I got up early to hit the pool and get a lane. No problem. But, it was “one of those days” where I knew the walk would not go well, even if the swim was ok.
1000 yd warm up; 250 of 100 free, 100 side, 50 front kick, then 100 free, 100 side, 100 back, 100 breast, 100 free.
300 of fin kick drills (balance)
4 x 50 free, 50 pull on 2:30; 2 were 1:52, 2 were 1:45-1:47, 1 was 1:51
100 free in 1:45 (pretty lame)
50 back to cool down.
Then a LOT of PT; went fine.
But the legs were dead when I started my walk; could be 4’th day in a row, could be 2 miler Saturday, and somewhat more challenging dead lifts yesterday..who knows…but the first 1/2 mile took 8 minutes and I figured 1.2 was enough today; stopped the watch and kind of limped to the car.
In what is now an unusual move for me: I blocked someone on Facebook. Normally, I just unfollow and put on my restricted list (so they don’t see “friends only” post). Ok, I tend to do that with people that were once active in my life that I now find annoying.
The issue: I was trying to explain to people that, yes, loans carry interest and that if your payment doesn’t cover the interest accrued during the period, the amount owed goes up.
Someone tried to argue that banks get “virtually free” loans from the Fed (true..to cover the reserve requirement, though they get even lower rates from other banks). And of course, administrative costs and risk costs must be covered as well.
But, this was one of those “why can’t you get that” remarks coming from a rather “dull but unaware of it” type person; someone I had no prior relationship with. So, “boom”, went the block. (on Twitter: I mute; I don’t mind their ranting into the Ether; I just don’t want to engage)
Yes, I have a double standard If I have a relationship with the person, especially one that goes back several years, AND if I like said person, I give a lot more leeway.
If that person has special knowledge that I can gain from I might put up with more.
But having dull people think that I am an idiot…I get enough of that at my job from some of the worst students. I am paid for that; I am not paid for social media.
And yes, like the old song; sometimes the one you love doesn’t love you back (as friends). Yes, there are a few that I like better than like me..I can deal with that. And yes, I give them more leeway too.
And, much to no one’s surprise, most I have blocked tend to be left wing. It is easy to see why (that is who I tend to associate with)
Yesterday was a blah day..shoulder ached, back/glute was touchy, even my knee ached. Today was much better. Far less overall pain and weight was 203..down 2 lb from yesterday (clearly I was bloated)
PT 1 at home, including new shoulder stretches.
Swim 1850 yards done as follows:
1000 of: 4 x (100 free, 100 side, 50 front kick (no fins))
300 of 100 kick drills with fins)
400 of 50 swim, 50 pull on the 2:30 (1:50 each)
100 in 1:44 (yeah, sucks..)
50 slow back stroke.
Had the pool to myself: go figure.
The a lot of PT in the playground; embarrassed myself a bit on the balance course.
2 mile walk; too damned slow mile 1.
15:12/15:08. Ok, the first 1.4-1.5 were pain free..some symptoms at 1.6-1.7 but I forced myself to pay attention to posture and that helped a great deal.
A few things struck me. One was the protests outside of SCOTUS justices homes. If you read the opinion article I linked to, you’ll find a common theme: their expecting ruling is so awful they deserve this.
There have been marches, other protests and slogans such as “My Body, My Choice.” Such slogans really do not convince..even if I agree with them.
“They think it’s murder.” My take on abortion. Published online today by Free Inquiry: https://t.co/K5u553fiMN
This is a bit of a digression but here goes: the anti-choice people see abortion as the murder of a baby. To them, it is the same (so they say) as if you took a 1 month newborn and just killed it. And this is why “oh, so you don’t care about the baby after it is born” responses fail to convince. One can believe that murdering a 1 month old baby is murder but still believe that it is up to the PARENTS to care for that baby; that is not inconsistent.
Dakwins argues that the counter would be to challenge the assumption that a fetus is the same as a kid; of course it isn’t. After all, in a fire, would you prioritize saving a new born or some frozen embryos? Easy choice.
But that was a digression…
And the other main point is that many liberals really don’t care about how “the other side sees it.”
And that leads to the second:
During the Bush and Obama eras I felt like I was very much in tune with, and part of, coastal urban educated liberal American culture.
Since the Trump era, I've felt increasingly alienated from that culture.
To this I say “Me too.” No, there is no danger of me moving to the Republicans..at least so long as they remain a loony anti-democracy xenophobic cult.
But..read the responses to the above tweet. Smith is accused of being a conservative, not sufficiently caring about problems that affect him, etc.
This response I got might be telling:
Note: I was NOT the person who was put off by “pussy hats”; Smith was. I saw the hats as …”eye roll” material but merely shrugged…”that event was not for me” though I did think that stunt opened them up to even more ridicule and made them the butt of jokes..
But Twitter threads can be hard to follow, so I don’t blame her for that. The part I am interested in is the “we. don’t. fucking. want. you.”
That is telling.
There was a time when I saw things like the massive BLM protests which disregarded COVID protocols (and yeah, outdoors later proved to be ok) and were *sometimes* accompanied by riots, looting and violence, and I seriously believe that they contributed to the dismal showing by Democrats in the 2020 elections. The “defund the police” movement was especially bad. The country rejected Trump but didn’t want Democrats either.
And further still…well, with abortion, the “pro-choice caucus” is passing out approved language sheets
NEW: The Pro Choice Caucus has just sent out messaging materials to House Dems on Roe draft.
I really wonder if they actually tested said language changes on voters. This sure reminds me of the sorts of decisions “activist” faculty make..and I know most don’t test first.
So…I’ve wondered “why do these “activists” care so little about persuasion?” Yes, the hard core right wingers cannot be changed, but there are some far less committed people who observe the exchanges…and often we do NOT have a good look.
Then it struck me:
many liberals really aren’t about winning political battles or even winning policy changes. They are more about being an affinity group and getting praise from those in their own bubble.
So, the more outraged you are, the louder you scream, the more outlandish antics you engage in…the more credibility you have with your peers.
And if you lose at the ballot box, why it was because of the rest of the country of Homer Simpson’s are too crude, too immoral, too bigoted and not “intellectual” enough to appreciate you and “your side”.
I swear..they appear to see losing as a badge of honor and purity.
How this affects me I’ll tell you this: I am starting to think about candidates to succeed Cheri Bustos in the IL-17 district; right now, the race is rated as a toss-up. I won’t look at positions too closely; I’ll see “political skill and the ability to win the general” as the most important thing, by far.
I was a bit worried about shoulder ache..but then..and this was almost reassuring, my knees ached a bit too. It was one of those “rougher than average” days where things kind of hurt.
Still caution in the pool was in order: lots of off strokes and some fin work (with swim socks)
600: 4 sets of 50 free, 50 side, 50 breast
200 of 25 free, 25 back
200 of my weird 100 medley: 25 free, 25 back, 25 breast, 25 free (free in place of fly)
200 of fin drills
100 of dolphin kicks
200 of 50 free, 50 pull 50 fins, 50 fins
Side and back to get to 1650 total.
The PT was ok; walk ..I started out not driving my knees but rather slinging my legs forward..not good…started to feel symptoms early and then switched to a more robust walk; first mile took 16:01
I did feel a slight ache in the right shoulder then a “catch” toward the end (after stopping). No, I don’t want to go back, but I will adjust what I am doing. I do feel a forward pull in my shoulders; time to bring back rows in one form or another (make them back friendly?) and chest stretches.
And maybe, gradually reintroduce back stroke.
Workout notes:
Sleepy…a bit high after a night of Chiefs baseball (10-1 loss..4 errors).
Swim: 1800 yards:
5 x 50 free, 50 side
10 x 25 drill, 25 swim (lots of forward kicking)
10 x 50 on the 1:10. Mostly 50-51 though the last one was 49
50 back, 50 breast
100 pull
100 of 25 dolphin kick, 25 breast
LOT of slow paced PT; did everything plus
Walk. 2.02 in 30:10 (14:57 pace). Note: I felt it at 1.65 or so; I have a conditioning problem. My abs tire and I slump forward and I end up losing spinal support.
Baseball last weekend I got to see 2 of Bradley’s games against Indiana State: a 12 inning loss then a nice win. The win had the following happen: in the bottom of the 7’th with ISU up 2-1, 2 out, BU had a runner on second. ISU intentionally walks the BU batter and the next player up hits a home run! Great win to get the series win.
Chiefs: oh boy..this was a 10-1 loss. First 2 runs were NOT the fault of the starter; 2 out, runner on second, sharp ground ball to the short stop who decided to play games with the runner instead of going for the all but certain force at 1’st..bad throw..runners advance to 2’nd and third, then the next batter hits a single to drive in two.
Short stop made THREE errors…but is on the team due to a .378 batting average and a ton of RBIs. The kid can hit. Maybe a future DH?
2009 (5) (50 total) McNaughton 100 miler (47:45; staged, walk) (brutal conditions; the drop out rate was astounding: 74 started the 100 and 27 finished; 47 started the 150 and 27 made it to 100 (including the 12 who finished all 150); in total 54 out of 121 starters made it to 100 miles and I was one of these) Rockford Marathon 5:14 (walk) FANS 24 hour 66 miles (walk) Mulshoe 44 (DNF, ran out of time at mile 29) walk Quad Cities Marathon 5:28 (walk) McNot-aGain 30 mile 8:55 (walk) (fought through injuries for these last two; almost no training was possible)
Life of an old goat 