Next Step

Before!!

Digging It Out

Oh Boy

No More Meowing

Another yard photo from progress being made, finally. The black patches are the fabric that I will cut into and plant some cactus and cover w/a different color of rock.

 I crack up when I stand back and have a look. Many moons ago, Mr Jim installed a dry river bed at my OM place and when I was getting in his way, like a bull in a china hutch, he so kindly pointed out that natural river beds don't look like this. The larger rocks on the banks and the smaller pebbles in the wash.  I will bet he is shaking his head at me if he saw this, as if to say," Didn't You Learn A Damn Thing?"

Still Have Some Work To Do…. Pretty Pleased So Far

4-5-14…… Stoked Boy Dog….. Slow Mo

Shadow Boy couldn't be happier…….. A run in the desert……. A trip to the rock shop…… Life is Gr8 when you are a dog…… Finally able to lift my arm above my head…… Sneezing still blows….. But thankful that my body is coming back around…… Looking for a strong month of May

                                                          LOVE THIS BOY DOG!!!!

Few More Days…..

……. And we will be halfway through the year. I mean, Jan & Feb flew on by. March, did we see March this year?? April, April was all Spring Clean Up. That felt good to say. Spring Clean Up.

Update On The Ribs: Still flipping sore. My ROM was come back & my only real pain is when I sneeze & that never happens this time of year. Slept good the last few nights. Might have over done it working on both yards yesterday. Only time will tell.

This weekend should fly on by as well. I have clients in the office both Sat & Sun & should be able to score some trail running w/the Boy Dog at some point. Overall, feeling really good, making plans, & enjoying the moment.

Reading Others …. Maybe 4 The Birds

Saturday morning began w/a relaxing early session of Boy Dog Belly Rubs. Stretching was followed  by the grinding of the beans. Set myself up w/H2o, finished my morning routine, off to the Pickle Ball Tournament here in Grand Junction Colorado. Little did I know, there is a whole schedule of tournaments across the western slope. Little did I know, these folk take this sport SERIOUSLY. Little did I know, I was one of the youngest players.

Our warm up time started at 9:30am. However, by the smell of that place, players started "playing" at sunrise. SO my warm up wasn't worth writing about. More of a deer in headlights as I wondered around in search of my neighbor. After the usual check in & hand shakes & hellos, I was informed that we were in a double elimination. So 2 games. Right off the bat, I didn't say a word about my shoulder. Still painful to hold or extend my left arm but I was able to take in a full breath w/o pain today. Now, our 1st game, both of these guys tell us that they have been playing for over a year & still in the beginners bracket. But I do like these guys for some reason. My neighbor & I, well, we have played 3 nights…… TOTAL…… so we didn't score a point in the best of 3. Also, the indoor ball is much different then the outdoor whiffle ball. And the windows created a glare in which I would lose sight of the ball before it came off of their paddles. Some shots were short & I had no reaction time. So off to the consolation bracket we go.

Our second game was a one match to 15 points & win by 2. I decided to use the sideline to my advantage & keep the game in front of me. No rushing the net, not fancy returns, just react & relax. This was my game & I finally warmed up. This game was my full on learning curve. Things I Learned: 1) They will make simple mistakes SO LET THEM. 2) Reminding my neighbor to hit the ball w/a lot less gotta KILL IT mentality as we watched his shots go long every time. 3) Complement & point out awesome shots to everyone. 4) Its a game people RELAX.

Yes, we won that game, the next game, and the next game. We won & we sat a lot. I kept the game in front of me & allowed the other team to crush the ball into the net. We drank water & watch the other team return them long. I kept the game fun & my neighbor pulled off some shots. Each shot was rewarded vocally & not with just a knuckle bump. We sat & we won. All the way to the finals.

We were matched up against the 2 guys that killed us in the 1st game of 3. We had to beat them twice because they had yet to chalk up a lose. But….. my neighbor & had only been playing up to 15 the last few games & didn't even think about best of 3 series because they were still undefeated. So my neighbor & I score 15 to their 9 & we were stoked. Drinking more water & watching some other matches, its forced on me that the other team wasn't happy that we only played 1 game to 15 & we weren't done. My only question was if the 1st game to 15 count towards our best of 3??? They said yes but signs indicated they were pretty sore about it. More upset about the lack of the refs & directors professionalism then us. Whatever, I was stoke that we won, that I was enjoying myself, & that I really didn't care too much.

Just before our match to finish the best of 3, one the the players walks in from having a cig. Right then & there I knew it was over. That was his weakness. His mind was shot because he felt cheated loosing to us & we didn't know the rules, right? Maybe Yes?? Maybe No??? But now, his body is toxic & I am going to run him. Our second game wasn't even close. Each shot that came my way, I took aim at his feet. My neighbor & I crushed them. We took 2 straight. And I continued to complement sweet shots that really pisses of a loosing team for some reason. Actually, they really made some nice shots & acknowledge my acknowledgment. So then, they say we have to play a game to 15 now because they officially lost their 1st game. Made sense.  NOW, I still haven't used my left side, my neighbor runs to the net after every serve, & nobody read this because they were so caught up in rules, ref's, 100 dollar Paddles, outfits, etc. I was ready to watch them guys run. I mean really run this game. My neighbor & I brought out more drama & the ref informed us that if him & I don't get who's who serve down then he will deduct points from us. "Learn the rules." he told me. So we won that game w/even more drama as we won by 2. Final score was 16-14. I laughed so hard inside & my neighbor was stoked. His dream came true!! He got all fired up over our 3 days of "practicing" & signed us up for this tournament & envisioned us winning the whole thing. He was on top of the world. And then, they gave us the medal. " We got a gold medal. " My neighbor squealed w/joy.

Pretty Proud 

They supplied all the teams w/pork pulled sandwiches about 11:30am w/chips & oranges & snickers & random treats. About that time, the Men's Open started warming up. HOLY SH*T folks. They flipping rock & no way could I even think about returning a serve. No Way. These guys rip that ball & if we were outdoors…….. wouldn't be fun.

Walking out w/my neighbor, reflecting on the day, watching him walk w/a little skip, I told him that I would play w/just him again but never in another tournament. I am going to retire on top. Classic A???  After I pointed out my concerns & observations, I made sure to explain that I enjoyed myself, its just that I am not taking it so seriously & just wanna play to play. At this point, Phuc the score, lets rally. Lets play outdoors & play to play. And I would totally play the same guys again but w/o the tournament vibe. We agreed, bring back the fun. I'll prefer to play Pickle Ball for the GAME of it...

Double Dog Downer

Got It Standing

Well Sh*t……. Why this week of all weeks……. As you may now…… I took a spill on Monday….. Basically I crushed the left side of my rib cage…… I know nothing is broken…… Now I am just dealing w/this subscapularis feeling stuck…….. The head of my ribs were they meet my sternum hurts 2 sneeze, cough, or roll over in bed…… Now…. If thats not enough…… Mother Nature blew on through the valley…… Well…… Blew down the damn gate……. And I can't lift the damn thing….. So I was feeling way down….. Have yet 2 finish the landscaping project…… Cant ride my damn bike….. Unable 2 take a full breath…… Walking the dogs is painful….. On & On goes the water works….. Then, a friend of mine went over the handle bars of his bike & destroyed his Clavicle…… Hate 2 say this but its the perspective that I needed….. He is in REAL pain….. I am just being a big sissy…. Time 2 Wake Up Mr Reed….. I had the wind knocked out of me….. So did he…. It hurts 2 move…. He can't move….. Hurts 2 breathe in a full rich breath….. He can't even think about breathing

SO 2day I am so sucking it up…… Its Friday & Its Time 2 Feel Alive….. Time 2 Pull My Head Out…. This is going 2 be a Gr8 weekend…… Thanx 4 stopping by my blog….. I will have some photos from the weekend….. I will have some uplifting ideas 2 share……. Enough of the Debbie Downer…… Happy Friday Folks!!!!!

Awesome Weekend

Saturday started early. Like 5:25am Early. Like waking up in darkness. Like the Boy Dog wasn't even getting up, at 1st. The good news, every year, at some point it rains & I brought my rain gear in my panniers & oh did that pay off. Mother Nature dropped the wet stuff until 10am, just as MOG started. So Cool, So Wet, & Totally Worth It.

But……. I totally volunteered 4 this…… Manufactures of Outdoor Gear ( MOG ) is 1 of the coolest events & is run by the most dynamic person I know. 11 years ago, Jen Taylor started this event on Main St. The whole idea was bringing all these companies together 2 sell of last years gear. About 5 years ago, the Bike Swap took off. This year, we are talking Telluride Film Fest, MOG on Main Street, & the Colorado Mesa University Maverick Classic. All of these events were happening downtown GJ & were a huge success!!!

The downtown Criterium was a blast. The 1st race was Community Challenge at 1pm, which was a timed 20min. The Men's Pro race started at 7:15pm and ran 45min of racing on flat tight streets of GJ & the course was .95mi with loads of fans.

Then, over at Lincoln Park, Arbor Fest was taking place. They had a massive beer garden, music all day, vendors, & we showed up at 4pm 4 the Hot Pepper Eating Contest. MY HIGHLIGHT 4 SURE!!! I love watching these folks completely ruin their whole week. A huge turn out of drunks, families, fans, & contestants of all shapes & sizes. They started off w/1 hot pepper & 2 people called it good & walked off. 3 peppers later, everyone was still game. Then, the 1st serrano pepper was consumed & back 2 the green peppers 4 another 3 rounds. Then most everyone bowed out after the 1st habaneros. From there on out was pure out of body experience. 2 guys remained, however, I was becoming disappointed because everyone that quit really didn't seem all the jacked up. In the past, folks would puke!!! Thats why I was there!! Suffering!! Thats what I wanted 2 see. So, the last 2 guys were chomping down & the crowd started cheering big time. The 1 guy Will would have quit but had a gang of friends going ape sh&t which means the rest of the crowd adopted the "other" guy. They would have gone all night. The contest was deemed as a draw & these guys were splitting the $200 smackers. Then, our friend Will lost his marbles. It was awesome. We stayed another 20min just watching him blow up. Puking, blood red eyes, & his buddy dumped a 5gal of ice on him. Will was in really bad shape. 4 me, TOTALLY worth it.

We rode bikes back 2 the house, made up some ravioli, watched the rest of the A's game, & headed back downtown 4 the last few crit races. Back 2 racing, live music, & let the clean up begin. The whole day was awesome!!! Chris, Jen's husband, & I rolled cable, disassemble the bike rack, break down easy ups, & all kinds of closing duties. Most everyone was tired from the long day so I just kept on reminding everyone how much fun, kept the positive vibe going, & recapped the crit racing. Then, Rock Star Jen shared the fact that the vendors ALL had a record sales 4 the day!!! What an event!!! As we all gave out hugs & said our good byes, Jen & Chris asked me 2 stick round 4 a second. No Worries. I would do anything 4 Jen & Chris.

These 2 wanted 2 thank me 4 all my work. Sure, I hung posters, spread the word, but they were so stoked about my intro from Fridays vendor, volunteer, gathering at the brewery. Everyone introduced themselves & explained how they are involved w/MOG or 4 how many years. As a thank you, Jen & Chris bought me dinner at the brewery at about 10:30pm. They paid 4 the I.P.A., the appetizers, & our main dishes. AWESOME!!! Again, I simply enjoy helping out & I explained that I only see these folks or vendors once every year at this event. Its Gr8.

Volunteering is rewarding on many levels. Giving back feels good. Helping other 4 no reason at all helps in more ways then we know.

04-16-2014 Happy Hump Day Or…….

……...Bring back in old saying from many moons ago……. You may call Wednesday Hump Day, but I am calling it," Bustin' my Hump Day."



Yes, Busted My Hump!!! My hands are a weeeee bit sore.



But I sure feel better about this little project. It totally coming together quite nicely.

 I hooked up the computer out front & haven't missed a KAFM Fund Drive Show yet. I shall pass on more ranting about the station at this time. I have the speakers facing the street & I enjoy doing my thing. Shadow Boy has accompanied me 2 the rock shop X3 trips 2day.

GOOD NEWS: 1/2 yard of river rock, 1/2 crushed granite, & 1/4 yard of Mountain Magic 4 the cactus. A Grand Total Of $32.46

SO FAR…...

Here is a shot from last years project. I soon hope 2 have that grass removed some day.



Missed the Western Slope Runners last Tuesday 4 a number of reasons. I could write you all the reasons, like clients & yard work, but I am not giving any excuses. I can say this because I miss trail running on Tuesday. If I was avoiding the group, then I would be giving a wide range of justifications.



Stay tune as I will be adding more 2 the yard, updating KAFM, & sunsets photos 2 come. Feel free 2 stream an interesting radio show this Thursday. My friend The Blue Z will be hosting his last radio show WITH kids. The Blue Z is retiring from teaching 2nd grade ( 32 years ) & has been bring his students down 2 the station 4 many years. They take turn reading stories from popular nursery tales. Basically, its the 2nd graders perspective of 3 little pigs, a witches brew, etc. The show is very entertaining & the kids do a gr8 job. So try & catch the show from 6:30pm-9pm Mt Time Zone on www dot kafmradio dot org…… Now, its time 2 close my little eyes, spoon w/the Boy Dog, & get ready 2 do it all again 2mar