Day 3,965

Wowza, talk about one of those days in which all a guy can do is step back and say, “did that all really just happen?”

The most normal part of the day was the morning run with Becky. From there everything went in it’s own crazy direction. Honestly, the exact twists and turns themselves aren’t as relevant to this post as the nonstop rollercoaster of the day.

Throughout the day I somehow maintained a level of calm, collectedness, and stayed in the moment. Largely productive, I was able to still get pretty much everything accomplished, albeit in unexpected ways!

As I wrapped up the night everything slowly calmed and has gone back to normal. Plenty of time to focus on the next steps of my project, big day for it tomorrow! The calm maintained inspite of the crazy really helped me get into my groove this evening for the last practice run.

Two days of work, an evening of a test run, and then it’s off to camping for Becky and I! So looking forward to the bonus chill time in the woods with Becky, I’m already jonesing to hit the road!

Ha! This one really was all over the place – pretty fitting for the day! Might as well keep rolling with it 🙂

Fun little side note, I also had a few moments of pause to enjoy the wildlife right outside my office window today too!

Okay – so what am I grateful for today? Creating calm in the chaos, remembering to pause and recalibrate rather than reacting.

Step back. See the terrain. Choose my path. Mission accomplished today!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,964

Something that really jumped out to me today was how much I appreciate the moments in which I know Dad is laughing his butt off as I experience the same things that I did to him three decades ago! Each time I’m doing something with the boys and one of those moments happen when I get frustrated or shake my head, I can’t help but pause and smile as I remember doing my own version of the frustrating behavior to him.

“Just you wait, Mikey. I can’t wait for the day when your kids do this to you. I will sit back and laugh and laugh and laugh.“

Pete Kreiling

When it’s my time and I’m hanging out with Dad, I can’t wait to dive I to the stories and share them all with him – AND – know he’ll share more from me than I remember!

Part of the circle of life as a parent, re-living the same experiences but from a different perspective and possibly “re-branded,” as Gavin would say.

Many groans, smiles, and laughs as a dad today for sure!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,963

Growth:

My theme for this year really helped power me through the run this morning and yoga this evening. After pounding the trails on Saturday my legs were quite stiff this morning. I really wanted almost nothing more than to chill in bed, go back to sleep, and let my legs rest. Instead I read my 2026 theme, Fortitudine Vincimus (by endurance, we conquer), got my butt out of bed, and hit the pavement with Becky. Within a couple of miles my legs had loosened right up! Same for yoga – eveything loosened up and felt better as the practice went on.

Appreciation:

I almost forgot how everything seems to almost flow towards us when we start to focus on that which is most important to us. The more we remember to focus on what we want to do with our lives the more we see the opportunities to make it happen. For sure, not some crazy magic creating things, rather, when we get our minds in tune we more easily see all of the possibilities we’ve been surrounded by but just never took the time to notice.

Presence:

That moment in which you realize one dream is just about to happen while simultaneously another takes root. One of those moments in which all one can do is pause, zoom out, and appreciate the moment. While the realization and the start of the dream are wonderful, the most joy in the moment was found in realizing how much I’d been enjoying the path leading to today!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,962

Whew – that was a full Sunday! It started with some quiet time out in the woods with Becky, we went for a hike and enjoyed listening to the birds singing away atop the ridge. Is there any better start to a Sunday? Getting outside, spending time with Becky, taking in all the sights and sounds and scents of the outdoors?

We came back home, work on a couple of projects, and headed off to church. An old friend of ours was there and we spent time catching up with him. Throughout the ride home we talked, joked, and relaxed with Gavin. Many comments about how he is only a few weeks from moving out, and that this was likely the last mass he will be joining us for until Thanksgiving break, possibly Christmas. He spent time getting ready for shopping for meals for their upcoming backpacking trip, it was fun hearing him go through the entire process of figuring out exactly what was needed and which store they should go to for the best prices. Fun getting bonus time with him!

There was only a little adulting to get done so we knocked that out quickly. The project I’ve been working on has a large milestone coming up on Thursday night, super excited to get that all wrapped up! So many hours put towards that today, many new lessons learned, new skills being honed, and so much time getting lost in the flow of creating. One of my favorite types of project for sure! In so many ways it seems like I’ve been building towards this over the past twenty years, it feels incredibly rewarding to be getting closer to setting it free.

Becky and I had a great time catching up with Dominic! One more week of work, one more week of class, and then he’s off for a month of adventure! Catching up with him is always fun, even more so as he’s getting ready for travel. Looking forward to seeing him for a few minutes late on Thursday after he gets home and I return from my project.

More time working on the project, more pieces coming together. Now off to an early bed to start the week fresh!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,961

Today had one big goal, to hike Perrot State Park. Not just hike in the park. Hike the entire park. All the hiking trails. Even the little entry points that I had to do a quick out and back on. Fifteen and a half miles, almost 3,000 feet of elevation, & five hours later it was mission accomplished!

I did not realize just how much my soul was longing for a hike like this until I was into the groove. There were several deer on the trails with me, one little fawn bounced away as I turned the corner. In the picture below I’d spooked out a tom turkey who took off like a shot. So many birds, baby rabbits, and every type of bug (but no mosquitoes and ticks which was amazing!). The scent of the forest in the morning just about blew my face off at a primal level, it was so calming! Throw in all of the amazing views and it was an epic morning hike for sure!

While on the hike I had my open ear headphones on and had some quiet music mixing with the forest sounds. About an hour in I realized I had just about the right amount of time for something a little different. In what I can only define as “sublimely discordant” I listened to the entire audiobook of Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk. The combination of the solo outdoor trek and the fantastically dark book were unlike anything I’d experienced before, but they fit together so well!

The entire hike was amazing, I’m pleasantly surprised with how well I felt throughout, and the retreat into nature was exactly what I had been dreaming of!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,960

More of a short version grab bag tonight as I’m headed off to bed to get a nice night of sleep before heading out for some early morning hiking tomorrow.

Had a very engaging day with my fellow Express owners for our regional meeting, always a pleasure to reconnect with peers and learn how they’re taking on different challenges. I walked away with many notes and even more ideas! Getting the opportunity to catch up with those I haven’t seen for a while is always delightful, kind of like a family reunion. Also having time to zoom out really helps to see our day to day operations so much more clearly. When we’re in the heat of the moment and facing urgency it’s so much easier go with the flow and the same old. Stepping out of it provides space to see the issues more clearly and choose a better solution.

I was also able to really beat down and make some serious headway on another project this evening. Getting into a flow state while working on a project I’m passionate about always feels great, the extreme dichotomy of going from zooming out to putting my head down was invigorating. A sweeter balance than I expected!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,959

Growth:

Acknowledge the times in which rest is needed. Pause, sleep, recharge. There is so much to do, so much to experience, sometimes sleep seems to get in the way. Running full speed can only hold on for so long, eventually we need to refill the tank. No regrets in doing so, no shame in doing so. Realize the strength needed to intentionally sleep and rest, accept it, and do it.

Appreciation:

Throughout the year I’ve been putting additional focus on spending time with Gavin as he’s off to college in only a few weeks. One of the additional benefits of it is that I’ve also been more intentional with spending time with Dominic and Becky as well as other friends and family – nice added bonuses!

Gavin road up to Winona with me today for work to knock out more landscaping at our office. That gave us some bonus time in the car on the way up and the way back. After I got back from a work event this evening I was able to sneak in a little bonus time with him shooting the bull and catching up the show he’s watching and the book I’m reading (that was recommended by him).

The days are flying by so quickly, we don’t have much more time before he moves out East, I’m very grateful for the moments we’re getting before he goes!

Presence:

Getting over nine hours of sleep on a weeknight was exactly what this guys needed! This morning I felt completely relaxed and recharged when I woke up, ready to take on the day and feeling like my batteries were full. Throughout the day this continued to make a huge positive impact. A full, deep night of sleep, such a gift!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,958

Growth:

Yes, AI can be an incredible tool for so many great things. Sometimes it can help make a multi hour project shrink into a quick 15 minute task, make an incredible job fair flyer within minutes, and share insanely insightful wisdom. I’ve been using it quite often to test ideas, clean up the grammar of an email, and helping me keep my focus pointed in the right direction.

Other times, AI can be totally awful! Today I was on that side of the equation as I kept trying to work through something that I thought would be easier only to find that I’d wasted way more time than I should have trying to get the project completed. I finally relented, did it myself, and made so much more progress so quickly.

Key takeaway today – pay attention to if the task will actually be done ore quickly or not. If it starts to struggle at the beginning, heed the warning signs and go back to doing it the old fashioned way.

Appreciation:

A quiet dinner at home, kicking back to read a book, relaxing on the couch for a few minutes. Enjoying catching up after work with the family, taking in some quiet time, no agenda. Now blogging, prepping for bed, and getting an extra long night of sleep. Cheers to the quiet nights of summer that don’t seem to happen often, but are very much enjoyed!

Presence:

Gotta love getting in a run after getting a vacation or two on the books, always fun conversation for the morning run! Spending time on our run talking about the fun parts of our trip we’re heading on in January is always welcomed, in this case it made the run all the more delightful!

Thanks!!!

Growth:

This oldie but a goodie came back to mind today:

Beyond the very extreme of fatigue and distress, we may find amounts of ease and power we never dreamed ourselves to own; sources of strength never taxed at all because we never push through the obstruction.

Accredited to Scott Jurek, based off a similar quote by William James

Appreciation & Presence:

Spending time sneaking peeks at the little baby bird we rescued after it fell out of its nest has been amongst the highlights of my day!

Leia started barking at something outside on Sunday night and when we went outside we discovered a little furry baby songbird had fallen out of its nest. Thanks to some quick online searching we found that we could make a nest out of a small old food container, add holes in the bottom for drainage, fill it a ways up with dried grass, and then put it up in the tree secured to a branch. We gently put the little dude into the new nest, put him up in the tree, and then crossed our fingers. By the next afternoon we were able to see one of the parents flying up to feed it. As luck would have it we hung it in a spot in which we can clearly see into it from our bedroom window. Pretty awesome for sure!

Here we are 48 hours later and we’re able to watch him already growing, something I’ve never really paid attention to before. Not gonna lie, this might be one of my favorite birds ever 😉

Thanks!!!

Day 3,956

One of my goals this year was to go on eight micro-adventures shared with others. They could be long weekends, short weekends, long trips, or anything in between. The intent was that they were to be intentional, planned in advance, and shared with friends. In my mind they were to be largely outdoors focused, getting to combine sharing time with my favorite people in some of my favorite places.

To date I’ve had a couple. Another one has been in the books for quite some time. Yesterday saw two more get planned and finalized. There are another two in the works. Likely looking to add one more and there’s still another that will just barely fall into next year, but we’ll call it close enough.

What I’ve been most grateful for with this goal is the way it is forcing me to be intentional with my time. I can’t just hope for someone to be available to drive off for a weekend, we’re all busy. It takes some planning, some thinking ahead, and some focus.

True to the Rick Ridgeway quote from a couple of nights ago – the goal isn’t the summit, it’s the steps to get there. The dreaming big and sharing an idea with a friend. The looking at possible plans and getting them all set. There’s the pre-trip excitement chat back and forth as the trip gets closer. So many moments of joy before the adventure even happens!

Cheers to getting closer to the goal, but really enjoying the steps along the way so much!

Thanks!!!