Day 60: Tres

Here we are... March first.

I feel that this year is already starting to fly by. I still don't see much progress. There is a quite a bit of effort being exerted though and I have to hope that a bit more time is all I need to turn the tide. I am excited to continue to focus on creative projects and I plan on really hunkering down on my workout routine. I did very well last week and hit the gym four times.

It seems like there are a few people actually reading this... which is cool because I haven't really tried to plug it. This was the day that I said I was going to tell people about it. Sixty days seemed like a number that showed that I was serious about this. As I have said in the past, I don't want to give lip service any more. I want to follow through on the things I am talking about and continue the commitment to become a better person.

I hope that one or two the things I am talking about in here are hitting home for you as you read along and I  am excited to hear what you have to say. I am also happy to answer, or at least try to answer, any questions you may have. I have never claimed to be all knowing, but a rare gem has been known to slip here and there.

I thank you for reading this and for your continued support. I look forward to what this month has to offer and what I can bring to this month. Happy March!

Day 54: The Wait

Everyday I wake up and I think that things are going to be different. I rise in the morning and I think to myself that today is going to be the day that changes everything. The catalyst that makes all of the work that I have been putting in worth it. The one day that gets me out of debt and takes 50 unwanted pounds off my body...

That day hasn't come!

The hardest thing about initiating major change in ones life is the wait to see them take effect. I talked about setting small goals to alleviate some of these issues, but there is still going to be an amount of time that is necessary to allow for the roots of change to grab hold of the soil that is ones life.

A good axiom is that Rome wasn't built in a day. While this may be true I seem to think that there were a lot of pissed off Romans that had to wait.

I try to be upbeat on this thing, but sometimes it is a bit hard. I want everyone to know that this is a struggle. A damn hard one at that. Right now I have faith that things will eventually get better and that my roots will grow. I just wish someone would throw me some freakin' Miracle Grow!

Day 53: Anonymous

"Man, good job so far! I hope you keep on writing somehow and somewhere..."
                                                                             
What you are looking at is my very FIRST comment! I am so stoked that:

1. Someone is reading this!
2. They think I am doing a decent job!
3. They want me to continue!

I have only told a few people that I am even doing this and, of the people I have told, have only given the address out to one person! That means that said anonymous comment was from a genuine person that I don't even know!!! I am pretty excited about that. 

I would like to hear more from whomever is actually reading out there. It gives a little bit of purpose to what goes into this and I guess that is the true intention of this whole project. I wanted to commit to something that is all mine that truly only I will know if I give up on. The goal is to not give up!

I hope the people out there reading this are still enjoying it and I want to thank you for your time Anonymous! It meant a lot to me that you decided to let me know how you felt!

Day 47: 5 People

Okay, now that  The Alchemist has left my life for a while ( I am still deciding who to give my copy too so if you want it... let me know) there is definitely a vacancy on my bookshelf. I have been looking for another book to read whilst trying to put off reading Allan Carr's The Easy Way To Quit Smoking. I am by no means the type of person who reads a lot of self-help or inspirational books, however, I feel that now more than ever may be a time to indulge.

A co-worker of mine was telling me about a book by the author Mitch Albom, you may remember Tuesday's With Morrie. I loved this book a lot! I also highly recommend this, but I have already read it, and unlike The Alchemist once may be enough. He did recently write another book that seems like it may have some bearing on what is going on in my life right now.

The Five People You Meet In Heaven is officially next on the list! It apparently starts 50 minutes before the main character, Eddie, dies in a horrible accident. The end is the begining because the book takes place in Heaven and details... well... the five people you meet there. It is more a retrospective on life and judging ones self worth, which for the most part, is what I am doing to myself right now. I figure it may give a bit of insight to what this whole thing is about.

Oddly, I am excited to read another inspirational book. As I said before they are not on the top of my charts and I usually have to stagger them out a few months. For some reason this one just... fits.

I still need to go get it, but I feel that it will fill the void left very well. I will update you as I go along as to the intriguing points. Until then, I will be waiting to see who wants a copy of  The Alchemist..

Day 44: Mardi Gras

A buddy of mine is having a Mardi Gras party tonight, or I should say his wife is. I got a frantic phone call yesterday explaining that she had been planning it but "forgot" to mention it to him so that he could invite his friends. If I didn't know that his wife was the sweetest person on earth I would have to say that the whole thing stunk as bad as the French Quarter. It seems rather convenient that, save myself and one other,  all of his less civilized single friends didn't make the cut. Ah, the married life!

I am completely jazzed about the whole thing though. She is making muffaletta sandwiches and Hurricanes. She is bringing in Zapps chips, Abita beer, and, most importantly, a king cake ( with plastic babies). For those of you who don't know what a king cake is just imagine a huge cinnamon roll with bright icing on the top. As you're delighting in the delectable danish derivative chance may have it that you gnaw into a plastic baby doll. This is told to bring luck and prosperity in the coming year. That is what Mardi Gras is all about after all, having a party and living it up before Ash Wednesday can come along to make you repent it all away.

This should be a pretty good one though and I look forward to the upcoming festivities. Technically I have a few more days before I have to get serious about Lent ( I will touch base on this Wednesday if you are confused).  Right now... I am going golfing. I just hope that I don't beat these guys so bad that they want to give golf up for forty days! Enjoy your day!

Day 43: Boys Night Out

So I am pretty excited about tonight. I am getting a chance to go out with some of my guys that I haven't spent much time with lately. Were heading into Hollywood to hit up a fancy club for my very good friend's birthday party. The cool part about it is that the guys I am heading out there with have never met each-other. Normally I am a bit apprehensive to sticking a bunch of strange people together, however, tonight I feel completely okay with the whole thing. These guys individually are some of the most intelligent and reverent people I know so I am guessing that putting everyone together should be quite an event.

I guess this is relevant to this blog because all of these friends have come into my life within the past three years, some as recent as the past six months! I am thankful for them though... I feel that I have been through a lot when it comes to friends and at this point in my life I have developed a good enough bull-shit sensor to pick out the people that are going to be beneficial to my life in some way. The good lord knows that there is a constant onslaught of those who would be detrimental. I would be lying if I said that I never met anyone like that... but I do have to say that there aren't any left in my life at this point and that if I choose to bring friends in it is because I truly think that they are looking out for my best interests as I am theirs.

It is a long journey to understand why this is important. Some may never actually understand it. I thank god on the reg that I have come to understand it... and I thank him for bringing me the people that do truly care about me. I hope this entry gets you thinking about who is in your life and how they factor into your mix. Life is short... I hope that you are the type of friend you want to have in your life!  Most of the time your friends are mirror images of your own behaviors. Take a moment and ponder that...

Day 41: Big day

I had a very big meeting today. I followed the rules set forth in the Alchemist recently and have allowed myself to be open to the world around me. I can't quite explain what that means just yet... but it is life altering! I was very excited for today and, overall, I think it went exceedingly well.

I think that when someone is trying to actively change something in their life people notice. Not just the inner circle of people you deal with on the day to day. I am more specifically referring to casual interactions. Its like you have an glow that shines brighter when you are happy and working toward the better overall you. It is hard to explain, but I have noticed a difference in the way people are interacting with me.

I think it could also be a bit of the excitement of really trying to take over my life. I feel more alive today than I have in a long while. As more details become available on my meeting I will fill you in...

Day 40: Alchemless

I finished the Alchemist today. Again, it seems to come into my life at the most useful times. It amazes me how much insight one story can give you on your life, on multiple occasions, in many different ways, throughout multiple readings.

I hope that some of you may have read it by now and can agree with me in the previous statement. I have a lot of tough decisions looming in my life right now and I can honestly say that re-reading this book has brought much clarity into the process.

For those of you that haven't read it, I urge you to again! Everyone can take something away from this book...

To following your personal legend!

Day 34: 11 Years

In following yesterday's post I have yet another remembrance. Eleven years ago today I lost the most influential man I have ever known, my father, Walter Lee Weaver Jr. He battled with a form of cancer called Multiple Myeloma for three years. Ultimately I got a call at about 6PM from my mother that I should get a plane ticket home because Daddy just died... I had spoken to him ten minutes earlier. He was 55.  My dad loved life and spent every moment he could outside doing something with his hands. He taught me many things about the outdoors such as fishing, hunting, and how to correctly landscape a house. Most important though he taught me what it meant to be a good person, a good husband, and a good Dad.

Half the reason I am doing the project is because I feel that I have watched the last decade go by inactively. I sat in a bar til 2AM on a friday night and completely screwed up the next day. I have only recently had the epiphany that there is much more to life than this. I realized that I am not half the man my father was at my age and it has given me the strength to change that. I wonder what he would say to me if he were still alive. I wonder if I have turned out as he expected, and if I would be in the situation I am in right now if he were there as I was making my mistakes. I know that I will never know the true answers to these questions, but I like to think that he would be proud of me for some of my accomplishments. I also like to think that some of my shames would never have happened.

My father was an amazing guy... the type of man you are proud to call "Daddy." He left Mom with a lot on her plate. I have to say that she is the best Mom, and Dad, a guy could ever ask for. She seems to think that what I am doing now gives him reason to shine a smile down upon me from heaven. I know that I was very lucky to have a great dad for 18 years. Some people never know their father, or worse they know them, but wish they didn't. For that I am thankful, and to all the people out there who's father is still around... take the time to tell them you love them. You never know how long you are going to have them for. One thing is for certain, not a day goes by that I don't miss my father, and I wish that I could tell him I love him right now.

I miss you Dad...

Day 25: Faith

Today sucked! It seemed that nothing really was going well at work. On my way home I took a second to relax and clear my head. I said a little prayer to myself and assured myself everything was going to be okay. I was pretty worried about my finances when I woke up today and I wasn't quite sure how I could get through the next few weeks. I got home and checked the mail. I had two letters. The first was a check-card from one of my venders for selling a  body for a truck. I knew that was coming and that there is no money on it until I deliver this truck. The other letter I didn't know was coming. It was from the manufacturer of the trucks I sell. Apparently someone did some accounting on their end and found out I was owed for a promotion that had going on last year. I new I was going to be receiving a gift card for $300 from them... I was pretty surprised to find out it was just a check for six times the amount! I guess some deals I had done last year came through as well.

I set out to deposit the check and had to stop by the store. For fun, I bought a $2 scratcher ticket... I won $22 dollars! Now, I am a firm believer that good things come in threes and so I quickly purchased a couple of Mega Millions Lottery tickets. The jackpot is $121 Million. I am saying another little prayer right now that nothing good happens to me until about 7PM tomorrow night!

It just goes to show you that a little faith will go a long way. I believe that there are greater forces at work than you or I can see. IF you want something bad enough... it will come to you. More importantly, if you ask hard enough for help... it will be given to you. It isn't always the way you would expect, but most of the time you will look back and notice it was there!