NFL Now Down to Conference Title Games

The National Football League divisional playoffs are finished, so now we are left with the conference championship games to be decided next Sunday.  And then the winners will go on to the Super Bowl to determine the champion for this year.  I have had mixed results regarding my preferences (not necessarily the best teams) and their "survival".  This weekend saw me go 2-2 with the games: Green Bay sadly lost out to San Francisco and Houston (which I don't like anyway) fell to my nemesis New England (I'm a Miami Dolphins fan, understand).  On the plus side, though, the two teams I liked the most, Atlanta and Baltimore, won their games against Seattle and Denver, respectively (although the emotional theatrics demonstrated by the Ravens' soon-to-retire linebacker Ray Lewis were embarrassing, to put it diplomatically).  Oh by the way, you Denver fans...

I am still beside myself about the horrible way that the Denver Bronco management, in particular John Elway, treated Tim Tebow after he heroically lead his team from last place to division champion and a spot in the playoffs they had been missing out on for years.  Then to top it off, he led his team to a win against the then-defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round.  They lost in the division playoff round the next week.  And now we come to this year and Tebow's replacement, "Mister Perfect" Peyton Manning, who was supposed to be their certain ticket to the Super Bowl.  But guess what? They didn't advance any further in the playoffs then Tebow's team and are now OUT!!! Whoopee! I hope they NEVER make it to the Super Bowl after the way they treated ol' Timmy...

For the remaining teams, here are my personal preferences:

1-Baltimore Ravens
2-Atlanta Falcons
3-San Francisco 49ers
4-New England Patriots

But it won't exactly hurt my feeling if "my" teams lose and those pesky Pats win it all.  After all, at least they had the decency to avoid going undefeated this year...

Don't Give Up, But Change is O.K.

As I wrote in a letter to a loved one recently, a sign posted very visibly in the workout room of my local 24-hour gym (by the treadmills) gives the famous Winston Churchill quote "Never, never, never give up".  It is intended to be a motivational tool for the members as they work hard to get in shape.  I'm on board with it, too, but with one caveat...

Yes, determination usually pays off with our goals.  Keep trying and eventually there should be a positive payoff.  It helps, also, to be focused on one's goals with specific outcomes in mind, to be completed according to a timetable, however loosely that is devised.  Time should be allotted as well, giving a regular period when priority is given to working on the goals in question.  Good and well, I say.  But...

Sometimes, as goals are pursued, it becomes increasingly apparent that they really aren't the ones worth pursuing, and they change. This changing of goals to things more worthwhile isn't a violation of Churchill's exortation, though: it is a sign of maturity, not an indication of "giving" up, but rather "growing" up...

Unpleasantly Warm, Muggy Weather and My Running

I am quite beside myself with the state of the "winter" weather here in northern Florida.  Every day it's muggy and warm, not exactly conducive to the type of long, pleasant runs I had been anticipating for now.  Instead, I am left with the choice of building up my mileage by combining two separate runs: one in the morning pounding the streets of my neighborhood and then one late night after work, in my 24-hour workout gym on a treadmill.  Together I have been putting up impressive numbers (for myself) and am on pace to surpass last month's total.  Still, I would gladly trade that second treadmill run for a longer morning run in the cool, dry January air that used to exist in a bygone age.  Apparently it does not anymore, and from what I have seen on weather reports, no relief is in sight.

Surveillance Nation

There used to be an ethic in this country, at least perfunctorily adhered to, that it was a virtue to mind one's own business and live and let live.  But it seems that lately, and this may be partially due to 9/11 and a heightened sense of insecurity among the population, that as long as anyone sets foot outside their own front door, they are sure to come under scrutiny and surveillance.  It can also be argued that we have little privacy within our own homes, either, because of the unwelcome fact that practically anything we do on the Internet, on our own private computers inside our own formerly private domiciles, is subject to being traced.  And if we have cable, even what we watch on TV can be traced by the cable company; they even drive around neighborhoods with their "sweep analyzers" checking out homes to make sure no one is watching any "unauthorized" channels. But the saddest thing about it is that if I belabor this overwhelming loss of privacy and dignity to others, than I stand the risk of sounding like one of those paranoid ranters who see conspiracies everywhere and usually focus on them as being exclusively directed at themselves.  But I don't subscribe to this delusional thinking; I'm just reporting what I see.

It has come to the point with me that, regardless the circumstance I find myself in, I have a peripheral awareness of sources of surveillance around me.  I walk into a store and check for the security cameras, often well concealed.  Most traffic lights I pass beneath have their cameras pointing down into my car. My workplace is so loaded with surveillance and "scrutinizers" that it sometimes feels that even my private thoughts are being scanned.  Even at church of all places, I can't just face forward with my thoughts without someone from the praise and worship team staring down at me from the stage.  And my cell phone, with its GPS feature, can pinpoint and broadcast my exact spot on the map to "concerned" parties, whether I like it or not.

Needless to say, as I sit here at my favorite Starbucks in Magnolia Parke on 39th Avenue, where I have been a regular customer since it opened in 2000, there is a handy-dandy surveillance camera above recording me.  Just in case I'm one of those dangerous types, I suppose...   

Second Thoughts on Racing As 15K Event Approaches

Having recently expressed how little I want to participate in public running races, I may have to backtrack on that a bit as I consider entering a 15K (9.3 miles) race on the 26th of this month.  It's the Newnan's Lake 15K, which takes place around...Newnan's Lake, a relatively large lake due east of Gainesville.  The scenery there is reportedly very pretty, so maybe I'll get to run in a race that is pleasing to my eyes for a change.  I just completed a pretty easy eight-mile run yesterday, so tacking on an extra mile or so doesn't seem like anything that should cause me problems.  Since I'm not going to run in any half-marathons for a while, this race may be one of the last chances I have this year to run a race of reasonable distance (instead of those overcrowded, too-short 5K events).  Maybe I'll take along my digital camera for this one as I play the role of "running tourist".

I would like someday to go back to half-marathons, and think that this will eventually come to fruition.  The FivePoints half-marathon here in Gainesville will take place at a time that I'll be out of town, anyway (mid-February), so any question of my participation in it is a moot point, anyway.  But next year?  We'll see...

Another Great Dreary Day Run

Today it was dreary and overcast, with occasional drizzles and heavier rain into the evening.  It reminded me of that strange Christmas day in 2010 when, after first hesitating to go running due to forecasts of rain coupled with an annoying smoky haze settled over the area, I decided to try it anyway, amassing 20 miles before running out of energy just before the rain began to fall heavily (and the sky was nearly pitch black).  It was 63 degrees at about 3 PM when I set out on my more modest run today, intending to cover 4 or 5 miles around my neighborhood.  But there was something about the dark ambiance that appealed to me and I kept extending my run until I finished with 8.05 miles, the longest distance I have run at one time since April 9 of last year, when I covered 10 miles.  I felt that I could have matched that today as well but didn't want to push myself too hard. 

At the beginning of today's run, the weather was dry.  But about halfway through, rain began to drizzle lightly, lasting until I had finished.  The rain was a rather pleasant experience, I have to admit.  I can't remember when I have last run during a downpour: maybe I should deliberately try a short run when the next one happens to see how it goes for me...

It may seem to be a contradiction that I tend to pace myself faster when the sun is beating down on me, while I want to keep running and running when it's so grey and dark.  But running long and running fast are really two different things:  I like the endurance aspect of this activity more...

Churchill Optimism Quote

A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.       ---Winston Churchill

A few weeks ago I wrote someone about this quote, which I think accomplishes the three-fold requirement of an enduring piece of wisdom: it's short, it's catchy, and above all, it's applicable to just about any area in our lives.  Churchill was speaking from the context of a wartime leader, and his people were enduring severe hardship as the enemy was bombing British cities, their economy was under strict rationing, and their soldiers were putting their lives on the line for their country.  In the midst of this situation, it would be only too easy to become negative and dwell on the surrounding difficulty.  But I know people around me who are living in affluence but can only find things to complain about how their lives are going.  When they grumble, it makes me wonder just how much they themselves contributed to their state of relative wealth, and how much they instead are benefiting from the work and sacrifice of others.  Because with an realistically optimistic attitude, I believe, comes one of gratitude and proactivity.

For me to have a "rosy" view of the future, I need to believe that I have an element of choice as to how I personally can contribute to its shaping.  For me to just remain passive and expect things to "work themselves out" would tend, or so it seems, to cause me to adopt a more pessimistic mindset in the long run.  Besides, a busy person, centered in the present moment, has little time to be gloomy about things.  Especially when there is so much cool stuff to do and experience!

GOP Clueless, Sticks With Boehner

I wish that the Republican caucus in the House of Representatives, which apparently has little desire to follow or respect its Speaker John Boehner, would have just selected someone else whose leadership skills they respected, or at least feared.  Instead, it looks as if part of our federal government will continue to be under the dominion of a bunch of extremists who will do everything they can to ensure that this country of mine declines...just so that they can then proclaim Barack Obama to be a failure as a president.  But wait, they've already done that, haven't they, even after he was just reelected.  Then again, though, as I have predicted beforehand, we're hearing that his  reelection was "stolen", wasn't it?

More of crybaby, profane John to come.

God help us...

This Year's Chick-fil-A and Sugar Bowls

I've been watching some of these season-ending football games, and with most of them I couldn't care less who won.  Take New Year's Eve's Chick-fil-A bowl in Atlanta between Louisiana State and Clemson.  I was confronted with this game on my television screen as being "the" football game available to watch, so I arbitrarily chose LSU to root for.  But as the game wore on, I came to admire Clemson, especially their talented and determined quarterback Tajh Boyd. It was also becoming apparent as the game progressed that, although the LSU team seemed to possess more overall talent and size than their opponent, they seemed to be more poorly coached.  Finally, I switched my allegiance completely to Clemson when the LSU coach foolishly called three consecutive passing plays (all incomplete, each stopping the clock) late in the game when they were protecting a two-point lead and were supposedly trying to run out the clock.  Clemson got the ball back, drove down the field (largely due to the intrepid Mr. Boyd) and kicked a game-winning field goal with time running out. I felt good about Clemson's victory although I had pulled against them for most of the game.  As for this bowl's sponsors, not only do I resent them changing the name of this game from the Peach Bowl to one exclusively of a corporate entity, but I also quickly tired of those endless Chick-fil-A commercials that were supposed to be funny.  But I don't see anything funny about a company whose leaders funnel some of their profits into a homophobic political agenda under the cover of religious doctrine.  Don't expect to see me anywhere near one of their restaurants anytime soon... 

Tonight the Sugar Bowl pits my Florida Gators against the Louisville Cardinals.  I'll be working so I won't be able to see this game, one where I actually care who wins.  Although many see this game as a mismatch with Florida heavily favored, I know better: the Gators have tended this year to play to the level of their opponent, be it higher or lower.  Expect a close game tonight, with Florida prevailing while people around wonder if they're really all that good: that's the way it's been for them all season!

*******
Later...
The better team, Louisville, won 33-23.  Still, I am proud of Florida's improvement this year and look forward to more progress next year!

My Favorite Songs of 2012

Well, 2012 is ending and I suppose it's time for me to list my favorite songs of the year.  You may notice, however, that few of the songs listed are current: these are songs that I enjoyed listening to in 2012, not those that received radio play or promotion.  As a matter of fact, I have deliberately shunned radio music, as it all pretty much sucks.  So those great musical celebrities I see on TV that I'm supposed to be interested in following...well, most of their "monster" hits I've never heard!  And I don't care to hear them, either...

My focus of musical interest in 2012 was pretty much restricted to five acts: the now defunct Gorillaz, Beck (who hasn't released anything new in five years), Linkin Park, Regina Spektor, and Kasabian.  Of these Regina and Kasabian have the most recent releases with songs on my list.  My current favorite act to listen to is Kasabian, an England alternative rock band that has released four albums so far.  I plan to list all of these songs in a future article, ranked from best to least liked. 

Here's my list of personal favorites spanning 2012:

1 Firewood by Regina Spektor
2 Fire by Kasabian
3 Open by Regina Spektor
4 Me Plus One by Kasabian
5 Blackout by Linkin Park
6 Test Transmission by Kasabian
7 Think I'm In Love by Beck
8 Novacane by Beck
9 Secret Alphabets by Kasabian
10 Days Are Forgotten by Kasabian
11 "Messing" With My Head by Beck (euphemistically retitled by me)
12 Sun Rise Light Flies by Kasabian
13 Pay No Mind by Beck
14 Dead Melodies by Beck
15 Wretches and Kings by Linkin Park
16 Timebomb by Beck
17 Reason is Treason by Kasabian
18 I Hear Voices by Kasabian
19 To Binge by Gorillaz
20 Small Town Moon by Regina Spektor
21 L.S.F. by Kasabian
22 Motorcade by Beck
23 Youthless by Beck
24 Veliceraptor! by Kasabian
25 Beercan by Beck
26 Lost Cause by Beck
27 Butcher Blues by Kasabian
28 Empire by Kasabian
29 Jackass by Beck
30 Stuntman by Kasabian

And were I to name an Album of the Year, I'd have to go with Regina Spektor's What We Saw From the Cheap Seats.  But all of Kasabian's albums are quite impressive, too... 

My December 2012 Running Report

In December, my total mileage skyrocketed, far beyond my monthly goal of 100 miles.  I just finished a relatively short 3.25 mile run, giving me a month's total of 155.63 miles.  This means, of course, that I averaged just over five miles per day.  However, although I did put in some "long" runs (7.5 was my longest), much of the increase in mileage was due to me running twice on many days, in the morning and then late nights after work.  The convenience of a 24-hour workout gym with treadmills, combined with cooler temperatures and lower humidity for the outdoor runs, facilitated my increase.  I ran every day in December, now making my daily running streak 245 days. 

Although there were some public running races offered in December, I begged off entering them due to the simple lack of satisfaction I get anymore from participating in public races.  For one, I don't dig paying the progressively more expensive fees to register for them.  Also, the constraints imposed on me with the time and place of a race run counter to my freedom the rest of the time to choose when and where I will run.  But most of all, I discern a sense of unwillingness on the part of other participants to be more sociable.  Instead they seem emotionally insulated and clannish.  Who knows, though, maybe I just need to try a few more times and see if I can't break into some of their "circles".  That being said, I still have no plans for entering any races next month...

NFL Dolphins, Giants, Tebow, Season Ending

With one week left to go in the National Football League regular season, my two favorite teams both seem destined to miss the playoffs.  With the Miami Dolphins, this fate has sadly become the expected norm each year, although they very well could be sporting a 10-5 record instead of their actual mediocre 7-8 had some very close games not slipped away from them.  Yet I feel optimism, for a change, about their future because of their new coach Joe Philbin and rookie quarterback Ryan Tannehill.  They also have a chance at finishing at .500 this year should they beat New England in their final game (but not likely).  We'll see how things go next year.  But the other team I support, the New York Giants, have gone into a tailspin after leading their division most of the season.  Now they are on the outside-looking-in as far as an available playoff position is concerned.  And yet, they were in the same improbable situation for getting into the playoffs last year and ended up winning the Super Bowl!  So I can't count them out until they are mathematically eliminated...

It looks as if Tim Tebow will be leaving the New York Jets after this season, possibly ending up at Jacksonville.  The Jaguars, who could have traded for him after Denver signed future Hall-of-Famer Peyton Manning, would have filled their stadium for the Gator Heisman Trophy winner and two-time national champion.  Instead, the Jaguars chose to go with a second-rate quarterback in Chad Henne and now sport the worst record in the NFL.  I expect poor decisions from them in the future as well, so I'm a bit skeptical right now of Tebow ending up there.  As for Tim's short tenure with the Jets, I don't know what this franchise was thinking by trading for him and refusing to use him all season, even in the face of an extremely dismal year by their starting QB Mark Sanchez.  I used to like their coach Rex Ryan, but now I think the dude should be fired (doubtless to resurface on another team). Not only did he blow it with Tebow, but he also allows an atmosphere of open dissension on the team, with players commonly speaking out to the press against each other and their coaches...

Emphasizing Private Journaling Over Public Blogging

It's been a while since I've posted an entry to this blog.  There are various reasons for this, but the main one is that I have entered a more introspective period in my life.  I want to write, but not in such a public forum, as I have some personal issues I want to write about in a private journal.  The writing discipline continues for me, but the writing is taking place elsewhere.  This doesn't mean that I won't occasionally make an entry here from time to time.  But for this season, at least, I wouldn't count on seeing regular articles on this site.  Not that they won't pick up at some time in the future...

Lesson from Lord of the Rings

I have been watching my DVD collection of Lord of the Rings lately.  In a movie series of this scope, there are many new aspects to the story and its presentation that reveal themselves to me with each viewing, and it is fun to make new discoveries.  But one thing that struck me from the first time I ever saw it (and this isn't quite so apparent in the book) is the sense of epic importance that the present moment, the "now", so to speak, held for most of the story.  If the protagonists didn't focus intently on whatever happened to be immediately before them, then not only would their futures be in peril, but often also the future of Middle-Earth (author J.R.R. Tolkien's name for his fantasy planet).  The movies' extended version tended to mitigate this almost constant sense of urgent crisis by adding some scenes that gave some (usually humorous) respite to the drama.  But the more commonly-shown edited version is very, very intense.  And that brings to me a lesson of sorts that I can choose to follow.

The lesson is this: I may not be living in a time and place when and where the fate of the world hinges on my actions from one minute to the next.  But the fact still remains that this IS MY life, my one shot at it in fact, and it is only through this present moment that I can live through it and make a difference.  Maybe my choices won't have a gigantic instant effect on this often sorry world I live in, but they can contribute down the line to something better. Maybe I should just step up to the "now" and increase my intensity a couple of levels!

I am looking forward to watching The Hobbit when it comes out in theaters soon.  I hope that Peter Jackson, the movie's director, has been careful to include all of the book's events (something he failed in with his Lord of the Rings undertaking, as good as the final product was). For there is another big lesson from this tale as well, a lesson that the earlier animated version of The Hobbit completely omitted... 

I can't put off fulfilling my aspirations until "later": NOW is the only time guaranteed me, and it's "about time" I realize that on a deeper level...

News Flash: Found Empty Seat at My Nearby Starbucks

I am sitting here on a dreary, cool morning here at the Magnolia Parke Starbucks writing this, from my preferred seat at the long, narrow counter facing the parking lot window.  My routine, which used to entail early morning visits here to write and study, changed a few months ago.  Then it was relatively easy to find a seat.  Now, though, I usually stop by (and much less often) in the early afternoon and as often as not can't find anywhere to sit, with all of the coffee-shop-squatters and their laptops/notebooks dug in by that time.  So instead I've become a regular customer at Donut Connection just down the road and never have a seating problem there.  Their brewed coffee is just as good (I tend to stay away from the espresso bar concoctions anyway) and their sweets put Starbucks to shame.  Still, today the opportunity presented itself for me to get down here a little earlier and...lo and behold, my "spot" was available!

I love this weather, as long as it doesn't rain, that is.  This, to me, is prime running weather, so maybe I'll just climb down from this high chair and get ready for a nice jaunt around the neighborhood...

****
Three hours later...
I went out running like I said I would, only the dryness had changed to a light drizzle.  Still, it was a very pleasant four mile run...

December Mugginess, Leaves, and the Blowers

Just when I think that December will bring about cooler, wintry weather conditions favorable to outside running here in Gainesville, it gets warm and muggy.  Yesterday I was looking at my local 24-hour weather station and the screen gave the current temperature at 81 degrees, with the forecast high for the day of 78! They also predicted some light showers in the evening.  Instead, what really happened was torrential rain and a thunderstorm.  Not that we couldn't use some rain: in general, northern Florida has been more prone to drought in recent years, causing a forest fire hazard.  Still, I wonder what's going on with the weather forecasting here...

The trees at least seem to think that winter is approaching.  I was walking around the block with Melissa the other day when we passed a house possessing a large maple in its front yard.  The presumed owner was out there meticulously vacuuming up some of the myriad fallen maple leaves that he had carefully gathered up in a large pile.  I looked up, though, and saw that the tree was still loaded with many browned leaves, some of which were falling as we passed by.  I noted to Melissa that this guy's yard, after he had finished clearing it out for today, would be covered again with leaves tomorrow.  She confirmed this to me the next day when she went on another walk. 

Gathering leaves at this time, raking them in, and putting them in containers may seem like an exercise in futility, at least until the trees shedding them are completely bare.  But those doing this earn much more appreciation from me than those obnoxious leaf-blowers.  These folks have a limited, territorial view of their "home" that ends on the other side of the street in front of their house.  I have seen different neighbors blowing fallen leaves out of their own yards onto the street...and then stand there in the middle of the street with their leaf-blowers and blow them to the opposite curb, directly in front of their neighbors' houses!  I even once ran by one of these people and he continued blowing leaves directly at me as I passed!  Nice guy...

Proud of Son Graduating College

Yesterday my son Will graduated from the University of North Florida with his Bachelor of Arts degree, and doing so with magna cum laude honors.  I am very proud of him and know that, whatever he decides to do in the future, if he pursues his dreams with the perseverance and character which he exhibited with his undergraduate education, he will be successful and happy!  Way to go, Will!

December Business Picking Up

Once again, I've reached the time of the year when business drastically picks up where I work.  I may not be writing quite as often on this blog as I have been, at least until things settle back down.  In any event, I'm doing fine and hope you are too!

Tried a 7.5 Mile Run Today

Seeing that I just might be running in a 9.3-mile (15K) race next Saturday (see yesterday's article), I thought I'd see what it would be like to approach that distance, which I haven't run in many months.  So I ran 7.5 miles a few hours ago without too much difficulty.  But I didn't enjoy it and thought that pushing that kind of distance at this time in my life might just NOT be a good idea.  So I have decided to keep my distances at a lower level.  I may participate in 5K and 10K races in the near future (December has some 5K races around town).  But the main thing is that I will be going back to my earlier training regimen...

Upcoming 15K Race: Should I Enter?

This year I skipped Gainesville's Tom Walker Half-Marathon, which took place earlier this morning.  I ran it last year and enjoyed it, setting a personal record for half-marathons.  The race takes place on the Hawthorne Trail, southeast of Gainesville.  But next Saturday morning, the Season of Hope 15K (9.3 miles) will be held at the same location.  This distance, which would be a challenge, is still in my range of allowable distances, albeit on the far end.  Should I sign up and run it?

Since I am passing up on half-marathons for the foreseeable future, this type of event might represent a good substitute choice.  Still, it was such a grind getting up early in the morning this past Thanksgiving just to run that 10K race!  Is my memory beginning to erode on me?

Well, the registration deadline is December 6, so I have some time to mull it over.  I think I could handle the distance, even though I haven't covered nine miles in several months.  In the meantime, I'll continue to train on the same level I have been...