The Joy of Christmas, The Joy of Walking

Feature: The Joy of Christmas, The Joy of Walking

One of the MoneyWalker’s followers sent an off-list link to an article from the current issue of the Economist, perhaps the world’s finest news/commentary magazine. The article, “The Joy of Walking," discusses the moral, legal, and financial aspects of Walking in England, Europe, and the U.S. A few quotes follow:

• From “Song of the Open Road”, Walt Whitman wrote:

Afoot and lighthearted I take to the open road,
Healthy, free, the world before me,
The long brown path before me leading wherever I choose.

• The modern traveler will approach the bridge across the river Wharfe with a different purpose. A sign at its foot heralds the start of the Dales Way, a 76-mile (122-kilometre) trek through some of the prettiest parts of England.

• The joys of walking have long inspired poets and writers. Some have spoken of the sense of freedom that comes from leaving the city behind; the delicious choices offered by forked paths that lead through deep woods or over hilltops.

• Walking seems to set the mind free for contemplation. The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche said that “All truly great thoughts are conceived by walking.” The Welsh writer Lloyd Jones, who was inspired to produce his first novel by a 1,000-mile trek round his homeland, said that “The moving landscape provides an absorbing diversion which frees the mind and gives us a fresh viewpoint, and we’re most at ease with the world when we walk because everything is happening at a manageable pace.”

• Some politicians like the ability to ponder the great issues of state as they plod. William Gladstone, a Victorian prime minister and moralist, was an enthusiastic daily walker, opening a route up Mount Snowdon at the age of 83. While mired in the euro zone’s financial woes this year, Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, chose to spend her summer holiday walking in the south Tyrol.

The MoneyWalker will allow the Economist’s commentary to speak for the “Joys of Walking.” He will comment on his own personal commentary on the “Joys of Christmas.”

• Sharing the food preparation with Ms. MoneyWalker on Christmas morning. Her roast turkey and pecan pie are unbelievably delicious. Ditto for her homemade cranberry sauce, cornbread dressing, and baked sweet potatoes. I pitch in with Paul Prudhome’s great Corn Maque Choux. It takes hours of prep time, but so worth it. The cooking is amplified with ample amounts of well “seasoned” eggnog and an appropriate amount of time under the mistletoe.

• Reading the Christmas story before blessing the food to the visiting MoneyWalker clan while keeping Christ in Christmas.

• Quality time with the grandchildren and watching them play with their toys.

• Listening to our church’s great choir and musicians perform the spiritual and classical songs of the season.

And then to combine the “Joys of Walking” with the “Joys of Christmas,” he will take a long walk at twilight to burn a few Christmas calories while enjoyed the neighborhood lights and decorations; and perhaps spotting a few loose coins.

Merry Christmas everyone! Keep Walking!

MoneyWalker

Today’s Weight = ????

Today’s Money find = $1.43

Kōan Walking and Problem Solving

The Theory of Relativity

Journal Entry, September one to September 17, 2010: Average coinage find for the last 17 days = $1.43; Average weight for last 17 days = 171.75 pounds.

Journal Entry, September 20, 2010: Weight = 172.2 lbs; Coinage = $2.33, 63 pennies (one wheat), 1 nickel, 9 dimes, 3 quarters (one super find in a parking lot consisting of 2 quarters, a nickel and two pennies); Glass bottles retrieved = 8; Ground Scores = 3 (one, a 25 cent gum ball machine that was promptly opened by picking the lock, retrieving the money (a total of one penny), cleaning all parts both inside and outside, painting the antique cast iron “carousel” base, and reassembling. The trophy now holds a featured spot in the MoneyWalker’s herrenzimmer.

Feature Entry: Kōan Walking and Problem Solving

A friend that knows well both the personality of the MoneyWalker and about the orthodoxy of what it means to be a Southern Baptist once remarked to me: “You are not a Southern Baptist but a Zen Baptist.” I thought of his remark after reading Gretchen Rubin’s blog about happiness . This link is to her recent comment about Pablo Picasso Paints Fakes? -- A Koan about Creativity. Being a Zen Baptist is not the same as being a Zen Buddhist so I had to look up the term “koan.”

A kōan (most in the West ignore the correct spelling) consists of a story, a question, or a statement whose understanding cannot be understood by rational thinking but is accessible through intuition. Zen Buddhists would use the word heart as in “accessible through the heart.” In Western thinking kōans are often reduced to mere riddles, puzzles, or meaningless statements. However, in Zen practice a kōan requires a thoughtful response. Kōans are used in Zen Buddhism to demonstrate the inadequacy if not the futility of logical reasoning.” To a Zen Buddhist, “doubt is strength.”

Kōans are often presented as paradoxical poems or anecdotes in a question format. Yet there is no solution. A devout listener when presented the Kōan will meditate for meaning outside of logical thought processes. Kōan’s then, although not riddles, will initially appear as a riddle to the mind. In the case of Picasso, an art dealer asks him to authenticate a Picasso painting. Picasso said “It is a fake.” Later the art dealer returned with another painting. “It too is a fake,” said Picasso. Perplexed, the dealer replied, “But I was with you as you painted this very article.” In which Picasso replied, “I often paint fakes.” While this example is not a true Kōan, it is Kōan-like. This rather simple example for me relates to why 21 days have passed since my last blog. The blogs were all starting to feel redundant; whatever the title or theme of the blog, I felt as I had written it all before.

As for kōan walking, Robert Baker Aitken (aka, Roshi Aitken) in his book The Practice of Perfection: The Parameters from a Zen Buddhist Perspective, suggest that the practice of using kōans during meditation is to practice mindfulness, the practice of noticing what you are doing. He uses walking to illustrate his point. Walking, for efficiency, is below the awareness level and the very act is controlled by autonomic brain/body processes. Mindfulness for walking is the act of bringing the subconscious to consciousness—to be aware and noticing the "heel, foot, ball, toe action as you walk." To consciously process the feeling of all aspects of the walking behavior is kōan walking at its simplest. One may say, “So what?” Thus, a critical part of utilizing kōans for meditation is to practice mindfulness, to delve deeply into the obvious with questions that have no logical answers.

Kōan questioning is related to kōan problem solving. “So what, what?” is a kōan. As we walk, the mind must be occupied with something and often the mindfulness of that something takes the form of a problem. Kōan-like problem solving contains at least three stages according to John Tarrant in his blog essay “The Power of Koan Practice.” First, “contain the problem.” In the MoneyWalker’s current crisis of allowing three weeks to pass without writing a blog, containment meant getting back to the basics. Note the specificity of the above Journal entry. Recently, I had gotten away from what journals provide, a written history of the specifics of a practice, in this case walking for fitness and using the excitement of finding money and “ground scores” for external motivation to persevere. Thus, by being specific, I began the process of containing the problem.

Second, Tarrant would say, “focus upon it.” This entire blog about kōans is allowing me to focus on why I have lost the motivation to write two or three blogs a week about walking, health, and motivation. In truth, trying to contain the problem and focusing on a solution occurred weeks ago, even before my last blog of August 31st had been written. My focus has many prisms one of which is “Why I am writing a blog that contains, to me at least, such a cerebral requirement for something as straightforward as walking for health?” Don’t ask me, I’m still in focus mode.

Third, in Tarrant's tutorial is “allow its solution to emerge.” Tarrant says, “With a problem, listen to the mind’s conversation before trying to solve it.” A great turn of phrase is that thought to “listen to the mind’s conversation.” Kōan walking is a perfect time to listen to the mind’s conversation.

Well, it is well past time for the MoneyWalker to cut his losses and turn off the word processor. But before leaving, a great walk need not be a kōan walk, but when the MoneyWalker has a problem there is nothing better than taking a walk to contain the problem, focus on it, and let a solution present itself.

Perhaps kōan walking leads to good karma whatever that might mean

MoneyWalker

Spiritual Walking

Photo: (self)The Sicilian donkey is highly prized by some Catholic practitioners because of the "cross of Jesus" that appears down the back and across the shoulders. My neighbor paid $3,000 dollars for this champion donkey. Note: for this edition, the journal entries are at end of blog

Feature Entry: Spiritual Walking

After several years of walking for fitness and weight control and using the pleasure of finding money and other objects of value as external motivation, many friends, relatives, and blog followers report to me their walking motives and habits. Many report taking advantage of nature hiking to connect with their idea of the Supreme Creator. Similarly, several report that they meditate and pray while walking. More specifically, some seek Spiritual guidance for their problems. Some have actual conversations.

In the MoneyWalker’s bio sketch, he list “Fiddler on the Roof” as one of his three favorite movies. Most of us remember Tevye, the poor Jewish father of those beautiful daughters, the ones that kept breaking Tevye’s traditions if not his heart. Tevye walked from necessity and often used the time to talk to God, nearly always with sarcasm:

• [to God] Sometimes I wonder, when it gets too quiet up there, if you are thinking, "What kind of mischief can I play on my friend Tevye?"
• [to God] It may sound like I'm complaining, but I'm not. After all, with Your help, I'm starving to death. Oh, dear Lord. You made many poor people. I realize, of course, it's no shame to be poor... but it's no great honor either. So what would be so terrible... if I had a small fortune?
• [to God] I know, I know. We are Your chosen people. But, once in a while, can't You choose someone else?

The MoneyWalker has some of Tevye’s cynicism, but he can easily tear-up to this great Christian hymn: “Today I Walked Where Jesus Walked, I Felt His Presence There.” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has a poem with the same line but takes it further:

Today I walked where Jesus walked, today I walked where Job had walked,
Today I walked with Nephi, Today I walked where Abraham walked,
Today I believed I was nothing in their eyes, today they walked with me.

The MoneyWalker’s thoughts about Spiritual walking were stimulated by a request to be a guest Bible Study teacher last Sunday. The topic dealt with reconciliation of fractured relationships. This blog started out to be about the reconciliation of we dieters/exercisers with our January 1 resolutions. We will do it another time. In the mean time, if you have a fractured relationship with your resolution, practice or re-initiate the big four—weigh every day, eat a healthy breakfast, exercise, and be careful with food portions and selections.

Oh, don’t be afraid to ask for a little Divine intervention.

MoneyWalker

Journal Entry August 19, 2010: Weight = 170.0 lbs; Coinage = $.31. Alas, the Jefferson Davis Car Wash Vacuum mine is running dry. Still no locks. Maybe Jason has hired a new manager who keeps the vacuums clean and neat. Back to finding coins the old fashioned way with hard scans and clever hunches.

Journal Entry: August 18, 2010: Weight = 170.2 lbs.; Coinage = $.50; Observation = 12 school buses lined in a queue—summer vacation is over.

Journal Entry: August 17, 2010: Coinage = $1.11; Weight = 169.0 lbs. Observation = Undercover police raid that appeared to be a false alarm. The MoneyWalker passed right through the thrones of police on the street.

August 16: Weight = 170.0; Coinage = $.35

August 15: Weight = 170.2; Coinage = $4.90, quarters were found everywhere including a super find in a newspaper vending machine, four in the return slot; then in the next machine over, another quarter; then four more “curb quarters.”

The "Ground Score" Meets the Yard Sale

Photo curtesy of the "Yard Sale Addict"

Journal Entry July 19, 2010: Weight = 170.8 lbs; Coinage = $6.85; Ground Scores = 2.

Journal Entry July 18, 2010: Weight = 169.0 lbs; Coinage = $.58; Bottles retrieved = 2; Ground scores = 3.

Note: the MoneyWalker has taken a two week break from his walking and blogging, but he is back rested and resolved.

Feature Entry: The Ground Score Meets the Yard Sale

When preparing a feature blog about walking, finding money, or staying fit while losing weight, the MoneyWalker often uses Google to find inspiration. Today's blog is about hosting a yard sale to dispose of all the loot that has been drug home during the last year. I always use Google advanced and place walking in the first line and the subject of my inquiry in the second, in this case "yard sale". In the do not show, I placed the word "charity." As I thought, walking and yard sale supplied many hits. In addition to "causes" that involve both walking and yard sales to raise money, some neighborhoods combine to have multiple garage/yard sales and then ask people to walk the neighborhood as they shop. I liked the idea.

However, the purpose of my sale was to clear away the "ground scores" and donate the proceeds to my favorite charity, the New Orleans Baptist Friendship House. They minister to abused women and their children. This past Saturday, with Ms MoneyWalker's assistance, we sold more than $350 dollars of merchandise, most of it from repaired "ground scores." After advertising expenses we sent a check for $311 to the Friendship House. The letter of transmittal follows:

Bobby L. Eason, Ed.D.


Dr. Kay Bennett
Baptist Friendship House
813 Elysian Fields Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70117

July 19, 2010

Dear Dr. Bennett:

Enclosed is a check for $311.00 to be received as a donation to the Baptist Friendship House. The amount is the net amount from the “Friendship House” yard sale conducted this past Saturday from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. The Lord blessed us with sunny weather and a slight breeze. A large sign indicated that all proceeds were to be donated to the Baptist Friendship House. Several donated their extra change from their purchases, one donated $10.

The yard sale was great fun. Everyone said our prices were very fair. So in addition to helping the friendship women and their children, we were able to inexpensively place excellent items into the hands of New Orleans citizens, many with needs of their own.

As indicated in an earlier letter, most of the items were found during the MoneyWalker’s fitness walks in the Mid-City area. When an item of interest was found discarded at the curb, and if it had perceived value, it was somehow retrieved and repaired if necessary. The yard sale featured filing cabinets, four office chairs, a bicycle, three kitchen chairs, a baby stroller, a wheel barrow two beds, lamps, clothes, two bar-b-q sets, architectural items, hardware, sporting equipment, a painting, a card table, and about forty containers of plants taken from our garden while thinning, and many more “ground scores.”

God bless the Friendship Ministry.

Sincerely,



Bobby L. Eason

The MoneyWalker

Gardening Versus Walking With An Aside About Dog Walking

Monet's home in Giverny France.


Journal Entry, May 18, 2010: Weight = 173.6 lbs; Coinage = $1.71, 66 pennies (one wheat), 3 nickels, 4 dimes, 2 quarters; Best coinage find = two quarters in a pay phone, a “super find” (.50 or more in one side, does not include car wash finds).

Journal Entry, May 19, 2010: Weight = 171.2 lbs; Coinage = $6.93, 133 pennies, 10 nickels, 26 dimes, 10 quarters (big day at two car washes).

Journal Entry, May 21, 2010: Weight = 172.6 lbs; Coinage = $.80, 55 pennies, 3 nickels, 2 dimes ( what happens when the car wash canisters have been “visited” by the competition).

Journal Entry, May 22, 2010: Weight 173.2 lbs; Coinage = $4.91, 96 pennies, 16 nickels, 24 dimes, 3 quarters (an asphalt nickel, my first).

Feature Entry: Gardening Versus Walking With An Aside About Dog Walking

May 20th (note the gap from journal entries) was gardening day, but not any gardening day, it was outdoor prep day for the huge weekend party for the MoneyWalker’s Bible study groups. We are the hosts. Ms MoneyWalker is agonizingly thorough counterbalanced by the MoneyWalker who is a worriless procrastinator. But two twisted ears notwithstanding, four hours of work later, the yard was stunning.

We attacked the task together and early. Upon entering the front yard, we encountered a dog walker. Her dog had just finished his business on our curb grass garden. Unobserved and without cue from us, the walker reached into her bag and fetched a rubber glove and a plastic bag. In it went. She looked up, we smiled, she smiled, “good mornings” all around, and away she went on a 3 mph pace. Using the caloric expenditure table and estimating her weight at 130 lbs and 40 minute walk duration , she would have burned about 150 calories.

Meanwhile the MoneyWalkers went to work—mowing (no self-propelled mower), edging, hand trimming, weeding, thinning, transplanting, sweeping, pruning, hand watering—and four hours later we called it a day. The only stoppage was two brief G2 Gatorade breaks (G2 is diet). Again using the caloric expenditure table: .032 x 40 minutes x 173 = 225 calories burned. Using the dog walker’s weight of 130, she would have burned 165 calories for forty minutes of gardening. Incidentally, the Consumer’s Report Health Newsletter reported that dog walking is ranked as the number one source of motivation for taking the daily walk.

Measuring caloric expenditure using the table developed by nutrition and exercise physiology scientists is relatively simple. The table lists most daily household tasks in one section and most recreational/sport/fitness exercises in a second. The first factor (see .032 above) is a measure of caloric effort per one minute of exercise. The weighting is based on METS or “metabolic equivalent of tasks.” See Bill Yates, M.D. in his blog, “Brain Posts, Commentary on Research in Clinical Neuroscience” for a good discussion of METs and Wii computer game technology. The formula for measuring caloric expenditure is as follows:

Cal/min/lbs

To calculate caloric expenditure, use the table to locate the physical activity and gain the caloric expenditure per minute of exercise for the specific activity. Multiply the caloric number by the number of minutes of the workout. Then multiply the previous product by your weight in pounds. Using the MoneyWalker’s pace of 4 mph and his weight of 173 and a walk of 90 minutes, calculate as follows:

.042 x 90 = 3.78
3.78 x 173 = 653.94 calories burned

Using the table to calculate the MoneyWalker’s caloric expenditure for their gardening labor, Ms. MoneyWalker first: .032 x 200 minutes x 118, Ms MoneyWalker burned 755 calories (note two 20 minute breaks were deducted from the 4 hours workout calculation.) The MoneyWalker ‘s calculation is .032 x 200 x 173 = 1107.2. It is obvious that the more one weights the more calories are burned.

Now the real challenge begins for the MoneyWalker. In seven hours, the party begins. How will the MoneyWalker deal with the temptations of all that wonderful food that will be served? Will he negate all of the effort and benefits of the gardening expenditure? Stay tuned for the answer.

MoneyWalker

A Trip to the Bank with a Bag of Coins

Journal Entry 3/23/10: Weight = 170.8 lbs; Coinage = $1.25, 50 pennies, 2 nickels, 4 dimes, 1 quarter.

Journal Entry 3/24/10: Weight = 170.6 lbs; Coinage = $3.53, 63 pennies, 8 nickels, 10 dimes, 6 quarters.

Journal Entry 3/25/10: Weight = 171.6 lbs; Coinage = $2.44, 59 pennies, 9 nickels, 9 dimes, 2 quarters; Glass bottles = 9; Ground scores = 5; Best coinage find = a gas pump coin, a quarter. Caution, there are coin finds to be found in the gas station pump drive-thrus, but the drivers are not pedestrian friendly. Also, the practice of looking for coins at gas drive-thrus warrants a high stealth alert. Some attendants have been instructed to discourage non drivers from walking in the areas.

Feature Entry: A Trip to the Bank with a Bag of Coins

The MoneyWalker knew that it was time, time to go to the bank with a bag full of found coins. He had gone earlier in the week, but the coin counting machine was “broken.” “Broken?” I said, “Well not really broken, it just isn’t counting correctly,” she said. So much for my default feeling of machine fidelity. How troubling that all those found coins, carefully cleaned and straightened, and then lugged to the bank might not be counted correctly.

But in went the coins. Clingedy, clingedy, clingedy went the machine as the coins tumbled in. It was a very satisfying sound and the entire process very reinforcing. The machine gives a print-out of totals with frequency distribution by coin denomination. A month of walking yielded $51.15 and a total of 2,070 coins. And who was the king of coins, the denomination that yielded the highest net value of the five denominations—penny, nickel, dime, quarter, coin dollar? And the winner was the lowly penny yielding 35% ($17.35) of the $51.15 or 1735 coins. Next was the shiny dime yielding 32% ($16.60) or 166 coins. Third was the king of coins, the quarter yielding 20% ($10.25) or 41 quarters. Finally, the new dollar coin accounting for 2% of the total from one coin. But here is the concern, recall the repaired coin counter and fidelity—there were no one dollar coins in my cache. Also, these data are skewed. On several occasions, I have used the collected coins to make change from paper dollars. Now that I am using descriptive statistics for the coin finds, future reports will account for the times change are extracted.

Two thousand and seventy coins and one month of walking, a surprisingly high number when you do the frequencies. Also, all found money is donated to the Baptist Friendship House, a Christian ministry for battered women and their children.

MoneyWalker

Walking and Being in a Funk

Journal Entry March 10, 2010: Weight = 172.8 lbs; Coinage = $.73; Best coinage find = a five penny curb dump.

Journal Entry March 11, 2010: Coinage = $.91, 51 pennies, 2 nickels, 3 dimes; Glass bottles retrieve = 4; Ground scores = 6.

Journal Entry March 13: Weight = 171.0 Lbs. (water loss from hard gardening project, not real fat loss); Coinage = $1.37, 52 pennies, 4 nickels, 4 dimes, 1 quarter; Glass bottles = 12 (yuk!); Ground scores = 2.

Feature Entry: Walking and Being in a Funk

Yesterday, the MoneyWalker did not take a walk. He was in a funk. It wasn’t his back or his ankle, or even his tooth extraction from two days ago. It wasn’t the national political backbiting or the rampant corruption of our local politicians; nor was it caused by a fight with Ms. MoneyWalker. It wasn’t from going off of antidepressants because he doesn’t take them or any other medication. It wasn’t from playing too many games of FreeCell or Solitary even though I spend far too much time with these mindless time wasters.

It was from being scolded by a window warden at the local Burger King. The guy came from inside and screamed at me in the parking lot. O.K, O.K…. I get it, you want the pitiful dribble of dropped change. Who wants to “damage” others with your own behavior? It made me feel corrupt.

Suddenly, I didn’t want to walk anymore, and scrunching around for street pennies made no sense. It had lost its motivation. And blogging, who needs it or worse, who reads it? Tireless searches for inspiration and novelty and relevance of message just didn’t seem worthwhile. And I didn’t weight or eat a healthy breakfast either; and I pigged out for three evening meals in a row with each featuring a big helping of desert.

In her blog the Happiness Project, author Gretchen Rubin talks about the “arrival fallacy,” the belief that when you arrive at a certain destination, you’ll be happy. Well I’m a very successful at finding money while walking and conversely maintaining an enviable waist line in the process. Then why am I in a funk. I told Ms. MoneyWalker about my woes and she said that she was in a funk herself. What? Ms. MoneyWalker in a funk? Can’t be!

I blogged for information on the depression that we call a funk. I found the rantings of Dr. Virago and how she felt after gaining tenure at a Midwestern university. Quoting Dr. Virago: “I have no enthusiasm for anything I do right now, whether research, teaching, service, or blogging. I keep putting things off and then feeling them hang over my head. And what do I do instead? I Facebook. Why? Some might say it's for the instant gratification, and they're probably right. But it's also for the sheer mindless, time-wasting, numbness-inducing state it puts me in. Time slips away effortlessly when I piddle around on FB.”

She goes on about how she berates herself and then goes on a work tear without real accomplishment or satisfaction. She works to punish herself. And then she stopped running and promptly gained 20 pounds as a result. Moreover, her funk has lasted most of the semester, a really long time. She explains that after the push to gain tenure, a major goal, her post tenure goals are less clear—a sense of deflation, a sense of staleness sets in. She finished by saying that it will “take every atom of will power in my body to make it through the semester.”

This is not my first funk nor will it be the last. Jeff Bridges in his acceptance speech was euphoric, but he said that life is like bowling, it is a mixture of strikes and gutter balls.

Another Google found the writing of Joy1 with the title “Throwing Depression to the Curb.” Here is the way Joy moves past being in a funk:

1. One is I start to PRAISE the LORD as much as I can including the singing of praise music
2. Treat myself with some kindness such as taking a nap or getting her nails done, or picking up an iced coffee, or taking some extra time to read a book.
3. Do something physical such cleaning a closet or going for a bike ride, or walk just to get the endorphins moving.

So what did the MoneyWalker do to begin the process of breaking out of his funk? First, I begin weighing again and this morning I took a long money searching walk. Then, I took on the front garden by totally reworking the ground cover. My back is sore, but I can already feeling the funk slipping away.

MoneyWalker

Meditation walking vs. money walking

Journal Entry: Weight = 175.2 (Second day of consecutive losses); Coinage = $3.08 (great day for quarters, found money in most of my money spots) 83 pennies, 4 nickels, 8 dimes, 5 quarters (amount also included 29 cents (1 quarter and four pennies) from a long residual walk to the post office and the grocery store; Ground scores = 10; Glass bottles = 3. Residual walking is a great way of “walking green.” Retrieved a Barq’s root beer bottle with this inscription: “Please recycle—NY-MA-OR-ME 5¢ MI 10¢ IA-VT-CT-DE 5¢.” Also the beverage contains calories = 160 for 12 oz serving.

Feature Entry: The MoneyWalker is beginning to receive e-mails from friends that deal with the culture of walking. This act of friendship is appreciated. One wrote:

“I thought of you the other day when I found a quarter and a penny during my daily walk. I almost never see any coins and these were in a lovely and very quiet Japanese garden, which seems the unlikeliest place to find them. I left them for a moneywalker to find.

My enjoyment of walking is very different from yours as you explained it in a post about the middle of last week. (I am, as usual, behind on my Trollope post reading.) I walk for the physical feeling of walking and the enjoyment of the minute changes I see every day. I have a lovely park to walk in with various gardens (rose, perennial, lilac, formal, Japanese . . . you get the idea.)

Another sent me a website on how to do “meditation walking.” From that site (http://www.wikihow.com/Do-Walking-Meditation) was this advice:

“Many Buddhists incorporate walking meditations into their routine. Some people find meditating easier to do while walking than while sitting still for extended periods of time. You can also take the opportunity to Ground and Center as you walk: Imagine that every time you put your foot down, it connects with the center of the earth”

Both comments stimulated this thought, is the MoneyWalker vulgarizing the act of walking by searching for money? “Ground and Center” is a meditation process that “ … is a visualization and meditation exercise you can use to focus yourself on the present and learn to feel more whole, more aware.” I’ll give the question more thought, but for now the MoneyWalker is a little to giddy about finding $3.08 to worry about it.

MoneyWalker

Tribute To An Original Money Walker

Journal Entry: Weight = 176.2; Coinage = $.178, 37 pennies, 3 nickels, 5 dimes, 3 quarters; Glass Bottles retrieved = 13; Ground Scores = 3; Best coinage = two quarters found in a newspaper vending machine. One of the best feelings in the world is when a blind inquiry performed with a searching finger into the coin return cavern is met with a yes.

Feature Entry: James Clovis Shepherd was born November 17, 1942 in the high plains of Texas, the second son of a Baptist minister. As an adolescent, like many PKs, he was dually defined—one by his salvation and one by original sin. At age 11 he moved to my home town with his family, his father was the pastor of the First Baptist Church. We became best friends and remained that way for life.

For several years after each church service, James and I alternated Sunday lunch invitations; one Sunday my house, the next Sunday his house. We had the entire afternoon before regrouping and heading for the mandatory Sunday evening services. Probably from boredom, we developed the habit of taking long walks.

Then it happened, we began to discover discarded soft-drink bottles. In those days, bottles could be returned for two cents a bottle. A movie costs a dime and a gallon of gas about a quarter. The big four were Coca Cola, Dr. Pepper, R.C. Cola, and Seven-up. But we also found Hines Root Beer, Nehi Orange, and Squirt bottles. There were other brands from areas “out of market” that could not be redeemed. These ground scores became our “rare pop bottle collection.”

We never knew how many bottles we would find; some days only one or two, others we needed a large sack to carry them. Over time we became incredibly proficient at spotting redeemable “pop bottles.” Later as a young father, my children still remember their embarrassment as I stopped the car and directed them to retrieve a bottle for their own collection.

The bottles that James and I found were redeemed at the grocery stores in our small town. The grocers were annoyed when these two toe-headed boys came lugging into their store a wash-tub full of dissimilar, stained, and unmatched pop bottles. But we learned that if Brother Shepherd came with us, they always smiled and were happy to make the exchange. Usually we saved until we had 100 bottles, a net of $1.00 a piece. The money went into a private bank and saved until we could do something special such as a new ball glove.

Two years ago this original money walker died after a gallant battle with a very rare form of cancer--Carcinoid Syndrome. Thanks my friend for all you were and continue to be.

MoneyWalker

Charity and Money Walking

Journal Entry: Friday Walk = $2.67, Saturday Walk = $.45; Weight = 174.0; Glass bottles = 15; Ground Scores = 6; Recycled clothes = 1 shirt. Yesterday, I met Jason, owner of both the Mid-City Car Wash and the Canal Blvd. Car Wash. From his office at the Canal Blvd. location, he came right up, introduced himself, and asked if I was the “MoneyWalker.” How could this stranger have known?

It happened this way. After earlier meeting Jason’s employee Eddie who is manager of the Mid-City Car Wash, I dropped by a copy of a donation cover letter ($100 from coin finds) that I had sent to the Friendship House for Battered Women. Eddie had indicated that his company might want to donate to the organization. The letter had found its way into Jason’s hand. Jason indicated that he had observed me earlier at the Mid-City location and appreciated my tidiness and care in not disturbing his customers. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out more than five dollars worth of quarters and gave them for the cause.

2 Corinthians 9: 7 indicates that God loves a person who gives cheerfully. As God has blessed me, the small amount of change found on the streets of New Orleans hardly makes a dent in the poverty and social problems of our area, but it does show and communicate a concern for the poor and less fortunate. Jason and Eddie are doing their part as they work with the MoneyWalker.

MoneyWalker

Brad Pitt for Mayor!

Journal Entry, September 7, 2009: Coinage = $1.11, 31 pennies, 4 nickels, 6 dimes; Glass bottles = 9; Ground scores =6; Best coinage find = a well tanned dime from a heavily walked curb.

Journal Entry, September 8, 2009: Coinage = $3.03, 98 pennies, 4 nickels, 11 dimes, 3 quarters (yes these finds reflect an early morning raid of the vacuum cannisters of the local car wash); Glass bottles = 4; Ground scores = 2; Best coinage find = a nickel and 3 pennies in the curb in front of a coffee shop featuring the likeness of Brad Pitt (see photo above), also a dime was found in the Times Picayune vending machine at the building.

Feature Entry: Brad Pitt for Mayor!, he has my vote. Brad and Angelina Pitt are among the many national personalities that have given their time, money, and energy for the rebuilding of New Orleans. Among their worthy contributions is the rebuilding of the Upper Ninth Ward, the so-call “Musicians Village.” With their leadership, many of the City's musical treasures, the musicians, were able to return to New Orleans and rekindle the French Quarter music scene. This multi-sponsored Habitat for Humanity project has attracted many volunteers including the MoneyWalkers.

Just down our street is Warren Easton High School. This public and chartered high school is the recipient of thousands of dollars contributed by Sandra Bullock. The Moneywalker’s famous car wash is just five blocks away.

Perhaps more important to the recovery of New Orleans are the thousands of college students, high school students, church groups, and general population that continue to flock to the city and volunteer their vacation time for the recovery effort. One Idaho high school group totally “gutted” one of my properties two years ago.

Brad, you are a symbol of the great good will that we have experience from all parts of the U.S. and abroad. Thank you!

MoneyWalker

Patience and Confidence

Journal Entry, Sept. 1, 2009: Weight = 171.8; Coinage = $1.18, 18 pennies, 3 nickels, 1 dime, 3 quarters; Bottles = 3; Ground Scores = 4; Best coinage find = one lonely nickel in an asphalt crater in the middle of a street crossing.

Journal Entry, September 2, 2009: Weight = 172.6; Coinage = $.82, 42 pennies, 4 dimes; Glass bottles = 6; Ground scores = 3; Best coinage find = a dime in a gas bay at a service station.

Feature Entry: Those that study health and fitness usually include a spiritual component. This past Sunday, the MoneyWalker attended a Bible study with a theme of confidence and patience. The text for the message was James 5, verse 7: “Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord.”
The text has two important messages for moneywalkers. First, when the goal is to lose weight, be patient with time. Don’t fall for the quick promises of diets featured on glossy front covers of magazines at the grocery line. Plan to lose one or two pounds a month with a slow but reliable reduction of caloric intake and an increase in aerobic exercise. Second, carry yourself with confidence knowing that you can and will be successful.

As for the Spiritual component, believe in something larger than yourself. For me, it is faith in a supreme being. For others it might be a secular belief. What is important is to avoid a vacuum of belief in which you take on the world without anyone but yourself. Boredom, depression, loneliness, disillusionment, and often poor health including poor eating habits are usually the result. Be patient, be confident and you will lose weight.

MoneyWalker