Farmer's Markets

My coworkers and I discovered a small farmer's market in town last weekend. Not only was it a fun adventure, the vegetables were so cheap! Nothing beats fresh fruit and veggies and when you add that we found kale for $1 a bunch, that just makes it even better! So naturally we went back this weekend. I was able to get 2 bunches of kale and 2 cucumbers for $3. I am pretty sure that would have easily been at least $6-8 at the grocery store!

Eating healthy is oftentimes hard, especially when we are balancing life, school, work, family, friends, and anything else that we might have going on - and you aren't the only one! Everyone has the exact same problem! Take an hour out of your crazy life to do something easy, relaxing, and fun. A farmer's market is an easy way to get a lot of shopping done quickly and cheaply. It's a fun way to eat healthy on a budget, AND it supports your local farmers. Keep it local and support your home economy! We even walked in the rain and so added a little bit of exercise and friends into our day.

Nectarine Salad

So I am moving soon and I am on a mission to eat everything in my fridge before this happens, because you know, less to move...anyways, I have been making and eating some interesting things lately. Today it is approximately 90 degrees and most of my food that doesn't require cooking has been eaten already - go figure. So unfortunately I did have to turn the oven on, but this was well worth it! It is basically nectarines and blue cheese and it was quite yummy! The original recipe is from Bobby Flay and Food Network and involved a grill, which I don't currently have. I would love to try it with the grill. I have one more nectarine, so I very well might be trying this again tomorrow!

Happy Eating!

Multi Tasking

So a new thing in my life is health. I think this is a common thing among all 20-somethings as well as the current popular opinion. Either fortunately or unfortunately, I am also studying for licensing exams which means that I either have a lot of boredom to work through or no time at all to impinge on with my new health "craze." (Keep in mind that I am not at all "crazed" compared to a lot of people that I know.) So how do you balance this? As usual, by multi-tasking.

- Sit in the sun to study - this helps get some much needed vitamin D. Did you know that the majority of American adults are deficient in Vitamin D? Did you know that you need adequate Vitamin D levels to properly absorb calcium to keep your bones and teeth strong? Even when studying, you can still enjoy the outdoors and get some much needed Vitamin D (and a tan!) Just don't forget the sunscreen! We don't want any sunburns here.

- Take notes on the treadmill, bicycle, or elliptical. This works especially well if you have mnemonics to memorize.

- Walk to the grocery store, or ride your bike. Everyone needs to eat! Eating at home is healthier than going out, it is therapeutic, and tastes delicious! Getting to the store by walking or riding limits the amount of groceries you can buy - which does mean that you will need to make more trips overall, but fresh food gets eaten before it goes bad because you bought less of it! And if your grocery is about a mile from where you live, like mine is, that is a 2 mile walk right there! Now you don't even need to go to the gym.

- Take study breaks. Unfortunately, our brains do need a break every few hours. So take 20 minutes and rest! If you get restless like me, add some pushups or sit-ups or something into the break time to mix things up and get your blood moving!

Ski Bum

Disclaimer: this blog post is going to be a bit like the last one.

So for those of you who don't know this story, I will give you a summary of it:
I grew up skiing, not every weekend like some kids but enough that my Baba bought my sister and I our own gear. Now we went skiing with him a few times a year until his knees stopped letting him go - which conveniently coincided with our gear no longer really fitting properly. After that, I hadn't gone skiing again until 2 years ago - and I was completely and utterly terrified. I wasn't scared because I didn't know how to ski (muscle-memory is really an amazing phenomenon!), instead I was scared because I had somehow developed an irrational fear of falling off the face of the mountain.

Yes, I understand that this fear was irrational and to those of you who don't know much about fears - do NOT EVER try to logic someone out of an irrational fear. It doesn't help, and will probably make it worse.

Needless to say, even though my ski buddy was so kind to me, I still felt that day that I was holding him back and that he really would rather be skiing somewhere else. And I couldn't help how scared I was and I couldn't get over it. (Looking back on it, I think I tried to force myself to get over it, and that also made it worse.)

So the other day, I decided that, buddy or not, I was going skiing and I was going to conquer my fear. I ended up having a friend to go with who had only skied twice and he was probably the best ski buddy I could have asked for because we were about at the same level and I could go at a slower pace and not feel as though I was holding anyone back. And you know what? I was a little nervous, but I was never scared. I now feel as though I could totally go back, and enjoy myself again, I just have to remember to stay within my limits and comfort level - and maybe be more careful of whom I pick to accompany me.

At some point, I told M that "there are some days where I am really glad that I'm not the same person I was two years ago, and today is one of those days." Now, I don't know if M really needed to hear that, but it was good for me to say out loud. Because I realized that this ski trip was only partly about proving to myself that I can ski and that I'm not afraid. It was also about proving to myself that I'm a whole person who is strong and independent and can make decisions on her own and doesn't need to be helped through life.

My entire life I was told that I was confident and very grown up for someone my age. And in the last 2 years I have felt like I was anything but that. Don't ever take who you are for granted, constantly develop yourself and give yourself opportunities to grow, because you won't ever grow if you don't take chances. You might be hurt worse than you ever could have imagined, but you also might find that you are stronger and more confident and more sure of yourself than you ever imagined you could be. Only in change does one truly live. Biologically speaking, if your body stopped changing (stopped metabolizing food, stopped growing, stopped healing, etc), you would be dead. The same is true for your soul - you have to give it the opportunity to learn and grow or you will only be moving backwards and unhappiness and discontentment will follow. So, even when times get tough, remember that "even if you fall flat on your face, at least you are moving forward" (Viktor Kiam).

All You Gotta Do Is Hang On...

I am a runner. I am one of the "few" people in this world that can honestly say that I like to run. I have quote books filled with quotes about running, 90% of which I have used in normal conversation and 99% of which I wholeheartedly agree. And I truly think that "running is the greatest metaphor for life, because you get out of it what you put into it." But lately? Lately, I've been rock climbing - indoor bouldering, to be exact.

My friend took me to a wall a few years back and I decided I really liked it. At the time, it was challenging yet relaxing, social, fun, and you could get a really good work-out in less than an hour. I never went very often but always wished I could go more. So when my parents bought me a membership to a climbing gym and a pair of climbing shoes for my birthday this year - I was very excited.

And today, while climbing, I discovered something. No, I can not yet effectively climb upside down like you always see in National Geographic style pictures and I'm really nowhere near to being that good. I discovered that I'm stronger than I was last week. Because I got up a little higher and around a curve that I couldn't quite master then. Now, this curve: the first time I climbed around it, a coach had a hand on my back to remind me that he was there and he wouldn't let me fall. Last week, I climbed by myself and couldn't quite figure it out - plus I was nervous, and that nervousness caused me to not trust myself or the wall. This week? I got myself up and around this curve no problem! Now, I got up to the top and couldn't quite figure out where to go next because I was actually rather surprised that I was there, but that is beside the point. What I realized through this discovery was that I'm stronger.

Now, I've decided that, while running is a great metaphor for life (and comes with far more inspirational quotes than rock climbing does), bouldering is a pretty good place to unearth life lessons as well because, unlike many other sports, if you fall, you could be seriously injured (or die if you're crazy enough to be that good). I climbed that corner today because I was stronger - but I wasn't just physically stronger either, although I'm sure that was part of it. Sometimes strength means conquering your fears - you could fall off that wall flat onto your back...but then again, maybe not - and you will never overcome your fears if you don't challenge them and put them to the test. Sometimes strength means believing in yourself, believing that you can do something that that sinister voice in your brain says you can't. Today, I believed I could do it, I wasn't scared to try, and the I physical strength to follow-through, along with a trust and a faith in my own abilities.

I was stronger, so what? I climbed the corner, so what? Climbing a 10-foot wall in a gym isn't life! There are mats on the ground to protect you if you fall for Pete's Sake! But maybe that's what life is. Being physically, mentally, and emotionally strong enough to challenge yourself and win. And trusting that, even though "the higher you climb, the farther you fall," there will always be someone there to catch you because that's what friends (and family) are for.

Goals

I never thought very highly of goal-setting. Yes, I know, they are supposed to be a way of focusing your life and staying motivated and there are these bogus "statistics" that say people who set goals are more likely to achieve them...or something. But I'm one of those people who re-evaluates my life constantly, so setting S.M.A.R.T goals was really just a lot of extra work that I didn't (don't) have time for.

However, I took a class this semester where we did goal setting at the beginning and end of the semester and then compared them. We had to write 1-year and 5-year personal goals and professional goals. At the end of the semester, I felt rather justified in my lack of goal-setting practice, because my goals 1) hadn't changed drastically from beginning to end of the semester and 2) the only one that had, I could have totally told you that my thoughts had changed, without comparing the written down goals - I know myself pretty well, thank you very much!

During this process, though, I realized that the professional goals were easy - those are the things that I have been generally working towards my whole life, if not at least the past 8 years. The personal ones though, now those were hard. (Partly because I didn't feel like "get married" was an appropriate long-term personal goal to write down for a leadership class. Not to mention, it's nearly impossible to predict and plan for something like that.) But I was driving home from yoga tonight (yes, yoga, I had to swallow whatever pride I carry around and tell my mom that she "won" and yoga actually made my back feel better - I've been fighting her on this for...'round about 13 years) but I was driving home from yoga and realized that I do have a goal - to feel better about my life. This has been my goal for the last 2 years - as I'm sure if you've read much of this blog, you probably could have guessed. But to get a grip, grow up, and be content and happy.

Now, I am naturally an extremely patient person, but when it comes to myself, I think I can get things done quickly and get very frustrated when I can't. That is also part of this goal. My goal is:

Be completely healthy in mind, body, and spirit, in one year.

That is my true "1-year personal goal" Dr. Robinson, I hope you are happy. So here is my explanation:

- One year because, as much as I hate to admit it, these things take time and I have to accept that. My previous attempts that amounted to "next month," "when school starts," and various versions of "tomorrow" have not worked and were a result of me wanting to force my emotions into submission which is not really very healthy overall. One year will make it so I do not try to rush this process because, after all, you can't rush perfection. :)

- Mind, body, and spirit - because all good things come in threes, and "three is a magic number," but also because these three aspects of a person are so intertwined that they really can't be distinguished, and because if I want to be the best Me that I can be, all three of these need to be in one-piece.

So here is to a journey, and may the journey be as valuable as the destination. 

Bloomsday

I ran Bloomsday today with my little. Now, I have this goal of running a half-marathon in October, but I got sick a few months ago and never re-started. So running 7.5 miles on no training is really a stupid decision. However, it was fun, and although I hurt and I will hurt worse tomorrow, I don't regret it at all! In light of all this, I would like to impart some wisdom in the form of running quotes (*note, I am not responsible for the accuracy of the authors as most of these were found via the internet):

1. "Even if you fall flat on your face, at least you are moving forward." - Sue Luke

2. There are two kinds of people: those who run, and those who should.

3. The greater the challenge, the greater the glory. (Not necessarily about running, but can apply to all aspects of life.)

4. "You shall run and not grow weary, you shall walk and not grow faint." - Isaiah 40:31

5. It doesn't matter if you win or lose, it's how you play the game.

6. "Top results are reached only through pain. But eventually you like this pain. You'll find the more difficulties you have on the way, the more you will enjoy your success." - Juha Vaatainen

7. "Running is a lot like life. Only 10% of it is exciting. 90% of it is slog and drudge." - Dave Bedford

8. "Sports do not build character. They reveal it." - John Wooden

9. Cross-country, finally, a good use of golf courses! (No, offense to my golf-liking readers.)

10. Running is 90% mental, the rest is physical.

11. While running, it is rude to count the people you pass out loud.

12."Most people race to see who is the fastest, I race to see who has the most guts." - Prefontaine

13. "Running is a lot like life, it's a long journey but well worth it."

14. "Anyone can run 100 meters...it's the next 4900 that count."

15. "Some people don't have the guts for distance racing. The polite term for them is 'sprinters.'"

16. "Bid me run and I will strive for things impossible." -Shakespeare

17. "Running is the greatest metaphor for life, because you get out of it what you put into it." - Oprah

18. "Records are made to be broken."

19. "It hurts up to a point and then it doesn't get any worse." -Ann Trason

20. Running is real and relatively simple - but it ain't easy.

21. To a runner, a side stitch is like a car alarm. It signifies something is wrong, but you ignore it until is goes away.

22. Life is short...running makes it seem longer. (*But not if you run with good friends - they make everything go faster!)

23. "Running is a mental sport...and we are all insane."

24. Date a runner, everyone else is a player.

25. Our speed team has a cross-country problem.

26. Cross-country...no half times, no timeouts, no substitutions...the only true sport.

27. "If you run 100 miles a week, you can eat anything you want. - why? Because a) you'll burn all the calories you consume, b) you deserve it, and c) you'll be injured soon and back on a restricted diet anyway." - Don Kardong

28. "Why your legs, stomach, chest, arms, and head hurt, and you feel like you're going to die, then you know you are ready to start the second mile." (*This is so true. You will almost never feel as bad as you feel after 1 mile into your run.)

29. "Just want to make sure it's living hell for anyone out there who's going to beat me." - Ken Souza

30. "No negative thoughts cross my mind on race day. When I look into their eyes, I know I'm going to beat them." - Danny Harris

31. "You don't run against a bloody stopwatch, do you hear? A runner runs against himself, against the best that's in him. Not against a dead thing of wheels and pulleys. That's the way to be great, running against yourself. Against all the rotten mess in the world. Against God, if you're good enough." - Bill Persons

32. "Racing teaches us to challenge ourselves. It teaches us to push beyond where we thought we could go. It helps us to find out what we are made of. This is what we do. This is what it's all about." - Patti Sue Plumer

33. "Your toughness is made up of equal parts persistence and experience. You don't so much outrun your opponents as outlast and outsmart them, and the toughest opponent of all is the one inside your head." - Joe Henderson

34. "The miles can build you up or the miles can wear you down, it's all about how you approach it." - Josh Cox

35. "If you can't win, make the fellow ahead of you break the record."

36. These are the times that try men's soles.

37. "Champions do not become champions when they win the event, but in the hours, weeks, months, and year they spend preparing for it. The victorious performance itself it merely the demonstration of their championship character." - T. Alan Armstrong

38. "The five S's of sports training are: stamina, speed, strength, skill, and spirit; but the greatest of these is spirit." - Ken Doherty

39. "If God invented marathons to keep people from doing anything more stupid, the triathalon must have taken Him completely by surprise." - P.Z. Pearce

40. "The gun goes off and everything changes...the world changes...and nothing else really matters." - Patti Sue Plummer

41. "It's at the borders of pain and suffering that the men are separated from the boys." - Emil Zatropek (*Again, about more than just running.)

42. "Somewhere in the world someone is training when you are not. When you race him, he will win." - Tom Fleming

43. Cross-country philosophy...the faster you run the faster you're done."

44. "Run like hell and get the agony over with." - Clarence DeMar

45. "We are different, in essence, from other men. If you want to win something, run 100 meters. If you want to experience something, run a marathon." - Emil Zatopek

46. "Running is like mouthwash; if you can feel the burn, it's working." - Brain Tackett


You're welcome.

Dove Real Beauty Sketches

So this is a picture of me. This particular blog post is based on this video. It is the Dove Real Beauty sketches. I highly suggest that you watch it, but if you don't have time for that, here is a summary: basically, a forensic artist (never having seen any of these women) draws them based on their descriptions of themselves and each other. So first they go in and describe themselves and then they describe the assigned person they met in the waiting room. These women were so hard on themselves, and so critical that the drawings of the self-descriptions were terrible and very sad looking. On the other hand, the drawings from the descriptions of someone else were beautiful and a whole heck of a lot more accurate to real life. Crazy!

I've never had bad self-esteem and am usually not overly critical of myself, but I figured I would try it - and be as not-negative as possible. So I've included the picture so as to keep myself honest.

1. I have pretty short hair, bob-style that comes down to between my chin and shoulders and has quite a few layers in it. I have bangs that swoop to the right from a part on the left middle. Sometimes the bangs kinda swoop upwards first and then down, and sometimes they swoop right across my forehead...not sure why the difference happens, must depend on the day.
2. My hair is brown but I have found all different colors in it and recently it has this red tint to it that comes out in certain lights. It is pretty smooth and shiny.
3. My eyebrows are relatively big, but not bushy and my eyes squint pretty bad when I smile really big. My eyes are brown and everyone says they sparkle when I smile. My Baba used to say I had "smiling eyes."
4. I wear glasses that have black rims, they are square-ish.
5. I think my nose is normal...it's not really thin or really fat either. My sister says that I flair my nostrils when I talk, but I don't know about that.
6. My teeth are white and straight due to the nice orthodontia work I had done when I was little.
7. My skin is pretty pale and my cheeks slightly rosy.
8. There is this diamond-like crease around my mouth when I smile - I will probably get laugh lines there someday.
9. My lips are light pink and are in the middle as far as shape goes - not super puffy, but not really thin either.

I feel like if someone was drawing a picture of me, that might not be a very good description, but I guess I would need more questions to answer. It's kind of hard to describe yourself completely, I'm sure there are a whole bunch of things that I didn't think of or that my friends would add. Again, I hope you watch the video, and don't be too hard on yourself. Believe them when your friends tell you that you are beautiful - because it's true.