The South ain't all bad.

Indeed I am, and will always be a mid-west girl. My 2 years in the south have been a bit rough - being far from family & friends, struggling with jobs & money, trying to build new relationships... all the while feeling like I'm a bit of an outsider. I'm excited to get back to where I feel I belong (HOME), but there are things that I will certainly miss about Charlotte. Here are 12.

1. Charlotte friends. You are #1 by far on my list. You made this experience something I would never trade. I am so grateful to know you all. We are still planning on that annual beach trip, so count us in next year... or we'll just crash your party.

2. Being close-ish to the beach & the mountains. 2-3 hours east or west gets us to the Atlantic or the Appalachians. It's pretty cool. Check out the sand dollars we collected at the beach this past weekend:

(Pardon the terrible CrackBerry quality photo.)

3. REAL barbecue. (see below... not the kind you get at Sticky Fingers.)

4. 70 degrees in January. Actually, I'll miss the weather October - March in general.

 

5. Beer. Specifically Yuengling & my newest favorites - all 3 beers made by Big Boss Brewery out of Raliegh. Also, I'll miss the unlimited access to Fat Tire, Carolina Blonde and numerous other awesome mico-brews that I've come to love.

6. "Y'all" This is one southernism that I find charming and useful. Up north, as you know, we say "you guys"... doesn't quite roll off the tongue.

7. Running all year long. Even when it snows, there's still not enough, nor is it cold enough to stop me from running - with the exception of maybe a week or 2. Ohio is MUCH different in this regard. (Sad face.)

8. Lake Norman. It's pretty, and I like to watch the boats. Although there are giant lakes back home, they won't be in our back yard.

9. Rust-free vehicles. I know Paul will miss this for sure! However, I will get to use my 4WD again, so that's cool... I guess.

10. Slower pace. Now, let me clarify. My day-to-day is very fast-paced, but if you took work out of the equation, life is indeed slower here, which is nice.

11. Moe's Southwest Grill.  Man, I just really love Moe's. I'd like to own a Moe's one day.

12. Being the one with the accent. It's fun. 

I could care less.

Perhaps it's been an annoying sort of week, hence I'm annoyed and angry. I promise it won't always be this way... I'm usually a pretty happy person, believe it or not.

Here are some examples of things that have annoyed me this week... phrases that should be banned.

1. I could care less.
If you could care less, then you must care some. What you mean to say is you couldn't care less. That means that right now, you care the least amount that you possibly could, hence you could not possibly care any less.

2. Bless your heart.
This is a southern-ism. It sounds harmless... even sweet, right? Wrong. What it really means is "Wow, are you stupid!" For example... "Oh, you made the coffee today? Bless your heart." That does not mean "thank you" for making the coffee. It means "Don't you know how to make coffee? This is the worst coffee I've ever had! Wow, are you stupid!" Now you know. Don't be fooled!

3.Going forward.
Instead of what? Going backward? Riiiiight.

4. No offense, but...
Um, this means that person is about to offend you. Why say this? It doesn't make the next words any less insulting. "No offense, but this logo looks like my cat threw up all over it." Oh, OK, great. None taken. Thanks for saying "no offense" because it magically created a shield around me through which no insults can penetrate. Thanks for protecting my feelings... JERK. No offense.


Do you have pet peeves like this? Or funny corporate jargon? I once had a boss who thought "jettison" meant "do it FAST" when it really means "to throw away." Hehe... "Sarah, jettison those designs for the website." OK, yep, I'll toss 'em!

Ahhh... onward to a better week! I wish you all a good one!

30-Day Challenge: 1/2 Way

Well, I'm half way there and I've only skipped one day! I've read (uh... don't ask me where!) that when it comes to most life changes, it takes 2 weeks to create a routine. I think that might be a low estimate, but hopefully 30 days will be enough. I love getting home and just knowing that my night will, at some point, consist of a workout because... well... it's the routine. Hopefully this means that when these 30 days are up, I'll keep gettin' it*.

As far as changes, I think I've lost a bit... but I don't know for sure because I hate scales. I was seeing a nutritionist a couple years ago and the guy actually told me I look like I weigh less than I actually do - and that I have dense bones or something. It's one thing for a friend or random person to tell you that - but ever since this professional told me that, I've decided scales are crap. I'd rather measure by how my clothes fit. And they are *slightly* looser. Yay! But still a long way to go before my skinny (and probably out of style by now) jeans fit again.

Still, I ate some junk this weekend (Mexican food), but... no looking back! ONWARD to health!

*"gettin' it" is a southernism meaning "keep going". Hehe.