3 Things...

There was a lot of crazy shit that went on last weekend but I have decided to save some of that for a rainy day and switch this blog up a little.  Here you go...

Currently and the last few years of my life I have come to realize that 3 things basically occupy most of my time and they are work, alcohol, and working out.  When I was younger there were other things that occupied my time such as sports and school but for the most part those are things of the past.  So I am going to focus on the three that I deal with now and kind of weigh the pros and cons of each.

Work:
For most of us this is a requirement or something that has to be done.  We all choose different paths.  For example I use to work a 9 to 5 and I have mixed feelings about it.  When I was at a small company I loved it;  I was young and we all worked together to make money.  I made a mistake and left that company for a huge corporation.  Now I am not going to slam corporations because I know Charlotte would not be anything remotely close to what it is today without a handful of companies but I could not stand working in that enviroment!  The amount of politics I had to deal with was complete bullshit and I truly believe for most middle to lower class people there is a glass ceiling.  There are exceptions and I will leave it at that to make sure I do not get my ass black balled from Charlotte.  Now I am self-employed and I love it.  But let me explain.  Until you take that step or plunge you have no damn clue of what it is really like.  The amount of stress is unreal sometimes and that 9 to 5 is long gone.  Not sleeping, eating, or seeing some people becomes the norm.  I have been on lots of dates but have yet to find some one who can deal with my work schedule.  I will answer my phone during a first date, I will leave your house at 4 or 5 in the morning, I will get out of your car and call a cab or walk before I go to far from my business.  Your employees really do not know what you sacrifice for them.  I have fallen asleep in at least 6 bars in Charlotte after long work weeks and a few drinks.  With all that said, America was built on people taking risks and taking chances but you better be a special kind of crazy before you do!

Next topic Alcohol:
Talk about a love, hate relationship!  Where do I begin with this one?!  I do enjoy alcohol but there are negatives involved as we all know.  First I truly believe that I am "wired" differently than most.  I have the ability to go to bars and not drink (it has been harder lately but still do able) but when I do drink there is none of this just a couple shit.  If I have one I am having 15.  The dumbest things that I have ever done in my life are related to alcohol.  I am not blaming it on alcohol or even saying that drinking is bad because I don't think so.  The dumb/crazy shit I have done is my fault and alcohol was the crutch I used as an excuse.  I have ruined multiple relationships, been injured, been in trouble, and almost killed as a by product but I still drink.  Some of you probabaly will read this and think I should quit...too bad.  I may slow down sometimes but there is a flip side to this.  I have an addictive personality so I have never and will never do drugs.  I don't even like taking tylenol or asprin.  Why do I mention that?!  Because alcohol helps me sleep sometimes it helps me forget about shit that I don't want to think about for a few hrs.  Yeah, yeah, I do face reality but occasionally I want a damn break!  Not to mention the magic it works in bars!

And finally there is working out or exercise:
Since high school I have always exercised at least a little (with the exception of my first year of college) and it actually has some of the same effects as alcohol.  I have always ran a little but a few years ago I really go into it and was knocking out about 30 to 40 miles weekly.  I learned that not only does this help your body but also your mind.  If I am by myself and running I can think with a clear mind and it also becomes a stress reliever.  But just like working and alcohol there are negatives.  I can become obsessive with this too and push myself extremely hard.  This is usually good but with the amount of injuries I have had in my life my damn body starts to hurt!  I have ran races limping due to knee pain but there was no way in hell I was going to stop.  I worked out when a neurosurgeon told me not to.  In my younger days I played football 3 weeks after tearing another knee ligament.

To wrap it up what have I learned while writing and thinking about this?!  The old saying is true, "too much of anything is not good for you."  I realize that too much work (too much for me would kill most!  ha) leads me to drink to relieve stress because I don't have the enerey to work out.  Too much alcohol leads me to do a lot of dumb shit and put my health at risk, which then effects my work and my ability to work out.  And if I decide to work out like a maniac I am again putting my health at risk which effects my work and my ability to get smashed on occasion.

So I guess I need to find out how to balance the 3 things...