"Hit of Happiness" Weekly Wisdom

 

What is YOUR hit of happiness?

I was having brunch with friends a couple weeks ago and on the menu was "million dollar bacon."  This was not the first time I have seen this on a menu. Last year in Florida, we went to a restaurant with "million dollar bacon" and we ordered it because HELLO, you must try million dollar bacon. It was good and it was even better on vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce. I did not order it at brunch because I felt like once you have had it, you really do not need to have it again. It made me think how wild it is that we live in a world with million dollar bacon as a menu option. 

Which led me down an even deeper spiral of my dietitian brain of the many other options we are exposed to similar to million dollar bacon. It's a thrill when we see it, try it, eat it and relive it the next time we see it on a menu. Maybe its the triple dip, hot chocolate sundae with 3 kinds of chocolate chips and a side of extra chocolate sauce. Maybe it's the tomahawk ribeye. Maybe it's the morning Bloody Mary with the beer back, maybe its the extra spicy romance novel that you can't put down. Maybe it's the 6 season Netflix show that you lose sleep over because you can't stop watching it. Maybe it's the 5th trip to Target this week and the bag of "stuff" you just needed to have. Maybe it is a yoga session or a long walk. Maybe it's journaling or praying. Maybe it's therapy or coffee with a friend. Maybe it's just a bandaid holding your life together?

I believe we live in a world where we are all looking for a little less chaos with a little more calm and joy in our lives. We run ourselves into the ground working long hours, doing activities, trying to have relationships and social lives, trying to manage our homes with cooking and cleaning, trying to get adequate sleep, trying to nurture our inner peace and balance. We have a hard time saying no and find other ways to find the joy we are missing. If you are burning the candle at both ends and finding yourself searching for those daily hits to help you cope, I challenge you to ask yourself if it's productive or just a bandaid?  

We all have our own "hits of happiness." 

Do more of the ones that bring you closer to the life you want. 

#realization | #EmbraceTheHellYeah

AE

"Do Your Best" Weekly Wisdom

 

What do you "do?"

You know the drill. When you meet someone new, the small talk begins and right after you share your name and a little small talk about the day or weather - the infamous question arises:  What do you do?

Our default is always our job. We are so much more than our job and we should never limit our answer to just what we do for work. Why not share more about what you do? Share with others your other passions, hobbies, activities/sports, parenting humans or pets, or in my case - I do my best. 

Defining yourself never needs to be limited. All the things you do make you the stunning person you are. Careers are important and in my younger years, I thought it was the only thing that made me, me. Now, it is the last thing that makes me, me. 

I challenge you in a next new meeting, before you talk about your job, talk about what lights you up. That's what you "do."

#realization | #EmbraceTheHellYeah

~AE

"There Is More To Life" Weekly Wisdom

What Olympic sport do you wished you knew about and would play?

My list:   badminton (I did play this as a kid and loved it, but who knew?), skeet shooting, rugby, table tennis, handball and fencing. None of these were ever discussed or were available for me to play as a more serious sport when I was a kid and that makes me sad. Granted I grew up in a small town and I am sure, resources were very limited. I still think it would have been great to learn about the options or even talk more about the sports of the Olympics. 

I am not sure what it is like in other countries, but I sure would like some insight outside of the American sport culture. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy football, basketball, volleyball, softball, and an occasional baseball game but watching the Olympics every year reminds me there are so many more options. When I was younger, soccer was barely on the radar so I am glad that is making bigger waves in America but I feel we could do better. 

I know there is a cultural component to these other sports. Maybe parents or family members have experience or have done the sport and you were raised doing that sport. I love the lineage of passing along these skills to kids, I wish I had this experience.  I just think it wouldn't hurt for kids like me to learn a little more about other sports outside the American norm. We don't all wear the same clothes or eat the same foods, we shouldn't have to feel we have to play the same sports our country sensationalizes. 

I know it is never too late to try something new and watching the Olympics inspires that for me. I did hear the USA Handball team is in need of members...

#realization | #EmbraceTheHellYeah

~AE