Push-Up for Your Health

The New York Times brings us this article about the value of push-ups. The gist of it is that emphasizing cardiovascular health is not sufficient for overall health. As we age, we need to have muscular and skeletal strength for many reasons. For instance, we need to be able to get up and down from chairs, but also need to be able to break our inevitable falls with our hands and arms, and then we need to be able to get up from the ground when we do fall.

...a 40-year-old woman should be able to do 16 push-ups and a man the same age should be able to do 27. By the age of 60, those numbers drop to 17 for men and 6 for women.

If you can't do enough of them, you can start out easy by trying them at an angle. lean against a wall to start out, then try a table. Over time, you should be able to move your angle down so you gradually get closer and closer to being horizontal.

So, how many push-ups can you do?

Parents (Like all of Us) Are Self-Centered

OK. This is going to be one of my more epic rambles. I'll try to keep it short, but a couple really different things have come together in my mind and I feel the need to share the connection.

First, parenthood. When Boy Kid was about three weeks old, Mrs. Kid and I were exhausted, constantly stressed out by not knowing what the heck we were doing, and struggling to keep ourselves together emotionally and physically. Mrs. Kid was in physical pain and we both were seriously sleep-deprived. A friend who had a three year-old kid said "and it gets so much worse when they are two or three years old." At the time, I doubted her (I used colorful language at the time, but this is a family blog), but not having had a two or three year old kid, I couldn't doubt her with confidence.

Now that I have had a couple kids in the first few weeks and then later in the two to three year range, I can say with confidence that in my experience, those first weeks were far more brutal. Anyone who doubts this either had angel babies (who slept through the night and breast fed like champs and never defecated all over a bedroom wall at 2:00 AM) or has really forgotten what those first weeks are like. The latter is pretty likely. Sleep deprivation, frustration, and fear of screwing up are incredibly powerful in those first weeks. Later trials and tribulations as children become more independent and willful are tough, but at least you generally get to deal with them on a good night's rest. Don't get me wrong: losing control as the kid gets older is not easy, but eating and sleeping in shifts, thrush, blocked ducts, poo on the walls, evening fussy time, teething, bilirubin tests, scheduling around naps, and other issues add up to a pretty tough few weeks.

When you are going through tough times, it's easy to forget how others could not have your problems, but still have problems of their own. It's easy for someone with an infant to think that having more sleep and a kid who can use words to say what the heck is the matter would solve all their problems. It's easy for someone with a rebellious three year-old to think that having a kid who doesn't constantly play emotional and control games would be easy. We are all self-centered and it is hard to imagine that having our particular problems taken away would not make for an easier life.

Now for the other seemingly unrelated item: Barack Obama's Reverend Wright, who said:

Racism is how this country was founded and how this country is still run!

My point here is that when you are a victim of racism, it's easy to imagine that it is the strongest negative force there is. Similarly, when you have been on the wrong side of sexism or classism or religious discrimination or affirmative action, or any other bias, it's easy to imagine that what you experienced is the strongest negative force out there. Just read Gloria Steinem's Op Ed about who is at a greater disadvantage in the democratic race. I'm not saying that we aren't sexist any more than I'm saying we aren't racist, but focusing on one bias to the exclusion of others is just another example of our self-centered reality.

Whether black, white, asian, hispanic, male, female, young, or old, each of us can be a self-centered beast who sees our own adversity as the greatest societal issue. Empathy isn't easy, but it is the pathway to a society that can transcend our problems. We can't simply ignore our problems. Biases are real. Adversity is real. Once we accept the reality of our own challenges while accepting those of people who are different from us, we can make real progress.

Since I drafted this post a day or two ago, Obama has made an impassioned, but reasoned speech about race in America. His speech is worth an entire post on its own, but first everyone should read or listen to the whole thing.

Soundtrack: The Beatles (Revolver), John Coltrane (Giant Steps), Lee Morgan (The Sidewinder), Beastie Boys (Ill Communication)

The Black Mail Server

When anyone sends email to me at work, it takes a while for it to get to me--even if the sender is sitting 10 feet away. Others in the office get their email quickly (as you would expect), but my stuff takes the scenic route.

I'm not usually big on conspiracy theories, but in this case, it's clear that my email is going through the "black" mail server. I figure all the white folks have their email going through some jacked up thing that looks like it's from Minority Report or some other futuristic movie. As a couple people in my office have noted, they think the black server is sitting at the back of the bus. Only the geekiest among you will appreciate the technical play on words there.

The white email server,

• is powered by 7 GHz quad core CPUs
• has terabyte RAM
• has 300 teraflop computational power
• can beat Deep Blue in chess, checkers, and backgammon all at the same time
  
• has a wall of LCD monitors
  
• connects to the Internet using a fiber T3 line to a dedicated Tier 1 provider.

The black email server,

• was recently upgraded from a 286 to a 386 processor
• has 16 MB RAM
• takes 5 minutes to deal a hand of solitaire
  
• has a 9 inch diagonal amber CRT monitor that weighs as much as a 5th grader
• connects to the Internet using a 14.4k baud modem

Am I bitter than our servers are separate and clearly unequal? A bit, but I am patient. No, I'm not being patient waiting for an upgrade to a 486, I'm just patient enough that I don't need my email right away. An extra five or ten minutes gives me time to get other things done.

Soundtrack: Funkadelic, Cannonball Adderley

Music Monday: My Three Songs, Volume 1

Local radio station WHFS used to have something called My Three Songs (I think) in which the DJ would play three songs that had a connection and listeners had to guess what the connection was. The connection might have been a common theme (e.g., love, days of the week, etc.), common artist (e.g., same drummer or singer or even producer), or anything else.

Every once in a while (as an homage to the spirit of WHFS in the 70's and 80's), I will post my own version of My Three Songs. See if you can guess the connection that links the three songs. Email me or post a comment with your answer. I will post my answer and credit anyone who got the connection I thought of.

My Three Songs, Volume 1

Song One (Mike)


Song Two (Robbie)


Song Three (Chip)


That's it. If you need a hint, just let me know.

Web Stuff Friday: More Laziness

You might recall that I blogged about Lazy Sunday a bit ago. It's a fun rap that has inspired some responses.

Lazy Monday: This west coast response is OK, but I haven't lived in LA before so I probably don't appreciate enough of the references.


Lazy Muncie: An old friend who now lives in the midwest sent me a link to this midwest response to Lazy Sunday and Lazy Monday. He tells me that this one nails the midwest vibe pretty well. I really liked it. Particularly amusing was the cameo by Jim Davis of Garfield (with Garfield) fame. I had to pause the video while I laughed at that part.


There are other Lazy spoofs, but most are pretty lame.

Soundtrack: Yes (Fragile)

Geraldine's Race and Gender Comments

Was Geraldine Ferraro being honest, stupid, racist, or some combination of these when she talked to the Daily Breeze?

If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position," she continued. "And if he was a woman (of any color) he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is. And the country is caught up in the concept.

Slate has a commentary by Mickey Kaus that defends Ferraro and Huffington Post has a commentary by Eric Deggans that is critical of her.

Hillary is both helped and hurt by being a woman just as Barrack is both helped and hurt by being black. At some point in his life, Obama was probably helped by the color of his skin, but he was probably hindered by it at least as often. Same goes for Clinton. She has benefited at times and been hurt at times by being a woman. That's just the way it is. Anyone who pretends to think that race and gender are not factors in this election is really not living in the real world. Anyone who thinks that either candidate is only being successful because of gender or race is insulting the candidates and the electorate.

I have heard this argument from a few women: our country is more sexist than it is racist. It's interesting to me that as their candidate is in a fight, they turn away from the candidates' messages and positions and straight to prejudice. It seems the ultimate denial and arrogance to say that if you disagree with me, you must be prejudiced. I don't assume that anyone who dislikes me only hates me because I'm black, but some of Clinton's supporters seem to be following that sort of logic.

From a more practical perspective, Ferraro's comments were just plain stupid, but not because they are so contrary to the truth. Her comments were so stupid because they represent yet another example of the Democrats eating their own. They just don't know how to behave like a coherent political party. This sort of attitude had better evaporate from the Dems or they will grasp defeat from the jaws of victory. A good, spirited dialog is a great thing. Divisive, insensitive attacks will weaken the party. If things turn nasty, then some of those who supported the losing candidate could become disillusioned and could stay home in November.

Paying Respects

Here is a quick entry about my sister's funeral that was last Saturday.

The funeral was really moving. It was great seeing family and friends gathering to celebrate my sister's life. People came from far and wide to pay their respects on a rainy Saturday in Reston. My sister's friends from elementary school, college, grad school, business, and various neighborhoods were there as well as lots of family friends. Her friends are really a diverse and amazing bunch. They have been incredible through it all.

Some friends of mine including a few friends from work were able to make it. Their presence was really touching. These are people who have rarely if ever met the woman being celebrated, but their support for me was really great. One of these friends is Jewish, so his impressions of the Episcopalian service were pretty amusing. For instance, he liked "snack time" (communion) and thought the cannibalistic song was interesting. I don't recall what the hymn was, but it was certainly all about how eating Jesus' flesh and drinking his blood were good things.

She is now interred in a location that has a view of the football field on which she received her homecoming princess sash. I really like that from her grave there is a connection to her young, vibrant life.

Friends and coworkers are still offering condolences for the loss of my sister. The down side is that the pain doesn't really get far away. The up sides are that I get to hear other people's tales of perseverance and I get an excuse to talk about my sister.