2008 represented living the way I want to live without any apologies....
Lifestyle Changes:
GoingVegetarian/Vegan-ish. I feel good - better than ever. It is certainly an addictive lifestyle.
Becoming n NWA Worldperks Silver Elite member.Upgrade Me.
Finding a Dog Sitter.Last year, I struggled with travel due to lack of places to put my dog while I was gone. My dog sitter/good friend has relieved that anxiety and stress.
Blackhawk HotelCedar Rapids, IAvery unique hotel in the middle of nowhere Cedar Rapids. every room is different - you choose your room from a list online
the iPhone.the ONLY thing I am not sold on with this phone is the fact that you can not text & drive. I KNOW! Not Safe. BUT with the Blackberry, I could text by feeling the keypad - without using my eyes....
Shuella.Talk about saving lives... the lives of my Stilettos!
People seem to be amazed at my ability to cut meat, dairy, caffeine, and processed foods out of my lifestyle. These are all items that I consider non-foods and think twice before the consideration of consuming any of these items.
Most of the food I eat consists of fresh, organic, pure, raw food that has not shot, slaughtered, bleached, processed, canned, or preserved. Forgive me now for the un-willingness to let go of creme brulee, sushi & cheesecake. On the other hand, non-food items such as doritos, soda, store-bought cookies, and milk are snubbed upon.
Christmas is a holiday of indulgence. A time of the year that people are willing to sacrifice their slender or not-so-slender figures, and their strict diets to over-stuff their faces with all of the traditional holiday dishes that knowingly will contribute excess weight around the waistline. Commonly, the guilt eventually sets in, a New Years Resolution is made... and then never followed.
My family, being of no exception, makes the same holiday meal every year: turkey, ham, beef, canned green beans drenched in cheese sauce, buttered rolls, mashed potatoes and gravy, cheese cubes, and summer sausage... blah blah....
My family could not wrap their minds around my decision to not eat most of the foods served. It is challenging for me to give an honest answer to the sarcastic questions being asked by my over-weight family members. Honestly, I tried to ignore the questions (although tough) and simply reassure them that I feel good and am not going to lose weight to the point of anorexia. On my way out, they offered me a plate of ham to take home. Funny.
Last night, an old friend re-surfaced - they always do during the holidays. Although we have not spoken to each other in months, he decided to wish me a Merry Christmas via text message.
I can vividly remember a night last winter that him and I decided to step out and take on the city. On that chilly evening, prior to drinks and dancing at Lumen, we decided to start our evening over Sushi. At that restaurant, he made a few comments that have never left my memory. "I hate picky eaters. I need a girl that is willing to try new things." he said. I nodded in agreement, and reassured him that I was always willing to try new things.
Things have changed since that night. I HAVE tried new things. Plenty of new things - but not the type of 'new things' he had in mind. What's new to me this year is conciousness. Conciousness about the food I feed my body, and better yet the non-food I don't feed my body. I also have a new standard with the guys I will date. He will be concious of the food he feeds his body and will always remain meat-free. When I informed Bachelor #1 that had re-surfaced of my new vegan-ish lifestyle, he immediately informed me of his dis-interest in me. It's all good - hours earlier, I had informed him of my dis-interest in him. I win.
To meet my standard, Mr. McDreamy must be willing to transform in the form of a Veg.
Afterall, vegans do taste better. No dead, rotting, decomposing flesh in our intestines. At most.... some pineapples and strawberries.
To take it one step further, without laying it all on the line... Did I mention that I frown down upon anyone un-willing to recycle?
*I understand that I contradict myself in this blog calling myself vegan, but admitting to eating foods such as Creme Brulee (OBVIOUS I'm not giving THAT up) & Sushi. I do not attest to being 100% vegan - but I have adapted a lifestyle similar to that of a vegan, and carry the same morals & conciousness.
#1. strip down to minimal clothing and allow artist to paint fins with glitteratti blingin acrylic paint
#2. Photographer snaps shots in multiple "mermaid-like" positions
#3. artist sketch (see below)
#4. the final image including iridescent gliteratti fun. (coming soon)
I was reminded today that i was still eating hotdogs, porkchops, burgers, bacon, and bologna when the early stages of my mermaid-ness were taking place. nasty.
As a vegetarian, the #1 question I am asked is: "How do you get enough protein?!?!"
This question is especially annoying because the people who ask are obviously un-educated as to what a well-balanced meal really looks like (their idea of a hearty meal is steak/pork chops/meatloaf, fried potatoes, a dinner roll, and a diet coke.)
For those of you curious; vegetables, soy, legumes, fruits, nuts, seeds, and grains all contain protein.
Vegetarian Protein Reality:
Over the last few decades, wide spread practical experience of vegetarian diet, knowledge of traditional cultures, and hundreds of health/diet studies, all tell a different story.
Too much protein is as harmful as too little, and is linked with shorter life expectancy, increased cancer and heart disease risk, widespread obesity and diabetes, osteoporosis, kidney stress, and bad digestion
High protein-diets bring about temporary weight-loss, at the expense of overall health, and people quickly regain weight once they return to a normal diet
A varied vegetarian diet with a balance of protein, fats & carbohydrates, and adequate calorie intake provides more than enough protein
Complete animal protein is not superior to complete protein from more than one plant source – they give the same result in different ways
Protein from plant sources doesn't include excess calories from fat, toxic residues, or an overabundance of protein, which stresses the kidneys
Protein deficiency is very rare in the US and is generally diagnosed in people living in countries suffering from famine. It's been estimated that the average person in this country eats two - six times more protein, usually from animals, than is needed for good nutrition.
So then comes the question on Thanksgiving. Am I REALLY NOT going to eat TURKEY on Thanksgiving. And to be completely honest, if i WERE going to eat meat, TURKEY on THANKSGIVING would be the last piece of meat on my list because I know the facts:
There are 300 million turkeys killed each year—more than 40 million during the holiday season alone—for human consumption. Turkeys on factory farms have their beaks and toes cut off without pain relief. They are crammed by the tens of thousands into dark, stifling warehouses where disease, smothering, and heart attacks are common. Today's turkeys are genetically bred to grow so quickly that their bones and leg muscles often give out under the stress of supporting their huge upper bodies. Millions of turkeys die every year from heat exhaustion, freezing, and accidents during transport.
Thousands of free-range turkeys are raised in a single warehouse-like structure forced to stand on accumulated fecal waste and breathe in ammonia fumes. These turkeys are then taken to the slaughterhouse through transport containers where they are hung upside down in shackles. There they cry out in fear and pain as they await their own slaughter. Think of how much it hurts when we get a little speck in our eye, and we might understand the degree of suffering that the turkeys are been forced to endure day after day.
And in an earlier post, I pointed out that the Union of Concerned Scientists points out that 70 percent of the antibiotics sold in the United States are used to treat healthy livestock...
Anyhow, due to my family being hundreds of miles away, I am spending Thanksgiving at home, alone, with the pooch. I have resorted to the couch, in boy shorts, un-showered, with Forrest Gump on the tube. I will take the opportunity to work on my Weekend Commitments
Oh, and did I mention the house next door was on fire this AM? 5 Fire Trucks parked outside of my window, Channel 5 news, & LOTS of firemen (including the Chief.)
Throughout the week, I have been busy creating my very own little Thanksgiving meal. On the menu: Sweet Potatoe Souflee, Apple Crisp, Butternut Squash Soup, Black Bean Salad, Minnesota Wild Rich & Squash, Spinach Salad, Jalapeno Cornbread, Apple Cider, Cranberry Fruit Salad, and Pumpkin Pie - mostly made from scratch. THAT's enough to be thankful for. (did i ever mention that i LOVE cooking in my kitchen??)
I rarely get excited about the holidays, for various reasons. The #1 reason tends to be the many obligtions that come including: being expected to showing thanks, thinking of thoughtful gifts, (gift-giving is no longer natural - it is EXPECTED), the consumption of garb foods, the guilt of gathering with relatives ONLY once a year , and a years worth of the positive & negative life stories (I feel guilty telling a positive story, when everyone else is living in the negative.)
I DO enjoy Gift Wrap. (actually, obsessed. I have a collection of wrapping paper, bows, string, glitteratti, need I go on?!?!)
I have been humbled on this day, Nov. 27th, 2008.... Thanksgiving. I will pour one for all my Turkey homies that were literally plumped to death for your dining pleasure.
**Facts Found at: goveg.com, articlesbase.com, savvyvegetarian.com, peta.com
I found some information I needed to share. WARNING: May Be Disturbing.
-Americans eat more meat than anybody on Earth packing away approx 200 pounds per person in 2005, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which forecasts that we will add another 20pounds of it annually by 2016.
-the Union of Concerned Scientists points out that 70 percent of the antibiotics sold in the United States are used to treat healthy livestock... what does this say about our own health?
-2,500: The number of livestock animals butchered for each meat-eating American in his or her lifetime.
-Americans throw 22.5million pounds of meat in the garbage every day - the equivalent of 15,000 cows, 36,000 hogs and 2 million chickens.
-"Healthy People 2010" report showed that vegetarians typically weigh less than meat eaters and suffer from lower rates of type 2 diabetes and other diseases.
All of this information was pulled from an article entitled "Of Calves and Carnivores" in Oct 2008 issue of Mpls St Paul Magazine.
Diamonds Rings: Not Just for Bail Anymore
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Since about the thirteenth century, diamond rings have already been the
gift of choice if a man seeks a female's hand in marriage. The first
registered p...
Where the Sky Ends
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I walked home tonight in the thinnest coat I've worn all year, just a layer
of cotton between me and the cold. It's been a long winter, gray skies and
icy ...
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