I have definitely had my share of troubling experiences in life. But don’t worry, I won’t whine about the bumpy roads my life has traveled. My stories are a lot like everyone else’s; relationship problems, troubling times at work (yes, even at Schipul), financial struggles, etc.

I realized that I was extremely unhappy and it was showing, big time. I had a horribly negative attitude towards everyone in my life, including my family. I didn’t want to be around people and they surely didn’t want to be around me.

One day I was in the book store just browsing when I came across a book called Letting Go of Your Bananas by Dr. Daniel T. Drubin. The title grabbed my attention and actually made me laugh. It’s a short paperback, only 119 pages.  I like reading those kinds of books so I bought it.

Of course the book is full of motivational, “You can do it!“, type of references. But it’s also insightful and it just spoke to me. By “letting go of your bananas”, the author means letting go of everything negative in your life, anything that limits you from personal growth. On the second page of the book, he writes,

“If we refuse to let go of the things or people that hold us back, life starts to rot and then stink. The only way to go beyond where you are in your life is by being willing to let go of the things, people, habits, and beliefs that keep you where you are instead of where you want to be.”

That spoke volumes to me. As I continued to read the book, I made a list of all of my rotten bananas. They ranged from personal habits to people that I considered to be very good friends. I started working on myself, my attitude, and my life in general. I broke off relationships that brought negativity in my life and focused on ones that were positive. I got a better attitude at work. I even went to counseling and got my personal life under control. Of course my life is far from perfect but I’m definitely on a better path after reading the book.

I’ll leave you with this, from the last chapter of the book, 9 guidelines for taking charge of the rest of your life:

1. Think one step ahead and always have a back up plan for whatever you are doing: don’t put all of your plans in one basket. Challenges in life can strengthen your resolve and build your character, so be flexible when the situation calls for resilience and steadfast when an obstacle is in your path.
2. Understand and effectively utilize the power of your personal affirmations and self-talk. The two most important words of personal power are “I am”.
3. Be childlike in your willingness to accept no as an answer. Be deliberate about what you want and when confronted with a no, dig in and totally invest yourself in the attainment of your goals.
4. Live the principles of TELL – Teaching, Earning, Laughing and Learning. When you work toward earning a living as well as earning the admiration and respect of others, you improve your life.
5. Always deliver more than you promise. When you live up to your word and then give more of yourself than even expected, you elevate yourself and how others view you.
6. When given the choice regarding how to think and behave, always choose limitless over limited. When you think in limitless terms, you expand your potential.
7. With a dramatic need for speed, decide to break the speed barrier for changing your life. Comfort is not necessarily your friend.
8. Become more purposeful in your thoughts, actions and attitudes.  To live a more meaningful life, there is no substitute for purity of purpose.
9. Eliminate the eighth day of the week: “Someday”.  By procrastinating and putting off until Someday the things that need to be done, you restrict your growth and diminish your personal potential. Do it now.

There’s not a day that goes by that the word paintball is not heard in my house.  My 13 year old son is consumed with it. He eats, sleeps, and breathes paintball.  It’s because of him that I have learned these lessons to pass on to you!

Types of paintball games:

1. Woodsball - the original form of paintball played in the woods.  Fields consist of trees, bushes, and other natural resources.  Sometimes you’ll find other things like old cars and buildings too.  But it’s all played in the woods.
2. Speedball - the most common form of paintball that uses bunkers of equal size and distribution on the field.  Also called recball.
3. Scenarios - paintball games in which players participate in a scenario or story, often a re-enactment.

What you need to play paintball:

1. A paintball marker (gun)
2. Ammunition (paint balls)
3. Mask or goggles
4. Protective clothing (if you’re a noob)

Common paintball terms:

1. Staging Area- the area where the players store their gear and rest between games.  It’s also where they hang out, talk smack and challenge each other.
2. Barrel socks – a “sock” type device that fits around the barrel of the gun and captures a paintball in the case of accidental firing.  Trust me, when hanging out in the staging area, you are grateful for barrel socks!
3. Masks on – this means you better get that mask on and now! Masks are required on the field even if you’re not playing.
4. Hit - when the paintball leaves a solid mark on your clothing or equipment.  Splatters do not count, it must be a solid mark.
5. Wiping - players sometimes “wipe” the paint to make it look like they didn’t get hit.  We call these players CHEATERS!
6. Ramping - This one still confuses me. I think of it as automatically changing the mode of fire from semi-automatic to fully automatic.  The gun goes pop, pop, pop, then badadadadadada, sort of like a machine gun mode.  And while it’s legal in some leagues, I think of it as another form of cheating!
7. Bonus Balling – this occurs when a player continually shoots his opponent knowing that they already have a hit.  Again, CHEATER!
8. Go, Go, Go!!! - the start of a game.  You’d better be ready or you’re hit!

Probably the least known fact about paintball is that there are teams and tournaments played all around the world.  In the US, we have many official paintball leagues.  The two main ones are the National Professional Paintball League (NPPL), and Paintball Sports Promotions (PSP).  At the college level, there’s the NCPA College Paintball Association which includes teams from the University of Florida, Purdue University, University of Connecticut and about 15 other teams.  The NCPA has begun reaching out to high schools and organizing leagues (which Austin is totally looking forward too!).  At a local level, we have the Houston Rookie League (HRL) which has 3 man tournaments specifically for beginners.

As a parent, I often wonder what I have to look forward to with Austin’s paintball obsession.  Well, the PSP World Cup games are held close to Orlando, FL so that’s pretty cool.  The NPPL World Championship games are held in Las Vegas, even better!  And with high school right around the corner followed by college, who knows, maybe there’s a future in paintball for Austin…

Shameless plugs: Thanks to Tanks Paintball for helping Austin with the sport and Pro Edge Paintball for assisting Austin with his gear.  And to both, for taking my money!

1. Check Your Car

The first step and arguably the most important is to make sure you car can safely drive to your destination. This includes tire pressure, engine oil, wipers and wiper fluid, battery, and radiator coolant.  This is especially important if you have an older car.  Even if you drive your car everyday and it seems to run fine, it might not be able to handle the distance of a road trip.

2. Bring an Emergency Car Kit

If you failed to follow rule #1 or something unexpected like a flat tire occurred, it’s vital you have emergency car kit on board. Like a first-aid kit for your car, this could save you in desperate situations. Tools to include are:

- Duct Tape: Can temporarily fix a broken window wiper, hold glass together, mend a broken hose, etc….

- Tools: Wrench, Screwdriver, pliers, and a socket wrench.

- Booster Cables: To jump a dead battery

- Emergency Flashlight/Flares: To see around at night, and attract help.

3. First Aid Kit

If your car was damaged or broken down, there is a good chance you will have to wait sometime before help arrives, especially on road trips where help is hundreds of miles away. If you are driving with multiple people, like children, safety should be the first priority. It’s is important to have an adequate first-aid kit on hand to help if there are any injuries. Bandages, antibiotic cream, aspirin, ice-packs, alcohol wipes, and a first aid instruction book, are some basic materials you should have.

4. Don’t Just Pack a Picnic

Just because you brought road snacks doesn’t mean you can survive off them for several days. Many people will bring food that goes bad if not kept in ice, and during the summer the heat will turn these foods stale quickly. Snacks like trail mix are good but you can’t assume you are prepared because you have some food.

- Naturally, the first thing you will think of is water. It is important to have back up jugs or bladders of water at about a 3 gallon per person per day ratio.

- Energy Bars: powerbars, granola bars, and my personal favorite, cliff bars.

- Dehydrated food: While they might not be consumed at all during your trip, these meals can easily be made on a pinch, and are light/small enough to be packed into your trunk.

*Emergency food/water you pack should be considered off limits unless of an emergency. If you include the food you plan on eating with your emergency food, you won’t have nearly enough food to survive for multiple days.

5. Know the Road

Do you know multiple ways to get to your vacation? With construction and traffic you might be forced to take an alternate path. Make sure you plan your trip through Google Maps and bring an atlas, so in case you can’t get internet, you have a back up copy. Also make sure you know the nearest town/city to find help at all times during the trip. This doesn’t have to be a boring task, plan your route with the intention of seeing cool sites and having fun but always be aware of your surroundings.