Embrace the Near Win

"Masters are not masters because they take a subject to its conceptual end, they are masters because they realize that there isn't one. We build out from the unfinished end." -Sarah Lewis

The Paradox of Disease Prevention

"The “daily” part of daily exercise is the challenge. The difficult part of healthy behavior is adhering to those healthy decisions day after day after day."

Finburg HV, 2013. JAMA.

creating a new habit

"it's not just our own minds that try to trip up our new habits, it's also the situations themselves...[which] provide a whole new set of temptations to lure us away from our new habit. We go on a diet and cakes, chips, and beer are suddenly everywhere. Or we decide to walk to work and then it starts raining every day."

-Jeremy Dean,
Making Habits, Breaking Habits

on public speaking

"if you realize that you have a chance to be generous in this moment, to teach and to lead, you can leave the self-doubt behind and speak a truth that the audience needs to hear. When you bring that to people who need it, your fear pales in comparison.

The faster we get over ourselves, the sooner we can do a good job for those tuning in."

-seth godin

“I'm afraid that if you look at a thing long enough,

 it loses all of its meaning.” - Andy Warhol 

“ It is not abstinence from pleasures that is best,

but mastery over them without being worsted. ” — Aristippus

On getting in shape now:

 "why not see what potential you have now? Eat some plants, lift some stuff, run somewhere, get on a machine to nowhere, whatever...it’s a goal you can see and feel, and lessons from it often translate well to career or other goals. Oh, and try boxing."
-found here

"you want to try and be at the front,

otherwise it's like running through a forest where all the other trees are running with you."

-Casey Neistat, here

following

As I sit on the T, bundled in a thick scarf and the latest copy of Edible Boston, I realize that my dreams are unfolding.

I am on the way home from a Slow Food Boston Board meeting where I am a board member. I am humbled in the presence of the other members and I can only aspire to be as articulate as they are.

The tasks that I have before me are to write the minutes for Slow Food, to test recipes for Joanne Chang, to finish an assignment for Medical Nutrition Therapy, and to practice my choreography for a Body Pump class. These are all things that I dreamed about when I was in Texas. 

As I opened my latest copy of Edible Boston, I was greeted by familiar names and faces; these are the magical aspects of getting older,

I hope to get wiser, as well, and to become better at practicing gratitude.

"the amount of work required to succeed is tremendous,

 and there’s no reason to do that work, no boss, no deadline, it’s totally on you and your desire to create. So do the work and be brave, is what I always say. Work hard and take chances. And it definitely scares a lot of people."

Casey Neistat, here

"Good sense prevailed,

 however, and the cake lived to see another day. But that was all. After night two, with about a quarter of it left, Jenny dumped it into the trash and banned it for life. “Don’t bring that into the house again,” she said. “It’s too good.” – Andy
Dinner: A Love Story

how you do anything...

is how you do everything

six months

Six months since the Boston Marathon. So much can change in such a short period of time.

challenge yourself and

get smarter

by:

Seeking Novelty, Thinking Creatively, Doing Things The Hard Way, and Meeting Lots of Great People

found here

"One should

 not pursue goals that are easily achieved. One must develop an instinct for what one can just barely achieve through one’s greatest efforts." —Albert Einstein

"The journey begins

 with a single step, a wise man said, and for me that first step is simple:

Admit I don’t know.

Learning begins by emptying your cup, so that you can fill it with what you find. Emptying your cup means getting rid of pre-set opinions."

Zen Habits, found here

"Your drudgery

 is another person's delight. It's only a job if you treat it that way. The privilege to do our work, to be in control of the promises we make and the things we build, is something worth cherishing."

-Seth Godin

I dream and think

in colors and flavors. 

I study words and methods to be better at my craft, a challenge that makes me feel like the goldfish trying to ride a bicycle.

We all face uncertainty,

but when nothing is sure, everything is possible.

“There are two basic motivating forces

fear and love. When we are afraid, we pull back from life. When we are in love, we open to all that life has to offer with passion, excitement, and acceptance. We need to learn to love ourselves first, in all our glory and our imperfections. If we cannot love ourselves, we cannot fully open to our ability to love others or our potential to create. Evolution and all hopes for a better world rest in the fearlessness and open-hearted vision of people who embrace life.” 
-John Lennon