Mediocrity

I sometimes feel our society is drowning in an ocean of mediocrity. Crappy TV, crappy music on the radio, and crappy movies shown at my local theater. Not to mention junk food being fed to us.

The sad thing is there is good music and good movies being made but you won’t hear it on your radio or see it at the theater. Why? Because music you have to really listen to fully appreciate, or movies that make you think, do not appeal to the masses.

Just as junk food gives a body instant gratification, so too does junk TV, music and Movies. And crappy TV and other entertainment is destroying people’s minds, just as surely as junk food destroys bodies.

The sugar or salt on junk food only gives a person fleeting pleasure while they are actually eating it. The moment they stop eating they are craving more.

So too with entertainment; people are constantly listening to music through ear buds because they are not actually listening, it is just background noise.

It is not difficult to eat healthy, it is not even expensive; it does however, require a conscious effort to research, choose and prepare the right food. It is not difficult to find decent entertainment either; it just takes a conscious effort to seek it out.

Some people might even find benefit if they removed the ear buds while running or riding their bikes and simply listen to the sounds of nature, or even just enjoy the silence. Plus they would have increased awareness of their surroundings, thus increasing their safety. 

About six months ago I dropped cable TV. I got tired of paying a premium for 150 channels and finding nothing worth watching.

I switched to Hulu and Netflix, and between the two I can pick and choose what shows I want to watch. More important I can watch them when I want to; I am not tied to the TV channel’s schedule. For example, I can watch the late night programs early the following evening.

It is one of the best things I ever did, it is costing me a fraction of what I previously paid for cable. And I have found there are some great movies being made that never make it to the movie theatre.

It is important to me what I feed my body and my mind.

                       

Unzip a Banana

Unzip a Banana was a catch phrase for a British TV ad campaign in the 1960s. To this day I cannot peel a banana without thinking, “Unzip a Banana.”

For cyclists a banana has to be one of the most convenient foods you can carry on a ride. It is the perfect size and shape to fit in your jersey back pocket, and comes with its own bio-degradable wrapper. (Its skin.)

An important source of Potassium, the banana is one of the healthiest fruits. Vitamins and minerals are abundant, offering vitamin A, a full range of B vitamins are present with Thiamine, Riboflavin, Niacin, vitamin B6, and of Folic Acid.

There is even vitamin C, with minerals Calcium, Magnesium, with trace amounts of iron and zinc.

About a 100 calories for a small banana to 140 for a large nine inch one, with 36 grams of carbs, it is a good source of energy to take on a ride.

Last Saturday I went on a long ride, 76 miles to be exact. I knew I would need to carry fuel for the trip; my choice was a double-decker sandwich. Three slices of whole grain bread; one layer of butter and cheese, the top layer a sliced banana.

A whapping 600 calories, enough to get me home from the halfway point. I used cheese because it is what was available at the time; I could have substituted jam or peanut butter.

I cut the sandwich in half, and tightly wrapped the two pieces separately in cling-film so they wouldn’t crumble and fall apart in my pocket. Then I placed both halves in a zip-lock bag.

The sweetness and moistness of the banana made the whole thing very easy to eat. It was cheaper than Energy Bars, and packed a lot more fuel. (Calories.) I find some energy bars are either dry and tough to get down, or tend to melt and get sticky.

I always try to keep bananas on hand, but try not to buy too many at once as they tend to ripen and quickly go soft. If they a over ripe they just end up a mushy mess in your pocket when carried individually, and if this is the case then the best way to carry them is in a sandwich as I have just described.

Another little tip; when you peel a banana, start fom the stem end. You will find you get less of those stringy bits that hang from the side of the fruit.

There is a lot more info on the banana on this website. What is your favorite food to carry on a long ride?