It's my birthday and I'll philosophize if I want to

"At the heart of the mountaineering experience lies an optimistic expectation, a belief that tomorrow will be better than today -- the ice pillars a little less rotten, the wind a little less bracing, and that you will be able to go further that you have before."

Peter Metcalf looked out at the room of 100 REI employees, all on the edge of their seats. His address returned again and again about how fundamental this gut attitude of "optimistic expectation" is to climbing mountains (and, of course, running a business). You have to wake up believing that today can & will be easier than the day before. Of course mountains don't care about your expectations. No matter how many routes you've flashed, one misstep or change in weather and your life may be out of your hands. But people who are true mountaineers, he said, just have this attitude in their blood. "The best years are still to come," he said as he left the podium, "of course, they always are."

I regularly have a strong feeling that my real life is beginning tomorrow: from now on, I will really be living my values. For the first time, I have found the balance in my life I have been searching for. Finally, I will set & follow clear priorities. The feeling is one of excitement and positive anticipation, but I am really hard on myself about this attitude. I have always thought it means I am not being present in my life; that I am doing a disservice to my daily adventures by always thinking "that wasn't as good as it could be, next time I'll do much better."

Metcalf's speech planted a little seed in my brain that maybe, just maybe, my "life actually begins tomorrow" outlook may not be such a bad thing. In fact, it may be an incredible tool that I can use to succeed in difficult situations, even when the ice pillars are rotten.

The 8,760th day of my life ended with fantastic sashimi, a petite caramel flan with candles in it, and meeting a giant troll that lives under a Fremont bridge. Then my new friend from Kennewick and I walked along the shore of the dark, wide Puget Sound - soaked through, in the pouring rain, the seattle skyline in the distance. 24 is going to be a good year.

Tomorrow I come home! I am thrilled to have a really productive day at work, one night in my own bed, and then it's off to North Carolina!