Put me in a house in the woods

I took a new way home from Brookfield today, down Gebhardt Road. I wasn't even sure if it was a through street but once I got on it I didn't care. Because as I drove down Gebhardt Road, I realized this is the kind of place I would like to live. The houses are in the woods! Right here in Milwaukee (ish). As you drive along the street it feels as if you are driving through a narrow road in northern Wisconsin or Flagstaff through a reservation surrounded by towering pines in all directions. It was beautiful and so relaxing. The combination of this experience and sharing stories with my physical therapist earlier today about our past homes and experiences in Arizona, New Orleans and Colorado, made me miss the feeling of having passion for where I live. The northwest side of Milwaukee just isn't doing it for me.

Soooo, anyone wanna buy a house? That would be step 1, I suppose. Sell this house. The question is, what will move me from this contemplative stage to an action stage? I certainly got a couple of pushes today. Put me in a house in the woods. This is what I want.

Danskin 2008 Chicagoland Triathlon

I am an awesome swimmer.
I am an awesome cyclist.
I am an awesome runner.
I am a triathlete.

This will be my mantra for the next 11 weeks as I prepare for race day, July 13. I will swim a 1/2 mile in Lake Andrea.
Then I will Bike 12.4 miles. And then I will run 3.1 miles.

After spending the weekend with my IronFriends, Aleece and Ryan, I am ready to go! And a motivational talk from Sally Edwards tonight...well that just sealed the deal.

http://www.heartzones.com/about/bios/sally_edwards.php

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7. London, England


8. Mexico City, Mexico


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Sorrow and Joy

The chronic winter blues that I see and feel all around me, drew me to this passage in a book I haven't looked at in many years, The Prophet, by Kahlil Gibran.

Then a woman said, Speak to us of Joy and Sorrow.
And he answered:
Your joy is your sorrow unmasked.
And the selfsame well from which your laughter rises was oftentimes filled with your tears.
And how else can it be?
The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.
Is not the cup that holds your wine the very cup that was burned in the potter’s oven?
And is not the lute that soothes your spirit, the very wood that was hollowed with knives?
When you are joyous, look deep into your heart and you shall find it is only that which has given you sorrow that is giving you joy.
When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight.
Some of you say, “Joy is greater than sorrow,” and others say, “Nay, sorrow is the greater.”
But I say unto you, they are inseparable.
Together they come, and when one sits alone with you at your board, remember that the other is asleep upon your bed.
Verily you are suspended like scales between your sorrow and your joy.
Only when you are empty are you at standstill and balanced.
When the treasure-keeper lifts you to weigh his gold and his silver, needs must your joy or your sorrow rise or fall.

Step, bump, step, bump bump...

I almost fell out of my chair laughing at this this morning.... and that is no easy task for a Wednesday morning at work.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=d-Op-rbE658