inspiration is all around us - and easier than ever to highlight and share on the web. this site is about sharing the bits and pieces, the discoveries that make everyday new and interesting - to help us all be more healthy and better connected.
As I mentioned earlier this week, I’m doing sort of a modified detox from the one on Goop.com. There are three highlights so far that I wanted to share.
BEET, CARROT, APPLE and GINGER JUICE
I made this a few minutes ago and am drinking it now. I don’t juice the ingredients though - I blend them in a Vita-mix so that I get the entire benefit of the fruits and veggies. Tastes hardy after a hard workout.
PEA and BASIL SOUP
I made this last night for dinner and it was awesome and super easy. Just stir up some olive oil, garlic and onion, add the peas and seasoning, add water and then blend with the basil until it’s as smooth as you like it. You can use this as a formula with all kinds of different ingredients. I used to make a similar one with Cauliflower that was delish.
STRAWBERRY ORANGE ALMOND SPINACH SMOOTHIE
I basically modified the blueberry almond smoothie recipe from the site - had good handful of fresh strawberries, half an orange, small handful of almonds, and a small bunch of spinach, water and ice. Another winner in my book.
Sipping a blueberry, almond smoothie inspired by this one on Goop. Mine is a bit different:
1 cup blueberries (maybe a little more)
handful of almonds
handful of spinach
1/4 cup acai juice
splash of coconut milk
a couple of Dulce flakes
water, ice
Delicious on this beautiful summer day and reminds me of Maine because blueberries always remind me of home! After weeks of traveling (Maine, Milwaukee, Taipei, NYC, and Chicago) I’m doing a bit of a detox - modified from the one on Goop - and treats like this make it feel fantastic.. like I’m not missing anything. Going for a refill now.
“There is this deliberate veil, this curtain that’s drawn between us and where our food is coming from. The industry doesn’t want you to know the truth about what you’re eating because if you knew, you might not want to eat it.” - Food, Inc
It’s finally here! I heard the buzz about this film - here’s the trailer…
Check out the site for more info. Here’s a bit more directly from their press-kit:
How much do we know about the food we buy at our local supermarkets and serve to our families? Though our food appears the same—a tomato still looks like a tomato—it has been radically transformed.
In Food, Inc., producer-director Robert Kenner and investigative authors Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation) and Michael Pollan (The Omnivore’s Dilemma) lift the veil on the U.S. food industry – an industry that has often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihoods of American farmers, the safety of workers and our own environment.
With the use of animation and compelling graphics, the filmmakers expose the highly mechanized, Orwellian underbelly that’s been deliberately hidden from the American consumer.
They reveal how a handful of corporations control our nation’s food supply. Though the companies try to maintain the myth that our food still comes from farms with red barns and white picket fences, our food is actually raised on massive “factory farms” and processed in mega industrial plants. The animals grow fatter faster and are designed to fit the machines that slaughter them. Tomatoes are bred to be shipped without bruising and to stay edible for months. The system is highly productive, and Americans are spending less on food than ever before. But at what cost?
Gratitude is…more than a feeling, a virtue, or an experience; gratitude emerges as an attitude we can freely choose in order to create a better life for ourselves and for others,” explains Brother David Steindl-Rast. “The Nigerian Hausa put it this way: Give thanks for a little and you will find a lot.” There is a paradoxical aspect to gratitude, Emmons and Hill point out: the more grateful we are, the more reasons we have to be grateful.
On my way home from a doctor’s appointment this morning, my mind must have drifted a little allowing me to drift just a bit too far into the other lane of the off ramp as I was exiting for my street. I wasn’t completely clueless and don’t think I came close to anyone, but a man in a little car with an ad for VA prepaid law services clearly thought otherwise. He blared his horn at me and when we stopped at the light, pulled up next to me. He started to scream at me. I turned to him and mouthed the words “I’m sorry”. He continue to scream. I again mouthed - “I’m sorry - what can i do??”. That seemed to infuriate him more and a list of expletives spilled from his mouth like raw sewage flowing down an open sewer. He opened his window so I could hear it. I opened my windows so I could hear it. For some reason, I turned and faced him and just watched and listened as he called me a fucking stupid bitch with my head up my ass who expected the entire world to kiss my ass all the time. That was the kindest thing he said, and I was amazed at the amount of hatred pouring out of his entire body. When the light finally changed, he proceeded to speed off and then cut in front of me. To be honest, I wasn’t sure what to feel. Part of me wanted to speed up and smash the back of his little car. Or stop at another light and see what else he had to say . I wish I had taken off my glasses so he could yell straight into my eyes.
I guess I didn’t want to let it end because… well, maybe I wanted him to realize I’m not a stupid bitch. We all make mistakes. I’m not above accidently cutting someone off in traffic because I let my thoughts drift too far. Is he? I’m actually quite conscientious and aware the majority of the time. I’m still sorry I entered his territory without warning. But the punishment seemed a little harsh for the infraction - I guess because it was so personal, crude and to be honest, hostile. If we hadn’t had cars between us would he have gotten physical? I don’t think so. He seemed more like a chihuahua growling and howling like mad at someone who accidently moved their bone.
On with the rest of my day! For some reason, this little man made me stop and think. Maybe he just got layed off.. maybe his sewer mouth had less to do with me and more to do with some misery in his own life. It all made me feel less angry at him and more sorry for whatever it is that gives him such anger. To the universe, I say, I’m sorry to anyone who I accidently inconvenience. May we all stay aware, but also think twice before letting our negative emotions overtake our entire selves.
A few months ago I read some blog posts about coconut water and watched a video about how to open a young, green coconut. I quickly became hooked! It’s a blast to whack a coconut with a knife and pop it’s little round top off, revealing a perfect pool of clear, sweet liquid. There are lots of health benefits too - here are just a few I wrangled from that great big world wide web:
natural energy booster
great for weight-loss
full of goodness like fiber, calcium, potassium and magnesium
replenishes your body’s fluids after exercising
boosts your immune system
is detoxifying and cleansing for your liver
very low in calories and no cholesterol
naturally sterile and identical to human plasma
great for your skin
For those of you who aren’t so interested in buying whole coconuts to open yourself, you can now find packaged coconut water in stores like Whole Foods. Check out a video I made a few weeks ago sampling two packaged coconut waters (ONE was the winner). I still prefer drinking it fresh from the coconut (it’s just so fun!) but this is a great alternative if you want a quick easy fix.
Sources for more info on the benefits of coconut water:
Goethe wrote: “I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element. It is my personal approach that creates the climate. It is my daily mood that makes the weather.
It seems like all my favorite quotes are from Goethe. That guy really got it. And Gretchen Rubin of the Happiness Project does too. And it’s funny because I usually get it, but every once in a while I need a little (or big!) reminder because it’s so easy to fall into this trap that Gretchen writes about:
It’s when you’re feeling isolated and awkward that you want people to be friendly. When you’re feeling ugly, you want someone to tell you how sexy you are. When you’re feeling insecure, you wish someone would express confidence in you.
But that’s not how it works because you keep getting what you put out there. So, read Gretchen’s article about how and why you should act the way you want to feel and the way you want others to respond to you.
Here’s my own quote mashup that I use to remind myself of this:
Be the change you want to see, and don’t take life so seriously.
Not sure? Ask Umbra! And enjoy this video from GristTV starring eco-advice columnist Umbra Fisk as they discuss options for safer deoderants this summer. I’m a fan of the crystal stick and baking soda for everyday use, but I’ll admit, if it’s a very special event and fancy clothes, sometimes I still have to break out my old Dove solid. I don’t feel good about it, but nothing else makes you feel as confident. Agree? Disagree? Let me know in the comments.
I’ve mentioned the Gratitude Journal iphone app before but now that I’ve been using it for months, I decided to investigate a bit more and found that it was designed and built by Carla Kay White.
Couple things I wanted to share here…
> The app is great. if you believe in gratitude and have an iphone, check it out.
> If you want to build an iphone app but didn’t think you could, get her ebook. It shows you how anyone can build one and makes it easy.
> I recently discovered her personal blog and love the photography and writing. Today’s was particularly stunning and I wanted to re-blog her simple but powerful meditation:
Thank you, Carla. I’m inspired by your work - much gratitude!
I was just reading about the benefits of B5 for your skin and thought I’d order some online from iHerb.com. I had heard about iHerb before, but this was the first time I’ve actually ordered from them. It’s not a pretty looking website, but the prices are attractive and an interesting thing happened.. they auto-enrolled me (sort of) into an affiliate program when I was done with my purchase. Of course, you have to activate it by clicking a link, but that’s it. Now, if anyone else uses my discount code (IFE115) for their first purchase at iHerb, I get credits at my account there. The benefits of the program continue as anyone who uses my code becomes a shopper, but I won’t get into the details (you can see them here). I just thought their approach was interesting.
So, here’s the coupon you can use if you’d like to order something from them and you’re a first time buyer - it’s $5.00 off your order! Pretty nice deal. iHerb has everything from vitamins and supplements to teas, juices, beauty products, aloe vera, algae, anti-aging products and so much more (they are name brands so don’t be scared). But since this was my own first purchase, I’ll let you know how it goes once I receive it. Cheers!
