.attitude adjustment.

one of the challenges of living in LA and working in post-production is finding the time to fit in some exercise. in new york, if i couldn't find the time to work out - i would walk home from work. or walk to the restaurant or my friends house or wherever i was going just to be a little active. in LA, we go from cars to desks back to cars and then home. where's the beef exercise?

because my work schedule in the evenings is mostly unpredictable, i spent the majority of last night researching exercise classes in santa monica that i could take in the morning. and what my research told me was that unless the class starts at 7:30a and basically lasts for 15 mins, i have no interest. 6am? next. 7a but you have to get there 15 mins early to reserve your spot? hahaha - NOPE. so i found one that sounded interesting, even going so far as to sign up for a spot in the class - until it asked for my credit card information. and then that was a whole other can of worms - oh, well that would involve me finding my card in my purse and my purse is in my room and that would require me getting off the couch. *close computer*

but i don't feel good when i don't work out. and unless i have a class to go to that i've previously paid for, i'm really really bad at forcing myself to get up. so last night, i was like how can i make myself get up tomorrow morning to go running on the beach - sans class. i looked at my alarm schedule on my phone and thought - ok, well one thing i can do is write "GET UP AND MOVE IT" so when it rings, i'll see that. check. and then i noticed that you can change the tone to a song from your itunes - so i decided to change it to "blurred lines" by robin thicke + pharrell, because that song instantly puts me in a good mood.

cut to this morning, 7am - alarm goes off and the first line of the song is "E'REYBODY GET UP" - and i just start busting up laughing. and let me tell you - that is a phenomenal way to start your morning-laughing. so i snoozed once. i did. but robin thicke wouldn't let up - "E'REYBODY GET UP." fine robin, fine pharrell. you win. e'reybody will get up.

and i did! i got up, i ran, i did an hour of cardio, on the beach, in the glorious sunshine, and i feel AMAZING today. and all it took was a little change in the routine and trying a different approach. they say the definition of insanity is trying the same thing over and over and expecting different results. today i worked to break the pattern - i changed my attitude and the results were different.

go figure.

 xoxo
meags

day #1 (post 30): karaoke challenge

the night started out innocently enough. i worked until 8p and there was a post-work gathering at a bar not far from the office. it was fun to spend some quality time with some of the peeps outside of work - get to know everyone a little bit more. we ordered a round of drinks and people came and went, and at 9p it was evident that the bar was turning into karaoke night. the first person to sing was an older guy, and you could tell he lived for karaoke night at this place. i don't remember what his song choice was but it was something that didn't immediately scream "fun karaoke song - get the crowd pumped." i think it was long and depressing. the next person to sing was our server. she also sang something long and depressing - one of the songs from les mis. she had a good voice - but she was singing les mis in a sports bar on a wednesday night. no.

most people were paying attention to the hockey game on TV, some people were watching the karaoke. and we were all egging each other on..."you sing" "no you sing" "ok what song would you do -if- you sang." i started telling someone that i wanted to do it, but i just never had and i get nervous. and next thing you know, i found myself walking over to the table and signing myself up. what. the. hell. there were 3 people ahead of me. victoria. devon. the first guy again. and then they called my name. i mean well they sort of called my name - they called me "mee-gan"- but it was close enough.

and this is what happened:

OH MY GOD. i did it. i had a blast. i was nervous. i was excited. i sang my JAM that i had sang so many times in the car, in private karaoke rooms with friends, in the shower. but never ever, in front of strangers. and i did it. i conquered one of my most prominent of fears - stage fright. and did i do it perfectly? nope. was i shaking the whole time? yep. and it didn't matter in the slightest. nobody cared. NOBODY. i was able to get over myself and just freaking do something i enjoy doing without thinking about what anybody thought of me. my coworker friend who doesn't hug for anything even gave me a hug after i was finished. we both conquered our fears :)

if this is any indication on how great my 30s are going to be, sign me up. there are 8 days unaccounted for on the challenge, and i'm so happy i have started back up on the other side of this decade. one small step back for fears - one giant leap over them for meagen.

more to come.

xoxo
meags

day #5: STREET

as you might have noticed, the blog has been silent for the past few days because....well. you know. life happens. part of the challenge was a challenge within the challenge (!), which basically was that i was inevitably forcing myself write everyday, no matter how late, how early, how tired i was to get down the previous day's challenge. alas, my sanity depended on abandoning it for a bit. but now i'm back! and it's good to be back! yay blog! great big blog hug! ::reunited and it feels so good::

i've also come up with a solution to make up for those lost days. and i'm really excited about it since there are still things on my list that i'd like to accomplish. so that'll be addressed in a future blog post. but for now, we'll pick up with day#5 - Tuesday.

all of my LA friends have been posting about a restaurant in hollywood called STREET. and i knew that when i got here, it was a must do for the LA part of the challenge. it's a restaurant that serves dishes from around the world tapas style, so you could be eating from a different part of the world with each dish you order. and they have plenty of vegan and vegetarian options to choose from, which is awesome.

on tuesday, i had to head out to the east side to try on a bridesmaid dress for my best friend's wedding (her actual wedding, not the movie in case you were wondering which I'M SURE YOU WERE), so i grabbed my friend chris and we made the trek to the east side to get a little STREET.

there are some key differences between LA + NY dining, one being the time you eat and the other being the reservation factor. it seems like 7/7:30p is the ideal time for angelenos (correct term?) and 8/8:30p is the ideal time for NYers, and in LA you need a reservation and in NY most restaurants don't accept them - so if you aim for 8:30, you usually end up eating around 10. so needless to say, when chris and i waltzed in to STREET around 9, the restaurant wasn't super packed - much to our hungry tummies' delight.

we were seated and given the schpiel, and give some delish indian-inspired crunchy chip thingys with some yummy salsa. win. then, they brought us their infamous kaya toast - which, let me describe this to you.

KAYA TOAST Singapore toast filled with coconut jam; soft egg, dark soy, white pepper 

STOP IT RIGHT THERE. coconut jam? i die. it was so good and so weird and so sweet and salty all at the same time. i would like more, please. and then we ate a greek artichoke, heirloom tomatoes with balsamic, sashimi with some amazing sauce, and this:

chicken and bacon croquettes-aka fancy chicken and waffles. but oh my god was it delicious. i wish i would have gotten more photos, but we sort of dug into everything before i got a chance to. chris also had one of the best cocktails i've ever sampled - some sort of oatmeal moonshine something? whatever, it tasted like rootbeer and it was sooooo yummy.

i'm happy to be back in LA and getting to do some fun things while out here as well. it's been really fun getting back in touch with a city i used to live in, and i'm so excited that i get to spend my 30th birthday with my family (and LA friends) for the first time in 4 years!

more challenges to come, but for now - day 5 complete!

xoxo
meags

day #9: viva mas

ok, i admit. this challenge is ridiculous. but i really did want to try the doritos locos taco from taco bell and i'm about to embark on a (fairly) healthy eating regime. so i knew it was now or never.

friday was spent tying up a lot of loose ends. returning cable boxes at time warner, picking up dry cleaning, paychecks, dragging my mattress out into the street (NY has weird rules about when you can place bulk items on the sidewalk - i get it, but it's maddening), etc. and when you're running around so much, often times 4p can creep up on you and you're like "oh, i haven't eaten lunch yet." so in the midst of running all around town, i passed the taco bell on 14th street and knew today was the day.

NY only has a handful of taco bells (thank god, really), so it's almost like you have to make a  destination of it. i walked up to the counter, weighing my options on the 'viva mas' menu, and i decided to only order the nacho cheese one 1. because listen, i needed to be at least a little kind to my body and 2. because i never really liked cool ranch doritos. i'm a bit of a purist, especially when it comes to my doritos. i also did not get it surpreme because i don't really like sour cream either...whatever. it's my challenge i'll do what i want!

i got it, unwrapped it, and took my first bite. was it everything i wanted it to be and more? i mean. it tasted like a regular taco bell taco. it was pretty delicious, but the shell being "doritos" pretty much meant it tasted like all the other shells. idk. i mean. i'm glad i ate one? but really, it's more to know i never have to eat one again.

later that night i spent my last night in new york with some good friends at decibel sake bar, which, if you haven't been is a really neat spot. later we grabbed sushi, i said my goodbyes, and headed home to await the 5am alarm signaling my departure to LA.

day 9 - complete!

xoxo
meags