I wouldn't say I have a difficult name. In fact, I probably have the easiest name in the world. Two a's, two n's, and you're done. Yet somehow, everyone has a hard time understanding what my name is. When I get coffee at Caribou, I get asked at least three times. "Ava?" "Ala?" "Amber?" "Abba?" (Yes, I actually got called Abba before.) Or I get the "What? I'm sorry, what? I'm sorry. I'm having a hard time hearing you." Whaaat? Do I have some speech impediment that only comes out when I say my name? Perhaps if that second a wasn't on there and my name was just Ann, it'd be much easier to understand.

In honor of my ridiculously difficult name, I thought I'd find every song I could with the name Anna in it. Is the name hard to understand in these songs people?? Ok. Done with my rant. :)

"Anna Begins"-Counting Crows
"Anna (Go To Him)"-The Beatles
"Anna's Song"-Marvin Gaye (I have to admit-this song made me blush. Wowza!)
"Anna"-Bad Company
"Anna Molly"-Incubus (Hey, it still has Anna in it!)

My fave out of them all

As part of Capella's Healthy Living initiative, O'Neal Hampton, a contestant from Season 9 of The Biggest Loser, came to speak on site. Aside from walking away with a brand new Biggest Loser cookbook, I walked away more inspired than ever. Here are some of his great points:

"Nothing tastes as good as health feels."
He showed a clip of a temptation challenge from his season-he was stuck in a room with junk food and tempted to eat some. He initially took some fries, but told himself it wasn't worth it and walked away. When asked about that moment at the event today, that quote was his response. I need to remember that next time I want to shove Taco Bell in my face.

"Everyone needs a lion in their lives."
He had an interesting analogy. He started by saying that, if a lion and tiger were fighting for the same meat, the tiger would win. Pit 10 tigers against 4 lions, the lions would come out on top. That's because tigers go into it as individuals, but lions work together for the end goal. Basically, he's saying that everyone needs a support system in this weight loss journey. Find yours.

"Don't let the past creep into the present and manipulate your future."
You shouldn't let your past mistakes ruin your future success. Don't look in the metaphorical rearview mirror to what you did wrong in the past. Rather, look out over the dashboard to all the possibilities in the future. Sure it's corny, but he's totally right. It's never too late to start making smarter choices.

Find your eternal happiness.
If being healthy brings you ultimate happiness, you should do what you can to achieve it.

O'Neal started his own foundation to give back to Minnesota and his community. I recommend everyone take a look at his site, because he truly is so inspiring!
Hampton Wellness Foundation

Favorite Song
"I Forgive You"-Kelly Clarkson

Favorite Part of Working Downtown
Food trucks-Vellee Deli is my fave so far!

Favorite Glee Cover
"Shake It Out"-Florence+the Machine

Favorite Picture

It's no secret that I'm a teeny tiny person. God bless everyone who guesses I'm 5'3 or 5'4. I'll take every inch you want to give me. Being a short person, especially with a short torso, it's hard to wear certain clothes. (I'm sure tall people can say the same thing.) There are a few trends that I've tried and look absolutely ridiculous in. Here are some, just to name a few:

Cropped Pants
Uh, yeah. Can you imagine me with my short legs in these? They'd make me look about 3 feet tall. But I adore this style and am completely jealous of people who can rock it out. Curse you short legs!





























Belted Tops and Tunics
Belted tops and tunics create a twofer of ridiculousness. This is where the short torso really screws me. Again, I love these styles and think they're so cute, but I could never pull them off. Son of a...


Leggings
Two words: no butt.