Are you a gym rat?

I'm not much of a complainer via the internet. I really save my complaints for my mom. She's a good listener, mainly because she has to even if she doesn't want to. It's in the job description for mom. But, I have a complaint. Not a huge one, but just a little something that's bothering me.

I love Twitter. I think it is a FANTASTIC tool for networking, customer service, advertising, and whatever else you want it to be. While I was perusing the LA Fitness website a few days ago to figure out how to make the most of my few remaining days as a member, I discovered that they, too, have a Twitter account. Imagine that! So I decided to follow LA Fitness.

Then I opened my Twitter feed this morning to see this:


I think this is terrible, no good, very bad advice. First of all, it makes it seem as though snacking is a bad thing. It's not. As with everything else, it's healthy in moderation. Now, I don't consider myself an expert, or even a healthy living blogger, or anything else that would make me at all qualified to speak about this subject, but I just have to tell you, coming from a place like LA Fitness, that is not what I was expecting to see in my Twitter feed. As someone who is currently trying to perfect my exercise routine and eating habits, that 140-word-tidbit wasn't motivating. It didn't inspire me to not eat snacks. It discouraged me - made me feel like if I have more than 3 bites of my snack then I'm not up to LA Fitness par. Maybe I'm overreacting to a stupid tweet, but it's really how I felt!

Because I firmly believe that if you are going to complain out loud, you should also offer solutions to the problem... LA Fitness, rather than calling me out for the things I do wrong, how about tweeting instructions for a quick workout or challenging followers to meet a milestone such as increasing their speed or adding another lap to their swim? Or offering information about what's going on at clubs across the country! Or maybe a tip about how to warm up or cool down, or where to get great running shoes... Anything other than making me feel bad about what I'm already doing, really! I get that it's a suggestion, and I do see where the tweet was coming from but... I still don't like it. And maybe it's just me, and I'll deal.

I guess all I am trying to say is that LA Fitness is not in my good graces as of lately. Between the rotten (although remedied) customer service I received and now their tweets about how to eat and calories... I'm just not impressed.

I Shall Tweet On

So I was struggling to come up with something to confess today. I've already bared my soul for the whole internet it seems. I messaged my friend Peanut*, hoping to gain some sort of inspiration...

A little background on Pea - we lived in the sorority house together for 2 years. Pea helped me craft projects for my ex-boyfriend back when my crafting sucked (and back when I had a boyfriend... remember those days pea? we were both in relationships and we were so happy!) She made out with freshman as a senior in order to keep us entertained, and the majority of Friday mornings my last semester of college, I could count on her coming into our room, head hung in shame, and crawling into bed with me while she, my roommate (Roxxy), and I shared stories from the night before. There was no telling what the stories were going to consist of. And you can bet that on those Friday mornings, the three of us were also the first ones downstairs to get our fill of chicken fingers before resuming our positions in bed. But now, little peanuthead has moved far, far away, but I can always count on her for good stories.

Today, I forgot that she had come HOME for the weekend, and I messaged her to tell her about my conquest today - I am planning to exercise not once, but TWICE. Little pea told me how proud she was and then the following conversation ensued:

Peanut: wait, you know whats creepy

Peanut: jackie* read us your tweets! so i already know that:)

me: hahah why was jackie reading my tweets out loud?

Peanut: bc i was telling them about how i read food blogs and they asked how i found them and i said you and jackie was like everytime i look on twitter katie is all of my updates and so she read us your updates

me: haha i'm mildly embarassed

Peanut: oh but its SO funny at the same time, you really are the internet genuis

So thanks, little peabrain, for embarrassing me and simultaneously making me feel quite proud (and for confessing more of my soul on the internet). Also, stay away from the 18 year olds. Just a tip.

*names have been changed to protect the innocent (or not so innocent)

Life

Sometimes, life takes over and I feel like I am sitting in the passenger seat and life is driving. Not always - sometimes it's the other way around. And when things are really crazy... I think me & life are both tied up in the trunk with no way out.

Right now, life's driving and I'm along for the ride. This is unusual for me. I like to refer to myself as "in control." Some might interpret that to mean "control freak" or that I have a "my way or the highway" attitude. To-may-to, to-mah-to. But for right now, at this very moment, I'm really content to let life take over for a while. I've spent the last few weeks just going with the flow - letting everything come as it will, and not worry about what doesn't. This has reflected in every aspect of my life - work, relationships, health, hobbies... you name it.

This week I was feeling overwhelmed. Last Friday, as I started looking ahead to my next week, I thought to myself, "I HAVE NO FREE TIME!!" but I didn't do anything about it. I was excited about all of my plans, and I didn't want to cancel, but I guess deep down SOMETHING piped up and said NO! So life took over. Life canceled for me. One friend had a sudden work meeting come up so she had to cancel our dinner plans for tonight. No big deal! I know I'll see her soon. Another had stuff come up with her kids and asked to reschedule. And now all of the sudden, even though I thought I had everything under control, I am breathing a huge sigh of relief that I'm letting life drive. Ordinarily this change in plans would have thrown my whole week off. But right now, this week...I'm so excited to knock a couple of things off my to-do list that I had resigned to the weekend, and really, if I'm being totally honest, I'm excited about this new attitude I've taken on. Life seems to be much more pleasant this way.

I guess what I'm trying to say is sometimes, as control-freaky-type-a-my-way-or-the-highway as I am, it's nice to just... let go. To go with the flow, to relax, and to let things happen as they will.

Ommmmmmm.
image courtesy of ournewearth.tv

Craft Project #1

This weekend I had big plans to do a whole lot of nothing, at which I was very successful. I did manage to do a few things, including try 2 new restaurants, attend a Saturday morning seminar, watch Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (and by watch I mean slept through - I woke up as Snape killed Dumbledore. That jerk!), and completely destroy any chance I had at continuing No-Alcohol-August. It's now become No-Alcohol-August-Except-For-When-I-Feel-Like-It, and even still, I am trying to cut back. Just 1 drink instead of 2 or 3 is better right?! RIGHT?!

I also managed to complete a craft project, which I will now show you with step-by-step instructions. I picked up this tray at an estate sale while I was in Minneapolis, and I got it after seeing this DIY tutorial. As soon as I saw it I knew EXACTLY what I was going to do with it, and for $2, it was totally worth it!

Start out with a brown tray, spray paint until you have a blue tray! Then cut pieces of scrapbook paper to fit each side of your tray, spray some adhesive glue on the tray and on the scrapbook paper, lay it down, smooth it out, and voila! Project complete! Now, find a pretty place to put it (mine's in my bathroom holding my perfumes and some jewelry) and there you have it!

100 things

I found this on Red Letter Rising, who found it on The Squeaky Grocery Cart, who found it on I'm Just Sayin', who found it on This Little Family... Things I've done are in bold.


1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitchhiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Went skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelos David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

... I've done so much more than I thought I would have!
What have you done?

Ur Gr8

So, it's 2010, I get it. People are lazy, I understand this as well. Technology is the greatest thing since sliced bread according to the baby boomer generation and the generation of parents that have small people now. You know them - they peaked in 1992 while listening to NKOTB and wearing a crimped side pony, stirrups, and an oversize tshirt. All of this I can 100% understand. What I cannot understand, however, is the need for abbreviations for EVERY SINGLE WORLD GROUPING KNOWN TO MAN.

I don't need any help in indicating just how hard I am laughing. If I am talking to you via the interwebz or text and I think you are funny, I will inform you of that by saying "HA! That was funny!" or "Aren't you quite the jokester?" I will never again bring myself to use (because yes, I was once in 8th grade and used AIM, I imagine these were tossed around like 10 years later I wouldn't hate my 14 year old self) those types of words.

Ex: LMAO, LMFAO, LOL, ROFL, ROFLSFH... I think you get the gist.

I cannot tolerate, and will not respond to any form of communication involving abbreviations that include numbers. I wish I had saved text messages from my former roommate. I'm pretty sure I harassed him about every single text he ever sent me, yet he never stopped sending them. They went something like this: "Hey Josh where should I go for the event tomorrow?" "if ur l8 go 2 bck dr" "are you allergic to vowels or something?" "jst go 2 bck dr kt"

Let me translate that for you. "If you're late, go to the back door." "Just go to the back door Katie." That was not an exact text message, and it was not even as good as my favorite one I received. But the substitution of u/ur for you/your, the "8" for the "ate" on the end of late... it makes me want to take his phone and throw it across the room. I can't stand it. ESPECIALLY IN EMAILS.

The takeaway: don't send me any form of communication that substitutes u for you, 8 for late, uses lol to say I was being clever, or otherwise indicates you are any less intelligent than you actually are. If you do, I might just roast you on my blog for the whole world to see. We all know how well that turned out for my Godfather Dave.

Vacation Rocks

• 1. It's where I was born.
• 2. It's where they call Coke "pop."
• 3. It's where there are more mosquitos than anything else (even lakes).
• 4. It's where they say "dontcha know?"
• 5. It's where my first true love broke up with me.
• 6. It's where I was given my first bouquet of roses. (on the day I was born, because my dad wanted to make sure that HE was the first man to ever buy me flowers. and they wonder why I'm a daddy's girl...)
• Happy weekend!

Happy Birthaversary!

Who's got awesome plans this weekend? Oh, me!!!!

I am heading to the Twin Cities with my mom, dad & sister to celebrate my paternal grandparents. This past June, my grandmother celebrated her 80th birthday, January 2011 marks their 60th wedding anniversary, and June 2011 marks my grandfather's 80th birthday. 80TH BIRTHDAYS!! 60TH WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES!!! We'll also throw in a visit to the Uptown Art Fair, the Mall of America, and dinner with my hilarious godfather and his family.

The par-tay is going to be awesome. My aunt has over 100 RSVP's. That's a lot of frickin' people, most of whom my grandparents have known for the better part of their 60 years of marriage. Most of them also saw me in diapers, or watched me chase my grandparents cat down the stairs (the cat won). My grandmother has also undoubtedly told them the day I started my period, when I stopped sucking my thumb, and how often I wet the bed as a little kid (never!). What can I say, she's just proud! The party will be filled with people 30 years, at least, my senior, who are going to want to know how I am, where I'm working, how long it's been since I graduated college, and when I'm going to start producing great-grand-babies. The answer to the last question is entirely dependent on the male species, with whom I am currently waging a war, so when the question of great-grand-babies comes up I might run to the bathroom and cry. That's after my throat is practically numb from yelling because let's be honest... at 80 years old your hearing ain't at it's finest.

Despite all of those things, I am beyond excited about this weekend. Something about my first memorable family reunion that screams fun! excitement! drama! yelling! posing for pictures! gossip! And most importantly of all, I get to see my mama. I miss her. I'm bringing her a present. It's not from me, it's from my dad. Wanna know why? They are celebrating 26 years of being married next week! Last year for 25 years I made them a scrapbook with letters & pictures from friends and family, so this year I feel no guilt in doing nothing but showing up in Minneapolis. That's present enough, right?

Happy Anniversary Mom, Dad, Grandma, Grandpa, and everyone else in the whole world. I'm proud of you and inspired by you and can't wait for someone to celebrate me one day! (yep, always gotta bring it back to me.)

The bloggy world is buzzing with news of Caitlin's book release. I'll be the first to say that I have never read Caitlin's blog, but I have been meaning to, and I was even kind of skeptical about the book. I almost thought it was one of those "I'm going to love it because my friend wrote it and not because it's all that great, but you should love it too!" bandwagon type things, and I'm not into that. So I keep seeing blogs about it that I skipped over, and I keep seeing tweets about it, so I figured what the heck. So I started reading a little deeper, and realized that holy cow. This is something I can get behind. This is something I believe in. This is something I will be purchasing immediately for my friends, my small peeps, and my sister, ranging in ages from 10-45. And I'm going to give it to all of them right now. Why? Just because. Because they are BEAUTIFUL women! And I'm going to put a post-it note on the inside telling them all the things I love about them and all the things they should love about themselves.

So, I encourage you - check out Operation Beautiful. I'll be the one to tell you that your skepticism is unnecessary, because this book is going to be all sorts of awesome.

No Alcohol August

One of the things on my 101 in 1001 that I can actually check off is to abstain from alcohol for 1 month. I've decided that August 2010 is the month of choice. I'm super busy this month with trips & meetings and other things, so I figured what the heck why not. And I can push back my "end of summer" party to September, no big deal! Maybe I'll do it every August for the next 2 years! Wouldn't that be special?

So anyway, I'm here to proclaim to the world that for the next 30 days I will be consuming zero alcoholic beverages. This will also go hand-in-hand with my goal of doing some form of exercise daily for the next 30 days. It's amazing how these things work, isn't it?

I do have to tell you though - my weekend was phenomenal! The best part was Saturday - $25 for a beer tasting at The Porter Beer Bar in L5P, followed by a 10 minute urban hayride to the PBB farm, and there was a pig roast and organic beer at the farm! We were initially a little skeptical (and really effin' hot) but the day turned into a blast. The company was fantastic, the food was OMG to die for (seriously I couldn't stop eating), and we had an absolute blast! I even got to try pork belly... um delicious!! And it made me think of Jenna. If you haven't been to the PBB, check it out! They have an awesome menu and a huge beer selection. I saw where all their fresh produce comes from - in a large garden (aka the farm) behind the owner's home in Inman Park. Isn't that incredible? They had tomatoes and okra and sunchokes and all kinds of other veggies growing. All the money they raised went directly to GA Organics, and while I am not exactly Miss Organic, I can totally support it! Our day ended with a giant rainstorm in which there were 8 girls huddled in the bed of a truck with some hay in it completely soaked from head to toe, but that just added to how really awesome the day was. I love doing things like that and having them turn out to be completely, unexpectedly AWESOME. Plus, when we walked back into the bar soaking wet, we received a standing ovation from the people eating there.

Anybody have any fun stuff going on this weekend? Any goals for August? I can't wait to hear about them :)

Happy Monday!