Thanks for making the leap with me from Life on a Bike to Not Just Life on a Bike. Any observant person would notice that my last blog post was over 2 years ago. For anybody that knows me enough to be reading this blog, I don't need to tell you about all the drastic life changes I've had in only these past 24 months. And you probably already know that I stopped writing for a reason, and that is because I stopped riding. I stopped being interested in riding bikes and I especially started disliking racing. Just a couple months after that last post, I dropped out of a race midway and called it quits for good. I have done a few races here and there since then, but nothing too serious. I have been gradually getting back into mountain biking, but the trick has been to make sure there is nothing serious about it. No 4, 5, or 6 hour trainer rides in the winter. No log recording every detail of every day. I don't even know how fast I have gone or how far I have gone on any bike ride anymore because I got rid of my bike computer. So now it is just fun. And that is why this blog won't just be about biking and training. This blog is going to actually be about life. It took me longer than it should have to figure out that life can be even more awesome than it was when I am not focusing all of my time and energy on riding a bike every single day. I figured out there are so many fun things to do out there. I realized it too late to take advantage and fully enjoy the great opportunity of living in Montana. I will not repeat that mistake and my life in Washington is going to always be an adventure.
This post has gotten a little more philosophical than I intended, but I think I am going to continue with that for just a little bit longer. I was a whiny pain in the ass when I lived in Montana. I took for granted one of the most amazing places I could have lived on this planet. I have taken a lot for granted in my life, and getting older is helping me to realize that. Life doesn't have to be about riding a bike everyday. It doesn't have to be about perfect weather every time I want it. It doesn't have to be about sports teams winning or losing. It doesn't have to be about any one thing or just a couple things. It doesn't need to be about anything except enjoying it to its fullest. My plan for living in Washington and anywhere else I end up from now on is to make sure I see the awesome beauty and amazing opportunities that surround me no matter where I am (a plan which has been working so far for the past 6 months). I don't think I was mature enough or ready to move to Montana. Moving back to Michigan was a knee-jerk reaction that I did not think through at all. Moving to Washington, though, was both thought out for a long period of time and was met with a more mature me. There are decisions I wish I had not made in the last two years. But now that I have figured so much out, and now that I am finding myself actually completely happy with where I am for the first time since August 9, 2009, I know that the experiences of the past two years have been invaluable to my maturation and to shaping me into who I am right now and hopefully to continue helping me grow even more.
I really hope I will keep up with the blog this time. I have had so many adventures so far, and I have so many planned in the near future. Scratch that, so many planned in the future. And I have pictures. And hopefully this blog will motivate me to take more pictures. From grizzly bears to hockey to gardening to hunting, get excited to get caught up with what's been going on here and what is to come.
Thanks again for visiting. Its gonna be a fun ride!
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