Wednesday, 16 December 2009

The Presence of Grace - J.F. Powers

The Presence of Grace by J.F. Powers Image Books, Victor Gollancz Ltd. London, England 1957 (First published in 1956). This second collection of J.F. Powers' short stories was published nearly a decade after his first collection. The nine short stories were previously published between 1949 and 1956 in a variety of magazines including The Partisan Review, The New Yorker, Tomorrow, Commonweal, and Accent. This collection of Powers' short stories is very different from his first collection, The Prince of Darkness and Other Stories, in that this collection is almost exclusively Catholic-themed stories. This collection also avoids some of the political nature of the first collection, with no stories about racism or Antisemitism. Of the nine stories all but one have Catholic themes, and most revolve around the lives of priests.

Powers creates unique stories in that his writing style is minimalist before it was even recognized as a style. His stories are events and dialogue driven. Seldom does he go into extensive descriptions of locations, places or surroundings. When he does, the reader realizes that it is critical to the story. An example of this is the description of the furniture and environment in the basement in the story The Losing Game. The young curate is trying to get a desk from the Rector. They are down in the locked basement, and there is more description in this segment of this story than the rest of the book. Because of this lack of description, what carries these stories and gives them such power, is Powers' exceptional creation of characters, and his use of dialogue, both external and internal, to individual characters.

In this collection, we are also introduced to the Clementines - a factious religious order that is the focus of Powers' first novel Morte d'Urban. In the story, the Devil Was a Joker, we encounter a traveling salesman who hocks the literature of the Clementines and supplements his income with a variety of religious paraphernalia. But there are a few of the stories that have that Clementine feel; the Clementines are a middle-rate religious order, nowhere near as glorious as the Jesuits, and not as pathetic as the Missionary Oblates.

Powers presents priests in two categories, those who are adept at their jobs, and truly care about people and those who seem to be in it just as a business. The interesting thing about these stories is that even though they were all written before Vatican Council II, they can all be read as if they were written today and about today's priests and laypeople. These stories are about life - life as part of a faith community, a community that has both strengths and weaknesses just like the members who make up that community. As such he continues to speak to readers a half century after it was first published.

Dawn
This is a quirky story about an envelope left in a collection plate addressed to the Pope. It causes much consternation both in the parish and in the office of the diocese. It is an example of how people can always fear the worse, and their own apprehension makes the situation worse.

Death of a Favorite
This is the first of two stories told from the perspective of a cat. In this collection, combined with Defection of a Favorite, they tell the story of a rectory where the Pastor refers to the cat as his curate. Father Malt likes to make fun of Father Bruner, his real assistant, by claiming the cat is his assistant. The story is a little unusual from Powers, in being told in the first person and that person being a pet cat.

The Poor Thing
This is the story of an elderly woman, Teresa, whose pension just does not make ends meet. As such, she takes some work as a personal-aid worker to a woman in a wheel chair, Dolly. Both characters are to be pitied for their situations in life and their inability to deal with them appropriately. Both are Catholic and Dolly uses her faith as a weapon to make Teresa feel guilt and to do things she does not really want to do.

The Devil Was the Joker
This is a story about the Clementines. Or rather about a traveling salesman Mac, who represents them to dioceses and parishes around the country, trying to sell their booklets and magazines. But it is also the story of Myles, a failed seminarian who is trying to find a way to have a Vocation. Mac meets Myles while Mac is in the hospital and Myles is working as an orderly. Myles is enlisted to assist in this work, with the lure of it being a vocation and could maybe help him get into the fold of the Clementines. However Myles soon learns Macs' religious rhetoric is just a game and he will sell anything, including playing cards with angels and devils on them.

A Losing Game
This and the final story are about a parish where Father Fabre is a curate and there is an unnamed pastor. In this instalment the curate gleans insight into the pastor's character and ambition, all the while trying to get a desk out of the pastor for his typewriter in his room. In the process, he is shot while the pastor is trying to kill rats in the basement. The story is a little humorous but really does not feel completed until we read the final story, The Presence of Grace where the story of these two continues at some point later in time.

Defection of a Favorite
In this story Father Malt has been injured and is in hospital for most of the story. During that time, Father Bruner goes through a transformation from being a little self-centered and obtuse to really living and working for the ministry into which he was apparently called. The animosity and antagonism between Bruner and the cat also end, and they become friends and the cat attempts to assist Bruner when the Bishop visits.

Zeal
The Bishop is on the beginning of a pilgrimage journey to Rome, when an old classmate introduces him to Father Early just before the departure from Saint Paul, Minnesota. During the train ride to Chicago the Bishop is initially put off by the aggressive and outgoing priest. However, he soon realizes that the priest is really just zealous for God and does all he tries to do, however misguided, because of that zeal.

Blue Island
This is the only secular story in this collection. It is an odd story about a housewife, who is a newlywed and moves to her husband's home town, Blue Island. Her husband is quirky and even though he saved the family business he does not really fit in. Like many of Powers' stories, this one is about someone who is a bit of an underachiever and this causes him to put undue pressure on his wife.

The Presence of Grace
In this story young Father Fabre makes a mistake. He decides to visit a parishioner without clearing it with the pastor. In doing so he opens a large can of worms. Once he realizes his mistake, he waits for the pastor's return in fear and trepidation. However the pastor calms him and meets with the Women's League and deflects them as well. All this time Fabre had thought the pastor was holding him back and not very effectively. In this instalment he realizes the wisdom in the pastor's long silences and idiosyncratic ways.

(First written for RS398 - The Religious Fiction of J.F. Powers.)

My Reviews and Articles on Powers:

1962 - Morte d'Urban - novel
1963 - Lions, Harts, Leaping Does, and Other Stories
1988 - Wheat that Springeth Green - novel
1991 - The Old Bird, A Love Story - Illustrated Edition
1999 - The Stories of J. F. Powers
J.F. Powers Selected Bibliography
J.F. Powers Book Covers
That Elusive Story
The Warm Sand
Meme Booked By 3 May 2007
Meme Book Meme
Meme Booked by 3 February 2007

RS398 Directed Reading - The Religious Fiction of J.F. Powers
Essay - Why J.F. Powers
The Prince of Darkness and Other Stories
The Presence of Grace
Morte d'Urban
Look How the Fish Live
Wheat that Springeth Green
Essay - J.F. Powers Literary Life and Legacy

Tuesday, 15 December 2009

The Prince of Darkness and Other Stories - J.F. Powers

Prince of Darkness & Other Stories
by J.F. Powers
Image Books,
Doubleday Company Inc.
Garden City, New York 1958 (First published in 1947).

This collection of short stories was first published in 1947 but most of the stories were published earlier, between 1943 and 1947 in various magazines and newspapers. Power's writing had a devout following from early on. His stories have been published and republished not only in this collection but in many anthologies and collections - often in collections of Catholic fiction or collections of American fiction. Also, his works often end up in English literature courses.

He has two distinct types of stories, religious and cultural. His religious stories focus around the Catholic faith, the day in and day out life of clergy and laity. This first of his published collections is a mix of those archetypes. There are five secular stories and six religious stories, and overlapping both are five stories with racism, either against people of color, or Jewish heritage or Germans (Americans of German dissent). Powers does an amazing job of capturing a snapshot of American culture at a very specific time.

Reading these stories transports one back in time, to a less politically correct time, a time rife with social unrest and a world responding to the Second World War. As a modern reader looking back, these pieces are so well written that they draw the reader in and he becomes a witness to the events. Personally, being a post Vatican Council II baby, my experience of the Roman Catholic Church was very different from Powers, yet he captures something about the spirit of Catholicism, with its good its bad and its ugly, in such a way that his religious stories still speak to the minds and hearts of readers more than a half century later. Now a brief look at each of the specific stories.

The Lord's Day: This is a story about a power struggle at a Catholic parish and parochial school between the Nuns and the Rector of the Parish. In a way it is the story of all politics in a religious organization. It is a sad story with a sad ending.

The Trouble: Based around the race riots in the U.S., this story captures the feel and terror of a time when civil unrest left people dead and constantly under a threat of danger. It is also the story of faith - a woman's faith that the priest will come when her daughter is injured no matter what is happening, and her faith to protect a white man being chased by a black mob even though her daughter lies unconscious after being beaten by a white mob. This story evokes raw emotion and reminds us of a less glamorous period in our recent past.

Lions, Harts, Leaping Does: This is the story of an elderly brother living and working in a monastery. The story takes place mostly in the protagonist's mind, as he struggles with his own ac
tions and motives and those of people around him. It is Didymus coming to an ontological self-understanding during illness and not too long before his death. He states: "With the same wonderful clarity, he saw what he had made of his life. He saw himself tied down, caged, stunted in his apostolate, seeking crumbs, the little pleasure, neglecting the source, always knowing death changes nothing only immortalizes .. and still ever lukewarm." (p. 45) Such open, honest transparency with self is rare even in fiction.

Jamesie: This is the story of a young boy who has faith, not in God but in his hero, a baseball pitcher. It starts during a specific baseball game where the pitcher is believed to have thrown the game. The boy's faith is crushed and he is left wondering, as we so often do after we have been let down by those in whom we believe.

He Don't Plant Cotton: Powers does an amazing job in this piece describing music and the playing of music. It focuses around three black musicians playing in a small club. When some white businessmen who are drunk start hassling them, they stand up for themselves and thus lose their jobs. It is a story of racism, but also human dignity.

The Forks: Is the story of conflict within the church, of differing opinions and interpretations of what it means to be Christ's ambassadors. For the older established priest, it is about status, and people's opinions; for the young curate it is about serving, helping and loving. It also highlights the stru
ggle within the church for those who take stands on current issues, in this case social justice and those who support the old order or tradition. When I was a candidate discerning a vocation to the Catholic priesthood, the conversations in this story could have taken place between priests, seminarians and students like me, around the table or on road trips in the car. Even though this story is dated by the vehicles in it, it could just as easily have been an experience of a friend of mine. It even has overtures of anti-Semitism.

Renner: This story was harder to follow and though I grasp some of the anti-German sentiment in it, I do not grasp the real meaning of the story. I know I am missing something from this story of an evening spent in a roadhouse and the various groups interacting with each other over the evening.

The Valiant Woman: This story is about a priest who has allowed himself to be overrun by his maid. She is really the one running his life and the parish. Some joke that he is like an old married man nagged until giving in. In part that is true, and he realizes it but does not know how to change the situation without hurting her, and she has served him and the church for many years. It captures the struggle that can take place between what should
happen and what does happen; about the struggle to find balance between following the letter of the law and extending mercy, even if at the cost of self.

The Eye: This story has strong, powerful, raw emotion in the form of racism. It focuses around a group of white men responding to rumors of a white woman being raped and attacked by a black man. The story is visceral in how it evokes anger over wrongs done, and wrongs done in response to perceived injustice.

The Old Bird, A Love Story: Written about an old couple during the great depression, Charlie wants to work but he is older than most looking for work and slower when he starts. It is a sad story of failures.

Prince o
f Darkness: This is a story about mediocrity - about a priest, the only one from his seminary class without his own parish. It is about his desire for a parish, even a rural one if he must. He is almost past the point of caring or even of hoping, yet when he is summoned to the Cathedral he cannot but get his hopes up.

In this collection Powers addresses issues of his time, and captures experiences of ordinary people living their day-to-day lives. His stories have the power to evoke emotions and sentiments and a response from readers. His characters are real and I could name one or two clergy I've known in my life that are almost the men he creates in his story. Maybe that is what has contributed to Powers' lasting impact - his characters are real, and a reader cannot help but think of people they know, and see them or even themselves, in his stories. These are some of his earliest published works that show his writing at the beginning of his career, and are thus excellent starting points for a study of his collective fictional works.

(First written for RS398 - The Religious Fiction of J.F. Powers.)

My Reviews and Articles on Powers:

1962 - Morte d'Urban - novel
1963 - Lions, Harts, Leaping Does, and Other Stories
1988 - Wheat that Springeth Green - novel
1991 - The Old Bird, A Love Story - Illustrated Edition
1999 - The Stories of J. F. Powers
J.F. Powers Selected Bibliography
J.F. Powers Book Covers
That Elusive Story
The Warm Sand
Meme Booked By 3 May 2007
Meme Book Meme
Meme Booked by 3 February 2007

RS398 Directed Reading - The Religious Fiction of J.F. Powers
Essay - Why J.F. Powers
The Prince of Darkness and Other Stories
The Presence of Grace
Morte d'Urban
Look How the Fish Live
Wheat that Springeth Green
Essay - J.F. Powers Literary Life and Legacy

Monday, 14 December 2009

Why J.F. Powers - Essay

J.F. Powers was called, by Joseph Bottum: 'The greatest Catholic Writer of the 20th Century'. His work is infused with his faith but a realistic faith. His heroes are often priests - yet priests with faults, foibles and very human. He wrote about a 'pre-Vatican Council II' faith and even though I was born after the Vatican II reforms, his stories touch something central to my being and my faith. I have found a small community of devoted fans of his writings and few whom I encounter who have read his works do not love them. In this essay I will examine my own introduction to Powers and his works, present a short biography and conclude with a Bibliography as complete as I can generate on his fictional works.

J. F. Powers is an author whose works haunted me for over a decade. His short story The Warm Sand was in an anthology of Catholic Fiction that I read years ago. Shortly after reading it, I lent it out and never got it back. A few years back while on retreat in Toronto, the story came to mind yet again, and this time I had to track it down. Unfortunately I did not know the name or title of the story, or the name of the anthology or editor. All I could remember was that it had a black cover with gold lettering. Thus began the quest for finding the story. I started searching online book stores, new, used and out of print, for Catholic short story collections. I could not find one with a cover that matched but found a few without covers, so I interlibrary loaned them until I found the book in question. It was called The Substance of Things Hoped For and was edited by John Breslin S.J. After finding and rereading the story I became obsessed with the author and his works. I interlibrary loaned all of his works and sometimes different editions. I devoured his fiction writing. This course will be a culmination of that quest and academic inquiry. So come join me in a journey through the literary fiction of J.F. Powers.

J.F. Powers, born James Farl Powers, on July 8th, 1917 is a bit of an enigma. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest American short stories writers. He published only 3 collections of short stories and two novels, in a writing career that spanned more than 50 years. During that time he published just 2 novels, both of which won the National Book Award by the American Library association. Those two novels published 26 years apart are really a collection of continuous short stores and many of the chapters in the books had been previously published in one form or another. Powers was a conscientious objector during World War II and worked instead as a hospital orderly. Powers was a writer, a husband, a father, and, from some accounts, in that order. He moved his family back and forth across the Atlantic from the United States to Ireland a number of times. He was a teacher, a researcher and to many who knew him a man of good character. Powers died on the 12th of June 1999 just months before his complete works were put back into print by The New Yorker's literary line, New York Review Books.

Powers was a master wordsmith. He did an especially good job of capturing Post World War II American Catholicism, both from the perspective of clergy and from laity. He specialized in satire but not a cruel, cutting satire, rather a more balanced, gentle approach. Powers would not have made a good priest, but he does an amazing job writing about priests and their lives. Over the next 6 pieces we will journey through his works in their original published order, examining his canon of fiction in chronological order. After we have examined each of his books separately, we will examine his works as a whole and the lasting impact of his life and works.

(First written for RS398 - The Religious Fiction of J.F. Powers.)

My Reviews and Articles on Powers:

1962 - Morte d'Urban - novel
1963 - Lions, Harts, Leaping Does, and Other Stories
1988 - Wheat that Springeth Green - novel
1991 - The Old Bird, A Love Story - Illustrated Edition
1999 - The Stories of J. F. Powers
J.F. Powers Selected Bibliography
J.F. Powers Book Covers
That Elusive Story
The Warm Sand
Meme Booked By 3 May 2007
Meme Book Meme
Meme Booked by 3 February 2007

RS398 Directed Reading - The Religious Fiction of J.F. Powers
Essay - Why J.F. Powers
The Prince of Darkness and Other Stories
The Presence of Grace
Morte d'Urban
Look How the Fish Live
Wheat that Springeth Green
Essay - J.F. Powers Literary Life and Legacy

Sunday, 13 December 2009

J.F. Powers Week On Book Reviews And More

This fall I did my last course to finish my University degree. I did a selected reading course RS398 on the Religious Fiction of J.F. Powers. During the course of the term, I reread all of Powers' books, and wrote formal academic book reviews on them, and wrote 2 essays. Here is the List of the assignments:

RS398 Directed Reading - The Religious Fiction of J.F. Powers
Essay - Why J.F. Powers
The Prince of Darkness and Other Stories
The Presence of Grace
Morte d'Urban
Look How the Fish Live
Wheat that Springeth Green
Essay - J.F. Powers Literary Life and Legacy

I read the books in their published order; it was a difficult course - I am not, nor ever will be, an English major. I am a book lover, and avid reader. I stumbled upon Powers' work years ago and have a great admiration for it. Over the next week I will post each of my assignments for this course. I had previously written about some of Powers' works and their influence over me seen here:

My Reviews and Articles on Powers:

1962 - Morte d'Urban - novel
1963 - Lions, Harts, Leaping Does, and Other Stories
1988 - Wheat that Springeth Green - novel
1991 - The Old Bird, A Love Story - Illustrated Edition
1999 - The Stories of J. F. Powers
J.F. Powers Selected Bibliography
J.F. Powers Book Covers
That Elusive Story
The Warm Sand
Meme Booked By 3 May 2007
Meme Book Meme
Meme Booked by 3 February 2007


So welcome to J.F. Powers Week on Book Reviews and More.

Looking for a Christmas Miracle

I am writing this looking for a Christmas miracle. But let me begin with a story, many years ago when I was a student at Queen's University, I was not registering to go on a retreat, a friend asked me why. I said I could not afford it. He then rebuked me for not asking for help. He knew I had helped sponsor other students in the past who could not afford retreats as this time I needed help and would not ask. He said by not asking I was committing a sin, the sin of robbing other of the blessing of giving. His words have always stuck with me, and though it is never easy to ask for help and I struggle every time I need to. It is indeed time to ask for help. First and foremost I covet your prayers. We are in serious need or a Christmas miracle.

As many of you know I was off work for 3 years with a shoulder injury. We are still recovering financially from that, and every time we seem to be getting caught up, we get slammed with yet another problem. Each and every time we start getting caught up something happens. This fall we have been hit three times. First We asked for help in August for my last course to finish my University degree. A number of people responded. And we borrowed the money to pay for the course. Then only about half of what people committed came in. Next Andrea lost about half of her income with three weeks notice, then they changed it to 2 weeks without warning. Next our landlord informed us he is moving back into the house and we need to move out March first.

We are in need on so many levels it is hard to imagine. Andrea is not sleeping well because of it. I am stressed to the max. I lost 40lbs this year and have no clothes that fit me. Andrea and I were out for a few weeks ago and she said I looked like a kid dressing up in his dad's clothes because of how big and loose the were on me. I constantly have headaches because my glasses are 3 years old and desperately in need of replacement. We need to come up with first and last months rent and the money to be able to move. And as it is we are barely making ends meet. There is nothing under the tree, and fortunately our kids are young enough not to notice. I am not sure there will be enough for rent at the end of the month.

We need a Christmas miracle. We need to find a place to live that fits our needs and reduces our expenses. We need to find a way of increasing our income, either through a new or different job for one or both of us. But in the short term we need help. Please consider using the paypal donate button on the left sidebar and helping us through this trying time. As I said in the beginning first and foremost I covet your prayers, because I have reached a point when I am finding it hard to praying. I spent the whole 3 years off work praying and things kept getting worse. I now have a job I love, a boss who is great but just don't make ends meet. To quote Bilbo in the Lord of the Rings, "I feel like butter spread on too much bread". Please be praying for us this holiday season.


Peace and Strength!
Yours, learning to be
Steven R. McEvoy

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Saturday, 12 December 2009

PowerStands - Tony Horton


PowerStands
Tony Horton
Beachbody


There are dozens of varieties of push-up stands on the market, some that pivot, some that swivel. Some made from metal, plastic and even wood. So what makes these ones worth the extra money? All I can say is they are. I went to two different fitness stores locally and checked out all the models at both Wal-Mart and Zellers and some were ok, some were flimsy and a few I did not even trust enough to try. These PowerStands designed by Tony Horton and produced by
Beachbody were a lot more money. They are almost twice the price of even the standard model they sell and up to four times as expensive as the cheapest set I could find locally. At $39.95 plus $12.95 shipping and handling, I was leery about spending the money on something I had not tried. But I had heard some good things in the teambeachbody.com forums, and have found their other products trustworthy so decided to give them a try. They have not disappointed.

These are a fantastic product. I have used them on carpet and hardwood floors with no issues. The photos on the website do not do them justice. They are very well constructed and heavyweight. With solid welded construction, they come preassembled and ready to use. I had them shipped to work and when they arrived at work a few guys tried them and loved them immediately. The sloped hand grips can be used for a variety of exercises. They have helped me improve my form, quantity and quality of push-ups, pike presses and even dips. I can only emphatically state that they were a fantastic addition to my home gym and for the price, one of the best investments I have made in exercise equipment.

(Disclaimer: I am asked frequently if I am a Beachbody Coach, no I am not, I am just some one who has used their products, P90X, 1on1 with Tony Horton and more and liked them and achieved good results. I am not paid by Beachbody or any of their affiliates. You can see my full disclaimer here.)

Other Fitness Articles:
Fall 2011 Programs
Workout program March 2012
My Gear February 2012
Fitness My Retrospective

TRX Articles:
TRX an Introduction
TRX Force

TRX Force Tactical
TRX Essential Flexibility

My P90X Series:
Phase I, Phase II, Gear, Phase III, Fitness Options, P90X at 120 Days Out

Health & Fitness Book Reviews:
The Primal Blueprint 21 Day Total Body Transformation - Mark Sisson
The Ten Commandments Of Lifting Weights - Jared Zimmerer

Toadally Primal Smoothies - Todd Dosenberry
Caveman Resurection - Jeff Pickett
40 Days to Optimal Health - Dr. Scott Morris
Eat Stop Eat - Brad Pilon
The Primal Blueprint - Mark Sisson
The New Rules of Lifting - Lou Schuler and Alwyn Cosgrove
Bench Press by: Sven Lindqvist
Sly Moves by: Sylvester Stallone
Fit for Eternal Life: A Christian Approach to Working Out, Eating Right, and Building the Virtues of Fitness in Your Soul by: Dr. Kevin Vost
Body for Life 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strenght by: Bill Phillips
Lose Fat Not Faith by Jeremy R. Likeness
Living The Good Life: Your Guide to Health and Success by: David Patchell-Evans
Dump your Trainer by: Ashley Marriott and Marc L. Paulsen

Friday, 11 December 2009

PowerBlock - Elite Set 5-90lbs

Elite Set 5-90lbs
PowerBlock

I got my PowerBlock about 7 years ago. They were and are a fantastic investment. My Elite Series goes from 2.5lbs a side to 90lbs a side. I also purchased the barbell and can go from 40lbs to 220lbs for the barbell. They take up only 2 square feet of floor space and changing weights takes seconds. My set replaces 28 pairs of dumbbells and 2565lbs of free weights. The set of dumbbells replaced by this kit is:

2.5, 5, 7.5, 10, 15, 17.5, 20, 25, 27.5, 30, 35, 37.5, 40, 45, 47.5, 50, 55, 57.5, 60, 65, 67.5, 70, 75, 77.5, 80, 85, 87.5 and 90lbs.

There are also two upgrade kits I do not have yet. The first is aluminum core replacing the Lexan 5lb core with a 10lb aluminum core. This actually fills in all the other weights from the above list taking this set from 2.5lbs to 95lbs in 2.5lb increments. The second add-on is the Elite Big Block Kit and expands this to 130lbs a side. Now personally I don't think I will ever need the 3rd add-on for the weight, but I would like to add the second set of handles.

The PowerBlock has gone through some modifications since I purchased my set. They now have rounded heads, and they have a new urethane series, basically the rounded version of my set but rubber coated to reduce noise, making them smoother and quieter. I have no plans to replace mine anytime soon.

A few people have asked me about limitations. The only exercise you can do with
traditional dumbbells that you cannot do with this set is two-handed overhead triceps extension. I have also been asked to compare them to Bowflex SelectTech. I went to a local supply store and gave them a try on a few sets. They are a good product, but it all comes down to personal taste. I had the PowerBlock first and love them. They have also lasted years. I do not k
now anyone who has had the Bowflex products long. The other advantage of PowerBlock is they are expandable; you can buy the base set and add weights as your fitness level progresses, and they are expandable beyond the maximum weight of the BowFlex models. BowFlex has either a 90lb set or a 52.5lb set.

With the PowerBlock Sport you can start with a set that goes from 5-50 to start, expand to 90lbs and if ever needed even to 130lbs a side. The versatility factor goes to PowerBlock. The other advantage of PowerBlock is, if for some reason a plate breaks, or a weld goes, you can replace just the broken one - usually under warranty from what I have heard. If the select function on the BowFl ex goes you're out of luck - you lose all your dumbbells. The SelectTech does win out for speed of changing weight but not by enough to make it a significant factor. Therefore based on experience and versatility the PowerBlock is the way to go.



Other Fitness Articles:
Fall 2011 Programs
Workout program March 2012
My Gear February 2012
Fitness My Retrospective

TRX Articles:
TRX an Introduction
TRX Force

TRX Force Tactical
TRX Essential Flexibility

My P90X Series:
Phase I, Phase II, Gear, Phase III, Fitness Options, P90X at 120 Days Out

Health & Fitness Book Reviews:
The Primal Blueprint 21 Day Total Body Transformation - Mark Sisson
The Ten Commandments Of Lifting Weights - Jared Zimmerer

Toadally Primal Smoothies - Todd Dosenberry
Caveman Resurection - Jeff Pickett
40 Days to Optimal Health - Dr. Scott Morris
Eat Stop Eat - Brad Pilon
The Primal Blueprint - Mark Sisson
The New Rules of Lifting - Lou Schuler and Alwyn Cosgrove
Bench Press by: Sven Lindqvist
Sly Moves by: Sylvester Stallone
Fit for Eternal Life: A Christian Approach to Working Out, Eating Right, and Building the Virtues of Fitness in Your Soul by: Dr. Kevin Vost
Body for Life 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strenght by: Bill Phillips
Lose Fat Not Faith by Jeremy R. Likeness
Living The Good Life: Your Guide to Health and Success by: David Patchell-Evans
Dump your Trainer by: Ashley Marriott and Marc L. Paulsen