Day Two – Metamorphosis

02/02/12 Day Two

Breakfast and dinner the same:  three eggs fried over-medium in butter, packet of instant grits microwaved in milk (again, I think it’s creamier than using water), two teaspoons of apricot jam, pepper, another pat of butter on top, and coffee with a bit of milk, sweetened with stevia. No bread, toasted or otherwise.

Breakfast was around 7AM and dinner at about 6PM.

Nine minutes of 30:30 Burst Training:  30 seconds of exercise, 30 seconds of rest using the following exercises:  push-ups, body rows, squats… three minutes per cycle, three cycles.  This allowed me to focus on the time under tension and not worry about counting reps. (Qualifier:  push-ups were at a 45-degree or so angle against the kitchen sink counter, some of the body row active time was simply trying to hang onto the bar for the full 30 seconds when I couldn’t “pull” anymore, and the squats were full, deep freehand movements)

That’s a wrap for today and now it’s time to get ready for work.

I’ll be thinking of that ‘hunger’ issue I discussed yesterday as I go through the night; real, perceived, what do I do about it?  How do I handle it as the body adjusts to it?  Well, we’ll see.

How Day One Passed

02/01/12 – end of day.  This will be a short post.

Day One – pretty uneventful.  I got off work at 5:00AM and opted to skip breakfast (or Meal One) this morning.  Not feeling any hunger, so I stretched the time to an IF day:  previous meal was Tuesday @ 7:ooPM and I slept most of the day away until around 5:ooPM, eating dinner at about 6:30PM when Bonnie (my wife) fixed me two large spicy turkey burger patties ala a Rachael Ray recipe; no buns, but a slice of cheese on one of the burger patties.  A small salad with blue cheese dressing and 2 large glasses of iced tea completed the meal.  IF (Intermittent Fasting) period – about 21 hours.

Failed to get a kettlebell swing workout in – (insert curse word here).  I know the diet is the greater concern and force here, but a regular exercise program is necessary to reshape the body so the fat-loss doesn’t leave a bunch of loose, ugly skin hanging off the frame.   Focus.

Hunger.  Real or perceived, hunger will be a psychological as well as a physical factor to be dealt with.  I’ll chronicle both as this month progresses.  I know going into this experiment of one that I will be dealing with withdrawal during the first week to ten days from the grains (breads, rice cakes, chips, etc.) and sugars (real and artificial, sodas, that sort of thing).  Working through it is going to be like drug or alcohol  rehab - “Hi, my name is Chuck and I’m a carboholic.”

Substituting Stevia for the sugar in my coffee and tea will be a major plus at this time as drinking either plain is just not palpable (that means it doesn’t taste good to me for those of you in Azusa).  But even then, I’ll be working to cut back on the amount of Stevia used until my taste buds adjust and accept the plain versions – or maybe I’ll simply keep using the Stevia.  Time will tell.

Well, I am writing this post at nearly 6:00AM on Thursday morning, 02/02/12.  I have three eggs on the counter waiting to be put in the frying pan and the coffee is made and the instant grits are soaking in some milk (prefer it in milk as opposed to water – creamier to me that way).  Cooking the eggs over-medium in butter, ‘nuking’ the grits in the microwave for 1-1/2 minutes and then pouring them over the eggs and adding another tab of butter and some ground black pepper plus a teaspoon or two of apricot jam – that’s Meal One for today.

After that, it’s clean up the kitchen, brush my teeth, do a qiuck scan through emails and Facebook, and go to bed.  Planning for 8-9 hours sleep today and when I get up, it’s the Thursday workout (body weight exercises:  push-ups, squats, Aussie pull-ups (aka: body rows or reverse pull-ups), and 20-30 second plank holds – again, basic and simple in the beginning here.

Well, that’s how Day One went and the plan for Day Two.  I’ll post it either tonight or in the morning.  I think my preference is going to be to try and post at the end of the day before I go to work, but we’ll see how that works out.

PS:  God bless my wife Bonnie for putting up with me this month; she really is a saint to understand and support what I’m trying to accomplish.

February Fitness – Put Up or Shut Up

02/01/12 – 12:01AM

Commitment.  Dedication.  Follow through.

I’m writing this post at work over my ‘break’ periods (when I get home @ 5:20AM, I’ll put it on the computer and post to the web).  It’s time to put up or shut up.  Either I follow through on my promise to myself to improve my physical well-being and fitness or I admit it’s only wishful thinking and stop pretending I’m ever going to “get back in shape.”

So, today, I make the commitment to myself to dedicate the month of February 2012 as a new beginning.  For the next four-plus weeks, I will lay the foundation for the rest of the year… for the rest of my life.

Diet will be primarily a combination of ‘primal eating’ (eggs, meat, fish and some fowl along with mostly non-starchy vegetables) and a modified version of Tim Ferriss’ Slow-Carb protocol.  As for eating frequency, I am adopting Mike O’Donnell’s two meals a day and the IF guidelines (IF = Intermittent Fasting).

Exercise will be very simple.  A few basic body weight movements (push-ups, squats, body rows…), a few basic yoga moves from the Sun Salutations and the Five Tibetans (thank you, Steve Barnes), and some kettlebell swings and ab wheel roll-outs.  Nothing overly complicated to start… again, using the four weeks of February to lay a foundation of physical improvement.

The weekly schedule will break down as follows (subject to change as necessary):

Monday/Thursday:  basic body weight exercises (high reps, multiple sets as required to achieve my goals);

Tuesday/Friday:  yoga movements and the 5 Tibetans (I know it’s recommended the 5T’s be done daily, but, hey, this is my program);

Wednesday/Saturday:  kettlebell swings (hi-rep, increasing as possible each week) and ab wheel roll-outs; and

Sundays:  a day of relaxed, non-specific activity, such as bowling, or going for an easy bicycle ride.

While exercise helps in shedding the fat and reshaping the physique, the real work is done in the kitchen – it’s permanent lifestyle changes to the way I eat (hate that word ‘diet’) that will have the greatest impact in supporting the changes in my body.

First is the elimination of sugar in any form:  table sugar, corn syrup, HFCS, and any other kind of sugar, and artificial sweeteners (bye-bye, Splenda – hello, Stevia).

Next will be most grains; no more bread (sliced, rolls, white, whole-wheat, sprouted – whatever), and therefor no more sandwiches or burgers, etc. (goodbye Carl’s, goodbye Tommy’s).  Also, no more cereals, pasta (wasn’t really a big fan anyway), no cakes or any other foods made from flour or flour products, no corn or corn products (this includes chips, crackers, rice cakes), and while some people recommend or allow for a few exceptions, my personality would continue to try to expand them and find excuses to allow “just this one time”.  So my own boundary will have to be no exceptions.

The elimination or drastic reduction of any ‘starchy’ vegetables – think rice and potatoes – will be an on-going development.  I will occasionally have instant grits with my eggs at breakfast and I will also have small amounts of Smuckers’ apricot jam with that breakfast.  I’m  going to go radical, but not crazy, in my permanent changes to my eating lifestyle.  And that is what this is – a permanent change – not a temporary diet.

Rarely will I eat fruit for the next few months; once in a while, an apple, a banana, a handful of seedless grapes, an orange, or even a slice or two of watermelon in season.  But for the most part, especially this month of February, it’s going to be eggs, meats and non-starchy vegetables.

It will also be important to record and track both my diet, my exercise routine, and my over-all progress – both physically and mentally.

The primary tools for this will be this blog (www.chuckpruitt.wordpress.com) and supportive sites for tracking this kind of data such as Fitacracy.com and Fitday.com.

Starting stats to track:

height:  5’7″     weight:  173 lbs.     waistline at navel:  39″     pictures (front and side views, shorts only)

Most changes and improvements will flow from this beginning.

Motivators / mentors (after myself):

Scott Sonnon;  Tim Ferriss;  Craig Ballantyne;  Mike O’Donnell;  Mark Sisson:  Johnny Grube;  and John E. Peterson.

Yeah, it’s a brand new month and a whole lifetime to go.

I don’t know about you, but like most people, I’m not where I want to be in my body.  It turned 59 years old on me early this month and while most people I meet, even among my friends who don’t recall how old I am, say I look much younger (how much younger they don’t specify).

To tell you the truth, it got sort of FAT on me; I know I probably helped to contribute to this sorry state (it’s true, you really can’t out-train a bad diet), and Lord knows I’m not getting a great deal of exercise (unless you call leaping to conclusions before I have all the facts, or reaching for some kind of understanding without a foundation of knowledge, or jumping on someone else’s conversation and trying to direct the flow towards ideas I favor, or think that sitting at the keyboard and banging on the keys with my ultra-fast two-finger hunt-n-peck typing method constitutes ‘exercise’).

So Craig Ballantyne, of Turbulence Training, has begun his 13th TT Transformation Contest, with a first prize of $1,000 and a three-month premium online membership.  Only stipulation is you MUST use the TT training routines.  (I will be taking advantage of the bodyweight system, with a few light-weight dumbbells and kettlebells as additional training tools.

I’m in.  I registered on-line for the contest (this one runs from December 26th, 2011 through april 7th, 2012 – 12 weeks) and this morning had my wife take two front profile and two side profile pictures with me holding a newspaper to show today’s date (entry requirement for ‘before’ and ‘after’ photos).  WOW!  It’s amazing how different I look when I see the pictures compared to just gazing at myself in the mirror.  (can you say self-delusion?)

Okay… entered contest on-line, had “before” pictures taken, and took some baseline measurements for the record – neck: 17″; chest: 42″; waist 40″; and weight on my digital scale: 175.0 pounds.

Next step is to begin a daily journal to record my efforts in this contest.  (In addition, I’ll be posting on-line to this web-log occasionally to update my progress.)  Got my starting stats, pictures, and registration done, so now it’s a matter of “just doing it!”

I’ll be keeping a record of the food I eat, when I eat, what and why I’m making certain food choices, and the results I’m feeling as I progress.  The focus will be on ‘primal’ foods, lean proteins, non-starchy vegetables, some fruits, and avoiding most sugars, starches and breads and other grain foods.  Also, I’ll list the exercises I’m doing (body-weight movements, some basic yoga moves for stretching/relaxing,  some dumbbell and kettlebell movements, and some high-rep body-weight exercises for cardio), including which movements, when I do them, how many reps, and how I feel afterwards.

Do I expect to win the $1,000 dollars?  Not really.  But what I do expect is to make the effort, and in the end, improve my health, fitness level, and reshape my physique to a leaner, more athletic build.  And in the end, that will make me a winner.

I Stole This Idea – The Next Best Step

I subscribe to a weblog called the IF Life.  IF stands for “Intermittent Fasting.”  A cool concept, but not the focus of this post.  I am also into two other ideas of his, Two Meals a Day and BodyBurst Training.  But again, not the focus of this post.

The author, Mike O’Donnell, has an article he wrote and sent in his e-mail newsletter and also put on Facebook this morning.  I read through it rather quickly, as I often do, and then had a “WOW” moment; and went back to re-read it slowly and let the material sink in to my conscious.

I’ve nicknamed the idea “TYNBS” which stands for “Take Your Next Best Step.”  This is the main point of Mike’s simple motto; when you’ve done something that screws up your plans (in health, fitness, diet, training, or even your job, relationships or your lifestyle – don’t sit and whine about it.  Don’t be consumed with guilt.  Don’t even worry about it (okay, take three minutes to worry, then put it in your ‘worry box’ and forget about it).

Decide to TYNBS – Take Your Next Best Step.  As Mike explains, “It doesn’t really matter how you got there, only what you are going to do next.”  His point is this:  Okay, now what?  What are you going to do today?  What is the next best step for you to take now?  Don’t tell me that after Christmas (I really dislike calling this time of year the holidays) you plan to start a new exercise program.  I do not want to hear about the great diet you’re going to be engaged in as a new year’s resolution.  I want you (and especially me) to tell me what you’re going to do now – what’s your “Next Best Step?”

You know I recently posted an article following a small weight gain that I was going to “Quit Bread.”  I know I’m not perfect and may (probably will) slip up and fool myself into thinking, “well, it’s just this one time… I’m having a burger with some friends and I’ll get back on the wagon tomorrow.”  The goal now is to recognize the event if and when it happens and to not beat myself up over it.  I need to Take My Next Best Step.

This simple motto from Mike becomes a mantra.  Didn’t make the time to get the kettlebell swings in – take the next best step.  Disappointed my wife when I forgot to do something she had asked – take the next best step.  Let a day slide without studying my future means of self-employment as a freelance copywriter – take the next best step.  As with any of the areas discussed, including health, fitness, diet, finances, relationships, job or lifestyle, accept the mistake, quickly evaluate the situation, re-focus and determine what it is and “Take Your Next Best Step.”

This is what I’m going to do.  Mike tells us to “reflect and focus on what you want to do in life.  It won’t happen by chance.”  And like he suggests in his post, repeat this process … hourly … daily …monthly … for a lifetime.

You can, and I recommend you do, read his article here.  Then apply the motto to your own life.

~ Chuck

The Bionic Energizer Bunny Woman

The “Bionic Energizer Bunny” Woman

What else would you call someone who tirelessly works to help others – family, friends, and sometimes complete strangers?  Someone who’s home is always ‘show-ready’ and comfortably lived-in?  Who never seems to slow down – even after two complete knee replacements (one about six years ago and one seven weeks ago), major repair surgery for a torn rotor cuff injury that same year, and other surgeries and medical procedures for various personal and health problems over her lifetime?

This lady has been a widow for a bit over two years but has put her memories in a treasured mental love box (63 years married to the same wonderful man) and continues to live and enjoy life.

It has been said of her that “she has never met a stranger – just people she hasn’t gotten to know yet”.  If you meet her for the first time, within minutes, she’ll engage you in conversation and know more about you in ten minutes than you’ve shared with your best friend in ten years (okay, but it’s only a slight exaggeration).  She simply has a knack for making you feel comfortable and at home, and that she genuinely is interested in YOU – and she is!

Friends and strangers alike are often amazed, at nearly 84 years old, how she keeps going, and going, and – got the picture?  The ‘Energizer Bunny’ come to life in a senior lady that does not know the meaning of the words stop, can’t or rest.  Her philosophy seems to be she’ll rest when she’s dead and you can try, but you won’t stop her – and she really does not know the meaning of ‘can’t’ – her attitude is maybe not now, but eventually.

If she likes you (and there is an extremely small list of those she doesn’t), there is nothing she won’t try to do for you.  Need a few bucks?  Done.  Need a meal; or two?  Done.  Need a place to stay for a night, a few days, a week?  She’ll put you up and feed you, give you your own clean towels, bar of soap and a new toothbrush.  She is true Southern Hospitality come to life.  A truer friend one could not ask for.

Gracious, caring, loving, street-smart and savvy; you might take advantage of her once – but she’ll forgive you and just put you on her watch list (burn me once, shame on you; burn me twice, shame on me).

She has always kept a clean home (not just house, a home), so much so that you can eat off the proverbial floor and not have to worry about dirt or germs.  A wife to her husband that others envied, mother to two boys (okay, men now – one is 59 and one is 56 – but they’ll always be her boys), grandmother to four (three boys and one girl), step-grandma to two more girls, and great-grandmother to one (so far).

While her formal education officially ended with high school (although in her time, a H.S. education was equal to a 2-year liberal arts education today), she has continue to be involved in training her mind and personality.  She reads, not just skims, two newspapers a day (minus the sports section – except when her boys were playing sports and sometimes were mentioned), watches the news, had conversations with her husband about events around the world (usually professing to not care about the rest of the country or world – but then try to hide a tear at the plight of the poor, the disadvantaged, and generally unfortunate ones, both here in the U.S. and around the planet).

She can be opinionated about what she feels and believes, but is always willing to have an honest discussion and to be open to the ideas of others.

One of the things that changed for her has been her unwillingness to just accept things that should or could have been done better – or right.  In her younger days, she would never complain in a restaurant if her order was wrong – over-cooked steak, limp salad greens, whatever – she’d simply eat it and then tell her husband that she didn’t think they’d be coming back to that place again.

Now, having ‘earned the privilege in her old age’ as she tells it, she will send an order back, change an order completely, insist on having it her way (no matter how many times we tell her she’s not at Burger King - old advertising slogan), and kid with both server, the cook, and always over-tip (she once worked as a waitress and has great sympathy for the breed).

In spite of the artificial knee joints (now she has to show two photos to the airport screeners when the metal detectors go off), repaired shoulder, and other medical procedures, in spite of advancing years, and especially in the face of those who keep telling her she can’t or shouldn’t or she better slow down, she just keeps on truckin!

So while others might call her the “Energizer Bunny” or the “Bionic Woman”, or that “tough old bird with no quit in her”, I am lucky enough to call her “Mom.”

~  Chuck

I QUIT! (Bread That Is)

I Quit!  

I put on about eight pounds in the past four days.  The biggest change was the amount of bread I ate in various forms: sandwiches and dinner rolls mostly – ham sandwiches, dinner rolls with the multiple turkey/thanksgiving dinners (we had three this year: one at each of the sister-in-laws (all good, by the way) on Thursday and Friday, and one more at home when my wife, Bonnie, cooked a turkey dinner, along with all the sides, for her parents at our home).

That was the major addition to my eating over those four days – lots of bread.  And I know better… I had lost 25 pounds over the past nine months or so, mostly by limiting the starches and sugars in my diet.  (Note: I’m also a recovering Type II diabetic.)

So it’s time to go back to what was successful in the past.  That means going back to the Primal/Paleo way of eating that worked before; why I got away from it?  Laziness, loss of discipline, loss of focus on the goal of rebuilding a better ‘house’ for the Holy Spirit to travel in.  Harks back to the old Jimmy Buffett phrase from one of his songs, “You treat your body like a temple, I treat mine like a tent.”

What I’m doing with this post is laying out some guidelines for the rest of my life.  A week from today, I’ll be 59 years old.  I have been complimented by many people who hear that fact that I don’t look that “old.”  Old is a very relative concept in today’s world of advances in medicine, nutrition, health and fitness, and technology.  But I tangent —

I’ve already posted on my Facebook page a quick note that I’m quitting bread – in all its various permutations.  No more sandwich bread (plain, toasted, white, whole wheat, etc.), hamburger or hot dog buns, bagels, french baguettes, dinner rolls, etc. so my Facebook friends can help keep me track with this pledge to eat bread no more… and, of course my wife commented, “Uh-oh, here we go again” because she is the one who most has to put up with changes to how I eat and what I consume as it makes it more difficult on her when planning meals.  (Sorry, babe; but if I want to reach the physical goals I’ve set, the diet and exercise must be congruent.)

How, you ask, will I do this?  What will I eat and what will I avoid?

I’m glad you asked.

To start with, these are the things I will be putting on my Avoid List:

Sugar – including soft drinks, fruit juices, most fruits, cakes, cookies, ice cream, candies, and other forms of sugar, like foods containing High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS), corn syrup, table sugar, and other hidden sugars.  I will be using Splenda and Stevia as sweeteners during the transition completely away from any form of sugar (this may take a few months).

Starches – here I will severely limit potatoes (exception will be the small dutch potatoes we slather with olive oil and other spices and bake to go with the occasional steak dinner at home – only happens two or three times a month) and rice.  High starch fruits will also be greatly limited; but I realize that with a focus on ‘real’ foods, fruits in their natural form qualify.

Grains – basically the major avoid items… flour and flour products (goodbye burrito, hello burrito bowl), corn and corn products (so long potato chips and crackers), wheat (gluten) in any form – breads, bagels, pasta, crackers, etc.  Cereals, pizza (now that will be tough at first; I do like to pig out on a pizza and salad at Round Table), and other forms of grains.  Others may say otherwise, but I can only go with how my body reacts, and the near-elimination of these things gives me the best results.

Legumes – no more beans (my wife actually likes this one; I tended to produce negative emissions (gas? flatulence? fart? – what don’t you understand?)

Dairy – okay, this one is among the hardest to limit, but while I’ll still use 2% milk to ‘soften’ my coffee when heavy cream isn’t available, I will be getting rid of the blocks of extra-sharp cheddar cheese (sorry, Trader’s Joe) I bought and often turned into a meal by itself (along with half a bag or more of rice cakes and three or four large glasses of iced tea).

Wow, you say!  What’s left to eat?  How will you survive?

I’m glad you asked.

My W.O.E. (Way of Eating – sounds more realistic than diet, doesn’t it?  Besides, diet always sounds like something temporary and as others have pointed out, the first three letters in diet are D-I-E !!!  Here’s what’s on the To Eat List:

Meats – beef, fish, chicken, pork (ham and bacon, especially), lamp chops, turkey (mostly as a turkey burger to be eaten with a fork without any bun), all prepared by grilling, baking, pan-frying…

Eggs – lots and lots of eggs, prepared any style and usually with plenty of butter (No margarine!)  Truthfully, I could eat 3-6 eggs a meal, a couple of times a day – I love eggs.

Veggies – broccoli (steamed), carrots, celery, cucumbers, lettuce(s), onions, peppers, spinach (raw leaf), tomatoes, and even some grilled zucchini.  Most of these foods will be raw, and as you can see, can all be assembled into a terrific large salad meal in itself.  Be careful as to the salad dressing, and we’re still rockin and rollin.

Condiments – butter (unsalted), coconut oil, EVOO (extra-virgin olive oil), black pepper, mustard, salsa, hot sauce, Splenda/Stevia (already mentioned), and my one exception to the sugar/HFCS rule – once in a while, some Smucker’s apricot jam – to go with my eggs.

The few other things to eat sparingly will be nuts (almonds, cashews, walnuts), and a very limited amount of cheese – like a slice of pepperjack to go the burger I’ll be eating with a bun but with a fork (I said primal, not savage).  I will eat some fruits during the year, but mostly the standard, everyday ones like apples, bananas, grapes, oranges and watermelon.

Beverages and liquids – water (filtered and purified, preferred), tea, both black (iced) and green (hot), and coffee, tempered with a little cream (growing up my dad used to joke I liked a little coffee to go with my milk!).

Add to this mix a planned exercise routine (10-15 minutes a day of body weight movements and kettlebells, 10-15 minutes of yoga-related movements, and a couple of times a week, some basic short sprint repeats (depending on the strength of my right knee recovery), and you have the plan to make a 59-year old body metamorph back to a much younger one.  Diet W.O.E. (way of eating) and exercise – there you have it in a summary.

And in order to have a goal, we must first know from where we are starting, so as embarrassing as it may be, the key stats here are:  at 5’7″ I weigh 173 pounds (even after a full breakfast 2 hours ago) and 39.5 inches as measured around the waist at the navel (relaxed, not tensed or suck in – what would be the point then? — or as friend often jokes, “Why go for a six-pack when you can have a keg?”)  The six-pack is not my goal – a leaner, more functional torso is on the plan.

(PS:  I re-read this a couple of times and kept asking myself, is the last paragraph necessary?  But if I don’t publicize where I start from, how can I (ever so humbly) proclaim where I get to? — so it stays)

~ Chuck

This Song In My Head

For several weeks now, I’ve had this chorus, this song running around in my head.  I have been getting the distinct impression from God that I will have to sing it before my family church congregation before He is going to release it from my skull.

So I asked my wife, Bonnie, if she would like to sing this song with me.  She said, “Yes, you know I love to sing with you.”

Then I asked her if she would sing this song with me at church… in front of the congregation?  (slight pause; change in pitch) “Yes, you know I love to sing with you.”

I then got hold of Pastor Dan (Burr) and explained my desire to embarrass myself at Crossroads Community Church.  Not only would he give us the opportunity, he would personally play the piano accompaniment for us.  Wow.

We made a date to meet to briefly rehearse the song and agreed to sing on Sunday, November 27th.

One of the things that led to this, other than the nagging chorus almost continually running through my mind, is Bonnie and I both “grew up” in church.  She as Grace Brethren and Baptist; me as a Southern Baptist – which is why in any extended conversation with me you will detect a small southern drawl, you’all.

Among the things that helped define us as we grew up in the church was the worship.  We were both raised on the great hymns and developed a huge love for southern gospel quartet music as well.  We are truly blessed at our church with both terrific singers and outstanding musicians.  It really is difficult to remain humble when our small but mighty choir performs, or our worship leaders solo, or when our musicians cut loose and play – sometimes I think the angels might even be a little jealous.

One of the reasons Bonnie and I left our previous church home was the worship was no longer inspiring.  There were several other reasons, but this post is focused on music and song, so I’ll just keep it there.  The ‘leaders’ had unceremoniously relieved a couple of previous ‘Ministers of Music’ over the course of several months and we were reduced to a small group of young men with a couple of guitars who seem to think the way to worship God was to sing simple praise choruses over and over (and over and over – okay, you get the picture).   While it was ‘praise’ and meant to be uplifting to celebrate God, it left the two us wanting in our souls.

Because we were raised more ‘old school’ in our worship music, we began to miss the hymns, especially the ones with great message and often taken from scripture itself.  In the chorus of church music, we seemed to be leaving behind too many of the old songs that meant so much to us.  And again, this song just kept running through my head and would not leave.  I started to understand what Paul was feeling when he asked that this affliction be taken from him.

So as I write this at six o’clock in the morning, I look forward to the chance to finally sing, with my wonderful wife, this song in my head and hopefully lay it to rest.  I know, there’s no guarantee of that; or for that matter, that after we sing He won’t slip another tune into my mind.

But today, at least, I’ll get the opportunity to try and expunge it from my head.  (If you’re really interested in what the song is, either be at church this afternoon, or make a comment to this post – I’ll let you know.)

~ Faith, Chuck

What I’m Grateful For

Silent gratitude isn't much use to anyone. ~G.B. Stern

What I’m grateful for (in no particular order):

1. A family that has offered nothing but support and taught me that the words friend and family should be synonymous.  And for encouraging experiments and showing me the meaning of the words ‘what’s the worst that could happen?’

2. A wife who supports everything I do.  I mean everything.  Who entertains the crazy ideas and is subjected to talking about this site and helping people do work they love, way more often than is fair.

3. A mind that believes it’s possible.

4.  My church and the many friends in Christ I have, both there and around the world.

5. An amazing mother.  As my wife calls her, ‘the energizer bunny.’  About 84 years old and just had her 2^nd complete knee replacement – now she needs two xray photos to show at the airport when she flies to visit family back east.  Thanks for everything, mom.

6. The Internet.  Because it helps to stay in touch with people in a way never before possible.

7. The ability to meet and interact with inspiring people every day.

8. My perfect wife. Oh wait, maybe I already said that. She deserves another mention anyway. 

9. To know that in the end, no matter what, God is truly on my side.

10. WordPress.

11. Writing.

12. Being able to write.

13. Books.

14. Being able to read.

15. All the people who show me that ‘impossible’ is usually not much more than a state of mind. Those who’ve done it all before me, have shown me the path and help and inspire me to walk it every day.

16. Friends.  Not just acquaintances, but friends – you know, the ones you can call for help at three in the morning, and they will be there, no questions asked.

17. My children.  Young adults now, both have grown to be terrific people, and although I don’t get to see them very much, I love them so very much.

18. And my step-daughter too.  Another amazing young woman, I envy the relationship she has with my wife – not just mother and daughter, but best of friends too.

19. Did I mention Jesus?  I’m grateful and thankful He came into my life and changed me and saved me “with His redeeming blood.”

20. A voice to sing.  In case you didn’t know it, I tend to sing all the time. Showering, driving, just walking around, with the radio, the CD player, even sometimes with the TV.  Mostly it’s like Psalms 100 (I make a joyful noise), but I do love to sing.

21. YOU.

Yeah, I’m really thankful and grateful for you.

Worldview Post on Alternate Blog

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check out my commentary on worldviews.

Thanks, Chuck