Musica Monday

I am going to keep this post short and sweet.  Today I am going to share a song that is very meaningful to me.  This is a classic song that was brought back in one of the best ways possible a few years ago with the Portal franchise from steam.

If you haven't heard of it, this is Cara Mia, and this version is is done by A Cappela.  It is basically identical to the version in the Portal franchise.  I couldn't give any higher praise to the series and suggest you all give it a try if you haven't.  I mention this not as a shameless plug, but because the context makes me tear up to this song every time I hear it.  Not only are these guys amazing singers, but the significance really gets to me.  If you have played the portal games and don't completely understand why it can be so emotional, I give you the task of looking up what the lyrics mean.  Otherwise, I hope you enjoyed this short little gem and hope all you readers have a fantastic day/night! 

As always, thanks for reading,

Matt

Tips For Exercise

Working out is hard. I will be one of the first to admit that, and I'm not talking about the workouts themselves (which should be challenging unless it is a rest day) but actually getting up and working out is hard to do. In all honesty, for some people it is nearly impossibly to do on their own, and you know what? That's ok! That's why I have a job, if everyone could workout as well as Jillian Michaels, I honestly wouldn't have a job and that would be unfortunate for me. However, it is something that the majority of us do find to be necessary in order to maintain our health, therefore I've been thinking of some ways that could hopefully make exercising a bit easier as far as getting out and doing it. 

1. Find something you enjoy. Not everyone enjoys lifting weights or running, maybe biking is more your thing. Perhaps you are more of a class or group exercise person, I know I'm going to try out a newish kickboxing gym not too far from my place just to see if I like the workout. For those of you who can find workouts online or can figure out what to do yourself, keep being awesome! I find it much easier to train someone than it is to train myself.

2. Have a reason to workout. This can be anything from weight loss to stress reliever to because my doctor says so. No matter the reason, keep that in mind whenever you start a workout or whenever you debate working out or not. Honestly, if you have time to debate working out or not, you have the time and should just go do it already. What's the saying? If you had started when you first thought of it, you'd be done by now? Yea, sometimes it's more true than you think.

3. Don't go extreme. That is unless that's what works for you, but for the majority, even a 30 minute exercise 2 or 3 days a week is better than nothing. You don't have to be able to bench press your max everyday or break your record for mileage and time every run. Pace yourself and have some days that are easier and some that are harder. Everyday doesn't need to leave you exhausted and sometimes 20 minutes is enough. 

4. Find a friend. Working out with someone else has been proven to help with motivation and keeps you honest. This also holds you accountable to getting up in the morning and working out, you wouldn't want to let that friend down when you don't show, would you?

5. Enjoy yourself. It's not meant to be torture (at least not the kind that I do), if you're leaving the gym feeling like crap after every workout, something is wrong. When you exercise, your body produces endorphins and endorphins make you happy (and happy people don't kill their husbands....10 points for the reference!). So, enjoy what you're doing!

I hope that this helps at least a little. If you have any questions feel free, I'll do my best to answer. What do you enjoy to do for exercise?

Love,

Sara :)

Decorating My Bedroom: Clocks

As many of you know, I moved into a new apartment with a roommate this about six weeks ago (woah!) and since then it's been busy nearly all the time for both of us. However, we are still trying to figure out how to make our home seem more like a home. Being me, I turned to books for advice, specifically: I'm currently breezing my way through Adulting: How to Become a Grown-Up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps by Kelly Williams Brown. This is one read I would highly recommend for anyone who is moving into a house or apartment for the first time (more likely apartment, but the same stuff can also apply to a house) mostly because it addresses pretty much everything from cooking, to what to look for in an apartment, to dating, to dealing with neighbor's sex noises....yes, it's actually in here!

Anyways, that was a bit of a tangent, getting back to our new apartment! We are working on decorating and while things are coming around slowly, one thing that we both have noticed that we need are clocks. So, being that the clocks we've been finding at Michaels and Kohls have been either not our style or too big, I've been turning to the internet for ideas! What do you guys think?

ThinkGeek is always a great place to start! :P This clock has always been one of my favorites since I first saw it in a friend's room in college. Find it here!

Or if you're in doubt, Etsy is another place where you can find some of the more creative versions of anything. Also, I do tend to be late for things...so this clock is quite accurate for me! Find it here!

I really can't help but put up this clock as one that I'd love to have hanging in my own kitchen someday! Maybe a bit ambitious considering my current state, but I love it just the same. And, it's from the lovely ladies at A Beautiful Mess!

What do you guys think? Kinda cute clocks? I'm not sure what we are going to be doing as far as reality goes, probably more window shopping until one of us finds something that we both like and that works for our place, but I wanted to share these :)

Love,

Sara :)

Spicy Thai Noodles

It's been a while since I've had the time to sit down and make a meal. Since moving, my apartment mate, Morgan, and I have found ourselves in a bit of a conundrum. We have quite different work schedules which lead her to leave the apartment by 6:45am and get back after school gets out, but due to her early morning she is in bed pretty early (by my standards). I, on the other hand, get done with work much later and by the time I get home Morgan is getting ready for bed. Suffice to say, we hardly ever eat dinner together.

However, this month we are home together for dinner two nights during the week, which is awesome! This lead us to think about making food, which is something that I enjoy doing (when time permits) and she enjoys as well. So, what did we do this past Tuesday night? Wine and cooking! It was great!

We found this recipe on Pinterest (as do so many people) and connected to a clog called A Small Snippet. It's pretty cool, and we used this recipe with a few adjustments of our own, so enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 box linguine pasta (we used whole grain cause it's yummy)
1 tbsp. crushed red pepper flakes (unless you are actually Thai, I would not recommend adding more than that, it's quite spicy!)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup sesame oil
6 tbsp. honey
6 tbsp. soy sauce
toppings (we used carrots, but couldn't find peanuts at our grocery store...fail)

Directions:
1. Cook noodles according to directions until al dente. Drain.
2. Heat both oils and crushed red pepper over medium heat un a small pan for about 2 minutes. During this time the red pepper will infuse into your oil mixture making it hotter. After, make sure to strain out the red pepper flakes, you can leave a few more in if you want some extra heat, but that's kinda crazy.
3. Into your oil mixture, whisk in your honey and soy sauce.
4. Toss mixture together with the noodles and refrigerate.
5. Slice up your carrot or peanuts or whatever topping(s) you have chosen.

They will keep for a few days, you can eat them cold or warm, and serve with milk and enjoy!

I had to add in a picture with our glasses because I think they are super fun and cute with the polka dots :)

What did you guys think? Worth trying? I think for sure! What types of food should we try next?
Also, as a hint, red wine does not really go with spicy food, so make sure to have milk with these noodles to help with the spicy-ness.

Love,
Sara :)

Summer Reading List 2014

I was meaning to put up a spring reading list for this year and then never did. So, here's my summer reading list of books that I want to get read by the time September rolls around. Now, for those of you who know me, you know that I don't always pick the books that I'm going to read, especially at the library, they almost pick me. I'm starting this list at the end of May (or planning on it at least), I mean summer is sort of a unspecified amount of time, so does it really matter? Meh, we will see :P

1. Divergent series. My apartment mate is actually getting me a copy of the first book in this series and I am super excited to read it. Yea, I'm a little slow on the uptake on this book, but better late than never right?

2. Game of Thrones. I started this book a year or so ago and then lost it for a while and really need to get started on it again because I want to know what happens but I don't remember enough to start again where I left off.

3. The Lightening Thief. Yea, I think I said this one last time too....but honestly this just needs to happen. Like, seriously.

4. Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. I finished the first one and it turned out I didn't have the second one :( So, I need to get my act together and get it read while the last one is still fresh in my mind. Also, side note here: if you haven't actually read this series, you are seriously missing out on a great adventure story!

5. Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World. Long title, but after reading what it's about on Amazon and reading the reviews, I can't help but admit that it sounds so cute and awesome. Not to mention I've been starting to read more non-fiction books and even though they tend to take me longer, they are a lot of fun and really interesting!

6. Wuthering Heights. Yea, yea. I'm a post-college bookworm who hasn't read one of the most popular classics in the history of writing. Sue me...I'm working on it!

I am currently finishing up In The City of Bikes: The Story of the Amsterdam Cyclist by Pete Jordan, and all I can say now is that Amsterdam is definitely on my list of places to go when I travel the world!
What are you guys gonna read this summer? What other things do you have planned for this summer? Follow me on Goodreads!

Love,
Sara :)

Musica Monday

Ever feel like you're just not good enough? Like what people are expecting of you and what you are capable of doing are two very different things? It's not fun and tends to cause a lot of stress and panic or general dissatisfaction. I've had several problems like that lately and it frustrates me that I can't do what I need to on my own and I need help from outside sources. Last week was a long week and this week promises to be just as busy, however, an important step I've learned from past experience is something that teachers try to teach us at a young age and most of us just kinda ignore. We can't all be perfect all the time, and I mean what's so great about being perfect anyways? If we were all perfect, there would be no variety in this world and we wouldn't each have our own little quirks. Instead take those quirks that bother you or someone else so much and accept them. They are a part of you and they really aren't going anywhere if you want to stay as yourself, an individual. As much as I advocate exercise to help your mood (endorphins are awesome!), the hardest part of doing something is the part between where you think you can't and where you do it, when you start thinking in a positive manner, you'd be amazed what you can do.
Alright, I'll get off my little soapbox here. I just needed a mini rant for a bit :P

Today's song is one I think about when I get down because it really makes me want to get up and smile and keep going! Enjoy 'On Top of the World' by Imagine Dragons.

Love,
Sara :)