Ain't Nobody Got Time...to Blog

Ladies and Gentlemen, 

We would like to formally apologize for the lack of a post these past two weeks. Life, as you know if you follow us on "The Book", has been quite exciting as of late. With a circus class, a trip to Las Vegas, and a surprise 30th birthday party, finding time to blog has been difficult. Complicating matters even further is the fact that I have put off correcting over 60 argument essays until this very moment (this is my way of avoiding those papers for another five minutes...) and Kate is deep in the Twitter-verse following all of the pre-Oscar red carpet hoopla. We will be making a valiant effort to get our words to the people this week. Be patient. Good things come to those who wait!

Sunshine and cake to you all, 

 
Krystal & Kate 

Plank Champion

Krystal: I am overjoyed to announce that 9 Marshall is now the home of a plank-off champion. That’s right folks, I said CHAMPION! For five grueling minutes, one of us planked her way to fame- and a free t-shirt.  Sweat dripping from all pores, muscles fatigued, determination high…

Kate: Wait a minute - Were you even there?

Krystal:...Okay, so I am doing that thing that I do when I tell a story that you told me, and I make it seem like I was there and I know how it went. You know how much you love when I do that!

Anyways, as I was saying: The room was hot and sweaty after nearly an hour of bootcamp feats of strength, and men and women alike were laid out in rows to compete in the most recent plank-off at Jeremy’s Bootcamp. As each competitor slowly dropped to floor in defeat, one woman would remain strong. And that, my friends, was Kate Letendre!

Kate: First of all, this is why Krystal would be a great social media specialist or PR person. Maybe I should hire her to rewrite my Match.com profile.

But really, it was true to say that sweat was dripping, muscles were fatigued, and determination was high. I can be quite competitive at times. I think that comes from my sports days.

Krystal: It doesn’t hurt that the shirt is sick. It’s a V-neck women’s cut!

Kate: The shirt was a nice extra incentive, but I was more focused on being the last one standing. I practice planking a lot, so I knew I would be a contender.

Krystal: I, on the other hand, started crying a little today when Kate made me hold a plank for a minute at the end of my third Body by Kate session.

Kate: Surprisingly, neither of the four men there were in the final three. It was me and two other women, and they were focused.

Krystal: Who runs the world? Girls!

Kate: When the four and a half mark hit, I figured I had another minute before the fatigue would get to me, but fortunately, I didn’t have to wait that long. At the announcement of 5 minutes, the woman next to me (the former plank-off winner) dropped to the ground.

Krystal: You should have seen how amped up she was when she finally arrived at Siam Orchid for dinner.

Kate: Yes, I was pretty pumped about the contest, but I think I was equally as excited at that point to devour some Pad Thai. The only thing better than a good workout is eating good food afterwards.

And I’d like to add that Krystal’s plank is noticeably improving. So though she may have made some crying-like noises today, she did better than the last time. Before you know it, we will be having regular plank-offs at 9 Marshall.

Krystal: And we leave you with that image. Happy Snow Day everyone!

PS. I actually want to leave you with the secret message I found in the wall at Bagel Works today. 

Booty by Krystal- Body by Kate

Krystal: I may have mentioned in a previous post that I am seriously, gravely concerned with the size of my Veg-a$$. Or I guess, to be more accurate, the size of my PRE- Veg-a$$. I have had numerous comments throughout the years about the junk in my trunk (cue “I Got it From My Mama” by Will.I.Am.). A friend’s husband, Cliffy-doodle, calls me his “booty girl”; a fellow Zumba chick once said to me, “For someone with such a small frame, you have a huge ass.” Well, how’s that for honesty?! And at our most recent MVMS holiday party, a co-worker told me black men must love me...so yeah- it’s a thing.

While it’s fun and all- all this attention, I suppose I do want to get into fighting shape. All the Zumba-ing just ain’t toning it; I need a SERIOUS muscle building plan, and THAT is where Kate comes in.  

Kate: Exercise has always been an essential part of my life. Being an athlete growing up, I developed a love for being physically active. Once I was no longer involved in competitive sports, I explored other fitness avenues and came to find out that I really do love anything that involves an increased heart rate and sweat (for those of you who have worked out with me, you know that there is usually A LOT of sweat. I am my father’s daughter). Working out for me is not a chore or an obligation; it is part of my lifestyle. I can honestly say that it is my favorite way to spend my time outside of work. It is often what gets me through difficult days.

Running has taken the forefront of my exercise routine in the past couple of years, but this winter I was feeling I needed something else to break up the monotony, especially considering it is difficult to get outside in the Polar Vortex and all. Plus, I have a thing against running on the treadmill. It just isn’t the same. So I went to a bootcamp class I had been eyeing for some time. I already knew that I loved the bootcamp model since I had had some exposure to several classes previously. After my first day at Jeremy’s Bootcamp, I was hooked.

Krystal: A note on running: those Letendres are relentless. They are serious about their training, dedicated to the sport, and they are persuasive! As anyone who knows me can attest, I think the farthest I had ever run prior to my Letendre years was from my couch to the fridge… no joke. But alas, we are coming up on our 5th BAA 5K race, which gave me yet another reason to try to get into better shape. While I’ve managed to break 30 minutes once before, this year, I want to crush it.

Kate: Her “training” usually involves a one-time 20 minute outdoor session one week before the race in which she claims she will never be able to finish so she should just watch instead. This has happened every year for four years.

Krystal: True story. Just ask Art; he’s a big fan of my training methods.

While we couldn’t be more different in this area, I knew that if I just swallowed my pride and asked Kate for some help, I’d be in great hands. Her bootcamp attendance has seemed to inspire her in new ways, and while I knew sh*t would get real, I was curious to see what she could do with me.

Kate: One of my many dreams of the future involves being a fitness instructor, so I am always up for a good training session. It’s nice to be able to share what you know, but mostly, it’s awesome to help other people realize that they are capable of more than they know. Fitness is as much, if not more, about mental strength as it is physical.

Krystal: I only realized this after about...5 minutes under Kate’s training. When I whimpered, “I can’t.” I realized that the can’t was way more about my mind and way less about my body’s ability. Kate, encourage me, coached me, and reminded me that I am stronger than I believe I am. It sucked and I was super sweaty and my arms, legs, and other muscles I didn’t know I had were quaking like crazy...but I did it. Only a few mouth pukes and a single tear...

Kate: And some guttural noises once in awhile. But that is a good sign because it means work is being done.

Krystal: I’ve only survived two Body By Kate sessions thus far, but I already feel stronger- mentally as much as physically. I think that is a sign of a great trainer and a great friend. She didn’t let me quit even as I bitched and whined because she knows how important a smaller ass is to me.

Kate: Yes, that’s exactly why I did it. I’m committed to helping my friends make their dreams come true, whatever they may be, big or small.

That and I love exercise and a good playlist that sends subliminal messages (i.e., Power, Burn, Stronger, Take on Me). 

Krystal: Wait a minute…! I was tricked!

Sunday Riffing

Krystal: Today, on this dreary Sunday afternoon, we are running into what some might call, “bloggers’ block”. And by some, I mean me. As a result, we’re just riffing. Hope you all don’t mind terribly.

Kate mentioned to me today that she likes calling my classroom because she doesn't have to worry about accidentally dialing 911. She’s done this twice now this school year while trying to call colleagues with classrooms that start with "11". I would have liked for her to say that she enjoys calling my classroom because she likes to hear my beautiful voice. Not so, my friends. Not so.

Kate: The thought of having an ambulance and fire truck show up at the school simply because I was fumble-fingers who can’t remember to dial 6 and not 9 before a room extension has caused great anxiety in me every time I go to pick up the phone.

Krystal: I, however, would look forward to causing such a scene. I am hopeful that the first responders would be young, strong and handsome. But then, we are in Penacook...

Kate: I’ll be sure to tell our bosses that if it happens for a dreaded third time. They’re all so desperate to get us married off that I’m sure they’d support this type of mistake. I think I’ll just stick to my avoidance of calling any sixth grade rooms like I have been for now. Lucky you, that means you get to be the recipient of most of my out-going calls. (Also, how else would we figure out what we are making, I mean buying, for dinner??)

"Blobs on a Stick"

* * * * * * * * * *

Krystal: On a different note, we’ve both come to the disappointing realization that we are NEVER going to be professional painters. After last night’s dismal creations at my mom's 50th birthday party at Muse Paintbar, it might be time to accept that acrylics will never be our medium.

Kate: I like to think I’m optimistic about most things, but not on this one. I’m so bad, I’m pretty sure a toddler with any type of fine motor skill ability would make a fool of me.

Krystal: To be fair, we both consumed two glasses of wine…TWO! AND I had gotten up at 4:30 AM (as I like to call that, the middle of the night!!) on Friday to go to the gym and work on my Veg-a$$. By 7:00 PM on Saturday, I was absolutely wiped. I’d like to think that if sober and well rested, my painting would have been worth bragging about, but alas...the cards were stacked against me.

"Untitled" by Josh Smith, the MOMA

Kate: First of all, no sympathy on the 4:30 wake up. Welcome to my world 5 days a week. So now you can stop giving me a hard time about going to be at 9.

In regards to the wine, the hope was that it would bring out my creative side, the artist within, be uninhibited and all that. Instead, it just gave me poor judgement that resulted in the most awkward reeds anyone has ever seen. They just look like blobs on top of brown sticks. I don’t even think my students will be complimentary of this one.

Krystal: ...Although maybe there’s a place for our work in the MOMA.

Kate: Seriously. It may be due to my lack of taking an art history course, but since when is painting a canvas one color considered high art? That, I could have done yesterday. Next time, I might.

"Wine-y and Sleep Deprived"

* * * * * * * * * * 

Krystal: And because good things, or even mediocre things, come in threes…

Kate: I’m pretty sure it’s bad things that come in threes.

Krystal: Riiiiiight. So how about those motorpsyches?

Kate: Motorpsyches you ask? They are one of my least favorite things. Let’s explain:

Krystal: So, a motorpsych, for you curious cats, is when you’re cruising for a parking space, slow creeping down the street or around a parking lot and AHOY! Looky there! It's a spot! With joy in your heart you put your blinker on, slow to a turning speed, and…

Kate: Rejected. Not until you start making the turn do you see a motorcycle there, or a tiny vehicle, taking up an entire space. Angrily, you curse the motorcycle for wasting a space that rightly belongs to someone with a real vehicle, and you move on feeling fooled once again by a motorpscyh.

Krystal: RAT BASTARDS! There is nothing worse than a motorpsyche...except for maybe...you know, real problems.

Kate: Touché.


PS. We reached 1000 views this weekend! Thanks so much for keep up with the Kardash...I mean, us! 

Weird and Powerful

 Krystal: I found this random quote posted on “The Book” as I like to call Facebook. After exhaustive research, I was not able to determine the source. Whoever said it, though, was dead on.  This quippy quote resonated with me so much that I felt it necessary to text it to Kate one morning. We were in separate rooms of the apartment, so I could very well have walked my phone over to her; however, texting it seemed to make it more “special”.

Kate: And it is special because it is exactly how our friendship started six years ago... 

2008

Some of us from school were planning a get-together in Portsmouth for some dinner, drinks, and dancing (before the big baby-boom of MVMS happened). I was in the teachers’ room having lunch when Krystal came in to grab something from the refrigerator. I had really only had one prior conversation with her across the table at the “Wan” one ninth period.

Krystal: That’s Schezwan Gardens for all of you who aren’t hip to the lingo, and ninth period is code for drinking session after school on a Friday.  We used to go often to celebrate the success of making it through the arduous work week.

Kate: I remember thinking, this girl is funny and seems to have no filter. Though we seemed to have different personalities, I felt we had a lot in common too and had the potential to be friends, which led me to asking her if she wanted to join the Portsmouth gathering that day in the teachers’ room.

And the rest is history.

Krystal: Thank God she thought my lack of filter was amusing- not everyone agrees. At that time in my life I was living alone, had recently lost a bunch of weight but had not found my confidence, and had no social life to speak of. I walked into that lunch room and she invited me into her life at the exact moment that I needed a friend. It was kismet. And she was right, I am funny. But as I always tell her, she’s actually the “funny one”. I just seem funnier because I say the F-word a lot.

Kate: I’m not sure about that, I mean me being the funny one, not the F word comment; that is very true. (That’s the no filter part I was referring to earlier).

2014

Krystal: Kate and I have obviously become BFFLs (best friends for life as dubbed by our former Bagel Works barista, Nadia) over the years and have done a lot of “stuff” together. Last weekend, for example, while in Boston for our third Jay Z concert (That’s right; we’re teachers, we read self-help books, and we are down with the Jigga Man!), we went out to lunch with The Smiths. Andrew was supposed to meet us at the restaurant but was running late per usual. I thought Kate was annoyed by his tardiness because she was keeping hyper vigilant watch towards the door.

What I didn’t know was that she had a surprise planned that she was dying to share. Once he arrived, practically before he had even sat down, she whipped out a little flip book that contained a super clever post-it note message revealing that she and Andrew are taking me on a trip to Las Vegas for my upcoming 30th birthday. These are some seriously GREAT friends I have. Overwhelmed by their generosity, I had tears of joy in my eyes and had managed to sweat right through my sweater.

Kate: Good thing it’s a sweater.

Krystal: SEE! I always say she’s the funny one!

Kate: Not only do I want her 30th birthday to be a memorable one, but I’ve never been to Vegas and can’t wait to hit the strip and see the sights. I also made sure we come home on a Thursday so that I have 3 days to recover from what I’m imagining will be some long nights.

Krystal: And by long she means she is likely to stay up past 9:30...Gasp! She has been practicing her late nights lately, and I didn’t know why. Now it all makes sense! What I need to work on prior to the trip is my Veg-ass. I have been hitting the gym once a week in preparation! I’ve let myself get soft this winter, what with random Cone Heads from Friendly's and a dark chocolate Lindt ball after every dinner. My Veg-ass needs a major tune up. When I mentioned that I should probably go to the gym this morning, Kate’s response was, “Yes, you should.” Her support means the world to me.

Kate: Whenever it is a question between working out and not, I will ALWAYS say do it. There’s an open invitation to join me at boot camp…

Krystal: Hahahaha! I am not much of a tire flipper, but thanks.

Kate: This folks, is how and why we work.

Our friend and yoga goddess, Tina, recently wrote on a Selvesie™ (that’s a selfie taken by two people) of us that friendship is powerful. I couldn’t agree more.

Krystal: Ditto. Our friendship certainly is weird and powerful. I'm weird and you're powerful. You can give credit to those boot camp classes you've been attending lately.

Daring Greatly

With Brené Brown at the Massachusetts Conference for Women in Boston, 2012.

Krystal: Ladies and Gentlemen, we are so sorry about the delay of this post. We’ve been über busy this week, what with having actual jobs (a fact we had both conveniently forgotten during our 17 day hiatus) and spending this weekend in Boston dining (at Davio’s), wine-ing (still at Davio’s), and taking in a show (at the Boston Opera House). We saw Once, which was amazing (for two highly educated chicks, this is the one word we kept falling back on to describe dinner, the wine, AND the show. BUT according to a recent BuzzFeed, it’s one of many words we’re supposed to stop saying once we’re over 30-which I’m NOT...yet!)

Kate: And I am, but they can NOT make me stop saying it. Totes adorbs maybe, but not amazing.

Krystal: Well, the fact of the matter is the lead in Once WAS totes adorbs and the show WAS amazing! If you ever get the chance, go see it. You must.

This sage advice leads me to our next topic for contemplation: Self-help. (I’m currently picturing that Mike Myer’s SNL character, Linda Richman of Coffee Talk, “I’ll give you a topic...talk amongst yourselves.”)

Kate: I have a confession to make: I am a self-help junkie.

Being the Oprah-follower that I am, I finally felt the draw to read some of the books she touted on her talk show once I turned thirty (is a tri-life-crisis a thing?). I started out with Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now, and I am not exaggerating when I say it changed my life because it changed my way of thinking.

From then, I was hooked, and my love for self-help reading began.

Krystal: See-Oprah again! Let me assure you all, she is serious when she says she’s hooked.

And while Kate has been helping herself for only five or so years, I have been reading self-help for a much longer time but with much less seriousness and frequency. My first foray into helping myself was in the form of a book picked up at a yard sale when I was in my teens. I was 16, newly single, and trolling yard sales for fun one Saturday morning (I was suuuuper cool). As I poked through the book box, my favorite part of any yard sale, I found the 1992 classic: Planning a Wedding with Divorced Parents by Cindy Moore. With optimism for my future marital bliss in my heart and 25 cents burning a hole in the pocket of what is sure to have been sweatpants, I bought the book and took it to my weekend home at my dad’s. As most know, this book has yet to come in handy.

What have come in handy over the past five plus years, are all of the recommendations that Kate has made to me. Kate has introduced me to the works of Patti Digh, Gretchen Rubin, Deepak Chopra, Marie Forleo, Marianne Williamson, Danielle LaPorte, Gabby Bernstein, and the courageously vulnerable woman we met last winter, Brené Brown. I have learned a tremendous amount about myself, creativity, love, and life from all of these brilliant minds...except that damn Eckhart Tolle...he’s good, but he’s a bit too deep for my liking. And while I'm being totally honest, I only read books Kate has read first for two reasons: 1. I save money because she buys them all and then lets me borrow them and 2. She highlights and makes notes- It's like CliffNotes for self-help books- Kate's Notes™!

Kate: I stumbled upon Brené’s work through one of the previously mentioned self-help writers. She had recently given a TED talk on vulnerability that to this day is one of the most viewed talks on the site. The title of her most popular work, Daring Greatly, spoke to me. And through the power of Amazon.com. I was reading it within days of discovering it. This book and Brené’s work is pure genius. Because everyone knows what it is like to fear vulnerability and putting ourselves out there.

Once you finish the book though, you feel empowered to dare greatly and “put yourself in the arena” as she likes to say.

Not that I have become a daredevil or done anything too drastically different, yet, but it has encouraged me to take small steps towards that fear-inducing word, change.

Krystal: Admittedly, I have always been a fearful person. Afraid to try new things, go new places, risk failure…ew, failure is the WORST. However, this book opened my eyes to the importance of acting in the face of fear rather than cowering. Brené wrote about being courageous and taking risks and not being afraid to fall on your face every now and then.

When discussing whether or not we should: A. Start this blog and B. Actually publish it for the world to see, Kate and I both battled the fear monster a bit. “What might people think?” “Who will actually read it?” “Who cares?”  Ultimately, our desire to be ourselves, write our truth, and try something brave, won out. This is our attempt to get into the arena. (Although Kate wouldn’t let me include the “F” word in this entry, so I don’t know exactly HOW daring we are going to get here…)

Kate: Like I said before, small steps...

The book taught us that no life is free from criticism and judgement. However, the only people who really have a right to criticize and judge are those who are also “in the arena” putting themselves out there. This is true of anything: writing, teaching, parenting, etc.

The following quote inspired Brené to do the work she does and write her book, and, through Brené, has inspired us to take more chances:

“It is not the critic who counts; not the  man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.

The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly… who at best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly.”

- Theodore Roosevelt.  

Krystal: Old Teddy also said something about carrying a big stick…wink, wink. 

There's No Day Like Snow Day(s)...

Unless it's a Rain Day.

Thursday, you sweet sweet vacation extender, you.

Krystal: Being teachers, there's nothing like the first snow day. As soon as the temperatures had dipped below freezing, heck, way before that, we had placed a bet about which day of this sure-to-be-too-long winter we would have our first snow day. We both had confidently picked days in mid-December, hopeful that we would have just one before vacation. December flew by, vacation arrived and life was good.

Kate: We were starting to have visions of being on the beach mid-June as opposed to early July and really believed that the Almanac’s prediction of the coldest and snowiest winter in years was false. Then came Hercules. Typically, I would never want a snow day on a Thursday; it’s the best day of the week for me at school, and it means the weekend is close by. Something about returning to school on a Thursday, post New Year’s really did seem awful though, so I was secretly hoping we could have just one more day and return Friday for one fast-paced day before the weekend came. When the news hit that our wish had come true, I knew that I had to do something productive with my bonus hours (since I hadn’t in the week and a half prior, really).

Krystal: God forbid she sleep until noon and lay around in sweatpants all day (My not so secret wish for just about every non-work day…)

Kate: It was time to get down to business. Only after a trip to the gym and some snow day pancakes of course.

This is how I roll.

Krystal: The gym- Ew. The pancakes- yum! But the pressure to perform got the best of me, and I too decided to be productive. I spent the greater part of my room pulling things...all SORTS of things out of my overflowing drawers. I started with my tights- a collection of over 40 that I am overly impressed by. I’ve heard word that teachers shouldn't wear colored tights- it’s a young look to be sure. But as I rolled each and every pair of my rainbow colored leg coverings, I felt supreme vibrancy and started plotting outfits.  

Kate: I had a mission: mop the kitchen floor. For some, this might not be a big deal. Enjoyable perhaps even. But I have never classified myself as a cleaner. I didn’t get the clean-gene. As an almost 35 year old, I figured it was time to start seeing what this hard-core cleaning thing is about.

Krystal: I still have almost five years before this urge is liable to strike...

Kate: I had good intentions a couple of months before when I actually bought a new mop. I conveniently “couldn’t find the time” though before now, what with having to be places like Live Juice, Hermanos, Bagel Works, Portsmouth, and Boston. It’s hard being a socialite (said in sarcastic tone).

First, I busted out the vacuum for a pre-cleaning of the floor. I even moved the baker’s rack that probably hasn’t been moved in years (Kell, you can attest to this). I moved furniture out and was ready to go. And go I went. After about 5 minutes of some intense scrubbing, I was starting to sweat, so off went one layer of clothing.

Would Martha clean wearing this?

Krystal: This is around the time that I snuck out of my room to see what the heck was going on out there...and HAD to snap a picture. The sight was priceless, but I couldn’t sit around and watch; I promptly ran back to my room in case she asked me to help scrub something.

Kate: I was like Cinderella, if she had just come from the gym.

Krystal: I was like the mouse that hides from the evil cat. You know, that fat one...Gus Gus.

Kate: I was feeling so accomplished once the kitchen was done that I moved on to the bathroom. I hadn’t committed to this in my mind once starting because the bathroom in our apartment can be a scary place. It really is true what they say about just starting something though because it gave me the momentum to keep going.

Meanwhile, Krystal was still “organizing tights”. - I knew exactly what she was doing. I mean she does have a lot of tights, but over an hour’s worth???

Krystal: To be fair, I unloaded many drawers...my numerous scarf drawers, my strapless bras and shoe laces drawer, and my broken necklaces, contacts, kitschy buttons, and tacks drawer….all needed to be cleaned, I assure you.

After hours of scrubbing on Kate’s part and hours of avoiding scrubbing on mine, we decided to hose off and take our show on the road. A quick trip to Live Juice for some sustenance and a chilly shuffle down the street to True Brew Cafe, and we were about to do the thing we had talked so long about doing. We started this here blog!

******

There has since been another snow day on Friday- snowy, frigid and wholly uneventful.  

Kate: Unless getting your car door handle replaced is an event.

Krystal: And getting Beauregard, my devilishly handsome 2008 Honda Civic, a little oil jobby and inspection…

Kate: Thank God we had the weekend to relax after all of that. A trip to Portsmouth was just what we needed to get out of the house and mentally prepare for the inevitable return Monday.

Krystal: With my bags by the door, my “I’m such a rebel” nose hoop safely resting in a drawer and replaced with my “I’m a teacher” stud, and my back to school outfit laid out, I went to sleep promptly at 10:15 PM- ready to get back to this teacher thing once and for all.

Kate: Except that didn’t happen. A rain day, however, did: freezing rain, light rain, heavy rain. Rain of all kinds. Which brings us to the present.  

Krystal: Which was, I suppose, a present. Because on this day, the words they were a flowin’. 

You’re welcome.