Looking Forward

I've had a cold for the past few days.  It hasn't been terrible, but coughing and sneezing have been somewhat painful in the area where I used to have a prostate.  I got some hi-test cough syrup from my doc yesterday and that is helping.

I managed to ski some moguls this past weekend and I felt pretty good.  The weekend before, moguls were a tiny bit painful.  I even hiked a decent distance on the Long Trail to get to some terrain that was open, but without lift service.  I had a small group of students and that hike was our adventure for the weekend.  Without a doubt, it was my best ski run of the season so far.

My time away from the gym and skiing and lots of other activities has given me time to think about what I do with all of the time in my life.  And, what do I want to do?

My wife is very interested in getting back into hiking this summer.  For a few years, we were intently working our way through the highest peaks of New York and New England.  And, by "working", I mean having fun.  And then, we pretty much stopped.  So, this summer, we are going to return to the mountains.  I've done over half of the 4000 foot peaks in NY and NE, but my wife has only done half as many, if that.  We will try to spend weekends in NY and NH, hiking higher peaks.

I want to get back to running.  In 2008, when Western States was cancelled, I was in really good ultra shape, ready for a great race.  A year later, I tore a hamstring tendon, got pulled early from Western States because of that injury, and ended the year with fewer than 1000 miles for the first time in many years.  From 2010 through 2013, my running really dropped off.  I want to get back to some regular running this year, just because I want to.  I have no mileage goals, no race plans or any other reason to do this.  After a few years away, I finally miss running and I want to do more of it.

I still want to go fly fishing as much as I can.  I really enjoy my time on the rivers, whether I'm solo or with my son.  In my many years of running ultras, I really got away from fly fishing.  Now that I've returned to fishing, I want to stick with this hobby, which I find a very peaceful way to relax while still actively doing something.

I intend, of course, to continue with skiing, CrossFit, riding my bike, etc.

I intend to continue to work hard for my company.  I've recently been promoted to Chief Technology Officer of the company and I intend to do what I can to make the company successful.

And lastly, I want to be a more social animal.  I have a tendency to have a small, core group of friends that I spend my time with.  Outside of that group, I'm often uncomfortable and a bit of a loner.  During the last six months, I've received such an outpouring of support from close friends and many, many past friends (high school) and acquaintances.  I need to make the effort to be more social, to be more available to others, as they have been to me.  After all, what do we really have here other than each other?

I mentioned George Sheehan in a recent post, talking about the battle he lost to prostate cancer.  One of my favorite quotes from George was not originally his, but rather stolen (and re-interpreted somewhat) from Ralph Waldo Emerson: "First, be a good animal."

The web is full of more on what this quote means, and what both Sheehan and Emerson meant when they wrote it.  The googling is left as an exercise to the reader.

But, my real goal, going forward, is to be a better animal than I've been in the past.