The Wind, a Moose, and Durian

My meetup group had another wild Alaska style gathering last night. The plan was to meet at Beluga Point (picture above) for Durian.....

It was soooooo windy at beluga point that I felt like if I was 5 pounds lighter, I might have been blown over. Literally. I love the wind when it gets like that so powerful and it wasn't just blowing from one direction. Standing in the parking lot embracing it's full power I was being rocked in every direction. Sitting in my car looking up a phone #, the car was just shaking :) Well people, I think we are going to have to seek a more protected spot.

So we moved the party up the highway a few miles to McHugh Creek. We hiked into the woods until we found an ideal spot, next to the creek. A throne for me to sit on carved from an old stump.

We have another amazing new member named Amanda. She is a vegan chef and 30+ year vegetarian. She was in her element as she took over the role of opening the durians and serving it to us with a squeeze of fresh lemon.

We had 13 people and we were all Durian virgins. The smell did not bother me. The reactions of my fellow raw foodies was all over the map. I don't believe we had the freshest durian ever. Let's just say it was an adventure and very entertaining.

We then went for a group hike, it was a very blissful experience. The hike was uphill. Here's the thing. I don't exercise regularly. I am an active person by nature, but my discipline is pretty much nill. Ah, but I am a raw foodist and the magic is strong with me. I felt no burn or physical fatigue at all on my first uphill hike of the season. It was effortless and completely invigorating. I love how strong my body is naturally. It's like a Ferrari. You can park it for months but if you need it's speed ,it is there at the turn of a key. You don't have to start slow when you are built from the best foods ever :)

On our way back down we had an encounter with a moose. Literally a foot off the trail. Here's the thing about wild animals, I believe they can pick up on the fact that I/we are vegetarians. It brings us into resonance. Our dear moose friend allowed us to come up close and trotted gently off to let us pass. I wish I had my camera, but for the moment it is MIA.

I have to say this about my meetup group, it's a high IQ environment. The conversations are very stimulating...... We even have one member who is often sitting on the sidelines working out extensive calculus formulas. I love peaking over his shoulder and wondering at what it all means.....

As a side note, my family is moving into a new house in June. My home right now is very small. We are very addicted to the yard though, and have had trouble moving on. We have also had to accept that we need more space. Yesterday we went and looked at a place, and are in the process of signing a lease. I have been eyeing this home for years. I have been to a few gatherings at this house over the years and I have always felt so at home. Could it have been the future making it's impression on me :)

Here's the low down, it's a three bedroom, with a sun room that my husband keeps calling Kristi's yoga room. That room actually holds a fond memory of me dancing with my friend Rainbo at a birthday party last August to Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. That was an amazing dance party and while most of the music was a lot more happening, I have a soft spot for that song and my friend. We also have a bathtub at this new place. I have lived with either only a shower or without running water for the past 8 years. I will be a goddess of the household seas once again :) And.....it has a sauna!!! I just wanna sweat it all out. All winter. The kitchen is so much more functional than the bad juju nightmare I am dealing with in my current cracker box house. My husband has committed to getting into the kitchen with me and working that food alchemy together, we are so excited. Also, I have been living with out a dishwasher or in home laundry for 12 years and those days are now over. I could go on, it is an amazing space.....

It is a new beginning for my family and I am so thankful.

SoulAce

I have made some big and joyful changes in my life.  Nothing I want to get into detail on at this point, suffice it to say that my courage found me and the time was right so I took a leap of faith and I have no regrets.

I am enjoying a spiritual retreat in a beautiful home nestled in the forest.  The sun is shining brightly on me while I type this and the birds are singing life's praises all around me.

You know what I wish I could do.....add pictures into the text...not all just on top like that.  I am so computer baffled, people are always suprised to hear that.  Honestly, you do not have to know anything more than what is in your heart and soul to write well, operating a computer is a little more technical....:)

I have intended a meeting with a computer guru who has the patience to deal with a flighty red head, and we will get me there somehow.  In the meantime....this is the best I've got.

It is so warm out now, nearly 70 and not a cloud in the blue, blue sky.  The bugs are back...I am gently shooing flies and mosquitos as I write this.  Signs of life they are, though the mosquito's have some serious karma :)  Time to start wearing citronella essential oil.....for sure.

My parents came to visit and my diet devolved in their presence.  As I dealt with the inevitable bloating and constipation my friend Jen summed it up best.... She said "Kristi, you went down for a good cause...:)"  She's right I don't see my parents often and to go all RAW on them would have been selfish in my mind.  They really like communal eating and not feeling guilty about their own diets.  I stayed vegetarian of course....

SO, now I have to rescue and heal the ol' body from my excess and the dead stress of lots of cooked foods.  I went grocery shopping yesterday and found myself really resonating with certain foods.  Sea veg, honey, and bee pollen.  Asparagus always trips my trigger.  I see lots of chocolate in my future as I am now embracing the sweeter things in life. 

 

My Alaskan raw foodist cell organized to find Durian locally at our last meetup.  One very motivated member scored a few nights ago.  He was so excited he called me from the parking lot to tell me.  We are having a gathering on Friday to collectively have our first taste.  We are meeting at Beluga Point, an Oceanside Oasis.  I am sure a tourist or 2 will be curious enough to ask us what we are up too.  And the smell....I love an adventure :)

Homer.....The Odyssey

I have not blogged in awhile. Life, it always takes precedent. Lots of shifts going on.

My son turned 3 on the 13. I went to a movie the night before called the Business of Being Born. I highly recommend this movie. It tells the story of modern medicalized births and the stories of women who choose home birth. The home birth midwife who's story was told works out of NYC. She was so fun, real, and present. I went with a group of friends to see this movie. We were all sitting in a row when Chinmayo, the midwife who was present at Mason's birth walked up. Giving us all hugs, I realized I shared a special bond with these women as we had all had the privilege of being cared for by this amazing woman when our children were born. She took such good care of me. Knowing what a home body I am, she drove out to see me weekly during the last month of my pregnancy. It is a spectacular drive from Anchorage to Girdwood and she always arrived with a huge smile on her face. She is an Angel and a baby catcher and I hadn't thought about her since I mailed her her Christmas Card this year. It was so good to see her.

So, Masons birth was my third and easiest home birth. I went into labor at 9:30 pm and he was born at 1 minute to midnight on Friday the 13th. That's right a 2 1/2 hour labor:) He was born in the water after 1 involuntary push. I used hypnobirthing meditations daily throughout pregnancy and it was as quick and effortless as I had imagined. Not painless though. I had one contraction where my water broke and threw up into a bowl at the same time...LOL..I had Chinmayo lying next to me massaging my back and whispering it's going to be o.k. baby, and I was. I love midwives, I am crying right now remembering the grace, beauty, and support that I received in my moment of need. Thank You Chinmayo.....

So, my son is 3 now and apparently very well behaved. I took him to my raw meetup yesterday and the host told me when I left that when the invitation says no children allowed, they are not taking about kids like him. He is an all star :)

My meetups are going so well. We got a new member that has a lot of potential. His name is Stirling and he is GOLDEN to me, even if he did get shit on by a bird riverside....so funny :) A classically trained chef in his former incarnation, he went 100% raw spontaneously 2 months ago and hasn't looked back. He brought the most amazing food and the stories of his daily diet are so inspiring. I said to him. "So, YOU'RE going to open the raw food restaurant..." and without missing a beat he said, "Yes, I am." :) This is huge to me. See, I want to normalize and mainstream raw. Bring it to the masses. I know my meetups will spawn a full fledged eatery in the near future....

Have I told you yet that I don't like to (un)cook. I know how, it's just not my passion....yet.....I am cultivating the desire within me, but it has been a lot of work. I made Spicy Kale Chips for the gathering and they were a hit. The looks on peoples faces were the looks of Love. Yes, love the kale chips people they are that GOOD.

So, why don't I like to cook. Well, I was raised with my father doing all the food prep and my mom helping out. He loved to feed us and I got really spoiled. I decided yesterday to quit feeling sorry for myself because my man doesn't cook and embrace the possibility of loving food prep. I mean really loving it....we'll see.....

I spent several days in the most magical place on earth in my opinion this week. Homer, Alaska. It is a seaside artists haven. That earth home model above was created by one of the myriad ecovisionary artists that fill the hills of Homer. It has a population of 20,000 people and is my spiritual home. The first time I laid eyes on the place I was in love. My husband and I were sitting on the back porch of a cafe watching our son play with toys in a quaint little play yard when I blurted out innocently and spontaneously, "We should move to Homer....:)" The look on his face reminded me that we have had this conversation before. Yes, every time we go to Homer. Sometimes even we are not there. He isn't game. The next day we were driving out East End Road, thick with the magic of the place and he said he'd like to retire there. An improvement, but I am only 34 and not willing to wait 30 years to live my dreams........

The quintessential Alaskan hotel called Land's End that we stayed in has a hot tub on the beach. It is located at the end of a "spit" of land that juts out into the ocean. It is actually the only beachfront hotel in AK and is owned by my neighbors family. It was in that hot tub, all alone that I met my maker. A soft rain falling on my face, the wind in my hair, the sound of the ocean, and the warmth of the water converged to remove my tension and existential angst in a profound and lasting way. I have been so much more grounded and zen since. I the twinkling of an eye they say. That has been my experience lately. Profound and lasting shifts into the heart of what I truly am. Everyday is a gift and I am grateful.

The Odyssey continues......

My Favorite Things...

So, I have a new baby. I bought a MacBook. It's my first laptop and I love the thing.

My other current favorite is green chips/dehydrator salads. These are the key to keeping my calories up and my spoiled fat tooth palate in Heaven.

This is how I made my last batch:

First I mixed red leaf lettuce, kale, grape tomato's sliced in 1/2, chopped celery, sliced mushrooms, olive oil, garlic, good salt, spirulina, and ground flax seeds in a mixing bowl and spread on dehydrator trays. I usually make 1 1/2 to 2 trays full. Sometimes I finish it all in a day and sometimes I don't. What's left over I store in Mason Jars on the shelf for use as quick to go food.

It's in the dehydrator now, it's been about an hour. Today the dehydrator is set at 105 degrees and I feel really good about that.

I'm gonna go taste some now......

OK, some of the kale is already crispy, oily, and pure bliss. The red leaf lettuce is pretty wilted at this point and makes a great wrap for the tomatoes, mushrooms, and celery. YUM.

1/2 the mushrooms are gone. I really like to save some for later, but they are so good that I have to be disciplined about it :)

SO I just graze all day and the final product, if there is any left, are Green Chips and they travel like a dream.

It is my belief that dehydrator salads and green chips are the savory side of the Green Smoothie Revolution.

And in closing a shout out to my pereniall favorite the Apple. My daily apple is ALWAYS a highlight. They are a perfect cold climate fruit.

I love to marvel at the artistry every time I enjoy one.


Good Times :)

Happy May Day

Ahhhh, Beltane one of my favorite old timey celebrations of the circle of LIFE. May Day celebrates the height of Spring. It is a festival of flowers, fertility, sensuality, delight, and FIRE.

When I was a little girl my mother and I would pick flowers and leave them on the doosteps of friends and neighbors on May Day. This is something her IRISH mother had taught her to do as a child. The Irish custom being to fill a basket with flowers and goodwill and then leave them on the doorsteps of someone in need of healing and caring. That description encompasses everyone I know. I truly believe that we are given life and consciousness in large part to love and care for each other. My husband must have subtly picked up on this vibe becuase he gave me the most beautiful bouquet of flowers yesterday :)

They smell so amazing. Flowers are the way of things, so bright, beautiful, and fleeting.

We will be building a small bonfire tonight in honor of the Day. The custom is to jump it to symbolically purify yourself. I will leap it no problem this year. I am very light and airy these days and have been practicing the tourjetes and split leaps of my ballerina youth lately. Now I know what I was preparing for.....jumping the passionate May Day fire.

This is also a good time for balancing your male and female aspects. For me that would be focusing to harness my creative feminine aspect while taking action steps to bring my wellsping of ideas into manifestation. My biggest hurdle is believing in myself. Sometimes I feel like I just want to be simple and a wallflower. Yet, this clearly not in line with my divine gifts and trust is the key to balance here. Yes, I do need to let my masculine side out to play in the arena of success :)

For those of us in relationships it is a great day to be a lover. To give of yourself fully in the present. Wipe the slate clean and begin anew. Reflect the fertility and renewal of the Earth after Winter's harshness. If you have a garden that is free from prying eyes bless it by making love in it tonight.

Honoring my heritage and the source of all life, I began this day on my front porch listening the birds sing and it is clear as day that everything is on time.

Emotional Eating: The Upside

My local raw food meetup group had our monthly raw luck last night. Mambo Italiano was the event name and the food was amazing. WOW. We had a neopolitan gelato that was a physical embodiment of the breath of GOD. If there were any wafflers in the room on whether or not raw food can compete with cooked, there doubts were banished.

It seems a lot of people, myself included have emotional attachments to the cooked food we grew up on. I even believe that if you have subsisted off wheat, dairy and other common addictive foods, you will have withdrawls and cravings. I heard that wheat has 19 opiate compounds in it. Part of me says "What's wrong with that??????" It's the side effects. It's always about the side effects. The raw diets side effects are like a natural sustained healthy high. Less need for sleep, food (after the initial phase), tons of energy, clear thinking, positive outlook, synchronicities, and HOPE.

I have a few friends who have gone raw with me and we have all experienced the above benefits. One other thing that has happened is the change in our relationship to our food. Lot's of people feel like they are emotional eating on cooked food. Which is totally possible, I have so been there, but again.......side effects. Raw eating open a new door for emotional eating. I get really into the food that I eat, esp. if it's fruit or desert. I am not alone in this. There were several people at the potluck who mentioned how much positive emotion they feel while eating their raw foods. I have encouraged this from the beginning.

Think about that apple tree, really examine and taste that piece of fruit. Time after time people tell me that they feel the connection so effortlessly to the tree, the fruit, the food.

Eating raw is a conscious and ecstatic experience......IF you open the door out of guilt based or habitual eating patterns and into communion with life.

The Peppermint Essential Oil Blog

I have been using essential oils instead of drug/drug store remedies for 8 years now. By far the most versatile oil is Peppermint.

Peppermint oil is anti-inflammatory, antitumoral, antiparasitic (worms), antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, gallbladder/digestive stimulant, pain-relieving, and curbs the appetite.

It is commonly used on Rheumatism/arthritis, respiratory infections (pneumonia, TB, etc.), obesity, viral infections, fungal infections/Candida, digestive problems, headaches, nausea, varicose veins, eczema, psoriasis, dermatitis, scoliosis/lumbago/back problems.

Purifying and stimulating to the conscious mind, Dr. William N. Dember of the University of Cincinnati found that inhaling peppermint oil increased mental acuity by 28%.

Alan Hirsh M.D. researched peppermint's stimulation of the brain's satiety center (ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus) to curb appetite.

When inhaled it improves/restores the sense of taste by stimulating the trigeminal nerve. University of Kiel researchers found that peppermint oil blocked headache pain in a double-blind placebo-controlled cross-over study.

In my life I use or recommend this invaluable oil all the time.

Here are some of the ways Peppermint heals...

1.) Headaches. It works every time. Here's an example. I was talking to a friend on the phone the other day and she was having some pretty bad headaches because of wisdom tooth pain. I asked if she had any peppermint oil and yes, she does. I told her to apply it to her neck and shoulders and then inhale several deep breaths of the oil left on her hands.
She called me back 45 minutes later for trivial reasons and happened to mention that she felt a lot better but still had some pain in her eyes. Essential oils can be reapplied every 15 minutes so I told her to reapply until she no longer has any pain. An hour later she called to tell me that she felt just wonderful and blissed out. I told her she was dosed and not to use anymore. 2 applications total is what it took to turn it around.

2.) For abdominal pain put 1 drop of organic peppermint oil in a glass of water and sip on it and then mix 5 drops oil into a small amount of olive/vegetable oil and massage it onto your stomach. Inhale the remains off your hands. You will be amazed at how well this handles the situation. Remember you can reapply ever 15 minutes if needed. It won't be long until you've forgotten all about your distress until someone reminds you by saying "You smell really good, is that peppermint oil?"

3.) For lung ailments add a drop of oil to a bowl of very warm water. Put a towel over your head and inhale for awhile. It is a good idea to pinch some of the towel over your eyes. Peppermint vapor is a bit too strong for the eyes. Mix some with veg oil and massage onto your chest and back.

4.) For fevers mix 5 drops with veg oil and massage into your entire body. This is an amazing feeling, it will take an enormous edge off the fever and muscle aches.

5.) For itchy skin, eczema and psoriasis use a peppermint oil/veg oil blend as a lotion.

6.) For hemorrhoids, mix one drop with veg oil and massage on location. This will relieve the pain and after several applications over 2 days you will be looking forward to, not dreading your next BM.

7.) One drop in a glass of water in the morning will mimic the effects of coffee. You will feel revived, refreshed, have very pleasing breath, and then have a speedy BM.