this tuesday afternoon

Andy Dwyer nailed it.

The church I preached at contacted me. 

They want me to come back again in October. 

I think that means I passed the “first round” of candidates. 

My sermon topic? Forgiveness. 

I’ve been staying consistent with my workouts, though running itself has been hit-or-miss. The humidity is just too much; I feel like I’m being water-boarded when I take a breath. Because I’ve missed running a couple times (“I wouldn’t say I’ve been missing it, Bob…”), I’ve been trying to compensate by (a) harder, more strenuous workouts with free weights, and (b) cardio exercises in the relative comfort of the Hobbit Hole. There’s one workout that kills me every time: I do a squat, jump into the air, land in squat position, kick my legs back, fall to the ground (usually rather awkwardly), do a push-up, get back into squat position, and do it all over again. You’ve no idea the pain this causes my legs the next day. Stairs become insurmountable obstacles. I’ve been noticing that my shirts are fitting tighter; I think this is because my chest is getting better, with lots of assistance from my perky ribs. I don’t know if I like it. I mean, that’s what you should expect when your muscles get bigger; but I’m not sure if I like how it feels. I’ve already got big nipples; now I feel like I have T.H.O. wherever I go. 

Tyler recommended an app called “Headspace.” 

It’s basically a ten-minute-a-day meditation guide. 

I’ve been doing it in the mornings, and it’s been great. 

It helps me escape my thoughts and to just be present to myself. 

Perhaps it will enable me to reclaim some sanity. 

I’ve been moving forward with my narrative history of the War of Independence (not to be confused with the American Revolution: the Revolution, and its accompanying War, are considered by historians to be two different beasts rife with correlation). The “finished work” of this narrative history may end up taking a couple volumes: I’m already looking at around 200 pages covering events from the French & Indian War (1754-1760) to the Battle(s) of Lexington & Concord. The first volume, I’m thinking, will cover everything from the Seven Years War (of which the French & Indian War was its own theater) to the British evacuation of Boston in March 1776 following Washington’s “capture” of Dorchester Heights. The focus on the narrative history is on the battles themselves, and there are some good ones for the first volume: Point Pleasant (actually a battle in Lord Dunmore’s War against the western Indians), Lexington & Concord, Fort Ticonderoga, Bunker Hill, and the Siege of Boston. I’ll post the rough draft of the first chapter sometime this week (for the few none who are interested). 

I spent much of yesterday working on my bike.

I took it for a spin this afternoon: eight miles on the Miami Scenic Trail.

I usually aim for 25-30 miles, but I wasn't sure if my bike would work.

(I don't work on bikes that often)

No tires blew, the chains didn't break off, and I had a smooth ride.

Definitely feeling proud at my handiwork.

In other news, I’ve finished rereading two of my favorite books: The Dawkins Delusion and The Devil’s Delusion. 

The first is written by a Christian scientist (and by that I mean a Christian who happens to be a scientist, not the denomination), and he goes through much of Dawkins’ The God Delusion pointing out flaw-after-flaw in his logic. It’s funny that a lot of atheists have done the same thing with Dawkins; mainstream media loves him, the scientific community practically views him as a charlatan. The second book is written by a secular Jewish mathematician; he’s non-practicing, basically a theist, and he looks at some of the tenets of the New Atheism and shows how many of their robust claims are full of hot air. He has quite a litany of scientists on his side.