Use your Time Wisely

Weekly Update 4/9/2023 to 4/15/2023 #168

Twenty-three years ago I purchased a shirt on a mountain bike trip to Moab, Utah that read “Choose your sick days wisely.” Before I explain why this shirt is on my mind, let me share some of my week serving as mayor of the best smalltown in America.

Like last week, some of my time was spent talking to students here in Seymour. This time, it was a visit to Mr. Zakrzewski’s classroom to talk about our community and my role in it. We discussed how one of their fellow classmates, Paul Montgomery, had asked for Seymour to become a Tree City and the steps we had to take to recently reach that status. We talked about his ongoing role in that process as he became a member of the Tree Board. We also discussed how I had to work on securing funding for the designation through a couple of outside sources that have become great partners along the way. This visit also gave me a chance to discuss the Mayor’s Youth Council, which will be coming back for its fourth school year this fall. Registration is opening soon for all incoming high school Freshmen through Seniors who might be interested. Thank you, Mr. Zakrzewski, for the chance to come to speak to our future leaders. 

Seymour Parks and Recreation board met last week to go over a long list of agenda items. One of the new items on the agenda was a request for new programming with Kevin Zarate from Crave Nutrition to host Fit Camp at Gaiser Park on Tuesdays and Saturdays. Through a partnership with Su Casa, we are also now going to be offering a Wednesday night Zumba option at Crossroads Park. These free exercise options will be a good addition to our parks programming and, I hope area residents will see them as a good chance to use some of their valuable time to improve themselves. Thank you to the leaders of these fun exercise options and congratulations to Program Director Chad Keithley on reaching over 100 program options for our community members of all ages to enjoy. 

Wednesday morning this week, I spent time with the crew out at Water Pollution Control learning how to locate and replace a bad section of the sewer main. Hydro excavation was a new experience for me, and thanks to the work of the locate crew, I was able to find the pipe on the first try just five to six feet below the surface. Of course, finding it was just the first of many steps before the job was finished. Each time I visit I pick up a little more and am able to be a little more helpful without as much direction. Thank you, guys, for not only maintaining our system but for teaching me on my visits.

Guess it is time to get back to that decades-old holey t-shirt that I can’t bring myself to get rid of. It doesn’t see much use anymore, but every morning it is a reminder to use my time wisely. To make sure that I enjoy the day as much as possible because we only have so much time before we shuffle off this mortal coil. It reminds me to not only put my time in at work but to spend time with family and friends when I can. Remembering to keep my work-home life balance in check. It feels like just yesterday that we were new parents bringing our oldest daughter home, and later this year, she will be getting married. It feels like a day or two ago that I was sworn in as a member of the Common Council for district three, and here I am now in the fourth year of serving as mayor of our amazing city. Author Harvey Mackay had this to say about time and I hope it helps remind you to use your time wisely, "Time is free, but it's priceless. You can't own it, but you can use it. You can't keep it, but you can spend it. Once you've lost it you can never get it back."

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