The Man That Didn't Fit In

Instead of snowboarding this morning I went to one of the local coffee shops to snuggle up with a good book and a fresh cup of Joe. While I was sitting there I noticed a poem on the wall by Robert Service. I googled it later and it was only the first stanza, but I really felt like it fit in with this blog.

The Men That Don't Fit In

There's a race of men that don't fit in,
A race that can't stay still;
So they break the hearts of kith and kin,
And they roam the world at will.
They range the field and they rove the flood,
And they climb the mountain's crest;
Theirs is the curse of the gypsy blood,
And they don't know how to rest.

If they just went straight they might go far;
They are strong and brave and true;
But they're always tired of the things that are,
And they want the strange and new.
They say: "Could I find my proper groove,
What a deep mark I would make!"
So they chop and change,
and each fresh move Is only a fresh mistake.

And each forgets, as he strips and runs
With a brilliant, fitful pace,
It's the steady, quiet, plodding ones
Who win in the lifelong race.
And each forgets that his youth has fled,
Forgets that his prime is past,
Till he stands one day,
with a hope that's dead,
In the glare of the truth at last.

He has failed, he has failed;
he has missed his chance;
He has just done things by half.
Life's been a jolly good joke on him,
And now is the time to laugh.
Ha, ha! He is one of the Legion Lost;
He was never meant to win;
He's a rolling stone,
and it's bred in the bone; 
He's a man who won't fit in

Skiing Beaver Creek

EpicMix: an RF chip inside my ski pass that logs all of the runs I take. It counts vertical feet and days on the mountain.
Todays Goal: 36,000ft (about 18 lift rides)
Todays Goal: Accomplished without wearing my knee brace
This puts me at 29 days on the mountain and well over 300,000 ft for the season.

The best part of the day was the end actually. I had such a sense of accomplishment for not wearing my knee brace. There was this moment that was completely freeing! I don't feel like I am held back by it any more. I can no longer use my knee as an accuse for not participating in physical activities.

Bees Knees

Over the course of my last few snowboarding days I've gone without wearing my knee brace. The first time was an accident and I just forgot to put it on before hitting the slopes. I took it easy for the first hour or so, but I soon realized my knee was taking the mogul and tree runs just fine. After a 4 hour day I didn't need ibuprofen. I gave it another shot this morning at A-Basin to find the same results. After an hour of intense moguls and steeps I was still doing great!
This is a huge improvement and blessing! I can tell that my body is really loving the exercise I've been able to get in up here, but I had no idea that it was helping my knee so much. I've felt like it has held me back a little the last few years, but being able to snowboard without my brace is incredible. I never thought I would be able to do that again. It's a relief to shed that un-needed baggage.
I'm continuing to work out and snowboard. I can't wait to see just how "in shape" I can get this winter. I'll be ready for swim suit season when it gets here
: )

Sub-Arctic Snowboarding

Merry Christmas to me! I bought a new pair of bindings for my snowboard and I put them on last night. So naturally I wanted to test them out today seeing as it was my day off. When I woke up this morning at 9:30 the temperature hadn't made it above 0 degrees. I made it to the mountain at about noon and was super excited to get a few runs in regardless of the temperature. The first few runs were great! I didn't notice the fact that the temperature was at a daytime high of 2 degrees. After about 5 runs my toes were COLD! So I rested for a few minutes in one of the warming huts. It was all down hill from there. The second time out I got 3 runs in before I wanted inside and then I did 2 runs for my last outing of the day. By then the sun had gone behind the clouds and the temperature had dropped. So I called it a day. Overall though, for sub-arctic temperatures it was a fairly successful day! And my new bindings are great!

The Tire Saga

One of the discoveries I made early on upon arriving in Colorado was that my car is not ideal. Having front wheel drive is a plus, but my car is small and was not equipped for the snow. What seemed like an easy fix was to get studded snow tires. I was told by numerous people that it would make driving in the snow and ice much easier and safer for everyone involved. I did some research and found out that the lowest priced tires and installation were going to cost over $500, so I had my Dad do some bargain shopping for me on craigslist for some less expensive tires. After a few phone calls I finally found someone who still had the tires for sale. We made the transaction and I set up an appointment to have them put on my car for the next day. I was elated! It had started to snow again and I was ready to test out my new tires. While I was waiting at the auto shop the mechanic comes out and says "Ma'am, I hate to tell you this, but your tires are the wrong size." He then explained to me that my car had 15" rims and the ones I had bought were 14" rims. So the search continued to find tires for my car. About a weeks later and a lot more phone conversations I found a guy with 15" rim tires already on rims. This was perfect. One of the tires did have a blemish and might need replacing, but that was an easy problem to solve. Buying one tire would be still within my budget. We arranged a time to meet and I thought I would finally get tires. About an hour before our meeting time he calls me to say that the tires mysteriously disappeared out of his car and if he figured out where they went he would let me know. A week and a half almost two weeks went by and I had forgotten about them and had been searching for other tires. He called me and said his friend had taken the tires as a joke and they were still for sale if I wanted them. We met, they fit my car and I ordered the other tire. So for a weekend I had 7 tires in my car! I got all four tires on my car a week ago and got to test them out last night and today. It has snowed about 5" and the tires work marvelously! I didn't think it would make such a big difference, but it has. I feel my car grip the road better than with my Oklahoma tires. This is probably the best investment I have made! Now I just need to get rid of the 14" tires.

The Journey

I find it ironic, but also a typical God move, that I named my blog “The Nomad” and what I have been learning about Christ and my faith has dealt with “journey,” so I though I would share a little of what I’ve been learning with you. It is pretty cool and makes me feel like I’m on the right track in life. Maybe not where I saw myself, but exactly where God needs me to be, to grow me into who I need to be.

From The Call by Os Guiness

            A follower of the Way is to see life as a journey, which, while we are still alive on the earth, is an incomplete journey that cannot be finally assessed[1].

            For those who live life as a journey and see faith as a journey, calling has an obvious implication. It reminds us that we are all still at different stages on the way and none of us alive has yet arrived.[2] Trouble comes when we forget this fact and pretend that life is static and settled[3], as if everything were a matter of sharp lines, clear boundaries[4], precise labels, and final assessments. So that some are in, some out; some have arrived, others not.

Certainly we who follow Christ know why we have lost our original home[5]. We know the home to which we are going[6]. And we know not only the One who awaits us there, who makes it home[7], but also the One who goes with us[8] on the journey. But we are still on a journey, and we are truly travelers. We are not wanderers, but we are wayfarers[9]. We have discovered that He is the way, but we are still on the road. Our faith is a pilgrim faith essentially at odds with place and settlement[10].

---

[1] Always a traveler; never settled. This fits my life so perfectly. I feel like I am a living representation of this.

[2] Isn’t it reassuring to know that no one has actually “arrived.” And if they say they have come to this ultimate place of “being” they have completely missed the point of following the way. You can never arrive while on earth. It will always be a search and a journey.

[3] This is awesome to hear! I would never think of my life as static and it never should be.

[4] There is no black and white. God doesn’t work inside the lines.

[5] Darn you serpent!

[6] Yeah for Heaven! It truly will be a glorious place.

[7] He has a special place just for me. I can’t wait to see what it will look like.

[8] Thank you Holy Spirit for guiding me through this journey.

[9] Wanderer: aimless and without direction. Wayfarer: a traveler on foot. A wayfarer has a destination, but a hard journey ahead. A wanderer has no final plans and just stumbles along. I may be wandering aimlessly trying to find my place in this physical life, but on my spiritual journey there is purpose.

[10] Could this be the reason that I always feel so unsettled? I’m always at odds with this life. I may never feel “settled” until I reach my final resting place. I do feel at odds with the world. Like my lifestyle doesn’t fit here.