Journeys

Yeah, I'm being a total slack-off with these blog posts. But, I have a good excuse for this week! I was gone literally all weekend, then worked a double shift on Monday, and then Tuesday worked another shift, then went to training only a little more than an hour later. Now, though, I've got some time off, and it's time to bring y'all up to speed.

Ready for this?

Nothing interesting happened in the past week.

Except, of course, for the seminar in Indiana. That was friggin' awesome. Only had to take the bus part of the way, and had a fun time riding with a friend the rest of the way. We even made a stop at the Jim Beam Stillhouse on the way up. Pretty cool, actually. We got free samples, too: Basil Hayden and ...Red Stag, I think. Former was 80 proof, latter was 120. I preferred the former.

The weather was phenomenal when we got there. It was, like, 70 degrees!! It felt so amazing after all the summer heat down here in Alabama. The hotel the seminar was hosted in (and where we were all staying) was fantastic. I've never seen a more beautiful hotel. And the breakfast? Dude. That's starting the day off right.

The training itself was awesome, as expected. We had a lot of great teachers, and it was nice to be surrounded by mostly strangers - forced me to train with people I don't know. My brain was fried the first night, trying to wrap my head around some stuff one of the teachers was showing from Japan. Wrapped up with dinner and drinks with a bunch of folks. We literally took over the four corners of the restaurant, haha.

Day 2 started off with some yoga with a couple friends, then a full day of training. I had the privilege of training with someone ranked much higher than myself at one point. That was mind-blowing. I spent the entire time just trying to keep up with the little things he was looking at, and trying not to look as incompetent as I felt. It was one of the highlights of the whole trip; I learned a great deal training with that guy.

I and the girl I was rooming with did an easy CrossFit workout (just cardio) once all the training was done, then got ready for the Saturday dinner. We got there late, but it was so much fun. Everyone got 2 free drinks, there were finger foods available, and the group had an entire room (with bar) to itself for a couple hours. It was awesome just chatting with folks and hanging out.

The party really got going for me, though, when the band came in and started playing. A couple people started dancing on the floor, and it wasn't long before I was down there with them. Whenever I would go to a school dance with my friends, high school or college, I always had a good time. I don't think any of us cared that we couldn't dance well - I sure didn't. It was the same thing on that dance floor. If I look like a goofball while I'm having fun, and it makes people smile, then it's mission accomplished. And it is a lot of fun for me. :) (I don't do ballroom, though. Doesn't keep folks from trying, but... I don't do ballroom.)

Sunday, training wrapped up with the final 3 instructors, and then it was back up to the hotel room to pack up and head south. Had some great conversation with the guy I was riding with, and had time for a few more stops along the way. The bus ride back to Huntsville, once I made it to the Nashville station, was one of the best bus rides I've had so far. Greyhound has these new buses that have wifi on-board, electrical outlets by the seats, and more leg room. Granted, the wifi's not that fast, but I didn't expect too much from it. I was happy just to be on Facebook, with something to do to kill the time!

After that, it's just been the usual: home, work, and training. The week doesn't promise anything else exciting, so Monday's post should be an interesting challenge. We shall see.

Until next time!