Martin Collis

« PLURES CRAPULA QUAM GLADIUS »
(Gluttony Kills More Than The Sword)

In the past couple of months I have sensed a shift in our attitude towards the obesity epidemic and our willingness to do something about it. This does not show up in statistics for the Center for Disease Control in the US or Statistics Canada, and you certainly wouldn't know it to see the shape of people at state fairs, airports, Wal Mart, Disneyland or any public place. Things will get worse before they get better; the obesity lifestyle is like a supertanker, even when it tries to stop, its massive momentum still carries it forward. But, optimist that I am, I believe "the times they are a changing', if for no other reason that we can't afford the insanity of an obese nation, we don't want to raise a generation of children, many of whom will die before their parents and nobody wants to live a 'c-' or even an 'f' lifestyle on their one appearance on this planet.

Before reporting on my perspective that there are positive shifts in a fat land, I'll give you two graphic examples of why the shape of a nation has to change.

I was watching Martin Scorsese's TV documentary on 'The Blues' and they showed a segment of Fats Domino playing and singing in the late 50's. I was struck by the fact that by today's standards he didn't seem particularly fat and were he performing now might be thought of as 'Overweight Domino' or, like some rappers, "Big Domino'. Then there was an article in the Sept. 28th issue of the New York Times titled, "The Final Journey: One Size Doesn't Fit All". The article is about the funeral industry and their need to provide caskets fit for their dead clients, or at least caskets into which their dead clients fit. There is actually a company called Goliath Casket of Lynn, Indiana (you'd laugh if you heard that in 'Six Feet Under') whose monster coffin business has been booming. One of the owners, Julane Davis, doesn't study demographics; she just looks at the world around her. "It's just going to local restaurants or walking into Wal-Mart. People are getting wider and they're getting thicker." Goliath not only produces doublewide caskets, but has found a growing need for 'triple-width' models. Fifteen years ago they averaged one triple-wide a year, now it's 5 per month.

In a trailer park Mr. Smith died
"He's too big!" the mortician sighed
We need a monstrous coffin
To carry him off in
In trailer park terms, "triple wide".

A standard coffin is 2 feet wide whereas the 'triple-width' is 3 feet 8 inches across. This leads to a ripple effect of having to create reconfigured hearses to carry the caskets and bigger cemetery plots to place them in. (No mention is made of the pall bearers who might need to be hired from the local weight training gymnasium. "He is heavy, he's my brother.")

"Don't miss this"


[click graphic for 'Life is Short' mpeg]

I overate, I'm overweight and I'll die
And blubber-bellied cherubim will lift me up on high
The Pearly Gates will be padlocked and I'll turn and ask them why
They'll say, "Go through the Golden Arches to our franchise in the sky."
(Extract from one of Martin's unrecorded songs).

Symptoms of Success in the Schools
Boosting Healthy Nutrition, Banning Junk Food and Soda

Administrators, parents and in some cases students, no longer want their schools used as convenience outlets for soda and junk food. This movement began with handfuls of concerned individuals and small groups but is now becoming mainstream. I will include a few examples and a reference for more information.

In response to a UCLA survey, which found 40% of their children were obese, Los Angeles Unified School District has banned the sale of soft drinks from vending machines or school stores during school hours. After a huge outcry Oakland Unified School District rejected a $5 million contract with Pepsi and banned the sale of all soft drinks and candy in all of its schools. Sacramento City Unified School District also vetoed a $2 million deal with Pepsi. In New Hampshire, the Portsmouth School Board eliminated all drinks, which were heavily caffeinated and sugared and replaced them with healthier alternatives and did the same with unhealthy snacks. Similar stories can be found in Texas, Wyoming, Southern California, Minnesota and Montana. In Seattle, Coca-Cola has little chance of renewing its $6 million 'pouring rights' contract after huge opposition from Citizen's Campaign for Commercial-Free Schools who feel that things don't go better with Coke. In 2004, California's State Wide SB 19 Pupil Nutrition, Health and Achievement Act takes effect, and New York has brought in legislation curtailing the sale of junk food and drinks and offering healthier alternatives. For more detailed information see "Stories of Success: Healthy Foods in Schools Case Studies"

I've had school principals and PTA groups (PAC in Canada) tell me that they might as well sell the junk food, because if they don't, children will just buy it elsewhere. This has elements of truth, but is also the rationale used by nearly every drug pusher who sells stuff to kids.

For an interesting manifesto concerning junk food in schools go to www.commercialalert.org/ and go to Childhood Obesity Prevention Agenda.

More good news in schools

The province of Alberta is going to institute daily physical education in grades K-12 over the next two years. Learning Minister Lyle Oberg (a physician) said, "When you take a look at what's happening, I don't think there's anyone who can argue with more Phys Ed, more fitness, and we have to find a way to make it happen, and we will. I think it's critically important. If it means extra funding, if it means extra staffing, then we have to look at it." It takes courage and vision for a province or state to offer quality daily physical education. The incoming president of the Alberta Teachers Association described the move as "bold and courageous." He went on to say, "It recognizes the value of daily physical activity on youth today. This has absolutely no down side. It's a step in the right direction, even though we won't see benefits for years and years to come."

It's been said that, "Politicians think of the next election and states people think of the next generation." Congratulations to Lyle Oberg for being in the latter category.

An interesting footnote is that two leading Alberta politicians have successfully dealt with their own weight problems in the last few months. Iris Evans, Minister of Children's Services, has shed almost 50 lbs. while Premier Ralph Klein has lost 25 lbs. As Ghandi said, "You must become the change you wish to see in others." Also, a tip of the hat to my own Premier, Gordon Campbell, in British Columbia who has recently shed 35 lbs.

As I was writing this article the local paper arrived quoting the BC Minister of Education, Christy Clark, that "Physical Education will be an integral part of the BC curriculum starting next fall, with fitness assessed just like the '3 R's'. It sounds good but I have some concerns about its implementation. Ministry officials say the changes won't necessarily mean more phys. ed. classes, but could include activities such as walk-to-school events, sprints around the block and classroom calisthenics. (This would be akin to saying you'll teach English by speed reading magazines, having pop spelling bees in class and have some read-at-home events.) When they consider testing I hope they look carefully at Fitnessgram. However, the good thing is they're aware of the problem and Terri Watson of the BC Parent's Advisory Council says her organization is strongly supportive. "It's a motherhood issue - as important as literacy." It's an interesting comment as one can look at many of our children as being physically illiterate. Minister Christy Clark said she has urged her fellow ministers across the country to establish national standards for physical activity in all schools.

If anyone is concerned that more time spent in physical activity will rob students of academic preparation, I've never seen a school which has instituted quality daily physical education where academic performance has declined, it almost invariably improves.

The correlation between fitness and academic performance was clearly demonstrated by the California Ministry of Education last year. [see our previous article in the summer issue ]

Personal Insights

Everywhere I go I see wonderful lifestyle initiatives and meet creative, dedicated people who want to spread the word on wellness, but everywhere I go I also see people getting bigger and bigger and every little town I enter is approached through an avenue of fast food franchises. The fast food industry is a multi-billion dollar enterprise and they use their dollars to buy a place in our convenience driven culture. But the wealthy Goliath's have to be wary, because there are many David's out there. These 'David's' are organizing wellness conferences, selling organic food, teaching yoga classes, lobbying for bike paths or daily physical education programs, leading exercise breaks at work and generally making it easier for people to eat well and be physically active. I met one such 'David' recently in Iowa named Tim Lane. Tim seems to be involved in many successful wellness initiatives in the State of Iowa. One is "Lighten Up Iowa", which involves Iowa State University Extension, the Iowa Games and Iowa Department of Public Health. If you 'Google' "Lighten Up Iowa" you'll find a personal online risk profile, nutrition tips, cardio-quest, employee health, walking programs and the remarkable State weight loss program which was a big success last year and is being repeated in 2004. Tim has been a long time participant in R.A.G.B.R.A.I., which stands for the (Des Moines) Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa. This event is the world's largest bike tour, annually attracting over 10,000 riders from around the world and from every state in the Union. There is an official RAGBRAI website www.ragbrai.org but some of the fun flavor of the ride can be found at www.danenet.wicip/org/bcp/ragbrai. In some ways it looks like a 7 day wheeled version of the Bay to Breakers run in San Francisco. When I asked Tim if he would make a small contribution to 'Well', he typically chose to write about someone other than himself.

«Education is not filling a pail but the lighting of a fire.» ~ William Butler Yeats If this quote above is true, let me introduce you to an arsonist from Iowa. Her name is Carol Mahlendorf and she is a fourth grade teacher at Crossroads Elementary in West Des Moines, Iowa [photo]. Twenty-eight years ago she got hooked on cycling after riding on RAGBRAI. It has generated similar rides in many other states and inspired Carol to plan a tour to end the school year. That event turned out to be a roundtrip of over 20 miles to various neighboring communities and back. It may sound simple but is a huge undertaking that involves teaching a safety unit, support vehicles, and dozens of other logistical items. For many it is their first serious ride. It is an event that opens a whole new world to them. The youth and many parents see the bike as a vehicle for the first time. Getting to and from a nearby town, teaches them they cannot only play with bikes, but they can tour. This event was such a hit; another teacher who transferred to a different school in the district initiated the event there. A teacher who transferred from that school to a third instituted it there, so that now there are three schools that are involved and thousands of youth and parents that have been introduced to a healthy, enjoyable and active lifestyle option. In listening to Carol's students, even those who are now 20 years removed from her classroom, it is evident that her passion made a lifelong impression. Even some of the parents who volunteered to help got hooked and are still riding. Just one more fire for this world-class educator.

I met Carol who has completed 31 RAGBRAI's, is discreet about her age, looks fabulous and is one of those teachers you hope your own children encounter as students. For many years Tim has produced a daily fitness column which is emailed to a worldwide list of subscribers. If you wish to add your name to the list he can be reached at tlane@idph.state.ia.us.

Many Politicians still don't "Get It"

I did the closing keynote address at the Governor's Conference on Public Health in Iowa. The opening day of the conference featured eight of the Democratic Presidential hopefuls presenting their thoughts on health care in the USA.

They were passionate and articulate and most mentioned health care for the old and the young and the 41 million uninsured Americans, but what they did not mention were words like 'exercise', 'diet', ' obesity ' and 'self responsibility ', which their speech writers obviously felt would not attract the average American voter. All the candidates also campaigned at the Iowa State Fair, where they could not have missed how overweight their potential voters were, and what disastrous food choices were available at the Fair.

Fortunately, the Des Moines Register newspaper highlighted the ugly food choices at the Fair and Iowa State University posted signs telling people how long it would take them to 'walk off' their deep fried disasters. It' s interesting that the cross section of a deep fried Twinkie resembles a cross section of a plaque-coated artery.

One worrying, but almost inevitable trend I have observed is that a number of morbidly obese people who, although still capable of walking, are now using motorized scooters to get themselves around. I was first aware of this at airports, but it was quite evident at the State Fair and 2 weeks later at the Grand Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi. Of course, many people using powered chairs and scooters have specific disabilities, which leave them unable to walk, but there is a growing percentage whose only disability is body fat.

Biloxi was fascinating, I was addressing a conference of US military medical officers in Region 4 (South/East) on the Future of Military Health Care. The Conference Center was attached to the Grand Casino and the difference between the conference delegates and the patrons of the casino was cosmic. The US military has fitness and weight standards and a dress code and the officers looked like another species besides the overweight, cigarette smoking, and badly dressed gamblers. The Center for Disease Control has designated Mississippi the fattest State in the Nation with over 25% obese and more than 1 in 10 diabetic, figures that didn't surprise me as I watched patrons making repeated trips to the pasta bar and the chocolate fountain, which was a feature of the dessert buffet.

Multi-National Image Enhancing

It's hard to open a newspaper or magazine without reading about obesity and the way in which individuals, organizations and the fast food industry are choosing to respond. Some responses are laudable, others laughable, some fascinating, others fatuous, there are careful and care-filled programs and programs of blatant self-interest. Albert Schweitzer said that a positive progression is from "naive simplicity to profound simplicity" and in profoundly simple terms overweight people need to eat less (and better) and move more. But in the Orwellian world of the 21st century the fast food giants, who are part of the problem, are buying alliances with schools, hospitals, governments, sports events and even with organizations dedicated to fighting the diseases which convenience products might well exacerbate. Examples of this include Coca Cola's one million dollar grant to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and their supporting of the National PTA Parent Involvement School Certification Program, Hershey Foods promotion of the American Diabetes Association's "Walk for Diabetes", Kraft Foods Inc. also have a link to the ADA through its Proud Sponsor Program. (It's really hard to take any health-related initiatives of Kraft too seriously, as its parent company is the Altria Group, formerly known as Phillip Morris). But in fairness to Kraft, they are going to create an "advising council" in 2004 who will:

1. Set guidelines for all Kraft products for the permitted content of calories, total fat, saturated fat, trans fat, sugars and sodium.
2. Develop new marketing practices, especially for kids. Kraft will stop in-school marketing. The council will determine products appropriate for school vending machines. It will create marketing guidelines that encourage healthy eating and active lifestyle.
3. Set a global labeling policy, even for markets where nutrition data isn't required.

I will watch with interest.

Other 'big food' companies who play the health card are Con Agra Inc (Healthy Choice) and PepsiCo Inc (Quaker Oats) who both collaborate with the American Dietetic Association. The American Heart Association has a food certification program, which includes General Mills' Cocoa Puffs and Yoohoo Chocolate Beverage Corporation's light drinks among the products listed. Professor Marion Nestle (unfortunate name), the author of "Food Politics", feels these alliances damage the credibility of professional groups. "This has nothing whatsoever to do with health and everything to do with selling products."

McDonalds, of course, are working hard to burnish their health image. A wealth of information regarding the involvement of big food and big business in "partnership" with government and other agencies can be obtained from the ever-watchful people at www.commercialalert.org/.

The McDonalds Connection

Fortunately for us all, McDonalds is concerned with our eating, exercise and general lifestyle. The origins of this concern have been interpreted by some as a response to their narrow escape in a recent lawsuit. (Fast food is referred to by public interest law professor John Banzhof III as "the next tobacco".)

In May, McDonalds established the "Global Advisory Council on Healthy Lifestyles", a global group of 15 experts in the field of nutrition, medicine, obesity and lifestyle. More than a quarter of the Council have strong Olympic connections including Patrick Schamasch MD, Medical and Scientific Director, International Olympic Committee, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, 6 time Olympic medallist, her husband Robert Kersee and Victoria's own rowing medallist, Silken Laumann (Update: In speaking with Silken recently, I discovered that she has withdrawn her name in order to focus on her many other commitments, not the least of which are her young family and the establishment of a Foundation concerned with the health and well-being of children.). I was delighted to see that James Hill from the Center for Human Nutrition, University of Colorado was included, along with a number of other well-known scholars in the areas of nutrition and health. Canadian Professor G. Harvey Anderson from the University of Toronto, also on the council, is quoted as saying; "It's better to work within the food industry itself to promote change." (Dr. Anderson should know, as he has also been a consultant for General Mills, Heinz and the Sugar Council of Canada.)

Personally, I'd like to have seen names like Marion Nestle, Ken Cooper and Dean Ornish on the Council, but I'm not paying the bills.

In fairness to McDonalds they have taken a lead in animal welfare and are spending millions of dollars to standardize and improve the treatment of cattle and chickens by their suppliers. Like all the other fast food purveyors, McDonalds faces a problem that would challenge the wisdom of Solomon. How do you improve the quality of animal welfare and the products you sell and still keep costs down and profits high? Somehow or other you are going to have to teach the general public to pay a little more for more nutritious and less calorie dense food and to actually care how it is produced.

The French Paradox

Scientists have often puzzled how the French seem to be able to eat, drink and be merry and yet have only 7% of their population obese, compared with more than 20% obesity in the US. For a while, red wine got the credit for their low rate of obesity and heart disease, but the September 2003 issue of Psychological Science offered a more likely explanation.

1. Portions are 25% smaller in France, averaging 9.8 oz. compared to 12.2 oz. in the US.
2. French supermarkets and cookbooks offer smaller sizes and portions.
3. Candy bars in the US are 41% bigger than those on the shelves of Paris stores.
4. US soft drinks are 52% bigger, hot dogs 63% and yogurt 82% bigger.
5. The French walk more and snack less.
6. Even if they go to fast food outlets, Parisians take more than twice as long to consume their food as their counterparts in Philadelphia.
7. Although the article didn't document this I'm sure they eat fewer French fries.

Summary

In summary, I think we are close to the zenith of our obesity in North America. I do believe we have a lost part of a generation of convenience fed, screen watching children who will move down their shortened years like a pig through a python. But there is an awakening.

1. Some politicians who tend to stay in shape jumping on and off bandwagons are now finally aboard the anti-obesity, pro-activity bandwagon.
   
2. In Canada, we finally have a Secretary of State for Physical Activity and Sport, who might be able to repair some of the damage left by the demise of Participaction, Fitness Canada and the lack of anyone with a real mandate to address national physical activity issues.
   
3. Some schools and school districts are beginning to see the light, both in terms of moving towards daily physical education and getting the junk food products and advertising off school grounds.
   
4. Food labeling is improving.
   
5. The fast food giants are concerned about huge class action lawsuits and their role in the obesity epidemic. Some are beginning to cap portion sizes, decrease fat and offer lighter alternatives.
   
6. The big health care providers are taking exercise and weight loss very seriously as a preventative measure. PacifiCare Health Systems, which serves millions of clients, offers significant discounts for Weight Watchers and similar discounts on memberships to more than 400 designated fitness clubs.
   
7. There are hundreds of thousands of independent projects, clubs and classes which are helping to turn the cultural tide from 'fat and sedentary' to 'slim and active'.
8. Massive amounts of research money are being made available for lifestyle related research.
   

   Sooner or later people are going to wise up and rise up and, in the words of 'Twisted Sister', join in the chorus of, "We're not going to take it any more." It doesn't make sense to be spending hundreds of billions of dollars to protect a culture and a country whose citizens are eating themselves to death. It's not the Taliban and the Al Qaeda that should be our biggest concern, but ourselves, and our eating and exercise behaviors. Shakespeare could have been speaking of us when he wrote, "I am my own executioner."

   Bob Dylan spoke of "the madness of becoming what we were never meant to be", and we're not meant to be sedentary and obese and we're not meant to be living miserable shortened lives because of our obesity related diseases, which include:

   Heart disease
   Strokes
   Diabetes
   Hypertension
   Hyperlipodemia
   Fibromyalgia
   Breast cancer
   Colo-rectal cancer
   Esophogeal cancer (related to acid reflux)
   Gallbladder cancer
   Kidney cancer
   Pancreatic cancer
   Prostate cancer
   Uterine cancer.

   Note: The relationship between obesity and the above cancers is documented in the October 2003 edition of Nutrition Action in an article titled, "Fat Chance".

   A recent study at Tufts University noted that as subjects lost weight their immune function improved (Tufts University Health and Nutrition Letter October 2003), so we can add a compromized immune system to the many other undesirable correlates with obesity.

   This article began with an observation about Fats Domino, so let's give him the final word. "I'm walking, yes indeed."

Be sure to see the Red Cross pages:

• Swim Around the Island: Updates
• Donations can be made online

f course I believe in magic, but it's not the magic of wizards waving wands or casting spells, it's the magic we make ourselves with our minds, our will and our wit, with our willingness to embrace a dream, with our courage to love unconditionally and our vision to recognize and acknowledge the magic we help create.

In the 2nd issue of "Well" in the Fall of '99 the theme was "Human Potential" and I wrote an article "Three Unreasonable People: The Best Lecture I Never Gave." It was a magical class; I knew it; as did everybody in the room. It involved 3 student presentations, each of which told of triumphs in the face of ridiculous odds. I am still in contact with two of the three, one of whom, Simon Ibell, has been working at Speakwell. Simon's story was featured in the Spring "Well" 2003 and titled "Per Ardua Ad Astra" and culminated with him receiving the "Spirit of Sport" award on National TV despite the fact that he was the only finalist without an Olympic medal.

The story of Rob Dyke is still unfolding. He and his friend, Ian Scanlon, allotted themselves a year to try to achieve an extraordinary personal goal. Ian attempted Everest without oxygen and with minimum support (mostly Rob).

He got within 300 meters of the summit but had to turn back for fear of losing fingers and toes. (There was not enough oxygen to generate a chemical reaction in his heat packs.) It should be noted that not content with climbing Everest, they walked across India to get there. (Rob has promised a future story for "Well" about India, including his list of "The 10 worst jobs in the world".)

Currently, Rob is half way to completing an almost impossible journey. His goal is to swim (yes, swim!) nearly 1000 miles (about 1500 kilometers) around Vancouver Island. The water temperature is in the 50's F (between 8⁰ and 13⁰ Celsius) and for much of the way, his sole support has been Ian in a Zodiac. He is often swimming close to a marathon a day and has dealt with winds, waves, tides, fog, jellyfish, sea lions and mind numbing, face breaking, bone chilling cold. For the next few days he'll be beyond the reach of cell phones and the World Wide Web as he attempts to round the desolate North end of the Island. After the first day of his swim, he ate dinner with Nancy and myself at our house on a hot summer night. Even though he'd been out of the water for 2 hours, Rob sat huddled in a toque, sweater, poncho and sweat pants looking like someone at a prairie football stadium in mid-winter. He was somewhat subdued, as the enormity of what was confronting him could not be ignored.

One of my rules for life is to "show up" and day after day, Rob has shown up to his challenge and he's discovering magic in the inhospitable waters off the North Coast of the Island. Members of the Haida Nation have lined the shore to shout encouragement, a middle-aged man showed up in a Zodiac and told Rob he had been inspired to fulfill his own dreams. Rob's last email in tinged with magic.

To my friends Martin and Nancy,

Last update for a while as we are leaving Cape Scott for parts unknown. It has been an incredible 5 weeks adventure and we are almost halfway there. In the early morning mist this morning a pod of Orcas (Killer Whales) inspected me and swam along with me for a while like an honor guard. The presence of the whales was so powerful. and it was a truly magical moment.

My spirits were lifted by a pocket cruise ship, the Princess of Oceana, which slowed right down and tracked me for 45 min. They lowered a boat and 2 crewmembers dropped off $360 US in donations for the Red Cross. (A neat coincidence considering my 360-degree swim). But it's not all been cruise ships and Orcas. Three days ago we struggled 25 km through some horrible fog to discover that we were only 10 km from our starting point. I also swallowed a jellyfish (my revenge for all the stings) then vomited up jellyfish.... Ugh. It's been one amazing journey. My time in Nepal seemed to provide me with the odd combination of focussed detachment necessary to deal with endless hours in the water.

The cold, the sores from the wet suit, the jellyfish stings are real, but almost irrelevant. This is not about swimming, it's about transformation and the magic of the mind and however far I get I'll be a changed man next time you see me.

All my best and thanks for your support and wishes.
Robbie

Update on Rob's swim I spoke with Rob on the phone from a tiny haven called Winter Harbour (population 11). He is now operating from a live-aboard fishing boat with a makeshift hot tub, as there is nowhere to stay along much of the Northwest of the Island. To the amazement of the 1st Nations fishermen, he has swum around Cape Scott, and has the tremendous psychological boost of knowing each kilometer from now on brings him closer to Victoria. The 1st Nation's mariners have lost many colleagues around the North of the Island and have acknowledged the fortitude of a man who is swimming through waters they regard as a death sentence. Rob says he no longer thinks of himself as a swimmer. He's some sort of guest in the huge West Coast waves, just a tiny wet suited speck of life in the massive Pacific. His body hurts from the constant buffeting, his stomach is in turmoil long after he leaves the ocean but he's sentient and focussed and beginning to allow for the possibility of success. But there's hundreds of miles ahead and the ocean may or may not permit him to survive along a coastline that has broken so many ships.

A Premature End to Rob's Journey

Just when it seemed possible that the complete circumnavigation might become a reality, the ocean intervened. There is an area of the West Coast called the Brooks Peninsula, which seems to create its own weather system. The conflicting Japanese and Alaska currents converge around Brooks, the tides are powerful and the wind and waves ruthless. Rob rounded the Peninsula but got into some roiling water that had such force and torque that it literally pulled his left arm out of its socket. He actually swam the dislocation back into place, but the ligaments and muscles were shredded and after telephone conversations with his surgeon in Victoria and two aborted attempts to carry on, he had to abandon the swim for this year.

Once Rob and Ian returned to Victoria we got together for a night of adventure stories, laughter and champagne. The stories all seemed to blend together as we watched video of the swim, talked about India and Everest and about the freedom and peace which comes from living your dreams.

Rob's already planning attempt number 2 and, of course, you'll be able to read about it in 'Well'. For the record, he swam about 900 kilometers (560 miles) in a period of just over 2 months.

More Thoughts About Magic

My mantra for Rob was borrowed from "Field of Dreams", "Go the Distance" and he did. The movie "Field of Dreams" is all about magic. The old doctor (Doc. Graham) asks, "Is there enough magic out there in the moonlight to make dreams come true?" the answer of course is, "Yes".

I always enjoyed the thinking of psychologist Wayne Dyer, who wrote books titled "Real Magic" and "You'll See it When You Believe It", which is the essence of "Field of Dreams." To me it seemed quite appropriate that the Field is located in the town of Dyersville, Iowa. (I wonder if Wayne knows that?) One magical aspect of the Field which attracts thousands of visitors, is that the family who live in the farmhouse featured in the film and own the land, charge no admission and provide a selection of bats, balls and gloves, so parents and their children can actually hit the ball and "have a catch" as it says in the movie.

As an aside, the town of Dyersville also has a place in the history of weight loss. In 1998, 383 people lost a total of 3998 lbs, which is described in an engaging and informative book called "The Town That Lost a Ton", published by Sourcebooks Inc., Illinois. Available through Amazon in Canada and in the US.

Magic is known by many names. To some it's mystery, to others the work of a God or Goddess. Dar Williams tells us that the "magic's in the learning" while others write it off as coincidence of synchronicity. Poets like William Blake and Wordsworth saw the whole universe as magical and the closer you looked, the more magical it became.

To see a world in a grain of sand and a heaven in a wild flower, hold infinity in the palm of your hand and eternity in an hour. ~ William Blake

Dar Williams expressed similar sentiments when she said "you find magic in your God. And we find magic everywhere." I'll give the last words to Leonard Cohen, whose thoughts on magic often find their way into my presentations.

Extracts from "Magic is Alive"

Magic is alive. Alive is afoot. Magic never died.

Many hurt men wondered
Many struck men bled
Magic never faltered
Magic always lead
Many stones were rolled
But God would not lie down
Many wild men lied
Many fat men listened
Though they offered stones
Magic still was fed

Though laws were carved in marble they could not shelter men;
Though altars built in Parliaments, they could not order men;
Police arrested magic and magic went with them, ah!
For magic loves the hungry....

But magic would not tarry, it moves from arm to arm,
It would not stay with them;
Magic is afoot! It cannot come to harm.
It rests in an empty palm. It spawns in an empty mind.
But magic is no instrument: magic is the End!

Many men drove magic, but magic stayed behind; Many strong men lied.
They only passed thru magic and out the other side! This I mean to whisper to my mind:
This I mean to laugh with in my mind:
This I mean my mind to serve
'Til service is but magic, moving thru the world
And mind itself is magic, coursing thru the flesh
And flesh itself is magic, dancing on a clock,
And Time itself, the magic length of God!

Pedometers are not new; the remarkable mind of Leonardo DaVinci designed a prototype. The concept of step counting really appealed to the Japanese, who used the term "Man-po Kei", which literally means "10,000 step meter". I found an advertisement for a primitive pedometer on a 50's matchbook cover, which I picked up at a New York flea market. But now with the combination of a sedentary society seeking movement stimuli, combined with the availability of cheap, mass produced pedometers from Asia we are in a position to put a pedometer on every belt or waistband.

A couple of years ago, airport security used to look at my pedometer with suspicion, because they didn't know what it was. Now it's a familiar device to them and I'm often asked how many steps I do each day and "Do those little gadgets really work?"

Pedometers and Research

To be used in research, pedometers must be reliable and accurate. At Speakwell we've tested many different pedometers including ones that speak to you in an electronic voice, ones that play little tinny tunes and ones that beep at you when it is time to walk. Our primary questions in treadmill testing in the laboratory were:

1. Did the pedometer accurately record all the steps you took?
2. Were its predictions of distance walked and calories burned reliable?

You can see the write up of one such test in the Summer 2002 edition of "Well", "More Thoughts on 10,000 Steps". We discovered that the most important variable was correct assessment of stride length to be programmed into the pedometer.

Increasing numbers of researchers are now seeing the pedometer as an exciting and inexpensive tool to both record and stimulate walking activity. Currently, Speakwell is associated directly or indirectly with a number of pedometer based research projects. We are working with Dr. Lara Lauzon on a major grant proposal and also some smaller projects, one of which involves our local MLA (Member of Provincial Parliament), who is concerned about school fitness. Speakwell employee, Shane Brown, is proposing a pedometer study as part of his Master's thesis, and former Speakwell employee, Guy LeMasurier, has a big walking program underway in Arizona as part of his Ph.D. Guy used the acronym W.E.L.L. for his project. (Walk Everyday, Live Longer). Guy is being assisted by pedometer guru Dr. Catrine Tudor-Locke and his graduate advisor is Dr. Charles Corbin.

McPedometers

McDonalds are now distributing pedometers! In Houston, named "The Fattest City in America" by Men's Fitness Magazine, McDonald's is "the official restaurant sponsor" of "Get Lean Houston", a civic get fit/lose weight program. McDonald's will be distributing pedometers to their customers. I have two questions:

1. Will the pedometers be accurate? We recently tested two inexpensive promotional pedometers bearing company logos and they recorded less than half the actual steps taken. A real disincentive.
2. Will McDonalds inform customers how many steps it takes to walk off various products on their menu? I can't imagine they'll be in a hurry to tell people that, at about 20 steps/calorie, a meal featuring a large drink, supersized fries and a Big Mac might take about 35,000 steps and probably more than 6 hours to walk off.

Maybe someone could design a "fedometer", which measures calories consumed. Albert Camus once said it was the sign of a brilliant mind that could comfortably contain opposing ideas. My less than brilliant mind still struggles with McDonalds as the official sponsor of a "Get Lean" campaign.

Major Canadian Initiative

In Canada, the Canadian Institute of Health Research working with the Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes, is partnering with a cereal company to distribute 800,000 free pedometers throughout the country. With supplemental distribution we will see a million new pedometers in Canada in 2004.

When you have a product launch of this magnitude there are many concerns that have to be addressed. The primary concern, of course, is accuracy and reliability, without which the research associated with the project will be of little value. The pedometers also need to be robust and weatherproof. However, when you start putting pedometers with cereal boxes the manufacturers and sponsors have to be alert to other concerns, including whether they might be swallowed or otherwise misused by little children. From experience, I've found one of the vulnerable parts of a pedometer is the clip by which it attaches to a belt or clothing. Once this breaks, the pedometer is often discarded.

Conceptually this project is a brilliant idea, with participants throughout the country being able to record their data on a web-site to create a nation-wide 'natural experiment'. The web-site launch is slated for December 5, 2003.

In the old Meatloaf song, "Two Out of Three Ain't Bad" it says, "There ain't no Coupe de Ville hiding in the bottom of a Cracker Jack box." In Canada you might get something even better, a pedometer with your morning cereal.

Insurance companies are already convinced of the value of walking and on my recent trip to Iowa, Wellmark Blue Cross/ Blue Shield were busy handing our free pedometers.

I think one of the most useful functions of a pedometer is to enable people to visualize calories in terms of steps. Once they do that, they can look at casual eating a little differently. (E.g. "Do I have time to walk for two hours if I eat that candy?") See previous 'Well' article "Let's Have a Value Meal and then Walk for Five Hours"

Work Steps

We have recently heard from 'Well' readers about the number of steps they do on an average day. A nurse did about 10,000 steps a shift and a Phys. Ed. Teacher totaled nearly 15,000 in his active day of teaching and coaching. Robert Sweetgall lists a number of approximate stepping days for other professions. These include:

Receptionist	1120
Physician (office)	3000
Hairdresser	3700
Dental Hygienist	5000
Auto Mechanic	15,000 (this one surprises me)

Another of our readers reported that she did 8000 steps for 9 holes of golf and 19,000 for a full 18 holes. However, she did say she wasn't a good golfer, so spent time lost in the trees looking for her ball!

The Omron HJ-105 pedometer is available from Well Mart on the Speakwell web site.

9 Gold Medals I heard David Roth perform this song at the New Hampshire Celebrates Wellness Conference this summer. It recounts the true story of a Special Olympics track meet held in Marin County in 1987. I decided to sing the song myself at a subsequent conference, but lacking a lyric sheet and with a fallible memory, I had to do some rewriting. So here's my version of "9 Gold Medals".

Click the CD for a sample of 9 Gold Medals, which is part of a wonderful CD titled "Digging Through My Closet" and is available from from Well Mart.

Please take a look at David's web site for more about him and for a selection of his other CD's.

They came to Marin from all over the country
They'd trained all the year through the heat and the cold
Their bodies and minds were prepared for one purpose
To run for a medal of gold.

The spectators crowded around the arena
Cheering on all those young women and men
All were aware that the tension was building
It was time for the final event.

The runners warmed up and their blocks were adjusted
For the 100 meters about to be run
9 resolved athletes coiled at the starting line
Poised for the sound of the gun.

The pistol went off and the athletes exploded
Fired into life by the gun's sudden crack
But the smallest and fasted tripped and then stumbled
And fell face down on the track.

All heard his cry of frustration and anguish
His dreams of a medal so soon at an end
But as sure as I'm standing here singing this story
Here is what happened right then.

The 8 other athletes pulled up on their heels
Those who had trained so long to compete
One by one they all turned round and went back to help him
And brought that young man to his feet.

Then all 9 athletes joined hands and continued
The 100-yard dash now reduced to a walk
And the banner above reading "Special Olympics"
Could not have been more on the mark.

That's how the race ended with 9 gold medals
They came to the finish line holding hands still
And the standing ovation and 9 beaming faces
Said more than these words ever will.

Each month seems to bring forth a new diet, which immediately shoots to the top of the non-fiction best seller list and makes the author disgustingly wealthy. At Speakwell we always have our finger on the public pulse and have now created the 'next big thing' in the wonderful world of weight loss: the "No 'C' Food Diet".

Have you ever noticed that when you're trying to lose weight, much of the forbidden fruit begins with the letter 'C'? It's no coincidence that the word 'calorie' is a 'C' word, as is 'carbohydrate'. The No 'C' Food Diet is simple, all you have to do is not consume (another 'c') any food or drink beginning with the letter 'c'.

Cake (remember that muffins are cake by another name)
Crackers	Cracker Jack	Cobblers
Cookies	Chocolate	Crumpets
Chips	Carbonated drinks (Coke etc.)	Canapes
Croissants	Chicken Fried Steak	Cocoa
Candy	Canned fruit	Custard
Crepes	Corn bread	Corn dogs
Corn syrup	Chili	Chimichangas
Coconut	Cole slaw	Caesar salad
Chop suey	Chow mein	Chinese food
Coq au Vin	Curry	Chutney
Croutons	Chevre	Confit
Cheese	Cannelloni	Casseroles
Chocolate milk	Cheeseburger	Caramels
Cashews	Coffee	Catsup
Corn meal	Cream (as in ice cream)	Cream soups
Cinnamon toast	Club Sandwich	Chocolate eclairs
Cinnamon buns	Cream puffs	Croquettes
Cheese Wiz	Cheesies	Couscous

The Dreaded Double 'C's

Coffee Cake	Creamed Corn	Cold Cuts
Creme Caramel	Cottage Cheese	Captain Crunch
Cauliflower cheese	Corn Chowder	Corn Chips
Cheese Cake	Chocolate Cake	Cotton Candy
Cup Cakes	Clam Chowder	Commercial Cereals
Crispy Chicken	Carrot Cake	Candy canes
Cream Cheese	Camembert Cheese	Custard Cremes
Crispy Creme Donuts (it's not our fault if they can't spell!)	Coconut cream	Crab cakes

Nutrition Action magazine recently listed some examples of "foods you should never eat" and told you why. Some 'Double 'C' Foods' were prominantly featured. Coffee Cake - Tim's Own Coffee Cake with a caramel topping is advertised as a nice change of pace from the typical Tim Horton's donut. This tasty little extra with your morning coffee provides a quarter of your day's calories (510), half a day's saturated fat (9 grams) and nearly 9 teaspoons of sugar. Chicken Club - Swiss Chalet's Chicken Club Wrap. Wraps often appear to be a healthy alternative to burgers, but not this one with its 620 calories, 8 grams of fat and 1280 milligrams of salt. These are big burger type numbers and what makes it even more burger-like is that it comes with fries, bringing the total calories to 1090. Cheese Cake - Compliments Classic New York Style Cheesecake. I'll just give you the numbers for one slice. A day's worth of saturated fat at 18 grams, 380 calories and 5 teaspoons of sugar.

And a couple of Triple 'C's

Chili Con Carne

Chocolate Chip Cookie

The 'C'ing Doubles

Cocktails	Champagne	Cabernet
Chardonnay	Cerveza (that's beer)	e.g., Corona, Coors, Canadian, etc
Cognac	Cider	Cosmopolitan
Cinzano	Cointreau	Chablis

Cut Out Comfort Foods

Our taste buds are designed to respond to fats, sugars and salt, and comfort foods are designed with those taste buds in mind. In the recent online Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Dr. N. Pecoraro reported that comfort foods block the body's response to chronic stress. However, he points out that short term relief can turn to long term stress as the comfort foods turn to an abundance of uncomfortable fatty tissue.

Comfort foods don't all begin with 'c' but if you're serious about weight loss eliminate this whole category.

We polled some colleagues to come up with a list of a few favorite comfort foods.

Buttery popcorn	Rice pudding	French fries
Pasta (especially Mac and Cheese)	Mashed potatoes
Donuts	Baked beans on toast	B.L.T.
Grilled cheese sandwich	Hot dogs	Banana custard

Convenience Stores

On the 'No 'C' Food Diet' you are not allowed to buy food and drinks in convenience stores whose shelves are loaded with calorie dense, low nutrient foods and drink.

The High 'C's

Not all 'C's are created equal and a No 'C' Food Diet could mean a life without:

Chives	Cod	Cabbage	Crab apples
Coriander	Chicken	Cauliflower	Cumin
CrabCelery	Cranberries	Carrots	Caviar

Most of the world lives without those anyway. If you feel nutritionally compromised on the 'No 'C' Food Diet' it is permissible to take 1000 mg of (what else) vitamin C.

The funniest thing about the No 'C' Food Diet is that it works. You can of course subvert it by bulking up on food and drink beginning with other letters e.g. designating cookies as biscuits and having 10 glasses of Sauvignon Blanc instead of Chardonnay. But just cut out the 'C' foods and the 'Double 'C' foods and you'll even be allowed a daily glass of wine or beer and no-one will worry too much if you have the odd piece of skinless chicken or 'High 'C' vegetable and maybe the occasional cup of coffee.

Whatever your weight, there is one set of 'C's to be avoided by all and here we are talking of cigarettes, cigars and chewing tobacco, all of which have powerful associations with The Big 'C' of cancer.

We'll be 'C'ing you.

By Shane Brown

The National Heart Lung and Blood institute have combined with the National Institute of Health to produce some excellent interactive web based information. You can find out your BMI, access a menu planner or try the Portion Distortion quiz. The quiz will take you 5 minutes or less and after you've seen the pictures, and the correct answers to the questions, you'll not be surprised that obesity has increased 5 fold in our children and that more than 2/3 of North America is overweight.

Click the banner to go to the quiz

Speakwell sells a high quality, ABS Stability ball. ABS stands for Anti Burst System, which means the ball will not explode if accidentally punctured. They are made from high-density PVC resin and manufactured by a Vancouver company.

Exercise balls (also known as Swiss ball, Fitness ball, stability ball etc.) have been used for decades by physical therapists in Europe for rehabilitation and fitness.

These balls become a great tool for mobilization, coordination, strength and balance. Exercise routines that address the fitness of the stomach, back, buttocks and thighs are beginning to gain acceptance on this side of the ocean. Many athletes are turning to the ball to gain strength and performance improvement.

In Scandinavia, Germany and Switzerland entire office buildings and schools have been equipped with balls, not chairs, for sitting. North America is starting to get in on the act too. The ABS Stability ball promotes an upright posture, builds up back muscles and improves your balance, while sitting at home or in the office. The benefits of "Active Sitting" are becoming better understood by doctors and physical therapists.

At Speakwell, we use our balls while sitting at the computer, writing at our desks and during conferences. "Pull up a ball" has become a common phrase around our office as friends and clients drop by. Dr. Collis often uses one while giving presentations around North America on health, fitness and lifestyle.

We looked long and hard to find a high quality ball at a reasonable price. We sent a few of our exercise balls to Jeff Compton, co-author of 'Ball Bearings', and he put them through their paces. He rolled one over a nail in a board and although it did puncture, it took a long time to deflate with lots of pressure on it. He also weight tested the ball up to 750 lbs. (he didn't have any more weight!) and it came through with flying colours! If you're under 750 lbs (340 Kg) we have the best ball at the best price. Go to WellMart on the Speakwell web site if you wish to get on the ball.

Dear Dr. Collis,

I've been a poor correspondent of late, but don't take that as a sign of failure. My goal was to lose 10 lbs. by your next newsletter and as of this morning I've reached that goal. At your suggestion I used the Weight Watchers on-line program, which enabled me to avoid their meetings and morality talks. I actually found some inspiration from Shakespeare who must have been one of the earliest advocates of behavior modification.

Assume a virtue, if you have it not.
That monster, custom, who all sense doth eat,
Of habits devil, is angel yet in this,
That to the use of actions fair and good
He likewise gives a frock or livery,
That aptly is put on. Refrain tonight,
And that shall lend a kind of easiness
To the next abstinence; the next more easy;
For use almost can change the stamp of nature.
  ~ Hamlet Act III, Scene IV

That's how I've been getting through my days and nights. "Refrain tonight", "Refrain today" and, of course, Shakespeare is right. It doesn't get easy, but it is a little easier. I've learned a few lessons, one of which is that I can't eat what I don't buy. If there are cookies in my cupboard they finish up in my stomach. (It's called the "see food diet", you see food and you eat it.) I've also learned that I must keep busy in the evenings, because many a good day has been undone in front of the TV at night. So, in addition to my morning walk, I walk somewhere almost every evening. I walk to the movies, to the library, to a night school class I'm taking and to the swimming pool. (I like the adult swim after 10 o'clock at night,)

No cosmic tumblers have clicked into place, no planets aligned themselves, no lightening bolts, no voices in the night, no inspiration, except from your good self. But little by little I've lost weight, almost imperceptibly. I feel better about myself and it's now been 16 days since I achieved less than 10,000 steps.

I am hesitant to even write about success as if it would tempt the Gods to cancel out my gains with an injury or sickness. But I've lost 10 lbs., Dr. Collis, and I really don't believe in Gods, but I'm just beginning to believe in myself.

      Sincerely, Sigma

y favorite sports movies of all time. These were movies that moved me, made me laugh and cry, movies that sent me running out of the cinema to start training, movies that proved once again that sport can be a theatre for heroism, passion and the whole range of human emotion. My thoughts turned to sports movies in August when I visited the "Field of Dreams" in Dyersville, Iowa. In the words of Arnold Schwarzenegger, "Field of Dreams" is a film that makes strong men cry." Flying home I compiled a list, not of the most critically acclaimed movies with a sporting theme, but of the sports movies which got inside my mind and have stayed there.

1. FIELD OF DREAMS     Directed by Phil Robinson     BASEBALL
   

   Long before the movie, I loved the short story by BC based writer Bill Kinsella called "Shoeless Joe Comes to Iowa". He was encouraged to expand this into his first full-length novel which he titled just "Shoeless Joe". I felt the novel was too sensitive and lacking in action ever to make the transition to film. There was no sex, no violence, no crime and no car chases, just a gentle fantasy about a man who loved baseball and his family.

   

   But Hollywood stayed true to the spirit of the book and the movie was released in 1989.

   

   "Field of Dreams" gave birth to some phrases that are now embedded in everyday speech. None is more famous than, "If you build it, they will come" and, as so often happens, life imitates art and fantasy becomes fact, as everyday hundreds of people come to the "Field of Dreams" to hit a baseball, and just maybe, have a game of catch with their dad.

   

   

   The script of the movie is anchored in reality, featuring famous names such as Shoeless Joe Jackson, who was implicated in the 1919 Chicago White Sox betting scandal, although in the games in question he was errorless and batted over .370. This gave birth to another catch phrase when a boy asked him about the corruption by saying, "Say it ain't so, Joe." Jackson is said to have replied, "Afraid it is, kid." Even the character of Moonlight Graham, played so exquisitely by Bert Lancaster, was as saintly as his "too good to be true" portrait in the movie.

   He was the school doctor for the town of Chisholm, Minnesota and pioneered mandatory blood pressure screening for children in a 13-year study. Doc Graham was legendary for making sure the poor children in town had enough money for sports equipment or an affordable treat. He is buried in Chisholm where the Doc Graham memorial Scholarship Fund still helps provide for the children of the town.

   

   In 1990, "Field of Dreams" was nominated for an Oscar as Best Picture, but lost out to "Driving Miss Daisy". In my opinion, Kevin Costner has never been able to replicate the quality of performance he gave as Ray Kinsella, which the creator of the story, Bill Kinsella, said was "perfect".

   

   2. CHARIOTS OF FIRE     Directed by Hugh Hudson     TRACK
      (Executive Director Dodi Fayed)

      
      
      A film about the journey of some young, male athletes in post World War l Britain towards the Olympic podium in Paris. Perhaps the most lasting feature of the movie is the music of Vangelis, which remains one of the most recognizable movie themes of all time. [ click here for a short sound clip of the theme in wav format.] There are wonderful contrasts in the protagonists ranging from the noblesse oblige of Lord Lindsay to the gifted, rugby playing, quarter mile running Eric Liddell, whose toughest opponent is his Christian beliefs about the value of sport and Sunday competition. Then there is Harold Abrahams, the son of a Jewish immigrant, intense, angry, talented and trying to win acceptance among his fellow English undergraduates. The subtext of the film is the xenophobia and exclusivity of the English aristocracy and upper classes. In seeking to improve his sprinting performance, Harold engages a professional coach, which, to his professors, is tantamount to cheating. The Arabic coach, Mr. Mussabini, quickly becomes persona non grata at British track meets and is hustled out of the infield by zealous marshals.

      It wasn't until Princess Diana was killed with Dodi Fayed that I realized what fuelled the film and added an intensity, which transcended track. Dodi's father, Mohammed Al-Fayed had tried desperately to find acceptance in his adopted country of England. He tried to be more English than the English, he bought Harrods, he revived Punch magazine, which was an English institution, his horses raced at Ascot and he even owned Fulham F.C., a London soccer team, but despite all that he was denied a British passport, he remained an outsider, an interloper. Nothing would have pleased Mohammed more than if his son, the 'Executive Producer' could have married Diana, mother to the future King of England.

      Knowing all this, it's easy to see that Chariots of Fire is a tribute to outsiders; be they Arabic, Jewish or Scottish, for whom there is no place in the English establishment. Harold can sing Gilbert and Sullivans' "He is an Englishman" and William Blake's 'Jerusalem' about 'England's green and pleasant land' but through the eyes of his college administrators, he's still a Semite. Dodi Fayed was not well thought of in the movie world, but I have to think that he and his father identified with Mr. Mussabini alone in his room outside the stadium where the King and the Olympic committee are applauding Harold Abraham's victory

      'Chariots of Fire' won the Oscar for Best Picture and for once I feel the committee got it right.

      

   3. THE HUSTLER     Directed by Robert Rossen     POOL

      This 1961 film gave us a young Paul Newman in a story of circling pool sharks. The casting was spot on with Jackie Gleason as a totally convincing Minnesota Fats and George C. Scott at his best as the manager/coach who works with Fast Eddie Felson (Paul Newman). The pool hall and bar room settings are so seedy and noir that they are almost a character in themselves. In a pivotal scene after Fast Eddie has let Minnesota Fats off the hook in a big money game, George C. Scott teaches Fast Eddie some lessons about the philosophy of winning and losing.

      

      "Sure, you got drunk. You got the best excuse in the world for losing. It's no trouble losing when you've got a good excuse. Now winning can be heavy on your back too like a monkey and you can lose that monkey when you find an excuse. Then all you gotta do is learn to feel sorry for yourself, it's one of the best indoor sports feeling sorry, a sport enjoyed by all losers." So real were the characters that it was commonly believed that Minnesota Fats actually existed. But the author of the book, Walter Tevis, said otherwise. "That is ridiculous. I made up Minnesota Fats - name and all - as surely as Disney made up Donald Duck."

      Walter Tevis is an interesting story in his own right. After a difficult childhood, he became a popular professor of English and not only "The Hustler" but his book "The Man Who Fell to Earth" (starring David Bowie) became successful films. It's no accident that alcohol is featured in 'The Hustler' because it became a big part of Tevis' life and he wrote nothing for the next 17 years until he finally dried out. Then he wrote an intriguing chess based novel "The Queen's Gambit" and finally 25 years later he wrote a follow-up to 'The Hustler' in which Paul Newman reprised his role as Fast Eddie Felson now mature as a liquor salesman and 'student of human moves'.

      The movie was directed by Martin Scorsese and features one of my personal favorite vignettes of all time, when the young pool protege (played by Tom Cruise) struts his stuff around the table to a soundtrack of Warren Zevon singing 'Werewolves of London'. As he says, "money won is twice as sweet as money earned."

      

      
   4. THE ENDLESS SUMMER     SURFING

      In the early sixties, Bruce Brown made surfing movies for surfing audiences, but he wanted to do more and spent two years creating 'The Endless Summer', which cost more to make than his previous five films grossed. The concept was contrived, two surfers circling the globe in search of the 'perfect wave'. The dialogue is often bland, the jokes are corny, but somehow the movie captured the spirit and freedom of surfing. Strange as it might seem, I think that the songs of the Beach Boys and 'The Endless Summer' were as much responsible for me going to California as was a chance to study at Stanford and to coach at Santa Clara Swim Club.

      Initially, Brown had a hard time convincing any distributor to handle the movie. ("It'll never fly, baby.") To prove a point, he rented a theatre in Wichita, Kansas, thousands of miles from any ocean, in the middle of winter. The movie showed for two weeks and broke all attendance records. Still no one picked up the distribution rights. Undeterred, Brown took 'The Endless Summer' to Kips Bay Theatre in Manhattan where it played for over a year. After the first few weeks of sold out business, he got his distributor.

      

      I love the logo, I love the concept of an endless summer and I bought the T-shirt, which I still own. A couple of years back I was surprised to find an Endless Summer Bar and Cafe in Santa Barbara. I asked the owner how he was able to get access to the famous logo and he replied that Bruce Brown lives in town and said he could use the Endless Summer trappings provided that he (Bruce and his friends) could eat free of charge.

      There is an Endless Summer II, but I prefer the original.

   5. ROCKY     Directed by John Avildsen     BOXING
      and RAGING BULL     Directed by Martin Scorsese

      There are a lot of bad things associated with boxing not the least of which are brain damage and corrupt promoters. However, at times it produces great theatre and a handful of memorable movies.

      ROCKY

      Before Rambo and before Rocky movies were followed by Roman numerals a young Sylvester Stallone had a screenplay and an idea for a film. A number of potential backers liked the screenplay but not the idea of the unknown Stallone playing the lead role. In his mind the young Stallone was Rocky and he could not conceive of anyone else inhabiting the part. The movie, like Rocky, was a million to one shot, but the pieces fell into place and a classic underdog movie was born.

      The movie was well filmed, beautifully directed and Bill Conti's "Eye of a Tiger" became synonymous with sporting heroics. [ click here to download an mp3 of 'Eye of the Tiger" ]. Two great scenes still remain with me, Rocky's cry of "Adrian" after he wins the title and his dramatic ascent of the steps leading up to the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

      Successful movies have a life of their own and the lines between fact and fiction get a little blurred. Every day hundreds of people run those steps and raise their arms like Rocky at the top. A statue of Rocky was donated by Stallone to Philadelphia and placed at the top of the steps, but the Art Museum felt it lacked sufficient 'artistic merit' and it was moved to the Spectrum. (A move guaranteed to keep ordinary people away from the Museum in droves.)

      The film was not only a commercial success, but won Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director, with the 4 leading characters all nominated for Oscars.

      

   6. RAGING BULL

      Like Rocky, Raging Bull was a huge commercial and artistic success and was the film nominated in most categories for the1980 Academy Awards. Robert DeNiro submerged himself in his role of Jake La Motta; he trained relentlessly and actually fought minor professional fights. Performances like this transcend acting and in this case, let you see the world though the eyes of a violent and self-destructive fighter. In the words of Sports Illustrated "DeNiro's unsparing portrait of this opaque, repellent villain is poignant in its precision."

      The use of the 'Intermezzo Sinfonico' from Cavalleria Rusticana had the same kind of jarring dissonance as did Barber's 'Adagio for Strings' in Platoon.

   7. HOOP DREAMS and HOOSIERS     BASKETBALL

      HOOP DREAMS     Director: Steve James

      This is a daring documentary where the outcomes are unknown, this is prospective research, it's a mystery novel in which the author hasn't figured out the killer and the victim. Two inner city 8th grade basketball prospects, Arthur Agee and, the ironically named, William Gates, are recruited to play for St. Joseph's High School where the religion is basketball. The coach, Gene Pingatore, is looking for 'another Isaiah Thomas'. The heroes of the film are their two respective mothers who deal with missing husbands, loss of jobs, welfare, the cutting off of utilities such as electricity and water, the ever-present drug culture and yet continue to support their son's basketball ambitions with almost Oprah-like fortitude.

      

      We see a system where young men are commodities. When Arthur loses his 'scholarship' at St. Joseph's and goes back into the public school system, the Christian school tries to block his graduation by withholding his grades in an effort to squeeze $1300 from his mother, who is on welfare.

      There is a systematic winnowing process at work in which those with active pituitary glands and coordination might survive, but the odds are overwhelmingly in favor of a return to the inner cities rather than the Promised Land of the NBA. (A similar process operates in ballet; film, music, theatre and virtually all performance based professions.)

      Fortunately for basketball hopefuls in the US, there is a consolation prize of an expense paid college education. In Hoop Dreams, William gets a 4 year scholarship to Marquet, while Arthur, after a bizarre couple of years at the 99% white Mineral Area Junior College, moves on to Arkansas State.

      It's a pleasure to watch a movie free of contrived situations and simplistic outcomes, where, to quote Rudyard Kipling, "You can meet with triumph and disaster, and treat those two imposters as the same."

      

   8. HOOSIERS     Director David Anspaugh

      "Hoosiers' is included as a counterpoint to 'Hoop Dreams' not because it merits a place amongst my favorite sports movies. I was predisposed to like Hoosiers; it was based on a true story, the 1000 to 1 shot with David beating Goliath. In 1954, Milan High School of Indiana with a total of 164 boys and girls beat the dominant Muncie Central with a student body of nearly 2000 in the final of the state championship. It's a great story, but David Anspaugh messed it up by buffing away the facts to 'improve' the real story and by trying to make the film more palatable to the general public. So instead of getting some insights into the greatest story in the history of Indiana high school basketball, we get a Hollywood confection.

      

      In reality, in 1952 a popular coach, Herman 'Snout' Grinstead, was fired for ordering new uniforms for his Milan High School team against the wishes of the superintendent. He was replaced by a young, dedicated and often inspirational coach named Marvin Wood who, in his first season, took the Milan Indians to the State semi-finals. Wood, who used to practice with his team to provide enough numbers for a scrimmage, bore no resemblance to the old coach seeking redemption played by Gene Hackman. (One of the many ways the film lost credibility was that I couldn't imagine a coach as inflexible, intractable and just plain stupid as the Gene Hackman character ever producing a championship team.)

      In the actual 53-54 season, there was no drunken assistant coach (Dennis Hopper), no holdout by the star player, no intrigue between a glamorous teacher and the coach and no thought of firing the remarkable Marvin Wood. The only place the movie came close to realism was that the game was won by a last second shot by the star player, but they even managed to blow that. What the movie missed was the tactic used by Milan to control the score against their physically superior opponents. There was no shot clock in the 50's so with the score tied the star player, Bobby Plump, dribbled or just held the ball for nearly 5 minutes before attempting a shot that missed. Muncie failed to score, so Plump protected the ball for the last 1 minute 18 seconds of the game before scoring in the last seconds to give Milan a 32-30 victory. The tension was indescribable and can still be experienced on the original game film on www.ihsaa.org/video/bbbvideo.htm.

      There's a restaurant in Indianapolis called "Plump's Last Shot", the 32-30 score is still visible on the water tower above Milan and local stores do a brisk trade in 1954 style Milan Indian uniforms. It's unfortunate the "Hoosiers" did not provide a better tribute to Marvin Wood and his team. Wood died of cancer in 1999 having raised large amounts of money for cancer research and the Special Olympics. (See poetry "9 Gold Medals")

   

   SPORTS AND HUMOR

   4 Sport movies that made me laugh

   

   1. BULL DURHAM     Director Ron Shelton     BASEBALL

      I don't rate this movie as highly as some sports movie aficionados. It was both written and directed by a former major leaguer and gets a lot of points for detail and general authenticity. Some segments strain credulity, but that happens in comedies. Susan Sarandon is wonderful, as is the smitten young pitcher Tim Robbins, and or course, it's good to have Kevin Costner back in a baseball uniform.

   2. SLAP SHOT     Director George Roy Hill     HOCKEY

      Twenty-five years after the film was released the notorious Hanson Brothers still show up to provide entertainment at NHL games. There are Hanson Brothers teams in many intramural and bush leagues and a few years back I had 3 teenagers with taped glasses and hockey sticks as the Hanson Brothers for Halloween. It's hard to find a Canadian male who is not familiar with 'Slap Shot'. The film lacks political correctness, sensitivity and subtlety but it's just plain funny and strangely enough is rooted in reality. In the 1970's there was a Pennsylvania team called the Johnstown Jets who featured 3 brothers with long hair and glasses who were the team goons. (Jeff, Steve and Jack Carlson). On the same team was a player named Ned Dowd whose sister, Nancy, wrote movie screenplays. Ned fed Nancy some stories, the Johnstown Jets begat the Charlestown Chiefs and 'Slap Shot' became a movie. There was one other piece to the puzzle; the single most feared player on the Jets was Steve 'Killer' Hanson. When Hill went to cast the movie he could not improve on the originals to essentially play themselves. Jack Carlson had been called up to the Edmonton Oilers so Steve Hanson joined Jeff and Steve Carlson and the legendary 'Hanson Brothers' were born.

      
      [ www.hansonbrothers.net/ ]

      Improbably Paul Newman was persuaded to play the role of the manager of the Chiefs and, as always, acquitted himself well, even on skates. When he tells the Hanson Brothers to "Show me what you've got." The door is opened to some magnificent hockey mayhem.

   3. BREAKING AWAY     Director Peter Yates     CYCLING
      

      Coming of age, loss of innocence, boy almost meets girl, all set in the context of cycling. Dennis Christopher is the young cyclist who loves all things Italian, much to the frustration and disgust of his Middle American, used car salesman father. In one great scene at dinner the father (Paul Dooley) says, "There will be no more 'ini' foods in this house." Christopher leaves the table and calls his cat, "come here, Fellini". The Little 500 cycle race where the local Indiana Cutters take on the boys from the University makes an acceptable climax.

      Footnote: The Little 500 is still going strong at Indiana University and recently passed the one million dollar mark in student scholarships donated from money raised at the race, which has been in existence more than 50 years.

   4. JERRY MAGUIRE     Director Cameron Crowe     FOOTBALL

      Tom Cruise frustrates me. I tend to see him as a Hollywood pretty boy, but the reality is that he's a terrific actor. My local sports radio station said this was really a chick flick disguised as a sports movie. The casting was flawless, Cruise was great, Rene Zellweger can do no wrong and then there was Cuba Gooding Jr. who gave us the phrase, "Show me the money" and won best supporting actor. Hollywood can still get things right on occasions and Jonathon Lipnicki as Zellweger's (Dorothy's) son was outrageously and wonderfully cute. I loved the soundtrack, which included a special bonus for fanatics such as myself. Crowe inserted an alternative, never before heard, version of Bob Dylan singing "Shelter from the Storm". (He wrote the liner notes for Bob Dylan's retrospective set 'Biograph' and presumably had access to some rare material from the vaults of Columbia Records.) This movie was funny, poignant and flat out good and deserved its nomination for Best Movie at the Academy Awards.

   FILMS THAT NEED TO BE MADE

   The world needs a good soccer movie. Soccer is the world's game but has yet to inspire a truly memorable film. Currently we have "Bend It Like Beckham" which is an enjoyable if somewhat contrived confection. I enjoyed "Fever Pitch" based on Nick Hornby's first book of the same name, but I liked it because I'm a huge Nick Hornby fan, not because it was a movie of substance. "The Cup" was delightful, but was more about young Tibetan monks than soccer itself.

   I think a movie of 'The Lance Armstrong Story' could be terrific. Brash young Texan triathelete from a single parent family, whose promising cycling career is cut short by cancer. Rejected by his French sponsors who would not honor their commitment to him. Armstrong and his friend go into seclusion to train. He emerges stronger, lighter and with a determination to win the Tour de France, with his new team, US Postal. Five straight wins with all the pain, crashes, climbs, intrigue and triumph which are part of the 'Tour'. It could be a great movie and maybe Robin Williams could lose about 20 lbs. and play the part of his friend, Lance.

   

   Robin gets to ride his bike with
   cycling's reigning champion, Lance Armstrong.
   Lance gets his personal "comic domestique."
   Photo and caption from Saturn Cycling Magazine

   

   

   «Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.»
   George Carlin

   «If you find a path with no obstacles, check and see if it leads anywhere.»
   Alan Joseph

   «Change favors the prepared mind.»
   Louis Pasteur

   «If we learn from the experience, there is no failure, only delayed victory.»
   Carrie Lane Chapman Catt

   «Appreciation is a wonderful thing, it makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.»
   Voltaire

   «The joyfulness of a man, prolongeth his days.»
   Psalms (Bible)

   «Life is what we make it, always has been, always will be.»
   Grandma Moses

   «To lengthen thy life, lessen thy needs.»
   Ben Franklin

   «Life is like a 12 speed bike, we all have gears that we never use.»
   Charles Schultz

   «I write when I'm inspired - but I make sure that I'm inspired at 9 o'clock every morning.»
   Peter de Vries

   

   

   The theme for our poems is death and dying. (Not your normal wellness theme, but still an inevitability that can be handled well.)

   Since the last issue of Well we lost two singer/songwriters who at first glance have little in common, other than their profession, but on closer inspection have many similarities. The two singers in question are Johnny Cash and Warren Zevon.

   

   The approach of death seemed to be a catalyst for productivity and each produced some of their best work as their bodies failed. Both men approached death with dignity and perhaps even a sense of gratitude. They were musicians' musicians who were admired by their peers and at different times they each recorded with Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and members of Fleetwood Mac among many others.

   They each used drugs heavily as young performers and were able to beat their addictions and their demons. Both did recordings with their children.

   Thanks Warren and Johnny, you will be missed, but have left a great legacy.

   Four Weddings Poem

   Called "Funeral Blues" in the movie Four Weddings and a Funeral, but "XX" in the collection.

   Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
   Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
   Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
   Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.

   

   Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
   Scribbling on the sky the message He Is Dead,
   Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves,
   Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.

   He was my North, my South, my East and West,
   My working week and my Sunday rest,
   My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song;
   I thought that love would last for ever: I was wrong.

   The stars are not wanted now; put out every one:
   Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun;
   Pour away the ocean and sweep up the woods:
   For nothing now can ever come to any good.

   ~ W.H.Auden
   XX ~ The Collected Poetry of W. H. Auden 1945

   

   Departures
   By Linday Pastan

   They seemed to all take off
   at once: Aunt Grace
   whose kidneys closed shop;
   Cousin Rose who fed sugar
   to diabetes;
   my grandmother's friend
   who postponed going so long
   we thought she'd stay.

   It was like the summer years ago
   when they all set out on trains
   and ships, wearing hats with veils
   and the proper gloves,
   because everybody was going
   someplace that year,
   and they didn't want
   to be left behind.

   

   PERFECTION WASTED
   By John Updike

   And another regrettable thing about death
   is the ceasing of your own brand of magic,
   which took a whole life to develop and market --
   the quips, the witticisms, the slant
   adjusted to a few, those loved ones nearest
   the lip of the stage, their soft faces blanched
   in the footlight glow, their laughter close to tears,
   their tears confused with their diamond earrings,
   their warm pooled breath in and out with your heartbeat,
   their response and your performance twinned.
   The jokes over the phone. The memories
   packed in the rapid-access file. The whole act.
   Who will do it again? That's it: no one;
   imitators and descendants aren't the same

   

   POETIC JUSTICE By JOHN ALLEMAN The Art of War Leni Riefenstahl, Aug. 22, 1902-Sept. 8, 2003 We now see evil as banal, No thanks to Leni Riefenstahl. Her lens turned misfits into gods, And Calvin Kleined those Aryan bods To make the heroes Germans craved -- For how could beauty be depraved? By bringing style to war's debris, She found art's fearful symmetry. No need to ask just what she knew About the fate of any Jew -- In loving shots of Nazi abs, She blessed all fascist power grabs. To pretty up the master race Should be a sure route to disgrace, And yet her legacy lives on Wherever beauty plays its con -- All those sucked in by looks that kill Are cheering Triumph of the Will.

   Leni Riefenstahl, for a number of years, was Hitler's cinematographer, producing dazzling films about the Nazi party such as the "Triumph of Will" depicting the Nuremberg Rally and the 1936 Olympics in Berlin.

   

   Roxy R.I.P.

   And finally a tribute to our Speakwell cat, Roxy, who died last month at age 20. We miss her manic morning 'operas' and her presence in the 'in-tray' on the office desk and we miss her constant love of affection and attention. She was a resident in the Speakwell office and her presence always made things a little softer and more mellow. In later years, the only mouse she came close to was the one attached to our computer and then one day she moved from the 'in-tray' to the 'out-tray' and went on to higher things.

   To a Cat

   

   Mirrors are not more wrapt in silences
   nor the arriving dawn more secretive;
   you, in the moonlight, are that panther figure
   which we can only spy at from a distance.
   By the mysterious functioning of some
   divine decree, we seek you out in vain;
   remoter than the Ganges or the sunset,
   yours is the solitude, yours is the secret.
   Your back allows the tentative caress
   my hand extends. And you have condescended,
   since that forever, now oblivion,
   to take love from a flattering human hand.
   you live in other time, lord of your realm -
   a world as closed and separate as dream. ~ Jorge Luis Borges

   

   

   

   SIGN LANGUISH

   ...such insight!

   ...mmm, tasty!

   ...McDeath?

   ...another dream come true!

   ...decisions, decisions!

   hope it's not too urgent...

   it's time to collect all bets...

   Oops, not secret anymore!

   yes...well...er...

    ride to the top?

   "Careful--you could put an eye out with that thing."

   "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands."

   

    ride to the top?

   ATTRIBUTES OF A GREEK GOD?

   

   Former Speakwell employee Dino Asproloupos

   LAWYER HUMOUR (Thanks to Bill Dickerson) Charlotte, NC, lawyer purchased a box of very rare and expensive cigars and then insured them against fire among other things. Within a month having smoked his entire stockpile of these great cigars and without yet having made even his first premium payment on the policy, the lawyer filed claim against the insurance company. In his claim, the lawyer stated the cigars were lost "in a series of small fires." The insurance company refused to pay, citing the obvious reason: that the man had consumed the cigars in the normal fashion. The lawyer sued and won! In delivering the ruling the judge agreed with the insurance company that the claim was frivolous. The Judge stated nevertheless, that the lawyer held a policy from the company in which it had warranted that the cigars were insurable and also guaranteed that it would insure them against fire, without defining what is considered to be unacceptable fire," and was obligated to pay the claim. Rather than endure lengthy and costly appeal process, the insurance Company accepted the ruling and paid $15,000.00 to the lawyer for his loss of the rare cigars lost in the "fires." NOW FOR THE BEST PART After the lawyer cashed the check, the insurance company had him arrested On 24 counts of ARSON!!!! With his insurance claim and testimony from the previous case being used against him, the lawyer was convicted of intentionally burning his insured property and was sentenced to 24 months in jail and fined $24,000.00. This is a true story and was the 1st place winner in the recent Criminal Lawyers Award Contest. ONLY IN AMERICA!

   TEXAS HUMOUR Things you'll Never hear a Texan say. . . (with thanks to Bill Dickerson) "Honey, we don't need another dog." "I'll take Shakespeare for $1000, Alex." "We don't keep firearms in the house." "No kids in the back of the pickup, it's just not safe." "Wrasslin's fake." "Honey, did you mail that donation to Greenpeace." "We're vegetarians." "No, I'll pass on the biscuits and gravy." "Spittin is such a nasty habit." "I just couldn't find a thing at Wal-Mart today." "Trim the fat off that steak." "The tires on that truck are too big." "I've got two cases of Zima for the Super Bowl." "Checkmate." "Those shorts outta be a little longer, darlin'" "Nope, no more for me, I'm drivin'"

   One of our contributors to "Grins" is Scott Sieben, an educator and one of my former students from Kelowna. A few weeks back, we checked Scott's contribution but instead of a joke or cartoon it was an aerial picture of the space where his house had been before the forest fires in the Okanagan. There were no complaints, just gratitude that he and his family were safe. Four days later, the regular cartoons and jokes were back and I guarantee that Scott's positive attitude and sense of humor will help him survive the loss of his house and possessions.

   

   MPEG HUMOUR

   Click on the picture to view an mpg file of an outstandingly humorous commercial

   

   

   

   

         « It's never too late for the magic »

   

   
   
   
   Wonder is often associated with magnificent natural phenomena like a sunset over the Grand Canyon, but it's also satisfying and sustaining to see wonder in the people and friends who make up your life.

   Two such wonder-full people are Penny and George Marsden whom you can't help but notice in my neighborhood, which they patrol daily on their 1 1/2 hour route around the parks, shops and the church.

   Penny is 81 and George 93 and last year George was afraid he might lose his walking and life partner when Penny broke her hip. She had a 3 month hospital stay, extensive rehabilitation and is now back on the streets, sun glinting off her walker and seeming to move as well as ever.

   Penny and George are really poster people for wellness of body, mind and spirit. They radiate warmth and friendliness, they are physically fit and, in their 80's and 90's, have been busy auditing courses in Latin and Greek, medieval studies, English, linguistics, philosophy and history at the University of Victoria.

   I noticed that their caps and clothing often feature a Tri Fit logo. There is a reason for this, their daughter is Veronica Marsden, a Pioneer of Canadian Wellness and owner of Tri Fit, one of Canada's leaders in workplace fitness and wellness.Wellness just seems to run (or maybe walk) in the family.

   

   

   

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   October 1/03	Ontario Occupational Health Nurses Association	London, Ont
   October 11/03	Royal Victoria Marathon Dinner	Victoria, BC
   October 20/03	UBC Health Symposium	Vancouver, BC
   October 22/03	Northwest Wellness Conference for Seniors	Seaside, Oregon
   October 24/03	Western Canada Education Administrators Conference	Edmonton, AB
   October 28/29/03	New Brunswick Regional Health Authority	Saint John, NB
   October 30/03	Heart and Stroke Foundation Workplace Wellness	Charlottetown, PEI
   November 17/03	Pacific Sport Toolkit Seminar	Victoria, BC
   November 19/03	Islands Trust training session (hold)	Victoria, BC
   January 13/14/04	Saskachewan Workplace Wellness Conference (hold)	Regina, SK
   January 15/04	World Critical Illness Insurance Conference	Victoria, BC
   March 9/04	St Margaret's School	Victoria, BC
   March 13/04	BC Operating Room Nurses	Victoria, BC
   June 20-22/04	ACUHO-I Conference (hold)	Montreal, PQ
   July 14-16/04	Picker Symposium (hold)	Boston, Mass
   August 23/04	Vancouver Police Department	Vancouver, BC