Daily dose of inspiration.

"My goal has changed from ‘be a size zero’ to do a motherfucking pull up. I have gained..."

Tue, 14 May 2013 15:31:17 -0400

“My goal has changed from ‘be a size zero’ to do a motherfucking pull up. I have gained far more self-esteem from being able to pick up heavy shit that I ever have from being able to zip up a skin-tight designer dress. I became a more capable, energetic, independent, and mentally focused person once my focus shifted from what my body looks like to what my body can do.”

- Strong is the New Skinny

"Someday, my derby career will come to a close. Someday, I will look back at these years and wonder..."

Tue, 07 May 2013 12:55:41 -0400

“

Someday, my derby career will come to a close. Someday, I will look back at these years and wonder at how I lived this life. Someday, I will be able to tell my grandchildren that I was a pioneer of a sport that is played around the world. Someday I will have more free time. I’ll have more money. I’ll have less stress. But for now, I’m going to continue being challenged. I’m going to continue being a small part of a big movement. I’m going to continue experiencing Christmas morning regularly. I’m going to continue being part of something that makes me crazy, and keeps me sane. And I’m going to continue being someone’s hero.

Someday will come eventually. But I hope that’s not for a long, long time.

”

- Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang

Pizza from a speakeasy with @designlightning. Yum! #latergram...

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 08:04:02 -0400

Pizza from a speakeasy with @designlightning. Yum! #latergram #food #pizza #nyc (at 180)

"You will make a fool of yourself. You will fall. A lot. You will miss the jammer. You will jam and..."

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 12:16:46 -0400

“

You will make a fool of yourself. You will fall. A lot. You will miss the jammer. You will jam and not make it out of the pack for a full two minutes. You will get a penalty for something perfectly avoidable. You will make many stupid mistakes. Don’t be afraid. Embrace it. All of it. This will be one of the most fun times of your life. Enjoy it. Don’t ruin it with negative self talk. Things will improve if you stick with it.

You will get in better shape than maybe you’ve ever been in your life. Your teammates will praise a killer move you made. You will make rosters. You will have great practices. You will win bouts. You will get lead jammer. You will knock the opposing jammer down and the crowd will cheer. Repeat: this will be one of the most fun times in your life. Enjoy it.

”

- Letter to a Young Derbyist | DerbyLife

"I asked my 9 year old son, “what is the opposite of success?” He thought silently for a..."

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 13:40:24 -0500

“I asked my 9 year old son, “what is the opposite of success?” He thought silently for a very long moment and responded, “giving up.””

- Bo Brustkern

"Your parent(s) basically gave up their freedom to raise you, and deserve a medal. You know this..."

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:40:22 -0500

“Your parent(s) basically gave up their freedom to raise you, and deserve a medal. You know this because with only one job on your plate, you already have no time.”

- Brandon Chu

"Be relentless. Like when you jam."

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 07:23:15 -0500

“Be relentless. Like when you jam.”

- Mick Swagger

"Do not become content with living crappily ever after. You have a purpose inside you worth pursuing...."

Thu, 28 Feb 2013 11:52:02 -0500

“Do not become content with living crappily ever after. You have a purpose inside you worth pursuing. Don’t let crappy become quicksand. Learn, grow, and then go.”

- Paul Angone

"For me, the most damaging Romantic Comedy myth was not, of course, margaritas with the gay best..."

Mon, 11 Feb 2013 12:59:00 -0500

“For me, the most damaging Romantic Comedy myth was not, of course, margaritas with the gay best friend (reality?). What really messed with my head was the Romantic Comedy life timeline. I really thought that you graduated college, found an interesting job at a magazine or art gallery, got a nice urban apartment, and were starting down the road to serious success by twenty-two, preparing you for happily married with a baby and owning the art gallery by twenty-seven. And I know this myth has its hold on more people than me, since the APW comments are filled with laments of not being anywhere near as successful at, say, twenty-three, as expected.”

- A Practical Wedding

"Saying no is a gift to the people and projects that are the priorities in your life."

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 15:20:39 -0500

“Saying no is a gift to the people and projects that are the priorities in your life.”

- Don’t tell me you’re busy | Penelope Trunk Blog

"Everyone needs a break, both physically and psychologically. If you’re on a competitive team, you..."

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 12:30:55 -0500

“Everyone needs a break, both physically and psychologically. If you’re on a competitive team, you can go for weeks without having any time for your friends, your family, or yourself. Take some time. See all your friends you shunned during the season. Cook a meal that you don’t have to chow down in the 30 minutes between work and warmups. Read a book (not Facebook.) Take your significant other out on a fancy date and don’t talk about derby—not once. Go to bed early or sleep in on a day you’d normally be practicing. Get laid.”

- Five Ways to Survive Your Off Season | DerbyLife

"You don’t move to New York to do Nothing. It’s just too fucking expensive. Laying in bed for an..."

Tue, 08 Jan 2013 11:25:37 -0500

“You don’t move to New York to do Nothing. It’s just too fucking expensive. Laying in bed for an entire day costs you like 60 dollars.”

- 15 Reasons Why People Move To New York City | Thought Catalog

"They made for good stories, our weddings. They were enormous fun, and the goodwill we received then..."

Wed, 28 Nov 2012 11:12:35 -0500

“They made for good stories, our weddings. They were enormous fun, and the goodwill we received then still seems to be powering us forward, two months later. But (spoiler!) you know what? Being married is even better. I guess that’s what I’d say to anyone who’s in the thick of wedding planning and tearing their hair out over it now—what I said to a frazzled friend recently: Everything will be lovely, and totally worth it. The best is yet to come.”

- A Practical Wedding

"Brooklynites would probably be the first to perish in a zombie apocalypse, but they’d do it with..."

Mon, 26 Nov 2012 11:28:18 -0500

“Brooklynites would probably be the first to perish in a zombie apocalypse, but they’d do it with style and probably while working on a puzzle, eating kale chips, and watching Twin Peaks.”

- Manhattan Nest

"So, basically, your options are: Staten Island, the Bronx, make more money, or move (but not to..."

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 18:19:50 -0400

“So, basically, your options are: Staten Island, the Bronx, make more money, or move (but not to Honolulu, which landed third place.) Or just stick around and keep shelling out $14 for cocktails and having those weird dreams where you discover an extra room in your apartment.”

- Manhattan Still the Most Expensive Place to Live

"I encourage you to thoughtfully take this step and to appreciate the journey. It may not be exactly..."

Fri, 24 Aug 2012 12:44:22 -0400

“I encourage you to thoughtfully take this step and to appreciate the journey. It may not be exactly what you plan, there may be many more bumps along the way than anticipated, there may even be tragedy. It is worth it.”

- Karen

"My friends tell me I’m ‘lucky’ and that, ‘he’s a keeper!’. But actually, luck had nothing to do with..."

Wed, 15 Aug 2012 09:14:02 -0400

“My friends tell me I’m ‘lucky’ and that, ‘he’s a keeper!’. But actually, luck had nothing to do with it. Had he objected, I guess he just wouldn’t have been the man for me.”

- Hayley

"The more you document your own life, the more you check in, you tweet, the more you post photos of..."

Fri, 03 Aug 2012 17:09:00 -0400

“The more you document your own life, the more you check in, you tweet, the more you post photos of what you did last night, the more you do all of this stuff, or even in my case, the more you listen for little lines of dialogue that can make their way into stories, the more you photograph moments, in a way, the more you start to step out of those moments, and if you do that too much, you become a spectator to your own life.”

- Jonathan Harris

"I cannot promise never to be angry; I cannot promise always to be kind. You know what you are taking..."

Tue, 15 May 2012 09:21:02 -0400

“I cannot promise never to be angry;
I cannot promise always to be kind.
You know what you are taking on, my darling –
It’s only at the start that love is blind. And yet I’m still the one you want to be with
And you’re the one for me – of that I’m sure. You are my closest friend, my favourite person,
The lover and the home I’ve waited for. I cannot promise that I will deserve you
From this day on. I hope to pass that test.
I love you and I want to make you happy.
I promise I will do my very best.”

- A Vow by Wendy Cope

"why waste energy trying to plan? I would rather enjoy the now… and my plans never work out..."

Wed, 02 May 2012 12:45:47 -0400

“why waste energy trying to plan? I would rather enjoy the now… and my plans never work out anyway.”

- Letting Go of the Plan « A Practical Wedding