Memorial Day Memories Redux

(Originally published in 2013, based off a 2009 post. The day remains as solemn today as it was then.)

This Memorial Day I again think of Kurt and T.J.

Imagine you knew a man from Cleveland, Ohio.

This man had one sibling, an older sister.

During Vietnam, he volunteered for dangerous assignments, operating far behind enemy lines.

After the war, he battled drugs and alcohol.

Eventually, he sobered up and went to work for a vending machine company.

For many years, he traveled in a van around Los Angeles fixing coffee and soda machines.

Now imagine you knew two men with the exact same history.  (But different vending machine companies.)

I was honored to have been friends with a pair of guys whose backgrounds meshed in such odd intimate ways. Once I introduced them at a party, figuring they'd have lots in common, but after a few polite minutes they separated.

They'd experienced stranger things.

Kurt served in Marine recon. Based out of Khe Sanh, he operated in Laos along the Ho Chi Minh Trail on operations so secret that the Americans who died there were never officially acknowledged. Kurt had extended his service to go to Vietnam. He was wounded twice, decorated, and returned home only to be attacked in a bus depot by a man angry over the war. (The man didn't fare well against Kurt who beat him into a fine mist.)

T.J. originally fought with the 12th Infantry near Dak To. He loathed the eerie randomness of combat—here one second gone the next and decided his odds would be better in the  LRRPs (Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol). Instead of waiting to be hit, TJ  crept around North Vietnamese base camps in the Central Highlands making the enemy nervous. He returned to serve out his last few months at Fort Knox, conducting tours of the U.S. Gold Reserve. One night while watching a TV show he started shaking and broke into tears.

Years would pass before he learned about PTSD.

In 2002 I made a business trip to Vietnam. I brought Kurt back a little Buddha and some red clay from Khe Sanh. TJ collected Buddhas so I picked him out a honey in Saigon: a big, fat happy Buddha, smiling like he'd just won the Power Ball,  holding up the Pearl of Knowledge.  
  
In the end, Vietnam finally claimed them both. Health and psychological problems shortened their lives. But they did the best they could with a bad hand and I value the times we had together. 

This weekend I remember them and all who gave their lives in service to the country.

(Based on a post from 2009.)

Run China and Die

 

voxpolitical

Okay, three running posts in a row. You'd swear it was 2007 again. I'm nowhere near a marathon in China or America. Today I ran a pleasant 2.5 miles, experimented with 2x1 run/walks, and didn't keep overall time. This is my step-down week and I intend to rest. Weather conditions were sunny, in the high 70s.

Meanwhile at an ultramarathon in northwest China:

Survivors gave shocking testimony of events on the rugged mountainside, where unconfirmed meteorological reports to local media said temperatures had plunged to as low as minus 24 degrees Celsius. [-11.2 Fahrenheit]

Recalled one surviving runner:

"My limbs were frozen stiff and I felt like I was slowly losing control of my body. . . I wrapped my insulation blanket around me, took out my GPS tracker, pressed the SOS button and lost consciousness."

He said when he came round he discovered a shepherd had carried him to a cave, placed him by the fire and wrapped him in a duvet. [A form of bedding.]

Read more here.

The article didn't state if the deceased runners had their organ harvested. Perhaps a later edition will update us on this robust custom. Of course, being dead prior to the harvesting leeches some of the fun from this Chi Com practice. 

A Midwestern Running Day

Astounding. Two running posts in a row. High 60s today with cloudy skies and a light breeze. Very similar to the Illinois of my youth. A splendid day to run four miles. My last mile lagged a bit as I didn't press to finish, but, otherwise, I'm pleased with my performance. Next week features EZ running, no timing, just a trio of short fun runs. Then back to training for my 5k at the beginning of July. 

The Heavens Align for a Good Run

weekendletter.com

 

Well, perhaps nothing that grand. 

But I ran four miles today, dashing out early to take advantage of the marine layer over the LA basin. As I was working my way into mile four, out popped Mr. Sun. I finished up before the temperature rose another ten degress. 

Two things to remember from todays effort:

1. I did not want to run this morning and considered putting it off another day.

2. I did not want to run on pace. 

3. Now I'm quite pleased that I ran and. especially. pleased that I stayed on pace.

How odd, the human mind. Mine seems to want to do just enough to get by, whether in exercise, writing, finance, my relationships. Sometimes not even enough to slide along. As I mentioned last month, I need to plan my actions, execute my plans and adjust as I go, always with a goal in mind. Otherwise, the default is ambling through life waiting for the end. 

Here's an intriguing short video on dealing with stress and achieving goals. 

Productivity Game

Total Equality For Women Includes Crab Fishing

 

Ryan Long and Co. point out the yawning gaps in gender equity.

Ryan Long

Les Grossman Meet Hans Gruber

 

Funny or Die ponders the outcome of negotiations between Tropic Thunder's profanity-rich studio boss and the creepy terrorist from the first Die Hard. 

Funny or Die

Lockdowns Rock!!

Comic Ryan Long and company examine the inert lifestyle.

Ryan Long

Book Review: Kill Zone

 

Kill Zone by Damir Salkovic
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A dystopian feast, Salkovic's world mixes the techno jargon of William Gibson's cyberpunk with the surreal blend of entertainment and violence found in books such as The Running Man and The Hunger Games.

When the system upends Frank Clayton's life, he signs up to appear in a brutal reality show where survival and ratings closely intertwine. But a series of events points Clayton down a road to revenge against the indifferent corporate forces that destroyed his family.

Salkovic excels at description. He handles action well. However at several points the pacing seemed slowed by both action and description, braking the story's forward motion. Nevertheless, for the most part, the narrative moves rapidly, immersing the reader in one man's struggle for justice in a savage dog-eat-dog world.

An excellent pick for lovers of the dystopian genre as well as military sci-fi.

View all my reviews

Paul Rugg Explains the Art of Puppetry

In under a minutes, Jim Henson puppeteer Paul Rugg unveils the secrets of his craft. 

Paul Rugg's Froynlaven

Mental Toughness Practical Applications

 

bobandrosemary.com

If I lost anything since the twin deaths of animation writing and marathon running, it was a certain hardy mental attitude. When combined with chasing little dopamine hits on the Internet, the decay has proved devastating. Over the last thirteen years, my unfinished writing projects have multiplied while my weight has ballooned. At one point I went over a year writing folders of prose without completing so much as a short story. During the same period, my weight topped out at 271 lbs with a svelte 48" waist. 

Mental toughness was easy to see in exercise. Pain and discomfort are present. To push past them requires effort. I would allow myself to quit after five seconds of such effort. I usually lasted longer. Gradually, I acclimated to stressing myself. Pushing hard on certain workouts became the norm. The payoff was on race days.

In writing, mental toughness exhibits itself every day in a series of little nos. No to checking email, or social media, or watching one short YouTube skateboard fail. No to stopping early or quitting a project to begin a new one or hating everything you've written. Perhaps no is not the word. Perhaps its the phrase "maybe later."

As in exercise, the ability to apply the phrase can be built gradually. "Let me write one more sentence." "I'll first reach the end of the chapter." "This isn't too bad. I'll keep going a little longer."

Sadly the Internet trims your attention span and flushes out new knowledge with newer knowledge or, worse, trivia, ensuring that nothing stays in your head long enough to become wisdom. As I train for a 5k in July, I decided to reacquire mental toughness. If in running, then why not in writing?

Here's a book I used to help prepare me mentally for the 2007 Phoenix Marathon. It's so old, there's not even a Kindle version. But I'm returning to its pages for inspiration and techniques to help me grow as a runner and a writer.

Five seconds here, a maybe later there. It adds up like compound interest.

What's the Difference Between Panic-PTSD-and Combat Fatigue?

 

Journey of a Prophetic Feeler

No, it's not the setup for a joke. But writers might want to know the difference. Author Caroline Furlong lays out the markers in an info-packed blog post. Furlong points out how the ignorant often conflate this trio of afflictions. 

How So?

". . . no combat veteran is a ticking time bomb waiting to go off. Those improvised devices waiting to explode are warped human beings that have chosen their paths and who are seldom veterans. The popular press/media paints with as broad a pop-psychology pastel brush as possible in this matter so as to demean, depress, and indict all those who have served in the nation's armed forces. Combat Fatigue, meanwhile, is almost entirely ignored, by both authors and the media and their pet psycho-babblers."

Learn more about these distinctions with a difference at Furlong's blog A Song of Joy.