Ballot Box & Long Box

As if our current political situation here in the USA hasn't created enough turmoil, NPR's new midday show, 1A, got me thinking about how my spending habits impact (positively or negatively) those who either support or oppose political parties/politicians. It was on my weekly drive to the local comic book shop for New Comic Book Day, that I listened intently as the host and guests worked through the question of "How does one respond to an administration that has no issue shaming corporation and businesses that express any disagreement with them?"

One of the guest reminded the listening audience of the Walter Reuther quote regarding the "direct relationship between the ballot box and breadbox."

Turning off the radio at the close of the interview, I headed into the shop wondering about who the publishers of my favorite comic books supported in the most recent election. The two most likely financial contributors of note would be those at the head of the Big Two, Marvel and DC. I recall hearing something in passing about an executive at Marvel Comics being involved with the Trump administration, but had not sussed out any particulars. Yet. Was there... or should there, be a direct relationship between the ballot box and the comic book long box? What practical impact would a potential buy-cott of  a company like Marvel whose chief executives contribute significant amounts of their personal financial gains (and therefore the money the consumer spend on the services provided) have? If I were to find out a Marvel bigwig was helping fund a politician I did not agree with, would my moral compass suggest I stop supporting that line and would it provide a meaningful enough message?

My initial thought is that the majority of artists (editors, writers, inkers, pencillers, letterers, etc.) in the industry, at least based on what can be inferred via Twitter, lean toward the more liberal side of the political spectrum. This group would include some of the most prominent Marvel creatives including Spider-man writer Dan Slott. My weekly pull sheet includes many titles that reflect my own (and presumably those of the creators) political leanings though such a factor has not always been a factor in my choices. (I do however purchase some titles that I don't outright "love" but recognize the need to support the artistic voice in the mainstream with my dollars.)

I am only a comic book fan with a very limited understanding of the industry beyond what can be gleaned though online reading and the tweets of a myriad of creators. (I do know that the "Marvel way" and "bullpen" was something of a ruse, albeit one I totally bought into as a youth: "Kirby, Stan and the crew hang around an office together goofing and making comics, right?")

So, what is "the story" with Marvel Comics and the 2016 Presidential candidate?

Last January, according to most news sources (whether the action was framed as a "good" or "bad" thing depends on the sources ranging from Breitbart to The Hollywood Review), "Marvel Entertainment CEO Isaac 'Ike' Perlmutter joined Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump by donating $1 million of his own money to America’s veterans on Thursday night in Des Moines, Iowa." (Breitbart) This was after first donating $2 million to Marco Rubio's during the primary season (THR). Following Trump's election victory, Perlmutter's wife was part of Trump's Inauguration committee.

Despite this personal support of Republican candidates, Perlmutter's employer Marvel Comics has famously published reality "crossovers" that (at least superficially) are decidedly pro-Democrat. There are two obvious examples that quickly come to mind. Who can forget the Amazing Spider-man #583 variant cover that featured Spidey snapping a picture of President Obama? This stunt proved successful enough to warrant four reprint runs. More recently, issue Ms. Marvel #13 in which the book's protagonist, Kamala Khan aka Ms. Marvel, overtly throws her support behind Senator Clinton. In an unfortunate twist, the issue actually hit stands after Election Day. This is chronicled in greater detail in "Marvel Comics Superhero Uses Her Powers to Help Elect Hillary Clinton" (from an unbiased website who's mission is to "combat liberal media" so take that as you will).

Whether a calculated move for image purposes or (optimistically) because of the high quality of the product warrants it, Marvel has also been willing to publish titles reflecting a very clear political agenda. The most obvious recent example of this would be the cover to issue 8 of 2016's short-lived "ongoing" Mockingbird. (Ironically the last issue to be published as the book was canceled following it's publication.) It made quite a bit of news when the protagonist was featured on the cover wearing a t-shirt inviting readers to "Ask me about my feminist agenda".

The bottom line is while I like using my disposal entertainment dollars to be entertained, I also recognize to use these limited resources to support political/social perspectives with which I have agreement. Not buying certain comic books might make one "feel better" but ultimately only impact negatively those at the creative level. It is fair to suggest that this group includes many individuals whose ideals are consistent with my own and are giving larger voice to relevant issues.

Nothing is simple, even in the murky place where the worlds of lol it's and "funny books" overlap. The resolution to the decision of whether or not to buy-city is to remain vigilant in following the money in a way that works best for you and your conscience.

Embrassez votre été invincible!

Outside my front door in beautiful Upstate New York on January 21, 2014,
on a welcome sunny winter day.

It's once again that time of year where the perception on the part of most is that the winter season has dragged on too long, been too cold and generally too much; the key word in that statement being, of course, "perception."

Though we in upstate New York are nowhere near the empirical "depths of winter," (despite the occasional nor'easter tail end of frigid air) it certainly feels as though that is the case: the ongoing lack of consistent bright daylight, fluctuating temperatures, and a general malaise have many of us feeling a little wintry. Some personal events of the past few weeks, have put yours truly a bit of a funk. But, even in the early-morning/late-evening darkness (some real, but the most dangerously self-imposed), it is important to remember that we, you and I, all hold within us the potential warmth of the invincible summer.

In times like these, I try to focus my mental energies on quotes or mantras that were previously useful in adjusting my mindset to better assist me in barreling through the challenging winter months. One quote, in particular, that I find myself returning to when feeling a little blue (or in today's case, grey), is ironically, from noted Existentialist ("a sense of disorientation and confusion in the face of an apparently meaningless or absurd world.") philosopher and author of The Stranger, Albert Camus:

"O light! This is the cry of all the characters of ancient drama brought face to face with their fate....In the middle of winter I at last discovered that there is in me an invincible summer."

To those who have not read Camus broadly, the use of his lines as inspirational mantra will certainly seem ironic. He remains closely associated with the dark and brooding black-and-white photographs that perpetuated this image of the artist as an "intellectual Frenchman." Despite those iconic photos, Camus' writing does include quite a few nuggets of warmth, as evidenced by the one above.

It is in these recent grey, cold days that it becomes even more important to make the concerted effort to grab that inner light and hug it close! Until the outside world (as accurately communicated by the local news) more closely matches my desired sunny state. By continuing to do one's best to keep the sun inside stoked and burning, hope remains of influencing one's perception of the winter to stir a sunnier disposition, rather than the other way around.

Tumbleweed

Last October, while in Cheyenne, Wyoming, for my brother-in-law's fuenral, my wife and I were diving back to my sister-in-law's when I stopped the van to let a tumbleweed roll across the pebble and hard pact dirt road. We waited for a few moments during which time I reached into my hoodie pocket for my small Canon camera.

Being a lifelong upstate New Yorker, I had never seen a "real" tumbleweed before and wanted to take a quick picture. Because I have five thumbs, no pictures came out (like, not even close), as I had inadvertently flipped the function to "video." As a result, all I captured of that tumbleweed by is a single second of it rolling out of view down a slight hill.

It was a pretty cool tumbleweed to watch roll along.

Photo Essay: Tinker Nature Park

Weather Report: Cloudy, 40°F, 68% Humidity, Winds: SSW @ 15 mph; feels like 36°F.

This morning Anne and I headed out to the Tinker Nature Center in the town of Henrietta, New York, about 20 minutes outside of our River City. The weather was unseasonably warm, and as we are anticipating another cool down in a few days, we thought it a good time to take advantage of the opportunity to get out and snowshoe.

It had not registered for me just how grey the morning actually was until I downloaded the photos from the camera. Despite what some might see as a "depressing" color scheme, I think the contrast between the grey skies and brown and green flora makes for some beautiful looks at the duality of our winter nature-scape: cold and bleak, yet life goes on...

I've selected an excerpt from a piece by English novelist Charles Kingsley to provide as a narration, of sorts, for this photo essay.

"Every winter,
When the great sun has turned his face away,"



The earth goes down into a vale of grief,
And fasts, and weeps, and shrouds herself in sables,



Leaving her wedding-garlands to decay--
hen leaps in spring to his returning kisses."~Charles Kingsley

Fonzie, Me and Rodney Yee.... 2Gether Again!

The Fonz: [to his class] Don't you understand, your brain is clay and I gotta *squeeze* it!
[class is startled]
The Fonz: [then calmly] Let me put that another way..."
~Happy Days (1974)

AS part-and-parcel of my return to training, I am once again committing to a regular series of yoga poses. Waking up this morning, a little achier and little stiffer than usual, I am reminded of ho important this aspect of my training is now that I am a little older and a little less likely to recover quickly and without the benefits of stretching...

I made the decision to do so last evening and further demonstrated my commitment o ti this morning at 7:00 am when I followed up my "jumping out of bed and having a cup of joe routine with a trip to the attic. There,

I dug out one of my old (like, gosh, almost TEN years-old now!) yoga videotapes to work through. A number of times (it must be at least annually), I will come back to the yoga practice as a means of maintaining what (little) flexibility I have, and as a means of working while resting. Right now, the additional benefit is that doing even a fraction of a tape or two allows me to feel that my "head" is still "in the game." I reckon it's a discipline thing...

This particular morning I skipped past the reflective meditation with the "Opening" series of Yoga Conditioning for Athletes with uber-yogi Rodney Yee (he of the by-now-familiar Prana Sleep mattress television ads). I "skipped" this portion as I now regularly practice meditation without the use of the tape, so it seems somewhat redundant... besides I'll sit for a while later this morning, as planned.

It felt great to be participating in some structured movement and led nicely into a fifteen minute reflective period. Now to be patient with my recovery and (more difficult for moi) maintain a level of fitness that will in the long run continued to my overall quality of exercise (and life!).

Easier "said" than "done," I know, but definitely worth the effort of s-q-e-e-e-e-zing it into my schedule and making it a part of how I start my day... chalk another one up for me, Yee and Fonzie!

Breathe in, breathe out... YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

Fonzie, Me and Rodney Yee.... 2Gether Again!

The Fonz: [to his class] Don't you understand, your brain is clay and I gotta *squeeze* it!
[class is startled]
The Fonz: [then calmly] Let me put that another way..."
~Happy Days (1974)

Just over a week-and-a-half since finishing my most recent 50k, and about five days since an ill-timed recovery run of five miles, and my knees continue to ache. I have been using the time (sort of) wisely to preliminarily plan my lessons for the upcoming school year (which begins in September).

Since I have been "unable" to run ( a commitment to "rest" I am trying to keep for at least five more days!), I made the snap decision at 6:00 am this morning to return to a previous training strategy that has been helpful to my running in the past. I once again dug out one of my old (like, gosh, almost NINE years-old now!) yoga videotapes to work through. A number of times (it must be at least annually), I will come back to the yoga practice as a means of maintaining what (little) flexibility I have, and as a means of working while resting. Right now, the additional benefit is that doing even a fraction of a tape or two allows me to feel that my "head" is still "in the game." I reckon its a discipline thing...

This particular morning I preceded my meditation with the "Opening" series of Yoga Conditioning for Athletes with uber-yogi Rodney Yee (he of the by-now-familiar Prana Sleep mattress television ads). It felt great to be participating in some structured movement and led nicely into a fifteen minute reflective period. Now to be patient with my recovery and (more difficult for moi) maintain a level of fitness that will in the long run continued to my overall quality of exercise (and life!).

Easier "said" than "done," I know, but definitely worth the effort of s-q-e-e-e-e-zing it into my schedule and making it a part of how I start my day... chalk another one up for me, Yee and Fonzie!

Breathe in, breathe out... YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

Final Thoughts on the FL50s

"Try the meditation of the trail, just walk along looking at the trail at your feet and don't look about and just fall into a trance as the ground zips by."~Jack Kerouac, Dharma Bums

The official results for this past weekend's Finger Lakes Fifties have been posted and I did better than I had expected (at least in terms of where I finished)... as I type that previous statement though, I am struck by how little my place and time mean in this overall experience. Talking with colleagues at work yesterday, I didn't even think to offer my possible time or place, but was proud to share the fact that I have finished... not something I have always done in the past.

At any rate, my time (5:38:15) was about five minutes slower than I had projected (the whole stop your watch at the finish or look at the HUGE clock is not my bag) in previous recent posts, but I placed tenth overall out of sixty-nine finishers (while five did not finish--been there).

Now on to the next challenge...

Breathe in, breathe out… YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

My Blue Highway

"When I go quiet I stop hearing myself and start hearing the world outside me. Then I hear something very great."~Brother Patrick Duffy, Monastery of the Holy Spirit (Trappist), Conyers, Georgia (end of chapter 18)

For about fifteen years I have been carrying around the book Blue Highways: A Journey Into America by William Least Heat-Moon. I bought a paperback version of the book while in college, during my On the Road stage and the cover gave me the sense this was a similarly themed story. As I've gotten older and gained (pleasurable and painful) life experience, I find the book becoming more relevant to my own life. Least Heat-Moon wrote a grand story of small moments by recording his interactions as he traveled the country in his van.

Two summers ago, my wife was briefly hospitalized, and during that time I picked up the book and began reading. As I read the book, I was quickly drawn again into Least Heat-Moon's slice of life anecdotes. His trip is prompted by his failed relationship and quest to get a better sense of himself, our country, and his place in it. Seeing and fearing for my wife, I began to search a little for my place in the communities I operate in, but most carefully, in the communal partnership that is my marriage.

Pulling back from Least Heat-Moon's story of his travels across America, I began to consider the anecdotes, moments and passing interactions that have shaped my relationship with my wife and family, and started to recognize how even the slightest interaction causes ripples throughout, effecting how she and I perceive our past and the reality that even the smallest moment will also effect (possibly) our future.

Breathe in, breathe out... YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!!

Rain

Run: 11.1 miles @ 6:15 a.m.
Weather: Light Rain, 51°F, 83% Humidity, Wind: From SSE @ 7 mph; feels like 51°F.
Course: Crazy 10.8 Run course made using USATF Map It!.
“The best thing one can do when it's raining
is to let it rain.”
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Anne has been in the hospital for four days now and hopefully will be released tomorrow. This morning I planned on going for a run early on so that I could stop by and see her before setting off for an afternoon of high school cross-country races. The rain has not let up at all since it began this morning and though I generally enjoy running in "the elements" there is something about a soaked sweatshirt and running shoes that I somehow don't find appealing today.

Nonetheless, I head out into the dark for long, slow run... and accepting it, am reminded that it is not so bad...

Summer Reading Round-Up: Spaces

"This isn't a tale of derring-do, nor merely is it some
kind of 'cynical account'; it isn't meant to be at least. It's a
chunk of two lives running parallel for a while, with common aspirations
and similar dreams."
~Ernesto "Che" Guevara, The Motorcycle Diaries
One genre of literature that I take great pleasure in reading (or re-reading) is non-fiction, and of the many books I read this Summer four of the titles which fit into that category are among the books I most recommend when people are looking for a quick satisfying read. One of the obvious joys of reading is one's ability to live vicariously through the experiences of the author and to get insight into the "real" worlds of others. The "worlds" featured in these three books though is not so alien as to make the tales told unrelatable:

Farewell, My Subaru: An Epic Adventure in Local Living by Doug Fine
The Solace of Open Spaces by Gretel Ehrlich
Into the Wild by John Krakauer
The Motorcycle Diaries: A Latin American Journey by Ernesto Che Guevara

Of those four books, one (Into the Wild) I have read and re-read more than once, another I have read off-and-on over more than a year (Motorcycle Diaries), another I read in not more than three hours (Solace), and the last, I have recommended a number of times and look forward to coming back to (Farewell).

The obvious binding trait that runs though all four share, whether wholly biographical (as three are), is the author's loving exploration of their individual connections to the landscapes they inhabit (the American West, Latin America, Wyoming and New Mexico) during the telling of each tale. I read recently in another book of an author who as a youth felt he needed to travel to experience the world and grow spiritually, only realizing when he was older that he could facilitate any growth, or move in a direction, just as far, by staying home--there was more than one path to a level of personal understanding. In either case, whether the space we explore personally or though our reading carries a benefit and offers a unique perspective on the spaces we inhabit.

Breathe in, breathe out… YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

My Green Toe: Agriculutral Architecture

"Architecture begins where engineering ends."~Walter Gropius
It has been quite a while since my last post about our garden; nearly six weeks(!) to be exact. While we have been benefiting from a significant haul from our yellow squash and Spineless Beauty Zucchini, Anne and I are still eagerly awaiting our first pickable crop of tomatoes, any tomatoes. Of the three varieties we planted early this summer, all have fruit and many vines, but none are as yet ready to be harvested.

As you can plainly see from the pick above, they are growing like crazy! So much so, in fact, that we needed to head out to the local gardening store this past weekend and purchase some stakes to get the vines and plants up off the ground, to which they were attempting to root! As Anne and I carefully tethered the plants to either the metal cages in which they have been growing, or to the wooden stakes we added (or in most cases, we tied different parts of each plant to both!), Anne remarked, correctly I think, that the whole activity was "like an engineering project."

Upon reviewing the picture below of what our garden looked like following our delicate agricultural engineering, I would say architecture would be a related field of study, too:


Now all of our vegetables, both those that have been producing like squash, zucchini and peppers, as well as those we are anxiously awaiting have more room to breathe and grow...

Breathe in, breathe out... YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

Morningtime

Run: 5.1 miles in :37:47 min. @ 5:30 a.m.
Weather: Mostly Cloudy, 65°F, 85% Humidity, Wind: From W @ 6 mph; feels like 65°F.
Training Plan Suggested Mileage: 4 miles
Average Mile Page: 7:21 min./mi.
Course: Twelve Corners-Cobb's Hill found on USATF Map It!.

"I love the sweet smell of dawn -
our unique daily opportunity to smell time,
to smell opportunity -
each morning being, a new beginning."~Emme Woodhull-Bäche

I woke up especially early this morning, which was to be expected as I had both retired to bed too early last night, after having snacked on quite a bit of dairy. With a rumbly-tumbly, I awoke at 4:00 a.m., and following fifteen minutes of rolling about in bed, resigned myself to the reality that I was hopelessly unable to fall back asleep.

As is the ritual, I went downstairs to make some coffee and begin waiting or the sun to hit the edge of the horizon, thereby allowing it to be ju-u-ust light enough out for me (my torso covered in a reflective vest) to hit the streets for an early morning run.

Such is the life of the recreational runner...

Breathe in, breathe out… YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

My Marathon Plan... Such As It Is!

"We are different in essence from other men. If you want to win something, run 100 meters. If you want to experience something, run a marathon."~Emil Zatopek

So, here's what I'm thinking is going to be my "plan" as I begin the final preparations for Sunday's Buffalo Marathon. As previously posted (like a ba-jillion times!), I am going to be employing a run-walk-run approach to the entire affair, similar to that I used in running the ultra-run last October. Remember, the dream is to finish in three hours and thirty minutes. Twenty-six point two miles in three hours and thirty means plays out to about an 8:00 minute mile pace total including any walk breaks, of which I will be taking minimally five one minute ones. According to the event's official website, "Water and Gatorade will be available every two miles, starting at the 3 mile marker."

Given that info, here is how it will go down:

1) Run the first six-to-seven miles straight through without a walk.

2) at mile seven (the third aide station), walk for 60 seconds and then run for two miles (roughly 16 minutes--hopefully!).

3) for each two mile (or, once again, sixteen minutes) increment leading up to the twenty-first mile, I will walk for 60 seconds. This means a break to hydrate and "eat" (if necessary) at miles nine, eleven, thirteen, fifteen, seventeen, nineteen and twenty-one. There also remains the real possibility that I will eliminate at least one (or maybe two) of these planned "walk breaks," depending on how well I am (or am not) feeling.

4) I will then wrap-up by hoofing the last 5.2 miles non-stop, carefully monitoring my pace and if necessary, kicking it the last half.

Just like my beloved Detroit Tigers championship chances did just before the star of the MLB season, this looks great on paper... but, fortunately, this I have a little bit more control of. The challenge will remain adhering to it and avoiding the HUGE urge to succumb to adrenaline (and the mid-marathon euphoria) and go too fast, too soon!

Breathe in, breathe out... YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

Ruminations on Meditation

"The flower that you hold in your hands was born today and already it is as old as you are."~Antonio Porchia, Voces, 1943, translated from Spanish by W.S. Merwin

I have been sitting everyday for the past week in an effort to better my meditation practice. Despite the effort, my hag-ups are still getting in the way of my progress. The chief among these challenges is the issue of my preoccupation with the time that I am sitting for; not "time" as in a.m. or p.m. (I'm comfortable using time in the morning after a brief series of yoga poses), but "time" as in the duration of the sitting session.

Many of the resources I am using as guides (How to Practice: The Way to a Meaningful Life, Awakening the Buddha Within, and a number of websites) speak of sessions ranging from 20 minutes to an hour(!). I thought I had been doing well to stay "on task" for much shorter having built up to over five minutes.

I recognize that part of my error is even worrying about time, though I have alleviated that internal need by setting a small alarm clock to go off after x minutes having established my sit time in advance. Part of trying to experience the moment is losing track of the "before" and "after." If I'm subconsciously concerned with later, it is hard to be "now."

Breathe in, breathe out… YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

Run: 6.3 miles in :51:03 min. @ 7:00 a.m.

"It was a cold hard easterly morning when he latched the garden gate and turned away. The light snowfall which had feathered his schoolroom windows on the Thursday, still lingered in the air, and was falling white, while the wind blew black."~Charles Dickens, Our Mutual Friend

Pace: 8:06 min./per mile

Weather: Cloudy and Windy, 36°F, 64% Humidity, Wind: From WSW @ 23 mph, gusting to 27 mph; feels like 24°F.
Course: Castaway's 6.4 Eastider available on USATF Map It!

Embrassez votre été invincible!

Visiting an Old Acquaintance

"I frequently tramped eight or ten miles through the deepest snow to keep an appointment with a beech-tree, or a yellow birch, or an old acquaintance among the pines."~Henry David Thoreau

Embrassez votre été invincible!

Gracie's Ready for Winter!

"Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole."~Roger Caras

Two sure signs of winter: Gracie's looking a little shaggy and she's begun receiving special presents, like this cozie new bed... of course, she would prefer the couch!

Embrassez votre été invincible!

Gone Fishin'

Run: 8.2 miles in 1:03:25 min. @ 7:15 a.m.
Pace: 7:48 min./per mile
Weather: Cloudy, 35°F, 76% Humidity, Wind: From WSW @ 12 mph; feels like 26°F.
Course: The 8 Miler (loop, mostly flat, sidewalks or roads) from USATF Map It!

"There are two types of fisherman - those who fish for sport and those who fish for fish."~Author Unknown

Following a work week abuzz with the excitement of students (and staff) psychologically revving up for a two week winter recess, as well as, having taken advantage of the opportunity to attend a number of events for my kids (children) and kids (students), it was rewarding to go for a slushy, windy run this morning. I haven't run much "for distance" of late, but that's cool... I'm not always "fishing"... err... running for sport. Of late, I've been content to run when I can for the sake of simply running.

And that, I've concluded, is good enough.

Embrassez votre été invincible!

The Season's First Snow!

"The first fall of snow is not only an event, it is a magical event. You go to bed in one kind of a world and wake up in another quite different, and if this is not enchantment then where is it to be found?"~J.B. Priestley

Embrassez votre été invincible!

My Green Toe: Garden's End

"Last night, there came a frost, which has done great damage to my garden.... It is sad that Nature will play such tricks on us poor mortals, inviting us with sunny smiles to confide in her, and then, when we are entirely within her power, striking us to the heart."~Nathaniel Hawthorne, The American Notebooks

Things have been fairly busy at our urban homestead these last few months, but our garden has continued to plug along producing tomatoes, green peppers, purple peppers and, yes, even some delicata squash. Now that the frost and colder temperatures have arrived, our gardening season has officially drawn to a close as Anne has harvested and frozen the last of the crops. My job, each year, is to clear the garden of its vegetable cages and plants, which are returned to the composting pit, to be used the next year in laying the foundation for the new season's garden.

Here's a quick look at our garden from start to end this past season (late May through Early November):









Breathe in, breathe out... YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!