empathy

During spring break the boys and I were invited to join a trip to the Albuquerque zoo. Friday afternoon we headed down to join the group. When we got there we discovered to my horror that everybody else in New Mexico had the same idea. After a mild panic attack(real men don't experience this) I made an executive decision and we bagged the zoo trip.
  The boys were disappointed so I decided to take them to lunch and a movie. We came back to Santa Fe and hit the Plaza Bakery by the new theatre on the west side. I ordered breakfast and the boys ordered chips. When the bacon and pancakes came Soren decided he wanted bacon and took all of mine. Ben was working on his chips and Guacamole, he looked up and said "Wow I love pancakes with syrup!" We all set to serious eating for 2-3 minutes. Soren (Who is 5) said "Hey Daddy you could give Ben some of your pancakes." I was surprised and felt a little embarrassed that a 5 year old would be paying more attention to subtleties than I. Needless to say when I asked Ben if he would indeed like pancakes right now the answer was affirmative.
 I handed over some pancake and we all happily had lunch and went to see The Lorax.

Iconclast?

I have a need to be different. To be accurate, I have a need for the illusion of being different. A subtle but important difference. The fact that there are 7 billion humans on planet Earth makes it highly unlikely that there is no one similar. Until the news came out the population was approaching 7 billion I was under the misapprehension that  there were already 8 billion. Anyway back to the subject matter of being unique, or how to maintain the illusion. The point being that I cannot realistically claim to have unique properties, but I can pretend the same
   I have always thought of myself as a runner. In grade school a matter of survival and in later school an identity an emotional life-preserver if you will(where does that phrase come from?). During the secondary years I held on to a semblance of sanity through being a vital part of the "Animal" relay on my high school track team. During basketball season(I did not participate because I could not organize rides home from practice. I would go out in empty land across from my home and run in the dark. Nobody but the coyotes and rabbits to keep me company.  Out of time more later

why 2

I never did figure out even why I run much less why others run although I have read that we have an epidemic of competitive running especially in the young in the USA. I will continue to look into it.
Right now I am headed out the door for another run

why

Why do we run? A simple question. except that it is not.
Humans run to catch food right? That is the theory and or story that I have always heard. Wolves and humans evolved to jog all day and thereby wear out catch and eat a most efficient source or energy. Other animals.
 there no longer seems to be a need for us to chase down horses Mammoths or Buffaloes. So many humans do not run.
Most people claim now to run for fun or fitness. For some reason I do not think that these are the primary reasons for our self imposed forced exercise. I Will pretend to some insight into why all those other poor ignorant souls actually run,but first i will to a feeble stab at self knowledge. Why do I run? I have been told that I will live longer. I sometimes actually feel good while running but it seems to me that mainly I run because it reminds me of the good part of using track and field as psychological survival during what some may call a difficult childhood. The years I spent competing in the horse world I thought I should be running but I never did. I could claim that it was an exhausting lifestyle, but I can also admit that I mat have a psychological need for "competition" I use quotes because I jog or run in the arroyos and on the trail and only compete against or run with the ghosts in my own past.  more later

peacemakers?

I have 3 dogs who are all friendly peaceful animals. Lately I have noticed a pattern> The oldest dog has become a little aggressive towards strange dogs. Today we were all out walking and the neighbors big dog and my dog were growling and circling each other. My young dog went and got between them much like much like a person trying to get two angry people to calm down. It worked. I am curious as to why he broke up the budding conflict and how his actions worked. It seems very similar to primate actions. Is he making peace so h wont have to fight? is he being altruistic? I look forward to seeing more such interactions

careers

Soren who is 5 years old often sings to himself and it sounds very good to me(although Tone deaf is an understatement)
This morning he is singing about Santa Claus. I ask him if he wants to be a singer when he grows up. He says no.
Well what do you want to do when you grow up.
   "Play"
"well singing is playing"
"Not that kind of singing. I am going to play with toys"

dementia?

So not only have I lost a molar(the dentist would not even let me bring it home for a funeral) I have been so bothered by sports talk radio that I sent them an e-mail questioning their integrity. Well I am hoping that it is the hydrocone that I am taking to deal with the pain from the dentist. Older persons may remember Laurence Olivier from Marathon Man treating Dustin Hoffman for memory loss. Certainly I cannot explain such an action as taking sports talk radio seriously otherwise. I do have to say though that in general sports talk seems smarter and more honest than political talk radio. Well I try to keep most of this commentary in the other blog.