Corporations...and People

In the controversial 2010 Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission United States Supreme Court decision, the Court's majority decided with the plaintiff and in so doing, overturned more than a century of precedent law that distinguishes corporations from individuals when it comes to the expression of speech.  Justice Anthony Kennedy, in his majority opinion, justified his position by stating that associations of people were just as protected by the First Amendment as were individuals and offered his own precedents for this view...opening the way for just about any shadow organization to now anonymously funnel millions of dollars into political advertising for targeted elections...thus in the eyes of the decision's critics, unduly influencing...even corrupting...the election process.  What I think is important here is the equating...in the minds of the conservative justices rendering the majority decision...of corporations with individual people...

That was 2010...fast forward to now, in early 2017.  The Trump administration says it wants to reform our tax code, in great part because the American corporate tax rate, at 38% when including average state and local corporate taxes, is the highest in the world and discourages our businesses from remaining here and encourages them to relocate abroad.  But liberal critics of any plan to lower the corporate tax rate to bring it more in line with other countries like Canada, the United Kingdom, or Germany...all of which have drastically lower corporate rates...invariably refer to this endeavor as trying to give tax breaks to rich people.  About which they're right, in a meaningful way, but in making this argument these liberals are in essence doing what they complain that the conservative justices did in Citizens United: equating corporations with individual people...

Of course, a corporation is not a person...else they'd be allowed to vote as well as run for public office.  Justice Stevens, in his dissenting opinion in Citizens United, emphasized the important longstanding legal separations between corporations and humans while also questioning the rationale of exactly who it is that a corporation is "speaking" for: its shareholders, CEOs...who?  And I'll add: if the shareholders are not American citizens, then does a corporation's "free speech", through its political spending, pose the danger of foreign interference in our elections?   Well, I guess you can see that a whole can of worms has been opened up with the decision from seven years back...but it would also behoove those arguing against our new president's tax goals to clearly distinguish between corporate and individual tax rates when making those arguments...

Gators Fall Forward Into the Elite Eight

Whether it was a viral attack or simply the pollen allergy season hitting me, I found myself last night in the throes of coughing fits and upper respiratory congestion... and consequently sadly but wisely decided to forego getting up early this morning to run a 10K race in the middle of the alligator-friendly, soggy wilderness they call Paynes Prairie.  Instead I slept in...hooray, I feel a lot better now!  I went to one of the last two surviving Radio Shacks here in Gainesville to pick up a cheap MP3 player, only to discover that (1) they didn't have any more MP3s and (2) they are closing down in nine days.  Sorry to hear that...Radio Shack's always been a fun place for me to browse through, and I've bought quite a bit of stuff there over the years.  Anyway, between last night and this morning word has spread throughout Gainesville and beyond of late last night and the miracle three-point buzzer-beating shot of junior Florida Gator guard Chris Chiozza...as he was falling forward...that gave them a thrilling 84-83 overtime victory over Wisconsin and advances them to play South Carolina (for the third time this year) in the Elite Eight game tomorrow.  It was funny to hear the sports commentators on TV talking about how Florida and Wisconsin...after all the previous games in the tournament...had finally put on a show worthy of the hyped-up excitement of "March Madness".  As if either team actually wanted to have their contest so painfully drawn out the way it was, just to be considered worthy enough for others to watch!  Actually, until last night I felt that Florida had been unfairly slighted and ignored by the national sports media...we're talking about a team devoid of superstars and coached by someone in only his second year with the school...a team with a losing record two years ago and which settled for going to the NIT last year!  Regardless what happens tomorrow between the Gamecocks and Gators, it has already been a great season for Florida basketball...

I was tempted to wait until the Final Four lineup was set before writing my "basketball" article, but I think this weekend's games promise some interesting basketball to discuss.  This is the schedule, for the next round, which will determine each region's champion and the Final Four field:

Saturday (today):
West Region
Xavier vs. Gonzaga, 6:09 pm, site: San Jose
Midwest Region
Kansas vs. Oregon, 8:49 pm, site: Kansas City

Sunday
East Region
Florida vs. South Carolina, 2:20 pm, site: New York
South Region
Kentucky vs. North Carolina, 5:05 pm, site: Memphis

Today's games...according to the NCAA website, will be shown on TBS and tomorrow's are on CBS...but knowing how television programming can suddenly change, I wouldn't bet my house on that information.  As for the Final Four, should Florida get by South Carolina...and they split their regular season games...they will have the advantage of playing the Xavier/Gonzaga winner in the first game, on Saturday.  I'm glad about that because I'd like to see the Gators get to the championship game and Kansas is so hot right now I don't know whether anybody can stop them. As for which teams I want to win...disregarding their real chances...I'd like to see Florida, Xavier, Oregon, and North Carolina make it to the Final Four...fat chance of all that happening, though.  Anyway, the Final Four games are to be held in Phoenix, Arizona on Saturday, March 31 and Monday, April 2.  The Saturday games will pair up the East/West and South/Midwest winners.  May the best team win...unless it's the Gators, and may they win even if they're not the best team!
  

Quote of the Week...from Henry David Thoreau

The universe is wider than our views of it.                 ---Henry David Thoreau.

Henry David Thoreau was a nineteenth century American writer famous for authoring Walden.  He's also known for a number of quotes...the one at the head of this article resonated with me. In essence, he's saying here that as humans we tend to oversimplify reality, and even our greatest scientific accomplishments are only abstractions at best.  But also, many of us fall prey to worldviews and ideologies that order the universe...especially that regarding society and its institutions...according to a set number of rules we often confuse with objective truth without recognizing their limitations.  Take, for example, radio talk show host Mark Levin, someone I've grown accustomed to listening to on weeknights.  He calls himself a "constitutional conservative" and has written a number of books espousing his ideology.  But Levin, while entertaining and independent-minded, has a rigidity to his political philosophy...should a caller to his show define conservatism...even favorably...in any terms other than Levin's own "definition", he'll fly off the handle and begin to angrily berate them...often suggesting that they have no right to their opinion since they haven't read his books...

Or take this nominee for the United States Supreme Court, Neil Gorsuch.  He has his own system for deciding cases on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.  In exploring how a specific law applies to the plaintiff and defendant in a particular case, he makes no effort to explore the underlying intent that the lawmakers had in designing and passing it, instead just taking the text on its own terms...and then using his Oxford English dictionary to read the definitions of different words in the written law that best suit him.  This has resulted in some strange past rulings of his that have come out in the Senate confirmation hearings lately...including one that the current Supreme Court just unanimously overturned...

Look, we have to make some order and sense out of the chaotic universe that surrounds us...we would otherwise be unable to function.  But let's not get carried away with ourselves and instead recognize our own man-made rules and explanations for what they are: merely tools and not reality itself.  And if someone else has a different way of interpreting things, it's O.K. to respect them for that while remaining secure in our own outlook.  On the other hand, if you're a federal judge with the enormous responsibility that job has regarding others' lives, then the people appearing before you depend on you seeing their case from more than one self-imposed, narrow perspective...
   

3/19 Sermon on Prodigals, Part 1

The new message series at The Family Church here in Gainesville that Pastor Philip Griffin began last Sunday is about Jesus' parable of the prodigal son, appearing in the New Testament book of  Luke 15:11-32...here is a link to the passage for this sermon, in the New International Version via the Bible Gateway website: [link]...

In introducing his message, Pastor Philip made two points: one, the term "prodigal" means wasteful and squandering...and two, what is commonly referred to as the "parable of the prodigal son"...which I myself just used...is actually about two prodigal sons, each meeting that description in a different way.  Most who are familiar with this story know of the irresponsible, selfish son who demands his father give him his portion of his inheritance up front and then squanders it all in a distant land on prostitutes, ultimately finding himself destitute, left to feed pigs while he himself is starving.  He then decides to repent of his ways and returns to his father, willing to be taken back not as a son, but as a servant.  But the father sees him from far off and rejoices that his son, once lost, is now found...and stages a big party for him.  The older brother, who had dutifully stayed with his father, takes offense at this type of greeting...feeling slighted and unjustly treated while prideful at his own righteousness behavior...

Last Sunday's message focused on the rebellious son in this story from Jesus.  Pastor Philip unraveled the process through which this prodigal son rejected his father...in fact treating him as "dead" by demanding his inheritance, rebelled against his father's ways...in the opinion of the pastor, probably alienating him from the local population and necessitating him moving far away, finally reaching an all-time low, responding to that bottoming-out by repenting, and then receiving forgiveness and restoration from his father.  Not only does this all conform pretty closely to the sermon notes I have in front of me, but as Pastor Philip pointed out, it is also a picture of the salvation process we have through Jesus...the father represents God, the party he throws is his kingdom in heaven, and the prodigal is...actually, each of us...

As this series continues over the next couple of weeks, the focus will shift to the father and then that "dutiful" prodigal son.  You can view Pastor Philip's message, as well as many others from previous weeks, by getting on The Family Church YouTube video website, which you can access with the following link: [link].  The Family Church holds its Sunday morning services at 9:30 and 11 and is located at 2022 SW 122 Street...

Star NBA Players Sitting Out Regular Season Games

Having had my fill for a little while of the Senate confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch...and straying from the ongoing headline news story about today's terrorist attack on London, I checked in to ESPN and heard Stephen A. Smith and his interchangeable cohort go off against each other about National Basketball Association star players being given "off days" by their respective coaches and sitting out entire games...even those advertised by major networks for show on TV.  It's gotten so bad now that sometimes almost the entire starting lineup won't play...in essence forfeiting that game and, in my opinion, cheating the paying fans the opportunity to see the high caliber of basketball that they shelled out their money for.  The rationale for a lot of this off-time is that the season is too long and that too many games are played back-to-back...with this train of thought goes concern for the players' health.  And after all, it's the playoffs and not the regular season that counts, right? 

If the 82-game NBA regular season is only there to establish eligibility for the playoffs and create a seeding system for the 16 teams that make it, and everyone's so concerned about the players' health...then why not reduce the number of games, then?  Do we really need that many games...or is the sport instead way too greedy?  I suspect the latter is the real reason for the status quo in pro basketball here.  If you can take around 200 teams in college basketball and devise a 64-team tournament that few events in sports can challenge for its mass popularity...and accomplish this after most teams have played regular seasons of only 24-27 games, it seems to me...unless of course money is the only thing they're interested in...that the NBA playoffs could be lined up after a regular season of, say...around 50 games.  That would still be about twice the number as the college version, and think of all the "off"-time that the big-shot multi-millionaire stars would be enjoying.  On the other hand, if the regular season has to be kept at 82 games, then why have playoffs at all?

Why not have the teams in the league play each other the same number of games and let the team with the best record be crowned champion...or let the playoffs be limited to a championship series between the two conferences' regular season champions?  Overseas professional soccer leagues don't use playoffs to determine their champions and they are still wildly popular over there.  This way, the games themselves would count and you wouldn't see all these games with starters on the sidelines throughout.   And also, let the worst finishers in the league be relegated to a lower-status league in order to reduce the incidence of teams...such as reputedly the 76ers...flopping in order to achieve a high draft status for the next season...

But the bottom line here is that, if the coaches and star players themselves don't value the regular season, then why should I or any other fan?  When I tune in to a game like the other night and see a whole row of perfectly healthy, monumentally-paid starters sitting back on the sidelines joking around with one another while their team on the court is losing by 25 points, then I would say we've got a problem here...

The Overrated Small Group Circle

I'm not sure that this article is one based on principle as much as it is my feelings about a certain subject: how people are seated when in small groups.  I've noticed over the years in school, church, and the workplace that often the individual in charge of conducting the small group I am attending will insist on drawing up chairs in a circle, with everyone directly facing each other.  This is supposedly meant to engage everyone in the group...but I find it produces the opposite effect with me.  I find myself instinctively looking away from the others in the group while feeling defensive about them watching me...instead of focusing on whatever was the reason for the group in the first place.  If I happen to be a little out of sorts...be it sleepy, anxious, or displaying the numerous symptoms of my seasonal respiratory allergies...it all becomes readily apparent to all...call me self-conscious in that regard.  I also believe that many who insist on conducting small groups in circles do it precisely to make the participants uncomfortable...this enhances their power within the group to manipulate the others.  And also, the circle format creates the impression, accurate or not, that one's own opinions about a particular matter are subservient to those of the group...or should I say, those of the loudest and most dominant of the group...

I say all this because I recently heard someone ridicule the idea of people in a meeting sitting in rows and that they should instead be gathered in a circle.  I don't think folks need to follow either model...as long as we are within a reasonable proximity of each other, we should be able to sit facing whatever direction we want...as long as our backs aren't to everyone else...and in different places that make us feel the most comfortable.  But I'll repeat my earlier sentiment, and you cannot refute me because it is how I deeply feel: small groups in circles are worthless and counterproductive as far as what I get out of them, and they serve to worsen instead of strengthening my connection with the people involved...I consequently tend to avoid situations where they are mandated. There, I said it...

What's Up for Me this Week? Don't Know Yet...

The coming week in my life contains some variables, the outcomes of which will determine what I do.  I may end up spending some time at the beach or run a 10K (6.2-mile) trail race...or both...or neither.  What I end up doing should be cleared up, though, within a few hours...

The beach is always calling me, and whenever an opportunity arises for both Melissa and I to get to go there, then we have to seriously consider it.  Maybe I'll get to go and maybe I won't.  But if it's not in the cards to go there this week, then there is a cool-sounding trail running race held annually in Paynes Prairie, just south of Gainesville. Called the Trail of Payne, it's become an annual tradition...yet I've never gotten around to running in it.  Being a trail race, the surfaces are varied and things can even get a bit muddy...and I'm wondering about those alligators, too.  Should Saturday morning end up clear on my calendar with me still here in Gainesville, I have half a mind to go down there and try it out...

Regardless of where this week leads me, I'm resolved to make the best of it and have a good time...

Senate Confirmation Hearings for Neil Gorsuch Begin Tomorrow

At 11:00 tomorrow morning (Monday, March 20th), the United States Senate Judiciary Committee is slated to begin its hearings on Neil Gorsuch, President Trump's pick to replace the late Antonin Scalia on the United States Supreme Court as an associate justice.  Gorsuch has served ten years as a federal appeals judge in the 10th Circuit, having been nominated for the position by then-President George W. Bush and approved on the Senate floor by voice vote.  By all standards, including those of the American Bar Association, he seems very qualified for the post he is nominated for. His judicial philosophy is to interpret the Constitution as he believes it was originally intended and to strictly interpret laws according to their text, putting him squarely in the corner of conservative judges like Scalia.  Because of this, he is bound to be seriously grilled during the hearings by the nine Democrats on the committee, with his more controversial decisions from the 240 he has made so far certain to receive scrutiny and criticism.  I imagine Gorsuch will be able to catch his breath, though, whenever the eleven Republicans are questioning him, doubtless raining accolades down on him and feeding him softball questions...

Monday's hearing will feature Judge Gorsuch in attendance, but other than the nominee possibly saying something later that day, the rest of the time will be devoted to the committee members making their own speeches and setting the tone for the hearings.  Tuesday will feature Gorsuch in the "hot seat" as the senators take turns asking him about his record, past statements, and judicial philosophy.  Committee chairman Grassley wants Gorsuch's testimony to be only a one-day affair, but it may spill over into a second.  The last day will be devoted to others' testimonies about how good or bad a job they feel he will do on the Supreme Court...and then the committee will vote to pass on the nomination to the Senate floor.  Then it will be a question as to whether the Democrats can muster up enough votes to filibuster the final debate...if they succeed, in all probability Majority Leader McConnell will change the Senate rules to end debate with a simple majority...the so-called "nuclear option"...in order to hold the final confirmation vote.  Regardless, unless something nobody knows about Gorsuch comes out, it is a near certainty that he will be confirmed and sworn in as the next U.S. Supreme Court justice...

I personally do not have a problem with a conservative president appointing and having confirmed a qualified conservative to the Supreme Court.  What I do have a problem with is when a liberal president makes his own selection to the high court and has it stonewalled and rejected out of hand by the opposition-controlled Senate, without even the courtesy of a hearing given the nominee.  This vacancy, caused by Justice Scalia's death more than a year ago, was Barack Obama's to fill.  He made overtures to McConnell and Grassley in order to come up with a candidate more acceptable to them, but they refused to honor their Constitutionally-mandated role of advice and consent.  The President nominated Merrick Garland, by no means a liberal but neither a dyed-in-the-wool conservative.  In my opinion there is something illegitimate about next week's hearings for Neil Gorsuch, as Garland should already have been serving in the Supreme Court for several months by now. That having been said, it isn't Neil Gorsuch who is at fault here and, so far, I have a favorable opinion of him...

The 2017 NCAA Basketball Tourney As I See It

Having been at work during the first round of the 2016-17 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship Tournament on Thursday and Friday, I've already missed more than half the tournament's 63 total games...not that I would have watched them all had I had the chance.  But here I am on Saturday afternoon and the second round is now underway to pare the field of teams down from 32 to 16.  Earlier I watched Notre Dame bow to West Virginia in the day's first contest...and now defending champion Villanova just got upset by 8th seed Wisconsin...no repeat champions this year!  Later today in Orlando, Florida State will play Xavier and then the University of Florida will face Virgina...the Seminoles should advance but "my" Gators are pretty evenly matched against their ACC opponent...good luck to both my home state's teams!  I was disappointed that  Miami (badly) lost their game yesterday and is out of the tournament.  I traditionally support North Carolina, and the Tarheels are seeded number one in their region...they will play Arkansas early tomorrow evening to try to advance.  As for which team I think will eventually win it all...well, I have a feeling that Kansas may be the one to put it all together this time around.  But after mentioning this to a co-worker who is also a sports fan, he suggested that Arizona should be considered, too.  Then, there are also Gonzaga, Duke, UCLA, Oregon, Kentucky, and so on...

Now that Villanova has been eliminated, that makes 25 years now during which only one school has managed to put together back-to-back NCAA Men's Division One Basketball championships: the University of Florida (my alma mater) who pulled it off in 2005-06 and 2006-07.  This year's edition of the Fightin' Gators isn't quite as star-studded as that earlier group, which included future NBA players Al Horford, Joakim Noah, and Corey Brewer, but it works very cohesively as a unit under second-year head coach Mike White.  Unfortunately, their starting center John Egbunu suffered a season-ending injury a month ago and they have been struggling to fill in the gap caused by his absence.  But if they can shoot well in their game against Virginia, Florida should be in a good position to win and then be competitive against the next opponent: those impressive Wisconsin Badgers who put just put away the defending champs.  Now please excuse me while I get ready for the next game...

Quote of the Week...from James Joyce

Mistakes are the portals of discovery.        ---James Joyce
 
James Joyce was an Irish author of the previous century, considered by some to be the greatest writer of English literature since Shakespeare.  Not having read his works, I couldn't say whether I agree or not...besides, I'm not that big a fan of Shakespeare, anyway.  I do know that Joyce was well known for writing fiction with language very difficult to understand for its complexity...and his book Finnegans Wake is a unintelligible morass of cryptic, disconnected phrases with numerous sojourns into other languages.  So I was tempted to use the following quote of Joyce instead on this St. Patrick's Day: I've put in so many enigmas and puzzles that it will keep the professors busy for centuries arguing over what I meant, and that's the only way of insuring one's immortality.  But hey, I already knew of this successful strategy of writing with popular songwriters like Beck or R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe...

As for the above quote that I did use, I think that few things could be more true.  We do learn from our mistakes...the trick is to keep them from being fatal, debilitating, or harmful to others.  One of the problems I had with the way things were structured during my school years was how mistakes were consistently used to judge whether a student was "good" or "bad".  The fewer mistakes you made meant that you got a higher grade and more meant you were headed for trouble.  Now supposedly homework and in-class assignments were supposed to bring out mistakes so that students could learn from them and they could then do well on quizzes and tests...but if these learning assignments were also graded and recorded by how many mistakes they contained, then the student was discouraged from this important learning experience and would be more defensive about how he or she performed them...

In a broader sense, in our lives we're all making mistakes left and right.  It's better to already know that doing or saying a particular thing is going to backfire and never try it.  And sometimes behavior that is counterproductive or even harmful will go unchecked until the habit is well entrenched and the consequences happen later on down the line.   Better that a mistake is exposed as early as possible and corrected.  But in a more creative sense...and here is where James Joyce might have been going with this quote...mistakes can often lead one to reconsider where they are going and to either change their direction, reevaluate what they are doing and why, or to discover a better solution to their situation...one that opens up new opportunities heretofore hidden from them...

3/12 Sermon on Family Life, Part 2

At The Family Church here in Gainesville for the past two weeks, the Sunday morning messages have been focused on the church itself and the need for missions.  Last Sunday Jeff Moody, our missions coordinator, delivered the sermon, titled Four Commitments That Will Change the World...which was about missions, of course.  And his key Bible verses are well-known to those in this field: Matthew 28:19-20 (NIV):

¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Known as the Great Commission, this was the final commandment given by Jesus before his ascension.  But speaking of commandments, what did Jesus say during his brief sojourn on Earth?  Jeff, drawing upon material he had read from others...including George Patterson...came up with seven basic commandments of Jesus: repent and believe, be baptized, love, take communion, pray, give,...and that last one: make disciples.  I'm assuming that forgiving others comes under the banner of "love"...

Jeff structured his message around the commitments that each of us can make to have a global impact.  One crucial commitment is to obey Jesus's commands...not as a one-time event but as a continuous, ongoing process throughout our lives.  As for making disciples, part of that involves training whoever becomes a disciple to, in turn, make disciples of others.  Our fellowship at The Family Church offers programs to do just that...

Jeff Moody's message was very focused and well spoken.  I appreciate his return to ministry at our church and wish him and his family the best.  You can watch his message by clicking on the following link to the church's YouTube video website: [link]...

Puzzled About "Cat Found" Notices

I write this blog using social media...Google's Blogger...posting my articles on it as well as putting a link to them on another social media site, Facebook.  I also have a Twitter account, although my use of it is more to get information than to express myself.  A few months ago a co-worker told me of another social media site, NextDoor.com, in which the user can communicate over it with others in his or her own immediate neighborhood.  Although I've never posted anything on it, I receive regular postings from others on my cellphone app.  Among these are postings from folks who either lost a pet or found one.  I understand how someone would want to put neighbors on the watch for their lost dog or cat, and I can see a good Samaritan holding a stray dog and posting about it, in hopes of reuniting it with its owner.  But what about the posts I occasionally see about someone who has "found" a cat?

In my subdivision, cats are everywhere running free, in their own yards and others', crossing the street (or boldly lying in the middle of them), jumping fences...pretty much free spirits with their "territory" being the neighborhood itself.  On the other hand, if someone notices a dog walking around loose without its "human" in sight, then it's a major crisis that urgently needs rectification.  I understand the difference: cats, unless rabid, are not going to chase people down and attack them while many dogs will do just that.  If I were to pick up, retain, and advertise  "CAT FOUND" with every unrestrained cat I saw while driving or running through my neighborhood, I wouldn't have much time to do anything else...plus, I'm sure I'd end up with a lot of pissed-off neighbors!  So I ask, how does one see a stray cat and decide to advertise it as "found"?  Now I can see somebody reading another's plea about their own lost cat and, using the animal's description, find it on the streets or in their own yard...and then directly contact the owner.  But I'm not talking about this here.  I plead ignorance on this subject and am puzzled.  Oh ye who are more enlightened, please educate me...

Just Voted...On Election Day in Gainesville

Considering how badly the previous election went for me and my candidates, I was eager to get another one behind me, one that wouldn't "matter" as much even if things didn't go my way.  Well, thanks to the good people running the show here in Gainesville, Florida, I didn't have to wait long: for some reason unknown to me (and probably most everyone else), they decided to hold city commission elections in March instead of November...guaranteeing a low voter turnout.  As faithful as I am to consistently get to the polls, even I nearly let today's election slip by me...

For this election three Gainesville City Commission races were on the ballots.  In my precinct, I got to vote for two of them: one at-large seat covering the whole city and one districted seat...that was all that was on my ballot.  Once again, I drove the very short distance to my polling place at the county's senior recreation center, walked straight through to the volunteer at the appropriate desk, got my ballot, spent about five seconds filling it out, shoved it into the slot, received my "I Voted" sticker, and then skedaddled out of there.  My main impediment during the whole process was having to dodge several seniors in the hallway, a few of whom seemed hell-bent on colliding head-on with me...

As for that senior recreation center, which I joined for free after turning sixty last October, I'm still trying to figure out how I can make use of it.  So far, the only attractive thing they offer that doesn't conflict with my work schedule is chess on Wednesday mornings.  I've never been a good chess player and the brochure states that someone will be offering some instruction in the game.  Maybe I'll try it out sometime in the near future...

Just Finished Reading John Grisham's Rogue Lawyer

Rogue Lawyer, which came out in 2015, is the seventh John Grisham novel I've read so far.  Seeing how six of them are stories about the legal profession, it's surprising I've gone this far into the genre, considering that I entertain a deeply-held revulsion toward courtrooms, trial lawyers, and judges.  Not that I've ever been in trouble with the law...I haven't...but jury duty over the years has left me cold...I might say disillusioned as well, but I never had any illusions about it to begin with. Whenever I get a jury summons...and they seem to be annoyingly attracted to me...the immediate reaction I get is a feeling of disgust, anticipating the spectacle I'm about to experience against my will.  But Grisham is a very good writer and his ability to spin a good yarn, along with how well he develops his characters, has overridden my aversion to the "justice" system...consequently, here I am with another book to write about...

Sebastian Rudd, the protagonist in this story, is just what the book's title suggests: a rogue lawyer, someone operating on the fringes of the profession who takes cases nobody else wants and who has no problem making enemies with the police or the prosecution when it comes to defending his clients.  He operates his law practice out of a modified van, which brings to mind the 2005 Michael Connelly novel The Lincoln Lawyer that spotlighted another renegade attorney who ran things out of a vehicle.  There are a few more similarities between the two books, but I read Rogue Lawyer on its own terms and don't consider it to be a ripoff of Connelly. After all, it is the nature of literature, art, and music to be derivative...this is why we have different genres and schools in the first place.  Rudd tells the story in the first person, which gives the reader a lot of information concerning his attitudes about life, relationships, and justice.  He has a big mercy streak to his personality, but finds that many of those he defends are suffering from their own self-made problems and attitudes that get in the way of his trying to help them.  And the symbols of justice and law and order...the judges, lawyers, juries, and especially the police...don't carry much, if any, credibility with him...

Rogue Lawyer is, in a way, a collection of shorter stories, interwoven into a cohesive whole, that describes different cases Rudd works, along with his dysfunctional relationship with his ex-wife and their son.  Also, he has to make several ethically-questionable decisions in order to achieve the greater good...something that carries a more universal application beyond practicing law. Throw in a little romance on the side, along with Rudd's penchant for managing and betting on cage fighters, and you pretty much have this novel down...albeit without the main details of which I'm going to hold back in case you'd like to read it yourself...

I liked Rogue Lawyer...but then again I like John Grisham's writing.  If you're a fan of his, go for it and read this book!

Mexican Pro Soccer Matches Postponed...and Why

I have been a soccer fan for the past three years, focusing my attention on some of the top professional leagues in the world.  I follow England's Premier League, Germany's Bundesliga, Mexico's Liga MX, and the United States/Canada's Major League Soccer...well, maybe this last one still has a way to before attaining that "top professional league" status.  I would be a fan of Spain's La Liga, France's Ligue 1, and Italy's Lega Serie A, but I don't pick up their games with my TV cable plan and have plenty of soccer to watch as it is.  One of my favorite "activities" on a Saturday evening at home is to tune in to Univision and watch the Spanish-language play-by-play live broadcasts of Mexican soccer.  And last night had two great games lined up: "my" team, the UANL Tigres, were facing off against Guadalajara, a traditional favorite in Mexico and doing well this year...and the later game was between first-year Necaxa and another traditional favorite: Club America, based in Mexico City.  There was extra drama with these matchups because Tigres and Club America, each usually near the top of the standings, were struggling so far this season and are both in danger of missing the playoffs, which they call "Liguilla".  So I'm sitting there waiting for this very violent dramatic series titled La Piloto to finish at eight, when game number one was going to start.  Only it never did, and that horrid show kept going on and on.  Being a citizen of the 21st century, I simply whipped out my android phone and asked it what happened to the games...the answer, while disappointing, affirmed what I had already been thinking about professional soccer, especially as it is played in Mexico...

The referees, totally exasperated at the whining, arguing, and even threatening attitude of the players whenever a call goes against them, collectively got together with their union and staged a one-weekend walk-off strike in protest of their poor treatment.  Apparently, all the games slated for this weekend were postponed to a later date.  While I was unhappy at missing what would have in all probability been two entertaining contests, I am completely in sympathy with the officiating staff, which gets very little respect from the players during their matches.  Soccer does not use cameras and instant replays and reviews to back up their calls, so what the officials say on the field is final and that's just the way it is until the rules get changed...hopefully that won't happen as replay/review would ruin the natural flow of the game.  But with that lack of official review, the authority and responsibility for calling fouls and penalties (or not calling them) rests much more heavily on the individual referees, and there seems to be an epidemic of players getting in their faces arguing with almost every serious call.  I see this in all of the leagues I follow, but in Mexico the lack of sportsmanship has reached new depths.  I love following the different teams and seeing the fans in the stands rooting for their sides...but folks just need to get a life...after all, it's all just a game in the end...

My 2017 Run for Haven 10K Experience

The town of Tioga, a few miles west of Gainesville, holds an annual 10K/5K race in mid-March on a Saturday afternoon, with the theme of celebrating St. Patrick's Day...hence the green clothing in the above picture.  Today marked the third straight year I've run in it, always opting for the 10K (6.2 miles) distance.  The temperature this time around was relatively moderate in the mid-seventies and the humidity was low.  On the other hand, though, the part of the 10K course that went through the woods west of the Tioga neighborhoods was drastically changed due to extensive road construction...we had to run down long stretches of dirt roads with a traction as difficult at times as dry sand on the beach.  Yet in spite of that, I managed to run a moderately strong race (for me), maintaining a very consistent 9:28/mile pace throughout.  My final time was 58:45 and I finished 42nd out of 115 total finishers for the event.  In my men's age 60-64 category, I finished first...against only one other contestant.  As a matter of fact, I was the 4th oldest finisher out of the 115.  You can view the race results on the following link: [link]...

Most of the participants in Run for Haven chose to run the 5K race.  Since both the 5K and 10K events began simultaneously, I once again found myself spending the first mile or so struggling to avoid collisions with others.  But eventually we all spread ourselves out and I could enjoy it more.  Still, the race was very tiring and I found my chronically sensitive throat rebelling against the heavy breathing involved...by the race's end I was struggling to avoid coughing bouts.  The folks running this event were all very supportive and friendly...as were the runners I encountered.  All in all a very positive experience...aided by the fact that I sat for a while before the race at the Starbucks a few yards away from the starting line and then used the facilities at the nearby Gainesville Health and Fitness (of which I'm a member) as well as warming up a bit on the treadmill there.  I think this Run for Haven, proceeds of which go to support Haven Hospice, has definitely become an annual tradition for me.  I wonder what's up next on the racing calendar...

Quote of the Week...from Michael Stipe

Life is bigger, it's bigger than you and you are not me.       ---Michael Stipe.

There's a pretty reasonable chance you've already heard this quote, since it's the opening line in a famous hit song, R.E.M.'s Losing My Religion, from 1990.  Michael Stipe, their brilliant lyricist and lead singer, wrote a song not of someone losing their spiritual way but rather about a very frustrating conflict with another person, a conflict that is in large part about boundaries and respecting identity..."losing my religion" is an old slang expression meaning to lose one's temper. Although R.E.M. is one of my all-time favorite musical acts and I plan in the not-too-distant future to put out a comprehensive list rating almost all of their recorded songs, this song is not one of my favorites...except for that very discerning opening line that carries great meaning for me...

One of the incredible disadvantages that children have in life is that they have to take reality the way it is presented to them...and their notions about what is "normal" are largely based on those people with whom they live and go to school.  Compounding this disadvantage is that many adults with whom they are in a subordinate relationship have a problem with respecting the distinct nature of a child's identity, instead wrongly concluding that they are somehow lacking in viability due to lack of knowledge and life experience.  I saw this in my own family growing up, as well as with my teachers at school.  There was also this notion among my childhood peers that individual kids weren't entitled to be respected for their own selves...the burden of respect was always on the one receiving it, never on the one giving (or denying) it...

But I am no longer a child and at last check haven't been for some time.  I can look back and evaluate the attitudes of others who haven't respected me for who I am, especially those in positions of authority over me...particularly at home, school, and the workplace.  Just because people are friends, classmates, co-workers, fellows in their respective faiths, in the same family, etc., does not mean that they have to share the same points of view and preferences as the "alpha dogs" in their respective groups.  When I encounter someone who sees me as an extension of themselves instead of the complete, separate person that I am, that person is to be avoided.  I have my own story to tell and others can speak for themselves, and if they can't accept that then they can just take a hike, to put it very euphemistically...

3/5 Sermon on Family Life, Part 1

At The Family Church here in Gainesville last Sunday morning, Pastor Philip Griffin embarked on a new series...I'm not quite sure how long it'll be...titled Family Life.  The first message concerned the nature of Christ's church and what it is not: it is not a building, something to attend instead of being, something that is optional, or something that, like a business, is consumer-based.  Instead, Pastor Philip stresses that the church is a family, of which all Christians are integral members, each with their own specific roles to play according to the spiritual gifts that God has bestowed upon them.  And being so equipped, each is then deployed to advance God's kingdom...so in this way each of us changes our world.   The pastor raises some questions for us to ask ourselves in order to ascertain whether we are truly living out our family role in the church: do we bear others' burdens and allow others to bear ours, do we encourage others in a constructive way, do we confess our sins and demonstrate accountability to others, and are we engaged in service to others...notice the connection between "we" and "others":  it's all about relationships, isn't it?

This message wasn't presented in the usual manner that Pastor Philip is accustomed...instead of taking a section of Biblical text and exploring its underlying themes, he has taken the theme and then used various short passages as illustrations.  He used 1 Corinthians 12:20-22, 26 and Ephesians 2:19-21, 4:11-16.  You can look them up for yourself through this link to Bible Gateway: [link]...

Yes, I knew that the church isn't a building or a business, but rather the collective body of believers in Christ...yet here we are with this "church", The Family Church...as opposed to the other fellowship bodies scattered about, often in a sort of unspoken competition with each other for members.  And I do attend church, and it does have to be accountable and solvent like a business as well.  But the message's main point is to get people thinking and acting on their own attitudes and purposes within this fellowship.  If you want to hear Philip Griffin's message, here is a link to it through The Family Church's YouTube video website: [link]...

The Nonlinearity of Long-Term Progress

Whenever I am first embarking on a personal endeavor, for example like running long-distance or learning a foreign language, there seems to be a direct, linear correlation between the effort I put into it and the progress I achieve.  But it seems like in every case, with everything I do, that effort/results relationship eventually breaks down.  With the running I've been doing since 2007, I initially built up my endurance by simply going out there and running longer and longer distances...culminating in running a marathon in January, 2011 while training for the same-distance race later that month.  But in the process I injured the IT-band in my leg and my progress was stymied, with me drawing back to running for half-marathons.  But even had I not been injured, sooner or later I would have tapered off my training to a state of equilibrium...a maintenance state at the level I was satisfied with.  In the years since, I had found that running too much can cause problems with my feet (plantar fasciitis) while my already-sensitive throat, coupled with a tendency for upper-respiratory airborne allergies, can make me prone to coughing over the course of a long run.  So just stepping out my door and running down my neighborhood streets for a protracted period of time doesn't bring the same benefits as before...and that detracts from my enjoyment of running...

With the study of foreign languages, living completely immersed in the target language and culture is easily by far the most preferable course.  But my life does not lend itself to this, and my learning consists of books, language learning apps like Duolingo and Quizlet, and Internet audio sources.  It is possible to develop a good rudimentary vocabulary and get a grasp of grammar...and make great progress with scripts that aren't based on the Latin alphabet...but at a point it all falls short when it comes to understanding a regular conversation or reading an ordinary newspaper or magazine article in that language...

I think one of the problems with jumping into an endeavor enthusiastically and progressing up to the point where we reach a plateau or even a wall is that in many cases we truly do not understand the nature and scope of what we are trying to do.  As we get more deeply into the activity we begin to realize its complexities.  Take any neophyte president, not just the current one.  They all storm into office with their ambitious "hundred days" agendas, making decrees left and right...until the resistance settles in against them, not just from the opposing party but also from those in their own who feel threatened and the need to assert themselves with the new leader.  Each president has to finally learn...if they want to be re-elected, that is...that the office they have assumed is a lot more involved and complex than they may have arrogantly assumed when they were campaigning for it...

It seems like with any worthwhile long-term endeavor, clarity is the rule at the beginning...but chaos eventually takes over with all-sorts of conflicts and complications.  Gee, I don't mean to sound pessimistic, but that's just how I see it...

Just Finished Reading Daniel Silva's Portrait of a Spy

Daniel Silva is an American author with an interesting niche in fiction: a successful espionage series featuring as the protagonist an Israeli secret agent.  His first book in the Gabriel Allon series came out in 2000 and he has been putting them out pretty much annually since...the seventeenth installment is due out later this year.  I just finished reading my first book by Silva, number eleven in the Allon series, titled Portrait of a Spy...

One major advantage that standalone novels have over series is that, especially in stories involving suspense and peril, you never can be sure just who will survive to the end and who will perish.  With series, the main protagonist is certain to endure, while it's also a more or less safe bet that the series regulars will make it, too, to start afresh in the next book.  So in spite of Gabriel Allon finding himself in numerous very dangerous situations in the story I read, I was kind of bored...the suspense here is in what happens to the "guest" characters.  In Portrait of a Spy, Allon has recently retired from working as an Israeli spy and is living with his wife in Cornwall, England, doing what he likes best: restoring great paintings.  But a rash of terrorist attacks in Western cities, along with one that Allon witnesses and unsuccessfully tries to stop, leads him to serve at least one more espionage stint with the aim to infiltrate the new terror ring and bring it down.  Enter the "guest" character as an important asset in this project...and that's about all I'm going to say about this story so that I don't give it all away...

I've read only one Gabriel Allon book, but I get the basic premise: the Israelis are better at the spy game because their very survival depends on their success, while other countries like America and Britain have more or less institutionalized the field and depend much more heavily on technological prowess to achieve their ends.  The clumsy and overly political Americans and Brits keep getting in Allon's way...kind of reminds me of a few James Bond flicks...

Usually I avoid picking up a book in the middle of a series like this, and I should have known better: I already possess a Gabriel Allon novel that I got in a local used book sale but never got around to reading.  No, for this type of genre it's much better to read a story that stands alone without any sequels and for which the author's intended suspenseful sequences ring true for the reader...

Favorite Songs So Far in 2017

We've gone only a couple of months in 2017, and many of my favorite songs from last year remain my favorites...in particular P.J. Harvey's The Wheel and Regina Spektor's The Light.  These are tracks from their respective albums The Hope Six Demolition Project and Remember Us to Life...I recommend both.  Also, in 2016 I liked...from the radio...Take It All Back by Judah & the Lion and still think it's fantastic.  Oh, I neglected to mention that when it comes to listening to current hits on the radio, there's only one station in the Gainesville area I follow: WHHZ/100.5, commonly known as "The Buzz" and which plays Alternative/Indie/Rock.  Unfortunately, it transmits from a few miles out of town and its signal is relatively weak, so unless I want to drain my android phone's batteries by picking it up online, I have to wait until I'm at home or in the car to listen to it.  Still, I've come to like a couple of already-established songs that are in its regular play rotation: Spirits by the Strumbellas and Ride by Twenty One Pilots.  This latter act I was pleased to see win a Grammy a few weeks ago...they've amassed a nice string of hits...

I suppose if I were to name the "Song of 2017" so far, it would be Ride...although that tune has been out since 2015.  As I've said before, it sometimes takes me a little while to catch on to a song...sometimes years, as a matter of fact.  In any event, it's still early in the year and I'm confident I'll hear plenty of other good songs.  I'm keeping a lookout for any new recordings from my favorite musical artists, Beck's much expected and long-delayed album release being at the head of the list.  And, of course, I'll continue to listen to "The Buzz" whenever I have the chance...although I liked this station more from 2002 up to 2008 when its music selection was more in accordance with my tastes...

Market and Sell All Short Stories for Kindle as Individual Items

With the advent of the digital revolution, it is clear that the music industry has vastly outpaced that of the printed media.  When the compact disc rose to prominence in the 1980s, there was no comparable technology for books.  Eventually, Kindle and its imitators emerged, but the overwhelming majority of books that have been published are not available in a digitalized format...yet we've had the ability for some time now to purchase just about any individual song for download...even from old "out-of-print" albums...for $1.29.  Try that with out-of-print short stories on Kindle!

Over the years, I amassed quite a collection of old science fiction short stories.  For example, I have the entire 25-volume Isaac Asimov Presents The Great SF Stories, spanning the years from 1939 through 1963 and collected and published in the 1970s and 80s, and edited by Martin H. Greenberg and Isaac Asimov...these books are all out-of-print now.  To me and many others, this was the "golden age" in science fiction short story writing, and these books contain many of my all-time favorite works in this genre.  Yet try to find those favorites on Amazon...even if I can, in all probability they are inseparably attached inside larger, expensive collections.  Why can't I go down a list of an author's works and purchase and download on my Kindle the specific ones I want, in the same way I would order a musical act's individual songs from their listed discographies?  After all, short stories are copyrighted one-by-one, not as inextricable parts of a whole...so I don't see how the question of royalties would be a problem.  Amazon itself proclaimed a new policy of selling short stories as individual purchases in 2013, but here we are four years later and there are still precious few to select from.  I don't understand why it is so easy to sell digital music this way, but not digital stories.  After all, the technology is in place to accomplish this and it can only be a win-win situation for companies like Amazon, the authors and copyright owners, and of course devoted readers like me...

Just Finished Reading Frank Peretti's The Oath

A few years ago, a hardback copy of Frank Peretti's novel The Oath found its way into my garage...we're not exactly sure how it got there.  It has a strong evangelical Christian orientation while its genre is similar to the horror fiction of Stephen King...albeit without the latter's usually strong profanity sprinkled among the pages.  I finally had enough of walking past this book and picked it up to read...it was pretty much the way I expected it to be...

The premise of The Oath is basically a bargain with the devil, instituted by the corrupt owner of a mine in Hyde River, an isolated western American town in the late 1800s, and signed by that community's residents, that created a rapacious, predatory beast which devours those who sin and run afoul of the town boss.   Fast forward to the present as Steve Benson, an agnostic scientist, arrives to investigate the mysterious death of his brother...ostensibly by a rogue grizzly bear.  But the autopsy reveals a different sort of attacker...and Evelyn, his brother's wife, has witnessed the event but is suppressing her memories of it.  Hyde River's citizens are all hush-hush about the incident...except for born-again Christian Levi Cobb, who understands the underlying mystery...

Evangelical Christian symbols pervade The Oath, as I expected that they would...the message is clear: sin is inevitable and will ultimately consume you unless you make God first in your life.  I have read literature with Christian analogies but which isn't quite so direct about it...C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia and J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings are two examples.  Even Stephen King's novels usually have a strong moral message to them and contain struggles that could only be seen as spiritual warfare.  So yes, The Oath was definitely predictable about the general flow of the story, as well as its conclusion...and it was clear that the overriding intent of the author was to present the gospel message of Jesus Christ to the reader.  No problem with that, as far as I'm concerned.  It just bothers me that some folks apparently want to just live inside their own bubble when it comes to reading literature, listening to music, or watching television, a bubble that excludes material even created by others of their own faith but which is not theologically "pure" enough for them...

Quote of the Week...from Dean Karnazes

Run when you can, walk if you have to, crawl if you must; just never give up.
                                                                                       ---Dean Karnazes.

Dean Karnazes is one of the most renown ultra-marathon runners in the world, ultra-marathons being races beyond the standard 26.2-mile marathon distance...usually measuring 50 or 100 miles.  I first read his book Ultra-Marathon Man: Confessions of an All-Night Runner back in 2010 and have it on my Kindle, regularly rereading it although I have no intention of ever running that far...I'll just stick with half-marathons as my "ultra" distance, thank you.  But the above quote resonates with me, especially since this past Sunday morning I practiced it while participating in my first half-marathon in two years...

I enter long-distances races with the aim of running throughout them, but in any event I always resolve to finish them...even if I have to walk part of the way.  In this recent race I had to walk brief stretches while I got through a coughing fit and a bad cramp in my right thigh...but I stayed the course and finished the race.  In my "official" marathon back in 2011, I injured my IT-band just below the knee and, after 10 miles, had to alternate running and walking until around the 19-mile mark, when the increasing pain compelled me to walk (slowly) the rest of the way.  But I finished it!  I know another long-distance running enthusiast who annually trains for marathons and proudly insists that he never walks during his races...as if it is somehow cheating to do so.  But in the trail races dominating the ultra-racing calendar, Karnazes not only sometimes has to walk, but also climb...and yes, even crawl on occasion!  And those races often require all participants to stop at various points on the course and submit to being weighed and examined by a physician in order to avoid serious medical complications arising from the distance and conditions.  Jeff Galloway, a great American marathon runner, developed a plan whereby runners will walk "x" minutes and then run "y" minutes in the appropriate ratio that enables them to be able to train for longer distances and then successfully finish their races...even marathons...this way.  Now if you want to make up your own rules for yourself that prohibit you from ever walking, then that's your business...but don't hang that legalism on me.  Besides, being brought up in the Judeo-Christian tradition, I've come to believe in the application of the concept of a Sabbath in just about any endeavor I do...work intensely for a set time and then lighten up for a brief period before resuming the intensity.  Galloway has found that this system of his has helped runners avoid many of the chronic repetitive motion injuries that often befall this group...

Many good quotes that contain a literal meaning can carry over and be applied to other aspects of one's life...the above quote is a case in point.  And if you expand its meaning to life itself, then it also has a more universal application to others, not just highly trained distance runners.  And here is that meaning for me: having a purpose in life is crucial to us...and always being engaged in actualizing it is also important.  But circumstances, either external...such as inadequate financial resources, conflicts with others, or rejection by potential schools, employers, publishers, etc, or those of an internal nature...such as illness, injury, physical or mental disabilities, or the lack of skill and knowledge...can present themselves to us as obstacles to the realization of these purposes.  It is during these times that we shouldn't give up, but rather "walk"...or even "crawl" toward our ends until once again we can break out into a "run"...but even if it takes crawling to the end, then crawling it will be...

2/26 Sermon on Joseph, Part 7

At the Family Church here in Gainesville, Pastor Philip Griffin concluded his series, titled Upcycling: Trash to Treasure on the life of Joseph from the Old Testament book on Genesis, Chapter 50, Verses 12-21...you can access the passage via Bible Gateway through the following link: [link].  The theme for this past Sunday's message was redemption and summed up the previous weeks...

As Pastor Philip noted, Joseph did three things right: one, he refused to take God's place by not making up his own moral code, giving God the rightful credit for his successful interpretation of dreams, not allowing himself to worry, and to not assume God's position as judge by holding grudges or seeking revenge.  Two, he sought God's perspective, not man's.  Philip gave a word picture of a little child looking up from the "other" side at his grandmother's needlepoint...it looked like a mess from below but was beautiful and meaningful from above.  We don't always know the divine strategy for our lives, and many problems and crises can cloud our sense of God's presence...but he is always there, turning things his way for the good.  And three, Joseph embraced God's grace by being kind to all and reflecting God's grace on his fearful brothers, reassuring them of his forgiveness for their earlier mistreatment of him...

This was a good series and contained many valuable lessons.  Since I've written each successive Thursday following the previous Sunday's sermon, you can read my take on each message by going back in time on this blog.  You can also view the entire series on the church's YouTube video website, which you can reach through the following link : [link].  The Family Church, located at 2022 SW 122nd Street, holds its Sunday morning services at 9:30 and 11.  There's good praise music, complimentary coffee, and friendly people...not to mention, of course, the messages themselves...

President Trump's Address to Congress Last Night

I admit it: I personally dislike Donald Trump, although he is my president and I want him to be successful in promoting the interests of the United States, performing in an ethical manner while upholding the Constitution, and respecting my own personal livelihood...the last sadly being under attack from the Republican establishment in Congress.  I wish he wouldn't behave so childishly with his policy of never conceding anything...no matter how obviously true...that he perceives as negative to himself.  And this getting bogged down with his asinine Twitter posts...c'mon, dude, you can do better than this!  Yet I hold out some hope that his presidency will grow into something good...and Mr. Trump showed some promise of this with his address to the joint session of Congress last night...

I wasn't able to follow all of his speech, and what I did hear was through radio, not television...so I was spared the president's annoying repertoire of goofy facial expressions as he delved through his material.  Nor was I exposed to the vice-president and house speaker sitting behind him, with their own smug expressions...along with the Republican side cheerleading the speaker on and the Democrats going to their own lengths to express their "resistance" to our elected president.  Content-wise, Donald Trump was true to the issues that he ran on during the campaign, pointing out what he regarded as failures of the previous administration...as well as some of earlier ones.  But he also struck tones of inclusiveness, unity, and optimism when he opened up the address by decrying the recent outbreak of anti-Semitic attacks and how he wanted to lift up those living in the inner cities.  He balanced the idea of free trade with that of negotiating with other countries as America's advocate, first and foremost.  I have a big problem with a lot of he is promoting, but our new president showed his potential for being an effective communicator with this speech...he should focus on this venue and discard the petty, petulant nonsense of his angry personal vendettas in favor of displaying a better image of himself.  Last night was a promising first step, but will Donald Trump go down this road?  I rather doubt it, although he would be well-served by resisting his baser impulsive and reactive instincts and instead take his presidency to a higher, more dignified level...

My February 2017 Running Report

In February this year my running mileage increased substantially from the previous month, greatly helped out by the unintended 14.2-mile run I managed to swing during this past Sunday morning's Five Points of Life Half-Marathon...read that day's article for details. By the way, my official finishing time in that race was better than I had anticipated, at 2:24:39...you can see the complete race results (I ran in the men's age 60-64 category) through the following link: [link]...

So after two years, I finally got around to finishing another half-marathon, although it was fraught with numerous obstacles.  But the main thing is that I ran it and completed it...whew, glad that's over!  Now I can get back to a reasonable running regimen.  But wait, there's that local Run for Haven 10K race coming up in a couple of weeks that I've run the last couple of years in Tioga, a few miles west of Gainesville.  Who knows, maybe I'll do better in it this time around: I think this race is starting to become an annual habit for me, in spite of it being held late in the afternoon when temperatures are the hottest...

Anyway, as I was saying, my total running mileage for this past month increased substantially over January's total, reaching 123 miles, with the upsurge credited to that recent half-marathon plus my gradual recovery from the upper-respiratory viral infection I suffered last month...with an annoying, lingering sensitive throat prone to coughing.  I somehow unwittingly managed to run on every day of February, and of course my longest run was for that strange 14.2-mile jaunt on race day...

I'm feeling a bit on the optimistic side about my future running prospects, but I need to train intelligently and have some ambitious but realistic goals set in front of me to pursue.  The weather, already very warm for this winter season, is only going to heat up in the next few weeks and I need to take that into account when I go out to run distance on a regular basis.  Then again, there's always a treadmill waiting 24/7 for me at the gym...and mixing up the routine with walking and bicycling (plus a little swimming) may be the way to go for the future... 

Just Finished Reading Maria Semple's Today Will Be Different

I am an avid reader, as you probably already know if you've read this blog for any amount of time.  Yet I've hardly begun to scratch the surface of all that is out there to read.  Take Maria Semple, for example.  A few years ago she had a blockbuster bestseller with her novel Where'd You Go, Bernadette, but I had neither heard of her nor of this book when I selected, almost at random, her 2016 work Today Will Be Different from my local public library's shelves.  So I had no idea what I was in for...as it turned out, my reading experience with this book was refreshingly different...

The premise of Today Will Be Different is basic enough: Eleanor, a fifty-year old woman with a background in the TV industry, who with her long-time physician husband has carved out the yuppie dream in suburban Seattle, has woken up one morning and resolved that "today will be different".  Her idea is, of course, that she is responsible for what goes on in her life and, by consciously deciding to do a lot of little constructive things, she will improve her life...sounds like something I would do, something easier decided than implemented, though.  Instead, it seems that with each succeeding hour her life is unraveling...her little boy Timby is having problems at school and manipulates the staff there...and later his pediatrician, into being released so that he can tag along with mommy all day... which doesn't make mommy very happy.  And then Eleanor discovers that her hubby is apparently on "vacation" from his office...without telling her and leading her to suspect that he is having an affair.  So instead of a positive, self-controlled day, Eleanor slips further and further into melancholic introspection about her family, including remembering her estranged sister Ivy.  Along the way, she interacts with different folks she encounters, displaying a tendency to abruptly, emotionally scream at people in public settings and doing all sorts of crazy, impulsive things.  And I'd better leave off here in case you might want to read this story for yourself...

Yes, Today Will Be Different contains a lot of introspection from the viewpoint of someone who has inner conflicts between her previous role with her career and her current one as a homemaker...with regrets abounding about her past, vulnerability about the present, and uncertainty about her future.  I found that, in a general sense, I could be sympathetic to Eleanor's situation and yet also feel that she was in a great way responsible for the predicaments she found herself in.  And she was also a little bit too much of a drama queen to boot. Furthermore, I had some difficulty in feeling for this relatively healthy and wealthy middle-to-upper class person with her assumptions and prejudices...and discontent.  But that's not to disparage the author, who I believe honestly depicted a flawed...and often quite funny...character...

It isn't often that I would recommend that a book I read be adapted to the screen, but I think that, with the proper casting and direction, Maria Semple's Today Will Be Different would make quite a good television movie.  I read some reviews online for this book and discovered that many who read it and her earlier novel Where'd You Go, Bernadette found that they had far too many similarities, which detracted from their enjoyment of the latter.  Still, maybe someday I'll get hold of Semple's more widely known work and try it out for size...

Ran Today's Five Points of Life Half-Marathon

This morning I ran my first half-marathon race in two years, finishing my hometown of Gainesville's Five Points of Life event for the fourth time in eight years.  It was also the race I was the least prepared for, having not consistently trained for that 13.1-mile distance as I have in the past with regular runs of five to ten miles...and it was reflected in my final finishing-line-crossing time of 2:26:08, easily by far my all-time slowest half-marathon.  Looking back on it, I had no business in running it, but I did it anyway.  But I probably would have come out of it with a better time had a number of mishaps not beset me, beginning with the race's start...

I had read somewhere that the Five Points of Life Half-Marathon, which runs concurrently with the marathon event, was set to begin at 7:30 am...my mistake was not to back up this observation.  I got up early in the morning and timed everything to reach the race site's parking lot (behind the Orthopaedic Center off SW 34th Street) around a half-hour before the start...it was a nippy 47 degrees and I didn't want to spend too much time standing around shivering before the race, but I still wanted to use their bathroom facilities. I found some empty remaining parking spaces in the back and noticed the lack of runners mulling around when I got out of the car.  And then I heard the national anthem being played and, still a half-mile from the starting line, I realized I had made a huge mistake: I nearly sprinted the distance and reached the race just as it was beginning, filing into the crowd of entrants near the rear.  I was already winded before the race began and I needed to go to the bathroom!  Still, I kept my head, found a volunteer pacer for a slower pace than I had planned, and flowed with my circumstances.  I eventually did find a portable bathroom after about two miles, but I had to wait about five minutes in line to get to use it.  When I emerged, my pacer was way down the road and I knew it would take a while to catch up.  A mile or two later I found myself succumbing to a severe coughing attack and had to stop and walk for another five minutes or so, wondering whether the race would end in this ignoble fashion for me.  But I persevered and eventually caught up with my pacer, who was running the full marathon at a five-hour pace...meaning that sticking with him would give me around a two-hour thirty minute half-marathon time.  I had planned to follow someone pacing for a 2:15 time but after that initial rush to begin the race, I settled into a more pragmatic strategy.  I stuck with the pacer's group then for most of the remainder of the race and appreciate the great job he did.  He was always looking around him and asking how runners in his contingent were doing while pointing out hydration stations with Gatorade and water and turns in the course.  I was sorely reminded of the hilliness of this course and began to suffer a bad cramp in my right thigh right near the end of the race while going (again) uphill on Fraternity Row.  My pacer pulled up beside me and walked with me, asking if I'd like him to stay with me to the end.  But although I appreciated his concern, I told him this same thing happened two years earlier and I would be fine.  So he went on ahead to pace his marathon distance and I recovered after yet another five-minute walking break to finish this difficult race.  Yet I'll say one thing: in spite of me running a fast half-mile just before the race began, getting sidetracked waiting at the porta-potty for five minutes and having to stop and walk for a total of about ten minutes due to coughing and cramps, my energy level remained strong to the end.  Several hours later, my legs feel sore, but that's normal...I'm definitely going to take it easy with the running for the next few days.

As for the total distance I ran and my final time: the (fast) half-mile I ran just before the race added to the total mileage, but then I discovered on my android phone GPS tracker that I had covered 13.7 miles during the race!  So my run was actually for a total of 14.2 miles.  As for the finishing time, as I had mentioned, I crossed the line at 2:26:08...but it took about 30-40 seconds at the race's beginning to even reach the starting line.  Whether that will be taken into account when they tabulate my "official" time, I don't know.  Not that it really matters...I'm just happy I stuck with the race through all the adversity and finished it with my head held up high.  Having supportive people around me was a real help, too.  Oh, and if you're wondering what the photo is that I included with this article, it is the view in front of us running westward on SW 2nd Avenue, during the second half of the race, in the direction of the University of Florida campus...

Farewell, Alan Colmes

Alan Colmes was one of my favorite opinion makers on television and radio...and he passed away on Thursday from lymphoma at the age of 66.  Whenever he was a guest on a FoxNews Channel show, I would always look forward to hearing his take on the topic being discussed.  And seeing how Fox, despite its ridiculous claims to "fair and balanced" journalism, was very biased in favor of the Republican Party's talking points, it was fun to see Colmes consistently stand apart from everyone else...not necessarily to espouse a liberal/leftist agenda, but rather to inject some healthy, blunt realism into the on-air discussions.  For many years he had cohosted the Hannity and Colmes show, and later had his own talk show on Fox News Radio that I used to be able to pick up on a weak local AM station here in Gainesville.  On that show he would interview guests from all political persuasions, always treating them with professional dignity while standing true to his own beliefs.  Because Colmes was employed by Fox and had many conservative friends there, some on the political left criticized him as if he were some kind of traitor to their cause.  That's a shame...I think each of us has our own set of beliefs and the right to choose whatever form of venue in which to express them, and none of us owe allegiance to others who arrogantly claim to have an inside track to legitimacy on any side of the political debate...

Alan Colmes was a blessing to us while he was here...I'll miss him.

Quote of the Week...from Bryant McGill

One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually listening to what another has to say.
                                                                                               ---Bryant McGill

I had never heard of Bryant McGill before I read this quote of his.  He is something of a pop philosopher/motivator who has devoted the recent years to promoting human rights across the world.  He sounds like someone whom I would be interested in following...I understand he's written a few books.  Well, knowing that he seems to be generally esteemed and respected is the main thing for today's purposes.  After all, if someone...say, Adolf Hitler or Pol Pot, had written the above, I don't think I'd be using it!  But then again, I doubt that villains of this ilk would have authored such a quote since neither was terribly interested in hearing what others had to say, being ruthless dictators that they were...

What exactly does it mean to listen to others, anyway?  It's not quite as straightforward as it may seem on the surface, for listening is not really a passive form of behavior.  Listeners are actively communicating interest, directing the flow of the talker's speech, and carefully remembering as much as possible.  Also, sometimes listening is a bit of a tight-rope act when someone is saying things with which you disagree: respect who's talking and, for their sake, honor their viewpoints, but don't compromise your own beliefs...

Of course, there are a few folks who dive directly into their favorite topics of discourse and go on endlessly with their opinions.  With these, who can come across as relentless bores, I think the listener's trick is to catch them off guard and get them talking about themselves...but not about their favorite talking points.  I've seen good listeners in action: they are patient with whom they are conversing, they almost never directly dispute what they are saying while searching for places of affirmation, and display their interest and affection by remembering and recalling the speaker's own personal interests and endeavors...and asking about them and how they are doing.  You might think that good listening is something that introverts might do better than extroverts, but being an introvert myself, I would beg to differ with that assumption: I know I can do much better listening to others than I am currently doing.  You not only need to value people in general, but you also need to want to seek them out proactively and draw out what they think is the most important to them...that sounds like awfully extroverted behavior to me...

I don't think one needs to be like Larry King to be able to effectively listen to others: just keep it simple, ask for clarification when you don't understand what someone says, and try to put to memory what they said.  I know this from personal experience: not from me being a good listener to others, but from others being good listeners to me.  Oh, and it would go a long way to remember people's names, another sticking point with me...

2/19 Sermon on the Life of Joseph, Part 6

Forgiveness is the theme of the most recent installment of Pastor Philip Griffin's series on the life of Joseph from the book of Genesis, presented last Sunday at The Family Church in Gainesville...and titled Upcycling: From Trash to Treasure.  The Biblical text of focus is Genesis 42:6 through 45:8, which you can access in the New International Version via Bible Gateway through the following link: [link]...

Jacob's favorite son Joseph, presumed dead, is now in charge of much of the governing of Egypt, and his interpretation of Pharaoh's dream...of seven future years of famine...is now coming true. But he has prepared for it and Egypt has vast storehouses of grain that attract those suffering from surrounding famine-stricken areas...including the homeland of Jacob, who sends his ten older sons to Egypt to buy some and bring it back.  Joseph meets with them, but they don't recognize him and he tests them to see whether they have regretted and repented of their earlier treatment of them...moreover he is concerned about the safety of his little brother Benjamin, also favored over the others by their father.  After his brothers "pass" his test, Joseph reveals his true identity and expresses his forgiveness of them...after all, God used their bad aims for good and placed Joseph in a position to ultimately save his family...

In applying this passage, Pastor Philip stressed that forgiving is not the same as forgetting...after all, "it is precisely because we cannot forget that we must forgive". Neither does it mean wiping the slate clean, so to speak, and trusting the transgressor as if they have never done anything meriting forgiveness.  Forgiving someone, after all, is the act of the forgiver and doesn't at all imply any change for the better...or any contrition...on the part of whom they are forgiving.  But, as Philip continued, it does mean relinquishing one's right to get even and exact revenge.  That doesn't mean, though, that what was lost shouldn't be grieved: on the contrary, grief is a process to get over the loss in order to it from being in control.  Joseph made a point of expressing his forgiveness to his brothers...when advisable, letting others know that you have forgiven them is a good idea...although I would like to add a caveat to this.  For if you approach someone who isn't even aware that they had done anything wrong, then telling them you forgive them comes out sounding like a manipulative sort of accusation...

Finally, Pastor Philip recognized that forgiveness isn't just a decision one makes one time...it often needs to be repeated and reinforced.  But not, in my opinion, in such a way in which it serves as a verbal weapon of aggression in order to continually remind the offender, long already supposedly forgiven...

I have my own views on the subject of forgiving, having been on this planet with my fellow humans for some sixty years and having experienced quite a variety of offensive behavior against me...with myself guilty as well of some against others.  When it comes to forgiving others, there are some transgressions that are so egregious that they are literally criminal...the need to forgive is very clear in these cases.  On the other hand, if you have allowed yourself to fall into the habit of seeking fairness in every social situation and collect offenses the way others collect coins or stamps, then this notion of always forgiving others, in a way, only reinforces the justice trap you have allowed yourself to become ensnared within.  So as one final caveat to the above excellent message from Pastor Philip, I would like to add that it might be a good idea to first pray to God for discernment as to whether someone's transgression against you is really a transgression at all...and for the ability to see yourself from their point of view...

If you'd like to watch Philip Griffin's message, here is a link to the church's YouTube video website: [link]. The Family Church, located at 2022 SW 122nd Street, holds its Sunday morning services at 9:30 and 11 and has discipleship courses and family groups available as well.  And the praise music is very inspiring!

Just Finished Reading Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus

Erin Morgenstern is an emerging writer who wrote her first and only (so far) book, The Night Circus, as an entry in a book-writing contest.  It was published in 2011 and has received critical acclaim.  Never having heard of the author and novel before, I discovered it through the simple and time-tested expedient of browsing though the shelves of my local public library.  Seeing that it did not appear to be part of a series, I checked it out...in order to check it out.  And I've just finished reading it...

Spanning mainly the years from 1885 to 1902 and initially centered in London, England, The Night Circus has two intertwining stories that inevitably come together as they progress: a boy and girl have each been chosen, by elderly magicians...who possess the ability to perform real magic...to be the combatants in a contest of magic against each other.  In the meantime, a new traveling circus is being organized, one that combines illusion, acrobatics, fortune-telling, and thrilling settings to dazzle the customers.  And the Night Circus does dazzle, always mysteriously suddenly appearing unannounced in a field somewhere and then opening its tents from sundown to sunrise until, a few days later, it suddenly disappears, only to set up its operations outside a different town.   Marco and Celia, the two contestants, find themselves involved in the circus, with the former working as an assistant to the circus's producer, forming a huge bonfire that bestows magical effects on it and its performers...and the latter as one of those performers, an illusionist who disguises to the enthralled spectators the fact that her acts are truly magical.  Neither Marco nor Celia, although bound to participate in the "game", know anything of its rules...eventually they discover each other as their opponent...and unwittingly grow closer and closer, to the consternation of their "sponsors"...

Ultimately, the most compelling and sympathetic characters in The Night Circus are introduced in the middle of the story:  a teen-age boy, Bailey, and the young circus-born twins Poppet and Widget, who form strong friendships with each other and play an increasingly important role in the resolution of the intensifying crisis...

I have mixed feelings about this book.  Morgenstern's narrative style to me seemed too stiff and presumptive...on the other hand, the characters' spoken dialogue was amazing...especially that of Widget, a master storyteller with a magical gift of empathy.  As with any tale in which the author attempts to create a new "universe", there is a necessary balance between going too far to explain everything, bogging the reader down in details...and not going far enough, creating the danger of too much confusion.  Maybe, just maybe, The Night Circus erred a little on the side of not saying enough.  Still, I recommend it and am looking forward to Erin Morgenstern's next book.  I've also read that there may be a movie in the works, based on The Night Circus...

SpaceX Rocket Launches Successfully from Canaveral After Delay

Sunday morning the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, carrying the Dragon spacecraft containing supplies and experiments for the International Space Station, successfully launched after a day's delay.  The original 10 am Saturday launch target from Cape Canaveral was scrubbed at the last minute when a technical complication arose...SpaceX CEO Elon Musk himself made the decision to back off the launch...better to be safe than sorry.  This pioneering company has already had its share of setbacks, including a launch pad explosion last year that destroyed a $250 million satellite. The plan is to eventually transport people into space using the Falcon 9 and Dragon, but I think the company would like to first drastically improve its reliability...

Our previous president, Barack Obama, is often accused by those on the political right of being a socialist and wanting more and more state control over businesses.  Yet in 2010 he essentially privatized our space program by first ditching the plans of his predecessor, George W. Bush, which involved a highly centralized project to establish a permanent moon base, and then placing the future of space exploration into the hands of private companies, SpaceX rising to become the most notable and ambitious of them.  Their goals are very bold: to send a manned mission to Mars and back within ten years and to follow that by settling the Red Planet in the 2030s.  But wait...here comes yet another president onto the scene...

Donald Trump hasn't spoken much about the American space program, except to criticize Obama for scrapping Bush's Constellation moon project.  Does he intend to continue along with his immediate predecessor's privatization/Mars goals or will he veer off in a different direction?  Being pretty gung ho about space exploration, I'm hoping he'll do both: keep our eyes set on Mars while returning to the moon in a more permanent fashion.  But we really don't know what our new president will do, do we?  After all, during the final days of his first presidential campaign in 2008, Barack Obama traveled through Florida and assured the people in the Space Coast area that he would not upset his predecessor's plans...and then proceeded to renege on his word once he stepped into office.  If Trump wants to change my opinion of him in a positive way, he at the very least will not backtrack the way Obama did and will honor the continuity through successive administrations that our space program so desperately needs...

Decided to Stay an Extra Day at Daytona Beach

Well, Melissa and I were enjoying the beach and hotel so much here at Daytona Beach that we decided to extend the stay to a second night...we'll definitely be heading back to Gainesville tomorrow.  I enjoyed the pool and swam some laps...maybe it's time to resume that form of exercise regularly at my gym, which features a great indoor pool.  I also ran 4.5 miles on the beach, this time using a free GPS mileage-tracking android app I just installed last night.  This should make it a lot easier to be creative about my future running, walking, and biking...no need anymore to map out a course in advance and measure its length...

It's a good thing to have at least one full day to enjoy at the beach...checking in one afternoon and leaving the next morning seems a bit incomplete.  We spent a great deal of time outdoors, and it was refreshing and invigorating for both Melissa and me.  The two of us enjoyed a twilight/early evening walk down the beach after flying a little kite that she had recently purchased (that's what I'm doing in the above photo).  And tomorrow morning we'll still be here, although the emphasis will be more strongly task-oriented as we pack up to go back home.  Yes, we need to get away like this more often...