F3 Knoxville

Tag: MD Hammer

The Empty Stocking

AO: asylum-pm
Q: Pele (Jon Lindberg)
PAX: Lilydipper, Brick, Pusher, MD Hammer, Drum Major, Kung Blue, Tenderfoot, Switchhitter (Tony), Crash Dummy, Ghost Flag (F3Knoxville), Pele (Jon Lindberg), Birdie
FNGs: None
COUNT: 11
WARMUP: – 17 Grady Corns (4-ct, IC)
– Motivators (5 count, decreasing)
– Bolt 45s
– 10 LBCs forward/backward , (4-ct, IC)
– 10 Cherry Pickers (4-ct), in cadence

THE THANG: • Mosey to First hill on Pickett’s Charge
o 25s on the hill: STAR JUMPS and IRON MIKES (2-ct)

• Mosey to Serpentine Sidewalk.
o Run down sidewalk, suicide style, stopping to do the following exercises:
 2 lights: 5 Merkins/ 4 lights: 10 merkins/ 6 lights 15 merkins/ 8 lights 20 merkins.
 Rinse and repeat for only SIX LIGHTS with FROGGY JUMPS
 Rinse and repeat for only SIX LIGHTS with SHOULDER TAPS (2-ct)

• Mosey to Playground:
o 30 Seconds AMRAP:
 LBCS
 BENCH DIPS on wall
 FLUTTER KICKS
 INCLINE MERKINS
o Rinse and repeat

• Mosey to Flag Pole by Pavillion. SEVENS from Flag Pole to Parking Lot: LOWER ½ BURPEES (flag pole) UPPER ½ BURPEES (Parking Lot)

• Mosey to AO

MARY: SSHs until time
ANNOUNCEMENTS: Hot Toddy 3x Bday Q Jan 6, 2x BDay Q the following week, Big Ball Convergence Jan 20
COT: We talked about the 3rd week of Advent and how to bring Joy to yourself, others, and your Sky Q. The last one is particularly challenging. How do we give Joy to God? Probably the most obvious way is to follow the Greatest Commandment, as written in the Scriptures: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind”. OK… But that can seem a bit abstract. How does one really express their love for the Lord in a meaningful way?
I was struggling with this question last night. So I put down my Q that I was planning and watched The Bishop’s Wife, an old move from the 1940s starring Cary Grant as an angel who comes to Earth to give guidance to a Bishop who is trying to raise funds for a cathedral. He accomplishes his goal, and in the end, the Bishop reads a Christmas sermon that the angel actually wrote (but the Bishop doesn’t know this), and he says in that sermon, “During the Christmas season, we give gifts to each other. You give me a book, I give you a scarf. You give her a necklace, she gives you a tie. And on and on. But one stocking hangs empty. The stocking of the little boy who’s birthday we’re celebrating. We always forget to fill that empty stocking for the Child. But what would the Child want? What can we give Him? If we all—ALL of us– pour into that stocking some Loving Kindness, Warm Hearts, and the Stretched Out Hand of Tolerance, there would be Peace on Earth.” So… If you’re looking for that last minute gift that gives Joy to your Sky Q… well, I think that’s an awfully good way to start. Loving Kindness, Warm Hearts, and the Stretched Out Hand of Tolerance. May there be Peace on Earth and Good Will to all Women and Men this holiday season.
Merry Christmas everyone.

Leaning Into the Ache of Advent

AO: asylum-pm
Q: Lilydipper
PAX: MD Hammer, Switchhitter (Tony), Lizzy, Pele (Jon Lindberg), Steam, Drum Major, Duggar, Crash Dummy, Glamper, Abacus, Doubtfire (Nick Bond), Brick, Pusher, Lilydipper, Gridiron, Birdie (Clyteroll Cabual)
FNGs: 1 Birdie (Clyteroll Cabual)
COUNT: 16
WARMUP: Stretches to left toe and stretches to right toe, 20 High Knees, 20 Side Straddle Hops, 10 Twistees, 10 Cherry Pickers, 7 Pterodactyls Forward and 7 Pterodactyls Backward
THE THANG: Mosey to the Caribbean Parking Lot. We will do Candy Canes, starting at the first island and running counterclockwise around the parking lot until we reach the last cone at the end of the candy cane. There will be a cone on every other island. At each cone we will do the exercises listed below. When we reach the end of the candy cane the first person to finish the exercise sweeps everyone back to the starting island. We then do another candy cane with the next exercise. Here are the exercises:
• 10 Shoulder Taps
• 15 Squats
• 20 Merkins
• 10 Lunges
Mosey to the start of the Serpentine Sidewalk where it touches the road. We will do 14’s on the Serpentine Sidewalk until it merges with the Perimeter Trail. We will bear crawl ahead for one light, then run for four lights, then bear crawl for one light and run for four etc. until we reach the perimeter trail.
Next we will get on our sixes and do 20 American Hammers and 10 Gas Pumps.
Mosey to the start of Cardiac. We will run up Cardiac, stopping at each curve in the sidewalk and finally stopping at the benches. Here are the exercise we will do on the way up:
• Curve 1: 20 Carolina Dry Docks
• Curve 2: 20 Hello Dollies
• Curve 3: 20 Decline Merkins
• Benches: 20 Bench Dips
Mosey to baseball field entryway parking lot.
We will go to the center of the parking lot where Doubtfire parked his truck and trailer. Each man will get a CMU out of the trailer. We will do the following exercise in cadence.
• 20 Overhead Presses
• 20 Curls
• 20 Rows
Place the CMUs back in the trailer.
Mosey to the AO.

MARY: 30 Seconds of High Knees
ANNOUNCEMENTS: RoCo Starfish Convergence at Rampart at 7 am this Saturday. Hot Toddy Triple Birthday Q at Asylum Daybreak on Saturday, January 6 at 7 am. F3 Knoxville Winter Convergence at Big Ball, 7 am on Saturday, January 20.
COT: Our brothers Ocho and Kick Flip have been talking about Advent on Slack, urging us to discuss it with our families. What is Advent? For Christians it is the four weeks before Christmas and it represents the waiting for the coming of Christ. But it is more complex and significant than that. It isn’t all about Christmas lights and getting gifts for others while we wait, although those are certainly nice things. Advent represents a yearning for change in the recognition that all is not right with the world. The American Writer and Anglican Priest, Tish Warren, states we need to lean into the ache of Advent, recognizing that the world, racked with conflict, violence, suffering and darkness, needs change. We need a savior. And Christmas represents the coming of that Savior.

Miracles

THE SCENE: Insert info about the weather, etc.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
Motivators starting with 7, 10 Mountain Climbers, 7 Windmills, 7 Rockettes, 7 Twistees, 7 Little Baby Arm Circles Forward and Backward, Little of This and That.
THA-THANG:
Mosey to dirt path south of the Admin Bldg Road and then go to the Cul de Sac at the southeastern corner of the Admin Bldg.  We will do 20 American Hammers.

Mosey to the Coliseum. Then mosey downhill downhill to the main park roadway.  Stop at the top of each of the three hills on the way down to do 4 burpees.

Mosey to the Caribbean Parking Lot.  We will run East on the South side of the parking lot stopping at the 2nd and 4th island to to the first of the listed exercises below.  We will then Bernie back on the West side of the parking lot stopping at the 2nd and 4th island to do the second exercise listed below.  We will repeat the above pattern with the 3rd through 6th listed exercises.  Here are the exercises:

  • Bear Crawl 10 Lengths
  • Backwards Lunge 10 Lengths
  • Standing Broad Jump 5 times
  • 20 Baby Crunches
  • Lunge Forward 10 Lengths
  • Backward Standing Broad Jump 5 times

Mosey back toward the roadway.  Next, we will run the Pickett’s Charge up to the Coliseum.

Mosey to the small parking lot down the stairs and to the south of the Coliseum.  In the parking lot we will do the first of the listed exercises below. We will then run up the parking lot, up toward the cul-de-sac, then toward the stairs that go back to the parking lot.  Those getting to the stairs first will sweep everyone back to the starting point.  We will then do the 2nd exercise but go the opposite direction with the rabbits sweeping us back when they reach the upper part of the parking lot.  We will repeat the above pattern for the 3rd and 4th exercises.  Here are the exercises:

  • 15 Imperial Walkers
  • 15 4 ct. Flutter Kicks
  • 10 Hand Release Merkins
  • 10 Shoulder Taps (both shoulders = 1)

Mosey to the steps of the Admin Bldg.  We will do 20 4 ct Calve Raises.

Mosey to the AO

MARY:
Abdominals
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
16 men, no FNGs.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Miracles

If only you believe like I believe baby in miracles – we’d get by.  – Jefferson Starship.

Surely the lord is in this place and I did not know it.  Jacob speaking in Genesis 28:16

Many of you may have heard of Salmon Rushdie’s book, The Satanic Verses.  It is a famous book because after it was published, in 1989 the country of Iran’s late Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, issued a fatwa against Rushdie, proclaiming that the novel was blasphemous to Islam and calling for his death.  Rushdie has received protection in both Great Britain and the United States since that fatwa.

I have read the book and it really is a great book.  I don’t think Rushdie meant it to be a blasphemy of Islam although he does make some criticisms of Islam writings.

I bring the book up because there is an amazing passage in it where humans fall from a hijacked Jumbo Airliner to the earth below.  By miracle, two of the passengers survive.  One of those is the main character in the novel.  He knows it is a miracle.  After all, how could a person survive such a fall?  Yet, over time, he forgets the miracle.

How often do we do the same in our own lives?  We have a miraculous experience, so thankful at the time for what we have experienced . . . and yet, over the years, we forget about it.

I personally need to hang on to those miracles, pin them to my chest.  I know that miracles have happened in my past that I have simply forgotten.  I do remember some.  One example:  I didn’t think it would be possible for me to get into a doctoral psychology program after I had spent years studying law and floundering in that profession.  It would take too much time and money and it would be crazy to make such a change in careers.  On a day when I was ready to quit the law practice my boss convinced me to take undergrad courses in psychology and, afterwards, apply to doctoral psychology programs.  I did so but didn’t get into the program in Dallas I was hoping for.  Instead, I was accepted by a program in Aggieland – Texas A&M.  Through loans, stipends, and very cheap housing, I was able to get my doctorate.  What I had only dreamed of actually happened.  And, another miracle:  I met this woman from Kentucky who just happened to apply there as well – that woman became my wife.

I never want to forget that miracle.  I still thank God for it.  There are others I remember but some that I unfortunately have forgotten.

What miracles have happened to you in your lives?  Are there places where God is working in your life but, like Jacob, you don’t know it?  Search for the miracles that God has presented to you.  Write them down and remember them.  Finally, wait for more miracles to occur.  They will happen. God remains with you and will continue to perform them for you.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for On Star regarding his citizenship status.  Prayers for those impacted by the fires and smoke from coming from Canada, including the wildlife impacted.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
This Saturday we will gather at 9 am to help work on and beautify the Asylum. On Saturday, June 17 we will have a F3/Fia team for the KARM Dragon Boat Race. Through the following 1 1/2 weeks, F6 and the Tennessee Valley Players will be performing Beauty and the Best at the Auditorium of Catholic High School.  The website for tickets is posted on Slack.  Our own F6 will be in the performance.

Epiphanies of the Everyday

THE SCENE: On the warm side, but low humidity! About 85 degrees, no wind.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

Check
WARM-O-RAMA:

-SSH (4-ct, IC)

– 10 Windmills (4-ct, IC)

– 20 Moroccan Night Clubs (4-ct, IC)

– 10 Steve Earls (4-ct, IC)

– 10 Cherry Pickers (4-ct, IC)

– Little of this and that

THA-THANG:

MOSEY to the mulched path south of the AO, to the corner where it turns to join the main path.

JINXY’S FOUR AND A QUARTER.  Start at turn, run down to main path and do 25 reps of an exercise, return to starting position.  R&R 4 times, totaling 100 of the exercise.

  • Round 1: Carolina Dry Docks
  • Round 2: LBCs (single count)
  • Round 3: Lunges (single count)

MOSEY to Bottom of Everest.

Three points of contact w/ pain stations: 1. BASE, 2. BASE OF SUMMIT, 3. TOP OF SUMMIT

Do 20 reps of three exercises at each location.  Run down to bottom and do 20 LBCs/20 flutter kicks until 6 arrives. Stay at top after Round 3.

Three rounds:

Round 1: Seal Claps, Overhead Claps, Grady Corns

Round 2: American Hammers, LBCs, Box Cutters

Round 3: Merkins, Shoulder Taps, Plank Jacks—Ran out of time, so just ran to base of summit did 25x each, and ran back up.

MOSEY TO AO.

MARY:
A lil’ bit of stretching.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
14 Strong! (Twitch not tagged, 2.0 of Caveman)

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

I studied a bit of art history when I was in college, and ever since then I’ve had an appreciation for painting, especially from the Renaissance period until the 20th century.  One artist that I’ve always appreciated is Jan Vermeer, who was a Dutch artist active in the 17th century.  He is best known for his paintings of scenes that are quiet and still (i.e., “genre” paintings).  Two of his most famous works are Girl With a Pearl Earring— which shows a woman with her head turned part way towards the viewer, a blue towel on her head and a large pearl earring dangling from her left ear—and The Milkmaid, which depicts a woman, pouring milk into a bowl as light streams through the window.  There were other artists of his time that were more technically proficient, who painted more exciting scenes (Biblical scenes, historical battles, profiles of the rich or powerful!!), who used bolder colors and more elaborate compositions.  But the effect that Vermeer’s paintings have is sublime.  Such quiet and still scenes are rendered into beautiful depictions of everyday life.  In The Milkmaid, for instance, the room the scene takes place in is very plain, as is the woman, the earthenware vessels, and the clothing.  And yet there is such a sense of peace, of airiness, even of loneliness as this woman goes about her chore alone and in silence.  And the objects in the room look so real, you feel like you can almost taste the milk, and feel the dry crust of the bread.  The end result is more than a sum of its parts, and the beauty of the painting when you take a few moments to appreciate it is incredible.  The beauty of the simple.  Vermeer was a master taking these little, mundane moments and turning them into Epiphanies of the Everyday.

I can’t help thinking about the analogy of how God works in our daily lives.  Although I believe miracles can and do happen, the beauty and love of God is often much more subtle.  The kindness of a stranger, the perfect sunset over our AO as we enjoy a Board meeting, the phone call or text from a friend during a time of loneliness or hardship.

We’re often so busy that we’re oblivious to the little moments, the small windows of our Heavenly Father’s beauty and kindness and love that is hiding in plain sight.  Take a moment this week to pause and appreciate an Everyday Epiphany that our Lord and Father provides for us.  Just take a moment, breathe, and be grateful.  And even better, take the opportunity to BE that Epiphany for someone else.  Perform a random act of kindness to a stranger, reach out to a friend, family member, or F3 brother that you haven’t heard from in a while, share your gift of music, humor, or good nature with someone who may not be expecting it.

MOLESKIN:

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Sign up for the Volunteer work day at Asylum a week from this Saturday, 9 am – ??.  Send Me shirts still on sale!

Better Versions of Ourselves

THE SCENE: Insert info about the weather, etc.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
25 Side Straddle Hops, 10 Mountain Climbers, 7 Twisties, 7 Windmills, 7 Cherry Pickers, 7 Pterodactyls forward and 7 Pterodactyls Backward, Little of This and That.
THA-THANG:
There will be bricks laid out by the AO.  We will split into teams of two for Doras.  While one partner starts on the exercises listed below the other runs on the road going north and east to the large shaded tree.  Do five merkins at the tree and run back.  Partners change position and the other runs.  This pattern goes on until each team has completed the following exercises:

  • 100 Overhead Presses
  • 100 Triceps
  • 100  Curls
  • Rows
  • 100 Punches (both hands = 1)
  • 100 Wings Up
  • 100 Winds Down
  • 100 Wings Out.

We will mosey with the bricks to my car in the parking lot and place the bricks behind the back of my car.  Next we will run to the steps of the Admin Bldg.  There will be a list of exercises that we will do while running around the loop.  The steps of the Admin Bldg will be 12 o’clock.  We will do the first exercise at 12 o’clock and then will run around the loop stopping to do the first exercise at 3 o’clock, 6 o’clock and 9 o’clock.  The first man to finish the exercise at 9 o’clock will sweep men back to 12 o’clock.  Each time we reach 12 o’clock we will run up and down the stairs one time.  Then we will start the loop again but with the next set of exercises.  Here are the exercises:

  • 5 Burpees
  • 10  Merkins
  • 10 Big Boy Sit-ups
  • 10 Plank Jacks
  • 10 Carolina Dry Docks
  • 10 Box Cutters

Mosey Back to AO.

MARY:
Abdominals.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
Eleven men, no FNGs.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
I recently attending a video seminar that discussed people with disabilities and discrimination that can occur, even from the health professions, towards those with disabilities.  Some of the best moments of the seminar were when two men with disabilities were interviewed.  One of them, a man in his forties named Matt, was born with a very rare disease that caused his bones to be deformed.  His shoulders were awkwardly small, his hands deformed and turned inward, his legs small and crooked, and other bones deformed as well.  Fortunately, the disease had not impacted his brain and he was quite an intelligent person.  Because of his deformities, he had gone through periods of depression in his lifetime but was now a man comfortable in his own skin.  He has a career in film production.

Matt had many important things to say at the seminar but one that stuck out for me and which I want to share with you regarded his physical conditioning.  He was asked what it was like growing up and not being able to do things other kids did like play kickball, run around on the playground and climb the jumble gym. He did say it was difficult and that the inability to do the things others were doing impacted his self-esteem and mood. He commented that as a younger man he was overweight.  After all, he could not do the types of things that we do in F3.  After some time, he decided to work on his conditioning.  He said he began to realize that we cannot expect, through physical conditioning, to look like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson but we can certainly become a better version of ourselves.  So Matt began to work on his diet, eating healthier foods.  He also began to work out doing simple exercises that he could perform, like leg lifts and raising books above his head.  He could do things to raise his heartbeat and work up a sweat without jumping or running.  For a guy with the disabilities he had, Matt looked to be in very good condition.  He had some muscle tone despite the slumped shoulders and curvature in his body.  He felt good about himself and, like I said, was comfortable in his own skin.

Gents, we do not have to look like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, but we can become, like Matt said, “better versions of ourselves.”  We may not have the speed of Swimmies or the all-around ability of someone like Woodshack but we can strive to increase our physical, mental and spiritual prowess.  That’s important to know for an old geezer like me who cannot keep up with you younguns.

Colossians 3:23-24

Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for employees at Crispr’s workplace where some things have been happening and an employee will be fired; prayer for safe travel for Drum Major and his daughter and for Dawg Paddle; prayers for Pusher’s son as he decides on graduate school; prayers for Abacus’ daughter as she prepares for graduation; prayer for all students at the end of this school year.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
We will meet again to work on our Obstacles at Hardship Hill on Saturday, May 20.