A Few Books & Films

In the last few weeks, I've been on quite the reading kick. I found a few titles at REI that looked interesting, which I then came home and ordered for reduced pricing from Amazon. Although this first book listed here is one that I borrowed from my cousin.

EXERCISE TITLES:

Image taken from here.

This book was amazing. You all know that I started running routinely again in spring of 2010, but since our return to Oregon I've been running and hiking in Vibrams. Thus far, running "barefoot" in Vibrams has been great--no real overuse energies, no shin splints, etc. And my only real complaint has just been stinky feet and blisters from where the Vibrams rub on our long hikes. But since reading this book, I kid you not, I think of some piece of information from the book every single week. It offers me motivation to know that genetically humans are supposed to be capable of running incredibly long distances--in fact it makes me in awe of the capacity of the human body. The book also motivates me to run even if I've neglected myself nutritionally or via my beverage choices on any particular day. And since reading this book, I always try to remember to smile on my runs and hikes....in order to truly increase enjoyment of the activity. If you're into running or into learning about the capability of the human body due to evolution, I highly encourage you to check this book out.

Now these next two books actually are about the same thing---couples that traveled the Pacific Crest Trail. The first book listed has chapters written by both the male and female perspective along the trail, while the second book is only from the male perspective. The books both offered insight to the trail, to the difficulties, and made me laugh at some of the trials faced by the couples upon their time outdoors together. I'm not going to lie though, if you wanted to read one of these, you're much better off with the first book, as I found the author of the second book incredibly annoying and focused way too much on sex on the trail. The first novel however was much more rewarding, balanced, and insightful.

Image taken from here.

Image taken from here.

SUSTAINABLE LIVING TITLE:

Image taken from here.

This book was one that I saw mentioned somewhere although I have no recollection of where I first read about it. I ordered it on a long shot and sure enough I loved it. Kimball was a NYC journalist/hipster out to interview an organic farmer--they surprisingly fell in love and moved onto a piece of land to start their own full-service CSA. Humorous, insightful, and fulfilling, as you read about their adventures in horse drawn tilling, pig and chicken raising, maple sugaring, cow rearing and milking, and the attempting of a relationship leading to marriage.

Recently I've also watched three great documentaries or clips of news.

The first is from a National Geographic Series:

Stress: Portrait of a Killer

It can be found both on YouTube and on Netflix Instant and it's about an hour in length. Incredibly insightful on how stress impacts us biologically.

The second is a 20 minute Frontline Video found here, which is about for-profit colleges taking advantage of veterans and their education benefits/GI Bills. I'm not a huge fan of for-profit educational institutions anyway but this just annoys me even more.

And the third is a documentary: God Grew Tired of Us which was shown at the Sundance Film Festival in 2006. Incredibly heart-warming and heart-breaking it provides the story of the Lost Boys of Sudan who were forced to flee Sudan during Civil War or be killed. They traveled by foot with limited water and food, basically starving, to Ethiopia where they lived in a refugee camp for three years. At the conclusion of the three years they were forced to relocate again to a refugee camp in Kenya, walking again. At the time of the film, the boys had been in exile for 10 years. From there the film follows a handful of boys (now young men) who are relocated to the United States and discusses the hope and trials they face as they integrate into our country. It'll warm your heart, it'll make you cry. It was available via Netflix DVD or a rental, but you can watch the trailer here:

PS If you are interested in either of the hiking books or The Dirty Life, let me know and I'm willing to pass on. Drop me a comment and I'll send you an email for your mailing address. Born to Run is not up for grabs however as it belongs to my cousin.

Take a Few Hours to Understand the Experience

So....(How many of my posts seem to start with this word anymore?!)

I never intended to write many posts about the military and I'm still holding most my final thoughts until after we are no longer active duty....but since the military is what surrounds me, is what currently defines my husband's life, and is part of the institution that employs me, then I'm sure you can imagine that much of what I think about is, well, the military.

I come from an area of this nation where most individuals are opposed to us being at war, but I don't ever feel that any of my friends or family are ever opposed to the soldiers themselves that are over there fighting. I like to believe, that for the most part, the nation does stand beside these men and women who are fighting and who are continuously putting their lives in harms way.

Now anyone who has been a long-time reader here probably knows that I have a mixed bag of opinions on the military, "defense" spending, the lack of services available to soldiers after separation, etc etc. I will whole-heartedly reiterate that I completely believe in my current job, however, and I feel honored to have the experience to interact with such a diverse group of individuals on a daily basis.

One thing that I think we as a society often struggle with is a sense of what it's like to be fighting in this current war. In all honesty, I was under the impression before coming here that we technically weren't at war anymore...but at this point, I can't remember if that was due to the media or a governmental decree or what. What I can tell you is that the military definitely believes that we are still at war and are active participants in Operation Enduring Freedom.

I don't feel that any of the media we see truly documents what the current deployment experience is like however, not that I would know exactly what that experience is or could be like. What I can tell you and urge of you is that you might seek out a recent documentary that my husband and I viewed on the National Geographic Channel. It's called RESTREPO, selected based on the name of an out posting built by a platoon (approximately 30-40 soldiers assigned to more or less the same duties and location) in memory of one of their fallen.

This documentary gave me my first glance at what the actual mountainous terrain of Afghanistan looks like. It exposed me to what an ambush scenario feels like, what it's like to be constantly exposed, raw, and potentially always in fear. It showed me how at times the leadership might lack, that the men bond and form a brotherhood in spite of personality and background differences, and it showed me how difficult it can be to be a soldier and yet need an opportunity to grieve. It gave me a snap shot of the experience that most of the infantry soldiers face and are currently facing, left me applauding the interviewed soldiers for their honesty amid the difficulty of sharing such innermost thoughts and feelings, and left me with an aching heart for these soldiers I serve on a daily basis and for those who have already separated and are attempting to integrate back into a world of civilians who for the most part have a limited understanding of their experience.

If you have the opportunity, please take the time to try to  understand this experience and view the film. This link: http://restrepothemovie.com/ will provide you with an overview and the film itself might increase your perspective. You'll probably walk away with new insights but you might also walk away with a stronger argument for some of your previously held beliefs. Regardless, I always think its worthwhile to attempt to understand another human's experience and to gain a better, more honest picture of what is going on in other areas of this world.

If you are in the US and a Netflix user, the film is able to be delivered via DVD although its not yet instant. And I can tell you via the soldier who sat along my side and from commentary from other wives, this film is a vivid snapshot of reality.

(Although a word of caution, you will hear the F bomb dropped consistently and this film is not suitable for children....)

Problems of Educators

Today I have been reading the book Living Cheaply With Style by Ernest Callenbach. It is quite the entertaining book-full of interesting ideas and insights (not all are practical and I don't know that all are quite legal either). I have only read about 2/3 of it but there were a few interesting things that got me thinking. To start with, in his introduction he talks about The Green Triangle which is composed of environment, health, and money. He argues that if you make a beneficial change to one area you will then in turn positively impact the other two areas. It made me feel validated in my thought from my first blog posting that to me the environment, health, personal finances, education, and spirituality are all interconnected. SO I suppose that in my book instead of a green triangle, it would be a green pentagon. But if you think about it, generally if you do change one aspect of your life, it will influence all the other realms of your life as well. Which gets me into my primary topic.

Later on in his book, he also discussed the fact that so much of our educational system is about abstract thought taught in impractical manners instead of through integrated subjects or hands-on material. As an educator, I would have to agree that our educational system does not do as well as it should and could, however I also feel that it does the best that it can under the given policies, regulations, and budgets that it has currently. Within educational contexts, there are a variety of opinions about what the school system should be teaching children and it depends on who is running the government as to which applications we focus on. Personally, I also believe that the dissolution of the family subsystem has created catastrophic issues that educators have to deal with on a daily basis. Students come from a variety of families that hold a diverse array of philosophies. Therefore different parents will become involved, both positively and negatively, for different reasons. Some parents complain about minute issues, while other parents feel that their children should have a variety of freedoms. It becomes a constant battle within the classroom and school administrators are pressured on multiple sides.

I have also noticed that students (at least within the high schools were I have worked) have almost no sense of delayed gratification. I don't quite understand why this is but educators are forever dealing with issues that ten years ago were never a problem. If I never saw another MP3 player or cellphone in the hands of a teenager I think I might be very happy. In a society in which we are constantly bombarding our youth and children with fast paced entertainment, students (and parents alike) have begun to expect the same out of teachers and lessons. Sigh....just some thoughts on the state of teens, our education system, and the lack of discipline, accountability, and sustainability of the family subsystem.

I don't think there are any easy answers to our current societal problems, but hopefully we're all willing to work on solutions. Otherwise what are we living for? Such a dour note to end on this evening! But there is always bright light at the end of the tunnel!