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Nearly a month ago, I applied for a spot in the 2008 LOTOJA, a bicycle race from Logan, Utah, to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Ever since submitting the application, I've been on proverbial pins and/or needles waiting to see whether I would be given a spot to ride in the race this coming September.

Today, I received an email congratulating me on receiving a spot in the race. I couldn't be more excited. Not only did I get in, but everyone else who applied in our teams received a spot to ride, as follows:

* TEAM VCBO "CUTTERS" (FULL RACE) *

1. Tim Valentiner
2. Justin Brown
3. Tyler Smith
4. Zack Hackett
5. Jer Valentiner
6. Steve Baxter
7. and myself, Mike Drechsel

* TEAM VCBO "MIGHTY CUTTERS"" (4-PERSON RELAY) *

1. Christianne Valentiner
2. Niels Valentiner
3. Mallory Lake
4. Katie Drechsel

* TEAM VCBO "IT CUTTS BOTH WAYS" (2-PERSON RELAY) *

1. Daniel Dansie
2. J. Ray Milliner

It looks like things couldn't have gone better for our teams! Excitement Level: HIGH to QUITE HIGH.

Initially, I emailed a link about this out to my family members, but then I realized that it deserved to be posted here as well. I watched this TED Talk presentation by Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor earlier tonight and it really left quite an impression on me. I thought I'd recommend to everyone that you take 20 minutes when you get a chance and watch it. This is really impressive stuff and I think you'll find that it ends very differently than it begins.

And if you don't know about TED already, you really should learn more about TED.

There are some really amazing talks available on the TED website, and I recommend exploring the content there. I have spent (not wasted, but invested) hours watching different presentations on the TED site. The one I recommend above is one of the very best I've seen to date.

Think about it.
Or don’t because nobody can make a monkey think about anything.
In a monkey suit, you are as good as, maybe better than, most monkeys.
Be free. Be who you’re supposed to be.
Swing from tree to tree.
Jump onto a table and pounce on strangers.
Sit on the floor when eating dinner.
Knives, forks and spoons are out of the question…
unless you really want to use them,
because with a monkey suit on, you can do anything you want.
You certainly have the dexterity.
Monkeys don’t have to get up early.
Monkeys don’t have to watch TV or brush their teeth.
Monkeys only have one bill to pay,
and we all know what that is.
Monkeys are curious
and people laugh at the crazy capering they indulge in.
Monkeys don’t have to conform to proper grammatical conventions.
Do what you want. Get the suit. Do what you want.
But definitely get the suit and wear it.

A song lyric is now in order:

And if all I have is a heart that fears
if all that's left are the stains of tears
and if your soft voice is all I hear
I'm never fighting back

Ayden is growing up. He is so smart that at times I can’t really believe it. Tonight we played hide and seek. He’s better at the seeking than the hiding (so far). When it’s his turn to hide, he leaves the room, or goes to the closet in the same room, but then returns before we finish counting to ten. I suppose we’ll have to shorten the countdown. Once the seeking begins, he usually just shows up out of his hiding place without really understanding the whole concept of staying hidden until found. I think he likes the searching portion of the game. He excels at seeking. I hid all over the place tonight, but he found me every time without too much delay. I even relocated my hiding spot a few times during the same seek-session, but he is thorough. If he couldn’t find me, he’d check the places he’d already searched again to see if I was there on the second check. Then when he finds the person he is looking for, he runs away screaming and laughing. it is pretty funny.