FROM GOOD OLE UNCLE VIC

March 2007

   Well, it looks like March is coming in like a lion. Let's hope it goes out like a lamb! Actually, I am grateful for the cold weather. Lynne and I got snowed in at Charleston on Sunday, February 25 because Reagan International in D.C. was closed due to weather. We were down there for Jon's last home game of the season at The Citadel. Since we couldn't get out until late Monday night and we were planning on going back down for the first game of his conference tournament on Wednesday, we decided to just stay down there instead. We had a wonderful mini-vacation. All because of the ice and snow up north. It was in the 70's each day. And I was thinking of you guys the entire time. Not!

   The answer to last month's trivia question, who did Shakespeare call "the noblest Roman of them all? Yes, it was in his play, Julius Caesar, but it was not Caesar! It was one of his assassins, Brutus. Why? Because of all of the conspirators, Brutus was the only one that did not do it for personal gain but for what he thought was in the best interest of Rome. Those that got it right were: Shannon Davis, Pam Monacelli, Laurie DeHoff, Blakely Agnone, Josh Gerber, John Krainer, Joan Bennett, Matt Whelan, Jenna Sunday, Jeff Campognone & Jess Sheffield.

   This month's trivia question: Of what were Washington's dentures made? Again, please email your answers to Lisa at Lisa.Hemovich@BrickBodies.com. To see what people wrote, go to www.BrickBodies.com/Vicblog. Feel free to add your own.

   As I said, Lynne and I got "stuck" in Charleston this past week. As luck would have it, Lynne's parents, Tony and Cecelia Grandi, were with us on the trip. We actually had a great visit with them and Jon. Lynne's aunt and uncle, Joni and Paul Hopkins, came up from Aiken, South Carolina on Saturday to see the game as well. When we couldn't fly out on Sunday evening, we simply checked back into the hotel and determined to enjoy our time in Charleston. On Monday we did a little more sightseeing and then we took our good friend, Sandy Unitas out to lunch at SNOBS (Slightly North of Broad Street) and had a delightful time. Later that day we took Lynne's parents to the airport as they had not intended to stay for the conference tournament and we were left by ourselves to enjoy the city.

   I was in hogs' heaven. Charleston is steeped in history and played a vital role in both the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. As most of you know, the first shots of the Civil War were fired on Fort Sumter, in Charleston Harbor... by a Citadel cadet, I might add! On Sunday we had visited Fort Sumter with Lynne's parents. On Tuesday we visited Battery Wagner, made famous by the movie, Glory, where the all-black regiment, the Massachusetts 54th made a valiant ill-fated attempt to storm the Confederate earthworks. We toured the Historic Exchange building where George Washington once spoke and where Stede Bonnet, the "Gentleman Pirate", was incarcerated before they hung him on September 10, 1718! On Wednesday we visited Fort Moultrie, sight of a great Revolutionary War victory over the British fleet.

   And in between we worked. I answered e-mails, created a killer marketing campaign for our new Positive Changes Weight Loss Program, created some other great ads, solved several pressing issues with the clubs and completed several key projects on my to-do list. In addition I came back rejuvenated and refreshed.

   I know some people say you should not do any work while you are on vacation, and for traditional, planned vacations, I agree. But there is a lot to be said about small get-aways and mini-vacations where you get away, clear your mind and let your imagination take over. You are able to think more clearly, see the big picture better and let your instincts take over. Often situations that have been clouded in mystery become clear to you and the required course of action is revealed.

   I think many of us are overworked and are overwhelmed by our day-to-day responsibilities. We are constantly so busy stamping out fires that we are often ineffective. In addition, our creativity is stifled because we are constantly in a left-brain mode. It is physiological as well as psychological.

   Sometimes a change of scenery is exactly what the doctor ordered. Ideally, you would get away to where you would have limited access to your cell phone and to the insidious computer and its nefarious offspring, e-mail.

   It doesn't take much. A two or three day respite is all you need. I can't tell you how much better I feel after our little mini-vacation.

   I intend to incorporate mini get-aways into my schedule regularly. And I am not going to wait until I have the time. I am going to make the time. I really did not have the time to hang out in Charleston for three days. We have just opened a club, we are negotiating for the opening of another club (see Brick Bodies at Green Spring Station on our web site), it is the busy time of the year in the health club business, and our Les Mills Mid-Atlantic choreographed group exercise division is really building momentum. But I am glad I did. Sometimes the time you need a break the most is when you are the busiest. I am sure I will be more productive now that I am rejuvenated.

   What is the moral of the story? Pace yourself. Take time to smell the roses. Or, in my case, visit the forts. Work regular retreats, road trips, get-aways and mini-vacations into your schedule. Use the time to rejuvenate, get creative, solve big-picture issues and develop strategies, new paradigms and long range plans. And don't feel guilty about taking the time off. You need it. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY