The Short Bus

What a game!

2009-05-09T16:54:00.002-04:00

Olivia rocked today in soccer! She scored three goals in about three minutes. "They call that a hat trick, Daddy", she said with her hands on her hips.

A math equation

2009-05-05T08:34:00.002-04:00

Perhaps my dad can figure this one out...not me, I have an English degree.

I wore my heart rate monitor for the first time ever in a race. I've trained with it before, but am just trying to figure out how to use it effectively.

I forgot to stop it when I finished, and didn't realize it was still running until I had finished cleaning all the mud off of me. I stopped it at 6:20, when I had finished almost exactly 30 minutes before. I was probably near enough to my bike (where the receiver was attached) to register for about 7-8 minutes after I finished.

So...what was my TRUE average heart rate? It read that I had averaged 160 when I stopped it, but there was at least 20 minutes of a zero reading while I went off to clean up. So, 5 hr. 50 minutes of exercise, +/- 10 minutes of recovery (probably around 100 beats per minute) , +/- 20 minutes of zero reading.

My guesstimate is somewhere around 170. I had it in my mind (had done some rough calculations) that I needed to be around 167 to keep from generating too much lactic acid for my body to handle. Most of the time I looked down, I was in the 170's and 180's, but I couldn't read it for a while for the mud, and honestly didn't look at it for much more than the time reading.

I will probably set a window between 165-175 for my next race. I can set the watch to beep when I am out of that zone. Staying consistent is hard, but necessary in these types of races for ultimate results.

New look

2009-05-04T21:17:00.001-04:00

I think this template makes my blog read better (easier). What do you think?...Who the hell am I talking to? There are maybe four people that read this...

Ft. Yargo Race Recap

2009-05-04T20:11:00.007-04:00

^I'm on the left - this is 2 minutes in and I would never be cleaner^

Well, I'm done racing for a while, unless the team want to pay my entry to the big track race this weekend. I won't waste my cash, as it seems I still don't feel 100% myself. I feel better, but I definitely don't have the top-end power I'd need to be competitive at the track.

I raced 6 hours at Ft. Yargo this past weekend. My mom and dad came in town to help with childcare (Thanks, Mom!) and race support (Thanks, Dad!). Dad and I got up early Saturday to pretty nice weather and arrived at Yargo a little past 8am. I got my number and we walked around, found a good pit, and set up. Having a little local knowledge really helped, as I knew a clean and vacant bathroom was only a quarter mile spin on the bike away from the crowded, nasty bathroom next to the start.

I went through my nutrition plan with Dad and went to the line. The announcer said there were around 400 riders, however there are lots of teams, so not that many actually line up, but there were at least 200 at the start. We took a parade lap before hitting the singletrack to sort things out. I hit the singletrack in the top 25 and settled into a pace. I got passed quite a bit the first half lap before finding a comfortable spot.

At the end of the first lap and into the second I rode with my friend Matt. We talked, and it got me through the "pissed off" stage I seem to enter early in a race. I picked up the pace about 1/4 into my second 11.5 mile lap, and finally started to feel a little better. I am not climbing worth a shit and really need to work on staying seated like a mountain biker, and stop standing. In the wet it just makes you lose traction and you spend more energy standing, but it's just my natural thing to do.

About 2/3 into the second lap I don't know what happened, but I went into a tree like it jumped into the trail. I don't know how, but I came to an abrupt stop and my saddle went up my ass like like that thing that takes your money at the bank drive thru! I immediately felt like I had just spent my first night in prison. I could feel the skin rip and was worried that I might have broken something. It brought a sweat across my brow and my eyes swelled up. I got back on the bike gingerly and rode a little tenderly for a few minutes.

The third lap started to feel pretty good and then my front tire went down quickly. I got off and changed it pretty damn fast. I honestly don't think I lost more than 2 minutes, but it pissed me off. I rode a little more aggressively after that, then all hell broke loose from the skies. It absolutely poured! The trail quickly looked like a small creek bed. Most people start bitching about this time, but for some reason I thrive on that shit. I came in the pit and it was just storming. I got my GU, my salt tablet, and my bottles from Dad and told him I had flatted, but that the rain wasn't bothering me at all.

Unfortunately, it only rained about 25 minutes. When I saw the skies start to lighten I was not a happy camper. Not only would it become ridiculously humid, but the trails would actually get muddier as it dried, and my ass (which had stopped hurting for a while) was going to start getting raw as my clothes dried.

The fourth lap just sucked. It became hard to ride lots of parts of the trail, my ass was killing me, and it had become obvious that I wasn't going to make my goal of six laps. The interesting part was that no one had passed me in over an hour, and I was slowly picking people off left and right.

I came in for my final lap and got some chamois cream to put in my shorts to ease the chaffing. Relief. I took off, but was starting to really feel the pain. My shoulders just wouldn't ease up, my left hamstring had been bruised from my wreck and was starting to hurt. I felt on the verge of cramps on each hard climb, and my hands were starting to blister as my gloves dried. To top it off, my bike was starting to protest all the mud, water, and grime. I was getting "chain suck" in my small cog, and rendered it useless. I could only stay in three gears, some of which were just not enough, and forced me to get off and run a few sections. I'd try the small ring every now and then only to have it bind up, get off bike, unwind the chain, and get back on.

I fell apart focus-wise for about 20 minutes, and just slugged my way through. I had no idea where I stood as far as placing, and I was just too close to cramping to push as hard as I wanted. About a third of the way through the lap the course started to dry enough to be confident in corners again, and I decided to catch anyone I could, and put my head down. It hurt, but I just kept walking down anyone I could see in front of me. I crossed the finish line and sat on the bike a minute and talked to my dad. Fortunately, he had packed everything up and I didn't have to do any of that tedious crap when you feel like hell.

I went down to the lake and hopped in with all my stuff on, and proceeded to remove about 90% of the mud. It was THICK and everywhere. When I finally got clean enough to put clothes on, we went to see if it was worth sticking around for the awards ceremony. It took a while, but we finally found out I had finished second in class! I was really pleasantly surprised, as I had no idea where I stood. The good news was that NO ONE had completed 6 laps, even the Pros, so I didn't feel bad about not meeting my goal.

We got my medal and bag o' swag and headed into town for one of the best Burger King burgers and Butterfinger pie I've ever had. Both of us were starved.

I still didn't feel 100%, but I think I'm feeling a little better. Unfortunately, it will have to wait. I've got other things in life I need to get straightened out before I worry about racing anymore. The next in the series is not for a couple of months, so I'll re-assess my motivation, fitness, and financial standing in a month or so. I have to say that despite not feeling great physically, I think I am enjoying these endurance races, and think if I can get my shit together I might be pretty good at them. We'll see.

Oh, yeah, and screw the pigs...

2009-04-30T22:59:00.002-04:00

I don't have time for the swine flu. I'm still busy trying to avert the bird flu, SARS, Hoof and Mouth disease, and peanut poisoning that were all supposed to wipe out half the world's population. Thank you, liberal media for creating yet another ridiculous uproar.

I have sworn off newscasts all together. Since when did we define "news" as anything negative? I don't need to hear about another car crash, another murder, another corrupt politician, another layoff, another bankruptcy, another celebrity, or even the chance of "severe" weather. I may see the glass as half empty sometimes, but at least it's a clean glass.

Hectic week

2009-04-30T20:11:00.003-04:00

Short post.

I went to Yargo early Sunday to test the course for this weekend's 6 hour race. I finished second in my race and felt a little better than I have the last month, but not great.

I have Olivia from tonight through Sunday. My parents are coming in town tomorrow. My dad will help me at the race on Saturday and my mom will take care of Liv that day.

Got a lot to do between now and then.

Olivia's book

2009-04-17T10:21:00.005-04:00

Olivia has been home sick with Strep Throat for the last two days. Yesterday, she spent the day with her mom and made this book. Today we have colored sand animals and are about to make purses and bags.

Catching up

2009-04-16T11:01:00.002-04:00

A lot has happened since my last post. Quit my job at the bike shop, attended my brother's wedding, went on a cool camping/hiking trip up the Appalachian Trail, Olivia lost another tooth, did my first mountain bike race of the year, blah, blah, blah.

I'm sitting at work, with an unusually small amount of actual work to do today, which is odd considering it has been very busy lately. My knee is throbbing from a foolish ride yesterday. I really haven't recovered from what was a pretty unspectacular race this past weekend.

I was really hoping to use this past weekend's race as a primer for a 12 hour race in a few weeks, but I knew going in that something is just off. It has been for a few weeks. I know my body well enough to know when it is not running on all cylinders. I really can't pinpoint what it is - possibly stress. I just feel like I'm operating at about 80%. I didn't ride poorly - as a matter of fact, my lap times were very consistent over the 5 1/2 hours, but when I wanted to pick it up, I just couldn't. My bike handling skills had gone the way of the Dodo bird. I wasn't smooth and I wasn't as focused as I wanted to be. It's made me re-evaluate my next race. I think I'm going to try the 6 again, instead of 12. It's a good, familiar course for me. If I ride shitty, I'll know that something is wrong.

Got to see my sister's house, and meet her extended family for Easter. It was a really good time. My brother and his new wife appear to be doing great. Their wedding was a really neat, low-key affair. Olivia was thrilled to be the flower girl. My parents just go back from a NC/SC coastal trip, and are busy planning being hosts for a big motorhome rally in Oshkosh, WI in July.

We had a little party for my sister's birthday, my parents' anniversary, and me and my brother's birthday. I got a Jack Lalane Juicer. That will be a whole blog post in itself. The juice is good, but the act of getting it and cleaning up is quite interesting.

A couple of weeks ago, my friend Jay and I hiked from Amicolola Falls to the lower end of the Applachian Trail. It was my first backpacking trip in a while. I hurt for several days afterwards! We camped on Springer Mountain, and it was cold as balls! We considered packing up at around 10pm and hiking out in the dark, but were just too chicken to get out of our sleeping bags. Jay lost his job recently, and we had hours of discussion on the meaning of life...PS - we didn't figure it out.

Olivia has about a month of school left. She has a front tooth that is about to come out. She is growing up so fast, but also reminds me that she is still a little girl; the other day she was with me at the grocery store, talking to her mom on the phone as we were walking the aisles. She was in the middle of a conversation, and realized that she had put on some new lip balm, so she asked her mom if she could smell over the phone. It was priceless.

A little of this and a little of that

2009-03-23T21:08:00.004-04:00

I have ADD - I think about a lot of things, and forget about 75% of it. By the time I find a piece of paper to write down my idea or thought, I've forgotten what it was.

I am reminded constantly what a positively foul habit smoking is. From my observations, smokers have little respect for other people. Hardly a day goes by that I don't see someone throw a butt out their window. Exactly WHO do you think is going to pick that up??? It's your fucking nasty habit, don't turn the world into your ashtray. If it's so great, then why not keep the butt in your car as an air freshener? Why do most of you look like you just rolled out of bed, regardless of where you are or what you do for a living? Why do you hang your cig out the window - Aren't you inhaling that shit?

I have a day off tomorrow - my first in I can't remember when. So...they schedule a mandatory meeting at 10 a.m. Now I have to drive in to town for a stupid hour in the middle of the morning. Some day off. I'll take advantage of it somehow though.

I'm doing a 6 hour mountain bike race the day before Easter in Rock Hill, SC. The team I'm riding for will pay the entry and give me a gas stipend. The only other race I have planned is a 12 hour race on May 2, here at Ft. Yargo, GA. The 6 hour will give me a good idea of where my fitness is. It's a rough course, from what I'm told - lots of climbing, which isn't my strength, but I will be able to work on pacing, nutrition, water intake, etc. I don't expect much, but if I feel good, I'll give it all I have.

If you want a peak at pure comedy, then watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8N2uQ7Fg_Uk Before you watch it, here is a synopsis: Apparently, this woman is a congressperson that is a graduate of Florida. She spends 3:28 butchering the English language, destroying people's names, and generally making no sense whatsoever. It is a sad commentary on our country. I'm not being racist, I'm not being sexist, I'm not mocking the Democratic party, and I'm not bashing the University of Florida.... I just don't get how the FUCK this woman can fold her own clothes, much less represent ANYONE in our great country. Jesus, America, where's your pride????

Balance

2009-03-19T21:03:00.003-04:00

There's a guy I know that refers to life's balances as the "three-way teeter totter" - family, fun, work. Life is great when the teeter totter is balanced, but not so great when one (or more) ends are down. Despite lots of stress, my life is o.k. I am, however, finding the teeter totter more like the Whirlygig ride at the fair.

It's really gotten under my skin lately that I just never get a day to do whatever I want. I am committed to something every day of every week of every month right now. I work 12 days in a row, followed by 2 days off - those being the weekends that I have with Olivia. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't give up my time with her for anything, but it just never leaves a day that I am not obligated to her, her AND work, or just work.

Olivia is going with her mom for Easter, a weekend I would normally have her, and am off work...so, what am I going to do? I'm going to do a 6 hour mountain bike race, followed by hanging with my family to celebrate my sister's birthday, my birthday, my brother's birthday, and my parents' anniversary. It will be a busy couple of days, but it will be a balanced teeter totter.

Right now, I'm watching my NCAA bracket get blown to Hell on the first day of the tournament.

Random thoughts:

Why do lakes get different treatment than other bodies of water? You have the Chattahoochee River, the Pacific Ocean, the Dead Sea....but Lake Michigan, Lake Lure, Lake Allatoona. I don't get it.

I grew up loving the opportunity to watch Pro baseball on TV, but couldn't give two shits about it right now. Saturation makes it less special.

Living without credit cards is hard - I'm on month 3. Not because you want to buy something you can't afford, but the lack of simply pulling out the card makes you think twice about a purchase.

I have never looked more forward to warm weather than this year. I've been freezing for too long this winter. Something was different.

I mowed the grass in the dark tonight for the first time this year. I smell like wild onions.

The weekend

2009-03-02T19:19:00.005-05:00

Lots happening in the last week or two. I have some pics from testing bikes in Tsali, NC that I'll post later. Went to my brother's wedding shower last weekend, as well....More on that later, too.

Wanted to get a post up to let everyone know that we survived WINTER STORM 2009!!!! without incident. It really was kind of cool. The flakes were huge. Unfortunately, mix it with about 2 inches of rain and it made a huge mess. Olivia enjoyed it nonetheless.

Saturday started with gymnastics ^
Took Olivia and Sophia bowling after Sunday School^
It started to snow while we were bowling^

Massive snowman ^

Sometimes it doesn't pay to be photographer^

Amazing

2009-02-13T08:45:00.002-05:00

So, I just happened upon a blog by a guy that regularly posts on the SORBA (Southeastern Off Road Bicycling Association) website. Apparently, he is trying to market himself as a "blog expert". Most (of what little I read) seems to be trying to tell the visitor how to create a successful, and, I assume from what he's writing, profitable blog.

Problem is, half the sentences didn't make any sense. Some were riddled with punctuation errors. Others were simply partial sentences. There were at least 5 words on his home page that were spelled wrong.

I was listening to talk radio last night while cleaning dishes. It was a sports talk show discussing media and the sports fan. The host suggested that blogs have become a legitimate source of sports information....BUT, the bloggers don't have any accountability. That's a pretty big "but" in my mind! He lamented that the internet doesn't have any rules, and he's right. You can pretty much say or do whatever you want on the internet and there's no police.

Back to the above mentioned blog - it looked really slick, but I just don't know how you can claim to be an expert on anything that shows a complete lack of respect for our language. Oh, well.

Random "pisses me off" subject of the week:
Wednesday, I did something I rarely do. I went to Starbucks for a cup of coffee. I got my coffee and looked for a place to sit for a couple of minutes so I wouldn't spill my hot beverage in the car like I'm known to do.

I look around for a table, but there's not a single seat available. What I do observe is that at least half the tables are being taken up by someone with a laptop, and, in some instances, a pile of shit strewn all over the place. Why the FUCK is this acceptable? How does buying a four dollar cup of coffee entitle you to set up a home office for 3 or 4 hours??? I see it everytime I go in there, and I just don't get it. This is a RETAIL establishment. Would you sit in the aisle at Kroger and sample food for 3 hours? Starbucks' stock is in the shitter, in case you haven't noticed. I wonder why? I'd say it has at least a little to do with the fact that people aren't BUYING coffee. They are simply "hanging out" at the coffee shop.

Walk into Barnes & Noble. Look at all the people sitting around like it's their living room or the public library; little study groups here and there. Look over at the douchebag taking vigilant notes out of the "Job Searching for Dummies" book. It's a BOOKSTORE! They SELL books! I can pretty much assure you that in 10 years we won't remember what a bookstore was.

Got that off my chest. Off to do a little bike ride before heading to work. Happy Valentine's Day!

Damn...

2009-01-09T00:25:00.003-05:00

Found out tonight that my hours were cut at the bike shop for the third straight month. Trying to stay positive...but.

I'm going to think of something really funny to write to make up for my bitching. Just give me a day or two. Perhaps it's time for another "random thoughts" post. That's always fun!

Brookshire Dominates College Football Handicapping Competition

2009-01-06T09:17:00.000-05:00

(ATLANTA, GA)

Brookshire, a name synonymous with winning, is on the tongues of Las Vegas wagerers this morning. In what was billed as an epic season-long handicapping competition between three college friends, there really was very little actual competition. James Brookshire, aka "The Puppet Master", simply toyed with his buddies, ultimately sinking the dagger with his Nostradamus-like predictions during the 5 game bowl season. The fact that he will go 4-1 after Florida covers on Thursday is simple gravy at this point.

"There's a homeless guy that shits on my back porch every week. During the season, I'd put out a newspaper and wherever his logs landed is who I picked that week" says Brookshire, laughingly. "It turns out that I could stay competitive with these guys with that technique, and I didn't have to waste any time scouring the scouting reports each week". "When the bowls came around, I simply used my superior knowledge of all things sporting, and pretty much rocked the house".

Recently ousted Tennessee football coach, Phil Fulmer, had this to say about Brookshire: "The kid is always in it for the long run; witness the fact that it took him SIX years to get a degree from UT. He also knows a lot about college football". "James could have probably won this competition with half his brain tied behind his back, especially against a couple of known homosexuals like Bruce and Kyle. They might know a lot about which jersey fabric resists grass stains or what end-zone pattern might compliment the band's uniforms, but they are clueless about the actual game of football".

When asked if he had any comments about his competition, Bruce Irvine and Kyle Rankin, Brookshire had this to say: "Bruce's winning percentage was quite strong...if he were vying for a major league batting title, where getting a hit 3 out of 10 times is impressive. Kyle reminds me of that "special needs" kid that lived down the street from me. You know, the one that talks a lot, but makes no sense. His knowledge of college football is similar to his knowledge of female anatomy; he knows what the parts look like, but has no idea what to do with them."

Brookshire sadly laments that he has no room in his Marietta mansion to display the winner's trophy. "Look, winning is nothing new to me. When it comes to trophies, medals and ribbons, I've got more hardware than a well stocked Home Depot. Knowing that Bruce was responsible for the trophy, you can assure it's small (because he knew he wouldn't win), so I'll probably display it like a Tiki Doll on the dash of my car".

When queried about what he would do with the monetary portion of his winnings, Brookshire became more stoic: "I've thought long and hard about this. I think that I will donate a portion of it to the University of Tennessee athletic department, in hopes that they might be able to buy a win for their football team next year, and the rest I will give back to Bruce and Kyle so that they can buy a clue about college football wagering"

Hanging with Olivia

2009-01-04T18:47:00.007-05:00

Olivia and I have spent a lot of time together lately. Yesterday she told me she wanted a camera. We went to the store and she looked at them. She liked one that was $39.99. I told her that if she did some chores over the next few weeks that she could use any change that she could round up around the house.

She emptied both cars, my change jars, looked in drawers and other places. We went to Kroger and the Coinstar machine. I let her use the machine, take the ticket, and present it to the service person for her money. Coincidentally, she found $39.26! We went to Target and bought the best camera we could for the money. She paid for it and I also taught her about taxes...which she had to ask me for.

Afterward, we went on a hike at Kennesaw Mountain. She took some pics, but I haven't uploaded them yet. I chronicled the whole day with my camera though:

Collecting change in a plastic bag ^

Visiting the wonderous Coinstar machine...for the lazy coin roller ^

Emptying her stash ^

Sitting on the bench at Target - cash money in hand ^

A new camera....and maybe a small lesson learned. Hopefully. ^

Like every six-year old, she has her moments, but she is a very happy, well adjusted, intelligent little girl. And that makes me happy.

Happy New Year

2009-01-02T09:09:00.003-05:00

Celebrated the new year in style - On the couch watching some guy jump his motorcycle in Vegas. Put Olivia to bed at her usual time after a New Year's Eve dinner at Chili's with her and her mom.

Liv and I woke up yesterday and just hung around in our PJs until her mom picked her up. I then headed to Ft. Yargo State Park after picking up my friend Thomas. We were meeting four other guys, but they were running late. Thomas, Mike and I put in one of the 11 mile mountain bike loops before meeting Terry, Gary and Lee in the parking lot. We rode another pretty hard lap, then took a break and did a shorter lap, but this time Terry, Gary and myself got a little lost! We made it back. Great sunshine, but a little cold. A great way to spend New Year's Day though.

Back to the grind today at work. Tonight calls for a beer, deep cleaning the house, and putting away the Christmas decorations. Need to start the new year with a spotless and organized crib.

Christmas

2008-12-26T09:14:00.003-05:00

OK, longest I've gone without a post since I started this thing. Time to get back in the game....but not much time today, as I have to also get back in the grind at work.

Here's a pic of the family at Christmas:

Pure Confusion

2008-11-05T21:03:00.003-05:00

Not sure this silly blog gets read at all. If I thought it did, I probably wouldn't spill my life for all the world to read, but it's my outlet sometimes. Life is coming unravelled again. Everytime I think I have something figured out, I reach another obstacle. Honestly, I thought life was supposed to get easier the older we get.

I have been searching for some clarity. I am truly trying to not sweat the small stuff. I am trying to find the silver lining. Right now, all I find happiness in is spending time with my daughter and riding my bike. They are my salvations and my escapes.

Last night, after work, I drove to Blanket's Creek and rode in the dark, in the woods, by myself. It was surreal. Just me, the lights on my handlebars, and one on my helmet. Occassionally, I would see a pair of eyes light up off the trail. Every now and then I'd hear a rustle of feet off in the distance. About half an hour in, I came around a corner and was face to face with an 8-point buck, just standing in the trail. I stopped abruptly, and he stared into my light, just 20 feet away, for what seemed like over a minute. I could hear him breathing, but he didn't move. It was an incredible experience.

After work tonight I ran over to Olivia's house, spent five minutes hearing about her day, gave her a kiss, and ran back home. Running at night can be fun, but tonight wasn't near the thrill of riding last night.

If I'm going to work a meaningless job, making peanuts, I'd rather be somewhere that I could enjoy my surroundings more. I know that's not possible, but I can wish for it nonetheless. I know it's not good to live in the past, but there are some mistakes I've made that I've just never recovered from. I'd like a "do over" on some of them. I know what I want, and where I want to be, I just have no idea how to get there anymore.

House for sale

2008-11-04T07:27:00.004-05:00

I've decided to put my house on the market. It will probably be after the first of the year, but if you know of anyone out there looking for a nice little home close to the interstate (I-75) in Marietta, then let me know.

I've got a few things that have to be done - primarily some additional insulation in the attic. I'm going to try and sell it by word of mouth at first - I'd love to save the realtor's fees. If someone is looking for a rental property it would be great, and for the time being, I would be more than happy to be the renter. What more could you ask for?!

I'll update with more details and pics in a few weeks.

By the way, my truck is still for sale, as well - 2002 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab - 140,000 miles. Great condition inside and mechanically. A few cosmetic issues on the body, but still drives like it's new. $5500 is a steal...but I'll take it :)

Time to call on the optimist in me

2008-11-03T06:49:00.002-05:00

Today I go into Ibex Bikes to learn the ropes, and hopefully start working there permanently on my days off from the "other" bike shop.

Yesterday, before work, I went to Conyers to do one of the Georgia Cyclocross Series races. I rode really strong - me and four others had about minute lead after the first lap. Halfway through the second lap I went through a little swale in the grass before a turn...and my rear wheel folded under me. Game over. I'm 0-2 in finishing cyclocross races this year. On another front, I found out about an epic 50+mile cyclocross race in mid-January. It is in the mountains (Ellijay, GA) and will probably be a 5 hour+ race. I'm gonna set my sites on that.

I got to go trick-or-treating with Olivia! I am very grateful to her mother for inviting me at the last moment. She was Sharpay from High School Musical. I was happy to be there for it.

Liv and I have a long weekend ahead. Her mom goes out of town for a couple of days. I'll be teaching Sunday School at church this weekend. Olivia is excited about it. We may go up to Rome, GA to watch the cyclocross races after church on Sunday. I may plan a hike for us on Saturday.

I need to get to the grocery store - I've had peanut butter on toast for breakfast for about 12 days straight.

Happy Halloween, I guess...

2008-10-31T08:40:00.002-04:00

So, I wake up this morning to an e-mail from the owner of the bike shop. It's got the new work schedule attached with a note saying that sales are down in October so he had to cut back hours. Unbelievable.

Last month we sold almost $30,000 more than the previous year's number...now we have to cut back hours because of a down month. I'd go off on a long rant, but what's the use?

Misc.

2008-10-31T00:46:00.003-04:00

No emotional post recently...I guess it's about time.

Every year about this time - well, exactly this time, I get a little sad. Today would have been my 9th wedding anniversary. It's also marks the 4th year since our separation and ultimate divorce. I guess the good news is that each year I get a little less angry, but the sadness never seems to go away.

Tomorrow (or today, I guess) will also be the first Halloween that I won't go trick-or-treating with Olivia. Her mom is taking her to a classmate's house to go out in their neighborhood. I wasn't invited, and I guess I understand. I don't put the parameters on divorce and how it looks to other people like some do. I guess I just want what's best for Olivia.

I hatched this crazy idea to do the NUE (National Ultra Endurance) series next year. It's a series of mountain bike races. Someone asked me how I plan to do that on no money and no time....I'll train as though I'm going to do it and worry about the logistics later. I freely admit that the only reason I'm racing mountain bikes is because it makes me feel good. It seems to be one of the few things I'm good at. Riding for long distances allows me to escape for a while and puts me in a place where I can really focus - something that is very hard for me in most of the other endeavors in my life.

I'm really just trying to enjoy some things in life, even though my stress levels are through the roof right now. Olivia and I have spent some really good time together. We are connecting well and she responds to me like every dad would want. It's something I've learned to not take for granted. There are parts of me in her that make me cringe, but she is a phenomenal little girl and I am very proud of her.

Hard to believe that about 6 weeks ago we were paying almost two dollars more for a gallon of gas. I wonder if the people that were so quick to blame George Bush for the increase in gas prices are now crediting him for the dramatic drop in prices? It's funny, that so close to the election people on the left want to treat this economic period of difficulty as though it is purely an American thing. Here's a wake up call - this is GLOBAL...Might as well throw every governmental official in every country out of office...unless, of course, you, like me, think that this problem was created by the CITIZENS, not the government.

I'm tired, and I'm going to go to bed. Actually, I'm going to "couch". I haven't slept in my bed in about a month. For some reason, I'm just sleeping better on the couch lately. Maybe it goes back to my last 5 or 6 years as a bachelor. When me and my brother lived together I slept almost every night on the couch. Don't know why - it just felt comfortable.

My buddy Bruce sent me some videos he took from Las Vegas on my 40th birthday trip today. They are unbelievably funny. I had tears rolling down my face from laughing. Good times indeed.

Update

2008-10-28T09:26:00.006-04:00

Well, the job didn't start as planned yesterday. I'm concerned about the economic stability of the company - the owner doesn't want me to start until the week that the other guy leaves. Maybe it's a sign that I need to keep exploring other possibilities.

Took Olivia to the Tumbling Creek 6 hour mountain bike race in Gainesville on Saturday - once again, a last minute team formation left me racing. I paired with Betsy Austin for a co-ed team. Friends of mine, Chris and Brigette Dusack, have a daughter, Norah. They set up a tent and the girls played in it all day. Chris and Brigette do a team at each race. We all took turns when we weren't riding watching the kids. Everyone had a great time and Olivia was on her best behavior. It's really cool to be able to spend time riding and being able to hang out with Olivia as well. It couldn't have worked out better and Olivia is being exposed to sports.

There was a "Lemans" start, where we ran about 500 meters around a lake to a staging area where the bikes where. I don't run much anymore, but compared to other cyclists I guess I'm pretty good. I got into the transition area in 3rd place, and thanks to cyclocross skills of being able to get on my bike quickly, I led the first mile or so of the race. I settled into 3rd, knowing I was going to ride 2 laps before handing off to Betsy. I clipped off some pretty fast laps and we had a nice lead. The course was fairly flat, but there were some really muddy spots, some tight singletrack, and brutal winds in the open field where the transition and our tents were.

Olivia and Norah

Cyclists running usually ain't pretty!
The winds when we rode the mile or so on this field were brutal

We ended up finishing 2nd. Not a bad effort at all. I was on the bike about 3 1/2 hours total. Physically, I felt pretty strong. I still have a lot to learn technically. I met a tree on my last lap and I've got the bruises to prove it! All in all, a great day though. I spent less money than I would have taking Olivia to a movie, and we probably had a lot more fun.

Conyers 12 Hour

2008-10-28T08:19:00.002-04:00

New part-time job

2008-10-23T13:25:00.003-04:00

Unless something falls apart, I'll be starting Monday working for Ibex Bikes - http://www.ibexbikes.com/. One of my friends has worked there a few years and is leaving to go into the computer field. I will work there on my current days off, Monday & Thursday. Unfortunately, it means I'll have all of 4 days off a month, which will be my weekends with Olivia.

Ibex is a manufacturer/distributor of bicycles that sells exclusively on the internet. Their warehouse/office is in Alpharetta. Not a fun commute, but I can't really be picky right now considering it works with my schedule.

I'm honestly not sure about the stability of the company. I know the current owner is looking for someone to buy it. Their bikes are OK. I am going to feel out the possibility of riding their bikes next year at some endurance races. Will (my friend) thinks that it would be huge for their exposure to have a tent/rider at some local mountain bike races. Obviously, it would have to pay or I wouldn't even consider it. He doesn't see that as a problem - we'll see.

Tired

2008-10-20T21:43:00.006-04:00

Long time, no post. I've been busy and, honestly, a little tired. I'm starting to pay the price for burning the candle at both ends lately.

The weekend before last I teamed up with Jason Seaver, a teammate of mine from Peachtree Bikes less than 48 hours before the 12 Hours of Conyers mountain bike race. Jason hasn't ridden a mountain bike in about 5 years, and I've just recently gotten back on the bike. We borrowed a bike for Jason and headed to Conyers, site of the 1996 Olympic mountain bike course. Long story short, we pretty much cleaned the floor with the other 12 teams.

We were told we were obviously "roadies" because of our white shoes

We covered 136 miles between the two of us. Our strategy was almost flawless. I took it out fast on the first lap, then let Jason go for two laps of the 8.5 mile course. I then took a two lap session, but for some reason was cramping, so we went to 1 lap stints until it got dark, when we decided that I would ride the first two hours with lights since Jason had no experience riding at night. We were up a lap when Jason got on for his first night lap, but his light didn't hold a charge and he had to follow another (slower) rider for half the course. We lost our lead, so in order to secure the win I had to go out for another lap about 9:30.

Looking fairly fresh after over 12 hours in the saddle

We ended up winning by 38 minutes and were ecstatic. The course was rough and I wasn't walking upright for a couple of days, but it was a lot of fun. The announcer kept asking the other teams if they were going to let a couple of "roadies" kick their asses. Jason really rode well and I'm amazed that I can spend that much time riding when I only train a couple of times a week.

We've been moving the bike shop the last week into a new space. It has meant a few long days and a lot of time on my feet. Today Olivia was off from school. We went fishing and didn't catch anything, then went to watch Wall-E at the dollar theater.

The job market blows chunks right now, but I'm still plugging away. I'm going to start looking at more blue collar stuff - I need regular hours and benefits right now. I can't assume that a job that fits my degree or skills is going to come along right now.

You only live once...twice if you're dumb enough

2008-10-09T13:06:00.004-04:00

Jesus...What was supposed to be a way for me to make a few extra bucks on Saturday has turned into another "only James could get himself into this" situation.

I was (and am) going to be wrenching for a team at the 12 Hours of Conyers this weekend - basically just making sure their bikes don't fall apart and prepping their lights, food, etc. Now, it looks like I may actually be riding in this stupid race.... No details will follow because apparently I've lost my freakin' mind.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

2008-10-07T08:12:00.003-04:00

It's on this day every year that I realize that my dad may be the greatest engineer in the history of earth. If my grandmother or great aunt were still alive they would testify to this fact. The reason why: according to them, he was the first man since Jesus Christ to walk on water!

Have a great day! I hope that one day people think as highly of me as most do of you.

One and done..

2008-10-06T13:32:00.004-04:00

Right now I want to scream the 7 words that George Carlin says you can't say on TV...

Sometimes when stuff isn't going well you do things you know you shouldn't do, but you hope will make you feel better. So was the case with going to the opening round of the Georgia Cyclocross series.

Jay and I carpooled, and it wasn't far away, so gas was not a big concern. My entry will be paid for by the shop, and I was able to get back to Atlanta in time to work. It's everything in between that was stupid.

I don't have any 'cross racing wheels, but the guy I train had a set we have for sale in the shop that he said I could use. He had talked about the possibility of me buying them from him and just deducting a little from my bill each month. Well, one of them is an expensive paperweight right now.

I guess I can take solace in the fact that I rode well, was running fifth (would have probably ended up fourth) with just under 3 laps to go when I dismounted to go over a barrier. The rear of the bike hit the barrier and shattered my borrowed carbon fiber wheel. What sucks is that it wouldn't have even dented an aluminum one. My season is officially over. I'll work off the damage, but I just can't throw any more money at a stupid sport when I have other things to concentrate on. I really hoped I'd be rejuvenated and have a brighter outlook when I left.

Exercise has been my escape lately. I'm not in great shape, but it has been one of the "positives" in my life, and I'm not going to eliminate that time because I think it keeps me sane right now. I'm just wondering when I'm going to get a break (no pun intended). Add to all this, it was confirmed this morning that the bonus we were supposed to get from work last month, will indeed be SIGNIFICANTLY less than what is was supposed to be. For the most part, Murphy's Law has ruled my world lately. I'm gonna keep my head up though because the alternative doesn't attract chicks...:)

This is not the way my wheel looked when we arrived>>>When I prayed for a break the other day, this is not what I intended>>>

Jay made the podium after a very solid ride - Good job, brother!

A pretty sh*tty week

2008-10-04T23:00:00.003-04:00

I've made plenty of mistakes in my life, but it's amazing the number of people that won't take responsibility when they do. They don't seem to care if someone else suffers for their bad decisions, only that THEY don't. This is exactly why the economy is in the crapper. You can blame the politicians, the banks...whoever you want, but the bottom line is that people want to be able to be careless and stupid, but not have to be punished for it.

A friend of mine wants to blame the Republicans for the economic recession. That's fine if it makes you feel better. Putting a Democrat in office isn't going to stop people from being dumb. He told me that people aren't responsible enough to not have the government regulate mortgages and lending. He thinks that people aren't responsible enough to determine how to invest their retirement savings. Why live in a democracy then???? Just move to a communist country where they will be glad to make all your decisions for you and leave you in poverty. Nice alternative, huh?

You won't have to worry about whether you should have taken mortgage option A or B...you just won't OWN anything. You won't have to worry about your retirement savings....there won't be any. You won't be able to make decisions about where your child gets their education, where you want your medical care, what you want to watch on TV or what car to drive. You'll have most of the decisions made for you or you'll be too poor to even have an option.

You can put whoever you want in office, but until the general public starts taking responsibility for their own actions, nothing is going to change.

The weekend

2008-09-29T22:42:00.003-04:00

Considering all the stress in my life, Olivia and I had a great weekend.
Olivia had a soccer game, in which her team got destroyed. She played very well though, and is much more aggresive than last year. She just needs to charge the goal a little more.
Camping was fun. We set the tent up on my deck, started a fire in the chimenea, made S'mores, and watched a movie in the tent. Olivia fell asleep around 8:30. I went inside and did some work on the computer and watched a football game. Around 11:30 I decided she would probably be up as soon as the sun rose, so I figured for a decent night's sleep I'd take her inside.
Yesterday we went on a hike at Sope Creek. We took Bear and had a good walk. We then tried our hand at some fishing on the pond. Didn't catch anything but a turtle. It was a fun day anyway.

Campin'

2008-09-25T09:44:00.002-04:00

Olivia and I are planning a "backyard camping" trip. Actually, we aren't really even going to make it to the backyard - it will be on my deck.

Saturday we'll go shopping for ingredients to make S'mores. We'll pitch the tent, lay out our sleeping bags, arrange the various blankets and stuffed animals, then light a fire in my chimenea. It should be fun for both of us.

Vegas has the odds at 3-2 that we'll end up in my bed before midnight. Not sure my little girl is quite ready for the great outdoors.

Back in the saddle

2008-09-21T23:27:00.005-04:00

John O'Brien took this - interesting shot. He met me at the door when I opened the shop today and had this photo all blown up. Nice guy
During my scratch race qualifier - not much mojo going on...
We had a pretty big pro field
Rick Miller and I making an exchange during the madison event

So, I raced the track last night. I thought I might have a good night because I've had pretty good fitness lately and rode well last weekend....I think I might have overdone it. I was just flat last night. I just couldn't accelerate well and lactic acid seemed to rush into my legs during the first lap of every race.

I rode a decent miss-and-out, finishing 10th out of about 30 in the pro race, but that was pretty much the highlight of the night. There were some real studs there. I completed my first madison since my epic crash 12 years ago that witnessed me waking up on a backboard in an emergency room. I rode with Rick Miller from Philadelphia. We didn't do great, but we were a pretty good team as far as working together, and our "exchanges" were pretty solid. Rick is a really nice guy, and it took a little bit of trust on his part to ride with me considering how long it had been since I had raced.

Afterwards, a good group of track cycling peeps met at a new bar in Decatur that is run by a fellow cyclist. I was exhausted and ended up crashing at Joe and Wendy's house, which was within walking distance of the bar :) The bad news was that they had stopped serving food when we got there. Keith was a lifesaver and walked back to his house and brought me back some grilled chicken, some pistachios, some Doritos and yogurt!

My butt hurt too bad to ride today! The track really beats me up. I'm meeting my client in the morning for an easy ride on the Silver Comet Trail, then I have a lot of work to do around the house - clean, mow, dishes, etc. Sooooo looking forward to that, not.

Did I mention that Tennessee football sucks???

This n' that

2008-09-19T08:32:00.003-04:00

A lady called the bike shop yesterday and asked me if we sold soccer balls....

Another guy came in and asked me if I could change the cleats on the bottom of his shoes because he "didn't have the right tools". The cleats are held in by a bolt that accepts a regular flat blade screwdriver... I'll bet HE is the only tool around when he opens his toolbox.

The Ryder Cup started this morning. I'm a fan of that type of golf.

I have a bad feeling that Tennessee is gonna get their asses handed to them by Florida tomorrow, but I hope I'm wrong.

Here is a list of foods that Olivia will eat:
Macaroni and cheese
cheese quesadilla
chicken nuggets (only from McDonald's)
cookies

I'd probably cancel my cable subscription if it weren't for Family Guy, college football, and a good Carey Grant film on AMC every now and then.

I'm gonna take my track bike in the shop to prep it for tomorrow, but I still don't know if I'm racing or not.

To prove that my cupboard truly is bare; I put a hot dog bun in my toaster and scraped out the bottom of the peanut butter jar for breakfast this morning.

It's Thursday

2008-09-18T20:54:00.009-04:00

Hmmmm...I'm beat. This week has flown by - It's already Thursday. I have really focused on doing some networking this week. If I don't get out of the bike shop soon I'm going to need to apply for food stamps.

I recovered pretty well from the race on Sunday. Maybe I'm in better shape than I thought. I'm really struggling with whether to race at the track Saturday night. It's the last race of the year and I love track racing, but racing really can't be a priority right now.

Unfortunately, I've felt the arthritis in my hip for the first time in months this week. I really thought that dropping some weight and increasing my flexibility had really helped relieve it. I'm finding that it flares up when I'm dehydrated or put in a really hard effort. It's nothing compared to what it was a year ago though.

I got the most bittersweet of invitations this morning. My new client told me that he has an extra seat on his chartered Leer that he's taking to Knoxville on Saturday morning to watch the Tennessee/Florida game! Regardless of whether I race on Saturday, I'm still on the schedule to work the first part of the day - can't get out of it if I wanted.

The weather has been great this week. I love a crisp Fall morning, even though we haven't exactly had one yet, I've still opened a window each night this week. I love Fall.

Will work for food >

Finding myself, being a hero, and suffering like a pig...

2008-09-14T21:50:00.003-04:00

I could, and may, write a long synopsis of this past week's trip, but right now I'm just exhausted. Happy, but exhausted.

I got just what I wanted out of my little roadtrip - some great time alone, away from the stress. I went to the Tanasi trails in Ocoee, TN. I got a nice campsite, rode my bike a ton and enjoyed the wilderness.

The highlight, or lowlight, however you want to look at it, was that on my Friday ride I happened upon an old lady who flagged me down. Her husband had broken his ankle. Long story short - another 2 1/2 hours later and I had ridden to the Whitewater Center, got a hold of the Ducktown Paramedics and led them to the site while they drove an ATV & trailer. I felt somewhat like a hero, but was also beat. My ride ended up being over 6 hours.

I drove back to Atlanta just in time to make it to the Kate's Club Cabaret charity event. It was a slightly smaller even than the past ones. I ducked out relatively early, knowing I was headed to Macon the next day.

I drove to Macon mid afternoon on Saturday and found the trails for a preview lap. I rode, but got lost and couldn't make sense of where the course went. When I returned to my car, I met the race director and a few of his friends. They invited me to ride with them and help mark the course. It was very beneficial, but I was feeling the efforts of the day before. I helped them for about half the course, then headed back to my car and drove to the campground on Lake Obefsokee.

It was hot and there was absolutely no breeze last night. I didn't fall asleep till about 2, and was awake by 6. It sucked. I drove to the race site early and set up my pit. 4 hours 42 minutes later I finished 3rd overall! I will write a longer post later, but today I actually felt like a mountain biker. I could tell that I was riding well, but didn't really know how well. I suffered like a dog the last lap and a half, but I'm pretty sure that only 4 of us made the 4 hour cutoff to start a 7th lap. I can actually say that I am proud of myself. It wasn't the biggest race - 40-50 people, but you can only race who shows up. It was my first event of this kind and I really rode over my head.

As soon as the pain goes away, I'm hoping I'll feel recharged and satisfied with making the decision to take a few days to myself.

Misc.

2008-09-10T09:06:00.002-04:00

Well, it looks like my trip may be delayed because of weather. I have pretty much decided that I'll head out early tomorrow morning, try and ride some before noon (wherever I go) and make a decision as to whether to stay and set up camp for a night. While I'm looking forward to some time away, time spent in a wet tent is not my idea of fun.

Regardless, I have a lot to think about the next few days. I was presented with a business proposal last night that is very intriguing. I need to see if I can get my arms around the entire thing. The idea is a service type of business. If it was a product I think I could think it through more clearly. I think it definitely has legs, it's just the implementation that has me a bit puzzled.

My new personal training client is proving to be elusive. He has been travelling a lot and has a big deal he is trying to close. I hope that he can be more consistent in the future.

My resume has seen several revisions in the past few weeks. It's close to being something that I can present a little better, I think.

Olivia is off on her trip. Her cruise actually starts tomorrow, so it looks like she'll be on the backside of Ike.

Monday, Monday

2008-09-08T09:55:00.003-04:00

Olivia leaves for a Disney Cruise with her mom tomorrow after school. They'll fly to Orlando, stay at the Disney Resort and then cruise for 4 days in the Bahamas. Olivia is really looking forward to it. They really do cover all the bases on those cruises.

The weather forecast is starting to look iffy for my camping trip. I may, once again, have to change my venue. Looking now at Bear Creek in North Georgia. It's not much closer, but my friend Jay went there this past weekend and said the campground was pretty deserted. It's also easy to find, which could be a problem at Tanasi because I'll be arriving after dark on Wednesday.

I've got a busy next couple of days. Lots of chores and my "to do" list today. Tomorrow, I have work and then I'm meeting with a friend to explore a business idea he has - could be a late night. Wednesday morning I'm working out with my new fitness client, then working, then taking off on my trip.

100th post

2008-09-06T07:18:00.003-04:00

So, I couldn't sleep, as usual, last night. I started thinking of my strategy for this race next weekend. I have no idea how many riders there will be, but I'm shooting for a top 20 finish.

The race has a LeMans start - riders run to their bikes from 1/2 mile away. This shouldn't be a problem for me. However, in calculating lap times, it will make things difficult. In order to complete 7 laps (which last year would have put me in the top 15) I would need to average just below 40 minutes a lap. Looking at last year's lap times - most riders were well above 40 minutes for the first lap.

Factor in that on some laps I'll pull in my pit to get water, food, energy gels, or just plain rest...and I have no idea how to prepare for this thing. I guess I should be more concerned about the fact that I haven't ridden 4 hours straight, even on a road bike, in over 12 years. Time on a mountain bike is even more painful. I think my back and my legs are going to be more of a factor than anything else.

This has been an extremely stressful week - I'm glad I've got something to look forward to. I may just end up hibernating in the woods for five days and forget my other obligations of racing and going to the charity event.

THE PIG

2008-09-05T23:29:00.002-04:00

This is the race I'm probably gonna do next weekend. I need to suffer some. It's a 7 mile loop - you do it as many times as you can. If you can start a lap before 3:59:59 you get credit for the next lap, assuming you can finish it. There are much longer endurance races out there, but this one will be long enough.

Shorter post

2008-09-05T20:17:00.001-04:00

FUUUUUUUCK!!!!!!! Do you ever feel like the harder you try, the harder it gets??

Short Post

2008-09-04T09:30:00.003-04:00

My little vacation plans seem to be changing by the hour. I'm now thinking about heading to the Tanasi trails in Ocoee, TN. They are less than 100 miles away, a little easier, and there's a little more to do in the area. I am supposed to attend a charity event on Friday night. I assume I'll come back for that. Since I have Sunday off I may try the 4 Hours of Pig mountain bike race in Macon.

I picked up a new client yesterday to coach. It's less structured than the other guy I'm coaching, but the pay will be better. I am trying to get him to commit to at least a couple of days a week of one-on-one training. Unfortunately, he is very busy, and it may be sporadic.

Tennessee football sucks.

A little trip

2008-08-31T20:55:00.005-04:00

I rolled some coins today and decided I'm taking a mini vacation next week. Olivia is headed on her Disney Cruise with her mom. I'm gonna go to the Cohutta Mountains in North Georgia. You can camp for free anywhere inside the National Park. I'm going to leave after work on Wednesday - the trip shouldn't cost me anything but a half a tank of gas and some food. I'm taking my mountain bike and plan on a 4 or 5 hour epic ride on Thursday.

I was supposed to go to Alabama to race in a criterium that weekend, but I think I need this trip more. I'm broke and don't need to waste money on a bike race anyway. If I don't get away I may shoot someone....and I'm really not in the mood for jail.

I'll probably throw in my old fishing rod, my camera, and a good book. I need to get lost for a couple of days, and this is the perfect opportunity.

A day at the races

2008-08-31T08:46:00.010-04:00

Olivia and I tripped it on over to Birmingham (Leeds, actually) yesterday to watch my dad race at Barber Motorsports Park. I raced there a few years ago. It is, by far, the nicest race track I've ever been to. The grounds are immaculate.

Not such a great weekend for the old man. It was the first time he had seen the track, and there was only one qualifying session and the race. He managed to keep his nose clean after a first lap spin, and qualified 4th. During the race he got a great start and even got side by side with the leader going into turn one. The cars disappear into turn two, then come back into sight for turn 3...which is where his race ended.

He was third entering the corner - a downhill 180 degree left turn. The guy in front of him locked up his brakes at the same time my dad did. There was tire smoke, cars dodging, and part of my dad's nosecone flew into the air. His car lifted slightly off the ground, enough that he couldn't steer and sent him right into a large gravel trap. He tried valiently to get out, but it just dug the car deeper - day over.

Olivia actually seemed to kind of enjoy herself. Got to see a few people I hadn't seen in a while, and despite being a little hot, the weather was pretty nice. Birmingham is only two hours from my house, but the drive back always seems much longer.

The view from the backstretch where we watched the Spec Miata race - my camera battery died before I could get any pics of my dad's race

The grounds are covered with interesting sculptures - this is a giant spider on the infield of the track

The Miata field entering the hairpin where my dad went off - stage left

Rick Gambill (82) passing a competitor after his first lap spin

An old bike racing friend of mine, Tommy Mulkey, was in fifth until he ran off course into a tire barrier.

Olivia chilling at the races
These two old guys kissed each other after I took this picture...

I'm a pig

2008-08-28T16:48:00.002-04:00

As my brother would so elequently put it, "Look at the terd cutter on that chick".

I'm standing at my sink this afternoon doing dishes. I turned on the TV and saw that they are showing the US Open. Ana Ivanovic is playing some other girl, but I can't take my eyes off this Serbian hottie.

As many of you know, I've been trying hard to get a new job. I think I've found it. I'm going to apply to be Ana Ivanovic's husband. I swore I'd never get married again, but I live on the edge, kids. I'm willing to make the supreme sacrifice for a hot, rich, probably non-English speaking girl that's half my age.

I'll let you all know how it turns out. In the meantime, I need to go back to being a HUGE tennis fan.

Like winning the Lottery

2008-08-26T08:18:00.003-04:00

Olivia and I stopped by the grocery store on the way home yesterday. We needed to return a movie and get just a few items - peanut butter, chips, etc. While walking down the cleaning supplies aisle I remembered that I was about out of toilet paper. I'm pretty snobbish about my TP, but for some reason I grabbed a four pack of the house brand - it looked to be of decent quality. I figured it would do until payday when I could afford an eight pack of the good stuff...

We go to pay and the kind, old, wrinkled, heavily made-up cashier says "You got the penny item". I looked at her quizzically. She said "Well, I'm going to give it to you anyway (with a wink). This toilet paper is the 'secret penny item'." SHANGRI LA!! I'm gonna wipe my butt for the next week basically free with GreenWise Market Double Roll Bathroom Tissue goodness! If life gets any better than this I may just eat some rat poison and die content.

Under the influence

2008-08-19T09:05:00.004-04:00

First off, I am under the influence of a couple of Ambien - I simply have not slept in two months and my body needs it BADLY. We'll see if this works. If this post is rambling, then it's not entirely my fault.

I gave some advice to a friend the other day. I said, in essence, that if you keep taking the same approach towards something then you shouldn't be suprised if you get the same results. It sounded good at the moment even though my friend didn't seem to quite get it.

I've thought about it a lot since saying it. I realized that I'm not taking my own advice. I am no doubt in a rut right now, and I think it is because I expect different results without changing the way I do things. The old adage "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" still applies today, but turning the radio up to drown out that awful sound your car is making doesn't work either.

I have really attempted, and I think I'm succeeding, at taking a more positive attitude, regardless of the situation. I think I am coming off as a more happy person now.

I've got to re-evaluate several things in my life. The one thing positive that comes out of being confused is that you realize what is important to you. Being a good father, staying in shape, enjoying what you do for a living, learning new skills - I may not be achieving all of them, but the list of that which is important becomes smaller, but more passionate.

I need to heed the attitude I had for 3 of the 4 decades I've been on this earth - I've made it this far and I can only assume that everything moving forward will work out as well.

Reading

2008-08-19T07:46:00.005-04:00

Olivia has become quite a good reader. Part of her homework for last night was reading to me for 10 minutes. I usually let her try and figure out most of the words for herself, but I helped her a little in this video for time purposes.

Uploading video was new for me. Not that hard - you just have to be patient.

A great night in Gainesville

2008-08-14T22:52:00.005-04:00

Went up to Gainesville for the last of the TNT Mountain Bike time trials. We picked up Anne and made good time up there. The mountain bike community in Gainesville is awesome. They told me to bring Olivia up and people would watch her. I barely know most of the people, but they were great to her.

Olivia was given all kinds of jobs. Her first was decorating number plates for those that wanted. She helped put down the start and finish lines. She called out numbers of riders as they approached the finish. She drew names for the series finale raffle....and she stood in for Aimee Murphy, who couldn't make the final, on the victory podium. Aimee finished 2nd in the series and Olivia did her proud.

Me? I finally felt like a mountain biker tonight! I took almost a minute and fifteen seconds off my previous time. I changed my position a bit and put a different fork on my bike this week. I also rode better. Two weeks ago, my fastest time was 14:24. Today, I put in a 13:16, followed by a 13:12! I recorded the third and fourth fastest times overall of the night.

I came within 4 feet of hitting a deer on my first run! He just appeared out of nowhere. On the second lap I hip checked a tree and I'm gonna have a really nice bruise on my hip bone. I hit it so hard that it lifted the back end of my bike off the ground. I was better off than another guy tonight that broke his collarbone!

Anne finished 3rd in the series. She has been battling a sickness for 6 months now that they just can't diagnose. She and her husband have a great attitude though, and she continues to compete even though she gets sick to her stomach often.

Norma Rainwater (middle), Anne Ledbetter (left) and Olivia standing in for Aimee Murphy on the series victory podium
Me and my girl after my first run.

Olivia helping Anne decorate her number

The best number plate of the night - notice "I love you" above my number!

My Girl

2008-08-14T09:37:00.005-04:00

Wood Acres School map ^

The first day of school went off without a hitch. I drove Olivia to school yesterday - walked her in, took a pic of her with her teacher, settled her at her desk, kissed her and left. When I picked her up she seemed to have had a great day. She is really a very happy girl.

When I got her home we went through her folder. There was a school calendar in there and I asked her if she could ask the teacher for another copy for me. She is acutely aware that her parents are divorced, but sometimes wears it as a badge of pride...It's strange, but I'm sure it's just one way she copes with it. She said "Sure, I need to tell her that sometimes I need two copies of things because my parents are divorced". It was matter-of-fact and very adult of her....and, she'll remember. She has the memory of an elephant.

I'm going to pick her up today and we'll go do the mountain bike time trials that were postponed from last week. I think she'll enjoy it. I think they are going to give her a job to decorate people's number plates. I don't have anything planned for us this weekend. I need to be more creative with her and think of new activities.

Gotta get to work and make something productive of this day off.

Meet N' Greet

2008-08-11T20:50:00.006-04:00

Today was meet and greet at school. Olivia starts first grade on Wednesday. Her teacher is Mrs. Pacifico, who has been an assistant teacher, but this will be her first year as a head teacher. She seems very nice. The school looks phenomenal. There was a lot of construction last year, but now the grass has grown in and it looks great.

Olivia only has 12 kids in her class - I guess that's one of the huge benefits of private school. Olivia and I went to Chick-Fil-A with a few moms and their kids afterwards. Sometimes I feel pretty odd being the only dad at a lot of functions, but I'm trying to be a little more social this year. We are, once again, the only divorced parents in Olivia's class. Odd, considering today's divorce rate.

What a hen house these types of functions are. I understand that there are a lot of traditional families in East Cobb, but sometimes I wonder if Olivia is the only child with a dad at that school. It's a bunch of friggin' women standing around talking about "mom" stuff....and none of them are remotely cute. It would be one thing if I was standing there listening to them go on and on about the cost of eggs and I could at least be thinking "Hmmm, Kate's mom's got a nice rack"....but, no, they dress in their Winnie the Pooh T-shirts and their Keds and look like a member of a late 80's sitcom.

Here are some pics:

Looking in the classroom from outside
Olivia's favorite subject

Hope

2008-08-08T22:17:00.004-04:00

I've learned not to get too excited about job prospects. I applied to five jobs this week - three of which I think I am very well qualified and have contacts within the company. This certainly doesn't mean I'll even get an interview, but it is better than nothing. I've been very reluctant to even mention job leads because they can lead to false hope, but I've been busting my ass and have to believe that something will pay off soon.

I met an interesting person this week - a professional organizer. Not only does she literally organize people's belongings, but also helps them manage time. I find the whole thing fascinating. Maybe it's because I'm such the opposite at times.

The Olympics start tonight. I still don't sleep worth a damn, so at least I know there will be something to watch in the middle of the night.

Wow, what a day...

2008-08-06T22:52:00.003-04:00

Holy crap, someone must be filming my life! I swear I'm being tested for some reason - just to see if I'll crack. This complete bitch came in the bike shop today. I could tell she was trouble from the first words out of her mouth....after her 3 minute conversation on the cell phone before she'd even look at me.

She was vague and argumentative from the get go. I decided I was going to kill her with kindness. I showed her several bikes. She had something negative to say about everything. After 20 minutes, she tells me that the current bike I'm showing her "looks like crap, and is cheap". I decided I just would stop talking at that point. I really didn't know how to respond. The nicer I was, the ruder and meaner she got. I hope that my job in Purgatory is pissing on her head in Hell....Some people are just meant to be miserable.

So, my self-imposed deadline of August 1 to find a job has come and gone. I'm cutting myself some slack since I did pick up a client to train. I am still pounding the pavement hard. Something has got to come my way soon because I'm about to lose my shit working retail. I had a lady the other day that sweated which color of baby jogger she wanted for a full half an hour. Seriously, if this is a big fucking decision for you perhaps you need to analyze your life. It's not a car, it's not your house, it's a STUPID MOTHER F'ING BABY JOGGER!!!!!! She brought it back two days later and exchanged it for another color. Her husband must wish for a car accident to take his life every day on his way home....

Busy week

2008-08-01T19:33:00.005-04:00

Went to Gainesville last night to work/ride some mountain bike time trails that they hold at Chicopee Woods. You can ride the 3 1/2 mile loop as many as 3 times, with your best time counting. I was the only one to ride all three times - I figured if I was driving that far I was going to get my money's worth.

This is my mountain bike that I "kinda" own - I've begged, borrowed and bartered to put it together. It is an Orbea Scandium Team, made in Spain. The cool thing is that this was a Team Issue frame and I doubt I'll see anyone else on one anywhere.

I finished fourth in the Expert class, which I think is pretty good considering I've ridden this bike exactly twice and have never ridden the course. I was pretty spent afterwards. Each loop took about 14 1/2 minutes and I rode them with my heartrate pretty much at 175 beats and above the whole time. That's about 45 minutes totally anaerobic!

The crazy thing is that my first lap felt totally out of control - I overshot corners, wasted energy and rode over my head and fell off twice. The first lap was in 14:25. Because I was tired and needed to ride better, I concentrated on riding smoother the second lap. I didn't fall and I felt like I rode much better - 14:36....I was very tired on the third attempt, but felt like it was technically FAR superior to what I had done the previous two rides - 14:37....All three rides within 11 seconds of each other! I took about 20 minutes rest between each attempt.

I got up early to meet with the guy I'm going to be coaching. It went very well and he is very excited about the program. He is like a sponge trying to absorb all that I am telling him. Someone else came in the shop today asking if we knew a coach. I gave him my number. I guess I'm going to make some business cards and build a basic website to sort of legitimize the whole thing. If I can get 4 or 5 regular clients it will definitely supplement my income.

I guess I need to keep working out myself if I'm going to portray the image that I know what I'm talking about!

I have Olivia this weekend. We are going to a birthday party tomorrow morning at one of the inflatable jumping places. We'll probably hit the pool at sometime. I have tickets to the Braves on Sunday - we didn't go the last time I had them.

Rat Bastard!!!

2008-07-31T09:28:00.003-04:00

In the latest chapter of the Brookshire Cleaning Frenzy, I organized my books last night and this morning. I filled several containers with books I don't necessarily need at hand, but don't want to get rid of. So, this morning, before it got too hot in the attic, I hauled the containers up the attic stairs.

I've known that I've had a creature(s) living up there. Until recently I hadn't seen any activity. A month or so ago I saw some fresh terds. While my mom was in town a few weeks ago we bought some rat traps. I set a couple with some peanut butter and put them along an apparent trail. I've checked them every day or so, but nothing.

This morning I smelled a perculiar smell. Not quite bad yet, but something was definitely afoul in the attic. I grabbed my flashlight and did not see the bigger of the traps. Of course, the areas where I had to put the traps are hard to get to. I climbed closer to see a big tail and body, with an ugly old rat head neatly squeezed in the trap.

Now, I've seen some gross things in my life, but for some reason dead animals make every nerve in my body wiggle. Immediately, my mind started racing about how I'm going to get this son of a bitch out of my attic. I grabbed three trash bags and stuffed them inside each other. I opened the bag as wide as I could and set it between me and the rat/trap. I grabbed my long flat shovel and scooped him up. Wisely, I did this in relative darkness. If I had the flashlight on I'm pretty sure I would have had a puddle of puke to clean up as well.

I tied up those three bags and set them in an additional bag that already had trash in it. I'm now trying to decide if it can sit in my trash can until Monday, when the trashman comes again. In the meantime, I guess I need to go buy additional traps. This bastard was so big that he may have eaten any other competition, but I doubt it.

The only positive is that it appears he was probably caught yesterday. Any longer in my 130 degree attic and I'm pretty sure I'd have had a real gem of a mess to clean up. Sometimes life just ain't funny.

We don't need no stinkin' camp...

2008-07-29T07:15:00.003-04:00

Olivia wanted no part of camp yesterday. Her mom brought her over and me and my little girl spent the day together. She's really done a great job adapting to different camps, so it was ok with me that she just wanted a day away.

We worked cleaning out my storage unit and went to the dump. The dump is a fascinating and scary place for a 6 year old. She didn't like the smell, but she liked that went over the scale to get weighed. I let her pay the lady on the way out - it's the small things that get them excited.

We went to the pool for a while. Olivia did a flip off the diving board! She reaches down and grabs her ankle and just topples over - it's funny. I never cease to be amazed that with the advent of the anacronym MILF, that I never see any in East Cobb. Our pool offers zero to look at.

Brookshire Fitness Solutions has its first client! I am now training a local attorney. He has a goal of completing an Olympic distance triathlon in a little over a year. Friday morning I will do a two hour assessment and bike fit, then I'll set about the task of setting up a training regime to fit his busy schedule. Should be fun and profitable.

My mind on my money and my money on my mind....

2008-07-27T17:57:00.002-04:00

The past 24 hours have been pretty good. It's about time.

Last night I played poker with the usual crew and finished second. Only made $40, but that will put gas in the car. Woke up early this morning and drove to Lawrenceville and did a bike race. I was worried about my fitness, but was really never put in too much pain. I kind of screwed up with a mile to go and lost a bunch of positions, but managed to claw my way back to 10th by the finish....the last position to pay! Made $20 for that. Nothing to write home about, but a top 10 is good by me. My entry fee was covered, so it only cost me gas money.

At work today an attorney that I had helped a couple of weeks ago came in and asked me if I knew anyone that could coach him to do a triathlon. "I'm your man!". We talked for about 15 minutes. I'm e-mailing him a proposal, which is just a re-hash of what we had already talked about. Looks like he's interested. If it goes well I'll make enough money to pay my child support each month! He has long-term goals, so this could be a long-term thing. His primary goal is a year off. He seems like a very personable guy, which bodes well.

Headed to the storage unit to get some stuff to put in the shed. It's been a busy day.

Shed Life

2008-07-25T09:43:00.003-04:00

The shed (cute girl not included)

I've stupidly been paying $125 a month for a storage unit for more than three years. I've talked about building a storage shed in my backyard since moving in over a year and a half ago. Finally, my mom and dad convinced (helped) me do it.

My dad came down yesterday and we went shed shopping. I could have gotten a wooden one with more space for about the same price, but there would be more time and maintenance involved. We build an 8'X8' platform and used decking material, supporting it on concrete deck blocks. We bought a Rubbermaid 7'x7' vinyl shed. It went together in just over two hours and actually seems like it's pretty well built. From start to finish we might have spent 5 1/2 hours - not bad.

I now have a convienient place to put my tools and store misc. stuff. Just one more thing on my checklist now checked off!

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ....please!

2008-07-23T22:29:00.003-04:00

I gotta get some sleep, man. I haven't slept more than 6 1/2 hours in 3 or 4 months. I've tried everything. None of the sleeping pills I've tried have worked well. I wake up every night around 4 am. Sometimes I'm able to go back to sleep, but more often I end up thinking for a good half hour to hour.

I'm up every day at 6:00 - doesn't matter when I went to bed. Most mornings I don't have to be up that early, but it's impossible to go back to sleep. I've never been one to sleep in. This 16 year old girl that recently started working at the shop told me she slept till 11:00 yesterday. Amazing. I can't remember sleeping past 9:30 in my life - and that was because I had stayed out until the sun came up.

I'd take one 8 hour night a week - I think it would work wonders. At least my appetite is back, for the most part. I didn't eat for 3 weeks.

I'm not nuts, just going through a difficult and stressful time. Life will return to normal soon and I will be a happy camper.

Just doing a good deed...

2008-07-22T21:30:00.003-04:00

What a day. I rode to work today - about 36 miles roundtrip. I try to do it at least two or three days a week.

Riding in on a backroad I rounded a curve to meet head-on with a big truck coming to a stop in my lane. I came to a trackstand, balancing the bike while I tried to figure out what he was doing. I paused for about 5 seconds then mouthed "Move, you idiot". I went into the left lane and could hear him yelling at me. I yelled "Fuck you", then saw a big redneck standing on the side of the road. When he heard me he put out his arms and lunged at me. I yelled "..and fuck you, too!". Actually, it was pretty funny.

About 15 minutes before we closed it started pouring. Josh and Daniel had also ridden in. We waited a while and I decided to go ahead and ride in the rain. I was soaked by the time I hit Northside Dr. before a big climb. Then I saw this girl pulled off the road and she flagged me down. She had been in an accident and hydroplaned into a guardrail. Turns out she drove about a mile before actually pulling over. She was talking to a guy on her phone trying to tell him where she was, but she really didn't know. She said, "Here, talk to Lance Armstrong. He knows where I am".

The friend/boyfriend was kind of a dick. He obviously was pissed that she had called him. I stayed with her far too long until he finally showed up. She was a piece of work. She asked me to help her think of a lie to tell her dad. All I could think about was if Olivia was ever in this situation that I hoped she wouldn't be asking some stranger in Lycra how to lie to her dad. When dickhead boyfriend finally showed up I headed on home. It was pitch dark and almost 9:00 before I hit my doorstep.

Anyway, I figure I'll get some brownie points in case I'm wrong and there is a Heaven.

Oh, and one other thing...

2008-07-21T19:51:00.002-04:00

So, I referenced a job posting that I had applied for last week. I had an "in" at the company and was pretty psyched as I was very qualified for the position.

Today, I was writing a follow up e-mail to the recruiter. I went back to the job posting to emphasize some key points....Then I noticed the first sentence of the job description - Must be fluent in Spanish.

I did a double take, then went back and reviewed the job to make sure it was the same one. It's the same one alright. However, at some point between last week and today the first sentence had been added.

I've tried to adopt a positive attitude lately, but I just want to punch someone right now.

You cannot be serious...

2008-07-19T19:55:00.004-04:00

Holy crap! Has the general population just lost all pride??? Went to White Water Park today. There were several thousand people there - I might have seen one woman I'd be attracted to if I had a six pack (of beer, not abs).

If life, a baby, too much food, etc. has wrecked your body, for God's sake don't wear a bikini. I don't want to see your cellulite, stretch marks, scars and tattoos. The thing is, most of them seemed to be flaunting themselves. Just because they make a swimsuit in your size doesn't mean that it looks good on you.

Everyone also looked like they were related to each other. All I could think about was how in the hell I can't get a decent job when all these people look like they share the same DNA and ridiculously low brain cell count. I saw more blank stares than a seventh grade class that just had an unannounced math test thrust upon them. I felt like I was walking down the lobotomy hall of a 1940's lunatic asylum.

Don't get me wrong, I'm no Adonis, but I also wasn't walking around in a banana hammock with my ass crack showing. I seriously saw some late teen girl with one of her nips showing and about 3 inches of crack sticking out below her muffin top - oblivious to the whole thing.

Don't get me started about how much crap cost at that place. No more $2.00 lockers - you get "all day" access to some piece of shit 1'x1' hole for only $19. I saved $5.00 by buying our tickets online, only to find out that I'd be charged $3.00 for the convenience of actually printing the damn things. Another $10 for parking. I got bent over so often that when I left I felt like I had spent six months in prison.

My new positive outlook on life took a real blow today, but I have to take it all in stride. Olivia had a pretty good time and that's really all that matters. Tomorrow we're going to a Braves game. I'm lucky in that the tickets and parking pass were given to me. After I buy her a $10 popcorn and a $5 lemonade I'll be fine. Maybe a $8 beer will calm my nerves.

Everybody's workin' for the weekend...

2008-07-19T07:40:00.004-04:00

Going to White Water Park with Olivia and a friend of mine and his daughter today. White Water is interesting. It's actually a pretty neat water park. It is usually very crowded and you see a myriad of people. Way too much skin that shouldn't be exposed...

Tomorrow I have Braves tickets that my friend Keith gave me. It's an afternoon game and it's supposed to be 94 degrees tomorrow. I'll lay even odds that Olivia doesn't make it through the 4th inning before wanting to call it a day.

The job search continues to be a roller coaster. I have a freind that has been a tremendous help. I found a job that I am qualified for with her company, but the recruiter for the job has been fairly unresponsive to her inquiries. It sucks, because she has great relationships with most of the recruiters....but not this one. Her and her husband are both contractors for Northrop Grumman and are both very happy with their jobs. Another huge benefit to this job is that it apparently can include a good bit of telecommuting - perfect for my situation. We'll see.

Olivia was in Science Camp this week. I think she enjoyed it. I find her camp experiences are a direct reflection on which (if any) of her friends are also at the camp!

Cyclocross season starts in about 3 months. I shouldn't be thinking about it until I get a job, but I need some sort or extracuricular activity to get me excited or I'll just get depressed. Cyclocross was a blast last year. I'm more fit this year, so we'll see how it goes. The season is short (about 8 weeks) and races are Sunday mornings at 10 am. Most of the courses are within an hour of Atlanta and don't cost much to enter. It's a great atmosphere and I really enjoy hanging out with my team mates.

Nothing changes

2008-07-17T10:41:00.002-04:00

Today, the third rider in less than a week was thrown out of the Tour De France for drug use. It amazes me the number of people that come in our shop that are shocked at this. There hasn't been a tour in a decade that hasn't been rocked by a drug scandal - why the shock?

It's no defense, but no other sport requires their athletes to do what professional road cyclists do. European pro riders will race in excess of 120 times a year - that's once every three days....at their limit...most of the time for more than 4 hours at a time. The other days they are riding at least three hours during training - some days more than twice that.

The drug tests are getting more sophisticated, but so are the chemists. I don't see it stopping anytime soon. Just watch a single day of coverage of the Tour. You have never seen more rabid fans in your life. I dont' think Americans can really grasp just how huge this sport is in other parts of the world. Win a stage in the Tour De France and you are a hero in your country for life.

Cycling is doing all it can to rub off the tarnished image, but no other sport has been rocked more by rampant drug use. I'm not one of those that thinks they should just "open up" the sport and allow drugs. I'm all for fighting the good fight, but I think it's all for naught.

This n' that

2008-07-16T08:45:00.004-04:00

That's Emile Abraham from Trinidad in front - he's a pro for Team Type 1 and won the overall title this past weekend. I'm sitting fourth, but going nowhere... Below is me leading Dan Holt (he finished second overall) and the legs you see are none other than former Olympian and multi national champion, Kent Bostick. This is coming around turn 4...they both passed me by the finish line :(

As some of you know, I raced at the track last weekend. I didn't have any decent results, but I didn't embarrass myself either. I rode aggressively, and a few moves had a chance of paying off, but the legs just aren't there to race with guys that do this for a living. I finished in the pack during most of the races - good enough.

If I can find the time to put in some more short intervals and sprints, I'll probably race again in September. There are three Festivals of Speed at the track during the year - these are when the big boys show up, and last weekend was the second one.

On the job front, I've had a few letdowns in the last weeks. The job market is very tough. However, I have a couple of leads that may show some light soon. I don't want to get to excited, but we'll see.

Olivia is at Science Camp this week. She seems to be enjoying it. I want to do something special with her this weekend. I have been on edge lately and probably not the dad I want to be lately. Got to remember my priorities.

What is wrong????

2008-07-07T19:47:00.002-04:00

On the way to pick up Olivia from camp today a car turned in front of me. It was a Lexus with this sign on the side:

We make Custom Bras

Over 240 different size's

First of all, it's funny that a custom bra company is out there and this is the way they market them. Then, of course, there's the problem with the apostrophe.....How is it that I can't get a job writing or editing, but the G.D. moron that a) sells custom bras, or b) makes custom signs is allowed to walk through life unmolested for his stupid use of an unnecessary apostrophe?

I know, you're thinking that he's on another rant. Not so - just making a point. In fact, I'm doing my damnedest to adopt a positive attitude. It ain't easy lately, but I'm determined to do it. It's almost scary how much I've gotten accomplished in the last week. My life and my home are close to being in order. All I need now is a regular schedule and gameful employment. My self imposed deadline of August 1 is fast approaching.

I've made mention a couple of times lately that I would love "a la carte" cable. After all, I only watch about 5 or 6 channels - none of them are a major network. I really enjoy Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations. He travels the world, sampling food and hanging with locals. I watch Family Guy every night before bed. I watch old movies on AMC and TCM. I like Man Vs. Wild and Dirty Jobs on Discovery.

Damn, am I getting skinny... Weight loss at my age should be a good thing, and I certainly could have used a few less pounds. Unfortunately, now none of my pants fit. They literally fall off of me. I'm the lightest I've been in 11 years.

I hurt my back doing a can opener for Olivia at the pool on Saturday. How in the heck do you hurt yourself doing that? It wasn't a triple flip or anything. Ah, I love getting older.

On The Road Again?

2008-07-01T20:19:00.007-04:00

OK, OK, I said the last post was it for a while, but this is too funny not to share.

Anyone who's ever done a monotonous sport knows what it's like to let their mind wander. Oftentimes, if you're not wearing an iPod, you'll get a tune in your head. Chances are it will be some stupid song that you wouldn't admit you like, but really do - something by Wham, Culture Club or Hall & Oates. Possibly some other "are they gay or just close friends?" duo of the early 80's. Today, on my ride to work, I got a song in my head....The theme from "Alice". Uh, yeah, you know how it goes - "There's a new girl in town and she's looking good. There's a fresh freckled face in the neighborhood..."

Are you fucking kidding me?!!! I don't know that I watched that show more than five times, and it's got to be 25 years old. Not a single redeeming quality - no good looking chick, no funny character, no real plot at all, unless you consider the struggling single mom who works slinging hash scenario interesting and heartstring pulling. Alice was about at hot as the Beiring Sea....But there it was, going over and over in my head. Couldn't shake it no matter how hard I rode or tried to deprive my brain of oxygen...."Early to rise, Early to bed. In and between I cooked and cleaned and went out of my head.."

It's been a long time since I read the classics, but if I recall, in Dante's Inferno there are long descriptions of the various levels of Purgatory. You're certainly not in Heaven, but you're not far from Hell. In these rooms are people in various stages of uncomfort, serving their endless time. Dante was probably right to scare us into wishing for either extreme over Purgatory. It would remind you too much of when you were living - toiling away with some douchebags who had similarly screwed up their lives.

I will be in a room with a bunch of other morons. We will be forced to watch silent episodes of Hee-Haw while a continuous loop of "Alice's Theme" plays on a loudspeaker - the volume just high enough to be slightly distorted as to annoy the living shit out of you. It will be akin to Chinese water torture. Every five minutes, Mel will scream at Flo to get back to work and Vera will have another one of her nervous attacks. Just for shits and giggles we'll all have hair like Alice's son, Tommy. You know, that shitty long, over the ears, late 70's 'do that made everybody look like they just took a hit from a bong or were an extra in a cheap porn flick. Think Leif Garret before rehab.

Every four hours a nurse will come by and give us a Viagra. The only problem is that our hands will be tied behind our back, and a cellophane covered copy of Boobs N' Buns will be just out of reach. You'll spend the next four hours listening to Alice's theme, looking at those big knockered girls that pop up out of the cornfield on Hee-Haw, hoping to God that you don't suffer the dreaded "erection lasting four hours or more" side effect of the little blue pill.

Of course, you have to believe in Heaven and Hell...and I often sit on the fence. Really, you have to be a masochist to believe in God, but there are times when I just have to believe there is a God of some sort. If so, He's (notice I capitalized the "H" in He....just in case He's reading this and has his AP Style Guide by his side)...anyway, He's been kind of a prick lately (sorry, man, I just call it like I see it), but today He showed me that He's got a pretty funny sense of humor, too.

God, Kiss my grits...

End of the line...for now

2008-06-27T09:39:00.003-04:00

The Short Bus is going in for repairs. It's one thing to provide fun and witty posts, but another when they start to get too personal and negative. Time for an oil change...or maybe this will become one of those buses you see rusting in a Kudzu overgrown backyard in rural Georgia. Time will tell.

Nineteen

2008-06-19T21:49:00.002-04:00

Paul Hardcastle wrote a hit song in 1985(?) simply called "Nineteen". It referred to the average age of a soldier in the Vietnam War. Not exactly uplifting...but a pretty good beat, nonetheless.

Nineteen was the number my dad used most commonly when racing cars. Naturally, it's been a number I've tried to acquire in every sport I've done. The first time I remember having the number 19 was by pure coincidence...or was it?

I knew I liked to run at an early age. In middle school I competed in some summer track meets. In Junior High I was part of my first organized team. During the first couple of weeks of practice the coaches made us run long distance, regardless of your event, to "weed out" the weak people. I ran like a scalded dog during those first weeks.

There were 40 pairs of sweats that the school owned. The first day of practice they were handed out to the 9th graders, but could be "earned" by lowerclassmen who worked hard and showed promise. At the end of the first week there would be a list posted of those who had earned (and lost) sweats. As an underclassman, you were expected to go to the locker of the person whose sweats you earned and ask them for them....talk about intimidating.

I don't remember the name of the guy whose sweats I was to take after that first week, but I remember he was BIG. I bucked up, walked over and said "I believe I'm supposed to get your sweats". He wasn't happy, but handed them over. They were number 19.....I never gave them up.

Ther have been several instances where that number came up and I was pleasantly surprised. The fact that Olivia was born on June 19, at 8:19 didn't faze me. Obviously, today I interviewed for a job that I desperately want on the 19th. It's a small thread to hang on to, but I'll take it.

Happy Birthday, Olivia!

2008-06-19T21:36:00.006-04:00

Six years ago, about this time, Olivia was getting poop cleaned off of her while hanging out under incubator lights. I was the beaming proud father of a little girl. Today, that little girl read her own birthday cards....without my help.

I'm sure that everyone feels like their kids grow up fast. In reality, a lot has happened in that time. I feel like I've done all that I can to give her a decent life. She doesn't have happily married parents like I envisioned, but her mom and I have done what we can to make sure she feels loved and we've probably done a better job than most at letting her know that her parents don't hate each other.

Today was my interview with Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. I took a one hour writing test that was excruciating. It wasn't perfect, but I don't think that I did so miserably as to take myself out of the running. Then it was on to a one hour interview with a panel of four. They took turns asking 10 different questions. I was to answer with examples of how I had handled problems. It actually went very well. I think I used a wide variety of examples that were pretty pertinent to the questions. I got a good vibe from the four people that might one day be my colleauges.

Apparently there will be a "phase II" interview for those that make the cut in the preliminary interviews. I'm pretty confident that I'll be called back, but I have to wait at least a week before they make their decisions. The pressure has made me sick to my stomach. This is a job I not only want, but need.

Headed home to NC to see my parents this weekend. I need some time away to unwind.

2008-06-15T21:51:00.003-04:00

What a week/weekend.

Olivia finished High School Musical Camp on Friday with a show at camp. I was able to alter my schedule to go watch. What a production. Olivia did wonderful. Caught it on tape and am trying to figure out how to put a clip of it on the old blog. We'll see. I watched the tape with her this morning and teared up a bit.

Olivia had a birthday party yesterday - I wasn't able to make it because of work. This morning I went and got her a bagel and was able to spend about an hour with her for Father's Day, then off to work again.

I have an interview for a job that I really want on Thursday. I am calling on all my resources and contacts to help me out. I haven't interviewed in years, but I'm thinking I'll do OK. I have to take a writing test, which in the past has never scared me. Now I'm nervous as hell.

I can feel the tension returning like I had when I was going through my divorce. There were times when I could barely get out of bed from the muscle spasms I had in my back. It's on the verge of locking up again, but I'm just punishing myself with exercise the last few days. I lead the group ride that leaves from our shop this morning. I usually ride easy, but I drilled it a few times and left everyone on every hill we climbed.

There are some other things that are just crappy in my life right now, but I'd just rather not spill my guts on the internet. If I landed this job my life would improve in so many areas.

Tiger Woods may be the most amazing athlete I've ever seen. If you don't think golf is a sport, that's fine, but I've never seen someone with more mental toughness and confidence than that guy. For the amount of time the guys spends in the spotlight he's also the closest to a pure role model that a kid could have. Not many of those left anymore.

PS - Finished second Friday night at poker. Got my money back and enough more to half fill the car with gas - not bad. I was outchipped by a bunch when it got down to Matt and myself. I won 14 straight hands. Then I went all in with pocket 10's. Matt called with King/Jack of spades. He hit three straight cards to make a flush. Kind of a crappy way to lose the hand, but I played it correctly.

It's in the cards

2008-06-12T14:54:00.004-04:00

Haven't talked about poker much because I haven't played much lately. I took a 4 month hiatus from my regular game because finances are just too tight to risk losing. However, I played a few weeks ago and looked back at my "poker log" and realized that playing poker (in my case) is rarely not profitable!

I've been playing with the same group of guys for over 8 years. We typically have a $60 buy-in. Depending on how many of us play, the winner usually takes home about $200. We'll pay 3 positions if 6 or more play - 3rd just gets back his buy-in.

When I played a few weeks ago it came down to Robert and me. We both knew we'd make money, so we decided it was late and we'd just split the top two positions - each of us got about $125. I'm going to use my winnings to play again tomorrow night.

When I got home, I entered my winnings into my poker log and realized that I had just exceeded $7,000 in gross winnings since I started keeping track! I've got a net gain of just under $5,000, and I calculated that I either break even or win money 59% of the time I play.

What's more interesting is my success in "big" games. We used to hold a 64 man tournament every year. I played in it twice and won it all the last time (about $2300). We stopped that tournament about 4 years ago, but we still try and have at least one game of 24 or more guys. I've made it to the final table, meaning I get paid, in 4 of the 7 times we've played - winning it all once, finishing 3rd another time. I also won the only casino tournament I've ever played in at the Stratosphere in Las Vegas.

Many will argue that poker is luck. Not really. There wouldn't be professional players if it just came down to luck. I play an aggressive game and I'm good at reading my opponents. I win more hands forcing others to fold when I know they have a better hand than me. From what I've watched and read, this is what seperates the pros from the joes.

Another observation I made (no surprise here) is that I play better sober - not a drop. I stopped drinking at all while playing a couple of years ago. In the past, I'd have a beer an hour - no, I've never driven home even buzzed. I just don't concentrate as well.

I'm not gonna get rich playing the 6 guys in my group, but I usually like my odds of being able to treat myself to a nice dinner that weekend!

Ground Zero

2008-06-09T14:28:00.003-04:00

The shit is about to hit the fan. I'm officially fed up with my life the way it is. Last week, I made a deadline - August 1. I'll be mowing lawns or working at a new career. It's not what I'd call "set in stone", but it's as definitive as I can be right now. Anybody that reads this: If you need someone with above average intelligence and a willingness to do almost anything then contact me. I'm tired of trying to figure out what I want to do with my life. I know I can do whatever is set in front of me. Working retail hours for lousy pay is not my idea of fun anymore. I think that I've been pretty good at just about everything I've ever done, so bring it on.

Every day has a goal from here on out. It may not be a big goal...hell, it may not even be a goal that "moves me forward", but goals will be met regardless. Today began as "organize your fucking life" day. It's 2:30 and I've filled 4 garbage bags full of shit, with more to come.

Olivia is at High School Musical Camp this week. I couldn't make it up if I tried. Bottom line: she's excited and, therefore, I'm excited. I'll pick her up at 5:30 today and I think we're going to go watch Kung Fu Panda....or some such nonsense. She may spend the night with me tonight. This morning was the first time I've seen her in a week. Last week she took tennis and swim lessons at her grandmother's. She seems to really like tennis. She hits the ball really well for a 5 year old.

Back to cleaning.

Bump N' Grind...and Cuss

2008-06-02T08:37:00.003-04:00

I know now why it's been over 13 years since I last raced a mountain bike.

The Bump N' Grind is the largest mountain bike race in the southeast. I felt a little nauseaus driving to the race site and seeing just a mob of racers.

I just didn't have the time or confidence to ride my old bike. My fork was shot and the hodge podge of parts I was going to use just didn't work well together, so I borrowed a Litespeed from the Fizik rep. I spent my warm up increasing the height of the saddle until I felt comfortable, then went to stand in the ridiculous staging line. I had no idea what kind of competition there would be or where I stood fitness-wise.

I decided I'd start the race like cyclocross race and go out hard and try and defend my position. I got a good start and rode the first mile in 5th. We hit a short road and I knew we were transitioning into the singletrack section where passing would be harder. I dove inside two guys on the transition and rode third for the next couple of miles. My lack of technical skills left me going wide on some corners and bouncing off some trees, but I managed to stay upright....until.

We started catching groups of slower riders that had started ahead of us about 4 miles in. It is hard to get by them on the narrow trails. One guy told me to pass on his left after the next corner. In my eagerness to get by I overlapped his wheel - he went right, I turned left, but my tire was on the right side of his rear sending me hard into the ground. I had a yard sale - shit went everywhere. Water bottle gone, all my stuff to change a flat littered the forest. I got back up losing two positions - my handlebars askew, but no time to straighten them.

I regained composure as we hit a jeep trail that was wider. The riders in front of me seemed to be standing still and I just laid the hammer down. I moved into second and was feeling incredible physically. Then I started to feel it.....a flat. Of course, all my stuff was gone. I cussed a bit and started walking. A few minutes passed and a guy stopped and said he had seen me earlier riding strongly and that I could have all his stuff. Wow. He handed me a tube, two CO2 cartridges, and adapter and some tire levers. I started changing the flat only to realize that his adapter didn't fit his cartridges! I got just enough air to get going for another mile before another flat. I walked about half a mile until I came upon an old dude sitting on the side of the trail. This little encounter could take up an entire post, but the gist is - he had a pump, a tube and after an agonizing 5 minutes I was on my way.

I knew I was long out of contention, but I had to get rid of my anger and I knew that the big two mile climb I had been dreading was coming up. .... I hammered up that fucking climb like I had wings. Every pedal stroke pissed me off more because I'm not a natural climber. I couldn't believe how strong I felt and all I could think about was how I would have finished very well if I didn't have mechanical gremlins. I started counting riders as I passed them just to give myself motivation. I passed 32 riders over the two mile climb. I bombed the next downhill section into the "rock garden" and into Blood Rock.

Blood Rock was more than I had even been lead to believe. Throngs of people screaming as riders approached a ridiculous series of huge rocks in the trail - all while going downhill. Many people advised me to get off and walk this section. I was pissed and rode it - almost to my demise and to the cheers of drunk mountain bike fans. I nose-wheelied off the last drop-off, a sure trip to the ER if I didn't land it. Blood Rock behind me and still feeling good. Then, in one of the smoothest sections of the course......another flat. Day over....

To say I enjoyed the 5 mile walk to the finish would be stupid, but I needed just about that distance to gain my composure. Everybody I had spent the last half hour passing rode by. Men, women, parapalegics, dogs, snails, turtles. I walked across the line alone, covered in mud, a little blood, and dragging my flat tired bike all alone. To add insult to injury, I was officially scored as DNF. Didn't even get credit for my hike and bike.

The only solace I got was that I was just one of tons of people that got flats. The trailside was a myriad of people changing tires as the brutal course took its toll. One guy rode by me on a downhill with no chain. I know one local rider who had three flats as well, but had all the tools to get them all changed. I have a hard time wanting to compete in a sport where mechanical failures have way too much of an influence on the results.

If I had a normal job with weekends off and the money to race I'd have a real dilemma right now. Would I sulk off, justified that I was stupid to ever try it or would I train my ass off and get some redemption on this stupid sport? One day I'm going to grow up and just do things for fun - right now I'm just pissed off.

this week

2008-05-29T07:47:00.002-04:00

Working a bike race on Saturday for the bike shop. I'll be the "holder" for the time trial...should be a lot of fun, not. Saturday night I'll head to Alabama for the Bump N' Grind mountain bike race. I'll be helping some of the Sorella cycling girls team, and, if I can get my 15 year old mountain bike together, I'm gonna race. Blue Bicycles has offered me one of their team bikes to race, but I know my history with mountain biking and I'd rather risk my own stuff than destroy one of their bikes!

The news keeps getting worse about friends and crashes. A local rider who I've only met briefly was hit by a car while warming up for a race last weekend and is in intensive care, soon to undergo about 10 hours of facial reconstruction surgery. Just heard yesterday that my good friend Steve was in a racing accident in Chicago this past weekend - broke at least 8 ribs and punctured a lung. I don't know what's going on, but I sure hope it stops soon.

Olivia started the first of her summer camps this week. She'll spend the night with me tonight because I won't see her for a while as she goes to spend next week with her maternal grandmother. She'll be taking tennis lessons while there. I have gone to the courts with her three times in the last week. She's actually picking it up very well. I'll have her out playing with my brother and sister soon - both much better players than me.

When I make my millions I'm gonna hire a guy (or a cute girl) just to follow me around and tell me where my cell phone, wallet and car keys are.

Mortality

2008-05-19T09:53:00.004-04:00

13 years or so ago I called my mom. I had about 3 hours of sleep on a Naugahyde couch in an apartment with no air conditioning that I was sharing with about 6 other cyclists. The night before I had crashed hard on the track. I woke up on a backboard, totally unaware of where or who I was. About 6 hours later I was discharged from the hospital in the middle of the night, after spending a few hours with Nurse Ratchet, who informed me that she was tired of stitching up "you crazy cyclists". Here's a tip, bitch: Don't work in the ER of the closest hospital to the most competitive velodrome in the world.

My friends had accompanied me and drove me home. Unfortunately, they were all gone when I woke up back at the apartment. We were all supposed to leave at 6am to head to US Track Nationals. They left, I stayed. I was under strict orders not to drive a car for 10 days as I had suffered a pretty nice concussion along with losing about half the skin on my right side, several cracked ribs, a sprained wrist, a swollen shut left eye, and half of one of my front teeth was missing. When I called my mom she immediately knew something was wrong. All I could tell her was that I hurt all over as I started crying like a five year old that wants her ice cream.

That day, my coach told me I needed to ride my trainer because I had to keep the blood flowing. I rode for ten minutes before I realized I couldn't even balance myself on a stationary bike.

In the past week, three of my friends have been hurt pretty badly in seperate bike accidents. Ryan may never walk again (he had surgery on Friday to try and relieve the paralysis)....Brendan looks like he was beaten by an angry mob, left to bleed a while, then beaten again for good measure... and Amy (who I haven't talked to) apparently has at least one broken bone.

Brendan, you weren't pretty before...and you sure aren't now, bro'

During the first race my mom went to watch me she got to witness a crash in the race before mine, front and center. She immediately turned to me and said she'd pay for a year of car racing if I'd quit bikes then and there.

I've been around car racing my entire life. I know only a handful of people that have been seriously hurt. I don't know a friend of mine that HASN'T been in some sort of bike wreck. I've been in two races where riders died. I have arthritis in my hip from a wreck that will never go away. I like to think I have an incredible pain tolerance, but that really doesn't matter, because for the first time in my life I'm a little scared to ride a bike.

Friday

2008-05-16T08:31:00.002-04:00

Happy Birthday, Mom!

No big plans for the weekend. I have to work at the shop both days. Unfortunately, I'm going to miss Olivia's last soccer game of the season and her gymnastics recital. If the motivation to get out of retail wasn't strong already, missing events like this just make me more determined.

Olivia brought up the "damn treehouse" the other day. She reminded me that I said I would build one in Spring. "Well, Daddy, it's spring". She didn't seem too upset when I told her that it probably wouldn't happen this year. I took her for ice cream and she seemed to forget about it.

What a week!

2008-05-15T18:42:00.003-04:00

EDIT: Believe it or not, Comcast was able to retrieve my e-mails and all is well. Kudos to them. Now I feel better about the huge amount of dough I pay just to have access to the silly internet!

So, I logged into my e-mail this afternoon....nothing. All of my e-mails are gone - from the inbox to the "sent" files. Comcast has no idea what happened, but they are "looking into it". Somehow I doubt they have a dedicated place for my e-mails in cyberspace besides right where they've always been.

Shit happens in 3's, or so they say. I've had my share this week.

Life is Good

2008-05-15T10:28:00.004-04:00

Excuse this emotional post. I'll be sure to follow it up shortly with something funny and politically incorrect.

I was raised to take care of myself. I was provided everything I needed to be successful in life - including parents that instilled a good work ethic, morals, respect, a sense of humor and a positive outlook on life. My brother, my sister, and I knew that my parents would always be there for advice, a helping hand, an open door to visit and unconditional acceptance of our friends and those that we love/loved.

I never expected or wanted to ever ask my parents for financial support, a place to live or to bail me out of mistakes... and, for the most part, I never have. I've made plenty of mistakes, but I've managed to work my way through them. Call them "life lessons", if you will.

My parents jumped to help me twice in the past couple of months when I needed them. It didn't matter that I haven't been the model son the last few years. I've been caught up in my own self-absorbed world. Granted, I've been through a lot, but I tend to internalize things instead of reaching out. I don't communicate much when I'm embarrased or disappointed in the direction my life is going. It's probably just the opposite of what one SHOULD do. You can tell when things are going well in my life - you usually hear from me! When they aren't, I tend to clam up.

I want to be the type of parent that mine are to me. I'm 41 years old and shouldn't need to ask or expect anything, yet they overlook my faults and help me out. I'd love to say that life isn't fair sometimes, but ultimately we are all responsible for where we are and what we've become.

As I said, I've screwed up plenty in my life, but one thing I know is that I'm a pretty good parent to my daughter. I think I'm better than a lot of dads that actually live with their children. I may not have much to give to her, but I hope (and think) that I am "there" for her. She's five years old, but knows that I love her and will always be her dad. Sometimes, I can even see that contentness in her eyes - and that makes me happy.

The Weekend

2008-05-12T13:36:00.002-04:00

Spent the weekend with the 'O' Show. I seem to always say it, but she's really growing up too fast. Bear came over for the night and he was in the bushes in the backyard and I couldn't see him. I asked Olivia where he was, and she said "I don't know. Running around in La La Land, I guess." What kind of response is that??

We picked flowers in my yard for her mom for Mother's Day. My house has a bunch of neat flowers & plants that the old lady that lived here before planted. This year, some Irises came up that weren't here last year. I've got several rose bushes, as well. Olivia grabbed one, forgetting that they have thorns. The tears flowed and she reached out for me to hug her. She's growing up, but it's nice to know she still needs me.

Did some decompressing this morning by working in the yard after a busy week last week. Gotta start enjoying life again. I'm trying to get a new perspective. I sat at a birthday party this past weekend and just listened to the mothers - complaining about their busy schedules, annoying in-laws, sagging real estate, and un-involved fathers. There's got to be more to life than that. Life's full of positives that we often overlook, including myself.

It's Friday.

2008-05-09T09:32:00.002-04:00

The good news: I didn't damage the bike or wheels I borrowed last weekend, and I made $50 for finishing 10th. The bad news: The field was small and I was never in contention past the first two laps. I felt bad warming up and it never got better. I think that burning the candle at both ends is catching up to me - I've been exhausted this week. Last night, I took two sleeping pills to see if I could get some adequate rest. No luck. I took them at 9:30, didn't fall asleep till well past midnight and was up at 6:05.

Olivia has two more weeks of Kindergarten. I can't believe how fast she is growing up. The other day she remarked that she's glad that people don't go smelling other people's private parts like dogs do. Quite the observer, that little girl of mine.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom! I love you.

not smart

2008-05-03T23:14:00.002-04:00

So, I'm sitting here at 11:30pm and I just finished tuning the bike I'm going to try and race in the morning. It's a bike I'm borrowing...that I've never ridden...on wheels I'm borrowing...and I put a small allen key through the tip of my thumb this afternoon....should make for a stellar race tomorrow.

My thumb is throbbing and should probably have a stitch or two in it, but I don't need to get drunk enough to do it myself, and I'm certainly not going to the emergency room.

I'm going to take some Advil and see if I can get some rest.

Time...

2008-04-30T09:38:00.005-04:00

I've come to the conclusion that some people are definitely better time managers than others. I am not. I have found myself dumbfounded when I think about CEO's of major companies and how they manage to do all they do. Granted, I've also come to realize that a lot of "successful" people are getting successful while neglecting their spouses, children, friends, health, etc., but I'm still amazed.

I am on a schedule where I am working (albeit not always 8 hours a day) every 12 out of 14 days. I feel like I just don't have time to do anything. Between work, spending time with Olivia, trying to exercise, chores around the house, and a sliver of a social life, I just don't get some things done. My "to do" list (if I wasn't scared to make one) would be two full pages.

I'm not really working out as much as I'd like, but I still seem to be losing weight. Maybe it's stress, maybe it's just being on the go all the time. Maybe it's because I'm not eating as much because even though I'm working more, I still dont' have any money! It's not a bad problem to have, I guess.

Time to spend some time researching time management...

Tour De Georgia

2008-04-25T08:16:00.005-04:00

Went to Road Atlanta yesterday for the Team Time Trial stage of the Tour De Georgia. It was good fun. I took my camera, but as is the norm lately, something wasn't working quite right and I got exactly two pictures. The first one is of the Rock Racing Team Provost motorhome - taken for my parents. This was one sweet rig:

For those that don't know about Rock Racing, here's a very short synopsis: Michael Ball owns Rock N' Republic jeans - think 300 bones+ for a pair o' jeans. He's a prick, but a marketing genius. He supposedly raced bikes in the late 80's. He decided last year that he needed to start a pro team. He hired a few riders that have either failed drug tests in the past or are under suspicion for using drugs. He spend large amounts of dough buying team vehicles like the one above and an outlandish uniform for his team. He has since publicly "dissed" promotors, riders, his OWN sponsors, etc. In the meantime, creating more publicity for his team than Lance Armstrong could.

He has umbrella girls, an enormous "posse" of mechanics and hangers-on. He had a large merchandise booth pumping techno music and plasma TV's hyping a very well done video of the team. While I'm pissed that he's chosen to hire known cheaters, I can't help but respect the sheer genius of it all. He's ensuring that cycling will continue to be the farce it has become over the past two decades. Oh, well.

Here's a pic of the Jelly Belly team. My friend Thomas is their team mechanic and I spent quite a bit of time yesterday hanging out with him and the team.

I'm pressed for time, but I'll post again later this weekend some pics of a project bike I've been working on.

Bear on the catwalk

2008-04-16T09:37:00.006-04:00

There are some strange things that excite a 5 year old girl. A couple of weeks ago Olivia and I put her Hannah Montana nightshirt on her new dog, Bear.... We also added her ballet tutu. Admittedly, it was pretty damn funny:

This morning, while at her mom's trying to get her dressed, I put her "hoodie" sweatshirt on him. I pulled the hood over his head and he was one dope dog. Olivia laughed until she almost peed herself. Her mom gave me the disappointed look that I'm very used to and said "she's definitely your daughter".

On the way to school all she could talk about was how we need to have a fashion show with Bear. We'll put him in her two piece swimsuit, her robe, a tank top, a sweater, flip flops, sunglasses....the list went on and on. I'm going to have to chronicle it with photos.

The dog is so docile and has no idea what she has planned for his furry ass.

Back in the saddle again...

2008-04-13T14:29:00.002-04:00

Made it through my first race of the year with most of myself intact. I actually rode very well. I got involved in a crash about half way through. Fortunately, I fell on top of one of the guys that started the wreck. I messed up my bike a bit and now I have a strange piece of bone drifting around my elbow. I feel like someone hit my elbow with a hammer. Nothing much I can do about it though.

Got back in the race after getting a new rear wheel from the pits. I rode at the front most of the race. There were at least 4 other wrecks and I was nervous. I had planned on putting in a good sprint at the end, but with 4 laps to go I attacked. I stayed off the front for about a lap and a half before getting reeled back in. I was in the top 10 coming out of the last corner, but just didn't have much left. All in all, not bad for as little training as I've been able to do.

It felt good to talk to a lot of guys I haven't seen in a while. The only criterium I did last year, I rode in the ProAm race. Glad I raced the Masters category yesterday. The pros were just hauling ass, and I'm positive I just couldn't hang with them. The best part of the weekend was that several people told me how strong I looked and rode. I think that anyone that competes, no matter the age or sport, likes to hear compliments like that.

I'm pretty sure that part of the reason for my rise in fitness, despite little training, is that I've mysteriously lost about 10lbs the last month and a half. I'm not sure I can attribute it to one thing. Hope it's not a tapeworm or something!

Random shizzle

2008-04-09T22:51:00.005-04:00

Gonna race my bike this weekend in Chattanooga. I got a little confidence by finishing second at the "Tuesday Night World Championship" - also know as the practice criterium here in Marietta. Granted, a few of the really good guys sit out the sprint at the end because there's no point in getting killed when you're just racing for pride, but I still felt pretty good considering I'm only riding a couple of time a week.

I'm dog sitting my daughter's new dog while she is at Sea World. He chewed through the cable to my TV. I hope she wasn't too attached to him.

The Tennessee women's basketball team just won their 8th NCAA title. That's domination, even if it is "just" a women's team.

I've started writing a book. I may never finish it. Doesn't matter - I've sworn I'd one day write one.

How and who decides what my horoscope is each day? I need that freakin' job....

Started working for Bavarian Soundwerks yesterday. I'll only be there a couple of days a week. My friend and racing partner, Jason, owns the company. They do high end car audio components primarily for BMW. It will bring in some much needed extra cash right now.

Kyle sent me this e-mail this morning: "Bored. Check out cockbrutality.com". I'm considering an intervention. The guy is clearly disturbed.

Happy Birthday, Jodi! Happy Anniversary, Mom & Dad! Love you all.

underwear

2008-04-02T09:19:00.006-04:00

ME: "Hello"

OLIVIA'S MOM: "Olivia has a question that I think you should probably answer"

ME: "OK, put her on."

OLIVIA: "Daddy, this is a question about your privates."

ME: "Uh, my privates? OK."

OLIVIA: "You know how boys' penises are long and stick out? How come when you're wearing pants it doesn't stick out?"

ME: "Well, boys wear underwear just like you and it keeps their penis close to their body so it doesn't stick out."

OLIVIA: "Ohhhhhhhh! Underwear! I didn't think of that." (as though I had just demystified Euclidean geometry)

I smiled, thinking how well I had diverted a possible cornicopea of sex questions....Until I hung up. Then I started thinking...Why is my five year old concerned about penises sticking out? More so, why is my five year old even thinking about penises at ALL? Why does my five year old think penises are "long" (Well, she has seen me getting out of the shower...so that answer is obvious)

I've said it since she was born; I love my little girl, but I want her to morph into a little boy at about 10 years of age. Maybe I'm wrong....Let the metamorphasis begin NOW, while I'm relatively sane.

OK, so maybe I'll give it a shot

2008-03-31T13:17:00.002-04:00

So, a couple of weeks ago I sent a mass e-mail to my cycling friends. Told them that I wasn't going to do any road or track racing this year. No shock, I did one criterium and one track race at the end of last year....and those were my first races since hanging up the shoes in '97. Cyclocross was a blast, but I just didn't hold on to the fitness after that.

Finally, I'm starting to feel OK on the bike. I may try and do the Festival of Speed at the good old Dick Lane Velodrome in May. Problem is, I'm still at Category 1 on the track. I'll probably just pick and choose which races I want to do that weekend. Track racing usually involves about 5 different races in a night and most people do them all for the "Omnium", which is an overall score (and usually pays the most) from all events.

I'm in no shape to do a points race against a Pro 1/2 field, but I may be able to get lucky in a scratch race or miss & out. If I can get some sprint work in, there's a chance I could squeak out something in the keirin. This is all assuming I can keep feeling OK, and I don't have to work that weekend.

I don't know who these people are, but it's part of the reason I can't get totally psyched about psychling again...

A day in the life of a Professional Cyclist

2008-03-29T22:33:00.003-04:00

The last two years I raced bicycles I filed a W-2 that included the job of "Professional bicycle racer". I held a Pro license and had a couple of contracts with sponsors. By no means did I ever "make" money racing a bicycle. As a pro you are entitled to claim losses, which I did. Sure, there were a few weekends where my winnings outweighed my expenses, but it was certainly the exception and not the norm.

Today I made $150 riding my bike for two hours. A customer who happens to own a very successful commercial real estate investment company wanted someone to ride with him this weekend. I volunteered. He simply needed the encouragement of an experienced rider to take care of the logistics of planning the ride, route and pace.

We rode at a relatively leisurely pace until I suggested some intervals, to which he wholeheartedly agreed to. After our two hour ride, he took me to lunch and handed me $150 cash for "gas money"....uh, we drove HIS Lexus.

Long story short, he wants to ride again on Monday or Tuesday. I think I'll make the time!

While riding, we discussed his desire to implement a fitness program to his employees (roughly 8 or 9 people). These people are NOT athletes. He just thinks they'd benefit from some sort of individualized plan. On the way home I thought "why not me?". I just finished writing a proposal for his company and hatched Brookshire Fitness Solutions. It took all of 2 hours to write the proposal and design the logo. If it pays off, it will be time well spent. I'll let you know if anything comes from it. In the meantime, I'm enjoying my return to professional cycling!

The new dog

2008-03-24T11:04:00.001-04:00

Here's a pic of Olivia and Bear from this past weekend.

Spring is here

2008-03-21T09:56:00.002-04:00

Spring can't get here quick enough for me this year. I was cold all winter. Unfortunately, I've been feeling the affects of spring in the way of allergies all week. It seems to get worse each year. I may also be fighting a cold.

I went with three first round upsets in the NCAA tournament - only one of them pulled through. I've got Kansas winning it all. Sounds like most experts like UCLA. I'm really hoping for a Tennessee - UNC matchup in the Final 8. I only wish Dean Smith was still at the helm as the Volunteers sodomize the Tarheels in Charlotte.

Turkey bacon has less than half the calories of real bacon...and if you eat it often enough you'll forget how good real bacon tastes. Not a bad substitute.

Since I really don't have a mountain bike anymore, I borrowed one that we rent from work. It fits terribly and made for a most miserable ride yesterday. I rode with a friend that does long distance mountain bike races. She drilled me. I couldn't keep up on the hills at all. The allergies or the cold (if I've got one) have left me exhausted.

My phone is AWOL right now. Why do I have such a hard time keeping up with something that most people can't live without?

Next weekend Olivia has two birthday parties and a soccer game on Saturday, then another birthday party on Sunday. Her social calender is very busy.

I still prefer reading a newspaper or magazine over reading something on the internet.

If I put down some weed killer on my lawn this year I'm afraid all I'll have left is dirt.

Music for the 21st century

2008-03-19T21:47:00.003-04:00

If you haven't checked out the Music Genome Project at Pandora radio, you need to: www.pandora.com. You can type in your favorite artist and it will continuously play songs by artists similar to yours. You can add other artists and the site will evolve and become more specific. The best part is it's FREE!

I was trying to figure out a way to channel the music to my receiver so I could enjoy it over my better speakers, and my ones outside. I thought about a sound card or a digital-to-analog converter.....then I just bought an iPod headphone adaptor for $6 at Target. I plug it into the headphone jack on my computer then splice the seperate (L & R) audio cables into a traditional audio cable, plug it into the auxilary inputs and VIOLA! I may lose 1 or 2% in sound quality, but it's hardly noticeable. Sounds awesome!

I have about 7 different stations that I created. I love that I can get a consistent type of music with different artists and it plays forever. The artist, album and song title are there if you hear someone you like and want to go out and buy their album or download it from a music service. Sometimes I loathe the internet, but it definitely has its advantages.

Odds & Ends

2008-03-19T10:13:00.005-04:00

Might as well start calling this the "Olivia Bus". Had our parent/teacher conference yesterday as Olivia completed her third semester at school. She is doing great. Her teacher couldn't stop talking about how well she is doing. She said that Olivia is a perfectionist. She doesn't get that from her dad! It's funny, there are some things in my life that I am absolutely obsessive about....and other things that just "get done".

"Bear", as he's now been named, is doing well adapting to his new surroundings. Olivia loves that she has a dog. He's having some difficult with house training, but is a very sweet dog.

It's gonna rain like crazy again today, but I'm riding my bike to work.

Went to the Banff Film Festival on Monday night with a friend. It was phenomenal. It is a travelling show of 10 short adventure films from the week-long festival held in November. They had a drawing and I won a titanium camping cookset. Very nice. There was a film about some guys attempting to climb a natural stone arch in a bay somewhere off the Italian coast. The guy was attempting a very difficult move over an over, each time falling the 50 ft. into the water. When he finally pulled it off the crowd went nuts. Very breathtaking cinematography.

Everyone knows that I'll die a Republican, but I have noticed a real shift in my views on the environment the last decade or so. Watching films like the ones at the festival make me realize how valuable saving our natural resources is to enjoying life. Not yet ready to wear hemp sandals and turn vegan, but I think twice about how some of my actions affect the earth.

I work Saturday. Gonna go mountain bike riding on Easter for the first time in about 10 years.

Dog....Poop

2008-03-17T08:42:00.007-04:00

Highlights from the weekend:

Olivia's mom got her a dog yesterday. It is actually quite cute. They don't know exactly how old he is, but he's somewhere between 8 months and a year and a half. Looks like a small lab. He's brown - Olivia has decided to call him Hershey...or Chip....or Hot Chocolate....or Bear. He's very skinny under his full coat of hair. Pretty timid, but very loveable.

While I was working on teaching Olivia how to wipe her butt, she commented that one of her poops looked like a pickle.

Was supposed to go to the CDC Career Fair today, but it has been postponed due to damage to the Georgia World Congress Center from Friday's tornado. It's too bad - there were some good jobs I was looking forward to learning more about. I've discovered that I have a few contacts there that I didn't know about. I'm going to spend today trying to find out more about how I might get an early lead on something there.

I'm officially under 185lbs for the first time in about 5 years. I ran into a friend of mine I used to work with at the Chamber of Commerce at the grocery store last night. She is not under 185lbs....

Olivia for President

2008-03-05T21:47:00.004-05:00

Apparently, Olivia’s kindergarten class is learning a little about elections. They were assigned to make a campaign poster with a promise that they would keep.

Most kids wrote that they would promise to treat people nicely, give money to the poor or make recess last for 3 hours each day. My daughter, never one to mince words and get right to the point, wrote this:

As her campaign manager, I can tell you that she will definitely keep her promises....

Random shiznit

2008-02-29T12:28:00.008-05:00

This little blog o' mine is in danger of becoming stagnet. My certification in CPR expired years ago, but I'll give it an attempt:

Olivia started soccer again this week. I was happy to see her really charge the goal - she was a little timid last year. Now, if I can just teach her to throw some elbows and land some headbutts we'll be in business.

Our bike shop has to have a sitcom or docudrama in it to make us all millions. 5 full-time employees. Three of us are single dads with daughters. I can't decide whether it's funny or pathetic...

I'm ready for Spring, dammit.

Two people in the last month have told me I look like Kelly Slater (the surfer)...Uh, yeah, we both shave our head and have blue eyes. The similarities end there.

Cold pizza? Seriously, I don't get it. Might as well eat cold oatmeal.

Did you check out that couple that won the Lottery from Georgia last week? Holy shit! I'm reminded that people like that WIN the lottery because people like that PLAY the lottery. "As soon as we get Ethel's gout taken care of we're going on a Royal Carribean cruise. Then we're buying Bert that little Asian whore he's had his eye on at the strip club next to the truck stop..."

I don't like much music being made these days, but I do like Jack Johnson. I bought his latest album a couple of weeks ago and it's like Valium. C'mon, Jack, I didn't illegally download it, I BOUGHT it! You can do better than that.

On the way to school the other day, Olivia asked me if "God is naked?". How do you answer that? "No, honey, he usually rolls in an Armani suit. Now, Jesus, on the other hand, has no style at all. Birkenstock wearing hippie..."

A friend of mine is getting married for the second time next weekend. I thought I had something clever to write about that, but I don't.

My parents tried to call me from Mexican prison the other night. I told the guard I had never heard of them. My mom had apparently run nude through the streets of a local town during Siesta. My dad was behind her in a bull outfit. I guess they thought they were in Spain.

That last paragraph was a joke....I just need some spice today.

My brother once shaved his crack. Said he couldn't fart for a week....That's not a joke.....no matter how you look at it.

Peace out, bitches

Done before I started

2008-02-19T20:51:00.003-05:00

Didn't mean to write two negative posts in a row, but I'm done with my attempt to try and race a bike again. I'm giving the bike I've been loaned back and stopping the attempts to train when I know I just can't make the time or muster the enthusiasm.

I won't quit riding all together, but I'm just setting myself up to be disappointed if I try to race. I'm still a category 2 rider, which means I'd have to race with Pros most of the time. I could race masters, but I just don't think it will give me the rush I need. Cyclocross was different and new, but I've been a successful road racer and I just can't seem to adjust. My dad can probably relate to it. He was a National Champion in car racing, and I'm sure no matter how old you get it would be hard to go back to regional racing.

I was sick for two weeks and didn't pedal a stroke. Now, I just don't have the energy. I've ridden twice in 3 weeks and the season starts in a month. Riding, I had hoped, would be therapeutic. To a point it has been, but I need to compete to be happy.

I've got some serious issues I need to deal with in my life. Cycling will just have to wait.

Feeling pretty low

2008-02-18T21:19:00.002-05:00

Did you ever feel like you were the only person in the world dealing with the trials and tribulations of life? Surely it's selfish to believe that you are unique enough to be any different than anyone else.

Right now, I question whether I'm the person I think I am or want to be. I think everyone wants to think they are an honest, decent, intelligent, caring, friendly, successful, and driven person. I'm too confused and angry to know anymore.

I feel like a Robbie Williams lyric:

And you know and you know
Cause my life's a mess
And I'm trying to grow
so beforeI'm old I'll confess
You think that I'm strong
you're wrong
You're wrong

Pray for me Thursday at 5:15

2008-02-05T13:31:00.000-05:00

Olivia and I are finally going to the Hannah Montana 3D spectacular! OH MY GOD, I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!!!

So, for those of you that don't have kids, this thing is just a taped concert, essentially a movie....oh, yeah, in 3D. Her mom paid $32 for the tickets. No, the three of us aren't going, just me and Olivia. Seriously, I'm pretty sure I payed less for my first LIVE concert, and I doubt I'll even get a contact buzz. Of course, this is HANNAH MONTANA, not Loverboy.

I ventured to the other prepubescent girl craze this weekend - the American Girl store. Amazing. I had the typical "why didn't I think of this" thoughts, but I don't think my feeble mind is capable of the marketing ideas this place has. Unfortunately, we didn't have 4 hours (not kidding) to wait for a table at the Bistro, where they would serve a mini meal just like your daughter's (or gay son's) to your American Girl doll.

We also didn't have time to wait in line to dole out $20 to have her doll's hair styled. There are adult women who put your child's doll in a mini salon chair and style their hair to your liking. I'm sure tips are accepted.

One bonus (although I'm not in the market for one) was the droves of hot moms walking around in their hip "I want to be like my daughter" clothes. I don't venture to Alpharetta much, but there are distinctly two different types of moms walking around with their kids. You've got the Snoopy sweatshirt, hair stuck in the 80's, Keds-wearing moms and the "there's a chance I might get laid at the mall" moms - no inbetween. I put my blinders on, paid 100% attention to my daughter, gave the nice cashier all my money and left after a trip to the merry-go-round.