It Is On!

I just signed up for the Paris to Ancaster bike race again this year with my buddy Tony.

We only did the half distance last year, the St. George to Ancaster leg, which was 35 kms, but man did it kick our ass! We finished well down in the field, top of the bottom 3rd of the pack, with a time of 2:20:12

Maybe it's because we have short memories and don't remember how cold it was or how tired we were when we crossed that finish line all covered in mud, (OK, I do remember that!) but I also remember how cool it was to cross that finish line with the crowd cheering you on.

The whole experience from start to painful finish was a absolute blast!

This year we will be a little more seasoned. We will know what to expect from the course and with a little more preparation, I'm pretty sure we can do a lot better then last years time.

In fact, I bet we can do it in less then 2 hours this year.

I say bring it on!

Laid To Rest

Yesterday we buried my mom's ashes in her final resting place at Highland Memory Gardens out in Don Mills. It was a small ceremony attended by her family and close friends. I was worried that the weather would be horrible, as they were calling for freezing rain and snow, but none of that materialized. It was the perfect type of day to say goodbye to my mom.
I took some photos of the service to post here because my mom loved it when I would post stuff about our family events on my blog so that she could show all her friends. If any of her friends would like to visit her and pay their respect, please let me know and I will send you some directions on how to get there.
Goodbye mom, you may be gone but never forgotten, forever in out hearts.
Rest in peace.

Happy Birthday Mom

My mom passed away a few months ago after her long battle with cancer. Today she would have been 70 years old. To honour this special mile stone, my family and her close friends are laying her ashes to rest later today at Memory Gardens in North York.

Then we are going out to lunch to celebrate her birthday, just like she always loved to do.

Happy birthday mom.

Thanks for making me into the man that I am today.

I love you and miss you lots.

Rest in peace.

Trying Something New

As you may know from reading my blog, I am a bit of a cycling nut. In the summer I usually log about 2000 kms on my road bike. It is and has been for the past few years my only real means of getting daily exercise. But as soon as the weather turns bad and I have to put the bike away for another season, I find that my fitness level drops dramatically because I don't really do much about it in the winter.

Well this year I decided to change all that.

In October, the wife and I signed up for body boot camp, which was a 60 minute circuit training workout in a church basement with 10 other people and an instructor, 3 times a week for 4 weeks.

Surprisingly I didn't die, and even more surprisingly, I really liked it.

So when that ended, the wife and I joined a local gym in the neighbourhood. We picked this gym because it offered a wide variety of classes as well as the weight and cardio machines. And wouldn't you know it, I love going to the gym.

Funny thing is, I can't say I've actually used any of the weight machines yet, but I have been trying out a lot of the classes and I am really starting to enjoy them.

I take a 60 minute spinning class 3 times a week and a yoga once a week. And as my work schedule allows, I've also done a 9o minute class which consisted of a 45 minute barbell strength and endurance, followed by 45 minutes of spinning.

Who knew working out could be so much fun.

And the best part about it is I am starting to see some results.

Ok, so the last time I saw anything below 200 lbs was in the summer of 2008 for a week or two, but before that it had been years.

Maybe that 6 pack really is possible...

I'm just sayin' is all.

Winter Skies

What a difference of couple of days makes. This is the beach after the first snowstorm earlier this week, taken with my digital camera. And these were taken the next day with my iPhone.
All this awesome scenery, right in your own backyard. How cool is that?

Winter In The Beach

More Famous Then The Beatles (...in the Beach)

Here's a funny story for you.

I have lived in the beaches area for more than 14 years now, and for 12 of those years I have been going down to the beach each morning and afternoon to walk my dog, Hobbes and then with Calvin as well, a few years later when he came along.

Last spring I got a new car and decided I didn't want all the sand that goes along with walking two dogs twice a day along the beach in my car. So I started walking my dogs at another park which was all grass. Less mess, cleaner car.

Just recently I started going back down to the beach to walk my dogs again. Well wouldn't you know, every person I walk by stops me and wants to know where we were. Apparently the other dog park regulars had been talking amongst themselves and were wondering what had happened to us. The consensus I learned was that we had moved out of the area. Of course no one wanted to know how I was, just how Hobbes and Calvin were.

Now that we are back at the beach for our morning walks, when I run into people from the other park with the grass, they want to know what happened to us. And by us I mean Hobbes and Calvin.

And the funny thing about these conversations is that no one ever knows your name, you become known as Hobbes' dad or Calvin's owner, and when you run into someone on the street or in the grocery store you just address them by their pets name.

This morning at the gym, this lady came up to me and asked me how my dogs were. I didn't have a clue who she was until she told me she used to walk her dogs down in the beach as well and then explained which dog she owned and then it was, "Oh Hi, how are you..."

All attention has got me thinking that my two dogs, Hobbes and Calvin by association, may be more famous then the Beatles ... down at the Beach.

I'm just saying is all...