Definitely a better session than last week. I got a late start, and figured I could only do 1:15. But then I decided I was just gonna keep kicking until the janitors showed up. They never did. I finally quit at 1:45. I almost pushed it to a full 2 hours, but... I still had to make a CO- double F- double E- Filter run. Drug addiction (caffeine in this case) is not always a pretty thing.

The important part is, I felt more motivated, pushed myself a little harder. I definitely worked up much more of a sweat tonight than last week. I still can't seem to do much in the consistency department; my best guiltless string was a whopping 24. Oh boy. I'm gonna blame the floor. Tile. Dirty. Slick. If only I could be there right after the janitors, not before. But I started really strong tonight, got a little mojo working, and had a good time. And slick floors make me more (painfully) aware of my (lack of) balance.

In the music department, tonight it was Pandora that was lame, and Last.fm that was rocking the house. Either way, I love internet radio!

I've got a better start on my time goal this year than ever before. I like how my body feels after pushing myself longer. I'm so looking forward to 2-hour sessions in the warm sunshine at Speakers Circle! Speaking of which, fuck that goddamned groundhog. I'm gonna get at least one outdoor session in February. I believe in global warming more than a dirt-digging rodent.

Until next time, thanks for tuning in!

The good thing is, the janitors are usually really cool people. They're working at night, on hard times themselves, the last thing they want to do is cause other people trouble. A little respect goes a long way. I think my secret is still safe for now, but I've got this window between about 8:10 and 10:05 to be in, do my thing, and be out. I've given up on trying to find a legitimate place to kick this winter. I just can't afford it.

It was a dark and stormy ni... wait, no, wrong profession... It was a crappy, uninspired session. I'm rather irked at Last.fm; it seems like every time I tune into my station, it's all different, but not in a good way. A few weeks ago, it went from Fatboy Slim / Chemical Romance / Other Funky Stuff to lame Easy Listening crap. Tonight it was all Ambient tempo stuff. That worked OK for a while, but the beat started getting monotonous. Good thing there's more than one of those internet radio stations. Pandora seems as true as ever to the kind of music I like to kick to.

But what about footbag? you ask. Oh yeah, that. What this blog post is supposed to be about. When I can't get into the groove, I'm reduced to bean counting. I needed 1:45 to make "par" for the month (5 hours) and that's what I did. I managed to hit at least one of all my usual moves, but certainly not in a single rally. I'm working hardest to re-integrate drifters into my strings. I like drifters.

I don't take my camera to the secret hideout, because I can't really post the video. Not being able to post the video makes me not care about the blog; I blew it off last week. I might just start taking it and filming anyway, because I like being able to go review and count rally contacts after the fact. I hate counting contacts while I'm kicking; it turns me into a bean counter instead of a freestyler. But I did spend the last 30 minutes of the session counting guiltless contact strings. My best was 20. My average was probably 6 or 7 (In nearly 30 minutes of trying). In a good session, I can double that. Bleh...

I'm still working on the dual footbag break-in. I kick with each one for about 10 minutes, then switch. Both my Abshire bags are sweet, but subtly different. And since I'm doing this, I've decided to practice juggling just a bit - at least once per session. I never really got the hang of it back in the day, and I quite frankly still suck at toe delays. But the practice seems to be paying off, because I actually got a few rounds on each foot tonight. It would be nice to have just a little of that for next summer's Speaker Circle sessions. Kinda like pendulums and probes; not that hard, but a crowd-pleaser.

That's it for now. Thanks for tuning in!

With my new goal of 60 hours this year, I've upped my "minimum" session time from 1 hour to 1:15, and am trying to hit at least 1:30 per session. I'm still looking for a legitimate place to play in the winter though, and there's a good chance I'll only get an hour at a time. I'll be glad when I can do 2-hour sessions in the warm sunshine again.

Thanks for tuning in!

50 hours of footbag: YES! I did 58.5 hours. I was hoping to hit an even 60, but... then it snowed. I ditched the last session of the year to play in the snow with the kids (Win!). Along the way to my footbag goal for the year, I've been featured in a local newspaper and been the subject of several J-School student documentaries.

2,400 Km on the bike: YES! I finished the year with 2,918 Km (~1,813 mi). Was hoping to hit 3,000Km, but again, the snow. So, don't expect me to feel bummed that I didn't quite make the 3K mark. I still ride a bike to work and back every day, and lots of other places too. So far in my life I've displaced at least a quarter-million miles of car travel with bike travel. Stick that in your carbon footprint and smoke it!

Reduce my anger: YES! Against all odds, against my life's history, the "fever" of rage and anger finally broke. I went through a very bleak period this summer, feeling suicidal enough to go buy the exhaust extension hose I would need for the job. I had it all planned out. Before I pulled the plug, I took a short trip through SSRI land. THAT SHIT SUCKS BIG TIME. The crap made me feel awful. No, I wasn't getting angry while I was on it, but I sure as hell didn't get happy either. I just got numb. I physically felt like crap all the time, and mentally felt like a zombie. Two words about me and SSRI drugs: NEVER. AGAIN. That goes for the therapists, shrinks, and doctors who push that crap, too. The only person that belongs in my head is myself.

In the end, it was one of my best friends that helped me get my head screwed back on straight. Once I finally found the strength to cast the enormous weight of hatred and anger overboard, I discovered many other things were tangled up with that albatross, and went overboard too. Fear? Yep, that was just another lead weight tied to anger. Motivation? Oh shit, that's tangled up with the fear and anger too. In fact, I'm still reeling from the change, trying to find a new balance in my life. But I can't go back. The anger, and everything tangled up with it, is at the bottom of the ocean, unrecoverable.

I did get genuinely angry for the first time in months on Christmas Eve; A 2-hour job blew up on me and turned into an all-day frustration fest. Afterwards, I felt like I had been hit by a truck. Being angry takes too much energy. I just can't do it any more.

60 hours of Footbag - I got so close this year, I've got to try to hit the mark next year. It's going to be tough; I don't have a good winter kicking place, and that's where I lose so much ground against my goals. Securing an indoor facility for 2010 will be a top priority.

3,000 Km on the bike - Again, I got so close this year, I've got to try to hit the mark next year. Just a few more lunchtime bike rides, or taking the longer route to work and back, and I'll have it.

The first two goals never change much: X amount of footbag, and Y amount of bicycling. The 3rd goal is always the crazy, out there, fru-fru kind of thing. And I can't make up my mind. There are so many things I want to try! I got a harmonica for XMas; I've always wanted to be able to wail the blues on a harmonica. I'll try that. I'm also disappointed in my relative financial status; this year has seen income reductions and expense increases. I'd like to increase my income in 2010. That might dovetail well with my desire to learn new technology, maybe a new programming language. I also want to be more affectionate with the wife and children.

Lots of ideas, and I need to pick one to call out as my goal, or resolution. Ah, yes... more affection with the wife. That's it! Thats definitely it. Wish me to get even luckier in 2010.

Thanks for tuning in!

I do want to give a shout-out to Richard Abshire - all footbag sequences in my documentary were filmed using an Abshire bag. 58:30 for the year... still gunning for 60!

Thanks for tuning in,

A million and more thanks to Nick Velliquette for his time and incredible enthusiasm for producing this documentary. Your professor better give you an A+++ for this!

Thanks for tuning in!

57 hours down, 3 more weeks to hit 60. Time to pull out that can of Scheme-O-Matic...

Nick's project is due today. Next post should be the final product. I'd like to thank Nick for his interest, dedication, energy, and enthusiasm in creating a documentary on my involvement in footbag. I can't wait!

Thanks for tuning in!

One more Outdoor! With Nick filming for his project, we mixed it up this time - hitting 4 different locations on campus! I only filmed at one spot - "Tiger Plaza" on the Carnahan Quad. A fountain runs there in the summer. That's Nick in the background, just packing up, so I bust out a couple blenders. Dang, where were those 10 minutes ago? Oh well, I got 'em on my camera, priceless commentary and all.

We still need to do an interview, do a bit more work filming a few moves, and get a little more background material on the history of footbag. I'll be very interested to see how this project turns out.

That's another 1:15 for an even 56 hour total. Thanks for tuning in!

It was definitely an "off" session for me, I had a lot of trouble getting anything going. But a good videographer can fix that, eh? He seemed really excited about some of the shots he got. If work isn't too crazy tomorrow, I'm going to try to meet him at the circle again, with his HD camera next time. Let's hope we can pull it off.

One more hour - 54:45 for the year. Thanks for tuning in!

It's hard to believe I've been blogging about my footbag experiences for over a year now. I was kicking outdoors on Stankowski Field just before Thanksgiving 2008. This is part of why I started my footbag blog. Now I can see the pressure of posting videos has actually improved the add ratio of my rallies (marginally) during that time. W00T! I'll take that. Other tidbits: my average rally length for posted videos is still only about 30 contacts. The "single best rally of the session" approach of my videos, while quick and easy, is getting a bit boring. I might have to mix it up a bit. But... Gawd I love playing footbag freestyle!

It was chilly enough I had to put on a shirt. Crazy! Old timers know this: I've almost never worn a shirt when I kick. They just get saturated with sweat and get in the way of the footbag. But I make compromises to kick. At my age, every session is a gift. That I can still do this, that I am still doing this, brings so much joy to my heart. Posting vids of barely 2-add ratio runs seems lame compared to today's freestyle monsters. I've got 2 broken legs compared to Vasek, the young punk, or Davidson, a hardcore shredder almost my age. But... whatever. If "most fun" counts, I'm still in the running.

I enjoy kicking more today than I ever have. Retirement - whatever the heck that means - suits me well. My time, my focus, my goals, my results. The terror of the judge's table has faded away, leaving only the sheer joy of kicking. I may be declining in technical ability, but I'm still getting better at choreography. That's what I want, and I'm happy.

One more note about the circle preachers. A couple of younger guys were out there today. I spent the first 40 minutes kicking nearby, waiting for them to leave. When they moved aside and sat down, I checked to see if they were done with the circle. Yes. But then one of the guys changed his mind and wanted to preach some more. He finally compromised by kicking with me and preaching to me for over 20 minutes. Bless his heart, he was actually pretty good with the basics! I'm trying really hard to establish a good relationship with these people; my access to Speaker "Hacky" Circle depends on it. Things are going well with them so far.

Oh, one last thing: 2:15 out there today. I kept kicking until my legs started cramping. Minus the time I spent circle kicking with the preacher and another guy, I'm calling this session 2 hours even. 53:45 for the year. How close to 60 can I get?

Thanks for tuning in!