Monday Madness

I want you to take a few moments to listen closely to Rep. Michelle Bachmann gives a great explanation on what is going on inside our government. This should make you angry as hell. If not check your pulse , take 3 aspirin and call your soon to be socialized physician in the morning to get a colonoscopy while they still use versed.



"Keep On Rock'in In The Free World" While it is still free..

TT - Even In The Quietest Moments

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our dark that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people don't feel insecure around you.We are all meant to shine as children do. Its not just in some of us; its in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
Mahatma Gandhi

In the quietest moments our thoughts are most pure and can be harvested and built upon for the greater good. The air this morning was heavy even though it was somewhat chilly. Kind of strange meteorologicaly speaking. I am flying without my editor this fine morning. I only say this as a warning to those who are punctually and grammatically anal. I am a writer not an editor. Kind of like Ed. He was an attorney and owned a bowling alley, two separate things. See I have the whacky mind with all the ideas and can put them into motion. My better half puts dots and commas and pauses and stops in places I never thought to pause or stop.

So this mornings walk was one of pure brilliance. It was so quiet all you could hear was the pure melodious chirping of the early sunrise birds and in a few areas the seeping whistle of water jetting out of the sprinklers. I have always wondered what it would be like to be able to understand what the birds are saying. Are they really singing a happy song? Or are they somewhat more diabolical?

Robin - "Chirp, chirp chirpetty chirp...= Hey look at the fat guy coming our way."
Meadowlark- "Chirp, chirpity, chirpy, chirp...= I See him, at least he is out trying to be healthy you rude fat ass Robin."
Robin - "Yeah F you Meadowlark punk."

I mean you can see my point? Maybe birds aren't always singing a happy song like they teach them in school and on the Disney movies. I don't know. Anyway just one of many observations that come across this crazy mind.

The air held that scent of freshness in its grasp almost as though Mother Nature had actually cleansed it overnight. She left a strong scent of honeysuckle on one block. ( my personal favorite.) Another block the smell of toast and coffee wafted about the morning air. As I pass through each of the various neighborhoods I find that they each seem to have their own neighborhood alarm clock if you will. Some are still quiet and calm. Others are bustling with energy and the frenetic pace of our fast forward society. Cars zooming by. One with ding dong at the wheel barely noticing the guy on the road because she is driving, putting on her eyeliner and speaking on her cell phone all at the same time. Genius!! The sounds of hammers crashing down on wood, the wailing of power saws tearing through plywood and that obnoxious beep, beep , beep of the already blasted loud cement truck as it backs into position. Man those cement guys like to pour early. I guess the gelatinous state of cement must be more workable at 6am when it is cool than later in the day. Go figure. But thanks for the acoustic mind bender. The smell in the air around the construction site is one of raw wood and fresh cigarette smoke.A mixture I do not necessarily care for but it oddly tickles the senses. Yeah because nothing says good morning like a good heater. I guess I will never understand how starting the morning off with molten hot tobacco searing through your mouth and lungs is ever a good thing. Thank God I get to move back into the forest for the later part of my road time today. MMM fresh pine and that stifling quiet noise of the forest. The forest floor filled with ferns and other flora and fona seem to absorb all static sound to a hush.

I find it interesting the amount of information one can download while having an earpiece in one ear blasting tunes from an Ipod play list, and the other ear free to catch all of the worlds rapture as it awakens to a new day. I love my morning ritual. There is such a cathartic peace about this place and practice. God Bless you all, make it a great week.

Please go check out Angie's site for some great reads.





"Keep On Rocking In The Free World"

Things That Made Me Tough

"Day 10 on my "Walk About". All is well. 6:35 am 55 degrees and rainy. Half way through my morning 5 mile ritual and I get an epiphany. More on that later, promise.As epiphanies go, it was hugely profound and may have changed the direction of my life forever, or at least brought me back to a grounding point.Anyway, as I said more on that later."

Ok, So lets try to stage this for you. For the past 4 months as most of you know I have been unemployed as a former co-worker told me.
"Let's face it you got screwed by some rather incompetent and unscrupulous people."
None the less,that is in the past and I must live in the now. An acquaintance of mine is a life coach. She drew the parallel that the loss of a job after 18yrs is much like the loss of a family member emotionally. You go through 3 very distinct phases,( disbelief, anger, sorrow ),each beholding their own unique challenges and growth opportunities. The hard part is getting through each stage with some sense of clarity so that you can actually see the forest through the trees and grasp the growth or more pointedly "Grasshopper snatch the pebble from the hand."

As I was hiking up one of the many hills that are splattered into my morning walk which I added to my daily workout routine it hit me. The adrenaline rush associated with this moment was indescribably intense. It hit me so hard I thought maybe my former roommate and ex-NFL Offensive Lineman had pulled around the corner and leveled me with a crushing block. ( which did happen once.Thanks Eug.) The rain was pouring down. I was walking at a good clip and I realized this was exactly the types of moments that had made me tough. Doing things that others are not willing to do. In high School the many mornings of running with my Dad at 5am while he and his nut case pals trained for the Ironman. At Virginia Tech Always pushing myself during strength training and to win the mile and a half conditioning run against our overly cocky quarterback. Did I win every time? No, but I won enough that people took notice and so did I, and that is what fueled me for next time. The years of 4:45am wake ups to attend spin class & weight training.

Ok so you are asking why these things are significant? The answer is these are the things that made me tough. I have allowed myself over the past few years to slack off on the workouts whether due to my arthritis, kids, work whatever. Sure family, my health and life are all important, very important. These were the things that identified me. So the epiphany was just that. These are the traits I had adopted that made me who I was and when I allowed them to fade I may have faded a bit with them. I have never been a quitter and especially when we are talking about life. So the in the words of Robert Plant " Hey Hey Momma said the way you move, gonna make you sweat gonna make you groove." Tony is getting his groove back. I do not have a job, but my job or job title has never been what has identified me as a person. Sure I will get a new job someday. Hopefully someday soon.The important things is that through all the disbelief, anger and sorrowful moments I have endured the past 4 months, I have gained a pearl of wisdom in this epiphenomena event. Sometimes in the winds of change, we find true direction.

Off to continue taking back what is rightfully mine. I must harness my toughness, my persona, my life. Just try to take it away again, see how that works out for you Life.

"Keep On Rocking In The Free World"

Hey Hey Moma Said The Way You Move Gonna Make You Sweat , Gonna Make Groove.

Day 10 on my "Walk About". All is well. 6:35 am 55 degrees and rainy. Half way through my morning 5 mile ritual and I get an epiphany. More on that later, promise.As epiphanies go, it was hugely profound and may have changed the direction of my life forever, or at least brought me back to a grounding point.Anyway, as I said more on that later.

It is Jr's last soccer game of the spring today. I as one of the coaches I feel so grateful to have had 12 families entrust their children to me for a few short hours for 6 Saturday's. I know very little about soccer, but I know a tremendous amount about sports,teamwork,life and their cyclical evolution around each others vortices. So very cool to see these kids grow and add another layer to their onion. Hope to be back after another 40 miles. The breeze is blowing across my face I have to keep moving in my day dream. God Bless.

"Keep On Rockin In The Free World"

Wordful Wednesday- My Walk About

I really appreciate you loyal readers for your patience. I know I have not been on my "A" game with posting as of late. I think the stress, anxiety and pressure of this jobless thing has been weighing down my creative side. I do apologize. I will get back to it soon I hope. I have to fight to keep a roof over my kids head right now. That is my priority. Thanks for understanding.Prayers accepted.

"We must be willing to get rid of the life we had planned, so as to have the life that is waiting."
During my Walk About I am really trying to do something I spoke about a few weeks ago. Lending yourself to a new process, a higher power. Releasing all that you have ever wished for, wanted, planned for and jumping into the abyss with only your faith in God. Instead of trying to steer your life via the hopeful human Garmin system, allow yourself to float in the sea of uncertainty to realize your fate and new destination in this very wacky time in which we are evolving these days. No Mom, I have not been smoking peyote. God Bless each of you and your families.



Keep On Rockin In The Free World

ATWT - Giro d'italia Craziness.

So many of you may not know I am big and big into cycling. The Giro d'italia is going on right now. I know who cares?

I do!
This is all about me. So holla.

This guy seems to show up at all the races. Kind of funny. I want to know how he gets those horns on the plane? Hmmmmm. Ride like ya stole it. Please whenever possible support the LiveStrong Foundation.

Wordful Wednesday- Kindergarten Field Trip

So, last Thursday I got the wonderful opportunity to accompany my son Jordan to his Kindergarten end of the year field trip. We all piled onto the school bus and headed for the vineyard country 35 miles southwest of Portland, Oregon to a little gem called Camp Tilicum. I was the chaperon for my son and one of his school mates. While we were there we made our way around the lake to 5 different activity zones.

1. Rope walk/climbing wall, where the kids got to face their fears of heights and believing in themselves to make it across the rope walk.
2. 3/4 mile hike, which of course turned into a 3/4 mile sprint because the kids knew that the fishing station and lunch were waiting at the end of the trail.
3. Fishing, where Jordan was one of 8 kids who actually caught a fish. He caught two, (plus a salamander) which absolutely made his day so bright.
4. Canoeing around the lake, which was interesting as I tried to paddle and keep 3 eager and inquisitive boys from moving too much so we wouldn't have to go swimming. (56 degree spring run off water would not be my idea of fun.)
5. Finally, we attended an old one room school house for some learning. The kids all sat in the old style school desks for a spelling bee & an energized discussion about beavers. Then, outside on the muddy lawn, they played a game of boys against girls tug-of-war. Needless to say, we had a nice long bus ride ahead in muddy clothes.

For me it was a day to put all my struggles aside and just enjoy and engage those moments in time with my son who is such a special loving little boy. At the end of the day he hugged me and said
"Thanks Dad, for coming with me."
Then he drifted off to sleep against my shoulder on the bus ride home. I sat with tears in my eyes and whispered thankfully back to him.
" No, thank YOU, buddy."



Keep On Rock'in In The Free World

ATWT - Peace, Tranquility & Strength

A Thousand Word Thursday was based on the simple premise that a picture is worth a thousand words. For me I see peace, tranquility and strength. What does it say to you? Take a moment this week to stop and engage the natural beauty around you. Enjoy the cathartic warmth nature can provide.

In addition you need to check out My Grandmas Of New England Coffee Cake !



Go check out the many fun new bloggers over at The Mom Jen's site. Enjoy.


Keep On Rock'in In The Free World

Wordful Wednesday- My Friend Angie's Brood

I am not so Wordful this Wednesday. But Please go check out Angie's site for many awesome new options to uncover some great new blogs. Angie has been such a wonderfully supportive, kind friend to me these past few months. Thanks so much Angie. It is like a treasure chest of material. I hope you enjoy.



Keep On Rock'in IN The Free World

TT- Allowing Yourself to let Go.

"We must be willing to get rid of the life we had planned, so as to have the life that is waiting."
Kind of a strange tribute I know, but today I choose to tribute lending yourself to a new process, a higher power. Releasing all that you have ever wished for, wanted, planned for and jumping into the abyss with only your faith in God. Instead of trying to steer your life via the hopeful human Garmin system, allow yourself to float in the sea of uncertainty to realize your fate and new destination in this very wacky time in which we are evolving these days. No Mom, I have not been smoking peyote. God Bless each of you and your families.



Keep On Rockin' In The Free World