The JP Morgan Corporate Challenge, through my eyes... er... words?

This is something I posted on Facebook (26 June 2009). I'm reposting it here because I rather like it, and I need to keep reminding myself. So I hope it's something you folks out there on the internet find interesting...

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Last night I ran in the JP Morgan corporate challenge. Well, I jogged. Okay sometimes I walked, but mostly I jogged. I did the 3.5 miles in 44 minutes. That's roughly 12.5 minute miles. My legs and feet were fine. I'm not sore today. It's my cardiovascuar endurance that was the killer. I'm working on it though, and will continue to work on it. Anyway, to get to the bullet points about my experience with the JP Morgan Corporate Challenge.

BAD: I parked in Sommerville near the Davis T Stop. I've grown to hate Sommerville. What a horrible city. One way streets, bizarre intersections, signs everywhere that don't tell you where you are or how to get where you want to go... just that you can't park there... and I hope to never have to drive through or park in Sommerville again. It doesn't help that the parking lot had those parking meters that only take quarters. I had two quarters... good enough for an hour. A friend had more quarters but the meter was broken or something and only went up to an hour. I couldn't move to another meter because I had no more quarters. I got a $20 parking ticket.

GOOD: I like riding the T. There are always interesting people to see. I find myself wondering what story explains the facial expressions of other people on the train.

GOOD: The race itself was fun. I'm not a huge fan of the crazy crowd (there were 12,000 people running in the race), but it was interesting. The other people served as motivation for me. The biggest motivation was the guy with one leg on crutches. He was ahead of me at the beginning, I caught up to him at a point where I desperately needed a breathing break, so I walked behind him for a bit. Of course there's the comedic "Holy crap, the guy on crutches is ahead of me in the race", but really the more important thing is that that guy was awesome. I think I take my own health for granted too much. I know I'm out of shape, and recently I've been trying to do something about it, but I'm not in good shape yet. And of course as I was running and then taking that break, the thoughts of doubt and desire to quit are running through my mind. When I saw the guy with one leg on crutches doing a 3.5 mile run through Boston... it really helped me. Anyway, the race was really a great experience. So many people just getting together to run. I don't even care that it was a charity event. Seriously, how does my running 3.5 miles help any charity? I paid $40 to participate, and I understand how that helps the charity... but couldn't I have just given them $40? Oh well... like I said, the race was a lot of fun, and I'm glad I did it... even if it was humbling.

GOOD: Going out afterward to get some food and a drink with the coworkers/friends I ran the race with was nice too. We may have been a little sweaty... but the company was top notch, the food was pretty good, and that Jameson-in-Coke was delicious. Of course I should have skipped the alcohol entirely. Being somewhat dehydrated from the run, and then drinking something that requires water for the body to process. I woke up this morning with the worst headache I've had in weeks (I get a lot of headaches). But still I'm calling this part a "Good" part of the experience. 2.5 times the normal dose of ibuprofen did the trick for that headache.

BAD: Travelling home was not my favorite part of this. Finding my way out of Sommerville (CURSE YOU SOMMERVILLE!! I WILL HAVE MY REVENGE!!), was tricky. I know I'm looking for 16 and route 2. But my iPhone GPS doesn't tell me what direction I'm facing, the previously mentioned crappy signs in Somerville were no help at all, I was stuck on one way roads for the first couple turns, and so finding route 16 was a good 20 minutes of driving so I could see where on the little iPhone map I actually was, so I could figure out what direction I needed to go. Then of course there was the hour long trip back home. I was pleasantly entertained by the lightning storm that was happening... that part was good, but I was tired, sweaty, and I knew I'd need a shower before going to sleep, which would keep me up longer... I wasn't so happy about the drive home. Not that it'll save me on time, but I will always go to Alewife now instead of Davis.

GOOD: The experience in general was a good one. I got to run with 12,000 people, including some really great people from my office. I got to go out in Boston afterward to the Black Rose, and enjoy some conversation with those same people (not the 12,000...). And I got to be shown again that my physical health is not something I should take for granted. Sitting in front of a computer as my job is fine, but typing at a keyboard can't be the only physical activity I get in a day.

That's it. That's what I took away from this experience. I recommend it to everyone. And I do mean everyone who is capable of moving under their own power. The fastest guy did it in about 20 minutes or something. I did it in 44. And there were people who walked the course and did it in over an hour. It's not about getting the fastest time. It's about doing something that will remind you that your health is worth fighting for.

Over 1 Billion Hungry People

EDIT: Oof this didn't age so well. This was still a conservative minded post. Not having any interest in helping anyone. And I was so callous writing that. I'll still leave this post here so I can look back at it, but I care about people now. And I recognize that this problem of people needing charity is the direct fault of the super-rich who keep too much of the labor value of their employees and cause poverty. And sometimes, people just need help. Wow was I wrong.

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http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSTRE58F1MJ20090916?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews

So there's the brief news article. In case the link is broken later, the article basically says that the UN relief organization doesn't have enough money to support the 1 billion people who need it.

This issue caught my attention because I'm not sure I care. Don't get me wrong. I feel bad for individuals who suffer, and I certainly don't want to cause suffering, but doesn't this situation strike anyone else as wrong? And by "this situation" I mean the one where 1 billion need to be completely supported by charity.

Why aren't these people doing something to survive on their own? What causes them to need support for their entire lives? Are we doing anything to get these people to a point of self sufficience? Or have we basically created 1 billion people who require total support just to survive?

I'm fine with the idea of helping people to get back on their feet, or to learn how to stand on their own to begin with, but I'm not okay with parasites. Life is a struggle that makes you stronger, and these people are just (apparently) not doing anything at all. They sit back and wait for someone else to take care of them. Sounds a bit like our welfare system, but that's another post entirely.

So to sum up: I think we need to get to a point where 1 billion people aren't in need of charity... where those 1 billion people can take care of themselves... farm... whatever it takes. And I'll just lay it out there... if people die... that's okay. That's a possible outcome of trying to live. If I died because I couldn't take care of myself... that's just nature... it's the nature of living. Like I said before, I'm okay with helping people become self sufficient, but not with supporting people indefinitely. The strategy needs to change, for their (the starving people) sake more than ours (the people who can feed themselves).