Rain Delay

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Our bike trip has been delayed due to the unexpected SoCal percipitation =....( why oh why doest the heavens hinder our venture north!?!?!? (a little too dramatic huh? sorry, hehehe) Oh well, let's see which way the winds blow on the morrow.....

Vacation!!!!

Finally getting some time off of work this coming week.  Planning on doing a ride up PCH w/ my brother to the Santa Barbara area and spending a few days there exploring.  I'll be keeping you guys updated w/ pics and news.  Looking forward to a relaxing ride up the coast through beautiful SoCal...  Have a great week =D...

Life can be great...

Hey everyone,

I just wanted to share the following with you (it was taken from www.zenhabits.net).  I can really relate to the way this guy views life.  Life will always have its ups and its downs, but in the end, life will always depend on how you approach it.  Please read the letter and take from if what you will...

Enjoy...

A Letter to My Son, on Starting Out In Life

Dear Seth,

You're only three years old, and at this point in your life you can't read, much less understand what I'm going to try to tell you in this letter. But I've been thinking a lot about the life that you have ahead of you, about my life so far as I reflect on what I've learned, and about my role as a dad in trying to prepare you for the trials that you will face in the coming years.

You won't be able to understand this letter today, but someday, when you're ready, I hope you will find some wisdom and value in what I share with you.

You are young, and life has yet to take its toll on you, to throw disappointments and heartaches and loneliness and struggles and pain into your path. You have not been worn down yet by long hours of thankless work, by the slings and arrows of everyday life.

For this, be thankful. You are at a wonderful stage of life. You have many wonderful stages of life still to come, but they are not without their costs and perils.

I hope to help you along your path by sharing some of the best of what I've learned. As with any advice, take it with a grain of salt. What works for me might not work for you.

Life Can Be Cruel
There will be people in your life who won't be very nice. They'll tease you because you're different, or for no good reason. They might try to bully you or hurt you.

There's not much you can do about these people except to learn to deal with them, and learn to choose friends who are kind to you, who actually care about you, who make you feel good about yourself. When you find friends like this, hold on to them, treasure them, spend time with them, be kind to them, love them.

There will be times when you are met with disappointment instead of success. Life won't always turn out the way you want. This is just another thing you'll have to learn to deal with. But instead of letting these things get you down, push on. Accept disappointment and learn to persevere, to pursue your dreams despite pitfalls. Learn to turn negatives into positives, and you'll do much better in life.

You will also face heartbreak and abandonment by those you love. I hope you don't have to face this too much, but it happens. Again, not much you can do but to heal, and to move on with your life. Let these pains become stepping stones to better things in life, and learn to use them to make you stronger.

But Be Open to Life Anyway
Yes, you'll find cruelty and suffering in your journey through life … but don't let that close you to new things. Don't retreat from life, don't hide or wall yourself off. Be open to new things, new experiences, new people.

You might get your heart broken 10 times, but find the most wonderful woman the 11th time. If you shut yourself off from love, you'll miss out on that woman, and the happiest times of your life.

You might get teased and bullied and hurt by people you meet … and then after meeting dozens of jerks, find a true friend. If you close yourself off to new people, and don't open your heart to them, you'll avoid pain … but also lose out on meeting some incredible people, who will be there during the toughest times of your life and create some of the best times of your life.

You will fail many times but if you allow that to stop you from trying, you will miss out on the amazing feeling of success once you reach new heights with your accomplishments. Failure is a stepping stone to success.

Life Isn't a Competition
You will meet many people who will try to outdo you, in school, in college, at work. They'll try to have nicer cars, bigger houses, nicer clothes, cooler gadgets. To them, life is a competition — they have to do better than their peers to be happy.

Here's a secret: life isn't a competition. It's a journey. If you spend that journey always trying to impress others, to outdo others, you're wasting your journey. Instead, learn to enjoy the journey. Make it a journey of happiness, of constant learning, of continual improvement, of love.

Don't worry about having a nicer car or house or anything material, or even a better-paying job. None of that matters a whit, and none of it will make you happier. You'll acquire these things and then only want more. Instead, learn to be satisfied with having enough — and then use the time you would have wasted trying to earn money to buy those things … use that time doing things you love.

Find your passion, and pursue it doggedly. Don't settle for a job that pays the bills. Life is too short to waste on a job you hate.

Love Should Be Your Rule
If there's a single word you should live your life by, it should be this: Love. It might sound corny, I know … but trust me, there's no better rule in life.

Some would live by the rule of success. Their lives will be stressful, unhappy and shallow.

Others would live by the rule of selfishness — putting their needs above those of others. They will live lonely lives, and will also be unhappy.

Still others will live by the rule of righteousness — trying to show the right path, and admonishing anyone who doesn't live by that path. They are concerned with others, but in a negative way, and in the end will only have their own righteousness to live with, and that's a horrible companion.

Live your life by the rule of love. Love your spouse, your children, your parents, your friends, with all of your heart. Give to them what they need, and show them not cruelty nor disapproval nor coldness nor disappointment, but only love. Open your soul to them.

Love not only your loved ones, but your neighbors … your coworkers … strangers … your brothers and sisters in humanity. Offer anyone you meet a smile, a kind word, a kind gesture, a helping hand.

Love not only neighbors and strangers … but your enemy. The person who is cruelest to you, who has been unkind to you … love him. He is a tortured soul, and most in need of your love.

And most of all, love yourself. While others may criticize you, learn not to be so hard on yourself, to think that you're ugly or dumb or unworthy of love … but to think instead that you are a wonderful human being, worthy of happiness and love … and learn to love yourself for who you are.

Finally, know that I love you and always will. You are starting out on a weird, scary, daunting, but ultimately incredibly wonderful journey, and I will be there for you when I can. Godspeed.

Love,
Your Dad

Mama's boy...

It has been said that, once you have children, the World no longer revolves around you.  The bouncing baby boy/girl is now the center of your universe.  Now charged with the  raising of the child, you carefully need to mold the child's plastic mind and soul by instilling ethics and values.  The child will need to grow from your experience and wisdom.

Mind you, this is no easy task.  The parent can either view the child as a gift or as a personal sacrifice.  Fortunately, my mother chose to view my brothers and me as her prized gifts.  She took our upbringing very seriously.  She regularly disciplined us when we were out of line, but not in a way that constituted only strict spankings.  She always tried to teach us why our actions were wrong.  She would also discipline us differently, because we each had unique personalities.  She knew which of our buttons to push -- who else knows you better than your own mother.

She is also quite a character.  She's an ardent Lakers fan (Go LA!!!!) which was passed onto me.  She is becoming a dedicated SD Chargers fan, because of her kids =D.  The funny thing is that she can't watch the games (it makes her too nervous).  She also has a quirky personality, which is very endearing.  We love her so dearly.  (My brothers and I don't mind going shopping with my mom, even if it isn't "cool" - it must be funny to see three grown men shopping with a tiny lady - she frequently gets the "Are these three your kids?" question).

She (of course with my dad, but come on, this is a Mother's Day post) raised each one of us the best she could.  The person I am today is directly attributed to how my mom brought us up.  I appreciate all her efforts in raising me and my brothers.  Thank you so much mom... Happy Mother's Day!!!!!

Bless me!!!!!

Watery eyes, itchy ears (yes itchy ears), intense pressure building behind in my nostrils.... Aaaaaachoooo!   Man these allergies are insane, especially after the weather heated up last weekend.

The allergy symptoms drive me crazy.  The absolute worst, however, is when the itch feels like its inside my ears.  How the heck am I supposed to relieve that nuisance?  The only solutions I have found involve using the middle of my tongue to "scratch" the top of my mouth (this is the best I can explain it) and making a sort of cat hiss that irritates my throat.

Anyway, I hope these allergies pass soon enough.  I'd hate for it to hinder my outdoor activities.  Hold on, my nose is irritating me again......