Almost Home

Hi!  So I've been a bad blogger...It's been far too long since I posted so I thought I'd put up a little something now.  It's very late right now and I am trying to get a few million things done before I fly home tomorrow evening!  I am attempting to get my homework done that is due next week so I don't have to do it while home, but I need a little break before I get back to my paper, packing, and cleaning.

So in the past few weeks here's what I've been up to...

I've been trying to cook and bake more.  Some of the things I've made include:

Pumpkin Muffins.

Fig Bars from Clean Eating magazine.  They taste like Fig Newtons and are super delicious.

And veggie soup.

I also made really good turkey chili that I've been slowly eating throughout the week.  All of these baking/cooking attempts have taught me that I need to have healthy options around the house to eat when I don't have time to cook.  The soup and chili has been great for that so I've been trying to make extra and freeze it.  But I've also discovered that as much as I like to bake, it's not really a good idea for me right now.  Because one I make something delicious...I want to eat it...all.  So baking will have to wait until I have a kitchen full of people to feed everything to and it's not all sitting there for me!  I would love anyone's advice on healthy eating/sticking to a plan when you're living in a college/communal environment.  It's definitely been an ongoing struggle for me but I'll continue to work at it.

On another note, I have been sticking with my training plan for the most part.  I substitute some days when school/life gets in the way but for the most part I have been doing my 3x a week strength training, about 2 or 3 runs a week, and about 1 or 2 days of cross training.  The workouts have been going well and have included some fabulous runs through Central Park.  I can't wait to start getting into my half marathon training starting in December!

I really love running there and am trying to do it at least once a week.  It is so beautiful, especially right now with all the colorful leaves.  There is also a great energy there because there are always so many runners and walkers, I even saw Al Roker running this past weekend!

On that note, my other celebrity sightings of late have included Brooke Shields, Tyson Beckford, Gabe from The Office, and Jimmy McMillan, the NYC mayoral candidate from The Rent is Too Damn High Party (Seriously, google him).

Other exciting occurences include a visit from Whitney!  She wasn't here very long but it was still fantastic!  We went to lunch at Le Pain Quotidien and I showed her the amazingness of 16 handles!  Can't wait til her next visit!

Also, the Christmas decorations have been popping up all over the city!  While, I do not myself celebrate the holiday, I still love the decorations, the lights, and the general holiday feeling in NYC!  I saw the Rockefeller tree the day it was being set up.  I definitely want to go back after it is all lit up.

   When I was walking in midtown I also noticed many of the department store windows were totally blacked out because they were putting up the infamous holiday windows!  Can't wait to go back and see these Saks windows.

 Here's Macy's decorations!

Once Thanksgiving is over I'm sure there will be holiday decorations everywhere!  I can't wait.  Ice skating in the park is another must do activity to get in the holiday spirit!  My roommates and I are planning on having a Hannukah party once we get back as well.  Hannukah is super early this year so since I  won't be home :( we are going to make latkes, light the candles, play dreidel, and maybe even decorate some Hannukah themed sugar cookies!

Another activity of note was seeing the Broadway show, Next to Normal, this past weekend.

I went with my friend Caroline and we won the student lottery so we got $25 box tickets!  The show was intense but I really loved it!  I am very happy I got to see it, since it is closing in January.

A few weeks ago I also tried to see the Daily Show.  I had tickets but they purposely oversell so they don't have empty seats which left me out in the cold.  I was dissapointed since they very rarely have tickets available but hopefulyl sometime in the  next two years I will be able to see it!

I also got to see Harry Potter at midnight!  It was amazing!  So much better than the last movie.  It makes me so sad that the next one is that last!  I really want to reread all the books before it comes out this summer.  The ads have been plastered all over almost every subway stop.

Ok, well I should probably get back to my criminology paper and laundry.  Maybe even sleep, since it is almost 2 AM.  Yikes.  At least I can sleep on the plane.  I will be home in less than 24 hours!  I can't wait to be in Portland, see my family and friends, see Lucy!, eat lots of yummy Thanksgiving food, go on runs with my mom and the Hurley's, go to Barre3, watch the Ducks play, and go to brunch at the Benson!  I will be very busy but it's going to be so worth it!  After this break, I hope to get back to more regular blogging.  I hope you all will continue to follow along!  See you soon!

Hello November!

Hi hi everyone!  Hope you all had a fabulous weekend!  Mine was pretty nice.  I'll be back later with a recap of the weekend.   But what I'm really getting excited about is the fact that I will be flying home for Thanksgiving break in approximately 14 days!  Not that I'm counting or anything...

So here is the news since I last posted:

1.  Spanish and I have parted ways.

 After much discussion and a few tears, I made the decision to withdraw from my Spanish course.  Admittedly, I was not doing very well but on top of that my professor seemed unwilling to consider why so many of her students were not doing well and instead advised us to simply drop the class.  After being yelled at to "pay attention" when I did not know the answer to a question only because I did not understand, I felt comfortable with my decision to leave.  If it turns out that I do in fact need to take Spanish in order to graduate, I will start over, but hopefully I'll find a professor more willing to teach.

2.  I got into Gallatin!
      Gallatin is the School of Individualized Study at NYU.  It basically means that I will be able to pick my classes, develop my own major, and have a lot more freedom because there won't be any requirements.  I will eventually have to present my major at the end of next year to some faculty members.

3.  In other happy news, the red Starbucks cups are back!

To me, the red cups mean comfy sweaters, wintry days, the prospect of snow, holidays and winter break.     I love it.

4.  Speaking of winter....it's getting cold!  This week the mornings have been in the low 40's...brrr.  Don't get me wrong, I knew winter in NYC was going to be cold but that doesn't mean I like it  or that I was ready for it!  It seems like just a few weeks ago that I was sweating to death in the 95 degree heat.  NYC is all about the extremes.  Extreme heat.  Extreme cold.  Extreme crowds.  At times, extreme loneliness.  And NYC always has the extreme craziness which is on view everyday, whether it's the man who screamed at me in Washington Square Park that he is the President of the United States or even my crazy roommates who insist on playing Justin Bieber at least once a day.
     And since it has been getting cold, my dearest mother sent me the cutest Lulu running clothes!  I needed some warmer stuff to run in for the next few months when I begin training for the Shamrock Half Marathon in March and the stuff she sent is the cutest!  Thanks Mom!

     So cute, right?  I just love lululemon!  Hint, hint....to anyone who feels the need to send me something since they miss me so much :)

The changing of the season and the realization that this year is almost over prompted me to feel kind of ambitious and I decided to make some goals for the rest of the year.  Some of them I want to complete by the end of the month, and some of them are just habits I want to stick with through the next two months and hopefully continue with them.  I thought sharing my goals would help me to follow through and make me more accountable.  So, ready for another list?

End of 2010 Goals:

1.  Map out my courses/requirements/plan for next 1.5 years until graduation (scary!).
          Since I just got into Gallatin, I need to figure out an academic plan.  I want to meet with an advisor and determine what courses I need to take to fulfill requirements, what courses I need to take/want to take for my major, and how I need to do this in order to graduate on time.  Figuring all of this out will give me some peace of mind and planning ahead is essential since I need to fit a lot of credits into a rather short period of time.

2.  Improve my grades.
         I am not doing badly in any of my current classes, but there is always room for improvement.

3.  Work on the procrastination.
        I've always been a bit of a procrastinator and probably always will be, but I want to at least work on starting my assignments further in advance then I have been.  This means I need to do my HW due on Wednesday over the weekend, and not Tuesday night and start my papers at least a week ahead of time. This is not going to be the easiest for me to do, but I'm going to work on it.

4.  Make contact with prospective offices for Summer Internships.
      Summer internships can be so competitive, especially in this economic climate so I want to get started early.  By the end of the month I want to have reached out to a few offices and either send in an application or know when they want it by.  If anyone has any ideas or contacts, let me know!

5.  Stick to my training schedule.
     I've started a workout regime that includes 3 days of strength training, one long run a week, 2 short runs a week and some cross training.  I want to be disciplined and stick to my schedule by doing the planned workout each day.  By doing this I think I can build a good base level of fitness to start my official half marathon training schedule.

6.  Drink 3L of water a day.
     Pretty self explanatory.  I need more aqua in my life.

7.  Journal my eats each day.
     I tend to eat healthier when I write down what I eat.  It helps me refrain from mindless and overeating.  Sometimes it is annoying but I'll be happy with the results if I keep this up.

8.  Do at least one thing each weekend that I've been wanting to do in the city.
     This could be seeing a show, visiting a park, going to a restaurant, exploring a new neighborhood, a museum, etc.  There is a lot I want to see and do in the city and I really want to take advantage of my time here.

Ok, there are all my goals.  Sorry this hasn't been the most exciting post, I just wanted to share.  Let me know what you all think!  I'll be posting sometime soon with pictures and a recap of my visit to the NYC marathon expo and everything else I did this weekend.  Farewell for now!

<3 from NYC