I'm not old

So the opening scene from Holy Grail keeps playing in my head where Arthur accosts a peasant who turns out to be neither old nor a woman. Dennis the peasant claimed to be 37 which today I am as well. As I reflect on my age I am struck by the realization that in three short years I'll be 40. That is a big number. I don't feel particularly old although I do realize that there are things I just can't do anymore. All-nighters have more severe consequinces, I can't eat the legendary amounts of food that I used to, I have to wear glasses more and my teenage sense of invincibility is long gone with my hair. I think of the promise of tomorrow that was portrayed in my youth and how it compares to the reality and have to laugh at all the differences. We still don't have flying cars and still depend on fossil fuels for energy but who saw texting or facebook or iPhones. I have a 12 year old son who has never known a computer without a GUI interface or life before the Internet was accessed with modems. My youngest daughter assumes that handheld devices have touch screens. Makes you wonder what wonders they will see develop that we have no concept of now.

Geocaching: TNG and Scouts

I had the pleasure yesterday of introducing a few scouts in the troop at our church to geocaching. While it has been a while since I have gone out caching it has always provided me with a lot of fun and something to do in unfamiliar cities. Geocaching for those who don't know was best summarized to me as using multi-million dollar satellite systems to find Tupperware in the woods. Essentially a cooperative game of hide (objects, not yourself) and seek that is coordinated online on the original site, http://www.geocaching.com/. To be fair, there are other sites that perform similar functions but not as comprehensively in my opinion. The BSA has implemented a new merit badge for geocaching and I was asked to introduce the game to our boys.

This was also Doug's first scout meeting as a boy scout. and I think he and his friend Joey enjoyed being the knowledgeable ones in the room due to me having taken them both out caching in the past. It can sometimes be hard to be the new guy and bringing something to the proverbial table helps to eliminate some of that difficulty.

I have many fond memories of scouting and look forward to Doug developing some of his own. I know a lot of people like to criticize the scouts. For those who didn't enjoy their time in scouts, I am truly sorry. I learned in scouts that if I invested myself in energy and effort to the program, I received dividends in experience and skills. I've heard people say that they didn't need scouts to know how to camp. That may be true but camping is maybe 20% of scouting, more a method of teaching than an end goal.

For those who were traumatized by bad leaders, again I am truly sorry. Organizations like BSA have an obligation to screen and educate leaders to provide safe and enriching environments. It is a sad fact however that large voluntary organizations are probably the most difficult environment to enforce these standards. While I denounce the abuse of these victims, I would also state that for every one who suffered, there are perhaps as much as 100 more who knew of any such problems in their units. There is no such thing as an acceptable rate of abuse but I would further state that all youth organizations will face the same issues but not the same scrutiny due to their comparative size and relevance. No matter what the fanatics say, Macs are not inherently safer from viruses than Windows systems, they are just not as big of a user base and much the same is true for youth organizations.

As for discrimination, one of the benefits of a free society is non-compulsory club membership. I don't have to join the democrat party if I don't agree with them. There are benefits to being a democrat and it is an integral part of our governmental system but I can choose to not associate. The BSA should be viewed in a similar light. Join / don't join; your choice. If you think the uniform should be red then you can send the request through defined channels and if the leadership disagrees, fine, start your own organization with like minded red uniform people. There is no need for vilification or recrimination. Every day, everyone makes a choice as to who they associate with based on a variety of factors and this by definition is discrimination. We all discriminate whether we like Coke or Pepsi or meat or vegetables. The question then becomes if we can be tolerant. I believe that tolerance does not have to include a negation of standards. The Porsche Club of America does not have to let Corvette people in. The Corvette people can and do have their own club. It has never been my experience in scouting that violence against or persecution of others has been taught or even condoned. Per the Scout Law, A Scout is Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean and Reverent.

New Shoes

I ran the Sunburst 10k this past weekend. I was slow but not last (barely). The reward was to go out and get new running shoes after the race. I actually went to a specialized running store and worked with the staff there to get the right fit and support. So far I have only used them once and the difference is noticeable from the worn out off the shelf shoe I had been using to these new shoes. What I got are Brooks Dyad 5. I got some new socks as well (sorely needed) but no custom orthotics or such. I will admit to making a small modification though but this leads into a bit of a story.

Since I started running, I have been using the Nike+ system with my iPod to track and motivate me. The system uses an accelerometer that wirelessly connects to the iPod and acts as a pretty accurate pedometer also measuring speed and distance. Nike makes a special pocket under the insole of their running shoes to put the gadget. I haven't worn Nikes so have been using a pocket like thing that attaches via Velcro to the shoe laces. With these new shoes I carefully carved out a pocket under the arch. It wasn't major surgery but did involve a Dremel. So far I think it has been a success but only time and use will tell if I ruined a brand new pair of shoes.

Leaning Tower of Media

Have you ever wondered why the news seems to be filled with ever louder voices spouting ever more vicious verbal barbs and trite phrases. I am filled with sadness when I think how the moderate rational voice has all but disappeared from mainstream media. They have been chased away or ignored by the reporters and editors and personalities in favor of more entertaining fare. That is really the root of the problem; news is a form of entertainment and has been commercialized for some time now. It is the original form of reality TV dressed up as a collective social conscience.

It has been said that when you wake up in the morning, at least one news outlet already agrees with you. Every channel has its own particular slant but I don’t need to name names as their bias is readily apparent. They make no attempt to hide their leanings but instead wear them proudly as a badge. Journalists are taught to develop a story. Start with a premise, gather some supporting facts or quotes, shape the flow of the argument to support the premise and out pops the news.

Let’s say I am a liberal news editor. 3 out of 8 people our reporter talked with are concerned that healthcare reform will raise taxes, another 3 would like to see healthcare become accessible to all and control rampant abuses, 1 says that universal healthcare is a basic human right cause that’s what they do in Europe which is the source of all mystical coolness and 1 says the healthcare is a bad plan because it is from the devil and medicine steals your soul. Who do I give airtime to? What I do is forget the first 6, present the super pro and con opinions but edit out that stuff about Europe. Lead story is now that people believe that healthcare is a basic human right and anyone who says otherwise is a Luddite nut job.

Same people same story but now I’m conservative. I now focus on the first three but edit out that they are ‘concerned’ and replace that with a snap of the last opinion that it is a bad plan. Suddenly the story is that most Americans believe that healthcare reform is a bad plan and should be forgotten.

Both stories have been molded and shaped for the greatest impact and most entertainment value. If there are 20 people at a protest, an oppositionally leaning reporter will find the least educated and eloquent member to give an exclusive interview to. Hey look everyone, these protesters are idiots.

I have had to learn to trust no news fully. One must instead play a game of averages and accept multiple sources and try to glean the tiny kernels of facts from the spin. There is one bright spot in today’s environment. With more voices and media to choose from, the amount of truth hidden away in the stories has increased. From these facts one now gets to apply their own biases and formulate their opinion. This last reminds me of another saying; Opinions are like a particular body part that everyone has and they all stink.

Easter

Amongst those of the Christian persuasion, Easter always seems to bring out the most self-inspection. The elephant following us around seems to be the question of am I worthy of Christ's sacrifice. A lot of people will beat themselves up over this (sometimes literally as in look up Filipino flagellants) and I think this misses the point.
I am no prophet but something I believe is that God's lessons are where you look for them. Metaphor of true principles can be found in watching a seed grow, the sun rise, and a wound heal. Meaning can be found even in cleaning up after a sick child has thrown up in bed in the middle of the night. I think that instead of trying to engineer my own experience on a given holiday to match some imaginary ideal of what that experience should be like, A better approach is to spend more time interpreting the lessons already before me. The great part of this is that I don't have to wait for a day or time, the moment I seek is ready for me when I am ready to receive it.
So, in confession, I did not spend a lot of time planning and executing the perfect Easter experience with morning services, meditative thought and doctrinal exploration. I visited with family because we love each other, we hunted for eggs and ate candy because it is fun, played at the beach because we are here and the weather is wonderful and tonight, as we prayed together as a family, my son added a special thanks to God for having such a great day and asked that we can have another great day tomorrow. There was no prompting on my part and it matters little if he thought the best part of the day was the family, candy or beach; he took time to thank God for it and that is a lesson he found on his own.

King of the Road

It has been a while, so in the interest of fresh content I present pictures from our recent Pinewood derby.

Here the cubscouts are lined up to race their cars. We also had a more 'open' division for everyone to participate. We had about 18 cars in the open class which seemed to go on forever. But in the end, Patrick's car took the blue ribbon. Yes, yes I am quite proud and all and Patrick was very pleased as well as surprised. I wish we had gotten a shot of all the cars lined up but hopefully we will have as nice a turnout next year.

Cheryl made this cake with a nifty cake pan. The cub scouts got to pick which car they wanted all to themselves. We also had a commercial popcorn maker on-site which made it really festive and left the aroma of popcorn in the air for a couple of days.

Turn in my Man Card

I am somewhat annoyed. Blogging has become the realm of women. I am talking here about the personal blog and not the pseudo-blogs which serve only as a platform to promote or review products or serve as a soapbox for an agenda. One might ask, 'What is wrong with that?' Well, nothing really at least on the surface. I like women. Generally, they can be at least as intelligent, articulate, thoughtful and witty as men and what they write is interesting. The problem is that while I enjoy keeping up with people I know by reading their blogs, I keenly feel the pressure of social mores that, as a man, I am somehow spying into a cyber hen party. I'll read someones recollection of a trip they took or a birthday party that will spark a response but I stop short at the thought of being an unwelcome intruder.

I know that this is all so very illogical. One should expect that when posting your thoughts online, the world will see and possibly respond. I know this and yet I still feel like a lurking voyeur.

What is to be done about it? Reassurance from fellow bloggers probably won't do much. What else can they say about a publicly posted journal except that all are invited to read and comment. Similarly, just 'getting over it' hasn't really worked so far either. Logical argument? No; tried that one already. I believe that the only thing that may cure my petty angst is to see more postings and comments from the Y chromosome demographic. I'm not looking for competition so much as participation. Many of these blogs style themselves as 'family' blogs and yet are maintained by only a fraction of that family. Alas, the likelihood of this plea reaching my target audience is nil because, guess what, it is a blog post and most men do not read blogs.