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Running with Ruby

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Ruby & The Blonde Side

Ruby & The Blonde Side

This one time I went running with a dog.

That was the last time I went running with a dog.

Her name is Ruby, and she’s a golden retriever and lab mix. She’s cute, but still a puppy. I should remind you I have a 23lb teacup chihuahua, so running with a dog is not really my thing. For obvious reasons. I’m not sure if my pup is 23lbs because I choose not to run with him or if I choose not to run with him because he’s 23lbs. But that’s neither here nor there.

Ruby’s owner, Sally, said she’s “good to run with,” so naturally I took her word for it. Here’s what good ole Sally forgot to mention:

1. Dogs (not unlike humans) poop when they run. Thankfully Sally had a poop bag tied to the leash, but when I went to pick it up pushing my hand through one side, there were holes in the bag (yup, visual). And there were six construction workers standing by staring at me. That was awkward for multiple reasons. Oh, and there wasn’t a trashcan to be found anywhere.

2. As a puppy, Ruby liked to bite her leash, pulling it away from me, thinking it was a game. I’m not the best runner to start with so all my focus needs to be on actually running, not an animal. This in turn, shortened the leash, making it an awkward length between the two of us causing me to stutter-step behind her. Perhaps ideal for cross-training, but nothing else.

3. Running on the bike path in South Lake Tahoe, it never failed that when a bike passed in either direction, Ruby tried to chase it. The same went with squirrels, leaves, trash, and so on. I guess the bonus here was that my pace was quickened against my will.

4. We ran across a homeless man laying in the bushes and in true Lassie form, Ruby ran over to him, before I had even noticed there was in fact a human on the ground. I’m not sure who was more frightened by this act, him or me, but it surely wasn’t Ruby.

Ruby's clearly in charge here

Ruby’s clearly in charge here

5. If there is anything, I mean anything, interesting on the ground (say like a half eaten apple), Ruby will swiftly veer to one side pulling you along just to eat it, without warning.

[Today’s running accessories: I ran in my favorite New Balance 1400s, my lululemon speed shorts & my #nolimits tank, listened to the “No Doubt Radio” station on Pandora to kick it old school, ran a 8.3mph pace and finished 1.75 miles using the Nike+ running app before promptly returning the animal back home. Ruby however made a bigger mess drinking her water when we got home though. Go figure…]

June 28, 2013/by Jayme
https://theblondeside.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/photo-2.jpg 2340 2340 Jayme https://theblondeside.com//wp-content/uploads/2018/06/1526998321020-300x192.png Jayme2013-06-28 16:58:112013-09-04 17:00:44Running with Ruby

Quotes & Proof Branding

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Ric Flair is the man

Ric Flair is the man

Quotes make the world go round. While I don’t have any empirical data on this, it certainly makes my world go round. And with social media and the ease of sharing things, The Blonde Side decided to create a set of shareable quotes, branded specifically with the TBS logo. After shooting a message out on Twitter, quite a few notable designers responded back, but the folks at Proof Branding caught out attention and we set out on our first (hopefully of many!) partnerships.

How did Jayme | The Blonde Side connect with Matt | Proof Branding: “Jayme and I connected in the early stages of The Blonde Side and it’s been pretty damn incredible to see her grow and evolve over the past few years. She knows her shit when it comes to sports, but more importantly, isn’t afraid to bring her own personality into her editorial process – that truly is what sets her apart and is the mark of a great writer,” Matt says.

“It’s a pleasure to partner with The Blonde Side on this project and it’s so important, especially in today’s journalistic environment – to pair the visual with the written word to offer up content that is engaging and memorable. Jayme does the hard work of cranking out great content – and we’re happy to step in and make it look (even sexier) than it already does.”

Awe Matt, now I’m blushing! I owe you a case of your favorite beer!

A little more about Matt with Proof: Matt Chevy, the Founder/Brand Craftsman of Proof is a die-had Chicago sports fan. “Bears, Bulls, Hawks, and yes, even the lowly Cubs (my family’s favorite saying rings true with Cubbie fans everywhere…’Maybe next year’) – that damn goat! I’m also a Titans Fan but ever since we came up one foot short of winning the 1999 Superbowl, I’ve had a bad taste in my mouth,” Matt says. (If you too are a fan of craft beer, Chicago sports teams, or branding at its finest, be sure to follow Matt on Twitter.)

The gal behind the graphics: Emily! She’s awesome! Emily and I worked side-by-side, via email of course, to work on these graphics creating a professional yet fitting look for The Blonde Side. Although not totally invested in sports (yet), this is what Emily had to say about sports: As far as “my teams” — I’m not invested in sports whatsoever, but I can say that I love US Women’s soccer. As a kid, I idolized the entire team in the days of Mia Hamm and Brandi Chastain, and this year I got to go to the gold medal match at the London Olympics — a rematch against Japan from the World Cup. We won, and it was powerful and nostalgic. My dad coached my soccer teams growing up and taught me to love the game, it was my first trip abroad, and the crowd broke a record for attendance at a women’s Olympic event. So it was a wonderfully full-circle sports-loving moment.

(You can follow Emily on Twitter too.)

More about Proof: Proof is a full-service branding company based in Nashville, Tennessee that does a lot of creative work – logos, websites, print pieces, etc. – but they do it all through the lens of branding, encouraging clients to take a step back and think holistically, and strategically, about their overall brand – their big dreams and strategic goals.

A big thanks to Matt and Emily with Proof and all the other partners that have helped grow The Blonde Side brand over the years!

Be sure to follow The Blonde Side on FB and Twitter to see all the newest quotes and definitely share them around those crazy world wide webs we all live in. If you have any favorite sports, fitness or motivational quotes, leave a comment and maybe we’ll add it to the already stellar collection!

June 21, 2013/by Jayme
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Ladies, Play Nice

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OKC Thunder Cheerleader, Kelsey Williams, Under Attack

Thanks to my FB page, earlier this week someone posted a link to a story that broke on The Daily Mail, asking my thoughts.

The accompanying message to her post said: “Did you see this? UGH! Why can’t women in the industry support each other? Disheartening.” And linked to this article where a Houston (go figure!) sportswriter called an OKC Thunder cheerleader “chunky” noting her “pudgy waistline.”

The original article even has a poll that asks people, the general and super mean public, to vote with one of the options being: “She has no business wearing that outfit in front of people.” To me, that’s the worst part.

Let me be very clear: I am not the nicest person. I say dumb and unedited things A LOT, most of the time wishing I had a filter or the ability to retract those statements. I’ve written things I wish I could take back. I’ve taken sarcasm to levels far beyond necessary multiple times. I can’t dance to save my life, as in, I have ZERO rhythm. I have an extreme adoration for cupcakes and Veuve champagne and I too, have a pudgy waistline. (Never has this last statement been more clear than the past month I’ve spent in Hawaii lounging around in bikinis all day everyday watching these tiny-waisted locals surf, skate, skin-board, bike, or run on by.)

Some of my BEST articles have been about professional cheerleaders/dancers in the NFL and MLS and I know how hard these women work to keep their bodies in shape and smiles on their faces even in some of the toughest times.

This Houston writer should have been much more understanding of women’s body issues before writing this, but here’s my kicker:

This is the blogger who picked apart another gal’s appearance.

Shame on her for MULTIPLE reasons, but Anna-Megan Raley calling anyone less than pretty is the equivalent to Tori Spelling picking on Reese Witherspoon’s acting resume – we’ll just leave it at that.

(See what I did there? There went a Lifetime Movie reference…)

Anyways, this post probably isn’t nice either, and I’m not trying to stir any pots as there’s already enough drama in the Houston sports media world, but the picture to the right is the blogger who made fun of the cheerleader. Just proof none of us should make fun of the other. We’ve all had chubby or “pudgy” days, we’ve all worn something and looked back on the outfit in pain and I look hammered in most of my photos. I will say that Raley’s past work has been pretty good, let’s just hope this blogger blooper doesn’t keep her from doing the job she’s still probably pretty qualified for.

Also, WHEN did being a sportswriter result in an “article” at only 151 words? I write longer texts to boys. By no means am I perfect, but if we’re talking about where there’s too much or not enough MEAT, it’s in your ARTICLE, not her midsection.

The cheerleader in question is taking the high road, as she should, posting this message on her Twitter account just a few days ago: “To be womanly always, discouraged never,” which should be a testament to women everywhere.

And lastly, it’s not the 1800’s anymore (nor are you Mark Twain I might add), or maybe I’m just too vain of a person, but who uses pen names anymore? Unless you’re getting paid beaucoup bucks to write for someone else (I’m looking at YOU whoever is writing Lauren Conrad’s books) or you’re seriously embarrassed for people to know what you really think…oh wait…that’s it isn’t it?

And next time I say something mean about someone else (unless they are on the Dallas Cowboys roster), please remind me of my own rant. In all honesty, we all go that extra mile to drive web traffic, but none of us, myself included, are better than anyone else. Unless you’re A.J. McCarron’s girlfriend because she’s better than pretty much all of us.

Note, this story about the unwarranted criticism from Raley or Crawford or whatever her name is, even made US Weekly, and Good Morning America. As a writer looking for fame and your byline in new places, something tells me this wasn’t on her hit list.

April 29, 2013/by Jayme
https://theblondeside.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/article-2315288-19800AC6000005DC-741_306x503.jpg 503 306 Jayme https://theblondeside.com//wp-content/uploads/2018/06/1526998321020-300x192.png Jayme2013-04-29 03:49:282013-04-29 11:01:12Ladies, Play Nice

Style: ASPEN: Where 39 Degrees is More Than Tolerable

Blog, Travel

Update: Sky Hotel and 39 Degrees has closed. 

[This article originally ran on TangoDiva back in April, 2012.]

Having been an avid snowboarder for 15+ years, I still can’t adjust to mountains and resorts whose lifts close mid-afternoon – those are valuable hours with or without sunshine that I could be shredding down the mountain on my trusty ole Burton board.

On my 3:15pm run on each and every trip in said towns, my heart automatically drops with the sudden urge to whine like Kim Kardashian on yet another failed marriage. Like I said, most places. That is certainly not the case in Aspen because I know on my last run I’ll pick up speed going as fast as I can, hit a jump or two (don’t get crazy here) and head on over to
39 Degrees inside the Sky Hotel (a Kimpton Hotel) for a Champagne Supernova (Moet & Chandon Imperial, St- Germain Elderflower Liqueur, Fragoli Wild Strawberry Liqueur and White Peach Puree – $18). And the rest of the world (or at least everyone in Aspen) will quickly follow suit making the bar just inside the lobby more packed than the Gondola after a fresh dump of snow. The hotel’s website boasts
39 Degrees as having “Wicked Cocktails and Aspen’s Best Burger” – how could you possibly go wrong? But the place is so much more than a cocktail or slab of beef.

Seriously.
39 Degrees is the place to be after a long day on the mountain, to grab unrivaled “bar” food, tasty drinks and check out some of Aspen’s finest – in the terms of locals and tourists alike. And if you don’t believe me, what about these recent accolades: The Sky Hotel recently was recognized as “A Place to be Scene” by Travel + Leisure magazine, and 39 Degrees was named “One of the Top 10 Places to Bar Hop Around the Globe” by USA Today.

The bar/restaurant/lounge is located exactly at latitude 39 degrees, so you don’t need to ask where the name came from. You can tuck away that handy little tidbit of random knowledge to use at a later date. The luxurious ambiance was conceived by Hollywood designer Dayna Lee of Powerstrip Studios back in 2007, and word on the street is the hotel (and bar) is on for a small redesign this year which will cause the doors to be temporarily shut from April 22 – May 23 with a huge relaunch party slated for June 1 (no word yet if this is invite only, but I’ll be anxiously checking my inbox to see if mine arrives).

The lounge currently boasts a retro ski-lodge feel you’d see in any classic ski flick combined with contemporary vibes throughout the place. The best place in the lounge is the sofa in the center of the bar, which wraps around the entire room allowing you to soak up all the happenings in every crevice of the dimly lit spot. Day or night you’ll find men and women of all ages there for one thing – the scene. In a place as picturesque as Aspen, that certainly says a lot.

A few good items to munch on:

Giant Pretzel $10
Assorted House-Made Mustards

Root Chip Nachos $11
House-Made Russet & Sweet Potato, Scallions, Crispy Bacon, Pico de Gallo, Aged White Cheddar Fondue

Tuna Wonton Tacos $16
Crispy Wonton Taco Shells, Ahi Tuna Tartare, Sushi Rice, Avocado & Jalapeño Puree, Sweet Soy, Tobiko Mayo

As for drinks, aside from the Champagne Supernova, which is my absolute favorite, you might also try:

Bourbon Peach Cobbler $12
Buffalo Trace Bourbon, Southern Comfort, Pomegranate Molasses, White Peach Puree, Mint

Sky Hotel and 39 Degrees
709 E. Durant Avenue
Aspen, CO 81611
(970) 925-6760

April 10, 2012/by Jayme
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