I tried to eat really clean today. I did well- a protein shake and an apple for breakfast, some goulash for lunch, carrots and hummus for an afternoon snack, mixed vegetables for dinner. But then there was a box of caramel popcorn left from game group last night that was unfinished. If it is in the house and sugary, I will eat it. I will start again tomorrow. I have to. My body deserves to be treated much better than I treat it.

I started Tom Verducci’s book “The Plan” recently, on Theo Epstein’s work to build the Cubs into a World Series winner in five years after he came to Chicago. Well, Theo did it, and Verducci, a fine sports journalist and writer, tells us how. Epstein took some unconventional risks in the players he selected for the team. And he also had a major shift in the type of player he looked for to bring onto his ball club. In Boston, he was all about Sabremetrics, and finding undervalued players. In is last few years at Boston, he realized something was missing in what he wanted in his players. When he came to the Cubs, he softened. His main requirement for what he wanted in his future players, besides obvious skills, was character. He wanted guys on his team who cared.

At my parents’ recommendation, I ordered a book online last week that arrived today. The book is one they thought they might give me, since the copy they had of it had been in their library for a long time, and I might find it useful these days. My dad had said he had got it out to read some in it last week, and he was impressed by facts offered in it. The book is one I remember being in our home ever since I was a little kid, and I always thought it was special because of its unique comb binding. I told them I thought I might find a decent copy of it online- and upon a quick search on my phone at addall.com, I did- at a used book dealer in Colorado. For under 5 bucks, including shipping. And, in a pretty pristine, unviolated condition. The book?

Betty Woods’ 1969 book, “101 Trips in the Land of Enchantment”

I look forward to using it in the near future.