Marty is a friend from church (who probably knows me better than anyone else there), who won the Transformation Challenge. His weekly videos are posted here, at Bill Phillips’ Transformation site. And I heard that some form of this will be on TV in the fall.

I hadn’t seen Marty for a while, but was amazed at how good he looked, after a few weeks of this challenge. I enjoy(*) watching the videos, because it feels like a “brush with greatness” to see someone I know featured weekly on the Internet for all the world to see. It’s also nice to see shots of the church and other people I know on these videos. So it seemed “meet and right” to devote some space to Marty here, since there is some connection with my life as I watch the videos — even, or maybe especially, as I’m drifting away from church.

(* I had trouble viewing the videos for some reason, but maybe I had too many windows open. Or maybe if I watch them at a time when the site isn’t getting as much traffic, they don’t freeze up on me. I just watched all the ones I gave up on when they were originally posted. They’re all short.)

Added 6/8/08: A total transformation

Added 6/18: Now that I had to confess to Marty that I posted this blurb, I just watched the last video. And I’m mystified. Is it really him in the picture above? Anyway, I just noticed that the videos can be embedded. I got a few laughs when I watched this latest one, so I’ll post it:

(And I have to say, I have no trouble viewing it on my own site.)