Written by my friend Teodoro Martin

I started a new diet and exercise regimen with a personal trainer at the new gym down the street. And, I am telling you, it has changed my life. I wake up every morning, run five miles, rest, drink my coffee, and hit the gym after my morning conference calls. She has taught me all about how to improve overall health and Just enegy information by what I’m eating. I eat a smoothie for breakfast (where I used to skip the meal altogether), a turkey sandwich for lunch with an energy bar, and meat and veggies for dinner. I’m not talkin’ a health fanatic smoothie, or a cardboard sandwich. This is real fruit, real bread, real chips, real meat stuff. I have lost fifteen pounds since June and still dropping! I have more energy than I did in my twenties. I just realized I sound like a commercial for weight watchers. But, it’s the truth, folks, I’m a changed woman. Now, go hit that treadmill and try to tell me you don’t feel better.

A couple days ago I went clothes shopping for the first time in I can’t even remember when. In the past I’ve always hated clothes shopping because I was heavier. I’d either not be able to find anything that would fit me, or I’d find things I like and they wouldn’t look half as good on me as they did on the rack. Because of this fact I have a closet full of clothes that are pretty much on their last legs. Some have holes in them, some are so stretched out they don’t fit right, and some just plain aren’t my style anymore; you can definitely tell that I bought them when I was in high school (over 7 years ago!)

But now that I’ve lost some weight, I decided that it was time to go get some new clothes and I asked my friend to come along with me since he definitely has better taste in clothes than I do. In the end I didn’t do much shopping at all though; I spent most of my time following him around while he tried on clothes. Not that I really minded though, since shopping with him is fun and I got to ‘yes’ or ‘no’ approve everything he was buying. In the end he ended up getting some polos, a few button down shirts, and some over-priced socks. I didn’t walk away empty handed though! I ended up getting a nice low-cut long-sleeved sweater that I can wear over my halter tops. Long-sleeves are something I definitely need since winter is coming and since I’ve lost weight I can feel myself getting colder more quickly!

No, not the TV show, silly!

I’m not in the medical field what so ever, and truthfully, hospitals tend to freak me out. But there is one thing that I actually think I’d like about being a nurse and that’s getting to wear nursing scrubs. I used to have a couple pairs when I was in college and they were some of the most comfortable things I’ve ever put on my body. So naturally when I came across Blue Sky Scrubs, I had to browse around and see what kind of selection they had. I have no clue where my scrubs got off too after I graduated, but lately I’ve been in the market to get a couple more pairs. I wore them as pajamas or around the house, but I know a few people who are RNs and say that scrubs are just as comfortable to work in as they are to lounge in.

So, like I said, I came across this website and was pretty thrilled that this site has scrubs that come in almost any color you could think of. Mostly when you think about plain colored scrubs, you just envision that teal-blue color that everyone seems to wear. But no, this place even has scrubs in black (earning them major points in my book!). I’m also impressed  that they have a section devoted entirely to women (http://www.blueskyscrubs.com/categories/Scrubs/Scrubs-for-Women/) because many online retailers have mostly men’s scrubs.

Guest written by our friend Mason Abbott

My son is all about football and he’s a really important member of his school’s team. They happen to practice in the summer which I think is cruel and unusual punishment in this Texas heat out here. Anyway, I always make sure Bret has plenty of water and the house is nice and cold when he comes home (HTTP://www.texaselectricityproviders.com) and his coach says it’s really shaping up to be his best year yet. I wish I could go out there in the backyard and practice with him but sometimes when my husband gets home from work early enough he goes out there and does some passes with him. Bret’s just a sophomore but he’s really good and we’re hoping he’ll be able to get some kind of college scholarship off this whole football thing. He loves the sport and we’re glad for it – we’d never make him play if it wasn’t something he was passionate about. Hopefully he’ll make it through the summer and come out stronger on the other side for all his hard work!

Post contributed by Noah Schmidt

Last Monday night I watched my favorite sitcom on my cable television. “How I Met Your Mother” is my new favorite sitcom. It’s so fresh and sassy. The characters of Ted, Barney, Marshall, Lily, and Robin are the regulars on the show, and they make it seem so easy to maintain friendships even when people disagree with each other.

This last Monday the episode focused on Ted trying not to admit he had fallen in love–again–because his love interest (Zoey) is against his involvement in tearing down a cherished old building, intending to replace it with a giant bank. In the meantime, Zoey is battling her attraction to Ted because of the same disagreement. Their friends all want Ted to be happy but they don’t trust Zoey to deliver that happiness.

It’s entertaining to watch the characters argue because the writers have such great wit, especially since I know that the characters will respect each other and reconcile at the end of each episode. Spoiler alert: Ted and Zoey finally kiss when Marshall tells each of them of the other one’s love. This episode proves that, in the end, love is all that matters, and any disagreement can be overcome if the two parties are willing. I like that idea, and I would recommend this show to anyone who wants to study the way friends should behave.

Posted by Hyman Weeks

Since all my kids have been home for weeks during Christmas break, and then an extra 3 days after that for snow days I have had very little time to watch what I want to on out new satellite TV that I got after seeing these West Virginia direct tv deals. It has mostly been tuned to kids TV shows and tween shows like Degrassi and Wizards of Waverly Place. Thankfully everyone is back in school and I have the entire house to myself again. After spending the first 2 days cleaning and getting everything organized again I finally relaxed and tried to catch up on some of the TV I missed. First thing I watched were my episodes of Project Runway that I had saved. Thank god satellite! I seriously love this show. There is basically nothing that I do not like. I love the panel of judges, the concept, the contestants and especially Tim Gun. He is so handsome and charismatic and really knows what he is talking about when it comes to fashion. He can take one look a dress of suit or jacket and tell you exactly what is wrong with it, how to fix it and how to ‘make it work.” Even though he is constantly criticizing he never comes across as mean or negative. I also love that there is a contest inside a contest with the models. The models are almost as interesting at the fashion.