2
26
Apr

How to Quit Drinking Soda

Diet Coke racks

CC/BY-NC Flickr user naillkennedy

If you’ve stuck with me throughout my extended absence, you may remember this little infographic I shared about how terrible soda is for your body. What I neglected to mention at the time was that I was a total diet-cokaholic. I’m talking AT LEAST a 2 liter a day… usually in the form of a fountain drink (it tastes better that way, I swear).

Now, my commitment to quitting diet coke did not just spring up at the sight of an infographic… although it was pretty convincing. I’d been thinking about it, attempting it, and failing at it for years. It wasn’t until I stumbled upon Kris Carr’s Crazy Sexy Diet: Eat Your Veggies, Ignite Your Spark, and Live Like You Mean It! that I really got serious about banning this stuff from my body.

So on January 1, 2012–in true new years fashion–I put down the diet coke. And I haven’t had one since. That’s 116 days if you’re counting! Other than quitting smoking, puttin down the DC was one of the toughest things I’ve ever done. So I’m super proud of myself and can say with 110% confidence that I will NEVER go back to chuggin that stuff again.

So, dear friend, if you’re contemplating following my lead and putting down the bubbly, here are a few things that will help:

Gather Inspiration

While there is no shortage of “diet coke will kill you” articles on the web, not every one of them is gonna spur you to action. You’ve gotta take some time to learn about why this is a positive step for your health. In the process, you’ll likely find an article, story, or two that really resonate with you and your decisions to quit. Hold on to them… you’ll want them handy for when you need a motivational boost.

Set a Quit Date

I’m the kind of person who likes to start things on a Monday, or the beginning of the month, or well, on new years–it’s the virgo in me. But pick any day you like as long as it’s not a hectic one… you may be a little sluggish due to the lack of caffeine. Which reminds me…

Prepare for Caffeine Withdrawals

If you drink tea or coffee regularly, this won’t really apply. But if you’re like me and consume the vast majority of your caffeine through soda, you’re gonna have to prepare yourself for caffeine withdrawals. Headaches, fatigue, and irritability are common, but they only last a few days. You can supplement with some iced tea twice a day, which is what I did. But be careful not to replace one crutch with another.

Find a New Beverage

Without a doubt, water is the best beverage choice you can make. It keeps you hydrated without any yucky chemicals, calories, or caffeine, and does wonders for your skin. But sometimes ya just need a little TASTE. Iced tea (unsweetened or with a natural sweetener like stevia or agave) is still my go-to tasty beverage. But I also experimented with flavored waters and unique tea concoctions, which are great because you can design a recipe to suit your personal tastes. And whenever I hit a convenience store, I grab a Vitamin Water Zero, which is sweetened with stevia. So, try a few different things until you find something that you like.

Be Patient

Sure, the first few days are gonna suck. And you’ll be thinking about a tall, cold glass of bubbly for at least the first two weeks. But I promise you… after about a month you will adjust to your new soda-free lifestyle. And if you dare to relapse, that soda you once loved will taste like ASS. Because your body has fought off that evil trick your brain plays on you to keep you drinking, you can taste all of the chemical crap it’s really made of.

Taking the plunge?  Let me know in the comments!

xo Em

 

0
24
Apr

Most Awesome Six Months Ever // 4.24.12

Today I’m celebrating the most awesome week six months ever.  (I’mmm bbaaaccckkkkkk!)

Women.

sold our car // killer turkey fry for Thanksgiving // fell in love with web work at my new job // got jiggy with some networkin // spent Xmas in Pensacola // visited my homie Wes // worked with the awesome team at Are You a Human // my little bro moved back to Pensacola // Hand to Claw released their first album // spring break in the ATL // QUIT SMOKING // celebrated my niece’s 1st birthday // won some awards with Thrive.ly // a Michigan winter that DIDN’T suck // got a new job as an Experience Architect!!  // finished the semester // started disc golfing again // evening walks with my boo // going organic // staring down the light at the end of my MSI tunnel // much, much more that I can’t remember… which is why this should be a regular thing!

What awesomeness are you celebrating this week?

xo Em

0
13
Jan

In Which I Commit a Cardinal Sin of Blogging

This post is dedicated to my girl Tina.  Ain’t she a beaut?

Tiner Bean

 

I’ve had this post idea rattling around in my head for while in which I would showcase all of the awesome internet celebs that totally make me swoon.  We all have those, right?

Oh, just me then?  Word.

Anyways, it is in this post that I would introduce you to Alexandra Franzen, who is a playalistic word pimp that I discovered last year and haven’t been able to quit internet stalking since.   There are plenty of reasons why this lady is the bee’s knees.  She’s wise beyond her years and has the uncanny ability to motivate you to put your shit out there and WORK IT.  But she also tells it like it is.  She ain’t gonna bullshit you, internet.  And we ALL need someone like that around.

One of my favorite pieces she published was about how to make your website/blog/internet clubhouse NOT SUCK.  Or at the very least, suck less.  I totally agree with her… smart cookie.

But sometimes a girl’s just gotta break the rules.  Please forgive me Ms. Franzen.

Friends, romans, countrymen… please excuse my extended absence.

I didn’t mean to leave you hangin for so long.  After 4 months of coding classes, building a wee little startup, and my new web job, I just couldn’t stand to look a screen in the face any longer that was necessary to receive my paycheck.

I’d had too much.  All that glaring, ticky-tackin on the keyboards, the eventual slump… my poor body just couldn’t take it any more. My eyes, my fingertips, my back.  I needed a break, mmkay?

But I’m back in the swing of things, and you can expect somewhat regular updates here at Awesomania once more.

xo Em

 

 

0
1
Dec

Reverb // Humble Beginnings

I’m in the mood to reflect, so I’m hoping on board Reverb 11 and spending the month of December looking back at 2011. 

Hot tub
CC BY-SA Flickr user Andrei!

Prompt for December 1: Humble beginnings.  Where did 2011 begin for you?  Describe where you were, be it physically, emotionally, or otherwise.

2011 began in the backyard hot tub at my in-laws… soft fluffy snowflakes meeting the warm, bubbly water as I hid underneath.  I wouldn’t say I was hammered.  Just a bit inebriated… as is likely on New Year’s Eve.

I remember being somewhat disappointed early in the evening.  Perhaps it was because my family just left and it was my first NYE without my people.  That, and barely anyone showed up to the party at my in-law’s house.   Where was the loud music?  The dancing?  The illicit drugs strong drinks?  I felt like I was getting too old, too fast.  Paired with my move-induced depression, seasonal affective disorder, and chronically low bank account, I was probably the last person anyone wanted to hang out with.

But after a few beers, some good conversation, and a dip in the hot tub, things began to look up as I held on to every shred of gratitude I could muster.  For it was a BEAUTIFUL night and I was with BEAUTIFUL people.

The next morning I started my first day of January as I had always hoped I would, but never managed to due to the oh-so-common New Year’s Day hangover–getting everything organized for a new year.  I cleaned the house, I balanced my (meager) checkbook, did some goal-setting, and packed my bag for school.  It warmed the cockles of my Virgo heart.

I vowed that this would be a great year.

I vowed to get out of my funk.

I vowed to get thing done and take care of business.

And I did all of those things, for the most part.  I made sacrifices, as we all do, and I think next year I will make some vows to repair or renew those things that I sacrificed in 2011.  My marriage, my hobbies, my health.

xo Em

0
1
Dec

Nothing Gold Can Stay

Autumn is back
CC BY-NC-ND Flickr user Geekr

Last night was the first significant snow fall of the year for Michigan, which–while it was all winter wonderland up in hur–really had me grieving for autumn. For winter has most definitely arrived. If, by chance, you are grieving too…

Nature’s first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf’s a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.

Robert Frost

xo Em

1
23
Nov

Awesome Finds // 11.23.11

I mentioned testing out new web content curation tools to improve the standard link roundup, and this here is my second test subject: Storify. I’ll be moving on to other tools in the weeks ahead, so be sure to tell me what you think about Storify in the comments!

xo Em

0
13
Nov

Most Awesome 2 Months Ever // 11.13.11

Today I’m celebrating the most awesome week two months ever.  (Yeah, so I’ve been slackin on my gratitude posts, but it’s not because I ain’t feelin it!)

won a prize from Sillygrrl’s bday giveaway! // kickin ass and takin names at school // got a new FULL-TIME job // began residence at U-M’s startup incubator TechArb // spent some quality time with the fam // successfully re-branded a global campaign // spent several hours on the phone with my locked-up homie Wes // finally cleaned out both cars // rocked my niece to sleep // sold some shit on ebay // pulled off my first Bentley tea-time // Black Sabbath is back in the studio! // Hand to Claw’s inaugural album is nearing completion // bought some much-needed clothing // played in the leaves // got my snuggle on with the pup // much, much more that I can’t really remember

What awesomeness are you celebrating this week?

xo Em

0
8
Nov

Awesome Find // Birthday Giveaway

Y’all know Sarah at Sillygrrl, right? Wellll, she’s havin a fun little giveaway in honor of her birthday, and ya might wanna get yr butt on over there and get in on the action.  Her mad design skills and some ad space are up for grabs… ain’t she sweet?  She’s one of my favorite bloggers and a fellow Michigander, so you KNOW I got love.  You should, too!

Happy birthday Sarah!

xo Em

3
4
Nov

Awesome Eats // 2 Step Crockpot Chili

Bowl of chili

Chili is the quintessential autumn food, is it not?  Warm, hearty, spicy–I love it to DEF.  Mmmmmnomnomnomnom!  It’ funny because once upon a time, I hated chili.  My mother would make it for dinner and I would require a separate meal.  She was so good to me.  Now chili is firmly in the things-I-used-to-hate-but-now-love category, keeping bell peppers and asparagus company.  One of the best things about chili is that there are a million different ways to do it.  This recipe here is the quick and dirty version that shows up often in the Team Bowman household.  It is LITERALLY two steps.  Could not be easier.

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef, turkey, or whatever
3 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 garlic cloves, diced
1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes
2 15 oz cans of kidney or chili beans, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons yellow mustard
2 tablespoons dale’s steak seasoning or worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons barbeque sauce or ketchup
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
  1. Brown your meat of choice in a skillet over medium-high heat; drain.
  2. Combine all ingredients in a crockpot and set for 6 hours on high or 8 hours on low.
  3. Top with your choice of chili accoutrements and enjoy!

xo Em

1
3
Nov

On Friends and Loneliness

Do you read Penelope Trunk?  Because you should.  It’s funny though, as a “career expert” she does very little writing that is explicitly about careers.  It all relates to careers somehow, but she mostly just writes about things we don’t want to acknowledge about ourselves and about life.  Like how you shouldn’t do what you love, you should pay more attention to sex than money, and no, women can’t have it all.  Despite sounding like something you don’t want to read, her blog is something you SHOULD NOT MISS.

Penelope Trunk has Asperger Syndrome and just about every other month or so she has me thinking I do too.  This is partially due to the fact that I have a slight case of hypochondria AND that people with Aspergers have a lot in common with introverts, which if you haven’t already guessed, I am.  In her latest article she talks about loneliness.  And about how difficult it is for people with Aspergers to make and keep friends.  Naturally my identification with this trait has me thinking that I’ve gone 31 years without anyone acknowledging that I OBVIOUSLY have Aspergers.  Damn doctors.

Really, though, it makes me want to admit to the internet that I am lonely too.  Cue the tiny violin, y’all!

Not lonely in the “I have no friends, I want to kill myself” kind of way, but rather in the “Make new friends? Ehhh” kind of way.  I already HAVE friends.  Great, wonderfully fantastic friends.  With fancy gang names–like the Gulf Coast Kooter Brigade–and a vast collective memory of good times and wacky aliases.  They just happen to be–with the exception of the hubs–living very far away from me.  And while phone calls, Facebook chats, letters, and care packages can take me pretty far, sometimes a girl just needs someone to hit a happy hour with, ya feel me?

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Here’s my problem: having a long-time, close-knit group of friends who totally and completely get me makes it HELLA hard to find new friends that can live up to my expectations.  Not to go all Virgo on you, but I generally have pretty high standards for the folks I spend my time with.  Must have smarts without arrogance, personal style without being materialistic, and one hell of a sense of humor–ALL kinds of humor.  No self-proclaimed hipsters, born-agains, or all-around douchebags. Anyone who watches The Bachelor on a regular basis or Jersey Shore without shock and disgust need not apply.  Last, but certainly not least, we gotta CLICK, baby.

While I’ve certainly come across a cool chick or two here in Michigan, it’s that last one that screws everything up. Making friends can be awkward, and I don’t play that.  I’m so grateful I’ve got Jeffrey… as long as I’ve got him, I’m good.  Just hoping one day I’ll come across some kindred spirits in Michigan who appreciate my nerdiness, can get down on a decent brew, and can tell a good joke.

What about you?  Have you ever had a hard time making friends–by choice or otherwise?  Where’d you score your posse at?

xo Em