Well-Being

Jamie's prompt this week on Wishcrafting Wed - "what do you wish for your health & wellness?"

Quite timely, at the beginning of a new year - double, as this week we left Rabbit & entered the Year of the Water Dragon!

My first thoughts are more movement, healthy food, clearer home & serenity!
Yesterday I picked up my first Veggie share from my CSA. I've eaten mostly local OG veggies & fruit, & try to keep the rest of my food as close to home as possible, for most of my adult life - 40 years!

Our little family (daughter, her family & myself) have eaten Gluten Free for 2 1/2 years, & added mostly dairy free last fall. I experience more energy, healthy weight (weigh about 5# more than I did in my 201-40s), clearer sight, .... it's been great! & contrary to some folks experience, I see 'glue-y' items & am just happy they're not on MY plate!!

Movement - as a kid, I HATED PE - mostly ball sports with guys or 'jock' women teachers. Blagh!! Then in my late 20s, we went to see my oldest niece in Nutcracker - wow!! The next week I began taking classes (from a world class, Russian method teacher, whose 26 year old daughter is now the principle teacher) .... Here's my son Josh as 'Mother Ginger,' from the 2011 Nutcracker, with one of the principle dancers peeking out from under the skirt (my 6 year old grandson LOVES Nora!) Miss Emma insisted Josh keep his beard, tho the red hair isn't his :)

A few years later, I began taking (& later teaching) Tai Chi & Qigong, along with becoming a Massage Therapist.
The last few years I've taken occasional classes, along with my more regular ballroom & square dance, & have been going weekly this winter - so I plan to continue that. AND next week, am teaching my own Chi Based movement class - 'Dragon Dance,' at a local workshop centre. Stay tuned :)

I'm still at work clearing & cleaning my home! Was actually challenging on Monday (1st day of the Chinese New Year) NOT to sweep or clean much (just put the dishes in the sink, & swabbed a counter! - here's a sweet link for activites of each day)
I'm making headway, & it gets easier. Yesterday I cleared off the little shelves beside the kitchen sink (the house I grew up in had these, & my mom always kept ivy on one) .... & put up teapots & various blue & white cups & containers.
Now I need to deal with the stuff that was there!

My daughter said she feels this year of the Dragon is the year I'll 'get your little Breitenbush house back!' when I live with less 'stuff' around me, it's much easier to keep it neat! I have 6 or so bags in my car to take to Good Will, & a few bags for garage sales ....

What do YOU wish for health & well being in this year of the Water Dragon?

WW - What do you wish to Remember?

Jamie's prompt on Wishcasting Wed is "what do you wish to Remember?"

I wish to remember how grateful I am for living on this beautiful, Blue Green Planet, what a blessing it is to be incarnate at this time!!

& for being born & living HERE, in the Pacific Northwest - where we have abundant water, trees, gardens, lovely OG veggies grown 'for us' by our CSA farmers, Katie & Casey For Grandchildren (5 - I am so blessed!), for music, dance, joy, vitality, health, and friends.

I wish to remember how blessed I was to be a wanted & cherished child, raised by parents who enjoyed being parents, enjoyed having ME (as ornery as I could be) & lived simply & honestly. Today would be their 62nd anniversary! (mama died ~ 7 years ago, & daddy 19)

& my daughter just shared a favorite, favorite memory: one sunny afternoon when she was ~ 9, we spent most of the day reading aloud, under the clothesline in our side yard - Anne McCaffery's 'Ship Who Sang' while her bro & papa were off collecting beetles with our Entomologist friend Jim .... 'one more chapter, please??' ...

This is Anne McCaffery's own memory of her son reading from that book for a camera crew: "I think the best story I ever wrote was 'The Ship Who Sang'. It still causes people to cry, including me. When Todd and I were reading it at Brighton, they had a BBC crew filming it. So there were these BBC cameramen hunkered down filming us, and comes the end of the story (which Todd always reads, because I can't go through it without weeping), I saw that these cameramen had tears rolling down their faces."
Anne McCaffery died yesterday, at 85 - may she fly with her dragons (Pern) & sing with the stars with Helva!!

I am blessed!!

What do you wish to remember?

Jamie Ridler Studios posts a weekly Wednesday Wishcasting prompt.

As Jamie says, "Wishcasting Wednesday is a safe haven for wishes, a fertile field in which to plant wish seeds and have them witnessed and tended lovingly. It’s a place where magic begins...Make a wish: Dare to dream."

"What would happen if every week you made a wish?

What magic might start to stir?"

Wishcasting Wednsday - how do we NOURISH ourselves?

It's been quite awhile since I participated in this LOVELY practice of self-discovery.

Jamie's Wishcasting Wed question: "How do you Wish to NOURISH" yourself?

I think of being in (via transporter or flying carpet!) in the Hot Springs, soaking in the far meadow pool ... being fed lovely OG & GF meals, joining friends to dance, chant, doing Qigong under the trees ...

Yesterday when a client forgot HER appointment, I received a massage a co-worker - wonderful self-nourishment! & later picked up my luscious, fresh from the OG farm CSA veggies - having fresh, local OG food as the mainstay is very nourishing & uplifting for me.

Spending time with the lovely grandkids, esp my five & 1/2 month old grandson most weekday mornings ...

& just sitting on the couch with a comforter & book

Doing Qigong in the sweetness of my living space

Dancing, singing & signing with friends

Bliss!

How do you wish to nourish yourself?

Always Apply a Joyful Mind

This morning, reading a bit in a library book before I rolled out of bed, I ran across this quote by Akisha, 11th century. "Always Apply a Joyful Mind" Rather like the 5th Reiki Precept: 'show gratitude.' I am grateful, indeed I am grateful for many blessings, health, happiness, family, food/shelter/warmth, clients, time, music .. & I have much joy in my life.

Life has been good & busy - since I began 'facebooking' I notice I've blogged less & less - instant gratification? & communication with a vast community - I recently read that 1/3 of the internet use is spent on Facebook ... now is that really true? While I write here, my FB is 'open' so am I considered spending time there, while I'm actually 'here' ??

(excuse me, I had to pop over cause I had comment notifications ...)

You see how it goes! & then there was a call from my March Red Hat Hostess, checking to see if she had everyone's contact information ... we're going to Wednesday Wines, with catering from Harvest Fresh across the street! Yes, those lovely photos are actually of the produce & other shelves! & if I didn't have a CSA share, I would be quite happy with the lovely OG & local fare -

A week or so ago, my former hubby called my daughter to ask about HIS family history - two of his sisters & a niece & nephew have celiac & have gone gluten free. My son & his family think about doing so, but haven't really stepped off the wheat wagon, ...

Now what is wrong (um, short sighted?) with a family of biologists, who, when they see several members of the family have a 'disorder' that is now known to have genetic links, & have health problems that are also related, but 'wonder' if they could also have gluten issues?? Do you think? He is lactose intolerant, which often follows gluten sensitivity, & 'does better' when he doesn't eat bread ... it's not just about bread! Sigh. At least he's asking questions!

Yesterday I received 'Gluten Toxicity' e-book from Shelly Stuart - a compliation of her research & info she'd posted on her website - yea!!
Love these quotes: "Unfortunately, gluten appears to be a difficult protein for everyone to digest. Humans don't have all the gastric (stomach), brush border (intestinal) & pancreatic (pancreas) enzymes necessary for ... it to... be broken down & digested easily." (chapter 2)

A DIFFICULT PROTEIN FOR EVERYBODY TO DIGEST!

& this one: 'like a ticking time bomb, perhaps, everyone who is ingesting gluten has the potential for an unfavorable outcome" (cancer, auto immune damage & diseases, malnutirition ...

Off to enjoy the morning - lots of light, off & on sun ... blessings on your day, may it be joyful!

*** MAGIC ***

 I think my word for 2010 is  * MAGIC *

This year already feels full of possibilities & opportunities.
& I'm seriously working on reducing clutter, both at home & in the office
(& yes, need to get off-line & on task!!!)

I take part in an on-line 'conversation' group of women who respond to questions every few weeks. This morning, the gal who invited me to participate sent a personal e-mail quiring if the ~ 20# weight loss I experienced over ~ 8 months & mentioned recently had been 'mostly' from the switch to coconut oil.

While that's defiantly contributed, the switch to Gluten Free has played a big part as well! This is what I sent to the group:

yes, (much of the weight loss) seems to have resulted from the shift in oils (using coconut
& olive oil while avoiding others) in the spring, then going GLUTEN FREE in the summer!
I love having  a waist again :) The mainthing I notice if I get some stray gluten is bloating.
I use high quality digestive enzymes or vinegar in water with questionable meals.

My energy level is up, & I WANT to move/exercise more because of the extra
energy, I find myself craving 'bad' stuff (anything with gluten, high
fructose corn syrup, & unsaturated oils) tho I still love things like GOOD
chocolate, fresh fruits etc. Pomegranates - I will miss those when the
season's over!!

This link to Grain Damaged offers a good overview of gluten sensitivity.
(the gal who asked about my weight loss suffers from IBS, & this article focuses
on food sensitivities usually playing a huge role in IBS, with wheat/gluten being the main
cluprit!!)

Hmmm - I also got a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) membership this
year, with a local organic farm. I tend to buy local/Organic as much as
possible (I choose coconut as one of the 'from far' foods - still OG) but
having the CSA membership really cuts down on buying 'other' (non-organic)
food. & prompts me to eat more veggies, which we 'should' anyway!

So that's another slight shift. Since 'my farmers' use  water from their own well, the
veggies are grown fluoride free - & fluoride interferes with the body's
ability to absorb necessary iodine, while the chemical fertilizers used by
NON OG farmers cut the amt of Magnesium available.
One of my 'additions' this year is a good water filter - that removes the
fluoride! Sigh. Why do *they* have to mess with our lovely NW water??

& 'of course' cutting soy as much as possible from my diet has helped (my
dau still uses some in cooking, & it's also 'hidden' in lots of things)
since soy depresses the thyroid, & coconut balances it, the inclusion of
coconut combined with the exclusion of most soy tends to boost the
metabolism (unless one had an overactive thyroid, then coconut would help
calm it down!) & much commercial soy sauce contains gluten, so Chinese
restaurants are pretty much 'out' unless they're conscious & REALLY offer
gluten free (soy sauce free) options.

Many women start eating more soy during menopause, for the phyto estrogens
- but with the thyroid depression, I suspect that's tied to weight gain!

Restaurant eating has gotten much more selective - I'm a Virgo, & have
been 'health conscious' for years; going gluten free gives me the 'excuse'
to say "Aw, I'm grain damaged - can you bring me .  . . ." (a salad w
olive oil & vinegar - or no dressing, a soup not thickened with flour, not
something breaded or fried . . . )  & lots of nice veggies . .  .& watch
my friends scarf down a huge plate of something greasy . . . (fried in
un-saturated un-healthy oils to boot!)

****** so that's my personal 'formula' for having dropped ~ 20 # in the last 18 months. & people
have begun noticing - one of the NDs that shares our office asked how much I'd lost the other
day! Her husband has dropped 30# since going Gluten Free last spring; she & their teen son still
eat some, but much less than in the past.
"LIVING WITHOUT" mag has a list of 10 'Must Dos for New Celiacs' (I so like the term 'Grain
Damaged!)
1: Understand your disease - research!
2: Build a Medical team
3: Join a Support group (my dau's best friend is part of ours, I haven't gone yet)
4: Check your Pantry (read lables & toss. Segragate gluten-containing food if one or more family
members still eat the stuff!)
5: Stock the Basics, including some good GF mixes! - Personally, I enjoy having a 'larder' of flours
as well, so I can add play with tweeking recipes (like the chestnut scones!) but I've always been
a 'creative' cook!
6: Dust off your apron (& make some new ones!)
7: Buy a bread machine (my dau got one for Christmas that has a low carb/gluten free cycle
I'm more an oven gal, myself! But do have access to it! & a dear client brot me several GF mixes
as a Christmas gift!)
8: Patronize Local Businesses - YES! & if they accomodate you, TIP WELL & let them know you'll
return!
9: Don't settle
  This could be our motto for life - don't settle!! Breathe it in!
10: Exhale - relax - it will be all right - & even better!

Exhaling reminds us to - INHALE!
A psychic friend told me in a reading that when I found myself craving bread, to remember to
take a moment to breathe! That my body was craving more *fuel* - & to think of Oxygen first!
so go outside, hug a tree, & take a DEEP BREATH!!

Oh, dear!! Here's a link to an article on how agave nectar (which I use sporadically) is made!!
Guess I'm retiring that bottle!!

Eat the Fridge - Step 1 - CLEAN the fridge!

Over on her blog, Suzie suggests 'eating (from) the fridge' this week, as we prepare to load our plates (& fridges) over Thanksgiving. My fridge is bursting at the seams, as, though my daughter & I share veggies from our weekly CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) pick up, we are hard pressed to keep up with the abundance.

Fortunatly, much of the current 'share' are root veggies which keep a bit longer - like these lovely HUGE carrots!


As you can see, my fridge really needed a good clean out & scrubbing - so I began that process with the bottom shelf & veg. drawers!

I decided to switch my fridge storage from the ubiquitous plastic bags to non-reactive glass. My mom had a nice set of the rectangular containers, which are hard to find &/or expensive.

A trip to the Good Will yesterday garnered a bunch of large glass bowls ($1 - $4 each) which I washed up before starting on the fridge! Several of these are mixing bowls, & I got a couple of tall vases for the long stemmed kale or chard! Plus a glass salad bowl for lettuce.
I'll probably add some more, as I find the sizes & shapes that work best! I generally eat out of bowls or medium plates, so got down a stack of larger cobalt blue glass plates to use as covers. (I found a few domed covers as well)

I began with the bottom shelf & drawers - first step was to get everything out! That shelf also holds jars containing oils (some flower infused) for making salves & lotions.
I love the big stem of Brussels sprouts - (middle of the photo) they keep well on the stem (& save our farmers a lot of work!)

Ugg - seems like the shelves always need a good scrub! Fortunatly, hot water, some baking soda & 'elbow grease' took care of the shelf grunge pretty quickly, & the glass shelves are easy to remove & clean. Now to reload! . . .


But those brussles sprouts - I popped them off the stem, . . . hmm, maybe I should make Rattatoui with some of the sweet potatoes (which DON'T want to be refrigerated, so I store them in a shoebox!)

That means I need to get out the nice wok I picked up as well - & note the lovely wooden spoon (Yew) from my friend & spoonmaker Peter - like the little 'tea spoons' that I eat with, this is a favorite! Peter & Lorraine have been cooking with one for about 20 years.

The onions & garlic also come from the CSA, they try to provide aliums weekly in some form. I haven't had a wok for awhile - always enjoyed that large surface for stirfrying! (& am happy it's steel - didn't want aluminum, or 'non-stick' coating)

I simmered the onion & garlic skins while sauteing the veg (in coconut oil, natch!) & poured a little liquid over the veg, & added some Italian herbs before returning them to the cassarole & putting them in the oven for ~ 1/2 hour.
Now, back to that fridge! . . . . . . .

TA DA!! OK, so the photo's grainy - but I now have the veg in glass bowls, only a couple of bags (celery root & a romanesco cauliflower) in one cripser drawer! Now on to the shelf above (some eggs, more oil, a few veg that are being consolidated, & the rattatoui is almost done! (added cauliflower, beet & carrot & baked ~ 10 min more)

Here's my bowl with the last of the rice n lentils from Tue in the bottom, the rattatoui, some quickly sauted chard, & a dolop of pesto, & cherve from one of the Playschool moms. I used a sprinkle of raspberry vinegar on the chard, which I sauted in the wok as the rattatoui was finishing. The spoon & chopsticks are from Peter, the bowl from a local potter.