Well folks we are moving again, Michelle and I are both looking forward to the move, but it really bites to move so much.  We have lived in 3 different apartments in the last 4 years and now we will be living in our 4th in 4 years.

One of the reasons we are moving is that Michelle’s commute is becoming a bit nuts, some nights it takes her 90 minutes to drive 12 miles from Quincy to Somerville.  So, we are moving to Quincy on the South Shore of MA.  Our new apartment will be about 1.5 miles away from her work which should make her commute so much nicer, I may have even convinced her to bike during the nice days of the year.  In addition the place is just as close to the Red Line as we are now, it’s just on the opposite end so I will still be able to hop on the T during winter.  The only thing I have not figured out yet is a great biking route, but I am still looking.  Anyone who knows me knows that I can be a little too optimisticfor my own good and I am not ashamed to admit that I don’t like to look at the negatives.

Prepare for unadulterated optimism:

Our new place will be less than a half a mile walk to Wollaston Beach, not the nicest beach in the area and not always swimmable but it is still a beach with sand, sunrises, views of Boston and the sweet smell of the sea, I am so happy about the beach.  With Michelle being so close to her work I think it will really increase her quality of life and all around happiness which is a huge plus.  Quincy is close to many places that allow for outdoor entertainment like hiking in the Blue Hills, Biking, Canoeing, and Kayaking.  There is this beautiful historic movie theater that is also walking distance that has not been open in many years that they are just starting a restoration project on, as in WE MIGHT LIVE WALKING DISTANCE TO A RESTORED HISTORIC MOVIE THEATRE.  We will still be very close to the T at the Wollaston stop on the Red Line which can take us directly into the ciy whenever we like, including when I go to work.  Quincy is also so much more inexpensive when compared to Somerville, the place we are renting for the price we are paying could not be found in the area we are currently living.

I could go on, but I will spare you, lets just say I am excited about our new apartment, I just wish the moving process was a little easier on the stress level.

After I finally got out of the house and on my way it was a little cold and I could certainly tell that I had lost some of my physical fitness since last October.  But, this is one of the reasons I am so happy to be able to get back on the bike for my commute to work.  I am really hoping that this will be a new starting point for me to change my health and fitness level for the better.  For as long as I can remember I have been fat and every year I have toyed with the idea of actually exercising and eating well in order to loose some weight, but I have never actually done anything about it.   So, as I sit here writing this, after biking 6 miles to work, I feel more motivated than ever to eat better and be more active. 

There are many more reasons I love biking to work besides motivating me to actually get healthier.  First of all I love being able to enjoy the beauty of the city by bike, it is slower the train or bus goes, it is slower than a car.  Even though it takes me 30 minutes to get to work by bike (which is still faster than public transit) I get to enjoy seeing people, trees, the sun coming up over the Boston skyline, and I get to smell bakeries baking their morning breads.  

I consider myself an environmentally conscious person and this is another reason I love biking.  Driving a car to work not only adds pollution  to the earth but it adds noise pollution and it adds to traffic.  Plus, I hate the idea of sitting in traffic and not moving when on my bike I could just be zipping around that darn traffic and headed on my way home.

The freedom that biking gives me is also amazing, when I take public transit to work and from work I have a very set route, if I need to go some place out of my way it could take another hour to get home, on my bike I can quickly make my pit stop (I don’t even need to find a parking space) and be back on my way home.  Now I don’t want to discourage people to use public transportation because I still think it is much better than driving, but the freedom of biking is fantastic.

Now get out there start biking darn it, I love it and I know you will too.

I have to admit that one of the things that has drawn me to the idea of simplifying my life is that I am a bit of a lazy procrastinator.  One of the areas of my life where this is overwhemigly the case is preparing my lunch for work the following day; working from an idea of simplicity I have come up with something that really seems to be working for me.

Instead of making myself a meal, or a sandwich or preparing leftovers from dinner for my lunch, I simply take raw fruit, veggies and nuts.  So before I leave my house every morning I grab 2 or 3 oranges, a banana, an apple, and I measure out about 2 onces of walnuts and 40 grams of raisins, this is all I eat until dinner when there is time specifically set aside to make dinner as a family.  Some of you might be suprised by this and think that it would not be enough food but every day when I leave work I feel quite full and satisfied.  What about protein?  Being vegan that is a question I often get anyway much less since doing this new minimalist lunch.  There is more than enough protein in the walnuts, which are also second only to blueberries in antioxidant power, plus if I get little cravings throughout the day, which most people do, I can just eat a couple of walnuts, there is enough fat in them that they help me feel full.

The advantages of this minimalist lunch and breakfast approach are amazing.  First of all I don’t have to worry about what I am making for lunch the next day, as long as I have bought enough fruit at the beginning of the week I know that I will be able to grab 4 or 5 pieces, it is wonderfuly simple.  Secondly, I don’t spend any money on food eating out.  It is also amazingly healthy, most days I get my 5 – 6 servings of fruit and veggies before I leave work.  Finally, and the most amazing thing, is that I have rediscovered how amazing just enjoying raw organic fruit can be.  Peeling an orange has become sort of meditative and once I begin eating it it is like heaven, there are times when I feel like I am just discovering how good oranges are and I must tell everyone around me.

I would certainly recommend anyone looking to simplify their work lunches and eat a much healthier throughout the day to give this a try, it has really worked for me.

Thom came up with the wonderful idea to share the whole house instead of each couple just sort of living in their separate spaces.  The idea being that we could share most of the things like the kitchen space, cleaning supplies, grocery items, etc. in turn sharing all of the resources those things end up using and lightening our load on the earth.

Aside from the fact of helping save the world which is all well and good I am mainly excited about creating an even closer relationship with our good friends.  We have been living there for several days and after 2 trips to ikea and 1 Vegan BBQ the house is still a disaster as we unpack and move one kitchen from upstairs to downstairs.  But even though there is still a lot of work to be done it is wonderful to come home to my new family

I was biking back in the Spring when I had purchased a bike off of Craigs List for $50.  At that point I had not been on a bike in 10 years and getting back on and riding was wonderful, fantastic, I loved it.  Then my bike got stolen right out of my back yard, I was pretty upset, shooken up I think, I was loving my commute to work and someone I did not know, a stranger just comes along and puts and end to it, only thinking about themselves.

My Wife, Michelle, after 2 months of me taking the T to work, practically forced me to find a new bike.  So we walked down to our local bike shop, Ace Wheel Works, and checked out the options.  I ended up buying a Gary Fisher Mako, last years model so it was at a super discount…and I am back riding to work again.

Today was day 3 riding me new bike and I love riding even more than previously.  I think it has something to do with the fact that I was riding and loving it and that was taken away from me and now I am able to do it again.

It is so wonderful to ride over the Charles River in the morning across the Mass Ave. bridge, smelling the water, seeing the sun rising, hearing the rowers.  Getting to work after riding 6 miles, getting my heart rate up, and struggling up some hills and through traffic feels so accomplished.

I think everyone should be able to bike to work, I can’t express how good it feels to get some exersice, not spend any money on gas, and see the city from a different perspective.

Media Department and I love it, for those of you that like titles I’m an Instructional Media Specialist.

I think that part of the reason I am enjoying it so much is because of my new perspective on trying to simplify things in my life. The reasons I love my new job are not because I am suddenly feeling fulfilled. All my hopes and dreams of a career have not suddenly come true. But by new position has allowed me to further simplify my life in ways that I was not able to at my previous employer.