There is more reason in your body . . .

. . . than in your best wisdom.
                                      -Friedrich Nietzsche

Isn't that the take-away of the whole barefoot idea?  More on that in a bit, but first let's discuss:

I know it's not what Nietzsche had in mind when that was written, but I'm not the only one who may have taken those words out of context.  I found that quote from another blog (Glydle) discussing a research paper written about that gut-feeling.  The gut-feeling in this case though is actually how your gut actually can make you feel about life in general.  The short of it is that the scientist had fed some mice some probiotics and that made them feel less stress in stressful situations than the control group of mice that weren't given the probiotics.  Read her blog, it's a bit more detailed and informative.  She also happens to be a beginner barefooter.  She's going all out, completely nekkid (foot that is).

Going back to that idea of what you take in, can make your feelings come out . . .

From my personal experience, I completely agree with it!  Before I started this whole bettering-myself quest, I ate horribly and didn't do anything to make my body the temple it was intended to be.  I reacted horribly, though many of my friends would say otherwise.  That was just my outward self.  I can remain physically calm in really bad situations.  But inside I'm like, WTF!!  Oh Shit!!! FML, it's OVER!!!!!

Then I'd get over it and try to resolve whatever needed to resolved.  Now I'm like, WTF, and get down to business.  I don't think many people have noticed the difference in outward behavior, but I believe I'm more productive in the stress department.  I have to be.  The people I work with have a tendency of overreacting at the smallest bit of stress.  They can be like the cliched headless chicken.  I've learned to be firefighter.  When shit is blowing up and burning down, I'm the ghostbuster because I'm the one who's called.  Fires start up everywhere all the time 'cause that's just the way it is where I work.  Most are preventable and are.

I can stroll in the fire and think about it calmly because of the changes I've accustomed myself to over the last several years.  I'm eating SO much healthier.  I'm actually getting more excercise than the FDA recommends (or whoever recommends health stuff).  I think 150 minutes of brisk walking or 75 minutes of jogging/running minimum a week.  Plus a couple days of full body workouts.  Check the link, it has the details.  But I'm doing more than that a week (at least the aerobic part).  I've still gotta include the full body part of the RDA for exercise.

The point is, the eatin' and the movin' are helping with stress levels.  And even before I included the movin', I was eatin' better.  And I immediately noticed my sleep improved which in turn reduced my stress levels.  I was now an effective firefighter.  Cool.

Now with the movin' and the gut-feelin' combined, life has been SO much better.  I'm more of a people person now and involved with my godson and the daughter more.

I'm not a religious person, but I am a spiritual person.  Thank God for givin' us the brains to do what must be done when He slaps the shit out of us to make us see what we fucked up on.  No disrepect to the Lord, it's just the way I feel and gotta love Him for making those alarm systems our body's have.  But again, the alarm systems are no good if no one's home.

Which applies to the quote in this post.  As Nietzsche stated, our body tells us when things are wrong most of the time.  Our feet are on our body.  It's covered in alarms.  They tell us when shit's going down . . . or when we stepped in shit.

Same diff. 

The point is we react to what our feet are telling us is wrong.  It's veeeery difficult not listen to our feet.  Though I've not gone nekkid yet, I do feel I'm getting closer to that point.  I'm really getting a kick outta my Bikila LS VFF's and Speed VFF's.  I'm looking forward to getting a pair of the Merrell Road Glove next spring if not sooner.  But once I've worked out all the kinks, I'll go nekkid!

GD

p.s.
too lazy to check

I did NOTHING!

Well, at least as far as keeping good healthy habits.

I had planned to run Saturday morning after dropping my godson off to practice, which also happened to be picture day for the team.  That running idea was thrown out the window.  I had to hang around with the other "parents" to find out how the logistics of getting a bunch of wired pee-wee football players organized enough and still enough for pictures . . .

Fun.

I could have gone after dropping him off at home, but I had told my mom that I was going to head to the restaurant by noon.  I headed home and was walking up the driveway when I heard someone playing my new XBox 360.  I thought it was my nephew.  He's supposed to ask before touching it. 

It was my brother.

He was supposed to be at the restaurant cooking!  The regular cook and my brother have been trading off Saturdays.  Apparently he was still sick and my mom wasn't feeling too hot, either.

So . . . no restaurant.  I should go running . . . maybe later.  I have the day off.  Let's get something to eat.

I went to Costco.  I bought a pepperoni slice and a hot dog with an iced tea.  Yum.  But bad.  I headed to my car, sat back opened my book and ate while I read.  For hours.  I've been reading a book series by David Wellington, the Vampire series.  Great horror and suspense!  As I was reading, I wanted an ice cream from Costco, too.  NO!

So I went to Starbucks and picked up a grande Java Chip frap.  So good and soooo bad.  And continued reading for several hours more.  Then I went to Wendy's and picked up a couple of 99 cent chicken sandwiches.

I haven't binged like this in MONTHS.  I was so wired when I got home, I ended up reading until after 2am. 

Then Sunday morning came.  I washed my car and went to pick up the daughter.  She had community hours to do for the football game my godson would be playing at later in the afternoon.  I didn't run again that morning, but again figured I'd run after the game.

Nope. Didn't happen.

I had a hot dog there then later a tri-tip sammich.  The sammich was awesome!  So I was a bit lazy when I got home and didn't run.  I cleaned up and prepared laundry for the next day.

I am running tonight for sure.  I feel as if I possibly gained several pounds.  I've gotta run.

I'll report back . . .

GD

p.s.
too lazy to check

Runnin' and a progress report . . . kinda 09/23/2011

Last nights run was a bit more difficult than the previous night.  I'm beginning to see the wisdom of early morning runs.

I think I may begin those soon . . . ish.

I decided to step on the scale expecting to see an increase in mass.  I've not been following the 4HB as I should be.  Too many things on the table and not enough time to make sure I'm doing things right.  But I noticed I've just stalled.  No decrease in weight, but no increase either.  I've been keeping as close to the low-carb idea as possible when eating out, so that combined with the running has helped me stay borderline.

I'm going to have to find time this weekend to plan out my meal for the week.  I like my breakfast of lentils, eggs and spinach.  But lunch always is a problem.  I think I've gotta change the beans.  I've been using black beans and they take too long to cook right.  And the taste isn't too bad, but I just can't seem to get them tasting consistently good.  Sometimes they come out great and other times . . . .

I'll figure something out.  Once the stuff is cooked and packed, it's no biggie.  But I've got to get it cooked and packed sometime during the weekend because I don't have time during the week.  And my weekends are FULL!  I may just cook the stuff while I'm at my moms restaurant.  I've got the equipment and the time.  Duh!

Sometimes I'm just a moron . . .

GD

p.s.
too lazy to check stuff

Just noticed . . .

So, I went for my run last night before picking up my godson from practice.  I obligate myself to pick him up to motivate me to go run . . .

But that's not what I noticed.  This morning I got up, jumped in the shower and drove in to work.  And I realized that I didn't have the usual foot and leg aches I have first thing in the morning.  Usually there is a lot of grunting and groaning when placing any weight on my feet.  It goes away after about a minute and I'm fine.

Not this morning . . . or yesterday if I recall correctly.  The only thing I can think of that may have helped is I took all that time off from running.  Maybe I need that time for things to knit together and get stronger.  Another thing, I also changed something last night in my run.  Because of the continuing leg/hamstring issue, I forced myself to relax my legs.  By doing that, I just focused on pulling my feet up from the ground.

Notice I didn't say "pulling my knees up".

As I've read at Maple Grove Barefoot Guy an at Barefoot Running University, being relaxed will greatly improve your comfort.  I've forgotten that in the last month or so.  I've been so focused on the ache as I run that I've not gone through what I SHOULD be doing.  I've just been using my metronome and focusing on the footfalls.

What I did and shoulda' been doing is focusing on using the metronome to focus on the foot-LIFTS!

And focusing on pulling the foot towards the butt!

So, I had relaxed legs and was pulling my feet up towards the glutes (I tried to use ass, but it looked too coarse) and the ache was somewhat there, but it wasn't as bad as my previous run on Monday.  I'm not limping around today and the ache is very minimal.

I'll be running tonight and see if this bit of good fortune continues.  Hopefully it isn't just a fluke of the day or weather playing a part.  But I'm feeling comfortable today and I think I may have done something right again.

Oh, and check out those two links.  Go through their archived stuff.  They have great advice and anecdotes.  I've been following them for almost a year now.  Both are ultra-runners and they've worked out most of their kinks in their barefoot running.  And yes, they've both run ultras completely barefoot.  And on trails, no less!

I don't plan on doing any ultras, but I do plan on running completely naked . . . feet that is.  You don't need to picture a short fat dude nekkid.

oops, too late  >:)

GD

p.s.

too lazy to grammar check

First after four days

Well I had my first run after those four days of doing nothing! And to make matters worse, I've not been keeping up with 4HB.  For shame!

I've been off the wagon since the weekend, and I'm still off it.  I've got to do something so my life at home doesn't interfere with health life . . . if that makes any sense.  I shouldn't be separating the two, but that's just the way it goes.

One reason for not being on the wagon is because Monday night at midnight, I picked up my new Gears Of War 3 Limited Edition XBox 360!  Yeah.  I'm Ubernerd.  I'm 38 and I still play video games.  And then people wonder why I have not girlfriend.  I'm almost the stereotypical fat nerd.  And when I wear my cool Warby Parker glasses (think Buddy Holly), I really start pushing it.  But where I separate myself from that stereotype is I'm not much into junk food and I really do enjoy running.  And running in my Vibram Five-Fingers!

When I jump off the wagon, I try to stick with healthy junk food.  If I go get a burger, no sauce. Tacos? Meat and veggies please, and no hard shell.  I attempt at the healthy.

As far as this last run, it was getting painful.  And it wasn't the foot.  The foot's been fine.  It's the leg now and it's still that weird hamstring thing.  It's going away quicker though.  Not as annoying.  A run, a quick massage and it's relieved though not gone.

It doesn't feel so bad today and I'm expecting to go for my run tonight, looking forward to it actually.

GD

p.s.
too lazy to check

Getting TOO lazy . . .

So I haven't run in two frickin' days!  Too much crap on the table to clear off for it.

Life sucks!

Not really, it can just be a little frustrating.  My mom owns a restaurant and my brother and sister are a tad nuts.  My brother works there now, but it took him a while to finally come to grips that he's an ADULT and he has to begin contributing to society in a POSITIVE way.  He drives my mom and the cook nuts with his temper tantrums, but he's slooooowly learning that he can't be acting that way at a place of employment.

My sister is another matter.  Her moods swing from manic to nuts.  We've tried to get her to help out at the restaurant, and she does ok, but then something happens and it's not a good idea to have her around my mom.  You how to two poles (as in polarity) work in electricity right?  They repel each other.  But in their case it's like two nuclear powered poles.

I'm not sayin' my moms nuts . . .

I'm just not sayin'.

Anyway . . . I have to play the buffer all the time.  When my mom breaks down because of either my sibs or something she misconstrued from my dad, I gotta be there to be shoulder so she can vent.  I've been doing this for YEARS.  As you may guess, this have left me emotionally jaded . . . stunted . . . whatever!

So when the daughter asked me to be her sponsor for Confirmation, I was left speechless and emotionally jarred.

The daughter had her orientation for Confirmation last Tuesday.  Her mom went with her and I went to pick up my godson from practice after my run since I was in the area.  It gave her time to clear her plate more comfortably and I really like helping her.  She does what she can for her kids as a single mother and sometimes she has to be at opposite ends of town at the same time.  I'm just glad I happen to be at one end of town to pick up my godson.  It also gives me a reason go run those days.

After picking him up we went to get something to eat at Subway.  He grabbed a foot-long which he wolfed down in a matter of minutes. I got one of their new salads, the turkey/avocado thing.  I grabbed it with the works and it was 4HB friendly.  Tasty!  My cousin was still at the orientation with the daughter and I had to pick up a couple of cases of chicken for my mom, so off I went.

After I dropped off the chicken, my godson and I headed back to his home.  We waited outside a few minutes before my cousin and the daughter showed up.  We went inside and they started talking about how long the orientation was and how well developed the program was and what they were looking forward to and then the daughter mentioned how they were asked to find someone they could trust to be their sponsor for their confirmation.  And I'm like "wow" and "cool".  But she was looking at me sheepishly with shit-eating grin.

I'm a bit dense.

Her face dropped and then I got it. D'oh!  I went to her and gave her a huge hug and apologized that I didn't get it right away and said I'd be happy to be her sponsor.  My cousin was smiling while the daughter began talking about ALL the events that were going to happen, the trips to Yosemite and Disneyland . . .

And all I could think to say after that was I'd better start saving up.  I don't know if the daughter caught it, but I think my cousin did.

A bit of a faux-pas.

The daughter had a football game to cheer last night and my mom needed help at the restaurant.  One of her dogs was ill and she wanted me to get out of work early to help.  I've got work and bosses and I don't think telling them my mommy needs me will give me a "get-outta-work-early" card.  I tried to finish up in good time, but it didn't happen and I didnt leave until around 5pm.  My mom was already back at the restaurant, but she still wanted a bit of help.  I stuck around til 6:30 and then went to the daughters game.

Have I mentioned that my mom doesn't like the daughter or her mom.  Yeah, some of the most important people in my life cannot see each other.  My cousin and the daughter love my mom, but my mom is jealous of them and has not spoken to them in several years.  She thinks my cousin is taking advantage of me when migrates to Yuma and leaves the daughter with me.  I think of it as a break from the insanity of my life.  There is alway a fire to put out and I. Am. Burnt. OUT!

I look forward to that and the schedule will not be as crazy this year.  She's not in her cheer/dance crew this year and cheerleading is not as hectic with the schedules.  It'll still be a full plate, but it's a plate that's a bit more manageable than years past.  I'm looking forward to it.

I'll be running tonight and hopefully there'll be no fires to put out.  I'm still figuring out this emotional issue I have, but at least I can say I'm happy someone put that kind of trust in me.  I guess my cousin would fall in that as well, she does ask me to take care of her daughter for several months.  She knows my vices are relatively harmless and are along the same as hers (food and beer), so I guess she feels confident that I'll do my best to support her and her daughter in this.  I can actually say I'm happy about this. 

It's not just a getaway from the craziness of my usual stuff, I think I need this.  I think I need someone to need me in this way.  I do feel like a dad to my godson and the daughter.  I wish I could do more for them and only them.

My mom has had her life . . . I want mine.

GD

p.s.
lazy, but run smiley!

I didn't run much the last week.  I think my last run for the previous week was last Wedneday.  I didn't even go this weekend.

I've had this nagging ache along my leg.  Like a thin section of my calf, hamstring and glute.  I think it's all tied to the PF of my right foot.  So I decided to begin concentrating on trying to fix it.

A while back I bought a foot massager and sprint stick.  The foot massager is a therapy device called the Foot Log.  It was supposed to assist in fixing Plantar Fasciitis and other foot issues.

It's a great little tool.  I think it works a bit better than a frozen can of peas, though having a cold can on your foot can feel good when it aches!

The other item is something I refer to as a sprint stick.  But the one I have is by Pro-Tec Athletics and they call it a Roller Massager.

That's not me by the way.  I'm not there yet.  But that is the stick I use and it feels GREAT!  That think will work out knots like you wouldn't believe.  I still have one knot in my calf it still hasn't been able to get rid of completely, but it has helped reduce it.  I should ice after, but I never do and I think that may be contributing to the long rehab.

It's pretty much a wooden dowel with a plastic floating tube with foam to allow it to roll freely.  The grips are cushioned to allow "trigger point release".  Trust me, it works great!

I still have a bit of a twinge and I think what I need to get is a foam roller next.  One of those body rollers.  I'd post a pic of one but there are a ton of them and I'm not sure what kind to get yet.  And they have a wide range of prices.  I may just make something out of pvc, foam and duct tape.  I may have some laying around at work somewhere, too.

Anyway . . . so get back on the trail Monday.  After four days of nothing, I was itchin' to go.  Unfortunately I started out too fast and in the last mile back, I was almost gassed out.  But I was able to push through and finish strong enough.  I ended up finishing in better time than I have in a long time, which would have been weird if I hadn't taken all that time off.  After the run, my leg started up again and when I got home I got to work on it with the tools.  It helped and I was able to sleep comfortably that night.

Yesterday I went for a run again and my knee began buggin' me, but it went away after my half mile warmup.  I walked for a minute and began the stronger run.  I made it out to the parking lot with only one stop in between.  Pretty good, I thought.  Usually on the way back, I have a problem keeping up the same pace, but I had focused on keeping it steady and somewhat effortless.  I was breathing a little hard, but was able to catch my breath fairly easily at each of the two one minutes walks I usually make.  I cut my time even further than yesterday.

I hope I can keep this up.  Even with the nagging, I'm still enjoying the running.  I'll be taking care of the daughter in a couple more months.  And I'm kinda excited about it!

I'm usually out by the Toro park area for my run and so I told my cousin that I could pick up my godson from his pee-wee football practice when I'm done.  I get to walk a bit and stretch out the legs before he's finished.  My cousin was running late because she was at church with the daughter.

The daughter is starting catechism again for her confirmation and she and her mom had an orientation meeting regarding that last night.  She was asked to find a sponsor she can trust.  She asked me!  I was dumbfounded.  It took me by surprise and I probably didn't express my feelings about it well and may have left her a bit disappointed by my reaction.  I'm going to remedy that tonight.  It's been on my mind all day and I really am excited and happy that she chose me.

I'm not quite sure what the sponsor is obligated to do, but whatever I can do to make sure that girl becomes a better, stronger person . . . I'm there for her.

GD

p.s.
run smiley and no, too lazy to check . . .

Still not runnin'

I still haven't gone running. I guess things like this occur to everyone every once in a while. Shit happens and your plans go on the wayside. I hope to run tomorrow morning. Hopefully it happens.

p.s.
too lazy to check.

Bloggin' from my iPhone

I probably won't be using this much unless I'm posting pictures. I'll definitely use this more once they've got landscape orientation working!

Two days! Ugh!

So, for the last two days I've not taken a single jump.  What do I mean?  Well for a "run" to be called a "run", both feet must leave the earth while maintaining forward momentum.  In other words, a jump.

I know. 

Semantics. 

Whatever . . . the point is I've not gone running for the last couple of days.  I'd made a promise to my cousin that I'd go and support the daughter who was cheering at her first real football game.  It was a great game, if you happen to be the opposing teams fan.  The daughters' school was the visiting team and they got clobbered, 20-0.  The home team was making good passes and were great at defending the QB and their receivers.


The poor visiting teams' QB would make great passes, but there was no one to defend the receivers.  It appeared as if they were focusing on protecting the QB.  Nobody touched the QB.  The receivers were getting pasted.  Every once in a while though, you could see the potential of the team.  Something would happen when everything clicked for the team.  They saw openings and were able to defend the line and stop the home team from going further.  Or the QB would see something before a play and make a play change and the whole team would explode and scream forward for a first down.

I hate to say it, but I actually enjoyed watching high school football.

The daughters' cheer team were still having trouble with a couple of their cheers.  But that's why they are the the frosh cheerleaders.  They'll get better as the season goes and they'll soon be nailing those cheers!  They must've been working hard on them though, because there were only a couple of hiccups.  Also I'm proud to say that the daughter was calling the cheers!  She must be making an impression with the coaches.  She's a tiny thing but she's been cheering for years!  And she's been on a national champion team twice and one of those wins just this last year.

Boy!  I feel like her daddy gushing about her like this but she's a studious student, sharp as a tack extremely respectful of her mom.  My cousin is strict with her, but spoils her rotten sometimes.  The daughter knows her mom does the best she can for both her and my godson.

I could keep going, but I've gotta stop or I'll be emotional all day.  I live vicariously through my cousin and I try to be there for her and her kids as much as I can.  She has no one else who has the time and I'll be there until she doesn't want or need me there anymore.

I do plan on having a run tonight.  I'm feeling good physically.  I still have that funky twinge all along the right leg, so I'm gonna focus on relaxing on tonight's run.  I'll post up how it went tomorrow if not tonight.

GD

p.s.
too lazy for grammar check

My time management suks!

Yesterday I had planned to run right after I got out of work.  But a new game came out, so I was going to pick it up before going for my run.

I left work around 5:15.  I got to the mall about 20 minutes later.  I left the mall at 5:55 because the employee I'd pre-ordered my game from (Dead Island, btw) had gotten confused when she placed the order.  I had put some money down for a new Gears Of War 3 XBox 360 that doesn't come out until September 20th, but Dead Island was going to be for my PS3.  She's placed the order the 360 . . .

So it took another employee some time to work with the register so I could get my PS3 version of Dead Island.

When I got to my car I began heading over to the Toro Estates for my run.  After my run I was supposed to pick up my godson from his pee-wee football practice, but I got a restaurant emergency call from my mom saying she needed napkins.  I got to Smart and Final and was heading inside when she called again saying she needed 20 bunches of cilantro for salsa. 

Smart and Final doesn't carry cilantro . . . and it was 6:20.

I picked up the napkins and dropped them off at the restaurant then headed over to Save Mart.  I looked at the clock, 6:30 . . . I wasn't going to be able to make my run.  I was just gonna make it to pick up my godson.  He gets let out of practice at 7pm.  I got the cilantro, dropped it off and drove to Toro Park where he has his practice.  On my way there I got another restaurant emergency call from my mom.  She needed shrimp.  I wasn't going to be able to pick up the shrimp in time for when she needed it.

Oh well.


Just as I got to the park, my cousin called and she told me that the coaches had let the kids out early from practice and that my godson was scared that I'd forgotten him.  I told her to let him know I was just outside the gates of park and walking to the practice field.  He spotted me and showed me a huge grin.


We got in the car and we talked about practice and how the boys had made some game involving fruit, desserts and sodas.  It's like the paper flower game we played as kids where chose a number or a color . . . but instead of what type of life you were gonna live, you got kicked in the nads.


I got to the the cousins house hugged the daughter and the cuz and let her know that I'd be able to pick him up the next day.  I told her that I'd be running there, because she felt bad that I went outta my way to pick him up.  I told her that I had planned to run, but a bunch of other things got in the way.


I don't foresee any other "emergencies", we should be well stocked.  I am SO looking forward to tonights run.  I've not been able to sleep well the last couple of nights.  I've been eating horribly and I've gotta burn off these carbs my body has begun to take in again.  I can't wait to get back to 4HB!  Too many CARBS!!!  ARGGGHHH!


GD


p.s.
too lazy to check!

Yes, I do sometimes listen to Glenn Beck.

So this morning, I was driving in to work and listening to Glenn Beck.  He wasn't on today though and he had a substitute.

According to the guy, the reason he works Labor Day is because it's his mini-protest to Labor Day.  He started talking about the history of it and said it's actually a holiday for socialism and unions.

Then he started in on illegal imigration.

Now I'm not really political or anything, but I think I finally have a solid opinion on the illegal imigration debate.  He sort of backed up the idea when he started talking about how Labor Day is a bunch of hooey.  I won't get into it too much, but when if you think about his protest to socialism and unions, I think you'll understand.

Here's my stand on illegal imigration, though.  Being a man of science and still having faith in God, I understand the idea of evolution.  The whole Darwinian concept.  You know, survival of the fittest?  There are millions of Americans all over the US who are looking for work.  A lot of them are real honest hard working people.

But I live in Salinas and of Mexican decent.  I'm gonna tell you the truth as I see it.

FOB's (Fresh Over the Border or Fresh Off the Boat), whether legal or illegal, are the hardest working SOB's you'll EVER meet.  The bust tremendous ass to get the better things for their families and provide for their futures.  They have come to work and they spend money in OUR country.  Yes, they may send some to whatever homeland they come from but the majority of it is spent HERE.

Many have forged documents to allow them to work in the states.  Many are paying into taxes because it's getting pulled out of their paychecks.  Many cannot file taxes because of forged documents so our government is free to keep those excess taxes.

I know I'm missing some more, but those are the main points.  But here is the problem I see.  It's the majority of first generation offspring. I'm including those children who were brought over when they were young enough to become Americanized.

The problem of illegal immigration is not the FOB's.  It's their children.  We see our parents busting their ass in labor oriented jobs.  We tell ourselves there is no way in hell we're are going to break our backs like our parents.  So that leaves a couple of choices.

Choice one, which took me a while to realize, is busting your ass in school.  Learn to use the system to educate yourself and become a productive, respected taxpaying member of society.  Like many of the first generation, I was floating around unsure of what my life was going to be like career-wise.  I puttered around, working menial jobs.  Don't get me wrong, it was a respectable JOB.  But I wasn't furthering myself whatsoever.  I finally got my shit together and earned my AAS, which allowed me to promote in the company I still work for.

Choice two, which is where I really see the problem: Learn to use the system so you get paid to do SHIT!

I have many family members and associates (cannot call them friends and can't distance myself from family, unfortunately) who have taken this route.  The women get preggers and stay single which allows them to draw benefits from the state.  If the baby-daddy is working, they get that money as well and pay for their cell phone which is glued to their head while they are smoking the government sponsored 2 packs a day and maybe even drinking the government sponsored beer.  Oh!  And then when the 1st or the 15th comes around, they have their government sponsored girls-night-out!

The guys work the system another way:  They'll work some type of labor job and get "hurt".  Their back is then shot for the rest of their lives.  Or so it seems because they never go back to work but they still continue to draw disability benefits which keeps them healthy enough to walk around and pick up the monster cooler full of Bud Light and carne asada with one arm while the other has the charcoal briquets.

Fortunately, at least from my experience, there are more of the first generation who have made the first choice.  They have made their parents proud.  One example is a friend who I am very proud to have in my life.  He and his family came to the states illegally when he was about 7 years old.  He struggled in school all the way to high school.  He busted his ass and eventually graduated with the top of his class with AP courses under his belt.

He worked the system to get a higher education.  He went to the local community college and aced his courses and earned his associates degree.  He then applied for citizenship.  While waiting for the whole process of citizenship, he applied and got accepted into UC Berkeley.  He graduated with his Bachelors degree and shortly after became a citizen of the United States of America.

Why can't we all be like him.  I wish I had the dedication he has.  I've worked hard, but I discovered it relatively late in my career.  Why couldn't my eyes have been opened earlier in life.  I don't know.

Illegal immigration.  Hmm.  If more illegals are like my friend, let them come.  We need those kind of people in our country.  They are here to make our society BETTER.  They don't want to drag it down.  They too live in neighborhoods and they want it to thrive.  They make friends with neighbors and look out for one another.

Let them come, the bad seeds will sort themselves out.

Our country first allowed immigrants no questions asked.  Then things changed in the late 1800's. . .  I'm not too sure.  But there were restrictions imposed and people had to change their given name to something more pronounceable to the a American tongue.  But many people thrived at the opportunity for a future.

Instead of bitching about the immigrants, maybe those that are bitching should bust their ass and take back those jobs the immigrants are accused of taking.  Work harder, do it better!

But nobody will. 

At least where I live in the Salad Bowl of the world, there are immigrants working the fields and from what I've seen it's mostly of the Mexican and South American variety of immigrants.  Philipino no longer work the fields much.  They've been given the opportunity to better themselves and I see a LOT of them working in the medical field.  I think down south near the Bakersfield area, you do have them working the orchards and vines.

I'm pretty sure there are some white people still out there working the fields, orchards and vines.  But I can bet you they won't be young.  They'll be of the old-school who believed any job to have is a good job.  Back when I lived on the east side of Salinas, a lot of our neighbors were white.  Most of them used to work the fields when they were younger.  But they made sure their children worked hard and did well in school so that they wouldn't have to do what they did and break their backs.

Sound familiar.

I know this is long-winded and tl;dr, but I felt I had to get this off my chest.  I know I don't have any readers but I always hope someone will accidentally find this blog and be bored enough to read it.

If you happen to be one of them, post a comment.  Agree, disagree . . . it's an opinion and right now the law is the law.  Illegal immigrants are illegal.  I'm going to write the governor and express my opinion on this.  America can't have it both ways.  Complain about the workforce that is doing the job nobody else wants to do.

I know that sounds like a cop-out, but let me ask this:
Given the choice between the unemployment line or working the fields, how many of your friends would choose working the fields?

GD

p.s.
too lazy to check

I'm not really competitive! I swear!

Yesterday afternoon, during lunch, I had a ton of coffee. I was wired throughout the rest of the day. I needed to burn off the buzz so I went for a run.

My aspiring firefighter cousin has been needing to get back in shape for a while now and had asked if he could join me.  I don't like running with him because he likes being the "coach" and annoys the crap outta me when he tries to push me to keep going if/when I stop for a breather.  He's always been the meat-head, you know?  Even though he's hellishly sharp!  You don't pass the California Firefighter exams by being fit but dumb as a rock.  He busted his ass for that accomplishment and he may be working with North County Fire soon as a volunteer.

Anyway . . . back to what happened yesterday:

Yesterday was the first time EVER that he could not keep up. He's always been able to push passed pain and exhaustion.  He started out good, then fell behind. He'd catch up when I'd stop for a minute.  He likes working out with others.  He needs the motivation he gets from other like minded meat-heads.  You know the type, the guy that is spotting you calling you a pussy because you can't get that last rep up.

Since he likes to get "motivated" by someone pushing him I told him, "I don't need to say anything.  Just that THIS fat boy is in FRONT of you".

I KNOW that caught in his craw! I've never been able to keep the kind of pace he has for himself.  I want to call myself a runner, but I'm not there yet.  I recently found out I have some weird deformed kind of competitive nature about myself.  I want to make sure he never catches up.  But in my mind, I'm not competing against him.

I'm competing against my self.

GD

p.s.
to lazy to ckeck garmmar