Some Thoughts

Wow, we are at the end of April, hard to believe it was just January and the winter winds were in full effect. Spring has finally, truly arrived here in the high country. All of the plants and tree are blooming with life, awoken from the long slumber we call winter up here.

The "stache" has been on an academic whirlwind of sorts over the last 48 hours, hence the absence of an edition since Monday. This is is a busy time of the year for us involved in the academic world. It is especially hectic with all of the sporting activities that present themselves in these months. Yesterday I spent 3 hours working on this one problem with two other people, one problem on a take home test for Operations Management. It had to be done in Excel, which is a great program, but it takes awhile to figure out the formulas and numbers to put in the problems. Glad that it is all over now. Yesterday was also Mountain Day, here at school, which is a service project day where we have a day off of school to help out the community. The XC team helped to pick up trash along Elk River, it is amazing the amount of garbage you can find alongside a river. There were 8 of us and each of us had 3 trash bags full worth of stuff. Also that afternoon, I helped clean and clear out the wooded area behind Pinnacle Inn, where the Business Department is located. We had a guy on the chainsaw, as well as many people helping to remove vines, cut down limbs, and pick up any trash on that hillside. The amount of vines, and what they can get tangled on is amazing when it goes unkempt for so long. It looks a lot better than it did before, and was a lot of fun in the process. I like doing productive work, especially outside. My post-running career has definitely had a lot to keep me busy. My brain is in overdrive right now, just waiting for it to completely give out on me, but it has not quite yet. My mental endurance has seemed to improve over the last few days. I guess my physical endurance has shifted a little into my head. Not that running was a burden, but it has definitely freed up some time to get some other things accomplished. I am not hamstrung, so to speak, by the amount of time I have to spend on other activities. I pretty much have all day to do things and not have to wait until nighttime to get my work done, which allows me to rest and get more quality sleep. This is a time of mental cleansing for me, taking things in from a different perspective. I feel like I am more free to do other things, without worrying how it will affect my running. The actual changes are minuscule from an outsiders perspective, but for me it feels a lot different. It feels new and fresh. I do not know if that made sense to anyone, but I think you get the point.

Graduation is a mere 23 days away, school ends a few days before that. All of us seniors here are eagerly awaiting these days. We know there are challenges out there for us to tackle and the goings will be tough early on, but we have the tools necessary to be productive in this world. It is just a matter of finding that right opportunity. Some will find their calling in life sooner than others. It will be interesting to see what happens on this road we call life as we face the cold reality that is the real world. No more college comforts, nothing to fall back upon any more. Time to step out of the shadows and make a name for ourselves. I will probably have more words of wisdom as we get closer to G-Day, so I hope you enjoyed a taste of what is sure to come soon. Take care.

Mb