Wow-another year in the books. Time flies. Sitting in one of my favorite coffee shops reflecting on the year 2022 and importantly the year ahead 2023 I am reminded of David Bowie’s classic song Changes. In particular the line in the chorus, “time may change me but I can’t trace time” seems to play on repeat in my head. More philosophizing on the lyrics later…
First things first. Let me recap the important swimming metrics upfront and then some highlights for the year:
- 430.5 miles
- 757,722 yards
- 692,861 meters
- 188 swim sessions
- 233 hours
- 2 new pools (Indian Hot Springs, Rosewood San Miguel de Allende)
- 1 bigger open water swim
In sum, the distance swum was the equivalent of swimming from Kyviv, Ukraine to Vilnius, Lithuania After a decade of meeting or exceeding my swim mileage goal (except 2020 pandemic related) I was only 95.67% to goal. I figure after years of exceeding goal its ok to be slightly off. Right? I am not beating myself over this-I promise (kinda).
Athletically speaking 2022 started off with my first ever Pool2Peaks day. As the name implies you start the day in the pool and progress to the mountain for some skiing. A detailed account of this day can be found at Pool2Peaks. In 2023, I am looking forward to adding another P–Pool2Peaks2Pickle!
Also in the first quarter I experienced another first-getting a tattoo! I Am I happy I did it? Yeah why not…I own it now. I am not going to lie it was a little painful to get (see blogpost Ouch). Do people notice it? I think so. Not everyone says something about it however those that do, mostly swimmers, think its pretty cool and total get why I got one. I don’t often think about it however when it catches my eye I often think back to the swims, the people and experiences that got me completing the Triple Crown. Another one in the future…hmmm.
The next several months brought about all sorts of fun stuff. A much needed quick trip to Napa to escape an extended winter and to Take The Waters in Calistoga. There was a family wedding in Portland where the Burrow clan cut up the dance floor.
A couple of big changes or should I say Graduation(s) took place in June. First, Courtney graduated from UW and has set herself on a positive course for the future. Second, after 34 years at John Hancock it was time for me to graduate. It was a great ride however it was time to start a new chapter (retire) or actually a new book. I was appropriately celebrated at my last (68th) national sales meeting in Orlando.
It was then off to Sardinia for the big swim adventure of the year. My figo amico Jeff and I signed up for Swimtrekking Sardinia. Basically, it was a week of swimming in the beautiful azure blue waters around Sardinia with end goal of swimming the Strait of Bonifacio (Corsica, France to Sardinia, Italy) when the conditions were right.
During that week I made new friends, enjoyed great food, wine and scenery of Sardinia. Most importantly, I was part of a like-minded group of people that came together as one to accomplish a common goal together. It was a magical week in the Buon Mare (blog about the trip)!
Post Sardinia, Shannon and I spent a couple weeks enjoying the beautiful Italian Riviera. La Dolce Vita!
Other memorable highlights of the year had me out of the water or as I said in my blog Fish Out Of Water doing other non-water related activities i.e. mountain biking in Bozeman, hiking the South Sister, trying to play golf and learning to fly fish. It was awesome.
Of course, we also enjoyed all the great summer activities that Bend has to offer; SUPing in the Cascade Lakes, floating the Deschutes and concerts at the amphitheater.
Shannon and I capped the year off by spending a month in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico studying Spanish. While there wasn’t a ton of swimming exercise being done there was sure a lot ejercicio de la mente (exercise of the mind). An incredible experience to share together and can’t wait to do it again (Muerte y Viva la Vida).
So what does David Bowie mean when he sings “time may change me, but I can’t trace time”? To me, I guess it means that while time may change me/us I am not going to worry or waste time (trace time) thinking about the past. We should live in the present.
2022 can be marked by two words “change” and “new friends”. When you open yourself up to change and new experiences you ultimately meet new friends. Friends and family isn’t that what life is all about? We met a lot of really fun people this year and we look forward to building upon those relationships with new experiences in 2023!!!
PS-I will be lowering my swimming distance goal in 2023 so I can make sure achieve it 😉
Goggle Reflections 