Climbing Update

Alright, a little late, but sadly I haven't been climbing a lot lately. I did however, climb this past Sunday with my friend from here. We both have officially mastered all the routes rated a 7, even though this is one of the lowest levels for climbing, the wall here is 3 stories tall or so. This does make it a pretty difficult climb the whole way up! But we both made it up two of them and then got part way up a level 8, which was pretty difficult. This weekend we hope to go back and try to get farther up the level 8, and since we are both certified it makes it easier to climb continuously.
That's all for now! Hope you have a great day!
Love,
Sara :)
P.S. I think Matt is posting this week? I'm not positive though :P

Halloweekend...After

Alright, so I promised to post my costume after the weekend, and here it goes! So I ended up dressing up like a fairy. It wasn't my original plan, but it's what I ended up using. As one of my best friends from school says "You're wearing PINK!", and yea I did. But it worked out that way and I actually felt very cute in the outfit. We actually tried to temporarily dye my hair and did! Only thing was that we didn't count on was that when sprayed with yellow temporary dye, my hair would actually turn green :P So, that was interesting and unexpected, but still worked out in the end! So this is my fairy costume!

Well, I hope you all had a great weekend and I hope the week goes well!

In case you're wondering, I believe that the music post will come later, because my friend Matt will be (hopefully) posting that for an unknown video that he promises will be good :) and I believe that it will be! So be excited for when that comes up!

Love,

Sara :)

Halloweekend...Before

Alright, so I am not a doctor. Not even in the long shot! However, I am a college student and I am 21. I can say that I have had my fair chance in dealing with drunk people, and I am not here to tell you not to drink, I enjoy a good margarita and small drink anytime :P I may even put up a few drink recipes I've tried later, because at times they are pretty damn good! But due to the fact that this upcoming weekend is the weekend before Halloween, it is, as my college calls "Halloweekend" and there is a stereotypical way for college students and younger adults to act during this time. Yes, being intoxicated. Now, I personally have no serious problem as long as no one gets too obnoxious, but what I really wanted to do was to share a small insight as to signs of something called alcohol poisoning. Alcohol poisoning is a consequence of drinking large amounts of alcohol in a short period of time that is pretty serious as well as potentially deadly. I wanted to share with you a few signs to look for alcohol poisoning.

• The person is unconscious or semiconscious and cannot be awakened when touched, spoken to, or shaken.
• The person is cold, clammy, or has pale or bluish skin.
• The person has slowed breathing (less than 8 breaths per minute or longer than 10 seconds between breaths).
• The person is vomiting while sleeping or passed out.is not fully conscious during or after vomiting.
• The person drank a large quantity of alcohol and collapsed.

If any of theses signs appear for a friend of yours or you see anyone with any of these signs, or anyone who might be close to getting to this point, if they have a drink in their hand please take it away for their sake? I mean I've known several people who have been hospitalized because of alcohol poisoning. Just look out for your friends and yourself!

Alright, have a wonderful time this weekend guys! I will try and get some pictures of my halloween costume, last minute but I'm quite happy with it :)

Happy Halloweekend!

Love,

Sara :)

iPhone Fitness Apps

So I got an iPhone not tooling ago and I have been playing with different apps to find ones that I would use and that are pretty interesting and fun for me. I have the usuals like twitter and Facebook and instagram. But I've also found some others that aren't quite as big as these. This post will concentrate on the fitness ones that I have found as of now.

First, Charity Miles. This app seems to be growing in popularity and for a good reason! It takes the miles that you run, walk, or bike and turns it into a donation to one of several listed charities, such as Every Mother Count, Autism Speaks, Feeding America, the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, World Food Programme, ASPCA, The Nature Conservancy, Pencils of Promise, Habitat for Humanity, Achilles International, and The Global Fund. For each mile walked or run Charity Miles will donate approximately 50 cents to one of these charities, and will donate 25 cents for each mile ridden on bikes. This app is pretty good, and the intent is there. My only criticism is that it isn't exact, it tends to underestimate how far you run or walk, so you will most likely have to walk or run farther than  one mile in order for it to say that you made a mile. Otherwise, this is a good app for keeping track of how far you might want to run!

Second, Strava Run and Strava Cycling. These are two separate apps that I really enjoy and really like using. It uses the GPS in your iPhone to follow around where you run both outside and inside (sadly it's not so good with stairs), the measurements of these two apps are ones that I completely trust and I do use them as my way of accurately measuring how far I have run or biked in the given time. This app also gives averages, and for running it gives each times for each mile ran. I do enjoy this app and the accuracy that it provides. These are ones that I highly recommend!

Third, Sworkit. Are you looking for a quick 5 minute strength workout for your arms? Or a 45 minute full yoga sequence? This is a good app for you! Sworkit takes several different moves that work for the area you want to work and then putting it into a random sequence. There are many good moves for each area of your body and you can choose to work your full body if that's what you want for up to 60 minutes. The thing that I'm not a big fan of for this app is that it doesn't show you how switch to each move, and doesn't allot you time to switch. But it still works well and I would suggest it.



As far as other apps go, I will keep exploring and try to update you when I find others that I enjoy! But these are the ones that I use most often, and the ones that I would suggest.
Happy Hump Day!
Love,
Sara :)

Musica Monday

Hey guys!
So I didn't do an Musica Monday last week, and I apologize for that, but to be fair I was in the cities and was being busy having break for that time that it completely slipped my mind :( Although, I do have to say that Matt's post was pretty helpful in that area! Yes, I am working on getting him on here more often but we shall see what ends up happening.
Alright, for this week's Musica Monday I'm busting out the 'M's! That was my attempt at being sneaky and clever. I've got a song by Muse called "Madness" for you. I've been a long time listener to Muse, and I have to say that I am enjoying their new CD! This song for instance really does remind me of some of their other stuff but it is different enough that it's not the same, and they have come out with several new things on their new CD that makes me pretty happy!

I am putting up the lyric video instead of the music video because I personally prefer this video to the other. As for my decision of choosing Muse? Well, sometimes it pays to just use the songs and artists you know! What do you guys think? I'd like to hear your response!
Here's to a good start to a good week that is hopefully less stressful than previous (unlikely wince two midterms lie in my future for this week and another waits for next Monday...), one can always hope and put forth their best effort right?
Have a great week guys!
Love,
Sara :)

Climbing Update

Hey guys!
So I haven't had one of these climbing update in a while, so I figured I should even though I haven't been climbing nearly as much as I would have liked lately. I did finally get belay certified here at Olaf, which is pretty awesome!! Now, when my friend (who is also certified) and I want to climb we don't have to wait for a worker to belay us because we can now do it ourselves! :D This is super exciting because it means more climbing time for us as well as meaning that we don't have to worry about how busy the wall is at the time, as long as there is a rope open and we can try and climb.
Sadly, because I have not been climbing regularly for the past month because of school and break, I do feel I bit like a newbie because I find some of the routes that were much easier last semester and even last month to be really difficult right now. This makes me sad and as such I hope to start climbing more often, making it regular like once or twice a week!
I also have added something to my Bucket List that has to do with climbing. I was watching an old episode of the Amazing Race when one of the tasks that groups could do was either white-water rapids or rick climb 60 feet in Chile. I have now decided that I want to go rock climbing in Chile at some point after college. I looked on YouTube and I mean seriously, does this not look like fun?! Haha

Alright all, I hope that you are having a wonderful start to your weekend! You should really look at some of the things out there and try something new! I know that I repeat this over and over again, but trying something new can lead to wonderful consequences and you can learn a lot about yourself and the people around you! So, I leave you with the infamous words of a crazy but creative teacher I used to know from television:

"Take chances, make mistakes, and get messy!" -Ms Frizzle

Thanks for reading all!

Love,

Sara :)

Fall Break Fun

Hey folks!

I'm back! I hope you enjoyed Matt's post, it is my hope that he will be posting every once in a while here, because he has some good ideas!

This past weekend I did spend with Matt which was a lot of fun! It was one of his first times in Minneapolis in quite a while being here and I was determined to show him a fun time. Now I'm not exactly the party girl that many college students are, my idea of a good time is hanging out and going to different sites in the city (which I really haven't seen so that was really awesome!). I picked up my boy (Matt) from the Megabus stop Friday afternoon, and we had dinner with one of my friends from college at the Mall of America (MOA). We ended up hanging out around MOA for a while just looking around at all the stores, it was a nice way to relax after a long week for me at school.

Since Matt had never actually seen my school, I took him down to St Olaf on Saturday and we spent the day there looking at the buildings and had a good time. I was able to show him where my classes were and where I lived. We had lunch on campus at the Cage and then dinner at Perkins (a great place for a fun and casual dinner date!). It was wonderful to be able to show him my world!

On Sunday we visited the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. This was my first time ever being there so it was very cool for me! These pictures are from our trip there, and the ones near the end are of the park that are across the bridge from the Sculpture Garden.

This is my favorite picture of us right now!

We were being silly here and it was quite a lot of fun once we figured out how to do it!

Yes, this guy is actually feeding the squirrels! It was pretty sweet! Even though it was cold outside and many of the plants in the garden were dead, we found some flowers that were still fighting the cold and leaving us with some pretty fall colors and warm feelings :).

Monday was a day of realizing that not everything goes your way, but changes ensued and it happens and we have fun. I learned today that Matt and I can find something fun to do no matter what the circumstances are and it's a big part of our relationship, we are able to communicate and have fun! Anyways, on Monday, we attempted to go to the Minneapolis Institute of Art because we thought it was be interesting. However, it was closed (not a normal thing for it to be closed on a Monday, but it was closed). This created a bit of a predicament for us and we ended up wandering around the Minneapolis area and getting lost several times, ending up in Franklin where we found a neat park and hung out there for a while, enjoying the fall colors (sorry about no pictures but we left phones in the care and I forgot my camera :( mea culpa!). We finally decided we should actually go to dinner, we splurged and went to Olive Garden. We had a glass of wine, which was surprisingly very very good, and had a lovely dinner! We then decided to finish off the night by heading back to MOA and going on the rides. We were so stuffed that we weren't sure if we could actually go on the rides without getting sick, but we did! It was a blast to be able to go on so many rides indoors at a mall with someone as enthusiastic as I was! I also had a nutella crepe, which if you haven't had it is a MUST TRY!!!

This concluded our wonderful weekend. I hope that there will be more weekends to share later on, but for now it's back to the reality of classes for me and job searches for Matt.

I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend! Any upcoming plans to share? What was one of your favorite fun trips with a good friend or special someone? Care to share? I love stories and I'd love to hear yours!

Thanks all for continuing to read here, my few readers :P, tell your friends!

Love,

Sara :)

Food for Thought - Skyfall

     Hello fellow readers, today I have been graciously invited to write up a post on the backup zone.  Looking through the history of the blog, there has been a tradition of Musica Monday's.  And although not every one has been on a Monday, they do tend to bring you readers some interesting and hopefully very fun and thoughtful music.  So I said hell, why not jump on the train.  My first guest post is going to be mostly about music, and in this case, the song Skyfall.
   
     So November 9th is Skyfall's release date, opening up another door in the long line of bond movies that started in 1962 with Dr. No.  Seems like so much has changed since then, but even back in the 60's that same bond theme that we all know was around and sounded like this:

     The bond theme never really changed much, and still gives the same chills it probably gave back in the day. (Not sure if I am really old enough to use that saying, but I will give it a shot.)  And starting from Dr No, the music in the bond universe has grown immensely over the 20 some movies produced.  The bond movies have used many various artists and motifs through their history, and this finally leads me to today's song, Skyfall.  

     This song features the popular Adele, showcasing her in the type of music that I feel she is at home.  Her voice just has that great range and interesting sound that just seems to mesh perfectly with the classy background that is very popular in bond movies.  It took me a few listens through the song to really get into it, but now I think it will be a great song to be played over the credits of the movie.  It could end up being like the movie Tron, where the majority of the audience watched the credits just to listen to music.  But I want to hear what you guys think, you be the judge.  Is this song a hit or a miss?  Should I do more guest posts? Did you like this topic? I am going to say its a hit, and I can't wait to see the new movie!

Thanks for reading everybody, and enjoy the day!

Where Have I Been?

That, dear friends, is a very good question. Where to start...well, as you may have heard I'm in my senior year of undergrad at St Olaf College, so I guess my simple answer is that I've been there. I've had papers, a test, group projects, and am currently starting a history research paper (which you will probly hear about from time to time throughout the semester since its due at the end of the semester with sections due throughout the next few months) on the training of the Nazi SA soldiers...oh I should mention this is for a class called History of the Holocaust. It's actually super interesting. I just hope that I can do well on it.
Yet, I can't say just at school, because I also just finished the first break of the year: Fall Break. Where did I spend that you might ask (or might not, I'm just being theoretical here), well I spent it exploring the twin cities (mostly Minneapolis) with some crazy awesome people! This trip update will come with pictures (from the phone because everyday I left my camera in my bag at the hotel...oops!). We visited the sculpture gardens, the Mall of America, and attempted to visit the Minneapolis Art Institute but it ended up being closed so we went to the park and went of driving adventures (meaning got lost due to me not having extra 3G to use for figuring out our way around but we survived! And had a blast!).
Hopefully I will have some pictures up tomorrow, when I can because the Sculpture Garden is a really neat place to see! And I like sharing pictures :D I also do encourage you to check out my pictures that I post on instagram!
Alright, that's my update for now :)
Have a wonderful day!
Love,
Sara :)

If Only....Feeling Wintery Warmness

Alright, call me a slight whimp but the weather here in Minnesota is getting colder. Like in the 40s (degrees F). So I'm starting to look at warm clothing, and with this whole fitness thing being a common theme, where else to look than Athleta?! Also, sorry it's been a long time since I've done one if these!
I'm gonna start with jackets and vests, because they are the ones that I wish I could have because they are so comfy looking and cute all in one!

One of my current favorites is called the Switchback Jacket, which is a fleece version of the classic pea coat. Wearing it with a cute gray knitted had and some mittens and scarf I think it would be quite adorable! I especially like this blue color, which they call "Night Blue", but the Asphalt color is a close second in my opinion!

This is the Himalaya Vest, it also comes in a pretty adorable Olive Heather color, but I like this color because it's more matchy to the clothing I have currently. This was inspired for hiking and climbing, and what Athleta calls: Adventure Travel. It's a lightweight, warm fleece vest that is again, machine washable! Another article that I hope to gain at some point since I do travel and travels are always quite adventurous! 

Of corse I can't get new winter wear without getting a new running jacket, especially from a place such as Athleta! The Interval Jacket is a perfect example. This jacket is not only super cute, but is water and wind resistant, which is a big help in winter. I mean just because it's winter is no reason for us to all stop running outside, especially since it's so pretty outside, just keep working on it!

Well, that's what I have for you today. I'm sorry that I have been super slow lately about putting up posts, but school has been pretty busy and I was sick for a while :(. I'm much better now and I hope to continue with more posts....soon! :P

Have a wonderful weekend! It's already Fall Break here, meaning I had Saturday through Tuesday off of school for expeditions around the twin cities! Wish me luck, I'll post pictures once I have some later :)

Love,

Sara :)

P.S. Athleta has just opened a new store up at Mall of America! I've been in there and it's super nice to be able to see the cloths that before I had just seen online, it's a very nice looking store, so you should all check it out :)

Musica Monday

Alright, so this is late, but better late than never right? Anywho, so I have found a youtube channel of a pair of guys who call themselves "ThePianoGuys". They have a whole bunch of really neat videos of popular songs. One of my favorite ones is their version of the song "Paradise" by Coldplay. I am a fan of Coldplay to begin with so them doing a different version with African style really made the song, dare I say it, even better!

Sometimes the remixes or covers are good! Not always, so don't necessarily quote me on that, but these guys seem to always hit the notes just right. And the cellist...don't even get me started! As a string player myself I can honestly say he's pretty damn good!
Have a good week guys! I'll try and keep this updated later on!
Love,
Sara :)