Here is Life

"Here is life, an experiment to a great extent untried by me; but it does not avail me that they have tried it."

- Thoreau

On Sunday, inspired by Thoreau, I went to Pilot Knob for a walk on the trails. No snowshoes, boots or skis in my possession, I was left hiking through knee deep snow in my old Nike Pegasus running shoes.

I walked up the steep hill that I went sledding on as a kid. I followed some paths that I run through in the summer. I went off the beaten path and just explored.

Not for long but for over an hour.

At some point, I just plopped myself down in the snow and sat there. Still.

The sun was shining and the trees blocked the wind. My face was warm with the glow of the sun and my legs were tired from constantly pulling themselves out of the deep snow.

A couple of hawks flew by overhead, a pheasant scattered across the snowy landscape. I was on a white beach -- laying on a blanket of tranquility.

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The night before I had made dinner for Mark and Joy Newcom. They were eager guinea pigs for some of my new food experiments. All recipes were by Giada (the hottest cook on the Food Network).

The dinner turned out great, the wine was really good (even the carpet got to enjoy some thanks to Joy), and the conversation was one of the best of my life.

Thanks to Joy for documenting some of the conversation on her blog -- which is a must read for all of you out there in the blogosphere.

I won't get too specific about the conversation but it was largely about a calling to experience life for oneself.

The beliefs of our parents is worth questioning. Our lifestyle and way of living is worth questioning. Even as I've remained in Forest City, Iowa, my philosophies, religion -- everything really -- is worth questioning.

We get a chance to be who we want to be. To define a way of life for our self.

My parents have never eaten cantaloupe wrapped with prosciutto but it turns out that it is fantastic.

Their experiences in life have been amazing and they have exposed me to much that I am grateful for.

But there is more to be seen.

I have to try cantaloupe with prosciutto for myself. I need to travel to Peru for myself. I must challenge my beliefs -- are they really mine or are they merely a product of my upbringing?

I need to sit in the snow only miles away from my childhood home -- but with thoughts and beliefs that put me further from home than ever.

After all, here is life.

My life.

Enjoy the ride,
Damm

Hope for Haiti

I'm watching Hope for Haiti tonight. It's a good reminder that life isn't about The Damm Journey. It's about our journey together.

The worst of humanity can be on display when people like Pat Robertson claim that God is somehow punishing Haiti for their "pact with the devil." But this is not the norm. This is not the religion or belief that most of us subscribe to.

The hundreds of millions of dollars donated from the U.S.A. to Haiti shows the goodness of our country.

The partnership of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush shows that men and women of politics are really men and women of public service. I don't believe the most politicians are the slime that we make them out to be. As a Democracy, the United States will need to change the path of our country if we are to keep good public servants from being corrupted by petty politics, large corporations and lobbyists hell-bent on making money.

The way that my generation has donated money through text, Twitter and other forms of technology shows that even though we might read fewer books and participate in the world differently, my generation is just as capable of serving and giving as those who have come before us.

Haiti has taught me about humanity. I've given $20 to Haiti and I encourage you to make a donation. Anything helps.

As soon as we focus too closely on our own journeys, we are often reminded that our journeys are tied to those around us.

I'm not sure I've met anyone from Haiti but my path is tied to theirs.

My belief in the Tao means that I am tied to the destiny of everyone on this earth and that we are all one.

At some point in my life, I know I'll need to work to make other people's lives better if I am going to be happy and content.

This month I start with my donations to Haiti and my work with Winnebago County's Relay for Life. And that journey must continue.

Please join me on this journey of compassion. I'm going to give more money to Haiti and more time to Relay for Life.

It's time that we all help others....

Enjoy the ride,
Damm

Dreaming of Enigmas

An overindulgence in red wine, white wine, Fat Tire and Cuba Libres led to a strange dream last night.

She and I laid in bed wasting a day with only each other's company. I was in a foreign place but felt at home. The tourist bus outside the window was filled with souls whose journey I could not understand.

I was a traveler now.

Comfortable with the uncertainty of daily life, I could no longer appreciate the guided tours and itineraries of a tourist.

Her image was at once, a melange of women's faces I know and yet an enigma.

Beautiful. Unknown but familiar. It was as if Monet had tried to paint a portrait of my future wife, not knowing who she would be but making his best guess through the strokes of his paint brush and the colors on his palette.

The feelings from the dream collided with my morning like a hot cup of coffee spilling on my lap.

I was tired -- as I am most mornings -- but also in a state of severe melancholy. Not depression by any means, but melancholy.

The type of melancholy that Albrecht Durer expressed in his allegorical engraving "Melancolia I" -- not showing a mood of depression but rather of inspiration waiting to strike.

I didn't long for inspiration as much as I longed to meet this person. To literally meet the woman of my dreams.

Until then I'll just have to....

Enjoy the ride,
Damm

Hope for Resolution

I'm going to keep this blog short and sweet but I wanted to publicly state some of my resolutions for 2010 before it gets too far into the year.

Public accountability is a big part of keeping one's New Year's Resolutions -- what better place than my blog to make my resolutions known.

Here they are, in no particular order:

- No blackjack, casino games or sports betting. Only poker.
- Train for the Kansas Half-Ironman beginning January 18th. The race is on June 6.
- No soda or diet soda unless I'm having it as part of a mixed drink. (I stuck to this for 10 months in 2009 and should have just stayed with it)
- Lift weights 3 times per week in addition to my triathlon training.
- I will not eat Taco Jerry's, pizza, crappy fast food or superfluous treats/desserts. Eating is now a part of my training.
- Cut back on drinking -- twice per week at the MOST!
- 2 hours per week of Rosetta Stone Spanish. I want to learn Spanish!
- Travel, interact with people, live life to the fullest and help others.

As I love to say, 2010 is going to be EPIC. And while some of these resolutions are still fairly broad, I'm going to continue to specify how I'll accomplish these goals -- especially as my training begins.

Enjoy the (Epic) ride,
Damm

Finding the Same Place

Last night I had a conversation that I won't soon forget with some really good friends. Both of these friends now live in much different places than Forest City -- one in a big city and the other in a foreign country. But for an evening we were reunited in our hometown and I discovered that our journeys over the last few years had brought all of us to a very similar place in life.

Questioning our surroundings. Questioning our beliefs. But finding confirmation of the incredible complexity and beauty of life in the everyday, simple occurrences that have presented themselves to us.

We talked about religion, spirituality, sexuality, high school and college memories, plans for the future and much more....it was a refreshingly open conversation.

All 3 of us grew up as strong to "medium-strong" Christians but I think all of us agreed that our experiences in life had created lots of questions regarding our childhood faith.

Two of us probably would no longer classify our beliefs as Christian, while one of us was still confident in Christianity but similarly confident about the validity of other beliefs.

We put down a couple bottles of red wine over the course of the evening, ate some pistachios, listened to John Mayer, Keane and La Roux, and read a David Sedaris story. The TV was never turned on.

Shortly after midnight, my friends left for their parent's houses.

They will soon be traveling to places far away from Forest City to enjoy their own journeys. At least for a while, though, we were able to inhabit the same place -- long enough to realize that our journeys were bringing us closer, even as we began to travel away from each other once again.

"Life may scatter us and keep us apart; it may prevent us from thinking very often of one another; but we know that our comrades are somewhere "out there" - where, one can hardly say - silent, forgotten, but deeply faithful. And when our path crosses theirs, they greet us with such magnificent joy, shake us so gaily by the shoulders! Indeed we are accustomed to waiting." --- antoine saint exupery, 'wind, sand and stars'

Enjoy the ride,
Damm

Happy Holidays

Happy Holidays!

Well, golly, what a year it’s been for Josh – lots of changes.

In January of 2009, Josh made a career change and began working for Lichtsinn Motors in Forest City as their Marketing & Special Events Director. It has been a challenging new position and he has learned a lot about the car and RV industry in a short time period.

February brought about a relationship status modification on Facebook – from “In a Relationship” to “Single.” And while my friend Joshua felt like staying on the couch for a couple of years without moving except to go to the fridge for cold beer and deli meats, by June he had regained his wits and was ready to start leaving his parent’s house again.

March included a trip to Alabama for Josh. He agreed to conclude the season as the Waldorf men’s golf coach even as he began his new position at Lichtsinn Motors (which, by the way, is a great place to buy a new or used vehicle at an unbeatable price!) and the team’s spring break trip took them to the Robert Trent Jones Trail in Alabama. It was a great week of golf and camaraderie for Josh and his players.

During April through July he was busy training for his triathlons. In May he placed 3rd overall at the Mason City sprint triathlon and in June he completed two Olympic distance triathlons (.9 mile swim, 24 mile bike and 6.2 mile run). The first was at TRINONA in Winona, Minn., and the second was in Rochester, Minn. At Rochester, he improved his time by 22 minutes – finishing the race in 2 hours and 47 minutes!

When he wasn’t busy working out, Josh went to a Keane (his favorite band) concert in Minneapolis, hung out with friends in Okoboji, St. Paul, Des Moines and Mankato, and played some golf.

August was an epic month. Josh went to Boston and Cape Cod with his friend Chris Fitzgerald. At Cape Cod, Josh and Chris went to see their buddy Dan Wellik coach in the prestigious Cape Cod league. A good time was had by all. Only a few lobsters survived.

Two half marathons, his cousin Megan’s wedding, a 100-mile bike ride, and the purchase/renovation of a townhouse (104 Sweetgrass Lane) in Forest City consumed the fall months for Josh.

And then, in November, Josh met me in Peru. We had a magical week of Pisco Sours (a strong but tasty alcoholic drink), delicious cebiche (raw fish marinated in citrus juices), and sightseeing in the capital city of Lima. Josh stayed with the family of Andres Baertl (one of his former Waldorf golfers) during the trip. I made the monumental decision of going back to the States with Josh at the end of his week in Peru and life has been great ever since.

We had a great Thanksgiving with Josh’s family and are looking forward to more Holidays together.

It has truly been a wonderful year for Josh and 2010 is going to be even better. To follow along with Josh’s adventures, check out his blog at http://thedammjourney.blogspot.com.

As for me, I’m just happy to be a part of Josh’s life now and I hope you’ll all be able to meet me sometime soon. I occupy the 6th floor of the IKEA bookshelf in Josh’s townhouse.

Once again, Happy Holidays,
Pedro

You Can Change or Stay the Same

As winter blows its cold breath across the cornfields of Iowa, my body and mind enter a type of hibernation period each year.

The bike rides of summer are replaced with shorter jaunts on my basement trainer. The enjoyable 10-mile runs of July are replaced with the nearly unbearable repetition of the treadmill. Swims in lakes are replaced with lap after lap after lap in the YMCA pool.

And for me, the blissful days of being outside as much as possible are replaced with nights on the couch watching movies contemplating life and plans for the year ahead.

A few days ago I watched "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" for the second time and was once again struck by a scene in which Benjamin Button leaves his family to start all over.

In the movie, we learn that growing younger (even staying the same age) is really a curse. Humans were designed to grow old. And growing old is a blessing.

But growing old doesn't mean we have to stay the same. We can change.

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Right now, as I type, I'm watching the Ford Ironman World Championships on TV. It's a call for me. Toward 2010. Toward my 70.3 Half Ironman in June. Toward change.

The sessions on the bike trainer will need to get longer. The treadmill and cold runs outside will need to become more bearable. The lap after lap after lap will need to turn to lap after lap after lap after lap...

"For what it's worth, it's never too late...to be whoever you want to be."

The Ironman continues on TV right now and it's screaming at me to get going. To be who I want to be.

Spring is never as far away as we think.

Even during the cold, dreary months of an Iowa winter.

Enjoy the ride,
Damm