Musings on good health...

my back has been out since sunday night/monday morning.... after that stressful day. :( it was so bad i..... i.... i confess i took an extra-strength muscle relaxant yesterday (me, who can count on her hands how many tylenol she's taken in the last decade). BOY are those things ever strong!! i walked around in a muscle-relaxant-induced-haze for several hours, oblivious to the pain my body was in... until it wore off and i was in even more pain afterwards. Still sore this morning i opted for taking yet another MR and later spent over an hour in the local pool's hot tub. now i feel GREAT but don't want to count my chickens until they hatch... if i feel great tomorrow then i'll get back at rowing and tai chi. but whoowee i hope i don't ever have to take medication of any kind ever again. i am so grateful for my health and for raw food. i am certain i am recovering faster because i'm not consuming deadened, cooked food as well, expecting my body to heal and also use the enzymes which should be going towards healing for food digestion. Nourishing myself with living foods is certainly a major part of the ticket to good health.

Update on Thursday: my back felt fine last night, so of course I did housework, even rowed on the rowing machine. Woke up this morning very sore again... however a visit to the chiropractor today has me on the mend now, I think.

Isn't it funny how we take our health for granted? How we will eat whatever's in front of us - burger, fries, beer, whatever... because the effects of such a meal will take so LONG to become apparent that we are too slow to realize once our health goes awry what the connection between that meal was and our now ill health. It is so EASY to disregard the importance of regular physical exercise, or of eating well (and by that I mean raw, living foods & pure water). It's just so much easier to eat crap and procrastinate and make excuses why we can't exercise... why it's not so important. Well, it's preventative. Today the chiropractor said I should have no problems living 'til I'm 100. WAHOO. Whether he's right or wrong isn't the point; the point is that I'm on the road to good health. Good health is not a goal that you achieve; it's a journey, a process. You can always improve your health, but if you don't take those steps towards good health, you'll backslide and slip. Falling off the wagon isn't the end of the world, but it means you're going the wrong way on the one-way road to good health.

So what things do you do to ensure good health? Not smoking? Abstaining from drugs? From alcohol? From certain foods - be it meat, dairy, common allergenic foods like wheat, gluten, soy, corn, peanuts, from cooked foods, choosing only raw, live, vegan foods? Do you exercise regularly? What types of exercise do you do - stretches, aerobic, muscle building and strength training? Do you practise good dental hygiene (did you know doing just that can increase your life expectancy by a full DECADE?!?! So go floss!!!) Do you feed your mind the way you nourish your body - doing brain-building exercises like Sudoku or crosswords? do you read regularly, do you challenge your brain? Do you limit things like violent media images and shows and instead nourish your self with images of a world you are here to create - a peaceful, compassionate, loving world? Do you surround yourself with community - with the loving support of others and do you offer that to others as well? Do you spend time outdoors every day in the fresh air and sunshine? Do you spend time in nature? in solitude? in silence? Do you regularly reflect on your life, on your goals? Do you keep the big picture of life in mind? What do YOU do to ensure your good health?

If wishes were fishes...

...I can't remember how that ends. LOL Anyways I'm in a wishin' mood, so I'm gonna put this out there, into the Loving and Compassionate Universe:

I want a juicer. Not just any juicer. A Green Star juicer.
And I want a 9-tray Excalibur dehydrator.
I'd like to win the 6/49. It's $39 million, I think. Yes, I have a ticket. ;)
I'd like to be able to order the raw food items on my wishlist, the ones I'm out of.

Apart from that, I really can't think of too much I need or want. (Note that the above are definitely wants, not needs).
I am grateful to have my health and the health of those I love, a roof over my head, clothes, a loving and supportive family, and so much more.
I am grateful for a sense of stability and security and safety in my life.
I am grateful all my needs are met.
I am grateful to have access to all the clean pure water I can drink.
I am grateful for nourishing, healing raw foods in abundance.
I am grateful for my education, for being a literate woman in this world today. So many many people aren't able to read these very words.
I am grateful for the support of the Universe.
I am grateful for this moment.
I gratefully acknowledge that we, all the living beings on this beautiful planet, are all ONE.

Namaste'
~n~

A Day of Emotions... and Growth

It's been an emotional day, dealing with a conflict. It's funny, because my emotional outlook has been so positive for so long now that I can't actually recall the last time I felt bummed about anything. Seriously. I've been feeling so content. And I realized that as the conflict unfolded this morning that I was struggling against acknowledging my emotions about the situation. When I did, I got upset... naturally, as it was an upsetting situation. Anyways, I had to allow myself to release the emotions and thought and thought and thought..... Eventually I decided I was wasting my time worrying about the situation (thank you Reiki; Just for Today, I will not Worry) and got on with enjoying the day. I began reading Raw Emotions (Angela Stokes) and reading about our emotions helped me see where I was at much more clearly. I took a moment, wrote down how I wanted the situation resolved, and wrote "I am happy, content, and at peace with every aspect of my life." Moments later the phone rang and I was able to find out more information about the conflict.... important information that had not been previously shared. The phone call COMPLETELY changed the way I was looking at the conflict and suddenly, in an instant, I was overcome with relief. Tears filled my eyes as I realized how much the Universe supports us in every moment. Truly, we are not insignificant. Unbelievable. I cried with relief and released all the emotions I was harbouring about the situation.

I was conscious today every time I ate whether I was eating because I was truly hungry, or whether I was eating because I felt stressed (which I admit I have a tendency to do). I drank more than 4L of water and had 3/4 L of delicious spinach, apple, ginger juice this morning.

Every moment there is an opportunity for us to grow. I am so grateful for today. My life has been rolling along, with relative ease as of late. I was beginning to wonder where the opportunity is for growth when things aren't shaken up. lol Be mindful what you think of, eh. I am so grateful. For my family, for my health, for consciousness and awareness, for the laughter of children and smiles on their faces... when they laugh and giggle, for their love and caring. I am grateful for conflict and turmoil. And I am grateful that support is only a phone call (and intention shared with the Universe) away. :)

namaste
~n~

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day to one and all! And a very very happy birthday to my little girl! How can she be 5 already?! Does time ever go by fast! Seems like just yesterday she was born... such a peaceful birth (spends a moment remembering...). :) We had a really nice birthday lunch for her, with 3 out of 4 grandparents here. She opened cards and gifts and got a new bicycle which she seems pretty excited about. dh is @ work so we'll celebrate a belated Valentine's Day (and also his birthday) on Tuesday... ;) It really is birthday season around here. 3 birthdays in as many weeks.

I had a piece of cake today - heart-shaped lemon cake with chocolate & lemon icing - and I feel absolutely icky now. I've had 3L of water, 2 nori rolls with lots of veggies in them (yummers) and a grapefruit & a banana earlier but that cake was toooooo much, despite being made with organic everything (org sucanut, org wht flour, org egg, org milk, etc). lol I'm either gonna have to go lie down until it wears off or maybe I should try rowing instead and sweat it out. self-inflicted, I know. silly silly silly

I'm reading Ms. Stokes' Raw Emotions right now... great book - highly recommend it. Grab it over at www.rawreform.com Also still reading the Hobbit with the children. I'm hoping to read the Anastasia series with them as well... not sure if our library carries those or not - I'll have to check.

OOO and don't I have the best mummy in the whole entire world!!! She bought me a new pair of Mavi jeans today! Just LOVE those jeans. You can find them at Salts Organic Boutique. I'm telling you they make you feel sooooooo fantastic. I own 2 pairs of jeans - one old grubby pair for working outside and the other is my Mavi's that I wear pretty much constantly when I go out in public. LOL Love 'em, Love 'em, Love 'em.

Check out Farewell my Subaru. The book is a great read. :)

Well, have a luverly Valentine's Day! The day doesn't have to be all about mushy romance. Instead, make it a day to be grateful for the many friends in your life that support you and care for you. May you be the giver and receiver of much loving-kindness today. :)
~n~

Lovin' the Aquarian Groove...

Alright, so 3 out of 4 people in this house are Aquarians. And wouldn't you know it but Jupiter is in Aquarius this year, which apparently, astrologically speaking, only happens once every 12 years.... the last time this happened was in 1997 (note to self: the year we married, the year I graduated from university, the year I got a job). Basically, all the horoscopes for Aquarius for 2009 say similar things: "This is YOUR year. Dream big." Only a lot more eloquently than that. lmao Can I just say how much I'm LOVIN' it already?! A huge WAHOOOOO for the astrological line-up this year! fanTAStic! Oh, and those who know me know I always dream big. I'm the dreamiest Aquarian of 'em all. LOL well-designed passive solar cob houses, composting toilets, going off-grid, permaculture, rainwater harvesting, self-sufficiency growing my own food with a raw vegan diet, alternative transportation, raising children with a philosophy of respect and loving guidance, homeschooling/lifelong learning, a supportive community with like-minded people... it's all me, baby, it's all me. ;) sure, us Aquarians are 50 yrs ahead of our times. it's a bear, let me tell you. no one EVER understands why i'm so passionate about things that are just so.... (well, i call them alternative, but others just call me eccentric & wacky). lmao it's all good. you'll all understand where i'm comin' from soon enough... if you haven't already figured it out. ;)

I've got a bit of a cold. Not much. The night before last, I didn't sleep so well - sinuses were plugged, woke up with swollen glands, that kinda thing. Well, I lay there and gave myself Reiki for at least half an hour before getting up. The Reiki alone opened my sinuses and I was able to breathe. I was so grateful! I got up, had a cup of hot water with freshly grated ginger and lemon peel and that soothed my throat/glands. I took it easy on myself yesterday, although I did row 5 kms and made bread. I had a smoothie with about 2 oz of fresh wheatgrass in it (it was REALLY yummy) late in the afternoon; I'm sure the wheatgrass must've boosted my immune system up a notch. I went to tai chi class last night (was sort of waffling on it, thinking I ought to go to bed early instead), but boy, was I glad I went! 90 minutes of tai chi gave the cold a real kick in the pants. It was great. The cold started to come back an hour or so later, but by then I went to sleep (and I always sleep super well after tai chi class - able to wake up easily if I am needed by those I love, but also easily fall back asleep after) and had a fantastic sleep and woke up feeling so much better than 24 hrs earlier. The cold is still here... ever so slightly, but lots of water is flushing it out. (Knock on wood) Our family is really super-healthy, all-round. We don't often get colds and when we do, they don't last long. Only rarely do we actually get the flu. I listen to other parents share their woes of vomit and tears and I am so grateful all of us are so robust and healthy.

I've got to make a small cake and soup for tomorrow (dd's actual birthday), as we are having a luncheon in her honour, and clean the house (sounds like an exciting Friday night, eh? lol). An early Happy Valentine's to you all, may you be blessed with loving-kindness and gratitude.

namaste'
~n~

Happy 200th, Darwin!

Darwin's 200th birthday today, eh? I think about people like Darwin, Einstein... anyone throughout the ages who has made a large impact on the lives of so many millions of others, even after they have left their physical bodies... Beethoven, Mozart, Mother Theresa, Ghandi... too many to mention. Think about those people and doesn't it make you wonder, just in what way where they any different than you? I don't believe they were any different than you or I. The universe is waiting right now for you to unleash your self. You (and I)... are we holding ourselves back, not giving ourselves over fully to the wonderment and joy that is available to us in every moment? When we "socialize" our children, are we possibly restricting their inherent genius, their true creative spark and calling in life? Do you do things that are socially acceptable when you know it's not what is in your heart? Are you feeling supported by the universe - knowing that you ARE in the right place at the right time, no matter what things might happen to you to make you think otherwise? I like to, when lying on the bed, imagine that the mattress is just an extension of the support of the universe. I really sink into it, lying still, feeling my entire body supported by this mattress, which I imagine as the palm of the universe's hand. I breathe, and I imagine Mother Earth, and the universe as a whole, expanding and contracting in symmetry with my breath. When I lie there and breathe, I am connected to all that is. It helps me realize there are bigger things out there than just me, and helps me realize that I am not alone, not just a cog in a wheel. I'm here and I'm pretty darn special... in my own way. ;) We each have a gift that is ours and ours alone to share and the universe/God/Goddess/Spirit, whatever you wish to call it, is just waiting supportively by, for you and I to find our voice, to find the strength and courage to speak up and find that gift which is ours alone within us, and to begin sharing it with others. I'm not going to pretend I fully understand what my gift is yet. No clue, really. But here I am, sharing myself nonetheless. Because you never know when I might be onto something. LOL

Happy 200th birthday, Darwin. In this moment I am grateful you shared of yourself so many years ago. :)

And now for something completely different (thank-you, Monty Python):

Why not start the day with some raw museli (Jennifer Cornbleet's book) with a banana sliced and some raw sesame milk on it:

Marinated Kale ("Mediterranean Kale" I think Jennifer calls it): DEEEEElicious. Now I can second Aleesha about how absolutely wonderful marinated kale is. One day I ate half a bunch of kale like this in one meal. The next day I ate an entire bunch of kale throughout the day!

Mushroom caps stuffed with sundried tomato sunflower herb pate, and a very simple cucumber/tomato salad with oil & vinegar & a little salt & basil:

Still eating a rather large meal, even though it's completely raw. Doesn't it look both colourful and delicious? A handful of home-grown alfalfa sprouts, sliced carrot, cucumber, avocado, jerusalem artichoke, a few cherry tomatoes, a serving of "parsnip rice" with a few dried olives on top, and a serving of sundried tomato sunflower/pumpkin pate (from Raw Food made easy):

And for dessert, why not indulge in a little chocolate cake with raspberry coulis? This is an adaptation of the walnut-raisin cake recipe & the flourless chocolate cake recipe from Raw Food Made Easy, with the Raspberry Sauce recipe. mmmmmmm..... soooooooo yummy.

Climate Chaos & the Raw Lifestyle...

Many people these days are considering their carbon footprint. I'm one. I have this beautiful image in the corner of my car's rear window. Each time I look in the rear-view mirror, it reminds me to tread lightly on this Earth.

I've been thinking this morning about climate chaos/global warming, and specifically my lifestyle choices in relation to it. Often I myself feel, and I hear it from others as well, that I am (we are) helpless to make any effective change that could mitigate the current trend towards climate chaos the world is experiencing. How often do we feel like nothing we do will matter? It's such a despairing thought.

At tai chi class this morning someone had an email from a friend in Australia, where they are experiencing a 13-year drought (are you kidding?!) and have recently had flooding in the north and bushfires in the south. I look outside where the wind is whoopin' it up and the weather is chaotic - for example yesterday we had high winds overnight, woke up to beautiful sunshine & (momentary) blue sky, to be followed by HEAVY snow for about 15 minutes, then overcast, then rain, then blue sky & sun, then HAIL for about 5 minutes, then overcast.... on and on the whole day. It's cold, too... the wind cuts through the many layers I am wearing.

I was thinking about how I had to drive 25 kms to get to tai chi class, how unsustainable that is. I was thinking about how MY lifestyle choices are affecting the environment. It is unsustainable to create (and live in) a community that is 25 kms from any amenities - from the post office, from the grocery store, from the library, from the closest town centre. We have nothing in our community, apart from a community hall, volunteer fire hall, and a corner store & restaurant that are only open 6 mos of the year (May - Oct). These are all within 3 kms of our home. That is not enough to sustain a community of 400 people. So all of us have made the choice to live in this community that is not sustainable, unless things change.

It's not reasonable to expect young children to ride their bikes 25 kms into town (each way!) to use the library, or to go to school, for that matter. There has been the odd person out our way who rides in, occasionally, but it's certainly not the norm.

Our long-term plan is to move 35 kms east, closer to the city. We'll still be 20 or 25 kms from the city's downtown (we're currently 55 kms), but we will be on 5 acres, with 2 more acres shared for farming with the neighbours. It's all in the discussions. Moving will put us within 2 kms of a long-distance bike trail - we will be able to bike into town (9 kms each way) for supplies along this relatively flat commuter trail. The trail hooks up with our current town (about 15 or 20 km ride one direction) and the next town east (about 10-15 kms in the other direction from the property). The bike trail also goes 80 kms in one direction, through the city, and out to the ferries to the mainland... so that infrastructure for sustainable transportation is already in place. The property itself has a corner store, restaurant, community hall, and school, and flourishing farmer's market, all within 5 kms. Compared to the carbon footprint we currently have, I envision living on the new property will drastically reduce it.

We have discussions, very preliminary, dreamy, Aquarian ones at this point, about what the future house might look like. Naturally I want to build a cob house and dh is of course leaning towards a more conventional, stick-frame home. I have gone on a few cob tours now, and I really like many of the features of Gord & Ann Baird's local handbuilt home...

It is sustainable and yet has many of the features most people are reluctant to give up when considering a green or sustainable lifestyle... one being size. As much as I'd like to downsize our family of four to between between 500 & 1000 sq ft, I can't see the others going happily along with me on that... not when our current habitat is very close to 2,000 sq ft. Yes, this is a lot more than the average family of 4 lived 100, or even 50, years ago. HOWEVER, I'd argue it's slightly smaller, or perhaps average, for the houses many families live in nowadays. A quick Google search comes up with the average house size (2008 figure) pinned at 2,412. So although our home may seem cavernous, it is, apparently, average. Check out architect Sarah Susanka's site for the Not So Big House, or check out her books from your library. Great concept - smaller home that is well-designed, no more McMansions. :) Or Jay Shafer's Tumbleweed homes - houses from 65 (not a typo!!) to 837 sq ft. Beautiful.

Our current home has some very advantageous design features (that I'd like to bring forward into future designs). One is the passive solar orientation (quite by accident, I think). Long and narrow on the south face, with large windows on the south, it lets in a good amount of "passive solar radiation" in the winter months. (If I had to redesign it I'd put even smaller windows than we currently have on the North side, and get rid of the 8' sliding door). So yes, passive solar design, very important (to me). Another thing I like about our home is that when you enter it, you enter the middle of the long side of the rectangle, and you can see diagonally nearly to each far corner, which makes the house appear larger than it is inside. I think our house has good flow, good energy. :) At some point I'd like to renovate the kitchen, pretty much the same cabinet layout except that I'd widen the "island" countertop to accomodate bar stools to allow an eating area right there. But overall, I do like the general design.

I keep daydreaming about a cob cottage with a kitchen designed specifically towards raw veganism. Maybe I'd use the cottage for Reiki treatments or for raw food consulting/classes, maybe I'd use it for a guest cottage, I don't know. But I do know it is something I definitely want to actualize & create in the next... let's say decade.

Thinking in terms of how do my food choices as a raw vegan affect the climate, it means asking Where does this medjool date come from? What about the organic California kale I bought at the health food/grocery store last week? It certainly isn't local, and the organic company is not small-scale agriculture. It's asking Where did these cacao nibs or young Thai coconut originate and what is their carbon footprint? Although I planted what I thought would be an abundance of dark leafy greens that I was planning on eating throughout the winter, the really cold snap 2 months ago destroyed so much of it. In 11 years we've never had it get to -18 at our place... until this winter. The winds have been unrelenting and the poly over the garden frame, making a make-shift greenhouse, has been somewhat uneffective at extending the growing season much. At 48 degrees latitude, am I too far North to expect to be able to grow greens relatively continuously throughout the winter? Eliot Coleman grows at 45, is 48 that much different? We subscribe to a local organic farm's CSA program, getting a box of fresh produce each week. I feel pretty strongly about supporting the local economy, especially with the values the farm holds. The farm has had to deal with the same weather as I have this winter and recent boxes hold few dark leafy greens and lots of root crops and frozen items such as tomatoes and berries from summer. My choice to consume local organics is dear to my heart, and I think it makes a positive impact overall on my carbon footprint, even though the farm is 13 kms from my house (it *is* the closest organic farm, btw).

My smoothie this morning:
1c spinach (org California) - if we hadn't had such a winter, it could've been local at this time of year
1 tsp spirulina (don't honestly know where it came from)
1.5c sunflower sprouts (org, I sprouted them at home, but where did the seeds originate?)
1 banana (org, but definitely not local)
1c froz raspberries (within 150 kms of our home)
1.5c frozen blueberries (also within 150 kms of our home)
1/4c raisins (probably from California) & a small handful of cashews (no idea)
2c of sesame milk (I made the milk, but where were the seeds grown? i have no idea)
1 tbsp cacao powder, 1 tbsp cacao nibs, 1 tbsp maca powder (none of those are local)
1 tsp goji powder & 1/4 tsp camu camu berry powder (neither local, though I'd like it known I *do* have two goji berry plants in my garden!)

Sure it made a delicious (and healthy) 1.5 L of smoothie - which fed me for breakfast & lunch, but as you can see, I have a LONG way to go in making my food choices more sustainable and local.

Anyways, I guess the whole point to this is that our lifestyle choices DO matter in regards to climate chaos. There are things we can (and HAVE TO) change, and the sooner the better. I'm willing to move. I'm willing to seriously reduce my car use, even dabbling with the idea of going without altogether. (I say that now, LOL) I'll bike or take the bus. I'm willing to go off-grid, either geo-thermal, solar, wind, or a combination thereof. I'm willing to drastically reduce my home's physical footprint, going for the smaller is more beautiful design. I'm willing to go without a dishwasher (gasp! did I honestly say that out loud?!) I'm willing to examine my food choices and choose local, organic, raw, vegan foods over things that come from further afar. I am dedicated to my raw vegan lifestyle - it has improved my health so dramatically - so let's see how sustainable we can make it.

I'd like to have a conversation with you on this one. What are you personally willing to do?