Austin

I almost feel embarrassed to say this, but I feel as if I'm slowly morphing into one of *those* Austinites. You know, the kind that listen to singer songwriters, walk around Town Lake, eating Whole Foods types of guys.

It's weird, I used to have this weird, completely irrational, aversion to Austin and the people who live here. I used to sit back in Houston, Dallas, and Denton and scoff at all of those people in Austin who, oh I don't know, actually cared enough about their bodies to work out and eat healthy foods. I mean, come on, this is Texas, we have more tasty food per square mile than any other place on the planet.

Yet, as I watched my belly grow and grow, I realized that something needed to be done about the way I ate and exercised, which consisted of nothing more than pushing the buttons on the remote control. Anya and I have always done really well with our eating habits. We eat LOTS of whole grained foods and have essentially cut weekly trips to Chuys out of our portfolio.

But as of recently, I feel that we've taken our healthy eating to a new level. We have essentially cut processed foods out of our diets, which is actually easier than it sounds. We have eaten a lot of fresh caught Salmon, none of that Mercury and color dye for us, thank you. We eat lots of Turkey and Chicken breasts. And instead of getting a Sundae at Amy's, I usually prefer to get a tasty Strawberry Smoothie instead.

Oh don't you worry, I'm still allotting a guilty eating experience every now and again. God knows that I LOVE my Tex-Mex almost as much as breathing. This new healthy eating has made me realize that stuff like Tex-Mex tastes better when you're eating it less often. It becomes a treat and something special, instead of daily sustenance. But for now, I'm really enjoying this healthy eating thing. I can feel the difference in my skin, bones, and muscles.

Muscles, which I must add, I've been working on with a new membership to Lance Armstrong owned 24 Hour Fitness. Anya and I have had the gym memberships since last Thursday, and have been almost everyday (Saturday) since. I must say that it feels absolutely great to be working out again.

I realized that if I were to ever get back into shape, it would have to be through a gym membership. It's one of those, I'm paying for it so I want to get my money's worth, types of things. Maybe someday when I'm fully back in shape, I'll try and switch to the running around Town-Lake mode of fitness, but for now, this works just fine.

And let me tell you, there are pictures of Lance Armstrong EVERYWHERE!!! The gym is practically a shrine to Lance Armstrong. I'm not being snarky here. I think it's a truly great thing. I mean, it's great to have Lance stare you down as you contemplate half-assing your work out.

"Oh, I don't feel up to giving my all today. What's that you say? You had brain and testicular cancer??? And you came back to win SEVEN CONSECUTIVE TOUR DE FRANCE CHAMPIONSHIPS??? Oh, okay, I'll give it my all today."

Going back to that Austin thing, it's no surprise that Lance won as many as he did. This place is basically just a series of hills, on which the streets are literally crowded with thousands of daily bicycle riders.

I'm sans bike at the moment, but will remedy this once I am employed. You see, part of me selling out and becoming a true Austinite involves me attempting to use my car less and less, for both environmental and financial reasons. So I hope to work a job which is close enough to ride my bike to.

So yeah, I'm not fully there, but am well on my way to becoming just another typical Austinite. You can scoff if you want.

peace and love