Five things friday (assholes, athletes, and... books)

Welcome back to your weekly Five Things! Although, you're probably thinking more along the lines, "Welcome back to doing your JOB!" Yeah, sorry again for depriving you of all ... this. ;)

1. I've been digging Richard Beck's substack for awhile now, and the other day (7/17) he shared about Richard Sutton's book 'The No Asshole Rule: Building A Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't.' It's basically summed up in this sentence by Sutton: "The difference between how a person treats the powerless versus the powerful is as good a measure of human character as I know."
2. I was moved this week by Rustin Dodd's piece in The Athletic, 'Why Amanda Anisimova's Emotional Post-Match Interview Was A Masterclass in Handling Failure.' You can likely find the interview she gave after being humiliated in the Wimbledon women's final last week. It was actually Harvard Business School professor Amy Edmondson who coined it "a masterclass in failure." Which, ironically, is a good thing! As Edmondson says, "...we all could benefit from failing a lot more" (and handling it the way Anisimova did).
3. Another athlete story that both saddened and inspired me was this story of Fauja Singh. He became the oldest known person to run a full marathon in 2011 - at the age of 100. What inspired me, though, is that he didn't begin running until he was 89 years old! It was his way of dealing with depression and grief after his wife and son had died in close succession. Sadly, he died after being hit by a car (though not while running). He was 114.
4. And... I'm sure you've been wondering about my reading. I finally finished Jeff Galloway's 'Running Until You're 100.' It had some helpful tips, but was a bit of a challenge to read at times. I am now into 'Try Softer: A Fresh Approach to Move Us out of Anxiety, Stress, and Survival Mode - and into a Life of Connection and Joy' by Aundi Kolber. It's another book from our church and the "mental health awareness" project we're doing. So far it seems good.
5.  "We are still in a position of waking up and having a choice. Do I make the world better today somehow, or do I not bother?" - Tom Hanks

Okey doke, I feel better now that we're back on schedule. Although, I'm just waiting to get sick or something... because I have felt really good this week! My blood pressure yesterday was 118/71, 112/71, and 109/71 (I always check it 3 times in a row), my heart rate/rhythm/force has been super calm, and - I dunno - it just seems like things are "okay." It's a strange feeling for me... :)