The Best Thing Since Sliced Gluten Free Millet Chia Bread

Dear Shoes I Buy at Exchange Stores for Less than $10 and Subsequently Wear Into the Ground,
Thanks for unselfishly letting me get way more than my money's worth out of you.
Liz
(PS Lest you be mislead, the braided mustard flats are still Superglued together and happily in use)


Dear Workout Log with Butterflies on it,
Thanks for being predominantly pink and way more girly than anything I'd usually use. You are the perfect size and have the added benefit that any six year old girl would love to have you you on her Lisa Frank shelf.
Liz


Dear Moving,
Thanks for being one of my favorite things in life. You help me consolidate and reflect on the past in ways that nothing else can. See you in another eight months or so.
Liz

Dear Postcards,
Thanks for letting me buy you and then forget to send you until I'm already back in the states. Who needs a postcard stamped from Canada or Cambodia when you can get a postcard stamped from good old 84015?
Liz


Dear Fall Semester 2011,
Thanks for being my last semester EVER. Love that.
Liz

Bon Iver

It's official, I'm in love. I know, it's the moment you've all been waiting for (When will that girl find herself a man and settle down?!). He's 30, tall, loves music, writes poetry, has great style and even a beard (if you're into that sort of thing), and I love him. You're probably dying to know his name? Or even see a picture? Well, here you have it.

(http://prettymuchamazing.com/mp3/justin-vernon-bon-iver-hazelton)

And as a special treat, I'll even post a video of him playing the piano. 

Justin Vernon. The end.

Long Live Google

Dear Bing,
You're tacky, and I hate you.
(Also, you're fat).

 (Just watch from 1:28-1:41)

Rejection

Sometimes rejection isn't quite what it seems to be. The other day as I was packing to move, I came across this letter (personal information has been removed to protect the innocent):

It may come as a surprise based on the content of the letter, specifically the first paragraph, but I was accepted into this program a few weeks after I received this in the mail; I graduated last August. So I got to thinking. What if I had just given up hope the day I got the letter? What if I had thrown in the towel and given up on grad school?  Sometimes rejection isn't as bad as we think it is. Sometimes our plans work out even if they take a bit of a winding road, and sometimes our plans totally don't work out because God has another route for us to take. But no matter how it happens, life always works out, cause He's on our team when we're on His, and that's pretty awesome.

The Radio

So, remember that media fast from a while back? The thing that was the best/weirdest part was not listening to the radio in the car. I can't even tell you how many times I went to switch it on and then remembered that I wasn't supposed to do it. So then, little miss go go go here was like, Okay, so like what do I think about now? I'm gonna start thinking about really important stuff. Yeah, okay so like, let's think about saving lives and stuff. Wow, it's hot. Maybe I'll turn up the a/c. Oh hmmm, maybe I'll listen to the radio (turn it on). Gah! I'm not supposed to! Gah. Silence. OH MY GOSH! I HATE SILENCE! Panic!Panic!Panic! Shh. Shh. Shh. (strokes arm). So yeah, but then I realized something that many well-educated adults are already well-aware of. I knew it once but forgot when I got distracted by all the quality music like Lady Gaga and like Katy Perry and like all that other stuff they play on 97.1 and my 99.5, wait, what am I talking about quality music?! This music stinks (especially Katy Perry. Don't even get me started about how I feel about Katy Perry). But back to the thing I forgot: I love NPR. I love NPR! So yeah, the other day I switched it on in the car. Wait, wait don't tell me! was on and I loved it. Heard the likes of Lisa Kudrow and Kevin Bacon answering trivia questions that I don't even have any clue about the answers to. I heard all about the American hikers who got sentenced to 8 years in Iranian prison. And how the rebels were almost to Tripoli. And about all kinds of informative and life changing things and WHY HAVEN'T I BEEN LISTENING TO THIS LATELY?! So yeah, just a little shout out to NPR, the newest radio staple in my life. Good job being informative and funny and endearing and right there at 90.1, just waiting for me to be enlightened. 

Travel Light

It all started on a trip to visit my girl Cate in Austin, TX. Austin+Liz+Yoga=Love at First Sight. Thank you, Austin. Austin is the yoga capital of the world. Okay, so it's not. I just Googled it and that distinction has been taken by Rishikesh, a city in India (makes sense), a fact confirmed by Wikipedia analysis. But that's beside the point. This post is not about yoga or India, it's about the quote I found in a yoga magazine at Magnolia in Austin. 


"Travel light, live light, spread the light, be the light." 
Yogi Bhajan


I know, life-changing, right? (Brooke if you read this: Do more; Be better). Since then, I've been making conscious efforts to minimize the possessions in my life. I got rid of my mountain bike. I hardly ever carry a purse. I downloaded the kindle app on my iPod Touch. I got rid of like 90 pairs of shoes (not really 90, but like, a lot). In spite of these changes, I still have a long way to go. 


Not so for my ex-roommate Allison. Check out this picture of her as she headed off to Georgia to start her new life:

Yes indeed. My girl Allison has EVERYTHING SHE OWNS in that car and ROOM FOR A PASSENGER. (Sorry for yelling). The girl has me beat by about 2 carloads and that's not counting furniture (somehow I feel like furniture shouldn't count?) But anyway, Allison is an inspiration to all of us. It reminds me of the Alexander Solzhenitsyn quote that I originally found from Ammon. 


"Own only what you can carry with you; know language, know countries, know people. Let your memory be your travel bag. "


Yes, please. I'll start with countries. Maybe European countries. Just let me run a couple of carloads to DI real quick. 

Thank you, Yes, Adam Bateman

Dear Adam Bateman, 

Thanks for your perfect use of books. I can't even tell 
you how long I spent staring at The Fourth Thousand Years,
loving it and being mesmerized and awe-inspired and 
plain-old impressed. So much that I felt compelled 
to come home, google all your work, email you and become 
a devoted fan. Well done. 

Liz

The Matter of Words will be at the MOA until November 26th. 
Check it out if you want to change your life. 

Traveling Around the World in a Minute? Yes please.

Check out this amazing video.

Dear Legs,
Thanks for the days when I want to bike and you don't really feel like it.
Liz

Dear Shelly,
Thanks for being hot and awesome and leggy and funny and tall. You remind me of someone I know and love very well.
Liz

Dear Water Bottle I Found on the Ground that One Time,
Sometimes when you almost kill me on my bike and I just leave you right where you flew off my cage, I feel bad, but then I remember how I found you on the side of the road in the first place and somehow I feel like the karma balances out. Thanks for that.
Liz

LANCE

Say what you will about Lance Armstrong, but you have to admit, he kind of rocks. It's not About the Bike, is one of my favorite books. His description of wrecking and getting hit by cars on a mostly regular basis makes me want to be more hard core when I grow up. (I'd also like to be as hard core as Jens while we're at it, but there is more to come on him...)


Some of my favorite Lance quotes:


Because I love legs:
"Motivation can't take you very far if you don't have the legs."

My yoga mantra:

"Leaner in body, more balanced in spirit."

What I think when I don't want to do another hill:

"I was meant for a long, hard climb."

This is one of my (many) favorite sports center commercials:

And this one brings me to tears every time:

He beat cancer and started LIVESTRONG. He has a resting heart rate of 32. He won the Tour de France 7 times. Hate him if you want to. 


But I love Lance.