Day 32 (Sunday): Here's to brilliant men :-)

WHAT a glorious day today! The weather was heavenly (well, if there's anything remotely like a heaven, I'm sure today -- comparatively speaking -- would actually be drek, but you get the drift.) On top of it all, it seemed to last forever, which always makes a Sunday sweeter, since the work grind starts anew in the a.m.

I did great today, food-wise. During the morning, I had a banana and an orange; for lunch I had the rest of that tabouli salad with some fresh grape tomatoes (that were as sweet as candy); later this afternoon I made a delicious tomato/pinenut pesto that was out-of-this-world (according to Jami, my dear friend and "guinea pig" for all my new recipes) which I put over summer squash pasta (I like that simple meal). I always feel refreshed after eating it, not full but satisfied. Tonight I'm going to have stuffed portabello mushrooms, using an avacado I have that's just about to "turn."

Five areas I plan to improve this month:

(1) daily exercise;
(2) meditation/prayer time;
(3) better preparation of food (planning ahead)
(4) drinking more water;
(5) taking active detoxing steps (i.e., weekly colonics/dry brush massage each evening, and perhaps even a professional massage).

I'll be "grading" myself on each of them weekly. (This blog is all about holding myself accountable, after all.)

Had a great conversation today with an old friend who I hadn't personally connected with in a long while. I have to say, it was one of the best conversations I've had with someone in years. (I've always had a weak spot for bright men, what can I say. Thus, the title of today's post.) :-)

Why do I mention it? ... 'Cause it was the highlight of my day.

Day 31 (Month 2 begins): Wheat grass and tabouli don't mix

This morning, through the course of a few hours, I nibbled on a whole cantelope. Delicious. I took a drive to my favorite health food store, Mrs. Greens, this afternoon to get some groceries for the upcoming week. The ride is beautiful, along the Hudson River, and the weather was perfectly spring-ish -- sun blazing, clear blue sky, perfect temps with an ever-so-slight breeze blowing. New life bursting out everwhere, and I'm psyched to be starting month number 2 of my mainly-raw "experiment."

At Mrs. Greens, I got an extra large greens drink with a shot of wheat grass ("yuck" is all I can say). I made the mistake of mixing it a little while later with some fresh tabouli for lunch. They did not do well together in my stomach AT ALL and I felt nausious all the way home. I live; I learn.

Tonight I'll be making stuffed portabello mushrooms and a little summer squash "pasta" with pine-nut/basil pesto ... IF I'm hungry. If not, I'll have the remaining tabouli. It's Eastenders night ... and I'm exhausted, but I'll stay awake for another two hours just to see it, 'cause I'm hooked.

All in all, I'm pleased with how the day went. Off to read the rest of Norman Walker's Become Younger. The guy writes so simply -- wish he were still around today to teach folks a few things; his kind of simplicity is a rarity among health gurus today. It seems there are so many voices out there trying to outdazzle each other with all their seminars, "certification programs", books, DVDs, CDs, and assortment of the latest "super nutrient" and enzyme powders, pills, etc., they are pushing (If the food is "alive," why does one even need all these "enzyme" products people peddle, I wonder? But if one is overdoing it on the desserts and pates and "burgers" etc. which are all made with intense amounts of fatty nuts and seeds, one may end UP needing to take outside "enzymes" to digest it all! Sort of sounds like it's defeating the purpose.) I find a lot of the raw food "oldies" to be the most helpful. There's a simple balance to be maintained ... and I hope I'm smart enough to know what it is for my bod.

Lesson of the day: Thou shalt not mix wheat grass juice with anything but other veggie juices (at least for about 4 hours after downing it)!

Day 30: Chicken-free for 30 Days!

Yup. My meat of choice has been gone from my diet for a whole month. That's quite a feat, since I really liked chicken. Probably what's more accurate is that I'd really gotten accustomed to eating chicken, the SAD chicken, that is. (Years ago, I used to occasionally buy real free-range chickens -- before everyone and their brother were calling their chickens "free range" because they let them out of the coop for 10 minutes once. Anyway, the taste of those birds was like NOTHING Purdue or Tyson offers today. They actually tasted sweet and very delicious, like a whole other animal than what passes for chicken today.

Anyway, a few times this month, I've opted to have salmon or flounder instead of chicken. Eventually, I'll be passing on all flesh foods, but for now, I'm enjoying an occasional "treat" of fish.

Today was an okay sorta day. The "newness" of it all is subsiding and it's causing me to "true up" a bit, to begin to consider better ways of prepping foods so that they're more easily and readily available for certain appealing recipes/meals. That takes planning, so that's where I'll be concentrating more in this new 30-day stretch ahead.

I started my morning with a banana/orange/strawberry smoothie, had a pear and banana in the late morning, a lovely lunch of baked flounder on a bed of greens w/ some cherry tomatoes, and I'm headed down to the Village for a raw meal this evening.

I'm looking forward to my hydrotherapy session on Wednesday (as weird as that sounds), because it will make a world of difference in how I feel. I can literally feel as if my body is overloading with cellular "debris" as it's called. My muscles are aching, I'm getting headaches, feeling extremely tired and somewhat bluesy, and my skin color is looking a bit ashen. None of it alarms me, though, in that I realize they're all signs that the cells are dumping out toxins.

See, the reason eating more live foods is a good thing is that we finally give our bodies a break from the nearly non-stop task of having to break down and digest animal products (meats, cheeses, milk) and processed starches and refined sugars. The great benefit we reap by doing that is this: The body now is freed up to do "housecleaning" within the cells ... billions of them! That's why when detoxing, one gets tired. There's that word of the hour again, "detoxing." The thing to avoid (which I have not) is letting the toxins build up in your system -- that's where colonics come in. Enough said on that for now!

The sun has come out in all its glory here in New York today ... after days and days of non-stop rain (and massive flooding in the tri-state area). The better side of Spring has finally showed up, and I'm thrilled. The weekend weather will be glorious, I hear. Yipee.

Day 29: A New Birthday for Moi

Thirty years ago today was the saddest day of my life. Without going into detail as to why, let me say very clearly that Providence has turned that sorrowful event into good. Since today begins a whole new 30-year cycle, I feel as if I am being born all over again. Dramatic, I know, but nevertheless quite true. (Mystics and such say 30-year cycles are extremely significant in people's lives.) A new beginning is probably one of the most beautiful things we humans can give ourselves, and we don't have to wait for 30-year cycles to do it, either. It just so happens that for me the 30 years thing happens to coincide with this recent decision I've made to love myself enough to become as healthy as I can.

As I approach the one-month mark, my feelings about this undertaking are all over the place:

I feel confident and assured that I'll become the fittest I possibly can become;

I feel joy and thankfulness for the commitment to do it, a gift in and of itself;

I feel free as a child because I can see how to have FUN with it all;

I feel proud because it's an accomplishment I once nearly despaired of achieving.

Now back to the mundane food diary! Today I was smarter than yesterday, and made sure I ate something before I left home this morning! I stumbled on this yesterday and saw how truly SIMPLE it is to eat living food that is delicious. What you'll see in this video took me about 1-1/2 minutes to make this morning (I used strawberries instead of blueberries). How simple could it get?

Makin' A Smoothie

This simple little "meal" was delicious. In late morning I had two small bananas. I had a late lunch at about 2:45 of spinich and mesclun greens with a medium piece of broiled salmon on top. Yummy. Tonight I'll spiral out some "fresh pasta" (made of summer squash) and use the leftover pesto sauce from last night as a topping. I even have some Rawmesein "cheese" made from nuts to sprinkle on top. It's a simple life, but I have to ask myself, Who's got it better than me?

Today, in honor of my lovely daughter, I'm posting a lullaby I first sang to her the day she was born ... the very same lullaby my mother sang to me. And to my daughter I say THANK YOU for inspiring me over the last seven years to take the paths that have led me back home to myself!

Toora Loora Loora

Days 27 and 28: Not so easy-peasy ...

Day 27 (Tuesday): Began the day great with my "power-washer" greens juice. I added a "hit" of wheat grass juice, just one ounce, but potent as all get out. I asked the juice gal to add extra carrot juice so I could down it better, but it wasn't enough to keep the gag reflex from kickin' in (eek). Wheat grass is loaded with amazing things, but still very much an "acquired taste," to put it mildly.

Benefits of Wheat Grass Juice

Had a large salad for lunch, too large, I think (I ate beyond full, I'm afraid). I think it's because I'm genuinely missing "normal" food. But I have to remind myself that what is "normal" is only normal because I've eaten it nearly all my life (with the exception of a couple of years macrobiotic). I'm in the process of creating a new normal, my normal, and the testing moments come when I'm longing for those old familiar tastes, smells, textures, etc., of cooked and/or processed foods. I'm keeping the vision of my new self clearly before me: increased stamina, energy, grace, litheness, fitness. A fit bod is beautiful, so that'll just be "icing on the cake." (Even our cultural metaphors are junk-food-related!)

For dinner I had leftover mushroom soup and some flaxseed crackers and a handful of cashews. Had a few date/nut balls for dessert.

Day 28 (Wednesday): Made the same mistake I did the other day -- left the house without eating and was famished at the train station; had two buttered rolls instead of fruit. (But I made sure to enjoy them!) At work I had a delicious pink grapefruit that filled me up until a very late lunch at 2:30 p.m., which was a small salad, including a little cold pasta w/ roasted vegetables mixed in.

For dinner, I think I'll make a simple angel-hair zuccini pesto (made with pine nuts and fresh basil and a drizzle of olive oil). It'll be easy and quick. I want to start experimenting more with different types of foods so that I don't get bored and then give myself a "reason" for reverting back to what's familiar (cooked and highly processed foods).

Today was an important day in this "going mainly raw" process because I set up several appointments over the next 6 weeks with a "hydrotherapist." For those not in the know, you'll have to look that one up for yourself! But if you want a hint, check out the sidebar info. It has to do with personal housecleaning, if you will.

Since this is my on-going journal to optimum health, I figured I may as well include all the things I'm availing myself to in the process. Years ago in my mother-earth days, I was a big fan of Norman Walker, one of the early raw food advocates who lived to be 109! It was either he or Herbert Shelton who coined the true but indelicate phrase, "Death begins in the colon." I never forgot it. (Had I heeded it, however, I wouldn't be writing this diary today!) A great book to check out in this regard is Colon Health: The Key to a Vibrant Life, by Norman Walker.

Here is a link to another of his books that I'm reading now. It's simple and terrific. Norman was a cool guy.

Become Younger

Here's to becoming younger ... one bite, one step, one pedal rotation, one jog, (one colonic) at a time!

Days 25 and 26: Plugging Along

Day 25 (Sunday): Had a terrific day -- ate mango pudding (just frozen mango blended together with a couple of majool dates and water) for breakfast and lunch. For dinner I made my very own version of "raw" mushroom soup. It could use a bit of "tweaking" ... but my friend, Jami, said it was delicious. I modified a menu I found in one of my raw cookbooks. Instead of miso I put in Bragg's amino acids; instead of olive oil, I put in about five cashews. I blended with about 3/4 cup of water the following: Approx. 1-1/2 cups portebello and regular mushrooms, 1/8 of a red pepper, 1/8 of a yellow pepper, 6 sun-dried tomatoes (soaked for a couple of hours before), 2 celery ribs, 3 carrots, 1/4 cup cilantro, 5 cashews and approx. 2 tbls. Braggs. I "garnished" it with a spray of fresh sprouts and a couple of cashews. It looked gourmet. Well almost. The brown color kinda made it look like lentil soup ... but it was very tasty, and I'm proud of myself.

Day 26 (Monday): Today was an okay sort of day. I've started to miss what my brain tells me is "real" food (you know, things like roasted meats, veggies, breads, cheeses, etc.) ... so I gave myself some of those things today (just some) ... no meat or bread, tho. I had a little feta cheese on my salad, some cooked artichokes and chick peas. Also had about a 1/4 cup pasta salad as well. Still didn't finish it though -- it was too large. That is what I love most about eating this way. One needs a lot less food to feel satisfied.

Been kinda bluesy again ... it would be cool to be doing this with someone else, I've thought. We could commiserate and spur each other on. As it is, though, I'm doing A-okay on my own.

The weekend saw one huge heavy, heavy rain storm here in the Northeast ... our brook in the backyard looked like a small river, and two roads were closed, I discovered, as I tried to get to the train station this morning. And it was brrrrrr COLD! Spring is reluctantly coming I hear, even tho being dragged in kicking and screaming. I'll be thrilled when I can sun on the deck ... listening to a splash of waterfall that rushes over stones not too far away. To smell a freshly-mowed lawn would be divine. Ahhh.... Spring, come in earnest!

Days 23 and 24: A Little Bump in the Road

Day 23 (Friday): This was the first day I wasn't psyched about how I "did" overall. I made the mistake of skipping breakfast at home (woke up late and rushed out of the house). Since I'd eaten somewhat lightly the night before, I was ravenous by the time I hit the train station. I had two buttered rolls -- one onion and one poppy seed -- at the station. The first bread I've had in over three weeks. During the day I had a small dark chocolate/mint bar a friend had in her office and offered me. Except for those two things, I did terrific -- had a good bit of fruit and a great salad! What WAS good is that I spent zero time in self-criticism. I just enjoyed in the moment the things I ate ... which I think is pretty darn smart and healthy! :-)

Day 24 (Saturday): Eating very lightly today ... feeling very, very tired and sorta "detoxy" ... skin breaking out, a sense of exhaustion even though I've had 8 hours sleep. And feeling very bluesy too. Ho hum, as they say. All part of the process, from what I've read. Things may get better as the day progresses. Made sure to get out today and do some deep breathing on the deck and some stretches. This bod is definitely going through good changes ... just trying to help it along.