Summons to Scholarship

Not so many years have passed since I attended university that I can't recall at least some things from that era.  Although close friends can recall numerous embarrassing comical adventures that found me during that time, I've lately been reflecting on the words inscribed on the main uni library:  "The library is a summons to scholarship".  

Matched with another snippet of wisdom (aren't the best quotes the short and simple ones?) - "Education's best result is questioning", which I heard early in my college career from a professor.  A psychology professor.   Many people have argued over the centuries on the topic of the core area of study that best supports humanity.  Scientists go further and debate amongst themselves about which is the "central science".  However, I'll make the case for psychology... 

Psychology certainly ties back to Education's best result.   Nothing brings up more questions than amateurly applying psychology to understand peoples' motives, actions, words, and expressions.   Even more questions can be raised and pondered when one tries to apply psychology to analyze complete strangers.  In most amateurish form, this is the classic game of guess the guest, where one makes an attempt to figure out the life context of someone with nothing more than a glance.  Hardly scholarship, but it does exercise the memory of those 75 minute lectures of psychology 101, and also uses any "wisdom" accrued to help better understand the anthropologic logic unfolding before my eyes.  And it's fun...especially when you actually meet the person/people in question and get to confirm or deny any guesses.

It's important to understand that I would never consider using any conjecture to judge, but rather simply to exercise the brain a bit.   In recent days I've been in some unfamilar settings, with cultural norms different to mine, and with time to ponder, all of which has provided a wealth of opportunties to question, answer, and question the answers.   Not taken scientifically, these observations and interactions provide a great bit of fun, as I learn about what makes the folks in this area "tick", and at what pace they "tick tock".   

Furthering the exploration is finding a whole new sub-culture, complete with it's own dialect.   This raised so many questions, which felt almost like a Christmas gift in a way.  Luckily, I was in an area rich with information about the culture and traditions so I wasn't left longing.   The historical path of just this Gullah/Geechee sub-culture alone is so deeply fascinating - although many don't really even know of it's existence, it has had a major impact on their own history in various ways.   What went through the minds of the people who were part of the origination of this culture?  Or, what goes through the mind of someone far removed from it, when they hear the first ever description of it?   These questions are equally important, in my mind, to questions of dates and places of origin - the SAT question stuff.

So, what's the point of this blog entry?   I can't exactly answer that just yet, but I can certainly ask the questions.   Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays to all.  

Pain that's not Pain

I purposely put myself in the path of pain this past weekend.  However, pain found me in more ways than I expected, and interestingly some pain can serve to counter other pain.  Ok, enough use of the word pain for a bit.

Myself, and 4000 others raced through the beautiful wilderness of northern Michigan for 30 miles on mountain bikes.  Northern Michigan in November isn't typically warm, and this day was no exception - it was 31 degrees (F) that morning, and remained below 33 all day.  I suppose they were serious when titling the race "Iceman Cometh". A partly baked weather forecast for partly sunny skies parted ways around 9am, and snowflakes began falling.  Take cold, add wet, and mountain biking really gets interesting.  During the race, which I did next to zero to prepare for, I went through all sorts of pain, but wonderfully, pain often gave way to joy...

A fast start is often a good strategy in a mountain bike race. That is, unless your legs are cold, and out of shape.  In this case, a fast start is a painful strategy.  Lactic acid, heart rate, burning muscles...you know it as well as I.  At this point, Pain 2 (cold, muscles); Joy 0

Approximately 2 miles into the race, the course finally took a turn into the woods on a single track trail rather than winding on dirt around high schools and fields.   This was welcome since the advantage the in-shape guys were flaunting on me was about to give way to a section that required riding skill, rather than fitness.  I took some joy in immediately passing some chaps on the tight and windy track who had passed me seconds earlier on the flat and open spots.  They were likely more experienced at road cycling, where the fitness and high-cadence pedaling win races regularly. (with the aid of doping).   Pain 2; Joy 1 (skills matter!)

The snow began falling while in the treed section, and the thick, heavy, wet snowdrops came down almost like large soaked cotton balls.   Unusual snow, but very pretty.  However, the wetness on the earthen trail started the mud a-flyin' - not great when you have riders directly in front of you and your mouth must stay open to suck in the copious amount of oxygen needed to keep from falling over.  Pain 3 (dirt in mouth); Joy 2 (awesome snowfall)

The snow continued beautifully falling as the trails became more vertically challenging.  One interesting chemistry/meteorological event that started going on was this mashup of snow, ice, sand, and mud.  The mix exhibited properties very close to velcro!  Tires were virtually sticking to the ground, not rolling with normal ease.  When the ground did let go of one's tires, they were left packed with a layer of this mix, making them much heavier than normal.   Pain 4 (heavy tires, velcro ground); Joy 2.

I continued to trade race places with a few guys that were clearly more adept at the pedaling part (probably road cyclists) as we transitioned between open stretches and single track trails that rewarded bike handling.  This was fun, but really getting old, especially as one of the guys I couldn't shake was really annoying in the way he announced his intent to pass.   Every time he passed me he yelled out "ON YOUR LEFT!!!" incredibly loudly, as if a meteor was about to wipe out Will Smith and the planet.   An uncalled for, blood-curdling scream that gave me concern, and nearly shook me from my bike (perhaps that was the plan?).   Somehow, for reasons I cannot explain, the "affliction" style of clothing made it to cycling gear before everyone realized how terrible it was.  And the guy in front of me was proudly wearing one of the affliction style bike jerseys.  It was such a rediculous look that it gave me pain...but it was a good kind of pain, so that notched the joy count up one.  Pain 4, Joy 3 (don't mess with one's dress)

Soldiering on, I "hit the wall", what's called "bonking" in the cycling world.  Recall my admission of non-preparedness?  I was seriously debilitated by the pain in my muscles...so much so that really all I could muster was keeping them going around using the "granny" gear on the bike. This has only happened to me twice in my life...not fun.  As my pace slowed, I knew this race wouldn't be a great showing, but I was determined to finish, and doubly determined to not get off the bike.  Already, a few tricky parts and near accidents allowed me to show off my 25 years of mountain biking experience to simply stay on the bike.  I noticed so many off their bikes at different times - not able to climb hills, taking a rest, stopping for the water stations, walking it over tough parts, etc.  I didn't.  I mustered all the balance between my inner ears to stay upright and not stop.   Each time I managed this where all others failed, I won a little.  Pain 5 (riding up the steep sandy bits was extreeeemly hard); Joy 4 (little wins)

I was now nearly 90 minutes into this epic race, and due to my legs' condition, I was really starting to think about "how much further!?" Inside my head were a pair of 4 year olds asking "how much further, how much further!!?"  I noticed a sign on a tree and then another.  On each were large numbers.  Yes, the numbers were large in size but my mind, numb from the cold, took a few seconds to register how high the numbers were.  WHOA! 24??!!  What. 30 miles, and I'm only 6 miles in! That's BS!!  A few other profanities flew, I'm sure.  I couldn't believe it...and started dreaming up reasons why it would be wrong. Was it numbered in reverse, as in 24 down, 6 more to go?  Was it some permanent sign used for snowmobiling and had nothing to do with the race?  I asked a rider in front of me that had the mack daddy of electronic gizmo's going "How far are we into this mess so far?"   "15.1 miles" came back the response.  Ahh, 24 kilometers. Through the rest of the race, I saw the kilometer signs, and although now I knew, I still couldn't conjure up the equation to convert it.  Luckily, I could see the car speedometer, so I had a rough idea of the remaining torture. Pain 5.5 (.5 for the temporary pain of confusion); Joy 5 (I'm halfway!)

The trail got snowier, more twisty, and even more encouraging.  As the final miles approached, more and more spectators lined the trails cheering, cowbelling (more cowbell!), and even someone that oddly knew my name yelled out...all of which restores a broken spirit.  The ultimate lift came in that last 100 meters, as I cranked out the last bits of energy from the furthest reaches of my body to sprint to the finish line.  I did it!!!

Pain 6 (another .5 for that sprint at the end); Joy 6 (I finished!)

It felt so awesome to finish this thing, that really felt like one of the most strenuous athletic events I've ever done.  Moreso than 100 miles in 100 degrees on a road bike. Moreso than 20 miles running. Moreso than shoveling stone for 12 hours.  The personal kudos was great, but a personal congrats from someone close put the feeling over the top.   Pain - what pain? it's all been forgotten and converted to joy;  Joy - more than can be counted.

Pushing oneself to accomplish things that feel insurmountable is an incredible ability of the human spirit.  It requires faith, hard work, diligence, and focus, but when it comes together, the reward is...priceless.  I hope you find something like my race soon in your own life.

ps. Reflecting on my particular skill set in the race (bike handling, and downhill parts) versus just plain speed, I think I may look into downhill racing in the future.   Makes sense...it's huge in Scotland after all.

All is right

Hopefully you often have days where things just seem to go right, to fit, to work.   Even if only for a partial day, the experience gives your attitude a check, a reset.   It provides such a great positive perspective, that it alters your entire attitude, which then leads to a better day no matter what happens.

This happened for me today - I noticed beauty all around...from about 4pm on:

Lights were green.
I saw unconditional love in a beautiful woman's eyes.
I witnessed a parent's dedicated care for their child in learning a new sport (and a sunset at once).

Endorphins kicking in on a bike ride, I stopped quick for a drink only to have my eyes forced up from the trail to the forest canopy, resplendent with autumn color.

No real point to be gleaned from the blog. Just well wishing that you find some thing, some person, some activity that gives you this inner peace and holistic wave of "life is good" often, and hopefully earlier than 4pm.

Hello iPhone, Goodbye Dove & Olive Branch

For centuries, humans of similar and non-similar cultures have needed a means to signify compromise, apology, a peaceful relationship.  Greek mythology tells us that Athene set forward a standard for this sort of gesture in an olive branch, planting an olive tree in agreeing to help found Acropolis.   The olive tree's branch has ridden a long and consistent trail of peace-bearing ever since.   

Even a pretty and purity conjuring bird hasn't been able to unseat the olive branch's seat on the peace and reconciliation throne, having to share the honor in many instances. 

Ancient Olympians were awarded an olive branch crown, Romans used it to adorn their currency, and artists all the way to Christ's day used the olive branch often in their works.   It's had quite a consistent history among western cultures, which you can get a cursory read on through Wikipedia.

However, I'm starting to wonder if the olive branch may have a new modern competitor for an article, which holds such great yearning from so many western, and eastern, cultures- The Apple iPhone.

Let's start a new section to Wikipedia's entry on the olive branch or the dove:  "How the iPhone took over".

1. Apple's invention is also often white, the bi-partisan, non-denominational, all-colors-in-one color that continues to carry a peaceful calm.
2. The iPhone is universally coveted, not only in western cultures, but in eastern cultures as well.  Heck, the thing has a decent design, and utility factor - even some alien culture from Pluto probably digs it.
3. The little white brick is often given as an award, be they a science fair winner, conference attendee, or caller 98 to the local FM station.  The last is unlikely to be a future caller, as with an iPhone a radio is rendered obsolete. iPhones are at the top of the gift list for a remarkably wide demographic...even children as young as 6 have them as their most desired gift.
4. People literally love their iPhones.  This quality really puts the iPhone over the top in the dove vs. olive branch vs. iPhone smackdown.   Passion, dependence, and bonding all come about for some through their iPhone.   It brings people together to create, share moments, socialize, and it even gives some purpose.  

Is item 4 above really a stretch, you ask?   Have a gander at this 2012 CNN article, wonderfully peppered with quotes from people about iPhones...

"In what's become an annual rite, thousands of diehard fans of Apple's iconic smartphone endured long overnight lines outside Apple retail stores around the world to be among the first Friday to buy the new iPhone 5." "Throngs of shoppers lined up outside Apple stores in Sydney, Australia; Tokyo; London; Paris; and Munich, Germany, among other cities where the phone went on sale." (Global admiration and ownership aspiration)

"Kelson Horton, 39, had been in line at Lenox Square mall in Atlanta since 5 p.m. Thursday.The truck driver from Jonesboro, Georgia, said he's done so for every iteration of the smartphone that Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduced to the world in 2007. "I've been doing it since Day One," Horton said. "It's the experience more than anything. It just happens to be the hottest phone on the market.  Near the front of a line of about 200 people Friday morning, Horton said he got about an hour's worth of sleep while meeting new friends from what he called "the iPhone family.""  (Societal and cultural identity, bonding, family)

"I've been waiting since midnight, so 12 hours now," said Fahir Wardak, a 21-year-old student. "I haven't really eaten but it wasn't that cold and I've got some tea now so it's alright."And why was his 12-hour wait necessary? "I've already got the iPhone 4S and a MacBook Pro so it's like having a collection really," he added. "You just want to keep going along with it."  (Desire outweighs even basic human needs)

"It's almost like a festival, people just camping in the center of Ginza, just drinking and playing and talking to each other," said Taiyo Nakashima, a 34-year-old Web designer. "It's not really just buying the phone; it's just enjoying the party, really."  (Not about the device as much as the experience, entertainment derived from iPhone camaderie)

Imagine - iPhone for Peace

Sure, there have some issues that arose due to the demand for the iPhone - people getting too aggressive in attempts to become an owner, the lack of peace on patents, and theft, but generally, these little electronic boxes are for what's good in mankind.   

Apple clearly has helped the world advance with its little iPhone wonder. Perhaps John Lennon was even more visionary than we knew when he and fellow Beatles created "Apple" Corps / Apple Records in 1968, going on to record songs like Give Peace a Chance, and Imagine on it.  (joking) Some Apple admirers seem to been even more liberal in the use of their imagination...

The iPhone is well on its way to unseating the dove and olive branch.  Soon we just may see them handed along with medals to triumphant olympians and made as peace offereings among middle eastern enemies.   Perhaps an iPhone will make it on the backside of a $100 bill. That is, provided it doesn't become a currency all it's own - reviewing Apple's stock performance may convince you of that.   Imagine, indeed.  

Lightning ride with the lightning bugs

Isn't it awesome when you surprisingly find yourself in a situation that is reminiscent of a great childhood memory?

I took advantage of summer solstice extra daylight tonight to go for a fast bike ride.  Just as the sun was spectacularly setting, I pedaled as fast as I could on my single speed bike, dodging fireflies in the warm summer wind.   

I didn't keep a journal as a boy, but I'm pretty sure that it would have read roughly like the above 25 years ago. 

Appreciating the small stuff is surely a perpetual piece of life wisdom.  Hope you find yourself in a situation like this soon...a surprise joy that's sure to net a smile.

Generational Conveyance

The oft used idiom "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree" has been making itself especially evident to me lately.  

As it's April, I've been having fun giving weekends and nights to the addictive ritual the US government dreamt up in  the late nineteenth century - Income Taxation.   The history of taxation provides a once funny and sad read.  Summary: America was formed for religious and taxation freedom principles, and survives on minimal business transaction taxation history for nearly a century, until we spent more than peace requires.  Only after incurring the Civil War's exceptional costs did the United States feel that a federal income tax was required.  At least the first take on the unpopular new rule were considered relatively fair (flat tax, and just 3% on income above poverty level).   So, income taxes have come a longggg way to their now fun and costly preparation routine (whether you pay an accountant or toil yourself) which when all said and done takes roughly 3+ months of your work to pay.  Unless you're Mitt Romney or Warren Buffet...those gents find ways to lower their effective rate to below what Joe Average pays, and probably can pay their tax bill simply via the "work" in a working lunch.

As you can tell, I really wish legislators would stop listening to so many lobbyists, so we could get rid of special treatment with the tax code and get back to a flat or consumption based tax.  The US GDP would be buoyed twice over, once through higher revenue that aligns with consumption, but also freeing the America workforce to focus on other topics related to workplace efficiency.  The tax accountants will find other work.

Anyway, before I get irate on my taxation milk crate, I'll return to my blog point.  While on page 231 of my tax filing, reading inscrutable instructions, (local tax authorities are half as well organized as the state folks, who are half as well organized as the federal IRS army) I had a sudden realization:  the color of my character continues to mature into the tint of my father's as I age.  

 - Even though I dislike preparing taxes and all the deductions and special exemptions I can't get, I do find the game of working the giant puzzle of taxes and credits interesting.  There are some interesting cases out there that tested various aspects of the tax code, and sometimes it's kind of fun to jump through a goose chase of 17 different reference documents to actually find a goose egg of a tax savings, making it worth it.  I've even found errors in the calculations the vastly used program TurboTax in 3 of the last 5 years to let them know where they had it wrong.    Guess what?  My dad taught Accounting for years, not as much tax accounting, but still...to actually find taxes interesting, we've got to share a very rare gene.

 - I recently injured an ankle and fibula, and the healing time is going exasperatingly slowly (nice spring weather doesn't help watching the clock with my leg elevated and iced).   I recall my father telling me that this day would come - the day when I didn't heal and wasn't quite as flexible as I was 20 years ago. Well, it's arrived, and I can't heal in 2 days from anything like I could.  So, time to learn yet another lesson in patience, a third quality of my father I continue to encourage in myself.

 - My short term memory has definitely taken a nose dive in the last few years.  I'd provide an example if I could recall it.   My father has plead this one for at least 15 years...at least he has some medically sound reasons for his.

 - I now appreciate the past and "the good old days" as much as current events.  I used to turn my head at the brand new Ferrari, now I look right past to catch a glimpse of a Frazer Nash.   However, I remain fascinated by the evolution of technology and take advantage of it anywhere I can. My dad is much like this, which is actually unusual if you consider his generation.  He's continually current on the latest mobile devices, but can talk to you in depth about the very first IBM PC he had.  I still remember getting better grades on book reports in junior high school simply because mine was done on a computer and printed out.  (Wonder if kids just email or blog their papers now?)

- Lastly, life is now about just taking a breath.  Nearly everyone goes through this, but I can attribute my understanding of not sweating the small stuff to my dad - really helpful in enjoying life to the fullest.

Speaking of, I'm going to go chill out and enjoy this beautiful afternoon casually working on a vintage sports car.  While I'll be working on a conveyance from a different generation, I'll certainly be thinking of generational conveyance and what else I could learn from my father. 

Corporate Flair

Ahh, the corporate executive, the c-level, upper management.  Ascending the corporate ranks to a position of this esteem and responsibility requires many things...hard work, loyalty, dedication, smarts, political savvy, often a blue chip education, and as of recently, an absolute commitment...to wearing a lapel pin.

Somehow the trend I associate with George W has become de rigeur for the executive set, and is trickling down to the lower ranks via adoption by the overly exuberant ambitious types.  Let's take a lapel pin history stroll to see how this has come about...

Although George has invented some other things (WMD's in Iraq for starters), it seems he did not invent this fad.  Surprisingly this craze even slipped by the Rap or HipHop street culture, reversing the typical direction of adoption (HipHop to 'burbs) to bring this craze to the masses.   If you're not familiar with a funny MTV parody of this typical adoption process check out "bling bling":

It seems this lapel pin trend started with a snobbish american brand trying to make their american mark in a place where being american doesn't bring it's own cachet: Paris.   Ray Ban wanted to stand out at a Parisian tennis tourney, and the lapel pin was a way to market their brand to those that wouldn't dare dream of putting a sticker on their clothing.  As with many trends in the "reacher" demographic, the pins became a must have accessory to show that you in fact belonged to a more elite set than those not wearing them.  True story.

Along the way, the snobbish quality of the lapel pin morphed into a patriotic one, and I'm fairly sure this had its roots in the 9/11 era.   Not to bash patriotism whatsoever, but there certainly was a lot of patriotic flair going on in quarter of 2001 in the US.  I recall a few cars that couldn't exceed 27 m.p.h. due to the unparalleled number of flags flying from them.  So, George starts wearing an american flag lapel pin to prove his dedication to America, and the key word of "dedication" is thus now conferred onto the lowly lapel pin.  George's pin wearing makes his patriotism absolutely unquestionable.

As the marketers cringed at the lapel pin's loss of brand commitment, politicians rejoiced as they now had something else to add to the clean haircut, blue suit, and red tie list of things that ensure people know they are the best candidate.  Just like any other wearer, this pin marks a truly dedicated individual.  

This may have been the lapel pin's grandest moment (I'm excepting the military's use of lapel pins which truly signifies something earned and honorable) as from here the pin became in with the corpo crowd.   First with CEO's and then waterfalling to the layers of management below, the corporate logo lapel pin surely marked the wearer's dedication to the brand, the company, the mission statement!

At this point, corporate lapel pins have also been added to the list of those things that supposedly make one more c-level marketable, and I surely wish I was a manufacturer of them, as they are seen on many lapels around my office.  Hopefully soon we'll see lapel pins ascend to the level of "flair" that some less-than-great chain restaurants have taken buttons, awesomely parodied by the film "Office Space"...

Keeping the entrepreneurial hat on, perhaps I should design a new unisex suit that has a massive lapel, as surely more pins, and larger pins, are the next logical step.  We also need to work on removing the word "lapel" as a descriptor of the pins.  Let's here forward deem them "dedication pins", as I see no reason why these can't be worn on t-shirts, hats (already are), trousers, and even underwear.  Scratch that last one...I did just think of a reason.  Well, I better wrap this post up - I'm hungry and before I can eat, I've got to change my "blogger" lapel pin to my "lunch eater" pin.