A Personal Blog
If you’ve been training Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for more than a few years, you’ve certainly run into wear holes and tears in your gi or gis. I have. It’s pretty much an inevitability. I’m not sure how many gis I’ve owned since I began training in 2008, but I can tell you that each and every one of them has earned its stripes, so to speak.
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Throughout my life, I’ve lived in New York, Georgia, Connecticut, Florida, and Maine. I’ve never really concerned myself with my cars rusting out until I arrived in Maine. In New York and Connecticut, yes, the winter roads are sanded and salted, but I’m not sure I noticed any discernable difference between when I purchased a vehicle and when I sold it, rust-wise. Nothing ever seemed to happen in a bad way. That’s not to mean that cars don’t rust in those states because they certainly do. I have a long history of family members needing to repair holes in their floorboards – you know the type; you’re a little kid driving down the road with your father in his old truck. You can see the blacktop and painted street lines pass you by underneath your feet. Yeah, those good ol’ days.
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I consider this blog my personal journal. I haven’t exactly began journaling, per se, yet, but I’ll certainly do that once I write all the posts that’ve been bouncing around my mind for the past few months. I love journaling and I feel it’s something everyone should do. It forces a person to sit down and think about his or her day. It forces recollection and ponderance. It forces a slower pace. And these may actually be good things.
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One part of my life that I’d say I’m fairly consistently concerned with is how I spend my free time. I’ve written posts that describe some of the world’s most popular hobbies as well as posts that describe which hobbies are most popular for men in particular. Have these posts done anything for me specifically? Have I gotten any ideas? Have I gotten very far with my attempt to settle on a hobby that’ll bring me through to the end? Not really. I do keep coming back to blogging though so I may as well consider this the one. I thoroughly enjoy sitting at my desk writing. Even if I write things that wouldn’t be considered as interesting to most people as much of what’s currently available is. I have a small following though and for that, I’m appreciative.
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I think one of the questions most people have on their minds, at some point or another, is, “Can I or do I want to live where I am for the absolute rest of my life?” If a person hasn’t asked him or herself this question, they’re either not old enough or are content where they are. Laura and I are content where we are. Although, I’d say we’re content because we’re relatively young and are able to handle the natural elements that are thrown at us. I’m currently healthy and strong enough to shovel snow and split wood. Will we be this content when we’re in our 70s? 80s? 90s? Will I still want to deal with snow and firewood then? We’ve discussed topics like this quite a bit and have come to the conclusion that there’s no one place on earth that’s perfect for everything all of the time, rather, there are multiple places that are perfect for some things some of the time. While I’m frustrated by realizations such as these, I’m also a realist and realists need to recognize reality for what it is.
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Good morning! I woke up a little while ago, warmed up a mug-full of apple juice, and now I’m seated at my desk writing this post. I enjoy my routine, especially during the late fall and early winter months in Maine. There’s something special about this time of year, so I thought I’d write about it. By the way, since I’m running low on decaf tea, I’ve turned to drinking hot apple juice in the morning. I don’t like to drink caffeine on an empty stomach because it makes my head spin. The alternative has proven to be especially scrumptious and sweet and when combined with the chilly air outside, simply perfect. Small mug, microwave for two minutes, done.
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What another perfect weather day for some coffee accompanied solitude in the forest. Last night, the temperature dropped to 25°. Then, this afternoon, it rose to the mid-40s, which was a stellar companion for the clear blue skies we experienced. I noticed these clear skies just after Laura and I moved to Maine in November of 2013. I grew up on the east coast and for most of my life, I thought nearly all of the northern portion of the coast saw fairly similar weather. I also thought that the farther north one travels, the more cloudy it would be – especially during the winter months. Apparently, that’s not so. We see quite a few blue sky days all winter long, especially during the morning hours. The skies over Maine do have a propensity for clouding up during the afternoon, but for those few splendid hours after the sun rises, well, we enjoy them very much.
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Wood stove season is upon us. I’ve been waiting for this all summer long. Back in April/May, I cut some trees, split some logs, and stacked some firewood. Now it’s time to burn. “Burn what?” you ask. Right now, mostly balsam fir and white pine. “But that’s softwood – pine,” you say. Yes, I know it is. And it’s wonderful.
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Did you know that the country of Scotland covers 30,414 square miles? And that the state of Maine covers 35,380 square miles? Those numbers are pretty close to each other. Coincidence? Perhaps. Or, perhaps these two land areas are so similar in so many respects that they should be considered twins. I won’t say that Scotland gets nearly as cold as Maine gets or probably nearly as hot, but both areas offer their fair shares of both low and highlands, flying insects, coastlines, and funny accents that no one from anywhere else can understand. Laura and I live in Maine. We like Maine. We also talk about liking Scotland. We think about it a lot and we like what we see on the internet. We’d love to visit one day, which is what inspired me to write this post.
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I snapped this photo with my phone a few weeks ago when our little slice of Maine had just climbed over the hump of peak foliage. Frost covered the grass and there were fewer leaves on the trees than off. The day was a good one – warm in the afternoon and cold at night. If only life like this in Maine could last just a little bit longer. I know. I ask for too much.
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