Sitting in the Rain

My neighbor has a white Boxer. It’s a friendly dog. It spends the majority of most days inside. Sometimes in the evening my neighbor leaves the front door ajar, and the dog frolics outside until he is beckoned to return. I like the dog and always say hello when our paths cross. We get along well.

Yesterday in the early afternoon I took a short walk to check my mail. As I walked past my neighbor’s apartment I noticed the Boxer looking longingly out the window. By the time I returned the screen had been pushed out of the window, and the boxer had his head sticking outside. He was smiling.

Within moments he decided to leap. It was just several feet to the ground, so he landed safely. I opened the blinds on my balcony door so I could watch him. His first order of business was to run around marking trees. His tail was wagging. He was happy.

After he had marked trees, chased squirrels, and sniffed everything that looked remotely interesting he got bored. The Boxer realized he couldn’t  jump back through the window; he was locked out of his apartment. So he laid down in the grass. He stayed there for hours. When he would briefly get up to circle a few times his head and  tail were down. He was no longer happy.

Eventually clouds began to congregate in the sky. A slight breeze picked up. Rain fell. The Boxer got up and moved to the door mat in front of his apartment. He sat there forlornly in the rain, waiting for his owner to return and open the door.

I decided he was too big for me to simply lift back through the window (plus it might have looked bad if I was leaning into my neighbor’s apartment through a smashed screen if he happened to return). I was headed out to run some errands, so I didn’t want to leave the boxer unattended in my apartment (it also might have looked like dognapping). So I decided to keep the boxer company for a while. I went out and talked to him. He was happy to receive a little attention. We sat in the rain and talked about life [1]. He wagged his tail. He was happy.

By the time I ran my errands I was soaking wet.

[1] It turns out that hearing loss is common in white Boxers, with some estimates as high as 8% that are completely deaf and another 22% with complete hearing loss on one side. I had no idea. So it is possible the dog was just being polite and had no idea what I was saying.

Spam Email Analyzed

I manage several email addresses through one interface with Gmail. My primary email addresses receive little spam, and that spam is caught by Gmail spam filters. This is in part because I am careful where I use my primary addresses. I have an account set up with Yahoo that I use where I fear spammers might exploit the address (and that account gets a ridiculous amount of spam). I usually dump the spam from my primary accounts without reading it–but I recently made a comment in a casual conversation that I wanted to back up with some data. The comment was this: “Most of the spam I get is targeted toward personal growth.” [1]

I made this comment because it seems like a disproportionate amount of the spam I get at my primary email accounts is related to “male enhancement.” But after making the comment I wondered, is it true? Or do the often hilarious subject lines from these emails just make a bigger impression than the other spam?

So for one week I charted the spam I received at my primary email addresses. And behold:

The verdict: My statement could be considered valid or invalid, depending upon how you define it. Only 46% of the spam I received in the past 7 days was focused on personal growth [2], but that is still a staggering majority when it comes to subject matter. The closest to the 46% share was the 8% represented by dating (and the dating category was pretty broad–from legitimate dating to nsa matching). It’s safe to say that the dominant subject was personal growth.

This is rather amazing to me. I understand that male insecurity is difficult to overestimate. My question is: who falls for this? Seriously?

I’m very curious what the trigger was for this onslaught of spam. Is it purely demographic or is it based upon where my address was gleaned? (I knew I shouldn’t have signed up for the Monster Trucks Weekly and Bazooka Hunting Quarterly newsletters.)

[1] This was a euphemism–and most people in the conversation realized that was the case.
[2] Technically it may have exceeded 50% if you broaden personal growth to include education: I got offers to learn languages and earn degrees.

Pat the Bat Retires

Pat Burrell signed a one day contract with the Phillies this season so he could officially retire as a player with the team that drafted and developed him. Last Saturday the Phillies paid tribute to Pat the Bat before their game with Boston.

Pat had a solid career with the Phillies, hitting 251 home runs and compiling an .852 OPS (119 OPS+). Pat led the 2008 World Series parade down Broad Street. He is only 34 years-old, but injuries have forced him into early retirement as a player. He now works for the San Francisco Giants.

Last year I wrote a blog post about conversations in which I mentioned questions I ask baseball fans at ballparks (a link to that post). One question is: Who was the best hitter you ever saw? For me the answer is Pat Burrell. This requires context. I spent a lot of time at Reading Municipal Memorial Stadium during the summer of 1999. That season Jimmy Rollins and Pat Burrell were playing for the Reading Phillies, it wouldn’t be long before they were in the Majors. Pat had a monster year. He hit 28 home runs with a .333 batting average in 117 games. His OPS was 1.068! But the numbers aren’t what sticks in my mind, it’s the fact that he scalded the ball in every at bat I saw. Vicious line drives. His opponents were overmatched. It was like an elephant playing tug of war with a wildebeest–not fair. Pat Burrell during the 1999 season was the best hitter I ever saw.

On one hot summer night in 1999 a game at Reading went to extra innings. Burrell strode up to plate and hit a majestic home run to left-centerfield. The outfielders didn’t even bother turning, they just started trotting off the field. The ball landed out by the brick wall that borders the centerfield parking lot. It remains the only walk-off home run I have seen in person, and quite possibly the farthest I have ever seen a baseball hit.

Thanks for the memories, Pat.

SCEFC Set List: May 27, 2012

On Sunday I’ll be serving as the worship leader at State College E-Free Church. I’ve been reading Ecclesiastes lately, so the idea of humility before God has been on my mind. I’ve had my share of “Meaningless, meaningless! Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless!” moments in the past few weeks.

Prelude: (E) 10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord) – Matt Redman | Jonas Myrin

(A) God You Reign – Lincoln Brewster | Mia Fieldes

(A) Our God – Chris Tomlin | Jesse Reeves | Joans Myrin | Matt Redman

(A) Everlasting God – Brenton Brown | Ken Riley

(A) You are God Alone – Billy Foote | Cindy Foote

Closing: (E) Hosanna – Brooke Fraser

I really like the bridge of Hosanna, which begins with “Break my heart for what breaks Yours.” I think it is very fitting for the conclusion of the sermon series we’ve been having this month that focused on Jesus reaching out to address the spiritual and temporal needs of others. Over most of my life the concept of a broken heart was rather abstract to me. It’s not abstract to me anymore.

One of the things that overwhelms me is that God loves so many people who do not love Him. He sees the pain they put themselves through. He sees the poor choices. He sees the injuries they inflict on themselves and others. At times I ask myself why He allows Himself to be so vulnerable. He still loves.

My immediate response is not so noble. When the pain is sharp I think: I’ll never let someone mean that much to me again. A line from Sherlock this past Sunday comes to mind: “Alone is what I have. Alone protects me.” Hearing that line elicits pity, for it is evident that it is not healthy.

The song Hosanna recognizes Jesus as the one who offers us hope. The very title, and the repetition of the chorus, is a plea to be saved [1]. Coupled with that plea to be saved is another request. A request to feel pain.

May our hearts break when we see need around us. May we refuse to embrace the protection of isolation. May we recognize the love of our Savior and offer our devotion.

[1] A loose translation of hosanna is "save us!"

Random Photo of the Day

I’m busy with writing and “writing” right now [1]. In lieu of a full post I’m going to upload a random photo from my archives. I might start doing this when I lack the time to develop a full post. Here goes . . .

Spectators at the 2009 Penn State Blue/White game.

[1] I define “writing” as sitting in front of my computer with the intention of writing but not producing anything. In the process of writing a dissertation a lot of “writing” happens.

Running to Stop Running

Trent Reznor wrote the song Hurt that opens with the lyrics: “I hurt myself today, to see if I still feel.” (Johnny Cash recorded an excellent version of that song.)

It has occurred to me that I do not hurt myself to feel, rather I hurt myself because I cannot stop feeling.

One of the reasons I like running is that it hurts. After a couple of miles at a brisk pace my body sends me a message along these lines: that was fun, now let’s stop. At that point running ceases to be comfortable. It takes focus to continue on, hold a steady rhythm, and use measured breathing. Depending on the environment and trail conditions the discomfort level rises or falls.

I realize that I like this for three reasons:
1). Focusing on running blocks out things I could not get off my mind if I were sitting on my couch. Running clears the mind.
2). It takes discipline to keep moving.
3). Much of the hurt we feel in life we cannot control. Running allows me to control the pain and choose when it ends. (And if you’ve never run to the edge of the breaking point in the hot sun, then collapsed in the shade of a tree and laid on your back savoring being still, well . . . you might be missing something.)

That’s what I did this afternoon. I decided to run a loop on a section of the bike trail with an ascent and descent, which take a toll. It looked something like this:

I think I pushed myself a bit farther than I have in my recent running. My route ended about one mile from my apartment. After lying under a tree and feeling euphoric for a few moments I walked home. During the walk my legs kept threatening to shut down. I think it was the combination of the heat, hills, and dehydration. I’m very curious to see if I am still incredibly sore tomorrow.

SCEFC Set List: May 20, 2012

On Sunday I’ll be serving as the worship leader at State College E-Free Church. We’re halfway through a month-long sermon series about Jesus. More specifically, we’re reflecting on how He addressed both spiritual needs and temporal needs.

Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about needs and wants, strength and weakness, and initiative and patience.

Prelude: (G) King of Grace – Mark Altrogge

(D) Revelation Song – Jennie Lee Riddle

(C) Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing – Robert Robinson

(G) Give Us Clean Hands – Charlie Hall

(E) We Fall Down – Chris Tomlin

——————–

Closing: (E) How Can I Keep from Singing? – Chris Tomlin | Ed Cash | Matt Redman