multiple vynes

Hello, my darlings. I hope your week started off nicely! I was tired today, and with good reason... I was up and at 'em at 5:45 a.m. for my first circuit training class. The class is run by our local recreation center (a.k.a. affordable), led by an AFAA Certified Personal Trainer, limited to 15 participants (there were nine today, including my mom and I), and will continue to run early Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings for the next four weeks. Gotta get my body ready for the beach, ya know? ;) But really, I do. Eating healthfully has become such a habit of mine that it hardly takes any effort or thought anymore, exercise on the other hand, now that's another story. The fast-paced nature of this class and it's short-term time commitment will keep me focused and motivated and, yes, hopefully reap many of the visually-appealing physical benefits too. Is that so vain?

Either way, and quite contrarily to my busy morning, the rest of my day passed rather slowly and uneventfully. I spent most of it daydreaming about my future social plans and those sweet ones of the past. Last week, after work, I met up with Leslie and Amy at the new, hip, and chic Vyne Wine Bar. It seemed rather out of place in Greenwich Village so I was all the more excited to try it. One might assume that a place such as this, with as incredible a wine selection as they have, would have wine flights, no? Well, they did not.

Fortunately, all it took were a few looks of disappointments and a defeated, "oh," for the sommelier to make an exception. Within minutes, the girls and I were met with a refreshing tasting of whites and reds which paired oh so wonderfully with our non-stop evolving conversation. One topic, which I'd like to share with you all, is the many "healthy living blogging" misconceptions: We are only passionate about food, we always eat on our "best behavior," and we are all the absolute best of friends. Each one could not be farther from the truth. Regarding the first, I would call myself a foodie, but if we're going to label my identity by passions you might as well slap these on too: yogi, artist, magazine reader, writer, globetrotter, photography nerd, language fascinator,  and wino, among others.

As for the second, I know that for most of us, our eating behaviors have not always been the healthiest. Food is a sensitive subject for too many reasons and adding countless social pressures to the mix makes it all the more "dangerous." As a result, many women must unfortunately struggle with this combination for the majority of their lives. And although I can often count on my foodie tendencies to remedy it, (like with the balanced and simple dinner meal above,) I am not immune, whether I choose to blog about it or not.

In addressing the last issue, I'm afraid I have to be brutally honest with you: "healthy living bloggers" are real human beings and as such, just because we might be able to get along with everyone, doesn't mean that we have the desire drive to truly befriend them. We all have so many different interests, food preferences, and relationships with our bodies that it would be impossible to think otherwise. Oh, we're also not always happy, although I do really smile a lot :). Nevertheless, I will not hesitate to exclaim my absolute adoration of the real life bloggies that I have become close with. Drinking wine and swapping stories with Leslie and Amy, I couldn't help but think how fortunate I am to have my own version of e-harmony friendships. And I have the blog to thank for that.

Fellow bloggers: What do you think about the myths above? And do you agree with my responses? Blog readers: Have you ever fallen victim to this one-angled view of "Healthy Living Blogs"? How has your opinion evolved?

Disclaimer: I don't mean to offend anyone or anything, I just wish to evoke a critical and respectful discussion of our community.