I often talk about Fall of 1996-Summer of 1997 being the best year of my life. For those slow on math and history, that was my freshman year of college at West GA. My freshman year is probably quite different than a lot of others. With the new found freedom of being on my own, I chose to use that time to workout, play basketball, learn guitar, study, and sleep as much as possible vice experimenting with drugs, getting drunk at every frat party and convincing myself that I didn’t have an STD (stereotype?). The open freedom was remarkable. That year, I only worked on the weekends. My sked was this: MWF: 6am basketball workout (this is before and after being cut), 7am breakfast at Z6, 8-1130 class, 12 lunch, 1, nap, 3 workout with Brian Walsingham, 6 dinner, 7 basketball, 9 swim laps, 10 go to sleep. T/T: Open all day. Study, track workout, more ball, more naps, learning guitar, and watching NBA. WHAT A LIFE!! With my new found freedom, I managed to make the Dean’s list a few times, dunk a few times, cement an eternal friendship with Brian, and have fun all along the way.
I dedicated 2011 as being the greatest year of my life. What a time! First I was enthralled in the greatest NBA season ever (ask anyone. Or just ask Bill Simmons, I saw it before he did!) with NBA league pass. The first few months I was still working 4 day weeks with my CVW job. Stacy was pregnant—more to come on that. I had my favorite vacation of all time. Idaho to hang with the Brians, see Yellowstone, raft Snake River, and see U2 (and Jordan Clark) in Utah before heading back to GA for an action packed 3 weeks. Let’s see if I can see all my top 10 friends in less than a week… Yep. Easy (thanks to the ID/UT trip) Seeing family and friends and BBQs for a few weeks with no work was fantastic. Throw in some surfing and it goes through the roof. Fast forward to late Oct and the birth of Eleanor. What a blessing she was and has been. If you can think of a greater year in my life, please let me know. Oh yeah, I live in Hawaii.
What’s the lesson in all this? Probably that life is great. And a fond appreciation of certain eras can do the heart good.
*Music from the best year: Recovering the Satellites- Counting Crows, Friction, Baby- BTE, Disciplined Breakdown- Collective Soul, Secret Samadhi- LIVE
* Music from the greatest year: Live August and Everything After- Counting Crows, Augustana- Augustana, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds- Noel, The King Is Dead- The Decemberists (let me have it)
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