An update

It's only February, so why oh why is it already the season finale of Parenthood?! This show is easily my favorite. Mae Whitman, Lauren Graham, Monica Potter, Erika Christensen, are you kiddding meeeeeeeee. They seriously know how to make me cry, like, a lot.

I have this problem where I get obsessed with everything. As in tonight I tweeted @some of those aforementioned people, IMDB'ed the crap out of them, and even watched a Leave it to Beaver clip with Erika Christensen as a 13-year old. I. have. problems. And now I keep replaying scenes from the show in my head. But tomorrow I will have no recollection of these events. The good news is that I discovered Rosa Salazar's blog and it's hilarious. I often write little letters out loud like she does, so now I have my kindred spirit from Parenthood.

In other news, my body has taken ill. I haven't been sick in a while and now I am. Boooooo. So what did I do to fix it? Well, I left work on time, bought myself some soup and medicine and watched tv all night. Panera sells their soup at the grocery store and although it is laden with sodium, it was still tasty.

And that's about as interesting as I get tonight. So there, an update.

Brotip #1467

I got the tip to this website from Davina and am sort of addicted to them. The sayings are sometimes funny, sometimes serious, and almost always applicable to life. 


Two things come to mind when I read this. One is the impending work I have to do as a result of an audit we just had at work. Sucks, but it will only make us better. We found what doesn't work.


The second is a friend's relationship. It's not a failure. It's success at finding what doesn't work. You live and you learn. (Then you egg his house).

Merry...Tuesday?

Ah, the week has begun. I intended to post yesterday but work got in the way and I had to skip my breaks. So here I am, after a long day of audit torture.

But back to the good stuff, le weekend. Friday was spent at the bowling alley. My back was aching and my finger was crying over a wide papercut, so I didn't feel like bowling. But then I decided to stop being a poor sport (and an old lady) and look, I had fun. We ended up on my sister's couch watching lots of tv shows (how typical).

Saturday started out extremely lazy. Then I went for a 3.8-mile run with my sister along the Mississippi River. And once again, I was lazy and didn’t want to go and had to be dragged out there and was happier for it. Moral of the story is stop being lazy and complaining about everything!?!? Hmf. Saturday continued on and le boyfriend and I went shopping (nothing to show for it) and to dinner at W.A. Frost, which was yummy. Then we hopped from here to there and celebrated another birthday. I swear there is a birthday practically every weekend! I guess it makes sense since there are only 52 weekends in a year and there are many people in this world who have been born...

Anyway, Sunday was breakfast, lazing, hoopin’ it up at the nearby basketball court, dinner, then watching Night at the Museum. I would say this was my most laid-back and lazy weekend yet. It’s a nice change to not know what you’re doing until the day you’re actually doing it. It doesn’t happen that often in my book. And now, let’s try to get through this week, shall we?

How I Shall Survive:

1. Audits. Zero fun but there for a reason. We’ll only be better because of it. (And have to do a crap ton of work but whatever). I gotta think of the big picture here.

2. MSP Fashion Week. That’s right. A low-key, smaller-scale fantastic week of style events and sales. I plan on going to a trunk show and maybe some kind of designer showcase. We’ll see.

3. Concerts. I have a concert to look forward to at the end of the week. Then I have eight more planned for the future…oops!

And lastly:

Happy [Belated] Birthday to Mr. Kevin!

Kevin is my brother-in-law who is ultra-nice and will do a lot of considerate things for people. He livens up my work day by being hilarious. He knows how to make you feel as though you’ve done a great job at anything, even if my cooking does suck. He’s a great guy to my sister, and that’s the number one thing I look for in someone who is married to my sister. Go figure. Happy birthday Schmevin!

Be Mine, Valentine

A lot of people think of Valentine's Day as an overrated holiday that retailers gussied up and devalued its meaning. It's not just about chocolates and roses and cliches. It's about recognizing people you love. I like it more than I like a lot of other holidays. The color scheme definitely gives it points and I'm not into the whole gaining a ton of weight on a holiday just because it's a holiday (like Thanksgiving). Not to say this doesn't happen. It does. Sigh.

Anyway, back to the point. The origins of Valentine's Day come from a bunch of saints named Valentine who were martyred on February 14. Then came Chaucer, who connected the day with love by writing a poem for a marriage ceremony. Then came hand-written cards in the 18th century, then came printed cards and now it is what it is.

What do you think? Will you be celebrating? I've been celebrating all month, so you know my answer. 

Here's a bit of a forward my coworker sent to me. Normally forwards are meant to be deleted, but this one was pretty cute. This is what some little kids think about love:

'When my grandmother got arthritis , she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore.. So my grandfather does it for her all the time , even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love.'
Rebecca- age 8

'When someone loves you , the way they say your name is different.
You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.'
Billy - age 4

'Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.'
Karl - age 5


'If you want to learn to love better , you should start with a friend who you hate , '
Nikka - age 6 


'Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.'
Tommy - age 6

'Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.'
Mary Ann - age 4

'You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it , you should say it a lot. People forget.'
Jessica - age 8

The best one was a four-year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry , the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard , climbed onto his lap , and just sat there.  When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor , the little boy said , 'Nothing , I just helped him cry' 

Oh! That last part just makes me tear up. And for my last trick, these are the other ways I've been being festive in the spirit of St. Valentine.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Merry Monday

Dear weekend,

I wish I never quit you.

Love, 

Jennifer

But really. The weekend started off with a girls' night at my friend's house. We drank wine, ate dessert and caught up on life. Then it was back to work for a half day, then on to a huge birthday celebration.

We started out by playing trampoline dodgeball at Sky Zone in Oakdale, MN. Trampoline dodgeball is just how it sounds, awesome. I never enjoyed dodgeball when I was in elementary school but now that I'm grown and every throw and dodge results in some sort of stress injury or pulled muscle, I loved it. After dodging and sweating bullets, we headed to dinner at Pracna on Main (one of my old favorites) and ended the night at Donny Dirk’s Zombie Den (one of my new favorites). I thought the bar would be over-the-top with the Zombie theme, but it was just enough. The lighting, the fabulously-crafted cocktails and the overall ambiance were perfect. I didn’t particularly enjoy the unexpected screening of Garbage Pail Kids, however. At the end of the night, instead of blaring lights and bartenders screaming “Get the eff out!” there was a classy surprise. You will just have to go there and stay until bar close to find out what that is.

On Sunday I got to tour the home of Indeed Brewing Company before it gets renovated. Pretty-effing-cool is my overall assessment. Eating Vietnamese food, making Valentine’s Day cards, catching up on tv shows, and baking with my sister ended my weekend.

And for the birthday part of this post:

Happy birthday to Mr. Micah!

I met Micah basically after he asked my good friend to marry him, 10 years ago. It wasn't until a couple of years ago that a group of us started spending more time together and I realized how much Micah and I had in common – mostly a love for music, grammar and all things punny. Micah (along with his wife Carrie) pushes me to do things I wouldn't normally do like run obstacle course races (Warrior Dash, Muddy Buddy), go to shows of bands I've never heard of, and learn about new Internet things (Evernote, Spotify, Fab.com, etc.) Micah is a very intelligent, kind, creative* and funny sort of guy. I'm lucky to know him. Happy birthday, Micah!

*He's the one who made the video featured here.

Also, photos are coming but I'm waiting on one more and I can't wait on this post anymore since the day is almost over.

The weekend, in le nutshell.

Today is merry simply for the fact that I do not have to go to work and type up my 700 TPS reports all day. (mycoworkersaresuckers.com!) <---I made it up, don't go to it.

This weekend was fun! I had dinner with my girlies at Ginger Hop in NE Minneapolis. The atmosphere was great, the service was ample and the food was delicious. I had a bowl of Tom Yum -- my Thai go-to dish and it was perfectly sour and spicy, like it should be. The only problem is that whenever I eat at a Thai restaurant, this is what I order. Maybe I should step outside of the box, or the soup bowl, or whatever, sometime. Afterwards, I went to my sister and brother-in-law's house to celebrate the unveiling of their forthcoming brewery! Lease signed, press releases released, and all of social media aflutter! You should probably check it out and get excited for this summer when it all comes true. Indeed, it will be worth it.

Saturday was full of cleaning, organizing, purging old beauty products, and then rushing out of the house to get to a comedy show. I went with a few friends to Joke Joint in Lilydale, MN which is basically a weird part of St. Paul. The comedian, Chris Barnes, is one of my favorites (I haven't seen that many) and my face was sore after the night of laughing hysterically. We headed over to Downtown White Bear Lake to spend time with the boyfriend's friends and brother and had a really fun time at small, unpopulated bars. My kind of night.

On Sunday I ran errands, went for a run (outside!) and then headed over to my sister's house to watch the Super Bowl. Just kidding, I didn't watch it, but the party was fun anyway. Only mistake? Not bringing stretchy pants. Glamorous - for sure.

My head is kind of all over the place today and this was more than a nutshell, but whatever. I guess it's the whole nut and that sounds pretty weird. You know me! Have a weird day!

The Heart of the Matter

Happy February! I love the beginning of every month and every year because it feels so fresh. This month is many things: Black History Month, Heart Health Month, the month of Valentine's and mushy gushy things, and this year, it's a leap year! 29 days to recognize some really great things. 

I've known a handful of people who have had heart attacks. Some have thankfully survived them, and some have not. My dad's best friend, who in turn, was one of my favorite people in the world, passed away in 1996 due to complications from a heart attack. It was the first funeral I remember and one of the saddest, if you could even put them on a scale. And more recently, as in within the past couple of weeks, someone close to me had a heart attack and will undergo surgery next week. 

So, as people who are young and able to change the course of their future pretty easily, I think it's time to change. (Yes we can!) I received a nifty calendar from SparkPeople (thanks to Ash for that website recommendation) of 29 days to improving your heart health. I've always known cardio exercise was important and I've gotten my fill through running. But now, I'm placing a greater emphasis on it. No longer do I run only to lose weight, but to strengthen my heart. After all, "The heart is a muscle. So treat it like one." 

With this, I vow to make some changes in my life: 
1. Cook meals on the stove, not the microwave. I tend to eat Lean Cuisines because they are fast and easy, but chock-full of sodium and micro-waves. 
2. Decrease my intake of red meat, eggs, fried foods and foods with high cholesterol. Be mindful of cholesterol in general. 
3. Exercise. I'm running for a plethora of reasons and now I have more motivation to get to the trail, track or treadmill. 
4. Sleep. I am in dire need of a bedtime. 
5. Be mindful of actions. Mostly because I couldn't end the list at four. Oh I know, decrease the alcohol intake. There. 

A heart attack is just that. An attack. An ambush. No one expects that they will have one; it most certainly comes as a surprise. And what do you do when you know you may eventually be under attack? You prepare. You draw your armor out. You round up your defenses and fight your hardest. 

So be healthy for your heart, yourself, your family and your friends. They all want you alive and well for as long as humanly possible. We're given one body that's meant to last decades - take care of it. And again, happy February. <3