one lifestyle change at a time
It's still early enough in the new year that I am figuring out my reading plan for this and coming months. It's impossible to know what to read next when I have so many books surrounding me...literally. My desk is neatly tucked into the front window well of my bedroom, and there is enough room… Continue reading 2021 Reading Goals and January Picks: The Read and the To-Be-Read
Happy New Year! If you're reading this, then that means you survived 2020 - Level 1 - now, proceed through the checkpoint to Level 2 (2021). Now that week one is behind us, I want to talk a little bit about looking ahead in 2021. I know, looking ahead might seem silly because the world… Continue reading January Reboot: Goal-setting, resolutions, and lifestyle changes
Christmas Eve certainly looked different this year. Then again, what hasn't? In my family. I am the traditionalist. I prefer when we do things exactly as they have been done for the last ten years at least. Apparently, Christmas Eve used to look different - back before I can remember - and my mom always… Continue reading Christmas Eve in these Trying Times
Merry Christmas Eve, everyone! No, I haven't turned in for the night quite yet. I'm busy downloading e-books from work and updating Goodreads. How's everyone doing? I feel like December has been a giant roller coaster of emotions for me and I am struggling to be happy -- to be positive. I'm struggling to like… Continue reading Finding the Christmas Spirit
I've never been a fan of massive conventions -- I'd attended NYCC only once before and hated it because there were simply too many people. I thought conventions were purely for tv shows, comic books, superhero movies, etc. As I began contemplating a career as a writer and in publishing, I learned about all the… Continue reading Goodbye, BookCon & Book Expo
The Noel Stranger (The Noel Collection, Book #3) by Richard Paul Evans Here's the story, as told by the jacket: The year is 1975. Elle Sheen, a single mother who is supporting herself and her six year old biracial son, Dylan, as a waitress at the Noel Street Diner, isn't sure what to make of… Continue reading NOEL STREET by Richard Paul Evans // Book Review
Officially, there are only 32 days left to the end of this TERRIBLE year. November was a complete wash for me, but December is about to be my power month. I'm thinking about some of the goals that I set for myself for my health, my career, and both financially and spiritually. Drinking 64 fl.oz.… Continue reading December Goals
Where has this month gone? Here we are -- two days from Halloween, five days from election day, and sixty-four days until New Year's Eve. October came and is quickly expiring without good news in sight. This virus is persisting around the globe -- especially around the country -- and because of the choices of… Continue reading Outgoing October
I know that I've talked about Aaptiv here before, but it's completely changed how I think about fitness so I'll probably mention it a ton more! Since March 2019, I have had a membership with Aaptiv. I can use it anywhere, anytime, and this year I have even used it for sleepless nights. They have… Continue reading Staying Active with Aaptiv
Starting Weight: 280 Current Weight: 274 Goal Weight: 200 When I started this weight loss journey in March of 2019, I weighed in at 280 lbs. I have horrible anxiety which is why I have been hesitant to share my journey on this blog. I've become comfortable making my life a little more public on… Continue reading Taking Back Control
Hello, lovely readers! There's a lot of new faces here lately and I've been making some content shifts. You might have noticed that things are changing. I'm re-focusing my blog toward my weight loss journey, but I'm going to share a bit of everything else - books, podcasts, adventures I take, recipes that I try.… Continue reading Allow me to re-introduce myself
Earlier this year, I was training for the Brooklyn Half Marathon with my Nike Project NYC group. We were running together twice a week and attending movement classes at MOTIV NYC to learn how our bodies move. I bought new running sneakers and a Garmin Forerunner 45. Then, the world closed down - races were… Continue reading 5K Training: Week 9
Let me start this review by saying that I am new to this whole "reviewing books" party, haha! So, if you would be so kind, at the end of this, please leave me comments and feedback. Let me know how I did, if there's anything I should have talked about, things that I could have… Continue reading One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London // Book Review
I'm 161 days into my work-from-home / quarantine as the new daily standard and I've finally gotten into a routine. I wake up by 6am and meditate/journal, read a book, and have breakfast. I try to sit down at my computer for work by 9am and then I don't move until lunchtime. After that, I… Continue reading Physical fitness in a pandemic
Those words are part of Machine Gun Kelly's song "27" from his 2017 album Bloom. This post isn't full of roses and sunshine so if you don't want to hear more fears from a stranger, then please keep moving. I won't be offended, I promise you. I just had some things that I needed to… Continue reading “If I must go, die at 27…”
Quarantine has been hard. I haven't seen any friends -- in person or via Zoom/Houseparty/Skype/Facetime or whatever else the cool kids are using to communicate today. My job became completely remote, in March, when NYC shut down so I have been working, and until two months ago, I was in graduate school. Busy, busy, busy.… Continue reading Living in a state of quarantine
It is day 35 of quarantine, and I’m sick and tired of being trapped inside my house. I’ve baked several different types of dessert, re-organized my entire closet, and purchased various pieces of workout equipment. Before quarantine, I was working out six times a week so it’s natural for me to want to stay active,… Continue reading Four Ways to Work with a Private Trainer During Quarantine
Welcome to a new year, a new decade, a new chapter in my life. I'm a slightly happier, healthier, almost 27-year-old woman, working in a job she loves (that might actually blossom into a life-long career), spending time with friends and family that I admire and care about.Last year, when I was trying to picture… Continue reading “And now, the chapter is closed and done”
I'm sitting at work and I have music playing and "You Matter to Me" from the musical Waitress comes up next in my shuffled playlist. When I saw the play, I sobbed during this song. Mostly because I was meant to see the play with my boyfriend and instead was seeing it with my little… Continue reading Considering the stay
Well folks, it seems I can never learn lessons the easy way. I fell for the oldest trick in the book, post-painful break-up - the old "let's be friends" line. My ex and I had been chatty lately and he and I agreed to be friends, which felt okay. I have been in a really… Continue reading Was it all smoke and mirrors?
Saturday - Rest: I slept like a queen in my king-sized bed on Friday night. Saturday morning, I woke up early, dressed for the gym, and ran to breakfast to beat the other guests to the buffet line. I'm not a huge people person (and I suffer from horrible social anxieties) so if I can… Continue reading Weekend in the Country: Part 2
It's finally here - my best friend's wedding! No, I'm not Julia Robert's and I am not planning on stealing the groom. While he might be my oldest friend, I don't harbor any unresolved romantic feelings for him and, anyhow, this is not a 90's rom-com. Today, I boarded the Adirondack Trailway bus and embarked… Continue reading Weekend in the Country
On Wednesday, my family and I returned from a 5-day beach vacation in Ocean City, Maryland. This is our third trip to Ocean City and hope there are many more trips like these in our future! My vacation this last time was the first time that I ever wore bikinis on the beach, or in… Continue reading ‘Ocean City, Maryland – Open for it’
July was one of the best months of the entire year. Some of you might not know this, but I am a major Bachelor/Bachelorette fan. I have watched almost every single season since Juan Pablo first uttered the phrase "It's okay". I skipped Arie's season and most of Colton's, until we got down to the… Continue reading Week “4”: Running with Bachelors
I am a die-hard fan of The Hills and now of The Hills: New Beginnings. Both shows are famous for using some beautifully poignant music for each scene or big moment in each episode. Last Monday night, we saw Justin Bobby and Audrina finally sit down to talk about all of the drama that's happened… Continue reading It’s bigger than us
It seems that I never learn my lesson. After six months of complete radio silence, the bastard had the nerve to text me back and act as if he hadn't contacted me in six days. His sudden reappearance and confusion was very much a kindred spirit of Buffy the Vampire Slayer's "Becoming Part 2", minus… Continue reading Down the Rabbit-Hole Once More
On this date, in 2015, it was a bright and sunny Sunday morning. I was in Rocky Hill, with my boyfriend at the time, and I felt a deep sadness as the Uber drove away without him. He wasn't allowed to stay on campus that week, since it was seniors only. I had no idea… Continue reading Four Years Ago…
My current weight is 280 lbs - it might even be slightly less than that, since I have not formally weighed myself in a few weeks. My goal weight, in the short term, is 200 lbs by December of 2019. Dropping 80 lbs in less than a year is no easy feat. I have been… Continue reading Week 3: Intermittent Fasting & Tracking Food
Work. School. Friendships. Family. Bills. Pets. I just returned from this fabulous family vacation, so why don't I feel any less relaxed than I did before leaving? Maybe it's because work is always at the forefront of my mind, and my thesis paper has plopped itself right there beside it. I don't sleep well -… Continue reading Just Keep Breathing
Welcome back for the final installment of #FAMSTERDAM2019 ! It warms my heart to know that part one didn't bore you and scare you away --- truly. The first half of our site-seeing adventures in Amsterdam were exciting (though I was pretty grumpy because of all the trams, bikes, cars, and Vespa-ish motorized bikes). I… Continue reading #FAMSTERDAM2019 Continues
My little brother is currently studying abroad at the University of Amsterdam. So, like any close-knit family, we are visiting him as a mini family vacation, sans two family members. Really, it’s just my mom, sister, and I on a semi-girl’s European getaway. I was stressing out, almost to the point of pulling my hair… Continue reading #FAMSTERDAM2019
Title: The Noel Stranger Author: Richard Paul Evans Genre: Fiction, Holiday Fiction (352 pages) Publisher: Simon & Schuster (November 6, 2018) Pre-Order: Amazon Barnes&Noble A few thoughts: Agnetha (Maggie) has been through the mill. Her husband is a bigamist, and has a second family, she is feeling shunned by the public after her divorce, and she can't… Continue reading The Noel Stranger by Richard Paul Evans
Last week, I talked about using the Teami Detox Teas. This week, I incorporated new workout routines and activities. I have two gym memberships: Planet Fitness and Title Boxing Club . Planet Fitness is for my cardio and strength exercises. I have a Black Member Card there, which is $21.99 a month, so that I… Continue reading Week 2: Working Out
A new month means a new health regimen. In the past, I have tried to implement alterations at the same time, but I have never seen the results I am hoping for. This is probably because I try to do too much and change too many things at one time, and I have never been… Continue reading Week 1: Teami 30-Day Detox Challenge
As a teen, I received all of my best life advice from the classics - Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul. Last weekend, I was nosing around my bookshelves and I found my copy of this life-saving book and a quote just stood out to me: “Letting go doesn’t mean that you don’t care about someone anymore. It’s just realizing… Continue reading Falling into the arms of friendship
Tomorrow is Valentine's Day. Even when I was in a relationship, I never celebrated so why should this year be any different? For me, it's just a normal day. I'll go to work, come home, work out, make dinner, and then watch some television with my family. I suffered a major heartbreak at the tail… Continue reading Ghosted by my 31-year old boyfriend
The first time I heard the name Judith Jones was during Sony Pictures Biopic Julie & Julia, based on the book (of course) which centers the "parallel" lives of Julie Powell and beloved chef, Julia Child. Julia was a world-renowned American chef best known for her insane use of butter in her recipes as well… Continue reading Julie and Julia changed my life
My entire life has been a struggle to fall asleep at night. Sure, I've had those nights when the moment my head hits the pillow, it's lights out, but those are few and far between - even more so lately. So, how do you get yourself to fall asleep? I've tried everything from putting the… Continue reading Reading while Sleeping
