Balance

Gettin' it back in my life. No "nigglies" that are keeping me from anything, and I'm now just looking forward to the Ironman in Dec in Busselton. This means I gotta get my butt to the pool! I really have to focus on swimming for a while! Getting to the pool NO LESS than 3 times per week! I also heard today that there's a tri coach that run "swim for fitness" classes (like master's) so hopefully I can get some feedback from him!

So I'm also planning this 100k run and it's coming up soon! I mean there's no real planning involved, I'm just gonna go and run it I think I have my route planned out already and have directions and such. I was talking to a guy in my program (Chris F-M) and he's interested in running a chunk of this thing with me. Through the park would be a good chunk for him to run with me, as I don't know how much Julia and Jared will be able to go with me for, so it would be nice to have some company through that part.

OK, so I started this while on the bike at like 2:30PM, it's not9:15! ahaha, it was a full day blog entry.

Class got in the way. ;)

Monday Monday

Here's a quick synopsis of today. Nothing special, just a random day, but these are the ones I'm gonna wanna remember are they not?!

I was up at 5AM. Easy to get out of bed this morning, as Ironman Lake Placid was on, and 5AM my time was 8 hours into the race for them, so most of the Pros would be finishing in the next hour and a half. We've been having a rough go at getting up early so I'm glad to have gotten out of bed and on with it pretty early. FRIG IT'S COLD AT NIGHT! We have about 4 sheets, a couple blankets and a towel or two on our bed, and they're RARELY on me! I dress in full clothing and am still freezing often throughout the night. It gets chilly in the evenings still. So anyways, I watched the race live as I got ready for school. Pretty cool! And probably my only chance to do that as most races don't have a live video feed with commentary and such and then when Kona rolls around, I'll miss it because it's in Kona, so the finish won't be til like what? 12PM our time or something, and I'll be at school! :( So anyways, random dudes placed in the men's race (not many of the big men's names race there, nor women really) but Canadian women, Tereza Macel and Samantha McGlone were first and third! Both these ladies have raced the Muskoka chase, and Tereza was at last year's Muskoka 70.3 but had major bike issues and had to drop out. Good on her! I also watched some local people finish (Barry Dimitruk, Dev Paul etc)

First up in the morning was PDHPE class and then tutorial right after, 3 hours total. Two hours of tutorial, some just working and listening, some actually doing games and being active. Right after class I hit the pool for 30 minutes, then the weights for another hour of power. Intense working out! I then went straight to my HSIE KLA class (social studies) and ate, listened for a bit and struggled to stay awake. Luckily it finished early and I have time to recoup before one more hour long class (creative arts KLA). Should be done here at 5:30PM. LOOOOOOOOOONG DAY! 6 hours of class on Mondays. It's all good though, Julia is at work so whatever, and I get some good training in between classes.

It felt great to get back in the pool, I just gotta stay consistent with it and keep it up regularly. I'm thinking 3 - 4 times per week, even if it's only 30 minutes like today. And then they have "Swim For Fitness" classes that I'll probably go to and maybe get some feedback on my stroke and such.

I've started major logistical planning for the "Operation Opera House to My House" adventure. I'm planning it for either the 8th or the 15th of August. I've chosen these dates for a couple reasons. FIRST, I want it on a Saturday, so I can have Sunday as an extra day to recover. SECOND, I want to do it soon enough before assignments start piling up, as it will take pretty much a full day from us. THIRD, I'm still a good ways from IMWA, so I can recover and get my training volume accross all three disciplines goin' again. So look out for it! It's comin'!

I also started writing a poem for Nanny for her birthday. :)

Weekend wrap

So here's a quick synopsis of the weekend.

Saturday we got up and decided to go to Sydney for the day. Hopped a train and were there for around 11AM. Did our usual walking around for 4 - 5 hours, stopping to chill out at the Opera House and then Darling harbour for a while. Julia's friend Michelle (from home) just got back so we met up with her and her Aussie bf at a mall in downtown Sydney and we grabbed some groceries at Coles and then went for coffee for a bit. Great day overall, just long train rides are a bore, we clearly don't have enough to talk about anymore! :P It's actually funny, we'll be walking down the sidewalk, both in our own little worlds and the only time we'll talk is when we get to an intersection, and then we're back off into la la land, looking around at all the cool stuff. haha.

Sunday we both went for runs. I ran 20k, decent, sore calves/shins, but ok, and Tunes ran 10k (first run since the marathon). After that we chilled for a bit, Jared and his mom stopped in after they had lunch and we had a quick chat about their travels.

Today I got up at 5AM and started watching IM Lake Placid. Canadian women in first and third.

I've got class at 8:30, it's just about 7AM now and I'm leaving soon for school and the pool! :)

Long day of classes today, not done til 4:30PM. :S

OH ya, and yesterday I started writing a poem for Nanny for her 90th bday. :)

I'm wearing my helmet from now on

HOLY MAGPIE BATMAN! Google it. "Magpies" and read the wikipedia description, particulary their interaction with humans and "swooping". I ALMOST DIED! On the way home from the gym one came at me from behind, giving me a "warning". I was unsure what happened at first, but looked back and saw the bird nearby, realized it was a magpie and knew that this may be "swooping season". I was scared shitless and went as fast as possible to the pedestrian bridge which is covered but it swooped at me one more time, close. Both times it gave me that warning that they describe as second I guess in intensity, a "close" swoop. WOW! I was terrified! haha...
I know I should be wearing my helment anyways, but scouts honour I'll be wearing it now!

Today I ran 15km. Lovely weather.

Brian the Runner

Haha. It's never been so evident. It's quite funny actually how my identity has come to be around here. I met a girl last night, an Aussie that's in my program. I recognized her but didn't know her name or anything, she introduced herself and asked if I was int eh program and I said ya, I'm in Primary, so's she. Bla bla bla. She asks what my name is, I say Brian. She says, oh.... "Brian the runner?" .... ya. haha. Also, a teacher who knows Jared from prac and knows the girls from the thailand prac somehow knows me also, as Brian the crazy runner/super fit guy. When the guys try to razz me for not going out, they're all like "oh he's gotta run like a marathon in the morning"... I like it. haha. I was taking out the garbage and overheard one of them say "marathons? dude, marathons are nothing to this guy!" ahaha I was also deeply entrenched in a conversation with a couple of the guys who couldn't wrap their heads around the thought that I'd be running from the Opera House to my House, 100k, all in one shot. I like this identity, I like that people know me for this. It makes me very different from the rest of 'em, and I like that. Michelle Majovsky was also saying that she was talking to someone about me, who had heard of me. hahaha... I find it funny, flattering, and makes me proud no doubt. It's kinda like my quiet way of expressing my true self. I just go out and do things, and then others do the boasting for me. :)

OK, well it's 7:26AM here, class is at 8:30AM, nobody here is up, pretty sure they came in at like 3 - 4AM, heard I THINK Kym barfing for a while so I'm not holding my breath that she'll be coming this morning. I guess I'm on my own. Grab some gym clothes to hit it up after class and then come home and run!

PS - So now I'm definitely "pot committed" (poker term) with this 100k run thing. Too many people know about it to bail on it. I guess I don't realize how many people read my facebook status! :P

PFD

PFD... Passion, Focus, Dedication. I made this accronym up myself a few years back, summarizing three core values that I strive for in myself. Regardless of the domain, sport, school, work, relationships. If you show passion in your work, in your actions, for your friends and how you go about life, you'll find a lot more joy in the simple things. If you remained focused in everything you do, you really stay in the moment, and get everything out of it that you can. If you're dedicated to something or someone, you'll do whatever it takes to satisfy the goal, or achieve what you've set out to do. That was random.



I love writing. Dunno why, probably because my brain NEVER shuts up. I can't stand watching useless TV shows so my imagination never really shuts off. It's always goes 110% full out, and in all sorts of directions. Must be the ADD. I like the ADD now, it's never really held me back from achieving what I have, and it got me $2000 free money from the government! Anyways, I love writing. I know I'll never be able to make a living doing it because my thoughts are always all over the place, though I'd love to learn how to write properly. Writing journal articles would be super cool, especially if it were about something to do with triathlon or running or the like. I never really would write like this before this year, other than for school and race reports!



Today's interview:

Had my group interview today at Bunnings, there were 13 of us, ages ranged from 13 - 65. I think I did super well, and FULLY expect one of the 1 or 2 call backs out of this. If I was successful I'll get a face-to-face interview and then maybe a job offer. I mean, not to sound cocky, but I was BY FAR the best one there. Some had more experience in trades but none had anywhere near my skills in customer service, you cold just tell and I'm sure the interviewers were impressed. :)

anyways, that's it! Gotta go put this thing away and get ready for Kym's party.... here, not by choice, but about 20ish people will be coming over for a bit, making a mess no doubt and leaving for the bar.

... so that's prettttttyyyyy coooool

I had my first class this morning of "Learners with special needs". We talked briefly about how the course would go and assessment tasks and such, a basic overview. Then we got right into a little lecture action. Prof briefly discussed a variety of learning disabilities including Autism and ADHD. We also watched this horrifically sad video called "Bulgaria's Abandoned Children". So sad to see. It made me think a lot! I came home and wrote the following email to my prof:

Hi there!

I must say that I rather enjoyed your lecture this morning and look forward to this course quite a bit. How's that for some early ass kissing? Just kidding. In all seriousness though, I've yet to be that engaged in any course to date, probably because I was "diagnosed" with ADHD while in year 6 and have grown up with it and all that it involves. I'd been written off by more than a few teachers in elementary and high school but I think I've succeeded academically on account of strong expectations placed on me by my parents and their unwillingness to allow me to use said "disability" as an excuse for poor results or behaviour at school. Today you turned on a HUGE light bulb in my head as to a correlation between my ADHD and my ability to and PASSION for multi-tasking! Most of my day involves multi-tasking of some sort, usually as a means to save time. It's a great point of pride for me that I feel I can concentrate on and complete a number of tasks at once. I always thought it was because I take on so much in my life that I adapted that way as a means to save time! As we speak I'm on my bike trainer at home getting in a cycling workout, all the while typing this email. I loved my part time job as a cook because it forced me to work quickly but maintain focus on a number of different tasks/responsibilities. I would have never guessed that these qualities were in the least bit related to ADHD, so that's pretty cool!

Secondly, in watching that video and listening to you mention over and over again about the importance of focusing on what people with disabilities CAN do and not what they can't, one particular story stuck in my mind. This is the ultimate opposite side of the story as what we saw today, and highlights all the positives of thinking the way you would want us to. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if you've seen this video before but I'm not sure how popular it is outside the world of triathlon and ultra-endurance. It's the story of Rick and Dick Hoyt, and whenever I need a little bit of inspiration for my own training, I watch this video. Rick is the perfect example of what people with disabilities are capable of, both physically and academically if they are given the same opportunities as everyone else, and if those around them focus on CAN. So if you're unfamiliar with this story and have 10 minutes to spare I highly recommend it! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flRvsO8m_KI&feature=PlayList&p=E83E548A21580508&index=10

See you next week,
Brian


To which he replied:

Brian, Thanks for the e-mail. The e-mail has inspired me to continue with the enthusiasm and joy I have in giving lectures knowing that you just hope a difference can be made.

You and I have a lot in common! I too have grown up with the condition and managed to work around the 'problems' that were caused during school to succeed in education. However, the frustration is that many don't (we are the lucky ones) and it is not because of the ADHD that many don't succeed, it is because many of the past school/classroom strategies do not cater for these students (hence why majority of people see these children and BAD). Is it such as bad condition to have? I actually am pleased 'now' for having it as there are many good things about 'us' that are due to having the condition. It is just frustrating to see many of these children written off before they have started in life.

Thanks for sending the link...I am not aware of it 'yet' but will have a look at it tonight. I truly hope you do enjoy the subject and learn from it to make you a better teacher.

Good luck for this semester and please feel free to contact me to discuss this further.

Kind Regards

Stuart



......... so that's pretttyyyyy coooooooool