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A few of my favorite Arabic words (in no particular order)

1. اسد - asad (to display the courage of a lion)
2. صلف - salif (someone with swag)
3. مفلح - muflih (someone who is successful, lucky.. based off a verb to plow, work the land… awesome)
4. خميس - khamees (Thursday.. based on khmsa.. or “five” as in fifth day, and its fun to say)
5. عمارية - ‘amariyah (a virgin riding a camel into battle) 

A few of my favorite English words (in no particular order):

1. cartouche
2. savage
3. wanderlust
4. baccarat
5. parsimonious 

Five Lessons I’ve learned from riding a bicycle

1. Don’t be a jerk.
2. Instead of getting upset over others, set the example.
3. There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing or fender choices.
4. Be proactive, not reactive.
5. Smile, you’re on a bike and it’s awesome.

Things I bought today:

1. Pearl Izumi Rain Jacket Barrier
2. First to the Line (Bike Racing Card Game)

Very stoked for them both.

Five Random Facts:

1. I lettered in Ice Hockey in high school. I played goalie.
2. I love the sound of bricks hitting other bricks.
3. On my desk are two Spy-vs-Spy bobble-heads.
4. I spent eight years in the Navy and never went out to sea.
5. I once broke my foot dancing.

My favorite cycling races…

I’ve been watching highlights of Spring classics for the last hour and wanted to make my top 5 cycling races:

1. Paris-Roubaix
2. Giro d’Italia
3. Hour Record
4. Ronde van Vlaanderen
5. Kierin racing (in Japan, not Olympics)

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Goals for Winter Break:

1. Start base training. 1 hour of cycling training a day (weights, rollers, or running)
2. Lose 3-5% body fat
3. 1 hour of Arabic reading/transcription a day
4. Read Richard Clarke’s Cyber War: The Next Threat to National Security and What to Do About It, George Tenet’s memoirs - At the Center of the Storm: My Years at the CIA, and reread Michael Scheuer’s Imperial Hubris, maybe sneak in W’s Decision Points too
5. Write every other day 350-500 words about counterterrorism, Islam or military action in the ME
6. Find pillow cases

GTD: Weekend Edition

1. Tonight: 10k run
2. Tomorrow: OSU v Penn State, have some whiskey with thebikenerd
3. Day after tomorrow: Infirmity Mound Cyclocross race

This week…

• Return of college football (OSU v Marshall, Thursday)
• Off-season training (starting Wednesday)
• Back on a more “controlled” diet
• Try to get an EP for a Blue Competition cyclocross bike
• Finish “This Side of Paradise”

My goals for this quarter:

1. Learn to solidify good language study habits and engulf myself in Arabic colloquialisms.
2. Read “This Side of Paradise” and “Ulysses” for fun.
3. Develop into a decent local cyclocross racer.
4. Increase my squats by 25 pounds.
5. See one ocean.