Yep, 2008 was the best year ever. No doubt about it. I don’t know how it happens, but somehow each year has been better than the last, since I was born. Seriously, I’m not bullshitting. Every year I look back and go “whew, does it get any better??” Sometimes some key aspect of my life goes to crap, but then, that just sets up something else. I knew it would happen again this year and it did. Not everything went perfect. There were some financial stresses, vehicles that got wrecked or broke down, races I blew, disagreements from time to time, jobs that never got done, friends or family that got seriously ill, and a few that passed on. But if you look at the list, it’s all stuff that no family on earth avoids. Try it, check the list. You probably had 80% of them too. It’s life. Otherwise it was the best year ever.
My bike racing performance was below average, and only a second place at the Velo stage race crit to smile about. But I learned that I could still hang out with friends and a few beers, get up the next morning and race hung over, and still have a fun day, it hurt more, but still fun. Lots of times that great day simply meant finishing at the back but having a great time watching the chaos, or working with a teammate. It was all good. I also realized that if I could stay with the pack completely hung over, maybe I might actually win something if I focused a bit. The Devon GP was another success, and we made some mistakes but they forced a whole new approach to the race organization, and the GP will be even bigger and better in 2009.
The kids were even more fun than ever as they grow and change. They still live life like a bomb going off. But one day this summer, Cassidy came up and said, out of the blue, “You know, I love my life. I love everything about it. My friends, my family, all the fun things I get to do, my school, my cousins. It’s so great! I just love it.” That right there, pretty much made my year.
At work, we’ve had a lot of challenges, and some really hard moments, but every time we get through it, every time we or I screw up and have to unravel a big mess, it’s like this intense MBA crash course. I have to make some adjustments to how I work to balance overtime, but I have a plan, and that’s half the battle.
We got lots to be thankful for; there’s a lot of war in the world, but I get to stay home with family; the economy is sideways but my company is gonna be ok; the housing market is a bear but we bought years before it hit; my kids are healthy and happy.
Cindy had a great year, establishing her training pattern, xc skiing with the club, doing more cyclo-cross. She continued to remove walls with the axe. She got her work schedule changed to fit our lives better. She was the rock that got all 200+ volunteers going the right directions for the biking club. She experimented with some dietary changes and it’s really working. She’s a machine; nothing stops her, she just keeps motoring along, game for anything.
The great part is that if I look at all the things I want to improve, they all seem to be symptoms of one issue, which means making a plan for 2009 to be the best year ever will be easier than I thought: I have to simplify. I let life get too complicated. Too many projects, too many activities jammed in. Too much clutter.
The Devon GP could be simplified to require less volunteers even with the same # of events. I have already thrown out a lot of half-done projects from the garage: Better to reap the satisfaction of the ones that will become something, than forever trip over the “someday-I–should’s”. I finally got in touch with a few old friends this year, people I used to be in contact with daily, that I haven’t spoken to in years. I gotta simplify my schedule, call people and get together, rather than saying “hey let’s get together”, and then it never happens.
There’s a lot of freedom in simplification. I got rid of my bike computer and it was like taking off leg shackles. I don’t need a computer to tell me that I pushed too hard…usually I just barf, and I see the chunks on my legs, and that’s my sign.
Simplify.
Yep, 2009 is gonna be the best year ever.
