Book Review: "American Phoenix: John Quincy and Louisa Adams, the War of 1812, and the Exile That Saved American Independence"

American Phoenix: John Quincy and Louisa Adams, the War of 1812, and the Exile That Saved American Independence intrigued me, but what a long title. It's about my favourite period of American history — the development of the American republic. It's about two people about whom I was mostly ignorant — John Quincy and Louisa Adams. Plus, since my childhood, I have loved biographies. It's a good read and I recommend it even though I think there are enough faults in the book to warrant a 3-star rating rather than a 4-star (a book has to really capture me to get 5 stars out of me).

American Phoenix is not a complete biography of the Adams. The bulk of the book covers the period 1809, when Adams was appointed as Minister Plenipotentiary to the Court of St. Petersburg [Russia], through 1815 when Adams led the US delegation that successfully negotiated the Treaty of Ghent to end the War of 1812 with England. Adams and his wife, Louisa, and this biographer, Jane Cook, considered this period of 6 years as a time of exile for John Quincy and Louisa. But Ms. Cook also considers this time period a major turning point both in the political life of Adams and in the national life of the United States of America — both phoenixes that rose from the ashes of near disaster to become prominent and powerful.

Ms. Cook demonstrates that the Adams' accomplishments during this period were important to the ongoing independence of the United States of America. Adams' ability to build and maintain relationships with Russia, especially in obtaining Russian sanction for the USA as a serious world trader, strengthened the ability of the USA to survive. Louisa played an important role in her ability to relate to both the Czar and his family. And, Adams' negotiating skills and his courageous initiative to propose treaty terms that had not, yet, been sanctioned by the President helped to end the War of 1812 on terms that were advantageous to the USA. But it seems to me that the successes of the US navy against the British navy, considered unbeatable in 1812, as well as the US military's successful stands against the British forces at Baltimore and then in the Battle of New Orleans in 1815 were at least as important, if not more so.

Ms. Cook's assertion that this time period was a key factor in John Quincy's revitalized political career seems to me to be on shaky ground. With all of her speculations about how much easier and more successful Adams could have been with modern communications technology, I have serious doubts that the American voting population were well-informed about Adams' diplomatic successes, at least not sufficiently so to move them to elect him as the 6th President of the US — something else had to account for that. But, perhaps Adams' accomplishments were sufficient to rescue, in the eyes of fellow politicians, a political career that had been grievously damaged by Adams' support of Thomas Jefferson's Embargo Act of 1807.

This biography focused as much on Louisa Adams as on John Quincy. There is a similarity in Ms. Cook's treatment of Louisa Adams and David McCullough's treatment of her mother-in-law, Abigail Adams in his biography, "John Adams." Both women played important roles in the successes of their husbands. Louisa was a brave wife of a diplomat. She managed to befriend both the Russian Czar and his family and to satisfy, at least to them, the social demands of a diplomat's wife even though the Adams operated under severe financial constraints, Louisa was terribly unhappy about being separated from her two oldest sons, and she had at least 2 miscarriages while in Russia. She demonstrated her bravery and her stamina when, in 1815, she undertook what turned out to be a perilous journey from St. Petersburg to Paris in the winter and through territory in which Napoleon's forces had been or were soon to be fighting against the official forces of France.

All in all, I enjoyed the book and think it was worth reading. I learned about a facet of US history that I did not know well at all. I appreciated the focus on Louisa's contributions to the diplomatic success of her husband. The book offers detailed insights into the development of American diplomacy and the difficulties of that endeavor in the early 19th century when the US was a new, barely recognized country and when international communications were so slow as to be almost nonexistent, a fact exacerbated by the long Russian winters that drastically further slowed any communication.

Even though I enjoyed the book, I think it would have worked better as a historical novel and/or that it should have been shortened by 100-200 pages. There were too many instances of speculative statements of the type, "perhaps Louisa did...." or "it's possible that John Quincy did...." Ms. Cook's reliance on metaphors got a bit tedious and seemed more appropriate to a fictional work than to a biographical work. At one point in the book, she compares the negotiations in the Congress of Vienna to an orchestra and there are at least 12 references to that metaphor in a span of approximately 2 pages. The timeline of Louisa's treacherous journey from St. Petersburg to Paris completely threw me. As I read that section, I thought it was concurrent with the negotiations in Ghent. Suddenly, I discover that the negotiations had been successfully concluded prior to Louisa's departure from Russia. There were also abrupt shifts in time, backwards and forwards, between Ghent, Vienna, St. Petersburg, and France.

(DISCLOSURE: I received a free, review copy of this book, the Kindle edition, from the publisher through its blogger review program, BookSneeze. I was free to write the review that I felt the book deserved. )

Run and read well, y'all,
Bob Allen
Nairobi, Kenya

More Alternatives to Google Reader

TidBITs, a digital publication about Macintosh computers that's been around for a long time, recently published an article about the demise of Google Reader and alternatives for RSS feeds. It talked about some alternatives that I hadn't seen before. I'm still happy with Feedly, but you might want something different: Explore Alternatives to Google Reader

Running? What's that? No, seriously, I'm trying to get the routine reestablished but it ain't easy. Walking more — some short walk breaks during my runs but more walking in the evenings with my wife. I thoroughly enjoy the time with my wife but want to do both — walk with her and run.

Run well, y'all,
Bob Allen
Nairobi, Kenya

I Love Music

At best, I am a for my own pleasure musician. As long as I'm not soloing in front of other people, I enjoying singing or playing guitar (well, with the guitar, I would add ...and as long as the chords stay within a narrowly defined range). You won't get me to do so for anyone else, but I even (painfully) play a bit of piano to my own amazement.

I love music. Partly, it's my family heritage. My grandfather loved to play the piano and sing. I could be wrong, but my memory tells me that he couldn't tell you a "C" from an "F#" — he read and played shaped-notes. As a kid, I was amazed.

Music speaks to me. And mostly, it's the music itself more than the words. Our son and, especially, our daughter hear and learn the words of songs almost immediately — it baffles me. For me, even as a teenager, it's the music. My tastes are pretty eclectic ... light rock (especially from the 60s and 70s), blue grass, country, instrumental classical.... For worship, I don't mind, at all, praise choruses (as long as they're not mindless repetition) and CCM (I don't know what the current in vogue term is). I even like some Christian rap (think Propaganda), but in this case, it's the words, not the music, that I like.

The first time I heard Francesca Battistelli, I heard Free to Be Me on the radio and it immediately resonated with me, both the words and the music (okay, When I was just a girl.... doesn't describe my experience — LOL!):

‘Cause I got a couple dents in my fender,
Got a couple rips in my jeans;
Try to fit the pieces together,
But perfection is my enemy.
On my own I'm so clumsy,
But on Your shoulders I can see—
I'm free to be me.

As much as I like all kinds of music, though, when it comes to worship, hymns are my preference. Yes, I like the music of (most) hymns. I enjoy a good 4-part harmony, in just the right range so that I can sing bass. But, it's the words that move me. I can hardly sing the third verse of It Is Well With My Soul without tears:

My sin — oh, the bliss of this glorious thought: my sin not in part, but the whole — is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more, praise the Lord, praise the Lord, o my soul!

They don't have to be old hymns, either. Lynn DeShazo's Ancient Words is a moving testimony to the power of God's Word, the Bible. Keith and Kristyn Getty are writing and singing excellent hymns that present truth in ways that speak to present Christians.

In oral-preference cultures — cultures where, no matter what their literacy level, the preferred method for storing and passing on information is in stories — songs are used to teach, reinforce teaching, and to help people remember important lessons. Hymns have performed the same function for Christians and Jews for millennia. Here's an excellent example and an interesting story of one way hymns have been used to teach — the free download is an old hymn in a modern style:

Hymn Stories: The Church's One Foundation (+ Free Download)

Oh, and let's keep the running theme of this blog. One of the ways that I motivate myself when I'm running is with music. Not via an MP3 player and earbuds, but singing in my head — whatever happens to be there.

Run well, y'all,
Bob
Nairobi, Kenya

Book Review: "7 Men: And the Secret of Their Greatness" by Eric Metaxas

In 7 Men: And the Secret of Their Greatness, Eric Metaxas endeavors to return readers to a clear and correct understanding of "manhood" by answering two questions: 'What is a man?' and 'What makes a man great?' Metaxas seeks to counter what he sees (and I agree) as misunderstandings of manliness as either brutish bullying to get one's own way or moral weakness in order to get along with everybody.

These questions are never addressed directly in the book after the introduction, but Metaxas seeks to provide an answer to them by giving the reader a glimpse into the lives of seven men that he believes deserved to be identified as great: George Washington, William Wilberforce, Eric Liddell, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Jackie Robinson, Karol Wojtyla (Pope John Paul II), and Charles Colson. In doing so, he tries to set these men up as examples to be followed, as role models worth imitating.

I think he succeeds to a great extent. However, if one were to read the short biographies without reading the introduction, one might come away thinking that each of the subjects was a good man who largely succeeded in his own life, but might not catch the Metaxas' intent to identify true manhood.

Metaxas demonstrates that greatness is neither age-dependent nor country-dependent. Each died in a different decade of life — 60s, 70s, 40s, 30s, 50s, 80s, and 70s — and most reached their pinnacle of greatness near the end of their lives. One criticism, though, could be leveled against Metaxas because he limited his choice of subjects to those who came from the broader western cultures — the USA, Germany, England, Scotland, and Poland. He could have broadened the scope of his subjects by writing, for instance, on Nelson Mandela or Mahatma Gandhi. (Side note: Mandela would have been an "odd man out" as all of the subjects of Metaxas' biographies have died — or, as a Kenyan friend has said, "They are past tense.")

At least one reviewer has already taken Metaxas to task for his heavy reliance on secondary sources. But, 7 Men is not intended to be a scholarly treatment of the lives of these men. Rather, they are used to illustrate Metaxas' thesis (in my reading of the book) that greatness, that true manliness is demonstrated when one stands firm on one's convictions even when such a stance leads to rejection, ridicule, suffering, and even death. In this case, reliance on secondary sources is not a detriment.
 
7 Men gives a good introduction to the lives of these 7 men who are admirable. But it goes beyond that to show the foundation of their greatness. This is a good read; highly recommended.

I read the Kindle version. Both the Kindle and the hardcover editions are scheduled for release on 30 April 2013. I received a pre-publication copy of 7 Men from the publisher, through their BookSneeze blogger review program. I was not required to write a positive review. Disclosure

Book Review: "Stress Test" by Richard Mabry

Life is good for Dr. Matt Newman. He has finished his last day in private practice. He's ready to start a new job tomorrow as an assistant professor of surgery at Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas — less stress, more regular hours, time for a life, and a happier girlfriend. As he walks out of Metropolitan Hospital after an emergency call and gets to his car in a deserted part of the hospital's parking garage, he's suddenly attacked, bound with duct tape, tossed in the trunk of his car, and driven off to his certain demise. When he escapes, Detective Grimes doesn't believe his kidnapping story but goes after Dr. Newman for the murder of Cara Mendiola, an IT technician at Metropolitan found dead in the trunk of his car. Defense attorney, Sandra Murray, takes his case but life goes downhill fast for Dr. Newman.

This is how Richard Mabry begins his most recent medical mystery. I've read 3 of 4 of his medical mystery series, Prescription for Trouble, and enjoyed every one of them. Stress Test was equally enjoyable. Mabry's treatment of the characters was consistent — if they had been actors, one would say they stayed in character. He does a good job of intertwining the lives of the characters to introduce some internal as well as interpersonal tension. For example, Ms. Murray has just broken off a relationship with Dr. Ken Gordon because he doesn't share her faith in God. She has concluded that all doctors are probably like Dr. Gordon — so wed to science that they can't have faith in God. Dr. Gordon becomes Dr. Newman's neurosurgeon when Dr. Newman suffers a serious head injury in his kidnapping. And, Ms. Murray not only takes Dr. Newman's case, she begins to be emotionally attached to him.

While Mabry keeps his characters in character, they are sometimes a bit shallow. For instance, it seems unlikely that someone like Ms. Murray, who is very good as a defense lawyer, would jump to the conclusion that all doctors were faithless just because Dr. Gordon wanted nothing to do with religion.

This is a "Christian mystery" so references to faith and God should come as no surprise. These elements are believable and portrayed as normal facets of life for the characters. Some might question Ms. Murray's breaking off of the relationship with Dr. Gordon because of his unbelief as odd, but it's not odd in the Christian world. Dr. Newman's faith grows throughout the story. Other characters have to confront their own lack of faith as the story progresses.

There were some plot quirks. For instance, near the end of the book, Mabry has Detective Ames saying that a certain deputy sheriff probably called the police dispatcher. She speculates that Detective Grimes had alerted the dispatcher to let him know about any calls related to Dr. Newman. However, just one screen later, Detective Ames says that the police got lucky because the deputy sheriff called the detective division rather than the police dispatcher.

All in all, this was worth reading.

There were some interface errors in the Kindle edition. Navigating to "Go to...Beginning" took me to the author's page at the very end of the book. Neither Kindle's X-Ray function nor real page numbers were enabled — perhaps that's because I was reading a review copy from the publisher but the X-Ray function, especially, would have been helpful.

Disclosure: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. See http://cmp.ly/1

CAPTCHAs and Spam

I tried an experiment a couple of days ago — I turned off word verification to see what would happen. For a couple of days, there were a very few Anonymous spam posts. Then, this morning, I woke to about 120 e-mails notifying me of comments on this blog from Anonymous — all spam, all posted between 2130 and 2200 GMT. Now, many of them complimented me on the extraordinary nature of my blog posts and my incredible talent as a webmaster. LOL! Really?

Well, fortunately, my self-esteem doesn't depend on anonymous postings from people who want me to click on a link to their (likely) virus-infested web sites. And, I certainly don't want an ever-increasing number of spam notifications filling up my inbox. So, I've reenabled word verification for comments.

Maybe hate is too strong, but I get seriously annoyed by CAPTCHAs. About half the time, I can't figure out what I'm supposed to type and either get it wrong or have to click on the button that gives a different CAPTCHA. (The example to the left is easy to decipher.) However, I find the other option — having commenters register or sign-in — equally annoying. My apologies. I do really like legitimate comments. I like reading other opinions. I like knowing that someone has found a post interesting or helpful. It's nice to know that someone has taken a moment from their day to let me know they read what I wrote.

As an aside, did you know that CAPTCHA actually means something? Google's Help page says this:

The term CAPTCHA (for Completely Automated Public Turing Test To Tell Computers and Humans Apart) was coined in 2000 by Luis von Ahn, Manuel Blum, Nicholas Hopper and John Langford of Carnegie Mellon University. At the time, they developed the first CAPTCHA to be used by Yahoo.

• What security measure do you find least annoying for blog comments — CAPTCHAs or something else?

Run well, y'all,

Bob Allen

Nairobi, Kenya

Calling All Skeptics — Could Jesus' Resurrection be True?

Christianity makes some pretty audacious claims. We celebrate one of those on 31 March — Jesus' resurrection. If you're a skeptic looking for truth or even a believer who wants to strengthen your belief, this may be a good book to read, "Raised? Doubting the Resurrection" by Jonathan Dodson and Brad Watson. It's free and available for Kindle (.mobi), Nook/iBooks/Sony (.epub), or as the generic PDF. The authors and publishers are encouraging people and churches to give it away. (I haven't, yet, read the book but read and liked another book by Dodson, "Unbelievable Gospel", so feel good about recommending this.)

Goodbye Google Reader, Hello Feedly

I have no idea how many of my friends use an RSS reader. RSS is a geekonym (my made-up word for a geek's acronym) for Really Simple Syndication. An RSS reader gathers, in one place, posts from blogs to which one has subscribed — in other words, instead of bookmarking every blog you want to read, you subscribe to those blogs in your RSS reader and you can find all the blogs in one place. It's simple and convenient. I have used Google Reader for several years. It lists the blogs to which I subscribe, shows me how many posts on each I haven't read, shows me a preview, and allows me to go to the full blog post if I want. Simple, easy, and it was free.

On Wednesday, Google dropped a bombshell for users of Google Reader by announcing the they will shut it down effective 1 July 2013 — A second spring of cleaning

Devastated? No. Unhappy? Yes. I immediately went on the search for a new RSS reader. I checked out the following — all are browser-based and not stand-alone applications:

• Newsblur — the problem with Newsblur is that in the free version, I can only subscribe to 12 blogs. To have unlimited subscriptions, I have to pony up $24 per year — not bad and the demise of Google Reader may be an indicator that a paid service is the way to go. But, I also found that Newsblur hung up more than once while I was trying to import my 12 blog subscriptions from Google Reader.
• The Old Reader — Well, frankly, I can't test The Old Reader. I set up the account yesterday and tried to import the OPML file that I exported from Google Reader. Still today, The Old Reader says that they've had a massive influx of new users, their servers are overwhelmed, and my import is in the queue. (OPML is another geekonym for Outline Processor Markup Language — yeah, like you wanted to know that!)
• Feedly — Simple, free, unlimited subscriptions, and there are versions for Safari, Chrome, Firefox, Android, and iOS. An article on their blog, Transitioning from Google Reader to feedly, was very helpful. I was able to import my blog subscriptions directly from Google Reader without using an OPML file and Feeldy promises a seamless transition to their own proprietary service once Google Reader shuts down. Feedly also offers several different ways to view your subscribed blogs — as a list of clickable headlines, in a magazine-like layout with graphics and post previews, the full post. I'm still learning my way around, but for now, Feedly is my choice — and frankly, I'm unlikely to change. In fact, as of today, I don't plan to go back to Google Reader, even during the next 3 1/2 months before Google shuts it down.

There are other options available, some free and some paid.

• If you currently use Google Reader, what do you plan to use after 1 July?

Since this is a blog that was started about running — I ran today. It was only 3.4 miles and included several walking breaks, so it was slow. But, I was out there. What about you?

Run well, y'all,

Bob Allen

Nairobi, Kenya

Book Review: "Heaven's Lessons: Ten Things I Learned About God When I Died" by Steve Sjogren

I'm not really sure what to say about this book. Sjogren talks about 10 things he learned as a result of his "near death" experience. While there were some good, Biblical principles (and some good secular principles) in the book, for me it was "wrapped" in such a way as to make it difficult to take. With a near death experience, professional dream interpreters, unresolved (in the book) leadership struggles in a church or ministry (the struggles were not clearly identified in the book), it just left much to be desired. It's not that there's anything wrong with the book, it just didn't resonate with me, except for the chapter on Quit Quitting.

Undoubtedly, Sjogren grew from his experience of near death and through the struggles he went through afterwards to regain his health, strength, and just his ability to function. His willingness to trust God through those years and not to give up are inspiring. The ten things Sjogren identifies that he learned were:

• We live in a spiritual world
• God is big
• Success works backwards
• God especially enjoys irregular people
• Don't fear death
• Quit quitting (best of the chapters — helped me)
• God heals gradually
• Get over it!
• Face your fear
• Be thankful.

Some chapters were unremarkable. I think there are likely better books that accomplish the same thing.

I read a pre-publication copy of the Kindle edition of the book. While not as distracting as some Kindle editions, there were formatting errors in TOC and a few other places like in the section on "How can I grow in thankfulness" beginning around location 1870. Hopefully, those have been cleared up in the edition that was actually published.

(Disclaimer: I received a free preview copy of this book in exchange for a review. The opinions are my own; I was not paid to give either a positive or negative review; I was encouraged to say what I actually think.)

Getting Back in Shape

I know people who are absolutely consistent with everything they do. Since, October, my running has taken a nosedive. Much of that is just due to life interfering but a bit of it is just my own inconsistency. About 6 weeks ago, I was in Turkey for a meeting. I had taken my running gear but just hadn't run. About the 4th day of the meeting, we had the late afternoon off and another participant said he was going to run. I asked if I could join him and we took off after about 10 minutes. Great run even though I hadn't run a lick in about 3.5 weeks. When I mentioned that to him, he was amazed and said he didn't think he had ever missed working out. (Boy, that made me feel good! Seriously, I just thought, "Well....")

Anyway, once we got home, I ran a couple of times but just couldn't get into the routine ... rainy mornings, not sleeping great after travelling, our adult kids and others here for Christmas, lots to do, some missing "wanna's". It just didn't happen.

Now that Christmas and New Years are behind us, I'm trying to get back. I had run so little, that I'm trying to take it easy. Only 2.8 miles or so every other day. Even with that, it's more than I've run since October.

Getting back in shape at my age (58+), at this altitude (5700'+), and at my weight (...never mind) just ain't too much fun. But, I'm getting there. My distance isn't going up and my weight isn't going down, yet, but without trying at all, I've already cut some time off. And, I can already run farther before having to walk.

The other thing I haven't done is stay consistent with this blog. Not that you care, probably, but I need it to stay motivated. So, let's see what happens.

Run well, y'all,
Bob

Book Review: Running for My Life by Lopez Lomong, with Mark Tabb

Running for My Life
(Disclosure: Review copy — I get nothing from posting the link, below, to the Kindle version on Amazon.)

I had seen the pre-publication announcements for this book and really wanted to read it for a couple of reasons. First, I live and work in Kenya and the issue of child soldiers is a hot topic around here. The Kakuma refugee camp is huge. So, a first-hand account of one who has experienced that holds a lot of interest for me. Second, I enjoy running. Now, I'm old and fat and slow, but I'm still attracted to stories of runners for whom running has been a way to work through and overcome challenges. Lomong's story fit both of those and I was glad to get the chance to read and review the book through Thomas Nelson Publisher's "BookSneeze" program.

In my experience, autobiographies have to be taken with a grain of salt. Most seem to come across as highly self-serving and, frankly, somewhat pompous. This one did not, perhaps because of the capable guidance of the co-author. I was pleasantly surprised at how engaging the book was.

Is it possible to quantify mistreatment? While Lomong was not beat during his captivity nor was he ever sent to battle by the rebel soldiers, it was difficult to read his account of being kidnapped and then his time in the rebels' camp. Any time I thought about him being only 6 years old and forcibly kept from his family and in those conditions, it was heartbreaking. At the same time, though, the thoughts he recounts from that time could hardly be the thoughts of a 6-year old — he's certainly projecting adult thoughts back to that time. Not that that's wrong because I think it's the nature of autobiographies.

It was fun to read of Lomong's "wonder" at all the new experiences he faced. He saw Kakuma as a haven (it's not, at least from an American middle class perspective) because he could go to school, he was away from war, he had food ("...I looked at the scraps of food from the dump as a blessing."), he could play football (soccer), he could run! Later in the book, as Lomong talks about facing a major 1500M race, he writes:

Pressure is trying to make a UN food allotment stretch for thirty days. Pressure is watching friends die of malaria and wondering who in the camp will be next. Pressure is writing an essay that will determine your entire future in a language you do not know. A footrace, even a championship race, did not make me feel pressure. (Kindle book location 2293-2295)

Lomong will help you see your own troubles in a new light. I think you will also be inspired by how Lomong has used his success to try to make a difference in the lives of other southern Sudanese — perhaps that's what makes this autobiography so different from others.

Running for My Life is a good read. While autobiographical, it's not pompous. If you're interested in the life of one elite runner, you'll enjoy this book. There are numerous references to Lomong's faith in God (personally, I'm very sympathetic to that perspective) but he rarely gets preachy — it's just who he is. I think you'll celebrate with this kidnapped boy who, with a lot of help from strangers, organizations, individuals, teachers, and friends, was able to escape from dire circumstances and use his freedom to help others. Maybe you'll even be inspired to help a lost boy. This would be a great read for anyone working with immigrants — it will help you know how to help them adjust.

A Book-Lover's Dream

It is no secret, at least not to those who know me well, that I enjoy reading. I've said it before, but I also like free — certainly not at all costs*, but free does roll off one's tongue quite nicely. So, when those two thing, reading and free, coincide it becomes a rather pleasant day.

So, you can easily imagine the pleasant thoughts that ran through my head when I found out that there is a contest at the web site, Christian Fiction Book Reviews, in which the winner will receive a $300.00 Amazon gift card. Very nice.

What would you do with $300.00 to spend at Amazon? What would I do? I don't know at the moment, though certainly some of that would be spent on Kindle books. And, frankly, I won't spend the energy thinking about it unless and until I actually win.

To enter — and, of course, by telling you this I may, in fact, be lessening my chances of winning (but my chances were probably already quite slim) — go to the Christian Fiction Book Reviews web site (click on the web site name), and complete any or all of the How to Enter tasks (share on Facebook, Like on Facebook, Tweet on Twitter, and/or post on your blog).

I sincerely hope that whoever is selected for the card will enjoy the shopping spree.

Run well,
Bob

Return Trip to Safari Snacks Doesn't Disappoint

Our daughter joined us in Burnaby for Labour Day weekend. Yesterday, she and I headed back to Safari Snacks House and Grill for some samosas and bhajias to go with the lentil curry and chicken curry that Linda was cooking for supper. And, the second time around didn't disappoint. Our only problem was that we had too much food. So, we had bhajias and samosas for lunch today. Linda put them on a tray lined with paper towels and heated them up in the oven and they heated and crisped up nicely.

The owners remembered me from the first trip. They also remembered my previous blog post and told us they had added a bit more dhania to the bhajia coating. While we were waiting, we sampled a weekend specialty of the house, muthiya. It was a mixture of various kinds of lentils, green beans, and chicken in a gravy. It was pleasantly spiced — not bland but not too hot either. While we sampled it, both of the owners came by to see what we thought. One of them said it was an acquired taste but Stacey and I thought it was really good. They only cook it on the weekends (maybe only on Saturday).

You won't find more friendly staff anywhere. Combine that with good food and it's a really nice experience — eat there, take it to the park around the corner for a picnic, or take it home.

Eat well,
Bob

Safari Snacks (Burnaby, BC) — A Taste of Home

I've been in Burnaby, BC for about 2 weeks. This past week, a friend (someone we knew from Kenya who now lives in Burnaby) called and asked if we were free to join them for samosas and bhajias. We did and enjoyed them immensely — both the food and the fellowship. So, we asked where the food had come from. Today, we decided to head there, get lunch, and have a picnic at Deer Lake Park.

So, we hopped on bus #144, got off at Canada Way and Sperling Ave., and headed to Safari Snacks House & Grill just east of Sperling, across from the Masjid al-Salaam & Education Centre on Canada Way. Great choice — we were not disappointed. The staff were very friendly. The lady who first greeted us is from Uganda; the man who took our order is from Dar es Salaam, though he left there in 1974 and hasn't returned (he would be in for a shock as Dar has changed a lot in 38 years!).

We bought a dozen samosas (4 beef, 4 chicken, 4 vegetable), a plate of bhajias, and a couple of Diet Pepsis (yeah, Diet Pepsi when we're having samosas and bhajias — saved us a few calories). Then we headed across Sperling to Deer Lake and spread out our Kenya khanga for our picnic.

The samosas and bhajias were fresh and still hot when we opened them up. Our favourite were the beef samosas but all of them were good. The bhajias could have used a bit more of something in the coating, maybe dhania, but they were also quite good.

On the way back to the bus stop to go back to the apartment, we stopped in and picked up 2 sweet mango lassis. Lots of mango juice so they were wonderful! If the folks on the bus had known what we were drinking, I'm sure they would have forced the bus driver to stop and wait while they got their own.

At any rate, small cafe, wonderfully friendly owners and staff, fresh food, good taste, reasonably priced. We'll go back. If you're near the east or northeast side of Deer Lake Park, stop in and try Safari Snack House & Grill.

Book Review: He Chose the Nails (Lucado)

Max Lucado has been a favourite writer of devotional material for Christians for decades. He Chose the Nails: What God Did to Win Your Heart will not disappoint long-time Lucado readers and would be an excellent starting book for those who have never read his writing.

I must admit that, though I have always enjoyed a bit of Max Lucado, I was a little hesitant to tackle the whole book. I just wasn't sure that I could take syrupy, tear-jerking stories. But, when I laughed out loud in the first chapter, that let me know I was going to enjoy this book. In the very first paragraph, Lucado describes a man trying to buy a Christmas present for his wife. Before the end of the first page, he passes on the sage advice that his father gave him about such a dilemma:

"There will come a time," he said solemnly, "when a salesperson will offer to help you. At that moment, take a deep breath and say this phrase, 'Es-tée Lau-der.'"

I'm reading this in the car and am almost rolling in the floor laughing so hard — I certainly would have except that I'm a bit large for rolling in the car floor. I'm hooked.

Lucado uses this story to introduce how lavishly God gives to us and how God's gifts shed light on God's heart, God's good and generous heart.

In He Chose the Nails, Lucado reminds us of what God did through Jesus to provide salvation for us. We certainly don't deserve God's love or His provision of salvation. Lucado provides abundant examples of how we have fallen short. However, God in Christ chose the cross and Lucado also provides abundant evidence of how hard a choice that was. Chapter two is subtitled, God's Promise in the Soldier's Spit. How can you resist that? Lucado talks about how the Roman soldiers treated Jesus once he was sentenced. The soldiers wanted blood.

So they scourged Jesus. The legionnaire's whip consisted of leather straps with lead balls on each end. His goal was singular: beat the accused within an inch of his death and then stop ... No doubt Jesus was near death when his hands were untied.

 Each subsequent chapter looks at a different aspect of Jesus' suffering, his crucifixion, and his resurrection and how God demonstrated His desire to save us. It is a powerful, provocative, piercing reminder of our need for and God's provision of salvation.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze book review bloggers' program . I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.

Book Review: The 13th Tribe, by Robert Lipuralo

The "immortals" are a group of Israelites who were knocked unconscious, but not killed, by the appearance of God's glory after the Israelites rebelled against God when they worshipped the golden calf at Mt. Sinai. Because of their sin, they are condemned to live forever on earth, never aging, never dying (unless their head is severed from their body). Through the "favors" that they have done for governments through the centuries, they have access to the highest places of power and to the most advanced weapons and technology systems in the world. They have determined that, like Phinehas in Numbers 25, their forgiveness and salvation lies in avenging evil. To that end, they have planned a massive attack on a place and people that they have determined are evil.

There is a certain appeal in vigilanteism when an obvious wrong has been committed and the authorities seem to do nothing. The problem, of course, is that vigilantes have set themselves up as jury, judge, and executioner without accountability for their decisions and actions — they have set themselves up as God. Thus, when I began reading the book, I rebelled against what appeared to be its premise — that the "immortals" were acting on God's behalf. Vigilanteism also almost always includes collateral damage that most find unacceptable. Both issues are dealt with in "The 13th Tribe."

Suspend any sense of reality and enjoy this book like any other action novel. Liparulo tosses in some real surprises. There is plenty of action; there is plenty to stir emotions. I'm not competent or confident enough to judge character or plot development, though Beth's forgiveness of Jagger is weak as she demonstrates no internal conflict in forgiving. The one glaring mistake is a biblical one — God did not, as Liparulo states, punish the Israelites to wander and die in the desert because of the golden calf incident but because of their refusal to trust God's ability to give them the Promised Land.

One interesting twist is how Liparulo deals with what might happen if a person were to be immortal. In the last part of the book, the immortals explain to Beth and Jagger that ... well, read the book.

This is Christian fiction and the theme of works-based versus faith-based salvation is woven throughout the whole story. It seems that Liparulo's goal is to make the reader think rather than to provide a pat answer.

This book is unlikely to become a classic but it was fun to read and it did make me think. Definitely worth reading. I read the Kindle edition of the book and it was formatted very nicely and easy to read. The book is set to be released on 3 April 2012.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze book review bloggers program . I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.

Book Review: December 1941: 31 Days that Changed America and Saved the World, by Craig Shirley

In "December 1941," Mr. Shirley set out to describe America's entry into World War II by putting the decisions to enter the war in the context of all of the things, military and otherwise, that were going on in December 1941. He did that day by day, refering to and quoting from various media accounts about things that were happening.

By and large, Mr. Shirley accomplished his purpose:

• He includes interesting anecdotes about the daily life of the average American that give great insight into the culture of the US at the end of the Great Depression.
• He clearly demonstrates the divisions in the country about getting involved in a European war that many felt had little impact on Americans.
• He alludes to but does not settle the question of whether or not President Roosevelt and his advisors suspected that an attack on Pearl Harbor was imminent but did nothing in order to force America into the war. Most of America was blind-sided.
• He also talked about the changes in American life that occurred as a result of America's entry into the war.
• Most surprising to me were the draconian measures implemented by the Roosevelt administration.

I really wanted to like this book — the premise and the method were intriguing. Many reviewers had given the book high marks. Overall, I'm really glad that I read the book because Mr. Shirley did accomplish his goal of putting American entry into WWII in the context of America in December 1941. In the end, I did like the book, but...

...I had a really difficult time getting past major deficiencies in the book. Each of the 31 chapters was titled by the date — i.e., "The Twenty-Eighth of December." However, citations were from newspapers from multiple days — in chapter 1, there are quotes from December 1 (which would have been about the previous day), December 4, December 8, December 9.

Second, there was little cohesiveness in the writing, particularly in the sections that quoted newspaper or radio accounts of events. Many times it was like reading a random compilation of sentences from newspapers.

Finally, I felt like the editing of this book was poor. Some sentences required multiple readings to understand what was being said (and I have a Master's degree). Others continue to baffle me. I wondered if publication of the book was rushed to get it on the market before the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor?

It's very possible that the medium that I used contributed to the difficulty of reading this book. I read the iBook version on an iPhone 3G — small form factor, aging technology, etc. Reading was fine but looking at footnotes (endnotes) was slow and most unpleasant. It's likely that reading this on a Kindle or Nook would have been much more pleasant.

I definitely recommend "December 1941." In spite of its many shortcomings, it does give one a unique and interesting perspective on America's entry into the war and on the enduring changes in American society that resulted. I just wish there had not been so many shortcomings.

More information about the book, including a video with the author, is available at this link.

Links to purchase various versions of the book from Amazon (I get no remuneration).

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Millennials and Returning to High Altitude Running (unrelated)

Recently, I finished reading The Millennials, by Thom Rainer and Jess Rainer. The book seeks to interpret research done among a group of 1200 people born between 1980 and 1991. It was an interesting and generally positive look at this generation. Today, I came across this graphic that summarizes the generation.


Created by: Online Graduate Programs

• Do you think this accurately summarizes (generalizes) this generation?

Running — I was in Saly, Senegal, for almost the last 2 weeks. Saly is 57' above sea level. Because of its location, it doesn't start getting light there until 7AM. Because I was in a meeting, I had to be out by 6AM. Fortunately, the roads where we met were pretty good. So, a headlamp and reflective vest were good things to have along. I did run 2 days on sand roads in the dark. That made for interesting runs. Our flight back from Senegal to Nairobi was an overnight flight and I didn't sleep very much. But, Sunday morning, having flown all night with little sleep, in a time zone that was 3 hours ahead of my body, and now back at 5700' above sea level, I ran a short run to try to shake out the cobwebs. It was really hard. Looking forward to getting my altitude lungs and legs back!

Run well, y'all,
Bob
Nairobi, Kenya

Two Kinds of Quiet and Other Random Thoughts

(From Random Thoughts About Change)

Since I call my blog "Random Thought While Running," I decided that, perhaps, today I should post some random thoughts. Some of these I had while running; some I had while eating lunch; some I just had.

• The quiet when my wife is not here (she's currently in the US with her Mom) doesn't have the same quality as quiet when she's here. The latter is full of love and support and life. The former is just quiet.
• SQUIRREL!
• Reading a book in order to write a review of the book is quite different from reading a book for pleasure.
• SQUIRREL!
• Did you know that there are life lessons to be learned in the app, Bejeweled 2 (iPhone)? I'll write about those another day.
• PIZZA! (Just arrived from Pizza Inn in 50 minutes rather than the 1 hour that I was told. Tikka Chicken and Hawaaian. Yum!)
• When you're tired, molehills become mountains. True in life and just as true when running.
• SQUIRREL!
• Loquats are slippery when you run across them.

Now, it's time to eat that pizza and watch a movie.

Run well, y'all,

Bob

Nairobi, Kenya

Confidence Builder Run

I've been really slack on running the last month or so. It's a combination of it being the rainy season here in Kenya and getting to bed way too late. So, when I have run, my mileage and endurance have been way down. Anyway, this morning I headed out for about 3.5 miles before going to church and planned to run a route that has a hill that I just don't like. I was determined to run the whole route, but I've been determined before and .... Well, it was short and it wasn't fast (9:40 mpm) but I beat the hill and ran the whole way. Huge boost to my confidence. Run well, y'all, Bob Nairobi, KE