The League

Let’s be honest here, I’m tired and I’m cold. I had several posts in mind for today, but those are going to have to hold off because I’m tired and cold and frankly not in the mood to make them look acceptable. Today, I am sharing a second TV workout because, let’s face it, that’s what I will be doing today. This one is geared towards both men and women, fun fact: it’s become one of my new favorite shows. So, grab a beer, click the post, print the post out, do THE LEAGUE workout. I understand the beer (or glass of wine) is counter-intuitive, but just go with it because you are tired and cold, too. Girls, if you are in the mood to be really girly, do the FRIENDS workout instead. I, however, will be watching The League and laughing about Mr. McGibblets all afternoon. Cheers!

P.S. Readers, I was serious when I said I’d give you a bottle of wine if you guessed the name of my new site. Whoever comes closest wins. Wine isn't your thing? Ok, you win an Arrogant Bastard Ale. 

Warm up with jumping jacks from the beginning scene through the League intro/logo

Every time Andre wears a hat                                                         10 push-ups

Every time Andre is made fun of                                                           10 squats

Every time Kevin has to Yobogoya                                                20 high knees

Every time you see Mr. McGibblets                                                    10 burpees

Every time Taco has a business plan/new hobby                      30 second plank

Every time Taco is with a girl                                            20 mountain climbers

Every time they are at Gibson’s                                                    10 jump squats

Every time Ruxin talks about his hot wife                                            10 lunges

Every time Shiva is mentioned                                                        30 ice skaters

Every time Rafi does something crazy                     20 tricep dips using counch

Every time Jenny gets competitive                                               10 sumo squats

Every time there is a college flashback                                     10 jumping jacks

Every time you see an NFL player guest star                                  10 push-ups

Bee My Valentine

I haven’t given out Valentine’s Day cards since elementary school, but this year I decided to use my giant box of ribbon and puffy paint from college to create small, youthful Valentines while I watched the Olympics. I am always a huge fan of hand-written stationery, whatever the season, but with the cold weather and my renewed craftiness, ribbon and glue gun temptation trumped classic cards this time. There is something so refreshing about a cheesy card; maybe it’s the memories it brings back about saving your favorite Disney valentines for your third grade crushes or the impending sugar high after you ate your weight in candy hearts, but it feels like a seemingly silly card has substantially boosted my mood this afternoon. I’d love to know, what are you doing for your loved ones on Valentine’s Day? P.S. All entries for the wine giveaway must be made in the comments section here. 

Note: I've printed the small cards and glued Burt's Bees Chapstick to each; you could also attach the card to a jar of artisanal honey! Honestly, the cheesier, the better. 

P.S. All entries for the wine giveaway must be made in the comments section here. 

Finally: FRIENDS Workout and Site Redesign Updates

 Happy Friday! I hope you have all had a fabulous week and have stayed out of the cold weather. I must say, coming home to below-zero weather after spending a weekend where it was a marvelous 60 degrees is quite heart-wrenching. Every time I go outside I am secretly hoping I’ll be pleasantly surprised, no such luck so far. As I divulged earlier this week, this month will be dedicated to getting out of the winter slump and into the spring/summer state of mind (and body); I’m pleased to report I tried my first spaghetti squash last night and it was infinitely better than I thought it would be, though it’s still not pasta.

In college, I became a FRIENDS junkie; I came home with all ten seasons and have watched each episode at least a dozen times. Excessive? Definitely. Since the weather doesn’t allow us to enjoy being outside, I am wasting away in front of the television most weekends and I absolutely participate in binge-watching; I’m not ashamed. However, because I’ve vowed to become more active this month, I created my own version of the FRIENDS workout game. Since it is almost impossible to just watch one episode (I mean, let’s be honest, I watch 4 or 5), I am going to aim to do this workout 1/5 episodes. For those of you that try the FRIENDS workout, let me know how it goes!

Because I promised to share a few redesign updates, here they are: this site will be undergoing a major, major redesign launching March 3^rd. Though the current blog title will remain under my copyright, it will appear as a segment to make way for my site’s new name. The layout, logo, color scheme and overall aesthetic will be undergoing changes, too. To build anticipation and make it a fun turn around, I will be gifting a bottle of wine to the reader who comes closest to guessing my site’s new name. All guesses must be left in the comment section. A winner will be chosen Friday, February 28^th and announced Monday, March 3^rd with the redesign. Those of you with insight, you can’t play. Sorry J. 

Nashville

This past weekend, two of my best girlfriends met me in Nashville for a nice, long-awaited getaway. Funnily enough, I was randomly seated next to one of them on my flight from Chicago to Nashville; I hadn’t seen her in two years and it was such a wonderful surprise. Luckily, we all arrived in Nashville around the same time and were able to share a taxi to the hotel, which was so beautiful. We stayed at the Hermitage Hotel, conveniently located near shopping, honky tonks and several restaurants. Naturally, the first thing we did was eat at Puckett’s: so amazing; traditional southern food mixed with three hungry girls resulted in no talking for at least five minutes while we shoveled, yes shoveled, in the BBQ.

Over the course of two days, we managed to do our fair share of sight-seeing. Some of the highlights included: The Stage, Etch (ginger grits were the favorite), The Impeccable Pig, Fire Finch, Lucchese and two memorable stops at Nashville Cowboy. After eating Southern-style for 5-6 straight meals, we decided to have sushi for dinner our last night; it was well received after literally eating grits and burgers for 36 hours straight, no lie. I wish the weekend hadn’t gone by so quickly, but I know it won’t be long before I see either of them again. Love you both!