Favorite Salad

Made one of my favorite summer salads for lunch today.

2 av0cados, diced large

2-4 tomatoes, diced large

corn from 2 cobs (uncooked)

a handful of cilantro

a squeeze from half a lime

a drizzle of your favorite oil (I used Hemp Oil today)

sea salt and fresh ground pepper

Toss and enjoy!

 

Dinner Yum

Last night was a perfect summer evening. It was Friday. Evan came home from work early and we went out for a family bike ride. When we got home, I pulled together a quick evening meal.

At about 3 pm, I had marinated portabello mushrooms in balsamic vinegar and olive oil and set them in the sun to warm up. I stuffed those with my homemade (raw, vegan) garlic cheese made from cashews (similar to the recipe in the link, but not exactly) and placed them on top of a bed of fresh romaine from our weekly CSA haul. I topped the salad with diced red peppers and zucchini and sliced tomatoes. We finished it off with a drizzle of more balsamic vinaigrette. On the side was raw corn on the cob (cooked for Evan). Ian's plate consisted of a few salad ingredients wrapped in rice paper.

Ian ate about 4 of these style veggie wraps the other night, but tonight wouldn't touch it. When corn is available, he often doesn't see anything else as food. He usually happily eats raw corn, but he had to be like Daddy so he ended up asking me to cook his too. When I was pregnant with him, corn on the cob was one of my cravings and I ate a lot of it. It must have imprinted on him.

We washed it all down with herbal ice tea made from half fresh pressed apple juice and half herbal tea (lemon zinger and rasberry zinger). It was a light and refreshing meal that we enjoyed on our porch. If you have never tried corn on the cob raw, you don't know what you are missing. When it is in season and fresh, it is delicious, crunchy, sweet and needs no condiments. It is also easier to digest than cooked corn and digests as a vegetable instead of a carb. (Note to those who are carb conscious!)

Miraculous Messages From Water

I am particularly fascinated with Quantum Physics (Quantum Mechanics) as it is one in the same as spirituality. Or, you could say, it is the science of spirituality. Last night re-watched "What The Bleep Do We Know!?". The first time I tried to watch this 2 years ago, I lost interest shortly into it. I wasn't ready. I didn't understand. This time, I made it through the whole movie. Now, I wouldn't say it is a fantastic must-see, but it had some interesting parts. I prefer books on Quantum theory better than this movie. However, there was small reference to something very interesting. A brief scene that pointed to the research of Dr. Masuru Emoto.

Check this this site on the Miraculous Messages from Water. Dr. Emoto took pictures of frozen water. Big deal, right? Well he also took bottles of water and taped words (thoughts) to them and left them overnight, then photographed them to illustrate how thoughts (vibrational energy) can influence the molecular structure of this basic molecule vital to our existence; water. Since our bodies are 60-70% water, mirroring perfectly the 60-70% water that makes up our planet, how much do the vibrational thoughts we offer as an individual and as the collective humanity effect our experience? I mean, if a single person's thought projected onto a bottle of spring water can make beautiful organized molecules and disorganized ones, depending on the thought, think of how we can effect our own experience, such as our own health and happiness. Cool stuff.

Our thoughts precede the manifestation of physical experiences in our lives.

Choose wisely. Choose consciously.

Please feel free to leave comments!

Photo: What water looks like when offered thoughts of love and appreciation.

Trees and Vines

I've been busy clearing the underbrush that is dead, scraggly, and otherwise impeding my view. Never being one who particularly enjoyed outdoor labor, I have recently discovered the joy of snapping dead branches, gathering rotted logs, and wrestling the persistent, suffocating vines that want to drag an otherwise healthy tree down.

I am fascinated by how strong those vines are, how they shoot down roots at every opportunity, and shoot up tentacles to climb the healthy trees, using them like a step ladder to reach higher than they could on their own. All in an effort to get to the highest point possible to receive the energizing rays of the sun but without a sturdy trunk to get there themselves. The vines remind me of someone drowning; grasping and clinging to whomever comes close and pushing them under so that they can reach the surface to breathe, while their savior is sacrificed.

The vines are covered in prickly thorns too. When I engage in a rousing tug of war with one, often I am injured by the thorns. Clearly they are there for that very purpose but they don't stop me. Nothing feels as good as winning that battle as a massive ball of prickly vines releases it's hold on the tree and comes tumbling down. It makes the scars worth it.

Gently, I help the tree stand up tall again.

Some are too weakened by the assault of the vine and the final fight to be free. I feel sad for them. 20 foot tall trees with their tops touching the ground in weakness. I prop them up against a nearby tree, give them an encouraging word or two and hope for the best. I've only given them a short reprieve. If they don't develop their own sturdy base to anchor themselves, then the vines will come back and overcome them.

Some are unaffected. The older trees with great round trunks and vast root systems shake off their vines easily. The vines are nearly dead and just barely hanging on. The give up easily and come down with minimal effort on my part. They really didn't need my help at all.

But some other young trees rebound taller and stronger than they were moments before. Skinny trunks right themselves while their leaves flutter happily in the spring breeze. Because of my work today, that many more trees are free to stand tall and can reach towards the sun's energy. They will grow stronger and next time the vines come creeping they won't get weighed down by them.

It's gratifying to know that my toil is clearing the view for all of us.

Photo: Arborvitae ("Tree of Life")

Hello, um, My Name is Renee...

and I am a blogoholic.

Yes, I admit it. I have a complete fascination for reading other people's blogs, the obscure details that they choose to share and usually with a greater sense of humor than I am capable of. It's like a Seinfeld episode when you read a really good one. I find myself hitting my favorite blog spots and feeling utter disappointment to discover there is nothing new to feed my addiction. A month goes by with no new blog and this junkie starts sending hate mail to the author demanding a fix. Ask Keith.

And speaking only to fellow blog junkies, isn't it just fantastic when you get a mention in someone's blog? It could be a casual mention in a blog that is read by 5 people, but hey, it's there. In print. For all the world...or just a handful to read, admire, and envy.

Blogs are a great invention. Everyone can have their little corner of the internet where they are the starring role and others gather 'round to read about their latest trip, their latest meal, or their latest excursion to buy socks....which, if the author is good, can be very entertaining.

Blog On my friends!......I am going to need it when the horrible TV shows that make up the summer line up starts and renders the other "Big Box With Lights" a useless source of entertainment for 3 months.

Dum ditty dum ditty dum dum dum....

"I wrote myself a part and went straight to the top. I recommend that to anyone." Ricky Gervais (British Comedian)

Recently I have had a friendship come into my life with someone I've known for a long time. I'll call him Chief. Chief is an enthusiastic person who realized at a much younger age than most of us, what it is he wanted to do when he grew up. He on some level always knew he would be Chief. He didn't get their instantly, but by simply doing what he loved and doing what felt good he has now found himself in a place of incredible energy flowing towards him and with him.

When the time was perfect, and timing is always perfect, Chief began to beat his own rhythm. As he is finding, people with a similar rhythm start to gather around him and join in creating the most awe inspiring flow of energy in the same direction. Now, Chief may not consciously realize he is doing this but for me, its so much fun to watch. Chief is going to find that as long as he follows his bliss, what he loves, and keeps beating the drum to his own rhythm, people whose drums beat a similar rhythm will flock to him. The people attracted to the light that is streaming through him will all fall in line, opportunities will present themselves, and life experience will continue to be an endless stream of joy and success. At the same time, people in his life whose rhythms are not in time with his own will be repelled by the discord and will fall away - some will be repelled quietly and some will protest but fall away they will. It is uncomfortable to live with the noise, with light shining in their darkness. That is okay. They need to find their own rhythm in their own time.

Some people are stuck in the land of missed opportunity and do not realize it. They live their present moment regretting the decision they made in the previous one. This is a vicious cycle because they forever miss the present opportunity because of excessive focus on past or future. Light comes into the present moment, doing what you love channels this energy and creates more of it. More people, more energy, more opportunity, more joy and with it more material success. The most fortunate thing about this path is that the material success is secondary to the joy of doing and being. People who chase the material success without the bliss of doing will tire themselves out chasing. Maybe that's where the term "rat race" came from because they spin their wheels with the throngs of others perplexed at how a seemingly few got ahead and out of the race.

Writing this, I just thought of one of the books I read to my son frequently and it just took on a whole new meaning in this moment. An "ah ha!" moment. I love it when that happens! The story starts with one monkey happily drumming a drum and by the end of the book millions have joined into the rhythm. Along the way, there is material success with "rings on fingers" and "hand picks an apple." Monkeys with compatible instruments join in the rhythm with banjos and fiddles. But in the end the leading monkey is still blissfully beating his drum because that is where his joy of being resides.

"One hand two hands drumming on a drum

Dum ditty dum ditty dum dum dum"

... progressing to

"Hand in Hand More Monkeys Come"

...culminating with

"Millions of Fingers and Millions of Thumbs, Millions of Monkeys drumming on drums."

Dum Ditty Dum Ditty Dum Dum Dum

Chief, I am so proud of what you are doing and I am so grateful that your light reaches all the way to Rhode Island.

Crazy Day and Rachael Ray

I finally posted a blog that I originally wrote in January so you need to look in the January file for it. I can't get it to post here and don't feel like figuring out why.