The End

No one tells you that after college the real world is HARD- It's no one's fault really because there
is nothing you can really say to a person entering the real world to warn them of what is coming because there is so much to disclose. Its not that the real world is horrible, its just that you grow exponentially fast- which is something that may come as a shock.

I am going to end this blog by stating some lessons that I have learned and some pointers I would give to those entering the real world:

1. You need to be adaptable- if you are a very structured person that is okay but learn now to be flexible because your plans will get derailed every day. If you are flexible then you will be just fine

2. Work life balance is important- no one can state it better then this man- please watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXM7MpoVAD0

3. You can miss your life if you strive for "1 day" meaning- you can fall into a trap of living for a day that does not exist instead of living the life that does exist now

4. YOU are in control of your life- don't let other things make you serve them. There are many parts of life that can pull you to serve them - get tough and take a stand

Go forth into the real world with a positive and brave attitude- its hard for everyone but its those who can arm themselves and bounce back that end up loving and living it just right.

Thank you for your support.

Love,
Alexa

Hello Fellow Readers!

Sorry I have not written in awhile...Things have been crazy busy at work and I am also looking to go back to school in the Fall so I have been wrapped up in trying to figure out all the details to that. One thing I wanted to share with you all today is something that caught my attention last night at work.

Before I left, I overheard two women in the kitchen- both of them were friends and joking around with one another and one of them said, "Gosh you are acting like our boss (for confidentiality we will call the boss, "Marsha") Marsha!" The woman who was called Marsha stopped laughing and seriously stated, "Great, that's awful."

That struck me because I hope that I live my life where if this same situation happened behind my back that they would say, "Cool, thanks for saying I am like Alexa!" Rather than "Ugh, great." I walked out of my building re-evaluating my life... Thinking that I need to be aware of how I live my life and treat others so that it is a compliment to be compared to- not a diss.

I feel bad for the woman these ladies were talking about in the kitchen but apparently she does not leave good impressions on people and treats them poorly. Remember that no matter what kind of day you are having that it is not anyone's fault- that others are going through hard times too- that others need love just as much as you do- and that you don't get permission to breathe twice so live the best while you can!

Loving YOU

 "Make visible what, without you, might perhaps never have been seen."

- Robert Bresson

"To love yourself right now, just as you are, is to give yourself heaven. Don't wait until you die. If you wait, you die now. If you love, you live now."

- Alan Cohen

"The easiest thing to be in the world is you. The most difficult thing to be is what other people want you to be. Don't let them put you in that position."

- Leo Buscagli

We all of issues with ourselves...I know I do. You know, the old, "Ugh I wish that I could have hair like hers," or "I'm not smart enough," or "Coach doesn't think I'm good enough" or "I don't have what it takes..." and "I used to be good but not anymore."

Yes, there are too many times where we are down on ourselves- where we come to treat ourselves like an enemy rather than a friend. But as the sayings all point out above, this is YOUR life- not anyone else's. This is YOUR chance to do something great NOT to impress anyone else or make anyone else happy but to do what you enjoy and making a DIFFERENCE in the world.

Too many people go about living to get fame- be the fastest, the smartest, the prettiest, the most popular, etc living for these types of reasons will ALWAYS cause you to, somewhere down the road, not like yourself- You will hit rock bottom because this is living in expectations and expectations can never always be met; therefore, you will be disappointed.

But if you live for the right things than I think you will come to love yourself (not in an egotistical way) and truly be able to shine and help others around you. YOU choose happiness, it does not choose you. Love yourself and appreciate you for you. If you need to make changes to become a better person than do them...but don't be so hard on yourself. If you don't love yourself and enjoy who you are and what you can bring to the table how can you expect anyone else to?

So yesterday was one of the biggest eye openers ever...one of my closest co-worker friends finally opened up to me that she had cancer and that she does not have very much time left. I had NO IDEA that she even had cancer because she hid it so well. She lives her life with such grace and such happiness that I would never ever have guessed it.

When she told me that she may not be able to come to work anymore starting next month it broke my heart- she stated that she regrets the days she worried about what to wear, getting a document in on time, what people thought, how to get thinner, how to get a guy etc. She told me that now she worries about leaving her grandchild who desperately needs a mother. It made me realize that the things I currently fret and worry about are nothing compared to what she has to worry about.

Conversing with her also made me think about how I want to live my life...We are ALL going through pain and we can all think that our life sucks if it is not going the way we had planned but in reality this current situation is all we have right here...right now and we are ALIVE. We are ALIVE and we have a duty to use this livliness to benefit ourselves and others around us. By this I mean that we take on the daily challenge of not wishing for something else but embracing where we are at in life and using every opportunity to learn more about ourselves and others. To discover weaknesses and turn them into strengths, to encounter new dreams and dispose of the old that are no longer working, to grasp a person walking by to tell them that they are beautiful.

We only get one chance to live- We all know that but how soon do we forget every day to actually live? There is a song out there with the line of "Everybody dies but not everybody lives." I love this because even though you are alive are you really living? Are you taking every chance you can to experience this gift or are you wasting it away with worry, anxiety, selfishness, or depression? If you feel like your life sucks GET UP and MOVE ON- Because your life may be challenging but it does not suck- for the sake of yourself and everyone else around you make a mental and emotional change to get out of self pity and LIVE.

Today was a Fairytale...

I don't know if it was my time to experience the fairytale I always gushed about while watching Disney movies- I don't know if what happened will last- I don't know a lot of things- but what I do know is that fairytales DO exist and even if they are just for a moment, day, week, or year....they are worth experiencing and worth waiting for.

I was late, SUPER late to work because it had just dumped a bunch of snow on the ground. As I hustled up to the light rail, I noticed that the line was longer than usual. "What is going on?" I asked. Apparently, some runner had run out in front of the last train and the train hit the person so the trains were not picking anyone up. The person was fine thank goodness but we were ALL LATE! I was panicking because I had my end of the year review with my boss and I knew I was going to miss it.

Suddenly, prince charming stepped out from the crowd and said, " I am driving, I can't be late and have 3 seats- who wants to come?" Now normally I would never take a ride with strangers but for some reason my hand shot up in the air like an idiot and without my mind's permission. So me, and this other guy followed Prince Charming to his car.

On the way to his car, Prince Charming and I just hit it OFF! Talking to him was so easy and fun. I felt free and uninhibited talking and laughing with this complete stranger.  The other person in the back seat did not even have a chance to join the conversation because we were just talking talking talking. By the time we got to my work, I had forgotten about every worry and stress that I was carrying and was smiling like a huge dope haha. As he dropped me off I reached into my wallet to pay him for gas but he didn't take it and instead replied with, "I would hate for you to have to wait in the cold again...do you want me to pick you up from work?"

Of course my initial reaction was to jump up and down and squeal like a little girl but I kept my cool for once and replied yes. So, he did pick me up from work that day and we ended up in horrible traffic but its okay because it gave us time to talk and find out that we have similar values, morals, and dreams but are different enough to make a good conversation.

As we neared my car at the light rail station I decided to be brave, "Since you would not let me pay for gas can I at least buy you dinner?" He smiled and said with his big brown eyes, "I will take you up on dinner but I am paying." So we went to dinner and talked for another two hours...

As the night drew to an end, I was about to get in my car and he said one last thing I won't forget, "Hey, I don't know about you but I don't connect with people like this...Ever. I really want to see you again. Can I call you?"

So there is the fairytale- he did call me and we went on a date two nights later and are contemplating on possibly going ice skating in a mountain town this weekend....Like I said, I have no idea where this is going or how long it will last but I got to experience a piece of a fairy tale. Every girl will get her fairy tale- even if it is for a brief second.

Enjoy them as they come and don't expect too much out of them- and don't expect them to come on your time because they won't. Fairy tales have a mind of their own...Let them come.

Let Yourself Be Loved

Have you ever thought that you were not good enough? It could be in any aspect of your life: that you weren't good enough to make the A team, that your work is not good enough for your boss and your co-worker that stays later than you is better than you, that no one will ever fall in love with you, that no matter how hard you try it seems like no one notices your efforts?

I know that I have caught myself thinking that I was not good enough in several of these areas. But I realized that it was a horrible place to trap myself in- yes that's right, its a hidden, subtle, trap that every human being is capable of entrapping THEMSELVES in. Although it may feel like others are making us feel this way, it is really OURSELVES that allow it.

To be honest, I think that, in these moments, where we allow ourselves to feel unworthy, is a time of weakness- and I hate weakness. I think its a cop out- I think that it disenigrates the soul and allows for the death of giving and receiving love. So, I have been working on catching myself when these feelings occur and using them as opportunities to find confidence and build self awareness. In other words, I try to see why I DO deserve to be loved someday, why I WILL get results someday, and why sometimes things DON'T work out but it is OKAY because it was not meant to be. Changing the mindset frees me of turning my back on the world and instead, opening my arms up to it.

Like I said, I hate being weak. What will your choice be today? Will you be weak and let yourself feel unworthy? Or will you fight to see why you are worthy- to love and to be loved?

Its all in the back and hips!

Hello All! You ever get those nagging lower leg pains? Hip pains? lower back pains? I know that I do. After rubbing out my calves and rolling them out for what seemed like hours I finally realized that it was not working...So I went searching as to why. After some research and talking with a professional sports massage therapist, I found that most of all athlete's pain derives from weak and tight hips and lower back!

So, what I thought was calf pain was really tightness and weakness in both my hips and back. I have been extensively rolling out my back and hips while adding in some important exercises and have seen a significant difference. It is important to stretch as well- many people do not believe in stretching but from my own experience I believe that stretching is crucial if it is done in the right way. Before activity it should always be dynamic: high knees, butt kicks, etc but afterwards you should do static stretching (holding a stretch for 45-60 seconds). This keeps your muscles elastic rather than tight.

Here are some exercises to look up and do if you cannot shake a certain injury:

Foam roll all body parts

clam shells

donkey whips

theraband monster walks

Heel and Toe Walking- forwards and backwards

Thoratic Back Twist

Bird Dogs and Bird Dog holds

Superman Holds

Reverse Pull Ups

Body weight squats on BOSU balls

Tennis ball pin point pressure on piriformis, hips, and lower back