I’ve seen springtime wildflowers that tower over my head.

Rattlesnakes coiled, ready to strike me dead

Curious cows, dumbfounded, chewing their cud.

Vast vistas of track homes, both high priced and HUD

I’ve hugged ocean buoys in a hyperventilating panic

I’ve seen hugs for campfire storytellers, who’s lives have been tragic

I’ve seen grown men cry,

young ladies laugh

Vice versa, then friends become brothers in a flash.

I’ve seen scared bodies pry themselves into winter wet suits, while paddleboarders sea scout.

and a mile later, swimmers peeling off neoprene and a thick layer of self doubt.

I’ve seen my attitude and priorities shift, for better or worse

To a life more improvised, than well worn and rehearsed.

Oh yeah, and I saw all the Ironman woman streak across a campground.  I don’t have a rhyme for that, I just wanted to let you all know I saw all of them naked.  Good times.

bit.ly/GoMauGo

#nodlvr

#nodlvr

Mauricio Balvanera - March 28, 2012,

Lets nerd jock it up for a sec shall we? Zeno’s Dichotomy Paradox, stay with me here, states that:

Fair enough.  I’ve marked many “half way there” point in many races.  It’s a time to take inventory; Take note of hydration.  Make sure your pace is sustainable.  It’s the time to take advantage of adrenaline and make sure your brain is set to warrior optimist.   It’s the time to remind yourself why this race matters to you or others.  Sometimes it’s even time to perhaps, pee in your bike shorts.  It happens and you fight on.  Zeno, the little Greek philosophizing bastard, laughs at your optimism and here’s why…

Zeno’s paradox lies in the fact that the distance from that half way point to the finish, also has a half way point.  Then that half way point to finish line has a halfway point.  It goes on infinitely because theoretically, there is infinite space between any two points.  How do you reach the finish if there’s always a halfway point?

Progress is an illusion and you never reach the finish line.

You may have been acutely aware of this paradox is you’ve ever driven the 405 freeway in Los Angeles, tried to watch Dr. Zhivago in it’s entirety, or in my case, attempted to swim my first mile in open water despite my phobia.  I swear, Zeno himself moved the buoys on the swim back to shore.

However fun the thought experiment may be, the fact of the matter is, we, with the power of our persevering minds, reach our goals everyday.  Last weekend, I swam a mile through 52 degree, thick sludgy dream breaking doubt created by my own asshole brain.  I beached myself like a asthmatic walrus when it was all over, only to have to start the 26 mile leg cramping bike ride right away. Still, I smiled, face to loading dock, briefly basking in the warm drying sun, giving Zeno the birdie in spirit.

We can wax poetic about time and space, string theory, and the multiverse all day long, but the fact remains that our collective reality allows us to take our bodies and mind to task and reach finish lines.  We achieve feats we never though possible everyday, whether it be in endurance sports, or in career, in love, and in healing.

This is why I’ve decided to swim, bike, run for Team in Training.  I’ve been inspired countless times by honorees who’ve had stories of finishing treatment and defeating cancer.  I’ve been crushed by other stories of cancer finishing them.  These stories have given the literal blood sweat and tears meaning beyond anything I could have imagined when I began triathlon training, and I intend to finish, for friends and family that I’ve lost to a monster inside.

For the record, I’m a little over half way though training, you’ve reached the end of this post, and by clicking here, you can help end cancer.

I once told a good friend, “Sometimes you’ve got to do things that are stupid. It keeps you sane”. I know I struggled to convince her as I walked, soaking wet, through the streets of Hollywood, shortly after I had jumped into the Roosevelt Hotel pool with this guy, fully clothed, on a particularly snooty “no swimming allowed” night. (That guy did it in his tighty whities, jumping from the second floor balcony, so he wins the stupid award that night.)

I still stick to this sanity theory, although I’ve slightly modified it to address the flawed generality, and unsafe conotations and/or illegality, of the word “stupid”. I might have been able to convince her had I instead said, “Sometimes you’ve got to do things that are out of your comfort zone”.

This mantra has helped me become a better, well rounded person by, listening to new music, purposely getting lost, talking to strangers, changing careers, moving to an unfamiliar city, eating scorpions in China, jumping fully clothed into snooty swimming pools, and, more recently, addressing my greatest phobia. Open water swimming.

Today I confronted my greatest fear by swimming in San Francisco’s aquatic park as part of the East Bay Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. It was not pretty. I mean just look at how far up my crotch that wetsuit rides up. There was also a full bore panic attack in the water with hyperventilating, BUT OMG LOOK AT THAT WETSUIT!

I’ve committed to swimming a mile (then biking and running), when I can barely get across a 25 yard pool. I’m getting better every day, but today, I wanted to quit and swim to shore. I didn’t because It would have severely hurt my pride. Not because all of my teammates would have seen me quit, but because I had already decided that my general water discomfort was relativity insignificant in comparison to dealing with cancer. And if today is any indication of relative comfort zones, cancer research needs some serious funding.

Team in Training has raised over $1.2 billion to fund cancer research since 1988 and my $2,900 share of it is a little bit of sanity and saved lives via a little perseverance, stupidity and your contributions. If you would like to contribute to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, please do so at via my fundraising page at bit.ly/GoMauGo

I’ll be posting training updates here, as I doggy paddle my way through it.

Big ups to Pam Torno and Nat Kidder on the awesome editing.

The guys behind “Whole Foods Parking Lot” (Fog and Smog) return with “Yoga Girl”.

Canadian Ad Agency St. John created a genius fake ad for a cat agency.  It’s so well pitched, I think the idea just might work.

To stay on top of the ever-changing advertising landscape, john st. has opened the world’s first cat video division. With production, filming and seeding all in-house. Ask yourself, what can cat videos do for your business?

via Graham Hancock

The Great Lunar Cycle, a new print Aaron Thong. Love it.

(Via Colossal)

#nodlvr

Ever since my wife got a job designing wineries (OMG AWESOME RIGHT?), the running joke has been coming up with novel ways that wine will infiltrate our lives.

It’s not funny anymore.  We’re totally serious.  Wine everywhere!

You can purchase this wine rack via Etsy user oopsmark.

I couldn’t agree more.

Former Apple UI designer thinks touchscreens are a “hokey visual facade”, calls for innovation in “tactile richness”:

claiming that Pictures Under Glass is the future of interaction is like claiming that black-and-white is the future of photography. It’s obviously a transitional technology. And the sooner we transition, the better.”

(Via 9to5Mac)

#nodlvr

I can’t tell weather Cyriak is a genius, or in need of professional help. Maybe both.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

If “Rock Center” is what’s replacing the recently cancelled Playboy Club, I couldn’t be happier. This is the Brian Williams Brian Williams should be.

William’s and Stewart’s banter is light on the substance, but heavy on the fun.

I had an out of bubble experience while I was sick this past week.  I shut myself off of any and all tech, mobile app and gossip news to focus on getting better.  I missed a lot, and at the same time I missed absolutely nothing.  Not surprising.   Everyone in any sort of cultural bubble resurfaces now and then to get a grip on reality.  I hope so at least.  I simply realized, as I gasped for air this time around, that I was submerged for a lot longer than usual.

I truly believe that nothing matters till you have enough perspective to realize that they don’t.

This “Meanwhile, Back In The Bubble”:

Kim Kardashian’s Divorce Headline against Bangkok’s disastrous flood images.

Ok, rant over.

Also listen via Spotify

Every month, I think to myself, there is no way in hell I’m going to find music that blows me away the way last month’s playlist did.

“Ye have little faith” says music, and laughs in my face. Happy Halloween.

I love the stream of kids coming out to see the crash. I don’t imagine a basketful of Scotts land in your rice paddy’s everyday.

Nine months, to 2 years!

I’d like a setting in youtube that automatically posts all Jay Smooths videos to this blog. Can somebody make that happen? Welcome back Jay.