Inquiring minds want to know… how was the 5K? Mark this one down in the victory column, folks! I ran the entire 3.1 miles. Consecutively. And I am THRILLED! Running has been… a struggle… for me in the past, well documented on this blog. The fact that I managed to not only complete the run but finish without pain is a big deal. My time was under 38 minutes — not my fastest miles ever, but still, I’m really proud of what I’ve accomplished.

Do I have to start calling myself a runner now?

Among other things in my life right now, tomorrow is my 25th birthday. Time for a crisis? Nah. (Not yet, at least.) I’m excited to celebrate with my parents tonight at The Food Market in Hampden — one of my favorite places in Baltimore for their awesome comfort food menu and local ingredients — and tomorrow with friends at Abbey Burger Bistro. My diet has been mostly meatless in the last few months, but (surprisingly?) Abbey Burger has the MOST delicious veggie burgers. Two of my favorite things: good people and good food. The perfect way to ring in a new year.

All this talk about food and fitness on the blog lately has really been a reflection of the changes in my life the last year and a half now. This wellness shift is only gaining momentum as the positive changes radiate through my life. I’m reading books like Animal, Vegetable, Miracle and planning a garden for the new house. I’m finding my passion for adventure and working out so that I can do bigger and badder things. I’m discovering networks like FitFluential that promote balance in eating, sleeping, moving, and enjoying life — and that’s totally what I’m after. It all feels good. Expect more of that here.

They say your twenties are years of change, discovering and establishing yourself, hitting the QLC if you must. I’d agree with the first two — I’m not done becoming the person I’m going to be yet, but I love the path I’m on.

So here’s to 25 — to health, adventure, running farther, trapezing higher, eating greener, loving more, and filling my days with all the goodness they can hold.

I have learned a lot about improv over the last six weeks, and a lot about life through improv. Want to know the secrets?

Improv is a lot about teamwork. We learn to make our scene partners look good. We learn not to turn down their “offers” for the scene. How much better would your real life relationships be if you applied the same ideas? Think about your significant other. You are a team. Improv is not about being the boss or deciding and dictating how the scene is going to go — and neither are relationships about being in charge all the time or deciding one-sidedly how things are going to be. I am learning this in real life, too. For example, I can’t decide that Mike and I will get two dogs when we get the house, and that they are brothers that their names are Chewie and Einstein. Mike wants some input, too.

We have been taught in improv to play in a scene. It reminds me of the quote on my “about” page.

“I am often accused of being childish. I prefer to interpret that as child-like. I still get wildly enthusiastic about little things. I tend to exaggerate and fantasize and embellish. I still listen to instinctual urges. I play with leaves. I skip down the street and run against the wind. I never water my garden without soaking myself. It has been after such times of joy that I have achieved my greatest creativity and produced my best work.”
– Leo F. Buscaglia, Bus 9 to Paradise

I’ve still never read Bus 9 to Paradise — I will someday – but I love this idea so much. What is life if you aren’t excited about something? Anything! Get inspired. GO PLAY. Life is not boring — people are. And improv will be boring if the actor is boring. (Sorry to offend you, boring people.)

“Yes And.” This is a core idea of improv that goes back to not turning down what your scene partner has to offer. To “yes and,” you agree with what another person has said (“yes”) and then you add to it to build the scene (“and”). Use this idea in real life to build some enthusiasm in your day. “We could go to the mall today.” “Yes, and we could have a fashion show of 90s clothing!” “Yes, and we could film it and make a montage!!” And then all of the sudden your day is awesome because you feel like Cher Horowitz.

We’ve already discussed how I live my life pretty balls-to-the-wall. I hear about a ridiculous thing that a person could do and I sign up to do it. Like be a professional mermaid. Or trapeze. But of all the crazy things, I feel like improv is the one thing that everyone could do and benefit from. There is a lot to learn. There is a lot to take away. Step outside of your comfort zone, play a little, and have some fun.

And come see my class performance tonight!

Then imagine how you feel when you realize that your phone is sitting on the side of the highway, because you somehow left your phone on the bumper or the roof of your car when you picked some people up at the airport and it finally flew off somewhere between 195 and 295. (I bet you feel awesome.)

Then imagine you’re me, walking up and down the side of the exit ramp looking for a cell phone that may or may not be lost in the bushes and trash on the side of the road, or completely destroyed already. People are stopping to ask if you need help, and you get to explain to them that you’re fine, just looking for a cell phone that went on an adventure. One woman thought I might have had relationship trouble and asked if she “needed to run anybody over.”

Then imagine your surprise and relief when you find the phone in one piece, exactly where the map said it would be. (I bet you feel like it’s your luckiest day, even more so if you pretend to be Mike again and now you don’t have to replace your phone.)

Two things you must do to prepare yourself for this kind of situation:

1. If you have an iPhone, definitely get it in to the cloud and make sure it’s hooked up to the locator service. Find My iPhone is incredibly accurate — Mike could even see that it was on the left side of the ramp. I only walked the entire exit ramp because I was worried the service wasn’t perfect, but the phone was on. the. dot.
2. Get yourself an Otter Box. I mean, really — his phone flew off his car, hit the ground, and bounced on to the shoulder, but the most damage it had was a scuffed corner when it somehow escaped from the case at the end of its journey. The screen was perfect, and it would not have been if the case hadn’t done its job.

Oh, and the third thing to do if you think you might lose your phone on an exit ramp sometime soon? Get an awesome girlfriend who doesn’t mind working the street highway to look for your phone while you’re stuck miles away at a meeting.

I used five different colors that I had in my collection, painting each nail a different color from dark pink to orange:

• Revlon “Bubble Gum” (360) — this actually smells like bubble gum, and the scent lasts for a few days!
• Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear “Fuchsia Power” (16)
• Essie “Cute as a Button” — one of my favorite coral shades, ever.
• Orly “Truly Tangerine” Sampler
• Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear “Sun Kissed” (06)

Pretty simple! I only wish that I had a slightly darker shade of pink for my thumbs, but I took care of that today by ordering a dark fuchsia (“Reagan”) from Zoya’s new summer collection* for the next time I try this look.

* Disclosure: If you click that link and create an account, you get a coupon for a FREE bottle of Zoya Nail Polish automatically placed in your account that you can use immediately on your first order — and I get points in my referral account that I can turn into free nail polish too. Win win!

I’m a week or so behind on my 5K training, and my first run (the Port to Fort 5K) is two and a half weeks away.

The chickens are getting big.

I read this blog post and it really made me think.

The passing of my grandmother has me examining my life a lot, too.

Some days I feel incapable of making decisions past what color to paint my nails.

In the meantime, I’m taking on Legends of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on N64 again. It’s much easier to make decisions to save Hyrule than to make “adult” decisions.

I think this is what they call a quarter life crisis.

Whatever it is, I’m really thankful for the people helping me through it, and not leaving at first sight of my over-thinking craziness.

Smothered tots at Alexander’s Tavern.

How to Brunch in Federal Hill, Baltimore:

1. Roll out of bed — it’s time for BACON! Dress like you’re going to yoga unless you don’t want people to see you looking like a mess. If Mother’s is hosting Pajama Brunch, you’ll need some glow in the dark dinosaur feetie pajamas.
2. Coordinate your intended location with any and all brunch partners in crime, all of whom are likely in the same 3-5 block radius.
3. Walk 3-5 blocks to your brunch venue of choice — I’d recommend Spoons, Little Havana, Regi’s, and The Hill. If one is packed or can’t accommodate your group size, walk next door to the next brunch venue. Repeat as necessary, brunch options are endless (as are the Bloody Marys).
4. If you’re feeling adventurous, walk, water taxi, or take a free Circulator ride to the next neighborhood. Fells Point has Alexander’s Tavern, home of delicious tater tots smothered in creamed chipped beef. (Guys, I kid you not — this is brunch heaven.)
5. Commence Sunday Funday. Arrive safely home on foot when the fun ends.
6. Repeat every weekend.

How to Brunch in the Suburbs:

1. Roll out of bed — it’s time for BACON! Dress like you’re going to yoga unless you don’t want people to see you looking like a mess. I can’t imagine that the suburbs are imaginative enough for pajama brunches, so that’s out of the question.
2. Coordinate your intended location with any and all brunch partners in crime, most of whom are in separate neighborhoods at least a 20 minute drive away. Argue over where to go because last time someone got to go to the place around the corner from their house but everyone else had to drive across town.
3. Drive 20-30 minutes to your brunch venue of choice. Discover that the wait for a table of eight is at least an hour. Decide that’s too long to wait for bacon, and hold a pow wow with fellow brunchers to decide a second choice location. Get back in your car, drive to another venue to be told that the wait for eight people is at least 30 minutes. Repeat as necessary, or decide that you won’t get a better wait time than that and wait where you are.
4. Wait 30 minutes for seats.
5. Commence Sunday Funday, but not too much fun-day, because you’re still 30 minutes from your house and drinking bottomless Bloody Marys requires a designated driver, an expensive cab ride home, or drinking only one “bottomless” Bloody Mary, which is the opposite idea of bottomless.
6. Decide that next weekend, maybe cereal at home is an easier option.

Okay, so maybe the suburbs aren’t that bad and I’m just really biased about brunch, but this evaluation is based off a very real experience we had in the ‘burbs of Orlando this weekend. Don’t get me wrong — I love Orlando and the warm weather and especially spending time with all of our friends down there. It’s just that… when it’s time for brunch and all the bacon and Bloody Marys, there’s no time to lose.

Don’t worry city brunch, I’ll never leave you.