Fortunate Friday {Good Friday Edition}

Hello dear friends!

It is good Friday today. To all of my dear Catholics out there, a day to reflect and to be thankful for everything that the one up above did and does for us. I am missing my mom as she is out of the country visiting her family. We would go to church every good Friday and take part in all of the activities.  I may have to do that on my own this weekend. My grandma is having a family dinner this evening so, looking forward to that.

I took today off from work to catch up on school work and to at least enjoy one day from my so called "spring break" without having to rush around and just to find some time to relax.

I woke up super late today catching up on sleep and then enjoyed a yummy breakfast.

In addition to the above noted "tasks" my apartment is in some serious need of deep cleaning and I may also go grocery shopping. I also woke up with the strange urge to purchase new sheets, a new comforter, new underwear, new everything! I may even paint my apartment (having painted it since I moved there over 2 years ago!).

 I've also been on some serious need of getting a bookshelf for the gazillion books I have at my place but I am not sure if that will take place today. I am just excited to "revive"  my apartment. and myself. :)

Will keep you all updated, of course.

Without further 'ado here is what I am feeling fortunate for this week:

1. God's unconditional love in my life and the feeling that I know for a fact he is always looking out for me. I cant explain it but when things are chaotic in my life and then when they finally fall in to place {sometimes miraculously} things make perfect sense and I cant attribute that to anyone else but the one up above! 

2. Co-workers that become amazing friends-- Not sure how this happened but I have become very close with one of my co-workers whom is fairly new. She has been such an amazing support system and I just feel so positive and optimistic around her. That's when you know you've met a good person!

3. Uplifting radio shows that motivate me-- I listen to a motivational show on Spanish radio which always manages to put a smile on my face. Do you listen to any uplifting shows?

4. The courage to talk to one of my managers about something (will share the topic on a post coming soon).

5. Finally finding Almond Butter!! (Quick Trip to Trader Joes)-- I made a gazillion trips to the whole food by my job with no lunch and yesterday I finally found my beloved almond butter during a trip to TJs! I also picked up a few staple items.

6. The time I've had to reflect on my experiences and getting to know myself better (does that process ever end?)

7. Optimism towards the future, finally feeling good again.

8. Things finally making sense, and self-forgiveness!

9. The courage to be more open on the blog (super freeing!)

As you may all have heard, one of the best known authors of the world, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, passed a way yesterday. I read several of his books growing up and I was very, very saddened by the news. I dedicate today's 'quote of the week' to one of his best sayings:

"What matters in life is not what happens to you but what you remember and how you remember it". GGM

Tell me,
1. Do you listen to any uplifting shows or podcasts? Please share!
2. Any plans for the weekend?

A Smooth Commute {and diet pill for breakfast?!}

Good morning all!

Happy hump day!

I had a pleasant commute this morning to work. I have been staying at my parents house this week considering my sister is on vacation and I can sleep on her bed. The commute from my parent's to my job is soooooooo much smoother than the one from my apartment. To make a long story short, it cuts my traveling time by about 20-30 minutes which is the equivalent of like 3 days in NYC time (I kid, I kid.).

Anyway, sleeping over at my parents also meant bringing over some of my foods that I had prepped for the week. Packing was a little stressful (isnt it always) but I managed to bring over some of the stuff including my banana bread which I am having for breakfast this morning with almond butter and a cup of joe'.

 

Yesterday while wondering the streets of wall street with my co-worker we went to Lot Less and amazing store with amazing sales and which I am obsessed with. I found these little pockets of almond butter for $1.

I ran out of almond butter about 2 weeks ago and have made sporadic visits to whole foods where they continue to be out of stock. Not sure what may be going on but I may pass by today again and see. But anyway, the little pockets are perfect for now although the jar would be a better deal of course.

So on to this diet pill situation….this morning as I made my way towards the cafeteria at my job to grab some coffee I ran in to a co-worker. This girl is absolutely beautiful and has a nice full shape which many would qualify as "over-weight". As we walked together she commented on how "hungry" she was but that she didn't want to break her diet. I asked her what does she mean? She responded by saying that she cannot eat anything for breakfast aside from a cup of tea. Then I asked her, what about lunch? she proceeded by saying she can have lunch but it has to be "light". She is on some kind of plan which involves diet pills from a fairly popular company I don't want to mention here. I felt sorry for her.

I felt sorry for the situation and I felt sorry for the ignorance of some people whom still believe that starving themselves is the proper way to lose those extra pounds. I don’t blame her. I blame the manufacturers of those companies whom, for the sake of profit, could care less about deceiving people about their "miracle pills". I can assure you that the CEO and high level executives at these companies eat pretty well and aren't starving themselves having a pill and some lettuce each day. I don’t want to judge. Maybe I don’t know the whole story. All I know is that the description of this diet she is on didn’t sound good.

I have to admit that back during my teenage years and maybe even very early 20s I would borderline starve myself in order to achieve that "idolized" skinny shape. Thankfully, through the years I have realized that deprivation is a sure way to fail in this area. There will come a time when your body will pretty much "attack" you and make you crave everything under the sun in order to get back those calories it had been deprived from for so long. The cravings will become so incredibly intense that you will have no choice but to give in and start the cycle all over again. This is a miserable way to live and I can attest to that because I've lived that first hand.

 

With failure comes experience and today I know that starvation is not the answer. Calories, fat, carbs, protein, etc. It is all necessary for a well-functioning body and all works in unison to make you healthy and bring you to your healthy weight. It may be easier said than done but it is true. Our bodies are incredible machines and they will tell you what they need. If you starve it and deprive it you better believe that the first thing that will pop in to your head when you cant take it anymore wont be the healthiest food choices; and this is one of the reason for that yo-yo cycle.

 

Anyways, these are my two cents and some venting on the situation. What are your thoughts on this?

 

Post # 301: Fortunate Fridays, March Objectives and Overnight Oats

This is my post #301 :)...I should really pay closer attention to my Blog's milestones..

Hey everyone!

 

First of all, there is some crazy and random snow storm going on in NYC (yes the Friday before we spring forward our clocks) and my morning was quite insane!

My bus never showed up so after around 45 minutes of waiting around I had to take a $8 cab to the train. Needless to say I made it to work super late. Thankfully my boss was understanding but what a disaster of a morning I had!

 I know it could have been worse. So, I am over it! Thankfully I had prepped breakfast the night before and once I finally made it to work I was able to enjoy my overnight oats (in an near-empty almond butter jar):

[In the mix: Chobani 0% Greek yogurt mixed in with a little bit of stevia for flavor, cinnamon, 1/3 cup of granola and raisins] Had it with some coffee on the side. So good! It had been a while since I had it.

And here is the Fortunate Friday Rundown of the week. This week I feel fortunate for...

1. Coming home to a clean apartment-- my mom was off from work one day this week. Since she's the type of person that constantly has to be "in motion" she called and asked whether I'd like her to swing by my place and clean up a bit. How could I be against that?!

Well, I came home to the smell of clean and fresh. Thanks mom!

2. Living during a time where absolutely everything is available on the internet-- I know this is so "normal" to us now but I am an 80s baby and I do remember a time where the internet was not in existence (encyclopedia Britannica anyone?!). Well, I've been doing research on different topics this past week (from personal to school related) and the fact that everything is so easily and readily available is definitely something to feel fortunate for... and not to be taken for granted!

3. Health-- I always feel fortunate for this but figured I throw in a friendly reminder. If you have health you have everything.

4. The free gym at my school-- or maybe I should say "free" because my tuition covers part of it (whether I like it or not). But anyway, Ive been trying to fit in some runs during my busy week and figured since I am already on campus nearly every single day I could make good use of my time and hit the gym before my class. This week has been a success with that! I'll elaborate more on my next post.

5. Scholarships for MBA students. Since my company doesn't pay for school I've had to get "creative" on searching for resources and found some scholarships online which i will be applying for. Please pray for me and wish me luck!!

I know I am 8 days late but here are my top 5 Objectives for the month of March:
1. Friendships: Meet up with at least one friend I haven't seen in a while (roll over from February)
2. Fitness: Run 2-3 times a week, Finish Jillian rippedin30 week 3
3. Personal: Tackle things head on before they ever have a chance to stress me out.
4. School: Stay on top of school stuff
5. Finish requirements for at least one scholarship

Any plans for March? How was your friday morning?