An inspiring email I received...

There was a blind girl who hated herself because she was blind.
She hated everyone, except for her loving boyfriend. He was always there for her. One day she said to him "If I could only see the world, I would marry you"

One day, someone donated a pair of eyes to her. When the bandages came off, she was able to see everything, including her boyfriend.

He asked her "Now that you can see the world, will you marry me?"

The girl looked at her boyfriend and saw that he was blind. The sight of his eyelids shocked her. She hadn't expected that. At the thought of looking at them for the rest of her life she refused his marriage proposal.

He left distraught, and later sent her a note: "Take good care of your eyes my dear, before they were yours, they were mine"

This is how the human brain works when their status changes. Only a few remember what life was like before and who was always by their side in painful situations.

Life is a gift. Before you saw an unkind word, think of those who cannot speak.
BEfore you complain about the taste of your food, think about those who have no food.
Before you complain about your life, think about those who have lost theirs.

ugh work

(wow so I just typed a legthy blog and then it got erased...i'm pretty sure it was autosaving but its nowhere to be found....grrrr)
Today was my first day back at work, I got in, looked at my schedule, and it was a very full book. I'm not surprised, just a tad annoyed, not sure why people don't spread things out. But anyway, it looked as though I wasn't going to get a chance to eat or pee I was so jam packed. Thankfully I wasn't working at a sloth's rate so I was able to have a chance to eat the yummy lunch I packed for myself (President's Choice world's best meatless chicken breast with a side of quinoa cooked in garlic and seasoned with hot sauce and soy sauce, yum)

I always find it hard to go back to work after vacation, you just get in the mode of eating when you want, sleeping with you want, reading when you want...peeing when you want. But I found it especially hard to go back to work today. When I left for vacation a few awesome girls had just left the salon, and although replaced with an awesome girl that used to work with us, it was just too different. stations had been moved around, it just felt weird. I realize that I work in an industry of change, and I should probably just get used to it, but seriously, I just wanted to throw a tantrum today...even though things ran very smoothly.

Yesterday, was a usual Tuesday for me, went to the chiropractor, picked up Rollin from work, went to pick up some seriously needed equipment for work, went to starbucks (totally necessary, had to pick up a treat for brigitte who got shoved by our elderly insane neighbour because she complained about this woman's rooster alarm clock waking her up at 4am daily, insanity). Then rollin took the car to go to job #2 (btw, the is working 74 hours this week without a day off, insane, I probably shouldn't complain about my busy schedule.). I sat around reading for the rest of the evening which was good I had no plans on doing anything, I felt quite sick after an accidental dairy incident. I went to Montfort's for lunch on Monday with my mom and they servedme rice even though I didn't order it, so I took it home and heated it up with soy and hot sauce and dug right in last night. It didn't take long for me to realize I just ate buttered rice, the tummy ache and headache was brutal, one way to learn a lesson about remembering to always ask how things are prepared...ick.

anyway, time to finish the book I started last night. the 5th book in that vampire series. It'll be the 7th or 8th book of the year. then its on to the 6th book of the series if it doesn't keep me up too late. Goodnight all...

watch out for the fullmoon crazies by the way, itson Saturday, but don't worry the crzies usually just find me.

home sweet home

Well, home is quiet and dark. especially, if you just spent a week in Vegas.

My trip was awesome. The record breaking rain & the fall I took in the middle of a crosswalk, not so good. But, its me, and I have a tendency to have a rain cloud and a habit of falling so I'm not surprised and I didn't let it ruin my fun.

There was soooo much to do and see in Vegas, I think I managed 50% of the things I wanted to do or see, but its all about prioritizing. While away, Rollin and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary. We had a tough year, it happens, we are so amazingly lucky to have eachother. So it was appropriate that we spent a wonderful evening watching LOVE. (cirque di soleil-Beatles). It was the most amazing thing my eyes have ever seen, I was overwhelmed, my jaw literally dropped. I had to use my hand to close my mouth. To see that talent and add in the Beatle's music, oh goodness, I think I would have flown to Vegas just for that show.

I hate to be a lister, but I really don't have the energy to go into much detail right now, but I feel the need to get out some of the things I did and the things I saw...maybe tomorrow I'll talk food and add details...(so if you are following only on my facebook notes, you won't see the editted version unless you actually visit the blog site)

Paris (eiffel tower, casino, amazing decor, shops)
-ceasar's palace (fountain show, forum shops, casino)
planet hollywood (PF Changs, casino, good music)
fashion show mall
million mile mall (fountain show)
crystals mall
Bellagio (fountain show, shops, casino)
The Venetian (dinner in St.Mark's @ Wolfgang Puck's Postrio, gondolas, shops)
Fremont Street (that's downtown: old vegas, Golden Nugget, lightshow, Binnions)
whole foods (and the 6.5 mile walk to get there)
Flamingo (where I stayed, wildlife habitat, casino, burger joint)
MGM Grand (casino, lion viewing)
New York New York (casino)
Hoover Dam tour (the new bridge and the walk to Arizona from nevada, giant pickle, frosty our busdriver, Dave our dam tour guide)
Mirage (Volcano, Beatle's LOVE, Beatle's revolution lounge, casino)

well, thats the pointform of it all for now... I definitely missed blogging this past week, which is weird, since I just started doing it.

viva las vegas

Oh I've officially been on vacation time as of 6pm on Saturday. I spent the day getting pampered by my coworkers, blowdry, foot detox, manicure and pedicure after having a nice lunch with Brigitte. Followed by a wonderful vegan dinner at my parents place. (Brown rice pasta with tomato sauce, tofurky's italian sausage and gardein's "chicken" cutlets...and rice pudding for dessert. YUM)

I just finished packing, but am annoyed with my memory. I forgot my plastic bags to pack my snacks (raw almonds & pumpkin seeds) and my vitamins for the trip. I guess it could be worse and I could have forgotten my printed tickets. I'll figure out the plastic baggie situation in the morning.

I'm looking forward to this trip to Vegas. I don't care if its rain or shine, fun & relaxation are in my forecast for the week.

Sorry it will be a blogless week to my "followers".

Have a great week:)

random nutritional information that I thought was neat about the food I eat.....

•An avocado has more than twice as much potassium as a banana.
•For a delicious, creamy salad dressing, mix together avocado and fresh carrot juice.
•Don’t eat bananas on an empty stomach; combining them with a bit of protein will help to normalize the insulin response caused by the sugar in the banana
• Because bananas are so popular, rainforests are often destroyed to make way for banana plantations, so maybe skip the banana and go for the avocado
•Broccoli contains twice the vitamin C of an orange
•It has almost as much calcium as whole milk--and the calcium is better absorbed
•Cilantro may be useful to treat urinary tract infections
•Both the leaves and seeds aid digestion, relieve intestinal gas, pain and distention
•They also treat nausea, soothe inflammation, rheumatic pain, headaches, coughs and mental stress
•Cilantro is a member of the carrot family
•Fennel can be useful for indigestion and spasms of the digestive tract
•It also helps expel phlegm from the lung (that part I didn't know, always used it for my belly)
•Kale eases lung congestion and is beneficial to the stomach, liver and immune system
•Onions are an excellent antioxidant, and they contain anti-allergy, antiviral and antihistamine properties.
•Sulfur compounds in onions help to detoxify the body.
•Peanuts contain about the same amount of protein as soy and are low in starchy carbohydrates
•Pumpkin seeds are high in zinc, which is good for the prostate and building the immune system.
•They also contain fatty acids that kill parasites.
•Raw pumpkin seeds contain essential fatty acids and beneficial proteins.
•For maximum nutritional benefits, seeds should be eaten raw.
•Roasted seeds contain damaged fat that can lead to plaque in the arteries
•Sweet potatoes contain calcium, are high in vitamins A and C and contain thiamine
•Be careful: eating too many may cause abdominal swelling and indigestion
•Sweet potatoes are also high in sugar and therefore should be used sparingly
•Sweet potatoes are not related to the potato nor the yam--they are actually a member of the morning glory family
•A tomato grown in a hothouse has half the vitamin C content as a vine-ripened tomato
•Zucchinis can grow as large as baseball bats but have little flavor when they reach this size

I found this information on mercola.com. Enjoy:)

5th book & noodle soup

Wow, I'm not sure where I'm finding the time, or perhaps I've always had the time, I just haven't been as productive....but anyhow, I just finished my 5th book of the year. "Lover Awakened" - J.R. Ward. Another book in the series about the vampires and such. It was good, this particular vampire had alot of major issues, so there was a lot to the story.

Anyway, I spent my day off yesterday getting quite a bit of stuff done, but still I left a few things off my to-do list, but I'll get them done eventually. like today, before work.

I had a big craving for an asian style noodle soup yesterday, but I had no car, and I wasn't going to go for a walk to go get some. So, I boiled water, since I have rice vermicelli noodles, added chunksof garlics and shallots to the water, added the noodles. Then I squeezed half a lime, added some soy sauce and some hot chili sauce. The result was that I rock. So good. Too bad I didn't have carrots or celery or lemongrass...I could have made something kickass. But I'm pretty proud of "andrea's garlicky kick the craving's bum noodle soup"

Be Kind to yourself

Oh goodness, I've been so focused on being healthy and eating whats good for my body. Part of my choice in becoming vegan was because I was sick of the unrequitted love relationship I had with dairy. I love dairy, it hated me, we broke up, I'm not sure I'm 100% over the relationship even though I know I am better off without it. So I dove into veganism, and explored all my other options. I think I swam a bit to deep into soy. I've had rash like/eczema/psorasis symptoms on my face for a while, they get better, they get worse. I was pretty sure it was a yeast intolerance, I did a cleanse, it got better...then it came back. Oh body, please stop being sensitive to the things I love.

I had a conversation online with a holistic health practioner wo is a part of the kind life forum, he's pretty sure its a symptom of an intolerance to soy. Its possible he's wrong, he said so, but I have this nagging intuition that he's right. So, it looks like I have a lot more planning into what I eat if I decide to emlinate soy until my immune system stops freaking out. No replacement meats or cheeses or eggs, and pretty much no processed food. With my hours, and working in a mall, this will take some serious planning.

I know that my health is priority, I haven't let it sit at the top of my priority list in years...sad, right? I'm sure after really focusing on everything I will feel amazing, but its really going to take work. I'm a hard worker, but when it comes to myself, I can be lax. I always have the best advice for people and their own health and eating habits, I have the information and the know how...I just seem to allow myself to slip more than I should. I know I shouldn't be too hard on myself, I know I eat a lot healthier than I have in probably my whole life, and better than most people...but I'm a perfectionist. When I feel like I am failing at something, I amlost prefer to give up instead of getting a less than perfect grade in my eyes. (does anyone else feel this way.)

Wish me luck. A fully plant based, whole grain, meat-free, dairy-free and soy-free me soon to arrive...oh the adventures of health.

To end this little ranty blog, I will leave you with a conversation I had recently.

"so Andrea, if you eat this great, and everything is good for you, then why is your skin off and you notice every single time you feel off from eating"
"well, i pay attention, I do myself the favour and I pay attention"

So to all of you struggling with your health, please just pay attention. let's stop ignoring our intolerances, and ignoring our bodies screaming at us to eat what we need to heal us. Be Kind to yourself.
Love, Andrea

weekend of working/pointless blog

I'm not a big fan of working on sundays. But here I an sitting on my couch waiting for the absolute last minute to get ready for work. But I didn't blog yesterday, and thought, I'd blog today.

I'm pretty much done reading the Kind Diet, just a few more pages, that deserve my attention more than I'm willing to give it this weekend. So I started the third book in the series I'm reading my J.R. Ward. I'm halfway through. Sometimes I think its good to dump some fun in brain. I've also put Eating Animals on my bedside table and I'll get back to that when I'm willing to give it my full attention.

So I'd much rather stay home and relax today as well..but thus is life, work exists...I love what I do, but thank goodness I start my vacation time next Sunday.

Oh and because I love to talk about food, I will let you know that I have been enjoying a wonderful breakast for the past few days, I'm hooked. Apple Cinnamon toasted pitas. Yumyum. I'm trying to give up peanut butter for a while, so I bought them as an alternative to the toast and PB I've been having. I love the swap.

kind life-kind diet

diet: (noun) a way of living, or thinking, a day's journey. "This was the definition of diet when it entered the english language in the 1600s. So simple. So sane. How did this cute little word become synonymous with deprivation, starving and - let's be honest - total hell?" ~Alicia Silverstone: the kind diet
I have started reading Alcia Silverstone's book "the Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to feeling great, losing weight, and saving the planet." Its a refreshing book, its honest and full of information. Some that most people would rather not know, some I already knew, others I didn't. I didn't make this blog to preach about a vegan diet, but I will post a few tidbits of information that I found interesting. And I seriously suggest going to thekindlife.com .
The community there is full of information, recipes and support whether you are flirting the idea of being a vegetarian or vegan, if you are a vegan, or if you eat a superhero diet.

I was happy to come across a table on information in this book that helps me easily answer a question that is commonly asked to me. "if you don't eat dairy, where do you get your calcium?"

Calcium Milligrams (per 100gram serving)

butter: 20
whole milk: 118
chick peas: 150
collard greens: 203
parsley: 203
soybeans: 226
almonds: 234
sesame seeds: 1, 160
hijiki sea vegetable: 1,400

01-07-2010

I woke up slightly earlier than my alarm today, which worked out, because my sleepy husband had slept in and forgotten an alarm last night. So he was able to have 15 minutes to get ready and drive to work. I of course wandered over to the couch and can't stop rubbing my eyes. I always find it hard this time of the year to go to work. I chalk it up to the darkness in the morning, and the exhaustion I feel after the holidays.

They are talking about "healthy eating" on the morning news program. I'm shocked that they actually are talking about health, not diet. Just finished watching a segment on my favourite grain...quinoa (keen-wa). The news lady hadn't heard of it. But that doesn't surprise me, I find myself explaining what this super food is, how to spell it and say, and listing its benefits and all the multiple ways I enjoy eating it.

Anyone have any great recipes involving quinoa? Have you heard of it?

days off...they never last long enough.

Well, its been a nice day off. I took down all the Christmas from my apartment...its quite sad that it doesn't sparkle. I always want to move or redecorate every January because of this. I'm choosing to resist this urge.

I spent most of my day reading...finished "Lover Eternal - J.R. Ward". I enjoyed it. Quite the sacrificial love story. Once again, I will let you know this is more romance than action, but a little romance never hurt anyone.

I've been putting off weighing myself after the holidays, things were fitting a little tighter, I was feeling a little sluggish..but I could have jumped for joy when I saw that I only gained 1 pound over the holidays. Of course I celebrated this by going out for lunch with Rollin..and actually ate all my entree, which I usually split in 2. =\ Oh but it was tasty, tofu lemongrass spicy stir-fry...soooo good. Then I mourned the removal of Christmas with a plate of crispy french fries dipped in veganaise.

Now I'm deciding what book to start next, but no rush, the Biggest Loser season 9 starts tonight.

Eat, Pray, Love...remarry

I don't think I've ever been so excited to read an article in a magazine until today. I open my mailbox, there is my Chatelaine (free subscription, thanks Rogers). I glance over the cover and in the bottom left corner are the words "Eat, Pray, Love....remarry. Elizabeth Gilbert faces her fears". WHy am I so excited? because Eat Pray Love is my favourite book, not in the whole, ohwhat a nice story, or it kept my attention, or there is a really romantic vampire in it. But because it was a memoir of a woman who was so honest about her life that her book that can be found in the travel section, or memoir, should really be in the self-help section of the book store. I will go as far to say, that it was life changing, in the eye-opening, find out what makes you happy, kinda way. So to see that years have past and she has written this new book, excites me beyond belief.

I had a brief moment, very brief, where I was scared that her new book, Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage, would disappoint me. After reading the interview in the magazine I decided that her honesty can't disappoint me. Although, this new book isn't as much of a memoir as it is a novel, I can't be disappointed knowing that she wrote this with her honesty, dry wit and goofball self-depricating nature.

01-03-2010

Oh goodness, I love Indigo books. I think I just love bookstores in general. They smell amazing. I picked up 2 new books (the next 2 in the Brotherhood of the daggars series by J.R. Ward and an address book. Rollin picked up a few books as well. Considering I just finished book 2 of 2010 I'm itching to get going into my next book.

I was hoping to pick up a new cookbook. I had read about Alicia Silverstone's new book: The Kind Diet. It wasn't in stock, so I'll find that eventually. Until then I'll just read her blog, especially since she inspired my Be Kind resolution.

http://www.thekindlife.com/

As for trying new things foodwise, I've been hooked on scrambled "eggs". Using tofu, scrambled in olive oil, garlic, onion and tumeric. We had breakfast burritos on New Year's Day and today I had 'eggs' on toast with 'cheese' (rice slices). Who knows what I'll do for dinner, maybe a tortilla pizza. (use a whole wheat tortilla with whatever toppings you want and bake for 15 minutes or so, super crispy thin crust and zero effort, great way to get the veggies in too...I also use earth balance mozerella style soy cheese, it even melts)

01-03-2010

So I started the new year under the weather. Which is okay I suppose, as its forced me to take time for myself and relax. Its quite frustrating that almost every year I am sick after Christmas, buts its understandable as its the busy season is just coming to an end at work.

Since I've been home for 2 days in a row I've had a lot of time to sleep and eat and read and recover.

On 01-01-10 I read "Dark Lover- J.R. Ward". It was a vampire book with a romance style. It wasn't as cheesy as I thought, it took the time to build its characters. Its part of a series so I think I will continue to read about these vampires.

Yesterday, I picked up a book I had started at the end of 2009 and got back into it. The problem is that I often start more than one book at a time and its hard to remember where I left off. I'm currently reading "into the wild - jon krakauer". Its full of facts and interesting stories about Chris MCCanddless life after college. Jon Krakauer related to him and therefore has a lot of personal influence on the story because Chris didn't leave that much into what he was thinking while on his journey across America and into the wild in Alaska. He often just wrote about what he hunted and ate. The book is full of accounts from the people he met while hitchhiking and working around the US. He seemed to leave a strong impression on everyone he met. I plan on watching the movie when I'm done with the book, but as far as I've been told the movie is definitely a hollywood view on the story, where as the book is full of the information needed to truly understand who Chris McCandless was.

Happy New Blog!

Its a new year. I've decided to try something new to me: blogging. Usually I don't bother with resolutions but after a somewhat epic 2009, that I was happy to say good-bye to, I found myself coming up with way too many resolutions & goals, this blog being one of them.

I've decided that 2010 should be a drama free year & full of healthy living as to the best of my abilities. I'm not perfect, nor do I expect those I live my life with to be.

Other than the goal of this blog, which I'm hoping to write about life, the books I read, the recipes I try, the food I eat, the people I meet, the travelling I do...I have a goal of reading 26 books this year, one for every second week of the year. I also hope to at least finish 12 paintings, hopefully it will be more.

And here is one for all of us, harder than it seems, depending on how many areas in yoru life you want to apply this too. Be Kind.

so in short
-no drama
-healthy living (vegan, green, exercise)
-blog
-read
-paint
-be kind