Friday, April 30, 2021

The Pedestrian

One of my favorite books is Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury but three years before he wrote what many consider his finest work, Bradbury also wrote one of my favorite short stories, The Pedestrian. It was the inspiration for Fahrenheit 451.

“In the introduction to the graphic novel adaptation of Fahrenheit 451, Mr. Bradbury explained the origins of this short story by describing an experience when he and his friend were stopped in 1950 by a police officer.

‘ …In the evening we were walking along Wilshire boulevard when a police car stopped and an officer got out and asked us what we were doing.

‘Putting one foot in front of the other’, I said, not very helpfully.

The policeman kept questioning us as to why we were being pedestrians, as if by taking a late-night stroll we were coming perilously close to breaking the law. Irritated, I went home and wrote a story called The Pedestrian.” 1
 
The Pedestrian ... 
is a dystopian short story set in the year 2053 in an unnamed city. It describes one night in the life of Leonard Mead, who enjoys walking the city streets alone every night. As he walks the empty streets, he passes the homes of other people who are watching television. He has done this for ten years and never encountered another person, since everyone else is inside, mesmerized by mindless entertainment. Meanwhile, he enjoys taking in the sights, sounds, and smells of the natural world. Mead has chosen a different path for himself: that of imagination, solitude, and connection to nature.

On this night, however, Mead meets a robotic police car—the only one left in the city, since crime is virtually nonexistent due to the incessant television viewing. A roaming public that is out walking is much harder to control than one that is glued in front of their television sets. So the police car is programmed to stop Mr. Mead, even though he is not engaging in criminal activity.

The police car interrogates Mead, trying to discover why he is out walking.

“Business or profession?”

“I guess you’d call me a writer.”

“No profession,” said the police car as if talking to itself.

There is no room for human discretion and judgment in a world that is fully automated. The interaction rapidly goes downhill as the interrogation reveals that Mead doesn’t own a television, he is unmarried, lives alone, and he is a writer in a society that doesn’t value the written word. He is “suspicious” and treated as a criminal because of who he is – a nonconformist.

The police car then orders Mead get in. “Wait a minute, I haven’t done anything! - I protest!” says Mead. But he eventually complies and asks, “Where are you taking me?”

The car answers, “To the Psychiatric Center for Research on Regressive Tendencies.” 2

After rereading The Pedestrian, I went for a walk. I thought about my neighbor who runs alone in the pre-dawn hours. He always wears sweatpants, sweatshirt, and a wool cap year-round - regardless of how hot it is. He definitely does not conform to society’s expectation of a “runner.” Does he have “regressive tendencies?” Is he “suspicious?”

Then I remembered another pedestrian, Elijah McClain. On an August evening in 2019 he was walking in the dark, wearing a ski mask, and moving his arms in time to the music playing on his ear buds. Elijah was walking home from a convenience store after purchasing a bottle of ice tea for his brother, when someone called 911, saying he “looked sketchy.

Elijah was stopped by police. He told them he was walking home and that he had a right to walk home. From there, the interaction spiraled from “suspicious” to “criminal.” The officers tackled him and restrained him with a choke hold. Elijah said, “I am an introvert, please respect the boundaries that I am speaking. Leave me alone.” 3

This was not a plot from a dystopian novel.  What happened to Elijah is our reality. Elijah died as a result of his “interaction” with police – he committed no crime – he was walking home! 4
 
 
Good fiction, like The Pedestrian, always lead to new understandings. After my contemplative walk, I began to research pedestrian stops. Here are my two brief “take-aways”:

1. In the U.S. Supreme Court case Terry v. Ohio, the majority opinion upheld a police officer’s right to stop an individual on the street if the officer has a “reasonable suspicion” that the individual is engaged in criminal activity.

So … Is walking at night engaging in “criminal activity?” Is the mere fact that a pedestrian is perceived by an onlooker as “sketchy” reasonable suspicion to make a stop? Or is it some personal aspect – profession, attire, skin color, etc. -of the pedestrian that creates “reasonable suspicion?”

2. “While pedestrian stops and searches are arguably an important tool in any patrol officer’s toolbox, policing theories indicate that they could reduce crime but also threaten police-community relations.” 5
 
I support our police and know they have a tough job. They are not evaluated solely on the efficacy of their performance – how many arrests they make, or tickets they write, etc. But police are also evaluated on their fairness in procedures and in distribution of justice. Fairness AND the efficacy of police practices are equally important. 6
If police officers fail to take into account our perceptions of fairness and justice, - like the robotic police car did in The Pedestrian - they may no longer be seen as legitimate in our eyes. Fair, lawfully conducted pedestrian stops preserve and enhance their legitimacy.
The Pedestrian was written 70 years ago and continues to be relevant today as it prompts us to reflect on our current society. The Pedestrian highlights the dangerous and slippery slope of law enforcement’s response to “suspicious” pedestrians. Our police officers are not robots and they are the only ones who can ensure that pedestrian stops are conducted legally, justifiably, and respectfully. 

Thursday, April 22, 2021

Running and Beer

 
June 9, 2019, Dave’s account of the Chicago Beer 5K – This was a benefit 5K run/quarter mile walk at Grant’s Park, with samples from local breweries at the finish. Heather ran the 5K and I walked the quarter mile. After finishing my walk, with a dozen or so happy comrades (wimps), I walked back along the course to watch for Heather. I saw the lead runner missing a turn, so I redirected him. A race marshall following the lead runner on a bike asked me to continue directing runners at the turn. So I spent the next 30 minutes pointing and calling, ‘Go left along the ball fields’. You never know what fun you’ll experience! I felt like I really ‘earned’ the beer.- Dave Ketron 
Ahhh, nothing tastes better a than an ice-cold beer after a run! Running and beer seem to go hand-in-hand and there is even some evidence that avid runners tend to drink more beer than sedentary people. Plus, results from a national surveystrongly suggest that alcohol consumption and physical activity are positively correlated.” Even spectators acknowledge the running-beer connection as evidenced by the proliferation of “Beer ahead!” signs along a race course.
Brewers are cashing in on the connection between running and beer. Many breweries sponsor popular “beer runs” which provide participants a free beer at the finish. After the free beer, many runners purchase a second brew … or growler to take home. In fact, there are even beers specifically brewed for athletes like GoPlay IPA, Rec.League, and Sam Adams 26.2.
 
But does that post-run beer help you or hurt you?
Rehydration

Some historians even think beer gave us the crucial vitamins and nutrients – not to mention a source of purified water – to keep us healthy.” - William Bostwick 1

Today we have safe and readily available sources of drinking water. And while beer does have some nutrients (the hops, yeast, and grains in beer contribute carbohydrates, a small amount of B vitamins, and potassium), it also is a diuretic – the opposite of hydration. So what role does that after-run beer play in rehydration?

One study explored the beverage hydration index (BHI) of a 4% beer, water, coffee, sports drink (Powerade), and orange juice. Researchers found that beer had the same BHI as the sports drink and nearly the same as water. In other words, a beer won’t hydrate you as well as water, but it isn’t any worse than if you drank a sports drink. Another study found that moderate beer drinking PLUS water after running is not detrimental to hydration.

Bottom line: Drink some water BEFORE enjoying your post-run beer!
Muscle Recovery
High-mileage runners never smoke, but some have as many as three or four drinks a day. The evidence is mounting that two drinks a day may help an individual to live longer than one who drinks more or less.” - Dr. George Sheehan 2
 
The last thing you want to do after a long run or hard race is drink yourself into a stupor! Research has shown that getting drunk after exercise does not help and, in fact, hurts muscle recovery. In one study participants who drank 5 alcoholic drinks after exercise lost muscle strength while participants who drank 2 – 2 ½ or fewer drinks did not experience a loss of muscle strength. Another study of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) participants found that a moderate beer intake does not blunt the positive effect of 10-week HIIT on body composition.”
 
Bottom line: “MODERATE BEER INTAKE” - Drink in moderation – 1 to 2 beers! 
Nutrition

Recently I read The New Rules of Marathon and Half Marathon Nutrition by Matt Fitzgerald and I learned that beer is “okay” from a dietary standpoint. Naturally, he advocates a quality diet that avoids sweets and processed foods. But he also permits and even encourages runners to have one or two glasses of beer or wine a day. 3 - Be still my heart!

But you can’t refuel your body on beer alone! Walter George, an English distance runner in the late 1800’s, once said, My favorite diet was a glass of beer with some bread and cheese.”4  Follow Walter’s example and pair some food with your post-run beer. As mentioned earlier, beer contains carbohydrates, a small amount of B vitamins, and potassium. But it is not going to fulfill your nutritional needs so you should eat some “real” food. Most races offer bananas, granola bars, and, (if you are lucky a restaurant may be one of the race sponsors), a variety of free food. Take advantage of that free slice of pizza or veggie sub sandwich.

Bottom line: Eat some food with your beer.
Enjoy!

Enjoying a cold beer after a hard run or race should be relaxing not stupefying. So I try to avoid stouts and porters and any beer over 6% ABV (alcohol by volume). Goose Island’s So-Lo IPA is a refreshing 3% but when I want to “splurge” I go for Dogfish Head’s 60 Minute IPA (6%). With my first sip, I can feel my muscles soften and release as I congratulate myself on a run well done!

I feel the way about beer the way some people feel about coffee or chocolate. Rarely a day goes by when I don’t enjoy a beer. It is good to know that running followed by moderate beer drinking is not detrimental to hydration, muscle recovery, nor nutrition. So go for a run, and then enjoy a beer! 
1. Bostwick, William. Brewers Tale - a History of the World according to Beer. Ww Norton & Co, 2015, pp. x–xi.

2. Sheehan, Andrew. The Essential Sheehan : A Life Time of Running Wisdom from the Legendary Dr. George Sheehan. Emmaus, Pennsylvania, Rodale Books, 2013, pp. 80–81.

3. Fitzgerald, Matt. The New Rules of Marathon and Half-Marathon Nutrition : A Cutting-Edge Plan to Fuel Your Body beyond “the Wall.” Boston, Ma, Da Capo Press/Lifelong Books, 2013, p. 48.

4. Will-Weber, Mark. The Quotable Runner : Great Moments of Wisdom, Inspiration, Wrongheadedness, and Humor. Halcottsville, Ny, Breakaway Books, 2001, p. 67.

Friday, April 2, 2021

Running Against the Wind

 

Running into a 20 mile-per-hour wind is frustrating and seems like you are running in place! It's funny how when you are running with the wind at your back, life is wonderful and when you’re running against the wind, life seems...well, not-so-great.

This morning was one of those 20 mph days, so my first thought was “go out against the wind and come back with it.” My second thought was Bob Seger’s song, “Against the Wind.”
During an interview Bob Seger said that "Against the Wind" was inspired by his days as a high-school cross country runner. He described the song as "about trying to move ahead, keeping your sanity and integrity at the same time ... The people in that song have weathered the storm, and it's made them much better that they've been able to do it and maintain whatever relationship. To get through is a real victory.” 1 
 

Running against the wind” is aging, weathering life’s storms, moving forward, and winning personal battles. Of course, the first step in “running against the wind” is to simply try!

In the movie “OneFlew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” , Jack Nicholson’s character plans to rip a drinking fountain from the wall and use it to smash the barred windows to escape. One of the other patients says, “Don’t be stupid, you can’t do that.” To which Jack replies, “Yes I can, anything is possible.”

He strains and strains but the drinking fountain does not budge. The other patients tell him, “We told you that you couldn’t do it.”

Jack looks at them and replies, “At least I tried, you bastards.”

To me that summarizes what I think about “running against the wind.” You’ve got to make up your mind to try and then keep going!
In running, as in life, if you simply make up your mind to try, half the battle is won. Then what remains is to determine which way to run. Here are a few suggestions:

Accept the Wind: Running into the wind gives you a tremendous mental edge. Relax, and remind yourself the wind is making you a stronger runner. And remember, there is always wind resistance when running.

“Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change...

Run Against the Wind: Run against the wind and learn to work with it. That is, deliberately head into the wind on your way out and then turn around and use the wind to push you home. Use the wind to grow stronger. As you adapt to the demand, change your pace going out and push a little harder.

...courage to change the things I can...

Respect the Wind: There are days when you have the extra energy to run in strong headwinds, and then there are days when it may make more sense to head to a treadmill. On your low energy days, have a back up plan. 3

...and wisdom to know the difference...

...living one day at a time; enjoying one moment at a time; accepting hardships as the pathway to peace... be reasonably happy in this life…”4 even while running against the wind.

1. White, Timothy (May 1, 1980). "The Fire This Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 20, 2019.

2. Dean, Maury (2003). Rock 'n' Roll Gold Rush. Algora Publishing. p. 359. ISBN 087586208X.

3. https://www.runnersworld.com/training/a20794415/running-against-the-wind/

4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serenity_Prayer