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Friends Make You Happy: Upping Your Social Interactions

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I have (yet another) confession: For the past few months I’ve been feeling especially lonely due to my lack of social interaction. While I am following my dreams to become a writer, I lack the type of social interaction one may find from a “real job.” Lunch dates, office meeting, company events? Yes, that doesn’t exist in my world. And I’m definitely not complaining, but I do miss the social aspect of all those things. After all, I am an extremely social girl, and truly enjoy talking to people…all people! My family and friends can never get a word in when I’m around…that’s how much I love to talk. 

So you can imagine when I’m hanging out with me and my mac all day how things can quickly become rather lonely. Of course, I have my roommates, friends from college and acquaintances here and there, but they aren’t around all of the time, and many of them live far, far away (as far as Virginia). So that means I have to rely on the phone, email, and facebook to communicate with many of my closest friends. While I’m thankful for social networking, it doesn’t make … Read More!

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Oh, the Memories: The Nostalgia of Going Home

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I have a confession: I’m sitting in the Panera I used to work at when I was in high school and am getting way too much satisfaction over the fact that I’m on the other side of the counter, enjoying my coffee this time. You see, my boss was a complete witch. Really, she was like the nasty stepmom in Cinderella. “Cut the bread!” “Make the jelly!” “Faster! Faster!” She’d make me cry every day of the week, and that is not an exaggeration. Going into Panera used to be as horrifying as going into the doctor’s office for a shot…or doing a presentation in front of the entire class. It was complete hell. One time the grape jelly ran out, and I told the customer he could have strawberry instead if he wanted, and she almost ripped my face off. “You never tell the customer no! Go make some grape jelly” Um, how am I supposed to do that? She pulled me into the back room and threw a ginormous carton of jelly at me, and had me scoop it for hours. She was the devil. Needless to say, I quit after a few months. 

Oh … Read More!

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P.S. Happy Hump Day!

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It’sssssss……HUMP DAY! WAHOO, congrats on getting half way there…just a few more hours at work until you’re officially over the hump. But until then, here’s my weekly Hump Day Lesson of the Day to get you through and hopefully make you giggle a bit…

Don’t Dress Too Sexy for Work: A few months ago (back when I worked a full time office job) I wanted to look good for an event so I put on my hot (yet profesh) pencil line dress. When I zipped it up, it was a little tighter than usual in the butt region but hey, maybe all those squats and lunges were to blame…and that’s a good thing. I asked my friend who is always honest if the dress was *too tight* and she said, “No way. It shows off your curves and is very flattering.” So I listened to her and head off to the office. 

I was walking down the streets with extra swagger. I look gooooood I thought to myself. Then I felt something. Something was not right. I went to adjust my dress when I realized it was hiked up all the way to my lower back, completely exposing my ass … Read More!

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Happy Hump Day: Hump Day Series

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“If taking vitamins doesn’t keep you healthy enough, try more laughter” ~Nicolas-Sebastien Chamfort 

I’m starting a new series in my “Healthy Chicks” blog, and that is the Hump Day series, a series dedicated to, well, silliness. After all (as I’ve stated time and time and again) healthiness is more than eating your fruits ‘n’ veggies. So let’s live a little, laugh a lot and be downright silly…

 It’s Wednesday and it feels a lot more like Monday to some of us to why not *laugh it off* to get “over the hump.” Last night, all my roommates were sitting in the living room thinking the same thing: When the heck will this week be over? Then comes Wednesday and those feelings are still there. Wednesdays are tough because you aren’t quite over the hump. It’s like being 20. You aren’t a teenager anymore (wahoo), but then again you can’t legally drink. So you just kinda sit there in the middle feeling lost and eager to get over that hump.

So that’s what my Hump Day series is all about: silly lessons from me (and please do add your witty wisdom) to get you over the midweek hump. From embarrassing moments … Read More!

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Single Gal's Fresh Mozzarella & Pesto Pasta

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This is the tastiest dinner for a single gal (or dude) looking for a filling, hearty fall meal! This dish serves one and can be enjoyed with a side salad, piece of garlic toast & glass of wine…hope you enjoy! 

*makes one serving for the single gal in the kitchen 

For Pasta:

-1/2 c. whole wheat or brown rice pasta

-1/4 c. spinach 

-1/4 c. Roma tomato, diced

-3 mini mozzarella balls, halved or quartered

-2 generous TB of homemade pesto

To Make Pesto:

-1 c. fresh basil leaves

-2 cloves garlic

-1/4 c. walnuts

-1/4 c. freshly grated Parmesan cheese

-3 TB extra virgin olive oil

-salt & pepper to taste 

1. Cook pasta according to directions on box. In the meantime, add the pesto ingredients in a mini Cuisinart and chop until well grounded, creating a smooth pesto sauce texture. 

2. Mix together tomatoes, mozzarella balls, spinach and 2 TB of pesto. Add in the pasta once cooked. Stir together and add in salt & pepper to taste. Enjoy! 


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More Protein, Please: Keep These Nifty 9 in Your House!

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Now that I’m a “runner girl” (so my dad calls me), it’s even more important than normal to ensure I’m getting my daily protein fix for the day. Women, and especially women who exercise, need protein to build and repair muscles and bones, provide energy, and control the body’s metabolism. And what better way to repair your bod post-workout than the perfect protein snack. No, I’m not talking about muscle milk or scary protein-enhanced high-cal bars. I’m taking healthy, tasty bites for you to enjoy! Here, my top 9 protein picks: 

1. Hard boiled eggs: Or even just the whites! For the perfect hard boiled egg, bring egg to a boil, remove from heat and cover for 14 minutes. It’s a fail-proof method. Make lots in bulk so you always have one to snack on when you’re in a pickle!

2. All Natural Nut Butters: My faves are almond butter and peanut butter, but I’ve even experimented with sunflower butter. Today I purchased Whole Food’s all natural nut butter where you actually get to grind it yourself. Nothing more fresh and natural than that! 

3. Cheese: I love string cheese with rice crackers or an apple for … Read More!

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Sorry I've Been Absent: 6 things I learned this weekend

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Why hello my lovely readers! First and foremost, I am sincerely sorry I have been absent for two days. However, the reason was valid (and worth it). I was out of town since Friday morning on a trip to Hoboken, NJ to visit my college friends. Some of them I haven’t seen in A YEAR, so you can image my excitement and reasoning for lack of blogging (I swear I tried to on the bus but the WiFi wasn’t working-boo!). 

Anyway, I’m back and at it so welcome back to all my loyal readers! So, I’ve realized lately that as I grow older I learn more about life and most importantly myself. Seriously, the learning never stops. And being the observant, nosy, free-spirit kind of girl that I am, I experience and learn a heck of a lot each  and every second, minute and hour of every day. 

So since I’ve been missing since Thursday’s blog post on realizing there is more to life than weight and calories, I decided I’ll fill ya in on what I’ve learned this weekend while I was away. I know, I know, it’s only been a few days but I swear I’m picking up … Read More!

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Let Go of Bathing Suit Season & Embrace the Fall, Already!

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While some are complaining about the end of bathing suit season, stargazing, and BBQing every night, I couldn’t be more happy about the fact that fall is finally here. And today realllllyyy felt like fall for the first time. I went out for a fancy lunch with my friend and ordered the Rotisserie Chicken with Butternut Squash Risotto. Let’s just say when I took that first bite of perfectly cooked rice with just the right amount of cheese and bits of butternut squash, I thought to myself, “Oh ya…fall is finally here.” Not to mention I licked my plate clean. So while some of you are crying as you store away your itty-bitty VS bikinis, I’m smiling ear to ear about my absolute favorite season. Still not ready to throw summer away? Well, I’ll tell you exactly why I love fall so darn much and hopefully have you smiling by the end of this post…at least just a little.

1. Cooking with butternut squash, spaghetti squash or any squash for that matter. Hey, you can even make fall cooking super healthy! 

2. Eating candy corn for the first time…and loving it just the same as when you were 8 … Read More!

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Single Chick in the City: An Honest Confession/Rant

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Warning: I apologize ahead of time if I go on some kind of rant 

While I may be a healthy chick and am 99% of the time a happy chick, I am also…dun dun dun…a single chick. Now many of my in-a-relationship friends root me on, and tell me that “being single is fun.” “You are so young.” “The right guy will come along some day.” Well, 23 years have gone by and he still hasn’t. OK OK, I understand that yes, I am young and yes, I probably will meet “that guy” some day and everything will all work out. But it doesn’t make that in-between, waiting around, what’s going to happen phase any easier. 

I guess what I’m trying to say is that as much as I’m trying to stay positive about being a single chick, sometimes it gets to me, and this week it’s gotten to me a lot more than usual. I try to be all strong. “I’m OK by myself.” “I don’t need a guy.” And that’s true. I know I don’t neeeeed one, but it doesn’t mean that every once in a while the thought can’t pop into my mind that’d be nice to … Read More!

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Confessions of a Sensitive Chick: How What You Say Can Make or Break Someone's Day

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I have a confession: I am a very sensitive person, and sometimes tend to care wayyyyy too much what people think of me. It’s mostly because I take what people say very seriously, especially those I value most. Sometimes this can be a very bad thing because I’ll let the tiniest little negative comment affect me in a BIG, BIG way. Someone told me I was big-boned once, and I thought about it all day long, feeling fat. When a coworker once told me all I think about was guys and that I need to get over myself (and my drama) I cried at work. When a guy in college told me he wasn’t ready for a relationship, I assumed it was me and wondered what was wrong with me. Was I not pretty enough? Why did I let these little comments get to me? Who are they to make me feel bad about myself? What they say shouldn’t matter, after all. 

I specifically recall when I was a junior in college in an advanced Health Communication seminar class. The crazy, negative, intimidating teacher (who everyone in college feared may I add), went around the … Read More!

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