Polar Plunge LA Style, Be a Voter, Ultra Podcast, The Iliad
What I am reading
The Iliad | Homer, Alexander Pope Translator
I am mesmerized by a poem written in ancient Greek, expressed in Queens English, as translated by 19th-century poet Alexander Pope, and still keeps its meaning in the 21st century. I am not a poetry guy in general. However, this is a classic tale of gods and men and a founding document of western literature. Having this heroic reading topic is helping me gain some perspective on our world's current troubles. In the Iliad, I see a dubious war exhausting an empire to no good end. In the early chapters, the gods step in to give the Greeks a push. I think of the gods as an expression of our emotions and desires. That is the best way I have found to understand the supernatural in this story.
Additionally, I am a history nerd. I have seen documentary explorations of the historical site of Troy. The topography around the city has changed over the centuries. The ocean is much farther away from the city than it was at the story's time. This shifting of the sands of time reinforces how alien and disconnected the world, or the Iliad should be to ours. Yet these worlds are not so different. This poem recounts the war between the Greeks and the city of Troy over Helen. The gods goaded the Greeks to pursue the war beyond any reasonable end. Sure they could win but at what cost? When we can't see reason in a situation, we blame the gods for our actions.
What I am trying out on my body
A cold water plunge is a wake-up tool. I have read about taking a cold shower to start the day being good for me on many levels. Here is a link to some details on the subject. The shower would be a great option in most places, but I live in Los Angeles. It does not get cold enough for the cold shower to significantly impact my metabolism. It does not stun me to the core as I am expecting. Fortunately, I have an easy option. Our pool is unheated after Labor day. At 5 am, the air is only 50°f. Some might think that's not so bad. But from warm in bed to shoulder deep in the cold pool, it's easily a 35°f drop. I count it as an arctic class "Will-Burr" success. It stuns instantly and is cold enough that I struggle to stay in for 5 minutes. The plunge therapy has many similar benefits to the cold shower. Here is another link to back up my insane new ritual. Right off the bat, it feels like a whole-body glove ice pack on all my sore parts. My neck and shoulders relax after the initial shock. Next, I practice controlled breathing. The usual reaction is to breathe fast and deep. The plunge practice suggests taking normal breaths is the ideal reaction. After the first minute, I swim a little bit and dunk my whole head. There is no going back to bed after my five-minute plunge.
Stepping outside of our comfort zone is good for our minds and bodies. I thought being ill with Crohn's disease was all the dis-ease I needed to experience. Recently I have reconsidered. The benefit of participating in something hard, the pain, has to be something you choose yourself. In this case, volunteer participation is its own reward.
Be a voter
Don't tell people to vote; to get a better response, tell people to be a voter. It leads them to imagine themselves voting actively. So don't vote, be a voter. We voted by mail here in California. We take it for granted. How much must it suck to be in a state where the people in power make voting as hard as possible? Be a voter wherever you are.
In her new podcast series called Ultra, Rachel Maddow tells the story of how the United States was leaning towards fascism just ahead of the second world war. It's a period of history that has been overshadowed by the world war that followed. In the late 1930s, ultraconservatives used clever means to get people from all walks of life, from regular Joes to U.S. Senators, to perpetrate unbelievable acts of treason, from supporting the Nazis in Germany from the halls of congress, taking up arms against the government with bombing campaigns and stolen army weapons, and calling for the overthrow of the elected government from radio shows and public rallies. Doesn't this sound familiar? She points out that we have a fascist muscle in our politics that we actively need to exercise against. I think being a voter is the exercise that muscle needs to feel. The podcast is gripping because there are audio files of the people who participated in the events to lend historical accuracy to the story.