fatty

In December I will have my seventh anniversary with my current company. To be successful in my current position I mostly rely on mental faculties. The tools that I commonly employ are, relationship building skills, technical knowledge, and the ability cover a lot of ground. Notice that these don’t include anything that even closely resembles physical activity, which is quite different from most all of the work I have ever done previous to beginning work in my chosen field. At first I did not think much about the change in work environment, but after a few years I began to notice horrifying changes; I began to get fat.

Getting fat is an interesting experience. It stalks you very slowly and patiently until one day you realize that your stomach feels disgusting underneath your shirt. Your belt buckle that once laid flat now looks downward toward your feet, almost like it’s embarrassed to around your waist. Maybe the most eye popping part of the experience is looking at a picture of yourself proudly displaying a round belly and cheeks that could be mistaken for a chipmunk’s. What’s more, nobody really has the gumption to tell you “Hey, by the way, you could stand to lose some weight.” You have to figure it out on your own.  

I have to say, though, that once you come to this realization the road back is every bit as intriguing. For the better part of my life when people spoke about exercise I would proudly say that my feelings on the subject were “no pain means no pain.” This made that first trip to the gym very awkward, but after about a year learning human nutrition and exercise physiology I am forced to admit that I was in error. In fact, learning the skill set required to accomplish losing my salesman’s body has been one of my more rewarding undertakings.  I expect too, that it’s much like anything else I have ever tried to do well; the more I learn, it seems the less I know. This seems to be the learning curve with anything that’s worth doing well. The major difference is this time I have foresight to understand this is how things work. This understanding has allowed me grow in this experience without arrogance or preconceptions that typically sets me back. Is that arrogant to say???

Anyway, I might have started rambling a little and if so; my apologies. My point here is to simply express the satisfaction I have found, in finding myself in a gym. For those of you that have known me well, I’m willing to bet you are as surprised as I am.

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. 

be good at it

We have all been trained to do something. It does not matter if the training came from formal education, or experience, or both, I think we all want to be the best at whatever we do. There are, no doubt, some people that have the talent and drive to be the best and some that don't, but I believe all most everybody possesses the desire to be the best. Of course I'm not blind to the exceptions to the rule; if my conjecture was 100% true well fare would not be as much of an issue as it is today. My point, though, is not to have a political dialog, but to reflect on the times when a person is able rise up and be extremely good at whatever it is they do.

It occurs to me that in order for a person to excel at anything certain conditions must be present. Even after someone has put vast amount of effort in becoming well versed in a discipline there must be some sort of an opportunity for a person to show case their talent. For some professions it seems this opportunity would be readily available, for example a professional athlete is able to look at a schedule months before a game and know that on that day he is going to have to be at his best. For most of us though, there is no off season and we have to be prepared to preform at our highest level at any time. We often find ourselves in situations that present problems that are unexpected, and these unexpected issues are, in my view, the best chances we will ever have to be at our best.

The catch to this, of course, is in order to deal with the unexpected problem we have to be prepared to deal with anything at a moment's notice. There are tools that we always have at or disposal like, intellect, charm, and strength. Others though, are a product of preparation. Those of us that are willing to take the time to prepare for situations that we can't foresee, are the people that are able to excel in our chosen vocation. When the time comes to be good, and you are able to rise above expectations, the reward is always worth the time sacrificed to prepare. I'm not speaking of money or even the respect of other, the reward is a feeling of pride and self worth that we are able to take home and use to drive ourselves to be the best again.  

hot stove: 2nd edition

I suppose it would be wrong to say that the hot stove is in full effect. We are still several weeks away from the winter meetings, but the signings and rumors really seam to be starting to get wheels. The allure of baseball's off season is like no other sport; with professional football, for example, a fan can take the summer to devote to other passions. Not so with baseball, it seems that a fan of a team (or the game) wants to keep up with their team and division year round. This year it seems that for Braves fans it going to be more of a matter of  watching the other teams in the National League East than watching what Frank does.

Already this year the Phillies have signed Jonathan Papelbon to a 4 year 50 million dollar deal, and the Marlins have offered Jose Reyes a pretty large contract. I'm still not sure that Reyes will go to Miami, but if he does they will have a really good line up. Reyes, Ramerize, Stanton, Morrison, and Coglin would be tough for even Holliday and Lee to get through. This is not to mention the fact that they are also talking to Pojols this week.  In regards to the Phillies signing Papelbon to handle the 9th inning duties; you have to believe that along with their starters, most teams will be happy to win a game 2-1. They certainly won’t get blown out often.

Of the two other teams in the league, I have to believe that the Nationals will do something radical. After last year’s Jason Worth deal nothing they do will surprise me. In fact I believe they have as good of chance at getting Albert Pojols as anyone except the Cardinals. With Strasburg coming back from Tommy John’s they look to be a solid team.  As for, the Mets, well let’s just hope they get Jose Reyes signed before the Marlins.

The home team looks pretty solid as it is, with the exception of short stop. And after having 3 rookies finish in the top 2 in the Rookie of the Year balloting (Kimbrel, Freeman, and Heyward) over the last two seasons; I have to believe that if Frank goes with Tyler Pastornicky at the 6 position we will be good to go. My biggest concern for next year is can Frank find someone to fill in for Chipper on the days when he’s not good to go. I guess Prado could fill in at 3^rd but then what about left, and what happens if we trade Prado? I guess we’ll find out soon enough. I biggest hope for the Atlanta off season is that Frank does not trade Jair Jurrjens. I really like that guy, he seems to enjoy playing the game for the sake of the game.  There are not many guys that seem to enjoy playing as much as he does anymore, and that makes him all the more enjoyable to watch. Not to mention he is a hell of a pitcher. 

the murph

I have made a point to keep the every day details of my life some what obscure in all of my post to date. Today though, I would like to share a specific experience that  will require some specifics. Please forgive me from the departure from the norm.

Today I participated in a  work out named simply "Murph". The workout garners its name from Lt Micheal Murphy, who was killed in operation Enduring Freedom. There is no way I could ever have the words to describe the events that lead to his death, my life has been too easy to understand such things (if you would like to read about it visit http://www.navy.mil/moh/mpmurphy/) . But it is worth saying; this brave American was the first Navy man awarded the Medal of Honor since Vietnam. It is my belief that none of us will ever know the courage that this man possessed.

Tonight, as I compose this post, the soreness that I have in my legs, chest, and back has become a reminder of this American hero. I am surely not the only one either; I expect tens of thousand of other people that participated today across our nation have the same fatigue and appreciation for Lt Murphy.  While I understand fully that, compared to the sacrifices that the men and women of our military make everyday, today's event was insignificant. I'm still carrying an amount of pride that I was able to (in a small way) honor the memory of one of our country's best. It is one of my wishes that we, as a nation, would take more time to honor and thank the brave men of the Armed Forces. They deserve more than one day a year.

give me the beat

Except for a fine bottle of bourbon there is nothing that will set a mind at ease quicker than a song that has the lyrics, tempo, and beat that speaks to you. It does not matter what mood or frame of mind you find your self in; someone has written a song that can make the moment more enjoyable, bearable, or whatever the situation calls for. Music has the power to cut down the hours in an all night drive, to dissolve the stresses of a hard day, and to provide motivation to exercise harder, quicker, and longer. Science and medicine have even begun to embraced music as therapy for all kind of patience.

I realize that everyone that reads this post will have different taste in music, and will not find my taste to their liking.  I still though, would like to share some of my favorite bands and songs. It should be said, that I have been accused of liking "sleepy songs"  so if your in to upbeat stuff this might be where you want to hop off.

Dave Matthews Band - With out a doubt, my all time favorite their live stuff is awesome

And long those same lines - Wide Spread Panic - has to be one of the best jam bands that ever released live albums from Athens, Huntsville, and Valdosta, which are all solid.

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - This guy got his start with the Drive By Truckers and is really a great artist. "Alabama Pines" and "The Last Song That I Will Write" are two of his best works

Old Crow Medicine Show - A dear friend from Raleigh turned me on to these guys a while back, and since then their song "Wagon Wheel" has become a staple of most every guy with a guitar. I have enjoyed their "Tennessee Pusher" album

Son Volt - This is an very good band that apparently didn't make it. I think they started our as Uncle Tupelo and split into Wilco and Son Volt. Check out the "Trace" album, it has some good stuff

Robert Earl Keen - Enough said

Cross Canadian Ragweed - These guys just broke up, but Cody Canada is still making some good music. If you don't know these guys I would recommend starting with one of their live cuts

These are just a few. If this post is well received by you guys I will get into music a little deeper sometime.

grit

Recently I was told that "a person has to have a certain grit" to be successful here. At the time I wondered if she was questioning whether I had that grit, and whether she might be right to ask that question. Tonight, I'm forced to wonder where the drive, fortitude, or grit to get "one more" comes from. Is it born inside us, or do we learn it over time? What is grit really?

I expect the answer to the second question is easier to handle. To find a man that is the portrait of grit, we don't have to look much further than a L'Amour or McMurtry novel and you'll find the Webster's definition of tough. Men and women with grit are all over the silver screen, and there is even a segment of psychology devoted to defining grit (google grit psychology). According to Wikipedia grit is defined as "a positive, non-cognitive trait, based on an individual’s passion for a particular long-term goal or endstate coupled with a powerful motivation to achieve their respective objective. This perseverance of effort promotes the overcoming of obstacles or challenges that lay within a gritty individual’s path to accomplishment and serves as a driving force in achievement realization." After reading this definition several times the point that becomes obvious is, in order for a person to have grit they must have a goal. After some thought this point makes perfect sense; when is the last time you saw a pan-handler and thought "boy, that guy must be tough?"

Grit.. It is a word that most every one would like to use to describe themselves. I believe, though, that using the word in any analysis of yourself would be worse than arrogant. Grit has to be used to describe you when your not listening, and to my mind their could not be a  more flattering way for some one to think of you. I suppose the only way to achieve this in another's eye is to be the hardest working son-of-bitch around for an awful long time. You are going to have to deal with failure with a resilience not displayed by common people. You are going to have to handle pain like it didn't hurt. You are going to have to possess a rare passion.

Even if a person does not have grit I would expect the quest for it would be a gritty goal.      

sunday morning coming down

Earlier this week while talking with an old friend I was reminded of days when a Friday pay check equaled a long a week end spent in dive bars where ever we were. Those weekends always ended badly on Sunday morning. I recall, quite clearly, the painful haze of the hang overs; as the song says "no way to hold your head that didn't hurt." It was not just a head ache involved though, a week stomach, a stabbing neck pain, and incredible fatigue all had to be dealt with on Sundays. And to be honest, there isn't an aspirin in the world that can make a dent in a good hangover. I suppose the main question that comes to mind is; Why did we do that to our selves? The answer: It was well worth the pain. In those days we had very little real responsibility.On the worst mornings the hardest job we might have had was to get up and feed whatever animals that were under our care. And even though the job seemed tough at the time you could struggle through it with out much problem.

Now though, things have changed; while Sunday mornings are not exactly pain free, they have become much more enjoyable. The pain that I have this morning is a dull ache in my chest and back, but instead of the regret of a bender, I am able to take pride in this morning's soreness. It comes from a better place. Now I drink my coffee and have my morning smoke while enjoying the cool crispness of a golden fall morning. This is opposed to taking them in an effort to be able to move with out the urge to bend over the toilet. Overall, these days, Sunday mornings are, more often than not, some of the finest hours in the week.

From time to time I am still subject to having a few too many on Friday or Saturday night. Those nights are still one of my favorite way to pass some time, but I have learned to appreciate the reasons to keep those nights few and far between.

I stole the title of this post from the great Kris Kristofferson, who wrote the best description of Sunday morning ever.

the new guy

It's a well know fact that we are creatures of habit. In every thing we do from getting ready for work in the morning to the way we sleep are routines that mostly don't change. I believe we find comfort in our routines, and in the people and places we are familiar with, and with good reason. When we try to add something new in our life, for what ever reason, we are forced to move out of the comfort zones that we so carefully created for our self.  While breaking out of our box is a very tough thing to do, the results are almost always a benefit. It has been said that nothing worth doing is easy. That being said, there are few things in life that are as as hard and uncomfortable as being the "new guy" in a group.

In my professional life I have watched many of my peers come and go, and watched new folks struggle to find their way. While I'm certainly not the most experienced team member on the pay roll, I have been around long enough long enough to know the system. My personal life is much the same; I have not made any signification changes in quit some time. Today, though, I walked in to a room of folks and was the new guy. It does not seem to matter how welcoming and gracious a group of people are, trying to become a member of an established group of people is an awkward proposition. This not a derogatory comment against a group of people; its just the nature of the situation. There is no way the new guy in a group can understand the existing dynamics with in the group. Who gets along with who, who are the dominate people, who are the weakest.

Don't miss understand what I'm trying to say, no matter how difficult it might be (for me anyway) to become an accepted member of a group, the end result is worth the pain of being the new guy. It has been my experience that in every group of people there will be a least one person that winds up becoming a friend or a great influence. In that there is an extreme value.

So, all in all I guess I'm looking forward to the challenge