In my post the other day, I wrote about how my life really is good times and noodle salad, there’s another side to it.  I didn’t quite spell it out this way in that post but the truth is, my life is good because I make it so and because I believe it is so.

Here’s the other side of that coin:

My wife and the kids and her dad and step-mom and sister and her kids are all heading out on Saturday for a week’s vacation.  Unfortunately, with some new work picked up, there’s simply no way that I’ll be able to make it – in fact.  It’s simply an impossibility (believe me, I’ve tried to figure out a way to make it work – if wanting to spend the time with my family weren’t enough, and it is, I’d only be maybe fifty miles from the most spectacular cycling roads in all of Michigan, a track that I’ve wanted to cycle ever since I started riding a bike)…  This is, in part, because we’re also heading down to Georgia later this summer as well and I can’t just pack up and drive home from that one.

Now, many folks would look at that as a reason to be mad, to hate their life, to be depressed and so on.  I’m not that guy!  The fact that I have to miss this one holds a host of reasons to be okay with it even if I would rather take a week off – after all, it’s been almost eight months since my last vacation.  So instead of complaining, here is a short list of reasons that I can be grateful for having to miss out this time:

1.  As much as I hate it, I’ll have some time away from my wife and kids.  In my case, absence makes my heart grow fonder.  By the time they come home, I’ll be beside myself.
2.  I’ll be able to ride in the Hell of a Ride in Hell, Michigan (yes, you can say it’s hot as Hell in the summer or Hell has frozen over January through February) with my friends next Saturday.
3.  I’ll have time to put in some serious evening miles.
4.  I’ll have some time to get some things done around the house that I’ve wanted to get to but never had the time.
5.  I’ll be able to get a lot of work caught up.

So, while there’s no doubt that I’ll miss out on being able to hang with my family on vacation (I am not your average guy – I married into a fantastic family – I am lucky enough to enjoy vacationing with them) and I will have to work through yet another vacation, my career was my choice.  I could complain – God knows, I’ve got reason to, but the truth is you’ve gotta do what you gotta do and complaining about it is useless…

Every once in a while I have to get my butt in the kitchen and make my own noodle salad.