Book ~ "Another Shot: How I Relived My Life in Less Than a Year" - Joe Kita (2001)

From Amazon.com ~ As he approached 40, veteran journalist Kita decided to revisit his greatest missed opportunities. It's a terrific conceit and, within the limits of his 20 specific regrets (from "losing my hair" to "working my life away"), Kita pulls it off with wit and aplomb.

After two months of conditioning, he works out with his alma mater's high school basketball team and is told that this time he wouldn't have been cut. He and his wife attend a workshop for lovers (for which he happily paid $1,000 and would do so again before spending another $10 on a Viagra pill), allowing them to have "the best sex of our married lives and with each other, no less." They also renew their vows in a ceremony far more satisfying than their overstressed wedding. Even when his quests don't pan out, Kita finds peace: so what if he can't recover that first Camaro or if that woman he was too shy to approach in college won't return his letter?

Basically a happy guy, Kita doesn't often stray toward seriousness, though he laments not having said good-bye to his father, who died at 62 (and tries to revisit him via a psychic); he also takes a day trip with his Mom to try to repair some long-standing rifts. In his conclusion, Kita lists some regrets he hasn't yet pursued that might make for a deeper challenge.

This book caught my eye at the library ... it sounded like an interesting premise.

I enjoyed the writing style and the stories. I'd definitely recommend it!

My favourite missed opportunities? Chapter 16: Not being a real man (he did a survival camp ... I can't imagine being left alone for two days!), Chapter 18: Mistreating a dog (made me hug my dog and cats), and Chapter 19: Not having a hero (he worked out with Jack LaLanne).

Would I want to relive any of my "missed opportunities"? No way ... my experiences are what make me who I am today. How about you?

I'll leave you with a quote that resonnated with me from his story about trying to find his first car ... I'll have realized a long time ago that it's only where you are and where you are heading that matters. So true!