i made this goal last year in 2010 to run 1,000 miles. i failed (it's cool, i'm okay with that. side note: not really). i had an injury that really set me back and to be honest...i just wasn't that great of a runner (am i now?). so as you can imagine it made my list of goals for 2011. about a week before thanksgiving i realized that i had logged exactly 800 miles with only 44 days left in 2011. i did the math (which i'm not that great at) and it came out to roughly 4.5 miles PER DAY until the New Year. my initial thoughts weren't the best/most optimistic. then i started thinking about it more and more. i started realizing that it might be a fun cool challenge to present myself. so...i took it on.
i "officially" started the "forty-four day challenge" (brilliant name, i know) on friday november 18th with 800 miles logged. i took a random poll on my facebook page to see what people would say/recommend and it was cool to see the responses i got. it seemed pretty split but of course my eyes were only worried about the ones that read, "GO FOR IT" or "YOU CAN DO IT" and that pretty much sealed the deal.
it's going to be great tomorrow when i can get a sweet thirty-one day countdown going. as of today i have 854 miles logged. i've been doing 5 milers most days to give myself a few days off between now and the New Year. i can't imagine how awesome the run will feel on New Year's Eve! i'm just praying i don't injure myself or have anything else happen that can keep me from hitting my goal.
i'll keep you posted because i am 100% surely positive you are going to want to know that i am running daily!
because no runner has heard, "run forrest run!" enough...here is my inspiration to run everyday:
one time this was just an idea in the works. well, i'm proud to announce the official grand opening non-black friday release party for the official unofficial official best ever hottest super power couple's blog:
this blog includes my amazing wife Emily and her input on a lot of things. mainly...our lives and what we're doing. take a look and let us know what you think. basically, we'll be updating it occasionally with things that we're doing or something we're thinking about. i'm really excited for you (assuming that you'll want to read it along with this blog) because Emily is a bright young lass that has some cool things to say...most of the time. ;)
enjoy. or don't. whatever. seriously though enjoy it, please. do it. thanks.
the title was inspired by my sister-in-law Cara. i think i'm going to write a book called Messing With a Vegetarian. if it exists already don't tell me you will crush my dreams. entirely. crush.
it may or may not include ripped off cartoons like these:
in all honesty though...i think it'd be super cool to write a book. i got a really really really complimentary comment on a previous blog post (probably from one of my old teacher's who wants me to succeed in life) and it really gave me a boost of motivation in my writing. clearly this post shows that motivation.
previous book ideas/titles i have had and could potentially (but probably not) write:
-Swimming With No Water (a book about having a fear of water and not knowing why)
-Batman vs. Me (a book about how we should all feel/act like super heroes)
-No, Paul...You Can Call Me Al (a book about my childhood - i think maybe my parents had a paul simon cassette i'd listen to a lot)
-Putting the 'I' in Music (a book about music snobs and how it's only cool if you admit it and are actually a cool person)
-Messing With a Vegetarian (maybe the only book I'd come close to writing at this point - an autobiography that would include more pictures/cartoons than words)
i've been watching/listening to a lot of steven furtick sermons lately and i'm not gonna lie...they're really good. do me a favor here, okay? if you normally close out my blog now once you see i'm posting about something religious or whatever...don't! do me one favor and read on. cool? cool!
i'll be real honest here...i have been having a terrible week. now, when i say "terrible" i don't mean bad things are happening or anything. i mean things just stink! i've been making dumb choices that make life harder than it should be. i haven't been trusting that God really knows what He's talking about. i've been staying up too late. i haven't been praying enough or reading my Bible enough. basically...i haven't been doing a good job at being the Godly person i want to be. guess what? i'm human. this happens to me all the time. for some reason i'm reacting a little differently this week than normal. i'm putting more pressure on myself to be a "game-changer" (meaning: world changer) and i think that is what's making my week bad. so, my week being bad is basically because i'm not doing enough for the Kingdom. hmmm....so are my weeks every really good?
one good thing this week? scripture!! passages like Psalm 37:23-24 say, "The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fail for the Lord holds them by the hand." scripture like this keeps me motivated even after a bad day where i completely suck! question: why do i not get into the Word more? answer: because i am a stubborn human who thinks he can do life himself...but can't! it's not like it's rocket science! i can't have a good day by myself! James 1:17 says, "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."
my point: although scripture tells us that "every good and perfict gift is from above," we're not guaranteed a good life, ya know? while the good days i have (which are many) are gifts from God...it's a possibility that my life might not ever be good ever again! ultimately, i'm not guaranteed a "good" life. what am i guaranteed, you ask? nothing. my only goal in life is to glorify God. sounds simple, right? yeah...it does. easy? not really.
