Hot for Teacher

Well it's been a while and I've been hassled by a few folks back home to get my act together so here I am.  Everyone likes to blame the holidays for not making time to do shit, so that's what I might as well do.  I'm not going to say I haven't had time, because that is just a damn lie.  I'll take accountability for my behavior; I haven't made an effort to utilize my time to write up any blog posts.  How often do you hear that?

Since it's been damn near a month and a half, a lot of shit has gone down.  But let me start where I left off.  December was a crazy month all around when it came to the CrossFit Football portion of my Job.  We had two seminars, one in Tampa FL, and one in Del Mar CA.  On top of that we had a little local gig that required a whole lot of prep work (logged over 100 hours a week and a half, kind of like Price Books).  Well I got to travel for both seminars, and more importantly I had the privilege of presenting on the Nutrition portion of the cert.

Let's talk Tampa.  I traveled there the weekend after my last post.  Tampa is the home of Raphael Ruiz's facility, which was also the hosting location for the CrossFit football seminar.  Raf is part of our CFFB seminar staff and when it comes to strength and conditioning he's a ninja.  His knowledge is immeasurable and he's had a ton of experience with sport specific training ranging from the amateur level to professional and Olympic athletes.  He's also a ninja in terms of his fitness level.  The dude is in shape in all facets of fitness.

Ben, my compadre from SoCal and fellow CFFB seminar staff member, and I flew in a day early to spend some time with Raf and pick his brain on a few things.  What ended up happening was a delicious BBQ lunch followed almost immediately by a "light" workout; a little "surf and turf" as Raf like's to call it.  It was a couple mile run, maybe, and then an open water swim.  It was god awful.  I'm not a strong swimmer; I struggle in a pool with goggles.  Open water with no goggles in 55 degree gulf water is far worse.  Not only did I think I was going to die, so did Raf, he was nice enough to swim next to me on the swim back.  Long story short is I beat Ben in the run and Raf and I basically tied on the swim.  Sure; he was making sure I didn't drown, but that's a detail.

The seminar kicked off the next day.  Our seminars are always held on weekends.  We lecture and coach for 8-10 hours on Saturday depending on the crowd's participation, and then another 7 hours on Sunday.  It's no joke and can be pretty grueling.  It's definitely grueling for the participants since there are 4 pretty tasking warm-up/skill sessions, and 3 killer workouts lumped into the seminar.

The Nutrition portion is on Sunday, after lunch.  We drop the Apocalypse on many people who are still all about "everything in moderation" and attempt break the stigma surrounding fats, red meats, egg yolks among other things.  We preach and follow a diet that is high in animal flesh, veggies, and "good fats" including saturated fats!  Lord help us!  Without getting into it, the nutrition portion is always a good block of dialogue.  Everyone has read or heard everything, and there is a lot of myth busting.  It stirs up some good debate at times and it helps that there are typically folks in the crowd who are familiar with the concepts and studies that we back our recommendations on.

The presentation went well.  I feel like I did fine, but world domination is not stemmed from mediocrity.  That's a "Welbournian" phrase.  At the end of the day I'm striving for perfection.  With that in mind I will always have room for improvement.

Crossing the Pond(s)

I don’t really consider myself well-traveled.  As a kid I vacationed in St. Lucia, Cozumel, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica, and the Cayman Islands.  I went on some extravagant scuba adventures, all-inclusive resorts, all sorts of great stuff at the expense of my folks.  But what I realize now is I was just too young to fully appreciate a trip like that.  I also know the only reason I went is because my folks had to lug my sister and I along; what else were they supposed to do?  Don’t get me wrong, I’m super grateful but god damn I wish I could go on a trip like that now!  While I spent 28 years in my Naperville bubble, I’ve managed to hit some standard vacation spots in recent history; Florida and California a couple times.

2012 is panning out to be something different.  Part of my new job is booking CrossFit Football Trainer’s Seminars across the globe.  That’s right folks, the GLOBE!!!  So CrossFit Football is an adaptation of an emerging online fitness “movement” called CrossFit.  Most people have heard of Crossfit but not many have heard of CrossFit Football.  It’s a similar structure in that the founder of CrossFit Football, John Welbourn, my new boss, has developed a training philosophy and publishes a vanilla version of his training protocol every day on our website www.crossfitfootball.com for free.  What sets it apart from CrossFit is

1. It’s not a one size fits all approach, there are 3 different workouts daily based on skill level
2. The goal of the training is to prepare for sport rather than prepare for workouts
3. Following the program will result in increased size, strength, power, and work capacity.  And as you progress through the program and “graduate” to the next level, the gains may taper, but are sustainable for multiple years.

How do we know?  Since CrossFit football dropped in 2008 we’ve been collecting thousands of data points and tracking results. The program is constantly evolving and strength/power gains on the “lab rats” across the world are continuing.

That being said, many gym owners across the world want to better understand the method to the madness, which is where the CrossFit Football trainer’s course comes in.  John and his team which yours truly is now a part of travel to gyms across the world where local gym owners, athletes, or inquiring minds gather to hears us brief them on how the create “The Power Athlete.”  Strict adherence to the CrossFit Football program will yield a Power Athlete; an athlete capable of dynamically expressing absolute strength in a very short period of time; over and over again.  For fitness enthusiasts, this is just a cool thing to be able to do, but for certain professional or aspiring athletes this is essential to their success on the field/court.  It’s more than just banging weights it’s really about understanding the bio-mechanics of it all; How do you intelligently expose an athlete to trauma that applies to their sport, and how do you optimize recovery from that trauma so we can sustain the training program?

People just don’t know that.  And we do; not only that but we know how to teach it.  So in 2012 I’ll be crossing the ”pond” flashing my passport in the United Kingdom in February, Ecuador in May, Brussels or Italy in September, and Australia and/or New Zealand in December.  The tour also includes a trip to Hawaii.  In addition to all these great spots, we have about 18 other stops in cities around the US and Canada.  I’ll have the opportunity to share with 20-50 folks per destination all the great stuff I have learned and continue to learn over the years, and to add quite a few feathers to the cap.

This Place is LITRALLY an Over Sized Closet

Before the spelling zealots strike (Rosanne) I know literally is spelled wrong.  Explained later on.  So... What is up?!  I've been off the grid for a while, which is a good thing cause I've been BUSY!  So as I sit here sipping on a paleo margarita made with El Ultimo Agave tequilla, the official tequilla sponsor of CrossFit Balboa (yes that's right, we landed sponsorship from a tequilla distributor a couple weeks ago!), I brainstorm.  And you know what?  I just realized that while I've given a handful of folks back home a tour of my pad (virtually of course) I haven't had the chance to give the royal tour to the blog.  Well, you'll find it here... in HD!!!

So here's the story.  I got myself a cozy little apartment.  I only signed on for a three month lease since Ashley and I knew that I just needed a landing pad to get stuff sorted out.  I went with an over-sized closet, a 400 square foot studio apartment in a place called the Coronado South and Newport.  When I called the leasing office I asked for the oldest, most dated, and inconveniently located unit as I was definitely on a budget and was shopping price.  The gal helping me out obliged, and set me up with a 3rd floor unit facing the street far from parking with the old school white pressed board cabinets and white appliances... mega 90's.  Whammy, landed a spot, and I was SET!  I was sweating it a little bit because as you guys all know this whole thing was happening fast, and I just wanted a place to call home when I got to Cali.

Well as I was packing my car to leave Illinois back in September, I got a phone call from the Coronado apartments and they had informed me that they double booked the unit, and it was no longer available.  I got a bit worried.  I worked out a 3 month lease for 400 square feet at about $1,150 a month.  Unheard of in Newport Beach!!  Comparable units for year long leases go for $1,400.  Upgraded units for $1,750.  I was crossing my fingers that since they landed me as a renter on price, that they would honor it for whatever unit they found. Well they did honor the price, and here is what they gave me:

Apartment H103.  First floor entrance next to the pool and parking garage, very close to laundry.  Great location.  Not much better in terms of space, it's still 400 square feet, but it's the upgraded version!  BALLER!  42" TV included, mattress included (aka murphy bed), new counter tops, new appliances, new cabinets.  Good stuff!  I lucked out.  But here's the deal, I didn't make this video for the blog.  It's because my current apartment is listed on Craigslist right now.  Already you ask?  Yes.  I only signed on for 3 months, but a mere 1 and a half months into it I'm already trying to get someone to take over my lease.

At first I thought, man there's a lot of closet space here I bet Ashley and I could just make this work, it'd be a ton easier!  Naturally she thought I was crazy, and disagreed (respectfully of course).  But when she came to visit for a week and set her suitcase down and all of a sudden we had no room, I realized it would be cramped.  And she was right, which is typical.

And in standard Ashley fashion, the 3rd day out here she ran into a guy who was renting a 2 bedroom spot out right down on "the peninsula".  She checked it out and really liked it.  Then I checked it out and really liked it.  So naturally we pursued it.

The Balboa Peninsula is neighborhood that is built on a 3 mile long 1/4 mile wide stretch of sand that is a hot spot to live in Newport Beach.  So no matter where you live, you are less than a 1/4 mile from the beach.  During the summer it is supposed to pack up and be a blast, but it can be a pain to find parking a la certain areas of Downtown Chicago.  About a 1/2 mile and again 1 mile down the peninsula there are a stretch of bars that I would consider the closest thing to Downtown Naperville.

Well the spot Ashley stumbled upon is a little over a 1/2 mile down the peninsula on the bay side, and 1 block from the beach.  It's 2 blocks from the first stetch of bars, and about a half mile to the other stretch of bars.  There's a 7-11 LITRALLY (parks and rec reference) 150ft away from us.  The place has two bedrooms, upgraded everything, two garage parking spots, storage and huge patio which means the fire pit is coming with!  WOOT!  The lease is signed as of today and the security deposit down so it is official.  We've got our spot.  Now all I need is off load my over-sized closet, and move in.  Oh and of course I have to fill it with my little lady and her pooch.  Sure do miss those two.  After that, I'll be all set out here.

What the Hell is the Internet?

For the past three weeks I've had a BLAST watching football on Sundays.  Thanks to the power of the interwebs and Google I still get to share it with my friends.  I'm 3,000 miles away but it's a point and click on my Google+ account to start a "hangout" aka a group video chat.  So far it's been Digger from his Iowa pad, and a room full of the rest of the hooligans watching football at somebody's pad.  I know we're just a week or two away from a handful of people to join up.

It's great.  I really look forward to every Sunday to get back in touch with my bros and find out what's going on.  You got a gmail account?  you want in?  Join up on Google+ and check our stream to join up!  I still get my Sunday full of shenanigans with my buddies; all thanks to the internet 

The American West

Are you picking up what I'm putting down here?  I mean let's be honest, what's going on with the hair and the beard?  I tell you what; I have no idea.  It's just something I don't really have to worry about anymore.

Or maybe I'm trying to pull off the homeless look.  The fact is I don't care, but let's see what's to come of it... maybe the Tom Hanks in Castaway look.

It seems like it's been forever since I carried the burden of having to "look the part" of my previous job.  What I like here is all that's need is to DO my part.  The looks don't matter.  I mean it wasn't really that hard to do.  $20 on dry cleaning every week, shave the face twice a week, Shower a couple times a day.  Haircut every 4-6 weeks.  All stuff I never really wanted to do.

But it's as if what you want to do and what you need to do are almost always at odds.

So here I am, I've done my part for the day.  I went into work a bit early, followed up on leads, scheduled my evening call with the host of an event we're sponsoring in February, rolled out my marketing kit for other hosts of our seminars in Q1, closed up an issue with one of our trainers, and reviewed our payments for the day to make sure they all went through.

Then I worked out, talked on the phone with an old friend for about 30 minutes, took Dakota to the doggie beach, watched her get chased into the deep end by a couple pit bulls who weren't feeling her, took a dip myself and cooked up a bunch of food for the next couple of days.

After that, I sat on my patio in the 70 degree weather, listening to the high school football game across the street, a cup o' whiskey in hand, and while I waited to help my boss move a couple of chairs into his new house... I wrote this.  Oh, and it's a THURSDAY!

Then I ate a big dinner, couple pounds worth of food, cause it was only 5pm and I had all the time in the world to digest before bed time.  Skyped with Ashley, laid and scratched the dog for about 20 minutes, then sat back down to finish this little post.  At this point, I don't have a title or any way to wrap it up.  That said, my plan is to leave you all with a quote that one of my closest, well read, and well traveled friends, Bo, tagged me with shortly after I made my decision to head our to California, and hope it provokes some thought for a title.

xoxoxo miss you guys.

"It should not be denied... that being footloose has always exhilarated us.  It is asociated in our minds with escape from history and opression and law and irksome obligations, with absolute freedom, and the road has always led west" - Wallace Stegner The American West as Living Space

p.s.  wow, what a creative bombshell of a title...

Hello, My Name is: Cornelius

I drive a 1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo. It's 4 wheel drive and has a 4.0L inline 6 engine. The engine is one of the most serviceable and reliable engines manufactured in the late 90's assuming you don't abuse it and you keep on your maintenance cycle, which is EXACTLY why I bought it. It's a 13 year old Jeep and it made it out here to California from Chicago no problemo... well it scared me a little bit through the Rockies when I was going down hill and had to floor it for some reason? I'm guessing wind resistance, but who knows. Not only that, it parallel parks like a champ! Which is ideal out here when parking can be hard to come by.

But what it didn't fare to well to is my Love taking it for a little joy ride, windows down, country music blasting. In hindsight, I'm picturing her "air lassoing" down the 405 at 65 mph, ocean air blowing through her hair, singing along to Kenny or whoever was on the radio... IN SECOND GEAR!

EEK! A couple of days after the joy ride, Cornelius (as I now call the Jeep) stalled on me... wait for it... at 5:45 in the morning! 15 minutes before my 6am class at the gym. I was ecstatic. So I had to hop on my bike, and pedal my ASS off to get to the gym for the class! Ended up being on time, but what was to come of Cornelius?

A buddy of mine out here gave me his AAA card, and I had Cornelius towed to a garage down the street... Being without a car for a few days wasn't that big of deal. Dakota learned how to run next to me on the bike, and we just rode to the gym. My apartment is within walking distance of grocery stores, restaurants, coffee shops, and basically anything you need. What was rough was anticipating the impending bill... a few days before Cornelius fell ill, I got my oil changed and a check up and Firestone quoted me $3,200 in parts and labor!!! I called their bluff, and I busted. And now my car was in the shop and I, a former service parts pricing manager who knows the EVIL that awaits behind service parts pricing, sat waiting for the estimate.

Well, long story short, these guys need a new pricing manager. It cost me $230 to get Cornelius up and running. He needed a couple new sensors (for now), but he still whines every once and a while because the power steering pump got beat up a bit. But he's a trooper. After all, who really wants to die without any scars?

How's Dakota?

As I reach out to everyone, there are a lot of questions that are asked over and over... one of which is "how's Dakota doing?" Well let me tell you...

She's doing great.

The ride out here was not only a 30 hour endeavor for Ashley and I, it was for Dakota too. I didn't quite know how she would react to being pent up in the car that long, but she did real good. Just sat in her little space, chewed on her toys, and when we would stop for a bio break she would hop out and do her business in the closest patch of grass. A complete non issue.

My place is the perfect size for the two of us, and the first couple of weeks were a bit shaky because my schedule at the gym was undetermined. For the most part I was kind of on call since my boss and his wife were expecting twin girls at any moment. That being said poor Dakota did spend a couple of long days in her crate. For dog owners, that's cool because the crate is a sanctuary of sorts. The uncool part was the fact that for those of you who know Dakota, she's a 50lb mass of pure energy that NEVER wants to slow down! So what is a dog owner to do? I'll tell you what, find a two mile stretch of beach and just let her off the leash, and watch her run around with random packs of dogs for hours!

It's quite the spectacle the doggie beach. I get a real kick out of how the dogs interact with each other when they don't feel a sensation of boundaries or being on a leash. It's fun to watch them chase each other around, or be chased around by dogs half or twice their size, chase after another dog's toy, or explore the mysterious ocean. As far as Dakota's experience, I've never seen her sleep in the car. On the ride home she was so tuckered out from nonstop running and playing she actually just laid down. When we pulled up to my apartment, she didn't even sit up. It was almost as if she was saying "just leave me in here, I'll figure it out later."

But she's not the same dog she was in Naperville. Don't get me wrong, she is the same old happy go lucky goof ball, but there's a little piece of her missing. Her side kick and older brother Zeke. It's going to be a fun reunion once he makes his way out here!