Mas y mas aqua blanca!

Man o man.... I have been such a slacker with my blog. And, as I have previously set forth... this is how I had hoped to leave at least a slight record of my life. And really, all I can say is that life is good. I keep taking my beat downs coupled with new achievements in my Kayak. I continue to enjoy my job and Football. As Captain of Greenman Coed, the little team that could is having it's best season to Date and I am so proud to be a part of it. Greenman open is also doing well and as one of the old farts on the team I am happy to actually be wanted and needed in the success of that team. Jack of the Wood, my Over 30 team, has also had some great matches as of late and that warms my heart as well. I love the brothers and sisters that I get to share the pitch with. These are blessings in my life.
And now I must elaborate on the kayaking. I have two guys in particular that are taking me under their wing. They are Justin Doroshenko and Aaron Oswaldt. Both are quite good on white water and they are both so excited to watch me move forward as a paddler. I know so little, but I am learning fast. They keep me safe while I take my lumps. I love how they really get excited about my progress. Each new eddy out, each new clean line run on increasingly bigger water, every time I ferry across faster and chunkier sections of white water, each time a charge through a bigger hole, and even each time I eat it and then have another successful swim. With each of these guys I feel like they just kind of drifted away from running rivers, but they now find new joy in bringing a newbie along in the sport. I just love the challenge, and I think they love that I love it. A few weeks ago I did the French Broad at 4000 cfs and REALLY got my arse handed to me. I had 4 swims including one that started with a massive unintentional stern squirt at Kayaker's ledge. I feel that that day was a critical junction for me in the sport. Seeing as how I do not have any sort of Roll yet, when I get up-ended, it means that I must wet exit and swim. One of these swims took me though the bottom half of "ledges" which is the longest rapid on the French Broad. I also had a good swim on the last half of Pinball a few days ago. Sure, a swim is scary when you don't plan for it, but now I do it with composure and relative calm. The other thing that makes me and my mentors happy is that, in each of the last swims I first made some strong attempts to keep the boat upright before finally rolling upside down and ejecting. All these things are just marks of progress. When I look back at where I was this fall and what I knew it is so great to be where I am now. I hope that in another 6 months I can see that I am yet again nothing like what I was...

Some thing Old, some thing new

Something Dorky, When I was 15 A few upper class men on my swim team in high school introduced me to the band, They Might Be Giants. I have most of what they have done. I just love them. The new Album, "The Else" is really solid. It very well be my favorite. They are musical savants. These guys just keep cranking out music. Music I like. TMBG is not an acquired taste... you pretty much know from the get go if it is for you. Some of the most nasal singing you have ever heard, use of all sorts of odd ball instruments. But it is technically brilliant stuff, tight vocal harmonies (one can harmonize even with the nasal). They are one of the tightest groups you will ever see in terms of live play. The other thing is that they simply revel in their dorkiness and the crowd is always on board. Pure cheese. Congo lines form at the bands request. We do whatever silly thing we are asked to do, because it's fun and who cares.
TMBG is an experience.
Well, I am off to go have some fun with these guys, just like I did in the 90's... and the 00's.

Olympic games random thoughts

1. The Inuits rock. They are my favorite aboriginal people of Canada.
2. The winter games are so white even the guy (the only one) from Algeria looks white.
3. Why don't they have like... snow Wrestling... or ice boxing? I'd watch that shiite.
4.Dude, I'd totally love to be some punk trust fund Kid from the Caribbean and be in the Winter games... SOOO much better than being doing it the other way... a la Eric Moussambani.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zjCc_VyxM4 (PS those other two dudes were punk ass B*tches)
5.Of course the Germans put the ladies in Pink Vests and the guys had Powder Blue ones... Always practical...
6. So those Aboriginal Canadians have been dancing for the entire parade of nations, did they give them E?
7. Common on India, yall got a billion of you and those little mountains... what are they called, oh yeah, the Himalayas... and you bring 3 people?
8. Awww man! no cool runnings this year! Damnit.
9. Dude that Flag bearer for Switzerland... the ice skater... Just take the L out...
10. Ok all the Folks in white along the entrance corridor are making the best Canadian Soul Train evs!
11. Um, no, I don't actually think my mom likes Shawn White...
12. 82 nations... so if global warming continues, how many are we going to have next time?
13. China... precise. Canada, cool and wavy.
14. In Canada, men must have big hair. It's kinda like Tennessee for Women...
15.Ok wait, one of those Aboriginal Canadians looked like he was in the cure. How am I supposed to feel about this?
16. Donald Sutherland is Canadian too???
17.Trippy.... they got good weed in BC, this is common knowledge.
18.Orca spouts... niiiiice.
19.It needs repeating... Canadians... Cool and wavy.
20.Of course the French Canadian part would start all weird and douchey.
21.Wondering what 1.3 Billion Chinese think about fiddle jams.
22.Note to self, do not attempt tree pose with built in lit sparklers on your shoes.
23. Indoor Flag Stuff, A good blow job is hard to come by... just look at those flags just strugglin'
24. Ah yes the finest in Canadian engineering... enh 3 out of 4 aint bad eh?
25. I wonder which of the four of them got punked, I really hope it was not the Handicapped guy.
Um, that is all.

Quizzo HOOOOOOOOOO!

Once again we are winning team names. (see the november post to see said names). And at this point we are in the midst of a 6 week championship at quizzo. Last week we were in a 3 way tie for third, this week a tie for second. I figure we are solid top 3 if not in first place at this point.
Oh life is good. And quizzo is a small fraction of it. This past weekend we had the second solid one foot snow of the year. Myself and many of my best friends in town holed up in the most awesome house down in Fletcher and had a rip roaring good time sledding, drinking, playing farkle and watching movies. There really is no point in the retelling of such an epic weekend. It's one of those you had to be there kind of things.

Something I have to say

"Dear life, thank you for being mine.
Dear friends and family, thank you for being in it."
-me
just now.

I googled the two sentences separately... nothing came up as an exact match on either.
so, maybe it is a quote attributable to me... But I wish it wasn't. Other people should feel this too.
And here's to hoping that for anyone I know.

To cold to paddle.

Well that is fine I need to be running anyway. What is also fine is that the solstice has just passed. More light, more sunshine pouring down on the earth to warm it back up. Though it is odd how sunlight and the seasons work. The hottest and coldest times always lag behind the simple number of daylight hours. I suppose my running is like that. For the past few years I have coasted on old fitness from 2006. but that is gone gone now. I really need to put a solid year of effort back into it to get myself where I want to be.
What I need to do is adopt a policy where I don't get to go paddling until I have run X amount that week or something like that. Maybe every 10 miles means I get to play on the water for a few hours or every 30 earns me a proper trip. this would work... you know if I stick to it... well time to go for another clunky calf deep crusty snow run.

Yet another reason why I am going to hell

If it exists, I am. Today's reason? While I was piddling around the house doing a little work this product concept pops into my head.
"Christ-ums"
with slogans like
"Christ-ums, savior flavored snacks!
Can't make it to mass? Or just hungry for a little taste of the lord?
Why open up a box of Christ-ums!"
and a few other ads popped into my head along those lines.

Well, I can't help it... this is funny to me.

My Good Friend Doro also suggested Jezits.