Loose Dog Alley

I like dogs.  They are cute and usually emotionally bonded to people.  I've owned at least one since 1987 and grew up with another. But I know that dogs are sometimes violent and attack people.  Around my neighborhood, some residents keep their very scary, nasty sounding (and looking) ferocious animals behind fences.  When I am on one of my runs, they usually remind me of their presence with some threatening growls and barks.  But they are restrained...and I feel safe.  There is one block in my neighborhood, however, that, practically every time I run down it, has a dog running around loose.  This stretch of residential road apparently has some incredibly indifferent dog-owners who have personal issues about inflicting their beasts on anyone happening to pass by their house.  First, there's Jake, a large grey mixed breed dog with a scary appearance but a friendly disposition.  Still, when he sees me and he is out loose, Jake tries to jump on me, follows me home, and even tries to come into my house.  Not fun.  There is another house where I saw a man walking by on the public street  having a scare from a large white dog loose in the front yard, who looked as if he were going to attack him.  Then I ran by and the angry dog turned its attention to me.  Fortunately, both of us managed to slip on by without somehow enraging this already disturbed animal into action.  Thanks a lot, inconsiderate owner!  And then there is another dog, if it really is a dog.  This guy I've seen a couple of times.  It looks like an overweight chihuahua mutant, has a very angry bark, and when it notices that whoever it is barking at isn't impressed and is still walking or running by, it suddenly sprints away full-speed down the very long block (and around the corner).  I think that's pretty smart on its part, for a dog like that has no business confronting anyone in public. 

We have a law in our area requiring dog owners to restrain their pets, but unfortunately some of my neighbors either don't care or deliberately want to set their dog out on people passing by their house.  But it's not THEIR street; it's everyone's, and they damned better keep their precious little monsters restrained if they don't want animal control knocking on their doors in the future...

Aggressively Loud People I Encounter

There is a certain individual in my life, someone whose presence I could probably do well without.  The good thing is that there is usually only a very brief period in my day that I encounter him.  The bad thing is that this individual is completely out of control with his speech, going off on loud, obnoxious and insulting rants about politics.  That I am diametrically opposed to his political "philosophy", which he seems to have assembled from FoxRepublicanNews talking points, makes this necessary exposure to his drivel that much more unpleasant.  And he's loud, one of those people who think that EVERYONE in the room needs to hear what he's saying, to the point where no one can even hear their own thoughts.  Yes, this is one obnoxious, unpleasant dude.  Yet...

Today I was sitting in a local fast food eatery having lunch and trying to read a little before having to go to work (and probably have to listen to the aforementioned jerk).  I didn't expect quiet conditions, but still it was very unpleasant because another person in the back of the dining area was loudly shooting off his opinions to someone standing right next to him.  There was no need to bellow out his words; he was obviously imposing his opinions on everyone present whether they wanted to hear them or not.  As it turned out with this guy, I happened to agree with almost everything he said.  But I was still offended at his attitude and verbal aggression.

"Avoid loud and aggressive people: they are vexatious to the spirit."  That is a line from Max Erhmann's celebrated Desiderata and is advice well worth taking.  I could have taken my food outside today, but I cannot completely avoid this other character...

2004 and 2012 Elections Show Similar Reactions By Losers

There is shock, shock I say, spread throughout the conservatives in this country who voted for Mitt Romney and were convinced that their "guy" was going to be swept into office in a landslide over Barack Obama.  After all, their media sources predicted it, didn't they?  Yes, that's an example of what can happen if you get yourself into a feedback loop and keep getting the same information from "supportive" sources without any independent verification (or refutation).  But I'm not looking down on my fellow conservatives, some of whom seem to be quite distraught.  After all, I got myself caught up in a similar experience in 2004.

Toward election day in 2004, the Democratic Party challenger to incumbent George W. Bush, John Kerry, was mounting a heroic, tough final campaign surge.  And the polls seem to bear out (at least some of them) that he may have caught up with his Republican rival.  On election day, especially in the decisive swing state of Ohio, positive voter exit polls further gave the impression that Kerry indeed was on his way to victory.  But, as was the case with Romney, a funny thing happened on the way to Kerry's election: it didn't happen, and the incumbent edged him out.  Yes, I was very discouraged over this turn of events.  But I accepted the results and wanted for Mr. Bush to do better in his second term (I was later disappointed).

All I can say is that you win some and you lose some.  I believe that both candidates in both elections loved America and sincerely thought that they had the best program for the nation.  I also believe that this should be recognized by ALL, even those who voted against them.  Instead, I sadly see an increasing polarization among the people: when their party is out of power (regardless which party that happens to be), somehow, for too many, they act as if their country has been taken over by the enemy.  And that, my dear friends, is a very unpatriotic and antidemocratic attitude to foster!

Champagne Time for '72 Dolphins Old-Timers

In the National Football League, the Atlanta Falcons lost to the New Orleans Saints today, 31-27.  So what does that have to do with the Miami Dolphins, my "favorite" team?  Everything, especially seeing that the 2012 edition of the Dolphins just got their butts kicked, at home, by a supposedly inferior Tennessee Titans team, 37-3.  So the Falcons loss just increases in importance as I desperately try to cling to something positive about my team.

In 1972, the Dolphins went undefeated both in the regular season and the playoffs.  No team has since accomplished this, although the New England Patriots came too damned close in 2007.  This year, the last undefeated team left was Atlanta...that is, until New Orleans took care of them a few hours ago.  So, the '72 old-timers on the Dolphins are probably somewhere celebrating with their champagne, like they've been doing on an annual basis whenever the last undefeated team goes down to defeat for the first time. 

This year wasn't too bad, with no undefeated season scares.  I like the Falcons and dislike the Saints, so it was a bit uncomfortable to go against my inclinations just to preserve the Dolphins' record.  Whew, now I can go back to rooting straight-out for the teams I like! Go Falcons and their great QB Matt Ryan!

Signed Up for 10K Race, Running Mileage Increasing

As I mentioned a couple of days ago, I was considering entering an upcoming middle-distance running race, the 10K Turkey Trot to take place Thanksgiving morning here in Gainesville.  Today I went down to Lloyd Clarke Sports on NW 13th Street (US 441) and registered for it.  So I'll be doing only my third race of 2012 (although I believe I could have done more).  Of course, what I really want to do is start running half-marathons again.  But even if don't run in any official 13.1-mile races, I can still train on my own with longer-distance runs.  After all, the weather has become very runner-friendly of late.  Today I stepped out of my front door at one in the afternoon and ran 3.83 miles, immensely enjoying the 70 degree temperature and sub-40 % humidity.  Also, lately I have increased the use of my local 24-hour gym, often running on the treadmill there around the midnight hour after getting off from work. And later today I may go there for my second training run of the day, something else I am doing more of these days.

Without having initially intending it, I have greatly increased my running mileage so far in November, still running every day while averaging about 4.5 miles per day.  I don't know whether this rate will increase or not, but since I'm just taking things one day at a time, I'll let the future take care of itself...

Gone Are the Comments

I recently decided to disable comments on this blog.  There are some good (to me) reasons for this.  One, I am sick to death of getting saccharine, meaninglessly terse comments that are almost always linked to a business website.  Two, the few people who actually read this blog and have historically made pertinent comments either have my e-mail address or personally know me and can simply tell me person-to-person what their reaction is to any particular article.

Once, in a more naive and innocent time of my blogging adventure, I held the notion that readers who were even personal strangers to me, spread across the country or even the world, would read articles that interested them and would then express their own points in comments, to which I could then respond and thus establish a pretty cool open dialogue.  But after five-plus years with this blog, I have sadly concluded that there are NO such people in this sorry world of mine. 

So, gone are the comments!  Either you already know me or you don't: The way is shut (what movie is that from)...

Upcoming 10K Race in Gainesville on Thanksgiving

I am considering entering my first running race since July 4's three-mile Melon Run.  The Turkey Trot, appropriately being held on Thanksgiving morning, November 22, is a 10-kilometer (6.2 miles) event, well within my capabilities.  The location will be on the Tacachale campus in the northeastern part of Gainesville.  It should be fun.  Unless Michael Bloomberg decides to cancel it, that is.

The weather has finally turned to lower temperatures and humidity, with my running much more pleasant.  I still don't plan to run in half-marathons, but I should have plenty of opportunities in the next few months to participate in other events, up to 15K distances...

My "Swing" State Becoming Irrelevant to Election

I live in Florida, one of the crucial "swing" states in the presidential election, along with Ohio, Virginia, and Colorado.  As it happened this year, the election was decided by those other states with Florida's final result, which as of this writing has yet to be determined, only representing an interesting historical footnote.  But that's how it is with swing states.  Either you're the nation's focus in a close race, like Florida in 2000 and Ohio in 2004, or nobody cares about which way you end up going after all the votes are tallied (this year).  On the other hand, the question of who ends up winning Florida will probably count in the future as people look back and try to discern voting trends.

I Voted: It is Done

At about nine this morning, I cast my ballot for president and the other assorted races and issues.  So as far as I'm concerned, it's done.  I only had to wait about an hour in line; had I come in a little later--say eleven--the wait would probably have been a lot shorter.  Still, no complaints here as I'm sure others either having to vote late in the afternoon/early evening or who live in less voter-friendly precincts will have experienced some tedious, especially long waits before the day is done. 

Like I said, as far as I'm concerned, it's done.  I am not going to get emotionally involved over the returns tonight, along with the accompanying mind-numbing analysis.  I've even entertained the notion of trying to see how long I can remain ignorant of the results!  Maybe my candidate will win, maybe not.  But I do know one thing: even though the election results will no doubt effect my life down the road, for better or for worse, how I personally choose to live each day will have a much greater impact on my future and that of my family than whether "Goofus" or "Gallant" gets in there...

My Election Recommendation

On this day before the big presidential election, it's time for me to give my recommendation: vote for ________ (YOU fill in the blank).  I myself have made up my mind a long time ago as to how I'll be voting.  My choice, in all honesty, is primarily based on my own, personal interests: the "other guy", if elected will in all likelihood work to destroy my job and retirement.  I can submerge this feeling and pretend to be voting based on some philosophical pretext or on a more general level of the "national interest", but I won't.  Maybe that's selfish of me, but then again, maybe that's how you should be voting, too. 

I'm hearing too much of this overgeneralized, ideological blather on the campaign trail.  Voters should ignore it and instead research how each candidate's election would directly affect THEM.  Not their neighbors, not the country in general, and not some abstracted, easily manipulated idea of "history". 

The biggest danger I see in this election is for people to ignore their own best interests and vote for a candidate and party based on either emotional factors, phony ideological constructs, or a misplaced sense of national patriotism that has been contrived to ultimately serve the ends of special interests.  Instead, vote for your own interests, which to you should be truly special!

Finally Over Nick Saban's Desertion of the Dolphins

Although I have no intention of becoming a University of Alabama Crimson Tide football fan, I have finally gotten over my sense of betrayal at their current head coach, Nick Saban.  He abandoned his job of coaching the Miami Dolphins in mid-contract to take on the Alabama post when the latter offered him a shamelessly exorbitant offer.  I still have a problem with coaches who hop from job to job, never staying in one place long enough to establish any sense of tradition there.  With Saban, the effect was compounded by the way he framed himself as a man of character, even writing a book on the subject.  But he has at least stuck with his present position at Alabama (this is his sixth year there) and harping on him doesn't do anything to change the past.  Besides, he and his team may have unknowingly done my Florida Gators a favor last night...

In order for Florida to get to go to a major bowl game (like the Sugar Bowl), they would have to be the second-highest ranked team in the Southeastern Conference.  Had Alabama not made their dramatic last-minute comeback to defeat LSU last night, the Gators would probably have ended up behind both Alabama and the probable LSU/Georgia conference title game winner.  As it now stands, though, Alabama will most likely win the rest of their games, including the one against Georgia in that title game (Georgia has only to beat an unusually bad Auburn team to win their division).  Should this happen, Florida will in all likelihood be that #2 team, assuming they manage to beat cross-state rival Florida State in a few weeks.  Sounds complicated, right?

So maybe UF can avoid playing Saban's Crimson Tide and end up with a great final ranking.  I didn't like Saban, a great coach, leaving Miami like that in late 2006.  But I wish he had at least gone on to a school that wasn't in the same conference as Florida (Urban Meyer "correctly" went on to coach the Big Ten's Ohio State while Steve Spurrier "incorrectly" landed at UF's divisional rival South Carolina).   Still, I have made my peace about the matter and have forgiven the dude, who never really ever did anything against me, anyway...

NYC Marathon Just Cancelled

Last night, while I was at work, New York City's mayor Michael Bloomberg finally came to his senses and cancelled the New York City Marathon that was going to take place this Sunday. It would have been a strange sight, with many locals cut off with no transportation and needing food and water...while thousands of runners pour in to the town, accompanied by volunteers helping them (not the people living around in dire need).  I guess they couldn't just postpone the event to another day, but to cancel or postpone it was obviously the way to go.  Why it took this long for the mayor to "get it" is beyond me.

They are still holding pro basketball and football games in the area.  I question this as well, but that doesn't make the marathon a good idea at this time...

NYC Marathon a Go in the Middle of Storm Recovery Efforts

I am a running enthusiast, a fact you should know if you've gotten anything from this blog.  And the New York City Marathon is an event that I would like to participate in some day, although the special circumstances of my health prohibit this in the immediate future.  Still, I share in the excitement others feel about preparing and running in this race, which goes through several of the boroughs in NYC for 26.2 miles. This year's marathon is scheduled for this coming Sunday, and I don't have to tell you that currently the effects of Hurricane Sandy are being felt in the Big Apple in a devastating way, with power still out in much of the city, widespread flooding, an inoperative subway system, a backlog of cancelled flights, and worst of all, thousands of residents stuck where they are without access to food and water.  Not a pretty picture.  Yet I understand that come hell or high water, the New York City Marathon WILL be held anyway in two days, dammit.

If this had been a terrorist attack on the order of 9/11 instead of a natural disaster, do you think anyone would think twice about postponing this race? Yet a hurricane of record monstrosity that directly and physically affected the entire northeastern section of the country is apparently nothing more than an inconvenience, as far as those organizing and promoting the marathon are concerned.  I have a two-part concern here.  One, how can a race participant run down streets in a city past buildings where people are suffering the effects of this storm?  And two, if I were a resident, even one who has had basic services restored and hadn't suffered personal loss, how could I look upon these runners as they pass by with anything less than scorn?

I don't understand New York's Mayor Bloomberg, who didn't even want the President to visit there "post-Sandy" because his presence might well interfere with recovery operations, if only unwittingly.  Yet he gives the go-ahead to this event, which will tie up already scarce resources and distract from efforts to help residents return to more normal, sustaining lives.

I just don't get it.

Bicycling and Running to Work

I have been riding my bicycle the eight miles to work for most of the last few Thursdays, and today was no exception.  So far, the weather has held up with no rainstorms around to drench me (although there have been a couple of close calls).  Today was more pleasant as the temperature was hovering around the 70 degree mark (noontime), a sign of autumn finally asserting its presence.  My renewing of bicycle riding, though, is due more to transportation glitches within my family that necessitate me lending my car out than to any resurgence of my enthusiasm in the activity.  Still, it is kind of fun to do this, although I have a lower back ache today that took away some of my enjoyment.

I always stop off, at around the six-mile mark on my route, at the Panera restaurant located at Archer Road near SW 34th Street.  There I order the same thing each time: coffee (I drink their hazelnut flavored brew), french onion soup, Caesar salad, and a cheese danish.  While I slowly consume my way through all this, I study foreign languages, read, plan things out...and even write an occasional blog article. 

I have entertained, at least in my mind, that is, the idea of running to work instead of bicycling.  I can always take a change of clothes to my workplace locker the night before so that I can freshen up after the run, just before starting work.  It's feasible, but with one potential snag: I haven't run for eight miles at a time in several months, although I feel that I am fully capable of it.  Anyway, there would be rest times built into the run since I'd have to stop and wait for green lights at various busy intersections from time to time...

My October '12 Running Report

Once again we've reached the end of a month and, as usual, here I am with my monthly running report.  I passed my goal of 100 miles/month with a total of 105.69 miles.  I also ran every day in October, bringing my personal record consecutive day running streak now to 184 days.  My longest run was a mere 5.3 miles, while the overwhelming number of runs were between 3 and 4 miles.

The weather, which for most of the month was unseasonably warm and (ugh) humid, took a much more pleasant turn in the last few days.  Today, for example, it was around noontime when I ran, with the temperature just 64 degrees and the humidity a blissful 29%.  Oh, for more of the same!  But alas, I AM in Florida, so most likely we'll go back into some unpleasantly warm weather...

Sandy About to Strike Northeastern U.S.

The massive three-headed storm now collectively known as Sandy is about to slam into the heavily populated northeastern U.S. coast in a few hours.  The storm rivals, even possibly exceeds, the scope of 1993's Storm of the Century that swept up the eastern American seaboard in March of that year.  I'm very concerned about this storm, which will be affecting an area and population that is certain to suffer severe damage, and tragically worse, casualties and possibly even deaths.  But even with just the sweeping and lengthy power outages, life may be very difficult is this massively urban area...

Weekend Sports, Downside and Upside

Being a follower of football and baseball, I had a few big games to keep up with this weekend.  Yesterday the undefeated and favored University of Florida Gators turned the ball over six times to rival Georgia en route to a tough 17-9 loss. Too bad, but they're a good team and should do well for the remainder of the season.   On the plus side, the San Francisco Giants, the team I'm pulling for in this year's baseball World Series, won and gained a 3-0 lead, with only a win to go to sweep their opponent the Detroit Tigers.  Then today came and with it two NFL contests concerning my favorite teams, the Miami Dolphins and the New York Giants.

Both teams were involved in contests with divisional rivals... and they won! The Dolphins' 30-9 victory over the New York Jets was more surprising because of their unexpected dominance.  Now Miami is solidly in second place in the AFC with a 4-3 record with good playoff prospects so far.  And the Giants outlasted their rival the Dallas Cowboys in a close game 29-24.  They are leading the NFC East with a 6-2 record.

Finally, the fourth World Series game just ended.  San Francisco's ten-inning win over Detroit gave them a Series sweep.  Whoopee!

I wouldn't be too concerned about the Gators with their loss, even though it may eventually keep them from playing Alabama for the SEC championship.  After all, just avoiding having to play Alabama may have been a desirable result...

Third Debate Raises My Doubts

Having already gone off against the exasperating still-undecided voter after all of this time they could have used to research and get to know the candidates in this 2012 presidential race, I got a taste of my own medicine a couple of days ago when I questioned my own voting decision.  The final debate between Obama and Romney had taken place the night before and I was surfing my radio in the early afternoon before work, searching desperately for SOMETHING decent to listen to.  Finally, I landed on 94.7, which was the frequency of a local low-powered station that offered alternative talk radio programming at that time of day.  In progress was a replay of that final debate, with one alteration. The show had two candidates from minor parties (a third,  the Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson had declined) who answered each question after the president and etch-a-sketcher's responses.  They were Jill Stein of the Green Party and Rocky Anderson of the newly-formed Justice Party.  The "debate" wasn't between these two; they could have been each other's running mates for the mutual agreement in their responses, making me wonder why those forming the Justice Party didn't just join and strengthen the longer-established Green Party.

The upshot of it all was that I found myself wholeheartedly agreeing with the alternative candidates, dismayed that they will amass between them probably less than one per cent of the vote.  They both opposed the Affordable Care Act for pandering to insurance companies and overburdening private businesses, instead of the single payer system that I had long preferred.  They both decried the excessive militarism of our foreign policy, noting that the difference between the major two political parties was just a matter of degree.  I liked Stein more and thought that maybe I should just switch my vote over to her.  But then I thought that by doing so, I would be aiding Romney in this close swing state I'm living in.  Noam Chomsky decided to endorse the Green Party candidate, but then again Michael Moore and Howard Dean are enthusiastically supporting Obama's reelection.  So, for a little while I have been experiencing a little of this undecided fog myself, but in the end I think I'll just stick with my original intention.

I liked the ideas I heard on that debate, not by the main speakers but rather by the candidates who were denied nationwide exposure.  Maybe, though, a presidential election isn't the forum for me to express myself by voting for a minor party.  Instead, I can look at how the tea party movement formed and strengthened as a more ideological branch of the Republican Party during the electoral off-season (not that I would have any interest in pursuing their agenda).  Perhaps instead, this is the better way for me to make my beliefs known...

Solar Powered Runner

Last Friday, I tried a predawn morning run, about 3.25 miles around my neighborhood.  I wore a cap with an imbedded flashlight in the visor, which was important because some of the street lighting where I live leaves a lot to be desired.  It was a pleasurable experience.  I could see the stars clearly, even including my favorite, Canopus, which was peaking low above the southern horizon.  Yes, I liked it.  And I felt the same degree of energy I usually have during my late morning runs.  But get this: my final time was about a minute slower than when I run the same distance in the middle of the day, under much warmer conditions.

Then early Sunday evening, as the skies were gradually darkening, I ran the same course.  Once again, I thought I was pacing myself like I usually did and felt energized.  But also once again, my time was slower than usual.  In between and after these two runs, I ran in the middle of the day.  I perspired more and it was less pleasant, but I ran faster nevertheless.  So I wonder...

Does exposure to the sun have some kind of positive effect on my running, making me faster?  Am I a solar-powered runner?  This would seem to run counter to the conventional wisdom, which states that I would be better off under cooler nighttime or twilight conditions.  Of course, indoor treadmill running is away from the sun.  But with that, my pace is set by what I enter on the machine and not by my inner sense of how fast I'm running.

Despite my puzzling slower pace at night, I'd like to do more nighttime runs.  The streets are pretty deserted in my neighborhood between 5 and 6 AM, so if I can just rouse myself up and hit the pavement, I should be able to pull this off...

World Series '12 Set Between Det and SF

Last night the San Francisco Giants did a "number" on the St. Louis Cardinals in their final divisional series game with a 9-0 and a 4-3 series victory, giving them a ticket to the World Series against the Detroit Tigers, who swept the New York Yankees 4-0 with merciless pitching.  Although the Series pairing doesn't evoke memories of earlier times and the geography isn't intriguing, I still look forward to it, especially since the Giants, my "runner-up" favorite in the National League playoffs after the Atlanta Braves were eliminated, made it this far.  Not that I have anything against Detroit, though...