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Welcome and thanks for stopping by. Lets see, what could I possibly say about myself that others might find interesting, this might be a challenge...
Lets start with some of the things I like to do. Hiking and biking are both high up on that list. I haven't done any real long hikes yet but I'm sure I will get around to that some day. I have spent a little time on the Appalachian Trail, hiked in Alaska, Wisconsin, and Minnesota but generally speaking do most of my hiking in Michigan. I also like to back pack, really enjoying the whole living out of doors experience. I'm not sure what my big trip will be this year but I am pretty excited about my planned attempt to hike the entire Waterloo-Pinckney trail in one day, that will be around 34 miles. My previous one day distance record is doing the entire Potowatomi trail which is around 17.5 miles, I've done it a few times and it usually takes me a little over 6 hours to complete.
Last year I started getting into biking as well. I like riding on pavement and going for longer distances (seems to be a theme of mine). My longest ride last year was 68 miles but I plan on doing my first century (100 miles) this year. I also like to go for speed on the 8.5 mile loop near my house. It keeps things interesting alternating between speed and distance runs. Which reminds me that I need to start working on my bike getting it ready for the new season.
Something new for this year is what I currently refer to as jogging. At some point I may be willing to say I am running but I will need to pick up my pace a bit before I cross that line. I plan to compete in my first 5K in spring. I never really thought I would be interested in jogging/running, but as i was contemplating longer hikes it sorta made sense to me that I wanted a way to decrease my total time on the trail. Not because I don't enjoy being on the trail, because I love that, but to decrease the overall fatigue. I have heard stories about endurance events where the slow participants are more exhausted than the faster finishers. So it made sense to me to start conditioning myself to alternate between walking and jogging.
I love music. I tend to listen to a very wide variety based on my mood or the inspiration I am seeking. I have also gotten back into playing the guitar the last year or so. What I find interesting is that even though I listen to a wide variety of music, I pretty much stick with the blues when I play the guitar. There is something about bending those strings that I just can't seem to get enough of. I want to start recording some songs but am not sure if I will get to that this year. I used to write a lot of poetry in High School and posted some of them in my blogs.
Like most men I like tools and can never have too many although I probably have most of what I need for woodworking. I start from rough sawn lumber which has always been my preference. When I use up my current supply of Oak I will start using the Oak my brother John and I harvested from his property in Tennessee. There is definitely some danger involved in being a lumberjack, I was almost killed twice but still had a great time! I do like to build things but also end up fixing a lot of things as well. You'd be amazed how many tools are needed just fixing things. My biggest project so far was building a 900 sq. ft. garage with an upstairs. The hardest part of that project was building a retaining wall (lots of hand digging) but it turned out great. I have also built bunk beds for the kids, a file cabinet, and other assorted things.
I also love to cook but have a limited repertoire, but I do a good job on the grill. I love grilled or steamed vegetables, salads, Chinese, Mexican and Italian. It seems like I am always shopping to keep supplied in fresh fruits and vegetables. I try to minimize the processed foods I eat but every once in a while I do crave junk food.
The last thing I'll mention is I love to take pictures, which should be fairly obvious if you check them out. I want to experiment with some kite photography this year, where you attach a camera to a kite and take pictures from above. I also want to shoot more low light pictures, they bring a whole new challenge to photography.
