So - at last I make an entry. Let's all get up to date. In May, I accepted a job offer to lead IT at a steel manufacturing company. The job search was so difficult on me mentally and I was glad to have it come to an end. It isn't local to me so I end up having to do a bit of hybrid work which is fine. My kids are growing up and they are all going different directions. It is expected but sad when they move out. I had an executive management trip to take last week and Madilyn ended up moving out. It was sad to see her go. On that trip I was introduced to playing golf. So - I learned a couple of things. Baseball doesn't have any competitive advantage in golf. So, regardless of my ability to hit the ball with a bat, it had no translation to helping me with a club. I also learned that golf clubs are very short to me. I ended up playing 2-18 hole games and 1-9 hole game. By the time I played the 9 hole game I realized how to play. I was more focused on hitting with accuracy than with power. I also lucked out on that game to get clubs that were long so I genuinely enjoyed the game more.
When I arrived home my feet were killing me. I realize how much golf plays into business as it helped build relationships of trust amongst the executives AND we were able to tackle some business problems along the way. I started out not knowing these people and ended the trip feeling like I was part of the company. My son called me as my plane had landed asking if we could start mowing early so he could catch some of the football games. One of our lawn clients had a tree taken out and the stump grinded down. They wanted the wood chips hauled off to the dump. After loading and dumping the weigh station had the truck with 1000 lbs. of wood chips. THEN we had two lawns to mow. After the lawns I spent the rest of the day catching up with a weeks worth of work I wasn't able to do.
Ammon, Claire, and I then met Samantha at work as her shift ended and we went to Chili's for dinner. It was a nice evening out. I honestly don't recall the last time we took Ammon and Claire out. When we got home, I was so tired from the day that I couldn't really stay awake. I excused myself and went to bed. Today was a busy day with church. I filled in doing the video/YouTube presentation as the normal guy assigned was ill. It took me a minute to remember how to work all the controls.
When I got home I ate a bowl of cereal, changed into something comfy, and then Madilyn came home with her dog, Athena. Athena was so excited to see me which made me smile. She was just all smiles and wagging her tail so hard it was hitting her face. She is snuggling on her huge dog bed while Madilyn is snoozing on the couch. I am glad I have tomorrow off from work as I need a moment to recoup from the travel.
So - now that I am working again, it is a lot of the same schedule. I have realized how much I put work into my worth as I struggled with seeing my worth until I was employed. I think this is probably fairly common with men. I think of how different men and women are when it comes to stresses of life - not that one is more/less than the other or that one is better/worse than the other. Just that we are so different. I think back to the way Jan handled stressful times. I think to how Samantha handles stressful times. I think on how I handle stressful times. I think we all process stress differently. I am reminded of when Jan and I got married. Someone asked Jan what she was thinking the day before - she said "I can't believe I'm going to be married - I am so excited". When I was asked I said something similar but I was thinking I am now going to officially be responsible for two people (Jan and myself). That level of stress motivated me to be my best. I think often stress can paralyze you as well - especially when you feel you have no resources. Maybe there is a kernel of truth in the words of Dory from the movie "Finding Nemo" "Just keep swimming"
