Injuries...bad luck...I need a dog.

So I was going to write about my injuries and how they tend to keep me from training. Nothing too serious. A concussion in the swim here..a  separated shoulder on the mountain bike there..and walking into a tree limb causing more trauma to an already screwed up brain.

In fact, I was able to tweak my ankle last week playing basketball. Well not really playing. It was more two out of shape guys trying to come within 2 feet of the rim with the basketball. I was relying on my set shot and hook since the chance of me actually getting off the ground for a jump shot was nil.  However, something happened yesterday which takes precedence

I was cleaning my truck out. Something I do on an annual basis whether I need to or not.  Since I take my daughter to school in it everyday and she tends to finish breakfast in the back seat there tend to be some food leftovers in the vehiicle. Ok,,I may also eat in the truck from time to time and may also drop french fries, Dots, sour patch kids, nachos...you get the point..don't judge.. 

The vehicle also doubles as my home away from home..so it is loaded with clothes, gym bags, unmentionables...   I opened the back passenger door up and was shuttling things into the house. Obviously I left the door open since why would you close it every time.  And since it was college football Saturday I had to stop and watch five to ten minutes of football each time I took a load in. 

On one of the trips out..it may have been 15 minutes in between loads...I open the door to my abode take two steps toward my truck and am looking at a furry vermin in the back seat eating some left over french toast sticks.  (I do not know for a fact if he was eating french toast sticks..but it was definitely an option for him.)

Knowing that Squirrels are one of nature's most vicious creatures..especially when confronted after a diet of dots and french toast sticks. (he may have had some Dots also) I immediately turned around and grabbed a lacrosse stick that was sitting in the hallway. (Doesn't everyone have lacrosse sticks sitting in their hallways.)  Being the analytical guy I am..I figured if I opened the door opposite the one that the squirrel got into..I could wave the lacrosse stick at him and he would vacate the vehicle by the door from whence he came.   So I opened the door and pushed the lacrosse stick at the little bastard.  He scurried a little bit and then just as I envisioned..he jumped out of the truck onto the gravel..and through the open door into my house.

What ensued next was about five minutes of me chasing the damn squirrel from room to room.  Luckily my new abode has an outside entrance in almost every room. (This is great for trying to get vermin out..but will be hell if I ever have to fend off an assault on the premises) I opened every door..and finally..after being taunted by the squirrel..He exited out the side door.

Now...The first thought that came to my mind..(after..I wonder if I have to fumigate the place) was..if I had a dog this would never have happened. The dog would have chased the squirrel out..or kept him from intruding in the first place.

I told this story to two of my friends later in the day. Both of the female persuasion. Somehow neither one of them  came to the same conclusion I did.  In fact there was talk of..possibly shutting the door when I formulated my plan..or even just completing my task instead of catching up on football in between trips out. Oh.. maybe your car should be cleaner. I think most guys will agree I need a dog.

I had previously mentioned to my daughter that I was thinking about getting a dog.  (What 7 year old is not going to back me up on such a plan?)  Her response was..dad..that will be the world's hungriest dog. (Apparently she did not believe I was capable of feeding the dog) I 'm going to blame her gender for her attention to detail and missing out on the big picture of ..how cool would it be to have a dog.

Anyway..jacked up my achilles...feeling pretty good now though. Will try to start an actual training schedule tomorrow.  Badgers won..Packers play tonight.   I didn't get my dog.  Oh..signed up for a race in October. jsut a 10k..but I haven't actually competed in anything since last December..(I'm not counting the Spartan race)

Hope everyone had a good..relatively vermin free weekend.

Hey..It's me.

I almost forgot I had a blog.  I just reviewed my last post..something about getting my head out of my ass.  That was nearly ten months ago. Since then there have been a lot of changes. Unfortunately my diet has not been one of them.  My life has taken a few major turns and I am on a new journey.  I think I may want to blog a little here and there about it. Hopefully it will be humorous..inspirational..thought provoking.  Who am I kidding, I just hope it isn't pathetic.

The changes in my life..without trying to be overly dramatic..have been..life changing. During the process I have lost contact with people that I thought were lifetime friends. I've questioned my values and my decisions.  I have pretty much lost my identity.  However, through the process I have relied on people who I know have my best interest at heart..both old and new friends. I am rediscovering myself and hopefully will be a better person.  I have made changes that I never in a thousand years thought I would have the courage to do.  Again, I relied on my friends and family to support me..and allow me to come to the best decision for me and my daughter. I also reconnected with family members I had fallen away from.  So, there have been some blessings in the last few months.

I cannot express how important it is to have one or two people who believe in you and your actions..but at the same time are willing to tell you straight up when you are screwing up. I will never be able to express to them my gratitude for being in my corner although I will try.

This is a new chapter in my life and it is scary to say the least. I'm going to try and discover what Scott wants and needs.  And more importantly how I can be the best father to my daughter.  I'm hoping to have new adventures and meet new friends. I also hope to solidify friendships I have formed the last few months and be able to express my gratitude to those I leaned on.

I was able to have some memorable times the last ten months. My family came to Colorado for a wedding. It was the first time we have been together in a long time.

 

 I got to hang out with relatives from Denmark as they explored Colorado

I mountain biked in Crested Butte...one of the coolest towns I have ever been to.

I attended a wedding and was able to show off my awesome dancing skills.  Seriously..I was able to pull out the lawnmower and cabbage. (All pictures and or videos of the foregoing were confiscated and destroyed)

And I spent a lot of time reconnecting with people I had lost touch with. ( I also learned what chap stick, moisturizer and ear hair waxing are all about...but that's a whole post in itself..its such a strange new world)



All right..enough with the emotional crap.  How about a synopsis of my training, racing and nutrition the last 10 months.  Well I guess the word is going to be..pathetic.  Wow..didn't take long for the blog to digress.  Ok. I have lost 17 pounds since the beginning of the year..I'm at 225 right now.  And I did do one race.  The Spartan race at Fort Carson.  I had the awesome idea to do this as a team with my buddies from work.

Well, this was stupid from the get go.First of all..everyone there..except possibly the three of us..looked like living advertisements for crossfit.  I knew we were woefully under trained for the race when we had problems getting to the starting line.  You had to crawl over a 4 foot wall to get to the starting line.  Yep..pathetic was the word.  It just went down hill from there.  It was hot as hell out..no shade..on an army base. We actually ran into 3 rattle snakes on the course.  Crawling under 30 yards of barbed wire was ridiculous.  And I jacked up my leg on the second obstacle which caused a bit of discomfort.

But luckily the Spartan God's were on our side..and brought in a lightning and wind storm that closed the last 7 obstacles or so..  thus we were able to finish the course on our own and without the assistance of a medic. I think I would like to do another in the future. I definitely would need to do some more core and weight training.

Actually the worst injury of the day occurred at the pub afterward..one of my stalwart cohorts was squeezing a lemon into his water when the juice got into his eye..he cried like a little girl for about 5 minutes and I started choking on my food I was laughing so hard. The waitresses saw the crying and gagging and yet somehow ignored us. It was actually kind of sad.

If there is an interest I'll continue the blog..hell I'll do it even if there isn't.  Being a Wisconsin native I am going to live the next chapter of my life by our state motto.  Forward.