“Life is a series of accidents and everybody is obsessing over their own.”

I FUCKING LOVE THAT!!!

The strawberry infused tequila at Catch 22 cocktail bar is absolutely phenomenal.

Reminds me of strawberry jello, which I ate a lot of growing up.

That doesn’t mean I’ll be drinking a lot of tequila though.

Cheers.

What does it mean to be a man?

I don’t know.

But I think that’s part of the dream that is life.

Noah Kahan.

The singer song writer, hailing from Vermont, is a treasure.

His music feels lived in.

Like an old home.

Like a pair of tattered jeans.

Like a book with its pages stained by coffee.

His music is lived in, and loved.

Now a follower of this man.

NORTHERN ATTITUDE is spectacular. Here’s the lyrics:

Breathing in
Breathing out
How you been?
Settled down?

You feeling right?
You feeling proud?
How’re your kids?
Where are they now?

You build a boat
You build a life
You lose your friends
You lose your wife

You settle in
To routine
Where are you?
What does it mean?

If I get too close
And I’m not how you hoped
Forgive my northern attitude
Oh, I was raised out in the cold

If the sun don’t rise
‘Til the summertime
Forgive my northern attitude
Oh, I was raised on little light

You bought some shit
You search online
You’re getting lost
You’re getting high

All alone
Late in life
Scared to live
Scared to die

You build a boat
You build a life
You lose your kids
You lose your wife

You settle down
You’re feeling lost
Getting stoned
Then kicking rocks
(Three, four)

If I get too close
And I’m not how you hoped
Forgive my northern attitude
Oh, I was raised out in the cold

If the sun don’t rise
‘Til the summertime
Forgive my northern attitude
Oh, I was raised on little light

Oh, oh, oh, oh 

If you get too close
And I’m not how you hoped
Forgive my northern attitude
Oh, I was raised out in the cold

If the sun don’t shine
‘Til the summertime
Forgive my northern attitude
Oh, I was raised on little light

Another delicious pint of Guinness at The Houndstooth Sports bar.

I’ve always been a fan of Guinness.

Whenever there’s a fubar Guinness at the bar after work, I grab it and slam it.

It’s just so damn good.

Cheers.

It looks better on her than it does on me.

5:30am:

First alarm goes off

Silence it

Roll out of bed

Go to the bathroom

Turn on the shower

Sit on the floor

Listen to the water

Calm the nerves

5:45am

Second alarm goes off

Silence it

Still listening to the water

Get a up

Grab a cup

Drink some water

Turn of the shower

Stomach grumbles

I have to eat

6:00am

Third alarm goes off

Silence it

Boil some water

Toss in cream of wheat

Stir

Let it thicken

Pour into bowl

Cut up strawberries

Add a cup of blue berries

Grab a spoon

Wander into bedroom

Get in bed

Eat

6:15am

Fourth alarm goes off

Silence it

Finish cream of wheat

Set bowl on bedside table

Doze back off

6:30am

Fifth alarm goes off

Wakes me up

Silence it

Feeling sick

Going to throw up

Jump out of bed

Run to the bathroom

Throw up

Turn shower back on

Sit on the floor

Listen to the water

Calm the nerves

Shut eyes

7:00am

Sixth alarm goes off

Startled awake

Sun is coming up

Almost 8

I have to get dressed

Turn of shower

7:15am

Final alarm goes off

Silence it

Dressed

Run through mental check list

Phone, keys, wallet check

Leave apartment

Get in car

Get to the meet

16 seconds in Hell.

No more needs to be said.

Merry: “This…is a pint.“

Pippin: “It’s comes in paints? I’m getting one.”

Sam: “But you already have half already.”

I earned this beer.

It is the eve of my first powerlifting meet.

I am competing in the USPA Battle of the Beasts located in good ole Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. I am.

But I believe worked up nerves mean that you are ready.

The road thus far has been nothing short of long.

I decided back in May that I was going to compete. Looking back I should have made the decision earlier.

I didn’t. I was fearful. Frightened to get under the bar, on the bench, and step on to the platform to see how strong I was.

With a little encouragement I was moved to do so.

At that time, I also decided to bring on a coach.

I could have trained alone, but I needed somebody with the knowledge, wisdom, intelligence, and experience that I lacked.

Enter Chris Lentini.

Or as all of us smurfs call him: Angry Papa Smurf.

Angry Papa Smurf is not an angry man.

He is happy. So happy that I would dub him the master of the power of positive thinking.

He is the type of man who gets pleasure out of identifying weaknesses, and destroying them until they are stronger.

Now-a-days those types of men are rare.

His big thing for all of us smurfs is to continuously make mental and physical progress.

Records may be set and smashed, or they may not. But mental and physical progress will always be made.

Always.

I think about the mental and physical progress I have made thus far.

Physically my body is in the best shape it has ever been in. Strong. Lean. Powerful. It’s in peak condition.

Mentally I have made gains, but there is a room for more. There always is.

Getting under the bar, setting up on the bench, and stepping on to the platform will always frighten me.

After all, you’re open and vulnerable to all of the things that can go wrong.

You could miss a lift.

You could miss all of your lifts.

You could get disqualified.

You could get injured.

There’s so much.

But that’s the chance you take.

My mindset tomorrow is to go in and do what I have to do.

And what I have to do is lift some heavy ass weight. Some of the heaviest I have ever lifted.

PRs may be set. They may not be.

Mental and physical progress, however, will be made.

Always.

I’m going to sleep now.

PS. Thank you Crystal and Bennet for letting me borrow your car today. I took a solo trip down to Montgomery and it was nice. Don’t worry, I’ll fill up your car with gas. I just I did as you said: “treat it like it’s yours.”