Andy's Blog

Still on vacation. Still continuing the "light-hearted" themed blog posts.

One of the greatest parts about coming back to Fort Wayne from time to time is to see how the city grew and changed while I was gone. I was driving from CJ's to my Dad's yesterday and I came across something particularly odd.

I usually take the back country roads because County Line Road and Aboite Center are pretty hilly, which makes it a blast to drive. Aboite Center takes me past my old Middle and High School, but it also takes me past Eggeman Rd.

I used to run Eggeman when I was in Cross Country. Eggeman was great for one reason: it was exactly a mile long, thus a return trip was exactly 2 miles long.¹ However, Eggeman was awful for three reasons

1. It was a gravel road so I am pretty sure your lungs were cleaner after smoking a pack of cigarettes than compared to running the road.
2. There was no shade and it was always hotter than a Hell²
3. Since there was no pavement, running it just killed your legs

But it is point three that I found odd yesterday when I drove by. It appears they have put in a sidewalk along Eggeman Rd. Now, while I would have loved that for Cross Country, as a home-owning, taxpayer I have to admit I find that odd. Apparently the county decided the road was important enough to pave a sidewalk, but not important enough to pave the road itself.

C'est la vie dans Fort Wayne, IN

And P.S. yes I was nerdy enough to pull over and document the above photo.

I know, I know. I said I wasn't going to blog. But I decided to do a fun little post. I found this clip Carlos Mencia did on Vacation for the show we did on Saturday, and I thought I would shared. I particularly love the bit about how on vacation, women have a whole list of things to do, and men, well, men just want to do nothing.

The nice thing about the vacation I am on right now is that I have done exactly what I wanted to do: nothing. In two days, I have literally taken four naps. I plop Asher on my chest, and then we both sleep for a few hours. Wake up. Eat. Then we go right back to sleep. I am living the life of a baby and I love it.

Andrea's been cool enough and let me hog Asher so far and we have had a great time.

Well that's it. Maybe another fun post coming later this week.

And P.S. I have not checked work e-mail yet at all. Take that all you said I wouldn't do it.

February 10, 2006. I remember just clearing security at Sydney's airport heading to my gate. I was about to board a 13 hour flight back to the States. And there it was, a computer...

I promised myself that I would not check e-mail for my entire 12 day journey down under. And I had done it!

It was the first 12 days I had gone with out checking e-mail since probably 1995. I remember sitting down in front of the computer at the airport café and feeling almost violated. It was like something was pulling me from a joyous, stress-free environment, back into the hustle of everyday life. I haven't left that hustle for almost two and half years.

July 27, 2008. For the first time in 2 years and 24 weeks, I am going on a real vacation. Not taking a laptop. Not taking a small to-do list. Not doing anything.

I am going to visit loved ones in Fort Wayne. I am going to hold Asher for the first time. And I am going to hopefully not drive myself crazy out of boredom.¹

I have to admit, I am a little scared. I am not sure if I am going to make it. But I got everything done for the next two weeks and there should be no problems. Everything else can wait.

If anybody is in Fort Wayne, give me a ring on the mobile² and I'd love to meet up. To the rest of you...see you in 7 days! I will not be blogging.³

P.S. Too all my law school law graduates lawyer friends who are taking the Bar on Tuesday and Wednesday, congradulations. I am very proud of each of you. I know the Bar is hell, but you are almost done. If any of you are in Fort Wayne,⁴ I'll buy you a drink at Columbia Street.⁵ For the rest of you, I'll buy you a drink the next time I see you. Congrats, you now officially can hold it over my head that you are an attorney, and I am not ;)

My freshman year of college I took Psychology of Religion. It was one of the greatest classes I ever took. It assigned two books. One was my favorite book of all time, Sheldon Vanauken's A Severe Mercy. The other, a book by Erich Fromm, To Have or To Be.

Fromm's book had an interesting premise. He position was that a century ago we were a "being" culture. 100 years and an industrial revolution later, we are now a "having" culture.

One classic example was how a century ago, when referencing marriages, men would say that they are a husband or that they are married. Now, Fromm says, men have a wife. We went from a state of existence to a state of possession.

Same rings true with children and jobs and hobbies and pretty much everything.

And the problem is much larger than just a semantic one.

When I was in 7th grade I took French. The first verb I learned was être - "to be." The second verb I learned was aller - "to go." The third verb I learned was avoir - "to have."

It was far more important for me to know Je suis Américain² before I learned J'ai une voiture.³

Why? Because even at the core of language, being and existing is more fundamental to our human experience than having and owning.

The problem is that in our increasing materialistic world the inverse seems to be true.

Fromm explains the rise in divorce as one of an identity crisis. If marriages are possessions, then like all possessions, when we tire of the marriage we drop it for a new one. As apposed to the idea that if at our core, our existence is tied to that marriage, to drop the marriage would be to drop one's existence - which we would be far less inclined to do.

It truly is a challenge to overcome the social pressure of the "having" culture - and it doesn't get easier with age. I find myself comparing myself to the neighbors and friends far more than I ever did before.

Henry David Thoreau once wrote, "It is preoccupation with possessions, more than anything else, that prevents us from living freely and nobly." I think that is a sentiment Fromm would agree with, and one I should pay more attention to.

Nathan and I went swimming yesterday. Came home. Decided we were hungry. I realized I had no hamburger in the house, so we had to go to the store. I walk out to back my car out of the garage and bam! The picture to the left is what I saw. My neighbor had parked his truck in front of my driveway so I couldn't get out.

And scene:

Andy: (walk over to neighbor's and spots him) "Is this your truck"

Neighbor: "I figured that would get your attention"

Andy: "Can you please move your truck"

Neighbor: "Nope"

Andy: "Can I ask why not?"

Neighbor: "Because your friend is parked in front of my house"¹

Andy: "It's a public street and she is breaking no rules parking there"

Neighbor: "That's not true. It is our space in front of the house"

Andy: "I have reviewed the neighborhood association rules and it states this is a public street and anyone can park anywhere"

Neighbor: "Well, I am an owner of a dealership, maybe I'll just bring a bunch of cars from the dealership and park all over the place"

Andy: "You would be free to do that, like I said, it is a public street. Now can you please move your truck"

Neighbor: "No, it is our space. I'll move my truck when she moves her car."

Andy: "First of all, she isn't here, she left with my roomatte. Second of all, no it isn't your space. I talked with my attorney² and it is not your space"

Neighbor: "Ohh you talked to your attorney, well, sue me!" (neighbor begins to walk inside and makes no indication he is going to move his truck from blocking my driveway)

Andy: (dials 911)

911: "911 Emergency what is the situation..."

So, I explain to the 911 operator what is going and she says a police officer will be right there.

In the middle of the conversation with the operator I realized that I hadn't taken a picture of the offense and I see the neighbor coming back out with a key. The 911 Operator was still not ready to hang up, but I couldn't take a picture with out getting off the phone.

So to buy some time I say to the neighbor, who is now walking towards the truck:

Andy: "ohh so now you are going to move your truck. Now that I have called the police."

Neighbor: "I didn't say I was going to move my truck."

Andy: "then why is your key in your hand?"

All the while the 911 Operator: "Sir! Sir! Do NOT escalate the situation. Do not escalate the situation. Wait for the police officers."

But the plan worked as the neighbor didn't move his car until after I got off the phone and took the above picture.

The Police came (3 actually). I explained the situation and apologized for having to bring them out for such a petty thing, but he refused to move his truck so I had no option.

My favorite part was when the police officers started to walk towards him, he acts like he is waxing his car, and responds "We don't have a problem here. Everything is resolved."

I explained to the Police Officers that not everything is resolved and I would like a Law Enforcement Officer to remind the guy that this is a public street and they have no ownership of the space in front.

The Police Officer then shared with me that what the neighbor was doing wasn't just against Homeowner Policy, but that it was against Roswell City Law as a car cannot park anywhere for more than 10 hours in one spot.

Anyways...they explained the law and situation and hopefully we won't have anymore problems.³

But here's my question: was I wrong in doing this? Should I have turned the other cheek? There is a bit more of a back story to this, as people don't just park cars in front of driveways and other people just don't call the cops. But you get the basics.

Gotta love living in the burbs!

P.S. If you don't get the title reference, I have attached a video of Klondike Bar's most recent ad campaign. This blog title actually came out of the fact I went to the grocery story after this whole deal and I saw Klondike bar's in the freezer and said to my friends who were with me, "Hey Andy, you just called the cops on your neighbor, you deserve a Klondike bar..." We laughed.

Since January, people always come up / email / send messenger pigeon to me saying, "can you believe Allen became Catholic." And I always say, "for those of us who know Allen, it really wasn't that much of a surprise." And I can attest that since becoming Catholic, not much has changed.¹

One thing that has changed: Allen has increased his use of the phrase the "seven deadly sins" exactly² 834%.

The seven deadly sins make for a great movie³ but awful theology. The ranking of sin itself is determinental to a true understanding of grace and redemption.

The Catholic church has taught for years there are two categories of sins: venial and mortal. Venial being your light everyday sin that must be easy for God to forgive.⁴ Mortal, or deadly, being the stuff God must have to work at to forgive you.⁵

But it isn't just the Catholics. We all do it. Please rank with your best Protestant Theology from most to least likely to be shamed.

1. Worked everyday of the week
2. Looked at pornography
3. Thought of myself better than the homeless man
4. Lied to a friend about plans
5. Cheated on a spouse
6. Used the words God Damn It
7. Disrespected a parent on national radio
8. Downloaded MP3s illegally
9. Used Ecstasy recreationally

My guess is you would rank it: 5-9-2-7-4-6-3-8-1

If I came to you and said, "hey, I was just really busy this last week. Boss really riding me. Worked every single day of the week." Would you even think there was anything wrong with that?

Now let's say I cheat on my wife.⁶  Now let's say I regularly sleep with my girlfriend.⁷ Now let's say I came to you and said, "hey, for the last five years I have had a sex buddy. We have no real relationship, but you know, we both have needs, and we both get pretty stressed out, so you know, from time to time we are 'friends with benefits'." Tell me you would not think differently in this case?

The point. We all rank sin. But does God?

The way I read it, there is no goody-two-shoes in the Bible.⁸

Paul, killed thousands.

Peter, denied his relationship to Jesus when Jesus needed him the most.

David, slept with Bathsheba, tried to cover it up, murdered her husband.

Abraham prostituted his wife for safety.

Name one person in the Bible who actually lives up to a sanctified life.

Heck, even sweet Ruth seduced Boaz on the threshing floor.

Do any of these sound like your pastor? Better yet, let's say your pastor did any of this, do you think he would keep his leadership position?

The modern Church has missed out on being apart of the story of redemption and grace for thousands of years. And it is all due to the fact we have an erroneous, sanitized view of redemption and it starts with the ranking of sin.

I have not had a physical in five years. This is not something I am proud of. It is just the truth. I don't get sick very often. Which is good. But the downside is that I haven't been able to find a good general physician.

I think it is because I was spoiled living Fort Wayne, IN. I had the greatest doctor from the moment I was born. Dr. Muhler was awesome. Graduated from Notre Dame. Very knowledgeable. Voted by doctors in his community as the doctor they would most like to be treated by. Heck, his father invented fluoride toothpaste for Proctor & Gamble.

Realizing I was coming to Fort Wayne at the end of this month, I figured I would try to schedule a physical with Dr. Muhler, but alas, the next physical appointment available is in November. Ohh well.

But this got me thinking, it wasn't just Dr. Muhler. Fort Wayne, as a whole, has an awesome healthcare community. It is a community that no where else I have lived or been to has been able to compete with.

If my gallbladder needs to say goodbye to my kidney, I want Dr. Justice yanking that sucker out.

If I inadvertently knock somebody up, the first face I want my first child to see is Dr. Alexander.

If I get cancer, the person making my body feel on fire due to the chemo had better be Dr. Rhinehart.

But this post isn't about all the doctors I psuedo-know. It's about Universal Healthcare. Because it hit me how important having a doctor who is knowledgeable and trustworthy is to your overall health.

When we don't feel comfortable with a situation, we are inclined to neglect it. Be it a relationship, or a job, or our healthcare. This would be Universal Healthcare's impact on the American medical community.

People are given less options. They feel less in control. And they ultimately become distrustful of the whole process.

We then would seek out medical care where we can get control. Just like how I was attempting to get a physical close to 600 miles from my home, so will millions Americans if Universal Healthcare becomes a reality. But instead of 600 miles, it will be 6,000 miles as we leave the country to find our best options.

It's called medical tourism, and it would be an inevitable consequence of Universal Healthcare.¹

Two years ago, I called it. Two years ago, everyone called me insane. Two years ago, everyone just told me to shut up. But I called it! And it ain't stopping anytime soon.

I have made it no secret on this blog and on air that I vehemently appose the seat belt law. I will even go as far as saying that I think it is the largest domestic affront that I am concerned about in this country. More than wiretapping. More than drug use. More than abortion. More than anything.

And the reason this simple, "well-meaning" law is such an afront is that it is the first example of the government saying "we are here to protect you from yourself."

It's a fundamental shift in our understanding of the role of Government in our life. It transcends into every other issue this country faces because we have conceded by silence that we agree the government is better at taking care of us than ourselves.

Every other law on our books is designed to protect us from others, not ourselves. And while the Soccer-moms and AAA-organizations and the Police-organizations of this world cheered the governments attempt to make our society safer, I lamented.

And my reason for this was because it doesn't stop with the seat belt law.

I said back in 2006 one of the next steps was legislating our health, and then today I get a Press Release from a publicist in my inbox confirming it has begun. The basic gist: the US¹ government is starting to take obese kids away from parents.

They justify that it is unhealthy for the child and costing the public billions of dollars.² Seat belt laws started off this way too. Only kids had to be buckled up. Now it is everyone.³

So again I ask, where does it stop? What's next? Why do we applaud this kind of action by an increasingly too-powerful government? The seat belt was just the beginning...

We have been on the radio for three years now. I have decided that unlike men, all opinions are not created equal which means not everyone deserves to have an opinion. For now on, I am going to require a simple, but apparently difficult, logic test for all people before they share an opinion.

Ready...

True or false:
      If A implies B.
      Then B implies A.

Simple enough right? Think you know the answer? Read on...

The inspiration behind this post is an email we received last night from Lucida on our topic "Man's Best Friend Has Become Man's God". She writes: "From a factual standpoint: It has been well studied and documented that animal cruelty is associated with crimes against human beings." The implication. Those that are cruel to animals are just destined to become murders.

Now the study she is referring to is true. It has been proven that those who have committed serious crimes had shown a propensity towards animal cruelty before acting out on humans. But does the inverse ring true as well?¹

Another classic statement I hear is that studies have shown that serial rapists were also pornography users.

Well duh! Of course those who are rapists are going to have an abnormal view of sexuality. But does the inverse run true? Are those who struggle with porn one image away from becoming a rapist?

When I was in high school, I took an Introduction to Philosophy class at Huntington University. As I later realized, it was less a class on classic philosophy and more a class on logic. The above test was essentially day one of the class.

Let's take the murders and rapists and alphabet letters² out of the equation and put it in more simple terms.

If it is raining the streets are wet. The streets are wet, therefore it must be raining. Wait a minute, something is right about that statement.

And now we are back to my test. Why doesn't that sound right? Because logic that assumes since a implies b, therefore b implies a is false. The streets could be wet because of a fire hydrant or because a dam break or thousands of other reasons.

If you answered true to the test above, you would be wrong, and no longer deserve to have an opinion as there is something fundamentally wrong at the core of your logic.

If you have an opinion, be sure to leave it in the comment box below.³

I went to Hilton Head again this weekend. It was wonderful. I relaxed and did absolutely nothing on Friday but sit on the beach and listen to music. Had good discussion with Charlie. Watched baseball with Nick. Julia studied her Bar Review materials. Great time. But on the drive down, I paid over $4.00 per gallon for fuel for the first time. In doing so, I think I am the only American that doesn't mind it a bit.

Fuel is in theory at "record highs" right now, but my question is "record highs" compared to what? The 1990s? The 1970s? Let's put this in perspective.

When adjusted for inflation, fuel prices are just $.25 more per gallon than they were in 1979. While this still constitutes a "record high" label, it isn't quite the burdening number most of us think it is.

The chart below shows fuel prices from 1979 to 2008. Look how the red line (actual price paid) jumps significantly higher, but when adjusted for inflation, it stays relatively the same.

Think about the price you paid for your house in 1982. Doesn't your current house look ridiculously expense when in comparison to your 1982 house? It's the same with fuel.

The problem lies in perception. For some reason we bought the idea that the fuel prices of the late 90s were somehow the norm, instead of an anomaly. I remember one time filling up at a Speedway station in Fort Wayne, IN for $.76 in the summer of 1999.

But these fuel prices were largely due the Asian market crash of the 90s (as well as the tech burst) and should never have been thought of as normal. In fact, they were further from normal on the low-side, as fuel prices are now on the high-side.

Now we all know I am super anal retentive. So I went through my records and pulled up every¹ fuel purchase I made from 2002 to 2008. When adjusted for state differential and inflation, I am paying approximately $2.00 more a gallon now when compared to 2002. So it is easy to see why it "feels" bad. But in 2002 we were still $.25 below the adjusted norm of 1979.

So does this mean fuel prices are where they should be? No. I am not going to say that. It is slightly high. But these things will correct themselves over time. What I am saying is that for most of us out there, the pain at the pump is more a mental problem than it is an actual budget problem.

And heck, at least we aren't in Europe paying over $9.00 per gallon for fuel. We have much to be grateful for.

P.S. For those who want the charts of date you can find them here: Fuel Prices Workbook. And if you really want to see an example of my anal retentiveness, you can see my Fuel Mileage Worksheet for my Honda Civic.