My goals for 2008.....and some birthday wishes

Firstly a few people I know are having birthdays today. First off is my good friend Christie who I have blogged about several times. These include my adventures into Indian Territory . She is such a special person in my life. She is in Ft Worth tonight celebrating birthday and new years at Billy Bobs world class honkytonk and watching Kevin Fowler perform. Next up is Chelle over at her escape. I think she is turning 29 again. Not sure how that whole Canadian to American exchange works on ages though so that number might be off a bit ;) Stop by her place and wish her a happy birthday. Lastly is a pretty young lady I just started chatting with this week. She lives in a nearby town and her name is Christy. I have not had the privilege of meeting her yet but hopefully sometime soon. She is celebrating her birthday at home with her boys. 29th too I think.....seems to be a trend here haha.

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I am not normally one who does the whole new years resolutions thing but this year I think I will document some goals here.

1. Other than my "house payment" I plan to be debt free at some point during 2008. This is an agressive goal but one I know I can handle with just a little planning.

2. My fitness level will rise. I don't want to put down a goal weight or how muc I want to lose because everything I have read points to the fact that weight is just a small small portion of fitness. I will track and document my weight each week (maybe on here too) but mainly I will be focusing on building endurance and strength.

3. Once a week I will call someone I have not talked to in a long time. I am bad about becoming reclusive at times and I need to "get out there" so to speak more often.

4. I will spend more time with my parents. My mom and dad are both now in their 70's and I know they won't be around forever. I also want to get my dad going again on working on our family tree. He stopped (or stopped mentioning it to me anyway) and I think my research ability and use of the internet is wat he needs to get it going again.

5. I will try to blog a minimum of once a week, if nothing else just to ave something to look back on. I should also get back to sharing some of my poems every Friday like I did for a brief stint. I have not taken the time to write anything new lately though. Maybe its time to start organizing some of these things.

6. Saving the biggest "change" for last, I will become more in touch with God and walk in his shadow. I know He is the reason I take each breath and without Him there is nothing. Reason this is listed LAST and not FIRST is none of the other things listed are possible without the strength He gives me.
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I hope everyone has a safe, happy and prosperous new year. Take the time each day to thank God for what He has given you. You might not feel your life is blessed but if you are breathing you are blessed. Anyone who does not know God or have Him in their lives, I would be more than happy to share some time and scriptures with them and show them what it means to be a child of God. I am far from perfect and not a preacher but I do know how to witness and don't mind doing so even for a complete stranger. Feel free to email me at brad6925@yahoo.com and include "YRYDHI" in the subject line so I know it isn't more junk mail.

May God bless each and everyone of you and guide you through the coming days, weeks months and years.

A few random quotes...

Good and evil do not befall men without reason. Heaven sends them happiness or misery according to their conduct.

-Confucius

A man who is "of sound mind" is one who keeps the inner madman under lock and key. ~Paul Valéry

Did you ever stop to think, and forget to start again? ~Winnie the Pooh

A person often meets his destiny on the road he took to avoid it. ~Jean de La Fontaine

I can't wait all my life
On a street of broken dreams.
~Journey, "It Could Have Been You"

We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak. ~Epictetus
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I had some spare time at work and was looking around at quotes and decided to share a few that struck a nerve for one reason or another with me. I hope everyone has a safe and happy new year and may it find you prospering more and more whether it be fisically or physically.

Favorite HNT of 2007

Hmmmmm HNT time again? Pick one favorite for this past year? (I didnt play along much this year so shouldnt take long to decide).I guess this one would be one of my favorites for a few reasons. I was feeling in a lot better shape then than I do now(Maybe putting 20 lbs back on has something to do with it fat boy?) But also a favorite cause of the emotions of the post. I am still "dancing with empty arms" but do have a few "prospects" haha And lastly I like it because of the lyrics in it. Merle Haggard will always be one of my favorite singers and noone today can compare with some of his lyrics, mainly cause he actually lived them and is writing from the heart. Anyway I guess I should include the two pics also and not just the link huh?



Wondering about those three letters "HNT"? Please click the little icon on my sidebar and it will become a bit more clear.

Steps both forward and back

Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.

-Aristotle
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Lately it seems my steps have been more of a retreat than advance. I have not been taking as many steps (not enough walking/jogging) and my weight has inched back up. One of the joys of winter months huh? I know I know.....I live in Texas and we dont even have winter compared to most of ya. Still it is cool enough for this Texan to really not want to get out and exercise like I should. I have slowly started getting back to the grind so to speak though and making myself do it. It is simply a matter of mind control really and my mental state has been one of confusion with all the overtime and holidays as well.
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I got a gift for Christmas that immediately made me think of a certain blogger friend . Yep a genuine tie dyed shirt (my first since I was a kid in fact haha) I also scored a nice Chiefs cap and yes I still wear the colors proudly despite the 4 win season. I have been a big time Chiefs fan since the early 90s and know they will one day be back in the playoffs. (Can we get Marty back now?)



I am down to my last few days of "training" for my lead man job I have taken as my previous lead man retires in two days. It seems odd in a way but in another way it seems like it is where I should be. The guys and gals I have working for me are great to work with and in fact most all of them have actually worked there longer than I have. I think I have seniority on two of the 14 people but as I said I have a great crew and I seldom will have any problems from them as they all know whats expected and usually do the job without even being asked or told. Thanks to the extra training I have been exposed to and exposing others to through SAP it has by far been my most profitable year. Looking forward to even more of it (with maybe a bit less overtime) this coming year. Not that I mind working for sure haha.
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Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and I would like to wish everyone a safe and prosperous new year!!!

Yes still kickin

He who postpones the hour of living rightly is like the rustic who waits for the river to run out before he crosses.

-Horace

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I have begun reading The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren. A good friend of mine suggested it and while I am normally not one to do much reading of that sort I have been enjoying it so far. Hopefully I can bring something from it and make me a better person. I admit I have many flaws and have no real "aim" in life. I am successful in some aspects but not the ones that really mean something. I feel I am just existing and hoping to change this very soon, God willing.

Not a lot to report really. I am just a few weeks away from taking full control of 3rd shift receiving. The guy I am replacing is retiring and his last day is Dec 28th. He started working there a year before I was born haha. Anyway I feel I have the job down pretty good so far. I have to change my hours next week in order to train a lady from Sacramento on our new receiving setup through SAP. Wish me luck there as some of you know how my patience can be when training someone. Actually I think she already knows the basics so hopefully it won't be too bad. I asked my boss what this lady looked like. No clue lol.

Will try to make it by some of your blogs tonight at work. We should have an easy night hopefully.

CIAO