Laying out my personal manifesto to help clarify life and things

It's easy to appreciate when good things happen. It's harder but more satisfying to appreciate when things don't happen. I recently experienced a wonderful thing that didn't happen. I felt the loving design of the microwave that didn't beep.

When I was young I thought weightlifting was about the muscles. After weightlifting for some years, golly jeepers was I missing the point. I'm often struck by some new realization of how weightlifting has made my life better. I've developed a deep gratitude for the practice. As someone who has battled chronic pain, I'll begin with the most important benefit weightlifting has given me: a huge decrease in my everyday pain.

We were dining at a Middle Eastern restaurant in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Just enjoying some dolmas, hummus, tabouli, baba ganoush, all the delicious fixin's. Then I caught a glimpse of it: my new favorite shirt.