Accomplished

            Well I made it, one week without a drop of alcohol.  Do I feel any different? Well I didn’t wake up with any hangovers over the past week. 

            Recently I was reminded of something called Banff Mountain Film Festival, which is a beautifully done movie of extraordinary people getting outside and doing things that most people put on their bucket list and never get to.  Unfortunately there are limited screenings in only 39 states, two screenings in Ohio, and only one night in Columbus, and of course it was sold out.  No one even on craigslist was selling tickets.  I was pretty bummed.  So I chalk that up on my bucket list of things to see before I die. Then I got to thinking this weekend about it and my “phucket-list,” which I had renamed my bucket list to a few post ago, and usually when that happens the list increases, and without disappointment it did, but instead of just thinking of things to add, I thought of things that I have done that might be on someone else’s list.  For instance, I hiked to the top of a mountain with three friends some years back, no it wasn’t Everest, but it was 3200 feet above sea level and the hike wasn’t an easy one.  A mile and a half of rocky jagged switch backs at almost a 90 degree angle to the top of Seneca Rocks. I have slept in a tent in all kinds of weather, except snow which is on my list, but from clear skies to massive thunderstorms I slept protected only by millimeters of tent wall.  I have hiked across a field of boulders in Pennsylvania, pieces of the Appalachian Trail in multiple states, along the coast in the Upper Peninsula, Michigan. I have climbed up the side of cliffs and repelled down others, and climbed all over boulders without ropes.  I have been on a handful of canoe and kayak trips where I had to make camp on islands.   I have mountain biked and hiked countless miles and attempted to surf, without much success, but I tried it.  I have been to the top of sears tower in Chicago, the Rockefeller center in New York City, and the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. I have been to museums, zoos, aquariums, concerts, and I’ve even seen Gettysburg.  I have pulled the motor out of a car and replace it with another, I have built bicycles, and tore apart many other things, and some of them never were put back together.  I have driven all kinds of cars and trucks, a dump truck, ambulance, fire truck and I have even ridden in a cop car, not my proudest moment, but I did it. I have driven motorcycles on and off road, 4-wheelers and 3- wheelers, boats and wave runners. I have parasailed above the ocean and snorkeled below it.  I have seen sunrises and sunsets, I have walked on beaches and swam in oceans, rivers, lakes and ponds.  Needless to say, I have accomplished a lot in my life and I am not done yet. 

            That’s all I have for this week, so until next time, it’s time to start checking off that list, get started.

“The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time.”      -Jack London

           

A few to make up a couple

I know, I know, it’s been a couple of weeks… again, but can you blame me?  The weather, for the most part, has been nothing shy of awesome, and instead of sitting in front of a computer I headed outside to either sit on the porch with the wife or take Penny the pup on a short hike through the woods down the road from our place.    

            Since it has been a couple of weeks let me try to catch you up on the recent events in my life; St. Patties Day morning I went to the dentist and they drilled for oil without success, went out that evening with Amber and some friends and saw 2 leprechauns, we were told by a complete stranger that amber and I make the perfect couple and so he wasn’t surprised when I told him that we were married, had a few cocktails, a post bar gyro, and headed home.  I have been riding my bike, well sort of.  I have a bike trainer that you put the back wheel of a bike on so it makes the bike a stationery bike.  And I have actually been doing fairly well about getting on it.  This past weekend my sister was in town, so as always, when my family gets together we eat and drink and be merry. And finally this morning I got the news that good friends of mine, chris and Audrey, welcomed their new bundle of joy, congrats guys.

            This morning as I was getting ready to leave I realized that we were low on food so I was unable to make my lunch or even have something to eat for breakfast.  “Not a problem,” I thought to myself, I’ll just stop at the gas station on my way to work and get something to get me through until lunch time, when I’ll head out and get a bite somewhere.  Easy enough.  Then a light bulb went off in my head, “It’s been awhile since I did a sort of challenge to myself.” So I decided that when I stop at the gas station on the corner to grab some breakfast, I’ll see what I can get for lunch to.  “That’s not hard to do,” you might be thinking, well here comes the more challenging part, it has to be healthy. Bam!  Yea that’s right I went there.  Gas station and healthy food, highly unlikely, I mean maybe a Nutri-grain bar at the most but a breakfast and lunch that are healthy.  No way.  Yes way.  For breakfast I got a Cliff bar (all organic energy/protein bar) and an orange juice.  And for lunch; a pre-packaged salad with spinach, pecans, raisins and a little cup of dressing, a small package of sliced apples, yogurt cup, and green tea to drink.  What do you think about that?  No, this wasn’t a difficult challenge by any means, but I was just showing that even if you are on the go most places are starting to offer a healthy alternative to the traditional junk.            

            Now I don’t consider myself an alcoholic, but I have been known to indulge quite a few over a course of a week, so I decided to not indulge for a week.  I mean none at all.  Starting today, Monday, I will not consume a drop of alcohol for exactly one week.  Doesn’t seem hard, unless you have cold beer in your fridge at home that will scream your name every time that door swings open and with the nice weather and a comfy chair on the porch this is going to be a challenge.

            So that’s it for this week, until next time, CHALLENGE! (been thinking of coming up with a catch phrase, probably shouldn’t use challenge since I don’t always do one)

“Look deep into nature, and then you’ll understand everything better.”

                                                                        -Albert Einstein

My Street.

So, in the past post, i have talked about the weather "here," but where exactly is "here?" Well, brace yourselves, i live on Sesame street. Oscar the Grouch is my neighbohr, well he lives in a rtash can behind my house. 

A day with Nick

     So my friend Nick came into town to hang out for a bit and see some old friends.

 

In the car heading to see some friends.

 

Stopped st Target for a card .

Stopped off to surprise the mother to be and drop off some gifts.

 Amber wasnt able to make it because she was stuck at home with this.  Poor Penny got spayed so she has to wear a cone for a week.

Posed for a photo with some of the old gang from high school. Good to see them again even though it was a short visit.

Then it was off to see the father to be.

Had a few beers and some food.

Chris was kind enough to lend me his hoodie because it was cold in the bar.

Quick stop by the Shoe for a photo.

Finished the evening playing Mad Gab and having a few drinks. 

Man it was great to see Nick again everyone was excited to see him.  Penny is doing well, she was a bit out of it yesterday but woke up this morning back to her old rowdy self again. 

News

            Recently I decided to take a look at the newspaper, so I went to the newspaper.  Well, actually I saved a $1.50 and looked at the Columbus Dispatch online and with no surprise the first head line was a political one.  The next story had to do with college construction, then a murder story, a very short article about the losing Blue Jackets (hockey team), and so on and so on.  As I “clicked” through the pages I discovered more and more negative type stories through out the paper.  So I moved on to another, the Chicago tribune, and it continued with more negative stories over positive.  So I was intrigued to see if this negative news trend was the same in other papers, so to the LA Times, then the Oregonian, Atlanta Journal, and a few others that I could look at without having to subscribe.   It was all pretty much the same pattern more negative then positive.  I can say I wasn’t that surprised.  But then I started thinking, “is it just the news or are people truly negative more so than positive?”  For the most part, yes.  I work in a medical field where I am in contact with anywhere from 5 to 40 different people a day, and amidst the polite small chatter there is usually a negative spurt of words that are said.  Most recently it has been about the weather too cold, too wet, or just not perfect for someone to be out in.  Now I'm not one to say anything because I complain about the weather myself, but some people just go off about it.  Really I have no reason to complain, I live in the north, its February, and its 45 degrees out, at least I’m not piled up to my knees in snow with temps at negative 10.  Another obvious is gas prices, I hear that quite a bit.  Since I work at a major medical center we see patients from all over the state of Ohio and some from out of state, but it’s the people that live within a 5 mile radius that complain the most.  Come on people if you are that upset buy a car that gets 30 miles to the gallon or buy a bike, Denmark is one of the happiest places on earth and almost everyone rides a bike and their economy isn’t crap, I see a pattern (love them Danish).  The list goes on about what people have to complain or be negative about and I feel that just brings me down to a negative slump sop by the time I get off work I’m grouchy and tired of hearing it. Then amber has to deal with me being crabby and that’s no fun for her or me. 

            So I have decided to fight back, that’s right I’m going on an anti-negativity campaign.  For every negative thing someone says to me whether it is a complaint about the weather or whatever, I will spout back a positive. This will be more of an experiment then a challenge and the judge is my wife since she gets to deal with me everyday.  “Experts” say that when you feel positive you tend to be healthier so I plan on seeing if it helps.  I will give my self a month to see if things change for the better.  I will take a weekly set of vitals weight, blood pressure, pulse rate, and a few others then after a month see if things change.  Maybe even get amber to chime in on my attitude to see if she says there is an improvement.  

            So until next time, have a nice day (positive).

 “Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.”

                                                                                    -Dalai Lama

Chris and abandoned people

A good friend of mine, Chris, recently started a blog, http://whatisityousay.blogspot.com/, which I was happy about because I like hearing him talk especially the stories. I think it’s because he can be so detailed when he describes objects in his stories that you almost say to him, “ yea, I remember that place,” when in all actuality you have never been there.  Anyway, he wrote about his dream job which is a music producer/record label owner, providing the world with new and wonderful sounds. Well it got me thinking, what my dream job would be?  Over the years I have gone back and forth on what would be awesome to do for a living, super hero, doctor, racecar driver, and every other boys dream, but there is one job that has never escaped me as being one of the most extraordinary jobs.  I don’t know what to call it and it’s something that no one really thinks about but sees it every day.  There is a job where movie production companies pay a person to travel the globe searching for places to film movies.  Think about it, all expenses paid to where ever you want to go.  It could be just the next town over or across the globe.  You could be spending time on a beach in a paradise type-setting, strolling down the Great Wall of China, or creeping around corners of an abandoned town trying to avoid rats and tetanus.  Where ever you were or are going you know that even if you had seen that place a thousand times or if it was a new one to you, millions of people would get to see it when that movie hit the big screen. 

Talking about abandoned towns and dream jobs, another job I would be happy to do is free lance photographer.  Again, you would get to travel the globe taking pictures of whatever you wanted and selling them to magazines or to the public for them to decorate their houses or offices.   I am always looking at photographer’s web sites and blogs just to see what’s out there.  I have been really intrigued by photographs of abandon towns, amusement parks, buildings and even people.  “Abandoned people?”  Well kind of.   There have been a few sites where people take pictures of homeless people, a kind of socially abandoned person, someone people tend to avoid on the streets or struggle not to look at while you’re in your car and they’re standing there with a sign asking for help.   One name of photographer that sticks out is Lee Jeffries.  When looking at his photos of people, just like Chris’ stories, there is so much detail.  You can see not only the person but the emotion they have, pain, sorrow, regret, sometimes even happiness.   It’s compelling, surreal, amazing, and awe inspiring all at the same time.  Anyway all you have to do is Google Lee Jeffries and you will see what I’m talking about.

So, check out Chris’ blog and lee Jefferies, they may inspire you.  So until next time, Paul is the walrus.  

“You must do the thing you think you cannot do.”    -Eleanor Roosevelt

Amberface and cell phones

How’s the resolution going?  My list is coming along, which seems to grow daily.  I feel like everyday I add something to it.  Latest addition, to build a cabin that is completely self sufficient using solar, wind power and natural gas or wood burning.   Now remember my list is a lifetime list not a yearly list so there won’t be any self sufficient cabin photos posted within the next few years.

            Also some news, my wife has started a blog, Amberface blog, which will feature “all things girl” along with some recipes, which are very tasty, especially the desserts.  You will also get to see some DIY projects, wine recommendations, and a few other things.  So check it out, become a follower, and enjoy.

            Now I would like to talk about something that amazes me, not such a thing like Angel Falls in Venezuela that drops water from 3,200 ft high. No, I’m talking about the fact that in 1969 we could communicate with a man on the moon 239,000miles away but in 2012 my cell phone still drops calls with someone who is 5 miles away.  At any given time I can whip out my phone, which is smarter than me, and look up directions on how to get to the local pet store or go to Wikipedia and learn about Angel Falls. But I can’t talk to someone while driving through a twenty foot tunnel. Now I admire the fact that I can head into the wilderness and not be bothered by a ringing cell phone but when I’m sitting in my office in the city and trying to talk to someone on the phone and I lose a signal, that’s irritating. I also try not to be that annoying person on the phone in the elevator, but sometimes it’s unavoidable, so I end up repeating myself for the entire ride down, “Are you there?”  Annoyingly amazing.

            So, that’s my rant for this post, remember to check out Amber’s blog, http://justamberface.blogspot.com/, or go to the link in my links section below.  Until next time, someone is always watching, isn’t it creepy? 

“…it’s hard to dance with the devil on your back, so shake him off.”

                                                                                    -Florence and the Machine