I forgot Saturday’s FFA — Sorry about that. Drew for 15 hours working on the Banjo book and didn’t get to my chores.
Ran 8 miles this morning and worked up a good sweat. It was cooler out than it has been, so I’m not complaining. I slept until 6, so it was a later run than I would have liked.
The big lug has been gone a year now. And like a forest after a catastrophic fire, our hearts are starting to heal and sprout new life. But it’s hard to believe Banjo died 365 days ago. Time flies when you’re trying to get by.
All I remember is that it was another rough day for him. My wife and kids were out of town and he had another vicious attack of pancreatitis during the night. (he’d worry and not eat, aggravating his diabetes and causing the attacks). I had him at the vet at 5:30 a.m. and he rallied just long enough to see his family one more time. But by evening he had gone back down hill and was whimpering from the pain. Even narcotic pain medication couldn’t bring him relief. We had to make the hardest decision we’ve ever had to make. He went to sleep one last time in my wife’s arms.
It was around 11:30 at night and the little brown dog with the big will to live was gone.
And at that moment, another little brown dog who would heal us was being born in Delaware. They passed on the Rainbow Bridge (He died at the same time she was born but on different days.Time zones are funny like that.)
Banjo was a rescue dog. We were his third and forever home. And because of it, he had a level of appreciation that couldn’t be matched. I’ve never seen an animal or human with his fierce spirit. His strong will to live will never be matched. He motivated me to get moving and chase my dreams.
Today I’ll honor his life by working on a book dedicated to that spirit. Banjo’s Dream will be out this fall — I hope it captures his incredible love of life.
I owe it to him. I owe it to my ‘Jo.
I watched everyone get their awards, had my picture taken with my line mates and limped home after last night’s PLS party. I felt let down — probably because it was over and because I’m really tired. I picked up my t-shirt and sticker, threw them in the backseat and limped home.
I had planned on running this morning and even got up at 4. But I went back to bed. My legs overrode my heart. I’ll run a long run tomorrow and will start my off-season training. I have a marathon to prepare for and I’m behind. My schedule this summer has not lent itself to training. And I’m about to start cranking out a children’s book. That’ll keep me very, very busy.
I’ll miss everyone on Monday morning. I’ll be out running somewhere, getting stronger and working on my overall fitness. I plan on running with some of my PLS friends, too, when I’m not running my hill training in the neighborhood. That will be fun.
But today is a day of rest and reflection. I have new goals to set. And I need to see what my fitness regime of the future looks like. A good sea captain always charts his course.
Good morning! Hope you have a great day! Here’s a painting I did of the State Capitol. It’s acrylic on canvas.
If so, you’ll avoid disappointment. And you’ll know true success.
My mom with her parents, Arthur and Dorothy Marshall.
I’ve always wondered what it was like for my grandparents during the Great Depression and then World War 2. I’m sure they were stressed out, worried about world events and wondering what kind of world their kids were going to live in. The economy probably frightened them, too. They had to be half-scared out of their minds. And I know they were just grateful to have jobs.
I wish my grandparents were still alive. I’d love to get their take on this crazy, messed-up world we live in today. They lived through a revolution. A complete change in the world.
Just like we are today.
The past five years have tested us. The heat of the Great Recession has turned our inner iron into steel. We’ve lost jobs and found three more to earn the same money. Our biggest asset, our homes, dropped in value. Technology blew up institutions we’ve known for our whole lives. The media, Post Office, even the way we get our movies has changed. Government’s role in our lives is changing, too. This is all happening around us. As Wall Street prospered, Main Street suffered. The Middle Class got battered like a ping pong ball in a tornado.
This isn’t an indictment against the rich or anyone else. It’s a wake up call for all of us. We have to stop watching Honey Boo Boo and staring at the computer screen for a few minutes and reflect where our lives are headed. What do we stand for? How can we adapt? We are busy playing Candy Crush while our worlds are being rocked. We have to wake up from our entertainment fueled sugar-rush and change with the times. Outrage isn’t enough either. It’s easy to be mesmerized by some media personality preaching outrage. The trick is to be outraged and DO something about it.
Start small. Begin in your own household. Clean up your world. Get your finances in order. Clean out a junk drawer. Spend time with your kids (if you have them.) Love your spouse (if you have one of those, too). Help a friend. Draw circles around your house. Reach out to your neighbors. Then your city or town. Help a struggling family. If you are a person of faith, act on it. Get busy on the local level. If we do that, the national stuff will take care of itself.
That’s what our grandparents did. They took care of things locally during the Great Depression and then saved the world during World War 2.
We live in a time of great change. So WWOGPD (what would our grandparents do)?
Get busy and change the world.
What’s one thing you can do to make your world better?
For the last day, we did the endurance run. What’s the endurance run? I like to think of it as the final test of PLS.
The drills are spread out all over the football stadium. And we ran between them, never stopping.
That’s one lap.
Last year, I got through it twice. This year, I did it THREE times.
I’m pleased. Very pleased. With today’s performance and the total 12 weeks. This time, I reshaped my body, lost a little weight and worked on my self-discipline. I managed to get out of bed at 4 a.m. when I didn’t feel like it. And I did what had to do to get better.
But I’m sad the 12-weeks are over. I was in an AMAZING line full of great people who pushed and inspired me. We managed the right balance of working hard and having fun. We didn’t just get in shape. We became friends. The coaches all were fantastic, too. They knew when to push and when to praise. They not only made us stronger physically, it made us better mentally. For me, it was worth every penny, minute and drop of sweat I invested in the program.
I’ll continue my Fit2Fat2Fit Blog, btw. There’s lots of exercise and diet related crud I can talk about. And I’ll be back with PLS this fall.
So, I leave you today with a list of the top 13 ways you know you’ve done PLS:
13. You have the sticker and the T-shirt.
12. You hear Will Norris in your sleep. “Crank it up!”
11. Your clothes are loose.
10. You’ve heard Paul use the F-word as every part of speech. (I mean the word “Fat,” of course)
9. You can inch-worm to the mailbox.
8. You find black rubber dots in awkward places where you shouldn’t find black rubber dots.
7. You’ll never like “Chips and Salsa” again.
6. You eat ibuprofen like Tic-Tacs.
5. Seeing a board laying on the ground makes you flinch.
4. You have “Can Bear Crawl 100 yards” on your resume.
3. You know someone with a bionic stomach, and his name is Clark.
2. You’ve made friends with some of the hardest working, most dedicated people in Mississippi.
1. Paul changed your life for the better.
See you tonight at the party!
Good morning! Last morning of workouts for a while. I’ll be up and running though. The 4 am club will still be meeting regularly. Since y’all like food, here’s my third painting I ever did. It’s a still-life of radishes.
I keep several books going at the same time. Right now, I am reading four books — yes, my brain is very ADHD. The one I pick up first thing before I work out is Time Warrior by Steve Chandler. Chandler, a motivational speaker, author and life coach, claims the book will teach you” how to defeat procrastination, people‑pleasing, self-doubt, over ‑commitment, broken promises and chaos.” Don’t know about you, but I’ve experienced a few of those in my life. So I’m reading the book — one short chapter at a time.
This morning’s chapter, Chapter 61, spoke to me. It’s titled, “Learning to welcome everything.” OK, I thought. I’m not so sure about this, but I’ll keep reading.
First sentence, “Imagine a life in which you are welcoming every circumstance.”
My first thought was, “Bull$#*^.” It was early and I was skeptical.
Chandler goes on to mention Lindsay Brady’s book on hypnosis, As the Pendulum Swings” and how it explains of perception as well as anything he has read. Brady, after working over 20,000 clients, discovered that perception is what really drives human behavior. That “we behave based on how we perceive things — not based on how things really ‘are.'”
OK, I can see that.
That falls into my belief that it’s not what happens to you, it’s how you react to it.
Sure, you’re on a plane that’s crashing, your perception is pretty accurate. But think about all the “bad” things in your life that are “terrible” but really aren’t. I’ll give an example how my perception changed yesterday. How the “bad” things quickly didn’t seem so bad.
Amy and I got hit with some pretty big bills. I was grumpy about it. I’m worried about my job, so therefore, money worries me (unless you’re Bill Gates, it probably worries you, too.). I had to go to the bank to put some money into our family account. I was grumpy as hell as the teller was figuring out my business deposit. I’m surprised I didn’t have black steam coming out of my ears. Then I checked my e-mail on my phone.
A good man that I know, a father and pillar of his community, has been diagnosed with a brain tumor.
I looked at my bank deposit slip and my attitude totally changed. My bad mood melted like sugar in hot tea. I have the money to pay the bills. I have the talent to make more money to cover future bills. I have my health to keep working. I don’t have cancer (and believe, I know what it’s like to have it.). I, unlike the man I respect, don’t have a brain tumor.
My attitude changed on immediately. I perceived the world in a different way.
Chapter 61 spoke to me this morning. I looked around after reading it and realized that my house was nicer. Amy was prettier as she slept. My children were more amazing. My job is better. Things are what they are. It’s up to me to “see them” as challenges and not problems. It’s up to me to make the most of them. It’s time for an attitude adjustment.
Because it’s not what happens to me. It’s how I react to them.
To quote former Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson, it is about perception.
What in your life can be better by a change in perception?
Order Time Warrior by Steve Chandler here.
Today was the next-to-the-last day of the Summer PLS training program and Clark & Co. served up a tasty breakfast of pain. There were six courses on the PLS buffet plus Clark’s famous Core-Crunch for dessert.
Items on the menu included:
It may not have been the hardest workout we’ve done this year, but it was easily in the top-five. I came off the Boards/Chips & Salsa winded and it took me until the Indian run to catch my breath. But I commented to my line-mate Liz that there is no way I could have done this level of workout 12-weeks ago. While I felt tired, I also felt extremely satisfied. I am very proud of everyone on the field today for making it to the next level.
So what’s next? Tomorrow is what they call an endurance workout. You go through the stations as fast as you can and non-stop for the whole hour. It’s really a lot of fun. (I did the circuit twice the last time I did it; this time I’m shooting for three). And then tomorrow night, we’ll have our end-of-the-session party. Top athletes will be named. Good food will be served. We’ll see what everyone looks like showered and dressed. A good time will be had by all.
The past 12-weeks have been amazing. I’m in the best shape I’ve ever been in. Now I’m going to take some time and plan out what I’m going to do to stay that way during the off time.
I look forward to the fall and my next serving of the breakfast of champions.
