Goals for the week...

I had intended to post this on Monday - but sometimes things get a little busy - and sometimes I get a little lazy. Either way, here it is now...

- Swim 4 times this week.

- Do something each day to help someone out. This cannot be calculated, and must be of no immediate benefit to myself.

- Vote.

- Fix the windshield wiper on my car.

My progress so far is good.

I took Wednesday as my rest day. Monday and Tuesday I swam after work - getting in half of a kilometer each night. Today, I swam on my break from work and pushed it up to three quarters of a km. My hope is to be doing 1 km non-stop before the end of the month...

On the subject of my 'random acts of kindness' - on Monday I returned that purse. On Tuesday night, I was closing up at work and about 25 minutes after we had closed, a man came in who seemed really disappointed that he had come too late. Rather then turn him away, fish and chip-less, I fired the fryers back up and cooked his meal. He was stoked. Last night, a similar situation. Customer enters, we are closed, he is bummed - only last night we had some leftover fish and chips that had been sitting for a few minutes. I crisped those back up and gave them to him on the house. He was really stoked.

I am not sure what I will do today - but hopefully an opportunity presents itself before the day is done...

And I voted too - only, I can't say that the election produced either of the outcomes I was hoping for...

And as far as my windshield goes - I can't replace the part apparently. Plan B = fix it my way - with glue and/or tape. Plan C - try to find the part at the auto wrecker. 

Back to work now!

Yes Man!

Lou and I watched 'Yes Man' last night. A little bit cheesy, but that was expected I suppose. Not bad though. It got us to thinking, or me to thinking anyway, about how difficult it might actually be to say 'yes' to every opportunity, even if just for one day. Maybe I will try it... Not today though.

This morning was the shits - but tonight, I am feeling pretty terrific. Just goes to show how much situations and moods can change in the span of about 13 hours. 

I was able to make it to the pool after work and got in a quick 1/2 kilometer before the pool closed. I feel good about that. I also plan to have a second go at waking up at 7am tomorrow, without Lou, for a pre-work swim... I feel like I might actually make it this time!

I also drove over to the capitol hill area to return a purse and wallet to a customer who left them behind tonight at Ol' Cockney Kings. I was not able to get a number from anything left in the purse - but her license lead me to her house. She was not home when I got there, though I found her husband and he seemed quite relieved as well upon the return of what may have been keys to his truck... I think this can slot nicely in as part of that homework assignment where I wanted to do something of no immediate personal gain in the interest of helping someone else. Let's make this week the week for that to happen for real - Monday down and one random act of kindness in the books. I will update tomorrow, or later in the week at least with my progress on that front.

On a completely unrelated side note - the Canucks lost tonight, bringing the best playoff run they have had since 1994 to an end. I really thought this was our year... but, it looks like that is not the case. For what it's worth though - I want to commend those boys on their effort. They did well, they almost had it tonight, but it slipped away. And unlike most other band-wagon jumpers, I'll take this loss and feel pretty good about it. The thing I figured out tonight is this: The only thing Vancouver loves more than the Vancouver Canucks, is hating on them when they lose.

So fuck each and every person who ended tonight with words and feelings of hate towards our hockey team. I might not play hockey anymore, and own a jersey, or a hat or shirt, and I don't have those ever popular Canucks flags on my car - but god dammit I am a better fan than you are...

That is all tonight. Time for bed!

Failed... kinda.

No 7am Wednesday morning wake-up for me. A failure in once sense, yes. But I'll call it a necessity - a conscious decision made in the name of extra rest. And realistically, I think I needed that extra bit of sleep - I have been a little grumpy this week.

In lieu of missing my Wednesday swim, I swam extra hard on Thursday. Done deal. I am now up to 500m non-stop. I hope to push that to 1.5km and beyond maybe. 1.5km is the standard distance for an olympic distance triathlon - which I have been thinking might be a new addition to the 'to-do' list... If I could run, I might consider giving Ironman a shot someday. Not soon though...

Today has been super productive so far. Despite a shitty start (due to news of a fuck up at work), I was up at 6:30 to take Lou to work. Hit up the passport office shortly before 9am (my new passport will be here in roughly two weeks). Ate breakfast and read the newspaper. Stopped at Canadian Tire. Took an hour long nap in my car. Saw Andy down at Sacred Heart about a new tattoo that is now in the works. Had lunch. Made a deposit at the bank and stopped at the library to pay old fines, get a new library card, and borrow a book that will hopefully help me fix some small issues with my car. The most important being my broken windshield wiper. In Vancouver, that can cause some issues...

All of that, and its only 2:32pm. Work starts in 28 minutes. Tonight will go well I believe. And I serve for Amy tomorrow morning. As much as that sucks on my day off, it is a bit of extra money in the bank, which is a good thing for sure.

The test...

Tomorrow morning I plan to wake up at 7am and go for a swim - as I usually would. Only, Lou is not here tonight, nor am I staying in Kits at her place. Without her to wake up with, and considering too the amount that I enjoy sleeping, this will surely be a challenge...

I will update tomorrow. Pre-work. Post-swim?

We will see...

It's a girl!

So - I realize I have (yet again) fallen short in keeping up with regular Sunday updates. To remedy the 3 week draught,  I will combine the past 3 updates into one, keeping things as concise and to the point as I am able.

On the subject of health and what not - I am now swimming quite regularly. I think it is safe to say that I am past the point where forcing myself to go is a difficult thing - and that in itself feels pretty good. It's almost as if my body equates feeling good to starting my day with a swim - therefor, it kind of craves it.  Another incentive is the fact that in order to get my money's worth (being that I bought myself a four month pass) - I need to swim at least twice each week. In the last month, I have been to the pool 15 times so I am most definitely on track. My next goal is to incorporate the gym into the mix - though I think I need to learn how to work out first... 

On a different note - I passed my road test and now have my class 5 license. It was long overdue, and as strange as it my sound, it feels good to be done with. I guess being lumped in with today's 'new' drivers made me feel a little bit lame - and lazy too, being that I have been eligible to apply for my class 5 for almost 5 years now. Anyway, it's in the bag - and apparently my face will be in hologram form on my new license! How cool is that!

I have been thinking more about the book I intend to write. I wouldn't say I am much further along though. But realistically, I have no intentions of writing it soon. It is just something I want to keep in the relative forefront of my mind when I am able to. To give it thought, and take note of ideas I may have, be it ideas about structure, or about content... I also may look into what it costs to print books on your own. Much like we did in Lights Below, without a label or publicity. Does that ever happen with books? Independently printed and distributed? It's an idea for sure!

And I guess I have saved the biggest event for last. In regards to the blog's title - Ashlee and Tony are now the proud parent's of baby Aven Iris Anne Patrick. At least I think that is her full name... haha! It was definitely an experience, being there and all. Not that I saw it happen, I waited in the hall of course, but something about hearing a new person be born into the world sends a shiver down your spine (the happy kind of shiver!). She is amazing, so far as I was able to tell in the 5 minutes I spent with her. But Ash and Tony will be out of the hospital tomorrow morning, and regular visits will soon begin if my mom has anything to say about it. So far, being Uncle Greg is pretty neat...