Connor Claire Store

Is it because of the harsh, sickly blue-tinted florescent lighting? The mirrored walls that cast stark shadows at unusual angles and reflect said lighting up your nostrils? The layer of perspiration glistening on your forehead? The complete and utter lack of kittens, art and cute furnishings?

Or is it because I roll up to HIIT class rocking a severe high pony, which, in my mind, looks just as sophisticated as Madonna’s during her Blonde Ambition phase, but in reality never does?

Or is it because everyone I work out with teases me (in a fun way!) about taking pics of myself in the mirror, so I end up smiling like someone just asked me if I’d eat a bowl of live earthworms for ten thousand dollars?

Basically, WHY IS IT SO HARD TO TAKE CUTE SELFIES AT THE GYM?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

I’m convinced that my Trader Joe’s on Redwood Blvd. in Novato is the best Trader Joe’s in all the land, and I say “my” like I own the place or something, LOL! I don’t own it (I wish), but I might as well be the mayor because I’m there practically daily.

In case you were wondering…they still have that excellent Shea Butter & Coconut Oil Hair Mask in stock (in case you were wondering), and if you haven’t tried it yet, ya need to get on that, sister! It’s worth a trip to TJ’s all by itself.

But since you’ll be there anyway, the Coconut Body Butter is also epic. 🙂

While you’re at it, toss a few of these into your cart…

I never leave the store without getting at least a couple of these frozen Reduced Guilt Spinach & Cheese Stuffed Shells. They’re 270 calories, with 33 grams of carbs and 20 grams (!) of protein, which is more protein than three eggs! Since the last thing I want to do at 7:30 at night when I get home from the gym is make something from scratch, these are great for quickie post-workout meals.

NOW THIS IS THE STUFF —->

When I get a hankerin’ for crab, which happens fairly often because I love crab, a box of this is where it’s at.

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This is something I think about sometimes, and I’d love to hear your opinion. Taking it a step further, is there such a thing as good luck? Or bad? I have no idea, but I can’t deny that some people do seem to have exceptionally good luck, and no matter what they do, things go their way. Whatever the reasons, I can’t deny that those people exist…and they kinda get on my nerves. LOL!

Fo’ real, though. 🙂

I do believe that good luck and bad luck aren’t always up to chance. I’ll say that. I mean, there is always that element of randomness and being in the right/wrong place at the right/wrong time, but like with lottery winners, how many cosmic coincidences had to all line up just right to place them at that specific 7-11 on that particular day to hit the Powerball? I don’t know…but I wish I did! Haha. Or, like, Gisele Bündchen? We don’t have control over our facial symmetry or our height or our long-leggedness (yet).

Personally, I don’t think it can hurt, though, to invite good luck into your life, but can a lucky charm (like my small but growing collection of maneki-neko Japanese lucky cats) really bring good luck? Your guess is as good as mine.

Where I think we do have some control over luck is how it relates to opportunities, and this is based on my personal experiences. If I go into a test with — yes, I recognize how corny this sounds — a good attitude, and I’m confident, and I think to myself, “This is going to go my way. I’m SURE of it,” I usually do better than I do when I feel the opposite way, which I’ve done before. Like, if I go into something feeling like Eeyore with a tiny storm cloud over my head, things almost never work out, and this has happened to me over and over again. I don’t know why, but I do feel that attitude has an influence over luck sometimes.

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