Great quote...

"All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on." ~Havelock Ellis

I love, love, love this quote!   Kind Over Matter is a wonderful source of inspiring photos and quotes.

Frustrating week in research

I do not have any runs to report at the moment.  The last two days I have spent long days at work.  I really need a good mid-length run right now.  I plan to run either tonight (pending plans with a friend) or tomorrow. 

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 I spent three long days this week working on an organic synthesis for school/work only to discover yesterday that it did not work.  We have successfully done this synthesis twice, and then the last two times it has not worked (and these two times were spaced a month apart).  Even my adviser who helped us with the synthesis has no idea why it is not working.  Long story short, I need the the synthesis product to do an experiment and nothing is working at the moment which has left me very frustrated.  Frustration is a part of research, and while last night I was frustrated beyond belief, I deep down still absolutely love my work.  I live for a challenge.  

Some quotes from some very wise men:

"I have not failed.  I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work."  ~Thomas Edison


"If we knew what we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?"  ~Albert Einstein

Last night I went home and had a very nice dinner with Chris which included a much needed glass of wine.  Then I went to bed and slept for nearly 9 hours.  Now I am up, feeling refreshed, and ready to face the challenge again.  Thank you for allowing me to vent.  Off to do more research!  How do you face mental challenges?  Have a wonderful day! 

P.S.  On a positive note, my butt is feeling better (Thank you for asking, Christine!  You're so sweet!).  There is still a dull pain, but is much better compared to last week.  Yay!

 

Starting my Christmas with Mint Tea

Merry Christmas!  I wanted to write a quick post about the amazing Christmas gift I got from Chris's sister, Jessica.  My very own loose leaf tea maker.... with my favorite... mint tea!

I am going to get a thermometer and a tea pot.  For today, the microwave worked fine.

P.S.  That is too much!

Definitely too much tea, but it looks awesome!

Go Knights!  (and Tervis Tumbler!)

Definitely had to be diluted, since I made it too strong.

Because I live in Florida, and I love iced tea!  I personally prefer mint tea sweetened and iced.

I hope you all are having a wonderful Christmas.  I most certainly am!  I love my future-in-laws, and I cannot wait to see my family later in the week. (o: (o:

Building family Christmas traditions

The lovely and oh so talented Katy over at The Singing Runner recently posted about her wonderful family Christmas tradition which involves Christmas ornaments.  This inspired me to write about our own Christmas tradition. 


Growing up, my sister and I each got a new Christmas ornament each year.  Mine were usually Goofy ornaments, because I am a huge Goofy fan.  In 2007, the year Chris and I met, I ran my first half marathon which he also ran.  We got these fun Christmas ornaments to remember the event.  My mom even found a special ornament which she had specialized just for me.

In 2008, I graduated with my Master's degree and Chris's family give me a Dr. Seuss ornament based on the book "Oh!  The Places You'll Go!".  Chris's roommate had moved out that summer and Chris brought an artificial Christmas tree for us to decorate.  We decided on an artificial tree (which looks quite real in my opinion) since he lives on a third floor (without an elevator) and had two kitties at that point.  We bought some plastic ornaments, knowing that the kitties would probably knock them down.  We hung the nicer ornaments on the top.

 In 2009, we went on a cruise and our trip to London, and I moved in with Chris.  While on the cruise, I saw Christmas ornaments for sale and came up with the idea of collecting an ornament from the different places we travel.  This way our Christmas tree will be built of memories of the places we've gone together.  We also purchased an ornament in London and found a London-related ornament in a store after we got back.  Unfortunately, that year the cats discovered that they could climb the Christmas tree.  Ashe broke my 13.1 ornament, but luckily Chris had a matching one, so we still have one.  The video below of Simon's Cat reminds me of Ashe.  We decided that the next year we would get a second smaller tree just for our special ornaments, and that tree would be kept in a kitty-free room.

This is our first Christmas together being able to refer to each other as fiance.  I could not be happier!  This year, I knew I wanted to get an ornament in St. Augustine where Chris proposed.  We searched all over and found a few ornaments.  We kissed under "The Love Tree" and got an ornament to remember that too.  This year both Chris and I had huge work and/or school projects, and since we are not going to be in town for Christmas we decided not to put up our tree.  Instead we decorated the balcony with Christmas lights. 

 

These last three were part of a buy three for $10 deal.  I thought the heart was appropriate after the proposal.

One for showing the location of our happy moment.

And Chris just really liked this gecko.  Go figure.

Next year I plan to buy the 26.2 ornament.  We will see what else we find to build our Christmas ornament collection.  I love spending the holidays with our families and learning about the traditional foods his family cooks for the holidays (all delicious I must add).  I love that my mom still stuffs our stockings full of tiny little gifts that she wraps individually.  I look forward to the years where we celebrate holidays in our own home filled with all of our family, buy and fill our own stockings, and continue to create our own traditions built upon the traditions of our families. 

What are some of your own holiday traditions?  How do you build new traditions?


As a final note, I ran 3 miles with my co-worker Bala yesterday (in 31:54).  Then spent the day Christmas shopping with Chris.  I am finally getting into the holiday spirit.



Simon's Cat in "Santa Claws"

More 30 DSLR - Eating Naturally and Gifts of the Body 3

I'll admit, with all of the excitement from the holidays and mostly due to my time-consuming school project, I nearly forgot about catching up on my 30 Days of Self Love Reflectance (30 DSLR) which was proposed by Tina at Faith, Fitness, Fun for the 30 days in September.  I however have been spreading them out and writing whenever I have the extra time.  It may be slow, but they are coming along.  I have been following her proposed questions and thoughts.  I have listed all of the topics below, and I have linked to the topics that I have already discussed:

1. Confidence
2. Gifts of the Body #1
3. Intrinsic Beauty
4. Trusting our Bodies
5. Love from Others
6. Idolize Bodies?
7. Perspective
8. Desiring Perfection
9. Gifts of the Body #2
10. How to View Exercise
11. Seeking Control
12. Jealousy
13. Outward Beauty
14. Finding Joy
15. Perseverance
16. Eating Naturally
17. Gifts of the Body #3
18. Loving Others
19. Stop Fat Talk
20. One Life to Live
21. Purpose
22. Forgive Yourself
23. Out of Conform Zones
24. Rest
25. Gifts of the Body 4
26. More Than Numbers
27. Forgive Others
28. Deeper Issues
29. Passion 
30. Worth

Now continuing with the 30 DSLR:

Eating Naturally (Tina's original post may be found here, and as always, I recommend checking it out!)

Tina posed the thoughts and questions, "How have you experienced any shifts in how you view food?  What are the biggest influences in your food choices?"

When I was young, I was the very strange kid who would rather have had a plate of steamed vegetables (including brussle sprouts) rather than cake.  I cried when I had to eat pizza, because I did not like it (my views have since changed, although I do consider myself a pizza snob).  I went through a phase a few years ago where all I wanted to eat were non-fat foods, and reading magazines like Runners World and SELF along with reading health living blogs helped me realize that healthy fats are necessar.  In fact, when I started eating a more balanced diet, I felt a million times more satisfied and healthy.  Reading healthy living blogs has influenced my view of food in terms of giving me new ideas of how to cook and enjoy the many foods I love.  I definitely have a sweet tooth.  That beingt said, I will never exclude a particular food from my diet (unless I just do not like it... for instance... peas.  Gross!), but I will enjoy them in moderation.  I love, love, love fresh fruits and vegetables, so I enjoy finding new recipes. 

Quotes:

 "Nothing would be more tiresome than eating and drinking if God had not made them a pleasure as well as a necessity."  ~Voltaire

“To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art.” -La Rochefoucauld

 


Gifts of the Body #3 (Tina's original post may be found here.)

Tina asked, "What of your body (inside or out) do you thank today?  List three new things to thank your body for today."  

Previously I have posted about my hair, butt, ears, legs, fingernails, and heart.  Today I am thankful for my mind, knees, and muscles.  My mind has helped me in school, in decision-making, and in appreciating all of those wonderful people and places in my life that I love.  My knees have taught me how to appreciate them for allowing me to train for a marathon.  After long runs, my knees are quite sore, but luckily icing them cures the pain.  I am thankful that my knees allow me to continue to run.  Finaly, I am thankful for my muscles.  They may be sore or knotted at times, but that just reminds me of how hard they work.  They allow me to run, perform experiments, and hold my kitties.  They also allow me to experience the ultimate joy that is a massage.  The post-massage feeling is the so amazing!  I am very thankful for that!


Quotes:

"Body and mind, like man and wife, do not always agree to die together."  ~Charles Caleb Colton 

"A woman is as young as her knees."  ~Mary Quant

"Massage is the only form of physical pleasure to which nature forgot to attach consequences." ~Robert Brault 

Continuing the 30 Days of Self Love Reflections

Time for some more 30 days of self love reflections created by Tina at Faith, Fitness, Fun.  After this I am half-way through the 30 days.  I will be sad when they end.

Outward Beauty (Tina's original post may be found here, and as always, I recommend checking it out!)

Tina posed the thoughts and question, "We must not forget that outward appearance does not define our worth as a whole. However, me must also feel free to declare our beauty on the outside. We all desire it…and we all have it. What physical characteristic makes you beautiful?"

My hair.  My crazy curly hair makes me uniquely me.  When I was very young, my hair was so blonde that it was almost white.  My mom used to brush it (a no-no for curly hair), and I ended up with an afro.  My dad called me Q-tip, because I was always thin (I was born premature.) and had this crazy fluff of hair on my hair.  As a kid, I remember many women coming up to my mom and asking if my hair was natural.  Yes.  Followed with, "People pay a lot of money for hair like that."  Remember the perm phase?  Even in my undergraduate college days, the intoxicated guys would be mesmerized by "boing-ing" my hair... gently pulling on the curls and watching them bounce.  Sure there are days when I wish I had straight hair, but I definitely love my curly hair!

Quotes:

 Beauty in things lies in the mind which contemplates them. ~David Hume

You don't love a woman because she is beautiful, she is beautiful because you love her. ~Author Unknown  

Q-tip

 

 

 

Cruise with straight hair.  I don't look like me!

Cruise with curly hair... much better!

Finding Joy (Tina's original post is here, you should check it out!)

Tina asked, "What will bring you joy?  It's yours for the taking...so take."

Helping others brings me joy.  I may get frustrated with my job, but the challenge makes me happy and brings me joy.  Being with family and friends brings me joy.  Planning my wedding to the man I love brings me joy.  My beautiful niece, Joy, brings me joy.  Taking care of babies (kitties) brings me joy.  Running brings me joy.    To sum it up, being around people that I love and care about, doing what I love, and helping others brings me joy. 

Quotes:

“Enjoy life. This is not a dress rehearsal.”


 “Who is the happiest of men? He who values the merits of others, and in their pleasure takes joy, even as though t'were his own.”~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 

“Joy is the feeling of grinning inside.”~ Melba Colgrove

“Joy lies in the fight, in the attempt, in the suffering involved, not in the victory itself” ~Mahatma Gandhi 

Speaking of Joy... Could my niece, Joy, be any cuter??

Perserverance (Tina's original post may be found here.)

Tina presented the questions, "What ways have you seen the benefits of perseverance in your life?  If you don’t want to get too personal, what are some small acts people can do to keep on keeping on?"

I'm going to opt for the second question, since I'm too tired to write much more.  My suggestion for keeping on is making a list of short term goals to keep you focused.  When times are tough, it is important to focus on taking care of yourself and leaning on family and friends... they want to be there for you.  This goes for personal problems as well as less serious issues.  Take running for example.  When I feel tired or burned out, I tell myself "just one more mile" (short term goal).  I give myself a rest day or two, maybe a massage, and make sure I am eating properly (taking care of myself).  Finally, I consult friends, including fellow bloggers, to get tips and motivation (leaning on friends).

Quotes:

"The difference between perseverance and obstinacy is that one comes from a strong will, and the other from a strong won't."  ~Henry Ward Beecher

"Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did."  ~Newt Gingrich

Self Love - Seeking Control (Controling your outlook on life) and Jealousy

I am over a third of the way through the 30 days of self love created by Tina at Faith, Fitness, Fun... my days are just not consecutive as they were originally intended.  LOL

Seeking Control (Tina's original post may be found here, and as always, I recommend checking it out!)

Tina asked the question, "What things in life might you try to control?"

I think it is good to control your outlook on life.  I have noticed that when I am upset or annoyed everything else seems to get to me more.  I might get annoyed over silly little things that other people do, simply because I am in a bad mood.  If I was in a good mood, those things would not bother me, and I know that.  So by controlling my outlook on life to make it a positive outlook, my life is just simpler and happier.  Rather than little things annoying me, I actually notice how all the little things in life make me happy.

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As part of this positive outlook on life, you have to learn how not to let the negative people bring you down.  Unfortunately they will always be there, but you can chose to distance yourself from them and focus on the positive.  Negative people and negative thoughts are not worth your time.

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I say this from experience.  Around the time my dad passed away, it seemed like everything snowballed.  You know, when it rains it pours.  Anything that could go wrong did go wrong.  I was so caught up in all of the negativity that I did not focus on all the amazing things that were also happening in my life.  I let my negative outlook on life control me until I finally realized that it didn't have to be that way.  Once I changed my perspective, life started to come together again.  I was happy.  Sure, we all fall into negative thinking from time to time.  I am definitely not immune to it.  I have written blogs where I have vented about negative feelings.  We are only human.  However, if we make a conscious effort to control our outlook on life, then we ultimately will live a happier more fulfilling life.  That is one of my personal goals, to have a more positive outlook.  I don't want my day to be ruled by little annoyances simply because I have a bad attitude.  I choose to to live a happy life.

Quotes:

"People seem not to see that their opinion of the world is also a confession of their character." ~Ralph Waldo Emerson  (One of my absolute favorites!)
  
"Think excitement, talk excitement, act out excitement and you are bound to become an excited person. Life will take on a new nest, deeper interest and greater meaning. You can think, talk and act yourself into dullness or into monotony or into unhappiness. By the same process you can build up inspiration, excitement and a surging depth of joy." ~Norman Vincent Peale (from Kind Over Matter)

Jealousy (Tina's original post may be found here.  Definitely check it out.)

Tina asked the questions: "What ways do you encounter jealousy? How can it hold you back? What could you look to in yourself or your life when wishing for what others have?"

Being that I am a graduate student on a budget, I get jealous of people who have the income to do more traveling, have more money for shopping, or wedding planning (LOL), etc.  I can honestly say that I am not lacking in any aspect of my life, including financially.  Like my thoughts above, focusing on these things that I may get jealous over take away from me focusing on all of the amazing things that I do have.  I am so blessed.  I may be a graduate student on a budget, but I am getting paid to go to school.  I know that is not very common, and sometimes I take it for granted.  I have an amazing support system, including my wonderful family and friends.  The next time I feel envious of what someone else has, I will control my outlook and think of all the wonderful things that I do have.

Quotes:

Envy is the art of counting the other fellow's blessings instead of your own.  ~Harold Coffin

Envy is a symptom of lack of appreciation of our own uniqueness and self worth.  Each of us has somethin to give that no one else has.  ~Elizabeth O'Connor (from Tina's post)

Envy is ignorance.  ~Ralph Waldo Emerson