Week 51: biiig stretch

 So i know this falls out of pattern given that it’s a Thursday night and all. I realized a couple of days into the week that I was late on my post and was almost going to do a combo next Monday…but then i realized I’m in the final stretch of the year. In fact I’ve got about five full days left of this year and then the project culminates. So why not still get this entry logged and then close us out with the final chapter on New Year’s Day. Crazy year man.

Finishing up the Ohio trip we got to do one of our oldest traditions as a couple: check out the lights at the cinci zoo. The first Christmas I spent in Ohio when we were dating in 2014 she took me to the zoo to meet up with some of her friends, it was so important for her to share that with me. So it seemed insanely fitting to close out the trip there and I gotta say, she’s still just as beautiful as ten years ago. The lights were pretty too. And of course honors had to be paid to Big H, miss you fam (RIP Harambe) (DO4H). All in all I couldn’t have asked for a better holiday trip. Still had two days of work when we got back in town but they were relatively painless, capped off the week in the gym and settled in to the white cycle. Oh side note, i haven’t been to BJJ in about a month due to holidays, travel for work, and latent injuries but I’m getting my ass back on the mats next week come hell or high water.

I also had the sad opportunity to check in on my physical metrics and though no muscle mass was lost…the random pie for breakfast and mashed potato dessert led to 3ish additional body fat percentages being tacked on. It’s ok, it’s not the end of the world, it just means that going in to 2025 I’ve got some work to do. Christmas this week was on Sunday because she spent the actual days on shift. Much like thanksgiving tho (and I think i mentioned this back then), this year was the first time in quite a while that the holidays actually felt like the holidays. You know, cheerful and joyous, and fun. What a novel concept, enjoying yourself and your family and friends. Haven’t had the best over the last few years so it was a much appreciated change of pace.

I think, if i look back through this blog, the biggest thing I’m going to notice is that very rarely did I have things go according to plan or work out in the best way possible. Life kinda sucks for everybody from time to time. Ups and downs, ebb and flow, it’s the natural progression of time and pendulum from great to shit. What is more important is your viewpoint and attitude. It’s damn near impossible to control like but you can practice and improve how you take it on. I get trapped in the shit perspective far too often for someone with extensive experience in mental and behavioral health rooms…my therapist wouldn’t be proud of some of these entries.

So too is my experience this year with reeling back the aperture and reminding myself to take everything a day at a time. It’s how you eat the elephant, freaking the fuck out about what’s going to happen in three months will have zero effect on how fast I’ll get there. If you continue to dial it back and focus on the next right thing, somehow all comes to pass just the same with drastically decreased stress levels.

I’m not sure how I’d write an autobiography: most people would just go chronologically i suppose. But wouldn’t it be more fun to start in the middle in the worst days of my life, Tarantino my way to how it got there, then round it out with the thriving of today? Who knows and who’s to say. Happy holidays, love your friends and family, and be nice to yourself ❤️

NFCWFH / IGY6 / 988 / SCW / 334