Earlier this week, I was visiting my esthetician (google it if you need to) who was on day #2 of a juice cleanse. It wasn’t one of those “master cleanses” you do at home with a little lemonade and cayenne pepper. She was on bottle #3 of Starbucks’ Evolution Fresh, a high-end juice she picked up from the Bellevue location of Starbucks’ recently acquired juice chain.

These juices can also be found in most Starbucks stores, but the Evolution Fresh locations have them in bulk packs, and also serve fresh food – most of which is either vegetarian or vegan. The stores are really a health-food junkie’s haven.

I had a lot to celebrate this week (more on that another time), so I spent most of the week binging – unlike my typical routine, which usually is limited to fresh salads or other foods centered around vegetables, and sometimes fish, capped at around 1300 calories. By Thursday, after several trips through the McDonald’s drivethru and definitely surpassing my daily calorie limit, I felt like total shit, so I decided after lunch to start this juice cleanse using Evolution Fresh’s juices. They call this their “ritual.”

After doing some research online, I picked up a few bottles from my nearby Starbucks – 4 bottles were $25 dollars. This got me through Friday, where I visited the store in University Village, and picked up pre-made six packs of the juices. Evolution Fresh was kind enough to send me a coupon for 20% off, so 12 juices ended up costing around $50.

I know. Yikes.

I got through Friday until around 7pm, when I was craving solid food. After a small salad during happy hour with a friend, I found myself really sick.

This is, apparently, what the detox looks like.

I ended up going to bed fairly early, starting to feel hunger pains, and slept really late today – waking up incredibly hungry with a terrible headache. I tried my hardest to push through the afternoon, but caved and ate a Larabar, along with a few Advil. At 5pm, I got a raw, dressing-free salad.

It was the best salad I have ever had.

The reality is, a juice cleanse isn’t necessary. It’s a quick way to consume a ton of vegetables  and ensure you’re drinking a lot of water – which most people find difficult to do. This isn’t different than my typical lifestyle. Cleanses also make it incredibly difficult to function during the cleanse – the simultaneous symptoms of headaches, nausea, being cold, etc are not normal for the human body. But it’s that time of year where everyone is setting goals to get healthy, eat clean, and start fresh…so of course businesses in the health industry are going to take full advantage of these resolutions and motivations. Especially as the “juice cleanse” fad is kicking into high gear.

So what better company than one already making juices for a specific demographic ? (Read: wealthy soccer moms.)

The Evolution Fresh “Juice Ritual” is nothing more than a marketing ploy – and an expensive one at that. But it’s genius, because it’s backed by a brand (Starbucks) that consumers trust. The products look beautiful – just walking into an Evolution Fresh store is a refreshing experience. And their spiel (the juice is still live since it’s cold pressed under high pressure, not pasteurized, etc. ) sounds legitimate – and better than the competition. And I’ll be honest – the juice does taste great.

But does it work? After two days, I was more bloated than normal, hadn’t lost any weight, and my mental state wasn’t desirable. I was completely unable to sit down and do any work (such as write) until I finally ate a big salad a few hours ago.

But Starbucks – and Evolution Fresh – will undoubtedly continue to capitalize on this fad with this marketing ploy. They’ve cornered their niche, defined their demographic, and have branded their own cleanse as a “ritual” – which is admittedly less scary than doing a “cleanse” per se. It actually looks and sounds fun to do, which is key in any marketing campaign. It’s downright enticing – even if you have no need for it.

Unfortunately, the reality is that no matter how you market a cleanse, you’re still starving yourself. As for me, I’ll stick with my paleo-ish lifestyle, and keep eating my veggies. And stay away from the fast food…of course.

I’ve never really been able to drink alcohol. Since I was a teenager, I’ve been on some form of anti-anxiety med that comes with one of those labels – the ones with BIG WHITE LETTERS in a BIG BLACK BOX that warn DO NOT DRINK ALCOHOL WHILE TAKING THIS MEDICATION.

Of course, since I was a teenager, I didn’t really listen – but never really understood why I went from Zero to Blacked Out with one glass of wine. I have no concept of “buzzed” or even “drunk.” I always thought my “version” of drunk was normal…at least, until I really did start to actually black out after one glass of wine repeatedly, and talked to my psychiatrist about it, who was legitmately surprised I hadn’t died in my sleep yet.

Explaining why I don’t drink is always difficult – especially in situations resembling an LMFAO song, like this one:

But that doesn’t mean I don’t like a good margarita or glass of wine. I’m not afraid to order any drink off the menu “virgin”, prepared for the look of horror on the waitress’ face. Alcohol-free wine is apparently also becoming more prevalent, and a friend of mine recently tipped me off to the brand Fre, which is sold is most grocery stores around the Seattle area. I picked up a bottle of the Red Blend yesterday, completely prepared for it to taste like grape juice and be the worst $6 I ever spent.

Instead, not only does it taste and smell like wine – it’s actually better than most reds I’ve had. I ended up drinking two glasses, and woke up with – get this – NO HANGOVER.

Not only did I get to enjoy a half bottle of wine on a weekday without the detrimental side effects, I also got to keep the benefits of drinking a glass or two of red. Another brand of alcohol-free wine, ARIEL, says the wine still helps to decrease the risk of heart disease, lower your cholesterol, and reduce the chance of having stroke.

While I probably won’t have to worry about those things for a few more years, I love that drinking alcohol-free wine is just as good as the real thing – and since it doesn’t come with the risk of any hangover (or other side effects of being drunk…like, you know, that potential DUI….) – it might actually be better to the real thing.

Have you tried any alcohol free wine? What’s your favorite brand?

If you’ve been reading my blog for awhile, you’ve probably been following a few posts I’ve written about my goal to be “debt free by December” – as in, this month, of 2012. I didn’t quite get rid of all my debt – but I did pay off $20,000 in consumer debt, including debt I owed to friends and family who helped me out during rough times.

Next year, I plan to tackle the rest of my debt – over $40k in student loans and the remainder of my car loan. Over the course of 2012, I learned how to make enough money to pay the bills, still buy coffee everyday, eat healthy (which, let me tell you, isn’t cheap) and still pay down a signficant chunk of my debt every month.

I also made mistakes along the way – especially during the first half of the year. I made sacrifices to make enough money to make this a reality – sacrifices that often impacted my friends, my family, and my health. These are mistakes I regret  - and in 2013 I vow to not repeat, and find ways around to make the goal of Debt Free by December a reality – while still living, and so I can live, a life that I love.

And for 2013, I’m inviting you to learn from my success – and my mistakes – as I pay down the rest of my debt with Debt Free by December. $40k is a lot, and I know that many people don’t even make $40k in a year. Your debt may only be one credit card maxed out at $5,000 – but paying that off can be just as burdensome as that $40k is to someone who makes six figures. Last year I developed templates, worksheets, budgets, and plans to help myself stay on track.

And now I want to share those with you, as well as my journey. In the Debt Free by December program, you’ll get access to all of this exclusive content, plus weekly updates with my financial status and analysis – what’s working, what’s not, and how I’m going to do better or fix things. I’ll share how I’m going to make more money, what debt I’m paying off next (and why) and what goals I’m setting next. You’ll also get access to an exclusive Facebook group to ask questions and learn from each other. But most importantly, you’ll see exactly how someone just like you is getting out of debt without taking a single drastic measure.

Membership details will be announced soon and will be available as a monthly subscription or one-time annual purchase. Sign-up today for early-access to receive a special discount.

Stop drowning in debt – and start living a life that you love.

This past August, down in the SODO district of Seattle, was one of my favorite local tech events – GDGT. (Okay, so the show is actually held across the nation – but it’s still one of my favorite’s to attend without having to experience the chaos of a conference in Las Vegas.) I spent some time at Monster’s booth, which was undoubtedly one of the most popular. Not only did they give away headphones and their famous interchangeable headbands, but someone even asked, toward the end of the night, if they could take home the glass people-shaped heads at used to demo the headphones.

Yes, Monster is that cool.

They are so cool, in fact, that they offered to let me demo the Monster Diamond Tears, which are as sparkly and glitzy as a girl like myself needs. These headphones feature over-ear noise-isolating earcups and pillow soft ear cushions. While they aren’t noise-canceling like their Inspiration line, I was amazed at how well I could hear music and phone calls without all the background noise that comes with living (and working) in a downtown apartment complex. (In fact, just wearing the Diamond Tears alone isolated noise!)

If you’re looking for a GREAT pair of headphones – and are especially tired of those in-your-ear kind that always fall out (sorry, Apple, I don’t care how much time and money you spent in redesigning yours….) these are probably just what you’re looking for. Of course, if you’re a guy – or are looking for something a little less flashy – you don’t have to get the Diamond Tears.

But who wouldn’t want to walk around the office or at the airport with this kind of bling?

Disclosure: All opinions are my own (of course) and were not paid for. Monster did give me these headphones, though. Wasn’t that super nice of them?