No one ever achieves everything they wanted to do in their lifetime. That’s not me saying it’s impossible or to not ‘dream big’, but I would be the first one to admit that I haven’t reached it.

I certainly feel blessed to be in the position that I am in and in the country that offers me the kinds of opportunities to even try to achieve something in my life. Things certainly could be worse if you’re paying attention to current events and seeing how they are or will impact you.

Why am I, a ‘Sports Guy’ rambling on about achievement and current events in a post titled Happy Birthday? In the past I’ve written about my impending 30th birthday and how I like many dread it. I used to have fun with these posts and talk about so many exciting things that I wanted to do and bring to you the reader. That’s not to say I still don’t have many new and exciting things to share with you, but I look at my birthday now as a philosopher and reflect on my life so far.

I used to think that when you were about to graduate high school it was a sign that you were becoming an adult. Not anymore. I see it now that the years 20-29 as the most important years of a persons life. Having a job, going to college, figuring out who you want to be. Those are the years in which you truly find yourself and you begin to take shape.

I’m not going to go on and divulge my past experiences because I know that you all have had similar ones and don’t want to hear some guy go on about his. What I will tell you though is if you take some time and go over some of those moments in life, even the littlest ones, there are some that affected you in the deepest way possible. They could have been happy, sad, terrifying or surprising, but they made you into who you are today. It’s a good exercise for me in my down time to think about the past and to keep myself afloat amidst some bumps in the road.

Know your history. That’s not just your country’s history, but you yourself. Get the whole story. You don’t have to write a biography or a memoir, but keep reminding yourself of what makes you you. I stumbled upon this kind of mental exercise a few years ago and it is quite fascinating to know how I became me. Not just as a ‘Sports Guy’, but as a son, brother, uncle, cousin and friend.

Life is good and I couldn’t be better. The picture with this post is an indication of something that I used to do for quite some time and will be doing once again.

As a promise to myself some years ago I will be doing a podcast that will start before the year is out. So those that are tired of reading my rants can hear me via iTunes not too long from now.

My NFL previews will be coming down the pipe throughout the month of August. With football coming back that means my ‘Week in Review’ posts will return as well for those who miss any of the action during the season. The NHL and NBA seasons will be starting as well. There’s even Baseball in October.

Rest assured that 2014 still has plenty of life left in it. Thanks for continuing to check in and have a look around. Plenty more to come in the very near future.