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That is humbling, in a profound way. Sometimes the most diligent representation of the human will is about exercising judgment and restraint over the kind of "come hell or high water" attitude we Americans are famous for (see also: arrogance).
Yet, part of me also thinks: but you didn't achieve your goal. You set out for the top. And it didn't work out. Wasn't that supposed to be the destination?
When you reflect on your journey, are you somehow emotionally coercing yourself into changing the destination to mean "what I actually did" because you simply could not achieve the original goal?
Of course it's so easy for me to wonder about this from this nice chair at a table with my fingers poised over a keyboard that is hooked up to electricity, in a heated room that has four walls and a ceiling. And adequate oxygen. I have respect for the decisions of people that make bold choices and really try. It's what...
But there are those mountaintops out there. There are those distinct destinations. I still carry around that part of me, probably young and unwise, that thinks sure, the journey is the destination — but getting there is better.
There. There's that arrogance. But I'm confronting it because I've been thinking about setbacks recently, and how they show up and fit in my life and goals.
It's small stuff. I had the longest run of my training schedule last week, and I didn't complete it in full. About two-third of the way through, my lungs felt tight and hurt a little. Maybe it was residual smoke impacting my lungs from a quick trip to wildfire-hazy Seattle earlier that week, or maybe it was someone bur...
And now I have a head cold that I'm hoping doesn't head to my lungs. Ah, the old breathing bags. My Achilles heel. My lungs are the first to pick up on something wrong, and usually the first to get sick. My race is in two-and-a-half weeks.
These setbacks ain't no whiteout on the top of Everest. But this whole "journey is the destination" thing becomes comforting when the destination gets elusive. It challenges me to evaluate why I'm doing what I'm doing.
Is it for bragging rights? So I can say "I completed this run; I ran this race"?
Is it to challenge some internal sense of self worth? "I think I'm only good for THIS much but let's see if I can reach the next level?"
Is it simply for the satisfaction of working hard and completing a goal in full?
When I'm honest with myself, I realize that while I wish it was absolutely and purely about the last explanation — simple work and satisfaction — it's actually probably a combination of the three.
My pride is wrapped up in telling people I am going to do a thing, and then doing it. My ego is tempted into going all in to what that says about who I am as a human. And it simply feels worthy and good as a pursuit in and of itself.
In the end, I give the things I choose to do exactly what I can. I calculate sacrifices I'm willing to make, and those I am not. Sometimes I screw that calculus up; sometimes I get arrogant. But ultimately I don't have control over anything other than myself — and even then I have limits that only I can determine.
Ultimately I know the journey is the destination to be true, even if it challenges my more comfortable straightforward narrative about what achievement looks like.
I'm adapting, slowly. I'm growing in my own way, even if it's in a different way than I'm used to.
I can only imagine what it must be like to be on the shoulder of some great mountain, with all of the hope and hard work embodied in that. I'm experiencing a very mini-version of that and making decisions accordingly.
But even though the lesson here is slowly sinking in, don't expect to see any inspirational posters on my wall. I'll just keep on with my muttering, and my running when I am able.
ST. CLOUD -- It was another great year for Catholic Charities annual Mardi Gras event last month.
The event raised more than $300,000 that will go towards helping the hungry and homeless in Central Minnesota. This was the 36th year for the annual fundraiser.
If you were not able to make the event but still want to help the hungry and homeless, Catholic Charities is gearing up for their Minnesota Food Share campaign starting in March.
Listen to what the medical experts say: It's not too late to get a flu shot this year.
Flu activity typically peaks sometime between late January and late February, said Josh Meyerson, medical director for the Health Department of Northwest Michigan.
"It looks like we'll see that pattern again this flu season," he said in a recent News-Review story.
Northern Michigan Regional Hospital in Petoskey, has reported at least five confirmed cases of the flu. Two patients have been hospitalized with the flu, said Dr. Karen DenBeston, one of three infectious disease doctors at the hospital.
Flu shots are still available at clinics and drug stores around Northern Michigan. The Health Department of Northwest Michigan also offers the flu vaccine. The cost is $15 and Medicare and Medicaid are accepted and no one is turned away for not being able to pay.
-- Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
Influenza symptoms include, but are not limited to: fever, headache, fatigue, cough, sore throat, congestion, body aches/chills diarrhea and vomiting.
Influenza viruses are spread when someone who is infected coughs, sneezes or speaks, which results in releasing the virus into the air for other people to breathe. The flu virus can also be spread when a person touches a surface with flu viruses on it and then touches his or her nose or mouth.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, on average, 5 to 20 percent of people in the United States will get the flu each year and more than 200,000 people will be hospitalized with seasonal flu-related complications.
"The best thing I can tell people is to get your flu shot if you haven't already, wash your hands, and definitely stay home from work or school if you are sick," DenBeston said.
Do yourself and the rest of your community a favor: Get the shot. For more information, call (800) 432-4121.
HELSINKI (AP) — Rescue workers off Norway’s western coast rushed to evacuate 1,300 passengers and crew from a disabled cruise ship by helicopter on Saturday, winching them one-by-one to safety as heaving waves tossed the ship from side to side and high winds battered the operation.
The Viking Sky issued a mayday call as bad weather hit and engine problems caused it to start drifting toward the rocky shore, the Norwegian newspaper VG reported. Police in the western county of Moere og Romsdal said the crew, fearing the ship would run aground, managed to anchor in Hustadvika Bay, between the Norwegi...
Rescue teams with helicopters and boats were sent to evacuate the cruise ship under extremely difficult circumstances, including gusts up to 38 knots (43 mph) and waves over 8 meters (26 feet). The area is known for its rough, frigid waters.
The majority of the cruise ship passengers were reportedly British and American tourists. About 180 have been evacuated, according to rescue officials.
Norwegian public broadcaster NRK said the Viking Sky’s evacuation was a slow and dangerous process, as passengers needed to be hoisted one-by-one from the cruise ship to the five available helicopters.
“I was afraid. I’ve never experienced anything so scary,” Janet Jacob, among the first group of passengers evacuated to the nearby town of Molde, told NRK.
“It was just chaos. The helicopter ride from the ship to shore I would rather not think about. It wasn’t nice,” Curry told the broadcaster.
Rescuers were prioritizing the nine crew members aboard the Hagland Captain cargo ship, said Per Fjeld of the Joint Rescue Center Southern Norway. He later said all nine crewmembers had been rescued.
Norwegian authorities said late Saturday that the evacuation of the Viking Sky would proceed all through the night into Sunday.
Officials said late Saturday night that three of the ship’s four engines had been restarted and it was moving southwest – but not toward shore.
Facebook reported a major security breach in which 50 million user accounts were accessed by unknown attackers.
The stolen data allowed the attackers to "seize control" of those user accounts, Facebook said. Facebook has logged out the 50 million breached users — plus another 40 million who were vulnerable to the attack. Users don't need to change their Facebook passwords, it said.
Facebook says it doesn't know who is behind the attacks or where they're based. In a call with reporters on Friday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that the company doesn't know yet if any of the accounts that were hacked were misused.
The hack is the latest setback for Facebook during a tumultuous year of security problems and privacy issues . So far, though, none have significantly shaken the confidence of the company's 2 billion global users.
This latest hack involved a bug in Facebook's "View As" feature, the company said in a blog post . That feature lets people see how their profiles appear to others. The attackers used that vulnerability to steal "access tokens," which are digital keys that Facebook uses to keep people logged in. Possession of those tok...
Specifically, from the "View As" feature, a bug somehow allowed a video uploader to appear for sending "happy birthday" messages, said Guy Rosen, Facebook's vice president of product management. Another bug then created an access token that made Facebook think the hacker had legitimately signed in with the account bein...
"We haven't yet been able to determine if there was specific targeting" of particular accounts, Rosen said in a call with reporters. "It does seem broad. And we don't yet know who was behind these attacks and where they might be based."
"The bigger concern (and something we don't know yet) is whether third party applications were impacted," Williams said in a text exchange. He noted that the company's "Facebook Login" feature lets users log into other apps and websites with their Facebook credentials. "These access tokens that were stolen show when a ...
News broke early this year that a data analytics firm once employed by the Trump campaign, Cambridge Analytica, had improperly gained access to personal data from millions of user profiles. Then a congressional investigation found that agents from Russia and other countries have been posting fake political ads since at...
The Facebook bug is reminiscent of a much larger attack on Yahoo in 2013 in which attackers compromised 3 billion accounts — enough for half of the world's entire population. In the case of Yahoo, information stolen included names, email addresses, phone numbers, birthdates and security questions and answers.
Ed Mierzwinski, the senior director of consumer advocacy group U.S. PIRG, said the breach was "very troubling."
"It's yet another warning that Congress must not enact any national data security or data breach legislation that weakens current state privacy laws, pre-empts the rights of states to pass new laws that protect their consumers better, or denies their attorneys general rights to investigate violations of or enforce thos...
Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter said "the most important point is that we found out from them," meaning Facebook, as opposed to a third party.
"As a user, I want Facebook to proactively protect my data and let me know when it's compromised," he said. "Shareholders should ultimately approve of Facebook's handling of the issue."
Dez Bryant wants to retire as a Dallas Cowboy but it’s going to cost Jerry Jones big bucks, the kind of scratch that’s normally reserved for quarterbacks and offensive tackles these days.
Jerruh says the organization is “all in” on signing Bryant but it remains to be seen if he will break big bread of go the route of other owners who have placed the franchise tag on players and eventually allowed them to walk.
Jones shouldn’t go there. He should go ahead and give Bryant something in the neighborhood of Calvin Johnson money. In 2012, Megatron signed a seven-year extension worth $132 million with $60 million guaranteed with the Lions. Bryant might not be the complete package on and off the field like Johnson, but his behavior ...
Is it a gamble to commit that kind of money to Bryant? It is if you think Bryant will encounter the off-the-field issues that dogged him earlier in his career. The guess here is the upside is too good to pass up and that Dez has grown up. It’s time to sew up Dez for the rest of his prime earning years.
Jones displayed huge loyalty to 34-year-old QB Tony Romo, who received a $108 million then he should find a way to do something similar for the 26-year-old Bryant, who is already on the short list of elite receivers in football. Have you seen his numbers this season (56 catches, 793 yards, 8 TDs)?
You take care of your heavy lifters in this league so Jerry should take the advice of my man Teddy KGB.
Much-changed Nutbrook paid the price for the unavailability of several key players when sliding to a 27-run defeat away to fellow mid-tablers Duffield in Division One of the Derbyshire County League.
Skipper Steven Sanderson (1-28) won the toss and after asking the visitors to bat first, things looked like materialising nicely when he himself bagged a wicket in the third over, having opener David Whiteley caught by Harry Thoman for 13.
But Duffield steadily recovered and ended up posting a fair total of 202-6 in their allotted 50 overs, thanks largely to a half-century by number three batsman Paul Bakel.
Bakel stroked seven boundaries in making exactly 50, and shared profitable stands of 37 with Chris Sheldon (20, four fours) and 52 with skipper Thomas Roe (34, one six and four fours).
Sheldon was dismissed with the third ball bowled by Nutbrook’s first-change bowler, Kas Hussain (1-38), but it needed a run out to remove Bakel, with the total on 102 in the 23rd over.
The visitors battled back, courtesy of Harry Duckles, who took 2-32 in a terrific 15-over spell, including the scalp of Roe. But although their run-rate suffered, Duffield kept their heads above water with a sixth-wicket stand worth 67 between Peter Jenkins, who hit 42 (three fours), and Daniel Clarke, who finished on ...
The Brook’s reply got off to its customary poor start when Sanderson fell in the fourth over for just five. He was the first of four victims for Joe Woznicka-Wells (4-49 in 13 overs), who proved troublesome all innings.
Things went from bad to worse as three more batsmen departed to leave the away side rocking on 26-4. And although opener Mohammad Ikram dug in for a 74-ball 31 (one six and three fours), when he was caught, Nutbrook looked to be heading for inevitable defeat on 71-6.
To their credit, they refused to buckle and after a gritty 14 from George Magdelano, determined defiance came from Richard Henshaw and Hussain, who kept the victory flame flickering.
Henshaw made 38, including three boundaries, while Hussain added 31, including one six and three fours, and further admirable resilience was shown by young tailender Joe Taylor, who scored 17 in his first senior game.
At 175-8, with Henshaw and Taylor at the crease, Nutbrook still had a squeak. But both fell without the addition of any further runs and Duffield were able to grab the spoils with one over remaining.
This Saturday, The Brook are at home to third-placed Alvaston and Boulton.
Hopes for a white Christmas in the foothills of Allegany County and in the Canisteo Valley of Steuben County are dissolving as fast as a mini-marshmallow in a cup of hot cocoa.
The prospect of some snow on the ground early next week appears iffy, according to the most up-to-date forecasts, but betting on a big snowfall on the holiday is never a sure thing, as shown by snowfall averages over time in the region for Dec. 24-25.
Jim Mitchell, a Buffalo-based meteorologist with the National Weather Service, understands that many people are dreaming of a white Christmas. In an interview with The Spectator earlier this week, Mitchell was prepared for questions about the picture-perfect amount of holiday snow.
“Officially, a white Christmas is supposed to be one inch or greater,” Mitchell said.
With Christmas still several days away, early forecasts call for a chance of the white stuff being around for Santa’s big day, but not before a big melt off now through Friday.
“We’ve got a big warmup — we’ve got a (standing snow) wipeout warmup coming — right around Thursday night through the Friday timeframe,” he said.
Mitchell outlined what to expect in the Southern Tier in the days leading up to Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
“We’ve got a big low coming up. It looks like it’s going to move right over us,” Mitchell said. “The models are pretty much in agreement that it’s going to move right over Western New York somewhere over New York state, maybe just west of us, maybe just east of us, or maybe just over us.
“Thursday night we won’t drop below freezing. We’ll stay well above freezing for Thursday night, so that melt just continues. It makes a big difference if you stay above freezing overnight because that melt just continues to go on.
After the warmup, more seasonal conditions are expected to return to the region.
“We might have maybe a little lake effect snow on Saturday into Sunday, but lake-enhanced is not really as big of a deal (in the Southern Tier),” Mitchell said. “It looks like you could get some. There is some synoptic moisture there, especially on the higher elevations in Hartsville and places like that. They’re prett...
Looking over some past weather data, it seems that the Christmas Eve-Christmas Day snowfall history in local towns bounces between extremes.
According to Weather Service Coop reports that track daily snowfall, Wellsville averages a half-inch of snow on Christmas Eve and slightly less, 0.4 inches, on Christmas Day. In 2017, Wellsville received no snowfall on Christmas Eve.
Wellsville’s record Christmas Eve snowfall occurred in 1999 when three inches fell.
Christmas Day 1978 was one for the record books in Wellsville. Nearly 18 inches of snowfall was recorded, the snowiest Christmas for the town by far, or at least the snowiest for which the Weather Service has totals.
Alfred’s Christmas Eve average is 0.6 inches of snow. The town’s record snowfall for Christmas Eve is 6.3 inches in 1962. The snow depth on that day was 19 inches.
Christmas Eve 2017 in Alfred saw 0.7 inches of snowfall, just above the Christmas Eve average of 0.6 inches.
Last year on Christmas, Alfred received 1.2 inches of snow, more than the average of 0.7 inches on Christmas Day.
The Christmas day record for Alfred occurred in 1978 when 29 inches of snow fell on the college town.
Angelica on Christmas Eve averages a half-inch of snow. Two inches of snow fell on Christmas Eve last year.
On Christmas Day, the average is 0.6 inch, but 2.5 inches fell last year.
At Hornell’s Almond Dam site, a half inch of snow is the average for Christmas Eve. Last year 2 inches of snow fell.
In Hornell, 0.5 inches is also the average for Christmas Day. One inch fell last year.
The record Christmas Day snowfall for Hornell was 26 inches in 1978.
This holiday’s forecast might not indicate a white Christmas, but there is no reason not to brew a cup of hot cocoa with a generous handful of mini-marshmallows.

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