Fun Facts Friday |

TGIF!! Ooof. Finally. I’ve been ready for this weekend since I dragged myself on to a train with tears in my eyes last Sunday night and left the lake behind. Not gonna lie — this week kinda felt like a long one, after such an amazing extended weekend at home.

But it’s Friday, and I’m looking forward to a fabulous weekend here in the city with my girlfriends, so life is good.

Let’s move on to the fun facts, shall we?

1. I dig anything nautical-themed. And no, this didn’t start with the new anchor obsession that seems to be running rampant these days, although this makes it much easier for me to find stuff I like. Mine goes way back and has family roots. One of our long-standing family jokes is that when my parents got married, they immediately discussed their deal-breakers: my mom wanted kids and my dad wanted a boat. Fair is fair. They got the boat first, naturally, so that we’d grow up to be sailors. Or something like that. 🙂

I’ve always been a water-lover and will swim in pretty much anything (yup, no qualms about lakes/rivers/the unseen water creatures here…clearly not so much of a clean freak, either). I often wear the anchor pendant that my mom gave me a few years ago, which symbolizes home for me: the security and safety of my roots, and the family into which I’ve been anchored.

It also ties into one of my favorite Bible verses, Hebrews 6:19, which talks about hope being “an anchor for the soul.” I love that image.

2. I had a really nice rosé wine this week. (I’m thinking this weekly post should probably include a new wine, no? I’m digging that idea!) I’m really not a sweet wine girl at all, so I generally shied away from rosés, but I’ve discovered some pretty dry options the past year or so. This one was delicious: Whispering Angel by Caves d’Esclans. Definitely a must-try.

(Mom, you’ll like this one! Go get it ASAP.)

3. I signed up for another half marathon today (!!) : the Newport Half Marathon in Jersey City, which is super close to Manhattan. A co-worker who’s also an avid runner offered me a free entry, and it fits in well with my training schedule, so I jumped at the chance. This will be my first race in New Jersey, and the course seems to be pretty flat, so I’m looking forward to a nice half marathon at the end of September, when the weather here is amazing.

4. Pitch Perfect has its own Pandora Station. I probably can’t express adequately in words how “the-world-makes-sense-finally” ecstatic this makes me. And if you haven’t seen the movie, stop reading this immediately and go rent it so that we can be friends again. No I’m not kidding.

The only problem with this station (besides every single other song that isn’t from the movie…seriously, is that necessary??) is that I’m constantly praying for the “Riff-Off” song to come on again and again, just so I can hear that wonderful boy singing “It Feels Like the First Time” for a too-brief 20 seconds. Really, his voices in that song just astounds me. I found myself singing it at my desk today, to the listening pleasure of my co-workers. Obsessed.

5. Sometimes, you just need someone to remind you that you’re wonderful. Because if they think so, well…you just might start to think so, too.