Category: Philosophy

October 2, 2024 – Getting Rich By Acting Poor

October 2, 2024 /

Now that is sensational. I also am not claiming to be getting rich but I am using a technique that rich people use. That would be don’t spend excessively on things that don’t matter. Since getting rid of my Mustang four years ago now, my vehicles keep getting older with more and more miles.

We have kind of poked at replacing the Navigator but the price of newer to new cars has become astronomical. We were thinking something around the Explorer size but going from no car payment to $900/mo for six years seams untenable. So we keep kicking the can knowing that the day will come that we need to bite the bullet and replace at least one vehicle.

Having been an owner of cheap cars, I have developed a philosophy that cheap cars are a good thing. Let’s think about it for a minute. If I paid $1000 for a car and it lasted two months, that would be $500/mo or half of what I would pay for an Explorer. This is not paying for things that do not matter. I am paying for transportation, not style points and that is half the cost of something new.

Of course, at some point having to replace a car every couple of months can be a hassle. That being said, at this price point you can afford to be choosy. So, maybe a $2500 car that lasts a year is really $200/mo. This is a far cry from new car prices. Think about it, all time beyond that is a bonus.

One thing my summer in Portland taught me is that a Navigator L (for long) in the city is a hassle. It is hard to find a parking spot and maneuver in tight spots. My tactic is try to get farther away from the door and hopefully find more open spots. Otherwise, it is multiple back-up, pull forward until I inch into a spot with traffic piling up behind me. But, going farther from the door is hard on the patient that can barely sit in the seat for the ride in the first place. However, you go with what you got.

Since I was under five during the last fuel crisis, the truth is I haven’t paid a whole lot of attention to operating costs. That being said, I won’t deny when you hit the cut-off limit of $125 for fuel it stings a little bit. With only me driving, I typically only had to refuel every two weeks so it was bearable. But, I could do a lot better than 12MPG as well.

About six months ago, my dad called me and said that he was thinking of buying a new car. His reasoning was that he wanted to make sure that he wasn’t stuck with only EV’s as options. He is also 78 so it probably will be his last car. But he asked me if I would be interested in buying his old car. I said sure.

My youngest son is a driver now and so he has taken over my pickup which has been my primary vehicle since I sold the Mustang. My wife just started driving again after stopping at the end of last year. That left us coordinating schedules much more tightly than we have ever done as a couple because we have always had a vehicle per driver. Adding another inexpensive vehicle seems like the right ticket.

It’s not all sunshine and roses because everything has a cost. Just possessing the car has registration, insurance and maintenance costs. So, truly acting poor would be to make due with what we have. I mention this because it should be considered when making this decision. I am still paying something for the privilege of convenience. My hope is that lower operating costs will offset the additional cost of ownership somewhat.

I wont drag out the negotiations and all of that. But, I ended up taking the possession of the vehicle a little over a week ago. I was telling him about my philosophy of cheap cars and he said ‘You agree with Warren Buffet then’. I didn’t know that, but I guess that I do.

End Your Programming Routine: I cant help but throw my opinion in. I think a lot of people are car poor because their image is more important than their budget. I come to this conclusion because I know what cars cost and I also know that our household income is pretty high. I also know that my newest car is 14 years old and has 240,000 miles. Adding an inexpensive car offers more flexibility and will extend the longevity of what we have and no car payment. Me and Warren Buffet agree.

August 7, 2024 – I Am Being Censored

August 7, 2024 /

I didn’t make this very clear in my podcast. I after I mentioned that I was going to talk about censorship, I meant to follow up later and say that I was going to write about it later in the week. This is what you get when I don’t finish my notes is that I don’t get things wrapped up real neatly. We are here now.

I have been waiting for this moment. I have known for months now, going all the way back to December when I was trying to work while waiting for some sort of diagnosis about my wife’s fatigue that I was on the black list. My work has me working for a tobacco company and the doctor’s office blocked my computer from accessing the wi-if.

I combat that by carrying my own hotspot. As long as I can get cell service it works pretty well. Unfortunately, as the local hospital cell service is a black hole so with Wi-Fi blocked and no cell service, it is impossible for me to work at the doctors or the hospital.

When we came up to Portland, I thought I would try it. I had Wi-Fi access for several days on my work computer. But, then I got to a point where my work computer seemed to connect to the Wi-Fi but not work. Back to the hotspot. Fortunately, the cell phone service is good, even in the depths of the hospital.

What I didn’t expect is that they blocked access to some of the blogs I check on a daily basis. nearly everyday I check ammoland and the outdoor wire. It is part industry news and part politics and opinion. I tried to check several times and several days always with the same result. Finally, I tried my phone off of Wi-Fi and it worked. So, I know that they are blocking websites.

I don’t know what comparable left wing websites are out there. My personal opinion is a lot of most major news outlets are propaganda for the left. As a result, I pretty much find anti god and anti constitutional ideals as offensive. I am not quite sure why they censor legal and right leaning sites while allowing others to proliferate.

I can understand to a point why my work laptop is banned. I work for a sworn enemy of the medical establishment. I just can’t get over the hypocrisy of my drug company over the hidden evils of their drug companies. It is all about what propaganda channel you swallow. And while the prescriptions are not in my name, I am looking at some of the most addictive drugs known to man right in front of me.

End Your Programming Routine: I figured that this was a question of when not if. I can even understand the reason why they think it is necessary to ban firearms on the premises. But, to ban what I am reading goes a step too far for me. This is a government institution, not a private entity. To be clear, they are violating my first and second amendment rights. Welcome to your future.

July 24, 2024 – At Least There is A View

July 24, 2024 /

I am going to make a commitment. Unless something goes drastically askew, this will be the last time I write about my current woes. It is not about pity but about my current situation. Since it is first and foremost in my life, it is going to take a dominant position on what I am doing.

Back for my second stint in the hospital, I told my wife that this must be what prison feels like. I don’t mean to say that this is actually like prison because it is not. Each time I leave the floor, I need to have permission to return. I hate begging to be let in so I try to leave as little as possible. That is the part that is like prison, confined to a room.

You may have seen the stories about an uptick in Covid. As luck would have it, there is also an uptick in influenza. Five patients in this ward have contracted it recently. For that reason, they are restricting visitors and procedures even more. Now, I have to put on a disposable gown each time I enter the room. I also have to wear a face mask at all times which includes sleeping.

Have you seen those prison beds? A mat on a bench. That completely describes my situation. To be honest, it isn’t all that uncomfortable and I have had some nights of extended sleep. I probably get more here than I get at home just because there is less to do here. There is the factor of multiple interruptions for blood draws and vital checks. Some nights are far from restful.

My wife has been working on a debt consolidation strategy since before she stopped working in March. As luck would have it, it finally came through. So what would you know, the notary had to come to the hospital (and go through all the sanitation procedures). You always want to put on a good face with these things but it is pretty hard when you are signing papers next to a commode.

Last week when I was here, I was able to keep my mask off. I also used snacks to supplement meals to try and keep the costs down. With the new mask policies, there is no eating allowed in the rooms. This forces me to leave the secured perimeter to eat. This hospital is isolated. Yes, there are about five or six places to get food and at least one that is open 24hours.

I feel bad. I want to like it but the food is just not good. There is that institutional frugality combined with government subsidy factor. All the sausage is chicken. The hotdogs are chicken. The vegetables are over boiled or steamed. For some reason, half the dishes are Indian. I love Indian food and I am sure I could eat it day after day but not on the potato wedges. I paid $8 for a terrible, unseasoned burrito with chicken sausage and potato wedges in it.

Enough about food, at this point it is a means to an end. My shift is Wednesday night to mid Sunday. Consequently, I am working at least two days. I have struggled to keep my computers connected to the Wi-Fi. As a result, I have taken to using my hotspot. It is why we have it in the first place. I am constantly plugging in and wrapping up cords to keep those devices charge. I really appreciate my office at this point especially because I have to work out of two computers daily.

A programmer needs two screens and hospitals are not setup to have someone work like I do. I even had to take a 2 1/2hr sales pitch meeting, talk about a near disaster. Fortunately, I didn’t have to speak or be on camera. It has been really tough to keep up with things and it seem like I am always working to make up for gaps and missed time.

End Your Programming Routine: At the time of my writing, we are solidly in the second week here. With much luck we may get to transition back to family housing some time on my next trip back. I definitely couldn’t look forward to something more. It takes a toll on you physically and mentally. I have said my peace, I am thankful for the opportunity at healing but ready to go.

June 19, 2024 – I Am Doing This (I Guess)

June 19, 2024 /

I have gotten some books and maps and started reading them. I have purchased some of my desired equipment upgrades. I have started training by walking the dog a couple of miles nightly (baby steps for me and her). I have even taken an inaugural day hike. Most poignant of all, my wife is telling all these people and inviting them to come along. So I feel kind of committed at this point.

I figure my greatest risk is actually my physical ability. Unfortunately, I have enjoyed too much sedentary life of excess over the last couple of years and the clock is ticking. My tentative plan is to cover somewhere between 10-20 miles per day with a pack that is loaded for a week’s worth of travel. That will likely be 40-60 pounds.

The one thing that I remember vividly from doing this as a youth was how my shoulders ached from the weight of my pack. I remember the salesman saying that the hip belt was going to significantly reduce pack fatigue to almost nothing as long as everything was adjusted properly. While in theory I think that could be true, it sure wasn’t for me. I would like to be to the point that I have prepared adequately and be able to enjoy my trip while I am doing it, not just the edited memories afterward. I do plan to add a pack with weight to my training at some point. I am not just there yet.

As this is my dream, I feel the obligation to act as a leader. I am reading about the section of the PCT that I am considering doing and wondering to myself ‘Is this the best section to do if I am only going to do this once?’ or ‘If the recommended campsites can only hold one tent, then where can we stop?’ I feel some extra pressure that I really wasn’t anticipating when I came up with this idea.

My physical milestone at 40 was to run a half marathon. I never really thought that I would continue running after achieving the goal. Sure enough, I really didn’t. But, this hiking thing is something that I really would like to continue as long as possible. I have always been outdoors oriented and the practical physical fitness of packing transcends into hunting and preparedness as well.

I am no longer young and don’t have nearly as many competitive allusions of being ‘hardcore’. My fantasy as a young adult was to camp and fish all summer then hunt all fall. I let life get in the way and have really done very little of it over the years. Now I think it would be a-OK for me to just be able to do it, whatever it happens to be. I would like to ultimately be ‘hike ready’ in physical condition and with gear going forward.

I could definitely see performing many more hikes and certainly not running half marathons. But, that is putting the cart before the horse. Let’s get one big one in first and see how it goes for the rest of it. I have no formal training plan yet, but certainly there needs to be some gear checks as well as overnight practice. So that is to come.

End Your Programming Routine: On top of the challenges I already have, it is pretty likely that my wife’s treatment is going to interrupt my exuberance. I plan on writing about my progress as I go along so be forewarned. That being said, don’t be surprised if I get off to a slow start. Already June, July and most of August are penciled out to be primary care taker and cooped up in a small room not to be out of earshot of the patient.

June 6, 2024 – Coincidence, I Think So

June 6, 2024 /

If you must know, I am starting this post the Friday before Memorial weekend. I am done with work and hiding out in my office while my wife has a message appointment. This was as fast as I could get to this because it is difficult to move things around once I have committed to a schedule. I think the information is really timeless but the irony is timebound. Hence I wrote the previous sentences.

I have had on my watchlist on Pluto for several months some well known documentaries. Those would be “Supersize Me”, “Food Inc.” and “Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead”. Believe is or not, I sometimes get tired of having Podcasts run in the background as I work. Sometimes, I want to actually listen attentively and so I stop podcasts until I can dedicate time to pay attention.

Well, two days ago I turned on “Supersize Me” for the first time. I have been in tune with diet for many years. The main character’s name was Morgan Spurlock. He had a film where he only ate from McDonalds for thirty days straight. There were a couple easy rules, he could only Supersize the meal if they asked and he had to try everything on the menu at least once.

All the while, Spurlock was testing his metabolic panel as well as other exterior metrics like blood pressure and weight. There were very few surprises in the film but I would say one was that he gained 25 pounds in a month. I had no idea we could put on weight that fast. The other was increase in blood markers like triglycerides was scary fast. The third was that it took 14 months to lose most of the weight. Some of it never came off.

The irony was that I was checking a headline this afternoon and I saw another one that Morgan Spurlock died today at the age of 53. I had just gotten to know about him only to find out that he had terminal cancer. One has to wonder if some of his extreme behaviors like the “Supersize Me” movie sewed the seeds of disaster.

Way back in 2012 after my wife’s first cancer, I read the “Paleo Solution” by Robb Wolf. I have this theory that all of her illnesses are related to her auto-immune problems. I also belive that auto-immune problems are diet triggered. So, we did it. It was part of our kick-off to running a half marathon at the age of 40.

Her psoriasis disappeared for years. I lost twenty pounds in a month. I think that she lost a little less than that. There is something clearly related to intake and health. I hate to say that we have subsequently degraded from strict paleo to a much more normal diet. And viola, problems come back again.

If it were strictly up to me, I would get rid of all of the junk food in this house. My view is that it is a treat, not a pantry item and should be eaten in moderation. My observation is that junk food constantly is eaten first until there is nothing left but food that has to be cooked. This goes on the list to be restocked next month if we can make it that long.

I am not perfect, I like to drink the beer that I make. I eat what we eat in moderation. But even moderation is too much as well. I have packed on more weight that I would like since I started working again. I am really not going to give advice here other than do your own research. I believe that Paleo is proper and healthy and I know a lot of people have metabolic data to prove it.

Back in my early thirties, I found out that I had high triglycerides. At that time, I thought that I was doing OK other than gaining some weight. When I really looked at my diet it was sugary cereal in the morning, a soft drink at dinner among other habits like that. I thought that was moderation at the time. I have cut most of that out since the Paleo experiment. I really do not have time to properly discuss the science of all of this. Suffice to say that I am not in my early thirties anymore.

End Your Programming Routine: I have worked amongst the food industry for many years. I have seen with my own eyes what these documentaries talk about. If there is one thing more nefarious than the food industry, it is the pharmaceutical industry. It is time to seriously consider health. Thanks Morgan Spurlock for reminding me what absent minded eating will do.

April 30, 2024 – My Life As a Country Song

April 30, 2024 /

No, my wife didn’t run off and my dog didn’t die. But, last week was a different kind of tough. The week before, I was dealing with the side effects of chemo and being a full time caretaker. But, we were mostly at home and sheltering in place. Last week as there was more getting out and about, it seemed like everything was going wrong.

My wife likes to say that I am ‘a glass half empty’ person. I don’t really think so. I like to think of myself as analytical and balanced. I like to see the full spectrum both good and bad. I suppose that to people who don’t like to see both sides, that is construed as negative. I fail to see how always being positive even when the odds seem low is a better trait that viewing the whole picture optimistically.

I say that because I am not complaining. I am going to get to a point by the end today. I think helpful advice is that we cannot change or dwell in the facts. My wife has cancer and we are doing what we can to combat it. All the ‘why me?’ in the world isn’t going to change a thing. It does however make life much more complicated.

This process is moving at an extremely disjointed manner. One day chemo is scheduled every other Thursday, then it is every other Friday. Take this medication before chemo, no don’t take it at all. Come in for this reason, no see this specialist. They are still doing diagnostic testing for goodness sake to determine if they are proceeding in the correct direction. Every conversation is musical chairs in who is running this process and is this information actually correct. This is the background for what I am dealing with.

Then, my son calls and says ‘my car has a problem’. He is about 45 minutes away. So, I have to drop what I am doing to go get him at 10pm. Due to a large coolant leak, I decide the best coarse of action is to have it towed home rather than risk a warped cylinder head. Imagine that I am trying to get my wife ready for an all day procedure that she is extremely nervous about while dealing with the tow truck driver at the same time because the car is locked and twenty minutes from the hospital.

The next day, my SSL certificate updates for altf4.co. Every 60 days this happens. But, it also follows with calamity. It seems like every time I go in there the user interface changes and I struggle with this process. I have come to anticipate the suck, but it does make it frustrating. This time I could not get the DNS provider to recognize my security documents. I tried and tried until I finally broke down and reached out to support. The problem was technical, I am not sure that there was anything I could do.

I was trying to setup my walkie talkies so that I could give one to my wife and I could hold onto one. This would give me some freedom to be out and about the house but still be in communication. This was the whole reason why I went through the licensing requirements that I talked about last week. One of them I couldn’t get to work. I bought new battery packs, I swapped batteries, no go. Finally, I took it apart to find some of the internal components fried.

No problem, I will break out my second set. They are not doing any good squirreled away in my emergency box for years anyway. One battery was dying, so I ordered new battery packs. Low and behold, there are a lot of aftermarket batteries that are similar but not the same on Amazon (even with the same battery model number). So, now I have two new batteries that don’t charge in my radios since I already opened them and threw away the packaging.

Last week it felt like everything was an obstacle. Everything I did had unintended consequences and nothing worked as planned. But, I want to go back to the beginning here. First, I don’t know what God has planned. I also know that I am handed scenarios that I can handle and learn from. As I am writing, things are getting better. My website is running, the batteries are cleared up, the problem is diagnosed with my son’s car and I think we have all the testing done and the path is clear on chemo.

More so than that, when things are not working right we just have to compartmentalize and be objective. Most of these things were not life altering problems. Take the problems and triage, then prioritize the work to solutions. The list might get longer before it gets shorter but we have to focus on the important things first.

End Your Programming Routine: To be truthful, I wasn’t exactly happy while all of these things were going on at the same time. But, being able to step back, it wasn’t huge problems. I suppose it is fortunate that more bad things didn’t keep happening at the same time. Mostly, step back and analyze the problems to the best of your ability. I am no electronics expert but I can see and understand burnt capacitors, Time to cut your losses and move on.

March 21, 2024 – Don’t Know What You Got (Till It’s Gone)

March 21, 2024 /

I have been incredibly blessed in my life. But I don’t really appreciate it. I have had some perspective to be able to see the mirror but it is so hard to grasp it. For instance, I have never broken a bone. I have never been admitted to the emergency room, I don’t take any maintenance medicines and I don’t need glasses to see.

For some strange reason, I hear songs in my head. I was thinking about titling this something like ‘You cant lose what you never had’ and then this song came into my mind. I started listening and writing.

This started out as a story about my vision. I went to the eye doctor recently because my vision seems to be rapidly getting worse. Now, I go to the eye doctor a lot because both of my parents have glaucoma and I have been ‘glaucoma suspect’ for all of my life. In fact, I gave my son that gift as well.

It is not the effects of glaucoma that I am suffering, it is the effects of age. I am comfortable with the monitoring that is happening and all of my numbers are stable. I was buying spray paint in the fall and I was trying to read the label for the coverage area in a can. I could not read the text. I finally gave up and bought two cans.

The other night, my wife asked me to read the tag on a piece of clothing. I couldn’t make out the letters. It looked like a jumbled mass. My son said, “it’s upside down.” Well no wonder, but I didn’t recognize it.

My vision is generally good. I don’t really need glasses to see. They help a lot in low light and small text up close. I have had glasses for several years that I try to wear when I work. But, I have been very poor about doing it religiously. Last week, I noticed at the end of the day I was worn out, like I just wanted a nap. I thought it was just me sitting in front of the computer all day, but it turns out that when I didn’t have my glasses on I would end the day fatigued.

I am going to have a lot to say about this topic coming up in the near future, just not today. But, having been a spouse to person having life-threatening medical issues, it makes a person realize that we don’t appreciate health when we have it. I don’t carry my glasses to the store to read labels because I never needed to before. It was actually a shock that I couldn’t read the writing. I didn’t know what to do.

It is hard for me to write with this perspective, because I don’t really have it. But, lots of people have glasses. I feel like, if your vision has been bad for all of your life, you don’t give it a second thought that vision correction is necessary to function. When you have never needed it, it is kind of humbling to realize that you are at that point.

End Your Programming Routine: Health is one of those few areas that most of us have a similar journey. Unless you are taken out in an accident or something pre-maturely, we are all going to have issues that we have never had before. I would like to find a way to appreciate those things without having to lose them. I just don’t know if it is in our nature. Maybe the way we appreciate it is that we don’t have to worry about it?

March 13, 2024 – Believe It Or Not, Spring Is Coming

March 13, 2024 /

Have you ever been to Yellowstone and seen Old Faithful? Do you know how this process works? As soon as the geyser blows, it starts to fill up again. Then the water starts to heat up again until about 90 minutes later there is too much pressure and it blows. It is not totally predictable, but it happens about the same time, every time. But for over an hour, it seems like nothing is happening, meanwhile everything is getting ready for the main event.

When your whole life revolves around gardening or the seasons then this is probably second nature. We have already made the shift to daylight savings time again. The photo below was taken around the first of March following the previous weekend that was in the 60s and sunny all week. Many trees and bushes are starting their bud around here yet I wont argue that March has been more like winter than February was.

My point is, spring is coming, I just can’t see it yet. Even more important than that, we can’t get complacent that just because we can’t see it doesn’t mean it is not around the corner. There is a very short window between too early and too late and it is this time that is critical for being prepared for that window.

I get trapped in this loop of I have to be done by six or eight weeks before last frost date. For me, that is late April. But, I also want to wrap up the winter work before that time. On years where I have really focused on the garden, most things ceased at that point. This was to the point that projects that only had a couple of hours left languished until the fall. Other years I did not finish my winter projects by June.

The trick is knowing when exactly to transition. But what is worse is convincing yourself that there is plenty of time (in either direction). We all have priorities and decisions to make. And so, I am not second guessing my choices but simply bringing awareness to myself and others that letting off the gas now is too early.

I love the quote by Earnest Hemmingway about bankruptcy, “Slowly than rapidly”. Children are born then they graduate. I graduate from school and now I am middle age. We have freedom until we don’t. It is all the things we do in the slow time that makes a difference.

When I watch This Old House, I have come to understand that footings need to be over four feet deep in the building as best practice in New England. This is the because the ground in that area can freeze down to four feet and as the ground freezes and thaws, that ground moves. That movement is described as heave. Heave moves the building up and down as well as breaks concrete foundations and slabs. We don’t build to that degree of detail here, that is a whole different story. My point is spending time on the details that aren’t seen are critical for the parts that are seen.

End Your Programming Routine: Just like Hemmingway said, spring is coming slowly than rapidly. And just like Old Faithful, it is going to explode in roughly 90 minutes. So those freak winter breaks of nice weather lull us into the pseudo belief that spring is here followed by a just as long winter reminder convincing us it will never come. Just keep going with your pace and trust that it will happen.

March 7, 2024 – Say It To Make It Happen

March 7, 2024 /

I started off the week talking about how little I feel like I have accomplished this winter. The truth is, at that point I had a lot of irons in the fire and for quite some time. I didn’t have dedicated time scheduled to do any of the work and it seemed like each project was dragging on.

Wouldn’t you know that the log jam has broken. I finished my third duct. I have one more to go and it is a partial installation. It is still not done-done but the momentum is there as well as the desire. I was dreading the rewiring and the unknown. I also knew that once I started, I was committed and there were also limited stopping points. In addition to that, I brewed my next batch of beer. I went to the range for the first time in months. I did it all while weaving all my other obligations in at the same time.

I didn’t say those things to get me motivated. But, somehow by putting them front of mind, I found a way to push to the end. This is a technique that is very helpful when you want to get stuff done. It is one of the values of using a list. This puts tasks front and center of what needs to get done.

There is a psychological satisfaction of crossing things off the list for sure. But, the real value of the list comes down to the ability to triage and prioritize. Priority comes down the the time and resources we have, external deadlines and the desire to do it. The last one is subjective and can have a strong influence for me. My desire to do something my not outweigh the consequences of penalties on external deadlines.

That is all good and well but really I am talking about the power of committing to doing something. It is what makes ultra-marathoners complete the race, the person getting out of debt or the someone learn a new language. They put the goal first of mind and then develop habits around it.

If I were to say, ‘I’m going to get in shape’. Then I am going to evaluate my diet and my physical exertion. I am not going to get in shape if I do not make changes to support at least one of those two parameters. Each one of those things will have sub-steps and challenges unto their own.

Even if I change diet and add exercise, I still may not get into shape. I will be in a better position for sure, but to be in shape I need to do those steps with intent. Maybe to you in-shape means to finish a 5K or maybe it means finishing a 5K under 15 minutes. You need explicit benchmark goals to correctly evaluate whether you are on the right path.

Putting the goal of getting in shape front of mind means that I will have to research recipes or purchase food that in not described as cheese puffs. I means that I will have to dedicate some time a day or week to exercise. That has to become part of my calendar or schedule when planning other things. Or said another way, it has to become front of mind.

End Your Programming Routine: Mastering this is not easy. I haven’t done so. I also find that the older I get the more susceptible I am to desire. I desire not to do that so I pay someone to mow the grass. We all have these conflicts. The real secret is harnessing the time and resources we do have on the things that are important for us to do. Those are the things that we need to keep front of mind.

February 22, 2024 – Good Luck Buddy

February 22, 2024 /

We are at the culmination of high school wrestling season. Today starts the state tournament for those good enough to make it. I have been away from wrestling for a long time. The last time I dipped my toe in it was youth mat club when I accompanied my son for a season. It became pretty clear that this wasn’t going to be his sport and so I drifted away.

My brother and I were into it in high school. He has remained active, in fact he is a head coach at a local high school. My nephew and my son are three weeks apart. He started school a year later than my son so that makes him a junior this year. But, he stayed in youth wrestling and is now reaping the rewards of that. A third district title and a 34-4 record looking to make a mark in the state tournament.

There are very few sports where getting started early pays as many dividends as wrestling. Most of the state champions that I have followed have been devoted youth club participants all the way through their career. Wrestling involves strength, quickness, stamina and technique. Show me someone that has continuous participation and you won’t find them out of shape.

When I was a wrestler, I started out late. I actually did it because I heard that it was hard, physically. I was a sophomore in high school and started in the 165lb weight class. I remember the day that I decided, I was wearing a ‘professional couch potato’ t-shirt. I wrestled on the Freshman team and didn’t win a match, not even close. In fact, I got pinned in about 20 seconds in my first match.

I wasn’t discouraged. I was doing this for me but to see how much I could push myself. I don’t remember how I did when I was Junior, I think that I was pretty bad that year as well. But I decided that I was going to push myself my senior year. Instead of just wrestling, I ran cross country in the fall. I went from one of the slowest running wrestlers to one of the fastest.

I was in shape wrestling between the 142 and 136 weight classes comfortably, I developed a never quit attitude. I still couldn’t beat the kids that had five years of experience over me. I was physically tougher but less skilled. And despite all of my efforts my senior year, I didn’t wrestle a single varsity match. I don’t consider that a failure, I simply ran out of time.

I pestered my brother for the wrestling schedule at Christmas time. He finally sent me the schedule with one dual left to go, so I went to support my nephew. My nephew won his match by pin, one two team wins in a 69-9 blowout. My wife really wanted to go to districts so we made the day of it and watched my nephew win his weight class in districts, now it is on to state.

In today’s world, I think too much emphasis is placed on putting kids in club sports. Travelling basketball, volleyball, baseball cost thousands of dollars and precious time on kids that likely have no future beyond high school. In fact, there were a few years I was questioning who wanted to wrestle more, my nephew or his parents. They claimed that it was his decision, they were just making him finish his commitment.

Some are going to go on. My nephew claims he wants to wrestle in college and winning a state title as a junior would help a lot. As long as the kid is happy and everybody loves it, I am fine with that. It has been a huge commitment in their lives.

End Your Programming Routine: We all do for our kids what we hope is the best path. I have zero interest in participating in Chess in the Park but there is no denying that it requires my enablement to fully make it happen. Wrestling was really important in my life not for what I did but for what it did for me. My mindset moved from that is too hard to try to I can do anything I set my mind to. That was invaluable to me.