Hey kids,Time doesn’t ever stop, but sometimes it’s slowed enough to catch a glimpse of the past.
Day 52
A Glimpse of the Past
Hey kids,Life’s Truths
Hey kids,Expected Unexpected
Hey Kids,
Heavy snow hit us today. Heavy as in wet and heavy as in a lot of it for this time of year. Officially, it was reported as 1-3” but with the lake effect snow, some places got a lot more than that and the mountains got over a foot.
It was predicted and yet it took people by surprise. I was no different. I knew it was coming and knew it was to hit yesterday and continue over night. And yet I still believed that I would ride my motorcycle in to work today. I was wrong and greatly disappointed this morning.
I settled for a ride into work with my honey. All the way in, I muttered how the roads weren’t so bad and I could’ve rode in and she kept pointing out all the slush and saying I couldn’t have. She eventually told me to stop my belly aching, and I did. I rode the bus home and started reading a new book. I will be on the bus and not riding tomorrow as well.
The snow hasn’t stop at all today and is to continue through the night. I’m sad because I’ve been spoiled by a mild winter, and it’s April 15th!
The amazing thing out of this storm, however, is not the storm. It can snow here in April and one should expect that realistic possibility through mid-May. The amazing thing is how people forget. People think that it’s crazy and unprecedented. So when the forecast calls for snow, we don’t believe it. We take no preparations for it, and act shocked and appalled when snow happens.
Like the weather as in all things, know the reality. Prepare for the unlikely but possible. Take it like a trooper. And in this case, know that’ll only last a short time and everything will be back to normal. Or did we already forget about global warming?
Day 51
Pony Express Rides Again
Hey Kids,
Apparently I chose the wrong anniversary to celebrate when it came to the Pony Express. I marked the 155th anniversary of the mail leaving St. Joseph, Missouri and Google celebrated the 155th Anniversary of those same letters arriving in San Francisco. It’s OK, I’ll enjoy it twice.
I know I eluded to in my post on April 3rd, but today I heard it stated as clear as it could be.
I mentioned that I wonder if I would have had, or if I have, the grit to be a rider. Today I heard it remarked that the biggest reason that the Pony Express Legacy lives on, is because deep down inside, we all wish we had done it.
Yessir, I do. I wish I had done it. I’m afraid I wouldn’t have, but I wish I had. One day, up there, when we’re all sitting around talking of our earth days, I’m going to hunt down one of those riders and listen to his stories and live the experience by proxy.
In Heaven?
I know that some of these fellas may have been a little rough around the edges, but if my God is who I hope he is, Pony Express riders will have a free pass into heaven, just for the hell of it all.
Day 50
When You’re Not Working
Hey Kids,
I’m not one of those guys who have to watch the off-season like it matters. I can barely keep up with watching the actual games, let alone trying to find out who showed up when to training camp, who got traded, and who got cut. I have too many things going on.
I do get caught up in some of the news and occasionally I like to check in and see if anything exciting that might affect the season happened. This past week, I got hooked on NFL organized practices press conferences.
In one interview, a second year player spoke of the difference of the rookie year when compared to the second year. The press lobbed the question to him and he answered that it really didn’t matter what year it was, he just had to work hard and get better at the things he could get better at, which was everything.
He’s a sincere guy. Humble family upbringing, soft spoken, and complimentary to everyone around him. But in regards to working hard he drew on a statement his father had told him that he uses as his motivation.
He said his daddy told him “When you’re not working, someone else is.”
This world will pass you by if you let it. Your spot isn’t assured. Get out and out-work the rest of them and good things will happen. If nothing else happens, you’ won’t have to worry whether or not you tried hard enough. And that puts you in some elite company and leaves you with no regrets.
Day 49
It’s Called the Lombardi Trophy for a Reason
Hey Kids,
It’s Friday and I’ve had a great week. Nothing special or anything, I’ve just owned each day and got some good things done. That hasn’t always been the case.
I’ve struggled. I’ve had some bad days, and I imagine I still will. This afternoon, everything could turn for the worse and be a horrible evening, a sucky weekend, and the start of a really bad week for next week. I’m not afraid. I’ve seen it all before and here I am, having a great week and day.
I have learned that the days keep coming. They come. And they come. All you have to do is keep standing up when one of them knocks you down.
I know, blah, blah, blah.
Well, it’s true. There is no mystery to it. There’s no secret answer. It’s all about what you do. How long will you stay down on the mat? Sometimes it takes a while. But you just have to get up as soon as you can.
And since you’re up, enjoy it.
Day 46
Connected
Hey Kids,
I woke this morning to a comment to yesterday’s blog left from half-way around the world, from Australia. The author and I have since exchanged a few comments on each other’s blogs and as fate would have it, he’s a motorcycle guy.
I find it amazing the reach that an individual can have. The world has become so small in terms of communication. One’s words can find themselves from a little apartment in Utah to any place in the world. To be alone or isolated seems an impossible feat anymore.
And yet, despite the close proximity all IP addresses share, we are able to be individuals now more than ever. To be unique, to embrace a relatively minority passion such as a motorcycle is OK. I can still be Mike from Utah, an American. I can still have my own ideas of how everything works and yet still find commonality with others on small specific topics. If someone is adamantly opposed to me, they can move along. Life’s too short to bicker.
It’s an incredible world we live in. The more we connect, the less we want to remain separate. The more we understand different points of view, the less we care if we’re red or blue. The more we discuss what we love and learn what others love, the less we need to discuss what we dislike.
Even with all the trouble in the world, this, I believe, is a great time to be a part of it. And the makings are here to make it even better for the future.
I hope we use our new possibilities to broaden friendships and expand humanity. I hope I get to meet more of the world.
Day 45
Sad Monday
Hey Kids,
A person I’ve known for many years passed this weekend to a sudden heart attack. The news hit hard this morning as people returned to work and got the news. It happened so sudden.
I won’t pretend that we were great friends or that had I not been told, it might be some time before our paths would have crossed in a way that I would have asked where he had gone, but it would’ve happened. And I would be just the same shocked and saddened as I am today.
Jon always made me smile when our paths did cross. He always bore a smile and if you spent any amount of time with him, you were blessed with a story of some sort. Or at least an encounter that became your story of Jon.
He was not young but he wasn’t old. It’s a reminder that life isn’t fair. It’s just life. One day you have it; the next day you might not.
I don’t want to cheapen my thoughts today by spelling out the obvious lesson. But I will say, I’m hearing it in my head.
Day 42
Once Bitten, Twice Frozen
Hey Kids,
Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results is said to be the definition of insanity. I guess I’m insane.
I have now tried to ride twice to and towards Idaho despite the early season and both times I’ve expected, nay, hoped, the ride would be warm or warmish. Both times I have been met with cold reality. Both times started in the sunshine and progressed into a grey, cold northern sky filled with cold Idaho air.
I might be insane, but I believe if I keep trying, this cold streak will change.
The worth and enjoyment of the ride was worth every shiver and frozen finger. I shared the ride with my brother and picked up my girl and brought her back home.
Ride on, I say; the cold is but for a few hours yet the memory of the ride will last a lifetime.
That rule actually applies to many things.
Day 40
Hail to the Chief
Hey Kids,
There are times to argue and times to show respect.
Today the President Obama is visiting Utah overnight. It is the first time that he has visited in 8 years and the first time since becoming the President.
One thing that really bothers me is the protesters that must follow and harass the President. In my opinion, many of them disrespect the office.
Shouting at an elected official or holding signs does not really affect policy. Shouting and offensive signs are disrespectful. Organized efforts, educated civilized dialogue, and responsible voting affects policy and shows respect to the process of democracy.
I do not endorse or protest the President’s policies today. I’m honored that our state will host our President tonight. I welcome the President of the United States of America to Salt Lake City. I hope that he returns again.
And I’ll extend this welcome to any President who decides to come in the future as well.
Respect the office; protest with your votes.
Day 38
Pink Slips
Hey Kids,
It was a sad day at work today; lay-offs happened.
5 people from our staff were released under the term “Reduction in Force” or RIF as Human Resources likes to call it.
The morale of everyone sinks when these things happen. It’s not hard to envision what the event would do to our lives if it turned out to be us on the receiving end of that kind of notice. What would we do? Where would we go? How would we continue to pay the bills? What do we tell our families? Our friends? The thoughts makes us feel sorry for the ones who were forced to face those questions today.
And then the guilt sets in. Guilty for our lives remaining the same and knowing others, people we cared about, worked with, and with who we shared a third of every day’s total hours; their lives were devastated . Guilty that we’re relieved it wasn’t us after all.
I’m not preaching because I’m in this boat too, but this is the exact reason to keep yourself out of these situations. Here’s a few tips I’m telling myself and if you agree, do likewise:
- Don’t work for someone else where they have total say of what you do, when you do it, and whether or not you’ll be allowed to continue to do it tomorrow. Find your own thing and be your own boss.
- If working for someone else, don’t be dependent on them. Save money. Hone your skills and keep your eyes always looking for other opportunities. Don’t be more loyal to them than they are to you. Lay-offs define the limit of their loyalty.
- Limit or eliminate your debt. It’s a lot easier to survive without the wolves at the door.
- Be valuable; so valuable that it hurts them more to get rid of you than for you to get rid of them.
Currently, I feel I dodged a bullet. And I’m going to do everything in my power to not have to worry about this kind of thing again.
Life owes me nothing, so I might as well earn and take what I want to have. A “job” is not one of those things.
Day 37
Mike M Jensen 