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charmingradiobelle · 4 years ago

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Thanksgiving in Quarantine

(A/N: more Pixar AU!! no there's not really a plot I just wanted to write something for thanksgiving. Also friendly reminder I've never cooked a day in my life so Imma just be vague on those details)

"Alright Pixars, listen up!" Mike called to get everyone's attention. After their conversations died down, he stepped forward towards the front of the room so all eyes would be on him. As the group leader, it was his job to host the monthly meetings and inform them of recent events or decisions made by him or their creator, Luxo Sr.

Once he was sure they were listening, he proceeded to explain, "So as you all know, even though we aren't affected by Covid, we still have to stay in quarantine for the sake of others. So that means that this year, we won't be spending Thanksgiving with the Disneys—"

"YES!!" Everyone cheered ecstatically, some standing up to pump their fists or high-five each other.

Mike was taken aback by their joyous reaction. Not just because it was a response to what he said, but he couldn't remember the last time all of them were that excited about anything. "—like we usually do.." He finished.

"Oh don't act like you're not relieved about it, Mike." McQueen said, "You hate the Disneys just as much as we do."

"Excuse me, but we do not 'hate' here." He said, "We just strongly dislike. Anyway, I'm not that relieved like you guys are. I was actually looking forward to our tradition."

"Well, I'm just glad we won't have to be greeted by them singing 'Be Our Guest' for the millionth fucking time." Woody scoffed, earning some murmurs of agreement from the rest.

Their relationship with the Disneys was complicated, to say the least. Luxo Sr. started the alliance with Mickey Mouse himself several years ago, and thus they joined the Disney family. But the Pixars were never given a say in the deal, and while they did admire the Disneys and were grateful for the success they brought them, that didn't mean they were tolerable to be around. The Pixars didn't hate them (despite constantly joking that they did), they just despised their arrogance and their random outbursts of songs every ten minutes.

"Wait so if we're not going to the Disneys, we're gonna have Thanksgiving at our house?" Marlin asked, "You do realize we haven't done that in like, 14 years? And obviously the family's grown since then."

Mike nodded, "I understand that, but if we're able to somehow survive Halloween, Easter, Christmas, and New Years on our own, then how hard can Thanksgiving be?"

"Your optimism is appreciated." EVE said, "But from past experience, this feels like yet another disaster waiting to happen."

"Yeah, I mean, who's even gonna cook dinner?" Remy asked.

"You are." Mike shrugged.

The rat man widened his eyes, "Say what now?"

Remy was a great cook, and honestly he was the only one who actually knew how to use an oven. But cooking an entire Thanksgiving meal for the whole group was asking a bit much.

"I can't cook that much in one day by myself!"

"You won't, some of us will help you. Right, guys?" Mike asked. But he got no responses, instead everyone just awkwardly looked away.

Remy sighed, "Come on, guys. Do you really want to eat burnt turkey for Thanksgiving? Imelda?"

She put her hands up in defense, "Don't look at me. I don't know how to make white people food."

"Okay, relax. We'll have WALL-E help you." Mike said, gesturing to the robot man—who gave an enthusiastic wave.

But this offer didn't make Remy feel any better. Out of all the Pixars Mike could've suggested, it just had to be WALL-E. "Seriously?" He asked, "You know he burns toast, right?"

"He'll be fine." Mike waved a dismissive hand. "..probably. Okay, does anyone else want to help with Thanksgiving dinner?"

Once again there was nothing but silence and awkward glances. Remy looked around with a pleading face, trying to get anyone to agree, but no such luck. Well, until Atta got tired of the lack of responses and and decided it was best to take one for the team. "Alright fine. I'll help you." She said to Remy.

"Thank Luxo." He sighed with relief, "You are a saint, Atta."

She shrugged, "I try."

"Then it's settled." Mike said, "Thanksgiving will be hosted by Remy, Atta, and WALL-E. Let's pray they don't screw it up."

The three gave him a cold look, while the others nodded in agreement.

—

Thursday came sooner than they realized, and unfortunately due to the pandemic, buying groceries was a pain in the ass and getting what they needed for dinner took longer than they would've hoped. Luckily they were able to have it all in their kitchen and (hopefully) would have enough time to make it. And even though they were spending the holiday by themselves, the Pixars still got dressed up and decorated for the occasion.

Since the kids would be joining them at the table as well, that meant having to cook for even more people. Remy, WALL-E, and Atta were hard at work in the kitchen making gravy, deviled eggs, sweet potato casserole, pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes, etc. And of course, turkey. At first it didn't seem like cooking was going to be so bad. They got an early start before most of the Pixars even woke up. If all went well, they would have dinner done by the afternoon.

"Okay guys, we've got a full house of hungry Pixars so we gotta get this done quick." Remy reminded them, "Atta, you're on pie detail, and you're gonna help me with the turkey. WALL-E, you focus on the casserole, eggs, and making sure Atta stays away from the marshmallows."

Atta slowly looked over at him while he pointed at her, "Yeah, I see you."

She narrowed her eyes at him before slowly reaching her hand toward the bag of marshmallows. He scolded her as she popped another one into her mouth, smirking at him and holding back a laugh. But then the two quickly moved on, since they couldn't waste much time on banter and jokes.

"I don't see how the Disneys do this every year." WALL-E commented, taking a bite of bread.

"Well, they don't actually make it. They have a whole cooking staff that serves them every meal. Which is kinda why they invite us in the first place." Atta explained to him, helping Remy baste the turkey.

Remy scoffed, "And yet there's only one chef in this house. Man, I'd love it if I could get more help around here. Hopefully the new Pixars will know how to cook."

"That's what you say every time." Atta chuckled.

"Maybe if I keep saying it, it'll happen." He shrugged.

After a few minutes, the turkey was ready to cook. They placed it in the oven and set the correct amount of degrees and time. Now all they had to do was wait and finish the rest of the meal.

Violet walked into the kitchen, inhaling the strong scent of half-cooked food. "Mmm, smells great in here." She commented, opening the fridge to grab a water bottle. "So how's slaving away for the others going?"

"We're not 'slaving away', Violet." Remy rolled his eyes. Although now that he said it out loud, it kinda seemed like they were, considering not a single other Pixar was offering to help. Instead they were all hanging out around the house doing who knows what. "Regardless, we're doing just fine."

"You wanna help us?" Atta asked with a mouthful of marshmallows—which earned a scowl from Remy.

Violet sighed, shutting the fridge. "I'd love to, but Joy's taking me out shopping for Christmas presents.

"But stores aren't even open today." WALL-E said.

"That's what I told her." The teen shrugged her shoulders, "But she insisted on taking me and a couple others. I honestly think they're just trying to get out of the house so they have an excuse not to help out."

The three exchanged an annoyed glance. While they expected that sort of behavior from their friends, it was still irritating to know they didn't care enough to even stay home for Thanksgiving. But then again, ditching her friends when they need her didn't sound like something Joy would do.

Before they could question it, they heard Violet's name being called from the other room, signaling her to walk away. "Well, good luck with dinner, guys." She said.

"Okay, have fun today." Atta said to her right before she left. The three then gave each other the same confused expression, all thinking the same thing. But it was a short-lived moment, as they quickly got back to work.

"Alright, making conversation is nice and all, but we can't spend much time having social interactions." Remy reminded them, "From now on, no more distractions, okay? Focus is key."

He turned around, seeing a certain someone once again stuffing three marshmallows in her mouth. "Atta!"

"Leave me alone!" She retorted.

—

Several hours passed since the three started cooking, and they were getting close to being finished. It was hard keeping the kids out of the kitchen to stop them from sneaking bites of the food, since they always did that even when eating at the Disneys' place. But in a display of irony, Remy always shooed them away or chased them out with a broom.

A little after noon the meal was finally ready to be gorged. Everyone had a little bit of everything on their plate and had to pull up a few chairs and small tables so they could all sit together in one spot (one of the tables was actually just an old nightstand). Usually when eating meals, the Pixars would just sit in different areas around the house since the table wasn't big enough for all of them to sit at. But since this was Thanksgiving, they wanted to be together.

"Alright everyone, before we eat, we should go around and say what we're thankful for." Woody said, "And I'll start if that makes it easier."

"It would." They all agreed.

They all joined hands as Woody began, "Well, I'm thankful for all of you. You're not just my friends or people I'm forced to live with, you're my family. Which is kinda the same thing but has better meaning. I'm also thankful for our success, and I'm thankful we're doing this here and not at Disney hell."

A few of them laughed and nodded, although they never thought they'd hear the words "Disney" and "hell" in the same sentence.

"I'll go next." Sulley said, "Let's see, I'm thankful for the food on my plate, and the hard-working people who made it for me."

Remy, Atta, and WALL-E smiled at him.

"And I'm thankful to have the privilege to celebrate this holiday with the people I love."

"Awww!!" They cooed.

Barley leaned towards Sadness to whisper, "Wait, are we supposed to say meaningful shit like that every time?" The girl merely shrugged in response.

Once everyone had a turn saying what they were thankful for, they were finally able to dig in. The turkey was even better than they were used to. The whole meal tasted far better than what they would've received at the Disneys' Thanksgiving. Except the sweet potato casserole appeared to be missing quite a few marshmallows.

"I'm so glad it's Thanksgiving." Joy said, a little out-of-the blue.

"Why's that, Joy?" Bob asked her curiously.

"So I can finally get in the Christmas spirit without people telling me to 'wait until Thanksgiving'." She rolled her eyes.

Out of all of them, Joy was definitely the Christmas fanatic, so much that all other holidays around the end of the year were irrelevant to her. The Pixars didn't mind it, though. They loved Christmas, and they were glad she was always the one to go all out on decorations so they didn't have to.

"Can't argue with that." Jessie said, stuffing a piece of pie in her mouth. "But sadly it's not gonna be the same this year."

"No kidding." Merida scoffed. "If people had just done what they were told back in March, this wouldn't have happened."

McQueen raised a brow, "Dude, we had a whole ass celebration for the Swearing-In in March—"

"That was before quarantine, shut up." She was quick to defend.

"When's quarantine gonna be over?" Dash asked, "I'm tired of staying inside all day."

Mike sighed, as he dreaded this topic every time it came up in conversation. But as the leader, he had to be the voice of reason. "Look guys, I know it's tough, okay? We can't even die from Covid but we're being forced to stay at home, and I know it's frustrating. Heck, there's probably not even gonna be a Swearing-In ceremony for 'Soul'."

"There's not??" Dory asked with a frown.

"If things stay this way, then no." He said, even though it hurt to admit. Swearing-Ins were a big deal for the Pixars. It was what made them apart of the family. "But there's nothing we've been through that we've faced alone, right? We've always had each other, and we always will."

Even though they were still sad about the situation, and even if what he said was a little cheesy, they knew he was right. They were the Pixars for crying out loud, they could handle any challenge as long as they stuck together.

Mike raised his glass, signaling everyone else to do the same. "I propose a toast. To our Pixar family."

"To our family!" They cheered, sipping their drinks afterward.

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alekakers · 5 years ago

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The Story So Far (or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Existential Dread)

- 32-

When I was a kid I thought of thirty-two as this incredibly significant age. For whatever reason I viewed it as the epitome of reaching adulthood. Of course as a child I thought of everyone older than me as an adult. You know that weird skewed perspective thing, when you recall memories from childhood and even high school kids looked like grown ups. But in my head thirty-two was a mythical age that solidified your status as an adult. An age that once reached meant you were no longer a young man/woman, but a full fledged adult-y adult.

Now as I sit here looking back on thirty-two years of life I can say I had no idea how my perspective on age and life would change over the next couple decades. But in some strange way I wasn’t completely wrong either. I had wanted to do this kinda thing when I turned 30 but that was a chaotic time so I never got around to it. So now with two more years behind me, here is a reflection on a simple life and what I’ve learned from it. Let’s start at the beginning...

- Born On The Bayou -

I was born in the early afternoon in Nassau Bay, Texas. I grew up on the same 25 acre ranch my mom was raised on. 30 minutes outside of Houston, 20 minutes from the Gulf of Mexico, and 10 minutes from the Johnson NASA Space Center where my grandparents were instrumental in the Apollo and space shuttle programs. My grandfather was an Oklahoma farm boy that crossed the Mississippi in a covered wagon who ended up putting men on the moon. My grandmother came from New England and was breaking ground in the country’s fledgling space program when she fell in love with a cowboy rocket scientist and brought my mom into the world. Unfortunately they died when my mom was in college. I wish I could have met them.

My dad grew up in a sleepy suburb outside Portland, Oregon. His mother was an eccentric, loving, and strong-willed woman. It was her grandfather, Aleksander Justice, that I’m named after. A wolgadeutsche immigrant, he moved to America to start a new life for himself and his family. My grandmother was harshly old-fashioned to say the least, but she loved me and my sister with all her heart and was in our lives more than any other extended family member. Her passing a few years ago wrecked me more than I thought it would.

My father’s father was an orphan adopted and raised by his Uncle. As an angsty youth he enlisted in the navy to avoid jail time, served as a frogman in Vietnam, worked as a motorcycle cop for decades to support three kids, helped raise my cousin after my aunt got divorced, and was a volunteer firefighter and loving grandfather and great grandfather when he passed a couple years back. He was and will always be the prime example of the man I judge myself against. I miss him a lot.

- Beans and Cornbread -

My parents met in college and were soon after married and the proud parent’s of a baby boy. My dad was serving in the navy when both I and then my sister, Erin, were born. After his tour of duty my parents moved to the property in Texas that was left to my mom and my uncle. Despite being crazy young, dirt poor, and perhaps in retrospect being wildly unprepared to raise a family, my parents managed to keep us fed and clothed and sheltered. Most importantly they instilled in us the values and morals I still hold dear. Treat others with kindness. Be grateful for what you have. Work hard, try your best, and never give up no matter what life throws at you. In some ways I’m grateful for my modest upbringing and the appreciation it gave me for the little things in life.

Even though my friends lived in nice suburbs while I lived in a run down ranch house, even though they had nintendos and nerf guns while I had cheap plastic toys, even though we ate on a shoe string budget and couldn’t go on fancy vacations, even through the emotional trauma of it all, I still look back on my childhood fondly. I am eternally grateful for those years. Wandering around the pasture. Erin and I letting our imaginations run wild. Going to cub scouts every week. Making our own fun roaming around the church after hours while our mom was there to do whatever she was there to do. My parents scraping every penny to make holidays and birthdays special. I wouldn’t trade all the dinners of beans and cornbread for anything else. I’ll always be a humble country boy at heart.

- Misty Mountain Hop -

Three months after my 11th birthday we packed up the house, loaded the moving truck, and drove half way across the country to start a new life in Washington. My dad had been unemployed for a while and ended up finding a job with the boy scouts in Everett. It would give our family a modicum of economic security and put us closer to my dad’s family in Oregon. It was a jolting transition to say the least. Shortly after we moved puberty hit like a ton of bricks. My early childhood was firmly left in Texas and my teenage years made their angsty debut in Washington.

We moved into a quiet suburb 30 minutes north of Seattle and for the first time our family had a level of comfort we had never had. We could afford name brand cereal! But simultaneously my father’s anger issues were coming to a boiling point. Also my sister and I were diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. It was a very tumultuous time. My defense mechanism was to retreat, and I became terribly introverted and detached, retreating into music and video games. My sister went the opposite direction and became a loud, boisterous spit-fire, finding herself at home in the world of theater. I think we both already had the predilections for these respective personality traits, but the dissonance in the family only exaggerated them.

After a few years we moved into another house around the block. It was around this time that my father’s temper finally became too much and he started seeking help to work through some things. It took some time but I can’t stress enough how much of a different person he was after that. Night and day. I was in high school at this point and it was also around this time that I started to become disillusioned with the status quo of society. The modern school system seemed pointless, I started smoking weed, and music became the end all be all of my existence. It still is. Music is life! I dropped out of high school and decided to live the life I wanted to live.

Throughout my teenage years I played in different bands, experimented with all kinds of drugs, met and broke up with my first true love, entered the work force, and started the slow painful transition from adolescence to adulthood. It was a wild time! While part of me wishes I had stuck out high school, I have never regretted the choices I made. I saw that so much of the reality around me was a construct of our culture and I sought to push the boundaries of that reality. And I’m glad I did. I learned lessons the hard way, on my terms. I saw past so many lies and illusions and fallacies of how we’re expected to live our lives and perceive the world. I created my own world of truths and morals instead of blindly accepting the ones being pushed on me. It was an incredibly eye-opening and freeing time in my life and I credit those experiences for a lot of the wisdom and knowledge that I’ve absorbed.

*Disclaimer: I am grateful that I came out of that time in my life relatively unscathed. I know/knew many people that couldn’t claim themselves so lucky. It takes an incredibly strong will to toe the line and step back without going over the edge. Even though I wouldn’t change a moment of it, I wouldn’t recommend the life I led to anyone.

- Retreat and Rebirth -

After the last band I was in during those days broke up, our collective friend groups started to dissipate. As the realities of adult life started to pull from different directions most people rose to the occasion. I did not. Burnt out from the crazy ride and being overwhelmed by life I retreated to a world of isolation. A little solitude is healthy. I consider myself an outgoing introvert (A term a like a lot). But I took it too far. Unemployed for three years. Letting many friendships dwindle and slip away. Spending my days doing nothing but smoking weed and playing video games. It was unhealthy and I didn’t know how to change. Then the universe decided it was time. Just after my 22nd birthday I finally cut ties with a very close but deceptively toxic friend. After smoking half a pack a day since I was 16 I decided to quit. And I decided to take a break from smoking weed. Then to top it all off my childhood dog that I had had for 14 years died. To this day that remains the most transformational time in my life.

I spent that spring and summer reconnecting with myself and what was important in life. Taking care of my diabetes. Eating healthier. Gardening. I leaned into making mixtapes like never before. It is still my main hobby. Musica es vida! I had what I can only describe as a spiritual awaking. Come fall I was smoking weed again but with a renewed respect for the plant. I had a job doing something I had unexpectedly developed a passion for, cooking. And I found myself coming out of my social isolation. It was like I ended a three year hiatus from the world. I still think of my life in terms of before that time and after.

Then three years after I hit the reset button on life I was ready for another change. I was 25 and the inexorable march of time wasn’t stopping. So I finally moved out of my parent’s house. No shame! Science says that adolescence in modern humans lasts into our early twenties. And I was definitely still weening out of my teenage years at that age and was lucky to have such amazing supportive parents. It wasn’t until 24/25 that the existential dread of life started to set in and I thought, shit I gotta get outta here. December 2012, the apocalypse didn’t happen, and I moved in with my sister in downtown Seattle. She herself had spent the last few years overcoming her own traumas and wrestling with her own demons, and she helped me step even further outside my comfort zone into the greater world. I am so grateful for the two years we got to live together as fledgling adults.

- She Saved Me -

Just shy of a year living among the sights and sounds of the city, I found myself falling into a dangerous rut. I had been at the same job for three years. Commuting between the suburbs and downtown. Six years since my last relationship. Not much of a social life. And finding escape from the dull routine at the bottom of a bottle. Get up. Go to work. Come home. Get drunk and high and play video games or watch tv. Rinse, repeat. I suddenly found myself back where I was. And again I didn’t know how to break the cycle. Then I met the one person that would change my life in ways I never could have expected. The one person that would rock my world, wake me up to the true possibilities of existence, and become the one person that I could truly never live without.

One fall day I walk into work to see a new face. Olivia was her name. Damn she’s cute, I thought. And I quickly became enamored with her personality. But it would take 6 months of quietly pining for her before I had the courage to try my hand. Then on a fateful day in May we spent a whole day together. Then a whole week together. Then the summer that would change my life forever. We fell madly in love. I stopped drinking like a horse. My heart was opened to another for the first time in many many years. My mind was awakened by a mind I so closely related to. My body was refreshed by the passion I had been so long without. It was another rebirth of the soul, the kind that shook me to my very core. I had almost resigned myself to being alone forever, working a dead end job and drinking the nights away. Then she saved me. She remains my best friend, my rock, and my favorite person in the whole world.

- My Place -

Invigorated and encouraged, I found a new job. A slight step up in the culinary sense. Challenging yet rewarding. Olivia moved in with us. Then a few months later we got our own place in north Seattle. Shortly after we got a pupper. It was an incredible time. Feeling truly independent and self-supportive for the first time. Developing an amazing relationship with the person that I quickly realized I could spent the rest of my life with. This was the first time in my life I could attest to feeling the slightest bit like an adult. Of course I had realized long ago that you never really feel like an adult. You don’t just wake up one day like a switch was flipped and go, oh I’ve got it now. Life is a constant journey of growth and learning. We’re all just faking it till we make it.

But this was the first time in my life where I felt like, ah okay this is it, this is life, this is being an adult. Waking up every day, doing your best to navigate life, and constantly trying to figure out what it means to be you, what's important to you. Then life set up to deliver another wave of challenges to overcome. It was around this time that my family experienced a huge upheaval. We almost lost someone very close to us and it rattled me to my core. Then my boss was involved in a car accident and as his assistant I was suddenly interim kitchen manager. A couple months later the owner was impressed enough to make it official and I toke my first salaried job.

I relished the opportunity and strove to run that kitchen the absolute best I could. I went above and beyond. I poured everything I had into it. I learned so much about the restaurant game, management, cooking, and above all about myself. It was an intense period of personal growth. At the same I was coming into my own as a leader and a cook, I was also dealing with multiple family tragedies. And as much as I loved the work, the restaurant, and the owners, the stress of the job started taking its toll. Salary is a double edged sword in any industry, but especially in food service. If you know you know. I was doing my best to soldier on but I got to a point where enough was enough. I had come into some money and decided to take some time off. I left on good terms and will never forget the lessons I learned and the people I met.

- Intermission -

I had just turned 30. I had spent the last two years running myself ragged as the kitchen manager of a bustling Seattle restaurant. I put my blood, sweat and tears into that place. It was time for a break. I invested most of the money I inherited, and then set enough aside to to take some time to live life again. I rested. I remembered how to not be anxious every waking moment. Olivia and I went on a cross country road trip to see the national parks and visit my home town in Texas. I proposed. She said yes! It was so incredibly cathartic and needed. I am still grateful I had the opportunity to take the time I needed to reset.

Later that year it was time to go back to work. I ended up back at the little place in the burbs where I started my journey. I was happy to take the lessons I learned and come back as kitchen manager. It was just what I needed to ease back into the industry. The perfect place to put into practice my new found appreciation for work life balance. Meant to be a temporary step, as soon as I did all I was able to do to help them right the ship, it was time to move on. My father in law put me in touch with the chef he worked with and he brought me on board. It was a significant step up in the culinary scene, and I’ve been tapped to take over for the sous chef.

- And Now For Something Completely Different -

Now here I am. 32 years old. That mythical age I held in random esteem when I was a kid. Looking back on my life and thinking about what I’ve learned along the way. Even though I still struggle with my less savory qualities - I fear change and the unknown. I’m scared of success. I suffer from impostor syndrome and doubt my own strengths. I avoid confrontation. - I’m working on it. For the most part I love who I am. I’m proud of the person I’ve become. But it took a time. And work. I made peace with childhood traumas. I fought through pain, did some serious introspection and soul-searching, and came out the other side a better person for it. I looked inside myself to find the strength to overcome my demons. I think it’s inside all of us. Some people attribute it to a higher power. Some people find peace and comfort in the company of others. Whatever it takes, we’re all capable of making changes for the better.

If there is one thing life has taught me it’s that we are never done learning. We never stop growing. We never “figure it out”. We’re constantly being tested by the realities of life and doing our best to rise to the occasion. At 32 I may be an adult by most standards, but I’m still sorting out what that even means, what my purpose in life is, and waking up every day just trying to be the best me I can be. That’s life. And I’m grateful for the safety and security that gives me the luxury of musing on such ephemeral topics. I’m grateful for every day I wake up and get another whack at this crazy thing called living. I’m grateful I got to exist at all. I don’t spend much time these days waxing on the countless possibilities of the what’s and why’s of reality. At the end of day it’s a mute point. My consciousness still inhabits this physical body in this physical realm, and if I wanna keep seeing how far I can take it I have to play by its rules. Even if I occasionally see how far I can bend them. Whatever comes next, whatever is beyond the great void, my reality exists in the here and now. I’ve come to terms (for the most part;) with my mortality and the existential dread. It reminds me that its up to myself to find purpose in life. So I try to live in the present, to work on my shortcomings, make the best of every day, and treat others how I would want to be treated.

As I stare down the barrel of the “best years” of my life, I am hopeful and optimistic about the future. If not for the world at large (jury’s still out on that one) than at least for my ability to navigate it and make the best of it for myself and others. I'm engaged to my best friend, I'm in a kick ass band making music with some of my oldest friends, and I've got a job that I'm incredibly excited about. Lao Tzu said, “If you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you are living in the future.” Wise words. But at the same time I think its important to remember where we came from and retain the lessons we’ve learned along the way. As well as looking to the future so that we may live with purpose. I think living is a delicate balance of keeping in mind all that was, all that is, and all that may be. And we’re all just doing our best to find the balance. Do whatever makes you happy as long as it doesn’t hurt others. Try to leave the world a better place for those that come after. Be nice and work hard. Love yourself so that you can love others. Namaste!

- Alek

TL;DR - I just turned 32. Life is crazy. Be nice and work hard. Love yourself and love others. Do your best. Namaste!

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thewritersafterglow · 2 years ago

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surefire ways to get motivated to write

Intro

hey y'all! i'm sure we all could use some writing motivation right now, as we're in the thick of nanowrimo, and at a pretty stressful time of the year (what with holidays, school, exams, etc). that's why i thought i would share some of the ways i like to motivate myself to write!

note: i know the title says "surefire", but that is kinda click-bait. technically, there's no one method that works for everyone. so if something on this list doesn't work for you... don't come for me <3

Having a Partner

my writing buddy (shoutout to caroll) is one of my favorite people in the world. while we haven't discussed writing too much recently, whenever i do talk to her about my projects, or her projects, it always gets me excited to write.

so, you don't necessarily have to have one writing buddy or critique partner, but having a person to talk to about your project can remind you why you love your work so much, and why you want to continue writing it!!

Watching Writing Videos

this. this right here is carrying me through nanowrimo. i've discovered my new favorite writing yt channel, "writing with ana neu". i love her channel so much, because she posts writing tips/tutorials and vlogs. the videos are super aesthetic but also productive, and definitely motivate me to actually start writing.

this is just one example of a content creator, i thought i should mention her because ana really has helped me so much, but there are loads other out there!

anyway, i would definitely recommend watching VIDEOS rather than scrolling through reels/shorts/tiktoks. those forms of media get extremely addicting and are seemingly-never ending. while it's possible to get addicted to clicking on new videos on yt, it's definitely harder than scrolling through one minute videos for hours on end.

Stalking People's Projects (THIS TITLE IS A JOKE!!)

before i get cancelled, i'm kidding, okay? i don't stalk people or anything. i'm just saying, sometimes, looking at the progress other people have made on their work helps me out! some of my favorite accounts have highlights about their projects, and clicking through them can really excite me to write!!

i especially like doing this with authors that are published + successful, because that can be even more motivating to someone who eventually wants to get published (like me lmao).

point is, this is very similar to the tip about previous watching videos. watching other people be productive and make progress, and/or achieve really amazing success, can help you want to do that too!!

Not Being Motivated

this title makes no sense, i know.

but sometimes, motivation just will not come - and that's okay! when you're feeling so burnt out that nothing will motivate you, this is where you have to work around it. if you think it's just laziness, you can try pushing through, and just forcing yourself to write. obviously, you can't write a novel without pushing yourself even a little bit.

however, if you are really exhausted and tired, from writing or from other external pressures, it is important to remember you don't always have to write. it is okay to take a day or two off, even during nanowrimo.

if this stresses you out further, you can try re-planning your schedule so that taking a day off doesn't change your end goal. for example, if you come home from school on monday and feel like sh*t, then tell yourself you can write an extra 1,000 words on friday to make up for it!

Outro

thanks for reading through this post! if you don't know me, i'm Rayne H. Olivia, the admin of this account and the founder of the writer's afterglow.

here on instagram/tumblr, i post daily writing content/advice, and i also have a podcast called "the writer's afterglow" (available on spotify, google podcasts, and my website in my bio!)

if you want to see more of my content + stay in touch, please consider following my account! if not, i understand, and hope you have a nice day :)

keep writing,

Rayne <3

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wantweightloss · 6 years ago

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8 week weight loss transformation - Healthista

New Post has been published on https://weightlossguideto.com/trending/8-week-weight-loss-transformation-healthista/

8 week weight loss transformation - Healthista

Healthista’s Vanessa Chalmers did an eight week weight loss transformation with Ben Camara at No1 Fitness to boost her confidence. She lost over stone and a staggering five inches around her waist and shares her results in the first of an eight-week diary

People always say to me, ‘you are so healthy’. But they never finish the sentence with ‘and fit, too!’ I enjoy exercise, but not nearly as much as food. Bored, fed up and disappointed with my lack of progress in the past three years of my fitness career (if you can call it that), I decided it was definitely time for a challenge. A much bigger one than the long list of them before.

Nothing was giving me ‘wow’ results. I needed help

It was the feeling of hitting a brick wall that first spurred me on to do something extreme. Or better defined, more advanced. I’ve rinsed home HIIT workouts, racking up miles of running or following the mind numbing ‘bikini body’ plans in the gym – all alone. Nothing was giving me ‘wow’ results. I needed help.

I set my eyes upon one of London’s top personal trainers, Ben Camara. Interviewing him for Healthista’s Celebrity Trainer Secrets feature, I was gobsmacked at a transformation (below), which landed him with a Men’s Health Champion Trainer Award.

Ben Camara’s Men’s Health Transformation with Sam Pridham

Turns out his gym, No1 Fitness, specialises in body transformations and getting you to ‘look good naked’, which certainly sounds appealing. Not only is Ben a PT, but a health coach – kinda like an upgrade. His job is to oversee a whole lifestyle and put strategies in place to improve things like sleep and stress, an approach that makes No1 Fitness unique. It also meant replying to my moany ‘I want mince pies and a large glass of wine, now’ texts with words of encouragement, a daily occurence.

Myself and Ben Camara, health coach and the founder of No1 Fitness

This made all the difference and, eight extremely tough weeks later, the results were worth all the sacrifices. Over the next few weeks, I will be sharing my diary every Tuesday with you including exactly what I ate, got told off for eating and my workouts (not to mention my tantrums and low points).

Skip to read day one of my weight loss transformation here. For now, here are my results in numbers:

Before After Loss Weight 65.7kg/10.3stone 58.8kg/9.2stone 6.9kg/15lbs Body fat percentage 25.1% 19.7% 5.4% Body fat mass 16.5kg 11.6kg 4.9kg Hip 102.5cm/40.3inch 96.2cm/37.8inch 6.3cm/2.5inch Waist below belly button 91cm/35.8inch 77.3cm/30.4inch 13.7cm/5.3inch Umbilicus (belly fat) 33mm* 16.2mm* 16.8mm* Tricep (back of the arm fat) 32.2mm* 19.8mm* 12.4mm*

*mm = millimetres. Umbilical and tricep readings are taken using a caliper to pinch the skin folds.

Body weight graph using Boditrax scanning

After: My body fat was towards thin/muscular

It wasn’t a completely smooth ride – in week 5 I was still self-doubting my abilities, having treats and prodding my chub in front of the mirror. Normally, at this point, I would give up. Persistence paid off. My clothes started to hang loose, and I was digging out old skirts I had hoped to fit in again. People began complimenting a slimmer face and asking, ‘what workouts are you doing?’ With fresh motivation, I smashed the last three weeks with sheer determination – if I say so myself. To my surprise, I lost over a stone and reached under 20 per cent body fat, and I gained self belief.

Why I did the weight loss transformation

Admittedly, the sexy-hot-bod wasn’t the top of my agenda. After losing 12lbs on the Healthista Lean Energy Programme at the beginning of the year (something that actually worked in which I lost 12 pounds), it had been a summer of pure chill. Beer gardens, boozy BBQs and holidays. It wasn’t just my gym attendance that plummeted, but my mental health, too.

I wallowed in self-pity. It was a vicious cycle

Although my jeans became snugger, my weight was the last thing I cared about. Clearly – because I continued to make misguided choices, like bingeing on thousands of calories at 3am after a ‘de-stress’ drinking sesh. This also made my eczema the worst it had been since I was a child. I scratched, ate and wallowed in self-pity. It was a vicious cycle.

In a rut, my lowest point came one morning when I had forced myself to get up and go the gym. I was trying helplessly to fight back tears through the burpees (enough to make you cry anyway, if you ask me). After ten minutes on the gym floor I ran to the changing rooms and cried for an hour. Desperate for change, to boost my confidence and outlook on life, I soon got in contact with No1 Fitness.

What is involved in a weight loss transformation?

Blood, sweat and tears. Just kidding, sort of. But what became apparent in my first chat with Ben, was that compared to normal weight loss journeys, there was no room for ‘treats’ or days off in the eight weeks. (But typical me, I did sneak in a few here and there, sometimes, with big consequences). Instead, it was consistency, sacrifices and sheer determination from day one. And that was just the mental test.

A post shared by Vanessa (@vanessa_chalmers) on Nov 15, 2017 at 5:12am PST

For the diet, I was on a calorie deficit – just that word makes my toes curl – (see below for details). I was also intermittent fasting, a popular weight loss method which means not eating for 15-16 hours a day (8 of which I was sleeping). The weekend before my transformation I had a binge on (most) of the things I wouldn’t be allowed – alcohol, sugar, white processed carbs like pasta and bread, ‘anything out of a packet’, did I mention all things yummy?

From there on, every meal focused on protein first. This helps with muscle recovery, but most of all it helps with the feeling of being full. I had Healthista Lean Vegan protein powder in my breakfast smoothie (raspberries, kefir milk and spinach) every day, which has ingredients scientifically proven to keep appetite at bay and encourage fat loss – inulin, glutamine, konjac root and matcha green tea. It also tastes delicious – I can’t decide between vanilla and chocolate so I alternated the two. It really worked to keep me full between meals more than any other breakfasts I have had – even, when I experimented with having other alternative breakfasts, I always felt hungrier than I would after I’d had our protein )I know I am bias, but it’s true). An example of lunch would be a green leafy salad with spicy chicken and quinoa, and dinner a fillet of salmon with sweet potato and, you guessed it, more veg!

I really felt part of the #fitfam club hitting the gym 5-6 days a week getting up at 5.45am each day, with a mix of one hour PT sessions with Ben and half hour No1 Fitness Slots (these were circuit classes at either studio). I was doing high intensity sessions – lifting weights in circuits, heavier and heavier as the weeks went on, with short cardio intervals. Always full body, because apparently, split training (doing arms one day, and legs the next) is for a body-builder look. There wasn’t a burpee in sight, hallelujah. Instead, top-notch equipment such as the prowler sled, a cage-like apparatus that you push across the floor, ViPR, a weighted tube, TRX bands, ropes with handles that hang from the ceiling and only use bodyweight exercises, and the Skillmill, a more advanced version of a running machine. I look forward to telling you much more about these in my detailed diary entries in the next few weeks.

How to lose weight in the new year

Hands up if you are on the ‘new year, new me’ wagon. There is no shame in wanting to lose weight in the new year with fresh motivation. For optimum results, Ben shares his do’s and don’ts of weight loss.

Have a goal: People stay on track much more when they have an end date such as a wedding or a holiday, knowing they must sacrifice until that time at least. Don’t just do a ‘detox’ in the first week of January. Set a proper plan in place till the end of March at least.

Give it time: Substantial change can take anything from 8-12 weeks. If you aren’t seeing any difference after three weeks, it means your calories aren’t right or you aren’t recovering enough. You will also slip up at times, but don’t let it stop you. Don’t think that having a chocolate bar has ruined your whole day – you can still make good choices moving forward.

Train at least three times a week: Put sessions in your diary at the beginning of the week and commit to it like an appointment.

A post shared by Vanessa (@vanessa_chalmers) on Nov 18, 2017 at 2:22am PST

Create a calorie deficit: Work out what your baseline calories (what you need to survive) are by using the Harris Benedict equation. This is called your BMR (basic metabolic rate). Then create a deficit of 10 per cent to start which will work alongside calories burnt during exercise. If you are seeing no results (and definitely not lying to yourself), lower the deficit more. It’s a rough guide. I started my transformation on 1650 calories a day, but this was lowered to 1500 in week two when results were slow, and then 1350 when my BMR would have decreased.

If you’re serious, get a personal trainer: The benefit of a PT is someone to push you in your sessions and hold you accountable. They will make sure you are exercising correctly with the best form and rest time, which will make a big difference. When you’re trying to find a good PT, interview them. Tell them exactly what you want – whether that be to be fitter, healthier or stronger – and ask them if they are able to do that and show you results from work with previous clients. With some PTs, you’re just paying someone to make you sweaty for an hour. You have to tell them you want more guidance.

Learn the correct form: Even if you have a one of session with a PT, correcting your form will achieve maximum muscle activation and prevent injury or worthless workouts. Throughout the next eight weeks, we shall show you how to correctly perform several exercises. You can also find Healthista’s Move of the Day playlist on YouTube.

Rest, rest, rest: Some people are shocked to hear ‘don’t train’. But it’s a huge part of getting results. The body transforms whilst you are sleeping, and so not getting enough will not only hinder your weight loss, but make you knackered and underperforming in your gym sessions. To get the best results, you need to have eight hours sleep a night and making sure they have at least one full day off training a week.

Keep a food diary: For the first two weeks, at least. This will educate you on your eating habits, portion size and how calorific, or not, your foods are if you use an app like MyFitnessPal. After two weeks, if you are still needing help, seek a coach. They will be able to show you how you can tweak things to suit your needs.

I kept track of my food with MyFitnessPal

Weigh yourself: Some say ‘screw the scales’. But you need to weigh yourself once a week for a time period, to see your progress. It’s easy to say ‘weighing yourself will mess with your head’. But so will looking in the mirror and not seeing any change. If your goal is to lose body fat, it may be better to take photo or measurements. Understand your weight will fluctuate naturally, especially if you are a female. Do it the same time every day, in the same clothes.

Work on time under tension: On linear movements, things like lunges, squats, deadlifts, push ups, or anything in a straight line that pushes or pulls, focus on the eccentric phase, that means the ‘going down’ phase. If you are squatting, make sure you are going down for four seconds, and up for one. This is called time under tension, and recruits all the muscles. Incorporate multidirectional moves, such as curtsy squat into lateral lunge, tranverse lunge or lunge matrix, for your tissue health and to help with toning.

DON’T

Have alcohol: It’s worth bearing in mind alcohol isn’t great not only because of the calories, but the after-effect on the body. The body wants to remove it straight away as it is poison, so it comes out in our pores, hence why breathalysers are possible. The day after drinking, the person is no doubt inactive and overeat foods that are really calorific. Look at the type of alcohol you are having – mojitos are full of sugar. Try neat vodka!

Go mad on treats: A given. But, if you do want to have a treat such as a few drinks on a Saturday night, just make sure you are super strict on yourself for the week leading up to it. This will make room for a little time off track.

Have ‘cheat days’: People go mad thinking they only have 24 hours to eat as much as they can. You can mess up a whole weeks work. If you decide you can’t sacrifice traditions or adjust your way of living, such as a takeaway on a Friday night, you can still lose weight, but you won’t get an extreme transformation with an aesthetic look. I wasn’t even allowed a cheat meal (though I did have them, stay tuned).

Remove a macronutrient: Don’t go low carb or low fat for weight loss because you always need a balanced diet to perform mentally. Don’t forget this needs to be consistent, so you don’t want to fall into a trap of crashing and binging. If you must, only lower the quantity of a macronutrient.

Try a fad diet: Just eat natural, healthy and unprocessed foods. There are a lot of fad diets in the media, including the alkaline diet, Hollywood, juice diets or low carb.

Don’t do HIIT every day: HIIT exercise is great for weight loss and everybody’s workout plan will be different depending on their goals. But factor HIIT into your whole programme, as opposed to just doing that every day. Strength training should be the corner stone of a programme, with other protocols fitting in accordingly. HIIT can stress the body if done too much and it’s important to rest and recover properly during and after sessions. What people don’t understand is it should be interval training, meaning if you work to your max for 20 seconds doing jump squats, you are supposed to wait until your heart rate comes back down.

An outline of a basic programme by week would look a bit like this: 3 X strength training, 2 X HIIT, 2 X cardio as a possible extra with strength training.

READ WEEK ONE OF VANESSA’S 8-WEEK TRANSFORMATION HERE… And come back every week to read her week by week diary with Ben Camara at No1 Fitness, with tips and advice from the experts.

Ben Camara has worked with some of the most famous faces in the world with training and health coaching clients including Madonna, Kate Moss and Vogue photographers Mert & Marcus. Having carved out a career in professional football, Ben Camara wanted his next career step to allow him to continue working in the field that he was passionate about, that of health, fitness and nutrition. He and Harry Thomas co-founded No1 Fitness seven years ago, offering bespoke personal training in two locations in London.

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8 week weight loss transformation

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