A new day. A new year.

           There’s a certain energy to the New Year.  The beginning of 2014 seems full of possibilities; a chance for rebirth, to shape yourself into the person that you want to be. Maybe it’s a vow to lose a few pounds, read more books, learn a new skill, travel somewhere you've been dreaming about, ask that girl out who you have been secretly admiring, spend more time in the outdoors or with your family, finally send that route you've been projecting.

Whatever your goal is, for at least a brief time as the calendar flips over from December 31 to January 1, you know that they are within your grasp. That this will be the year you achieve, accomplish and overcome whatever fear or disability has been holding you back. 

This is the year.

What if you could hold that certainty all year long? What if you could hold that certainty of limitless possibility and potential throughout 2014? Imagine what you could achieve if every day you woke up and thought.

Today is the day.

More after the break

As 2013 came to a close I was thinking that this year I wanted to create, to make things that were pleasing to myself and (hopefully) others. A week later, recovering from surgery, I read a post from my favorite blog: semi-rad.com. In it Brendan Leonard states his goals for 2014: 1) Do Things 2) Make things. He also references another post from cracked.com which feels like the text equivalent of a “What the fuck are you doing with your life?” speech from an uncaring drill sergeant. Both posts struck me as mirroring the thoughts and feelings I've had for the upcoming year but written much more succinctly and with greater craft than I am currently capable of.  

We all consume, it takes up a large part of our daily existence. Whether it’s a new jacket, food for a recipe we’ve been thinking about or the latest, greatest Youtube video or TV show. That’s okay, if it truly brings us joy. But I think it’s important to be mindful of the times when consuming is really fulfilling us and when it is taking away from time we could be doing or making things that really bring joy to ourselves and those around us.

As I fly back to our home in Colorado, I have a do it yourself knife kit complete with leather sheath my brother gave me that I plan to put together and then learn how to draw Celtic knots so I can wood burn them onto the handle. I have an order in for some new brewery equipment and I’m hoping to take On The Loose semi-pro this year. During my time convalescing, Brenda and I hammered out more details for our family summer road-trip and I’m pretty sure my parents and brother are on-board to join us out in Yosemite or Zion giving us a chance to share some of our favorite places with other members of our family.

Along the way, I’ll be chronicling our adventures on this blog and over at On The Loose Brewery. I’m pretty sure that my writing sucks right now, but I’m never going to get better if I don’t start practicing.  

Hopefully the next time we bump into each other I’ll be cutting my post-climb or hike salami and hard cheese with a cool looking new knife, drinking a beer I made and trying to become a better writer by sharing it with you all.

Oh, and it would be nice to lose 15 pounds and be sending 5.11 this year too…we’ll see how that goes.

This is the year. Today is the day.

See you out there.

So what's on your mind as we head into 2014? Post your thoughts down in the comments. I'd love to hear from you!