Monthly Archives: May 2016

• As We Go on

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on May 31, 2016

  I’ve been out of high school for nearly ten years. Looking back I would say I was neutral about my high school experience, but back then leaving those walls gave me similar feelings to having my chest stomped on by a 2 ton black bear.

  Hearing the song “graduation” by Vitamin C made me cry like a big ol’ baby when I was 18. Ohh to be young. I’m not even sure why I was sad, perhaps because the idea of “being a grown up” was frightening, but as I’ve learned in my 27 years on this earth we never really grow up. We just evolve and hopefully become better people.

  

  My beautiful younger sister Renae just graduated from high school, and I was fortunate enough to fly down to Arizona and attend the party. As with any trip to Arizona there are a handful of highlights I’d like to share.
  

  I left the lush green trees of Washington and attempted to trail run at 12pm during Arizona spring time. Not nearly as bad as Arizona summer time, but I made it a whopping 3.5 miles in the 90 degree weather before calling for back up.

  

  

  DAAADD save me, I’m covered in tiny spiky balls.

  The remainder of my runs were done before 8 am. I didn’t dare repeat this rookie mistake and melt to the side of a cactus. In fact every type of physical activity was done before 8 am. This included a handful of 7 am runs, a 5:45 am kayak adventure, and a 6:30 am hike.

  

  I made a friend in the mountains, I called him Frank.

  

  No. not him. He looked more like a Bill. 

  

  FRANK THE TANK!

  

  For our kayak adventure we used inflatable kayaks and practiced in the pool first. Heaven forbid we sink like the Titanic if one had a hole in it.

  

  

  

  I searched high and lo (aka Googled) for places that served nitrogen infused cold brew iced coffee, and I found one place close to where we hiked. Got some goodness at Songbird Coffee and Tea house in Phoenix.

  

  

  I fulfilled my dream of wearing a hair net once again by volunteering at Feed My Starving Children, an Arizona tradition.
  

  

  

  Visited a vegan restaurant per my dads suggestion. Those words he uttered were like glitter covered unicorns, I think I’ll keep him. We ate at Green Vegetarian Restaurant in Phoenix and gave a universal verdict of: OHMYGAHYESYESYES.

  

  

  Chili fries, fried brussels sprouts, and “buffalo wings”

  Best part of this meal: the owners also own a dessert shop called Nami just a hop, skip, OR, a jump away. Literally 10 ft from each other.

  

  I ordered a vanilla soft serve “tsoynami” with pretzels, chocolate, marshmallow fluff, and coco cereal. I then proceeded to understand the meaning of life. So.Good.

  

  Just in case anyone was curious where I get my dashing good looks from… 

  

  

  Time with family is always a great recharge for me. I came home full of love, and with eighteen mosquito bites – a good prep for summers in the mountains.

  Q: What were your final days of high school like?

  

  | 67 Comments Tagged Arizona, Coffee, Hike, Ice Cream, Run, Vacation, Vegan

• When Life Has Another Plan

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on May 18, 2016

  SOO…my manifestation didn’t come true, but it’s OK! To summarize, I’ve been somewhat unhappy with my current job role at Starbucks, and I started seeking something new. I applied for a job at the Starbucks corporate office not thinking I’d hear anything, but I DID! To be honest it all happened very fast.

  After meeting with the department manager, I sadly discovered that because this specific role was a time limited assignment my pay would stay the same. I’d also be loosing tips, and I’d be paying $$$ to commute to Seattle costing me a couple thousand bucks for the 6month period. Long story short, it wasn’t meant to be. That doesn’t mean I’m going to stop trying though, and I know this means something better is coming.

  Let the manifesting continue.

  Since I’ll be staying where I am for a bit, I want to highlight the things I can still do in my current role.

  I can still…take mid week adventures to the beach for a run.

  

  I can still…walk this dude three times a week.

  

  I can still…”easily” ride my bike to work.

  

  I can still…avoid the crowds of the mountains by hiking on a Tuesday.

  

  I can still…wear this black apron to work. (Or the obnoxious Hawaiian shirt during frappuccino happy hour.)

  

  I can still…take off on a jet plane to visit my family knowing there are plenty of other people that can cover while I’m away. Tomorrow I’m off to Arizona for a week.

  

  Sometimes life has another plan than what we might hope for, and in time everything makes sense. I’m actively manifesting a change, which I wasn’t doing before. That alone is a fantastic place to start!

  Q: Do you give up when things don’t go as planned? Nahhh, I fight even harder.

  

  | 90 Comments Tagged Dog, Gizmo, Hike, Run, Starbucks

• Manifest So Hard

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on May 12, 2016

  I spent my Tuesday afternoon in Seattle, but this adventure was different than my usual Seattle trips. This adventure wasn’t based around coffee, food, or hiking (despite some of these activities finding their way into the mix later in the day), this adventure was based around business.

  

  There is something in the works right now that I have been manifesting SO hard, but I won’t share it until it comes true. Because it will. It will come true.

  

  My manifestations have been keeping me up at night, and have taken over my thoughts. If I haven’t put enough brain waves into the universe with all this positive talk, then it simply wasn’t meant to be. But it will..it will be. HAaa.

  Manifest so hard.

  

  After the necessary tasks were taken care of, it was time to play tourist – per usual.

  First stop: Pike Place. Also per usual. 

  

  

  

  Next stop: Starbucks roastery.

  If you can get your hands on a cup of nitro cold brew, which is just how it sounds (nitrogen infused cold brew coffee) do it. This was life changing.

  Post refreshments my lovely copilots and I decided to partake in the ultimate tourist trap, we rode the duck. Half on land, half in water this tour takes you around some iconic Seattle locations.

  

  

  

  The weather was perfect, the positive energy was on point, and I found my future tiny home when the duck went in the water.

  

  Another Seattle adventure in the books, and I’m heading back today to see if all my manifesting payed off. Wish me luck!

  Q: What was something you wanted sososo bad that you couldn’t stop thinking about until you got it?

  

  | 60 Comments Tagged Coffee, Explore, Seattle

• Goal Getter

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on May 7, 2016

  Things around here have been optimistically negative lately, and I’m here to say it’s time to move on. I’ve had a positive spin on all the “more serious” topics that I’ve shared, and it’s quite obvious to all my loyal readers that I’ve found myself in a wobbly life spot. I know that this has been a time of growth for me, and for that I’m thankful.

  Maybe if I just close my eyes everything will turn around on its own.

  

  No such luck. If life worked that way no one would ever appreciate anything. In order to manifest the life I want it’s about time I set some goals. No goals = no direction, no direction = chaos, chaos = sugar binges at 10pm, sugar binges = needing bigger pants, needing bigger pants = spending my traveling fund…and well, you get the idea.

  Or I could just vagabond my way around the world…

  

  If we keep talking about things that we don’t like, the energy from our words will keep us stuck. We must actively choose to speak positively and direct our mind in the direction that we want. This is something I must remind myself of often.

  Here are my current goals for the next few months.

  .

  1. Get my sh*& together with my diet. How I plan to accomplish this: avoiding processed foods/sugar and finding my way back into the kitchen. I feel alive when I’m experimenting with meals.
  

  

  It’s an ugly process trying to break a sugar addiction, and I’ve found myself deeper in the white powder than I’ve ever been before. The only way out is to go cold turkey, and green – lots of green.

  

  2. Get into a solid groove with running, and watch my time improve naturally. How I plan to accomplish this: accept that I’m starting at square one again, fueling well, and being proud of each run. Even the 2 milers.

  

  

  Slow and steady

  3. Finishing strong with school. How I plan to accomplish this: continue doing what I’m doing. I finished my first semester strong and couldn’t be more thrilled. Only one more year.

  

  4. Practice self love. How I plan to accomplish this: STOP TALKING NEGATIVELY. Accept where I am. Move forward. Highlight the positives. Chop off my hair. Run.

  

  5. Grow my own food. How I plan to accomplish this: Self explanatory, but by starting small. I have been growing lettuce in my kitchen window and it’s flourishing!

  

  5. Put my energy into helping others instead of dwelling on stupid things. How I plan to accomplish this: volunteering, staying positive at work, family time, and by finding my inner zen. When we take the focus off ourselves, life becomes much easier.

  

  6. Blog more consistently. How I plan to accomplish this: CONTINUE TO go on EPIC ADVENTURES that are blog worthy. This space is a huge part of my life, and I’ve been somewhat absent lately, but I want to get back into a blog flow.

  

  

  Latest mountain adventure.

  

  These goals are realistic and attainable, which is a great place to start.

  Q: What’s one of your current goals? Eyes on the prize!

  

  | 63 Comments Tagged Blog, Life, Running, School

• Multnomah Falls

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on May 2, 2016

  I can’t remember the exact moment I first saw a photo of Multnomah Falls, but ever since then I’ve been daydreaming about it like it were a giant cinnamon roll.

  

  

  Seeing it in person was like seeing your favorite animal eating a burger in a baggy t-shirt with BBQ sauce on its face.

  It was amazing.

  

  

  With a forecast of 80 degrees and no post run activities, I decided the 30 minute drive outside of Portland was a good idea. It ended up being the best idea of the day.

  Even better than Blue Star Donuts. 

  

  The park was crowded, but after going up a bit the people thinned out. My family wasn’t too jazzed about going to the top of the waterfall and although they told me I could go and they would wait, I decided not to.

  This gives me an excuse to go back. It was all part of my master plan. 

  

  

  There are miles of trails all over this area and I must get back to explore for a handful of hours! Who wants to go back with me and stand at the top of the waterfall?

  I have to earn my new bag bling by standing at the summit.

  

  I can still feel the cold, wet air from the base of the waterfall hitting my face the closer we got. Nature in her true element, and boy was it great.

  Q: Coolest waterfall you’ve seen in person? This one..fersher.

  

  | 76 Comments Tagged Explore, Hike, Oregon

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• Contact: blissfulbritt@yahoo.com

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