The free time I had a year or two ago is gone. I’m not entirely sure what changed, but I suspect the cycle that I’ve had my entire life is still at play. I always come into a new environment, prove my value, become a fixture and necessity, and ultimately discover that I am overworked. This cycle has occurred with me for years, likely decades, potentially my entire life.

At this point in my career is where I would normally make a move to start over again, but instead, I leaned into it and applied internally for management. The result was more work. I am confident this is just growing pains and I am keeping my chin up while I adjust to this new position.

American Gridiron football has certainly kept my attention to the tune that I may simply stop talking about anything else but football. Project CELICA hit a wall once I could not get the clockspring (spiral cable) that I need without shelling an absurd amount of money: MSRP of part ID 8430644010 is $397.11. Beyond that, I have not even made the time to wash the car. I do intend to keep up with regular maintenance and oil changes, though. I’m also waiting on a Tesla Model Y to arrive by July. Ironically, I’m excited to consolidate all of my maintenance activities to just tires!

Now, on to football. The Super Bowl is this weekend, and the two teams in the Super Bowl are obviously deserving of respect, although I think if Derrick Henry stayed healthy it would have perhaps caused a rather extreme change in trajectory for the entire league. That being said, I am not a big fan of either the Rams or the Bengals. If I had to choose, I guess I’m for the comeback player of the year Joe Burrow and the offensive rookie of the year Ja’Marr Chase and the Bengal team. But if the Bengals lose, they just didn’t play hard enough. I certainly wouldn’t be upset about it.

My team of choice is the Jaguars, and its great because I like to root for the underdog. That way, when success comes, it feels that much more fulfilling. They have the pick of the litter this year and a brand new franchise QB out of Trevor Lawrence. Trevor, just like many rookie QBs forced to start, struggled in his first year. I’m not surprised, especially given the talent he is surrounded by. There are gems on the team, but the majority of them will be found on the defensive side of the ball as opposed to the offensive side.

I’m currently watching a replay of this year’s Senior Bowl. It’s always fun to see many of the next generation of players doing their best for the NFL scouts and staff. I’m excited for the NFL Combine and the NFL Draft. I’m also excited for the new season and the next iteration of the Madden NFL video game. Time will tell what our new head coach and staff will work towards for 2022’s NFL season.

I’m happy that I was able to pull away for approximately 30-45 minutes to shoot this update out. The next updates may not have any photos as I have been in a bit of a rut in regards to work, football, and spousal duties. It is always nice to write a little something though.