Feel good Monday :)

I love this animation.

There is a difference and it is important to practice

one more than the other.

And here is the full length speech by Dr. Brene Brown called

"The Power of Vulnerability"

This next video is just so heart warming :)

Wasn't that just lovely?!

Ria is my role model.

Laughs hysterically all the time.

Tells it like it is.

Lives life to the fullest 

(and even more full now that she's flown :)

Love,

liz xo

kindness

I thought this was worth sharing.

Give with no expectation of receiving...

It will bring you immense amounts of joy.

Love,

liz xo

guess what I did?

I did something that I've

been struggling to do for a very long time.

I struggled out of laziness,

peer pressure,

weakness...

and that it ultimately didn't matter what I did.

I was wrong.

That was a lie I told myself to make it 

EASIER

for myself.

I lied because if I told myself the truth,

I'd be dealt a big blow to 

what I believed in and how I had been behaving.

So,

are you wondering what it was that I did?

I decided to be vegan.

You may not hear the horns blowing in the background,

see the fireworks

or hear the cheers and applause,

but I do.

For my entire life I have believed myself to be an

incredibly

compassionate person.

I poured myself into every relationship and interaction 

with 

EVERY

living being.

I would touch the tree and say a prayer for it

when I saw that it had sap pouring from it's bark,

showing itself to be ill.

I picked up the bee that was lying on the ground,

lifeless,

in hopes that I could mend it back to life

and instead got stung... I was young guys, c'mon.

I listened for hours to whoever wanted to pour their troubles

and life's woes out,

feeling what they felt and doing everything I could to make things better for them.

I would even sometimes carry those woes for them..

but that is an entirely different blog post that has nothing to do with 

COMPASSION and everything to do with codependence!

I love this earth,

it's people,

it's life.

And, I have decided 

(oh hey, yeah, I've decided this...)

that I am a fighter for those things. 

That sounds so insanely cheesy written down,

doesn't it?

But it's the truth. 

I'm the cheeseball ova heeeya.

So,

why does this matter in me changing my habits to become vegan?

I have known for sometime that I am no more important to this world

than anything or anyone else is.

I have the understanding that everything is equal,

and I have been believing this to be true,

and yet all the while,

I have been eating carelessly and mindlessly animal products 

with this twinge of guilt that I shouldn't.

I do not condone the exploitation of ANYONE.

Whatever race, gender, sexuality, nationality, or cultural component 

that you ascribe yourself to,

that is for you to decide,

for no one to judge,

and for no one to exploit.

(remember when I said I was the fighter of the planet's people?

mmhmm.

Watch out for Captain Cheeseball.

Comin' atcha!)

So then...

Why would I leave out animals?

And our planet, for that matter?

I just got to the point where it no longer made sense to me

to just eat whatever meat product was in front of me

because of convenience or 

craving.

I am connected to this planet,

and I am connected to you,

and I am connected to your dog

(as you are, as well).

And we are solely responsible for our actions.

Only we are.

So.

I'm now vegan.

And it's not so bad.

I could say I miss cheese or pepperoni or frozen yogurt.

But, I don't really miss those things.

And I don't feel bad for losing them.

Because it's not about loss in the sense of regret 

or grieving.

It's a weight that has been lifted.

I have come one step closer to living a life where I 

can be assured that my living has 

NOT

negatively impacted someone or something else.

I made this choice.

And I'm excited to learn more about it

and possibly inspire someone

or many.

Or possibly no one.

This was for me.

And for the planet.

And you could maaaaaaaaybe say then that this would impact you..

 ipso facto

THIS WAS FOR YOU.

Just kidding.

Now, here's a goat jumping on a bed :)

Love,

liz xo

Yesssssss!

Here you goooooo! Here you go!

You should watch this clip once

Moo-ooo-oore!!

heh... I'm a nerd.

Love,

liz xo

Oh hey, February. How you doin'?

I am here!!

(hidden in the internetz!)

It is February, and I am here to update you all

on my #gotgoals progress!

So, January's goals were kicked in the rear!!

I mean...

I cradled and kissed and hugged them, and then I 

KICKED THEM!!

So, 

here were my goals for January:

Health - Drink 64 ounces of water a day. Fight through the phase
where you're peeing all day long and HYDRATE!
Personal - Spend 20 minutes each day doing nothing. And that means actually nothing.
Sitting still, listening, observing, no eating, no drinking, no iPhone-ing. Blissful nothing.
Career - Organize all work and "play" projects, so I can better manage my time
and understand what is needed to accomplish them all.

Health!!
I have not gotten to 64 ounces EVERY DAY,
but I have drank more than a liter a day
and that is WAY more than I normally drink. Goal not completely
met, but it was sure as hell
HIGH FIVED!
And I'll take it.

Personal!!
I have deleted FB from my phone,
and it has been
OH-SO LIBERATING!!
The time spent not on my phone,
and just observing and listening.
It is quite nice,
and a relief!!
I recommend everyone do it.

Career!!
I have gotten a calendar that I write in.
I have cleaned out my purse.
(and that was a HUGE feat to tackle!)
I have shredded documents I don't need.
I have organized ones I do.
I have realigned my goals with what I truly want to do,
and it feels SO GOOD!!!

Ok...
so here comes February!!

February

Health - Run at least once a week in the early morning. Oh yeah. 

You can do this, Liz. You can do this. STOP IT!! You CAN do this!!

Personal - Check in to this blog and update you on my progress every month, 

starting in February. 

Career - Have found 5 MSW programs that rock my socks and begun 

the application process.

Here we gooooooo!!

Love,

liz xo

#gotgoals?

2014 is all "BRING IT!!"

And I'm all "It's already been broughten."

Oh yeah.

Have I got some goals for this year!

I have been doing my best over 2013 to hone the 

skill of trusting myself in knowing what

my path is and what I 

deserve.

I think I've got this now.

So. 

Now that I find myself in a place where I am 

positively smitten with my life,

it's the perfect time to challenge myself into 

trying, doing and accomplishing

things that I've either put off, never tried

or been too scared to begin to think about doing them.

Here it goes, y'all!!

Without further ado..

Here is my list of goals for 2014...

January

Health - Drink 64 ounces of water a day. Fight through the phase

where you're peeing all day long and HYDRATE!

Personal - Spend 20 minutes each day doing nothing. And that means actually nothing. 

Sitting still, listening, observing, no eating, no drinking, no iPhone-ing. Blissful nothing.

Career - Organize all work and "play" projects, so I can better manage my time 

and understand what is needed to accomplish them all.

February

Health - Run at least once a week in the early morning. Oh yeah. 

You can do this, Liz. You can do this. STOP IT!! You CAN do this!!

Personal - Check in to this blog and update you on my progress every month, 

starting in February. 

Career - Have found 5 MSW programs that rock my socks and begun 

the application process.

March

Health - Go to bed 5 days a week at 10:30. Oh sweet baby Jay-Z, this
sounds magical, doesn't it?? And I'm going to do it!!! HOLLER!

Personal - Read a book every month and have started a book club! YAY!

Career - Get a raise at work.

April

Health - Run the 15 mile trail run race with friends. SO EXCITE!

Personal - Have paid off a fourth of my debt.

Career - Help coworkers with their goals. #gotgoals? will begin
it's journey to being HUGE!

And you'll just have to wait to see what's in store!!

Can't reveal everything, right?
And besides - I'm going to be riding the wave of the Universe
and will have to see what comes my way.

Are you excited???

BECAUSE I FREAKING AM!

Love,

liz xo

no shallow living for us mermaids.