coffee date #8 with christina arnold

coffee-holic, biochemistry major, Greek goddess, tiny & bold, pro weight lifter, Indian food lover, personal fitness inspiration, my mom’s favorite friend

“Without a system, you are nothing.” – Christina A., 2021

me: fresh mango fruit chiller | christina: fresh mango fruit chiller
location: freehold mall, new jersey

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MEET MY BEST FRIEND!

Christina is all about 5 feet tall, and according to my mom “always looks rosy.” She’s Greek and has a weird habit of talking/scolding in Greek when she’s out of it ;). Christina is that weirdo who has the most obnoxious laugh, so you’ll try to hide in a corner if you’re in public with her when she’s laughing her ass off. Her obsession with coffee is unlike anyone else’s (5 cups a day to be precise).

We met in high school, and had minimal conversations during our freshman and sophomore years. She was always that girl who looked effortlessly stunning and elegant. Come junior year, our minimalistic relationship morphed into a friendship. By the time senior year rolled around, Christina would drive over to my house and we’d spend the day harbored in my basement, watching steamy movies (i.e. 365 DNI), updating each other on our lives, going on Target runs, etc.

Christina is a no BS type of person. She stands up for what she believes in no matter how many people go against her. I freaking love this the most about her. She is not afraid to be herself! She’ll wear the quirkiest pants and say, “Yeah I don’t care if they look weird. My dad got them for me and they’re comfy, so….” She’ll dance her heart out despite knowing that she can’t dance (video evidence below 😉). She’ll bring the weirdest food for lunch and continue to laugh obnoxiously. She’s just herself and nothing less, nothing more.

Resilience is definitely a characteristic trait that I have learned from Christina. She’s been through a ton, but there was never a time where she would feel sorry for herself. She’s always waking up the following day, ready to tackle on the next obstacle that comes hurling down.

Christina is also one of the few people I know who flawlessly balances everything in her life – from academics to extracurriculars to relationships. This is mind boggling to me because I am constantly stressed tf out and hence, unable to balance everything in a healthy way. Christina, on the other hand, obviously does get stressed, but she just knows how to prioritize, plan, and work efficiently.

The beautiful thing about my relationship with Christina is that we support each other, 100% all the way through. There’s no competition or unnecessary drama. We just vibe, despite being almost polar opposite people.

Epiphanies

• Keep in touch with the people who mean the world to you.

I’ve mentioned this before in other coffee dates, and I’m mentioning it again. Mostly because I need this to get into my thick head so that I actually take this advice.

Instead of hoping that the other person will reach out to me, I need to, or at least, should make the first move. I can just shoot them a simple text to check in on them and make sure everything is going well.

Christina always makes an effort to text or FaceTime me, hang out, come over to my house, etc. She ensures that our friendship is still a part of our lives by just performing these simple actions.

• Don’t give a rat’s ass to those who don’t understand your value.

One of the most profound things that I learned from Christina is to never let the toxic relationships hold you back in life. There is always something bigger and greater waiting for you if you make the decision to move past the toxicity. HELL YEAH!

• Academics come first (at least for those who are trying to make a career out of something that requires a solid academic foundation)

Christina lives in an off campus apartment (so she’s one of those lucky souls who got to experience the “dorm-like” lifestyle her freshman year, unlike others *cough *cough* me who had to stay home cause of corona). Living in an apartment with a roommate means that there is room to get distracted and not have the time to focus on academics. Obviously college students do the regular college things and it’s easy to forget what your priorities are. However, Christina was and is always so disciplined. She wakes up at a certain time and gets all her assignments done BEFORE she goes out to a party or chills with friends.

My FOMO ass or procrastinating brain would get so distracted by life, causing my academics to definitely take a hit if I didn’t have set a routine for myself during 2020.

• Fitness is an empowering journey.

I only realized this after I started reflecting on my friendship with Christina. Christina is a fitness God and I always used to look up to her regarding fitness because I knew nothing about this realm. Freshman year of high school, I would skip breakfast and lunch, eat an ice cream bar, have some dinner, and then run for 40 minutes everyday. I thought this way of living would get me one step closer to getting ripped. Folks, I was wrong and I highly do not recommend any of you make the same mistake I made.

After watching and listening to Christina, she made me realize that fitness is supposed to be a holistic journey. You need to eat enough food to nourish your body (and also make it feel good, even if it is a freaking ice cream bar, enjoy it! don’t sit in a puddle of guilt) and do a variety of work outs. Solely running on the treadmill to see physical results is not going to do anything for you.

Training holistically means your training for something far greater than your physical appearance. I now have the time of my life working out because I am the mentally happiest when I’m working out. It’s the action of sweating out my anxiety and pushing myself beyond my body’s limits that re-centers my focus every day.

Thank you Christina Arnold for this epiphany because it has been life changing.

• Know how to spend your money wisely.

I never had a job (until now), so whenever I needed to buy anything I’d go to my parents for money. I’d go to the mall with my parents and I wouldn’t even look at the price tags as I threw tops and pants into the shopping cart. When we’re about to pay, my mom would take out each item and ask me “Do you really need this?” and then we’d halve the pile. Embarrassingly, I didn’t really understand the value of money until I met other kids my age working for hours at their jobs trying to earn enough money for their daily lives.

Christina also had a job in high school (at a cute Deli). When we used to go shopping together, she’d end up buying 2 or 3 things, that’s it. She wasn’t restricting herself or was unhappy. She valued her money and only bought what she absolutely wanted in that moment. After all, I only wear maybe 1/3 of my entire closet. The other 2/3 worth of clothing were impulsive decisions and things that I probably wore once in my entire life.