Self-Imposed Structure and Discipline an Issue So Far in Retirement

I'm writing this a little past 1 PM on a weekday that I normally would be driving to work had I not retired late last year after 37 years.  I'd be in the post office parking lot, no doubt eventually finding a free space somewhere in the disastrous mess that postal management created after they moved all the carriers into the processing plant on SW 34th Street.  Although if still employed I wouldn't be looking forward to being in that fishbowl of a building with all its peepholes and cameras and obnoxious "career" ladder-climbing supervisors trying to act tough, my mind and actions to a significant extent would be free to venture down whatever paths I felt inclined to follow.  The intermittent fasting that led to a heightened level of fitness and athleticism in 2023-24 (and was hinted at as being an "eating disorder" by loved ones) was able to take place under a work routine that saw me free from undue pressure by others to ravenously consume food.  I'd like to return to at least a modified version of that regimen, but I need to respond to the clearly different cues presenting themselves to me during these times of zero job-imposed structure.  For one, my priority is to include Melissa in as many activities that I can...but in the times she doesn't feel like going along I need to continue with my agenda while being sympathetic to her feelings.  People's moods and emotions fluctuate over the course of any day, and so do mine.  Each of them can speak for themselves...but not necessarily for me, although I welcome their input.  It does me little good to listen to podcasts from Rob Dial or Andrew Huberman about instilling self-discipline and structure if I get static for being proactive and showing up.  Being inclusive of others is not at all the same as depending on direction from them. My inclination is to make living simpler in a material sense and to avoid making mountains out of molehills.  Living in the present, or mindfulness, is the opposite of overthinking.  How about some mindfulness...and a little gratitude for the blessings in our lives? As for responsible activity, I think it's better to get little habits going to the point where "good living" just naturally becomes a part of my daily existence, instead of shutting down my life to focus on a specific massive maintenance or clean-up project (directed by someone else). I've learned over the past sixteen months with two tragic family deaths and three different cancer diagnoses that life is indeed fragile and we're all subject to eventual death in this world, and I value the present moments accorded me, aware that I don't know far ahead they will stretch out. I do my share of complaining about the news, but this is the time of my life. No, I'm far from perfect and have a long way to go. But I don't think that I'm being unreasonable to ask for a little consideration and respect when I am earnestly seeking to live in a disciplined and structured manner as I approach my 69th birthday...

On This Labor Day Starting Off September

Welcome to the month of September on this Labor Day Monday.  The Weather Channel meteorologists seem to be enjoying going to pains to explain that today marks the beginning of the meteorological fall season while the astronomical fall begins on September 22nd.  I'm not sure how that affects my life, but it continued to be very warm and humid outside as I walked around the neighborhood earlier this afternoon. I'm not counting on any sustained cooling in my surrounding weather.  No, it's tropical storms and hurricanes I'm on the lookout against, and the "experts" don't seem to think that anything of substance will develop within the next week or so, although they say there is a "robust" tropical wave out there.  We've had a pretty light Atlantic hurricane season so far, with the only developed hurricane staying clear of land, far out in the Atlantic Ocean...may the rest follow this pattern.  Melissa and I would like our planned cruise into the Caribbean Sea in early October to go off without complications. Not only do I need to take the weather into consideration about this, but apparently our mentally ill, creepy drama-queen of a president seems to think it's a good idea to manufacture yet another crisis by amassing warships just off the Venezuelan coast to provoke armed conflict with that nation...we're scheduled to cruise to the nearby islands of Aruba and Curacao. You probably voted for the felon: what excuses are you making for him this time? In any event, there's a limit to what I have control over in my life...let me focus on today and what it may bring...

My August 2025 Running, Walking, Swimming and Health Report

In August I continued to walk, run, and swim regularly, not really growing in fitness or athletic ability but instead practicing the discipline of showing up, often under stress to do other things and under adverse weather conditions.  It was a typically hot and muggy month in summer, and it wasn't at all fun.  No, it's still August as I write this and I am not having fun.  Sometimes I feel that I am acting in defiance of my loved ones when I carve out time in my supposed "retirement" to actively pay attention to my own fitness instead of being a limp, passive excuse for a being.  I'm frankly fed up with the frustration of feeling that I am being set up to be a kind of scapegoat.  Still, I think I did reasonably well getting through this past month.  I walk and run around my neighborhood regularly and I do exercises mimicking running in the house.  I do push-ups and calisthenics as well daily.  My swimming didn't happen as often as I would have liked...maybe this coming month will see an improvement in that activity.  In August I participated in three posted races...all Parkrun 5K's.  My finishing times have declined, and it's frustrating.  I wish I didn't feel pressured to stuff myself with food...that's not a healthful habit at all.   My weight has been creeping upward into the low 160's, and I'd much rather be twenty pounds lighter.   Along with my fitness routines I find myself deep into the medical rotations of tests and doctor visits following my March prostatectomy, with subsequent blood tests and pet-scan held to ascertain whether the cancer diagnosed last December is returning on any discernible level.  Maybe next month I'll have to undergo radiation treatment since my PSA level has crept up a bit. Am I healthy? Who knows, but I do know that I am continuing to be physically active.  I suppose that an element of health is having a social network of friends and family who express an interest in me and what I'm up to, and who want to hear what I think about things.  Unfortunately, although many seem to be benevolently inclined toward me, I don't see any of that extended into a level of interest.  So philosophically I guess I'm in a funk of social pessimism, with diminishing expectations of others and, if anything, a desire to be left alone without surrounding drama.  And the POS occupying the White House isn't helping anything with his antics, nor are those people who put him back into power...

Got Through This Morning's Hot and Humid Depot Parkrun 5K

Today was perhaps, weatherwise, the worst day to attempt a Parkrun: the temperature at the 7:30 start was 75 degrees with an oppressive 97% humidity.  That didn't keep Depot Park, located a few blocks south of downtown Gainesville, from filling up with runners and walkers for this weekly free event that is run by volunteers.  I mean, I got there a little earlier than usual, but the main parking lot was already packed and the overflow lot was already half full. For the Parkrun, my intention, given the conditions, was to speed-walk the entire 3.1 miles, but I found the experience frustrating when a kid and his presumed father seemed to pick me out as a mark as, early on, the little boy repeatedly (1) sprinted past me, (2) got immediately in front of me, and then (3) stopped...making me have to suddenly pivot to avoid collisions, knowing as I walked past them that I'd have to do the same damned thing all over in a minute when they did it again.  Look, if you're gonna coach your kid, fine, but maybe teaching him to avoid run-ins with others on the course just might be a priority, what do you say?  In any event, I eventually shook off that obnoxious duo but found myself going at an all-too-slow pace.  Eventually, after the second lap, I began to insert some running into it, ultimately running for 9:14 out of the final finishing time of 38:54. I don't know, I've written before how I prefer this simple Parkrun course to the one at West End because it has laps to it, but in all candor it can get to be a real drag encountering the same people over the course of a walk/run.  Maybe next time I'll try West End.  In any event, it looks like my times in the next few weeks are going to be slower and the emphasis will be on simply showing up and finishing (and avoiding tripping over obnoxious people). To view the posted results for today, click HERE...  

My Song of the Month for August 2025 is Garbage

It's approaching the end of yet another month, time for me to select my "song of August 2025".  I sought material that has been released this year for musical acts that produced songs I liked in the past.  The British alternative rock group Garbage, fronted by Shirley Manson, produced songs I liked in the late 1990's such as Stupid Girl, Push It and Special.  At the start of '25 they released the album Let All That We Imagine Be the Light. I listened to it all, one track at a time, and...wouldn't you know it...this is the third album in a row I've listened to in its entirety whose tracks I disliked.  Except, once again, for one standout, which I think totally rocks: the opening one, titled There's No Future in Optimism.  Shirley's appealing singing voice is in full stride here, and the song's instrumental production is breathtaking and powerful.  This is my song of August, and you might want to give it a listen.  In recap, below are my songs of the month for 2025 so far:

AUGUST   There's No Future in Optimism by Garbage

JULY          The Birds by Franz Ferdinand

JUNE         Stuck in My Head by Arcade Fire

MAY          Walking on a Dream by Empire of the Sun

APRIL        Nothing I Need by Lord Huron

MAY          Under the Rug by Arcy Drive

FEBRUARY  Starburster by Fontaines DC

JANUARY    Everyone Out by DIIV

New Run/Walk Strategy Developing

I was glancing out the window of my nearby Dunkin' Donuts here in far-northern Gainesville (see above pic), where I do much of my writing and studying, I'm contemplating a "sea change" regarding my future running and speed walking as I continue to plod on through the years. On my neighborhood run/walk combination training outings the last few months, I've grown accustomed to mixing them up.  Today I covered the 4.1-mile course by spending most of the time speed-walking with short, period intervals of easy-paced running.  I feel this may be the pattern for future races as well...especially the long distances ones of 10K (6.2 miles) and longer.  Speed-walk for six minutes and then run for four...and keep repeating the process until the race (or workout) is over.  I think this is a feasible training strategy for a future marathon in which I'm pushing to finish faster than six hours...there's one coming up in January. Today's workout was typical summertime discomfort, with an annoying combination of high temperature and humidity.  When conditions get cooler and dryer, it should be more workable to extend my training to longer distances and see how my body reacts to it all.  What I want is a viable level of fitness with which I can confidently enter any "classic" long distance event (10K through marathon length) and finish at a reasonable time...or in the case of the marathon...before they close down the course and stop timing entrants.  The elitists at the Florida Track Club have already stated that six hours is the deadline for finishing their upcoming marathon, after which runners are on their own and will not be furnished with posted finishing times.  A shoddy attitude, I think, considering the money laid out to enter the race, but obstinate, disagreeable people are everywhere and I would be better served focusing on my own attitude and behavior in response.  Let's try out this new alternation of walking and running and see where it gets me, elitists or not.  On the surface, it seems to make sense.  With this new structure I'm walking more than half the time while I'm running more than half the distance...

Boys with Toys

While shopping with Melissa the other day, I was very carefully steering our shopping cart past other customers along an especially crowded stretch of the store.  And then, straight toward us, an employee was casually pushing an imposing-looking pallet jack.  I watched him as he approached...and then he took out his cell phone and started looking at it while nonchalantly navigating his jack past without regard to anyone around...I guess it was up to us to get out of his way.  People whipping out their phones...what a scourge of our times.  Have you ever found yourself talking to someone, only to look over and see that they're zoned out and ignoring you, scrolling on their phone?  The only thing worse I know is the increasingly frightening circumstance of people...in anger...pulling out guns without any sense of restraint in using them.  It's become far too commonplace on the news to be met with the story of a shooter at a school, church, home or business...and often it's a minor who has committed the crime.  In the 1995 James Bond flick Goldeneye, Agent 007's Russian female partner Natalya Simonova had a contemptuous name for this phenomenon for pervasive and often harmful obsession with gadgetry: Boys with Toys.  So we're now living...or trying to stay alive...in the "Boys (and Girls) with Toys" era: whoopee...   

My Designed Running Loop Courses, Then and Now

My old running block (~3 miles) from my late teen years in Davie, Florida is the standard I use to evaluate the various training courses I've designed, especially those within the past twenty years.  These days my running (often combined with walking) takes place on asphalt road surfaces, while back then practically the entire loop was off-road, on the grass.  For a south Florida locale like Davie...where I went to school...running on grass was totally fine since there wasn't the prevalence of holes in the ground to trip up on like there are up here in northern Florida. I like seeing where I'm stepping...in my own back yard I have to be careful where I plant my feet.  But hitting a hard surface still takes its toll on legs' soft tissue, and I have to take care not to over-train.  That's one big reason I've taken to increasing my speed-walking emphasis...less taxing on the joints. My current standard 3.3-mile neighborhood loop has me passing many, many houses while I have to be attentive...even during low-traffic times of the day...to residents and visitors pulling in and out of driveways.  And then there's often a creepy vehicle or another that drives around me and then just stops in the road, as if the driver is some kind of stalker or Zimmerman-type neighborhood vigilante.  Pedestrians are truly the vulnerable class in this world loaded with suspicion and violently-inclined folks with weapons.  One of my favorite books from some fifteen years ago is Ultramarathon Man by Dean Karnazes.  In it he describes his late-night early morning long-distance training runs...one time he ran thirty miles around San Francisco in his underwear!  I can see myself doing something like that...and then get arrested and have my mug shot plastered over my local news station's screen: no thanks.  No, there are definitely times I want to stay off the road, and one of these is when it's dark outside. As for multiple laps on my loop, fifty years ago in March 1975 I once ran five laps on my old Davie loop, amassing nearly 15 total miles.  In Gainesville, unless I'm running or walking around the block (.7 mile), I don't do multiple laps.  Instead I have extensions designed to the course that create the desired distance.  When I ran 26.6 miles on January 15, 2011 I had a pretty complex running route that took me into some interesting territory.  I haven't ventured any distance near that far in the last few years, unless you're talking the marathon I completed last November along the eastern end of the Hawthorne trail.  But training? I keep it measured and consistent, with lots of time for rest and recovery.  Still, I'd like to revisit that old Davie trail from time to time...

Football Just Not One of My Interests

Are you getting excited about the upcoming football season? I'm not. One reason rests in the fact that in my nearly 69 years of existence on this Earth, I have never, ever played a single down of tackle football. Sure, I've played flag football at school and touch football on informal occasions, but the sport that people get so riled up about is something I've never been an active part of. I watch my local news program and revel in the fact that the head sports announcer almost exclusively covers either University of Florida sports or high school athletics...and football regularly gets the heavy emphasis. I despise the coaches I had in both high school physical education class and that one time I was on the track team. In these settings there is a martial, military spirit about minors...albeit adolescent ones...having to snap to attention for their coach like he's some kind of boot camp drill sergeant: disgusting.  I see some of these power-sick individuals on the sidelines going off loudly against players who, God help them, actually make mistakes and wonder why everyone doesn't just turn off the TV or go home in protest to this kind of abuse.  And they actually make statues of star players and stage them outside home fields, as if these people were larger than life.  No one covers with enthusiasm when kids do well in math class at school, and I suppose that makes sense...but I never see any coverage either of local running races, at that's definitely a part of sports..  But football? You can have it. The other day there was a season-opening game between Iowa State and Kansas State...I couldn't care less who won.  But then the officials called a delay of game penalty on the Iowa State defense and their head coach literally went berserk on the sidelines, jumping up and down and screaming at the referees.  That dude should have been sacked on the spot...

Mini-Seminar on Avoiding Falls

This past Saturday morning (somebody) presented an educational meeting about the dangers of falling for seniors and ways to avoid them.  Melissa arranged it for us...all I had to do was drive us down to the gym conference room where it was being held.  We heard a nice talk describing the various situations that can put folks in danger of falling, and also participated in a test of our own individual susceptibility for falls.  Melissa and I did well with the tests...since I tend to be a bit on the athletic side I figured I would.  As people age, they tend to lose muscle mass and strength, especially regarding the "fast-twitch" muscles that can quickly straighten them out when they lose balance, averting fall situations.  Also, bone density tends to lessen, creating the hazard of injuries from falling being compounded with broken bones. Sometimes I get down on the way the world is going, and it seems like people are getting meaner and meaner.  But there's good stuff as well, and this mini-seminar is a useful example... 

Showed Up at Today's Cancelled Depot Parkrun 5K

I had some insomnia early this morning.  I woke up around 5 and stepped outside on my back porch...the sky was clear with a couple of bright planets just over the eastern horizon.  I prepared for the 7:30 Depot Parkrun 5K, which I planned to run today.  I felt a little rough, but hopefully I would find a groove to settle into for the race and maybe finish under 30 minutes.  There were a lot of people at the park...this I expected, it being the beginning of the UF fall academic semester with Gainesville's population swelling.  Before the race started, the director gave us the "bad news": look out west at the storm clouds...they're coming our way quickly and will likely cause today's Parkrun to be cancelled.  Still, they started it at 7:30 and I was awkwardly off in the middle of the very crowded group of runners.  Sadly, a little down the path a young woman had fallen but managed to get herself back up.  I ran gamely but, after the first lap marking .7 mile, only had a time of 7:25, lagging well behind a pace to finish it in 30 minutes.  By that time after just a lap, the storm clouds had quickly swept over the sky and I thought that it was just a matter of minutes before the race was called off...so I stopped and went to my car, driving back home.  Later, online, my hunch was confirmed: the race was indeed cancelled, and in less than 10 minutes after the start.  Oh well, at least I showed up.  Later that morning Melissa and I went to an information session held at Gainesville Health and Fitness promoting seniors' balancing and fall avoidance.  They had some tests we took that revealed our individual likelihoods for sustaining falls, and we both did well in them.  Still, you have to be careful.  Pictured is a photo that Kristen Bryant, the Parkrun director, took of the then-impending storm and put on Facebook...looks pretty eerie, doesn't it...

People in Groups: Always a Power Struggle

In the preamble to the first Lord of the Rings movie, Fellowship of the Ring, the "Lady of the Woods" elf Geladriel (played by Cate Blanchett) explains the origin of the conflict about the special Ring of Power that the evil spirit Sauron used to bind under his domination all of the rings he "gifted" to the different nations of beings.  To the nine men-kings he bestowed each with a ring, for more than anything they coveted power.  Yet upon each's passing, they found themselves completely bound to Sauron, abject slaves to his will. Still, to the extent that they could strike terror in the hearts of ordinary people, I suppose that they would have derived much pleasure from this evil bullying.  I think J.R.R. Tolkien, the author of this fantasy series, had much insight into the basic, rank human nature that is much more universal among our species.  The truth is that you can't get three people together into a group without them sorting out their respective ranks...from top to bottom.  I'm not just theorizing this: I've lived it, going on 69 years come this October.  Barbara Streisand once sang, "People who need people are the luckiest people in the world."  But beyond the benefits and protections that an advanced civil society can bestow on me, I find it annoying, demeaning and stifling to find myself entangled within groups...and I'm sick of that sorting of pecking orders. Just before the Beatles broke up in late 1969, there were two group meetings, one on the 8th and the other on the 20th.  In the earlier meeting, John Lennon made the all-too-reasonable proposal that he, Paul and George each be accorded four songs on their future albums, with one or two given to Ringo. Paul, full of his perceived role as the the group's leader, rejected John's offer.  After Lennon's successful concert adventure a few days later, he announced his "divorce" from the Beatles on that second meeting twelve days later.  There was a flexibility, a willingness to work things out, in Lennon's original proposal, but people stuck in their minds with power aren't rationally reasoning things out.  The general problem I personally see in this translates into all social situations, whereby there are individuals consumed with their own sense of standing within the group, and they will sabotage any meaningful input from me while putting me down in what they regard as my "proper place". I am so sensitive to this that I don't even want to "show up" in some of the gatherings offered at church or in connection to the Parkruns I frequent...and when I was at the post office I tended to avoid union meetings: now it's retirement reunions I steer clear of.  But you know, I can always attend and just sit in the back and keep my mouth shut or just engage in small talk...

Looked at "New Student Edition" Florida Alligator

About a week ago I picked up a copy of the free local paper titled The Independent Florida Alligator, and opened it up to look for anything of use to me.  This issue's called "new student edition", so since I'm pretty damned old in the grand scheme of things I guess they're not all that concerned about me...but that's all right.  The contents were full of upbeat, encouraging articles aimed at helping students avoid burnout while offering suggestions on where they can hang out, eat, exercise, and so on.  I enjoyed reading the opening article describing the recent politicized crap surrounding who gets to be University of Florida's president ever since our excuse for a governor, Ron Desantis, appointed Nebraska senator Ben Sasse to the post, only for him to suddenly resign one day, leaving many angry people in his wake.  Then they brought back Kent Fuchs, who had served at the post for eight years, as interim president until they completed their search and confirmed a new one.  University of Michigan president Santa Ono was picked, resigned his old post...and was ultimately rejected by the politically obsessed Florida Board of Governors, leaving Fuchs still in charge.  He's retired now, and maybe UF doesn't really need a president anyway...what a pathetic joke this once-respected office has been degraded to.  I enjoy the creative writing in the Alligator, and it tends to have a personal edge to it that I can relate to...kind of like blog articles.  And of course I enjoy their little puzzle section toward the back, especially the "spot six differences" one.  But would I ever shell out any money for the Alligator? No way...

Snug-Fitting Old Brooks Shoes Seem to Improve Walking

Today on my neighborhood 3.3-mile loop speed walk, I tried wearing my older Brooks running shoes that fit my feet more snugly than the pair I had been wearing regularly.  I seemed to be able to pick up my walking pace with the old shoes, and it may well be because my feet are tighter in them, not moving around wasting energy with each contact on the road surface.  If I walk this coming Saturday's Depot Parkrun, I plan to use the old Brooks for it and see if I can't bring down my finishing time.  Should be interesting.  In any event, I plan to ask around for advice about who can give me authoritative pointers on race-walking form and evaluate what I'm doing wrong or right with it.  I sincerely believe that endurance speed-walking can well be the way to go with my advancing years as I am intent on maintaining high-functioning mobility, as athletically as possible.  I know the non-profit Florida Track Club, of which I am a member, has an auxiliary, commercial "Team" Florida Track Club that offers (for various fees) coaching and advice...and I believe that race walking is covered in it somewhere.  In today's digital information world, it seems that it shouldn't be all that hard to get some sound coaching with my speed-walking...

The Fallacy of the Dead-End Job

If you're an advocate of the practice of mindfulness, then you just might not need to read this piece about how some of us put down our own employment status as "dead-end".  I recently heard, second-hand, about a loved one who has expressed that her current job was dead-end, with no real prospects for growth.  It was a striking criticism, for I had gleaned from her previous descriptions of her work life that she enjoyed the relative autonomy that the daily routine granted her.  It's a position that demands some physical fitness and endurance...lots of walking!  I think I might have liked that kind of work were I her age...but I get at least her "old" way of looking at work: it paid the bills, she could get through the work day without being bullied by managers or co-workers and when she left, she was done and free for the rest of the day.  I've always worked for the same things and never rated a job as "dead-end" or depriving me of growth...about which I think she meant "opportunities for promotion".  I worked at the US Postal Service for 37 years and had ample opportunities to seek entry into management.  But I was consistently focused on treating each workday as an opportunity to perform my duties well, and when I clocked out at the end of the shift, I was satisfied and went on to what was next for me.  I totally understand that people have differing ideas about ambition and climbing status ladders in their respective fields of employment...a lot of it has to do with cultural values and family structure, as well as with being around certain more alpha-personality types that promote such outlooks and who may be intent on exerting undue pressure. I've encountered some of these pushy folks whose idea of getting to know me is centered around where I rate according to their scale of respect...and that means how prestigious (or not) is my job title and how much money I make on it.  I don't owe anyone an explanation for my motives in job selection, but any revelation from them that they feel entitled to negatively judge me accordingly quickly and automatically condemns them as unworthy of friendship and respect. Back when I first started working for the USPS, they hired...outside the standard-practice sequence of the register list of candidates according to their exam scores...the son of a current supervisor.  He was arrogant with an entitlement mentality, and performed his assigned tasks sloppily, but escaped discipline because of his connections.  Well, one day he came to work full of the advancement promises that being an Amway member gave him.  With Amway, the important thing is to get people "under you", through which you get a cut of their sales profits.  His idea was that eventually he could live effortlessly through the efforts of those supporting him.  Fine if that works, but his sales pitch to us coworkers was that it was better than this "dead-end job" we were doing.  That aroused some offense from me and a colleague, and the matter was squelched among us.  A couple of years later that dude was fired for outright insubordination...since his "daddy" supervisor had already retired, he was no longer under that umbrella of protection and they were only too eager to get rid of this troublemaker.  So that's where I stand whenever someone starts playing the "it's a dead-end job" hand.  Do whatever you want as long as it's legal and you do no harm to others, but leave me alone if you're going to use that bullshit excuse for an argument...

Evangelicals, Worldliness and Cognitive Dissonance

I've written before on this blog about how I'm put off by people who devote much of their very-verbose speaking efforts at defining their theology within the conservative evangelical Christian movement and discussing different people they personally know, employing a judgmental yardstick behind their backs regarding their salvation status and Christian walk.  Frankly, I just wish these good people would just shut up and sit back.  They also seem predisposed to be much more worldly in their materialism and status within the world system's pecking order.  For some reason church lay leaders place very heavy emphasis on people's professional and financial status.  Business owner, physician, college professor, engineer, lawyer, overall rich person...they seem to confirm that these individuals have leadership (over me) qualifications because of their worldly achievements and that they, by default, have more spirituality than someone who has lived a responsible life for themselves and their family but doesn't check the "right" boxes.  I've encountered this worldly, unspiritual snobbery on multiple occasions at church social gatherings...hard to digest and reconcile without the word "hypocrites" screaming out to me. I think, however, that I can deal with that sort of elitism better than the two-faced kind of cognitive dissonance I've noticed among some who, while insisting on their own high level of spirituality, are completely immersed in the struggles for political power in this world, particularly between the Republicans and Democrats in this country.  I mean, if you're on the "wrong" side, which they literally hate while extolling the name of Jesus, you might just consider carefully keeping your own counsel around them.  I have a choice with these folks, several of whom seem to harbor good will toward me since they do not know of my political leanings. Either I can eschew politics when around them or I can eschew them for my own mental and emotional peace, God bless 'em. Or maybe just try both paths...solitude can be a true blessing...

On Being One-Upped by "Non-Competitive" Park-Walker "Volunteers" in Parkruns

I like my habit of going out on Saturday mornings and participating in one of Gainesville's two Parkruns.  I either run it, speed-walk it, mix up the two within the same race or volunteer.  So far since 2019 I have finished 84 such events.  You're accorded the privilege after reaching 25, 50, 100 and 250 milestones of ordering special tee shirts bearing the achieved level.  I had their pretty lavender "25" shirt but a few months ago either misplaced or lost it...sad.  But now I'm going with "50", red-colored.  If things go according to plan I should be eligible sometime early in 2026 for their "100" shirt...looking forward to it.  As Shauna (the Parkrun leader here in Gainesville) has said on multiple occasions, the Parkrun 5K is not a competition per se but rather an event designed to bring people together who embrace fitness and bettering themselves.  I'm in agreement with her on this: my priorities with Parkrun are (1) show up, (2) finish, (3) do the run or walk or volunteer gig true to my standards, (4) as reasonably as possible be friendly and accommodating toward others attending with me and (5) write about it on my blog.  Well, here's one of those (5)'s! Starting a couple of years ago I decided to phase more speed-walking into my workouts and racing.  With this I began inserting, every few weeks, a Parkrun event in which I walked the 3.1 miles at my then-top pace.  My speed did pick up to the point where, a year ago, I regularly finished the 5K distance faster than 40 minutes, my top two days both at 38:19.  I was also some 25 pounds lighter at the time, something that I believe contributed to my speed and progress.  Since then, though, the weight has come back up and my finishes have gotten slower.  And a couple of annoying things happened as well.  One of the volunteer slots available to choose for a Parkrun is to be a park-walker.  You don a blue park-walker-volunteer vest and then simply walk the course during the race, presumably as someone who can be supportive to other participants.  Back on June 21st, I was speed-walking at Depot Park when a little boy, wearing that park-walker-volunteer vest, casually walked right past me toward the end, eventually leaving me far behind.  I was a little disconcerted at this, because I thought damn, I could have done what he did and race-walked, getting an extra volunteer credit in the process.  Then last week I was speed-walking at their newly begun West End Community Park course when the identical thing again happened.  This time the "volunteer", as it turned out, was an elderly woman in my same age group (65-69).  And she seemed to be having quite an easy time passing me, too...and it seemed to mean something to her to do so.  The fact that some others are so casual about walking so quickly shouldn't bother me, but it does because I take speed-walking seriously and see it as a promising vehicle for me to maintain a robust level of ambulatory activity deeply into my senior years, God willing. I'd like to even speed-walk a 26.2 mile marathon race in under 6 hours, but I feel I need to get my weight back down to a more reasonable figure first.  And I suppose that in the meantime, anybody can have their grandson or granny "volunteer" to fly right on by me in a Parkrun if that makes them feel higher on the pecking order.  I just don't see how that's doing any of the rest of us good if they're doing it as "volunteers"...  

Mixed Walking and Running at West End Community Parkrun 5K Today

The dog days of summer drag on, and I dragged myself down to West End Community Park to engage in their weekly Saturday morning Parkrun.  At 7:30 race time, it was a very uncomfortable 75 degrees with 98% humidity...and the sun rose to clear skies, practically blinding anyone facing the east during the event.  I had originally intended to run this 5K, but with the grounds being so slick from dew and the previous night's thunderstorms, I instead decided to go with a speed-walk and see how that worked.  This went well, until I decided mid-race to treat it all like a neighborhood workout and mix some running into the formula.  At 21 minutes I began running, alternating it with spurts of speed-walking: at the end, I finished with a time of 37:14, 13:14 spent in running.  You can view the posted results by clicking HERE.  I am getting more accustomed to this very convoluted course, but I still prefer the setup at Depot Park across town where I'm always on pavement and can easily determine my progress by how many laps I've covered...here at West End I have to go completely by my watch and the elapsed time. I also don't care too much for having to drive a substantially longer distance to get to West End Community Park, which is a quick right-hand turn just a few blocks west of NW 122nd Street off Newberry Road.  I do like the fact that afterward I can (and did) go to the Tioga Town Center across the street to dry off and change at Gainesville Health and Fitness there and then walk over to Patticakes, where I'm writing this out and drinking a chai latte.  And now it's time to go home! Looking forward to a nice weekend, for me, Melissa...and you!

Looking for Useful Stuff in Free Brochures and Newspapers

I retired at the end of November last year, but I still get my union's newsletters in the mail, as if I am somehow still listed somewhere as a member.  Let's see...this one is titled "Florida Postal Worker", representing the American Postal Workers Union of Florida.  Good enough, let's open it up and see what's inside. Headline item: Ratification Happens...the new collective bargaining agreement has been overwhelmingly ratified by the rank and file.  On turning the page, there is an article on how to avoid scams, an anti-Trump piece titled "No Kings in America", and an urging for members to contact their elected representatives with their opinions. Then there's list of 30 reasons to thank unions, a section listing general guidelines for emergency preparedness, an article about the APWU Auxiliary, and a few other trailing articles. Overall I found this issue to be informative and potentially helpful, assuming I come back to it and refer to it.  I think this idea of picking up a piece of literature like a brochure or newsletter and determining whether or not it contains anything of value is constructive...future such blog articles are in the works for other publications...

Swimming Between Two Medical Issues

I'm currently swimming between two different health issues that will probably be under medical scrutiny for the remainder of my (hopefully long-term) existence on this Earth.  The first one to crop up was a congenital defective heart valve and accompanying aortic artery aneurysm that was diagnosed in late 2011/early 2012 and surgically corrected through open heart surgery in July 2021.  For this, post-op, I take regular medications and undergo periodic testing and specialist consultations...I just finished one with my excellent thoracic surgeon yesterday, to meet again in two years. The second medical issue is cancer, more specifically that of the prostate, which for me was diagnosed through biopsy in mid-December 2024.  I underwent a robotic laparoscopic prostatectomy in March and seem (so far) to be doing quite well without that malignant prostate.  But this issue also involves periodic blood tests for PSA (protein-specific antigen) levels that might indicate a return or resurgence (or not) of the cancer.  On my second post-surgery PSA test, the level was at .1, which may or may not be significant. The urology department at UF Health has me scheduled for a PSMA PET scan later this month, and thereafter yet another PSA test to be taken at the start of September. Then I'll meet with my specialist physician to determine a constructive course of action with all of this...or in the best-case scenario, inaction. It's during times like these that I can sit back and feel gratitude for the wonderful state of medicine, and my access to it.  I'm looking forward to staying active and positive, taking each day one at a time and appreciating the great people and circumstances around me...

Keeping "Track" of Tropical Storm Erin

It looks as if this weekend the moment of truth will come out regarding what is destined to be Hurricane Erin, which is one of those Atlantic tropical storm systems that developed off the west African coast and traversed the high seas deep into our western hemisphere.  According to the projected various possible paths the storm could take, I'm not too concerned from my north-central Florida home location, but I'm not so sure I'd want to be on a cruise ship anytime in the near future that has the Bahamas and eastern Caribbean on its course.  My own cruise concern is projected for the first couple of weeks in October, when I'm afraid it might be a bit more touchy with the tropical storms during that period.  But we'll see. I'm guessing that Erin probably won't make landfall on the continent, but might threaten Bermuda and cause a lot of warnings about rip current along the Atlantic coast from Florida on northward. In any event, I guess this means we're finally in the middle of hurricane season.  Now that I'm retired and out of school for decades, I'm naturally hoping that they all stay away...

Will Trump Follow in Neville Chamberlain's Footsteps over Ukraine?

So it looks as if our current president will soon be meeting with his Russian counterpart in Alaska to present proposals for peace in Ukraine and try to come back with some hope for the future.  Having studied some history myself, I know that Great Britain's prime minister Neville Chamberlain met with Germany's dictator Adolf Hitler in 1938 to resolve the latter's instigated "crisis" as he threatened neighboring Czechoslovakia under the guise of protecting ethnic Germans in the Sudetenland part of that peaceful country's territory.  And Chamberlain came away from that encounter waving a signed piece of paper, declaring "Peace in our time".  It was nothing more than a capitulation to the Nazi warmonger and sped the international community toward eventual world war as Germany only accelerated its military aggression.  I have a suspicion that something similar will arise from this "summit" between a dictator masquerading as a democratically-elected president and a democratically-elected president masquerading as a dictator.  Only when it comes to strength and integrity, "my" leader, I'm afraid, is an ignorant, weak puppet for Russia's government...but I already knew that for nine years.  Get ready for Ukraine to be sold down the river while Trump proudly waves his own paper in the air and makes like he stood up to Putin...

Feel Excluded By Both Political Parties' Ideologies

It used to be that being a politically pragmatic centrist was a pretty reasonable, popular thing to be in our republic that has functioned through democratically elected representatives comprising governments on national, statewide and local levels.  Nowadays, however, I find myself extremely marginalized as the two main political parties are each practicing ideologies and policies that exclude me and my interests.  I'm repulsed at the increasingly autocratic Republican Party and President Trump on the national level and Florida's Governor Desantis at the statewide level.  On the other hand, I am one of those folks who are put off by a burgeoning Woke movement in this country, very sensitive to how its advocates group and label people while practicing cancel culture as they condemn anything or anyone they see or hear violating their special rules of speech and behavior.  The latest example of this is the furor being whipped up over the clothing company American Eagle and their ad campaign featuring an attractive young woman wearing their product.  Even Rachel Maddox on MSNBC is getting in on it all, lending her politically correct opinions.  In Gainesville we have a leftist news rag called The Iguana, and in all the years I've picked it up and read it I have yet to see anything in their issues that speak to my interests.  No, I seem to belong to all the wrong demographic categories, and not only am I the "bad guy" by default in any diversity/"inclusion" discussions, but I'm now adjudged to be guilty of being privileged whether or not I show any signs of prejudice or compassion.  I know a dude I used to work with who is very proud of his own Wokeness...I realized at a point that I could never talk to him about anything without him coming back at me with some Woke spin on things.  Such people are innately full of their own pious self-righteousness and see themselves as qualified to point their accusing fingers at anyone who uses the wrong pronoun or engages in the healthy, mature habit of playing devil's advocate in a discussion of issues or politics.  So no, I feel no love for either party, and I really feel like avoiding the creepy, stupid people who like to speechify on what is correct and what isn't... 

Comparing Depot Park and West End Community Park Parkruns So Far

I feel blessed at my age to still be fit enough to engage in 5K (3.1-mile) walk/run events.  I'm also grateful that my home town of Gainesville now has two free weekly 5K events, each held Saturday mornings at 7:30.  The older of the two, Depot Parkrun, I've participated in since 2019, finishing so far some 82 races at this writing.  The most recent one, West End Community Parkrun, held its first race on July 12th, and I ran my first race there on August 2nd.  I now have a choice for each Saturday morning: stay in bed at home, get up and do the Depot Parkrun...just south of downtown Gainesville...or travel a bit further west of town to West End Community Park for their event.  I've written before that I prefer the Depot Park course, which consists of four laps on a paved pathway around the park.  They also have park restroom facilities there, as well as plenty of parking.  My only objection is that the town surrounding the park is kind of run down, with plenty of homeless people walking the streets and planting themselves around the businesses that are trying to function there...including the nearby Starbucks, sigh.  As for West End Community Park, the course is nearly impossible to figure out, zigzagging with sharp turns and uneven concrete sidewalks, interrupted by stretches of grassway slickened by the morning dew and in different states of mowing.  Last week I speed-walked the four laps at Depot Park, and following the race I ran an unofficial bonus lap...this is unfeasible at the new site.  Also, West End at this time only has a couple of porta-potties: pretty primitive.  On its upside, though, just across Newberry Road from the park is a classy shopping center, highlighted for me by a branch of Gainesville Health and Fitness Center that opens at 8 am.  I can go there after the race, cool myself down at GHF and change clothes, and then walk a few steps over to Patticakes, a very nice coffee shop that used to be a Starbucks for years.  This Saturday my plan is to try out West End again and see how it all goes...

Walked the Depot Parkrun 5K This Morning

I decided this morning to go to Depot Park to speed-walk their weekly Parkrun 5K.  It was warm and muggy...as usual...as I felt my sore legs and decided to give the joints a break with a walk instead of pounding the pavement with a run.  As it was, the walk was easy enough, but with my increased body weight the speed has suffered over the past year and I finished it with a time of 42:42...click HERE to view the posted results.  I did feel energized enough at the end to run an unofficial bonus .7-mile lap...did that in 6:49.  Maybe in the future...at Depot Park at least...I'll tack on an extra lap or two of running following a speed-walk.  In any event, I feel I'm experiencing a sort of reset with my level of speed with the recent walks and runs.  That's all right: for the time being, the main thing is simply showing up. Besides, it's still the dog days of summer, with the temperature at race time 68 degrees with a muggy 94% humidity.  After the race I tried going to Maude's, a nearby coffee shop...wasn't impressed: going elsewhere in the future...

Enjoyed Some Time at Daytona Beach

 

Melissa and I made a somewhat spontaneous decision to go to Daytona Beach for a couple of nights...we just got back this afternoon.  It was pleasant to see the ol' Beach again...nice to be able sit out on our oceanfront room balcony and take in the scenery.  Since we're talking Wednesday check-in and Friday check-out, this stood as the last full weekday stretch for a while in which kids weren't going off to school.  Hence there were a lot of families with children everywhere...and especially in the hotel's swimming pool.  We did avail ourselves of it Thursday...I think our local pool is a lot more convenient, though.  I went on a couple of walks along the beach, each in a different direction.  The weather was a mix of rainstorms and sun.  The tides seemed to come in a bit too strongly, impeding walking paths along the beach...I timed my walks to coincide with receding sea levels.  We also ate out at a couple of our favorite area restaurants.  The whole experience was fun...except for the sometimes exasperating drives from Gainesville to there, and back.  And it's good to be back...

At Doughnut Shop Again, with AlphaSmart

 

I'm sitting here in my nearby Dunkin' Donuts writing this on the above-pictured AlphaSmart portable word processor, which is completely off-line and runs on AA batteries, automatically saving whatever I type in one of the device's 8 built-in files.  Now I do have a cord for it that allows me to transfer my writing to another computer...that's how you're able to read this! This doughnut shop first opened during the COVID-19 era in early 2020...I remember voting that March in the Florida Primary and then going through the store's drive-through, only to be told that the employees were "in training" and that the grand opening wouldn't be for another few weeks.  As I remember, Lord Voldetrump was president back then as well, and I was eager to support Joe Biden in his campaign to unseat him.  I felt that Biden did a credible job in his four years as our president. Apparently, though, you have to be a show-biz whiz in front of the cameras and mikes to make it in this social and mass media-based society we're subjugating ourselves to nowadays.  Biden in his earlier years probably would have come out looking and sounding better, but from 2021 to 2025 his best efforts resulted in a more subdued and less dramatic presidency: it worked for me, albeit not for the attention-deficit general population. Yesterday I was here typing out another blog article when an old friend from a now-defunct church came in and we talked (or more precisely, I listened to him talking).  My church buddies present a kind of predicament to me.  This guy was meeting with a couple of friends regularly on Monday afternoons to discuss "Jesus", but when they did get together they seemed bent on discussing sports and politics, the latter with an built-in presumption that the Democrats were villains. But that's the way it is for me with people I like from church: the overwhelming majority of them are Trump followers who get their information from FoxNews and their opinions spoon-fed by people like Jesse Watters, Sean Hannity, Greg Gutfeld and Mark Levin.  If Trump says something it's automatically true and you can't argue otherwise.  Sigh. So with these good folks I have the choice of either consciously avoiding discussing news with them or consciously avoiding their presence, period.  And, sadly, the trend for me has been to just stay away from them and leave them to their own self-imposed feedback loops and cult personality idol worship...

About Texas Redrawing Its Own Congressional Districts

I understand that there's a degree of brouhaha going on in the news about the Texas state legislature's redesigning of their district boundaries, and how it is supposedly all being done in a very devious, gerrymandered manner to deprive Texans of representation by the Democrats.  I viewed the "before" and "after" maps of the Texas districts and, quite frankly, am at a loss to detect any sign of gerrymandering in the new proposal.  The fact is that Texas has become a solidly red, pro-Republican state in the past thirty years.  It's also a known practice in national politics that a state's elected legislature has as one of its functions the periodic redrawing of district boundaries: Texas is no exception.  But now we're seeing Texas Democratic legislators fleeing the state to avoid there being a needed quorum in place to push into law the new map. I'm looking at the world today and ask myself, why should I care about this issue that is being headlined on the television news channels...must be a slow news day.  Although each state is authorized to draw its own district maps, the practice is traditionally done closely following the national census, done in years ending in zero.  This Texas action is different in that Jabba the Trump demanded they do it because he thinks he'll gain five congressional seats in the 2026 election...and, boy, does Trump ever want to stay in complete power!  In response, the New York and California state governors, both Democrats with strong Democratic-majority legislatures, just came out and announced that they would likewise redraw their own state congressional maps to give their own party advantages as well.  Are you indignant about any of this?  Not me, I have better things in my life to be concerned about, and the last thing I've come to trust any more is that the American voter will show any signs of integrity or wisdom in ANY election, no matter how the districts are drawn.  If the right candidate ends up winning one, regardless of where they are on the "map", it's more likely an accident or for the wrong reasons... 

Musical Artists Speaking Ill of Colleagues in the Trade

I was watching YouTube videos about popular music groups of the past and noticed that some of the preferred posts feature what different musical artists think about their colleagues within the trade.  Specifically, I just saw one video that listed five artists who didn't like the Beatles...and of course they explained why they felt that way. They were Lou Reed, Quincy Jones, Trent Reznor, Michael Stipe and Julian Casablancas. To me, all of these "artists" come away from their bashings appearing like musical snobs who think they know better than plain folk like you or me.  Since the only Reed song I've heard and liked was Take a Walk on the Wild Side and he seems to have no singing voice to speak of, I'll dispose of him up front.  Jones was a renowned record producer and heavily aligned with soul and jazz, a stickler for technique when it comes down to playing musical instruments. Unfortunately, I've never been all that into either of those genres.  Reznor, the frontman for Nine Inch Nails, only did one song, Head Like a Hole, that I liked, and Casablancas fronts the alt-rock band the Strokes, which produced a couple of songs to my liking, Reptilia and 12:51.  But Stipe and his band R.E.M. I've long considered among my favorites because their music and lyrics strike a strong emotional chord with me...like the Beatles did.  I think a lot of the divisive rhetoric is being magnified on social media as clickbait to build up user volume and revenue. People can believe what they want, just as I do.  My general view of the aforementioned critics is you can have the music of Reed, Jones and Reznor...no loss to me, and Casablancas isn't talented enough to even enter a conversation about anyone else...leaving Michael Stipe for me to scratch my head about in puzzlement.  But in honesty the Beatles themselves didn't hold back in what they thought about others, especially John and George.  I don't idolize anyone, and I can't think of any musical act that always produced stuff I liked, including the Beatles, which I regard as the greatest popular music act of all time..  

Ran Today's West End Community Parkrun 5K

On this first of five Saturdays in August I woke up to extraordinarily unpleasant weather conditions as I prepared for my weekly Parkrun 5K.  I had expected something like this since, after all, it IS summertime and we've been experiencing a horrendous heat wave.  Still, by the time I arrived at my race destination around 7, the temperature was an oppressive 77 degrees with the humidity just as bad at 100%.  If you've been reading this blog, you know that four weeks ago I drove down to West End Community Park about six blocks west of NW 122nd Street on Newberry Road, just outside Gainesville, to unofficially try out (with others) the course for the city's second Parkrun.  It officially kicked off the following week, and today was the West End Community Parkrun's fourth go at it.  So I headed on down and endured the stifling pre-race heat and mugginess...along with an inordinate supply of gnats buzzing all over everyone...yuck!  I entered this event just as a "workout jog", not focused on beating any special time goals.  The course is a twisting and turning alternation of concrete sidewalks and connecting stretches of grass.  Unlike the Depot Parkrun I usually attend, this course does not repeat...which has its advantages and disadvantages.  There seems to be more hilliness to this course, making it more challenging.  I was able early on to find a kind of slow-paced groove without too much interference from the other runners, and just focused on following the tortuous path, one step at a time, to the end.  As a mental aid I counted the stretches of concrete (26) in the race...I think it helped me since I'm used to counting laps on the Depot Park course.  I finished today's run with a time of 30:16, a good time on a new course that I can look forward to improving on.  You can view today's results by clicking HERE.  I think I still prefer the Depot Parkrun...it's easier to get to and the facilities there are better.  I did like the fact that West End is directly across Newberry Road from Gainesville Health and Fitness of which I am still a member, and a pleasant coffee shop called Patticakes.  If I ever get more sociable, I can go sit there when they meet to finalize the race results and post them...but now I think I'll just take it easy. By the way, the above photo of me tackling the course was taken by Olivia, one of the volunteers there...

About Politics (You're Welcome to Skip Reading This)

A few days ago I wrote a politically-charged article for this blog, but hesitated to post it because, well, it seemed a bit too harsh after reading it over a couple of times.  After last November's presidential election that made me sharply question the intelligence and integrity of the American voter, my political criticisms have alternated between calling out the gullibility and/or ugliness motivating too many people's voting trends these days and calling out the people that they placed in positions of power...the most notable one of course being Trump.  So instead of using pejorative designations like "dumbass", "fraud" or "hack", let me instead just relay that in no way do I feel any sense of trust in my elected leaders...especially the current White House occupant...nor do I think that the American electorate will, in either the immediate or long-term future, do anything to return this republic of elected representatives to a semblance of reason and comity directed toward the public good.  So, therefore, I've lived my whole life in a country that now makes me feel like a "stranger in a strange land".  I also don't think that any expressed political opinion of mine is going to make any real difference other than label myself, to the computer algorithms out there, as belonging to a particular political leaning after which they will concentrate on feeding me social media input that they "think" reinforces what they "think" I already think.  So there you go...let me just stay out of the way of all the crazies I see around me...oops, I think I just used a pejorative...

My July 2025 Running, Walking and Swimming Report

For the month of July I persevered with my running and (speed) walking, cutting back some with the swimming.  I participated in three different racing events, running two of them (Melon Run, Depot Parkrun) on consecutive mornings early in the month. My intent this month...in which we've been experiencing a record-setting heat wave...was to balance my running and walking training while trying to avoid overexposure in the heat (and humidity) of the blistering day: I think it's worked so far. In the middle of July Melissa and I went on a three-night Bahamas cruise, but apart from expected extensive walking I didn't exert myself much, and the ship's pools were too crowded and small to be of any use.  The second half of the month I began to use my gym's treadmill to work on increasing my walking speed.  And the past week saw us using our local YMCA's swimming pool, with me getting in some practice.  At this stage, I am dissatisfied that I have gained some 20-plus pounds since this time in 2024.  Back then I had a built-in daily structure...going to my regular post office job five days a week...with which I could implement habits moderating and spacing my food consumption while maintaining physical activity.  But I retired at the end of November and with Melissa we seem to be focusing more on the next meal we're to eat, while much of the time I'm content with just eating light although I often go along with her recommendations and, quite frankly, have my own high-calorie favorites (like pancakes and hamburgers).  I don't really need that much food to get by, and I think that my general health and fitness (and running and walking speed) would be better were I to proactively assert myself more around eating time.  That said, I'm happy with this past month and have high hopes for August.  During my last two neighborhood 3.3-mile training loops I walked briskly until 40 minutes went by and then I ran the rest of the way back home...I think I'll adopt that pattern into my regular training regimen.  With swimming, my goal is to get myself comfortable using the 25 yd swimming lanes and thereby avoid depending on the shorter and more shallow half of the pool, which can get unpredictably crowded.  August 2025 has five Saturdays, so there should be plenty of chances to do 5K races next month, especially now that there are two Parkruns in town now.  I'm thinking of "officially" running my first West End Community Parkrun in a couple of days.  Although I disliked the course when I test-ran it back on July 13th, I like that it's directly across the street from Gainesville Health and Fitness (Tioga branch) and Patticakes coffee shop...

This Morning at the Lab

After spending more than an hour waiting for my blood to be drawn at my pathology lab this morning, I realized that it's not always prudent to get there the earliest.  Many other folks are following the same reasoning...either to just get it done with or to fit it into their tight schedules...so the "early bird" rush is in effect.  Not only that, but they had only one person to draw the blood in the lab.  By the time my name was finally called, they had three on duty...I think from now on I'll wait a little while before going down there. Despite the wait, the people around me were friendly and patient, as (hopefully) I seemed to be toward them. I tried the "early" route because getting there right after awakening was the most convenient way to get my blood drawn after fasting...now I can enjoy my iced coffee at the nearby Dunkin' Donuts while musing about the month about to end.  Yesterday Melissa and I signed and initialed the contract for the sale of our tragically deceased son Will's house...the closing process is now essentially in the confident and capable hands of our real estate agent, bless him.  Then the two of us made plans for another cruise, this one in early October.  That should be fun as well.  In the meantime, I'm having to continue my follow-up medical visits, in August to check my heart status, in September to my urologist/surgeon following prostate cancer surgery, and in October to consult with a dermatologist.  I guess I'm now in the permanent medical rotation, but I feel fine and intend to continue doing so...   

My Song of the Month for July 2025

Scottish alternative rock band Franz Ferdinand gets my nod in July for my personal favorite "song of the month" with the final track of their January album release (The Human Fear), titled The Birds.  It has a relentless guitar riff/hook to it, and Alex Kapranos, the lead singer and chief creative force behind their music and lyrics comes off sounding quite a lot like the Doors' Jim Morrison...I mean they sound like audio doppelgangers!  This is the second straight month in which I listened to a recent release by a group I already liked, sadly disliked almost the entire album but then suddenly bonded with their final track...for June it was Arcade Fire, their Pink Elephant album and the song Stuck in My Head.  The Birds contains simple lyrics, with Kapranos expressing gratitude to the listener for "accepting him despite what he has done"...that's repeated throughout this catchy tune.  So now here are my songs of the month so far for 2025:

July        The Birds   by Franz Ferdinand

June        Stuck in My Head   by Arcade Fire

May        Walking on a Dream   by Empire of the Sun

April       Nothing I Need   by Lord Huron

March     Under the Rug   by Arcy Drive

February  Starburster    by Fontaines DC

January   Everyone Out   by Diiv

Now, it's onward to August...

Record-Hot Day in Gainesville Today

Looks like Gainesville is going to set a high temperature record for today, hitting three digits.  It's already 100 and there's plenty of time for it to get even higher.  I got up early this morning and did a walk/run around my 3.3-mile neighborhood course, and then went with Melissa to my local pool to do a few laps...all before the sun had risen to any appreciable extent.  Even then, though, conditions were stifling due to the humidity combined with warmth. And now it's all "hunker-down" in air-conditioning for the remainder of the day.  This is when I really appreciate the warnings that go out for employees exposed to outdoor conditions, like letter carriers for example...

Vacation Plans, Gym, Old Starbucks Store

If it's one thing I've learned well over the past two-plus years, it's been that it's fine to make vacation plans, but that whether or not they end up cancelled is another thing entirely.  So as Melissa and I ponder future out-of-town travel adventures, I thought it would be nice to revisit one of my old Gainesville haunts: the Starbucks at Magnolia Parke on NW 39th Avenue, which first opened back in 2000.  Other Starbucks stores in town have closed or moved to other locations to accommodate drive-through ordering, but this one seems so far to have lived a charmed life.  I knew the first store manager, Marty Bower, who was so polite and considerate that he'd give me coffee on the house if he thought there was ever any delay.  He's also the dude who inspired the wonderful Lifesouth Marathon/Half-Marathon Five Points of Life annual Gainesville tradition, begun in 2006 and ending three years ago.  The story is that he had transferred to managing the (now-closed) Royal Park Starbucks on Newberry Road when one afternoon a couple of LifeSouth employees, on a jog from their nearby office, came in and the idea was born with Marty making the suggestion to stage such races.  Marty once again transferred to another Starbucks, the one on 13th Street and 16th Avenue, before I ever got around to entering one of these races in 2010.  But by that time he was no longer around...too bad, I hope he's doing all right.  I used to come by this Magnolia Parke location on weekday mornings after dropping the kids off at school...they had a long counter facing the front window to sit at.  Today may arguably be the single hottest day of an already oppressively hot year, and instead of walking and/or running around my neighborhood I decided to make a rare visit to Gainesville Health and Fitness Center.  That was a pleasant experience as I used their treadmill to speed-walk 3.3 miles, increasing my speed a tenth of a mile every half-mile, starting at 4.1 mph and ending at 4.8.  I remember often stopping off there right after getting off from work at 10 pm, sometimes even venturing into the swimming pool (now nearly impossible to access for its overcrowding).  I probably should cancel my membership to GHF, since the other gym I subscribe to is available...along with a swimming pool...the other six days of the week.  But today was a fine experience.  As for those travel plans, Melissa and I both enjoy the Royal Caribbean cruise line and have used them three different times.  There's another cruise of theirs this October that we might be signing up for if our schedules permit and things come together right...

Volunteered as Tail-Walker in Today's Depot Parkrun 5K

When I pulled into the Depot Park parking lot this morning a little past seven, it was 75 degrees with 93% humidity.  These inhospitable weather conditions were expected, though, especially in the middle of these summertime dog days.  Last Saturday at this time I was on the cruise boat, docked at Nassau in the Bahamas, so of course there was no Parkrun for me then.  And even today, I volunteered as a tail-walker, so I wouldn't exactly be testing my ability to withstand the conditions...this past week I've done the equivalent, though, with my neighborhood walk/runs.  My main concern with being a tail-walker was to make sure I was the last person in the field, so at the start I waited a couple of minutes so that anyone who was going to be in the race was already "in"...and then I started at a slow pace.  Another volunteer was a "regular" park-walker, and she stayed back to photograph the other runners and walkers for their Facebook event photo feature...this was nice, although it also held me up, making me walk even slower than I had planned.  The spirit around this event was sweet, and it all seemed to go off without a hitch.  I finished 82nd out of 82, which of course is what I was supposed to do, at a subdued time of 1:11:38.  If you'd like, you can click HERE to view today's Depot Parkrun 5K results.  One of the nice things about volunteering as a walker is that I get credits both for completing the course and for volunteering.  Maybe next month I'll volunteer again, but I'd like to wait a bit before then...

Oven-Like Conditions Outside in Summertime Dog Days

Early today...real early...I got up and went with Melissa to get one of our Toyotas repaired at the shop.  Returning home, I was very sleepy and didn't wake up until mid-afternoon.  I checked the current weather conditions here in Gainesville at 3:00 pm: 91 degrees, 68% humidity, and "feels like" 108 degrees!  Stepping outside was like stepping into an oven: I promised Melissa I would be doing my exercises indoors, in the air conditioning...

Star-Gazing on Cruise Ocean Balcony

During the evening after sunset on our recent cruise, since we had a cabin with an ocean-facing balcony I spent some time there looking out at the sky.  Although there were a few clouds scattered about, I had little trouble making out the more conspicuous stars in the visible constellations.  Friday and Saturday evening offered a good view of the southern sky, and at this mid-July that meant that Scorpius was clearly the most notable and recognizable star pattern out there, vividly presenting the stellar image of a giant scorpion, with its first magnitude red giant star Antares standing out.  But below Scorpius and to the west (right) was another easily visible clump of stars...not quite as bright as those in Scorpius...that intrigued me.  I suspected that what I was viewing was mostly the constellation Lupus, with the standout inverted triangle of 2nd-and-3rd-magnitude stars and a smaller, fainter triangle to its left (east), and a couple of stars trailing off to the larger triangle's west.  After returning home I referenced a star chart and found my triangle...the bottom and top-left stars were indeed in Lupus while the top-right one was part of Centaurus, and the two trailing to the west were also in Centaurus.  As a matter of fact, had we been a little further south in the water at the time, I could have traced straight down from my triangle and reached the first-magnitude stars Alpha and Beta Centauri just above the southern horizon.  My personal star-pattern of triangles wasn't an official constellation but rather an asterism, which I called "Daisy-Doo" because it reminded me of our pet rescue dog's head.  I think tonight...if the rain clouds disperse, that is...I might just go outside and see if I can't find my Daisy-Doo hiding out there on the other side of the trees south of my house...

Back from Cruise, Routines Returning

I am a creature of deliberate routine, having normalized several different daily habits over the past months and years.  That's not to say that I'm going to stick to them all for the interruption that a three-day cruise creates, and this is good to know in advance.  For example, this past weekend I let go of my routine of listening for set time spans to different languages as well as doing writing exercises in them.  I relaxed my exercise workout standards as well, along with the limits I usually place with my eating.  After all, I'm focusing on the cruise experience, right?  But today is the second full day back and the old routines are returning to form, and that is a good thing. And what do you know, in only the span of one week the front and back yards look like they're ready for yet another mowing: back to that routine...      

Back From Our Little Cruise

Yesterday morning our three-night cruise returned to Port Canaveral and Melissa and I embarked on our sometimes harrowing ride home to Gainesville on the long stretches of interstate and turnpike roads.  Late morning today we're both recovering...from both the cruise and drive home.  The cruise was on Royal Caribbean's big boat, Utopia of the Seas, and it was likewise packed with a big concentration of travelers, spanning generations.  These cruises try to accommodate diverse interests, and they have a heavy emphasis on making alcohol available for adults...along with a casino and opportunities for night clubbing.  The pools on this boat didn't fit the bill in my estimation, nearly always overcrowded to the point that when you're just standing in one spot (maximum depth 4 feet), you stand a good chance of others carelessly colliding with you...which is what happened to me.  Our itinerary on this short trip had us stopping Saturday at Nassau, capital city of the Bahamas, and then on Sunday at Coco Cay, a little island owned by Royal Caribbean and transformed into a beach/pool/water park destination for its clients.  When we docked at Nassau, we noticed that there were, in plain sight, four other cruise ships there.  And the businesses we encountered after we left the shop that morning were nearly impossible to navigate, with so, so many people crowding around us and the shop owners/employees nearly always employing an aggressive sales strategy whereby they would approach one of us and feign interest in what we're doing but waste no time in switching over to what they wanted...which of course was our money.  It got very old very quickly out there in this little tourist trap corner of Nassau and we were only too happy to return to the ship after just an hour or so ashore.  For Coco Cay, we decided to avail ourselves of our ship's swimming pools...without all those people who we assumed went out.  Still, it was hard to swim to any degree there because, well, kids being who they are, just don't look out for others and were constantly getting in the way.  We did, though, enjoy some time in the pool and the whirlpool as well.  Utopia of the Seas boasted several water slides, none of which I went down...but I did go down their dry slide "Abyss", which shot riders quickly in a twisted tube down ten levels...from 16 to 6 where I slid out of a chute, climbed out and slowly walked away.  The above photo is of me at the entrance to the ride. There was also rock climbing, which I'd like to try out closer to home, but didn't this time around...although I observed how others were doing it.  For Melissa and me, we enjoyed just hanging out on the ship, walking around together exploring the different levels dining at their nice restaurants and cafes, and sitting on our cabin's oceanfront balcony.  I also used their fitness room once, walking a brisk 5K on one of their many treadmills that featured a nice virtual video to accompany my activity.  We were a little disappointed in the ship's adults-only Solarium section after enjoying it on our previous cruise ship, the much smaller and older Enchantment of the Seas. Solarium's pool was basically very small and just for standing around in...why bother!  I also liked Enchantment's little open snack bar, which I though would surely be available on the larger boat but wasn't.  I did like the free ice cream cones served on Level 15, just outside the Windjammer (the large indoor buffet cafeteria).  Upon returning to Gainesville, we've been adjusting back to our "regular" life...which is pretty doggone good as well.  Speaking of "doggone", it was also very nice to see our own dog again, Daisy.  I'm also interested in more travel opportunities with Melissa (facing me below at the Windjammer), including more cruises as well...

Upcoming Weekend Cruise

Tomorrow Melissa and I will be leaving on a brief cruise to the Bahamas.  We should be back sometime late Monday.  Until then I won't be writing any blog articles.  Tomorrow is the first anniversary of our son Will's accidental death.  We both grieve and miss him.  This outing should be an enjoyable break from some of the trying circumstances we've passed through the last couple of years.  In any event, I wish you all well...

People Under Pressure to Conform to "Gulf of America"

Our evil clown president, Donald J. Trump...move over, Pennywise...early in his second administration after my fellow citizens inexplicably voted him again into power, decided to ratchet up the xenophobic jingoism by renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the "Gulf of America".  This is forcing companies and employees to be under pressure to adopt the tin-pot dictator's petty decree. The two major weather TV stations, the Weather Channel and FoxWeather, have "Gulf of America" on their maps, and the latter's announcers seem to be quite happy with the new designation, especially Haley Meier who seems quite giddy about it all.  But the Weather Channel's meteorologists aren't all exactly on board with this change, particularly Greg Postel who is sticking to his guns with Gulf of "Mexico",  And why not? The presidential proclamation only renames the part of this body of water under the United States' jurisdiction, which is absurd considering that we're talking geography, not international political boundaries.  I like "Gulf of Mexico" more anyway, since when you are standing on that gulf's coast whether it's in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana or Texas, chances are that the land facing you on the other side of the water is, indeed, Mexico.  Of course, Trump in his supreme ignorance and narcissism is only trying to stir up controversy with himself as the center of attention. What a creep... 

Waiting for Afternoon Storm, So What's New

I've been watching the Weather Channel this morning as they explain how a circulating tropical low pressure storm system will be passing over where I live in Gainesville, Florida this afternoon, westward toward the Gulf of Mexico. Once there it will either develop over the next few days into a depression or will divert itself more northward into Georgia.  So I'm getting the storm, but the main thing is that on the eastern coast around Cocoa where Friday's cruise ship will disembark with Melissa and me on board should be relatively clear of weather trouble at that time.  Good.  In the meantime, I'm sitting here writing this, waiting for the morning dew to evaporate from my yard before going out to mow the lawn, before the afternoon storms strike, that is.  The grass here grows so quickly that just a couple of days after mowing the lawn it sometimes looks like it needs another trimming...sigh.  But that's summer for you, and we have very, very fertile soil up here in far northern Gainesville...

New Franz Ferdinand Track Works for Me in July

Since we are now getting into the middle of July, I'm starting to see whether I can't find a good "current" song to theme this month after.  Let's see...the Scottish alternative group Franz Ferdinand this past January came out with a new album, titled The Human Fear.  I listened to it the other day, and, just like when I listened to Arcade Fire's new LP release Pink Elephant, the entire album seemed like a dud...that is, until the very last track, The Birds.  And finally, I heard a really good song.  So for the time being, at least, The Birds is my song of the month for July, unless another tune comes along to replace it.  Check it out on YouTube...

About My Dear Departed Sister-in-Law Krista

Krista Jane Bailey, my sister-in-law, passed away last Wednesday evening, July 9th, at E.T. York Hospice Center in Gainesville after being diagnosed with terminal cancer.  She was a devoted mother, wife, grandmother and sister and will be terribly missed by all of us in her family.  Krista was my wife Melissa's little sister by thirteen months...she was 62.  Krista is survived by her daughter Amy Holley, sister Melissa Irwin, brother Keith Jones and granddaughter Tabytha Holley.  Her husband James Bailey had tragically died in December 2021...the two were inseparable, life-long soul mates.  I miss Krista's wonderful sense of humor and love of life...she was a great source of comfort to Melissa after the tragic death of our own son Will last year.  She was a licensed Certified Nursing Assistant with an associate degree, and spent many years employed in retail management.  For much of the last two decades she had lived in Lexington, Kentucky with James, who had many of his own family living there. I am tired of losing family members, and the loss of Will, James and Krista has been difficult for me to accept.  I have never experienced anyone like Krista before who was so positive and gracious during her final weeks and days, when hope for a cure for her leukemia dwindled and, finally, was relinquished when she was transferred to spend her final days at Hospice.  God bless her, and may God bless you as well...

Speed-Walked Today's Depot Parkrun 5K

Today is the first official day for Gainesville's second Parkrun, held at West End Park.  I went there for a trial run last Sunday, but decided to go back to my traditional haunt, Depot Park (near downtown), this morning to do a 5K speed-walk.  The temperature at 7:30 race time was 72 with 99% humidity...typical summertime muggy discomfort.  The "regular" Parkrun leaders were over at the other place, as I'm assuming were several "Depot Park" runners and walkers.  I had wanted to break 40 minutes with my finishing speed-walk time, and I tried to walk as fast as I could.  But it was to no avail, with me finishing at 41:44...click HERE to view today's results.  Next weekend I'm planning to be on a brief cruise with Melissa, and for the 26th I volunteered to be a "Tail Walker", i.e. the designated last person to finish the Parkrun.  They encouraged us participants to meet up at the food court on NW 4th Avenue near 6th Street at 9, but I finished the walk hot and sweaty and was in my car driving back by 8:15...can't wait 45 minutes, at least today.  I instead drove down to my nearby Dunkin' Donuts for a pistachio-flavored iced coffee, studied some foreign languages there and then wrote this article.  I used my Alpha-Smart portable word processor, which is completely off-line and automatically saves my writing...running on AA batteries: really old-school!  I don't think I'm going to make any substantial progress in walking or running faster until I regain control over my weight and eating patterns, which I know I will do. I can still cover the distance, but with each step I'm lugging twenty extra pounds of body weight from this time a year ago...