Tag: Life

Get Ready For the Workout of Your Life – Everything You Need to Know For the Ultimate Workout Part 2

April 27, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Dynamic Vibro-Stretch

Stretching Dynamics

There are two general types of stretching: static (no motion) and dynamic (with motion). Static stretching basically consists of stretching a muscle as far as possible and then holding that position.

Passive stretching involves the use of some external force (body part, partner assistance or apparatus) to bring the joint through its range of motion (ROM). Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) stretching is often a combination of passive stretching and isometric or static contractions.

Ballistic stretching uses momentum rather than muscular control to increase ROM, whereas dynamic stretching involves controlled movements — no bouncing or jerking.

Dynamic stretching as part of a warm-up can be useful to decrease muscle damage and improve performance. Research has shown that an active warm-up or 100 concentric contractions performed just before an eccentric exercise bout can decrease muscle damage.

Also, warm-ups involving calisthenics increase performance. A warm-up consisting of a ten-exercise bodyweight circuit (where each exercise is performed for only 20 seconds) produced a higher vertical jump compared to a warm-up with static or PNF stretching. And as you know, the vertical jump is practical and a good index of leg power.

Church states: “In designing warm-up routines for activities involving movements that require the generation of large amounts of power, such as sprinting and jumping, one should minimize the amount of stretching performed before the activity. Instead, one should rely on a warm-up consisting of easy movements that gradually move the joints to the appropriate ROM for that activity. Exercises designed to enhance flexibility, such as vigorous static or PNF stretching, should not be performed before practice or competition but rather following it so that flexibility can be enhanced without compromising performance.”

When it comes to stretching during warm-ups, you want to respect the following rules:

  1. Dynamic stretching is useful to simulate the velocity of your training (unless, of course, you plan to only perform isometrics, then by all means perform static stretching) and will help rev up the nervous system in preparation for activity. Just remember to use the pendulum method by gradually increasing speed and range with each repetition.
  2. PNF stretching is particularly useful to correct a muscle imbalance. For instance, if you plan to start with good mornings and your torso tends to pull to the left as you descend and/or your right hamstrings feel tight compared to your left, perform some PNF stretching on the right hamstrings to even things out.
  3. Only use static stretching if you have some really tight muscles that, in essence, need to be turned off. The law of facilitation is often recited when referring to these tonic muscles as they tend to rob the neural message during movement.

For instance, if you experience rounded shoulders and you plan to work your back, it may be a good idea to stretch out your chest to liberate greater ROM when rowing or pulling. Since static stretching will disrupt the optimum contraction length and temporarily weaken the fibers, it would be wise to use this form of stretching on antagonistic muscles (such as the chest) prior to working the agonists (which is the back in this case).

In general, static stretching prior to weight training is not recommended. There are certain applications for its use, but static stretching will ultimately sedate your nervous system and make you weaker: two things you don’t want before pushing some serious weight. Dynamic stretching will do the opposite: rev up the nervous system and increase strength!

Furthermore, as outlined in the Sports Performance Bulletin (Jan. 2005), additional benefits of a dynamic warm-up include saving time and freeing up more specific training hours as well as being better prepared mentally:

Training five times a week for 250 days a year, warming up and stretching traditionally for 30 minutes at a time, takes up 125 hours. That is virtually five days of continuous training time that could be put to more specific use. You’ll also be better prepared mentally. A slow warm-up with a sustained period of stretching can switch your mind away from the dynamics of the task ahead. This may be particularly detrimental before a race or competition, when you’ll want to maintain your focus and stay sharp. More subtly, your neuromuscular system may not be optimally prepared if you pursue a slower style of warm-up with lots of stretching. The more focused (dynamic) approach will heighten the ability of your muscles to contract.

Perform the following routine before every workout. It takes 10-15 seconds of contractions to raise the body temperature by 1 degree Celsius and a proper warm-up should raise body temperature by 1-2 degrees Celsius or 1.4-2.8 degrees Fahrenheit to cause sweating; therefore, 5-10 reps per movement is all you need.

When performing dynamic stretches, start slow and shallow and gradually increase speed and rage with each repetition.

Dynamic Stretching Routine

1. Prisoner Squat

2. Prisoner Split Squat

3. Toe Touches

4. Waiter’s Bow

5. Side Bends

6. Trunk Twists

7. Arms Vertical

8. Arms Vertical Alternating

9. PNF Pattern

10. Arms Horizontal

11. Arm Circles

12. Shoulder Shrugs

13. Head Tilt

14. Head Rotation

15. Wrist Flexion/Extension

16. Wrist Circles

Vibrational Training

Another excellent method to rev up the nervous system involves vibrational training. I had a chance to try the Nemes unit a few years ago. A simple 30 second circuit on this machine and I was wired afterward. Some of the benefits of vibration therapy include:

  • Increased muscle strength, particularly explosive fast-twitch muscle performance
  • Increased flexibility and range of motion
  • Reduced joint and ligament stress and reduced potential for joint and ligament injury
  • Enhanced blood circulation
  • Positive stimulation of the neurological system
  • Increased capability for burning body fat
  • Secretion of endorphin hormones, such as serotonin, as well as growth hormone and Testosterone, and neurotransmitter response
  • Pain suppression

If you’re still not convinced, check out this excerpt from Jordan et al.:

The effects of vibration on the human body have been documented for many years. Recently, the use of vibration for improving the training regimes of athletes has been investigated. Vibration has been used during strength-training movements such as elbow flexion, and vibration has also been applied to the entire body by having subjects stand on vibration platforms.

Exposure to whole-body vibration has also resulted in a significant improvement in power output in the postvibratory period and has been demonstrated to induce significant changes in the resting hormonal profiles of men.

In addition to the potential training effects of vibration, the improvement in power output that is observed in the postvibratory period may also lead to better warm-up protocols for athletes competing in sporting events that require high amounts of power output. These observations provide the possibility of new and improved methods of augmenting the training and performance of athletes through the use vibration training.

Hmm, I wonder if that would be useful for a warm-up?

Now, I know there are some reports in the literature that indicate no ergogenic effect from vibrational training pre-exercise. For every study that shows a positive, you’ll find one that shows a negative, but not in this case. The balance is tipping far toward the benefit side pre-exercise. This trend applies to static stretching as well. Take for example the most recent edition of the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research (Vol. 22, No. 1, 2008), there were three research papers dealing with various effects of static stretching and all three were unanimous with their results.

Holt and Lambourne, 2008 – Static stretching negates the benefits from a general warm-up when performed immediately before a vertical jump test.

Winchester et al., 2008 – Performing a static stretch protocol following a dynamic warm-up will inhibit sprint performance.

Bazett-Jones et al., 2008 – Six weeks of a static hamstring stretching protocol (i.e. 4 reps x 45 secs. x 4 days/week) did not improve knee range of motion or sprint and vertical jump performances. Chronic static stretching use is questionable and has neither a positive or negative impact on athletic performance. It should be restricted to post workout/practice.

Bottom line: if you have access to a vibrational training machine, try it out. There’s sufficient evidence to indicate that it will work, but you’ll never know unless you try it for yourself. The biggest issue with these machines, though, is cost. In the past, I just could not justify thousands of dollars for such a small application. I’m happy to say that prices have come down considerably. For instance, Soloflex now offers a whole body vibration platform for only $395. This is the machine that I own, and I’ve never had any problems with it.

Ultimate Workout Tip #5

Perform a dynamic stretching routine before every workout. To increase the effectiveness, try conducting the circuit on a vibrational platform. Remember to use the pendulum method and 10 reps or less per movement is all you need.

Set Your Body

Neck Bridge

Activating the long cervical extensors can help reposition C5 and C6, two vertebrae in your neck which enervate the biceps. This will increase curling and pulling strength. In fact, it may increase biceps strength by as much as 10% according to Poliquin, so try this technique just before back and biceps exercises.

Sit on a Swiss ball. Walk forward until only the back of your head is supported on the ball. Keep the hips up and make sure to accentuate the rib cage. Now try to hold that position for up to a minute. You may not reach that duration the first time; just work up to it gradually over sessions.

To make the exercise easier, lean the back of the head against a wall. Use a rolled up towel or pillow for comfort. To make the exercise more difficult, try it on the Swiss ball but hold a plate or dumbbell on the chest to increase resistance.

Holding a plate on the chest will make the exercise more difficult. Do this only after you’ve accomplished a full 60 second hold with your bodyweight only.

It is very important that you perform the neck bridge before upper body training only – never before lower body training. Shortening the upper neck muscles can actually impair lower body flexibility; whereas, releasing tension in the suboccipital region of the head can lengthen hamstrings and increase hip range of motion.


Researchers used PNF (or active resistance) stretching to examine the effect of upper neck muscles on hip joint range of motion. Stretching the hamstrings caused 9% increase in hip extension range of motion as measured with the passive ‘straight leg raise’ (SLR) maneuver. Yet stretching the small suboccipital muscles (which connect the occiput with the upper two vertebrae) resulted in almost twice as much (13%) increase of hamstring length as measured with the same SLR test.

The explanation for this extraordinary finding has probably more to do with the neurological importance of the suboccipital muscles. These small muscles have the highest density of muscles spindles in the whole body (and apparently on the whole planet!) and have a major sensory function for antigravity organization. Via the so called ‘Tonic Neck Reflex’ (which we share with most other mammals) an extension of these muscles tends to trigger a tonus decrease of the hip joint extensors.

My suggested conclusion for body workers and movement therapists: if a client shortens the upper neck, his hamstrings will stay short no matter how much he wants to stretch or lengthen them. Whereas if he lowers the tonus of these upper neck muscles (either passively via myofascial manipulation or via active ideokinetic movement facilitation) lengthening the hamstrings and increasing hip flexion range of motion will be much easier.

This fits also with a verbal report I heard from Hubert Godard about an interesting research in Italy: runners on a treadmill would unconsciously increase their running speed when a bioelectrical device on their neck lowered the tonus of the upper neck muscles. Whereas increasing the tonus of these muscles made them slow down their speed, although they were not aware of this and perceived their speed as constant. So a stiff occiput-neck connection will tend to ‘put a break’ into the legs via shortening of the hamstrings, and a long and loose occiput-neck connection will take ‘the break out’ by lengthening the midrange of hamstring length and will make the legs swing much faster and easier. – Robert Schleip

Set The Scapula

Performing behind-the-neck pulldowns with a tube or band is a great way to counter the ever-so-popular scapular elevation that many people experience. It’s excellent for scapular depression and is great prior to upper body training to help set the scapula and save your shoulders from unnecessary wear and tear while increasing strength.

It’s pretty easy to perform. While holding on to a tube or band with your arms extended overhead, simply perform a pulldown motion behind the neck. Try to pull the elastic apart as you pull it down. Hold the bottom contraction for 5-10 seconds and perform 10-12 reps. Start at 5 second holds for 10 reps and work your way up to 10 second holds for 12 reps over successive workouts.

Set The Hips

Setting the hips prior to lower body work can definitely improve performance. Ever notice someone’s knees dipping inward during a squat? You should have; it’s quite common! According to strength and conditioning coach, Mike Robertson, exercises that strengthen and develop the gluteals are required to correct this condition. For instance, light squats with a mini-band placed around the thighs, just above the knees, is a great option as it teaches you to recruit the gluteals while squatting. Start off with just your bodyweight and focus on hinging the knees outward throughout the movement. One set of 15-20 reps before training is all you need.

Mini-band walks are another option. Simply double wrap a mini band around your ankles and start walking. Make sure your toes are turned out slightly and the core is braced throughout. Here, 15-20 strides should do the trick just make sure to stay tight and tall, and concentrate on the glutes throughout the movement.

Finally, glute bridges work quite nicely as well. Like the behind the neck pulldowns, 10-12 reps of 5-10 second holds will do.

Ultimate Workout Tip #6

To improve posture and ultimately performance, set the body with neck bridges and behind the neck tube pulldowns prior to upper body training, and use either band squats, band walks, or glute bridges before lower body training.

Play With The Nervous System

Overshoot The Load

An effective warm-up method involves utilizing postactivation (aka post- tetanic facilitation/potentiation). By gradually ramping up your low rep warm-up sets beyond your working weight, it will increase strength for your work sets. There are different ways to really tap into those high-threshold fibers such as performing eccentrics or heavy supports with loads that are greater than your working weight. Another way to play with your nervous system is to add chains to the bar, which will naturally slow down the concentric speed (although the intent must always be fast). Then remove the chains for your work sets and you’ll go through the roof!

Oversize Grips

Want to trick your body even further and lift even more weight? Do your warm-up sets with oversize grips then perform your work sets with regular handles and watch your strength soar! The TylerGrip is a great tool for this purpose.

Plyometrics

Plyometrics can be very useful during a warm-up, but be careful. They place a tremendous amount of stress on the nervous system, and if you do too much prior to training, it will kill performance. On the other hand, if you do just the right amount, it can potentiate your strength! In general, though, plyometrics are best reserved for athletes. Various jumps, push-ups and medicine ball throws can be used, but make sure to perform no more than 5 repetitions per set.

Ultimate Workout Tip #7

Depending on your level, there are several neural tricks to improve strength and performance. Beginners can start with oversize grips for their warm-ups and then use regular handles for their work sets. Advanced trainees can take it a step further by employing plyometrics and overshooting the working load with eccentrics, heavy supports, and chains during their warm-ups.

What you do beforehand can make or break your workout. For the ultimate workout, you must start at the right time with the proper nutrients in place and some assistance from a proven, effective pre-workout supplement. Start the training session with the right amount of soft tissue work and an appropriate form of stretching. Then, set the body, activate the nervous system and go to it. Follow these steps exactly as outlined in this article, and you will experience a great workout and all the benefits that follow.

References

  1. Altieri, M. (2003) Step Up to the Plate – And vibrate your way to better recovery and more strength and health. Ironman Magazine. Vol. 62, No. 8, p. 286.
  2. Bazett-Jones, DM, Gibson, MH, McBride, JM. Sprint and Vertical Jump Performances Are Not Affected by Six Weeks of Static Hamstring Stretching. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 22(1):25-31, January 2008.
  3. Boyle, M. Foam Rolling. Originally printed in Training and Conditioning Magazine December 2006. StrengthCoach
  4. Boyle, M. The Static Stretching Renaissance. TheStretchingHandbook
  5. Burkett, L.N., Phillips, W.T., Ziuraitis, J. (2005) The Best Warm-Up for the Vertical Jump in College-Age Athletic Men. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: Vol. 19, No. 3, pp. 673-676.
  6. Chek, P. Timing is Everything or When to Exercise to Maximize Your Results. Mercola
  7. Church, J.B., Wiggins, M.S., Moode, M., Crist, R. (2001) Effect of Warm-Up and Flexibility Treatments on Vertical Jump Performance. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: Vol. 15, No. 3, pp. 332-336.
  8. Clark, M Integrated Training for the New Millennium. National Academy of Sports Medicine, Thousand Oaks, CA. 2000
  9. Cressey, E and Robertson, M. Feel Better for 10 Bucks (Self-myofascial release: no doctor required! T-Nation
  10. Cressey, E. Shoulder Savers: Part I. T-Nation
  11. Cressey, E. Shoulder Savers: Part II. T-Nation
  12. Evans, R.K., Knight, K.L., Draper, D.O., Parcell, A.C. (2002) Effects of warm-up before eccentric exercise on indirect markers of muscle damage. Med Sci Sports Exerc.: Vol.34, No. 12, pp. 1892-9.
  13. Gentilcore, T. Soft Tissue Work for Tough Guys. T-Nation
  14. Gray, S.C., Devito, G., Nimmo, M.A. (2005) Effect of active warm-up on metabolism prior to and during intense dynamic exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc.: Vol. 34, No. 12, pp. 2091-6.
  15. Holt, BW and Lambourne, K. The Impact of Different Warm-Up Protocols on Vertical Jump Performance in Male Collegiate Athletes. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 22(1):226-229, January 2008.
  16. Jiao C, Turman B, Weerakoon P, Knight P. Alterations in grip strength during male sexual arousal. Int J Impot Res. 2005 Oct 27
  17. Jordan MJ, Norris SR, Smith DJ, Herzog W. (2005) Vibration training: an overview of the area, training consequences, and future considerations. J Strength Cond Res. Vol. 19, No. 2, pp. 459-66.
  18. Landry, G. Top 10 Reasons To Exercise In The Morning. EzineArticles
  19. McGill, S. New understanding for back pain. UWaterloo
  20. McPartland J M, Brodeur R R, Rectus capitis posterior minor: a small but important suboccipital muscle, Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, January 1996
  21. Myers, T.W. Anatomy Trains — Myofascial Meridians for Manual and Movement Therapists. Churchill Livingstone, Edinburgh, 2002.
  22. Nosaka, K., Clarkson, P.M. (1997) Influence of previous concentric exercise on eccentric exercise-induced muscle damage. J Sports Sci: Vol. 15, No. 5, pp. 477-83.
  23. Poliquin, C. Breakfast of Champions. Rezoom
  24. Poliquin, C. (1997) Loading Parameters for Hypertrophy Training [Seminar].
  25. Poliquin, C. Question Of Strength. Golden, CO: Muscle Media 2000, Inc. December, 1996. (pg. 58)
  26. Pollard, H. and Ward, G. A Study of Two Stretching Techniques for Improving Hip Flexion Range of Motion. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapies, September 1997; 20:443-447.
  27. Robertson, M. 18 Tips for Bulletproof Knees. T-Nation
  28. Robertson, M. Getting to Know The Squat. WannaBeBig
  29. Schleip, R. How Upper Neck Muscles Influence Hamstring Length.
  30. Sports Performance Bulletin (2005) The weekly newsletter for athletes and coaches. Issue 3 – 17th Subject: Prepare To Win With Warm Up Secrets [Email].
  31. Winchester, JB, Nelson, AG, Landin, D, Young, MA, Schexnayder, IC. Static Stretching Impairs Sprint Performance in Collegiate Track and Field Athletes. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 22(1):13-19, January 2008.

New Millennium Exodus – Leaving Cities for Rural Life and a Humble Home in God’s Country (Part 2)

April 20, 2023 / / 0 Comments

3-21-02

5:15 AM. For me, this is late. The guard never arrived this morning to open the Pleassanton, CA, community pool. I waited until 6:15 AM and returned home. Now, I am off schedule and being swept into several directions at once while I pick up various tasks in random order to make the adjustment to a new timetable.

We bought the land about 17 months ago. Teri initially became interested in it while we looked for a mountain home with some acreage around it for me to have a large garden. We kept passing it while in the car with the real estate agent (their office is in the plaza at the bottom of the picture). You can not see the land very well from the road because of trees and an embankment that blocks the view somewhat. What Teri liked about it was the shape and length. She wanted to see if she could put an airstrip on it. Private pilots carry the sky experience around with them while they are on the ground and frequently see terra firma as merely a launch pad to the exhilaration of flying. I base this on observations I have made. I am not a pilot although I do fly with my wife.

In our search for a home, we found nothing that fit the dream we shared. In some cases the plot of land seemed excellent. In other cases the view was wonderful. A few homes seemed close enough to what we wanted that we could remodel one into a home that would be right for us. We were not looking for a large home. The square footage on our home now is a little more than 1,400 sq. ft. Primary in our criteria was that the home not be crowded by homes near by. I crave having open, natural space around me. I lived in New Mexico above 7,000 ft. from 1986 to 1996 and loved being there. That is the kind of experience I am looking for here with my wife.

So, we temporarily lost interest in the home hunting. We flew to Sina Lunga, Italy to attend the wedding of Teri’s brother in April of 2000. Remember the beginning of the dot.com bubble bust? Much of what we intended to go toward the new home was lost in the stock tumble. But, “it’s not about the money.” So we returned to the search with a different priority, investment value.

We checked and found that the property had not been sold yet. We made a bid and went to actually walk on the land after we had put down the earnest money. Up to that point we had only driven past the land. We dropped off the check with the realtors and went through the gate to discover what we were purchasing.

It was incredible, so peaceful. We have since learned that it is one of the healthiest alpine meadow ecosystems of its kind in the area. It sits at 3,000 ft. A 250 year old oak tree by the creek had fallen several months before we started our search and the trunk stands as a testimony to the powerful presence it must have commanded over the little valley. Red tail hawks circled above us calling and looking for gophers to eat. Golden strands of meadow grass swayed in the soft breeze. Sunlight covered each inch of the valley with a twinkling glow that almost sang to your eyes about the beauty of the natural world.

It captured my heart. On the springy soil I walked as though it was actually the clouds of an apparition. If there was a camera recording our walk around the land, I doubt it would have an appropriate aperture setting to encompass the width of the grin across my face.

We were so blessed. The land was magical and we were going to own it soon. We would have our open space and be close to our friends, Linda and Mick, living in nearby Pine Mountain Lake.

3-22-02 Thank the Lord. Thank you Jesus for every breadth I take and every wonder crowding this abundant land you made for us. As Micah said, (6:8)” He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?”

I only have time for a short start on the reference this week to Jefferson and Winthrop. The essential point of my alignment with these great leaders in this case, although I would expand to quite a few other agreements with Thomas Jefferson in particular, is their belief that people and the community would be best served if we kept our life groups small. That, to me, recognizes the inherent problems with maintaining the quality of an individual life when the size of the community becomes gigantic. It relates to a General Systems Theory which accepts the pattern of entropy and chaos. Let’s take these two thoughts and look at them.

First, Jefferson believed that the United States would be ideally constituted by small farmers. This can be expanded up the levels of government to include local counties through the state governments controlling the primary activities of keeping everyone’s rights safeguarded during their daily interactions. The principal role of the federal government would have been to maintain order between the states at the interstate level and in the defense of the nation against foreign powers. Governor Winthrop, of the Plymouth colony, stated simply that no church ought to be larger than a congregation. In both cases the ecology of the family, the community and the land they inhabit are very close to the problems and joys that their individual lives must deal with.

Today we face a system of such incredible complexity and size that individuals are dwarfed by their role and relationship to the nation. The energy necessary to support this overarching and overreaching system takes up a majority of our days. This can be supported by a simple look at the number of days wages in a year that go to taxes. This is not what our founding fathers envisioned. It is not the vision that the original Pilgrims held for a new Jerusalem when they crossed the Atlantic. It is a perversion in support of a Satanic affinity for a great system, a great machine or the “combine” that Kesey and Chief Bromden saw quite clearly.

I’m off to the pool.

3-23-02 Saturday.

5:45 AM. Mornings are typically are overflowing cavalcade of thoughts for me. “Need a dump truck, mama, to unload my brain” (Bob Dylan). Evenings are more of a slow glide into sleep without the snap, crackle and pop of awakening to a return to consciousness that makes the morning such a glorious event.

The purpose of this book is to chronicle the holistic experience of the planning and actual undertaking of the exodus. The tactical elements of the exodus involve the building of our home in the valley that can be seen in the professional photo gallery. We have not built a home on our own before. When we initially decided to make this happen we had additional funds that have disappeared courtesy of the dot.com bubble bursting. We will accomplish the exodus despite this new financial hurdle. God has a plan for us. And, in our prayers, as we listen for His guidance, we see this move as part of the plan.

If everything works out as planned, other readers will be able to follow the journey we have taken here and have a guide book on how they may follow a similar exodus out of the confines of our hedonistic society. That is the root cause of this mission. To flee the oppressive, ubiquitous invasion of our inner beings by what has become a global corporate mentality lacking any true commitment to what God has shown us is sacred. To flee the constant and increasingly torrential erosion of morality; Morality as God told us we ought to behave in this world He gave us. To flee the incarceration in a prison of new economic classicism that has become an epidemic in America and that we have spawned around the world. To flee what has been transmogrified into a decadent descent into this modern version of Caligula’s rumpus room. To follow Moses example and leave the material grasp of Pharaoh, our modern corporate combine. To heed Jesus’ warning to get to the mountains when we see the world overwhelmed with harbingers of an evil, Satanic rule.

This morning I am driving to the land to meet a prospective architect. We need to stake out the driveway leading to our planned location for the house. In order to have the well drilled for our water, the drilling company needs to have a road that will support their rig. It weights 25,000 lbs. and would sink into the soft soil around the house plot.

We also need to review the material sent to me by PG & E for the dropping of a power line to the lot. It has to be reviewed for accuracy in terms of location and specifications of electrical power. At this point, it is necessary to have it place so that the pump for the well will have power. Eventually, we also hope to install an inverter to sell back to PG & E the wattage generated by the active solar panels we would like to use.

From the beginning the plan for the house has been centered on having our lives and our home have a minimal dependence on power and financial commitment to the phalanx of power grids, transportation grids and food production networks. We are working to have this be practical rather than extreme but the goal is optimizing independence in supporting ourselves on our land. In pursuit of that goal, the house design will emphatically reflect both active and passive solar.

Today’s trip will take me 3 hours of driving to the property. It was raining so frantically last night that it woke us up and I fear there may even be flooding somewhere along the route.

We also have made revisions to the sketches the architect proposed. It is south facing with maximum glazing ( windows ) to capture passive solar energy. The view provided by that orientation is awesome. The valley rolls down from the small knoll our house will sit on to the creek, pond and rolling meadows of the west bank.

3-24-02

If it’s not about the money, what is it about? God’s eternal love.

Too much of the priceless value of our temporary existence on this planet is spent on the acquisition, consumption or anticipation of material sources of supposed satisfaction. The focus of our attention is fixed upon the ever multiplying choices for gaining pleasure from “things.” We are drowning under the incessant waves of technological progress that are engorging us with images to tickle our desires. We spend the treasured currency of our true lives, that is the temporary piece of eternity that is allotted us while we are beings in this world, on the devilish pursuit of cars, awards, perceived sexual gratification and untold numbers of pleasure destinations conceived in the minds of the collective corporate marketing genius. The jewel of real value is lost. Being thankful and cognizant of the blessing God has granted us by allowing each person the moments our souls can savor in awareness of being guests in this wonderland, is forsaken.

If it’s not about the money, it is about finding a way to live that allows us to honor God’s eternal gifts to us. This exodus seeks a path to living in God’s as He has commanded us. It is about walking in and being continually aware of our presence in His eternal love no matter what our current material circumstances seem to say about the state of our current circumstances. To accomplish this walk requires that our vision be centered on what is illuminated by an eternal light not what flashes at centers of sensory reception from the TV, billboards and the raucous parade of temptations we are bombarded with today. Eternal love is very simple, from the second epistle of John, verses 2-6,

For the truth’s sake, which dwelleth in us, and shall be with us forever.

[3] Grace be with you, mercy, and peace, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.

[4] I rejoiced greatly that I found of thy children walking in truth, as we have received a commandment from the Father.

[5] And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another.

[6] And this is love, that we walk after his commandments.This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.

Leaving at 7:15 yesterday morning I was able to get to the valley by 10. For significant stretches of the drive I was pelted by extremely heavy rain. Before I left the peninsula I passed into the most glorious rainbow I have ever seen. The color bands were broad and vivid. I found no pot of gold when I reached the end of the rainbow. I was carrying the pot of bliss within me.

I stopped first at the realtor’s office. I really enjoy talking with them about what is going on up in the hills there. While I was there getting a couple of copies, the architect hopeful arrived. We talked about the vacation voyages on cruise ships, as well as the trip Teri and I had taken to Chile. As typically happens the architect talked about flying planes.

My wife, Teri, is a pilot. Although Teri was not with me on this trip we still ended up taking about flying. I listened, again, as the architect retold the story of a Groveland pilot who made his last, farewell flight in command of 747 from Hawaii and lost 8 passengers and 1 flight attendant when the planes hull cracked open over the Pacific. I remembered when that story broke. He had to get the plane back on two engines. I confirmed that our direct neighbor, Paul Bunt, who lives on the left hand side of the valley, used to fly C-130’s. I often get the feeling I am surrounded by pilots who are ready at a moments notice to drop everything and fly up into the sky in their Cessna’s, Cherokee’s and Lear Jets even as their feet are planted on the ground next to me.

I managed to break the conversation away from the piloting related stories and we drove the mile up the road to do a site visit to determine the location of the driveway. One of the difficulties of building a home so far away is that it takes 6 hours by car round trip to be there. By plane the trip last only an hour or so each way. To stake out a driveway location you need to be there. So, we were fortunate that the rain let up to a soft drizzle while we agreed on where the driveway should come onto the ridge off of the county road. Then we confirmed how it should lead to the point where the well will be drilled. Following this twenty minute effort we went back down the road a mile to the local restaurant, Rosemary’s Café, for lunch and our discussion about revisions Teri and had come up after reviewing Sean’s drawings.

The architect had a BLT with cream of potato soup and I had the pastrami on rye special with Swiss cheese and coleslaw. Immediately after lunch, I disembarked on the three hour return drive to the East Bay area and our rental home in Livermore.

On the drive back home, I saw an SUV that moments earlier rolled off the pavement, down a steep 100 ft. slope and came to rest upside down in a meadow 50 yards from the side of the highway. A police officer was kneeling beside the overturned car peering into the window as an ambulance came roaring up the road to join him. So many of us are going too fast these days and far too many of us are ending up upside down, crippled inside and out.

There is no better time to take the first step in your escape plan than today. It can be depressing and surprising how long it actually takes to actualize your departure even after you have already made the decision that you must get away from the concrete jungle.