ISSUE #70 - May 31st, 2019

ONE

NOSTALGIA - My boy has recently discovered the joy and excitement of WWE wrestling and i couldn't be happier. I've been waiting years to introduce him to Triple H, The Undertaker (who returns Monday) and the rest of the boys...while also schooling him on some of my past favorites like...  The one and only "Macho Man" Randy Savage. I loved Hulk Hogan and the Junk Yard Dog and Big John Studd and Hacksaw Jim Duggan and all those OG wrestlers...but the #1 dude I imitated and loved as a kid was Macho Man...oooohhhh yeahhhh... Found one of my favorite interviews of him (with Mean Gene) using a cup of coffee to mock Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat's rise to fame and it's....well...glorious. Enjoy this one minute right here.

TWO

 STUNTS - I am about to introduce you to your new favorite Instagram follow. His name is Jiemba Sands and he's a stuntman/acrobat who takes everyday activities and turns them into action packed, yet casual, one-minute videos.  I loved this video where all he's "doing" is taking a walk and sipping on tea, but while walking he does several flips over cars, rolls over a fence, balances a dude drinking tea on his head and does various layouts and spins without ever spilling a drop. It's outstanding, and he does it all with a classic Jim Halpert look on his face.

THREE

BOOKS - Easily one of the best things about this newsletter is the awesome people who become readers and then reach out about one story or another and we become pals. This next George Plimpton-esque book that I'm enjoying came via the FF5!  The book is called Man Versus Ball and it was endorsed by Esquire's AJ Jacobs (whose books I've recommended) and written by FF5 reader (though that's not his claim to fame) Jon Hart. If you're familiar with George Plimpton's famous stories of "regular guy tries pro sports" then you'll know this genre, but Hart forms his own bucket list of activities, including semi-pro football, roller basketball and the Kramer dream of being a US Open ball boy. It's a fast, funny read and gives a nice glimpse into all kinds of "what would that be like" sports stuff.

FOUR

SWIMMING - Imagine not starting a sport until you're 60-years-old and then becoming the best in the world in your age group for almost 40 years.  That's what Masters Swimming legend Maurine Kornfield has accomplished in the pool. You don't have to be a swimmer to be sufficiently impressed by her 16 World Age Group Records and over 25 United States Records. She is currently 97 years old, still competes and is essentially who I'd love to be in my 90s. This is a fantastic and inspiring story about her by James Rainey right there in the LA Times. 

FIVE

A TREMENDOUS QUOTE ABOUT HEALTH:  “I do it as a therapy. I do it as something to keep me alive. We all need a little discipline. Exercise is my discipline. - Jack LaLanne  Exercise is my discipiline as well... Couldn't have said it better, Mr. LaLanne.