Get Busy

“Get busy livin or get busy dyin” - Shawshank Redemption

What a great line from a that movie. The genius of this line is that getting busy livin and getting busy dyin is the same thing. We all live, and we all die. The path to doing both is the same. You want to live a fulfilling life don't you?. When on your deathbed you'd like to look back and feel accomplished, right?

The key is to get busy. It appears twice in that line up there, get busy. Go after something and work for it. It can be anything really, but it'd be better if it's something you want. And I mean something you really want. A creative work of art, a relationship, a job, a title, a certain physique, whatever. Just get busy and get after it. Who knows, you might feel like you're living more than you are right now.

Then there's the question of what if I fail? Then keep on getting busy. Just means you haven't gotten there yet...yet. Keep going until you get whatever it is you're after. And when you get it you're still not done. Stay busy to keep it. Kind of sounds like a lot of work but ask yourself this...will it feel “busy” when it's something I truly want? Could be worth it...so why not take a shot?

So this sounds like some great rhetoric. Makes for a great pep-talk doesn't it? So how can the message in this line matter to me? Or you (whoever might be reading this)? Well, I watched The Shawshank Redemption about a week ago on TV and that's what got me thinking all this. Since then I've been thinking of what I really want to do and what I want to be. First on the list: I want to be a writer. Getting a book published that people enjoy reading would be awesome. Second on the list: fitness. Simply put, I'd like to look good. Third: jiu-jitsu. I fell in love with it the first day I went to Gracie Barra and I want to be good at it.

I got a few things that I find are worth getting busy for. What next? I've gotten busy with each. I write something every day and I've started blogging (check out my other blog called Hunters, it's a story I'm working on). I make time to run every week and I make time to go to jiu-jitsu practice 4 to 5 times a week. I'm not a writer yet, I don't have 6-pack abs, and I wouldn't dare call myself good at jiu-jitsu but keeping at it is the only way to ever get there. So that's what I'm getting busy with. What about you?

The Great Aloha Run

After months of training race day had arrived! 8.14 miles along the highway from Aloha Tower Marketplace (the clock-tower that gets blown up in Pearl Harbor) to Aloha Stadium (where the Pro-Bowl is played). My goal was to finish under 1hr and 5min. Let's recap!

My day began at 3:00am, that's when my 1st alarm went off. I turned it off and went back to sleep. At 3:15am my second alarm went off. This time I decided to get up. I drank some water, did some stretches, ate some oatmeal and a banana, drank some more water, took a shower, drank some gatorade...and then drank a little more water. By 4:30 I was on the road headed for Aloha Stadium.

Cars lined the freeway heading into the stadium, over 27,000 people had entered the run. Buses take runners from the stadium to downtown where the starting line is, it's nice to have your car waiting for you at the finish line. I got on one of the charter buses excited for the run and quickly realized that I had to pee really bad...must've been all that water.

The bus unloaded downtown and I made my way to where my friends planned to meet up: The Starbucks on Bishop Street. But first things first...bathroom! After relieving myself I headed to Starbucks and didn't see anybody I knew. Time passed by and still nobody. Apparently I got there moments after my friends had left to make their way ahead of the crowd toward the start line (the lines for the bathrooms were pretty long and that took a while). I was running this race on my own.

The sun had come up and I heard the mortar cannon fire signaling the start of the run. I was quite a ways back in the crowd so it took some time to get to the starting line to actually begin. It's pretty cool how the run is timed. There's a small chip that attaches to your shoelaces and the chip is used to clock your start and finish times. That way everybody gets their own time regardless of where in the crowd they start.

The first three miles went by really quickly. I spent the whole time weaving my way through the crowd dodging walkers, joggers, and casual runners. I wanted to hold a quicker pace to meet my time goal...and I wanted to catch up with the military groups to listen to their sound-offs. Makes a good rhythm to run to. I caught up to them a little after the third mile. I used the military groups to speed up (I didn't have a watch so I had no idea what pace I was running at). I would run alongside one group for a moment, listen to their sound-off, then run up to the next group and so on.

By the 6th mile the military groups were gone and I was back to weaving through the crowd. I was hoping to come across some of my friends by this time but I hadn't seen anybody. My legs were starting to get a bit sore so I had to focus on keeping up the pace. I also started to psych myself up for the last mile and the finishing push. When I passed the 7-mile marker I opened my stride a bit to speed up. The stadium came into sight and as the pain in my legs grew I just kept telling myself it'll be over in a few minutes, the faster I go the sooner the pain will go away, and things like that. I neared the ramp that led down onto the stadium field, 100 yards left and I let my legs go and pushed it to the finish. It wasn't a full on sprint, didn't have the juice left for that, but it was a fast run. When I crossed the finish line the timer was at 1:15:32 (give or take a few seconds). Given that I didn't know where timer was at when I crossed the starting line, I had no idea what my finish time actually was. But I knew it was under 1:15:32, which is better than last year so I felt good.

I just checked my time on the Great Aloha Run website and I finished at 1:05:21. I missed my goal by under half a minute...dang! But it was a good run nontheless. I held a good pace of 8:02 per mile and I love the big-event atmosphere. I met up with my friends after the race. All of us improved our times from last year. Good stuff.

Now I'm at home relaxing. My legs are still sore and they'll probably still be sore tomorrow. But hey, sore legs means I ran hard right?

Second Stripe

Howdy howdy! Yesterday I earned my second stripe in my jiu-jitsu class. Now I'm a second level noob! That class is so much fun and now I'm starting to catch a few submissions. I'm taking my instructors advice and focusing on two or three moves to go for every time I roll. As of now I'm most comfortable fighting off my back with my opponent in my guard. I'm learning how to move on my back to keep my opponents in my guard as I work for submissions. When on top, my balance isn't very good yet so I get swept to my back easily and I don't know as many submissions from the top position. Hey, just more to improve on!

Yesterday was also the UFC fight between Anderson Silva and Vitor Belfort. Sidenote: I've been more stoked for the UFC fight than for the Super Bowl. But damn, that front kick Silva landed to knock out Belfort was awesome! I mean, who does a front kick to the face and scores a knock out?! Front kicks are usually defensive kicks used to control the distance. But a knock out?? Yeah, Anderson Silva is that good. But I know his secret. When he entered the arena I noticed that Steven Segal was part of his crew. At that point it was just over! No chance! I mean, Anderson now had Segal-vision. I swear, Segal was levitating in the audience and when he whispered "front kick" the knockout came. I think the only thing that could possibly counter the Segal-infused power that Anderson Silva was granted would be Chuck Norris.

Anyway, I watched the fight with some friends at Roundtable Pizza. Awesome pizza, beer, UFC fights...good times! After the fights we walked over to Dukes and had a few more drinks. Even better times as chants of "IN THE FACE!!" echoed at our table. And we all agree that we need to practice front kicks because they're deadly.

Right now I'm relaxing at home wathcing the Super Bowl. At the moment it's 17-21, Green Bay but the Steelers have momentum and are mounting a comeback. It's a pretty good game. The commercials aren't all that great. At most they encourage a chuckle. I've also been working on some writing and just updated my Hunters blog. But mostly I've been reflecting about how going to jiu-jitsu training with a hangover isn't a very good idea...