Saturday afternoon was really the turning point. I went to yoga with Carly! We walked there in the “nice” weather and then had a great $5 Vinyasa class! I loved the teacher (Caitlyn) and can’t wait to go back for more We took our time going home and stopped at City Sports, Borders, Anthropologie, and finally Trader Joe’s. I got my grocery shopping done and Carly finished her errands! I left yoga with such a weight lifted off my shoulders. I was feeling so bad about my week and guilty for being mean to Sean. It was such a relief to just let.it.go.

We went out on Saturday night! I know, it shouldn’t be such a big deal but it really was. It was like breaking the seal! When you’re at home in the warmth, it’s just so hard to leave and go out into the cold, to a place that seems so far. We went to The Greatest Bar near TD Bank North via cab. It was so quick and cheap (the cab)! The place was huge and Sean, Olga, Matt, and I had fun!

The rest of the weekend was spent catching up on work!

I went to an event featuring Alicia Silverstone. It was pretty much her pushing veganism, but nonetheless, it was fun to hear her voice! She sounded EXACTLY like her role in Clueless, it was pretty funny

Lastly, a topic I’ve been wanting to address for a while – friends and family finding this!

I started this blog not necesarily because I wanted people to read it. Obviously, I’m perfectly fine with this content being public because I created a blog- not a personal desktop based journal!

So, this is a message for my friends, especially Olga and Rachel who are most likely to find this first- I’m totally fine with you reading this blog so let me know if you find it! I might even tell people when I move to Dallas but until then, please don’t think I’m intentionally hiding this from you. I’m just still a little uncomfortable with the idea of an entire website dedicated to my thoughts and feelings

Ok- on that note, I must go!!

Be back soon if the craziness of school allows!

-Jul

Monday: Back and Biceps, Work… not much else! I honestly don’t remember what I did besides make this for dinner (which by the way, was 10x better the next day!!). Weather: SUN

Tuesday: 6 am client and then a GREAT treadmill run! It was so nice to have a good run for once! I feel like it’s been awhile since I felt good and actually zoned out but ran hard on the treadmill! I came home and napped and went to class for the rest of the afternoon. I was SO TIRED on Tuesday night that I was asleep before the 1 hr sleep timer on the TV went off- which I set at 8:40! Weather: AM Snow and PM RAIN

Wednesday: Awesome Chest, Shoulder’s and Triceps workout with 2 miles of TM intervals mixed in! I worked and then went to class for the rest of the afternoon. My Spanish Lit class still scares me but I’ve come to terms with the fact that it won’t kill me (or my GPA) to get a bad-ish grade, as long as I learn some Spanish! The night involved…

COMEDY WEDNESDAY!!

I <3 them!

Weather: RAIN

Thursday: 6 am client – set my alarm for 5 minutes later at 5:45 and woke up 2 minutes before it went off! That was mentally really encouraging for the day and I slept through the night without worrying about oversleeping in the AM After another quality, zoned-out 4 mile run I was home by 9:30! That’s definitely the best part of the early morning training session! I had a delicious breakfast:

Amazing smoothie - eaten with a spoon for satiety and carbs

Did some laundry, napped, and headed back to the gym for 3 more clients. After leaving the gym I just felt so claustrophobic! I had been cooped up the in either my apartment, an academic building, or the gym for 4 or 5 straight days! I took a cold, but refreshing walk “around the block” before heading to class.

After some dinner and lazy time in my apartment, I went to Punter’s with Sean and Jeremy. Punter’s is a funny place- a little dive bar practically on campus that is not exactly the hottest place around! It’s perfect for a night like that where you just want to go have a beer! (a Harpoon IPA in my case) I actually finished the whole thing too! No small feat for me Weather: SUN

Friday: I slept in! Actually, that’s an exaggeration… I slept until 7, woke up starving and had a bowl of cereal while reading for class, then went back to sleep at 8 for an hour and a half!! Yay me I had class all afternoon and then came home and did Legs & Back in my room/hallway. I love my Friday workout routine because it keeps me away from the gym!! Weather: SNOW!! can’t even believe we had class today!

Now Olga and I are going to get ready to go out and find something to do!

I have lots lined up for the blog this weekend/week

-Jul

Julie’s Tomato and Meat Sauce

• 1 small onion
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1 can Italian Diced Tomatoes
• 1/4 lb browned beef

In a small saucepan over medium heat, add garlic and onion to olive oil. Heat until onions are fragrant and translucent. Add can of tomatoes with juice. Crumble beef and mix everything together. Simmer until heated through.

Grow stronger in my faith and closer to God

There have been times in my life when I’ve felt extremely close to God and extremely spiritual. Not coincidentally, the most memorable times were almost always those of great struggle. I can remember being very faithful around the time of my Confirmation, during both of my moves to and from Colorado, and after my sister’s accident. I prayed all day long and constantly talked to God. Despite the personal strife, it was really fulfilling to have someone to talk to and really brought me great comfort. Eventually, as things got easier I stopped being so diligent in my practice. When I went away to Northeastern I started going to church on my own and that was the time that I really understood the Mass and appreciated it not only for the chance to grow close to Jesus, but also to feel a part of a community. Although I wasn’t particularly constant in my prayer, I remember that time in my life for helping me love the Sunday ritual.

Over the course of the coming year many new changes and challenges will present themselves. I will graduate college, travel to Spain for 5-6 weeks, and then move to Dallas in August. I do NOT want to wait until I need God for me to rebuild our relationship. Since the beginning of Advent I’ve been going to church regularly. This week and last week are the first weeks that I can honestly say I’ve been thinking about my faith during the week.

On two occasions I felt myself rise above and call on my Christianity to be a bigger person. I will not discuss the incidents because that defeats my purpose, but I will say it has to do with the interactions and feelings I’ve felt toward two people I don’t particularly care for. Our university Priest said this week that we don’t have to like everyone, but we must love them. I do not love these two people in the common use of the word, but I feel compassion and acceptance. A big step for me.

I believe that I can continue to grow and become a better and more loving person everyday. It’s a simple quest, but one that I know will not end this year.

I’ll be back soon will an easy recipe and more!

-Jul



Who did you like?!

Not much else going on today! I made my own BEEF BURGERS from SCRATCH tonight! It was really good topped with ketchup and guacamole, and side of sweet potato fries

It’s back to school tomorrow after a weird week of a snow day and MLK Day today. I’m looking forward to getting in the swing of things! Laying around is getting a little old – at least I worked for a while today. I need/want to start getting out more but it’s just SO. COLD. aka 9-17 degrees today :-/

Okay, I’m off! Sean’s coming over later so I want to get ready for the day tomorrow.

-Jul

So, that spurred me into action. I’ve decided on the following:

(*=maybe)

1. Super Sunday 10K* – Feb 6 – Boston, MA

2. Ocean Drive 10 mi – Mar 27 – Cape May, NJ

3. Cambridge 5 mi* – April 6 – Cambridge, MA

4. NJ 1/2 Marathon – May 1 – Long Branch, NJ

I’m excited!!

Other than chatting with my BFF yesterday, I spent the morning sipping Starbucks and doing Spanish homework in the Student Center by Sean. I hit up the gym for a treadmill/track run of 5 miles, and then relaxed the afternoon away! It was a pretty great day.

Friday night at the Senior Blacktie event was pretty fun! I don’t know why, but our friend kept wanting to hang out in this little back room where there were only a few of her friends. My favorite part was being out in the crowd and seeing people from class! It made Olga and I want to spend more time this semester with different people they we WANT to see! I also think we’re going to incorporate more movie nights into the equation.

*I don’t have pictures yet but I will post them when I do!

Last night was low key. After tacos with Sean, Olga, Matt, and I went over to his place to hang out. We were going to go to the bar but it ended up being late when we were ready to go. I always have fun just hanging out with my friends! We watched “Valentine’s Day” – and now that I’m thinking of it, that counts as Movie Night #1 of the Semester!

I plan to get some work done and then go to work to train a client later. Looking for to…

JETS and GOLDEN GLOBES!

See ya!

-Jul

1. I must make this lunch wrap again: in a tortilla (in this order)- refried beans, cooked quinoa, ketchup, 1 chopped up microwaved egg, and shredded cheddar. Delicious when wrapped and eaten cold later!

2. I am tired of people (aka. friends) talking about what they eat, when, why, blah blah around me! I am NOT judging anyone for their food choices. People always apologize or make comments when they eat something unhealthy or enjoy a “bad” food. IT NEEDS TO STOP. I really don’t care. At all. I really have to start speaking up more but it just gets really old really fast when people say these kinds of things. It’s hard to be serious and polite about telling people to stop.

3. Not sure why I’m cranky? I tried to nap after class but all I did was watch “Dallas Divas and Daughters” – which, btw, is my new obsession (for research purposes!). I have some fun plans this weekend and don’t work until Sunday evening. I have the Senior Blacktie Blackout tonight and then the 111 Days until Graduation party at another bar on Saturday night! I hope to come out with lots of fun pictures

That’s all for now… must.try.smiling.

-Jul

• 1/2 C cooked Quinoa
• 1 small onion (or 1/2 large), chopped
• 1/2 clove minced garlic
• 1/3 C frozen corn
• Mixed fresh or frozen chopped red pepper, broccoli, mushroom
• 1 egg
• Adobo seasoning, to taste
• Cumin, to taste
• shredded cheddar cheese, optional for topping
• salsa, optional for topping

Add onion to pan sprayed with Pam. Cook until starting to soften and then add garlic. Saute about 1 minute until fragrant and add frozen veggies. Cover with lid and cook for about 3 minutes. Add quinoa and seasoning to taste, and cover. After about 4 minutes, make a space in the center of the pan, spray with Pam, and crack egg. Scramble with spoon or spatula. Scramble in center until about half-way cooked and then combine with the rest of the quinoa mixture. Remove from heat, sprinkle cheese, salsa, and pepper to taste.

Enjoy! I didn’t include a picture because I’m sure that would have actually discourage the making of this recipe Let’s just say my talent does NOT lie in food photography!

Last night I made these brownies! I’d been planning on it for a while and finally got around to it. I got the idea to make a batch of brownies and then freeze them individually for later from this Gina post! I can’t wait to take one out, pop it in the microwave and have a delicious dessert whenever I want! I’ve been sharing the secret with anyone who will listen

What else… oh yes, snow day yesterday!!

-Jul

It’s only the second day of class and already I’m right back where I left off! I trained 3 clients yesterday, 1 today at 6:15 am, did my Back and Biceps workout yesterday, ran 5 miles (outside) this morning, and attended all of my classes!

My first early training session went well! I was pretty caffeinated by the time my client arrived so I’m sure that helped the situation

I absolutely LOVED my classes this afternoon. They were so business-y and interesting. It completed confirmed (once again) that I love my major. It also made me really excited for my “real person” job starting in August. Supply chain really encompasses so much of what I’m learning in my MIS classes and I truly believe that my background will help me tremendously.

We’re crossing our fingers around here (like 10 year olds!) for a snow day tomorrow! I’m fairly sure it’s going to happen too because every other university in Boston is already closed!

And last but not least, look what I found!

-Jul

Wool Winter Coat:

• Orginally: $198
• Sale: $74.99
• Additional 50% off Clearance: $37.50
• Gift Card: -$25
• TOTAL PAID: $12.50

i love my life<3

…perfect for March in Boston or the dead of Winter in Dallas