Show the Earth some love today.

"Busboys and Poets is a green-driven company and is proud to have taken several steps to become more eco-conscious. We have adopted principles, policies and practices that improve the quality of life for our customers, our employees and our surrounding community."

Checkout their green initiatives. Happy Earth Day!

taking it as it comes...bending but not breaking

Run this Town

Photo finish. Clock time 1:34:07. Chip time 1:27:21. Pace 8:45.

Protein Kick

Getting my protein up! According to the University of Maryland Medical System Protein Calculator, I should be getting a minimum of 82g of protein in my diet daily ?! At first I tried to do it by consuming more protein-enriched food such as nuts, beans and soy yogurt, but there just isn't enough hours in the day and plus my system just can't handle all that. Seemed hopeless until I found this! It's a soy protein powder at GNC, and so far real good! No random side-effects, aftertastes, or system overload. Good stuff.

Half-marathoner

Completed my first half-marathon this year!


Sweet victory...ran 13.1 miles through Disney's Magic Kingdom in 2 hours, 9 minutes, and 6 seconds.


And I met Mickey!!!

Vegan Comfort Food ?

Yes! There is such a thing according to Yahoo! Green. Find 5 Vegan Comfort Food Recipes here. (Pictured above is the Sheperd's Pie, which calls for tofu, tempeh, seitan, or mushrooms as the protein of the dish)

I'm currently changing the weather

Flying from a snow storm in the East to sunny skies in the West. Stay tuned for photos from my travels!

Photo Update:

I give you, Paradise!


Ready to set sail


Catalina Island, CA


L.A. Cetto winery in Ensenada, MX



Although it felt great to escape the snow for a little bit, I found out that I am definitely not a 'Cruiser.' Nope, I don't need an itinerary jam-packed with activities and excursions to enjoy myself... Give me sun & sand, and I'm good.

The most important meal of the day

As a Vegan, breakfast is not my most important meal of the day. In fact, I dread eating before 11a now. I remember not getting dress before eating a hot bowl oatmeal with morning coffee. But I wore that routine out. Now that it seems like it's my only HOT meal option before lunch (which is usually cold too), I have grown out of oatmeal. I miss having options, such a luxury that we take for granted in this country. In one city block you can enjoy a plethora of worldly cuisine types. There's NO other country quite like it. Nevertheless, breakfast is special, less dish options but so many possibilities, and you can still get it fast! Vegans? We gotta plan ahead or eat cold foods. Apples, bananas, and soy yogurt are all great, but who wants to eat their afternoon snacks for breakfast, everyday? No thank you, I'll bypass the "most important" and hold out for the most satisfying.

The Social Network

Better late than never right?! Well it's probably not that serious, but I did finally see the movie about the birth, growth, and drama of the social networking tool that we know all too well, Facebook. Beyond learning about the life-changing side effects that were bestowed on all parties involved in creating and growing Facebook, The Social Network reveals exactly what it takes to start start a business with such a wildly innovative concept for its time. The co-founder Mark Zuckerberg illustrated an unwavering ability to focus on crafting the algorithmic programs and ascetics of the website. As an undergraduate student at Harvard Unuversity, one of the most prestigious and rigorous institutions in th world, he envisioned a cool concept and completely immersed himself in "The Facebook" in his college dorm room! It was cool to watch how him work relentlessly on coding, concepts, features, and funding. There's a great quote that was once said by insightful person, (something like) "Our ability to focus is what dictates our success." Not money. Not intelligence. But our ability to FOCUS! The ability to put our fears and doubts aside and just focus on the task at hand. Moving on to the next task, and the task after that, this will eventually lead us to even greater achievements. In 2004, Zuckerberg did not initiate his work on thefacebook.com to become the world's youngest billionaire or to even gain 1 million users. Nope! He through himself into the project so vigorously because he believed that his ideas were cooler, and he just focused on producing his vision. The writing for this movie is spectacular, and the underlying moral is even greater.

"And the strawberries taste like STRAWBERRIES!"

(A quotable from the classic movie Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory) I was this excited about the delicious strawberries that I just purchased from my local Trader Joe's. I'm always extra proud when I pick out good fruit. It's like winning the nutritious lotto! I'm trying to choose more healthy (and satisfying) snacks. For the record, being a Vegan does not exclude one from being a snacker! It's true, and I just love to munch. Not saying it's a bad thing, just not conducive to achieving my longterm lifestyle goals. So with my yummy strawberries, I'm snacking like I mean it and getting back on track!

I ♥ Polar Bears

Without a doubt, if I could come back to Earth as any other mammal, I would be a Polar Bear. Is that odd?! They are just so cool to me. It saddens me that they are increasingly endangered to global warming. These beautiful creatures are just magnificent.

*Photo courtesy of Planetsave

...something blue!

Striking Blue Dragonfly

*Photo courtesy of Cool Green Science

ESTC 2010 in PORTLAND

I had the pleasure of traveling to the great city of Portland, OR for this year's Ecotourism and Sustainable Tourism Conference (ESTC). The conference featured industry experts from all perspectives including destination managers and marketers, travel authors, wild life philosophers, and tour operators. Below, I was pictured talking to Tim Mongin, Housing and Reservations Manager for Travel Portland, the destination marketing organization for the Portland area. It was an inspiring experience, and I can't hardly wait for next year's conference to be held on Hilton Head Island, SC.

Photo courtesy of SustainableBusinessOregon.com

1-year and counting...

Hello world! It's been far too long since my last post, and for that I am so sorry. Fail, on my part. But, I am back with BIG news. Today, I am celebrating my 1-year VEGANniversary!!! Yup, 1-year and counting my friends:) Check out this awesome e-card that I received.