Apathy - I can take it or leave it.

Once again, no connection and no significance:

I stretched before my ride this morning and was fine until about mile six. But I suppose it's not realistic to expect that a couple of brief stretching sessions will solve the problem. The good news is that I finished the ride and beat my average speed goal by three tenths of a mph. Can I do this route faster next Monday?

Speaking of biking, you probably heard that the Tour de France finished this Sunday and was won by a Spanish rider. The Tour has lost most, if not all of its luster because of the doping scandals that have characterized the sport for the last three years. But it still provides some outstanding photo opportunities. Which of these will show up as my wallpaper? Too many are gorgeous.
And if my training regimen continues like this I should be Tour ready by 2026.

It may be apocryphal, but I heard a story years ago that the Nazis had two kinds of labor camps. In one they put prisoners to work making weapons the Germans needed for their military. Even though the prisoners knew they were making things that would be used against their relatives and countrymen they worked as commanded.
In the other type of camp they put people to work digging holes and trenches. They dug these holes and put the dirt a short distance away. When the prescribed hole had been dug the prisoners were ordered to take the dirt and put it back in the hole. As soon as they were done the Germans ordered the prisoners to do it all over again.
While some in the first group died from disease and starvation, most survived. But the second group, those given a meaningless task to do over and over again, fell into a deep despair that often led to suicide or a depression that resulted in death.
What made me think about that today?
I worked at a home in Sun City West today. The lady of the house wants all of the caulking around the glass shower unit in the master bedroom and around the tub in the hall bathroom cut out and replaced. Why? Because it's been there for almost seven years.
It was in perfectly good shape. No gaps, no mold, no discoloration. Just seven years old.
I've done some pretty nasty jobs, some that were physically very difficult and some that I hope to never do again. But cutting out perfectly good caulk just to replace it with more of the same made no sense and irritated me.

Here's a house for sale pretty close to where my folks live, closer to where the church is. Take a look at the photos, especially #7. Does this come with the house?

One of the big news stories today is the size of the national debt the next President will inherit. "The largest national debt in the history of our country."
That's true IF you're talking pure dollar amount. But the amount as a percentage of the national budget yields very different results. This one will be smaller than several others. Same is true if the debt figure is seen as a percentage of GNP. But we can't expect the press to mention complex details like that. After all, what kind of a story would that make?

I was recently given a gift subscription to World Magazine and the first issue came the end of last week. Excellent! Sports, movie and book reviews, significant obits - all kinds of general news. But also well written feature articles. All of this from a Christian perspective that is balanced and not overreaching. This may be the one magazine I read from cover to cover.
Thanks, guys!

That's enough for tonight. I have to sit on the floor and stretch my glutes.