Working On My Fitness: Runyon Canyon

I haven't been to Runyon Canyon since I left for the Army. That was all the way in early 2010. The last few weeks have been so crazy and unexpected for me, but now its winding down into and I am trying to get my fitness in order. Especially if I am going to be considering doing ROTC...that is another story! If you have never been to Los Angeles before, let me tell you, there is more than just Hollywood.  There are so many trails to hike and some have pretty cool stuff like waterfalls and ruins to explore. Runyon Canyon doesn't have either of those, but its pretty well known and it is a WORKOUT. Coming from the Studio City side its all downhill and pretty easy, but coming back up takes effort. If you are out of shape it will be tough on you, trust me! Even if you walk it. When you are done, its the best feeling ever though! That last quarter of a mile I practically had to drag my dog because she just didn't want to go any further, she was so tired! Even as I am typing this now she is passed out right now! LOL

This hill right here is death LOL. You will get such a good burn coming uphill!

Ruby trying attempting to lay in a hole haha

She is trying to make the hole bigger for herself!

Still digging

Downtown LA in the horizon

Yep, you can see the hollywood sign from here--I will have to get a better picture after a good rain or during the holidays when the smog is low

She gave up! 

Knocked the hell out! LOL

 Anyways, I have also been getting back to my Army eating habits and the goal this month is to lose 10 lbs. Well, maybe I shouldn't say that. I want to lose inches and build muscle. My diet (now) mostly consists of some kind of seafood, mainly fish. I love my tuna mixed with avocado and pico de gallo. I will have to show you the recipe for that when my avocados are ready to be eaten...its super yum! :)  I also eat a lot of vegetables. I don't really drink enough water so I am making it my mission to increase that. I do not eat fried foods and I hardly ever eat out. I don't really eat fruit too often either...bad, I know! I try to stay away from starches because I just don't know when to stop eating them LOL. However I know they are important for energy, so I bought some sweet potatoes. During my vacation I was eating horribly and my body paid for it! I gained a couple pounds so now its time to lose it!

Super sweaty after that hike!

The Single Life...

Well for the most part I am settled in to my place. I originally wanted to get a one bedroom, but honestly I don't need it so I got a single instead... Its just me (thats what I tell myself haha). Plus, the extra $100 I am saving I could put it to something else. Like good food...or traveling. LOL I think you get the point. Anyways, I tried to make it look and feel a little more like home so I added a room divider and a table. I got the divider so that when I open my door people can't just look in and see my bed LOL. I got it for a good price on Craigslist too---$25! These things cost over a $100 so I was definitely winning in this situation. Now, I need a lounge type of chair that doesn't have arms.

And I got my puppy! Let me tell you, I have been looking for a brown standard poodle on the smaller side for two years and now I finally have her! I am not looking to breed so things like confirmation and pedigree aren't at the top of my list. I just wanted a companion animal. Honestly, I am not impressed with the breeder so I am not going to give them free publicity, nor will I recommend them to anyone else. She was shipped to me in a old and dirty crate which I wasn't happy about. When I paid to have her shipped here, that was supposed to be for her airfare to Los Angeles, a crate and the bill of health from the vet. I guess it was too much to think that I would actually get a new crate? And she is underweight! Anyways, she is very shy, which I am slightly concerned about, but she is getting better everyday so I won't gripe about it too much. I just have to make sure I socialize her well to noises and other environments because it is obvious to me that the breeder didn't bother. She is a sweetheart though! I decided to name her Ruby :)

Ruby, my brown standard poodle! She should be around 35-40 lbs full grown!

Before

First time ever putting something together!

After :)

I moved back to Los Angeles!!!

The last two months have been such a whirlwind and to be honest, I didn't think that I would end up back in Los Angeles, but here I am! Thanks to the war and the fact that my honey is about to be gone for 14 months (and we want to save as much money as we can) here I am back home. I am a sad to be apart, but happy that I am at least in a place that I LOVE. I found a cute little single apartment in two days and its pet friendly which was a requirement for me. I could have gotten a 1 bedroom, but its just me and I would much rather save the extra $100 for something else. Apartment tour and DIY projects coming soon! My little single needs furniture and I am currently looking for ideas. My color scheme is black, white and red. Pics coming soon!

Now that I have reached my final destination, normalcy can begin again! I have only been back a few days and have been trying to get myself situated and the mission is almost complete. Anyways, here are a few pics of my summer thus far! Many more to come!

I am horrible I know!

I am so wrong and I sorry for the lack of updates! Honestly, I have been doing a whole bunch of nothing! Seriously. Feels great, but it sucks at the same time because I feel so lost and without purpose. Guess I am just used to being busy and always working and now that I am not, I don't even know what to do with myself...like for real. Anyways...I have been exploring some of the state parks in my area and I have some pics to share in a later post, so be on the lookout for that. And, before you ask....the fitness challenge was a BUST!!! Gotta keep it real with you LOL...I am not going to give up though. And obviously, following through on things is something I need to work on :)
On another note, I have GREAT news! I will share more soon!!!!

Vacation and New Camera

I am on vacation while I am on vacation in California! I am so tired, I think I need another vacation all by myself LOL. I wish I could pack light, but I can never do that! I got a NEW camera that I am pretty excited about. Its a Canon 110 ELPH HS and it takes the most amazing photos for a point and shoot. They retail for around $229 and I was lucky enough to not pay that amount because I had a gift card for Amazon. There are vendors on Amazon that cannot list new cameras as new so they list them under refurbished so make sure you check out that section. I found mine listed for $146 and then with the $100 gift card I paid much less...honestly you cant get it any better than that!