-Paul Simon
I am sitting here in my living room. I am watching a PBS special concert for Paul Simon. The line I quote is from the song Slip Sliding Away.
I spent 12 years wondering what might have been. When I was 21 I said goodbye to the girl I loved most. She went her way and I went mine. Most days I thought of her. Most days I missed her. Most days I felt I had made a big mistake. I lived with regret. It was deep and it controlled me in many ways.
During 2003 We became reunited through the internet. It was magical. Fairytale stuff. I proposed She accepted, and we began planning.. We both had struggles with income and we were partying far to much. In many ways we had become very bad influences on each other.
She spent many days wondering what might have been and eventually returned to her former life to explore her past. This time she left me. I was lost.I had no idea what had just happened as she handed me the ring. Blamed me and left. I guess sometimes it is easier to leave when you can blame the other.
The summer of '04 I spent drinking, smoking, staying up late, drinking, and just trying to be with other people. She would return once in a while to make sure she still had me firmly wrapped around her finger.
I did not train for triathlon that summer. It was the furthest thing from my mind.
Come Thanksgiving I ran into her in a bar. Something clicked and I decided that this was not going to destroy me. I realized that this regret was foolish. I understood that this person was not worth doing this to myself.
I began working myself back into shape. I pulled the bike out of my folks basement. I started running again. I talked my friend Mickey into swimming....
HEEHEEHAHA..... Sorry, Grover and Elmo are singing Feeling Groovy.
I built a master plan that would wind up at Ironman Wisconsin in 'o7.
So far, my plan is only off by a continent.
Today I am looking forward. My backwards view was blue. No more regret No more what might have been. Today I move forward. Today I am a better person in so many ways. Today I am happy.
Something I love about this blog network is how so many of us are working toward goals and achieving them. Thank you all for sharing your story
Next up. The Med Express Mountaineer this coming Sunday.
I have been really enjoying Jodi's success this week as well as starting to put together travel plans for Wisco...opps, UK.
What I am trying to say, is that all I can think of is IRONMAN.
Right now however I have to get my mind on the race. It is a half IM distance race. I am a little worried that I am taking it to lightly. I am concerned that I am not respecting the distance.
I am following my taper plan. I am getting extra sleep. I am eating really well. But I am struggling with visualization. I am jumping straight to Sherborne Dorset in the UK. I am searching my mind for the 1/2 and I can't see it. All I see is IRONMAN. This Train is Bound for Glory.
The good news is that today I don't spend my days wondering what might have been. I am no longer Slip Sliding Away.....
Side note. Paul Simon is one of four American (folk) songwriters I pay tribute to in this post. Can you name the others?
I spent 12 years wondering what might have been. When I was 21 I said goodbye to the girl I loved most. She went her way and I went mine. Most days I thought of her. Most days I missed her. Most days I felt I had made a big mistake. I lived with regret. It was deep and it controlled me in many ways.
During 2003 We became reunited through the internet. It was magical. Fairytale stuff. I proposed She accepted, and we began planning.. We both had struggles with income and we were partying far to much. In many ways we had become very bad influences on each other.
She spent many days wondering what might have been and eventually returned to her former life to explore her past. This time she left me. I was lost.I had no idea what had just happened as she handed me the ring. Blamed me and left. I guess sometimes it is easier to leave when you can blame the other.
The summer of '04 I spent drinking, smoking, staying up late, drinking, and just trying to be with other people. She would return once in a while to make sure she still had me firmly wrapped around her finger.
I did not train for triathlon that summer. It was the furthest thing from my mind.
Come Thanksgiving I ran into her in a bar. Something clicked and I decided that this was not going to destroy me. I realized that this regret was foolish. I understood that this person was not worth doing this to myself.
I began working myself back into shape. I pulled the bike out of my folks basement. I started running again. I talked my friend Mickey into swimming....
HEEHEEHAHA..... Sorry, Grover and Elmo are singing Feeling Groovy.
I built a master plan that would wind up at Ironman Wisconsin in 'o7.
So far, my plan is only off by a continent.
Today I am looking forward. My backwards view was blue. No more regret No more what might have been. Today I move forward. Today I am a better person in so many ways. Today I am happy.
Something I love about this blog network is how so many of us are working toward goals and achieving them. Thank you all for sharing your story
Next up. The Med Express Mountaineer this coming Sunday.
I have been really enjoying Jodi's success this week as well as starting to put together travel plans for Wisco...opps, UK.
What I am trying to say, is that all I can think of is IRONMAN.
Right now however I have to get my mind on the race. It is a half IM distance race. I am a little worried that I am taking it to lightly. I am concerned that I am not respecting the distance.
I am following my taper plan. I am getting extra sleep. I am eating really well. But I am struggling with visualization. I am jumping straight to Sherborne Dorset in the UK. I am searching my mind for the 1/2 and I can't see it. All I see is IRONMAN. This Train is Bound for Glory.
The good news is that today I don't spend my days wondering what might have been. I am no longer Slip Sliding Away.....
Side note. Paul Simon is one of four American (folk) songwriters I pay tribute to in this post. Can you name the others?
11 comments:
Hey-I'm going to England next week. I'll be sure to report on the vegan food options... Any more research I can do for you? I'll be too far north to check out the course for you, but let me know if there's anything else you want to know about.
Enjoy your taper... sounds like the down time has been pretty introspective for you. Good to use it well and write out the thoughts. I love hearing about how people got going on their triathlon journeys. We all bring so many reasons for our commitment to our goals.
I am thinking that one of the singers you reference is Warren Zevon.
I would suspect that you would not consider Warren Zevon a folk singer, although I definitely consider him to be one of America's finest songwriters.
I did see Woody Guthrie in there and perhaps a Bob Dylan reference.
Good to see you are firmly looking towards your future and not the past. You have so many great things ahead of you! Live in the moment, and when this year is over keep on plugging and don't look back!
:-)
Jodi
Here I am, just reading away and enjoying your post and WHAM it turns out that you're doing the Mountaineer this weekend!
And you're heads not in it yet!
And you're wondering if you respect the distance or if it will chew you up and spit you out!
And you've found it hard to to think HALF iron, when the whole iron is filling your brain!
Good grief, TriFolk, get off my brain! I'll be there, too. With all of the above in my back pocket. And I hope to meet you there in the throngs. I'd tell you what I'll be wearing, but if you check my blog apparently that's up for grabs.
Try to enjoy the taper!
"Live neither in the past nor in the future, but let each day's work absorb your entire energies, and satisfy your widest ambition."
-Sir William Osler
Thank you for the aerobars!!! I'll refrain from throwing them on tonite, in order that I get to sleep at a decent hour. But I'll be spinning around Summit county with them tomorrow :-)
You are going to tell us which folkers works you drew from, aren't you?
Yep, just wanted to give you a shot at it.
Al is correct with Woody and Dylan.
The other reference was from a John Gorka song.
"My former view was backwards
My backwards view was blue,
Now I am looking forward to you."
Gorka is more current. He is a singer songwriter from Philly.
He writes the songs that you wished you had written.
http://johngorka.com/
WKSU plays his music often on weekends.
ok, I see this train is bound for glory. Where is the Dylan reference?
You should be very proud of yourself. It isn't easy to pull oneself up by the bootstraps and move on, but you've done it!
I was the same way with my half-IM. In many ways, it was nice, because I didn't stress. Good luck!!
"You go your way I'll go mine"
-Dylan
Veg, It might sound silly, but could you play some of my CD outside and let the sound waves go and wander the country. Prep the air.
Credit Jodi with the 2nd Dylan reference. "Don't Look Back".
Able, I will be in my CTC gear I ride a Giant OCR2. I have Done a few modifications.
Have fun and have a good race.
Al, Zevon is great.
Bbop, Take your time in the aero bars. It is a very natural way to ride for me, but you always want to be close to your breaks. Steer with your basebar.
Jen, Thanks, I get what you mean. Thats cool. Just another training Day.
I got the CD! Thanks, Charlie. And I WILL play it in England... The airwaves will know the sound of your voice :-)
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