holiday travel is the worst

So I started writing a nice little recap post during my first flight back yesterday thinking we'd be back in Portland by 6:30pm.... and then from there I had the travel day from hell and I don't feel like recapping my weekend. Instead let's recap my last 24 hours. 

::Dec 2nd - 12:00pm eastern time. Leave for Indianapolis. Drive for an hour and a half to the airport. 

::3:30pm eastern time. Fly out of Indy to Denver...but first we get to sit on the plane for 40 mins and wait for a mechanic to fix a broke seat. A broken seat!

::4:55pm Denver time (I don't even know what that is, central?) Land...and our connecting flight back to Portland left at 4:50. Did I mention our original layover in Denver was 45 mins and we sat for a broken seat for 40? 

::Missed our connecting flight home. Cool. Real Cool, Frontier Airlines. 

::Now mind you Brad and I were 2 of at least 15 people that missed their connecting flights because of this. Needless to say, the customer service counter of Frontier Airlines was not the place to be last night, but there sure were a lot of us hanging out there. What was even worse is they said that the seat was broken by a passenger and since the issue was not caused by them they did not have to reimburse any of us and could only offer 2 options to get back to Portland and neither was enjoyable.  

::8:55pm Denver time fly to Phoenix (we were never supposed to go to Phoenix) 

::10:50pm get into Phoenix only to be told we have to take a van to a different terminal and go through security again. Almost miss this connecting flight as we are running through the airport and messing with security. hooray fuel points?

::11:50pm 2 hour and 40 min flight to Portland.  

::Dec 3rd - 1:34am we arrive back to Portland.... only to be told our bags have not. Are you kidding me?!

::3:10am arrive back to our condo. 

::6:30am alarm goes off for work.

::7:00am get to work.

::Guess who is not wearing makeup and wearing her old glasses today... this girl. 

Guess who is also not wearing deodorant. this girl. 

::7:45am Brad calls to tell me his car keys are in my car...so I got to sit in traffic again for an hour because I had to drive them back to him.... Girlfriend of the year award goes to me. Also, get a spare key, Brad. ugh. 

::Silver lining: I stopped and got myself a coffee in a holiday cup and there is Christmas music on the radio. Plus, I am getting Chipotle for lunch.

Is it bed time yet?

<3 BB

kid president and some music

Happy Friday! I mean Tuesday - but it's my last day of work for the week, so it's Friday in my eyes. We fly out for Indiana tomorrow morning. I even got packed last night (who am I?). Cross your fingers all our travel goes smoothly. The last thing I need is delays or missed flights. Ain't nobody got time for that.

Anyway, I have a few things to share with you today, because I am feeling so giving this morning. It must be Thanksgiving that is making me so kind don't get used to it.

I saw this running around the interwebs this morning and thought it was fitting for Thanksgiving and beyond. Kid President is a smart dude, we should all listen to him more. But really, let's say thank you more often and apologize if you're wrong and forgive someone if they do apologize...but maybe stay away from the corn dogs though, they aren't very healthy. 

Also, I have a playlist for you since it's Tuesday, duh. I personally think it would be great background music for a Thanksgiving or a Friendsgiving or if you want to take a nap after all that turkey...it would be great napping music too.

Pearl and the Beard :: Sweetness 

The Oh Hello's :: Hello My Old Heart 

Laura Mvula :: She 

Jamie Woon :: Spiral 

Hey Marseilles :: Heart Beats 

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds :: Into My Arms 

Oscar Isaac & Marcus Mumford :: Fare Thee Well 

Bastille :: Get Home 

Years Around The Sun :: Miles Away (Acoustic) 

These United States :: What Do You Want With My Heart? 

City and Colour :: Harder Than Stone (Acoustic) 

Paul Buchanan :: Mid Air 

Enjoy the music, people. Not sure I will be around the blog much over the rest of the week and I don't hate the sound of that. Don't miss me too much.

Cheers!

<3 BB

Is today over yet?

It's the Monday before Thanksgiving. I forgot my phone at home. I am tired from a good weekend. I don't want to be at work. I need to pack for Indiana. It's cold out and I just want hot chocolate and a fire...Can today be over before it starts? 

Silver lining: I have my Christmas music playlist going right now. 

In other news, I went on a great hike this weekend. Went to a Blazer game on Friday night and they won, because I touched the game ball. Watched the last Timber's game of the season....and I saw Catching Fire, which was fantastic, but long. twss

You heard it from the star herself people. Now go see the movie. 

<3 BB 

ps. sorry this weekend shenanigans post is garbage. I am ready for vacation and evidently so is my phone.

Turkey Day

Just because I have started listening to Christmas music already does not mean I have forgotten about one of my favorite holidays...

Thanksgiving, betches! It's almost here! It's almost here!

And let me tell you. I am a fan. I mean, what's not to love?! There are so many things to love including, but not limited to:

Food.

Carbs.

Football.

Food.

Turkey.

Family.

Stuffing.

Stretchy Pants.

Carbs.

Naps.

Pumpkin Pie.

Carbs.

More Naps.

Mashed Potatoes.

More Football.

MOIST MAKERS! (all you F.R.I.E.N.D.S fans know what's up)*

Basically, you can't go wrong with Thanksgiving, as long as you can put up with a little awkward table talk before the meal is actually served. Then it is sweet, sweet silence as everyone stuffs their faces with carbs! And in honor of Thanksgiving - we have to listen to the Turkey Day song by Adam Sandler. DUH! 

Linking up with Sarah for Fan Friday and Whitney for #backthatazzup Friday! 

Cheers to Carbs!  <3 BB  *Do not search Moist Maker Gif on your work computer. Bad things will happen. 

out of eden walk

On my drive into work today I was listening to NPR (that's the true sign you're becoming a grownup, you enjoy listening to the news and talk radio) and they were interviewing a National Geographic Fellow named Paul Salopek.  Paul is taking on the task of...

Retracing on foot the global migration of our ancestors in a 21,000-mile, seven-year odyssey that begins in Ethiopia and ends in Tierra del Fuego.

You can follow his journey here at Out Of Eden Walk, as well as in National Geographic. As I was listening to his interview I was taken back by his words and how he was describing his walk. He did not dwell on the pain he might have felt traveling 20 miles a day, day after day, in the dessert, often in war torn countries. In fact, it was the opposite, he kept describing it as something that felt right in his bones. He kept talking about the people and nomads he is meeting along the way. He described the walking as if his body knew 3 miles per hour was the perfect speed to travel, to take everything in, that his body knew humans were meant to be on the move, like it is what we were put on this earth to do. 

Each step we take is an arrested plunge, a collapse averted, a disaster braked. In this way, to walk becomes an act of faith. We perform it daily: a two-beat miracle—an iambic teetering, a holding on and letting go. For the next seven years I will plummet across the world. (via)

He says he is on a journey and that he is chasing ghosts, but not the past.

"I don't want this to be misperceived as a journey about the past," he says. "I'm using the past as a road map. I'm using what scientists are telling us are the closest approximations of how we dispersed out of the mother continent, Africa, about 50,000 to 70,000 years ago." 

But, he adds, "it's very much about the present day. It's about how we've changed the world, and how the world is being radically altered in our view by such things as the Internet. I'm starting out this walk with about 35 percent of the world wired. By the time I reach Patagonia in 2020, about 80 to 90 percent will be wired." (via)

I find Paul's trip fascinating, crazy, but fascinating and beautiful at the same time. I can't even begin to imagine being so alone and isolated, yet being so immersed with the world and its people at the same time. I have not had the opportunity to travel much yet, I always have excuses - lack of money and fear of trying something new being the top two... but this journey makes me want to experience life and the world in a new way. I am not saying I need to travel by foot on a global trek, but Paul's story does make me want to experience the world in a way I have never before, much like Cheryl Strayed's book Wild makes me want to appreciate  and experience nature, specifically my home in the Pacific Northwest on a deeper level. 

Both of these storytellers set out on their own personal journey for vastly different reasons, but I am so impressed, fascinated, and inspired by their determination and commitment, not to mention their ability to be on their own. I want to be strong and independent like this. I want to be in touch with myself in a way I think only experiencing the world can help us do. I want to be able to create my own story of travel. My good friend Caitlin and her boyfriend Andrew just quit their jobs and left for 3 months of travel and I envy them. I want that experience. I am on a mission to start one. 

Cheers to travel. 

<3 BB 

circuit fun

Guess what day it is..... hump day..... Well technically it is hump day, but I was going to say Workout Wednesday!!!! Either way, get excited because I have a workout to share. All you need is a kettlebell or even a dumbbell would do. 

//Here is how the kettle-bell swings should look. 

//Here is a reverse lunge. This movement really targets your core and glutes.

Depending on your fitness level you can provide yourself with a lot of variation for this one circuit. To make it harder you can increase the number of rounds/reps, use dumbbells with the reverse lunges, or add additional movements. You can also decrease the number of reps/rounds or do your push-ups from the knees to scale back.

Enjoy! 

<3 BB 

About Time

Ok, so you know how yesterday I raved about the movie, About Time?! Well I think part of the reason I liked the movie so much was the soundtrack. It just blended perfectly with the story. It never overpowered the movie, but each track helped create the perfect mood for each scene. I figured today I would share the soundtrack if you want to give it a listen. 

Hands down my favorite on the album is Into My Arms by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. This Gold In Them Hills track by Ron Sexsmith is a close second and you can never go wrong with The Luckiest by Ben Folds. I think Shay would agree with my choices, especially since she was the one to send me multiple tracks from the movie soundtrack after she saw it for the first time (Thanks Shay!). Music will forever tell a story and it definitely helped tell the story in About Time. 
Now go watch the movie. And go watch it again if you've already seen it. 
Cheers! 
<3 BB