Thursday
Jan052006
Tuesday
Jan032006
Tuesday, January 3, 2006 at 12:01AM Deprivation and Satisfaction
Life is full of paradoxes. Sunday, I ran 20 miles. The 78 degree temperature made the jaunt a bit unpleasant. After i tortured myself, I was standing in the shower feeling really good in contrast to how I felt only a few moments earlier. The phrase came to me, "Do you want to know how to make a hot shower feel better? Answer: Run 20 miles first."
We could say the same thing about weekends. Do you want to know how to enjoy your weekend? Answer: Work Monday through Friday. Satisfaction is on the other side of the coin from deprivation.
This is why rich people or folks who are privileged sometimes get depressed or disillusioned. They lack deprivation. Poor folks and those less privileged don't have to worry about deprivation, because it is built in to the plight of their lives.
Think about it. Ice water tastes best on a hot day when you are parched. Food tastes best when you are hungry. Rest is much better when you are physically tired.
When I had marketing responsibilities at one of the hospitals I worked for, we often ate out. At first it was fun going to fine restaurants and just signing the check like some kind of big shot. The Grill Room at the Windsor Court Hotel is one of the finest restaurants in New Orleans. One week I ate there three times. It dawned on me how such a treat had become boring. Now it has been so long since I've eaten there I would enjoy it again.
Over indulgence has its penalty. Food loses its taste, fun loses its joy, and time off becomes boring. Fortunately, there is a cure. Starvation, work, and hard work. Simple isn't it?
So before you break that diet you swore to midnight on Saturday, blow off going to the gym, reach for the cigarette you said you wouldn't smoke, just remember; deprivation that you control yields satisfaction.
So go for it. Accomplish that goal, and start that new good habit. Use short periods of deprivation to make your rewards satisfying. Too much deprivation though will result in you giving up; so don't go overboard.
Good luck on those New Years Resolutions.
Until the next time
John Strain
Saturday
Dec312005
Saturday, December 31, 2005 at 2:06PM It was a pretty good year
Here's to 2005 it was a pretty good year. Listen to the Lettermen sing a fitting musical tribute for 2005 Click to listen
January
We began the year by attending a Mardi Gras Ball. This was the first year John went with us. My dad turned 80 and we traveled to Kansas City to celebrate his birthday.
February
Hobo experienced his last Mardi Gras and donned his beads one more time. I ran the Mardi Gras Marathon in New Orleans. Ben ran the half marathon and won his age group.
March
March was a sad month. We said goodbye to Hobo after nearly 14 years. I honored him with the construction of Hobo Garden.
April
I realized a dream in April by running in the Boston Marathon. John was surprised by his grandfather, who gave him a boat for his birthday.
May
With Hobo gone, I turned my attention to feeding birds and squirrels. Then the vet called about a dog who needed a good home. Bear bounced on to the scene and began worming his way into our hearts.
June
I ran the Goat Milk Marathon in Utica, MS the first of June. Hobo Garden began to fill in nicely.
July
In July we took a trip to Vicksburg Mississippi and I enjoyed running in the National Military Park. Barbara won her age group at the 4 on the 4th race near our house.
August
I returned to my roots the first of the month by attending my family reunion in Blair, Nebraska. The photo of the butterfly in Joy's garden is in sharp contrast to what would happen on the 29th. Hurricane Katrina spun ashore changing this region and our lives forever.
September
September was about cleaning up. Hurricane Rita piled on, but we were used to it by then. I met a lot of people online and experienced a lot of blog traffic because of the hurricanes.
October
Ben left for Navy boot camp and I ran my first 50K in Huntsville, Texas. I can call myself an ultrarunner now.
November
On Veterans Day, Justin McLeese was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star "V". Thanksgiving Day, I took a boat ride with John and Bear. We visited New Orleans and witnessed the destruction first hand. Photos cannot convey the impact of this devastation.
December
I ran the Baton Rouge Beach Marathon for the second time. Christmas came again and this is the traditional photo of John in front of the tree.
It was a pretty good year. 365 days holds a little bit of everything. Good times and bad. God saw me and my family through it though and I only hold gratitude and appreciation in my heart.
I was too lazy to link up all of the photos and stories, but I did provide an archive link below. If you would like to see more photos or read the posts, just click the appropriate month.
2005 Archives
| January | February | March |
| April | May | June |
| July | August | September |
| October | November | December |
Until the next time
John Strain
Friday
Dec302005
Friday, December 30, 2005 at 8:30AM Whatever happened to "I disagree?"
Not too long ago, when there was conflict between two opposing viewpoints, someone would say "I disagree with that point of view." The statement voiced one person's opinion. End of conversation, respect was still intact, persuading was attempted, and opinions were expressed.
Somewhere along the line the statement, "I disagree" was replaced with "I am offended." This is a shift from reason to emotion. At some point in our culture, how a person felt became more important than what was right or what was true. This is the basis of politically correct speech.
Maybe when PC speech began it was a valid point. I don't really remember, but it is conceivable that some of our terminology was insensitive and could be improved - BUT not at the expense of the truth.
When I still lived in New Orleans, Barb and I were driving to a restaurant with some of her rehab counselor friends. I was talking about one of our patients at the hospital and I referred to him as "wheelchair bound." You would have thought I called him the most vile thing ever heard by man. "Oh, my god, did you hear what he said? Wheelchair bound, oh my god." Well, that is not the best way to get me to move in the opposite direction. So I said, "Oh, maybe I should have said cripple or gimp." Barbara had to stop the car and after a few minutes of CPR, I managed to revive both of the rehab counselors. I can't even tell you what the PC term was I was supposed to use. From my own point of view, I am legally blind. No matter how you refer to me, legally blind, visually challenged, partially sighted, or blind MF (as my closest friends refer to me), I see the same. There is a reality the labels do not effect.
Speech should balance sensitivity with truth and content. One can be so nice that the message they are attempting to convey is lost. Conversely, a message devoid of feeling may not communicate well either. It really comes down to the two people talking. A football coach may curse you out, but it may feel like love. A girl breaking up with you may give you compliments, but they may feel like daggers in your heart.
With the rise of PC speech though, the football coach started getting sued for cursing out little Johnny. Coach Smith had to find new ways to let the tyke know that his tackling technique was sub par. I am sure the NFL has suffered because of it.
The PC movement is a drive to make sure everyone "feels" good. There are no winners and losers, you can't fail a class, and you can't be wrong. This may work in Shangri-La, but it only promotes incompetence in the real world.
The thing is, there is nothing wrong with losing or failing. Just because I fail, I am not a failure. I do learn that I have to try harder or try something different to succeed. All the PC folks do is rob an individual of character building moments
I think the most damaging thing PC does is to silence people. Now people think things like, "I can't say that, it will offend someone." I contend that we should say whatever we want to say. Yes, we should be responsible and say things without defaming someone, but if we all talk alike, we lose our diversity.
Personally, I am turning a deaf ear (audio challenged ear) to the term, "I am offended." If I am offended, I have to deal with it in a way other than making someone else change his or her mind or the words they use. If I am offended, that is my work. Some things have offended me, but I was the one that needed to change. We need to separate the feelings from the facts and make decisions and form our beliefs over time.
I hope in the future governments and businesses will stop kowtowing to every little whiner who gets offended. Being a man, I have two spherical objects that often cause me to rebel - usually in socially acceptable means. Those two spheres have taken about all they are going to take from the PC folks. I do not intend to overreact and be particularly offensive, but I do intend to express my views in my own words. Isn't that what this country is all about?
If you like PC stuff and want to be PC friendly, go with God. I hope you will grant me the same courtesy if I choose other ways to express myself.
Until the next time
John Strain
