I woke up this morning wondering just where DID all the pain go? When I sit, my lower left back doesn't hurt anymore and when I stand, those little muscles just below my hamstrings and above my calves that usually need time to wake up in the morning, weren't hurting either. My headaches have been gone for some time now, my stomach isn't bloated anymore, my sinuses are a lot less stuffed up and I actually feel awake when my alarm goes off.
But still, what happened to the pain? It had become such a constant in my life that I hadn't even paid it much mind.
A few months ago, I got a massage from a great student at a school in Arizona called Southwest School of Healing Arts. They are cheap and this person was especially amazing at massage. During the massage I was continually told to breathe. At times my breath would speed up so much because the points that were being worked really hurt. He told me to breathe slowly anyway and to notice the pain.
I think that was really the turning point for actually realizing I had pain my body. For so long, I just ignored it because I had "other" and "better" things to do with my time than figure out what was going on.
His greatest lesson was yet to come. Near the end of the hour, I began breathing a little fast again and he mentioned to slow it down. After I did, he went on to explain that part of noticing the pain is simply just listening to the body. My body was talking to me and it was time for me to really listen.
This message has stuck with me. While I'd heard it numerous times from my mom, sometimes those messages go in one ear and out the other. She's brillant, truly, but ya know...she's still my mom:-)
So, the journey from pain to a loose, free body has been a ride. The up's and down's have been intense. I have eliminated all foods from my diet that no longer serve me (and it's different for everyone). These include mostly cooked foods and anything that is not vegan. I am playing around with introducing crill or some other kind of fish oil back into my diet and will keep you posted. Right now, though, I feel great. My body feels nourished and I eat less than ever before because I have so many nutrients to support me. My main intakes are superfoods, fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds & some grains.
Cups o' holiday cheer to you and yours!
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Monday, November 2, 2009
Friday, October 30, 2009
The Grass is Always Greener...Or Dead.
The Grass Is Always Greener on the Other Side. Ever heard that one before? Me too.
Let me start here, ever since I was a little girl, I have been rather aware. Aware of my surroundings, aware of people's energy & how it made me feel & aware that I have a big purpose in life. At the age of 8, I was telling my mom that I was going to save the world. I knew that & I still do. The only difference is that as you grow up, the world gets a lot smaller and the intricacies of saving it get a lot, lot bigger.
At 18, I got so upset that there was no purpose to life and that all materialistic goods (including the ones everyone and their uncle's brothers dog was now lusting over) were simply useless. Wanting them, longing for them, useless. So instead of spending any money, I put it in a jar and labeled it, "For Things That Actually Matter," And at that time, I had decided that the things that actually mattered were feeding the hungry and helping the people in Africa. (It is important, but not the most important.)
Later that year, I entered Arizona State University, determined to do what I love, whatever that was. My heart told me to start volunteering, so I did. I went to the Community Service Program office and signed up to do some of their larger events. I also found a brochure about doing play-therapy with a beautiful autistic 3 year old boy. So I called his mom immediately after I got home. We talked for an hour. It was amazing. A month later, I was offered a job at the Community Service Program and took it & offered a job working with Ian, this beautiful boy. Now, I had two amazing jobs, doing what I loved. It came to me that "nothing is worth doing unless you're following your heart."
But I still had a burning passion inside that I couldn't figure out.
Two months into my freshman year of college, (and even though I was totally LOVING LIFE) I was pulling my hair out trying to figure out what I was truly passionate about. Passion became my word, everything I ate, breathed and listened to. I loved my life but knew there was more of an underlying purpose. A month later I became the President of the Kayak Club at ASU and built that up. Finally, I realized my passion: Garbage.
More importantly, it was the garbage that should in fact, be getting recycled...or never exist in the first place because of people's amazing ability to reduce. So, I founded a brand new club at ASU called R.A.D. Recycling (Ready, Aware, Devoted). The first meeting, no one came. The next meeting, I had 7 people there...moving up in the world (by the end the list serve was 150 deep). The club snowballed with so much interest & by the middle of my sophomore year, I was involved with professors, students & whole departments regarding the likes of recycling & the environment.
My time at ASU was amazing, I led & learned how to be led, co-launched and ran an underprivledged children's basketball camp, founded the ASU Sustianability Coalition, founded the Green Team, served as Vice President of Undergraduate Student Government, worked for the Global Institute of Sustainability, became a Pat Tillman Leadership Through Action Scholar, worked for Teach for America, volunteered, had multiple entreprenurial ideas, got chewed up & spit out, not-so-gracefully skidded through burn out, drank more Starbucks in a year than someone should drink in a lifetime, learned more than I ever thought possible, built relationships, changed & grew.
Needless to say, I'm still on a journey to "save the world" with everyone else who chooses to join. On this particular journey, I have been meeting a lot of older people (10-40 years older than me in human years;-) and they all believe they are saving the world, too. They are, let me assure you.
However, often what they say to me is, "Wow, I wish I would have known this stuff when I WAS YOUR AGE." The first time I heard this, I thought, "Well-he-hell, being this young and understanding, "this stuff" does in fact make ME...the shit." Okay, awesome, now I will parade around like I am "the shit" and because I am, everything in the world will get better. NOT. Embracing the "I'm Great" actually temporarily sacrificed my higher goal (to save the world).
But not to worry, I would be further challenged with this everytime I was in a group of people older than me..."You're so lucky", "Wow, I wish I could go back in time", "You're so young to be here".....
It's interesting. They are here too. They are here now and whether the calendar tells them they are 25, 35, 67, it doesn't matter because they have also come to beautiful realizations their soul needed to come to. That's what matters, that's all a part of it too.
And the grass is pretty dang green on this side:
*A beautiful life.
*Law of attraction on my side.
*Deep understanding of who I am and where I want to go.
*The ability to see through people's bullshit & be real with them.
*The awesome gift of being able to read someone immediately & understand exactly their ailments (or close to it), the root & how they can start healing if they want to.
*Having incredible healing & intuitive abilities that I am so grateful for & refining everyday.
But sometimes it's dead:
*I can't go to the State Fair and enjoy myself because I understand how much electricity is being used & how everyone eating the food could be feeding cancer with it.
*Doing activities that were once fun for me no longer are: like going to Sea World, the zoo (and ESPECIALLY circuses) because I see animals in captivity that need to be free. Yes, I know Sea World & the zoo also have rescue programs that may have brought them there, but the bottom line is that giraffes are not meant to be in the desert, it's unnatural.
*I can't happily drink Starbucks because I know every ingredient & know the effects on the body.
*I lay awake at night wondering if what I'm doing fully & completely benefits all of humanity & ask to be given signs if I need to be doing more.
*I can't work a job for someone else or one that is even slightly less-than-fulfilling. I physically & mentally can't handle it.
*I can't hang out at bars or most diners with friends, because of the noise, smell & alcohol-->I'm way to senstive to energy.
*I'll never have care-free party days
One of the biggest lessons I've learned in life is that problems don't need to be solved. There is a single root issue that underlies everything that is going on. That is the severe lack of self-love & inner peace. Fixing the waste problem? People wouldn't be wasteful if they felt an affinity for their home space & mother earth, which would come from a deeper connection to themselves. Alleviating mass murders in schools? Self love & inner peace is the direct correlation.
But anyway,
In all, my life is blessed & I feel that I'm now on my mission to "save the world", which I have realized is only to save my inner self from chaos & bring pure love & peace inside. Everything in the world is reflected from the inside of each person outward. Everything manmade is made by man. Have you ever met someone hard & cold? Cement. Have you ever met someone you just couldn't connect with? Buildings, walls, false archtypes, cars.
Love & peace still sounding like a mushy gooshy, too optimistic way of believing the world can be saved? Have you heard of the lady who was being robbed but insitead she offered the guy a sandwich and to stay for lunch? He didn't rob her, she was able to calmly call the cops and everything was fine.
For example, the Dali-Lama & Mother Theresa are pure love & peace and that's how they are (alive or not) saving the world. This is what makes up existence. Love seriously saves. It's fundamental.
And after you have done the inner work to rediscover your self love it doesn't matter what you're doing. As long as you're doing what you love, you are saving the world, too.
Let me start here, ever since I was a little girl, I have been rather aware. Aware of my surroundings, aware of people's energy & how it made me feel & aware that I have a big purpose in life. At the age of 8, I was telling my mom that I was going to save the world. I knew that & I still do. The only difference is that as you grow up, the world gets a lot smaller and the intricacies of saving it get a lot, lot bigger.
At 18, I got so upset that there was no purpose to life and that all materialistic goods (including the ones everyone and their uncle's brothers dog was now lusting over) were simply useless. Wanting them, longing for them, useless. So instead of spending any money, I put it in a jar and labeled it, "For Things That Actually Matter," And at that time, I had decided that the things that actually mattered were feeding the hungry and helping the people in Africa. (It is important, but not the most important.)
Later that year, I entered Arizona State University, determined to do what I love, whatever that was. My heart told me to start volunteering, so I did. I went to the Community Service Program office and signed up to do some of their larger events. I also found a brochure about doing play-therapy with a beautiful autistic 3 year old boy. So I called his mom immediately after I got home. We talked for an hour. It was amazing. A month later, I was offered a job at the Community Service Program and took it & offered a job working with Ian, this beautiful boy. Now, I had two amazing jobs, doing what I loved. It came to me that "nothing is worth doing unless you're following your heart."
But I still had a burning passion inside that I couldn't figure out.
Two months into my freshman year of college, (and even though I was totally LOVING LIFE) I was pulling my hair out trying to figure out what I was truly passionate about. Passion became my word, everything I ate, breathed and listened to. I loved my life but knew there was more of an underlying purpose. A month later I became the President of the Kayak Club at ASU and built that up. Finally, I realized my passion: Garbage.
More importantly, it was the garbage that should in fact, be getting recycled...or never exist in the first place because of people's amazing ability to reduce. So, I founded a brand new club at ASU called R.A.D. Recycling (Ready, Aware, Devoted). The first meeting, no one came. The next meeting, I had 7 people there...moving up in the world (by the end the list serve was 150 deep). The club snowballed with so much interest & by the middle of my sophomore year, I was involved with professors, students & whole departments regarding the likes of recycling & the environment.
My time at ASU was amazing, I led & learned how to be led, co-launched and ran an underprivledged children's basketball camp, founded the ASU Sustianability Coalition, founded the Green Team, served as Vice President of Undergraduate Student Government, worked for the Global Institute of Sustainability, became a Pat Tillman Leadership Through Action Scholar, worked for Teach for America, volunteered, had multiple entreprenurial ideas, got chewed up & spit out, not-so-gracefully skidded through burn out, drank more Starbucks in a year than someone should drink in a lifetime, learned more than I ever thought possible, built relationships, changed & grew.
Needless to say, I'm still on a journey to "save the world" with everyone else who chooses to join. On this particular journey, I have been meeting a lot of older people (10-40 years older than me in human years;-) and they all believe they are saving the world, too. They are, let me assure you.
However, often what they say to me is, "Wow, I wish I would have known this stuff when I WAS YOUR AGE." The first time I heard this, I thought, "Well-he-hell, being this young and understanding, "this stuff" does in fact make ME...the shit." Okay, awesome, now I will parade around like I am "the shit" and because I am, everything in the world will get better. NOT. Embracing the "I'm Great" actually temporarily sacrificed my higher goal (to save the world).
But not to worry, I would be further challenged with this everytime I was in a group of people older than me..."You're so lucky", "Wow, I wish I could go back in time", "You're so young to be here".....
It's interesting. They are here too. They are here now and whether the calendar tells them they are 25, 35, 67, it doesn't matter because they have also come to beautiful realizations their soul needed to come to. That's what matters, that's all a part of it too.
And the grass is pretty dang green on this side:
*A beautiful life.
*Law of attraction on my side.
*Deep understanding of who I am and where I want to go.
*The ability to see through people's bullshit & be real with them.
*The awesome gift of being able to read someone immediately & understand exactly their ailments (or close to it), the root & how they can start healing if they want to.
*Having incredible healing & intuitive abilities that I am so grateful for & refining everyday.
But sometimes it's dead:
*I can't go to the State Fair and enjoy myself because I understand how much electricity is being used & how everyone eating the food could be feeding cancer with it.
*Doing activities that were once fun for me no longer are: like going to Sea World, the zoo (and ESPECIALLY circuses) because I see animals in captivity that need to be free. Yes, I know Sea World & the zoo also have rescue programs that may have brought them there, but the bottom line is that giraffes are not meant to be in the desert, it's unnatural.
*I can't happily drink Starbucks because I know every ingredient & know the effects on the body.
*I lay awake at night wondering if what I'm doing fully & completely benefits all of humanity & ask to be given signs if I need to be doing more.
*I can't work a job for someone else or one that is even slightly less-than-fulfilling. I physically & mentally can't handle it.
*I can't hang out at bars or most diners with friends, because of the noise, smell & alcohol-->I'm way to senstive to energy.
*I'll never have care-free party days
One of the biggest lessons I've learned in life is that problems don't need to be solved. There is a single root issue that underlies everything that is going on. That is the severe lack of self-love & inner peace. Fixing the waste problem? People wouldn't be wasteful if they felt an affinity for their home space & mother earth, which would come from a deeper connection to themselves. Alleviating mass murders in schools? Self love & inner peace is the direct correlation.
But anyway,
In all, my life is blessed & I feel that I'm now on my mission to "save the world", which I have realized is only to save my inner self from chaos & bring pure love & peace inside. Everything in the world is reflected from the inside of each person outward. Everything manmade is made by man. Have you ever met someone hard & cold? Cement. Have you ever met someone you just couldn't connect with? Buildings, walls, false archtypes, cars.
Love & peace still sounding like a mushy gooshy, too optimistic way of believing the world can be saved? Have you heard of the lady who was being robbed but insitead she offered the guy a sandwich and to stay for lunch? He didn't rob her, she was able to calmly call the cops and everything was fine.
For example, the Dali-Lama & Mother Theresa are pure love & peace and that's how they are (alive or not) saving the world. This is what makes up existence. Love seriously saves. It's fundamental.
And after you have done the inner work to rediscover your self love it doesn't matter what you're doing. As long as you're doing what you love, you are saving the world, too.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Start Change Inside
Change: In math, a triangle is also known as the Delta sign, or the sign for change. If you look around life, you can see them everywhere.
Inside: Well, as hard as we try to change the world, we can only start where we have control and since the only true thing we have control over is our own actions & choices, it must start inside. Inside ourselves, inside our businesses, inside our communities.
Ways to find inspiration for substantial change:
http://successultranow.com/
www.namastera.com
http://www.davidwolfe.com/
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Beyond GOOLOSH to Really, Really GOOD!
Happy Fall!!
I am so unbelieveably excited that the weather is finally cooling off, simply delicious isn't it?
I went outside yesterday morning & stood there for a good 20 minutes trying to drink the air and bathe myself in it...ahh...so wonderful!
So today, I just wanted to share a few recipes that you might enjoy!! (Oh yes, and GO ORGANIC baby;-)
Yogurt
1 avocado
1 banana
1 container fresh or frozen straberries
1/4 cup water
Put in the blender and blend...
ENJOY!
******This is one of our FAVORITES! It is melt-in-your-mouth amazing and you can't taste the avo at all.*****
Pudding
1 avocado
1 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup raw cacao
Blend 3/4 cup maple syrup with the avocado and some of the cacao. Add the rest of syrup. It gets super creamy, so you may have to stir it up a bit too.
*****This darling, is such an awesome way to indulge and not feel the after effects of the sugar highs and lows.******
Sending you tons of love for your journey!!!
I am so unbelieveably excited that the weather is finally cooling off, simply delicious isn't it?
I went outside yesterday morning & stood there for a good 20 minutes trying to drink the air and bathe myself in it...ahh...so wonderful!
So today, I just wanted to share a few recipes that you might enjoy!! (Oh yes, and GO ORGANIC baby;-)
Yogurt
1 avocado
1 banana
1 container fresh or frozen straberries
1/4 cup water
Put in the blender and blend...
ENJOY!
******This is one of our FAVORITES! It is melt-in-your-mouth amazing and you can't taste the avo at all.*****
Pudding
1 avocado
1 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup raw cacao
Blend 3/4 cup maple syrup with the avocado and some of the cacao. Add the rest of syrup. It gets super creamy, so you may have to stir it up a bit too.
*****This darling, is such an awesome way to indulge and not feel the after effects of the sugar highs and lows.******
Sending you tons of love for your journey!!!
Monday, October 19, 2009
Spare, Local & Personal Change
It seems as though we are constantly faced with challenges. Ya know, the good with the hard and sometimes emotional.
I was laying in the backseat as my boyfriend drove my grandma and I to Cottonwood, where she lives. As I stared up at the stars, I wished so hard to be spared an idea of a way off the never-ending, emotional eating roller coaster I've been on for the past few years. It's been quite the ride, learning about raw food nutrition, trying 90 day juice feasts and not making it past 3, being vegan & finally settling with vegetarian. A few months ago I found out I was allergic to refined sugar (surprise, surprise) and I quit eating it cold turkey. EVERYTHING got better. I felt awesome, my lower intestines stopped hurting, my attitude towards life was outstanding.
Then I went on vacation with my boyfriends awesome, amazing, incredible family. The free meals, plenty of delicious wine & scrumptious desserts became mine for the taking. Lake Tahoe, through Yosemite National Park and on into San Francisco the sugar started to creep back into my life and I felt like I had land slid into Hawaii's sugar crops. Needless to say, this has been happening a lot and I needed something, anything...
...so I asked...and I was given.
Suddenly (on the car ride) I had a thought! It went something like this: "SAC". That was it. SAC, ah, yes...I have come to a new realization, a real AHA moment! But wait, what does SAC mean?
I came to realize it stood for : Sugar, Alcohol, Caffeine. Now, I don't drink all that often (maybe once a month or every other month) but I (used to) eat refined sugar like it was going out of style. I also indulged in coffee & basically anything else that I wanted to during the day. I know about raw food nutrition and eating optimally for my body, but seriously, it's hard. So, sometimes I would beat myself up for eating poorly and sometimes I would go into denial, but neither were healthy.
Okay, so the solution was SAC and has morphed into DW-SACS.
Broken down:
D(airy): Most of the dairy on the market today is pasturized, which means that all the nutrients have been killed. Once this happens, when it is consumed, it actually leaches calcium from the bones. I've even read that because of the way that the animals are mistreated, blood and puss can be present in the dairy products. (I've even heard that *A huge corporation in America that is EVERYWHERE* has chocolate milk that contains chocolate coloring because there is so much blood & puss in the milk that if it wasn't covered up, you'd see it & would be unsellable--> Who knows if this is true, but that's gross!). (Most) traditional & commerical yogurts have a TON of sugar in them. Blah.
GREAT ALTERNATIVES: Rice or nut products. If you can make homemade nut milk & butter, even better! Raw yogurt...I have a kicken recipe if you would like it!
W(heat): Wheat is a hybridized grain between the king grains of spelt & kamut. When the wheat was hydridized a long time ago, the quality was comprimised and this is why so many people have such an allergy to wheat (even if they don't know it).
GREAT ALTERNATIVES: Spelt, buckwheat, amaranth
S(ugar-refined): I don't think I even need to explain this one. Refined sugar has been bleached, ground together with animal bones and put on the market for human consumption. There is ABSOLUTELY NO nutritional value to sugar and white, refined sugar makes the blood glycogen levels rise and fall very quickly, creating a CRAZY crash. This is where the addiction comes in.
GREAT ALTERNATIVES: Agave nectar, maple syrup, sucanat, stevia
A(lcohol): There is tons of information out there on this. If you're going to consume alcohol, the best thing to consume is organic wine free from sulfites.
C(affeine): WOAH! This stuff is nuts. You can feel it, people use it to stay awake, we know why it's bad. Tea, fresh juice & tons of water drinkin' is a great alternative. If you are going to drink coffee, GO FOR THE DECAF, it tastes the same and won't give you the nutty up's & down's.
S(oy): All soy is now GMOed (genetically modified). The last statistic I read stated that 98% of the worlds soy is genetically modified, however, to get that 2%, there is a very slim chance. Soy also has very high estrogen levels which can cause issues in both males & females.
GREAT ALTERNATIVES: Rice or nut products
My deal these days is to allow myself ONE "treat" like a chai tea or a DECAF coffee (caffeine, alcohol & refined sugar are OUTTA here) per day. Absolutely NO other sugary treats. The middle SAC are really the meat of it. These are the things that are the worst for my body. Dairy, wheat and soy are to be very limited and not eaten at every meal (for the above described reasons). For some reason (although it's always been all or nothing for everything else) I'm unable to quit all my dirty little eating habits at once. So, this is a means to help me get there. When I go to eat, I ask myself, "in this meal, how many of the DW-SACS are containted?" If the answer is none, I'm good to go. If there are more than 2, it's not an option. It's good, for me, for now.
So these days, I do my best to over-dose on veggies, love on the fruits & munch on quinoa, nuts & seeds.
After all...I had to start somewhere and here, now, where I am and with what I've got sounded like the very best option.
MuAh!
xoxo
I was laying in the backseat as my boyfriend drove my grandma and I to Cottonwood, where she lives. As I stared up at the stars, I wished so hard to be spared an idea of a way off the never-ending, emotional eating roller coaster I've been on for the past few years. It's been quite the ride, learning about raw food nutrition, trying 90 day juice feasts and not making it past 3, being vegan & finally settling with vegetarian. A few months ago I found out I was allergic to refined sugar (surprise, surprise) and I quit eating it cold turkey. EVERYTHING got better. I felt awesome, my lower intestines stopped hurting, my attitude towards life was outstanding.
Then I went on vacation with my boyfriends awesome, amazing, incredible family. The free meals, plenty of delicious wine & scrumptious desserts became mine for the taking. Lake Tahoe, through Yosemite National Park and on into San Francisco the sugar started to creep back into my life and I felt like I had land slid into Hawaii's sugar crops. Needless to say, this has been happening a lot and I needed something, anything...
...so I asked...and I was given.
Suddenly (on the car ride) I had a thought! It went something like this: "SAC". That was it. SAC, ah, yes...I have come to a new realization, a real AHA moment! But wait, what does SAC mean?
I came to realize it stood for : Sugar, Alcohol, Caffeine. Now, I don't drink all that often (maybe once a month or every other month) but I (used to) eat refined sugar like it was going out of style. I also indulged in coffee & basically anything else that I wanted to during the day. I know about raw food nutrition and eating optimally for my body, but seriously, it's hard. So, sometimes I would beat myself up for eating poorly and sometimes I would go into denial, but neither were healthy.
Okay, so the solution was SAC and has morphed into DW-SACS.
Broken down:
D(airy): Most of the dairy on the market today is pasturized, which means that all the nutrients have been killed. Once this happens, when it is consumed, it actually leaches calcium from the bones. I've even read that because of the way that the animals are mistreated, blood and puss can be present in the dairy products. (I've even heard that *A huge corporation in America that is EVERYWHERE* has chocolate milk that contains chocolate coloring because there is so much blood & puss in the milk that if it wasn't covered up, you'd see it & would be unsellable--> Who knows if this is true, but that's gross!). (Most) traditional & commerical yogurts have a TON of sugar in them. Blah.
GREAT ALTERNATIVES: Rice or nut products. If you can make homemade nut milk & butter, even better! Raw yogurt...I have a kicken recipe if you would like it!
W(heat): Wheat is a hybridized grain between the king grains of spelt & kamut. When the wheat was hydridized a long time ago, the quality was comprimised and this is why so many people have such an allergy to wheat (even if they don't know it).
GREAT ALTERNATIVES: Spelt, buckwheat, amaranth
S(ugar-refined): I don't think I even need to explain this one. Refined sugar has been bleached, ground together with animal bones and put on the market for human consumption. There is ABSOLUTELY NO nutritional value to sugar and white, refined sugar makes the blood glycogen levels rise and fall very quickly, creating a CRAZY crash. This is where the addiction comes in.
GREAT ALTERNATIVES: Agave nectar, maple syrup, sucanat, stevia
A(lcohol): There is tons of information out there on this. If you're going to consume alcohol, the best thing to consume is organic wine free from sulfites.
C(affeine): WOAH! This stuff is nuts. You can feel it, people use it to stay awake, we know why it's bad. Tea, fresh juice & tons of water drinkin' is a great alternative. If you are going to drink coffee, GO FOR THE DECAF, it tastes the same and won't give you the nutty up's & down's.
S(oy): All soy is now GMOed (genetically modified). The last statistic I read stated that 98% of the worlds soy is genetically modified, however, to get that 2%, there is a very slim chance. Soy also has very high estrogen levels which can cause issues in both males & females.
GREAT ALTERNATIVES: Rice or nut products
My deal these days is to allow myself ONE "treat" like a chai tea or a DECAF coffee (caffeine, alcohol & refined sugar are OUTTA here) per day. Absolutely NO other sugary treats. The middle SAC are really the meat of it. These are the things that are the worst for my body. Dairy, wheat and soy are to be very limited and not eaten at every meal (for the above described reasons). For some reason (although it's always been all or nothing for everything else) I'm unable to quit all my dirty little eating habits at once. So, this is a means to help me get there. When I go to eat, I ask myself, "in this meal, how many of the DW-SACS are containted?" If the answer is none, I'm good to go. If there are more than 2, it's not an option. It's good, for me, for now.
So these days, I do my best to over-dose on veggies, love on the fruits & munch on quinoa, nuts & seeds.
After all...I had to start somewhere and here, now, where I am and with what I've got sounded like the very best option.
MuAh!
xoxo
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
The Vegetarian Effect
By Jim.
People hate having their comfort zone pushed. So much so that they will take an assumptive leap to enter into a debate on a subject they assume they were challenged on.
For instance: There are two people at dinner. One person casually mentions they are vegetarian. The other immediately jumps into a defensive dialogue about why they eat meat. The vegetarian was in no way challenging the other person.
However merely knowing the person had an alternative standpoint on diet put them in a defensive mode. This is not a unique scenario. You can test this effect yourself. Next time you are in a group of people say that you, for example, believe cell phones cause cancer or brain tumors. It is very likely one person will challenge you on that issue or start talking about how they limit their own cell phone use.
There are four ways that people can respond to information. Passively perceive it (listen but make no comment), actively engage it (inquire objectively for more information), challenge it or bandwagon it (immediately say that they do exactly what you are talking about). I have noticed that in these situations where personal health related issues are brought up, the vast majority of the time people choose the third way of handling information- to dispute.
I am not saying I am the be all end all of health nor am I privy to special information. I am merely wondering why, on issues of personal health, people do not automatically opt to actively engage information. It seems to me that on an issue where most people outsource common sense and intuition to the minds of doctors, people ought to be getting as much information as possible from as many sources as possible- however much what you are hearing may conflict with what you believe and your current habits.
So if you are in a situation and someone says licking a piece of rubber daily improves your immune system rather than saying, "That is stupid, you are wrong," why not say, "that's interesting can you tell me more about how you came to this conclusion."
Then listen as objectively as possible and try to conclude the merit of the information of its own accord, rather than based on how the information conflicts with what you already know, have heard, or just think is true.
Does it resonates with you?
You know more than you think. Does what you hear feel like it is wrong or different? Objecting because it feels wrong to you is admirable, objecting because it feels different is embracing stagnation.
Embrace this method and you will find yourself asking more, better questions and coming to stronger, more universal truths.
People hate having their comfort zone pushed. So much so that they will take an assumptive leap to enter into a debate on a subject they assume they were challenged on.
For instance: There are two people at dinner. One person casually mentions they are vegetarian. The other immediately jumps into a defensive dialogue about why they eat meat. The vegetarian was in no way challenging the other person.
However merely knowing the person had an alternative standpoint on diet put them in a defensive mode. This is not a unique scenario. You can test this effect yourself. Next time you are in a group of people say that you, for example, believe cell phones cause cancer or brain tumors. It is very likely one person will challenge you on that issue or start talking about how they limit their own cell phone use.
There are four ways that people can respond to information. Passively perceive it (listen but make no comment), actively engage it (inquire objectively for more information), challenge it or bandwagon it (immediately say that they do exactly what you are talking about). I have noticed that in these situations where personal health related issues are brought up, the vast majority of the time people choose the third way of handling information- to dispute.
I am not saying I am the be all end all of health nor am I privy to special information. I am merely wondering why, on issues of personal health, people do not automatically opt to actively engage information. It seems to me that on an issue where most people outsource common sense and intuition to the minds of doctors, people ought to be getting as much information as possible from as many sources as possible- however much what you are hearing may conflict with what you believe and your current habits.
So if you are in a situation and someone says licking a piece of rubber daily improves your immune system rather than saying, "That is stupid, you are wrong," why not say, "that's interesting can you tell me more about how you came to this conclusion."
Then listen as objectively as possible and try to conclude the merit of the information of its own accord, rather than based on how the information conflicts with what you already know, have heard, or just think is true.
Does it resonates with you?
You know more than you think. Does what you hear feel like it is wrong or different? Objecting because it feels wrong to you is admirable, objecting because it feels different is embracing stagnation.
Embrace this method and you will find yourself asking more, better questions and coming to stronger, more universal truths.
UPDATED LINK...
For the "We Are the World" video...
I would love to encourage you to go to www.youtube.com and search for "We Are the World" by Michael Jackson.
It's an inspiring song...even if you're not a fan of him.
All the very best...
Tons of love and hugs.
I would love to encourage you to go to www.youtube.com and search for "We Are the World" by Michael Jackson.
It's an inspiring song...even if you're not a fan of him.
All the very best...
Tons of love and hugs.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Smoothie Your Way to Health
Sometimes being healthy can seem daunting, but really...it doesn't have to be!
It's not about elimination, but rather, about abundance.
So, darling, I have put some deliciously delectable recipes below for you to s k i p your way to health.
P.S. Don't forget to exercise for at least 20 minutes a day! (You're worth it!!)
1. Organic Green Goddess-
*2 organic bananas
*1 cup fresh organic strawberries
*3/4 cup organic soy milk (DO NOT USE NON-ORGANIC!)
*4 organic kale leaves
*1 tablespoon Spirulina (total superfood!)
*1 tablespoon Maca powder (total superfood!)
*BLEND & ENJOY
2. Organic Blue Bananza
* 1 cup organic blueberries (fresh or frozen)
* 1 organic banana
* 1 organic avocado (ummm, makes it so creamy and delicious!!)
* 3/4 cup organic soy milk (DO NOT USE NON-ORGANIC)
* 1 tablespoon Spirulina (superfood!!)
* 1 tablespoon Maca (superfood!!)
* BLEND & ENJOY
It's not about elimination, but rather, about abundance.
So, darling, I have put some deliciously delectable recipes below for you to s k i p your way to health.
P.S. Don't forget to exercise for at least 20 minutes a day! (You're worth it!!)
1. Organic Green Goddess-
*2 organic bananas
*1 cup fresh organic strawberries
*3/4 cup organic soy milk (DO NOT USE NON-ORGANIC!)
*4 organic kale leaves
*1 tablespoon Spirulina (total superfood!)
*1 tablespoon Maca powder (total superfood!)
*BLEND & ENJOY
2. Organic Blue Bananza
* 1 cup organic blueberries (fresh or frozen)
* 1 organic banana
* 1 organic avocado (ummm, makes it so creamy and delicious!!)
* 3/4 cup organic soy milk (DO NOT USE NON-ORGANIC)
* 1 tablespoon Spirulina (superfood!!)
* 1 tablespoon Maca (superfood!!)
* BLEND & ENJOY
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Create & Grow Your Own Blog
Hey there!
Want to start your own blog, change the world with your thoughts and release stress and tension by getting it all out there?
Great...here are easy to follow directions on how to get started (thanks Sara):
What is a blog?
A blog is a web log displaying entries made by the blogger. Blogs vary in style and format and are interactive, allowing readers to submit comments on entries.
How to set up a blog:
Step 1:Go to blogger.com
Step 2:Click on the “create a blog” link
Step 3:Input your e-mail address and required information to create a Google account. Continue
Step 4:Name your blog and create a url
Continue
Step 5: Select a template for your blog
You are now ready to start blogging!
How to become a "follower"
On the right hand side of this blog, click become a follower. This will add this blog to your blogging homepage. You can do this with other's blogs too to keep tabs on your peers. This will give me access to your blog link.
How to publish a post
Step 1: Login to your blog at blogger.com
Step 2: Click on “New Post”
Step 3: Input a title and write your post in the space provided. You can select the picture icon to add pictures, change the font color and size, add links, and upload videos. Remember to use spell check before publishing your post!
Step 4: Click “Publish Post” (not just save)
How to leave a comment
Step 1: At the bottom of a post there will be a “comments” link
Step 2: Select the comments link and in the space provided add your feedback or questions
Step 3: Click “Post Comment”
Happy blogging!!!
Want to start your own blog, change the world with your thoughts and release stress and tension by getting it all out there?
Great...here are easy to follow directions on how to get started (thanks Sara):
What is a blog?
A blog is a web log displaying entries made by the blogger. Blogs vary in style and format and are interactive, allowing readers to submit comments on entries.
How to set up a blog:
Step 1:Go to blogger.com
Step 2:Click on the “create a blog” link
Step 3:Input your e-mail address and required information to create a Google account. Continue
Step 4:Name your blog and create a url
Continue
Step 5: Select a template for your blog
You are now ready to start blogging!
How to become a "follower"
On the right hand side of this blog, click become a follower. This will add this blog to your blogging homepage. You can do this with other's blogs too to keep tabs on your peers. This will give me access to your blog link.
How to publish a post
Step 1: Login to your blog at blogger.com
Step 2: Click on “New Post”
Step 3: Input a title and write your post in the space provided. You can select the picture icon to add pictures, change the font color and size, add links, and upload videos. Remember to use spell check before publishing your post!
Step 4: Click “Publish Post” (not just save)
How to leave a comment
Step 1: At the bottom of a post there will be a “comments” link
Step 2: Select the comments link and in the space provided add your feedback or questions
Step 3: Click “Post Comment”
Happy blogging!!!
Health Care Re(ck)form
I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.
You know what sunshine? I am extremely disenchanted by things that are going on right now with Health Care Reform and the overall general tone in Washington. I can’t say that I have read the whole 1000 page official document. What I can say though, is that I have been doing my research from sources that I find appealing to reason and logic and here is what one Natural News article about the document and some of the incredible “double speak” said:
From CMS at FreeRepublic.com:
• Page 16: States that if you have insurance at the time of the bill becoming law and change, you will be required to take a similar plan. If that is not available, you will be required to take the government option!
• Page 22: Mandates audits of all employers that self-insure!
• Page 29: Admission: your health care will be rationed!
• Page 30: A government committee will decide what treatments and benefits you get (and, unlike an insurer, there will be no appeals process)
• Page 42: The "Health Choices Commissioner" will decide health benefits for you. You will have no choice. None.
• Page 50: All non-US citizens, illegal or not, will be provided with free healthcare services.
• Page 58: Every person will be issued a National ID Healthcard.
• Page 59: The federal government will have direct, real-time access to all individual bank accounts for electronic funds transfer.
• Page 65: Taxpayers will subsidize all union retiree and community organizer health plans (example: SEIU, UAW and ACORN)
• Page 72: All private healthcare plans must conform to government rules to participate in a Healthcare Exchange.
• Page 84: All private healthcare plans must participate in the Healthcare Exchange (i.e., total government control of private plans)
• Page 91: Government mandates linguistic infrastructure for services; translation: illegal aliens
• Page 95: The Government will pay ACORN and Americorps to sign up individuals for Government-run Health Care plan.
• Page 102: Those eligible for Medicaid will be automatically enrolled: you have no choice in the matter.
• Page 124: No company can sue the government for price-fixing. No "judicial review" is permitted against the government monopoly. Put simply, private insurers will be crushed.
• Page 127: The AMA sold doctors out: the government will set wages.
• Page 145: An employer MUST auto-enroll employees into the government-run public plan. No alternatives.
• Page 126: Employers MUST pay healthcare bills for part-time employees AND their families.
• Page 149: Any employer with a payroll of $400K or more, who does not offer the public option, pays an 8% tax on payroll
• Page 150: Any employer with a payroll of $250K-400K or more, who does not offer the public option, pays a 2 to 6% tax on payroll
• Page 167: Any individual who doesn't have acceptable healthcare (according to the government) will be taxed 2.5% of income.
• Page 170: Any NON-RESIDENT alien is exempt from individual taxes (Americans will pay for them).
• Page 195: Officers and employees of Government Healthcare Bureaucracy will have access to ALL American financial and personal records.
• Page 203: "The tax imposed under this section shall not be treated as tax." Yes, it really says that.
• Page 239: Bill will reduce physician services for Medicaid. Seniors and the poor most affected."
• Page 241: Doctors: no matter what specialty you have, you'll all be paid the same (thanks, AMA!)
• Page 253: Government sets value of doctors' time, their professional judgment, etc.
• Page 265: Government mandates and controls productivity for private healthcare industries.
• Page 268: Government regulates rental and purchase of power-driven wheelchairs.
• Page 272: Cancer patients: welcome to the wonderful world of rationing!
• Page 280: Hospitals will be penalized for what the government deems preventable re-admissions.
• Page 298: Doctors: if you treat a patient during an initial admission that results in a readmission, you will be penalized by the government.
• Page 317: Doctors: you are now prohibited for owning and investing in healthcare companies!
• Page 318: Prohibition on hospital expansion. Hospitals cannot expand without government approval.
• Page 321: Hospital expansion hinges on "community" input: in other words, yet another payoff for ACORN.
• Page 335: Government mandates establishment of outcome-based measures: i.e., rationing.
• Page 341: Government has authority to disqualify Medicare Advantage Plans, HMOs, etc.
• Page 354: Government will restrict enrollment of SPECIAL NEEDS individuals.
• Page 379: More bureaucracy: Telehealth Advisory Committee (healthcare by phone).
• Page 425: More bureaucracy: Advance Care Planning Consult: Senior Citizens, assisted suicide, euthanasia?
• Page 425: Government will instruct and consult regarding living wills, durable powers of attorney, etc. Mandatory. Appears to lock in estate taxes ahead of time.
• Page 425: Government provides approved list of end-of-life resources, guiding you in death.
• Page 427: Government mandates program that orders end-of-life treatment; government dictates how your life ends.
• Page 429: Advance Care Planning Consult will be used to dictate treatment as patient's health deteriorates. This can include an ORDER for end-of-life plans. An ORDER from the GOVERNMENT.
• Page 430: Government will decide what level of treatments you may have at end-of-life.
• Page 469: Community-based Home Medical Services: more payoffs for ACORN.
• Page 472: Payments to Community-based organizations: more payoffs for ACORN.
• Page 489: Government will cover marriage and family therapy. Government intervenes in your marriage.
• Page 494: Government will cover mental health services: defining, creating and rationing those services.
Whether or not you believe this, it is UP TO YOU to take health into our own hands and reform it for yourself and the people you LOVE!
NO ONE deserves your rights.
Your health IS in YOUR hands, not your governments.
TAKE ACTION:
www.naturalnews.com (Educate Yourself)
http://healthfreedomalliance.org/ (Let your politicians know what you think)
You know what sunshine? I am extremely disenchanted by things that are going on right now with Health Care Reform and the overall general tone in Washington. I can’t say that I have read the whole 1000 page official document. What I can say though, is that I have been doing my research from sources that I find appealing to reason and logic and here is what one Natural News article about the document and some of the incredible “double speak” said:
From CMS at FreeRepublic.com:
• Page 16: States that if you have insurance at the time of the bill becoming law and change, you will be required to take a similar plan. If that is not available, you will be required to take the government option!
• Page 22: Mandates audits of all employers that self-insure!
• Page 29: Admission: your health care will be rationed!
• Page 30: A government committee will decide what treatments and benefits you get (and, unlike an insurer, there will be no appeals process)
• Page 42: The "Health Choices Commissioner" will decide health benefits for you. You will have no choice. None.
• Page 50: All non-US citizens, illegal or not, will be provided with free healthcare services.
• Page 58: Every person will be issued a National ID Healthcard.
• Page 59: The federal government will have direct, real-time access to all individual bank accounts for electronic funds transfer.
• Page 65: Taxpayers will subsidize all union retiree and community organizer health plans (example: SEIU, UAW and ACORN)
• Page 72: All private healthcare plans must conform to government rules to participate in a Healthcare Exchange.
• Page 84: All private healthcare plans must participate in the Healthcare Exchange (i.e., total government control of private plans)
• Page 91: Government mandates linguistic infrastructure for services; translation: illegal aliens
• Page 95: The Government will pay ACORN and Americorps to sign up individuals for Government-run Health Care plan.
• Page 102: Those eligible for Medicaid will be automatically enrolled: you have no choice in the matter.
• Page 124: No company can sue the government for price-fixing. No "judicial review" is permitted against the government monopoly. Put simply, private insurers will be crushed.
• Page 127: The AMA sold doctors out: the government will set wages.
• Page 145: An employer MUST auto-enroll employees into the government-run public plan. No alternatives.
• Page 126: Employers MUST pay healthcare bills for part-time employees AND their families.
• Page 149: Any employer with a payroll of $400K or more, who does not offer the public option, pays an 8% tax on payroll
• Page 150: Any employer with a payroll of $250K-400K or more, who does not offer the public option, pays a 2 to 6% tax on payroll
• Page 167: Any individual who doesn't have acceptable healthcare (according to the government) will be taxed 2.5% of income.
• Page 170: Any NON-RESIDENT alien is exempt from individual taxes (Americans will pay for them).
• Page 195: Officers and employees of Government Healthcare Bureaucracy will have access to ALL American financial and personal records.
• Page 203: "The tax imposed under this section shall not be treated as tax." Yes, it really says that.
• Page 239: Bill will reduce physician services for Medicaid. Seniors and the poor most affected."
• Page 241: Doctors: no matter what specialty you have, you'll all be paid the same (thanks, AMA!)
• Page 253: Government sets value of doctors' time, their professional judgment, etc.
• Page 265: Government mandates and controls productivity for private healthcare industries.
• Page 268: Government regulates rental and purchase of power-driven wheelchairs.
• Page 272: Cancer patients: welcome to the wonderful world of rationing!
• Page 280: Hospitals will be penalized for what the government deems preventable re-admissions.
• Page 298: Doctors: if you treat a patient during an initial admission that results in a readmission, you will be penalized by the government.
• Page 317: Doctors: you are now prohibited for owning and investing in healthcare companies!
• Page 318: Prohibition on hospital expansion. Hospitals cannot expand without government approval.
• Page 321: Hospital expansion hinges on "community" input: in other words, yet another payoff for ACORN.
• Page 335: Government mandates establishment of outcome-based measures: i.e., rationing.
• Page 341: Government has authority to disqualify Medicare Advantage Plans, HMOs, etc.
• Page 354: Government will restrict enrollment of SPECIAL NEEDS individuals.
• Page 379: More bureaucracy: Telehealth Advisory Committee (healthcare by phone).
• Page 425: More bureaucracy: Advance Care Planning Consult: Senior Citizens, assisted suicide, euthanasia?
• Page 425: Government will instruct and consult regarding living wills, durable powers of attorney, etc. Mandatory. Appears to lock in estate taxes ahead of time.
• Page 425: Government provides approved list of end-of-life resources, guiding you in death.
• Page 427: Government mandates program that orders end-of-life treatment; government dictates how your life ends.
• Page 429: Advance Care Planning Consult will be used to dictate treatment as patient's health deteriorates. This can include an ORDER for end-of-life plans. An ORDER from the GOVERNMENT.
• Page 430: Government will decide what level of treatments you may have at end-of-life.
• Page 469: Community-based Home Medical Services: more payoffs for ACORN.
• Page 472: Payments to Community-based organizations: more payoffs for ACORN.
• Page 489: Government will cover marriage and family therapy. Government intervenes in your marriage.
• Page 494: Government will cover mental health services: defining, creating and rationing those services.
Whether or not you believe this, it is UP TO YOU to take health into our own hands and reform it for yourself and the people you LOVE!
NO ONE deserves your rights.
Your health IS in YOUR hands, not your governments.
TAKE ACTION:
www.naturalnews.com (Educate Yourself)
http://healthfreedomalliance.org/ (Let your politicians know what you think)
Monday, June 15, 2009
Settling...
Is for the dirt on the ground. Not your life.
Live it up.
Do what interests you, what lights you on fire, what turns you on.
IGNITE.
Live it up.
Do what interests you, what lights you on fire, what turns you on.
IGNITE.
Adrenaline 1.1
The following experience happened in the beginning of august 2006. Life is for living.
---------------
---------------
7am, I can't take the blow up mattress anymore. I can feel the ground underneath me every time I move and it's unpleasant so I revert to the couch under the window, the one with less sun shining on my face. Sirens yelled and dogs howled, it's 7:34am and I'm tired. I wrestle with the blanket and pillow to find my comfortable space, it works but still more sirens.
Last night I prayed I would wake up sick this morning, I didn't. My heart was beating abnormally fast, but it had been since I became aware we would be running Granite and the Numbers (kayak runs above the ability level I had ever run) around 4:30pm yesterday afternoon.
I contemplated playing sick, jumping off a cliff, lying about something waiting for me to do elsewhere, however the lies didn't suffice.
9am rolls around and I wake up again, this time just from a more rested stand point.
I use the bathroom and sit back down on the couch, staring out the window at the cloudy sky. Maybe it would rain, but who cares? Kayakers pray for rain and that would not be a way out. I got up off the couch and called Mom, told her the anxiety. She said not to run Granite/Numbers if I didn't feel comfortable. Mom's right. I had wished Bill would have been around to talk to, but realizing the last e-mail I had read from the Monsoon Warriors blog would put him right at the Upper Salt put in at 10am CO time.
I walked back into the house and went into the bathroom. My mouth had a faint blood taste, it was fear.
I had a decision to make and no one to make it for me.
I took Michael to Bongo Billy's but he wanted "real breakfast food." I was annoyed.
We walked to City Market. We bought muffins and fruit and whatnot and walked back to the house. We sat on the step outside and ate.
He looked at me and said, "It's okay to be scared."
My eyes swelled with tears but I said nothing, at first. I didn't want him to know.
Then I simply said, "I guess."
But I didn't think that coming to terms with my fear was going to help. Then, it was the moment that I realized I was stuck in between.
I had two options: Run it or Don't.
I didn't want to, not even a little bit. I knew that if I didn't, I would be upset with myself in knowing that I had the ability to try and succeed and if I did,
well, only the Universe could determine that.
It was time to go, do I stay and hike or do I at least go to the river and watch?
I go, gear in tow.
We get to the top of Granite and I finally conger up enough courage to tell Aubrie that I'm scared of the Numbers, flat out. S.C.A.R.E.D. Or maybe petrified, eh, call it what you will.
She understood. She knew where I was coming from and heard me when I told her. She asked what happened last time I ran it. I told her (she knew, she was there). She asked me what the worst thing that could happen to me if I didn't make a rapid, I looked at her and said, "I swim." She said, "exactly" and that's part of learning. She's right, I'm completely convinced to run Granite now, however, the Numbers is still being contemplated.
We run Granite with Little Pine Creek rapid. I don't flip. I sat forward and had vertical paddle strokes, right through the holes and swirly water. The rest of the 4 miles was easy class 3, but the "easy" kind that still has your heart dropping about 60 ft per mile (about the gradient of Granite) as you edge closer to triple drop. We pull into the eddy above Pine Creek and pull our boats out to portage. Aubrey, Amy (a girl we met at the put in), Michael and I walk Pine Creek and look at triple drop, a solid class IV rapid with three consecutive, river wide holes.
What the
f***
is going through my head. It's big and the water after it, that's big too, and a little bit down stream from it, oh yeah, that would also be big water. Amy agrees to run it, Aubrey has before and Michael plans to run it too. For the first time, they didn't matter. I mattered more than anything and the thought of running it, scared me. I didn't want to but I wasn't sure if it was the fear that didn't want to, or the possibility that it was over my head. As I stood on a giant rock waiting to watch Mikey, Mark and Zach (Amy's partner) run Pine Creek, I asked for a sign.
The beautiful sun shown through the clouds just then. I still hadn't drug my boat down to the put in, so I figured screw the sign, I'm hiking. I asked Aubrey how far the Numbers put in was so I could hike and she said "a mile."
I "un-screwed" the sign and drug my boat down to the put in for triple drop. Before I knew what was going on I was in the water paddling towards the eddy and Mark signals me to follow him.
I am at the top of the triple drop and I get spun around backwards. I go over the first drop backwards and flip going into the second one. I'm upside down in this rapid, I roll the first time. I'm still backwards. Oh good, the "backwards" current hates me, frickin' sweet, overboard. I roll. Still backwards but I'm over triple drop! I hit a small rock, into a hole, swallow half the river, choke, want to swim, shove my paddle to the surface, roll, FAST. (Thank God for textbook rolls).
Finally I get my boat spun around and see Mark in an eddy to the left, he calmly signals me to come that way and I do. I make the eddy, he tells me great job with a huge smile and I ask him if it counts, because I DID do most of it upside down.
Of course it counted.
My heart was beating about 14,000 ft per mile now. BUT I just conquered something so much bigger than a class IV rapid.
We run the rest down to the Numbers. It's more burly than Granite and considerably more burly than Brown's or the Upper Salt.
After running that, I decide to run Number 1 and if I swim, I decided, I'm pulling out and hiking it. I wasn't going to swim after that last battle roll boogie.
I ran all the Numbers straight through. I didn't flip until Number 4 and it was at the bottom in a funky hole. I rolled. We got out and scouted Number 5. I followed Mark, and if I could just follow Mark down the whole Number 5 rapid, like I had been following him in the other 4, I would be fine.
I went up to the top of the eddy and fairied a bit to follow him to just the right side of the rock in the middle of the river. I went down the drop paddling and leaning forward, I hit the second hole and paddled like hell. Went right through it. Mark turned around to tell me something and flipped.
Oh just f***ing great, the person's line I'm following just flipped and now I am skirting to the right of his upside down body, fricken sweet. Oh wait though... I just scouted the line, I watched Mikey run it and I know which line to take, so I ran it just a little left of center and then on down the center.
Holy crap, I just ran Numbers, through Number 5, without swimming or flipping in Number 5. I was in the Mamba 7.5 (my boat). I just did it and it included a solid class IV triple drop. Narley dudes.
Narley.
A conquered fear. A monumental day. A whole new boater.
<3
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Healing
Happy Thursday Sunshine!!
What a gorgeous day outside! People seem extra smiley today and I have to admit, I LOVE IT! I get such a warm tingly feeling inside when someone smiles at me with such sincere wishes for my happiness.
I am so bubbly sitting here in my seat because I have to tell you about something! Just a couple weeks ago, I was reading a a nifty little article and it talked about two things to help build up the immune system. Now, I must tell you a little secret...I was a bit of a slithery skeptic. Was it unfair of me? Possibly, but with all the "make money quick" gimmicks out there, ya just never can be sure.
So, I researched and searched and serached and finally decided to buy a bottle of this fancy stuff called Colloidal Silver (CS)...
...And holy toledo, it happens to be the best thing ever!
Here's why:
**My friend told me in confidence that he had a lump directly above his genitals that began growing a few years ago. Naturally, he was a wee bit worried but never made time to go to the doctor. I suggested that he try the silver, because he too was having tooth aches and problems with his teeth. Then, just this morning he called me and told me that the lump was COMPLETELY gone after only one week of taking the silver. Whoop-ti-doo, HOORAY!
**I have experienced various health woahs over the years due to prolonged stress, not eating well and over caffeinating myself (oh that coffee). After I started taking the CS, I began feeling stronger and my body began releasing better. My appetite changed and I am no longer interested in over-eating refined sugar. Must say, I'm stoked about feeling stronger every day!
**Finally, I was having tooth aches all over the place and, opps, I could even feel a cavity coming in. With my itch to travel and resistance to schedule a dentist appointment, I didn't go and turns out to be a good thing! My tooth aches are gone and dun, dun, dun....I can't feel the cavity either!
Okay, so wowzers, let's recap this awesome, amazing, one of a kind product! It repairs teeth, gets rid of mysterious n' malvolent lumps, helps regenerate the body AND builds up the immune system.
The kind that we have been using and that has been repeatedly recommended to me can be found here: http://www.allhealthtrends.com/colloidal-silver.html. It is called Sovereign Silver.
Anyway, have the best, one of a kind day ever!
Cheers to you, superhero!
What a gorgeous day outside! People seem extra smiley today and I have to admit, I LOVE IT! I get such a warm tingly feeling inside when someone smiles at me with such sincere wishes for my happiness.
I am so bubbly sitting here in my seat because I have to tell you about something! Just a couple weeks ago, I was reading a a nifty little article and it talked about two things to help build up the immune system. Now, I must tell you a little secret...I was a bit of a slithery skeptic. Was it unfair of me? Possibly, but with all the "make money quick" gimmicks out there, ya just never can be sure.
So, I researched and searched and serached and finally decided to buy a bottle of this fancy stuff called Colloidal Silver (CS)...
...And holy toledo, it happens to be the best thing ever!
Here's why:
**My friend told me in confidence that he had a lump directly above his genitals that began growing a few years ago. Naturally, he was a wee bit worried but never made time to go to the doctor. I suggested that he try the silver, because he too was having tooth aches and problems with his teeth. Then, just this morning he called me and told me that the lump was COMPLETELY gone after only one week of taking the silver. Whoop-ti-doo, HOORAY!
**I have experienced various health woahs over the years due to prolonged stress, not eating well and over caffeinating myself (oh that coffee). After I started taking the CS, I began feeling stronger and my body began releasing better. My appetite changed and I am no longer interested in over-eating refined sugar. Must say, I'm stoked about feeling stronger every day!
**Finally, I was having tooth aches all over the place and, opps, I could even feel a cavity coming in. With my itch to travel and resistance to schedule a dentist appointment, I didn't go and turns out to be a good thing! My tooth aches are gone and dun, dun, dun....I can't feel the cavity either!
Okay, so wowzers, let's recap this awesome, amazing, one of a kind product! It repairs teeth, gets rid of mysterious n' malvolent lumps, helps regenerate the body AND builds up the immune system.
The kind that we have been using and that has been repeatedly recommended to me can be found here: http://www.allhealthtrends.com/colloidal-silver.html. It is called Sovereign Silver.
Anyway, have the best, one of a kind day ever!
Cheers to you, superhero!
Saturday, June 6, 2009
A New Addition!
I would like to officially introduce you to a new contributing author for our Start Change Inside blog, Jim!
He will be sharing his thoughts and perspectives periodically so stay tuned as we amp up the blog with juicy stories, fun-filled calls to action and tons 'o love!
Cheers to the best day ever!!
He will be sharing his thoughts and perspectives periodically so stay tuned as we amp up the blog with juicy stories, fun-filled calls to action and tons 'o love!
Cheers to the best day ever!!
Tides
Graduation was over and when it was time, I got rid of half the things I owned including my Black Berry, all my furniture, my clothes, my escape artist adrenaline junkie turtle Tallie and said good bye to my beloved car Callie which was to sit idle at my mom's house. We then packed 200 pounds of necessary items (we know the amount because the airlines made sure to charge us for every single ounce) and moved to the North Shore of Kaua'i, Hawaii on May 28th. The plan was to live on a farm for 3-6 months and learn permaculture* through a hands on experience. The agreement with Mary (the lady with the farm in Hawaii) was to work 15 hours per week on the farm in exchange for food and a place to stay (a tent we set up). In theory, this was the best plan ever. In practice, it was much different.
So, we gave it a go. Nothing clicked. Nothing felt right and while we were in one of the most undenibaly beautiful places one could hope to be, we did not want to be there. So, we bought plane tickets back to Arizona after 5 days and took away some valuable lessons.
1. Intuition. Follow it. Before we left, it was incredibly hard to get out of here. Everything felt like we were running through mud while eating peanut butter (chunky) trying to climb a brick wall (covered in stinky olive oil). We felt like we should have been thrilled, excited beyond belief for this journey- but we weren't, no matter how much we tried to talk ourselves into it.
2. All that glitters is not gold. Sometimes you come across amazing oportunities in life that draw you in like a bug towards a light bulb. What is important to remember is sometimes those lightbulbs are bug zappers. Just because an opportunity or an idea seems incredible doesn't mean it is meant for you. Sometimes a place is better appreciated from a postcard. Life is not one size fits all. Specifically Hawaii is not for everyone- despite what their incredible tourism campaign may lead you to believe.
3. Be Decisive. When we realized that it wasn't for us, we left as soon as possible. We could have thought of a thousand reasons to stick around for one more harvest or one more night. But sticking around longer could have been detrimental to us, the people we were working with and the work we were doing simply because it was not the right place for us to be. We made up our minds and took action, and it was the best ever!
4. Chin Up. If it's not alright right now, it will be soon. Smile through it and trust that things are as they should be. "Although it may be unclear to you no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should."
5. Don't do something because it sounds appealing to someone else. I got wrapped up in the response from everyone else and how excited (or surprised) they were for me. But in so doing I forgot to listen to my innate (intuition). Which was screaming "What!? What are you doing? This is so not what I was telling you to do! Hello?!"
6. When making life decisions, tell the ego to shut up. Sometimes my ego likes to try and govern my life but I have decided that policy is bad news bears. From now on, it is my responsibility to feel first, listen second, tell third.
7. Follow your heart. Yes, you have heard this a thousand times- but there is a reason for that. It is the best all encompassing advice you could give or receive. You know, always, in your heart what is right. The hard part is listening to it. If you are able to listen and be guided by your heart you will be richly rewarded. Things will fall into place (although it may take a while and be difficult, extremely difficult, along the way) and you will live the life you want- even if you are not sure what that life may be at this moment.
All in all, 0 regrets, a zillion pounds of gratefulness for all the support and endless love for the journey.
**We- referring to my boyfriend Jim and I.**
* [pur-muh-kuhl-cher] (n: a system of cultivation intended to maintain permanent agriculture or horticulture by relying on renewable resources and a self-sustaining ecosystem)
So, we gave it a go. Nothing clicked. Nothing felt right and while we were in one of the most undenibaly beautiful places one could hope to be, we did not want to be there. So, we bought plane tickets back to Arizona after 5 days and took away some valuable lessons.
1. Intuition. Follow it. Before we left, it was incredibly hard to get out of here. Everything felt like we were running through mud while eating peanut butter (chunky) trying to climb a brick wall (covered in stinky olive oil). We felt like we should have been thrilled, excited beyond belief for this journey- but we weren't, no matter how much we tried to talk ourselves into it.
2. All that glitters is not gold. Sometimes you come across amazing oportunities in life that draw you in like a bug towards a light bulb. What is important to remember is sometimes those lightbulbs are bug zappers. Just because an opportunity or an idea seems incredible doesn't mean it is meant for you. Sometimes a place is better appreciated from a postcard. Life is not one size fits all. Specifically Hawaii is not for everyone- despite what their incredible tourism campaign may lead you to believe.
3. Be Decisive. When we realized that it wasn't for us, we left as soon as possible. We could have thought of a thousand reasons to stick around for one more harvest or one more night. But sticking around longer could have been detrimental to us, the people we were working with and the work we were doing simply because it was not the right place for us to be. We made up our minds and took action, and it was the best ever!
4. Chin Up. If it's not alright right now, it will be soon. Smile through it and trust that things are as they should be. "Although it may be unclear to you no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should."
5. Don't do something because it sounds appealing to someone else. I got wrapped up in the response from everyone else and how excited (or surprised) they were for me. But in so doing I forgot to listen to my innate (intuition). Which was screaming "What!? What are you doing? This is so not what I was telling you to do! Hello?!"
6. When making life decisions, tell the ego to shut up. Sometimes my ego likes to try and govern my life but I have decided that policy is bad news bears. From now on, it is my responsibility to feel first, listen second, tell third.
7. Follow your heart. Yes, you have heard this a thousand times- but there is a reason for that. It is the best all encompassing advice you could give or receive. You know, always, in your heart what is right. The hard part is listening to it. If you are able to listen and be guided by your heart you will be richly rewarded. Things will fall into place (although it may take a while and be difficult, extremely difficult, along the way) and you will live the life you want- even if you are not sure what that life may be at this moment.
All in all, 0 regrets, a zillion pounds of gratefulness for all the support and endless love for the journey.
**We- referring to my boyfriend Jim and I.**
* [pur-muh-kuhl-cher] (n: a system of cultivation intended to maintain permanent agriculture or horticulture by relying on renewable resources and a self-sustaining ecosystem)
Friday, April 3, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
Today
Today the pomp and circumstance, the trial and tribulation which seem inextricably ingrained in human functionality will vanish. You will find yourself synchronized harmoniously with all being, with all of the universe.
The Sun shines to meet your beautiful face. Rain falls so it may trickle down your golden hair, and, for a few lucky drops, to run down your cheek. The air exists to nourish your lungs. And Light is the surest sign that god exists everywhere, in everything, entirely of the most divine love. For how else could it elucidate such boundless depth and beauty?
Today the love, beauty and harmony of the world shines in you as never before. It shines with infinite clarity, purity and purpose. You are a child of love and so today is not merely the best day ever. In this realm of wonder all time exists in an instant and in eternity. Today you become of that eternity. You are eternal love, divine, sacred and pure. And so today, as always, you are the best that ever has been and ever will be.
I love you.
The Sun shines to meet your beautiful face. Rain falls so it may trickle down your golden hair, and, for a few lucky drops, to run down your cheek. The air exists to nourish your lungs. And Light is the surest sign that god exists everywhere, in everything, entirely of the most divine love. For how else could it elucidate such boundless depth and beauty?
Today the love, beauty and harmony of the world shines in you as never before. It shines with infinite clarity, purity and purpose. You are a child of love and so today is not merely the best day ever. In this realm of wonder all time exists in an instant and in eternity. Today you become of that eternity. You are eternal love, divine, sacred and pure. And so today, as always, you are the best that ever has been and ever will be.
I love you.
Monday, February 9, 2009
The Self.
"The self is made, not given.
It is a creative and active process
of attending
a life that must be heard, shaped, seen, said aloud
into the world,
finally enacted and woven into the lives of others."
—Barbara Myerhoff
It is a creative and active process
of attending
a life that must be heard, shaped, seen, said aloud
into the world,
finally enacted and woven into the lives of others."
—Barbara Myerhoff
Monday, February 2, 2009
Rooster Wake Up Calls.
So, it's 10pm on the Hawaiian islands and my tent is inviting me in, my warm sleeping bag awaits and I snuggle up. Ahh, a perfect night's...
COCKA-DOODLE DOO! It's 2:30am and the roosters are awake. Not only are one or two of them awake, but the one right outside my tent calls to the heard on the other side of the lake. Oh, and then they preceed to call back.
What a wake up call!
Literally and figuratively.
Aside from the roosters that week in Kauai, HI, another wake up call came...in a less obtrusive manner.
That call was the awareness of two emotions. Only two emotions that exist where all others stem.
Love and fear.
From love you'll find joy, peace, radiance, harmony...etc.
From fear you'll find anger, sadness, grief, jealousy...etc.
And so it goes...I realized I had a choice.
Everyday in every moment, in every step I take, I choose.
Love or fear.
Love or fear.
Love.
COCKA-DOODLE DOO! It's 2:30am and the roosters are awake. Not only are one or two of them awake, but the one right outside my tent calls to the heard on the other side of the lake. Oh, and then they preceed to call back.
What a wake up call!
Literally and figuratively.
Aside from the roosters that week in Kauai, HI, another wake up call came...in a less obtrusive manner.
That call was the awareness of two emotions. Only two emotions that exist where all others stem.
Love and fear.
From love you'll find joy, peace, radiance, harmony...etc.
From fear you'll find anger, sadness, grief, jealousy...etc.
And so it goes...I realized I had a choice.
Everyday in every moment, in every step I take, I choose.
Love or fear.
Love or fear.
Love.
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