Mid-Life Crisis!

Ahhhh, those three (sometimes) dreaded words... very commonly tossed around at forty-something year olds.... when we get to the point in life where we just don't give a sh*t whether we are judged by others.... and we splurge on something that makes us feel like we've been taken back to our youth! Oh yeah baby! The conclusion I've come to is that everybody should have one. A mid-life crisis that is. Because we've earned it! And because really, it's so darn much fun!!

2012 HD Sportster XL 1200 Custom

Yes people, that is ME. A couple of weeks after my 43rd birthday. Standing beside a Harley. MY Harley. For real. Woot woot!! Hands down, the best purchase I've ever made! I don't have a license just yet (work has been totally getting in the way), but I do have almost a thousand klicks on the bike already... I learned to ride it after a friend kindly brought it home for me, and I've been on it every nice day since! Wow, what a riot!

So anyway. Some random advice to all of my "mid-life" friends: Don't fight it - enjoy it! You go around only once.

Cheers!

Hey! Where ya been?!

Hello, kidinacandyshop stalkers!! LOL! Alright, I've been gooned by a few people recently (including my Dad), for allowing such a time lapse between posts. Jeesh I didn't know anybody was actually paying attention to this site (aside from my Dad!). Ha ha!

Oy, it has been a crazy couple of weeks. Work has been really busy - our turnaround is getting closer and I've been showing up on some of my days off in preparation for it as well as due to other issues we've been having. And between that and still trying to get out and play a bit, well, the time just goes by! So for those of you who are so concerned, here's what's been going down:

My great friend Lynn got married, and I went to the wedding .....


Lynn & Al sharing a laugh - love this one!!

Gorgeous couple!!

I skiied one last time (maybe! this weekend is Sunshine's Slush Cup... might have to check it out!!) and talk about a season finale - it was an incredible, incredible day.....


Finally got to see Assiniboine!

What a view! Now THIS is what Sunshine is all about!

And, I'm contemplating trying out for the LPGA tour... hee hee! Okay well perhaps not just yet... but I did buy myself some new golf clubs... and they are pretty sweet...


TaylorMade RBZ's

I've only had them out at the driving range, but I'm looking forward to getting them out for a real round! It's gonna be soooooo good!!

Well, that's been my life in a nutshell... See? You haven't been missing much - nothing too exciting is going to be happening until late July (due to work - ICK!!). At which time, I hope to be climbing, scrambling, hiking, biking, golfing up a storm!! My objectives list is extremely long, and I can't wait to get started on it! Only sixty (or so) more sleeps!! Hee hee.

Thanks by the way, to those of you who do follow my blog. I love you all!!!

Cheers!

Springtime on the slopes...

Yikes.... can you believe it is almost the end of April? Where the heck is the time going??! Since I got home from my Phoenix / Houston trip, I've been out skiing several times... all in stellar, spring conditions - how lucky am I!

Lake Louise

Sunshine

Sadly however, I think the ski season has come to a close for me. Not only are things picking up at work, but the warm temps are making me feel more like digging out the climbing gear rather than hauling around the skiis. So hopefully summer really is on its way - I'm looking forward to getting out on the rock, and soon!

Cheers.

All work and no play....

Alright, so maybe it hasn't been ALL work... but most of the hours in my days this past week have been spent learning about job-related things. I'm in Houston for a conference, and WOW it has been a blast! The material has been super informative and the extra-curricular activities have been soooo much fun!

Among other things: I had my very first teppanyaki experience, I made the jumbo-tron at the Astrodome, I hung out on stage with the entertainers at a local piano bar (and I have a feeling there is a video of that floating around somewhere.... oy!), and I met a ton of great people in the process!

I'm kind of sad to be going home, except for the fact that it has been dumping snow in the Rockies and I have plans to go skiing this weekend..... yeah!! Weird, but I'm actually looking forward to what might be the last taste of winter this year!

Cheers!

From Sand to Snow....

March is flying by... whoa!! What a month! A good friend of mine got married near Cancun last week, so I spent a few days down there, soaking up the sun... and of course rum... and totally laughing my arse off!! Wow, it was a most entertaining and action-packed 120 hours, I must say!

Yucatan Peninsula

Barcelo Maya

Tulum

 

Coba

 

Zipline!

Then it was back to work for a couple of days, followed by a trip out to the mountains for some playtime in the 'other' white stuff....

Ice sculpture on Lake Louise

Chateau Lake Louise

Hmmmm.... what to choose, what to choose....

Fun in the gondola!

We skiied Sunshine on Friday - which turned out to be the day that their all-time snowfall record was broken - and Kicking Horse on Saturday. Both days were stellar and it is going to be incredibly difficult to top such amazing conditions!

Today we loafed around Lake Louise and made our way back to Red Deer, where I have to reorganize and get packed up for my next departure on Friday. I'm heading back to the sand... Phoenix, then Houston! Yeah! How's my luck!!

Cheers!

Stellar Sunday

Wow. What a great day I had today. Wow! And that's all I have to say about THAT... Hee hee!!

Now, on a completely unrelated note, here is some colorful randomness from the streets of Barcelona....

 

Cheers!

Mountain Madness!

It's been a long, long time since I've gone skiing to a ski resort on a weekend... and yesterday was a great reminder why! Oh boy.

Madness at the main lodge...

Lift lines at the base... WOW!

Now don't get me wrong.... there were areas on the back side of the mountain which were much less crowded, and the snow was most fabulous - it dumped ALL DAY!  I didn't venture back to the base until late in the afternoon, and as a result, I had one of the best ski days at a hill in forever!

Fresh pow - all to myself!

I went with a group of peeps from work (the reason for choosing a Saturday), and all in all, I must say it was an awesome day! Can't wait to get out again! But on a weekday next time....

Cheers!

And that'll be the end of that!

Ahhhh, yes, all good things must come to an end.... c'est la vie... But I must say, my vacation ended with a bang! Barcelona is a fantastic city - it is huge and full of life, culture, and stunning architecture. I don't think I've been anywhere quite like it! We left the ultra-awesome Parador Cardona early yesterday and got into Barcelona before 11am.

Parador Cardona

Our whirlwind tour began at Columbus Plaza, and during the ensuing eight hours we saw the famous, quirky La Sagrada Familia, checked out the Gothic district, wandered the crazy La Rambla, and ventured down many quaint, full-on Spanish sidestreets in between.

Christopher Columbus monument

La Sagrada Familia by Antoni Gaudi

        

 

Siesta...

Another structure by Gaudi.

La Rambla

Beverages in Barcelona!

To end the day, we circled around the marina (Port Vell) and I drooled at all the sailboats!

I think we walked about 12km around the centro de la cuidad of Barcelona.... and it wasn't anywhere near enough for me! I need to go back! Not only to Barcelona, but to Spain in general. It is such a beautiful place, and this trip just barely scratched the surface for me as to all that the country has to offer. We covered almost 4300km in a VW Polo, and I'd say at least another 100km or so on foot..... soooo fun!

Well, I'm home now.... **SIGH**.... The flights were uneventful and the weather isn't even all that bad here. I am however, in about my 22nd hour of awaked-ness, so tonight is going to be an early night. Like as in the ''I'm going to bed right now" kind of early. But I'm betting you can guess what I will be dreaming about!

Cheers!