Category Archives: music

happy birthday!

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Today is both my brother’s and my niece’s birthday. I no longer have any siblings in their twenties! (That makes me feel old.) Anyway, they are both fabulous and I’m sad that I could be with them on their birthday, but I thought about them lots today…and at least they get to be with each other (they aren’t from the same family), so that’s fun for them.

I would write longs lists about everything that I love about them, but I’m exhausted, and one can’t read and the other one knows I love him, so instead, here is a video for all to enjoy…just because!

travis

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Tonight, I decided to go see Travis in concert. I knew they were coming and I really wanted to go, but I wasn’t sure that I’d have anyone to go with, so I put it out of my mind.


Then, today, I was telling a friend of mine that they were coming in concert. He asked when. I checked online. In fact, they were playing at The Depot tonight. He would have liked to have seen them, but he had some family dinner…and then decided American Idol was more important. Eleven years…that’s how long it’s been since Travis was last in SLC…and my friend opted for American Idol (or so goes the story).

In any case, I tried getting in touch with a few other friends. No one could go. (Seriously, people and their messed up priorities.) I was almost going to say, “Screw it.” But then I thought about poor Sarah, who has been dying to see them in concert, only they never came to SLC while she was living here, and in NYC, the concert sold out pretty quickly. I decided that, not only did I really want to see them, but I had to seize the opportunity so that I could “share” the experience with Sarah to the best of my ability. (Lots of photos from my phone and a song on her voicemail.)


Seriously, the concert was amazing. And I love that I have somehow manage to procure enough self-confidence to go to a concert by myself. I would hate to miss out on something I really wanted to be a part of just because I didn’t have someone to go with me. That would be tragic.

Check out Dougie’s super hot wry little smirk. Love. It.

The concert was FANTASTIC!!! They played all of my favorites: Closer (if you watch this video on YouTube, the checker is Dougie Payne, the bassist, who is so ridiculously hot in person I could hardly stand it…and it’s not so much how he looks as how he acts: HOT!), Driftwood,

Why Does It Always Rain On Me,

and the new Something Anything. And…in honor of the Britney Spears concert taking place across the street (or so I thought until I discovered, through YouTube, that they have done this song a lot, they played Hit Me Baby One More Time.

Seriously rad.

I cannot even begin to describe how incredible it was. I love live music. And Travis is so good. And Fran Healy (short for Francis…he’s the lead singer) even came down in the crowd. (Is it embarrassing that I totally reached out just to touch his sweaty back? Probably.)

Just before I reached out to touch him…
Yes…uber hot!

the continual weight loss drama of my life

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I know I haven’t written about this much, but I feel like it’s time for an update. I’m still losing weight. The process is very, very, very slow, but something about the slowness of it gives me comfort. I think it might be some psychological thing where I think that because it’s taking so long to get off, it won’t come back. True or not…the psychological comfort is helpful.

You want to know what else is helpful? Getting sick for a week. Or at least I thought it was until all of that weight turned out to just be water. It was quite depressing…gaining 6 lbs over night. Seriously. But all in all the process is going well. I’ve gotten below “mission fat”, praise all that’s good and holy! In case you don’t understand the term “mission fat”, this was how fat I was when I returned home from being on a mission for my church. Over the course of 16 months I managed to put on 35 lbs; “mission fat” was my all time a high…a weight I swore I would never ever see on a scale again. And yet…and yet…

I am now below “mission fat”. It feels great. My goal is to never see that number again (including whenever I end up pregnant) so I have a lot more to lose. I’ve been learning a lot of helpful things in my classes at school (interestingly enough). It’s not that I’m learning about weight loss, but I’m learning a lot about how to change behavior. And actually one of the books I’ve had to read does talk about weight loss specifically. The book is called Influencer and the authors (one of whom is my professor) have found three key behaviors present in those individuals who manage to lose weight and keep it off. Are you ready for this? I think your minds might be blown. They are 1) weighing yourself every morning, 2) eating breakfast, and 3) doing cardio at home. (Seriously, the book is worth reading.)

I know those of you who struggle with any kind of long-term trial/addiction can understand what I’m talking about. Losing weight, in the long-term, is about a lot more than eating less and exercising more. I have years of habits that have to be altered. Not an easy task. But I really do think those three behaviors are helping.

The good news is things are going well. I’ve had some set-backs, but I am managing the discouragement that normally accompanies those much better than I ever have. I’m being patient with myself. It’s kind of nice. Plus, I don’t really have any other option. With as busy as I am with school and life, and as much as I travel (not conducive to weight loss chez moi), I have to be willing to accept setbacks.

But here are my fantastic accomplishments for the week. Push-ups; I can do them and not on my knees. That’s kind of a big deal. The other one just happened tonight. I clocked a mile under 10 minutes. I realize a number of you out there could do that in your sleep (almost), but considering how little I’ve been running lately and how much I weigh right now, that’s a great feeling. Sometimes I think about how fast I’ll be able to run with 20, or 30, or 50 lbs less to carry and I get really, really excited. That’s the best motivation.

Speaking of motivation, are any of you watching The Biggest Loser? (I watch a total of three hours of t.v. a week generally…this and Lost. That’s it.) Seriously, I love that show. It’s so inspiring to me. Now, I would love it if I could commit all of my time to losing weight (and I think I’d kick some serious trash), but that’s not why I find it inspiring. What does inspire me? The fact that I have so much less to lose than the contestants.

And speaking of The Biggest Loser, if you want a great workout I highly recommend Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred. Kicks. My. Trash. In less than 30 minutes. Seriously amazing.

And in case you were looking for some new tunage for your workouts…here are my latest favorites:

  • I Hate This Part – Pussycat Dolls (yes…I am kind of embarrassed, but whatever)
  • Welcome to the World – Kevin Rudolf and Rick Ross (I personally like the non-explicit version)
  • Jai Ho – From Slumdog Millionaire
  • The Way I Are – Timbaland (not new…but still fabulous!)
  • Crash and Burn Girl – Robyn (yes…Robyn…the one-hit-wonder of the 90s)
  • Le Disko – Shiny Toy Guns
  • Day ‘N’ Night – Kid Cudi
  • I’d Like To – Corinne Bailey Rae
  • Hypnotized – Big Gemini (this is more of a cool down song…but I’m loving it)

Where am I finding all of these…the radio. Yes, I’m listening to the radio these days and with the help of Shazam, I manage to find and remember the names of all of the songs I want to download.

For some other favorite songs (not necessarily workout stuff), I’ve updated my sidebar!