Hey, I'm on vacay!

I was just home in Chicago for the past week for my winter vacation and as per usual it was great. It was the first time I have been home since July so it had clearly been way too long. I love, love, love going home and being with my family for some many reasons; it's the best.

When I am home, there are many things that I do (or don't do) because I am usually on vacation and therefore feel I can do whatever I want and because I can't necessarily do them on a normal basis in NYC. This winter break, there were quite a few things I did that I haven't done in a very long time. Below are some of the things I did at home this past week I rarely to never do in NYC, if ever, anywhere.

1) Skipped workouts. Hey, I'm on vacation so if I want to just lay on the couch all day long in sweatpants, I can. There's snow on the ground and temps are low which means this is not the best running weather for a person with little motivation at the moment. And did I mention I was on vacay? This means I don't have to anything I don't want to, right? But seriously, this has been the longest stretch of not working out since before I started training for the marathon. As much as I do find running and spinning therapeutic and do actually enjoy it most of the time, if I have to force myself to do it, it loses its fun-ness. (Yes, I really just used that word.) This week off will hopefully give my legs the rest they need and I will come back faster and stronger.

This needs to stop

Fear. Sadness. Shock. Disbelief. Grief. These are all feelings I am sure everyone has felt over the last few days. Whether your eyes have been been peeled to the news or not, we all now have some information of what happened Friday, December 14 in Newtown, CT. And we are all still trying to process what happened. And why it happened.

I was a junior in high school in April of 1999 when the Columbine shooting occurred. For days I couldn't take my eyes off the news, couldn't stop crying, and was very shaken up. How could this happen? And at a normal suburban high school? Why did these boys do this? Could this happen at my high school? What can we learn from it so it doesn't happen again? 

After this horrific event, I would look at the "trenchcoat kids" in my schools differently, wondering if they were hiding guns under their big coats. Our high school was cliquey, just like many others, including Columbine. We had the jocks, the bandees, the theater kids, etc... Newsweek even came to my high school a couple weeks after the shooting because our school population was so similar to that of Columbine and interviewed students on how they felt about cliques in our building and how they affect the mindset of teenagers. This didn't make me feel any better. Eventually my huge paranoia wore off because there was no sense in always worrying. School is supposed to be a safe place and I wasn't going to let this damage my sense of security no matter what.

Hooked

I've been watching the new show on MTV called Catfish: The TV Show. It's a television show based off the 2010 documentary by the same name. I had never seen the documentary but had heard about it and the topic was interesting.  In the movie, the main character, Nev, began an online relationship with a female and the film crew followed him as he discovered who she really was. (And it was not who she had perceived herself to be.) She was indeed a "catfish," which Wikipedia defines as "a person who creates fake profiles online and pretends to be someone they are not by using someone else's pictures and information."

The premise of the show is very similar in topic and shooting style. Each week, the one hour TV-show follows someone who has an online relationship with another person, usually for an extensive period of time, but has never met the person. It's the job of Nev and his friend Max, to uncover what the real deal is. Spoiler: The person is rarely, if ever, who they really say they are.

I tend to think of myself as a one-man wolf pack

Sometimes when talking with someone, you can gage if you two will click if you quote a random movie and they know exactly what you are talking about. Right away, you know you two have something in common, and usually its great taste in movies and a fantastic sense if humor. (Totally just described myself, natch.) Other times, I will see something that relates to one of these movies and randomly quote it and people will straight up look at me like I am speaking a foreign language. I am just being my usual hilarious self. Who cares if I am the only one laughing. It's funny. But I do love quoting movies and sometimes when I watch these movies I crack myself up by reciting the lines with the characters. (I know, so annoying, right?) And even though I have seen these movies so many times, I still laugh out loud when these lines are spoken. I don't know what it is, but they just get me.

Each of us has their favorite lines in some of their fave movies. Some of these quotes are totally random, and some are much more common. Some even make the movie if you will. They are that good. In my opinion, five of the most quoteably-awesome movies out there are below, along with MANY of my fave lines. (Warning: I got a little carried away and may have over-quoted. I mean, if that's even possible.)

1. Elf. Since its that time of year right now, this movie is on all the time. And I love every second of it. For a holiday flick, its unbelievably quoteable. And I even enjoy randomly watching it in the summer. It just leaves a smile on my face. 

• I just like to smile, smiling's my favorite.
• This place reminds me of Santa's Workshop! Except it smells like mushrooms and everyone looks like they want to hurt me. 
• I'm singing. I'm in a store...and I'm siiiiiingiiiiing! I'm in a store...and I'm siiiiiingiiiiing!
• We elves try to stick to the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns and syrup.
• What's a Christmas Gram? I want one!
• But the children love the books!
• SANTA! OH MY GOD! SANTA'S COMING! I KNOW HIM! I KNOW HIM!
• It's just nice to meet another human that shares my affinity for elf culture.
• You did it! Congratulations! World's best cup of coffee! Great job, everybody! It's great to be here.
• I'm a cotton-headed ninny-muggins. 

I need to love ME

It's that time of year again where holiday cheerfulness is around every corner. However, lately I have been feeling a little down. This always happens to me after running a marathon. It's what I like to call my "post-marathon funk" and it usually lasts a couple of weeks. I actually think it's kind of common for people after they participate in a big event. After all the hype, expectations, and excitement leading up to the marathon, now that its over, what's there to look forward to? I mean, I have tons of things to look forward to, most specifically going home for the holidays to see my family, but I need another goal. I am not good at just being content. I like having something to work for. I have little races in the mix, but nothing big on the calendar. So until then, I just kind of have this restless feeling. And restlessness doesn't sit well with me. It makes me think WAY too much.

When my mind starts to wander like this, its usually not a good thing. I'm not proud to say so, but I tend to focus on the negatives. Most of them having to do with my body. (And sometimes my singledom and I know those two things do happen to go hand in hand.) It just seems that everything I do in life always comes back to two things: working out and eating. Everything that I do has to not interrupt the workouts and the meals and/or drinks can't be too often or too indulgent. It gives me great anxiety. All the time. This uneasiness is not a good feeling to walk around with everyday. Being uncomfortable in my own skin is something I should have grown out of already, not something that continues to be a struggle for me.

Teach me, teach me how to...(dance)

In case you have lived in a cave the last month or so, you probably have heard of Korean superstar PSY. What? You haven't heard of him? Yikes. What planet do you live on? Anyway, PSY has become the creator the newest dance craze (and hit song) to take America by storm, Gangnam Style. Seriously folks. C'mon now. The man and his song and dance are everywhere. His video actually just earned the most hits on YouTube EVER! That's huge. For realz.

Since I love to dance and show off all my sweet dance moves at any opportunity I can get, I am always excited when a new craze occurs, so of course Gangnam Style was no different. Hearing it (over and over) made me take a little trip down memory lane of all the other dance crazes and songs that have come and gone. (Few have actually really had great staying power.) Starting with the newest one and current hit, here is a list of other dance crazes I have loved and learned over the years. 

1. Gangnam Style. I wish I understood Korean so I knew what he was actually saying, but since I don't, I guess I just can continue to appreciate the beat. I do wonder how long this will last and if PSY will be a one hit wonder. My bet: Yes.