T.G.I.F. Friday: Volume 40

Welcome to “Thank God I’m FI” Friday, Volume #40!

Here are some things I really like and that you might too. 

Finance Articles

Young FIRE Bloggers Remind Me Of Good Will Hunting (My Quiet FI) – “Don’t pursue it to the ends of the Earth like an obsession because your echo chamber is telling you this is what you must do.”

The Great Motivator (FI Heroes) – “…we really are the creators of our lives. Every day we have the ability to create what we want in our lives and to change our lives for the better.”

Video

Watch this bobcat gracefully make a 15 foot gap-jump on a lake from a standing start look like child’s play.  Then she deftly nails the next three pylons, lands on a plank, and struts like the badass she is.  Nature rocks.

Who’s Inspired Me

My neighbor Don.

When COVID hit last March, Don weighed 309 pounds.  He ate junk food, drank too much alcohol, and never exercised.  Despite us not having much in common we get along.  Every time I ride my bike past his house to start a ride he waves and says “go get ’em”.  He jokingly calls me “the human lung”. 

By late summer last year Don saw the writing on the wall about obesity and COVID.  He was frightened.  He started asking me about bikes, and I helped him find a good used steed.  He started changing his diet, and cut back on the alcohol.  To date Don has lost 29 pounds and feels better than ever!  He’s getting past those really hard early days of behavior change.  I keep cheering him on as a mentor, and I have tons of empathy for him, because I was once obese too. 

It’s friggin’ hard, it’s a daily battle.  It took me a decade of struggle to get to the healthy weight I’m at now.  By that measure Don has already done way more than me in a mere 9 months.  He still has a long way to go to get to a healthy weight, but now he’s more motivated than ever and he credits the bike with a lot of it.

What I’m Grateful For

My knees. I’ve had surgery on both but with a good diet and copious exercise they’re feeling better than ever, almost like new.  Here’s to more adventures!

Lyrically Speaking

One may think we’re alright
But we need pills to sleep at night
We need lies to make it through the day
We’re not okay

From “Pills” by The Perishers

The Perishers are another gem of a band that should have been more famous.  This song is as somber as they come, it’s no secret I harbor a certain appreciation for melancholic music.  I linked to a live version above because none other than Sarah McLachlan sings on it, and her beautiful voice makes me happy.

Those 4 lines above succinctly describe the state of so much of 1st world society today  As comforts and technology keep increasing, mental health, anxiety, depression, and suicide do as well.  Even before the pandemic.  I wrote about this in a letter to modern times, with no real answer. 

Miscellaneous

How diet affects mental health – “Poor diets, researchers say, play a role in worsening mood disorders, such as anxiety and depression.”

Driving Was Down In 2020, But Traffic Fatality Rates Surged – “Dave’s comment – as someone who rode his bike over 5400 miles in 2020 this was no surprise. When the roads emptied of cars in April – May the drivers that were out there drove like fucking asshole homicidal maniacs.  And it worked.  Deaths per mile driven were the highest since 1924! Congratulations all you irresponsible assholes out there, I bet you can’t wait till the next “Fast and Furious” movie comes out so you can celebrate your homicidal behavior.  Wake up to motor vehicle violence America, any one of us could be the next victim.

Tracking “Cancel Culture” in Higher Education – “The National Association of Scholars believes that cancel culture within higher education has reached an extraordinary level.”