I’ve been on a strict Paleo AIP diet for about 200 days which is quite a bit longer than when I did it in 2015. The diet is meant to reduce any ingredients that could increase gut inflamation and short description below:

“By removing the foods that contribute to a leaky gut, gut dysbiosis (the wrong numbers, relative quantities, or types of microorganisms typically growing in the wrong locations in your gut), hormone imbalance, and that stimulate inflammation and the immune system, you can create the opportunity for your body to heal.”

For anyone who lives on this diet out there on the internets I salute you. This is a tough diet and takes some getting used too. I’ve gotten to a point I enjoy it, and although it takes some prep I’ve gotten pretty efficient. I bought a HUGE 15.5 Quart Le Creuset Dutch oven and I cook most of meals in it. I can load this thing up on a Sunday, and eat off it for a good 4 to 5 days. It was expensive as hell but well worth it given how delicious food tastes as opposed to a slow cooker. I even cooked the Thanksgiving turkey in it :).

The hardest bit is the loss of eating out with other people. It is weirdly “un-human” to go out to eat, but not be able to eat or drink with other people. It makes you feel very weird, like you are not human. It is hard to describe but can be weirdly intense and unsettling.

I miss pizza the most.

You want to see a scary map that illustrates one of the primary reasons behind Trump? (Click to enlarge or interactive version here and full report here.)

I’d like to see this in terms of %, as maybe the total number of people in those segments changed heavily. But, it is still a pretty scary graph. I am not seeing a lot of hope for people without a college degree. Unions are gone, and what is left is lower paying service jobs. Hopefully we get a federal minimum wage to counter that and bring it up to $15 to $20 an hour (and index for inflation so this stops being a thing we have to do every x years).

Some interesting notes:

Workers with at least some post secondary education are now ~66% of the total employment.

Workers with a bachelor’s degree earn 57% of all wages, but make up only 23% of the workforce.

Of the 11.6 million jobs created post recession 11.5 million went to workers with at least some college education.

What happens in 4 years when it becomes apparent those jobs are not coming back? How are people without a college degree and stuck in a low paying job or no job going to react?

I am really hoping the Democrats get their shit together and offer a “new deal” style program to build a new social safety net, and fill the hole that the demise of unions has left. I don’t like unions, but someone strong needs to be watching out for workers (maternity/paternity, childcare, living wage, paid vacation, etc).

What happens as more people can’t afford a college education? Or go into crazy debt to get one?

The student debt load is insane, and it is decimating young people’s economic future. Trump wants to stop the federal loan program for college and make it 100% private. Which might break the system, and maybe that is good in the short term, but in the long term the USA needs more graduates to stay competitive and help people move up the economic ladder.

I’d love to see debt forgiveness for everyone, or at least the same interest rate banks pay since this is an even better investment in our country’s future. I’d like to see public funding return to state schools and making a 4 year degree free, or at least cheap enough that everyone can afford it ($2,500 to $5,000 a year + indexed for inflation). I’d love to see more apprenticeship / skill based programs as well, because not everyone needs to go to college and do the fluff. Teaching more programming in college, robotics, and other type of growth areas would be nice. The Australian system of capping loan payments based on income is also a decent idea. But, if college is so expensive it just means you are taking ~8% or so on from your population forever for something that could be run cheaper. Although I like it if you don’t pay anything if you make $50k or less.

In 2006 I headed to Essex in the UK to meetup with my brother who was studying there for the year. My brother still had finals so I took a short trip to Fez Morocco via a cheap Ryanair flight. And, after that we headed to San Sebastian near Pamplona to run with the bulls. We finished the summer trip in Dublin visiting Rose and exploring. It was a trip I had wanted to take for a long time and due to some hard work and luck I was able to do it and work remote. Pretty cool time :).

San Sebastian is an amazing city, and I hope to go back one day. The park with the fort overlooking the city was where I spent a lot of my time. My brother preferred the very crowded beach.

My brother was rocking some amazing hair :)

And here I am 10 years ago :)

And, finally some running with the bulls! I wish I had some more pics but for some reason I don’t have any of Nick. Running with the bulls was an adrenalin rush, and a bit of a shit show. It is an awesome feeling to be running in a crowd that big, jumping over shit, and jammed up in a door unable to move with a host of bodies pressed together.

And, finally a few from Fez. I wanted to visit a traditional Moroccan house as I was tempted to try to build one. I was going to go to Beirut but I am glad I skipped it for Fez as it turned into a REALLY bad time to visit. The people who hosted me were incredibly kind and cool. The lady was a former investment banker or similar and put a ton of money into totally restoring this house, and the dude was a spanish guitar player.

Are incredibly hard :).

Today I hit 252 days of consecutive meditation, and 322 of consecutive morning rehab workouts. Getting to that point was HARD, but it has gotten easier. I recently added 4 new ones, one around a certain number of big workouts weekly, one around a certain amount of back strength training weekly, and two around specific hourly goals for the type of work I love. I use the Streaks app to track it.

Previous posts were Meditation Is Fucking Hard and 100 Days of Meditation.

Man I miss Chappelle. Straight to the point.

And John Oliver.

FIGHT.

It has been a difficult week.

I am still disgusted that my fellow Americans elected this piece of shit human being. I am not sure that will go away, and I am not sure it should. I am trying to be optimistic :).

5 Attempts at Trump Optimism…

1. American history is full of terrible things we have done. So far the republic has survived. I just hope doesn’t become the #1 terrible thing we have ever done (which is a pretty high bar).

2. Trump has written the narrative that the Republican party is one of racism, misogyny, bigotry, xenophobia, and homophobia. That is going to be burned into a lot of young voters and minority voters. Demographics matter.

3. Trump’s base is now waiting for the crazy things he promised. Our system doesn’t move fast, and I am curious how they handle disappointment and moderation (if he shows it). Bring the popcorn. And, watch for the 2018 election to see who shows up.

4. In 2020 we have a census and then redraw congressional districts. As long as the democratic party wins big in 2018 and 2020 they could eliminate political gerrymandering. Both Republicans and Democrats are guilty and fixing it would be a MASSIVE leap forward in our democracy. Why? Because Congress would have to actually compete to be re elected (we need more competition in elections). I hope Obama is entirely focused on fixing gerrymandering after his vacation. Hopefully in conjunction with a conservative leader, maybe President Bush.

5. Some of what Trump is pitching in his first 100 days is not bad. Specifically some of the anti lobbying items (although they are pretty lightweight in years). We shall see what he actually stands for since his campaign was devoid of any coherent written or spoken policies.

What am I most worried about?

#1 – Climate Change

Trump doesn’t believe in climate change. His policies could accelerate global warming past the safe boundaries for the entire world (yes he could literally destroy the world for everyone by 2100). Plus give China the lead in renewables.

#2 – Supreme Court

Trump’s judges are crazy. I wish they were just conservative judges, but they are crazy judges. Some of them think you can have a State religion, just not federal. Meaning that Alabama might become a Protestant Christian state. Not to mention all the minority rights items they could roll back for 50+ years. Want to legally discriminate against someone on the basis of x, y or z? Well now you can with Trump’s judges…

#3 – Trump Can’t Read

I am pretty sure Trump can’t read. I am super serious.

What am I going to do?

Be optimistic.

Engage with ALL my fellow Americans.

FIGHT for a better America.

And pray pray pray. :)

PS. Great post on feedback to sum this up:

“Your (rational) Facebook friends are not calling you a bigot, but are disappointed in you for thinking bigotry is acceptable. By voting for Donald Trump, you told your friends that you think the things he says and does are acceptable. Your friends are upset because, by process of deduction, they’ve concluded that you do not find anything disqualifying about a lot of the objectively terrible things that have been said and done by your candidate. If you thought these behaviors were inappropriate, you would have taken a stand, like those on this extensive list of Republican leaders against Trump, and not given your vote to the man who demonstrated them. Since you did, in fact, cast your vote for Donald Trump, it shows them that you did not find anything wrong with his behavior, and that realization hurts their feelings. For them this is not just “difference of opinion,” but an endorsement of behaviors that degrade them as people.”

Wow. I have no words America.

You voted a man into the most powerful office in the world who I wouldn’t trust to babysit a rock.

The Monocle summed it up:

“But this is what we know: tens of millions of Americans were prepared to vote for a misogynist who boasted of committing sexual assault; for a race-baiting demagogue who brazenly courted the white nationalist vote and consistently targeted ethnic minorities; for a would-be autocrat who vowed to throw his opponent in jail. Those who could have stood up to Donald Trump failed in their duty, from former president George W Bush, who stayed silent and cowardly let it be known that he’d left his ballot blank, to House Speaker Paul Ryan, who rightly accused his candidate of “textbook” racism and said he was “sickened” by his sexism yet voted for him all the same. The morning after the night before, America no longer appears to the rest of the world as the shining city on the hill. Regardless of the final result, this is a dark moment for us all.”

*Change* at at any cost won last night.

When Bush won I was sad, but not distraught. I am utterly distraught now. America’s global leadership just took a huge hit, America’s values just took a huge hit. Racism, misogyny, bigotry, xenophobia, and homophobia won last night. Fear won last night.

I was never afraid that Romney or Bush or Rubio would destroy the world economy, or trash the value and standing of the US dollar. I am with Trump.

I was never afraid that Romney or Bush or Rubio would destroy the alliances we’ve built, or destroy what the American dream stands for. I am with Trump.

Just like the 2000 election the will of the majority was overwritten by the electoral college. Clinton won the majority of votes, but Trump becomes President.

2 steps forward 1 big step back.

What does the next 4 years bring? We get to see how strong our democracy is, and I hope that one man can’t destroy it all.

We are in a war over what America “is”, and fear just won round 1. Round 2 is up to all of us to fight for. I plan to fight!

PS, George Takei said it best:

I am addressing this to all who voted to defeat Donald Trump and what he represents. We may not have prevailed, but we must not despair.

Many of you are, like me, in a state of shock. This does not feel like the America you love and honor. We are in unchartered waters. In times like these we must reaffirm the values we cherish and have fought for: equality, justice, the care of our planet. We must stand up defiantly to any dark or divisive acts, and look out for the most vulnerable among us. It is more important than ever.

Within our hearts we know the society we wish to live in. No one can take that vision from us. We are each of us keepers of that promise. This country has seen wars and grave injustices, slavery and even civil war in its past. Yet we found our way through.

Hold your loved ones close. Tell them that it is in times of sadness and in the toughest of days where we often find our true mettle.

PS. Good writeup here too.