Personal

Here's your chance to learn more about me than you probably care to ever know! At the same time, I want you to get a feel for who I am and what I'm all about. 

What do you include in one of these things anyway?

Well, here goes….. I grew up the youngest of five children in Hudson Falls, NY a town of about 10,000 in the foothills of the Adirondacks — near the Vermont border, about an hour north of Albany. Lots of farms.

Come to think of it, I'm still the youngest… 

Here's me, my mother, and my siblings soon after my birth. Ah, I remember it well…Growing up, I actually enjoyed school. (See what my teachers from kindergarten to 4th grade had to say! Who better to judge my future potential as a citizen and a coach?) I liked school so much that I went through another four years of college, and another five of graduate school. Throw in 3 years of training at Coach University and let's see, that's 23 years all together. Where does the time go?

I live in the beautiful foothills of the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York, right on the border of Vermont. I grew up in this area.

I've lived in Florida, Pennsylvania, Central and Western New York, and Seattle. But it appears you can take the boy out of the Adirondacks, but not the Adirondacks out the the boy… I am very happy here and having family around is a wonderful bonus.
 

                                                                                          

Above is the house in winter if you care to see more pictures of my house and the surrounding 13 acres, check out the Flickr pix on the right of the page

I share my life with my beautiful and talented wife, Karin.

Anyway, I work out of my home and am usually surrounded by my three kids — the kind with four paws. My dog, a mostly Lab named Tasha, and two cats, Jezebel and Peanut. As I write this, I just lost my Lifetime Dog, a Lab/Shepard mix, Thai.

Hmmmmmmn… What else? Well, I really enjoy participating in athletics — I play a lot of basketball (my favorite), softball, volleyball, and I love to ski (downhill and XC) . In the summer and fall I cruise around on my mountain bike. I do some yoga, pilates, and a fierce workout called P90X too…

Yes, I am competitive, I admit it. And yes, I play to win. Hey, what would you expect from a coach anyway?

I love to spend time outdoors and hiking around the hills and doing some camping. I am fortunate enough to share a cabin with my brother in the Adirondacks as well. Kind of a boys place.

* * *

Let's see….I'm a big music fan, I used to collect CDs when CDs and have seen hundreds of live shows.

I play guitar, but most of my performances are in front of a campfire and have rather repetitive chord progressions. My favorite bands include:

• the Beatles (well, of course)
   
• The Tragically Hip (excellent Canadian band that has something for everyone — great rhythms, lyrics) They consistently give me the chills. In a good way…
   
• King's X the most talented rock trio you probably never heard of…
   
• Chris Whitley — Listen to him. You'll like him. Or not. Had the opportunity to share a beer with him for a couple hours (well, maybe two) before he died. A good man.
   
• John Mellencamp — Gets me in touch with my experience as an American. And a human.
   
• 311 — positive, fresh, and funky vibes, y'all.
   
• Rush — I think Rush is definitely a "guy-thing." A band consistently ahead of their time. Amazing musicianship and lyrics.
   
• Living Colour — One of my pet bands. They move me.
   
• Morphine — Unique sounding (just a drummer, sax, stand-up bass). Brooding and wonderful.
   
• David Lee Roth era Van Halen — The absolute prototype for a rock band in the late '70's early 80's
   
• and everyone from Sinatra to Suicidal Tendencies… Music fits the mood, you know?

My favorite albums (in no particular order)…

• The Beatles — The White Album…Kind of a no-brainer
   
•  Living Colour — Time's Up…For me, the best albums are the ones that make very little sense the first time you listen to them. This is one of those albums.
   
• Chris Whitley — Living With the Law…Wonderful guitar playing, meaningful songs, haunting vocals. Highly recommended.
   
• The Tragically Hip — Day For Night…I can't help singing along with this entire album. Some of my favorite lyrics anywhere.
   
• King's X — Gretchen Goes to Nebraska…One of those albums you discover in a college dorm room, swapping tapes with your friends (the original Napster). This album will always remind me of that time and where I was in my life. This band has given me a lot of happiness over the years and it all started here. Can't say what it would be like to listen to this album for the first time today though.

I enjoy movies where I can't figure out what's going to happen — thus I am not one for too many action flicks.

Faves include:

This is Spinal Tap, The Big Lebowski, American Beauty, and Raising Arizona (as you can tell, I especially love cool comedies and the Coen Brothers)
 

* * *

Magazines I read:

• The Week - Gives a great overview of all you need to know in quick hits. Love it. (I will let my Newsweek subscription run out… too dour)
   
• Esquire - Love the tips, love the writing. Covers things I care about (though I am not so fashion conscious). Often have to pry it from my wife's hands.
   
• Best Life - Got this from cashing in old airline miles. Better than expected.
   
• Inc. - Some inspirational business stuff in here.
   
• Fast Company - Another informative, fun read.

* * *

Books

I like to mix up my personal development with great fiction. I love Eckhart Tolle's "A New Earth." I believe that if more people can really "get" this, then we are on our way as a whole. I like Deepak and Wayne, too. Many many others. You can find a bit of my recent library here.

In the fiction side, I love Russell Banks and Richard Russo.

* * *

Finally a bit on my family… (impressed you got this far…)

Life has thrown me and my family a few curve balls since the year 2000. My father died after a brief illness on August 30th, 2000. He had been taking care of my mother who must deal with Alzheimer's disease. Shortly after his death, my mother moved into an adult home where she could receive full-time care. Mom passed in November 2005. Needless to say, I've never experienced such a storm of emotions in my life.

I felt very fortunate to have four wonderful brothers and sisters. (Here we are in the 1970s)

I cannot fathom going through that experience alone. It's not over yet, as my mother is never too far from my thoughts, but we humans are marvelously adaptable creatures, and things do get better.

If you're like me, you tend to look for the gift in adverse situations. My experiences with my folks have made me aware of an inner strength that I did not know I had. It's given me even more confidence that I can handle whatever life deals me and that I can always keep laughing.

I enjoy my life a great deal. I mean, that's the point, right? Is there anything more important than being happy? I mean, that's what it all boils down to, right? And I've always been a pretty happy guy…

That's all I have for now… Time to engage in my favorite pastime… chilling out…