My husband's thoughts: Journaling, take one.

By Scott

I'm back!  

It has been some time since my last post, but my recent life changes have illuminated the need for me to get some of my thoughts back in writing.  I have written a few posts for Annie's blog over the last year (mostly at her urging) but have not had the internal motivation for consistent writing for some time.  The job change and our family's move have provided the incentive for me to begin posting on a more regular basis.  

For a period of time in my life (1995-2002), I kept a very detailed personal journal.  Nothing overly emotional, mostly a technical record of my training, schedules, events and activities.  It started as a training log and turned into a valuable teaching resource for me when I entered the world of teaching and coaching full time.  It allowed me an outlet to put my goals and the action steps I was taking to reach those goals into a single point of reference.

Since 2002, my individual journaling has been very inconsistent for reasons too numerous to list here.  My new position, as well as my ever-growing desire to be a great husband and father, has re-incentivised me to get back on track.  I am going to use this public format as a method to exert some external pressure on myself to journal my thoughts and actions, which consequently should drive me to reach some of the goals that I have for myself and this family.

My old wrestling coach at West Liberty, Dr Vince Monseau, once told me that you can tell a lot about a man by what he is reading.  I have always agreed with the statement and I wanted to provide you with a little glimpse into what is on the current Shipman reading menu.

I have been spending a lot of time recently in training (work, gym, and at church).  Since my professional move, I have been going through intensive technical training on network infrastructure, cloud computing, information security, unified communications and application development.  Throw in a very detailed sales training program as part of my "onboarding" process, along with day-to-day interaction with a veteran group of account managers, and some of the sharpest technical engineers in the business, you can see why I feel that I am at the beginning of a very long journey to competence...  

I moved companies because of this opportunity, so my previous comments are meant to be viewed in a positive light.  I am currently doing a number of online technical tutorials on my way to some certifications, as well as reading two sales books at this time. My immediate goals are to become an asset as opposed to a liability to my employer as soon as possible.  This company is allowing me a significant ramp up time, but I am committed to becoming productive as soon as possible. 

The family and I have started attending a new church and are enjoying the teachings and interactions that come with a new congregation.   I am working my way through the book of Proverbs currently (thanks to the recommendation of my friend Steve Cashion) and I complete a daily Fellowship of Christian Athlete Devotional.  I am working on learning to pray better and I want to be an example of a Christian man to my beautiful wife and daughters.

My physical training has been going great.  I feel as good at 36 (37 in less then a month) as I have at any time in my life.  Annie and I are loving the new YMCA and this facility gives me access to some training opportunities that I have not had since training on campus at GWU.  I have began some increased involvement with the local MMA and some local wrestling clubs to get my fix in that area as well.  I am going to compete in a powerlifting event in September and grappling event later in the fall and I expect to be competitive in both events.  I am currently reading two powerlifting manuals based on the famous Westside Barbell Conjugate Method as well as my usual lifting, running, wrestling, and MMA magazines.  For my personal American history fix I am also reading a book on the Battle of Bunker Hill along with Dr Bill Bennett's American Patriot's Almanac.

Because this is first and foremost a training blog, here is my workout for today.  I shot over to the Y during the girls' naptime this afternoon:

Sauna - 5 min
Airdyne Bike - 5 min
Calisthenics and athletic warm-up outside in grass field - 10 min
10 min of the following complex:
5 tire flips (400 lb) followed immediately by 10 jumps onto the tire followed immediately by 15 pushups with feet on tire.
I was able to complete 8 "rounds" of this complex during the 10 minute go.
Rest 5 min
Another 10 min tire flip / tire jump / push-up complex in which I completed 8 total rounds.
I finished with 10 minutes of additional movement drills and was on my way way back home in 68 minutes from when I pulled out of my driveway.

Starting this week I will begin to document how my training is going in all three of my current focus areas along with some additional detailed discussions on goals, etc.  I will appreciate the feedback and direction that comes from doing this publically.  

If anyone feels the need to send a sympathy note to my wife because of her decision to marry and have children with a man like me, you know where to find her...

Here we go.