Sergeant Tony's Blog

Last week I involved you in a couple of “visions” of mine. A sailboat and some attendance goals for Boot Camp.

99% of you who wrote back were excited about my process of “visioning” and visualization … hopes and dreams! You’ve had fun with it.

One Boot Camper thought about my sailboat while he was giving his children a bath and they had a toy sailboat in the tub, among all of their other toys! “I sure hope Tony gets a bigger sailboat than this!” he said.

One of you, a member of the 0645 class (which is currently on hiatus) attempted to use email hypnosis to get me to start that class back up. “You’re getting sleepy … you’re thinking about the 0645 class … you LOVE the 0645 class … you want to start the 0645 class back up!” He has written me back several times since then with emails that simply say. “0645 Class!” hahahaha

Others have told me that every time they’ve seen a boat of any kind they’ve been thinking about my sailboat. I’ve heard about sailboats for sale! And I know that I’ll have one soon!! I’ve also heard about visions of me in a pink tutu.

Now, let me explain something. I could go down to the sailboat store today and buy a little sailboat, hire someone to teach me to sail on Saturday, and by Sunday I could be Jack Sparrow, CAPTAIN Jack Sparrow! But where’s the adventure in THAT? That’s mundane and ordinary. Others would call it carnal and worldly. I’m depending on the spirit and energy of shared positive visions to open up exciting and interesting doors! I can’t wait!

I don’t believe that a single person who read last week’s newsletter has been singularly focused on my visions and my dreams and my goals to the exclusion of their own! I rather suspect that the average reader quit thinking about my sailboat within seconds of reading about it. Shame on you!!!

One of my favorite people in the Old Testament is Joseph. His story is pretty incredible. He was the guy who had that coat of many colors. Hated by his jealous brothers and sold into slavery by them, he ended up as a servant in the home of a wealthy Egyptian, Potepher.

Mr. Potepher had a beautiful wife who was sexually interested in Joseph. One day when her husband wasn’t around, Mrs. Potepher attempted to seduce Joseph … but to no avail. Joseph was a man of character and integrity and he resisted her. Scorned, Mrs. Potepher ran through the house screaming to all of the other servants and staff and accusing Joseph of attempted rape.

What happened after that?

Dude was thrown in jail. Falsely accused and falsely imprisoned in a foreign jail. No advocate. No lawyer trying to get him out on appeal. No family to believe in him. No one to visit him. He was all alone. But he remained faithful and positive. He had a vision of his own life and his future.

Eventually Joseph was released from jail after he asked one of his fellow prisoners, a servant of Pharaoh who was about to be released, to not forget about him when he got out. “Hey man, listen … when you get out and back up in Pharaoh’s house, don’t forget about me, OK?” But the servant DID forget about him … for 3 more years. Three years later, when a crisis arose and Pharaoh needed a dreamer to help interpret his dreams and the servant finally remembered Joseph in prison. Joseph had a knack for dream analysis! So, at the urging of the servant who’d been in jail with Joseph, Pharaoh called for Joseph to be brought from the prison to give him counsel.

There is lots more to the story, but Joseph was released and became second in command in all of Egypt after he gave Pharaoh excellent counsel that day!

Joseph asked a friend to remember his vision, his vision to get out of jail! The friend was forgetful and it took three more years for him to “remember” his buddy in prison. But a shared vision got Joseph released and then elevated to second in command of all of Egypt!

Share your vision with others! Joseph did, and he was released and promoted. I did, and one day I’ll be flying the Skull and Crossbones from my own Black Pearl!

Share your vision with me! I’ll be happy to put out good thoughts and positive energy “out there” for you and your own vision!

Color your world in good thoughts, good things, and good intentions. Believe in your own vision and your own greatness! You can soar like an eagle or complain like the quacking of a duck.

Soar!

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Third Thursday at Mt. Fuji at 0530 — Tomorrow Morning

Our next trip to the mountain will be on Thursday, February 19. We’ll meet at 0530 at the Zach Curlin parking garage on the campus of the U of M.

NO 0530 class at Christ Methodist tomorrow, 19 February.

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SPRING HALF MARATHON TRAINING!

Half Marathon (13.1 miles) Training for the Country Music Half Marathon in Nashville on April 25, 2009 (or the Louisville Half Marathon or will continue at 0800 this coming Saturday, 21 February! We’ll meet in front of the Visitor’s Center at Shelby Farms.

Can you do this? I’ll bet you can!!!

If you can run 3 miles in 36 minutes or less, then you can do this!

Cost for the three month training is $100 for “friends” of Boot Camp and $75 for active duty BOOT CAMPERS!

All are welcome!

The training schedule is posted on the blog page of our website: http://usmcfitnessbootcamp.com/blog/

IF IT IS RAINING, WE’LL MEET AT THE ZACH CURLIN PARKING GARAGE AT THE U OF M!

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Sending Stuff to our Troops

BOOT CAMPER Tawnette Baker is involved with Make a Wish. Through her organization she is in contact with a school that is gathering up items to send to our troops in Afghanistan. The husband of one of the teachers from that school is in Afghanistan.

If you’ll bring needed items to Boot Camp, Tawnette will get them to the school for packing and mailing to Afghanistan.

I will post the list of needed items on the Boot Camp blog. http://usmcfitnessbootcamp.com/blog/

Thanks everyone!!

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Your Thoughts and Prayers

Our own Teri Trotter, some of you will know her as my 0830 assistant and teacher, is in need of your prayers and your positive energy. Teri has been diagnosed with breast cancer.

Her current prognosis is one that has a high success rate and the treatment is hoped to be one that will have the least amount of discomfort and pain. She feels fine right now. In fact, she taught the 0830 class and kicked everyone’s butt!

If you don’t know Teri, let me tell you a little bit about her: she is lovely, positive, energetic, driven, competitive and takes NO prisoners! She’s sort of our version of Jillian from The Biggest Loser, except Teri is meaner! I feel sorry for that cancer. He picked on the wrong chick!

Please hold Teri, her husband Brad, and their children Lanie and William in your thoughts and prayers!

You can read Teri’s story and sign her guestbook at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/teritrotter

Share in her vision of success and peace!

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Smile at someone today and see what happens. NO! Not that creepy smile! The good one!

To your continued good health and fitness,

Tony

Sergeant Major Tony Ludlow
USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, Commanding
4888 Southern Ave
Memphis, TN 38117
901-644-0145

www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com

www.shaklee.net/tonyludlow/main