We wake up each day, quickly probe to discover which of our several ailments are barking loudest on a given morning, and take the appropriate evasive action. We prepare our coffee to better adhere to Oat Willy’s immortal encouragement, “Onward, through the fog!” We sit and check our appointment books to recall which wars must be fought that day, which medical entity visited, what personal maintenance is required. Facebook irritatingly reminds us that it’s time to celebrate Herman Mayweather’s birthday and we find ourselves wondering who the hell is Herman Mayweather, anyway? And after all this is accomplished, we get down to the important work. We ask ourselves, What is the Single Best Thing I can do today? If we don’t, we should.
1. What is the Single Best Thing (SBT) I can do for my health? Walk for half-an-hour every day, no excuses. You have 23.5 hours left, so none of this stuff about how busy you are. Dr. Mike Evans of St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto discusses why exercise is so good for us: “First, it’s about the quality of life. I bike a lot and people ask, ‘Are you doing it for the environment or for fitness?’ I do it because I feel better at the end of the day. It makes me happy. Second, in medicine, we’re shifting away from telling people to lose weight. We’re suggesting exercise, instead. The data points to protective benefits from being active, even if you’re struggling with your weight. Third, exercise is a cure-all for a lot of mental health issues; it’s highly therapeutic for anxiety, depression and insomnia. It helps with diabetes, arthritis, fatigue, even Alzheimer’s.”
2. What is the SBT I can do for my relationship? Listen to understand and not to reply. Listen to the context of the communication rather than just the content. The content is like the picture in the frame, the context is the frame that goes around it. The content is the words that are spoken but the context is the deeper meaning behind what’s being shared, the part that’s sometimes hidden in the emotions beneath the words. Men, more than women, tend to focus on the content, which contains information and data the man can understand, control, apply logic and reason to. Feelings and emotions, however, are communicated more instinctively from the heart and expressed without any logic or reason. The woman often communicates feelings and emotions but the man interprets this as content and is unable to make sense of it. Hemingway famously said, “I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening. Most people NEVER listen.” Try it sometime.
3. What is the SBT I can do for my financial wellbeing? Automate your savings. Human beings are prone to procrastination. Inertia is one of the biggest hurdles to wealth creation. People say, “Oh, I’ll start saving tomorrow, I really need that money today.” But they never get around to it. There’s always something to spend that extra $10 on. That’s why automation is so powerful; you make the decision to save just once, then put it on autopilot and never think about it again. When there’s an automatic deduction from your paycheck or an automatic transfer from your checking to your savings account, there’s no chance of human error interfering, no opportunity to put it off. Financial advisors say you should aim to save 10% to 15% of your income, but that amount might stretch some people. Try starting with a modest amount you know you can handle to see how it goes. Once you’re secure with that amount, you can increase the savings as you see fit.
4. What is the SBT I can do for my brain? Stay away from anticholinergic drugs. These demons block the action of acetylcholine, an important neurotransmitter used by the nervous system and brain cells to communicate. They can also make you more liable to cognition difficulties and dementia as your brain shrivels. Brain-imaging research proves these medicines speed the atrophy of brain tissue. Anticholinergic drugs of various kinds are available in pharmacies for a number of different health conditions. Some are sold over the counter, others are prescribed by doctors to treat high blood pressure, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and sleep problems. These drugs include muscle relaxers like Flexeril, antihistamines like Benadryl, tricyclic drugs like nortriptyline and amitriptyline and motion sickness drugs like Antivert (meclizine). A complete list is available at: https://www.drugs.com/drug-class/anticholinergics-antispasmodics.html.
5. What is the SBT I can do for my wellbeing? Connect with the people around you. There are now several prominent analyses of wellbeing which illustrate the importance of social support and relationships to an individual’s mental health and happiness. Having a minimum of three people with whom you’re close may be enough to protect you from a psychological disorder. Having people around you who matter is more important than simply having sheer numbers of close connections. The most valuable social relationships in terms of wellbeing are those in which other people are supportive and encouraging, and that you find to be important to your own sense of meaning in life. It also helps to be active, curious, interested in learning and generous with your time (which could include volunteering to help with your favorite candidate’s presidential campaign).
6. What is the SBT I can do to find an appropriate life partner? Prioritize a respect for each other’s way of thinking. A life partner doubles as a career/life therapist and if you don’t respect the way someone thinks, you won’t be willing to tell him/her your thoughts on work each day or anything else interesting that pops into your head. You won’t really care much what they have to say about it. It also helps to have a reasonable number of common interests, a penchant for some of the same activities and fairly common people-preferences. That said, if you live in Skagway, Alaska, you may have to make allowances.
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| Idaho campaign coordinator Johnny Bolton says Gem State voters are looking for the candidate who offers "the most free stuff." Duly noted. |
Unlike all those Democratic sissies who flock to Iowa and New Hampshire in search of votes, Bill Killeen will start his campaign next month in the wilds of Trump-loving Idaho, a bastion of gun-loving, wall-favoring militia-men, who shoot first and ask questions later. Why would any sane Democratic contender expose himself to all this angst to woo a state with a meager 4 electoral votes? Sometimes we wonder. But there are points of light in Idaho. Ex-Subterranean Circus employees Mike (Jagger) Hatcherson and Johnny Bolton reside in the friendly confines of Ketchum/Sun Valley and a visit is in order. Forty-five years of non-contact goes by before you know it. Besides, Johnny is our lead volunteer in Ketchum, setting up town hall meetings and posting Killeen propaganda all over telephone poles and ski-shop facades.
And then there’s the primary. A Democratic candidate can’t be elected without a sufficient number of primary victories and nobody we know is campaigning in Idaho. Killeen is currently leading in the Idaho polls because the natives have heard nothing much about him and far too much about his rivals. A victory in Idaho would shock the nation into recognition of the Killeen grassroots support. Johnny Bolton claims the voters of his state are open to the candidate who offers the most free stuff. We’ve got free stuff aplenty, from bottles of fry sauce to rodeo tickets to cans of combine oil. We have also promised to install the Summer White House in Idaho, greatly boosting tourist dollars. What JFK did for Hyannis Port and the Bushes did for Kennebunkport, Killeen will do for Sun Valley. Idahoans, ask yourselves—what has Donald Trump done for me lately?
The Final Jewel
Unadorned by the pageantry inherent in a try for racing’s Triple Crown, this Saturday’s Belmont Stakes sneaks in on little cat feet, like Sandburg’s fog, unnoticed until it arrives. The favorite will probably be War of Will, the Preakness winner and the only one of this field of ten who has run in all three Triple Crown races. His chief antagonist could well be Tacitus, one of three horses in the race by the impressive stallion, Tapit, who was scratched from the 2004 Belmont with a recurrent lung infection but has made up for it at stud. Tacitus ran a good third in the Kentucky Derby despite being compromised by the heavy traffic in Louisville that day.
Everfast will get support after shocking the world (including us) to finish second in the Preakness. We expected him to be consigned to the discount bin after that race but he came tearing up the stretch along a very fast rail path and will get plenty of backing at the longer distance of the Belmont. We’re not buying it yet. Let’s see him do it again.
Master Fencer came over from Japan to run in the Kentucky Derby and ran better than expected on the muddy Louisville track. New York is expected to be dry Saturday. Intrepid Heart, another by Tapit, stumbled at the start of the Peter Pan and lost for the first time, seeming disinterested. He has the pedigree to win, but does he have the heart? Trainer Todd Pletcher and jockey John Velasquez will help. Sir Winston, by classics sire Awesome Again, is hot and cold, but the Peter Pan was his best race. He was aided by a very fast pace in that one and will not have that advantage in the Belmont.
Bourbon War was highly touted in the Preakness, but disappointed. He ran with blinkers in Baltimore but they’re off for this one. Tax seems in over his head here. Joevia could get the early lead before crashing and burning. Here is what Washington Post columnist Neil Greenberg has to say about Spinoff: “Based on what we have seen over the past few years, winners of the Belmont Stakes have shared three traits: tactical speed, a pedigree conducive to the distance and good connections. In this year’s field, only Spinoff satisfies all three. Every winner since Union Rags in 2012 has posted a triple-digit Brisnet speed figure before running in the 1 1/2-mile slog at Big Sandy. In other words, the last seven winners have reached close to par for the Belmont entering the race. Sir Winston, Tacitus, Tax and Spinoff are the only horses in this field that qualify on raw speed.”
The Envelope, Please
1. War of Will. Let’s face it, we’re prejudiced. We’re Tyler Gaffalione fans and his horse was easily best in the Preakness. He has the running style to win at virtually any distance, but a mile-and-a-half is a big ask and he will be seriously challenged.
2. Tacitus. The Belmont could be a two-horse race and if it is this horse and War of Will should be the two. Bill Mott, who won the Kentucky Derby with Country House when Maximum Security was disqualified, trains Tacitus, who was shuffled back early in Kentucky before weaving his way through traffic on the turn to finish well.
3. Put the other 8 in a hat and pick. We’re not as optimistic about Spinoff as Neil Greenberg because statistics don’t win races. If you want to excuse his Derby loss in Kentucky, fine, but how do you explain his Derby loss in Louisiana? Will the blinker change help Bourbon War? Maybe. Is Everfast for real? Prove it. Was Intrepid Heart’s Peter Pan loss an aberration? Could be. If you use our first two choices and get lucky with the correct outsider, you might strike it rich. And if you do, you know where to send your generous campaign contribution. Good luck to all.
That’s all, folks….
bill.killeen094@gmail.com
