April was fast!

I mean, it went by fast. There was a lot going on.

Swim: 28,550 y, 10 swims
Bike: 23.2 miles, 2 rides
Run: 0
Strength: 5 times
Yoga: once

It was a pretty good month in the pool. Still no running. Got a bit of cross training on the bike, but it's a small step towards getting back. Makes the knee and foot feel stronger.

One cool thing happened on the strength training front! In 2003 during my crazy weightlifting phase my bench press maxed out at 205 lbs. I only got it pressed once, testing my one rep max, never heavier and never again. A couple of weekends ago, I put 205 on the bar and got it up twice!  New bench press PR! So cool. Last year I totally blew a goal to increase my bench to 225 lbs, but now it's starting to look like that goal is in sight again! Very exciting. Maybe not as exciting as the 50k I was supposed to be running in Delaware that day, but still very exciting.

At the end of the month Kelley and I had a nice getaway to Boone. It was the 50th anniversary reunion gala for the App State chapter of my fraternity. Phi Mu Alpha is a professional music fraternity, and we got to meet some of the charter members and hear stories about how they got the ball rolling. The coolest part was getting to hang out with my boys, some of whom I haven't seen in over 20 years!

Me, Neal, Shawn in Boone together for the first time since around 1995

Kelley in front of the original Mast General Store in Valle Crucis listening to live bluegrass

Bridget (Shawn's wife) and I enjoying a pint of guiness with lunch

On the blue ridge parkway

With Neal and his wife Lorena at Cone Manor

Suprise selfie

Dressing for the gala

a real player only needs half a grey head to work a table

Kelley, me, Jon, Bridget, Shawn, Lorena, Neal

Chad was there under an assumed name

The whole weekend was incredible. We all went out drinking after the gala and it got a little nuts. Again, it's just good to see everybody and their wives, and get to share the common bonds we created so many years ago. This was a time that I will really treasure.

bunch of drunks

LOTS of other stuff happened in April.

Evil Genius and her best friend shared a necklace

Ella has fun with props

EG tries to use the selfie stick as a prop

it was hot as shit out there. EG's school had a carnival fundraiser. I absolutely hate large crowds of people on a hot day where people yell at you for money. Nobody yelled at me this time, but it was the most uncomfortable I think I have ever been at an elementary school. And we still won tickets to Tweetsie Railroad in a silent auction.

European Invasion side 1

European Invasion side 2

We had visitors in the office last week, a crew of 4 came over from Europe - 3 from London and one guy from Amsterdam. It was incredible having them onsite all week. We've been working closely together for most of the year. And we were able to negotiate us going to Amsterdam for the product launch if we make it on time! These pictures are from a dinner we hosted to show off the local brewery & pizza house, Trophy Brewing. I literally ordered the entire menu, there was 14 of us so we got all 8 specialty pizzas listed on that board on the wall. Nobody went home sober or hungry (well, the drivers were sober).

So overall April was a great month. Like I mentioned in the last post, I got to go to the Masters, the beach, had the Umstead 100 day volunteering, and got a bench press pr instead of a trip to delaware. Top it off with an amazing reunion in the mountains, nothing could be better.