Feel Good Post!

Namaste, fools.

I wanted to share some good Internet happiness today!

First up - this amazing video, where strangers meet in a dark room and talk... then the lights come on. "Labels are for cans, not for people."

This hilarious BuzzFeed post about why running is horrible, awful, no good, stay away. Enjoy the virtual giggle.

The fact that my high school cross country teammate Ryan Hill is going to the World Outdoor Championships! (Okay, so this happened a while ago, and I'm just now sharing it, but yay Ryan!) Does this make me famous by association?

A reminder that Ryan's fast is not my fast, my fast is not your fast, and your fast is not my fast. Yeah.
theBERRY

And then this is me as a pumpkin from 2007 during cross country season. Relevant.

And while this isn't an Internet find, another half marathon training cycle started for me yesterday (!) ... with a rest day. Killing it.

Happy Monday!

5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

Happy Friday, my dears! Time for a little countdown for the weekend.

5. The number of days until I fly to VISIT SAN DIEGO TO SEE JOE. I'll be there for the majority of July hooray, hooray, hoorayyyy.

Tough Mudder, November 2013. Paint, not blood.

Ohh, the differences in our lives...

4. The number of songs I'm currently obsessed with.

Please note: My blog is a judgement-free zone, thank you very much. And with that...

Skid Row - from Little Shop of Horrors (just smile and nod)
Love Runs Out - OneRepublic (little late on this bandwagon...)
World Championship Finale (2) - from Pitch Perfect 2 (the Bella's winning number ;) )
Platinum - Miranda Lambert (I'm brunette)

3. The number of pairs of shoes purchased recently.

New Balance 775s (left), New Balance Fresh Foams

I'm loving both of these pairs of shoes... which is nice, considering I had a near mental breakdown hoping they were good choices. The 775s took some runs to get used to, but the Fresh Foams felt as if I had been running in them my whole life (in a good way)! Also, I like how this picture makes them seem smaller... cough-I-wear-a-size-10.5/11-cough.

$8.50 from Old Navy, say whaaa!?

And the above are my other current loves. I don't run in those...

2. The number of salad pictures taken this week.

Spinach, tomatoes, onions, almonds, eggs, Sriracha.

Spinach, peas, corn, green beans, carrots, cottage cheese, tuna, BBQ sauce.

1. The number of months left until I start graduate school.

This has been a very weird time in limbo for me, and I'm ready to be done. If you recall, I graduated from undergrad with a BS in math, worked in DC for two years, then quit my job in May so I can start grad school (sport and exercise psychology, woop woop!) in August. For the time between, I have moved home to live with my parents. I guess in my mind I had this picture that coming home for this summer would be like coming home for some sort of break during college - all of my friends from high school would be around, and we'd play and laugh and la-dee-da forever and ever. Yeah, no, they aren't here. I've had travels to visit family, and I have my aforementioned long ass visit to California, and I've had occasional encounters with some other friends and acquaintances from my past, but I'm so ready to have structure again. Give me classes! Give me papers! Give me tests, exams, stress!

On second thought, keep the stress.

Pick a number and give me a fact! Please.

I want these, please.

Let's take a quick break from running, fitness, injuries, and food, and allow me to show you pretty things that I would like to have.

"No questions - get in the banana."

This is bread. This scares me... but not enough to keep me from wanting it.

That pool.

Except you can't have this AND a cat... good thing I don't have a cat.

Half whiskey, half frozen glass to keep it cold but not watered down!

I like all of this.

I never had a tree house, but I think this one would be the one I would have wanted.

Because food.

How adorable would this be hopping around your house!? And oh so flyyyyy.

All photos have been found via the wonderful, amazing, addicting site, theBERRY.

10 Pescetarian Points to Ponder

It's been about a month and a half of pescetarianism (word?), and I'd like to share some insight.

But first!

Shifting your diet is a big move, and I highly recommend doing so with a flexible attitude. Just know that you don't have anything to "prove" - if you choose to give up meat but then decide a few days/weeks/months later it's not for you, you didn't let anyone down, you aren't a failure, and no one can or should judge you.

That being said, allow me to enlighten you on a few things to remember before shooing away the furry and feathery protein crowd:

1. Realistically assess your favorite fast food restaurants. Chick-fil-A has the word CHICK in it for a reason. There is a void in my life that only a char-grilled sandwich can fill. Alas.
2. Have a conversation with the members of your household and their olfactory preferences. It's a new rule here that after I make my meals, all the trash goes into the street trashcan, not the kitchen one. 

   

   Mmm, dat smell.

3. If asked, you're a vegetarian. It's much easier than saying "pescetarian" and requested to explain.
4. However, although verbally you're a vegetarian, you can stray from veggie menus. Sometimes those menus won't have shit, but if you look at the normal one, it'll have some delicious seafood option that you can enjoy!
5. But on the flip side (again), Finding Nemo takes on a whole new meaning when trying to agree on a restaurant.

   

   We found food options for BOTH of us!? Totally excited.

6. Contrary to popular belief, you are NOT what you eat. I have yet to find any scales, fins, or gills on my body.
7. Your wallet will be a little lighter. $ seafood > $ deli. 
8. Beg ask your boyfriend not to boast about his new and improved buffalo wing sauce that you won't get to try on buffalo wings (not to say spicy tuna isn't a thing).
9. Obviously, you can get your protein from sources other than fish (cough - eggs, beans, and almonds - cough). 
10. Lastly, however you choose to classify yourself, don't let others classify you! 

    

    Nomz.

    Did I miss anything? ;)

Fun (and Debatably Weird and Unnecessary) Facts About Me

Random ramblings - kind of like two truths and a lie, but these are all truths.

1. I really like to eat in the shower and/or bathtub.

And sometimes I look this creepy doing it.

I'm not sure what it is - maybe the combination of two comfort activities - but I rather enjoy it. Tip: Try to finish your food before you clean yourself, else you're kind of countering the goal of bathing.

2. I'm a fan of cutting open bananas, stuffing some sort of chocolate item inside, and microwaving.

I realize this looks less than ap-PEAL-ing. Ha! Get it!?

And then BuzzFeed decided to try to one-up me on my genius-ness.

3. I hate beets.

How about 0 ways to eat NO beets, Suja? That didn't make sense...

4. For about 6 years, my favorite TV show was Survivor. Then they sort of changed the rules, the girls started wearing jewelry to challenges, and my childhood fantasy of people actually cast away on an island was ruined.

Outwit, outplay, outlast? More like outprimp, outflirt, outscript.

5. I once burned my leg pretty badly trying to use Veet.

This has scarred me for life; I will not use anything but a razor now.

6. Every year for Christmas, my mom gets me tampons as stocking stuffers.

7. I wear Chanel No. 5. No, it's not an old lady smell.

Timeless. And classy. My middle names.

8. My boyfriend and I have matching freckles near our eyes, which is sort of strange.

9. I have a "Read-the-Bible-in-2-Years" Bible, and I just got to Revelation. I'm stoked.

10. I have a tattoo of the symbol for pi on my foot.

I was a math major in college, but it has deeper meaning. Pi represents something seemingly perfect - the unit circle - but it itself isn't perfect; it goes on forever. It's kind of like us. We can try to represent something perfect (Jesus), but we will never be perfect ourselves.

Tell me something random!

10 Signs of the Hipster Gym Rat

You've heard of the "bro" - the muscle tanked, Friday-night-pre-drinking-weight-lifter grunting in the corner.

And then there's the "beauty queen" - music blaring, full face of makeup, going as fast as she possibly can, shaking the elliptical.

Well, rarely do you see the elusive "hipster gym rat." But if you ever did, here are some things you might encounter...

1. Gym selfies are taken with Polaroid cameras.
2. You have your iPod, they have their record players.
3. They curl with their biceps and handlebar mustaches.
4. They were planking before it was cool.
5. Their water bottles contain PBR.
6. Sets and reps are tracked on a typewriter.
7. Hipster gym rats run on the treadmill ironically.
8. They never work the leg press; skinny jeans won't allow for the movement.
9. Nor do they do push ups; their thick rimmed glasses always fall forward.
10. Don't ask where they got their running shoes - it's a pretty obscure store, you've probably never heard of it.

If a tree falls in the forest, and no one is around to hear it, does a hipster buy the album?

Oat Affair

I was really excited when I saw this post on BuzzFeed about healthy tips - POACHED EGGS!

Regarding #5 - I want to try cauliflower pizza crust.

Regarding #10 - I do this ALL. THE. TIME. I also flavor oatmeal with coffee creamer, M&Ms, cheese, Sriracha, veggies, tuna, regular milk, pepper, cumin, Snickers, protein bars (obviously not all at once ;) ). And the list goes on.

Oatmeal is the most versatile food ever. It is the best breakfast in the world. It adds to the best dinners in the world. It is one of the best snacks. It is the best food. All of these are facts.

If I were stuck on a deserted island and could only have one food, it would be oatmeal.

If I had to pick one food to live off of for the rest of my life, it would be oatmeal.

If I could date a food over a man, I would drop Joe in a heartbeat, screw this long distance nastiness, and go pick up some oatmeal.

I wish society would still accept an adult who ate this. Guys, they hatched. Clearly, I have some sort of egg fetish.

Did (does) anyone else eat this?

25 Thoughts During Yoga

I love yoga. I really do, but meditation just doesn't come easily to me. I envy those who can sit in stillness and silence for more than 2.5 seconds and be at peace... wait, isn't part of yoga about accepting yourself for what you can do? See? Unsuccessful.

I begin each class SO READY to om may way into contentment and self-love, but it never fails that halfway through shavasana, I'm wiggling, looking around, and stressing over what future MK needs to accomplish.

Well, in the spirit of experiencing, noticing, and reflecting, here are 25 thoughts we all I have during yoga class.

1. Ahhh, chirping crickets and flutes. Peaceful. Eyes closed. Yes.
2. Oh, the instructor's voice is so calming. 
3. Ow. First down dog - come on now, work with me, calves. 
4. That was not a pretty chaturanga. Okay, next one will be better.
5. Up! Saluting the sun! Hey-o, sun!
6. Aaaaand back down. *THUD* Alright, my left side isn't having this low push up thing today.
7. Again? Really?
8. I swear, I don't even work this hard during a marathon.
9. OKAY, THAT'S A LIE, I LOVE YOU, RUNNING.
10. If warriors really stood like this, they probably wouldn't be very good warriors.
11. Why is she so flexible? Do I look that flexible?
12. ....Did anyone just hear me fart?
13. Has it been an hour yet?
14. No, shh MK! You are becoming one with your breath! Breathe!
15. One foot. Focus, focus... Wobble, WOBBLE.
16. Stretching feels goooo... Er, did I just touch someone's foot?
17. Wait, turn to the right or left? Because now this is some serious awk eye contact.
18. Headstand. I'm standing on my head... Standing on my... Nooooope.
19. SHAVANSANA. REST. I'M DONE. PEACE. OM.
20. I'm so hungry. What should I have for dinner?
21. I totally need to do laundry.
22. I need to set my alarm early tomorrow.
23. I need to reply to that email tomorrow.
24. Are we done!? I have so much to do!
25. Wait, we're done? Namaste? Nah - 'muh stay right here, thanks.

Can anyone relate?