Physical Fitness + Nature Time = Smart & Steady

I'll bet this also applies to middle-age adults and senior citizens:

Last month, Harvard researchers reported in The Journal of School Health that the more physical fitness tests children passed, the better they did on academic tests. The study, of 1,800 middle school students, suggests that children can benefit academically from physical activity during gym class and recess.

A small study of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder last year found that walks outdoors appeared to improve scores on tests of attention and concentration. Notably, children who took walks in natural settings did better than those who walked in urban areas, according to the report, published online in August in The Journal of Attention Disorders. The researchers found that a dose of nature worked as well as a dose of medication to improve concentration, or even better.

20,000 miles! Woo-hoo!

That's like running to the moon and back 0.04 times!

(see my running stats in the right hand column).

A Touchy-Feely Running Story

So, Saturday morning Ted, Steve, Mark and I took off for a little 23 mile run (that was my sales pitch anyway). Steve said he could only go part way, claiming that he had a life or something. We ran over the river (on an ancient dilapidated footbridge) and through the woods, down to the Sundial Bridge (where Steve turned back), up to the Fisherman's trail by Keswick Dam and headed back home by (mostly) another way.

On the return to Sundial we left Mark where Steve had left us as Ted and I planned to run up the Water Tower Hill and Mark was, after 20 miles, pretty much out of gas. Mark believes that running should be painful and involve lots of suffering and that therefore, training is cheating. He just takes off on long runs and races with minimum preparation and somehow remains cheerful as he slows down more and more with each passing mile. By the time we left him he was in the gear that Ted accurately named, "Glacial".

No one has seen Mark since.

Ted stuck with me up the hill and up a few more hills until, at mile 23 (about 2 miles short of the finish) he dug way down deep and found... nothing. Bonk! I left him behind as well, ignoring the little naggy internal voice of conscience humming "He ain't heavy, he's your brother...", and pressed on.

As I past Mark's house, with Ted's car out front, I thought of good buddy Ted, crawling back on all fours through the mud and broken glass and I reached into my pockets to see if I had some memento I could leave on his car as a token of affection and penance. But alas, I had no Hallmark card, no money, no trinkets or fancy gifts in my pockets for Ted. But I took everything I found there, EVERYTHING I had, and I left it all for him, on his windshield. I held nothing back.

Isn't that the truth, Ted?

For all you moms!

Trillions of dollars!

The federal government is spending money so fast, trillions and trillions of new spending and bailouts, that a billion dollars is beginning to sound like pocket change. Granted, a dollar isn't a lot of money, but then a minute isn't a lot of time either... yet the New Testament is barely a billion minutes old.

In Me I Trust

God is opposed to the proud and gives grace to the humble. So it isn't surprising that the world's top expert on Top Experts says that the most trustworthy experts are the most humble. Hubris and arrogance goeth before the fall. Sometimes it takes awhile, but an inability to be self-critical is always a ticking time bomb. This interview is about financial experts, but applies to all of us:

How can we nonexperts test our own hunches?

Listen to yourself talk to yourself. If you're being swept away with enthusiasm for some particular course of action, take a deep breath and ask: Can I see anything wrong with this? And if you can't, start worrying; you are about to go over a cliff.

David After the Dentist

"Is this real life?"

Busted!

Why do men run ultras?

Two words: Childbirth Envy

Here's proof!

A Most Wonderful Rant

National Pastors Convention- 1

So far, so good. The first worship band, Ashton Hill, was OK, but seemed pretty generic to me. The current band, Sons of Korah (pic), have set the psalms to music and are absolutely phenomenal.



Highlights: This morning's message by Rob Bell on the need for pastors to forgive. To really, really forgive. If we want to survive. It was good to know that the various criticisms and such I get are pretty much par for the course; yeah, I partly deserve them but at least I'm not getting it any worse than anyone else. The downside is, that means it will never go away! And that's why practicing real forgiveness is so important. I'm pretty good at that, but I can slip into feeling sorry for myself or getting too down on myself. Thanks, Rob!

Yesterday's seminar by Larry Osborne on "Sticky Church" was about retaining the people you already have. Well, that was the topic, and it was about that, but mostly it was about strategic ministry through small groups and I got lots and lots of good insights and ideas.

I stopped at the Apple Store next door and it was the slowest I've ever seen it there. The Apple guy, when he found out I was a pastor, hung around and talked with me about faith and church for about 15 minutes.

Apple might be feeling the recession but, to my surprise, the Conference attendance is quite a bit up from last year's.

Competition is better than Monopoly

I'm heading to the National Pastors Convention (I won a free registration). Meanwhile, here's wisdom from Thomas Sowell:

Human beings are going to make mistakes, whether in the market or in the government. The difference is that survival in the market requires recognizing mistakes and changing course before you go bankrupt. But survival in politics requires denying mistakes and sticking with the policies you advocated, while blaming others for the bad results.

Rainbow Run

Today in San Diego County. More pics on my facebook page.

Today's Amazing Athlete

This one's a little different, but just as awesome: