Fortunate Fridays {Friendships are golden & Self Improvement edition}

Hey My loves!

This week FLEW! I almost forgot to post this but here I am-- as it is my Friday tradition. I wont waste much time on random stuff and just get to the point.

 This week I feel fortunate for:

1. Spending time with some amazing friends this weekend! -- My amazing friends from NYC came to DC and it was like a college reunion all over again. Great times!

Warning: pictures of delicious food and lots of fun ahead

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

First time at Peri-Peri--- absolutely delicious. 

 

2. I am getting better at not caring what others do but controlling my own emotions and being at peace instead!- I used too much power on things that were out of my control until one day I decided that's no way to live. Still a work in progress but I am so much happier.

3. My mom taking the time to "deep clean" my apartment

4. The realization that following a passion can take us farther than actual skills or aptitude can! (will be writing a post on this).

5. Finding the time to update my investing blog!

 

6. Not letting others intimidate me-- no matter what. I know what I am and what I am capable of. I know I have a bright future ahead regardless of anything.

7. The opportunity to attend an amazing work event last night. I am telling you--- the company where I am doing the internship is beyond amazing. Open bar, free food, free entertainment. They even sent me to the train station on a limo...yes. a limo.

 The Gold Magnolias-- Awesome band!

 

 

 

8. My incredible faith and the certainty of knowing deep inside that amazing things are ahead.

 

Me today after a nice run (although I was so exhausted I didn't feel like doing nada. But I did it!!).

 

 

Meme award of the week goes to:



 

 

 

TELL ME-- What blessings did you enjoy this week?

Fun NYC events: Dominican Film Festival

Happy Thursday everyone! First I’d like to start w/ sharing that I was able to accomplish another morning jog today with my virtual running buddy. We are trying out this new “waking each other up” experiment. Today was the second day this week and so far so good (we are shooting for every other day). Here is why support can be so important sometimes:

I gave myself 30 minutes and then walked by to my apartment to get ready for work. I still cant believe my pace improvement and I am very happy about it. I did about 3 miles over all (the last mile or so was spent walking/cooling down so is not reflected on the Nike App results).

 

In other news; for those who may not know, I am originally from the Dominican Republic (right term is “Dominican” although ive had people asked me whether I am Dominican Republican—not the right term). One of my best friends invited me to the “Dominican Film Festival” opening night, which took place yesterday at the Columbia University Medical Center auditorium here in NYC. I happily agreed. The movies feature Dominican actors and often take place in the country itself. The stories are compelling/dramatic and look to portray a picture of the Dominican culture, people, stories and circumstances (whether positive or negative).  I love seeing “my people” in the big screen and I truly admire their craft and talent.  So anyways, I jumped at the chance to go with her a had a truly amazing time!

 

I was able to meet some of the actors up close and personal and since it was a “red carpet event” I got to see a few celebrities from the Hispanic/Dominican community in person which is always exciting. One of my favorite Actors, Manny Perez, was present at the event (he was the protagonist of the movie MY friend and I watched). Is he sexy or what:

 

I think I met my future husband.

 

I took the liberty to stalk him from a distance and snapped a few pictures:

 

 

And this is the movie I saw last night:

 

*Movie was amazing. If you want to read more about it click here. It is completely in Spanish and I don’t remember if they had subtitles but if you live in New York City, have an interest in foreign films and maybe know a little bit (or a lot) of Spanish I recommend you check it out! The Dominican Film Festival ends on June 30^th (sadly this weekend, so soon!) and they have a lot of interesting movies to choose from (only $10 bucks!) so definitely check out the site if you are interested.

And that is all folks! Have a great day. :)

Q: Do you like foreign films? Have you ever been to the Dominican Republic?

Fortunate Friday + Week Recap, blended in 1 :)

Another Friday has arrived and no Friday would be complete without my summation of things that I felt fortunate for this week. And here you have it-à

1. The little things in life that bring us joy.  Needed a new mug for work and found the beauty pictured below at my local TJMaxx. The phrases literally put a smile on my face. My very first use of the mug was paired up with one of my favorite Luna bar flavors:

2. The people that find my blog and send me messages letting me know how much they like it. I know I’ve said this before but it means a lot to me. One of the individuals that reached out to me this week was a representative of an organization called “Happify”. The concept behind their idea is amazing and I cant wait to take part in their activities. I will share more about this soon!!

 

 

3. Random acts of kindness!--Was running late for work one day this week and the bus driver actually waited for me to get to the stop. He could have very well taken off but he waited and that was a really nice gesture!

4. Recycling my books from undergrad! This may not be what you think so let me explain. One of my professors this semester is using an old version of a business book that looked very familiar to me (at least the title did). He said the core concepts in education do not change much from year to year so he didn’t want us expending crazy money on a new version of the book. Nonetheless, cheap or not, the book still had to be purchased and that’s something I did not feel like doing.

Well, while browsing through my old business books from undergrad guess what I found---the book required for this semester! Crazy huh?! I have to admit that at first I was mad and thought to myself that I would be wasting money on a course I’ve already taken. But then I had to remind myself that there were MANY chapters that were not covered back when I was in undergrad and realized that those chapters are the ones I’ll be covering this semester. Isn’t that great?! Must have saved around $80+ just on that alone, plus I get to cover stuff I didn’t cover before!

5. My team member for one of my classes this semester—he’s super smart and thank god seems to know what he’s doing! Looks like we’ll both do great in this course and we complement each other quite well regarding knowledge.  (sorry if theres a lot of school stuff on here but my life has been bombarded by work and school lol).

6. Bonus Fortunate—Getting to know my sister’s cool friends and spending quality time with them! This past weekend my sister did an actual celebration for her bday (actual= clubbing). I got to meet more of her friends and realized I need to hang out with them more often. Such an amazing group of upbeat and positive people. Loved every second of the party! Below are some pics:

 

So, hopefully this post somewhat makes up for being  M.I.A this week. I’ve tried to blend in a wrap up of my week and what I feel fortunate for—hope I did a good job with that :). Thank God Is Friday!

What do you feel fortunate for this week? What was the best part of your week?

MY VERY FIRST 10K!!

So this past Sunday I had the privilege of joining my sister and her wonderful friends with the purpose of running a race. But not just any race…my first 10K ever!! I still remember the first time I ever ran a race in my entire life. It was a 5K and I think it was back during the spring of 2010 when one of my best friends and I went to visit her sister in Charlotte North Carolina. While most people you visit across the country surprise you with a night out in the town at a club or some big party she actually surprised us with the fact that she signed us up for a 5K! and not only that, we actually did some dirk-bike racing and that turned out to be one of the best get away of my life.

But....back to the purpose of this post. The 10k was at Roosevelt island (a tiny little piece of land between Queens and NYC) and it was called…brace yourselves!...the Hot Chocolate Run! When my sis first sent me the email about a couple of months ago I think I just read the title and signed up immediately. During the signing up process they asked whether I’d like to run the 5K or the 10K. I actually hesitated for a while and even texted my sister to see what she thought. I have to admit---I was doubting myself on whether I could actually run ~6.4 miles. I know this might seem like nothing to a lot of people that constantly run or that have completed multiple ½ marathons or marathons and beyond. However, for me this was quite a big deal. Ive learned to absolutely love running this year but I am used to 3-4 milers. Nothing more than that. Well, until this past Sunday, that is! This past Sunday was actually a few firsts:

1. First time on the Roosevelt Island Tram
2. First time on Roosevelt Island 
3. First 10K ever

Here are some fun photos of the event--

The Tram Experience:

 

On the Island. Pre and Post race:

 

The cool mug and enjoying the delicious Hot Chocolate at the Finish Line:

....AND HERE IS MY TIME/ MILES PER MINUTE:

The verdict?! I loved it! And even better; I ran the entire time! I was so proud of myself and of this huge personal fitness milestone. I also got a super cool mug which I will surely treasure along with great memories. I think it was so cool they actually emailed us the results the same night of the race!! How awesome.

What did I learn? What was I reminded of? That I pretty much can do anything and that is true what they say--- “mind over matter”. There was a couple of times I wanted to take a break and walk but the amazing podcasts I was listening to (TD Jakes-- "Stay on Track" part II) plus fun Christmas music helped me pulled through the finish line with a big smile on my face!

I do have to share that the next day my body was aching and I could barely get up from my bed. Lol. I somehow manage to get up and get ready for work but I think my body was in total shock for about 16 hours. Makes me appreciate all this body does for me and every piece of it: from my head to my toes. What an amazing machine the body is!

In other news---last night was my very last final of the semester. So happy to share that fall 2012 has finally come to an end!!! Now I have some decisions to make about my future and life in general but I am super excited nonetheless. I know that as long as I do what I need to do God will guide me on the right direction. I leave you with this super cool picture I found while browsing Facebook this morning. I love being optimistic about everything in life and this made me smile:

Tell me, Do you remember your first race? Is there anything you learned about yourself or life in general before, during and/or after the race?