Couch to 5K

I have so many friends who love running.  You know, the people who have a bad day and run 5 miles to relieve some stress after work. Or the friends who wake up an hour earlier than they have to in order to fit in a workout in for the day.  That has never been me, and despite how much I've always wanted to be a runner, I'm more of the type that wants to relax after a long day at work by drinking wine and watching TV.

It was almost 70 degrees in D.C. today and I decided if I'm ever going to love running, today will be the day to start.  So I did some research on a running plan my boss at CBS recommended, and I officially started the "Couch to 5K" program today!

The program is free, self monitored, and basically consists of 3 runs per week that slowly build up your running stamina, and will have me running 3 miles without any walking in 2 months!  Today's workout was hard since it was the first time I've run in forever, but I'm already feeling inspired to run again this weekend.

I'm really hoping I can stick with this...my thought is that if I blog about it, I will have more people to hold me accountable...right?

My reward to myself if I can make it through the first month will be a new pair of Nike shoes.

Do Un-Natural Blondes Still Have More Fun?

So in an attempt to save money, I'm holding off on highlighting my hair for as long as possible.  This means my roots are starting like Shakira's, making it very obvious that I'm not a natural blonde.

I've been contemplating getting the ombre look to make my root grow out less noticable, and so that I don't have to get my hair done as often.  However, I'm still emotionally scarred by my sophomore year when I went brunette, which was not a great look for me.  My inspiration for the ombre look is obviously the one and only, Lauren Conrad.

I also gave myself an awesome manicure yesterday that I'm quite proud of.  While I love nothing more than getting a professional mani and pedi, I'm glad my free alternative actually turned out quite well.

Happy Valentine's Day!

I just finished my "Onboarding" for Teach for America!  It was basically a 20 hour online course of what to expect in the upcoming months, taking practice tests (which were actually incredibly hard!), perfecting my resume, and preparing for upcoming interviews.  In July, every Houston Teach for America corps members has to take and pass the TExES exam, which basically allows you to teach in Texas for a year...if you don't pass it, you're basically out of luck...so here's to a lot of studying over the next few months!  That's one thing I don't miss about college.

On another note, it's Valentine's day! Instead of gaining 10 lbs from eating excessive amounts of chocolate or wishing I wasn't single, I've decided to let the most important man in my life know how much I love him...my dad! He has been the best valentine I've had in all 22 years of my life, and even if our Valentine's Day consists of emailing and texting from across the country, it's enough for me!

I love you Dad!!

Wish I Was Here

For the most part, I usually have no problem getting myself ready and going to work.  Sure, it's not always easy greeting people for 10 hours straight, and I'm often faced with customers who don't understand that no, we don't have valet parking...no, I can't park your car for you...and no, I can't accommodate a party of 20 with no reservations in our main dining room.  But for the most part, I really can't complain.   I'm getting paid, fed amazing food, and I love my co-workers.

But today, more than anything, I'd so much rather be here. Daiquiri in hand, reading Catching Fire, lying in the sun and being a completely un-productive human being.

But doing that never paid the bills, did it?

Bills, Bills, Bills

Nothing stresses me out more than finances.  This week has been the worst in a while...rent, cable, and the water bill due, and in then in a couple of weeks it's the credit, gas, and electric bill, on top of paying back my loan.  I'm working as much as I possibly can but let's be real, my restaurant job isn't covering much more than rent and utilities at this point.  I'm applying for transitional funding to move to Houston, but at this point I have no idea much I'll get.  I wish I could find a way to get my finances off of my mind, but it's just something I can't stop stressing about.

Who invented the concept of money growing on trees...and why can't that actually happen?