Apparently I Look Like….

On the way to softball last week, a friend told me that someone said I looked like this MMA fighter, Miesha Tate, who won a big championship fight (not sure which one – I don’t exactly keep up with MMA fighters).

I guess some of his friends were all watching the fight and one of them suddenly said, “Hey, that girl looks like Amber!” Totally random! (kinda like this post! )

Can I have her abs, please?

I don’t really see it, but like I told my friend, there are a lot of other factors (mood, self-esteem, etc.) that go into how we perceive ourselves. I think people often see themselves differently from how others view them.

My mom also added that we can only see ourselves one-dimensionally (either in the mirror or in pictures), while others see us from all angles and in 3D. So what we see is totally different from what others see.

Questions: What do you think? Does your self-perception usually match how others see you, or is it totally different? Or have you never really given it much thought?

Hollywood

This weekend B and I headed down to Los Angeles with Faye and her granddaughter from Texas, Jessica.

I’ve lived in California all my life, and had never seen the touristy L.A. places, like the Hollywood sign and Grauman’s Chinese Theatre.

Our first stop was the Hollywood sign, but we couldn’t figure out where to go to get a good picture with it in the background, so we gave up and headed to Grauman’s.

First we ate lunch at an Italian food place. Oh yeah, that was all mine. I ate about half.

Then after walking around the plaza, we made our way over to the theater and Walk of Fame to look at all the celebrity stars and hand-and-footprints.

B had to get a picture with Johnny Depp’s square.

We also got to take a tour of the theater and learn about it’s history. This picture is of the downstairs lady’s lounge, where famous actresses would sit in front of the mirrors to get ready. The butterflies painted on the walls are the original artwork.

This is a wax figure in the lobby dressed in traditional Chinese clothing. Back in the day, movie industry people would rub her shoulder for good luck, and we got to do the same!

Next it was off to Santa Monica Boulevard and Rodeo Drive.

Our last stop of the day was at a little café off of Rodeo Drive for some drinks and an amazing dessert.

This thing was soooo good – it had bananas, walnuts, strawberries, and Nutella all folded into a big crepe.

Before we started heading home I talked everyone into getting some Pinkberry since it was just around the corner.

And that was our day! We had a lot of fun seeing some of the sights, and I’m so glad we got to hang out with Jessica and Faye.

………

Now it’s back to my classroom to try to get some order in the chaos of stuff before school starts in one and a half weeks! My tailbone is slowly getting better, but I have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow to get my ankles checked out. Survivor Mud Run is in 46 days and I need to train my butt off these next few weeks!

Just Around the River Bend

On Monday, B and I headed up to the mountains to go to “Skinny Dip” (that’s the name of the place; we didn’t actually go skinny dipping ).

But first we stopped for lunch to use a Living Social deal I’ve had for awhile.

We went to Scoop’s, which is a cute little sandwich, soup, and ice cream shop. I had a turkey sandwich (mediocre) and a salad (pretty good). Both B and I also had an unpictured scoop of cake batter cookie dough ice cream (sooo good!).

Then we were on our way!

We parked the car in a clearing and then hiked about 1 1/2 miles until we found the “secret” trail.

We came here a couple years ago and it took us awhile to find the trail then. We kept saying, “Okay, it’s probably just around this bend.” This time was no different, but at least we recognized the trail once we saw it. (We also had to sing “Just Around the River Bend” from Pocahontas a few times )

On the trail:

Yay! We made it!

So beautiful.

A few minutes after we got there, two guys showed up who had come there to jump off the waterfall ledge into the deep pool below.

B and I weren’t up for jumping, but I got some cool pics of the guys:

Crazy!

After enjoying the view for awhile, and sticking our feet in the cold water, we headed back up the trail. Since it was well past dinner time by the time we got back to the nearby town, we decided to stop and get some Japanese food. I totally forgot to snap a picture before digging into my chicken teriyaki bowl, so here is a dinner-in-process picture:

We got back pretty late, and my tailbone was pretty sore from sitting in the car so long, but it was well worth it! I’ve missed being in the mountains, and I love how secluded and beautiful Skinny Dip is. It was a good day!

Question: Is there a special place you love to go where you know you will leave feeling relaxed and recharged?

Tail(bone) End of the Week

About a week and a half ago I apparently bruised my tailbone playing softball. I was going for the ball and my stupid ankle gave out on me, and I fell on my butt. I’m so graceful.

At the time I was more worried about my ankle, but two days later I noticed my tailbone was starting to hurt. Now it’s gotten to the point where anytime I sit down I’m in discomfort.

I keep thinking it will go away, but it still hurts pretty bad. And I’m not sure if exercising is making it worse… I’ve gone running a few times and I did kickboxing yesterday, and I’m worried that maybe that’s preventing it from healing… Any ideas about this?

I’m thinking I might go to the doctor just to see what he says about it… The Survivor Mud Run is coming up in less than 2 months, and I need to be training, but I don’t want to make it worse…. I’ve also been having ankle pain (but on the inside of my ankle, above my arch), so I also need to go visit an ankle specialist again…. This is frustrating. 

………

On a happier note, yesterday was my papa’s birthday (I won’t mention how old he is ). We went down for a late lunch and brought pizza and cake (I know, we’re so fancy).

Papa’s wife, Faye, got home from visiting her sister in France a few days ago, so we got to visit with her, too, and see pictures of the beautiful places she visited.

(B, are you giving me a peace sign with your crazy fingers?)

(That salad hit the spot… thanks Faye!)

(The ice cream cake suffered some minor damage from an earthquake… in the form of B knocking it over on the drive down… still tasted good!)

(My yummy out-of-focus slice of cake)

(It’s a new Kindle!)

(Hey, ZZ and Bo!)

(Hey, Dobbers and B! Lovely pose in a skirt, B! )

(Dobby’s got his turtle- time for a nap!)

Hoping my tailbone can handle a two hour drive up to the mountains on Monday- B and I are going to Skinny Dip!

(Hahaha, not really, that’s just the name of a swimming hole up near Yosemite– people don’t actually skinny dip there. )