Getting on my soap box one more time!

Ok, ok... you get it, I like to eat healthy, organic, etc. And I bet you have seen the High Fructose Corn Syrup commercials. If not, here is one in the link below.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W40yHDFxkAY&feature=PlayList&p=25E93FB9AF0B1A7A&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=20

So after seeing these commercials (I am not a fan of high fructose corn syrup) I decided I should know why I am not a fan... so that I can explain it to people who don't see a problem with it. Below is an excert from an article I read and I think it puts it clear as day.... so if anyone else is interested in why HFCS(High fructose corn syrup) is NOT good, continue reading:

Why You Need to Understand Why Fructose is so Important
All sugars are not created equal, in spite of what you might have been told.
Glucose is the form of energy your cells were actually designed to run on. Every cell in your body, every bacterium -- and in fact, nearly every living thing on the Earth -- uses glucose for energy.
But as a country, regular cane sugar, or sucrose (50 percent glucose and 50 percent fructose), is no longer the sugar of choice. It’s now fructose.
This happened in the 1970s as a result of technology that made HFCS far less expensive to produce. Believe me, it was NOT done for its health benefits. This was purely an economic decision.
Let me clear up any confusion here, as fructose is the primary sugar in most fruits. It isn’t that fructose is intrinsically evil -- it is just the MASSIVE DOSES you and your family are exposed to that makes it dangerous. Because it is so cheap and makes foods taste so much better, it is added to virtually every processed food.
There are two overall reasons fructose is so damaging:
Your body metabolizes fructose in a much different way than glucose. Fructose is broken down in your liver just like alcohol and produces many of the side effects of chronic alcohol use, right down to the "beer belly"
People are consuming fructose in quantities that are 400-800 percent higher than they were 100 years ago due to its pervasive presence in just about all processed foods

Fructose Turns to Fat and Makes You Fat!
Unlike fructose which is nearly exclusively broken down in your liver and is directly converted to dangerous fats. This is one of the reasons why fructose is the leading cause of obesity. However, only 20 percent of glucose is metabolized in your liver. This is related to the fact that nearly every cell in your body can directly use glucose as a fuel source, so it’s normally "burned up" immediately after consumption.
It is also important to understand that the fructose in fruits and vegetables is not the same fructose molecule you’ll find in synthetic high-fructose corn syrup, which is manufactured in the lab. Naturally occurring fructose comes along with fiber, enzymes, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, whereas fructose sweeteners have no nutritional value at all.
Additionally it is actually attached to other sugars and molecules and needs to be broken down before it is absorbed which limits the damage it causes. In HFCS it is a free fructose molecule, just as the glucose. Because these sugars are in their free forms their absorption is radically increased and you actually absorb far more of them had they been in their natural joined state which would cause a higher percentage of the fructose to pass to the intestine unabsorbed.
But the menace of fructose doesn’t stop there.
Fructose also elevates your uric acid levels, which is actually more dangerous than elevated cholesterol levels as it causes chronic, low-level inflammation, which increases your risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, cancer, arthritis and premature aging.
Fructose also "tricks" your body into gaining weight by fooling your metabolism -- it actually severely impairs your body’s normal appetite-control systems.
Excessive fructose rapidly leads to weight gain and abdominal obesity ("beer belly"), decreased HDL, increased LDL, elevated triglycerides, elevated blood sugar, and high blood pressure -- i.e., classic metabolic syndrome.
Fructose metabolism is very similar to alcohol metabolism, which has a multitude of toxic effects, including NAFLD (non-alcoholic fatty liver disease). Metabolically it’s very similar to drinking alcohol without the buzz.

Remember to RADICALLY Reduce Your Fructose
These biological changes are not seen when humans or animals eat starch (or glucose), suggesting that fructose is a "bad carbohydrate" when consumed in excess of 25 grams per day.
However, it is important to remember that because fructose is so cheap it is added to nearly all processed foods. So even if you are seeking to eliminate it from your diet you will EASILY exceed 25 grams per day because it is "hidden" in so many foods. This is made worse by the deceptive and lax labeling laws which frequently allow gigantic loopholes for agribusiness to include it in the product and not identify it.
Making matters worse, your body easily becomes sensitized to fructose.
Fructose activates its own pathways in your body—those metabolic pathways become "upregulated." In other words, the more fructose you eat, the more effective your body is in absorbing it; and the more you absorb, the more damage you’ll do.
You become "sensitized" to fructose as time goes by, and more sensitive to its toxic effects as well.
Let me be clear that it isn’t fructose that is the problem -- but excessive fructose. And especially the concentrated amounts of fructose that your body was NEVER designed to process, such as what’s in HFCS and agave syrup.
Agave nectar is EVEN WORSE than HFCS because it’s even higher in fructose than HFCS (80 percent and higher), making it an even worse metabolic menace.

To read the entire article (which is actually about Agave) here is the link: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/03/30/beware-of-the-agave-nectar-health-food-fraud.aspx

Do you Priceline?

I have a feeling this blog is going to lean towards my thoughts, stories and experiences of my travels. As my last one indicated, I am learning a lot to say the least.

Anways... do you Priceline when you travel? If not, you should and here is why.
Tonight, I am staying in a 4 star hotel, in Atlanta, GA for $70 dollars. The retail price I would guess is roughly $130.
Tomorrow-Friday, I am staying in the trendies part of Boston, in a 4 Star for $110/night. Retail at this place is probably right around $200/night.

I will teach you the trick of the trade if you need me to... but serisously?!

Luck of the Irish (or German)

Well, I know there is a rumor that floats around that I am a "lucky" person. Do I think this? No... I think I am a very go-with-the-flow type of person, therefore, take things as they come and don't plan too much into the future (that way, if you have no plans, they can't get messed up..). Anyways, today is the first time in life I will admit that I got lucky this morning. As some of you saw, I posted on my FB status that I missed my flight. It wasn't really anyones fault. I woke up bright eyed and bushy tailed at 5am on the dot... but one thing lead to another and when i got to the airport the security lines were the longest I have EVER seen. So... I missed my 7:30am flight. I was really bummed, but also had never missed my flight, so didn't really know what I was supposed to do.
I get up to the gate (watching the plane pull away that I was supposed to be on) and I tell the lady that I was supposed to be on that flight right now. She grabs my boarding pass and pulls up my name and is like "wow, that is weird... you are already scheduled on the 8:45am flight" I am like really?! She asks if I talked to anyone or called ahead and I was like NO. I literally checked in, stood in the security line forever and then came to you. Long story short (or long) she has no idea how I was automatically put on the 8:45 am flight without talking to anyone and it was a full flight. I will probably only say this one time in my life, but Lucky me! This saved me a lllloooonnnggg day of standby.

Chaos

Chaos is what I feel describes my life right now. I have been a traveling fool and have not really had to time to do anything besides work and think about work recently. Today, I woke up extrememly tired and stressed. Tired because I could not sleep last week for some reason and stressed, because I landed at 11pm on Friday night and am leaving on a 7:30am flight tomorrow (Monday) which means laundry, bills, QT time with Adam and Tyson, etc. just are a few of the several things I want to get accomplished before leaving again. On top of that, until a few minutes ago, I was not sure where I was going to be after tomorrow. Meaning, I am going to Atlanta on Monday and Tuesday and had a flight to Ft. Launderdale on Tuesday scheduled, but last minute- change of plans- now I am going back to Boston. I actually REALLY like this new position. When I am there, going on appointments it is soooo much better than what I was doing before. It will just be a juggling act until I get my life stabilized for the next few weeks.

Last week, Greg and I went to New Haven, CT for an appointment. New Haven is home to the University of Yale and we stayed at the Omni on campus and were surrounded by Yale folk. I loved New Haven... such a cool city. Anyways, I couldn't decide if I felt dumb or smart the whole time. Dumb because I knew everyone I was surrounded with went to Yale, but smarter because I am young enough for people to assume I was going to Yale :) which I let them believe. Ha! ANNNDD I could NOT stop thinking about Blair Waldorf the whole time for all you Gossip Girl fans. Remember how badly she wanted to go there?! Anyways....

Lastly, where do you all buy your work suits? I went to Express today to buy a new one, but need a few more. Any suggestions? Yes, I need tons of them as this is what I am supposed to wear and I only have like 2 or 3 that I kinda like. Probably need closer to 6.

XOXO

Too close for comfort

We rent a house in Denver. Basically, we have the whole top floor and a single guy, Neil, rents the basement. He is single, works a lot and is all around a pretty quiet guy that keeps to himself. He has a separate entrance to his part- so we don't really see him much, let alone to talk to him. And up until now, Adam and I have been 100% happy with our living situation.

Two weekends ago on Saturday morning, Adam gets up to take Tyson out. He gets outside and there is a strange women outside smoking in the backyard. Adam comes in and is like "Neil had a shacker... she looks like she is so hung over.... I thought she was a prostitute at first because she looks so bad" We both kind of laugh about it... not a big deal, he has had some lady friends in the past. Sunday comes... she is still here. Still not a big deal, this one was more than a one-night thing... weekend romance we think.

I kid you not... she has not left the house since the first sighting. In fact, Neil took the whole week off last week and stayed home. They holed up in the basement together, blared music all day, cooked dinner together at night and who knows what else. I am not even exaggerating... she has not left the house. To make matters worse, we are 99% sure she has moved in. In fact, we are 100% sure. Yesterday, she told me she wanted to bring her dog here and her grand kids are coming to visit this weekend. Ok, Neil is probably mid-40's. This lady does NOT look old enough to have grand kids- but she does! She has two kids herself (a 25 and a 22 year old) and they made babies (not together) so now she has grand kids.

Last night, which was a Sunday night, they were BLARING the music until late. Adam, had to wake up a 4:15am this morning, so he/we were not happy campers. We literally could hear her screaming the words to Celine Dion, like she was in the next room. It got so bad, Adam finally had to text Neil.

I don't mean to talk bad about her... she is actually really nice. Her name is Pauline, BUT.... anyone who has been to our house, knows it is not large. There is something about knowing 4 people + a dog live here that is making Adam and I feel a little claustrophobic. And she smokes outside several times throughout the day, so if she is out there, I don't want to let Tyson out because he will immediately run up to say hi, which means there is a strong probability that he is going to jump on her. So, it has just become a little inconvenient.

I don't think there is really anything to say or do at this point, so we are just going to wait it out a little bit. Along with the music last night, they got in a huge fight and I could hear her crying for a really long time. I am pretty sure she was three sheets to the wind last night... but still. I felt like I was in college again.

Jodi Picoult is my hero

I LOVE her books. Anyways, was wondering if anyone else has read Salem Falls? I finished it last night and would love to discuss it with someone else, because the last line of the book totally threw me for a loop!!!! I think this has been one of my favs of her's so far... is a must read for anyone who enjoys her books :)

PS- only have 2 more "Keeping Faith" and her new one "House Rules" until I have read her entire set... so sad :(

The Fabulous Life of Natalie Otto

Here are the pictures I got sent to me this afternoon after Natalie saw a few of the Jersey Shore boys on the beach in Miami (and was asked to stand in the background while the photo shoot was going on). The photos were for Cosmo. She lives a charmed life, thanks to Greg Parks!

Too bad she is not 21 or she could be fist pumping at the club tonight with them!!!!

Hello Bloggies...

First off, I know this has been blogged about several times today already- but congrats to Vanessa and Chris on making Classic Bride! Probably for Vanessa (as it would be for me) it is just the best feeling to have your wedding complimented like that after all the months of hard work :)

Onto life: An update to everyone is I got the promotion!! So, my life has been hectic the last few weeks and is only bound to get more hectic. I was in Scottsdale this week at corporate meeting with people and such. Next week, I am in Massachusetts and then New Haven, CT. Following week I am in Atlanta and then either FL or back to Mass.... then Mass from there on out. As these exciting changes have been, well,... exciting, I am anxious to really get started. This is a GREAT opportunty and I am very grateful for it. I might be calling you all when I am bored in an airport or hotel, so please answer!

I feel like I have so much going on the next few months and all exciting stuff. I can't wait for wedding season to begin (as weddings are one of my favorite things of all time- LOVE THEM). And I am in dire need of some girl time.

I have no great stories... but I am bored

Therefore, I will just write.
I woke up at 4:20 this morning, boarded a plane to Scottsdale. Worked all day in the office and then came to my hotel to lay-out for approx. 40 mins. I took a quick nap and then went to Paradise Bakery to grab some soup. I burnt the living heck out of my toungue on this soup.

I want to watch 90210 from last week, but the CW's media player sucks and my cable is not working in my hotel room right now. So, maintanence is here to hopefully fix the problem.

My life. Documented 3.16.10.

Toodles!

New Job, New Number

Save it now!!!! Since I have a new position within ATS and am the official Massachusetts rep- gotta seem like a resident.
617-869-2253
(Boston area code)

I would....

I would accidentally put a typo in my checking account number (in the direct deposit section) on my Federal Income Tax return. Which means the $3,633.00 (yes, filing married is awesome)that we have been anxiously awaiting for is pretty much lost in tax la-la land right now and I have spent a few good hours of my life figuring this out. Note to self: triple check my account number next year before pushing submit!!!

Red Lobster- the dinner of champions

Adam and I are starting to have a 'date night' once a week. This is a night where we actually go out and do something together rather than sitting on our couch and watching TV. Last night was our first date night... Adam has tons of gift cards from years of stocking stuffers, so we found one to Red Lobster and decided to try it out since we both had never been there.
I can sum up the experience with this statement that was made my Adam while exiting the restaurant
"I wish we would have stayed home and argued all night, rather than eating there"

No, we weren't ever in an argument yesterday, but both of us agreed that Red Lobster was no good. Adam had a horrible stomach ache when we left and kept saying how he regretted eating there. So, sorry Red Lobster in Littleton, CO.... you suck!

On a different note K-State played amazing last night! Go cats!

On a serious note, please say a prayer for our Pi Phi house Mom, who we love dearly. She is in the hospital and it is not looking good.

What a (stinky) night

Oh the joys of dog ownership. I feel these joys are definitely preparing us for children. Let me explain.

Last night, in the middle of the night, I heard Tyson crying/whining in his kennel. I assume he is just being a brat because he doesn't want to be in there... (I have been traveling so much and Adam lets Tyson sleep in the bed when I am gone). I yell at Tyson to stop crying- he does. About 2 minutes later, we hear the sound of diarrhea exiting Tyson. Oh Crap! (literally).

First thought of mine was "lets just leave it until the morning".... I was slightly out of it at this point. Adam is like- are you joking?! So we get up, let Tyson outside which he continues to go to the bathroom everywhere (poor little boy). We then survey the damage. Disgusting. Adam takes the crate outside to clean it. In the meantime... some of the pooh falls onto the floor as we are carrying the crate outside. Thank goodness we have wood floors. So we clean it up. Adam is in charge of the crate and we think - thankfully, this is going to be a quick clean-up and back to bed.

It gets worse. I let Tyson inside... he immediately runs into the bedroom and jumps on the bed and lays down. We are still cleaning the crate, so when Tyson gets up from the bed- I gag... because I realize he has poo all over him- which is now on the bed. SICK. SICK. SICK.

Now, I am in charge of giving Tyson a bath, Adam strips the bed (sheets, duvet, pillow top, etc). We start a load of laundry. I finish giving Tyson a bath, put new sheets on the bed and bring the clean crate back inside and lay some new towels in it.

Our bedroom smells horrible!!!! I spray freshener, we light a match, but the smell is there to stay for the night. I will say it again... DISGUSTING!

Cheers to Marriage! 9 months and counting...

This weekend, after my LOOONNGGG week in Scottsdale, Adam and I attended a marriage conference in CO Springs and stayed at the Cheyenne Mountain Resort. My parents had given us this as a Christmas gift in 2008. And yes, it has been almost a year and a half since we got the gift and we have FINALLY had the chance to use it. It was put on my Family Life Ministries and it was amazing.

View from our balcony

I would recommend it to any engaged/married couple. They do them all around the nation and if you live in a larger city, I am sure there will be one close to you this year! Adam and I really got a lot out of it and grew closer as a couple. It gave us some good "nuts and bolts" to put to use in our marriage. The speakers were amazing and all the sessions were really applicable to our everyday.


Anyways, I would encourage any of you newlyweds to try and attend one of these conferences sometime in the next year or two. If you can get off on the right start, the chances of your marriage lasting forever are increased! And sadly, with the divorce rate so high- marriage is something that you have to work at every day of your life. We heard a lot of older couples saying "if only we had been to this ___ years ago- it would have really helped"

Here is the link to look at the dates and locations in your area. If you are really interested in this, Adam and I would love to help out with the cost as a wedding gift- so let us know :)
https://secure.familylife.com/site/pp.aspx?c=dnJHKLNnFoG&b=4432699


Cheers to marriage!

Corporate Hell!

What is corporate hell you may ask? Corporate hell is when you are required to come to Scottsdale, AZ on a Monday and are here until Friday. Do you get to play outside? No. Do you get to see the light of day? No. Do you get to stay in a nice hotel? No. Do you have any alone time? No. Do you have to suck up to everyone you are in contact with? Yes.

And... surprise! We are taking a super intense public speaking course (when I mean intense. take a public speaking advanced college course times 10). 3 days. Several speeches. And I have to prepare a actual long speech to present on Friday. Shoot me. ON TOP of staying with your clients and getting your daily stuff accomplished.

Hi. This is room 331.... can you bring us.....

Two weekends ago, Scott Dikeman came in town to ski in Vail. Scott is a baller and booked us an amazing room at the Marriott on the base of the mountain using his points. He is pretty much famous in the Marriott world and we got to expereince the luxury with him.

Saturday goes something like this:

Leave Denver 7:30am- sit in 4 hours of traffic on the way up to Vail. Get there... Amazing powder... we check in the the hotel and go shred the nar-nar (haha.. yes, people really say this. Not sure why) with the group consisting of Adam, Scott, Becky, Larry and I. BEST DAY EVER OF SKIING. That is all I can really say about it. Get back to the hotel. Start drinking. Start drinking more. Scott decides that the hotel robes and slippers should be our apparel for the night as a group. Call guest services and request more robes and slippers so there is enough for all five of us. The guest services man answers the phone and says "Mr. Dick-eee-Man, what can I assist you with?!" Funniest moment of my life. Still laughing about that. After putting the robes and slippers on, we decide it is a good idea to walk around this really nice hotel in our robes.

Get on the elevater. Feeling pretty good at this point in the night. Get off the elevater. Small boy says to his mom "Why is everyone wearing their robes at this hotel?!!!!!!" He pretty much thinks its the coolest thing ever and boosts our confidence. We then decide to see how far we can go with this whole robe thing so we head to the hotel bar to see if they will serve us in our robes. They don't say a word, though everyone is staring at us. We think this is a good time for a shot. First round of shots down the gullet..... what to do next. Hot tub!

Head to the hot tub, get in and refill beers. Family comes to the hot tub and a wasted mother with 2 kids gives us marriage advice. Including: sex, pregnancy, etc. right in front of her kids. It was hilarious, slightly awkward considering she was telling us in extreme detail about all these things. And repeating herself a bazillion times... ummm.... ok. We realize soon enough that the group of adults is pretty cool so talk to them for awhile and then head back to the bar. Still in the robes... now wet. We are sitting at the fancy hotel bar. Boys order Scotch on the rocks, girls order martinis. Seemed like a good idea at the time. We are hungry. I order pizza to the room. 45 mins later, pizza arrives- we devour in approx. 5 minutes. The boys decide we are going out/no questions. So we all shower, and head out to wonderful world of Vail and the jacked up prices. Bar #1: get a round of drinks... decide to play a drinking game. This is the game where you count to 11 and who lands on 11, makes up a rule for one of the numbers. Well, one of Adam's rule is "on #6, you have to say SHOTS MATE (we were pretending to be British the whole night... forgot to add that detail earlier) loud enough for the bar tender to hear. After a few rounds of this game, Becky gets #6. The bar tender actally hears and comes over. She is too embarrassed to admit we were playing a game. Actually orders a round of shots. Cost: $48.00. Yikes! But oh so funny at the time. Finish the game- head to a different bar. Becky and I call it a night at about 1am and the boys stay out until close.

Best night ever. One of the best weekends ever. Thanks again Scott!

So Happy :)