Song: Second Chance
Artist: Shinedown
Album: The Sound of Madness (2008)
Hearing this song actually made my day today. I'm not even joking.
Work looked like it was going to be complete crap and then this came on the radio and things got better. Work was still fairly craptacular, but at least I had Shinedown.
What makes this song even better to me is that it's about taking chances and following your dreams; breaking away from the image and dreams your parents hold out for you and realizing that the most important thing in the world is living your life for you, because in the end, you're the one who has to be happy.
Honestly, I wish I could have figured that out a long, long time ago. I wouldn't have spent thousands of dollars earning a Psych degree with an HR minor from Waterloo or spending nearly five years twiddling my thumbs at the casino.
I would have followed the love of English and writing that was in my heart coming out of high school and taken a journalism degree or an English Lit degree and gotten on this path that I am on a long time ago.
The good thing is that I am here now and things are slowly falling into place.
And whenever I get frustrated or negative about it, there is Shinedown.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Soundtrack of My Life
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
You Have To Want It
Yesterday was Day #1 of Operation: 185, my quest to shed some extra pounds and get into better overall health not just for next year's big event, but life in general.
Pictured to the right is my new bible. Note the lack of capitalization so I don't get struck down for blaspheming or anything like that.
Martin Rooney's book is a comprehensive training program not just for the body, but also for the mind and contains everything from motivational sections to dietary plans, both of which I am taking advantage of throughout this effort.
The biggest thing I have already learned from my one day journey is that doing something like this - exercise and eating right - has to be something you truly want to do.
Like most people, I've had gym memberships before and started out with the best intentions. Four times a week for the first month, then twice a week for a couple weeks, then something comes up and you haven't gone in a year and a half, despite the fact that GoodLife Fitness still gets $50 from you every month.
Unlike those times, I actually got out of bed yesterday looking forward to feeling stiff and sore today from my first workout in years. Surprisingly, I'm not that stiff and I'm also still really geared up about following through with this program.
Groceries today was all about good stuff - fresh fruits and vegetables from SunRipe Market, snack foods are now Melba Toast and Granola Bars instead of chips and dry roasted peanuts and beverages are pretty much either water - I'm drinking about 5L a day now - natural juices or V8 so that I get some extra veggies in there.
I know it's early in the efforts and things could very easily change as I step up to the higher intensity workouts and feel twice as sore tomorrow - second day is always worse, right? - but as of right now, things are great and that makes me excited.
As hokey as it sounds, there really is truth to the adage that "You have to want it."
I've found the things that I want, now it's time to keep after them.
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