Day 85: Salads!

I love salads.  When I get myself to make them, I am always so thankful I did. It is like I am eating life in a bowl. I feel my best when salads are a main part of my diet. 

This doesn't always happen but I can say in the past 24 hours I have eaten three salads.  I ate them alongside latkas I made with russet potato, sweet potato, carrot, zucchini and onion. It was a veggie fest!

At least it makes up for the 6 cookies I've had in the past 24 hours too...

Day 73: Sushi

Tonight I had sushi for probably the fifth time within the past month. Now, two of those were Publix sushi, which isn't quite as indulgent as going out for sushi, but still. That's a lot of going out for me.

Sushi is one of those things that I love to indulge in. I love the freshness, the variety, the textures and flavors. Its always its own unique experience, especially with great company, conversation, and connection.

But sushi is also something that I've decided to enjoy it while I can, because I'm not so convinced that sushi as we know it will always be readily available or affordable.

In light of the

last post

, I would also say that all things in life need to be enjoyed while they can, decadent dining included.

Day 45: Surprise Dinner Party

Last week my roommate and I made plans to have dinner with a mutual friend we hadn't seen in months. When we were going back and forth on what to make, I just said at one point that I'd handle it. I was off of work in the afternoon and really just felt like making a bunch of food. It turns out a friend of our other roommate's was coming over too, and so we had ourselves a mini-party.

I made salad, guacamole, fish, and rice (with help from the roommates), we played surrealist word games, talked about our trips over the summer, and had a great exchange of ideas and experiences. I feel so enriched, by food and company.

Its the simplicity of evenings like this that make me ecstatic just to be alive.

Day 8: A Man with a Green Thumb

After seeing the purple longbeans (lower right) that seemed to just sprout up in my boyfriend's front yard yesterday, it only seemed appropriate to acknowledge this gift. I am so thankful to have a boyfriend that knows about growing things!


I still remember how the first time he came over he had beans in his pockets and planted them along the fence in my yard. Some died, some survived, and some thrived. This is where I learned maybe the most important gardening technique: Just put something in the ground and see what happens.  I guess over time, you learn more what works or doesn't. As far as I can tell, that's what my boyfriend has done. Oh, and regularly collects manure and leaves. Can't forget about that.

I still think it's magical, he's says it's just variety and persistence. Somehow I feel both are true.

Day 1: Memories of Clint

Just yesterday I discovered that a good friend of mine passed away in a car accident earlier this month.  I saw a picture of him on Facebook with words about "loving memories" and "passing on" that led me to check out his page to find several messages about his gentle, loving soul and how he will be missed. I agree with them all.

It only seems appropriate to start this project off with my gratitude for getting to share some time with this man. Clint showed me, and many others, the wonders of raw food. He taught me how to make salads, enlivened my love for kale, and is the reason I own a dehydrator.  It was also through Clint that I connected with an awesome group of friends. In a lot of ways, this guy changed my life.

I would like to dedicate this project to his memory. Clint was an incredible inspiration to those around him, may his love for health and good food live on in us all.

Here's a video of him in his element showing Tim Van Orden, a raw food athlete, the how-to on foraging Florida foods.

If I got a chance to talk to Clint one last time, I would want him to know that I can't make a salad without thinking of him and that I am so thankful he was here for his time with us.

Greens!

Until this afternoon, I hadn't had a salad in over a week. In fact, I think most green veggies, raw or cooked, had mysteriously left my diet. I will say the excuse was being on vacation last week which lends itself to eating food that tastes good but not really good for you.

But really, my health won't accept excuses.

So today I broke my green fast. Before I left the house this morning, I went and picked a bunch of the kale that is still growing in our garden (yes, we have an abundance of kale in the backyard and I was ignoring it - ridiculous!).  At lunch time, I washed the kale and cut it into small pieces. Then added some olive oil and did what makes kale the best: massaged it.

I only discovered kale a few years ago but soon learned how squeezing and kneeding the leaves makes the hard fibers more limp and easier to consume. Plus, as a massage therapist, such an intimate relationship with my food felt natural.

Well, when I did this today I was reminded of another reason why I love this vegetable: the smell. When you start massaging the kale it emits a smell of earth and life. Its like if the smell of dirt was yang, this smell it its corresponding yin.

I topped it off with some cilantro, chicken, seseme seeds, and sliced almonds with a miso-ginger dressing.

And how did I feel afterwards? What do you think? Awesome! Trying less to wonder what took me so long and more to remember how good it tasted and felt.