Because of my own struggles with fitness, it’s unexplainable that I agreed to train for the Columbus Marathon with my bff, Molly. Sure, we were raising money for Leukemia Lymphoma Society (my mom’s a Lymphoma survivor and her dad succumbed to Leukemia) and the race was the day after I turned 30, but it still seemed like an unattainable goal. Speaking of goals, I frequently joked throughout training that I just didn’t want to be last place.
While I certainly have disagreements or get annoyed with those around me, I tend to offer kindness and understanding. I assume that most people are doing their best and I can’t possibly know all of the difficulties or challenges they are facing. I try not to judge because I know I do not have the full context of any other person’s situation, even those closest to me.
I’m convinced that happiness is not a proper goal. In fact, only pursuing happiness is the surest way to unhappiness. Preoccupation with the pursuit frequently leads to missing the organic moments of relief, comfort and joy that happen every day. As I’m working to live my life with more intention, I’ve become more and more aware of those bursts of happiness throughout my day.
It recently occurred to me that I will not ever be a mechanic. Or a viola player. Or an accountant. Or an engineer. Or a clown. I’m 100% okay with the clown thing, but the rest? I think it would be interesting to learn more about so many things. But unless I figure out how to live 500 lifetimes, I don’t foresee diesel mechanic happening any time soon.
I don’t understand boredom, never have.
Well, there was this one time in about 1984 when I uttered the word bored. Quicker than I knew what happened I was in the barn, ankle-deep in cow shit spending a hot summer afternoon contemplating all the fun things I could have been doing had I just taken a few minutes to find some fun instead of whining.
October is here!
By all accounts, yes ALL, October is the best month out of the year. Why, you ask? Well, I’ll tell you, but first I’m going to share my goals for this month.
Am I just not good at setting my priorities? Should I spend more time working, exercising and reading than sleeping, eating and playing x-box with my boys? Or do I set completely unrealistic expectations about what I can do, see, feel and accomplish ?
I’m a podcast super fan, so when my Twitter pal, Ted Bauer (@tedbauer2003), asked me to be the second guest on his new show, The Blunder Years, I jumped at the chance.
Somebody in my family, who shall remain nameless, got a bad haircut. More accurately, someone got a perfectly fine haircut he just isn’t fond of. I won’t go into details of his reaction, which honestly got a little ugly, but I’d like to consider my reaction and explore the gravity of navigating these types of situations.
The article intrigues me, but I don’t want to get distracted form the task at hand—my followers are demanding more pickle recipes, damn it! The solution? I pause for a moment, right click and select Open Link in New Browser Window. The result? I end up with way more windows open than are sensible or easily navigated.
Professionally, I’ve felt the sting of rejection more times than I can count. Anybody who has applied for more than two jobs online knows how disheartening the auto-reply ‘thanks, but no thanks’ email can be, especially when it comes moments after submitting. Even worse, speaking with a recruiter who says they’ll be in touch to schedule an interview and then they disappear off the face of the earth is confusing and disappointing.
Think back to the last time someone asked you how you were doing. What was your response? I’d be willing to bet your answer was something along the lines of, “Great, but busy…” or “Tired! There are not enough hours in the day…”
