Sonnet to Sonic & Its Diet Cherry Cokes

So I'm like a little in love with diet coke.

I grew up in a family of diet coke fiends. That's right, I said it. Judge away.

These days it seems like people wear their non-soda drinking ways as a badge of honor."Oh, my parents didn't let us drink soda growing up. It wasn't allowed."

Well, good for you. My parents did.

Diet coke, at least.

And I'm here to tell you that its incredible bubbles and amazing ability to quell cravings is something that I can only describe as other-worldly. There are few things as satisfying as the first sip of a fizzy, straight-from-the-fountain diet coke.

Especially from Sonic. If you aren't familiar with this throwback drive-thru, it's a fast food chain where you don't get out of the car, you just drive up to these speakers, park, order and they roller skate out to you with your food.

I'm not one to eat in the car, really, so when I order a drink, I drive-thru, and always get the same thing.

A diet coke with the sugar free cherry syrup.

Uh-maizing. It's like the best Roy Rogers of your life.

First and foremost, they have hospital ice. You know what I mean.

The little balls of creamy ice that's so deliciously crunchy but yet soft all at once? People love it so much you can buy bags of ice from there (that's like a little weird. But whatevs. I'm letting it go.)

Second and second most, their diet coke is so good. It beats McDonalds by a landslide. And everyone in the diet coke community knows McDonalds has far superior diet coke to other, similar establishments (not including 7-11. That's in a category all its own.)

Thirdly, it's the only place you can get sugar free cherry syrup! Generally you get grenadine, or a similar cherry-like substance loaded with sugar and calories, but not at Sonic. At Sonic, it's a one giant cup of sugar substitute amazing-ness.

Now, while I appreciate your concern for the amount of aspartame I consume on a daily basis, know that I am well-aware of the risks associated with consuming fake sugar and I accept and embrace them.

We all have our things, you know?

So, here's to you, Sonic.

xoxo

Popping My LOTR Cherry

Huzzah! I've already gotten a jump start on my New Year's Resolutions.

Last night, I saw The Hobbit. As you'll recall in my last post, resolution #8 was to watch all of the Lord of the Rings movies this year.

I decided to embark on this unexpected journey (hint: that's an inside joke from The Hobbit!) whilst I was at a dinner party and everyone started talking about how they couldn't wait to see The Hobbit and I was like: eh.

Then, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that when there is a cultural phenomenon happening, you don't just stand idly by! When my kids are like, "mom, I can't believe you were alive when The Lord of the Rings movies came out!" I don't want to be like, "actually darling children, I didn't give a crap about the world around around me." What kind of example would that be?!

So, a few friends and I braved the San Francisco weather (it was absolutely pouring, not my fave!) and headed downtown to one of my favorite theaters, The Metreon. I LOVE this particular movie house because it's absolutely GINORMOUS (the technical term I believe) and is totally gorgeous and makes me feel like I am really doing something special for the evening. Which, for $16 a ticket, it better!

My pals and I decided to see the 3D high frame version (as if I even understand THAT) but boy was I glad we did. The movie was SO CLEAR and bright and beautiful! And since she's quite a long adventure (like, almost 3 hours) it was nice to be in front of such a delightful picture.

So, the movie was GREAT! I had a million questions, which I refrained from asking during the film (albeit for a few) but that's okay. I figure if I'd read the books I would have understood more, but whatevs. I was just surprised to find out there's a different between hobbits, elves and dwarves. Like, who knew?

xoxo

2013...Year 26.

"Am I loud? Am I clear?"

"You're both."

Have you seen Necessary Roughness? If not, you should. The above quote is from the main characters of NR, and it's one of my many favorite USA shows. I can't even handle how many good shows that network produces.

Fairly Legal. Royal Pains. Suits. The list never ends.

But this post is not about USA. It's about starting the new year off right. This is the year of being loud and clear.

I mean, I'm already pretty loud. That's never really been the problem.

But being clear? Not always a girl's strong suit.

But this year will be different.

That said, I've outlined some of the things I intend to accomplish in 2013. Some of them are serious and some of them serve only the purpose of nourishing my soul and making me laugh.

1. Run the Lulu Lemon Half Marathon in 2:30 or less. Last year, my time was 2:44, so I feel like cutting off a good 15 minutes is totes doable. I love running the Sea Wheeze for so many reasons, but first and foremost because I get to spend an uninterrupted weekend with my bestie and favorite Canadian. Love you Andrew!

2. Finish the Nike Women's Half Marathon. See, the thing is, the Nike Women's Half and The Sea Wheeze are like six weeks apart, so I'm not trying to set a PR for that. Girl just wants another Tiffany's necklace.

3. Watch all the seasons of Parks and Recreation. Yeah, that's real.

4. Be better at my calling. This includes having the occasional (weekly?) rogue dinner group to get to know more people in the ward. I am so, so grateful that I got called as the dinner group co-chair.

Heaven knows I love a good dinner party!

5. Go to Hawaii.

Not so much a resolution as a goal. On that note, I'm giving up carbs. Offer me bread and I'll never forgive you.

6. Go through the temple. Make a habit of going again, and again.

7. Read Daring Greatly and vow to live fearlessly and be unapologetic for saying what's on my mind.

8. Watch all of The Lord of the Rings movies. I always feel left out when people talk about them. That ends this year.

9. Get promoted.

10. Lastly, but probably most importantly, call my parents more.

Here's to 2013. I believe my bestie Emily said it better than anyone when she text me, "it's like a now or never biotch kind of year."

xoxo