I was looking for a few patriotic quotes for the 4th of July, and I especially liked these:

In the truest sense, freedom cannot be bestowed; it must be achieved. –Franklin D. Roosevelt

Freedom is nothing but a chance to be better. –Albert Camus

We must be free not because we claim freedom, but because we practice it. –William Faulkner

Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must [...] undergo the fatigue of supporting it. –Thomas Paine

Liberty means responsibility. That is why most men dread it. –George Bernard Shaw

These are obviously perfect for Independence Day, but I think they can also inspire you every day, year-round. Just think of “freedom” in terms of “freedom from regrets” or “freedom to be your best”, and maybe these quotes will motivate you towards a healthy, active lifestyle.

• The Ultimate Kauai Guidebook by Andrew Doughty – My sister and I bought Maui Revealed for our Maui Half-Marathon trip, and these are simply superior guidebooks. Friendly, funny, up-to-date, and the ONO restaurant ratings won’t let you down.
• The Kauai Marathon & Half-Marathon – A well-organized race, with very pretty scenery. This was the inaugural year, so I’m looking forward to seeing it grow. The elevation for the half was fairly sane (800 feet uphill, then 800 feet downhill), but the marathon route looked more brutal. Hardest part for me was the summer training and the humidity. Also, I really like the logo! It’s an island, a flower, and a runner! Goodies included technical tee and aluminum water bottle. And there was a great shirt with a chicken crossing sign.
• Postcard Shot #1: Kilauea Lighthouse – You can’t take a bad photo there.
• Postcard Shot #2: Waimea Canyon Lookout – Breathtaking. Again, any photos you take are going to be amazing.
• Waiohai Mariott – 2nd time staying here, and I like the big suites with private, roomy bedrooms, air conditioning that works, WIFI, full kitchen, and washer/dryer. Shower heads kinda sucked, but oh well. Cell phone reception in the room sucked, too, but… I kinda enjoyed that.
• Garden Isle Inn – Not a fancy resort or anything, but we stayed here for one night, and it really was nice! Near the airport, clean room, air conditioning, and free WIFI… works for me!
• Puka Dogs – Nom! And happy, friendly service!
• Grove Farm Homestead Museum – Low-key but interesting guided tour about Kauai/Hawaii history.
• Grass-Fed Beef – Dad grilled up some super yummy hamburgers. It seems beef grown on the island is mostly grass-fed.
• Always Awesome: snorkeling at Poipu Beach, doing nothing to island time, the color of the water, reading all the road signs out loud, sushi, Kona coffee, macadamia nut ice cream, and honey roasted macadamia nuts.

I’ll post photos on Facebook! http://facebook.com/cparkburke

RULES: Once you’ve been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it’s because I want to know more about you.

(To do this, go to “notes” under tabs (+) on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.)

1. I’m always delighted to have a cup of coffee with you.
2. I show up to parties with Pictionary and Taboo.
3. I crave good storytelling. Right now, I’m hooked on Lost and Neil Gaiman.
4. If someone asked me to join an 80s cover band, I’d BE THERE.
5. My personal web site from the 90s is still up: http://he.net/~jabrwock/
6. I’m “nerd Asian”… as opposed to “hot Asian”. This is disappointing, no matter how secure I try to be about it.
7. To distract people from the un-hot nerdness, I pose as “island Asian,” even though I’ve only surfed 3 times. And only with that big foam board that newbies use.
8. Hawaii is my favorite place to visit.
9. San Diego is my favorite place to live.
10. Watching the sunrise and sunset at the beach always puts everything into perspective for me.
11. I like long distance running and heavy lifting and boxing. I think I like feeling beat up.
12. I fenced for the UCLA Men’s Sabre team.
13. I love taking classes. I’ll take just about any class as long as the instructor is good.
14. Kirk might be fun for a few drinks, but I’m a Picard girl.
15. I like songs that break my heart.
16. My patronus is a dragon.
17. A lot of “healthy” foods (whole wheat, sprouts, nonfat milk) give me gas or rashes.
18. I avoid yoga and meditation classes because the chanting makes me giggle, and it’s probably negative karma to piss off a yogi.
19. I’m pretty good with dogs, cats, and horses. Not so good with fish and plants.
20. I miss my cat. I had her since junior high, and she was a week shy of 23 years old when we had to let her go.
21. My two best friends are my husband and my sister.
22. I like working non-stop. But I like being married more.
23. My husband and I use to be engineers. Now we’re a airline pilot and a personal trainer. Notice how much sexier that sounds.
24. I’m a naturalized US citizen, and I truly love being American.
25. I like feeling loved, and I hope I make you feel loved.

Glad to hear that playing all those computer games weren’t a complete waste of time!

Today, I’m pleased to launch my branding: LightHeartedFitness.com

And my new tagline: A light heart lives long.

This line is actually an old Irish saying, as well as a quote from Shakespeare’s Love’s Labor’s Lost (Act 5, Scene 2, Line 18). I like that the words light and heart have so many meanings and connotations relevant to health and fitness. And I like that the words light-hearted lets people know that I think laughter and humor are important to their well-being.

Finally, while I will always advocate the importance of health and fitness, I also like the reminder to not take myself so seriously.

Last night Arizona State beat UCLA 34-9. Sun Devils scored four defensive touchdowns, which means 28 of their 34 points can be pretty much credited to Bruin offense.

In case you don’t know, this is fairly indicative of the whole Bruin season this year. Every week, I hear my die-hard-Bruin-sports-fans family moaning about how bad Kevin Craft, the UCLA quarterback, is. “AAAAH! What was that??? WHO is he throwing that to???” These sentiments are verbalized… oh… at least 3 or 4 times a game now.

I don’t really follow sports, so I had to ask, “Why do they keep sending that poor kid out there? Doesn’t he get beat up going to class or anything?” It turns out that Craft is the 3rd string QB, but the 1st and 2nd strings are all out for one reason or another, and my sister glumly reports that the coaches say that he’s still the best one on the team. “Wow,” I keep saying. “The best one! Really! Wow.”

Anyways. I MUST give this to Craft… they keep sending him out, and he still gets out there! I am told that he doesn’t whine, and every news article I’ve read about him says he has great attitude and sincerely does his best.

Now, isn’t this true… that sometimes, you find yourself in situations that are tougher than you anticipated, and somehow, you gotta get through it, one day at a time, one throw at a time. And everything might still suck no matter what you try, and your teammates might drop the ball the times you make a great throws, and your bosses tell you to get back out there even though you know a whole lotta people would be happy if you just quit.

Well, I’m feeling there’s a lot of that right now. And I have a lot of respect for the people who are not whining and not giving up, despite everything that sucks.

So… here’s to you, Kevin. Good luck on your next game. You’ve got at least one Bruin fan.

Today, I want to congratulate my friend Pam, who finished her first 5K at the Oceanside Turkey Trot! See? Wasn’t bad at all!

(I’m sure she’ll start speaking to me again soon.)

I also want to acknowledge my sister, who crawled out of bed early and drove through sheets of rain to run the race with me.

(She eventually conceded she had fun, too. After we stopped running, of course.)

My folks are in town, and I’m looking forward to stuffing and pie and playing Guitar Hero with my cousins. Oh sure, times are a little rough right now, but it makes it that much easier to be thankful for all the things that are good.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!