Nashville was hot and humid.  It was 103 degrees during the days we were there with 93% humidity.   So I knew I had to get up early if I was serious about getting this done.

I got up at 6 AM on Friday, despite the fact that we had each drank a pitcher of peach/white wine Sangria the night before and the room had been spinning as I passed out fell asleep.  It would have been easy to use being intoxicated the night before as an excuse.  Very easy.  But I remembered a wise man telling me that he had one of the best runs of his life hung over so I figured it was worth a try.

I started running as the sun was coming up.  It was tough to get going but by about the beginning of mile 3 I was getting in the groove.  It didn’t seem quite as hot anymore and I knew I would be able to do it, no matter how slow and sweaty I was.  No matter if I had to stop and walk occasionally.  I would be able to finish this run.

I love running in a new place.  I ran down a couple of the Music Row streets and I did a few loops around Vanderbilt University.   I saw places I would not have gotten to see if I hadn’t gone for the runs that I did when I was there.

I completed the run (8 miles of it outside, and the final mile on the treadmill in the hotel because it just got too darn hot!) and had the rest of the day to celebrate my little victory.  I do think that running and sweating flushed out the toxins because I did not feel the effects of being drunk the night before like I was expecting.  I think I might have inadvertently stumbled upon a hangover cure.

To commemorate the occasion, my very awesome boss wrote me a song.  Friday must have been a slow day at work!

9 MILES IN NASHVILLE

I did 9 miles in Nashville
My dog had run away
I did 9 miles in Nashville
I hope that he’s ok
I did 9 miles in Nashville
My truck had just let go
I did 9 miles in Nashville
Oh Lord please save my soul

Chorus

When the road is long and your gas is low
You need to get on your feet
When your friends are there to guard your back
You know you can’t be beat
It’s only 9 miles in Nashville
To take your cares away
After 9 miles in Nashville
She’ll be with me in just a day

I did 9 miles in Nashville
This heat is killin’ me
I did 9 miles in Nashville
I hope I can make her see
I did 9 miles in Nashville
Gittin’ her back is the only goal
I did 9 miles in Nashville
Oh Lord please save my soul

(Chorus)

Bridge (full chord change from B to C sharp)

If my dog came back
And my truck would run
I get to you somehow
Damn this heat and this dusty road
This is all I can do right now

(Chorus)  and Fade out

Career

I started the year knowing that I was miserable at the company I worked for and that I needed to make a change.   I knew there was a potential opportunity somewhere in the murky unknown future to work for my friends but when it could happen was a great unknown.

I’m not one to sit back and wait for things to happen,  so it was a very difficult situation for me.  I found myself agitated with the lack of control I had over my life.  So I halfheartedly looked for a new job.  I even went on an interview.  But I knew even in the middle of interviewing that my heart wasn’t in it, and that I wanted to work for my friends.

I couldn’t stand to not be in control of my destiny, to wait for something to happen.  It was very difficult time for me.  Eventually, and this is the weird part, I surrendered to the universe and trusted that it would happen if I just had faith and relaxed.

And it did.  I went on vacation for two weeks and I had this unshakable image in my head that I would be giving my notice on the day I got back from vacation.  This seemed illogical to me and I didn’t know how it would happen but once again I decided to trust and surrender.

The Sunday night before I went back to work, my friends came over and offered me a job.  I gave my notice the next day, my first day back from vacation.  I’ve been there 4 months now and am ridiculously happy.

Lesson learned:  Tell the universe what you want.   Be very clear about what you want and have some faith that it will happen.  Let go of trying to control the situation.

Goals for 2010: Be the best Project Manager I can be.  Become more organized, develop new processes, become LEED Certified.

Health/Fitness

My goal for the year was to run the Beach to Beacon 10K, and lose a little weight and gain a little fitness in the process.

I did run the Beach to Beacon 10K in August and also the Trail to Ale 10K in September.  I ran several 5K races as well.  So far this year I have run 193 miles and I’ve lost about 15 pounds.

Lesson Learned: Having a fitness goal gives me a reason to go to the gym, or to go for a run.  Knowing that I was going to run a competitive race like the B2B really kept me motivated all year.

Goals for 2010: Run the Maine Half-Marathon (21K) in October.  I will have plenty of time to train and it will give me a goal that will last most of the year.  Also, I plan to increase my year’s mileage to 500 miles.  I want to get faster – I’d like to average 11 minute miles in the half-marathon.  And finally, I’d like to lose the last few pounds before I turn 4-0 in June.

Affiliate Marketing

I didn’t have a goal for the year other than to learn all that I could.  I love AM and I am doing pretty well for how little time I spend on it.  I love the unlimited scalability of it.  I love waking up in the morning and seeing sales that have come in when I’m asleep.  I love averaging 300% ROI and knowing full well that I can do better.

Lesson Learned: After playing around with CPA for half the year, I don’t feel okay about it and won’t continue to put effort into it.  I will concentrate my efforts on products that I would buy, that have real value.  I have yet to see a CPA product that didn’t feel scammy to me.

Goal for 2010: Dedicate more time to AM in general.  Fully develop three new content-rich websites in areas that interest me which have multiple monetization avenues.  I already have two sites planned out and ready to implement.   I will spend more time on link building and article writing.

Home

Our ongoing quest to declutter and simplify has been going well this year.  We have gotten rid of all the baby stuff and a huge amount of books and miscellaneous dreck.   The house is looking great.

Another ongoing goal is to fix up the house.  There’s nothing wrong with our house, but it is 210 years old, so it always needs something.  We’re trying to get it to that perfect state with all upgrades completed so if we find another dream house further up the coast we’ll be ready.  It’s hard to think about selling our house though because it is so wonderful, but we do love fixer-uppers and we do dream of moving to Damariscotta.    However, we both love our jobs so our goal isn’t to move this year.  It’s just to have the house in “sale-ready” condition…just in case.

Lesson Learned: Decluttering and simplifiying creates an awesome environment.  What also comes from simplifying life is a lack of want.  We don’t need or want stuff anymore.  If we do need anything we tend to purchase it at a resale shop so we can give it back to Goodwill when we are done with it.

Goal for 2010: Get rid of more stuff, continue updating the house, keep on enjoying life in a very old house with a great soul.

I always feel better after writing and/or saying my goals out loud.  Once they are “out there” I cannot take them back and I feel accountable.  Even if people forget, I don’t forget that I told them.  Also, I’m a huge believer in asking the Universe for what you want, because the Universe will conspire to give it to you.  Goals are part of that process.   And, as my friend Hollywood knows…Goals Work.
What are your goals?  Use the comment section to put yours in writing and send them out to the Universe!

Started by Bob Miner, a Vietnam vet who found a way back from reclusiveness through the animals, DEW has built up quite a menagerie of creatures.

When you first enter the park, you are presented with the normal animal park assortment of barnyard creatures such as sheep and goats.

My daughter made fast friends with one older looking goat.

First she gave him a big hug.

Then she went in for the kiss.

After passing by some bears, kangaroos and wallabys (wallabi?), I spotted this handsome fella.

In my opinion, the Hyena was the scariest animal in the park.  Bob told us that they can run at speeds up to 18 MPH which they can sustain for an hour.  There’s no out running these guys.  And just look at the way this hyena thinks that my son = Lunch.

Hyena Staredown

Man that’s creepy.  Here’s a video that shows Bob feeding the Hyena while it whines (laughs) and devours huge chunks of meat without stopping to chew.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5WvZfe-F5g[/youtube]
Here’s another video of Bob and one of his tigers.  He is missing an eye but can still catch birds for a snack.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vj0H22B_UIw[/youtube]
If you ever find yourself near Augusta, Maine, DEW Animal Kingdom is definitely worth checking out.

The town was well defended by cannons and armed militia men.

However, the Pirate ships would not turn back.  And the Pirate invasion could not be stopped.

The town was looted….to benefit the Lincoln County Family Holiday Wishes organization.    I was impressed by the event.  It seemed that the entire town was dressed up.  I even spotted a Pirate Dog.

And the costumes were not of poor quality, these were theatrical costumes, not the Wal-Mart Halloween variety.

A great event, for a great cause,  in a great town.  If you want to see amazing photos of the event, click here and here.

Where have my dreams gone?

But then over the next few weeks I relaxed into it and the ideas started flowing. As of today, I have about 62 items on the list. They include many travel destinations (Machu Picchu, the monasteries at Meteroa, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro (thanks Dan!)) as well as things that I’ve already done but now want to do with my kids (swim with dolphins).

I am lucky that I’ve already done many things that would have been on this list (skydiving, living in a foreign country, backpacking around Europe) but that means I have to dig deep to come up with more things to do.

It’s been fun trying to push myself to add items to the list. My husband is writing his own list, too and it’s great when some of our items match (we both want to have a beer with Mike Rowe) And it’s also very cool when some don’t (an African safari?). We’ll both get to have even more adventures helping each other to check items off of our lists.

I was surprised by one item that I wrote down. Run a 10K. Until I wrote it down, I hadn’t realized that it was already on the list in my head. I’ve run 5K races but my conscious mind told me that 10K is just too far. But is it really?

So, last month I committed myself to run the Beach to Beacon this year. And despite the registration snafu that occurred, I was able to get a spot. I’m still hoping that the registration issues will be worked out and my husband and our friends will be able to run as well for team Colby Co.

I’ve been running consistently since the beginning of the year and I still have 4 1/2 months to train. I’ve been running on a treadmill, but starting today (supposed to be 55 degrees out!), I will run outside as much as possible. I’m hoping to do 3 1/2 miles outside today.

The first post of the official blog of the Obama administration on WhiteHouse.gov listed 3 priorities:  Communication, Transparency and Participation.

And the expectations of the internet community have changed as well.

You can no longer hide who you are on the internet and expect that people will respect you and buy from you.

You can pretend to be a guru.  But not many people will fall for it.  You will be found out.

However, if you are yourself and let yourself come through, you will find people that really connect with you.   You will build relationships built on common interests not on you trying to sell them something.

Perry Belcher spilled his guts on this YouTube video.   Why should he hide his past when anyone with access to Google could “dig it up” anyway.   He now has over 22,000 followers on Twitter… coincidence?

Come clean.  Own your life.  Be yourself.

Also, Eben Pagan talked about the same concept in his Wake Up Productive program.   He used the example of people who are trying to quit smoking.  They repeatedly say to themselves, “Don’t Smoke, Don’t Smoke” but all their brain hears is “Smoke, Smoke”.

You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you. –James Allen

This lead me to start thinking about the power of positiving thinking and/or the Law of Attraction, or whatever you prefer to call it.  There’s no doubt that focusing on what you want (instead of what you don’t) works.     But now it makes a bit more sense to me why it works.   Your brain doesn’t hear the negative.   Stop saying to yourself things like, “I have to stop procrastinating” and replace those thoughts with “I will get more done today”.

What you focus on, what you think about, is what you bring into your life.