10 Things That Make Me Happy (10 TTMMH) . . .

1. Beautiful Sunsets

The last few weeks have been a little stressful for me. I could dwell on the things going wrong, or I could be grateful for the things that make me happy. Guess which one I pick;)

So without further ado:

2. Great umbrellas for rainy days

3. Bunnies

4. Chocolate

5. Cupcakes

6. The Deadwood Dress

7. Banana Shpeel tonight

8. Holiday decorations going up everywhere

9. Vanilla Chai

10. Star Trek on DVD

Today is the start of greatness, nothing else to it;) What makes you happy, dear readers?

MIA Yesterday . . .

Source: Saylisk

Sorry about the dearth of posts yesterday; it was a bit of a crazy day. It's been an interesting week, actually. For a small recap:
-Sebastian is doing very well after his abscess incident. Only one more very expensive cab ride to go before he gets a clean bill of health.
-Faeries are not waterproof. Hello precious behavior: I can sit in a pile of wood chips and dirt in my white silk dress, but a few drops of rain sends me running--running--for the shack.
-My sister is now hooked on Avatar. Cue evil laughter (mwah, ha, ha, ha!) We started viewing Book 1 this week, and are about three disks in. Last night, the conversation went something like this:
"So, do you want to watch another episode, or stop here?"
Extremely tiny voice and large eyes, limpid as with some sort of manga character: "Another episode, please." My work here is done.
-I used to love "Thriller". Perhaps someday, after we have had time apart to think over what we've done, I will again. But, I'm not making any promises.
-It's just about time to start the next crazy, out-of-the-blue project that has no practical applications to my life. I'm thinking of becoming a master of Tai Chi, or finally starting that fabric-sculpt 30" Temeraire. Why not, right? My life was missing some pointless self-gratification.

We're heading into 7th weekend at Faire, and the end is in sight. As tired as I am, I am going to miss it more than I ever have, I think. Still, I'm starting to look forward to sleeping in. Like, ever. Yawn. . .

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Watch this show. I'm not kidding. Watch it.

Set in a world divided into four sections, the Air Tribe, Water Tribe, Earth Nation, and Fire Nation, each group has benders that can manipulate their element and control it. They had lived in peace until the Fire Lord used the power of a great comet to attack the other nations. The Avatar was the only one who could control all four elements and the only one strong enough to defeat him, but he was killed, and the new, young avatar disappeared for a hundred years . . . only to be found by a young brother and sister from the Southern Water Tribe, Sokka and Katara. Aang, the 12-year-old savior of the world and the last airbender in existence, is tasked with learning to control all the elements and defeating the Fird Lord to bring all the nations back into balance. He travels the world with Katara, Sokka, his flying bison Appa, and the flying lemur Momo, eluding Fire Nation capture, getting into trouble, and making friends and enemies everywhere they go as Aang tries to learn just how to save the world.

Whoa. I just discovered this on Netflix, and I have become completely and utterly hooked. It's no secret that I'm a bit of a geek; for heaven's sake, I dress up and go to conventions! This show has been on my radar for a while, but I just hadn't gotten around to it until last week. Now?

What can I say? Saying it's not a kid's show does it a disservice, because there's a lot here for kids to love: the three main characters, Aang, Katara, and Sokka, are young and completely relatable to a school-age audience, and the episodes often have morals to them. But, saying it's only for kids does it a HUGE disservice, because the stories are dramatic and complex, the characters are three-dimensional and often have ambiguous motives, and the fight scenes--! Well, I'd like to see Jet Li and Chow Yun Fat try some of the stuff these characters do. The show is full of Chinese mysticism and the fighting styles are real and recognizable; I gasped when I saw that they even incorporated the true ritual for finding the Kundun, or the next Dalai Lama, with the ritual for finding the next Avatar! The episodes are clever and affecting, well-written and exciting, and often very funny. I've made it through the entire first season, and I can't wait to watch the second and third.

Watch. This. Show.

That is all.

Favorite Product Thursdays!

Today's favorite product is something that's been kicking my butt for a little while now: Jillian Michael's 30-Day Shred DVD. Jillian Michaels, as some of you may already know, is one of the trainers on the television show Biggest Loser. When I started my life-style shift in January, I started researching the most effective workouts to get maximum results in the shortest time. Result? There is no silver bullet, of course. But, this workout is pretty darn close!

Whether you are hopelessly out-of-shape, regularly active, or hardcore, this workout will whip your butt. There are three levels (beginning, medium, and intense), and each workout is about 20-minutes long, in Jillian's 3-2-1 interval pattern. Basically, Jillian believes that the combination of 3 minutes of strength followed by 2 minutes of cardio and 1 minute of abs is the secret to getting results. Most specialists agree that interval training is the most efficient way to get in shape, and let me tell you, this workout certainly feels like it's working! The only equipment you need? A mat and hand weights. Easy-peasy.

I haven't been able to use this everyday for 30 days; I combine this with my running program, elliptical, pilates, and weights, spacing them out and changing them up so my body never gets complacent. This DVD gets my heart going and I sweat like nobody's business, and just when I want to stop, she hits me with no sympathy and makes me keep pushing. She is not overly-nice in this DVD; if you've ever watched the show, you'll know she can be a little bitchy, but that is just what I need to motivate me to keep going.

This is a hard workout, but you feel like you've accomplished something when you're done. If you're serious about getting in shape and getting healthy, I highly recommend forking up the $12 to get this. See a clip here.