Last week.. not a great week for fitness goals. I missed 2/3 runs because I didn’t prioritize very well, and I decided to break in my new TOMS wedges on the most freaking exhausting day to recent memory, but I’ll write more about it in my running log.

Last week was also a crazy one on the family front. It was Cameron’s dad’s birthday as well as my cousin’s son’s first birthday, so on Saturday, Cameron and I drove from my home in Huntington Beach to Victorville (an hour and a half drive), then from Victorville to his dad’s house in Los Angeles (another hour and a half). Fortunately, the drive from Cameron’s dad’s house to mine is only about 50 minutes.

ONLY. Hah.

What I really wanted to share with all of you, though, was what happened to my Aunt on I think Thursday? My aunt woke up with a headache, so she took and Excedrin Migraine from a brand new bottle and within minutes broke out in hives that looked like bee stings and her face started to swell. If my uncle hadn’t taken her to the hospital, her airways would have closed off. Not good. As it turns out, and you may have caught my tweets about it, Excedrin, Gas X, Bufferin, and NoDoz have been recalled because of a potential mix up. SUPER dangerous. And guess what? I haven’t seen ANYTHING about it in stores. Really bothers me.

Anyway, check your medicine cabinets for Excedrin and Nodoz products with expiration dates of December 20, 2014, and Bufferin and Gax-X Products with expiration dates of December 20, 2013 or earlier. If you have any, toss the pills and follow the instructions at Novartis’ website to get a refund.

Aside from some general craziness, last week was freakin’ awesome.

• I filed my taxes and H&R Block noticed a credit that I would have missed if I hadn’t used them, so WOO!
• I was asked to join a small group of bloggers at Applebee’s Headquarters to check out their new Weight Watchers menu! I can’t wait to share all the awesomeness with you fine folks, and I’m so excited that they’re introducing this line of healthy options!
• I was invited to present at an academic conference at the end of March. EEEEEE!!! I’m speaking on the evolutionary implications of fairy tales, especially those about princesses. I know the princess complex is rather contentious, and I can’t wait to talk about it more on here.

Those are a couple bigger highlights, so I’m still running on residual excitement.

Anyway, I have a question for all of you this week, because I’ve had a really hard time motivating myself to get into the kitchen. Seriously, I just never feel like cooking because it means Cameron is whining that he’s not on my hip or trying to climb into the dishwasher, and if it isn’t Cameron, it’s just that it takes time and effort that I just don’t feel like exerting. Sad, right?

So how do you stay on top of cooking or staying motivated to cook?

Before Cameron was born, his dad and I had planned to work up to weekend overnight visits by the time he was a year old. The great part is we’re almost there – between his schedule and mine, Cameron’s weekend stays have been more like every other weekend, with his dad visiting us at our home on the weekends in between. It’s a functional system, and I’m really proud that even though we’re not together, his dad and I have a strong enough relationship as friends and enough respect for each other as parents that we’ve met our goal and made this work.

But as a mom, it’s hard. It’s hard not to wake up to those tiny, squishy fingers pushing at my shoulder, and it’s hard to fall asleep without him flopped over my arm, a position he’s taken a liking to as of late. I forget that I don’t have to step lightly because he’s napping, or barricade the kitchen to stop him from climbing in the dishwasher while I do the dishes. I hear the dog sigh as he stretches and yawns, and I jump from my seat thinking that Cameron is waking up. I have these fleeting moments of panic wherein I think he’s been asleep for much too long, then I remember that he’s not napping a few feet away.

Don’t get me wrong – I need and look forward to these overnight visits as much as Cameron and his dad do. Between work, writing, and school, the weekends are my time to get caught up on the things I couldn’t do during nap time, or in between Cameron’s bed time and mine. Besides, my social life can’t be limited to DJ Lance Rock and Kai Lan’s Ye Ye. That’s just not healthy.

But on these weekends, when I have my place to myself, it feels so much bigger and emptier than it really is. It’s amazing how much one tiny person can fill up a whole home.

Pinterest is one of the fastest (if not the fastest) growing social networks, and I tell you what. I’m totally obsessed. I’ve found really great ideas, recipes, DIY and gift projects, and even awesome blogs. However, with any new network comes a learning period, where everyone kind of has to figure out how the whole thing works and the most effective ways to use it. Because we’re still in that learning period, I’ve put together a list of tips on becoming an awesomely repinnable pinner.

1. Pin From the Post, Not the Home Page

I’ve found some great recipes and DIY projects on Pinterest, just to click through to the home page of the original poster’s blog. And that pin that I was so excited about was no longer there. [Insert Darth Vader NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Here] So then I have to find the search bar, search for the post, and hope that it was titled in such a way that the search tool can actually find it. So spare other pinners the agony, and just pin from the post itself. If you come across a pin that isn’t properly linked, fix it if you can! Courtesy is always appreciated.

2. Give Credit Where Credit Is Due

Along the same lines as #1, make sure to link back to the right place. This goes for Tumblr – I’ve found some REALLY cute nail pins that would lead to a tutorial, but they only led to a Tumblr post. Very disappointing. If you can, try to find the original source and give credit where it’s due. (And don’t call it a tutorial if there isn’t a tutorial at the end of the link chain). Furthermore, don’t link to other pins. It becomes this endless loop of frustration and no one likes that.

3. Don’t Copy & Paste the Entire Post/Recipe/Instructions Under the Pin

Thanks to Alyssa (@inspiredRD) for this one Someone took the time to write and publish that, and you’re basically taking away their blog traffic (which could be their source of income). That’s not cool, and it’s copyright infringement. If the picture doesn’t already say it all, just tell me what you’re pinning and why I should be interested in it.

4. Caption Accordingly

I’m pretty guilty of this, but I’m obsessed enough with Pinterest that I’m going back and fixing a lot of these. And by these/this, I mean pins that are captioned “LOVE” and “WANT” and “.” and “ZOMGWTFICANHAZIDIE.” Basically, the captions are vague and don’t tell anyone anything about what they’re looking at. This means that if someone is searching for something like that, they won’t be able to find it. At least not through Pinterest, anyway. So what to do instead? Describe the pin, then comment. “Purple Peacock Feather Pumps – LOVE,” “Nicole Espresso Nail Polish – Gorgeous!,” “Cinnamon Roll Waffles – SO easy peasy. Can’t wait to make these!” Or just stick with the description: “Crock Pot Chicken Tacos.” If you MUST put on a funny or cute caption (because I know it can’t be helped at times), at least make sure you’ve placed that pin in the right category (more on that later).

5. Don’t Attack Us with Hashtags

The same goes for Instagram. Great, you want the traffic for this. But #tacos #taco #chicken_taco #taconight #tacotuesday? Redundant. Obnoxious. Please make it stop because you’re making my eyes want to jump out of their sockets. A couple hashtags like #budgeting or #fitness or #diy are fine, but stick with popular hashtags you know people are searching. Keep it concise and broad if you’re hashtagging. Save the specifics for your descriptions.

6. Categorize Your Boards and Stick to Those Categories

I love browsing the category sections of Pinterest, but when I’m browsing Hair & Beauty, I really don’t want to see Orange-Glo which “Does wonders for wood floors.” That’s not a hair or beauty product. It’s a product you like, but if the default “Products I Love” board is too broad a category, maybe it’s time to split it up like “Beauty Products I Love,” and “Home Products I Love,” just for example. Just make sure to categorize your boards as you make new ones. This way, people can find and follow the boards they’re interested in without having to sort through too much clutter (because everyone has different interests, after all).

So that’s it! Do you think I’ve left anything out? Let me know and I’ll add it to the list (with proper credits, of course).

This week was all about pushing through and staying accountable. Joint pain from weather changes really took a toll on me this week, but I kept up with my running, so WOO! Go me.

This Week

Monday: Rest day
Tuesday: 2.75 mile run with the jogger
Wednesday: Core training
Thursday: 2.57 mile run with the jogger
Friday: Strength training
Saturday: Unexpected rest day. Kinda got suckered into a day of shopping, but I went dancing for a few hours!
Sunday: Yoga & 2.6 mile run

The Good

Now that I’m taking longer runs, my route (from my house to the beach & back) is on an incline (or at least coming back from the beach it is). It wears me out something fierce, but I have a feeling that I’ll be able to handle whatever terrain my races throw at me.

Also, I forgot to mention it last week, but I’m OFFICIALLY registered for Race on the Base!! Thanks to all of you for your donations thus far. As of now, I’ll be wearing a tutu for this race, but I’m still accepting challenges. I feel like gettin’ silly with it, so bring it on!

The Bad

That stupid hill coming back from the beach. It lasts for about 1/2 a mile (the steepest incline extends 1/4 mile), and it ends about 1/2 a mile from my house. It hurrrrrrrts *whine whine whine.*

The Ugly

I made the mistake of drinking juice right after running. I felt like I was going to hurl. Now I know to stick to whole grain toast, because it’s the only texture/taste combination I can handle immediately after running.

My Question This Week

I’ve been considering joining a running club, but I really know nothing about them. While running is a very individualistic sport, I like being part of a team. So my question to you is what is so great about running clubs? What has your experience been with running clubs or teams? Good? Bad? Spill it!

So I’ve had this issue for a while where my joints ache leading up to changes in the weather, especially rain. The last couple weeks have been filling the Southern California quota of rain for the year, just a little bit at a time. This means that the barometric pressure in my neck of the woods has been fluctuating something fierce. My knees? Constantly aching. Working out has SUCKED.

But I’ve done it anyway. Because sometimes working out sucks. But man oh man, the sore muscles the next day? SO SATISFYING!

I will say, though, the running really wears me out! I really felt it at yoga on Sunday. I made the mistake of practicing yoga AFTER running, so my quads were shaking. The entire. Freaking. Time. It was a little.. not frustrating. Disconcerting? to struggle with poses that I don’t normally struggle with. However, that’s part of the practice and beauty of yoga. Good stuff.

Also good stuff? Winning an Insanity workout DVD at the Yahoo! Shine Get It Guide Twitter party. My workout DVD collection is rapidly growing, and HOLY CRAP is that a life saver on cold, wet days like this where I’m stuck working out inside & postponing running. Because I’m not so hardcore that I run in the rain.

Non-scale Victory: I actually had a chance to go salsa dancing for my birthday! It can be difficult to squeeze in time for myself, but it really helps that Cameron is spending more weekends with his dad.

So that was my week! I’m very excited for all you Mamavation Mom candidates, and I’m so proud of all of you for surviving booty camp! Best of luck to all of you, and keep up the incredible work.

By now, you probably know how much I love juicing. I love my juice, sugar be darned. Problem is, the juicer is SUCH. A PAIN. IN THE BUTT. The juicing process itself isn’t a problem, but the cleaning… I don’t like to think about it.

So I was really excited when Pure Juiceology contacted me to give their juices a try. They’re quite different from other juices in that they’re the first juice ever that contains extracts of whole grain, including oats, barley, and 3g of vegetable fiber per serving. As an added plus, they’re only 98 calories, with no sugar added, and zero fat. I was very curious about how adding whole grain would affect the flavor, but the idea of getting fiber in my juice without having to choke it down like green blends? SOLD.

They sent me 2 flavors – Peach Mango and Blueberry Acai. Both had a kind of thicker mouthfeel that bordered on syrupy without the sweetness, much like fresh juice (just without the pulp), and you really couldn’t taste the grain. Even better? They taste like the real thing, and not overprocessed, added “natural flavor” nonsense.

I’ll be honest- I tend to avoid the blueberry flavors because.. well, they tend to taste like candy. I do love acai, but I’m a little acai spoiled from a trip to Brazil a few years ago. That said, I was a little skeptical about the blueberry acai. However, I was pleasantly surprised. It wasn’t overly sweet, though it did have a little bit of that lollipopiness to it.

If Shakespeare and Sarah Palin can make up words, so can I. My blog.

But really, I did like the blueberry acai variety- it wasn’t as tart as other blueberry acai juices, nor was it super sweet. I was pleasantly surprised by it, all things considered, and I think it would make a fantastic smoothie base or it would even be great with a little vodka and Pama liqueur. Actually, that might be amazing.

Peach & mango are already a couple of my favorite fruits, so it was almost an automatic win here. It had a hint of an earthy, savory flavor that could have been the grain, peach or mango, but I happened to like it a lot, what ever it was. You could taste both the peach & mango, and the combination is DELICIOUS. Big thumbs up. Blended with some ice, maybe a little tequila (which is the highest in antioxidants of all the spirits).. FANTASTIC idea. However, it’s fantastic on its own.

Overall? I’m impressed! I really like these juices – the only downside is that they aren’t widely available yet. Currently, they’re available in Ralphs, Bristol Farms, Famima, Gelson’s and Northgate in Southern California, but they’re quickly expanding so keep an eye out to see when they’ll be in your area! You can find out more about Pure Juiceology at purejuiceology.com/, and stay updated by liking Pure Juiceology on Facebook.

As an added bonus for Southern California residents, Pure Juiceology has been kind enough to provide a 5-coupon pack for 3 winners, so you can find them in the store near you and pick your favorite flavors.

To enter:
Visit Pure Juiceology at purejuiceology.com/ and leave a comment telling me which flavor you’re most excited to try.

For extra entries…
1. Like Pure Juiceology on Facebook (1 entry)
2. Like my blog, Making Geek Look Good, on Facebook (1 entry)

Be sure to leave a comment for each entry, and I’ll draw the winners on February 1st!

In exchange for this review, I was provided with free Pure Juiceology products. All opinions expressed are strictly and 100% mine.

Now I feel bad for laughing about this. Kind of.

However, I feel that as a public figure, she’s done her followers a serious disservice by not only hiding her disease, but by providing such a terrible example of managing it. Medication is all fine and dandy, but fixing your diet and moderate exercise can prevent serious complications, or even prevent/delay the onset of Type 2 Diabetes in the first place. Furthermore, there are people living with diabetes who absolutely refuse to acknowledge or treat it, or change their lifestyle & eating habits. My grandmothers are among them. Both have diabetes, neither has changed her eating, one has had a triple bypass as a result of that refusal to make a change. For many, Paula Deen’s example is an easy one they can use as an excuse: “I can keep eating the same crap- Paula Deen still cooks the same stuff and she has diabetes.”

Now yes, I know she’s not eating the crap she puts up for show all the time, and honestly, I doubt TOO too many people are cooking that way ALL the time. Furthermore, she’s not responsible for other people’s eating habits. However, promoting that kind of eating when you’re a prominent figure with a following that can suffer from your example? In my humble opinion, that’s NOT good PR, nor is it a good example of using ones celebrity for good.

But what really bothers me is this comparison that I heard on NPR. Someone said there are tons of shows out there that “promote” dangerous things, so get off Paula’s back. They used Jackass as an example of this. The thing is, Jackass at least has a warning in the opening credits (and I THINK though I’m not completely sure that they include the same warning when returning from commercial breaks). That warning says NOT to attempt the stupid stunts they’re doing because they’re professionals. Duh. It’s common sense, but they include a warning anyway. It should be common sense that Paula Deen’s cooking is NOT healthy and eating it often would take a whole lotta leafy greens to be considered a part of a balanced diet. However, for some people, it isn’t common sense. Some people don’t know or care. It’s not a valid comparison, frankly, because Jackass doesn’t PROMOTE those stunts. They perform them for entertainment purposes (and by my reasoning, THEY do them so YOU don’t have to). Paula Deen’s show, books, line of cooking ware and products PROMOTE that kind of cooking.

I know this is a rambling rant here, but my point is that I’m disappointed that Paula used this as an opportunity to profit on a product endorsement instead of using it as an opportunity to improve and educate.

What were your reactions to Paula’s announcement?

I’m sorry to inconvenience all of you, but tomorrow (January 18), Making Geek Look Good is blacking out in protest of SOPA, which in short intends to fight online counterfeiting and trafficking of copyrighted materials in such a broad way that any and every website could be at risk of being blocked. TechDirt has a fantastic article explaining the flaws and risks of SOPA & PIPA, and they explain the issue much better than I ever could.

However, I will say that the law really has not kept up with technology in so many ways, and piracy and copyright infringement are serious issues. However, SOPA & PIPA are proof that legislators are not doing their part in trying to catch up. I think John Lilly said it quite perfectly:

I’m not convinced that Congress is at all the right body to be taking up these issues, and am 100% convinced that they don’t currently have the technical wherewithal to make informed decisions, in any event.

This week.. injuries. Not serious, but enough to put me much further behind than I’d like to be. And what did I get? Shin splints. And the way I got them? Really stupid. Like, I’m a complete beginner, but I know better than this, but I did it anyway. Really. Stupid.

See, I got so excited about the first run of the week that I just kept going and didn’t stop to stretch after I’d warmed up. I didn’t get a sufficient stretch afterwards, either, so BAM. That happened.

On top of that, the weather started to change, which means my knees have been ACHING since Friday, so there went almost a whole week of training. Crap. I’m not at all happy about it. However, I did manage to keep up with my core conditioning, so the week wasn’t a total bust.

This Week

Monday: Rest day
Tuesday: 2 Week Challenge Days 1 & 2
Wednesday: 2 1/4 mile run – NO WALKING INTERVALS!!! I’m pretty sure this is the furthest I’ve ever run without stopping or walking.
Thursday: Core training
Friday: Injury day.
Saturday: Core training
Sunday: Rest Day

The Good

My sister got me a jogger as an early birthday present! It’s an awesome Columbia jogger that’s ultra-lightweight (honestly, it doesn’t feel like anything), and it does have a pivoting front wheel (WOO!). I did my 2.25 mile run with it and it felt FANTASTIC.

The Bad

I’m 2 running days behind schedule. However, I’m on week 7 of C25K, and my first race is in 5 1/2 weeks, so I’m 3 weeks ahead of target.

The Ugly

Shin splints. Eff that. Lesson learned the hard way, BUT lesson learned nonetheless.

You can actually buy this!

Then I read them.

Crestfallen is a good word for my initial reaction, but that feeling was quickly overtaken by that incredulous bewilderment I get when I watch the Republican Primary debates. The ignorance in this one virtually anonymous troll’s comments was staggering. You can scroll on down and read them here. However, these are a few of my favorite excerpts:

http://washingtonexaminer.com/editorials/2009/06/hispanics-pay-price-illegitimate-births Way to empower the Latino community, girls… ‘While 69 percent of first-generation and 73 percent of second-generation Hispanic children live with their married parents, that percentage falls to just 52 percent by the third generation.’

Yes, “tr.” Way to empower the Latino community. First and foremost, let me address those statistics. 48% of Hispanic children do not live with their married parents. Divorce rates in the US are hovering around 50%. These statistics do not specify whether or not these children are raised by parents who were never married or whether they are children who are raised by single parents by way of divorce. Furthermore, this is the Washington Examiner we’re talking about here. Their reputation precedes them when it comes to spinning issues such as these. This article also states “Since the number of babies born to Hispanic woman [sic] in the U.S. now surpasses the total number of Hispanic immigrants, the decline in the well-being of the third generation should be a matter of great public concern. It is a recipe for expanding poverty and all the misery and social dysfunction that goes with it.” Notice that they say “babies born to Hispanic [women],” not “babies born to single Hispanic women.” Maybe it’s that the editor wasn’t paying attention here, but I have my doubts that that’s what we’re really dealing with. By my reading, this article isn’t just pinpointing the issues of single parenting in the Latino community, but that the Latino community’s expansion in general is an issue.

Data from Kids Count Data Center

All in all, my take on the article? Yes, it’s troubling that the growth of single-parent homes in the Latino community is troubling, but the single-parent homes are on the rise across the board. Propagandizing these statistics only furthers the growth of anti-Latino sentiments throughout the United States, because let’s not kid ourselves. The “Ill-legal Workers” ads are not targeted at Canadians.

There should be a stigma attached to people like you, I wish it was greater than it is. Illegitimacy and single parenthood are big contributing factors to the high dropout rate and generally low educational attainment among hispanics in the US. No guy who has his life and education sorted out will go near a girl in your predicament, and as a consequence your child will suffer from a lack of a sucessful [sic] male role model. Single motherhood is creating the hispanic underclass of the next generation.

Sigh. So much to dive in on here. I put an excerpt of this on my Facebook as soon as I saw it, and the response was overwhelming and incredible, and I can’t thank everyone enough for the support. And the thing is, I really do understand where “tr” is coming from. This is a quality of life issue that does affect the Latino community, and by no means am I saying that being a single-parent is ideal. The thing is, it’s not something I’m ashamed of, either, and it’s not something I should be shamed and stigmatized for.

The comment was on part 1, which doesn’t really discuss Cam’s dad’s involvement in his life, so the unfounded statement that Cameron won’t have a male role model is something I’d assume to be a blind assumption. That said, it’s incredibly ignorant to think that my child wouldn’t have sufficient role models in his life. Not only do I have a very large family who loves Cameron dearly and takes a very active role in his life, but so does his dad. I’m a proud mom, Cameron’s dad is a proud dad, and the fact that we’re not married doesn’t mean we’re lesser parents. No, it’s not easy, but we have an incredible support system, which is, in my humble opinion, the part that really matters. To quote myself, because I think I said it pretty well if I do say so myself (I know, that was really confusing, but I think you get it), “shaming and stigmatizing only exacerbates those kinds of problems and isolates the people who are in the midst of these situations, and many of them are not fortunate enough to have the support system that I do. By isolating them, they feel too ashamed to reach out for the help that is available, and that’s when their children’s chances of success begin to dwindle.”

Finally, the word “illegitimate.” This. Nothing that this person said truly got to me, but this. This offends me. Calling my child illegitimate makes him sounds like he’s not as human as other children. It makes him sound like he’s not as important as other people, or that he’s not valid. It’s shameful and archaic to use the word illegitimate in reference to a child that had no choice in the matter.

“Not every child born out-of-wedlock is doomed to failure ” Yeah, and not every drunk driver kills someone so I guess that you single moms should give that a shot as well..

Yeah, let’s get drunk, drive around town, and see if we could get a kid into the broken foster care system, because we all know that would be better than being raised by a parent who isn’t married.

SERIOUSLY?!

Disadvantage isn’t inherent to children born out of wedlock. I mean, Barack Obama was raised by a single mother, for God’s sake. He’s the leader of the free world. All politics aside, I think his mom did pretty well by him, wouldn’t you say?

All in all, I think “tr” missed the boat on what MamiVerse is all about: “Universal empowerment for Latina moms & families.” Empowerment. I am an empowered single mother because that’s what I chose. I chose to raise my son in two happy homes. I made the difficult choice to keep my son. I made the choice to become a mommy. To try to isolate children of single parent homes, and to cut me and other moms LIKE me down is not what a community is about. I love the MamiVerse community, and this in no way changes that. I just hope that the people who are not like this bitter, sad person who is so full of hate continue to fill the community with their love, thoughts and support.