We Went to Chick-Fil-A

So the other week there was this big controversy over quotes concerning the definition marriage by the President of Chick-Fil-A.

Many people got very upset about this and hurled many negative, hurtful, threatening, and hostile remarks about Mr. Cathy and the Chick-Fil-A restaurants. Unfortunately, many of the remarks were ill-informed. The biggest thing I wish in any disagreement is that people come to the debate well-informed, ready to address the issue and not reduce it to a mud-slinging, name-calling affair.

Here is the quote from the President of Chick-Fil-A:

"We are very much supportive of the family -- the biblical definition of the family unit. We are a family-owned business, a family-led business, and we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that … We want to do anything we possibly can to strengthen families. We are very much committed to that."

Somehow, it got turned into the equivalent of a 1950's segregation stance. Nowhere in his quote did he say "we don't want homosexuals in our restaurant" or "we don't want business from those kind of people." However, the feedback of comments seen on twitter and facebook sure made it seem that way. Mr. Cathy is living out his values and our lives should reflect what we believe. If you hadn't noticed, Chick-Fil-A isn't open on Sundays because of this.

The one thing that I will completely respect from the dissenters is their choice to not support Chick-Fil-A through a boycott and to voice this dissension. However, I completely disagree with the negativity aimed at Mr. Cathy and the restaurant because they are simply stating what they believe. How would you feel if someone belittled you for what you believe? And, as was seen, the response to the declared boycott brought many people out in support of Chick-Fil-A. I guess it can work both ways.

I'm all for debates and arguments. But let's stick to the facts and be sure to attack the issue and not the person.

.....

Oh yeah, where this was all going was that Beth and I ended up going to Chick-Fil-A on the conservative talk show established "Chick-Fil-A Appreciation Day." (Note, it was not established by the restaurant but rather by citizens). We were on our way down to California University of Pennsylvania for a great talk that featured TWO big-time runners, Chris Solinsky and Amy Rudolph, at their high school cross country camp. Rudolph was a two-time Olympian and Solinsky broke the American 10k record and would have probably been in London for the Olympics if it wasn't for an injury. How did those two end up at the same cross country camp in rural southwestern PA during the olympics? Great motivation and inspiration from two people at the top of the sport.

Anyway, Beth and I needed to grab dinner and we have a calendar of coupons that we got back in January for "The Chick" because we really like their food. So, we used our August coupon and waited in some really long lines but it felt worth it to show our support for a company that we believe in their morals and where we also really like their food.

Again, all I ask of the many facebook and twitter and bloggers and whoever out there: feel free to disagree--that's an American value and right. However, make sure to hold debate and discord in a well-informed way that addresses the issue and does not attack the individual.

Not Welcome at PNC

Well, that one hurt for the Pirates. Up 7-1, they manage to lose 9-8 (even after retaking the lead 8-7). Chase Headley sure would've looked nice in a Pirate uniform tonight. He couldn't be stopped. James McDonald was not able to capitalize on the leads he was given, not the sign of an elite pitcher that he looked like earlier in the year.

They are now 1-2 (.333 average) when I've gone this year. Keep in mind they have the BEST HOME RECORD IN ALL OF BASEBALL!!! They are 34-17 (.667 average...twice as good) at home when I don't go. Sorry everybody. I even tried the inside-out rally cap in the 9th to no avail.

On a brighter note, apparently it turns out that when you pour a Heinz Ketchup Bottle, an Andrew McCutchen comes out.

Of course, can't make a post about going to a Pirate game without giving a shot of the magnificent downtown skyline. 

The Swing and Ankle Update

The past few days we were celebrating the life of Beth's grandfather. One of the recurring themes at his viewing were people who came up and said that he either was their neighbor or had built their house. Being a good neighbor and an excellent homebuilder are two great qualities to be remembered for.

There were sad times, but lots of good memories as well. At his home, he had a swing (and many of the neighbors mentioned how the kids loved coming to play on the swing!). So, Beth wanted to give it one more try while we were down there and it was fun.

Here's a few shots of her swinging.

Then, she twisted the swing and spun around and here are the results:

Kind of like at minor league baseball games with the in-between inning entertainment where they get fans to spin around on the baseball bat and then ATTEMPT to run in a straight line to the other side. To quote Beth's uncle, watching her do that was "a hoot."

In other news, my ankle has FINALLY come around after four weeks. Monday I ran 15 miles and then today (Tuesday) I did 3x1600 under 6:00 pace. Here's a revised summer racing schedule:

7/14 Knoch 5k (not doing because of ankle - read on)
7/22 Quench 5k (a friend's church is putting it on to raise money for a water system in Haiti)
8/4 St. Barnabas 5k (Enjoyed my first time racing it last year)
8/11 Brookline Breeze 5k (This will be new race for me)
9/30 The Great Race (Seeded spot!)
10/21......the Columbus Marathon (that's right, I'll be subjecting myself to another shot at that 2:59:59)

I'm not sure about going to this weekend's race, but we'll see how the ankle feels. The big target(s) are (obviously) the Great Race and the Columbus marathon.

The New Trick

I guess there's time in the summer to do things like teaching your dog a new trick. Roxy was a good sport about it at least!