but completely foolish looking once off. I also don't have the bicyclist posture of practically hanging over the handlebars, and I have the seat low enough that I don't have to dismount every time I stop. But I get around anyway.
I was watching the Tour of California bicycle race on the Versus Channel the other day. It was the first leg and was 76 miles in length, starting from the Lake Tahoe area and ending through the streets of Sacramento. With that much distance, you might think that at the end the pack would be spread out a bit. But you would be wrong.
At the end, ALL of the bicyclists were clumped together as in one mass. The finish was so close that everyone was given the same time. As I was watching the race, it looked to me like someone had cloned one bicyclist, along with the bicycle, everyone looking damned near identical with only their clothing and helmet colors to distinguish them.
I don't get this mass photo finish after 76 miles, I don't get the heavy expense, I don't get the conformity of appearance.
I don't get the sport of bicycling, I guess.
I have piled up many miles just riding my bicycle around town over the years, but I am not into the culture and expense of maintaining the activity to the level that others insist upon for themselves. For example, I am not going to shell out a couple of thousand dollars just for a bicycle. Nor will I wear that tight, stretchy bicycling clothing that may be good while on the bike but completely foolish looking once off. I also don't have the bicyclist posture of practically hanging over the handlebars, and I have the seat low enough that I don't have to dismount every time I stop. But I get around anyway.
I was watching the Tour of California bicycle race on the Versus Channel the other day. It was the first leg and was 76 miles in length, starting from the Lake Tahoe area and ending through the streets of Sacramento. With that much distance, you might think that at the end the pack would be spread out a bit. But you would be wrong.
At the end, ALL of the bicyclists were clumped together as in one mass. The finish was so close that everyone was given the same time. As I was watching the race, it looked to me like someone had cloned one bicyclist, along with the bicycle, everyone looking damned near identical with only their clothing and helmet colors to distinguish them.
I don't get this mass photo finish after 76 miles, I don't get the heavy expense, I don't get the conformity of appearance.
I don't get the sport of bicycling, I guess.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Heidi Revisited and Kinison
The other night I was at home watching game four of the NBA West Conference finals between the Dallas Mavericks and the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Mavs, which I wanted to win, were leading the series two games to one and were trying to win another one. But this game, held in Oklahoma City, was going the Thunder's way and it was getting late. OKC had extended their lead over Dallas to a whopping 15-point margin late in the fourth quarter, 99-84. I sadly switched channels over to the Sam Kinison tribute program on Epix I had been wanting to see. Oh well, I thought, the series is just tied 2-2 and Dallas will have other chances to win it.
Later that night I just happened to surf through the channels and happened upon the game's final score: Dallas 112, Oklahoma City 105! What happened?
Right after I switched channels, the Mavericks went on a furious 17-2 run to tie the game at the end of regulation and then overpower the Thunder in overtime. The sudden reversal in this game after I had left it reminded me of the "Heidi" football game in the late sixties between the New York Jets and the Oakland Raiders.
These two teams were, at the time, dominating the old American Football League. This game between them was therefore a featured contest shown nationwide on NBC. The only problem was that the network on Sunday evening had a prior commitment to air a children's show, a brand-new version of the Heidi story. So late in the fourth quarter of that game, with the Jets ahead 32-29 and seemingly in control of things, the network switched over to Heidi and left the country to wonder how the game ended. Well, right after the game's televised coverage ended, all hell broke out on the field and Oakland made a dramatic comeback, winning the game going away 43-32. There was so much anger expressed over NBC's curtailment of its coverage that, from then on, televised sports events as a rule are shown to their conclusion and later programming is broadcast on a delayed basis.
I wish I had hung around to see the Mavericks' dramatic turnaround, but oh well...
As for the Sam Kinison tribute, I have mixed feelings about the late comedian. There is no doubt that he had a very funny delivery and style. He was unashamedly brash and loud, with that trademark scream of his that would send his audience into an uncontrollable frenzy of laughter. But on many of his topics, which ranged from the homeless to gays to relationships with women, I found myself sinking into the feeling that this guy was just acting out the part of a stinking bully. That's too bad, because Kinison could have chosen any material he wanted for his content and been funny (he himself said that), but for some reason he decided to pick on elements of the population that needed support, not more hateful bashing. What a waste, not just for his death in 1992 due to the negligence of another driver, but also for the legacy of the idea that piling on certain demographic groups is fair game as long as you call it "comedy" (from which conservative talk radio seems to have capitalized heavily).
Still, now that I have witnessed Sam Kinison's act, from time to time I will notice people behaving illogically around me (or in the media) and I'll develop my own inner "kinisonian" monologue about them, ending in the obligatory (but usually silent) "scream".
Later that night I just happened to surf through the channels and happened upon the game's final score: Dallas 112, Oklahoma City 105! What happened?
Right after I switched channels, the Mavericks went on a furious 17-2 run to tie the game at the end of regulation and then overpower the Thunder in overtime. The sudden reversal in this game after I had left it reminded me of the "Heidi" football game in the late sixties between the New York Jets and the Oakland Raiders.
These two teams were, at the time, dominating the old American Football League. This game between them was therefore a featured contest shown nationwide on NBC. The only problem was that the network on Sunday evening had a prior commitment to air a children's show, a brand-new version of the Heidi story. So late in the fourth quarter of that game, with the Jets ahead 32-29 and seemingly in control of things, the network switched over to Heidi and left the country to wonder how the game ended. Well, right after the game's televised coverage ended, all hell broke out on the field and Oakland made a dramatic comeback, winning the game going away 43-32. There was so much anger expressed over NBC's curtailment of its coverage that, from then on, televised sports events as a rule are shown to their conclusion and later programming is broadcast on a delayed basis.
I wish I had hung around to see the Mavericks' dramatic turnaround, but oh well...
As for the Sam Kinison tribute, I have mixed feelings about the late comedian. There is no doubt that he had a very funny delivery and style. He was unashamedly brash and loud, with that trademark scream of his that would send his audience into an uncontrollable frenzy of laughter. But on many of his topics, which ranged from the homeless to gays to relationships with women, I found myself sinking into the feeling that this guy was just acting out the part of a stinking bully. That's too bad, because Kinison could have chosen any material he wanted for his content and been funny (he himself said that), but for some reason he decided to pick on elements of the population that needed support, not more hateful bashing. What a waste, not just for his death in 1992 due to the negligence of another driver, but also for the legacy of the idea that piling on certain demographic groups is fair game as long as you call it "comedy" (from which conservative talk radio seems to have capitalized heavily).
Still, now that I have witnessed Sam Kinison's act, from time to time I will notice people behaving illogically around me (or in the media) and I'll develop my own inner "kinisonian" monologue about them, ending in the obligatory (but usually silent) "scream".
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
I'm Still Waiting, GOP
I'm still waiting for someone on the Republican side of the political aisle who wants to be president to stand up for mainstream American values and set themselves apart from the right-wing ideology that has made this party currently unelectable in a national election. I suspect that Mitt Romney wants the mainstream voter to think that he stands for maintaining the country and tweaking things in moderate ways where they need to be tweaked, but he knows that he is stuck trying to get around the tea-nuts in his own party and the radio and TV blabberjocks in order to secure the nomination. As for me, as well as the American people in general, a competent leader who understands the diversity of interests and people in this great country and leads from both the brain and the heart, no matter which political party he or she belongs to, will be the preferred candidate for president in November 2012. Right now, in spite of what I perceive to be mistakes in his presidency (abandonment of the NASA moon project initiated by his predecessor, acceptance of a health insurance reform bill too accommodating to the private insurance industry, critical two-week delay in responding militarily to Gadhafi's ruthless attacks against his opposition in Libya, and the most recent attempt to capitalize on a success in that part of the world by trying to impose a peace treaty between Israel and the Palestinians), Barack Obama has established himself as a mainstream, centrist president who meets my criteria for that important office.
Even if the eventual GOP nominee turns out to be someone who would govern more from the political center than from the extremes, I still would need to scrutinize the candidate who got the VP/running mate nod, especially since that individual most likely would be more ideological in order to placate the teabrains.
Even if the eventual GOP nominee turns out to be someone who would govern more from the political center than from the extremes, I still would need to scrutinize the candidate who got the VP/running mate nod, especially since that individual most likely would be more ideological in order to placate the teabrains.
Monday, May 23, 2011
Nasty Weather of Different Types
I woke up this morning to the news of the devastating tornado that swept through Joplin, Missouri and destroyed an estimated 2,000 buildings and at last count took 116 lives. The twister was estimated to be a mile wide with winds reaching 200 mph. It hit around 6 PM yesterday and was part of a massive storm system that passed through the Midwest.
Here in Florida we have a different problem: excruciatingly hot days (into the upper nineties) with little or no rain. And fires breaking out everywhere. The weather forecasters hold out some hope for a little rain later this week, but we are in serious trouble here. It is quite different from other places, with their flooding and tornadoes, though. But when I see the extreme weather that has been affecting the country, I wonder how severe the upcoming hurricane season will be this year.
On a personal note, I ran 7.18 miles this morning while the temperatures were relatively mild in the low eighties. And it was a fast 7.18 miles for me, although I'm not quite sure why. With the heat, it sure wasn't a pleasant run. Still, I am astounded when it's later in the afternoon, the temperature is approaching 100 degrees, and I see people outside jogging in it! Ouch!
Here in Florida we have a different problem: excruciatingly hot days (into the upper nineties) with little or no rain. And fires breaking out everywhere. The weather forecasters hold out some hope for a little rain later this week, but we are in serious trouble here. It is quite different from other places, with their flooding and tornadoes, though. But when I see the extreme weather that has been affecting the country, I wonder how severe the upcoming hurricane season will be this year.
On a personal note, I ran 7.18 miles this morning while the temperatures were relatively mild in the low eighties. And it was a fast 7.18 miles for me, although I'm not quite sure why. With the heat, it sure wasn't a pleasant run. Still, I am astounded when it's later in the afternoon, the temperature is approaching 100 degrees, and I see people outside jogging in it! Ouch!
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Final Endeavor Launch and Flight
The other morning I happened to be sitting in the Magnolia Parke Starbucks, just before the Space Shuttle Endeavor was to be launched into space for its final mission. There is a multi-storied building across the street, and its stairwell is open to the outside with views of the south and east. In other words, a perfect platform from which to watch the launch. So that's what I did: I walked across the street, up the stairs, and voila, a couple of minutes after the scheduled launched I saw a sharp point of light followed by a long white trail, hugging the horizon in the southeast above the treetops and tapering almost horizontally (from my vantage point in Gainesville) in a northerly direction. Then it was gone.
Now it's out there in low Earth orbit, delivering and installing its important scientific cargo to study the universe and try to unlock some of the secrets about its composition, beginning, and future. Hopefully, with the reports of damaged tiles on the shuttle's outer casing, it will return safely again intact and with all aboard alive and well.
I am saddened by what seems to me the downsizing and outsourcing of our once highly respected, ambitious, and capable space program. But apparently this is reflective of what the American people want. They collectively have little interest in space exploration anymore. That wasn't the case when I was growing up in the 1960's, when at school they would have the the TV on all day to show how the Gemini and Apollo flights were progressing, complete with simulations, long drawn-out commentary, and Tang commercials...
...Hey, wait a minute, that WAS awfully boring, come to think of it. No wonder the American people lost interest!
Now it's out there in low Earth orbit, delivering and installing its important scientific cargo to study the universe and try to unlock some of the secrets about its composition, beginning, and future. Hopefully, with the reports of damaged tiles on the shuttle's outer casing, it will return safely again intact and with all aboard alive and well.
I am saddened by what seems to me the downsizing and outsourcing of our once highly respected, ambitious, and capable space program. But apparently this is reflective of what the American people want. They collectively have little interest in space exploration anymore. That wasn't the case when I was growing up in the 1960's, when at school they would have the the TV on all day to show how the Gemini and Apollo flights were progressing, complete with simulations, long drawn-out commentary, and Tang commercials...
...Hey, wait a minute, that WAS awfully boring, come to think of it. No wonder the American people lost interest!
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Gainesville Starbucks Store to Close Sunday
Thursday's Independent Florida Alligator reported that the Starbucks on 3822 Newberry Road will be closing this Sunday, the 22nd. I was surprised to read this, considering that almost every time I go there, it seems overcrowded and noisy. Its location is perfect, next to several upscale eateries and a large cinema complex. True, the interior seating is a bit cramped, and I usually have to look for an outdoors seat when I go there. I haven't visited this Starbucks much in the last couple of years, but there was a time when I was a daily customer there.
As a matter of fact, many of my blog articles from 2007 and 2008 were written at this soon-to-be-defunct Starbucks, usually at one of the outside balcony tables. Sometimes I would first go to the Coldstone Creamery a couple of doors down and enjoy some cheesecake-flavored ice cream while reading whichever Stephen King novel I was working on. Ah...those were the good old days! But I've read all of King's novels, I have found better locations to do my writing, and that Starbucks just seems out of my way nowadays. Still, although the newspaper article hinted as a reason of the closure that Starbuck's relatively slow business, I was never there when it wasn't annoyingly packed.
I don't know who has been managing that Starbucks lately, but I liked the former manager Marty Bower, who incidentally was the one who suggested to a couple of LifeSouth employees who stopped by while jogging that a local marathon sponsored by LifeSouth would be a good idea. It's a shame that this part of our local history will end.
As for the employees at the 3822 store, they are being relocated at other Starbucks in town, similar to the way that the Postal Service handles its closures. And much unlike what happened to the employees at my local Hooters restaurant who showed up to work one day and found the doors locked, the business permanently closed, and themselves abruptedly without jobs, without any advance warning. Tacky...and very unrefined!
As a matter of fact, many of my blog articles from 2007 and 2008 were written at this soon-to-be-defunct Starbucks, usually at one of the outside balcony tables. Sometimes I would first go to the Coldstone Creamery a couple of doors down and enjoy some cheesecake-flavored ice cream while reading whichever Stephen King novel I was working on. Ah...those were the good old days! But I've read all of King's novels, I have found better locations to do my writing, and that Starbucks just seems out of my way nowadays. Still, although the newspaper article hinted as a reason of the closure that Starbuck's relatively slow business, I was never there when it wasn't annoyingly packed.
I don't know who has been managing that Starbucks lately, but I liked the former manager Marty Bower, who incidentally was the one who suggested to a couple of LifeSouth employees who stopped by while jogging that a local marathon sponsored by LifeSouth would be a good idea. It's a shame that this part of our local history will end.
As for the employees at the 3822 store, they are being relocated at other Starbucks in town, similar to the way that the Postal Service handles its closures. And much unlike what happened to the employees at my local Hooters restaurant who showed up to work one day and found the doors locked, the business permanently closed, and themselves abruptedly without jobs, without any advance warning. Tacky...and very unrefined!
Friday, May 20, 2011
NBA Conference Final Series Going On
I have been enjoying the National Basketball Association playoffs lately, with two fantastic conference championship series going on. In the West, the Dallas Mavericks, led by an assortment of talent headed by Dirk Nowitzki and ageless Jason Kidd, are up against the Oklahoma Thunder and their scoring ace Kevin Durant. The East pits the preseason favorite Miami Heat with Lebron James and Dwyane (yes, that's how it's spelled) Wade against the Chicago Bulls and this year's league MVP Derrick Rose. I was only able the watch the first games in each series so far, due to my work schedule. But I'd like to see a few more, hopefully with a Chicago-Dallas NBA championship series the result.
The fact that I am rooting for the Bulls has been interesting, considering that I have in the past supported southern teams like Atlanta and Miami, both of which I have rooted against so far in their playoff series with Chicago this year. On the other hand, Chicago features as one of its starters former University of Florida standout Joakim Noah, who participated in the Gators' two national championship seasons a few years ago. Since Atlanta also has former Gator star Al Horford in its starting lineup, this can't be the only reason I supported the Bulls this year over the Hawks. I suppose that I wanted the stronger team to put up a better fight against the Heat, which I don't support because of its prima donna superstar Lebron James. I came to dislike James a few years ago when, after unexpectedly losing a playoff series to Orlando when with Cleveland, he refused to congratulate the winners and showed his lack of sportsmanship. He has also been very erratic regarding how hard he plays from game to game. I can't support a player like that. On the other hand, his Heat teammate Wade is a class act.
But we'll see who eventually wins. If Chicago and Dallas both make it to the finals, I don't know whom I'll support. If Miami makes it, I'll support the West winner, whoever that is.
The fact that I am rooting for the Bulls has been interesting, considering that I have in the past supported southern teams like Atlanta and Miami, both of which I have rooted against so far in their playoff series with Chicago this year. On the other hand, Chicago features as one of its starters former University of Florida standout Joakim Noah, who participated in the Gators' two national championship seasons a few years ago. Since Atlanta also has former Gator star Al Horford in its starting lineup, this can't be the only reason I supported the Bulls this year over the Hawks. I suppose that I wanted the stronger team to put up a better fight against the Heat, which I don't support because of its prima donna superstar Lebron James. I came to dislike James a few years ago when, after unexpectedly losing a playoff series to Orlando when with Cleveland, he refused to congratulate the winners and showed his lack of sportsmanship. He has also been very erratic regarding how hard he plays from game to game. I can't support a player like that. On the other hand, his Heat teammate Wade is a class act.
But we'll see who eventually wins. If Chicago and Dallas both make it to the finals, I don't know whom I'll support. If Miami makes it, I'll support the West winner, whoever that is.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
And God Said, "Where Are You?"
I recently attended a sermon in a conservative Christian church. The topic was how it was important for a believer to confess all personal secrets to God in order for prayers to be effective. This all sounded like a typical session in this church, where a member apparently is expected to spend the rest of his or her life deep in emotional anguish over every little dinky-ass thing he or she has ever done, is doing, ever will do, or even consider ever doing, and whether, if there is the remotest possibility of any impropriety going on (Christian translation: sin), this shouldn't be confessed, not just in quiet prayer to God but also to each other. Ho-hum, so what's new, anyway...
Well, here's what's new. During the message, the preacher made a reference to the Genesis story of Adam, Eve, and the Garden of Eden. It seems that humanity's first couple had been naughty and eaten the forbidden fruit of knowledge. Now they were hiding from God because... well, they were naughty and knew they were naked, to boot. The Lord happened to be walking in the Garden and called out to Adam, "Where are you?"
It was then that the preacher did something I have heard preachers do often over the years: he made presumptions about God that were not mentioned in the text. He said that, of course, God knew all along exactly what Adam and Eve had done and where they were hiding. And then he used this personal revision of the actual text to illustrate his argument for confession (which I don't quite get since God had already told Adam that eating the forbidden fruit would bring on a death sentence, so why confess and die).
The original writer of that section of text in Genesis in which God said "Where are you?", as well as the compiler of those ancient textual fragments into a cohesive narrative later known as the Book of Genesis, did not reveal God's motives behind his statement. And the statement, literally read, is self-explanatory: God is asking someone where he is. The preacher/interpreter, though, in order to ease any sense of awkwardness in this passage, which implied that God really wasn't all-knowing after all, inserted the "divine omniscience" doctrine into his interpretation during the sermon. As he performed this oratory legerdemain from the podium, I looked around at the faithful, uncritical congregation and saw person after person nodding and smugly smirking. Yeah, God knew all along where Adam and Eve were... but that's not what the text says!
Why am I belaboring this point? Because just a few passages before this in the same book of Genesis, the Biblical creation narrative is laid out. Those Christians claiming that evolution is false and that the origins of everything are literally explained in the first few verses of Genesis include the same preacher who, when it was convenient to HIM, added his own special enhanced interpretation to a nearby passage.
Hmmmph!
Well, here's what's new. During the message, the preacher made a reference to the Genesis story of Adam, Eve, and the Garden of Eden. It seems that humanity's first couple had been naughty and eaten the forbidden fruit of knowledge. Now they were hiding from God because... well, they were naughty and knew they were naked, to boot. The Lord happened to be walking in the Garden and called out to Adam, "Where are you?"
It was then that the preacher did something I have heard preachers do often over the years: he made presumptions about God that were not mentioned in the text. He said that, of course, God knew all along exactly what Adam and Eve had done and where they were hiding. And then he used this personal revision of the actual text to illustrate his argument for confession (which I don't quite get since God had already told Adam that eating the forbidden fruit would bring on a death sentence, so why confess and die).
The original writer of that section of text in Genesis in which God said "Where are you?", as well as the compiler of those ancient textual fragments into a cohesive narrative later known as the Book of Genesis, did not reveal God's motives behind his statement. And the statement, literally read, is self-explanatory: God is asking someone where he is. The preacher/interpreter, though, in order to ease any sense of awkwardness in this passage, which implied that God really wasn't all-knowing after all, inserted the "divine omniscience" doctrine into his interpretation during the sermon. As he performed this oratory legerdemain from the podium, I looked around at the faithful, uncritical congregation and saw person after person nodding and smugly smirking. Yeah, God knew all along where Adam and Eve were... but that's not what the text says!
Why am I belaboring this point? Because just a few passages before this in the same book of Genesis, the Biblical creation narrative is laid out. Those Christians claiming that evolution is false and that the origins of everything are literally explained in the first few verses of Genesis include the same preacher who, when it was convenient to HIM, added his own special enhanced interpretation to a nearby passage.
Hmmmph!
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Dearth of Public Interest in Swimming
The other day I was in my local Barnes & Noble bookstore, browsing through the magazine area. I tend to gravitate toward the athletic section, which contains magazines about all sorts of activities, chief among them running. I also see stuff about bicycling, skateboarding, golf, ...even surfing. But I NEVER see a magazine devoted to swimming. Which made me wonder...
When I attended physical education classes in junior and senior high school from 1968 through 1971, as a bloc my class always seemed overjoyed at the prospect of being able to swim in the school's pool while collectively groaning at the prospect of doing any kind of running. I myself didn't learn how to swim until the seventh grade, and afterward for the next couple of years my classmates would always leave me struggling far behind them when we swam laps (quite the opposite of my running experiences then). Although swimming in phys-ed usually began with a lap or two, the students were then allowed "free time" in the pool for most of the class session. I tended to practice my swimming, not enjoying it at all and feeling totally clumsy and stupid. Many, if not most of the other boys (maybe the girls did it differently in their classes) would play a game in which they would pair off in the pool with one riding the other's shoulders...and then try to topple each other in the water. To them, that was what made "swimming" fun, but I wanted no part of it then (and now, either). Oh, and there were also a few brave souls who were into diving. But even with pure swimming, minus the diving and horseplay, the consensus when I was this age was that it was cool and fun, the polar opposite of running.
Fast forward to now: running is an ardent passion for many while swimming is relatively rare among adults. I see magazine after magazine devoted to running; where are the swimming magazines? The only type of publication that at least indirectly addresses swimming is the triathlon magazine, and usually one has to search high and low in the pages to find articles in them relating to swimming, while the running and cycling sections predominate.
I find all of this very baffling. One would think, with the cardiovascular benefits that swimming brings without the shock to the body that running's pounding inflicts, that people would be flocking to pools in droves and insisting that more be built. There should be weekly public pool race events for different age groups to compete among themselves, just as there are all those public running events. But I search the Internet and find nothing of the sort. And here I am in hot, water-abundant, swim-friendly Florida!
And how often do you drive past hotels or homes with swimming pools that actually have people using them? With me, the answer is almost never. Some people seem to place great store in having their very own private swimming pools, but then don't use them, at least not for swimming.
I think one reason folks don't like to go swimming out in public is the modesty factor. Swimmers tend to be more exposed and a lot of people feel embarrassed about this and consequently avoid the activity. My own YMCA has a peculiar setup: their workout room directly faces the pool, with the treadmills, bicycle trainers, and elliptical machines all positioned to look out at the pool. From the vantage point of the pool, a swimmer looks up at the long glass window and sees rows of machines and their users facing them. Maybe that could be a little threatening for some who would otherwise like to occasionally go swimming in the pool. For me, I don't like this arrangement but I've overcome any modesty issues. I have even used this to my advantage by observing swimmers from the workout room and getting pointers about elements of form used in various swimming strokes.
If I am fortunate to live with my wits intact for a few more decades, I would also like to have a healthy, active body to experience this with. Swimming fits the bill (along with walking) as a suitable physical activity that is sustainable over the years. Running is fun for ME, but it isn't for everyone. Swimming should be promoted and more public-access pools built, with more reasonable swimming hours offered than what is currently available here in Gainesville.
When I attended physical education classes in junior and senior high school from 1968 through 1971, as a bloc my class always seemed overjoyed at the prospect of being able to swim in the school's pool while collectively groaning at the prospect of doing any kind of running. I myself didn't learn how to swim until the seventh grade, and afterward for the next couple of years my classmates would always leave me struggling far behind them when we swam laps (quite the opposite of my running experiences then). Although swimming in phys-ed usually began with a lap or two, the students were then allowed "free time" in the pool for most of the class session. I tended to practice my swimming, not enjoying it at all and feeling totally clumsy and stupid. Many, if not most of the other boys (maybe the girls did it differently in their classes) would play a game in which they would pair off in the pool with one riding the other's shoulders...and then try to topple each other in the water. To them, that was what made "swimming" fun, but I wanted no part of it then (and now, either). Oh, and there were also a few brave souls who were into diving. But even with pure swimming, minus the diving and horseplay, the consensus when I was this age was that it was cool and fun, the polar opposite of running.
Fast forward to now: running is an ardent passion for many while swimming is relatively rare among adults. I see magazine after magazine devoted to running; where are the swimming magazines? The only type of publication that at least indirectly addresses swimming is the triathlon magazine, and usually one has to search high and low in the pages to find articles in them relating to swimming, while the running and cycling sections predominate.
I find all of this very baffling. One would think, with the cardiovascular benefits that swimming brings without the shock to the body that running's pounding inflicts, that people would be flocking to pools in droves and insisting that more be built. There should be weekly public pool race events for different age groups to compete among themselves, just as there are all those public running events. But I search the Internet and find nothing of the sort. And here I am in hot, water-abundant, swim-friendly Florida!
And how often do you drive past hotels or homes with swimming pools that actually have people using them? With me, the answer is almost never. Some people seem to place great store in having their very own private swimming pools, but then don't use them, at least not for swimming.
I think one reason folks don't like to go swimming out in public is the modesty factor. Swimmers tend to be more exposed and a lot of people feel embarrassed about this and consequently avoid the activity. My own YMCA has a peculiar setup: their workout room directly faces the pool, with the treadmills, bicycle trainers, and elliptical machines all positioned to look out at the pool. From the vantage point of the pool, a swimmer looks up at the long glass window and sees rows of machines and their users facing them. Maybe that could be a little threatening for some who would otherwise like to occasionally go swimming in the pool. For me, I don't like this arrangement but I've overcome any modesty issues. I have even used this to my advantage by observing swimmers from the workout room and getting pointers about elements of form used in various swimming strokes.
If I am fortunate to live with my wits intact for a few more decades, I would also like to have a healthy, active body to experience this with. Swimming fits the bill (along with walking) as a suitable physical activity that is sustainable over the years. Running is fun for ME, but it isn't for everyone. Swimming should be promoted and more public-access pools built, with more reasonable swimming hours offered than what is currently available here in Gainesville.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
A "Circular" Argument
I have never been much of a supporter of the concept of small group discussions, be it at school, church, work, or in any other context. The way I have experienced it, whoever is responsible for organizing the group almost always has an agenda in mind that those sitting around in the group are expected to further, with little room for critical deviation. I can understand the need to "brainstorm" from time to time and get some positive input from others. But I think there are better ways to do this then cooping people up together in a room and expecting them to play a particular role that may be completely out of character for them. And then there is the circular seating arrangement...
Sitting people around in a circle facing each other is one of the more annoying aspects of many small groups, in my opinion. It creates a totalitarian atmosphere in which no one has any privacy from the glares of the others. Each participant in the group is totally exposed, with simple facial expressions and body language affecting the discussion in subtle ways that don't really contribute to an effective resolution of the topic. I have come to the conclusion over years of sitting in circle after circle of small groups that the one(s) responsible for this type of seating arrangement are, deep down inside, manipulators and seekers of power. Now, whenever I find myself in such a setting I zone out on whatever is going on and simply enter another mental reality, one where I review lists of things I've learned or simply drift off in thought about other subjects. I refuse to get caught up in the psychology of small groups, period.
Maybe this is unreasonable of me, but that's the way I am. The way I see it, if anyone wants my opinion they know where to find me and are welcome to engage in a reasonable and respectful discussion as long as they are truly serious about the stated topic instead of playing games with controlling people.
I'm not necessarily against the idea of having informational meetings, which are very common in the workplace. Policies there can be efficiently communicated to the appropriate people without having to go through the tedious process of conferring with each one. Pertinent questions can be posed here, questions that can add to everyone's understanding. But those group meetings that involve people sitting around shooting the bull are pointless, in my opinion. What often happens is that people attending them tend to say things that they later regret having said. When I hear someone speaking in this way during a meeting, I inwardly cringe and curse those responsible for making me attend it.
Sitting people around in a circle facing each other is one of the more annoying aspects of many small groups, in my opinion. It creates a totalitarian atmosphere in which no one has any privacy from the glares of the others. Each participant in the group is totally exposed, with simple facial expressions and body language affecting the discussion in subtle ways that don't really contribute to an effective resolution of the topic. I have come to the conclusion over years of sitting in circle after circle of small groups that the one(s) responsible for this type of seating arrangement are, deep down inside, manipulators and seekers of power. Now, whenever I find myself in such a setting I zone out on whatever is going on and simply enter another mental reality, one where I review lists of things I've learned or simply drift off in thought about other subjects. I refuse to get caught up in the psychology of small groups, period.
Maybe this is unreasonable of me, but that's the way I am. The way I see it, if anyone wants my opinion they know where to find me and are welcome to engage in a reasonable and respectful discussion as long as they are truly serious about the stated topic instead of playing games with controlling people.
I'm not necessarily against the idea of having informational meetings, which are very common in the workplace. Policies there can be efficiently communicated to the appropriate people without having to go through the tedious process of conferring with each one. Pertinent questions can be posed here, questions that can add to everyone's understanding. But those group meetings that involve people sitting around shooting the bull are pointless, in my opinion. What often happens is that people attending them tend to say things that they later regret having said. When I hear someone speaking in this way during a meeting, I inwardly cringe and curse those responsible for making me attend it.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Back to Hilly Trail on 10.5 Mile Run
Today the weather was cooler and dryer than usual, and I took advantage of it by running 10.5 miles, my longest since being sidelined from running due to a leg injury in January. My time reflected my usual pace: 1:40:59. The temperature went from 68 to 72 during my run while the humidity was pleasant as well, lowering from 57% to 41%.
Not only did I successfully accomplish this run, but I also ran down the (pictured) relatively hilly (for Florida) trail along NW 53rd Avenue for the first time since my injury. I had been concerned that the hills might aggravate my injury, but everything seems to be O.K. so far. I believe, though, that while running I am sensing potential problems in my right leg that may not exist, i.e. phantom sensations. I remember long ago in 1973, after I had suffered a hernia and had surgery to repair it, I also had this type of phantom sensation, concluding then that I had experienced another hernia. That fear turned out to be unfounded, and hopefully so will my current concerns. After all, it's now been more than 11 hours since my run and my leg feels fine.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
The End of the World
I have picked up on the news story floating around that Family Radio, a splinter Christian group (well, they are actually ALL splinter groups from each other) is putting out notices that Jesus is coming back on May 21. And yes, that means the end of the world, at least as we know it. Giving me pause to try to come up with something sensible from this lunacy...
I have always wondered why so many are "enraptured" with the notion of the end of the world. Especially when each of us already has, built into our individual bodies through our biology and interaction with the environment, our own personal "end of the world". We all die, plain and simple. After that fact happens, the rest of the world HAS ended, as far as the one who dies is concerned.
Those who are so caught up with events around us that seem to them apocalyptic in nature tend to be believers, not only in an afterlife, but also that they are "taken care of" by their spiritual savior (in Christianity it's Jesus). So if anything they should be unconcerned about what's happening in the world instead of obsessing about it. The reason they're not is kind of like those "time is running out" ploys on QVC or Home Shopping Network: if you want that "eternal life" deal and haven't bought into it yet, you'd better hurry up, because Jesus is coming...this version of the narrative has it happening on May 21. So ultimately this prediction about Jesus coming soon is a device to recruit more believers to the faith. Before it's too late, you see. After all, I suppose that Family Radio must have concluded that some people don't see themselves as ever dying, at least not in the foreseeable future, so this "Jesus coming back on May 21" could be used as something to expedite their conversions...
I have always wondered why so many are "enraptured" with the notion of the end of the world. Especially when each of us already has, built into our individual bodies through our biology and interaction with the environment, our own personal "end of the world". We all die, plain and simple. After that fact happens, the rest of the world HAS ended, as far as the one who dies is concerned.
Those who are so caught up with events around us that seem to them apocalyptic in nature tend to be believers, not only in an afterlife, but also that they are "taken care of" by their spiritual savior (in Christianity it's Jesus). So if anything they should be unconcerned about what's happening in the world instead of obsessing about it. The reason they're not is kind of like those "time is running out" ploys on QVC or Home Shopping Network: if you want that "eternal life" deal and haven't bought into it yet, you'd better hurry up, because Jesus is coming...this version of the narrative has it happening on May 21. So ultimately this prediction about Jesus coming soon is a device to recruit more believers to the faith. Before it's too late, you see. After all, I suppose that Family Radio must have concluded that some people don't see themselves as ever dying, at least not in the foreseeable future, so this "Jesus coming back on May 21" could be used as something to expedite their conversions...
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Better Swimming Experience on Thursday
This past Thursday I had a better swimming experience than usual. First of all, I decided to swim on Tuesdays and Thursdays instead of M-W-F, giving those days to my running and making weekends a kind of wild card in terms of exercising (or maybe resting from exercise). Then I got to the pool earlier in the morning, around 9:30. The water aerobics "bouncers" were all out in the shallow part doing their class session, but to my delight all of the 25-meter lanes were open. I took the one on the end and proceeded to swim 50 consecutive minutes for a total distance of 1,050 meters. I employed my strategy of alternating between freestyle and my modified backstroke, switching from one to the other halfway through each crossing. It worked perfectly, giving me a lot of confidence and making me feel on a par with the other lap-swimmers I've seen there. I did have a problem with the sun's glare while on my back. Later in the day I purchased some swimmer's goggles that should help with this on future swims.
Also, I developed what I think is a pretty cool way to keep track of the number of laps I'm swimming. I mentally run down the alphabet with each lap, starting with "A". While doing the "A" lap, I think of any words or names beginning with that letter and make any associations that come to mind. Next lap is "B", then "C", and so on. I got through "U", i.e. the 21st 50-meter lap. Not only does this method help me keep track of my ongoing lap total, but it also is fun, distracts me from the rigors of the exercise, and even gives me some insight about my mental state as I tire toward the end (my "S", "T", and "U" laps didn't evoke the same quality of associations as the earlier letters did). In the future, when I swim my 27th lap, I'll just reset the alphabet back to "A" and add 26 to the total.
My strategy in swimming is to continue with what I'm doing until I can swim 30 consecutive 50-meter laps, which at 1,500 meters I believe represents triathlon distance. Then I will gradually increase the freestyle portion of each crossing, always leaving a little room at the end for some backstroke swimming. And at some future date I'll insert some breaststroke into the routine.
Also, I developed what I think is a pretty cool way to keep track of the number of laps I'm swimming. I mentally run down the alphabet with each lap, starting with "A". While doing the "A" lap, I think of any words or names beginning with that letter and make any associations that come to mind. Next lap is "B", then "C", and so on. I got through "U", i.e. the 21st 50-meter lap. Not only does this method help me keep track of my ongoing lap total, but it also is fun, distracts me from the rigors of the exercise, and even gives me some insight about my mental state as I tire toward the end (my "S", "T", and "U" laps didn't evoke the same quality of associations as the earlier letters did). In the future, when I swim my 27th lap, I'll just reset the alphabet back to "A" and add 26 to the total.
My strategy in swimming is to continue with what I'm doing until I can swim 30 consecutive 50-meter laps, which at 1,500 meters I believe represents triathlon distance. Then I will gradually increase the freestyle portion of each crossing, always leaving a little room at the end for some backstroke swimming. And at some future date I'll insert some breaststroke into the routine.
Friday, May 13, 2011
Where is My Last Entry?
It's almost 1 PM and I have to go to work soon. Blogger went down for maintenance last night and finally just came back up. But they lost my last entry, ironically titled Crappy Products for Sale. Hopefully, it will be restored later today. Otherwise, my faith in Blogger as a reliable site will be seriously shaken.
I intend to hold up on any more postings on this blog until this matter is satisfactorily resolved.
********
Later... Well, they finally reposted my "crappy" article, so as far as I'm concerned, the blog is once again full speed ahead! But I'm still miffed...
I intend to hold up on any more postings on this blog until this matter is satisfactorily resolved.
********
Later... Well, they finally reposted my "crappy" article, so as far as I'm concerned, the blog is once again full speed ahead! But I'm still miffed...
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Crappy Products for Sale
There are little things in the world that peeve me, things that shouldn't but do. Not because I need to toughen up and take things in stride better, but rather because those responsible for them should and could do better. For example:
--Whenever I buy a pack of those cheap Bic ball point pens, I am satisfied. I take any pen out of the pack, uncap it, and from the start the ink flows out of the pen onto the paper. But any other brand, including the vaunted PaperMate (which all of the stores around me stock up on instead of Bic) has lousy pens that won't produce ink. This is a simple quality-control situation that the company should have taken care of during production. It's not a matter of me preferring their product less than Bic: I simply can't use their product at all, period!
--The same goes for clear adhesive tape. Scotch is the only brand that "gets it". For every other brand I've tried, the tape won't tear off cleanly, stretching instead of breaking. Or, the tape will begin to tear in such a way that it becomes fragmented around the roll, thus making the entire roll completely useless.
--Or how about those spiral notebooks that have their pages perforated for "easy" removal? After writing several pages of material in one such notebook recently, I tried to remove them so that I could reorganize them in another notebook. But about halfway down the pages, the perforation briefly ended, causing the paper to tear. How frustrating, and ultimately unnecessary!
No, I don't get it. In each of the above examples, I am not talking about products that are cheaper because they have less frills than a more expensive variety. Instead, these products are manufactured to be crappy and then sold as something that does not live up to its purported function. And sometimes they aren't even the "bargain" brands! But just the same, just because a product may be relatively inexpensive, that shouldn't grant its producer the license to sell something that in very basic ways simply doesn't work.
No wonder that many folks are edgy about purchasing generic prescription medicine. And what about the privatization of our space program? Sure hope we don't end up with any off-brand rockets...
KA-BOOM!
--Whenever I buy a pack of those cheap Bic ball point pens, I am satisfied. I take any pen out of the pack, uncap it, and from the start the ink flows out of the pen onto the paper. But any other brand, including the vaunted PaperMate (which all of the stores around me stock up on instead of Bic) has lousy pens that won't produce ink. This is a simple quality-control situation that the company should have taken care of during production. It's not a matter of me preferring their product less than Bic: I simply can't use their product at all, period!
--The same goes for clear adhesive tape. Scotch is the only brand that "gets it". For every other brand I've tried, the tape won't tear off cleanly, stretching instead of breaking. Or, the tape will begin to tear in such a way that it becomes fragmented around the roll, thus making the entire roll completely useless.
--Or how about those spiral notebooks that have their pages perforated for "easy" removal? After writing several pages of material in one such notebook recently, I tried to remove them so that I could reorganize them in another notebook. But about halfway down the pages, the perforation briefly ended, causing the paper to tear. How frustrating, and ultimately unnecessary!
No, I don't get it. In each of the above examples, I am not talking about products that are cheaper because they have less frills than a more expensive variety. Instead, these products are manufactured to be crappy and then sold as something that does not live up to its purported function. And sometimes they aren't even the "bargain" brands! But just the same, just because a product may be relatively inexpensive, that shouldn't grant its producer the license to sell something that in very basic ways simply doesn't work.
No wonder that many folks are edgy about purchasing generic prescription medicine. And what about the privatization of our space program? Sure hope we don't end up with any off-brand rockets...
KA-BOOM!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
The Pride of Humility: A Paradox?
There are many good lines in Max Ehrmann's poetic piece of counsel titled Desiderata, but a few really stand out to me as having significance for my life. One of these is If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. This speaks of the need to develop a sense of proper perspective and balance when engaging in personal endeavors that are open for public evaluation and comparison with others. It's true: usually I am pretty good at whatever I set my mind to do, but there are always going to be those who are better than me in whatever area I am working at.
I have discovered, while engaging in an activity like swimming or learning to speak a foreign language, that I often feel pretty incompetent and foolish. But I also recognize that only by refusing to feel intimidated by the fear of looking (or sounding) bad will I be able to stick with a project until I ultimate attain a satisfactory level of ability. I am learning, at this late age in my life, to punch through this often embarrassing period in learning new things by embracing the humility of spirit that it imposes on me. And then refusing to allow that humility to turn into humiliation, but instead cultivate a sense of pride that I have the guts to try new things regardless how poorly I may do them at first.
Humility is a virtue, and if you can practice it (without putting yourself down) then you should be proud! A sense of humor about one's own folly can contribute to humility and make it more enjoyable. When I am striving to learn to do something that others do better than me, I respect and accept with humility their superiority in that particular area and am proud that I want to improve myself, possibly to their level or even higher. But most likely there will still remain some with better abilities, and I'd like to be proud enough to say that this is O.K.!
I have discovered, while engaging in an activity like swimming or learning to speak a foreign language, that I often feel pretty incompetent and foolish. But I also recognize that only by refusing to feel intimidated by the fear of looking (or sounding) bad will I be able to stick with a project until I ultimate attain a satisfactory level of ability. I am learning, at this late age in my life, to punch through this often embarrassing period in learning new things by embracing the humility of spirit that it imposes on me. And then refusing to allow that humility to turn into humiliation, but instead cultivate a sense of pride that I have the guts to try new things regardless how poorly I may do them at first.
Humility is a virtue, and if you can practice it (without putting yourself down) then you should be proud! A sense of humor about one's own folly can contribute to humility and make it more enjoyable. When I am striving to learn to do something that others do better than me, I respect and accept with humility their superiority in that particular area and am proud that I want to improve myself, possibly to their level or even higher. But most likely there will still remain some with better abilities, and I'd like to be proud enough to say that this is O.K.!
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Union Meeting Attendance Strategy Revisited
Back on 11/21/08 I wrote an article titled The "What If" Fallacy, examining the attendance strategy of my union local. To increase attendance, they have a drawing each meeting, the winner receiving a hefty sum of money. If the one whose name is drawn isn't present, they don't win anything and their name is shown at work on the union bulletin board (I suppose to publicly humiliate them). The amount to win in the attendance drawing is increased with each meeting if not claimed. Once someone succeeds in winning a drawing, the total offered in the next meeting reverts back to a nominal $50. To be eligible for the drawing, all one has to do is be a (local) union member. I examined the flaws in the argument for this attendance strategy in the previous article (hit the link to read it). Now I have some new information on the drawing that, in my opinion, makes it even more flawed.
Union officers and stewards are expected to attend these union meetings. Photos from my local's newsletter reflects this: the attendees are heavily weighted with officers and stewards (and they tend to be the ones winning the drawing), with a few (very few) rank and file members sprinkled in [correction: executive board officers don't take part in the drawing--thanks, Brian]. This is probably just as well, since there really isn't very much room at the meeting site to accommodate more than a handful of people anyway. But to spur greater attendance, anyone attending a meeting gets an extra entry in the drawing for each meeting they attend. So if I, say, attended 5 meetings, then I would have my name in the drawing "pot" on 6 pieces of paper, greatly increasing my odds of winning, a clear incentive to attend. On the other hand, if I attend the meetings and want to win the drawing, then the last thing I would want is for others to start attending since their names would also be multiplied in the pot, thereby reducing my own chances of winning. So what we end up with is a few people faithfully attending meetings while not exactly wholeheartedly encouraging others to join them. I don't think that's what the creators of this scheme had in mind...
Maybe I'm sounding a little cynical about all this. After all, shouldn't we just show our "union spirit" and attend meetings for their own sake? But it wasn't me who concocted and implemented this attendance drawing strategy. And I probably would never had commented on it were it not for the continuing deplorable practice of publicizing the drawings' "losers".
Union officers and stewards are expected to attend these union meetings. Photos from my local's newsletter reflects this: the attendees are heavily weighted with officers and stewards (and they tend to be the ones winning the drawing), with a few (very few) rank and file members sprinkled in [correction: executive board officers don't take part in the drawing--thanks, Brian]. This is probably just as well, since there really isn't very much room at the meeting site to accommodate more than a handful of people anyway. But to spur greater attendance, anyone attending a meeting gets an extra entry in the drawing for each meeting they attend. So if I, say, attended 5 meetings, then I would have my name in the drawing "pot" on 6 pieces of paper, greatly increasing my odds of winning, a clear incentive to attend. On the other hand, if I attend the meetings and want to win the drawing, then the last thing I would want is for others to start attending since their names would also be multiplied in the pot, thereby reducing my own chances of winning. So what we end up with is a few people faithfully attending meetings while not exactly wholeheartedly encouraging others to join them. I don't think that's what the creators of this scheme had in mind...
Maybe I'm sounding a little cynical about all this. After all, shouldn't we just show our "union spirit" and attend meetings for their own sake? But it wasn't me who concocted and implemented this attendance drawing strategy. And I probably would never had commented on it were it not for the continuing deplorable practice of publicizing the drawings' "losers".
Monday, May 9, 2011
Swimming Pool Blues
Recently, I have become a bit bummed out about the swimming pools that are supposed to be available for me to use. One of these, Westside Pool, for which I as a Gainesville citizen share in its funding through my property taxes, waited until the very late date of May 6 to finally open to the public. Then it limited its hours to 3-7 PM weekdays and noon-5 on weekends. On top of that, I would have to pay $3.65 each time I used it. Not that I would, seeing that they apparently don't think that anyone but school children use the pool since they don't ever open unless school's out. Then there's my local YMCA's pool.
I pay out a reasonable sum of money monthly for membership in the YMCA. Having access to their pool is a big thing for me. But on Saturday and Sunday, they host a large scuba diving class, effectively clogging up two thirds of the pool. Aggravating the situation further, they reduce the available swimming lanes on these days from five to three. So it's often impossible to find a time there on the weekend when there is enough space in the pool for me to practice my swimming.
This morning I went to the pool around 11 AM, knowing that the water aerobics class, which also effectively monopolizes half the pool, had already ended. These days I often find the 25-meter swimming lanes full, and today was no exception. Still, I had most of the shallow part of the pool to myself and made good use of it, swimming for 43 consecutive minutes. Part of my swim involves a slow backstroke. I was performing this when I swam right into an old dude who was wading over into the shallow end from one of the lanes. Apparently, he felt that he was so important that he didn't feel the need to show basic courtesy and time himself to avoid me. A-a-a-g-h!
I remember experiencing frustration in the past about being able to find suitable places to run, finally deciding on my own home neighborhood streets as a stable, convenient, and consistently available setting. Perhaps I should follow this example and start showing up in my neighbors' swimming pools!
One unexplored option is the large number of natural springs in the Gainesville vicinity. I think I should start looking into this, keeping in mind of course the travel expenses involved as well as admission fees.
Getting my own swimming pool built is not an option for me due to the expense. I have seen ads on TV for something called an "endless pool", which is a small pool analogous to a treadmill that allows a swimmer to "swim in place" against a generated current. Unfortunately, this also seems awfully pricey. Also, the less expensive above-ground portable pools are not large enough to do me any good with my swimming.
So swimming is just going to have to be an activity that has its own limitations for me. But recognizing this doesn't reduce my frustration.
I pay out a reasonable sum of money monthly for membership in the YMCA. Having access to their pool is a big thing for me. But on Saturday and Sunday, they host a large scuba diving class, effectively clogging up two thirds of the pool. Aggravating the situation further, they reduce the available swimming lanes on these days from five to three. So it's often impossible to find a time there on the weekend when there is enough space in the pool for me to practice my swimming.
This morning I went to the pool around 11 AM, knowing that the water aerobics class, which also effectively monopolizes half the pool, had already ended. These days I often find the 25-meter swimming lanes full, and today was no exception. Still, I had most of the shallow part of the pool to myself and made good use of it, swimming for 43 consecutive minutes. Part of my swim involves a slow backstroke. I was performing this when I swam right into an old dude who was wading over into the shallow end from one of the lanes. Apparently, he felt that he was so important that he didn't feel the need to show basic courtesy and time himself to avoid me. A-a-a-g-h!
I remember experiencing frustration in the past about being able to find suitable places to run, finally deciding on my own home neighborhood streets as a stable, convenient, and consistently available setting. Perhaps I should follow this example and start showing up in my neighbors' swimming pools!
One unexplored option is the large number of natural springs in the Gainesville vicinity. I think I should start looking into this, keeping in mind of course the travel expenses involved as well as admission fees.
Getting my own swimming pool built is not an option for me due to the expense. I have seen ads on TV for something called an "endless pool", which is a small pool analogous to a treadmill that allows a swimmer to "swim in place" against a generated current. Unfortunately, this also seems awfully pricey. Also, the less expensive above-ground portable pools are not large enough to do me any good with my swimming.
So swimming is just going to have to be an activity that has its own limitations for me. But recognizing this doesn't reduce my frustration.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Bynum, Odom Goats, Kobe Shows Class in Loss
In the NBA West semifinals, the Dallas Mavericks completed their surprising four-game sweep of the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers with a resounding 122-86 win. Laker star Kobe Bryant was magnanimous in defeat, congratulating the winners and giving them full credit for playing so well against his Lakers. It's too bad that he has some teammates who are clueless when it comes to displaying good sportsmanship.
In the fourth quarter, when the game's outcome was no longer in question, Lakers Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum each committed egregious flagrant fouls within the span of a minute, causing both to be ejected. Bynum's was by far the worse as he elbowed a Maverick player sharply in the ribs as he was in mid-air driving to the basket. To make matters even worse, after the referee signalled his ejection, Bynum then took off his shirt in front of the Dallas crowd as he walked off the court.
I saw both flagrant fouls and thought that Odom's was forgivable, but not Bynum's. Kobe Bryant was clearly saddened and ashamed of his teammates' violent and immature behavior. The man does have class, I must say. But still, I will never again root for any team of which Andrew Bynum is a member, even if it's with Kobe Bryant.
In the fourth quarter, when the game's outcome was no longer in question, Lakers Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum each committed egregious flagrant fouls within the span of a minute, causing both to be ejected. Bynum's was by far the worse as he elbowed a Maverick player sharply in the ribs as he was in mid-air driving to the basket. To make matters even worse, after the referee signalled his ejection, Bynum then took off his shirt in front of the Dallas crowd as he walked off the court.
I saw both flagrant fouls and thought that Odom's was forgivable, but not Bynum's. Kobe Bryant was clearly saddened and ashamed of his teammates' violent and immature behavior. The man does have class, I must say. But still, I will never again root for any team of which Andrew Bynum is a member, even if it's with Kobe Bryant.
Saturday, May 7, 2011
New Late Hour Haunt
I don't know how long this has been going on, but I just found a Starbucks that stays open until midnight, not far from my workplace. Seeing how I usually get off from work at 11 PM, this may be the start of something big. You see, when it comes to studying or writing I hit a mental energy "zone of darkness" when I get home. It's been this way my whole life. If I had known as a kid how utterly opposite I am from this when out in a public place like a coffee shop, I might have been a little more rebellious and pressed my parents for some time "out" to do my homework. Still, that was then and now is when I have the opportunity to affect my life the way I want to.
So as long as this place will accommodate me by staying open late, I plan to do business with them. And I have a long, long list of projects that can occupy my time here (I'm at this Starbucks right now).
But more than just studying out late at night, this is a convenient location for me to relax and wind down from my often stressful job. Not that I'm complaining: my job is good for me in many ways. But it is also good to have a brief transitional time between work and home.
So as long as this place will accommodate me by staying open late, I plan to do business with them. And I have a long, long list of projects that can occupy my time here (I'm at this Starbucks right now).
But more than just studying out late at night, this is a convenient location for me to relax and wind down from my often stressful job. Not that I'm complaining: my job is good for me in many ways. But it is also good to have a brief transitional time between work and home.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Ten Mile Uncomfortable Run
Yesterday, I ran 10 miles (time 1:35:24). The temperatures stayed in the 70's throughout and the humidity was low. Still, I felt uncomfortable during the run, sensing aches in my legs and imagining that my injury was about to return. But at the end, nothing of the kind happened. Still, today I felt out of sorts and skipped my planned swim. We'll see what the weekend brings. Maybe I just need to take a day or two off from my workouts.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Swimming Progresses to Continuous Level
Yesterday I swam constantly for about 27 minutes at my YMCA's pool. Before this I used to take short "breather" breaks between laps. I swam in the shallow section, doing freestyle in one direction and then immediately a modified backstroke in the other. I discovered that I could go on indefinitely like this, but decided to cut it off at 27 minutes because I instinctively wanted to increase my time in a more gradual manner. Next swim is tomorrow: today is a running day!
My previous conclusion about what curtails my swimming distance seems to be correct: breathing is the limiting factor. Once I get habituated to a good breathing pattern that keeps me from building up an oxygen debt, I should swim on the same endurance level as I run.
My swimming strategy is now laid out. I will alternate freestyle with backstroke at about every 12 meters or so. As my breathing during freestyle becomes more efficient, I will increase my distance in that stroke relative to the backstroke. And it matters not where I'm swimming, either: I just need to count my strokes to determine the appropriate "flipping" moment. So tomorrow I plan to take this continuous swimming strategy and apply it to the longer 25-meter lanes at the pool. And try to swim longer than yesterday.
Somewhere along the line I also intend to integrate breaststroke and, later, the butterfly into my routine. Seems now that I should just be able to practice breaststroke as short segments of my continuous workout.
My previous conclusion about what curtails my swimming distance seems to be correct: breathing is the limiting factor. Once I get habituated to a good breathing pattern that keeps me from building up an oxygen debt, I should swim on the same endurance level as I run.
My swimming strategy is now laid out. I will alternate freestyle with backstroke at about every 12 meters or so. As my breathing during freestyle becomes more efficient, I will increase my distance in that stroke relative to the backstroke. And it matters not where I'm swimming, either: I just need to count my strokes to determine the appropriate "flipping" moment. So tomorrow I plan to take this continuous swimming strategy and apply it to the longer 25-meter lanes at the pool. And try to swim longer than yesterday.
Somewhere along the line I also intend to integrate breaststroke and, later, the butterfly into my routine. Seems now that I should just be able to practice breaststroke as short segments of my continuous workout.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Balanced Breathing in Swimming and Running
I was recently discussing with a friend my ongoing project of improving my breathing while swimming, to the point where I stop building up an oxygen debt and feel comfortable swimming for appreciably longer distances. She mentioned to me that she had previously had the same problem regarding running longer distances: she had to learn to achieve a balance with her breathing while running. I initially thought it unusual that someone might have trouble breathing while running. And then I took a walk down memory lane, back to my own childhood and my approach then to running.
When I was a kid, I ran at one speed: as fast as I could! There was no such thing as pacing myself. So when I ran, I ran all-out and soon would find myself gasping for air, having naturally incurred a great oxygen debt. It wasn't until I began to practice running longer distances in my mid-teens that I began to pace myself and establish a sort of peace between my running and my breathing. After this happened, I could run as long as I had the physical energy, barring any injury. I had figured out how to breathe while running so long ago (early 1970's) that I had at first missed the significance of my friend's remarks.
And this is the significance: even being a land creature with almost constant access to the open air, it took me several years to learn how to breathe in a sustaining way without building up oxygen debt. By contrast, I have been in water much, much less, having spent very little time or effort to balance out my "swimming" breathing. So I should feel encouraged with my progress so far, even though at times it seems like I'm just "treading water"!
When I was a kid, I ran at one speed: as fast as I could! There was no such thing as pacing myself. So when I ran, I ran all-out and soon would find myself gasping for air, having naturally incurred a great oxygen debt. It wasn't until I began to practice running longer distances in my mid-teens that I began to pace myself and establish a sort of peace between my running and my breathing. After this happened, I could run as long as I had the physical energy, barring any injury. I had figured out how to breathe while running so long ago (early 1970's) that I had at first missed the significance of my friend's remarks.
And this is the significance: even being a land creature with almost constant access to the open air, it took me several years to learn how to breathe in a sustaining way without building up oxygen debt. By contrast, I have been in water much, much less, having spent very little time or effort to balance out my "swimming" breathing. So I should feel encouraged with my progress so far, even though at times it seems like I'm just "treading water"!
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Smoky Haze Looms
Being a runner, and one who doesn't confine this activity to an indoor treadmill, I have become a little concerned over the last couple of days about the explosion of brush fires, both in the Gainesville area and in northern Florida and southern Georgia in general. Not that I feel at all threatened by any fire: it is the smoky haze from them that ruins the air, making physical activity something that necessitates going indoors into air conditioning.
On my local TV news, it was reported that Gainesville and vicinity had experienced 30 such fires over the past week. Furthermore, with winds shifting to a northerly direction, those fires north of us are due to be sending their stinking haze in our direction. I experienced a few minutes of this yesterday morning, but the wind fortunately shifted again and it disappeared.
This morning I was apprehensive, wondering whether I would need to go to my YMCA and work out on the treadmill instead of my much-preferred road running through the neighborhood. But at about 10:45, I stepped outside and the air smelled clean. I ran my 7.18 mile course with ease, only limited by time restrictions. Let's see how it is on Thursday, when I'll be setting out on another run, possibly a long one (10 miles plus).
Tomorrow I have scheduled myself to swim, so I'm still going to be outside. Hopefully, my string of luck will continue and we'll avoid the haze in Gainesville. But more than anything, we need a lot of rain around here. That may sound incredible, considering the horrendous storms and flooding the southeastern U.S. has been experiencing lately.
On my local TV news, it was reported that Gainesville and vicinity had experienced 30 such fires over the past week. Furthermore, with winds shifting to a northerly direction, those fires north of us are due to be sending their stinking haze in our direction. I experienced a few minutes of this yesterday morning, but the wind fortunately shifted again and it disappeared.
This morning I was apprehensive, wondering whether I would need to go to my YMCA and work out on the treadmill instead of my much-preferred road running through the neighborhood. But at about 10:45, I stepped outside and the air smelled clean. I ran my 7.18 mile course with ease, only limited by time restrictions. Let's see how it is on Thursday, when I'll be setting out on another run, possibly a long one (10 miles plus).
Tomorrow I have scheduled myself to swim, so I'm still going to be outside. Hopefully, my string of luck will continue and we'll avoid the haze in Gainesville. But more than anything, we need a lot of rain around here. That may sound incredible, considering the horrendous storms and flooding the southeastern U.S. has been experiencing lately.
Monday, May 2, 2011
Forget Unity from the Right Over Bin Laden
With the news about the killing of international mass-murderer Osama Bin Laden only hours old, I tuned in to my local extreme right-wing talk show radio station expecting to hear some short-term moments of national unity. You know, unity behind our president Barack Obama, who is strongly responsible for this outcome. It was the morning show with local Rush Limbaugh-wannabe Bob Rose. He was in the middle of taking calls. The first I heard was some dude angrily claiming that if it were Bush who had done this, then the "lefties" would be all over themselves criticizing him. "Rush" Rose said nothing for or against this comment. The next call-in was someone espousing the view that, a-ha, NOW he knows why Obama just went to the trouble to release his birth certificate. To which Rose should have replied, "WTF are you talking about, you irrational, crazy moron?" But he let that caller also go without any correction. These folks, after all, represent Rose's listening base of frightened, liberal-hating ideologues and he knows where his paycheck comes from. Finally, the esteemed local host took a minute away from the phones to make a statement to the effect that some of the previous callers should realize that this is a time of unity for the country as a whole and they don't need to be overcritical. Then he immediately pondered about GITMO, how information leading to the location of Bin Laden's hangout may have been obtained there from detainees, and oh by the way, didn't Obama and his liberal buddies want to close it down? All this almost in one breath.
So I see little hope for anything resembling the national unity expressed for President Bush immediately after the 9/11 attacks. Furthermore, I have a prediction: in the ensuing days, a conspiracy theory will develop, probably viewable on YouTube and passed around on "hate" radio and FoxHateNews: it was all faked, Obama knew he needed to "get" Bin Laden to be reelected and made a deal with him to "disappear" in exchange for his faked killing. After all, he had been living right there all along among the Pakistani military, our allies. And didn't they get rid of that body pretty conveniently fast? I further predict that at least one of the GOP presidential hopefuls will embrace this nutty fabrication and actually gain traction over it with the party's "base".
You should be able to see this coming: too many people utterly despise our president and will never credit him with doing anything good...
******
... I see tonight's Colbert Report ripped off my short-but-sweet article from yesterday. Now where's my lawyer....
So I see little hope for anything resembling the national unity expressed for President Bush immediately after the 9/11 attacks. Furthermore, I have a prediction: in the ensuing days, a conspiracy theory will develop, probably viewable on YouTube and passed around on "hate" radio and FoxHateNews: it was all faked, Obama knew he needed to "get" Bin Laden to be reelected and made a deal with him to "disappear" in exchange for his faked killing. After all, he had been living right there all along among the Pakistani military, our allies. And didn't they get rid of that body pretty conveniently fast? I further predict that at least one of the GOP presidential hopefuls will embrace this nutty fabrication and actually gain traction over it with the party's "base".
You should be able to see this coming: too many people utterly despise our president and will never credit him with doing anything good...
******
... I see tonight's Colbert Report ripped off my short-but-sweet article from yesterday. Now where's my lawyer....
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Too Many Books Adhering to Murder Formula
I was walking through my local Books-a-Million the other day, wondering how all of these successful general-fiction writers come up with successful story plot lines. I entered one of the aisles, looked around to make sure that there wasn't anyone I might accidentally bump into or trip over (many B-a-M customers like to sit on the floor), and closed my eyes. And then reached over to my right and pulled out the first book I touched. It was about a serial killer. Placing it back on the shelf, I then walked down a couple of steps and repeated myself. So did the book I picked: another serial killer story.
I stopped the experiment and began to examine book after book. No, I wasn't in the mystery section, but most of the books had as their premise a murderer on the loose. And then it hit me: books are marketed nowadays according to formulae similar to how popular music is marketed and played on broadcast radio. And instead of the diversity of stories that should be available, we end up getting a relatively sparse number of very successful authors churning out minor variations of their own (and each other's) works, much like the annoying homogeneity of crap being passed as music on broadcast radio. Yuck...
So I wonder how many aspiring writers have eschewed the overworked serial murderer story line and tried writing material of a more offbeat nature, resulting in their stories either never being published or suffering poor promotion leading to their lack of exposure in major book outlets.
Maybe I should write a parody of these tedious and ultimately boring serial killer books, but try to sell it as a serious work and see what happens. A kind of literary Spinal Tap, if you will...
I stopped the experiment and began to examine book after book. No, I wasn't in the mystery section, but most of the books had as their premise a murderer on the loose. And then it hit me: books are marketed nowadays according to formulae similar to how popular music is marketed and played on broadcast radio. And instead of the diversity of stories that should be available, we end up getting a relatively sparse number of very successful authors churning out minor variations of their own (and each other's) works, much like the annoying homogeneity of crap being passed as music on broadcast radio. Yuck...
So I wonder how many aspiring writers have eschewed the overworked serial murderer story line and tried writing material of a more offbeat nature, resulting in their stories either never being published or suffering poor promotion leading to their lack of exposure in major book outlets.
Maybe I should write a parody of these tedious and ultimately boring serial killer books, but try to sell it as a serious work and see what happens. A kind of literary Spinal Tap, if you will...
Friday, April 29, 2011
Boda Real is Real Bull
Let's be clear about this: I am an American. And if there's one thing that is clearly positive about my heritage as an American, it is that my country was founded as a republic, divorced from the curse of royalty. Places with kings, queens, princes, princesses, czars, sultans, emperors,... however you may designate them, are plagued with essentially worthless people who inherit shameless amounts of wealth and have completely unmerited power to influence events in their countries. It is true that in today's world, most royalty is chiefly ceremonial and symbolic. But a lot of the reason for this change has been bloody revolts and wars against autocratic royal despots in the past. And to think that people are getting all excited and teary-eyed about a prince marrying his girlfriend in England? Unbelievable!
What makes things even worse are two buried news stories occurring at the same general time as this ludicrous event. Three hundred people, i.e. American people, have violently perished at the hands of an historic storm system that unleashed hundreds of tornadoes on heavily populated areas, chiefly in northern Alabama. And another historic event, the final launch of the space shuttle Endeavor, with its very important cargo for studying the basic nature of the universe, was slated for Friday (but postponed for at least two days due to last-minute technical problems). But no, let's push these stories to the background, dress our journalists and announcers in ridiculous costumes, and fly them overseas for non-stop coverage of this non-event!
What I think is also funny (or sad, depending on how you look at it) is how even much more engrossed in the British "boda real" my Spanish-language television station Univision has been, apparently in response to its viewing audience. This floors me, especially considering that for most of the Latin American countries, their struggle for independence from hegemonistic European royalty was even more traumatic than was the Americans' struggle against the British during the Revolutionary War.
But I suppose that part of this fascination with today's wedding stems from our childhood memories of so many stories revolving around royalty. So instead of being realistic about how parasitic on society the REAL royalty is, we impose our fantasy visions on these basically common, ordinary people and elevate them to an undeserving status.
What makes things even worse are two buried news stories occurring at the same general time as this ludicrous event. Three hundred people, i.e. American people, have violently perished at the hands of an historic storm system that unleashed hundreds of tornadoes on heavily populated areas, chiefly in northern Alabama. And another historic event, the final launch of the space shuttle Endeavor, with its very important cargo for studying the basic nature of the universe, was slated for Friday (but postponed for at least two days due to last-minute technical problems). But no, let's push these stories to the background, dress our journalists and announcers in ridiculous costumes, and fly them overseas for non-stop coverage of this non-event!
What I think is also funny (or sad, depending on how you look at it) is how even much more engrossed in the British "boda real" my Spanish-language television station Univision has been, apparently in response to its viewing audience. This floors me, especially considering that for most of the Latin American countries, their struggle for independence from hegemonistic European royalty was even more traumatic than was the Americans' struggle against the British during the Revolutionary War.
But I suppose that part of this fascination with today's wedding stems from our childhood memories of so many stories revolving around royalty. So instead of being realistic about how parasitic on society the REAL royalty is, we impose our fantasy visions on these basically common, ordinary people and elevate them to an undeserving status.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Ten-Mile Run Ahead of Killer Storm
Well, maybe I'm being a little melodramatic. But I did run ten miles late this morning, and it WAS ahead of a massive frontal storm system that, at last report, is responsible for at least 170 deaths throughout the southeastern U.S.. The front seems to have dipped to the northern fringe of Florida, just missing Gainesville. But some spinoff storms still cut through the area later today (but not anything like the devastation visited elsewhere, especially Alabama). Ironically, it was this front that largely helped me to reach ten miles by providing welcome shade with clouds leading ahead of it. And it never rained during the run, although a few sprinkles probably would have enhanced it.
The run was done under generally unpleasant weather conditions: the temperature ranged from 78 degrees at the start to 86 at the end. Humidity dropped during the run from a sticky 74% to a more manageable 63%.
My ten-mile run time was 1:36:40, reflecting my stubbornly predictable and comfortable long-distance running pace.
It certainly does raise my spirits to be able to return to a regular running routine. Once again, there was no hint throughout this workout that I had ever suffered any injury. Hooray! But that personal encouragement is tempered with the sadness over this terrible storm system's casualties.
The run was done under generally unpleasant weather conditions: the temperature ranged from 78 degrees at the start to 86 at the end. Humidity dropped during the run from a sticky 74% to a more manageable 63%.
My ten-mile run time was 1:36:40, reflecting my stubbornly predictable and comfortable long-distance running pace.
It certainly does raise my spirits to be able to return to a regular running routine. Once again, there was no hint throughout this workout that I had ever suffered any injury. Hooray! But that personal encouragement is tempered with the sadness over this terrible storm system's casualties.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Is Kobe the Best Right Now?
I was listening earlier today to a sports talk show on the radio (I think it was ESPN). The question being discussed was who the best player in basketball is right now. The announcers settled on Kobe Bryant. One of them pointed out that, in last night's playoff game against New Orleans, Bryant made a couple of stunning plays to the basket that only he could make. And he was supposedly nursing an ankle injury!
Well, apparently there wasn't any ankle injury and Bryant had been using it as an excuse for his lackluster play against the Hornets so far. Then last night, in the second quarter (after a very slow first quarter), he suddenly "made his statement" and his Los Angeles Lakers won to take a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. But does that show him to be the best player right now?
Remember, the announcers were referring to the present and not to the span of a player's career. Kobe Bryant has a solid claim to a "career best player" for his impressive total of NBA championship rings. But his performance lately has been spotty and erratic, to say the least. For me, I place much greater store in consistent greatness. Chicago's Derrick Rose and Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant, by that standard, have shown themselves to be much greater than Kobe Bryant. Right now.
Kobe Bryant, like Miami's Lebron James, has enormous talent, talent which at times is breathtaking. But much of the time in a game, at least as I see it, both of these superstar athletes simply won't play up to the level that they are capable of. It creates frustration for their teams' fans as they wonder when, if ever, their hero is finally going to get himself in the mood to "turn it on" in a game. For me, I come away from the experience with a feeling of having been manipulated somehow. I certainly wouldn't elevate someone like this to the title of "best".
Well, apparently there wasn't any ankle injury and Bryant had been using it as an excuse for his lackluster play against the Hornets so far. Then last night, in the second quarter (after a very slow first quarter), he suddenly "made his statement" and his Los Angeles Lakers won to take a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. But does that show him to be the best player right now?
Remember, the announcers were referring to the present and not to the span of a player's career. Kobe Bryant has a solid claim to a "career best player" for his impressive total of NBA championship rings. But his performance lately has been spotty and erratic, to say the least. For me, I place much greater store in consistent greatness. Chicago's Derrick Rose and Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant, by that standard, have shown themselves to be much greater than Kobe Bryant. Right now.
Kobe Bryant, like Miami's Lebron James, has enormous talent, talent which at times is breathtaking. But much of the time in a game, at least as I see it, both of these superstar athletes simply won't play up to the level that they are capable of. It creates frustration for their teams' fans as they wonder when, if ever, their hero is finally going to get himself in the mood to "turn it on" in a game. For me, I come away from the experience with a feeling of having been manipulated somehow. I certainly wouldn't elevate someone like this to the title of "best".
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Is My Injury Recovery Complete?
On March 22, I began to experience some familiar pain from my January IT band injury (in my right leg just below the knee) while on a neighborhood run, around the four-mile mark. I prudently laid off running for a weak to aid in my healing. Since then...
Starting on March 29 and including today, I have run on ten different occasions and amassed 57.5 miles. No pain! Today was a breakthrough of sorts: I ran on the road around my neighborhood for 8.15 miles (time 1:15:12) and only ended my run because, frankly, I had fallen out of shape due to resting from the injury and was too tired to continue (and it was hot and humid to boot). But no pain in the injured area.
So have I fully recovered? I might as well act as if I have, since it will probably take some time to gradually build my distance back up to the level I had previously enjoyed. But with several recent runs of over seven miles, I am already in the lower mileage level of the area I want to get to! I would just like to add a longer run, around 13-14 miles, once a week, and I will be content with running again.
Yes, I don't think it will be long before I am participating again in various community road races. Unfortunately, with the oncoming hot summer, they may be few and far between.
Starting on March 29 and including today, I have run on ten different occasions and amassed 57.5 miles. No pain! Today was a breakthrough of sorts: I ran on the road around my neighborhood for 8.15 miles (time 1:15:12) and only ended my run because, frankly, I had fallen out of shape due to resting from the injury and was too tired to continue (and it was hot and humid to boot). But no pain in the injured area.
So have I fully recovered? I might as well act as if I have, since it will probably take some time to gradually build my distance back up to the level I had previously enjoyed. But with several recent runs of over seven miles, I am already in the lower mileage level of the area I want to get to! I would just like to add a longer run, around 13-14 miles, once a week, and I will be content with running again.
Yes, I don't think it will be long before I am participating again in various community road races. Unfortunately, with the oncoming hot summer, they may be few and far between.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Final Endeavor Mission Slated For Friday Liftoff
The space shuttle program is winding down as another shuttle, Endeavor, is scheduled for its final launch this Friday. There is so little popular interest in our space program anymore that it probably would have been largely ignored by the media were it not for the human interest angle with astronaut Mark Kelly being on of the crew. Kelly is the husband of recently-shot U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who apparently will be able to watch the launch.
It is a shame that so many care little or nothing about space exploration. To me, it represents the future of science and carries enormous significance for our ability to maintain our fragile Earth's ability to sustain life. But public apathy has instead allowed NASA, the federal agency charged with the responsibility of setting our goals and implementing them, to escape the needed scrutiny it needs to avoid slipping into a weighted-down bureaucracy instead of a dynamic, tightly managed organization with clear and ambitious missions.
When our last president presented his plan to go back to the moon and set up a permanent base there, the press reacted to it as if it were just a lame, fill-in news story. Soon after Bush laid out his vision, the story quickly died.
Space travel has little political traction with the ideological polarization currently intensifying in our country. The political right sees anything to do with the government as being inherently evil (unless it involves increasing discrimination against minorities and the poor, depriving women of reproductive freedom, promoting one particular religious worldview over others, or funding the military to ridiculous levels). The political left, on the other hand, seems to delight in negatively comparing public spending on space exploration to entitlement programs that it would like to see strengthened (the old "we can send a man to the moon but we won't help the poor" argument).
Hopefully, private industry will step in and help to revitalize space exploration. But don't expect a lot of media coverage on this. After all, the commercial news media of today is more interested in anticipating public interest for its stories, not creating it. Too bad.
It is a shame that so many care little or nothing about space exploration. To me, it represents the future of science and carries enormous significance for our ability to maintain our fragile Earth's ability to sustain life. But public apathy has instead allowed NASA, the federal agency charged with the responsibility of setting our goals and implementing them, to escape the needed scrutiny it needs to avoid slipping into a weighted-down bureaucracy instead of a dynamic, tightly managed organization with clear and ambitious missions.
When our last president presented his plan to go back to the moon and set up a permanent base there, the press reacted to it as if it were just a lame, fill-in news story. Soon after Bush laid out his vision, the story quickly died.
Space travel has little political traction with the ideological polarization currently intensifying in our country. The political right sees anything to do with the government as being inherently evil (unless it involves increasing discrimination against minorities and the poor, depriving women of reproductive freedom, promoting one particular religious worldview over others, or funding the military to ridiculous levels). The political left, on the other hand, seems to delight in negatively comparing public spending on space exploration to entitlement programs that it would like to see strengthened (the old "we can send a man to the moon but we won't help the poor" argument).
Hopefully, private industry will step in and help to revitalize space exploration. But don't expect a lot of media coverage on this. After all, the commercial news media of today is more interested in anticipating public interest for its stories, not creating it. Too bad.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Annoying Late Night for Me
Sometimes work can be a bit stressful toward the end of my shift, approaching 11 PM. After I get off from work, I would like to find a relatively quiet public place to unwind with a little decaf coffee and then go home. Try finding such a place in Gainesville, though! Still, I'm making it a kind of quest: surely there is someplace that isn't too loud, excessively lit, full of obnoxious people, and serves coffee that time of night...
The other night after a particularly stress-inducing shift, I went to my local 24-hour Krispy Kreme to find some solace and coffee. Mistake. There was a long line of customers as I entered, so I sat down and waited, pulling out a notebook to read. Only I couldn't read, everyone was so loud. And argumentative. It seems that some of the customers were irate because the red "hot doughnuts" sign wasn't on yet, and they wanted their doughnuts HOT, dammit. Then the comatose-looking attendant behind the counter asked a woman customer what she wanted, to which she replied a dozen glazed. This angered another customer, who had already ordered and was waiting for his dozen glazed doughnuts (are you beginning to see how irrational these people were). The woman actually apologized to the man for her order, probably realizing what a nutcase he was. All this and a myriad other conversations seemed to be amplified by the place's acoustics. And the lighting there would befit an interrogation room. Well, I eased on out of that joint and wrote off my experience as a lesson learned...
Maybe tonight I'll try one of those all-night restaurants where they expect you to order complete meals (like at IHOP or Perkins). Then I'll just sit there like the goth kids on South Park, annoying the servers by ordering only coffee and sitting there glued to the seat!
The other night after a particularly stress-inducing shift, I went to my local 24-hour Krispy Kreme to find some solace and coffee. Mistake. There was a long line of customers as I entered, so I sat down and waited, pulling out a notebook to read. Only I couldn't read, everyone was so loud. And argumentative. It seems that some of the customers were irate because the red "hot doughnuts" sign wasn't on yet, and they wanted their doughnuts HOT, dammit. Then the comatose-looking attendant behind the counter asked a woman customer what she wanted, to which she replied a dozen glazed. This angered another customer, who had already ordered and was waiting for his dozen glazed doughnuts (are you beginning to see how irrational these people were). The woman actually apologized to the man for her order, probably realizing what a nutcase he was. All this and a myriad other conversations seemed to be amplified by the place's acoustics. And the lighting there would befit an interrogation room. Well, I eased on out of that joint and wrote off my experience as a lesson learned...
Maybe tonight I'll try one of those all-night restaurants where they expect you to order complete meals (like at IHOP or Perkins). Then I'll just sit there like the goth kids on South Park, annoying the servers by ordering only coffee and sitting there glued to the seat!
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Annoying Day for Me
Today was one of those interesting days I could do without, for the most part. For most of the morning, after I drove my daughter to school, I was too tired to do anything but sleep. So I slept in. Finally, at the last minute I decided to try another seven-mile run around the neighborhood. By then the temperature had climbed to the mid-eighties outside, making the run somewhat grueling. But I completed it nonetheless and was quite self-congratulatory as I walked back up to my front door, keys in hand. Only I had the wrong set of keys; my house key was locked up inside the house. With nobody home inside this time of day, I had to spend the next twenty minutes creeping around the house trying to find a way to break in. Finally, just about when I had given up hope, I found a way. But then I thought this is a security problem. If I could get in this way, then an intruder could as well. So I fixed that breach, making the next time I lock myself out of my house an assured disaster!
I had just enough time to wash up and get ready for work. But right after I started my car, it instantly died on me, completely. Great, now I was going to be late for work and who knows what was wrong with the car. After getting on the phone with my auto repairman, he suggested that I tighten the battery connections. Sure enough, when I did that the power came back on and I was only a few minutes late for work.
Even after that, the day dragged on and I felt sluggish and weak. Usually after a good run I am pretty sharp, so I wondered why. And then it hit me: I hadn't had any coffee all day! At my first break at 4:30, I drank a big cup and everything improved from then on.
It's interesting how predicaments like locking oneself out of the house or having the car inexplicably shut down can seem so catastrophic while they are going on. But looking back from my perspective just a few hours later, it all now seems rather trivial, not to mention funny!
I had just enough time to wash up and get ready for work. But right after I started my car, it instantly died on me, completely. Great, now I was going to be late for work and who knows what was wrong with the car. After getting on the phone with my auto repairman, he suggested that I tighten the battery connections. Sure enough, when I did that the power came back on and I was only a few minutes late for work.
Even after that, the day dragged on and I felt sluggish and weak. Usually after a good run I am pretty sharp, so I wondered why. And then it hit me: I hadn't had any coffee all day! At my first break at 4:30, I drank a big cup and everything improved from then on.
It's interesting how predicaments like locking oneself out of the house or having the car inexplicably shut down can seem so catastrophic while they are going on. But looking back from my perspective just a few hours later, it all now seems rather trivial, not to mention funny!
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Swimming and Breathing
Sunday at the mega-used-book sale here in Gainesville I spent 50 cents on a swimming guide. It gave some tips for how to breathe while swimming. One was to practice breathing in the water by standing in place with the water at about shoulder level. Quickly inhale through the mouth and then dip under water by bending the knees. Slowly exhale through the nose and then briefly emerge to inhale again. Keep repeating indefinitely, if you can. For if you can do this without building up an oxygen debt or starting to gasp for air, then you have a working model for breathing while swimming. Or at least that's what the book implies.
In practice, it is different to do this while swimming. I am thinking about a lot of things besides breathing. I am balancing my body and concentrating on how I am positioning my arms, torso, and legs at any given moment. Most of the time (when I am swimming freestyle) my head is under water, so naturally I have to delay my breathing until my stroke is at the stage where my head is momentarily turned sideways out of the water. So the bobbing practice pushed in the book is helpful, but not entirely adequate.
Today I worked on my breathing at the pool, and it continues to be a work in progress. But I did learn something very significant today: I don't really tire much while swimming. My rest periods between laps are almost entirely because I am catching my breath, not because of any energy drain. And that gives me hope, because I am shortening those rest intervals with each time I go to the pool.
In practice, it is different to do this while swimming. I am thinking about a lot of things besides breathing. I am balancing my body and concentrating on how I am positioning my arms, torso, and legs at any given moment. Most of the time (when I am swimming freestyle) my head is under water, so naturally I have to delay my breathing until my stroke is at the stage where my head is momentarily turned sideways out of the water. So the bobbing practice pushed in the book is helpful, but not entirely adequate.
Today I worked on my breathing at the pool, and it continues to be a work in progress. But I did learn something very significant today: I don't really tire much while swimming. My rest periods between laps are almost entirely because I am catching my breath, not because of any energy drain. And that gives me hope, because I am shortening those rest intervals with each time I go to the pool.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Enjoying NBA Playoffs
I'm enjoying the National Basketball Association playoffs this year immensely. There have been some unexpectedly close games and some upsets as well. New York-Boston, Indiana-Chicago, Atlanta-Orlando, Philadelphia-Miami, Los Angeles-New Orleans, San Antonio-Memphis, Denver-Oklahoma City, and Dallas-Portland (the game I am currently watching) have all had competitive, interesting games (well, except for the latest Philadelphia-Miami game). The favorites have usually won, but even then the games have generally been tense and close, going down to the final minute in most cases.
I love this time of the year. NBA playoffs are a great source of entertainment for me. It's funny seeing how some players get traded from one team to another but somehow seem to be in the playoff picture every year!
This year I like Boston in the Eastern Conference and San Antonio in the West. The teams I am absolutely opposed to are Miami in the East and Oklahoma City in the West. My aversion to the Oklahoma City Thunder is probably irrational as I had always liked the franchise's previous location and name: the Seattle Supersonics. Oh well, at least they had enough sense to change the nickname when they moved, unlike the ridiculous Utah Jazz (formerly of New Orleans) and the even more ridiculous Memphis Grizzlies (formerly of Vancouver).
I love this time of the year. NBA playoffs are a great source of entertainment for me. It's funny seeing how some players get traded from one team to another but somehow seem to be in the playoff picture every year!
This year I like Boston in the Eastern Conference and San Antonio in the West. The teams I am absolutely opposed to are Miami in the East and Oklahoma City in the West. My aversion to the Oklahoma City Thunder is probably irrational as I had always liked the franchise's previous location and name: the Seattle Supersonics. Oh well, at least they had enough sense to change the nickname when they moved, unlike the ridiculous Utah Jazz (formerly of New Orleans) and the even more ridiculous Memphis Grizzlies (formerly of Vancouver).
Monday, April 18, 2011
Ditto to Karl Rove (This Time)
Karl Rove and I are seeing eye-to-eye, and that bothers me. For years I had regarded him as one of the chief culprits responsible for George W. Bush's shift to an ideological, right-wing presidency after initially running in 2000 as a moderate who could unite the country behind him (as he successfully had done with Texas as its governor). It was Bush's stubbornness during the initial months of 2001 in refusing to work with the Democrats in Congress that led me to switch my party affiliation from Republican to Democrat. So Rove is not exactly on my list of most-admired.
But Karl Rove has lately been quite vocal in his denunciation of new presidential hopeful Donald Trump, even calling him a "joke candidate". Why? Because Trump, who could have run strongly on his credentials as a very successful businessman qualified to take on the nation's economic problems as president, instead decided to go off the deep end and focus on Obama's birthplace, siding with the fringe "birther" movement that claims the current president to be illegally in office because he was supposedly born abroad and not in Hawaii. I initially had welcomed Trump's entry into the race until he showed that, beyond his business acumen, he was nuttier than a fruitcake.
But even setting aside the Trump nonsense, I find myself agreeing somewhat with Karl Rove, who wants there to be a field of stronger GOP candidates than there is right now. When November 2012 comes around, I want to have a choice between two candidates, either of whom I feel confident to be qualified to take over the reins of power in 2013. The last thing I want is for some simplistic demagogue to make it into office by repeating Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh's talking points. But except for Mitt Romney (who at least has a record in office of being reasonable, although he now is understandably trying to ingratiate himself with the party's right wing), I see no one who doesn't fit this description.
I don't think that Mr. Rove wants the Republicans to nominate political bomb-throwers like Donald Trump, Sarah Palin, Newt Gingrich, or Michelle Bachmann for the simple reason that their nomination would almost automatically guarantee Obama a second term. Rove wants the GOP to unite early in the campaign around a strong candidate who can win over independent and moderate voters, something crucial for their election in 2012. Instead, the Republicans may end up crippled with extremist teabaggers rejecting any moderation during the primary season and nominating a nutcase to run against Obama in the general election. Neither Rove nor I want this to happen.
But Karl Rove has lately been quite vocal in his denunciation of new presidential hopeful Donald Trump, even calling him a "joke candidate". Why? Because Trump, who could have run strongly on his credentials as a very successful businessman qualified to take on the nation's economic problems as president, instead decided to go off the deep end and focus on Obama's birthplace, siding with the fringe "birther" movement that claims the current president to be illegally in office because he was supposedly born abroad and not in Hawaii. I initially had welcomed Trump's entry into the race until he showed that, beyond his business acumen, he was nuttier than a fruitcake.
But even setting aside the Trump nonsense, I find myself agreeing somewhat with Karl Rove, who wants there to be a field of stronger GOP candidates than there is right now. When November 2012 comes around, I want to have a choice between two candidates, either of whom I feel confident to be qualified to take over the reins of power in 2013. The last thing I want is for some simplistic demagogue to make it into office by repeating Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh's talking points. But except for Mitt Romney (who at least has a record in office of being reasonable, although he now is understandably trying to ingratiate himself with the party's right wing), I see no one who doesn't fit this description.
I don't think that Mr. Rove wants the Republicans to nominate political bomb-throwers like Donald Trump, Sarah Palin, Newt Gingrich, or Michelle Bachmann for the simple reason that their nomination would almost automatically guarantee Obama a second term. Rove wants the GOP to unite early in the campaign around a strong candidate who can win over independent and moderate voters, something crucial for their election in 2012. Instead, the Republicans may end up crippled with extremist teabaggers rejecting any moderation during the primary season and nominating a nutcase to run against Obama in the general election. Neither Rove nor I want this to happen.
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