C25K meets the busiest time of year

That’s right folks! It is May and free time is a thing of the past. Lots of fun events on the books, campaign season in full swing and I threw in planning a friend’s wedding just for fun. In other words, I’ll see you in June! Due to my schedule insanity, I had to put my #c25k training on hold…but have no fear…I begin again on May 30th. To insure my laziness does not take over, I signed up for the Baltimore Women’s Classic on June 27th. No excuses now! Anyway, wish me luck, and if you see me all red-faced and panting along the streets of Baltimore…just send out a little cheer

SMASH Summit – 5 ways to build a brand with social media

Check it out!

http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/6861522

C25K and a few other thoughts

I just “finished” week 4 of my couch to 5k training program, however I have decided to keep my cute little running behind on week 4 for two more runs.  I sort of feel like I need to completely conquer it before I move on to longer runs.  I am determined to finish this program and hopefully run a 5k on June 27th with my friend Julia.  One that that has started happening is I actually want to go for a run.  Now, when I say run, you should think along the lines of “shuffle”.  What I am doing is not even close to running, but my feet are moving faster then a walk, so I am calling it running!  There!  I am mainly excited that one day, not too long from now, I will lace up my shoes and head out the door anytime I want…no more gym, crazy machines or psycho aerobics instructors…just me, the road and my new favorite tunes.  Honestly, does it get any better then that?

As you all know, I finished my thesis last week!  On May 28th, I will walk across that Homewood Field stage and finally be a Hopkins graduate.  I must say, it is a pretty cool feeling.  Now, the problem is, I have officially begun to lose my mind.  Let me explain…  I have spent the last three years of my life working full-time and going to school part-time while trying to have a social life on the side.  Needless to say, not the easiest thing I have every attempted.  BUT I DID IT!  Now, I am working and….well yea.  Luckily, Dr. Ron Elfenbein, District 30 Maryland State Senate candidate hired me to run his social media campaign.  So. since you all love me, check him out at www.facebook.com/ronelfenbein or follow him on Twitter @RonElfenbein.  Oh, and I am on Twitter @HopkinsChick just in case you didn’t know.  It’s good times… no lie.   

So, thankfully I have a few things keeping me busy in my off time, but I’m not really sure I’m cut out for a life of leisure.  Ok, it is not exactly slow seeing how I am still at work, and probably will be until around 10 PM, but it is slower then I am used to living…pretty sure I’m rambling, see I’m not myself.  Ok, well back to work.  Have a great Cinco de Mayo all!!

C25K…and beyond

Oh yea, I have jumped on the bandwagon, and start week four of my couch to 5k training program this week.  I have not bothered to post before this, because I was totally convinced I would quit well before writing a post.  Surprise!!  Not only have I kept it up, but I am starting week 4 baby! 

Honestly, I owe the C25k guy some serious props.  I have never EVER run in my life, nor did I ever plan to run unless something was chasing me (as my big brother always says), but here I am.  For week 2, I treated myself to a new pair of Brooks running shoes.  For week 3, I signed up for a subscription to Runner’s World…and wait for it…week 4, I’m gellin’.  That’s right, me and Dr. Scholl’s are totally pals these days.

Anyway, I seriously cannot believe I might finally become a runner.  To my surprise, my “I WILL NEVER EVER RUN” shouting brother started week 1 – day 1 today.  He said he just about puked, but hey it’s a start.  The best part about this process is all the c25k-ers I have found on Twitter.  @nickpiesco is always encouraging me and @c25kplaylists has some fun podcasts to download for your runs.  All in all, it has actually been a fun experience.  For some great hop-hop and “single lady” focused podcasts, check out RunningIntoShape.  They are perfect! 

To be honest, I am a bit worried about starting week 4 tonight.  This week requires 5 minutes runs, and I have barely mastered 3 minute runs.  But hey, I’ll never know until I try right?  Here goes nothing…

P.S. I passed my thesis defense on Monday, and I am officially Angelica Evans, M.A.

Top 10 Snowcation Day Activities

Now, if I had kids in the house, I bet this list would, well, BE DIFFERENT.  What are you up to during your snowcation?

10.  Cook everything in your freezer, cabinets, pantry and maybe even a few toppings from the couch cushions.

9. Begin vacuuming under the couch cushions after culinary explosion.

8. Categorize every book, movie and sweater color in your house. 

7.  Arrange, rearrange and arrange back every decorative item in your house .

6.  Start studying Zen and decide to become “one” with your couch.

5.  Empty off the DVR for the first time EVER!

4. Start to wonder how long it actually takes a muscle to atrophy.

3. Discover TV shows like RuPaul’s Drag Race and a commercial for an “Egg Cracker”…no joke, it cracks an egg for you…wow…yep  that’s all I’ve got

2. Start to actually want to go back to work…well, ok that took about 5 days for me

1. Realizing that the highlight of your day is…um…[Yea, you'll have to help me out on this one!]

More TV Talk…

Ok, so here is my TV driven rant today…why on earth don’t people just pay these TV shows to advertise their products????  Seriously, it is not a “slanket,” it is a snuggie and we all know it.  I get that they are probably not supposed to say a specific product on air, but really this is getting ridiculous.  They even showed a picture of the snuggie on NCIS last night, but they called it a slanket…a SLANKET really???  (side note:  I just Googled “slanket,” and it turns out it is just a knock off of the snuggie.  I’m still not OK with this haha)  Oh, and just in case you didn’t get enough of the snuggie during the holidays, they are now offering a double slanket as a gift for Valentine’s Day.  Oh yes people, you heard me right, a blanket, choir robe looking thing that now hooks you to someone like a siamese twin.  PLEASE, can someone buy one of these and take a picture?!?

Oh, and my other favorite is “facespace.”  That’s television’s verion of a social networking website, but it doesn’t exist!!  If you don’t want to say Facebook or Myspace, then simply say social networking website.  I would believe that over facespace anyday.  I know, I know, this really isn’t that important, but it is a little annoying to be enjoying a show and lost in the story, then they say something that completely jolts you back to reality. 

Does anyone know why they won’t say the real names?  I see actors using iPhone’s all the time, so obviously they can advertise specific products.  Anyway, this is me asking Facebook to at least pay for advertising on Law and Order SVU, because the facespace thing is really getting old.

It’s almost February…

…and you know that that means, SWEEPS!  Yes, I will admit that I am a bit of a TV junkie, and I get very excited every February and November for sweeps.  You can always tell when it is that time of the year as story lines heat up and the excitement builds.  Last night, Stone Cold Steve Austin showed up on Chuch, Renee pulled a total Jack on 24 and things started to heat up between Kate and Richard on Castle.  All in all, a good start to sweeps if you ask me! 

So, if you are looking for me, you can find me on my new, comfy couch enjoying one of my favorite times of the year.  Also, you will usually find me with a laptop firmly placed in my lap, as I am beginning the final stretch of my thesis project.  I can’t believe I have reached this point.  It has been 3 years in the making.  The first three chapters are nearing final approval, I am finalizing the research and will begin to write the results section shortly.  My last 3 years in school have brought me to this point.  To me, it is one of those things that you never really think you will finish, but then one day you wake up and realize it’s almost finished. 

I feel like so many parts of my life are coming together and moving forward.  When I take the time to look at my life and where I was 4 years ago, it is almost impossible to really see how far I have come.  Who knows what the next step will be?  I sure don’t, but I am ready to find out!

PBR in Baltimore

It’s that time of year again…time for the PBR Invitational in Baltimore.  It was a great day, and the rides were all fantastic.  Enjoy these pictures!!

I’m back to let you know…

Well, just that I’m back!  I have missed all of my blog buddies recently.  Most of my writing energy has been spent TRYING to pull together my thesis.  Thank goodness it is the last requirement before I graduate from Hopkins.  M.A. here I come!! 

I thought I would start back with all of you by sharing the fun details of my amazing trip to Cedar Pointe!  Yep, I spent the weekend in Sandusky, OH riding the tallest rollercoasters in the U.S. and laughing with friends until I cried.  It was just what I needed! Unfortunately, my camera died over the weekend, so I only have a few pictures that I snapped with my phone to share with everyone. 

Well, we only started the day two hours late due to a bit of  a late riser…no worries…we ragged on him mercilessly the entire day and made him buy everyone lunch.  So mean   As I’m sure most of you know, road trips can be a blast or a disaster.  I am happy to report that our trip was ridiculous!  It is the most fun I have had in a long time.  All of us laughed until our stomachs hurt.  I made the valiant effort to bring yummy and healthy snacks, but of course, at the first rest stop, I snatched a bag of doritos haha.  Other amazing combinations included Full Throttle, chocolate milk and dortitos (all at once) and sour cream and cheddar potato chips + slim jim…wow…I have no words.  We drove the entire 6.5 hours with the windows down and the music up!

It got a little windy...

Finally, we arrived in Ohio and checked into the Residence Inn in Independence.  The rooms were really nice, but the people were a little slow .  We dropped off our bags, grabbed a few showers and headed out for the night.  The night started with a great little tribute band and curb side popcorn.  We all sang along to some of our favorites and plugged our ears for a few missed notes.  All in all, it was a great start.  A little cold, a lot hungry and even more sleepy, we grabbed our things and headed over to the Rib, White and Blue festival in the city.  Can you say fun?!?  At least ten different vendors all selling award winning BBQ and frosty birch beer.  It was a little slice of Ohio heaven…to say nothing of the people watching.  WOW! 

Saturday morning we grabbed a yummy hot breakfast at the hotel and got on the road to Cedar Pointe.  It was the perfect day for an amusement park.  Around 70 degrees, light breeze and sparkling sunshine.  We couldn’t have asked for more.  First stop…the Raptor!

Waiting in line...

And on and on it went…I think we rode every coaster in the park almost.  We stopped at a cute little saloon for BBQ, beer and “Got Country.”  It was a fun western themed show with a lot of patriotism thrown in.  So much fun!  Needless to say, night fell and we were still going strong.  We strolled, wide-eyed, through the starlight express light display and bundled up in sweatshirts for a cool Ohio evening.  The highlight of the day came when we all hopped on a coaster right when the fireworks began.  We were shot 415 feet into the air and right into the middle of the fireworks (well OK, not RIGHT in the middle, but you get the idea.)  It was amazing!  After I recovered from the fear and shock of that coaster ride….yep you guessed it…I rode it again!!!

Sunday morning, we headed out to Lake Erie and a cute little lake town.  We stopped off at an adorable coffee shop for some frozen coffee and belly laughs.  “If that had happened in Maryland, the popcorn machine would have been up on cinder blocks”  :):).  I stuck my little feet in Lake Erie and collected a few beautiful stones.  It was the perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon.  After a yummy assortment of hotdogs, burgers and macaroni salad, we all hopped in the car to head home. 

Beautiful Lake Erie

Well, the ride home was just as fun as the ride in.  We danced in our seats, cracked jokes and had our fill of junk food.  We even had a guest performance by Little D, the Kia hamster stand in…it was hilarious. 

Little D doing the Kia head bop

All in all, it was a great weekend with great friends!!!  I can’t wait for the next one…

All This Craziness…

I am coming up on week three of being out of work…can we say stir crazy?  After enduring every test in the book including three MRI’s, a million blood tests, ultrasounds…basically you name it.  Tomorrow, I will head to the ENT for some crazy physical therapy procedures that may or may not work.  Pretty much, I am done!  The constant vertigo and nausea is just awful.  Sorry if this is not so interesting to my regular readers, but I just needed to get it all out. 

I can’t even begin to tell you how loved I have felt through all of this.  My friends and family have held my hand and supported me with prayers while I just struggled to keep myself together.  I truly hope life is going to return to normal soon. 

On the other hand, I kind of feel like God has been spring cleaning my life.  It has been easy to let people go who add stress to my life and basically offer me a one sided friendship, or claim to offer love and have no idea of the actual concept of love.  I guess we all have to grow up sometime.  This weekend, my two bestests are making the trek up from DC to just keep me company on my mushy basement couches, watch chick flicks and partake in my cooking.  It is such a wonderful thing to realize that genuine love exists in people  and in the world.  You know that one person you can text anytime and they always respond.  Or  that person you can call and they never hit the ignore button.  Or that person that loves you no matter how screwed up and mixed up you are.  I really hope that the people in my life can say that I love them the way they have made me feel loved over the last 3 months. 

Aside from the amazing people in my life, I’m learning to enjoy the small things.  I watched the movie “Last Holiday” yesterday and Queen Latifah’s character was starting up at a gorgeous ceiling.  She said, “has that ceiling ever made you just want to cry.”  I sort of feel that way about a lot of things these days.  My little nephew has been super sick and just seeing his little, perfect smile look up at me made me cry.  His little voice saying I love you is pretty much the most perfect moment ever.  We only get one time around at this crazy thing called life and sometimes we just forget to stop and see our life happening each day.  Wow, I really do sound like a huge dork.  I guess I was just hoping to share all the wonderful blessings God has given me during the horrible struggle in my life.  Feel free to share the little gifts you have in your life right now!