After a bit of a break from running due to an injury, getting back into running was difficult; not in the motivational sense rather it was getting my minute per mile down to what it was prior to my injury.

The injury was more or less an effect of pushing myself too hard and not listening to my body and listening more to the Runkeeper App that was training me. After pushing myself too hard on a speed workout my foot was more or less like ?????

To conclude - I was out of running for about 2 months.

By the time my injury healed, finals were coming around the corner the same way like when you're walking down a street / hallway & have to make a turn and you end up bumping into someone [ the someone in my case were my final exams ].

Attempting to get back into running with the Runkeeper App was more or less in my mind the NOTP that I subconsciously did not want to happen due to the injury I had as a result from using it. That's when I thought back to what I did before having an app to guide me - I would run & increase the distance the second I became too comfortable with the distance I was running.

What I ended up deciding on was to use the Runkeeper App only to track my minute per mile. That was until it couldn't perform that function -  I would run for 20 minutes & it would tell me that I ran for 0 minutes and 0 miles. This happened for a few times before I made the switch to the Nike+ Run Club App.



Some exercises that I have been doing before running are these from Pinterest as well as these from 100 Days on YouTube. I've been doing the latter more, and have to say it's really effective in moving all your muscles. After running I do a variation of stretches but use this & this as a guide.

If you're just getting into running, I'd recommend doing the workouts above & start by running at your own pace not the pace an app is trying to make you run at - yes of course challenge yourself, but also, first & foremost, listen to your body.
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Missed a previous fitness type post?
Here's the one prior to this -> Track VS. Road
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 Amendment 3

No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, not in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law. (X)

What does this mean?

Well, let's take it into parts.

No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner 

To give context, before this Amendment was made in 1791, there was something called the Quartering Acts in 1765. The Act essentially stated that British Soldiers could take up shelter in homes of the civilians [ of the colonies - you know when Great Britain ruled the world] as a compensation for their services during wartime. (X)

Great Britain would house its soldiers in American barracks and public houses.

In peace, however, it was not written plainly of what to do. Though, the colonies then considered it to be a violation of the Bill of Right of 1689 which forbade taxation without representation & the raising or keeping of a standing army without the consent of parliament.


Then, once America gained its independence, the creation of this Amendment formed. It essentially means that no soldier can reside with civilians in times of peace.

[N]ot in time of war, but in a manner prescribed by law. 

The first part covered for in times of peace no soldier shall be able to reside in a civilians home in time of peace, but this second half deals with in times of war. In time of war, there must be a law that specifies that a soldier can reside in civilians home. Without the law, a soldier is not allowed to reside there. So, if there is a war, that does not automatically mean you have to open your doors to house soldiers, rather there must be a law dictating to do so.

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In what ways has President Trump & his administration done something that pertains to this Amendment:

Nothing at this time.

*Perhaps it should be noted from the U.S. Senate website:
This virtually obsolete provision was in response to anger over the British Military Practice of quartering soldiers in colonists' homes.


-if needed this will be updated from time to time.-
_____
Is there an Amendment you would like to know more of?
to be taken to a list & choose which one you would like to learn more about.

This is a series that is ongoing - Every Wednesday [ #WednesdayAmendment ] there will be an Amendment Explanation paired with what President Trump & his administration have done that pertains to the Amendment discussed.




Normally, whenever I see someone with a watch it is either a digital one or a good ol' fashioned one. Though, the funny thing is, they are both used for entirely different purposes.

The digital watch is used to actually tell time - though, ironically, I feel that it destroys the purpose of a watch. Rather than my mind counting the lines, as I would on an old fashioned watch, to see if it's 5:46 or nearing more towards 5:48, it's just visibly there; no mind work or squinting at the lines needed.

The people that do have an old fashioned watch use it for aesthetic purposes. Rather than it being an instrument to tell time, it's like oh this accessory pulled my outfit together #aestheticgoals.

I personally didn't see the point of having an actual watch until last year. 

Why have a watch when you have a phone? 

Well, for starters, in a workplace / school it's not really acceptable to be checking your phone every .5 seconds to see if an hour passed. It's good to have a watch to glance back at without it coming off as rude / inconsiderate.



I feel that as technology advances our brains do less and less work. There's no brain work done when your watch is digital - the numbers are blinking straight back at you. Meanwhile, for an old-fashioned watch there is a lil bit of work to do in counting the lines just right.

I have to admit, my family did make fun of me when I first got my watch because of how long it took me to actually tell them the time. My brain had become so accustomed for the time to be digitalized on my phone that seeing that I actually needed to put in effort to tell the time my brain was like lol bye let's not for the first few weeks; as months passed by it became easier. It is as though I had reawakened my how-to-tell-time part of my brain. [It's actually really sad how long it took me to get the hand of telling time; past me would be ashamed oops]

My eyes were blessed with being able to tell time whenever and wherever I was without it coming off as rude (or unblessed if I discovered I still had a half hour left in my lectures).

Also, the satisfaction of actually getting the time right when you double check on your phone is actually what dreams are made of.


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Amendment 2

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. (X)

What does this mean?

Well, let's take it into parts.

What did the term regulated mean when this Amendment was made?

It essentially means organized & disciplined. The State was not controlling the Militia, rather the Militia was prepared to defend and protect its State (X).

What is a Militia in this context?

At the time of which this Amendment was created, December 15, 1791, it was generally an army comprised of citizens of a State that would be called upon in situations to defend the State (X).

Essentially, for comparisons sake, think of it as an early type of police.

Rather than having the military full time stationed at each individual State, it was thought to be more convenient to have able bodied men to protect their Towns & States (X).

At this time in America, majority of citizens owned guns for the purpose of protecting the State via the form of a Militia (X).
_____

A lil side bar crash course:

So the purpose for the Militia was for able bodied men to protect the state/town since the Military was pretty small at this point. To be specific - the U.S military didn't exist until September 29, 1789. George Washington's "First American Regiment" aka the Military of that time had a total of 700 men.

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What does being necessary to the security of a free State. mean?

At the time this Amendment was created, the United Stated recently fought a war which granted them Independence and was expanding (X). As such, many people felt unsafe and so security via the form of a Militia was considered needed to protect citizens of the respective States.

Also, quoting from a CNN article on this matter:
‣ "The idea of a state militia would also be attractive because it serves as a deterrent against national tyranny," says Rakove.
‣ "At the time, if government forces tried to take over land or overstep their boundaries, you'd have an institution in place -- the militia -- that would outnumber any army."
* Do take note that the size of the military back then was small compared to the modern size of the military today. *

What does the right of the people to keep and bear arms mean?

There is confusion on who the people in this phrase actually pertain to. It could be seen as the people as in individuals or as people in the Militia.

Though, the confusion of what is included in bear arms is up for a debate. Since the Amendment did not contain a list detailing what arms are to be included, it leads to a bit of head scratching. The weapons used back then are not the same weapons used in this current century (X).

Also, quoted from a CNN article pertaining to this topic:
‣ "One thing people disagree about is whether assault weapons bans are constitutional," says Rosen.
‣ "They also disagree about how we should interpret the constitution in terms of history or in light of new technologies."

Essentially this is what I myself understood from this Amendment:

The purpose of every able bodied male owning a gun was because they - as individuals- contributed to the militia that protected their state. By bearing arms, this Amendment was allowing every citizen to own a gun for the purpose of protecting the State as a unit aka the militia. At the time, though, the reason for a militia was because the idea of a police wasn't brought or thought of until 1838.

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In what ways has President Trump & the current administration done something that pertains to this Amendment:

1.

I would also like to add in a few words:

What is the purpose of not doing background checks?
The main reason, as suggested by this Amendment, for gun ownership is for able bodies males to assemble in the form of a Militia to protect citizens of respective States.
How is NOT doing background checks safe?
I don't have an answer for that because the answer is that it is not safe.

_____

2.


Senator Christopher Murphy, Connecticut: "You can't say, definitively today, that guns shouldn't be allowed in schools?"
Betsy Devos: "I will refer back to Senator Enzi and the school he was talking about in Wapiti, Wyoming. I think, probably there, I would imagine there is probably a gun in the school to protect from potential grizzlies."



-If needed, this will be updated from time to time.-
_____
Is there an Amendment you would like to know more of?
to be taken to a list & choose which one you would like to learn more about.

This is a series that is ongoing - Every Wednesday [ #WednesdayAmendment ] there will be an Amendment Explanation paired with what President Trump & his administration have done that pertains to the Amendment discussed.






Sometimes you're walking down a street and it diverges in two directions. Everyone in front of you goes right, but then you stop in the middle unsure of which direction is the one for you. You then choose left because you decide that's the direction you are meant to go.

A month ago, I went to the movies to watch Hidden Figures. If you haven't seen this movie yet, you're truly missing out [ like legit stop reading right here and go see when the next timing for it is ]. It centralizes on the three women that were behind putting the USA in the space race over at NASA ( well, it was a two man race between USA & Russia and USA came in second but anyway ).

This movie showed three women who went in a direction that was not paved for them, rather they paved the way for others to follow. This made me think that sometimes the best leaders are the one's that didn't expect themselves to be leaders in the first place.

Three general points that I learned from the film:

  • Sometimes the way you're going, there isn't anyone there. But that's the reason you're going in that direction- to be that first person there. 
  • Believe in yourself and you know, in the right time, others will to. The most important thing is to NOT stop believing in yourself.
  • Never doubt your ability to do something by others inability to see your capability. 

Sometimes the path you're on there isn't anyone there- that's because it's your path to pave.





Amendment 1

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government got a redress of grievances. (X)

What does this mean?

Well, let's take it into sections.

Congress shall make no law respecting as establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof [.]

This line gives We the People RELIGIOUS FREEDOM.

Whether that person be a Muslim, Christian, Jewish etc. we are allowed to practice our religion freely; it is our right to do so.

[The First Amendment] forbids Congress from both promoting one religion over others and also restricting an individual's religious practices.

-Slight Tangent-

So what tea went down in history that freedom of religion was included in the First Amendment?

In Europe, there were religious persecutions. Both Protestants & Catholics both had the belief that - in the interest of saving all citizens, there should only be one true religion & they had the right to force people to convert to be Protestant/Catholic - if they chose not to abandon their faith they would be killed.

Also - I don't mean you could choose to be either Protestant or Catholic:

If the person forcing you to leave your belief system was Catholic they wanted you to convert to Catholicism.

If the person forcing you to leave your belief system was Protestant, they wanted you to convert to Protestantism. 

Ok so what does this have to do with America?

Well, rather than to accept death, those who refused to leave their belief system fled to the good ol' American Colonies to practice their faith freely.


-End of Slight Tangent-

[O]r abridging the freedom of speech, or the press [.]

This line gives We the People FREEDOM OF SPEECH & PRESS.
‣ It gives We the People the freedom to speak as frankly as we'd like about the current administration that is running the show that is the White House.
‣ It gives The Press the freedom to write as they please. This means even if it does not mirror / reflect the administration in a positive light, such as saying President Trump had less crowds than Former President Obama at his inauguration; that is a fact and saying differently is falsehood [or as the current administration refers to it as Alternative Facts].

The press does not play to the White House's tune, they play to the actual tune. The press provide facts, not a pair of rose tinted glasses.

[O]r the right of people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for the redress of grievances.

This line gives We the People THE RIGHT TO GATHER & SEND REQUESTS TO OUR GOVERNMENT WITHOUT THERE BEING A FEAR THAT WE WOULD BE PUNISHED. (X)

The people have the right to form & assemble in a nonviolent way in response to disagreeing with a government action; i.e. peaceful protests such as the one in Battery Park, NYC.

This also includes, letter writing, email campaigns, filing lawsuits, petitions etc.

As stated by Learning to Give:

The Right to petition grants people not only the freedom to stand up and spread out against injustices they feel are occurring, but also grants the power to help change those injustices.


To view this point in detail, you may view it HERE in the third paragraph.



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The following is what President Trump & his administration have done that pertains to this First Amendment:

1.
The latest executive order signed on January 27, 2017 barred people from 7 predominantly Muslim countries from entering the United States violates the very first sentence of this Amendment:

Congress shall make no law respecting as establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof [.]

Among those held in Airports, it included American Citizens who held dual citizenship from the countries listed.

It was said by President Trump, when referring to refugees, that precedence would be given to Christian families.

Also, it was reported by Shaun King, Senior Justice Writer for New York Daily News:



How is this unconstitutional?

People are allowed to, via this First Amendment, to practice any religion without persecution. [ Definition of Persecution: Hostility and ill-treatment, esp. because of race or political or religious belief.]

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2.
 In relation to the press, Trump has essentially made it known that if you - a member of the press- do not showcase him in a favorable light, you are considered to be fake news.

President Trump deemed CNN Fake News at an event at the White House honoring Black History Month.

The job of the press is not to paint the narrative the administration wants, but to paint the actual narrative.

 UPDATE 6 MARCH 2017:
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3.

This is an 'updated version of the Muslim Ban' signed on March 6, 2017 which barres people from 6 predominantly Muslim countries: Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Yemen
~Iraq is no longer on the list as it was originally~

How is it unconstitutional?
It violates the very first sentence of this Amendment:

Congress shall make no law respecting as establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof [.]

UPDATE 28 SEPTEMBER 2017:

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4.
Presidential Proclamation Enhancing Vetting Capabilities and Processes for Detecting Attempted Entry Into the United Sates by Terrorists or Other Public-Safety Threats

This is an updated version of the Muslim Ban (referred to as the Muslim Ban 3.0 - the previous 2 are above) released on September 24 2017. This new directive places travel restrictions on: Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen.
~Sudan is no longer on the list~


Now - including North Korea & Venezuela can be seen as Trump's way of "hey this isn't a Muslim ban!" however 6 of the 8 countries listed are majority Muslim.

How is this unconstitutional?
It violates the Establishment Clause (aka the first sentence of the First Amendment:



Congress shall make no law respecting as establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof [.]
- This will be updated from time to time.-


_____
Is there an Amendment you would like to know more of?
to be taken to a list & choose which one you would like to learn more about.

This is a series that is ongoing - Every Wednesday [ #WednesdayAmendment ] there will be an Amendment Explanation paired with what President Trump & his administration have done that pertains to the Amendment discussed.





an ongoing saga: trump & his habibi Putin

Unless you've been under a rock, you will have realized that numerous protests have happened across the country. The question many people have, those who choose not to attend protests seeing them as pointless is: 

 What does protesting actually accomplish?

 I've seen numerous people make lists on Facebook & Twitter and so I thought why not put them in a blogpost and link them to their respective articles. It is possible the list will get larger and it would be a lot better to have it all in one place instead of trying to find the list on either social media buried under tweets and shared posts on Facebook.

 Below is what Protesting has done so far:

 1. Federal hiring freeze is reversed for Veteran Affairs.

 2. On the day the Executive Order was signed barring people from 7 predominantly Muslim countries, there was an emergency court hearing which concluded with allowing Partial stay of the immigration ban for those with valid visas.

 3. Green card holders allowed back in the country.

 4. Uber pledges $3M & immigration lawyers for their drivers after #DeleteUber trended on twitter.

 5. Uber CEO drops out of Trump's business advisory council in reaction to the immigration executive order.

 6. The ACLU raised 24M online during last weekend.

 7. EPA Climate Change is back on the White House website.

 8. More people of different religious backgrounds are considering running for political office than ever before.

 9. Washington State is suing the administration.

 10. The Federal Judge in Seattle temporarily halts President Trump's immigration order nationwide. [ The order was requested by the Washington State.]
  • A quote from the Washington State Attorney General statement: "To obtain the Temporary Restraining Order, the state needed to prove that its underlying lawsuit was likely to succeed, that irreparable harm was likely to occur without the restraining order, and that halting the President's order immediately is in the public interest.
11. Massachusetts, New York and Virginia also challenged the executive order similarly to above.

 12. San Francisco is suing the administration.

 13. Nordstrom has decided to stop carrying Ivanka Trump's brand; this decision comes amid calls for a boycott against all retailers that carry Trump products.
  • Quote from the Business Insider: The company said the brand's declining sales led to its decision."Each year we cut about 10% [of brands carried] and refresh our assortment with about the same amount," a Nordstrom representative told Business Insider. "In this case, based on the brand's performance we've decided not to buy it for this season."

 To conclude: It is 'We the People' with the power- not 'He the President' - if We the People see something that is not right, we will #resist.


-If needed, this will be updated from time to time-