Fyrescape II : Continuing On The Path To Excellence!

LOL Way too far back to remember!! -Connor

Woke up kinda early this morning and got ready, then Lees and I went out and did our 3 miles!! That felt great. Nice weather out. It was kinda cloudy, but it was still a good walk. Cody and Cooper got their exercise as well. I felt really crappy about myself today. Idk I feel like I've really put on weight since my recovery. It's so hard to accept that because of how much I busted my ass over the past year and a half now. I'm so frustrated. Now, it seems that I have to retrain my body to do everything I did before my surgery. My legs ache so bad and my feet hurt after my walks. That is really weighing down on me and it makes me mad. One thing I realized today is that I have really let the opinions of other people drag me down. The thing about Fyrescape is that it's not only about physical health but mental health as well. I've learned and realized so many things over the course of this Journey. Today was another one and that was that I let the past opinions of oth...

Today was great! Last night, Lisa cooked our turkey that Grandpa bought us. It smelled so good in the place last night and especially when I woke up this morning. We went on our 3 mile walk too, which was great. Cody and Cooper were so happy to get out there. One bad thing, though. About a mile into the walk, I got a really bad stomach ache. Ugh it was painful, so we turned around and came home. I just couldn't go anymore. That was crazy! I'm glad we did get out there, though. Oh man, this evening my legs are aching from that walk and my feet are in pain. Man, that 2 month recovery sure did a number on my body. I feel like I have to train it all over again. That totally sux. We ate a great lunch today. I had to take the Xbox One that Lisa gave me up to her mom's place because she bought Lisa some games and wanted to update it all for her. So while Lisa was getting lunch ready, I headed up town and did that. On my way back I stopped at the casino to see when that drawi...

The infamous Black Friday!!!! Well today was pretty crazy. I'm just so glad we had money. We went out this morning to some stores. Oh man it was cold out there though. No exercise today, thankfully. The wind was blowing today and it was reeeally cold. I'm so so glad my heater is working in my truck now :D That is just Amazing!! Anyway, we went to some stores looking for some boxes and start out our Christmas shopping. We have an idea of what we want to get everyone so we're going to start doing that over the next few weeks. There were some Awesome deals out there!! Wow!! I sure wish I had more money to spend. I could've got everyone gifts today alone. We bought several things and had a great time out there. I took Lisa to work today. After taking her in, I came home to unload the stuff then I went up to the casino and met Grandpa and Grandma. This day was really bad, as for our casino luck. I only had $40 and I lost it all. Grandpa right away won $300, but I think h...

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!! Today was a wonderful holiday :D This morning I took Lees over to my parents place so she could help my mom cook Thanksgiving dinner. Me, I was so flippin tired and sleepy. I wanted to sleep so bad. So I dropped her off, then came back home and lay back down for a bit. After an hour or so, I got up and showered. Dinner was at noon. Around 11am I went over there. I helped out a bit, then Lees and I left to go get some Diet soda and ice cream. When we got back, my grandparents were all there as well as a family friend from church. We sat down and had a delicious dinner together. That was so great! After we ate, my grandpa, my dad, and I went out and looked at the Christmas float that we'd been working on. We all talked about it and exchanged ideas. When they left, I suggested that we all go to the movies so my mom and dad gave me some money so we could all go watch, CREED, which was what I had wanted to do ever since I heard the movie was coming out on Th...

No Exercise today! Super busy!!

No Exercise today! Super busy.

No Exercise today! Super busy day ;}

I woke up late this morning because, again, I fell asleep on the damn couch. I really need to stop doing that! I always fall asleep on my couch in the living room then I wake up at 4 or 5am, freezing, and then I go to bed finally. When I do that, I don't wake up until almost 9am and that's too late to be waking up. I'm going to stop that, I swear. I'm going to go back to waking up at 7am, then getting out there and do my 3 miles and come home and do my morning workout. That's going to be my routine once again, even when I start working. Still, we went out and did a short 1 mile walk. We didn't have much time because we needed to go to church. I haven't been to church in 2 weeks. We were supposed to go today. We went, but we got there very late! That was my fault. I need to be updating everyone on the Christmas float that we're making for the parade. I'm having problems with my Pellet Stove. This morning I couldn't turn it on. It was giving me...

No exercise today! But, some really great news. I feel Awesome today! Last night, I took a shower..finally lol. Yeah I hadn't taken one in a while. Well the last few weeks, I've been feeling really crappy about myself. I kept thinking I was gaining weight really bad and my mind just ran away with me with all that nonsense. Well, last night I took a shower. Really nice hot shower. It was just before I went to pick up Lisa from work. When I was done, I shaved really good. Now when I did lose a lot of weight, one thing I noticed was my neck. I could see everything on my neck and my face. I didn't realize how much that weight loss did to my face and neck shape. It really did slender down. The way I could always tell for sure was when I shaved. So last night when I did shave, my neck still looked the same. Sleek ;) Oh man I was so glad about that. I finally changed my clothes too. I had been wearing the same pants and shirt for the longest time now because all my clothes are d...

Today is the dreaded BILLS DAY!!! ugh :( Well before I get into the day, we had a very bizarre night! I was asleep at 2am this morning, but then I get a call on my cell phone. It was from my parents house. So being as how it was so late, I was pretty worried because they NEVER call me that late unless it was an emergency. So I answered it. I said 'hello' about 3 to 5 times but no one said anything. So I hung up! Then, they called back like a minute later and once again I picked it up. I kept saying 'hello' over and over, but no one said anything. So I hung up, then immediately after, they called again. This time, I heard my brother's voice when I answered the phone. I said 'hello' over and over and over, but the freakin idiot didn't say a damn word to me. So at this point, I thought he was screwing around and I was actually thinking that he was drunk and calling me drunk. I was pissed because he woke me up. I was grouchy and cold. But he kept calling m...

Did my 3 miles this morning!! Feel great about it too. Last night, oh man my legs were aching pretty bad, but they felt better when I woke up today. I know that I'll get used to it over time. My feet are just so weak from my 2 month recovery. I'm ok with that because I know what my body is capable of and I know that I'll get back to all of that sooner or later. I just have to keep at it and keep pushing myself. In other news, my favorite wrestling company IMPACTwrestling announced that they now have a NEW TV NETWORK. Beginning of this year, they debuted on Destination America. Well now that DA completely dumped them out the backdoor, the lovely President Dixie Carter found TNA a new home with PopTv. They will now be available to 85 million homes, which is Awesome!!! I'm so excited to hear the great news. Also, turns out they have a multi-year deal with PopTv and I'm so glad to hear that. TNA is not going to die, which is what all the haters and wwe sheep were sa...

Did my 3 miles this morning! Felt great to be out there once again ;) I'm drinking a bit of water before I go out, but that's it. I am really trying to get more water down, but it's just not working out for me lol. So hard to get back to that, dammit! I really want to but ugh. I'd rather have a Diet Pepsi, or a Coke Zero. Maybe some Iced Tea, or something. Just not water, but I am going to fix that. The rest of my day was nothing much. Just a regular day. Tonight though, my brother called me and asked me if I wanted to go to church and that my mom and dad were leaving. So I said yes, figured I'd talked to everyone about the Christmas float. I went out and fed my animals and they came by to pick me up. It was nice to see them! Church service wasn't actually service. Instead, they just talked about this Sunday and the menu. We're having some guests from another church to come by on Sunday night to do a service and we're having Thanksgiving dinner righ...

I had a Nightmare last night! Omgosh I woke up terrified!! In my dream, we lived in the same place we are now, Lees and I. Across the way to the North there was a wildlife reserve and they had jungle animals there. Rhinos, Giraffes, monkeys, and Lions. Well three of those lions, two male and one female, ran off the reserve and right over toward our place. The two males where Huge with big manes. I watched them run toward our place. Lisa was cooking chicken and washing dishes. One of the male Lions ran off by itself. The other male and the female came right to our place. The lioness was just walking in our front yard and I was so afraid for my dogs. The Big Lion, that bastard came up to the front door and started banging our door down and staring in through our windows watching us. We got so scared because that thing was huge. We tried to stay away from the windows but the damn thing wouldn't go away. I tried to call the wildlife reserve but then the Lion started to break in to our...

It was COLD today!! That's all. Today was a freakin COLD ARSE DAY!!!! The end...or for today I mean ;)

CONGRATULATIONS TO HOLLY HOLM, NEW UFC BANTAMWEIGHT CHAMPION!!!!! Took a fighter from 'New Mexico' to take down the dominant Ronda Rousey ;) Yes I'm a UFC fan! I love Ronda Rousey though. I'm a huge "Rowdy" fan. I love her! She's an Awesome fighter and omg she is super HOT!! I love how beautiful she is. That woman has such an Amazing look. Someone as dominant as she is in a fight but yet so beautiful, that is a rare thing. HOWEVER, I really think that lately she has just gotten so cocky and arrogant. I told Lisa yesterday morning that the way to beat Ronda Rousey is that Holly Holm needs to just get some hard punches in and use her boxing skill and just hit and hit but to just stay away from Rousey and not let her take her down. Well the fight last night, that's exactly what Holly did. It was an Awesome match! Ronda just couldn't get her and Holly just dominated that entire match. It was insane!! I'm still a Ronda fan. It makes me sick how ...

WOW 200 days into Fyrescape 2!!! This is indeed a milestone in my Journey! Two hundred days in on my second year. This is so cool. I have accomplished so much. I haven't been exercising much the last two months but that's totally because of my recovery and I'm fine with that. The doc wanted me to not do ANYTHING for 8 weeks and I did exactly what he said and the reason for that was so I could come back strong and keep on with my Journey. I will gladly sacrifice two months of Fyrescape 2 in order to recover, but honestly I don't see it as a "sacrifice" but rather an actual part of it. I got myself healthy and fixed my hernia. That is something that my life and my health really needed!! So I'd say that so far, Fyrescape 2 has been a HUGE success!!! I'm going to keep on keeping on and start my workouts on a daily basis again. I just have to get thru the holiday season and start working again. It's going to get much harder in our lives once Lisa star...

Friday the 13th!!!!! First of all, I would like to give my condolences for all the people who lost their lives in the tragedy of the Paris attacks. I am so saddened by the evil that some people are capable of. I mean, seriously, those freaks in that terrorist group...what the hell?!! Why do they hate so much? I can never understand it. I sure hope they're not stupid enough to think they're doing this for "good reasons" because they're NOT! Oh man, I'm just so sickened by all this horrible news. How can they go in there and just start shooting people. That is just so...wrong! They really need to pick up a Bible and learn about God and acquire some love in their hearts. This is just so ridiculous! I am so saddened by the horrid news I learned today. I'm very sorry to the families of the victims in Paris. I hope so bad that everyone finds the people responsible for all of the attacks and brings them to justice. As for my day, we did some selling and I red...

Today was a rotten day!!!! Omg was it a horrible day! I had money this morning. We hauled off some trash for my grandpa today. That's one way I earn money. This was my first time doing it since my surgery. He made sure I had help and since today was Lisa's day off, we did it today. Anyway, he paid me today. Well, I ended up at the casino later on this afternoon...and put it all in there, losing it all :( I'm so pissed off at myself. What a rotten steak of luck!! I'm serious, we have absolutely NO money over the last several days and I been trying so hard to win some money for us because that's the only real means I have to do it since I have no job but all I've been doing is just losing losing losing!!! I makes me sick to my stomach and today was worse. All the money we DID have, I go up there only planning to play like ten bucks and I ended up putting the whole damn thing in because I was so damn desperate to try and win us some money. Everyone in that damn c...

Happy Veterans Day! Wanted to walk this morning but it was windy and COLD!!!! No way, plus we needed to go up to the college so Lisa could take care of some things. All in all, today was...eh ok. Not much happened. Feeling like crap because I go up to the damn casino to try and win us some money, but I never seem to win anything! I haven't got a job yet, even though I've been trying. I never got a call back from Albertsons, or Wal-mart, which sux!!! Ugh, it just doesn't seem to be going very well for me around here. But I do want to thank all the soldiers around the world who have put their lives on the line and especially those who have lost their lives defending our freedom. Also, I would love to thank all the brave animals who have also sacrificed their lives helping to defend our freedom. We need to never forget all the animals out there both past and present who assist in defending America and all veterans all over the world. Animals have always been there for us...

Did my 3 miles again today! Feeling great. Oh man, but I do have one big serious problem! My feet are killing me :'( I think those damn shoes I'm wearing aren't very good. They're too thin. The road I walk on is a dirt road and it's really messed up because of all the rain and mud that's been around lately. Everything is bad. Plus, there's rocks and uneven parts all over. Now my cheap shoes are so thin on bottom, it seems, and I can feel EVERY lump and rock underneath me when I walk. So, when I get home and I sit down for a while, oh the pain really sets in! Makes me crazy because I'm hobbling around like an old man. I remember I had this same problem back when Fyrescape first started in 2014. That was tough and even worse because I had NEVER really done any kind of exercise before that. Oh well, I can get thru it. No Pain, No Gain right?! Drank a bit of water today, but I'm still not pushing myself to drink more. No more exercise for today. My ...

Did my 3 miles this morning! Feeling great, but I am having some problems with my right knee. Idk but it's really starting to bother me. I think all those weeks of not doing any exercise during my recovery has/is really done a number on me, ugh :( Trying to drink water, but not back up to what I was before. Man, this is really hard :( No more exercise today. I am lifting things heavier throughout the day. I need to get back to really lifting weights and I know I keep saying that, but it is super hard. I'll get it though.

Today was a good day! Did 3 miles this morning. Yesterday Lisa timed it. We went and did our 3 miles, then we came home and watered the trees. All of that took us 1 hour and 30 minutes, which was great progress because that first walk we did after my recovery was over, that thing took us about 2 and a half hours to complete. We were walking super slow. So all that yesterday and we got it done in an hour and a half was great! Today, we got the walk done and the trees watered in 1 hr 20 mins. We are making great progress. I really pushed our pace today. When we started out I told Lisa "come on, let's walk fast. None of this grandma stroll today!" So we did it, we walked fast and hard. That was great! My legs are getting stronger and the GREAT thing is that my feet are getting stronger also!! They aren't hurting as bad and when I woke up this morning, I was ready to walk so I asked Lisa and she was happy to do it. We're getting there!! We didn't go to church ...

Did 3 miles this morning!! Back at pushing myself. I also drank a bit more water today. I'm going to get back to my one gallon per day and right now, I'm working towards that. Today was a crap day, well this evening was, but I'll get into that after I say this bit of positive stuff. Yesterday I told about how I've been feeling down because of my towel thing and how it's really making me feel like I'm losing progress. Well today I discovered that that's NOT TRUE!!! I have not lost ANY progress. Since I started Fyrescape on April 29, 2014 I have been pushing myself to be better. Just what my slogan is for this whole thing "The Journey Back to Excellence". Well, I realized today that all the stuff I've been thru HAS been progress. I mean, I came from 360 pounds and dropped so much weight and so much inches around my waist and the rest of my body. I have kept up exercising for over a year and a half now. I've learned so much about life and e...

Today is/was the dreaded Bills Day!!! Oh man I always hate these days. They just suck all our money out of us. We got up early and started getting ready for this crazy day. Well, fortunately it went sort of ok, but we don't have much money left over, only $70. Bills took the rest, but I'm very glad we got the important things out of the way. When we were done, Lees and I stopped at Walmart and bought some food for lunch. You know, one thing that is really bothering me is that I know that I've put on weight in these past two months of recovery. It's actually been getting me down really bad. I have this towel that before I started Fyrescape, the thing came no where near close to wrapping around my waist. There must've been about a ten inch gap in the back. Well, that was always my measuring thing. By the end of last year, that towel could wrap around my waist and touch at the ends. I was so proud of that! Then, by this past April on into June, the towel could act...

Last night it rained AND snowed! It was so cold outside and slushy/muddy. We called off our 3 miles today! It was way too muddy and that road we walk on is already muddy and slippery. So no way, man! We just called it all off today. Too dang cold to get out there anyway. I warmed up the place and we just enjoyed the day. Lisa had to go to work today so she was home until about 3:30, then she went to school. Right after that, she's heading to work since they scheduled her. Me, I just hung around home. I'm really trying to get myself back to the Bowflex and my exercise bike. It is so hard, though. This last two months of recovery sure did a number on my drive. Now I'm weak, but NO I'm not giving up. I'm just going to push and push until I get back up there! Tonight when Lisa gets back, we'll probably head to Walmart and get some food because we are totally OUT of everything! Times are so tight right now. Hope to see a bright horizon soon!

Woke up feeling awake today. Went out and did our 3 miles! I feel so great finally doing exercising. I'm really starting off slow and easy. I don't want to go pushing myself into all that stuff I did before my surgery because I don't think my body is going to handle that very well. Plus, I need to be really careful with my stomach. I noticed that when I lift heavy things, I'll feel this really funny feeling around my stomach. It's tough, like I feel really weak but I know I can still lift it. I just get scared and paranoid that I'm going to tear my hernia, but I know that's not going to happen. I just have that scar tissue and I think that stuff gets irritated when I start using my abdomen muscles. I'll get there! I've been drinking water every morning before my run. I'll drink one cup before we head out. Then when we get back, I'll drink two cups. So far, that's all I've been drinking. I want to drink more, but I'm not. I nee...

Did 3 miles this morning! Still trying to get back to drinking water, but it's very hard. I do drink some though, in the mornings after my walks. Another thing is my walking pace is not very fast. That's something I'm working on. My legs are so stiff and I'm trying to get out of this funk. Honestly though, I know that it's just something I need to break thru. Like a tough outer layer of weakness due to my two month recovery. Once I break thru that, though, I'll be rolling like a champ again. Just takes patience and hard work. I didn't do any other exercises the rest of the day, as I'm trying to start off slow, then ease myself into it. There are so many things that I want to do. I'm just so afraid about my incision and I keep hoping that nothing bad happens. Sometimes Lisa will freak me out with all her knowledge about the body and the things she's learning about for nursing school. So, it's tough to really believe that I'm fully heal...

Woke up early again, but I felt very rested this time. Yesterday I was tired when I woke up, but still stayed up. Today, I'm much better. I feel awake and very rested. My feet weren't hurting anymore either. I warmed up the place, then when Lisa got up, we both got ready and then we went out and did our 3 miles! Day Two :D The walk was great! I also drank water before we left and when we came back. I don't have a jug, but I'll get some soon enough. That old iced tea jug I had before was great and I used that the whole beginning of the year up until summer, then Lisa went and used it for something else, or no wait my brother used it when he was watching our place when we went to San Diego, not knowing that was my drinking jug. So then it was dirty and no way to really clean it so Lisa tossed it, which sucked. Enjoyed a great day! It's warm today, not cold or windy. I think I'll do a little bit of exercise tonight before I clean up, but I'm not too sure. M...

Day One ;) Well, I'm not going to start the blogs off with Day One, no way! I'm officially on Day 187 so that's where it's going to continue from. This is just the Day 1 of exercising again now that my recovery is OVER :D Well, I started off the day with 3 miles!!! Woohoo!!!! Oh man it felt great to get out there...but omg my feet hurt so freakin bad! I'm serious, I haven't felt this kind of pain in a while...a LONG WHILE!! My feet are and have been throbbing all day. It's not all because of my walking. This morning I set all our clocks back, being as it's Daylight Savings Time. So when I woke up at 6:50 this morning, it was actually 5:50. So, I didn't get too much sleep and I stayed awake. I had the cleaning bug so I cleaned up the place early after starting the stove and warming it up. When Lisa finally woke up, she got ready and we headed out. It was tough! Oh man that walk was something else. My legs are weak and my feet are weaker, but I kn...