WWPD - 2011 Goals

Based on the crazy year I've had, one in which I'm happy to put behind me I've taken a different approach to my goals. My Dad (Papi) is not here to provide input but I sure can use his life as a guide to what would make the most impact on my life. So the goals are titled WWPD (What Would Papi Do) goals.

Marriage - Simply put my goal is to put Mary first in everything I do. Through all the things flying around if Mary goes first we all win. She deserves that kind of attention and she will get it.

Marco - We are going to learn something together. We'll work on it this winter and by spring we'll make it ours. It will really be up to him. I know what I want to learn but if it's not what he wants we won't do it.

Money - Save, Save and Save. Our current savings rate is about 15% of our income. My goal is to get it closer to 25% of my income. In this world where we are lucky to have a job, a 25% savings is the smart thing. To do this I'm going to have to cut some of the things I take for granted. More on this as the year goes on. Any suggestions would be great.

Motivation - Papi spent the last 20 years of his life continually refining his faith. I think I need to do the same thing and first up may be that I define it. Then I need to continually refine it. I think this leads me to question it all. I can say right now that I don't define myself by a religion. Some heavy research is needed here. Some help or direction from others is welcome.

Me - I split me into two places that matter most.

1. Competition - I can't lie, I still want to compete. Last year I did zero in this world. At the end something had to give. My "Fitness" didn't give but I did no racing. So in 2011 I plan to do an Ironman and to do well in it. What that mean's is I have to cross the line and feel like I gave it everything and the results show. I also have to do this in the scope of everything here. I've been known in my younger days to put this first. That will not get me anywhere.

2. Relationships - This is one Papi was a master of. He had more personal relationships then anyone I know. I have 360 or so friends on my Facebook page but I don't know how many are truly personal. That needs to change. So my goal is to develop relationships all year long. This is probably the biggest stretch for me. Personal is the hard part. I have lots of relationships but personal is not what I would call them.

Now if I read this as Papi I think he would sign up for it. Put family first, take care of your money, build relationships and realize you are just a part of something bigger.

It's a good life...

Dave

Papi Day Mountain Bike Ride

I went for a ride today on the Mountain Bike. I had planned to meet up with friends but I forgot that the main group was out of town so the extended group wouldn't meet up. Silly me for not checking. But this gave me a chance to ride my own pace and to do some reflecting. Well at least I could do some reflecting when I wasn't on the rivet going up or holding on for dear life going down.

Today officially marks one year since my Dad Passed away. In fact it was one year ago on this particular Saturday. It was a rough year. Not because I sat around miserable because he is gone but I had life moments this year, more than I ever imagined and he wasn't there like he has always been. That fact didn't really hit me until this week and it was a big realization for me. I can only imagine what I looked like from the outside. You see, my Dad was always there to talk me through the challenges. Without that I think I let the challenges brew. And in that I think I've been walking around most of the year pissed off. Well that's done folks. No more!

I have a plan with how to get unpissed and that will be covered tomorrow when I throw out my goals. So back to the ride. It was as perfect a morning for mountain biking as you could ask for. That's November in San Diego. Crystal clear morning, sun and no wind. I got lost for a time but that's normal for me. I'm always looking for trails I've never been on. Then I just find my way back. I made it back so it couldn't have been that bad.

The View from the top of the hills I was on. That's the Pacific way out there.
I made it to this point pedaling. This was hard!

Dad, thanks for the morning.

It's a good life....

Dave

Be Real

Social Media - This Blog, Twitter, Facebook, Link In. There is more social media to attend to then there is time in the day. Or so it seems anyway. My goal is to keep it real. To stay away from the endless politics, to keep it light and to stay away from it for days at a time.

It's a good life...

Dave

Float

Float - To glide across the earth without bounce, without strain and with purpose.

Marco and I have been working on Float. It's very important in running to float. Every runner from time to time does not float. It wasn't until my last trip to china that I found my float. I noticed recently while Marco was running that he was bounding. We had a workout given by his coach yesterday to run 600m repeats. We ran side by side and focused on float. The more he found his float the faster he ran. There was a father on the track watching his daughter play field hockey. He said in amazement "I've never seen a kid that young run like that, it is beautiful". Float.

But float is not just running. Float should be life. Glide across the earth without bounce, without strain and with purpose.

It's a good life....

Dave

The Rock

Today I found out that Larry "King" Solomon has Prostate Cancer. You know it's serious disease when it hits someone you know. Larry and I worked for 12 years together at Road Runner Sports. He still works there. I titled this post "The Rock" because that is what Larry is to us. First of all he's the guy who can forecast like nobody I know. If you need to know how many running shoes to buy, give Larry a nod and a few key details on what you like or don't like about a shoe and he'll hit a forecast. Can you say inventory Turn? Besides that Larry is the guy you go to for a good word. He's the guy you go to just to chat. He's the guy you go to for direction on what's important. For Larry it's his kids. Both kids are simply great models of what a kid should be. Obviously Mrs. Solomon has a great deal to do with this too but Larry devotes his life to those kids. On a regular basis, Larry gives this big Sigh. Not the Sigh like a Black Lab just before he falls asleep. But the Big Sigh that says it's time to get to work. When you here it, you simply want to join in and get to work with him.

Now I say I worked with Larry for 12 years. I think he's worked there for more than 20 years. He's one of the many at that company that nobody knows about, but those who have dealt with the company have dealt with something or someone who has been touched by the Larry "King" Solomon. The next time you go to that huge retail store in San Diego or you order something from that monster website, give a big thanks to Larry and send good vibes his way. He's in for the fight of his life.

Larry my personal message to you is fight it and live it like you do everything. Put your head down and get it done. We'll be with you physically or emotionally the entire way. Oh and may your Chiefs play better for the rest of the season. Did I really just say that? We love you Larry.

It's a good life...

Dave

Keep Pushing

It's a good life...

Dave

Be Prepared

Today I met some friends for a Mountain Bike Ride. I hadn't really ridden my bike since I packed it up to ship it home from Germany. In Germany it was rather difficult to keep up with cleaning and care of the bike. When ride after ride was done in the rain on trails it was tough to get everything out. So today, I hopped on the bike only to find that yes, it showed it's wear. The tires were almost bald. The cables were beyond stretched. The front shifting didn't work and the shocks were like riding on a swiss ball. So on the steep climbs I was riding the equivalent of the big gear. On the descents I could squeeze the brakes to full power and still would struggle to control around the corners. Add to that I didn't know where we were going and it made for an interesting ride.

But I learned something out there. Or I should say I relearned something out there. Things are never going to be perfect. Sometimes they will almost be a disaster. But if you keep your head about you, and focus on the good stuff (like today, on the trails, home not traveling, hanging with friends no cars, not grumpy people and pushing the Heart Rate up) things will turn out ok. Yes, I'm feeling the effort of climbing steep hills in the big gear but it's a good feeling.

And the bike, well it went to the shop today for a total overhaul. One day riding like that is ok. Two days riding like that is stupid.

It's a good life...

Dave

A Free Night

When time permits, take a free night. Tonight without any notice, Mary and I get a free night. Good food good times await.

Dave

Be Different

A challenge to everyone: Be Different.

It's a good life....

Dave