Why you will fail to have a great career

This grumpy ol’ man talks about the reasons why people don’t pursue their passions. It’s very inspiring and surprisingly positive if you take it in and really think about it. This video will make you realize that we can’t keep making excuses for not following our dreams. All we have to do is set our excuses aside and we can really have those GREAT careers.

Jeff Yokoyama – InnerViews

Meet Jeff Yokoyama, designer and creative entrepreneur of 25 years. Known for his distinctive “surf” style, he has gone from selling clothes from his truck to a multimillion dollar business in a matter of months. He has created brands such as Pirate Surf, Modern Amusement, Generic Youth and Pidgin Orange as well as consulting for other top name brands such as Stussy and Quiksilver. He’s a pretty cool guy so check this out!

The Habits of Supremely Happy People

The Habits of Supremely Happy People

Ever wonder what makes Happy people smiling all the time? This article will give you an insight on how certain habits can lighten your mood. For me, just reading this article made me happy. This article made me realize that all it takes to be happy is following your passion, never giving up, enjoying simple pleasures and being with the people that make you smile.  Feel free to share what makes you happy and leave a comment! Enjoy!

Homemade Pizza

Theres something about cooking that helps me forget about everything else. I guess you can say it’s therapeutic. I love baking pizza because you can get creative with it. Not to mention, you can pretty much put anything you want on top and it’ll probably taste great. My boyfriend and I enjoyed our pizza so much that we decided to bake another one the next day. We are definitely addicted to them.  I recommend using store bought pizza dough because it saves a lot of time and they’re usually very affordable. I was able to get two balls of dough, enough to make two medium sized pizza, for only $3 at Safeway.  A friend of mine also told me that Trader Joe’s sells amazing pizza dough as well.

We decided to create a  simple pizza with some fresh ingredients, but feel free to top your pizza with whatever your heart desires!

Ingredients:

-Store bought Pizza dough

– Olive Oil

– Pesto

-1 Garlic Clove (chopped)

– Prosciutto

–  1/4 Red Onions (thinly sliced)

-Mushrooms

– Mozzarella slices

– Yellow Tomato

– Basil Leaves

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

2.  Lightly coat the Pizza Pan with olive oil, and spread the dough evenly until you get your desired thickness.

3. Place the dough and pan into the oven for 4 – 5 minutes to precook the dough.

4. Take your dough out of the oven and top your pizza starting with the sauce (in our case, pesto), garlic, mushroom, onion, tomato, mozzarella, and prosciutto.

5. Place the pizza back into the oven for another 10 – 12 minutes until your crust is slightly golden.

Optional:

6. Take your Pizza out of the oven and place the basil on top and bake the pizza for another 1.5  minutes.

ENJOY!

30 Day Run Challenge

When I think of fall in Alabama, I think of football, chai lattes, and boots weather.  The last thing I think about is exercising, especially outside when the weather gets cooler.  However, it is a new season, and a new season calls for new beginnings.  And this fall, I have decided to become a runner.  I got this idea from running my first 5k today with my BFF.  We left the house before the sun came out, so the moment I stepped outside and felt the cool air, I cringed at the thought of running in the cool weather.  Thank God the weather didn’t stop me though, because if I learned anything from today it’s that fall weather is the best running weather, so what better season is there to start running??

So this fall, join me as I start the 30 Day Run Challenge- inspired from this blog postfrom Swell.  There’s no rules–just run every day for 30 days!  So excited for what’s to come from this!!!

“Your Brain On The Ocean”

“This Is Your Brain On The Ocean”

Being away from Hawaii for college is the hardest thing I’ve ever done.  There’s just so much to miss–being close to family, the food, the weather, being in the water… So naturally, when I found this article by Huffington Post about how your mind and body react to being in the ocean, I had to read it.  It talks about the effects of the ocean on each of the five senses.  Overall, the ocean is a very therapeutic thing for the mind… salt water therapy is real after all!

The article forgot to mention one thing though… a warning of how homesick it will make you feel! The whole time I was reading, I couldn’t help but to imagine myself submerged in the clear waters of Waimea Bay or at Makapuu.

So here’s my own warning to those away from the beach–THIS ARTICLE WILL CAUSE A SEVERE LONGING FOR THE OCEAN!

With that being said, it is a super interesting read, and so worth the nostalgia you’ll feel… and it will make that first dip in the ocean in a while so worth it!

Put this on your bucket list: Act like a Tourist

As much as I love traveling and weekend getaways, there’s nothing like a good ole stay-cation.  Yes, stay-cation as in a vacation, but you don’t have to hop on a plane or drive for hours. It’s just a quick break from your usual, hectic life.  A stay-cation can be as simple as staying in a resort for a weekend, or  just doing something touristy for a day (dressing like one isn’t mandatory, but that’s totally up to you).  It’s a great way to experience your hometown in a whole new perspective.

Here is a list of fun touristy things to do in Hawaii:

Go to a Luau!

I really enjoyed the Luau at the Sea Life Park on the East side of Oahu. I grew up in Hawaii Kai so this place was literally 10 minutes away.

Why is this fun for locals?

Yeah, you’re from Hawaii, but I bet you don’t know how to open coconuts with a stick or create fire from dried coconut husk. Well, you can learn all of this with a Mai Tai in your hand. The food won’t beat the Kalua Pork from Kono’s or You Hungry? but the atmosphere and the entertainment is amazing.  (Also, Tahitian dancing is never boring)

Booze Cruise

There are a couple booze cruises around Waikiki  beach near the Royal Hawaiian. I was just told to take the “yellow boat”. For $30, you get a 90 minute boat ride with a wonderful view of the Waikiki and Diamond Head area. I would recommend going right before the sunset for the best view. Oh, and did I mention the open bar? All you can drink!

Why is it fun for locals?

No matter how many times you’ve seen turtles or dolphins, it’s always a magical moment. Not only do you get to enjoy the view while double fisting Mai Tais, you might get the chance to encounter some wild animals. There are also a ton of great restaurants in Waikiki, so you can have a bite to eat to sober up before  hitting the road.

Go Snorkeling

Snorkeling is the best way to channel into your inner “little mermaid” while taking a swim with all the underwater creatures Hawaii has to offer.   I love Shark’s Cove on the North side, which is a popular tourist spot, but as long as you have a snorkel mask and some fins, anywhere will do!

Why is it fun for locals?

Although it may seem touristy to be swimming around with a snorkel mask, snorkeling is one of those activities that can be made “local” by knowing those secret spots with the most fish or the clearest water or the least amount of people.  Not to mention, with an underwater camera, you can be that cool kid with that sick underwater profile picture! But in all seriousness, there is no better therapy than being completely submerged in the deep blue sea.

Shwood Scrap Surf

Objects we think as trash could be made into beautiful things. These guys at Shwood, found a way to make surfboards out of drift wood. They also documented and told their story using this awesome video. I hope you guys get inspired to create something totally new, I sure did!

Laie Point Cliff Diving

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sjaJepIVUQ&w=560&h=315%5D

This video created by shibbystylee is absolutely amazing. He does a great job of capturing the beauty of Hawaii. When people ask me what in the world we do on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, here is my answer to you… Well, maybe not as adventurous as these folks in this video. However, we all love the outdoors and exploring everything that Hawaii has to offer.

Exploring Sedona

Sedona is one of those places that you really can’t find anywhere else, everywhere you look, you are going to want to take a picture. I was in Arizona with my mother to move into my new house before school started and decided to stop by Sedona. We only stayed in Sedona for three days but we met some cool people, hiked, and meditated.

I usually don’t give a lot of thought when I chose a place to stay, as long as the place is clean and everything is working, I’m good to go. However, during this stay, my mother chose the Enchantment Resort. This place is a little pricy compared to the other hotels around the area, but definitely worth every penny. The resort is surrounded by beautiful canyons and is walking distance to many hiking trails. They have a wide range of free activities such as yoga, meditation, hiking, and horseback riding.  Make sure to register to some activities in advanced because space is limited, we tried to go on a group hike, but registered a little too late and could not go. However, the lady at the activities center recommended two hikes that she thought would be perfect for us. The Mascal Trail, a 3 hour long hike which went along the canyon wall and allowed the hiker to see multiple views of Sedona. She had to draw us the directions because it was not on the trail map given to us at the hotel. The second trail that she recommended was the Vista trail that led to the Kachina Women. It is said that the area near the Kachina Women is a Vortex. A Vortex is an area with a concentrated amount of healing energy. We decided to go to on the Mascal Trail in the morning and go on the Vista Trail right before the sunset.

This is a view from the Mascal Trail. Surprisingly, there weren’t many people on the trail (we only ran into one other group of people), making it a perfect place to meditate and relax. The hike merged into another hike so we decided to turn around and head back. Our morning hike took us about 3 .5 hours, but to our surprised we were not tired at all.

During the afternoon, we decided to take a ride on the Pink Jeep Tour. Since we didn’t feel like doing anything too rugid, we chose the Scenic Rim Tour. Our Driver drove along  an old bumpy path and took us up the red rock to see the beautiful view. You can really tell they love their job, our tour guide was so excited to show us different plants and rock formations along the way.

When we got to the Vortex, we just sat down and watched the sunset and relaxed. To tell you the truth, I didn’t really understand what a Vortex was, I didn’t doubt it, but I didn’t believe in it at the same time. However, the time spent there was very pleasant. We had a nice cool breeze to cool us off from the hike, the sky had a beautiful gradient of pink and yellow, and everything was still. After a long day of hiking, pink jeep touring, and sightseeing, it was nice to just sit and enjoy doing nothing at all surrounded by the beautiful Sedona view.