December 20

Happy Hanukkah!!! 

 

 Tonight is the first night of Hanukkah and to celebrate I fashioned a Menorah for myself and my roommate.I looked up the blessings and read them in English to us while lighting the candles. Neither of us is Jewish, well she is engaged to a Jewish guy, but we can both celebrate holidays from a variety of backgrounds.

Blessing for the Lighting of the Candles:

"Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to kindle the Hanukkah lights."

Blessing for the miracles of Hanukkah:

"Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the universe, Who performed miracles for our ancestors in those days at this time..."

Hanerot Halalu

"We light these lights for the miracles and the wonders, for the redemption and the battles that you made for our forefathers, in those days at this season, through your holy priests. During all eight days of Hanukkah these lights are sacred, and we are not permitted to make ordinary use of them except for to look at them in order to express thanks and praise to Your great Name for Your miracles, Your wonders and Your salvations."

December 19

This is the wall above my bed. I'm not a huge fan of plain colored walls, so I thought to add a little something to make it "mine." The great thing about this is that it will peel off when I move.

December 18

Hope, Peace, Faith, Joy, and Love to you this last Sunday of Advent

December 17

Half down, Half to go!

Happiness is making it to the top.

What goes up, must come down.

I climbed up the right side.

One of my new favorite hangout places

Palo Verde Tree

 

I found Santa!
(And I asked him for some rock climbing gear)

December 16th

I didn't take a picture today. Work was crazy then I had a friend's birthday part to attend. It was a fun, crazy, day. I'll make up for it with more pictures from tomorrow then normal.

December 15

 I made one of my favorite cookies - Citrus Glitters!

First you roll the dough into balls.....(this batch was Lime, Lemon, and Orange)

 Roll them in Sugar....

 

Bake them.....

Eat them and share with friends, especially those who take you on adventures (Dec 17th's posting)

December 14

Its been a long day, I had a Skype date with a friend in the UK and was awake until 1am, over 2 hrs past my normal bed time. It was worth it, but not something I can do ever day and still function.

So after a day full of the office Holiday/End of the Year party and evening rock climbing, I am going to enjoy a nice cup of tea and make my final climb up the stairs and into my bed. Good night.

December 13

Today has been cooler (I'd say cold, but after Maine, I don't think Phoenix will ever get truly cold!), I made Glühwein, and sipped that while making peppermint Christmas cookies, think Chocolate chip cookies but instead of chocolate chips, then had crushed peppermint candies in them. I melted chocolate on about half of them - yummy. I got to use my lovely orange Kitchen Aid, which might be my second favorite thing from Maine that I moved with me.  Happy Tuesday.

December 12

I love rain. It makes me smile and sometimes I've even been known to dance in it. I found a great quote for such a day as this:

"Some people just walk in the rain, others dance in it"

Rain in the desert is a treat and I treasure each rainy day here the same way I use to treasure the perfect sunny ones in Maine.

 

Finally, as a nice end to a Monday, I will share the lyrics from "Keep Breathing" by Ingrid Michaelson. My yoga instructor has been playing this song during savasana at the end of class, and I love it.

The storm is coming but i don't mind.

People are dying, i close my blinds.

All that i know is i'm breathing now.

I want to change the world...instead i sleep.

I want to believe in more than you and me.

But all that i know is i'm breathing.

All i can do is keep breathing.

All we can do is keep breathing now.

All that i know is i'm breathing.

All i can do is keep breathing.

All we can do is keep breathing now.

All we can do is keep breathing

All we can do is keep breathing

All we can do is keep breathing

All we can do is keep breathing.

All we can do is keep breathing now.

December 11

Superstitions - Arizona

Happy 3rd Sunday of Advent! I spent this Sunday hiking with a fun group of hikers that I've joined since moving to Arizona. I find the desert to be a very lovely place and think that cactus are beautiful, even if prickly.

December 10

Today was a busy morning: Up and to the farmer's market before yoga then rock climbing in the afternoon. Good thing I made it to the gyms today as this post is all about food.

Today I got (Clockwise), Mixed fingerling potatoes, Russian Red Kale, Rainbow Swiss Chard, carrots, striped beets, rosemary, and pink-lady apples. Yummy. All, except for the potatoes, are locally grown and organic. Love in the form of veggies!

Braising Greens - going to be made into a white-bean and greens soup for the chili winter days here in the desert.$2 for the bunch of beets and their greens - this will keep me in veggies for a while.

Kale and Beet greens braised in tomato sauce with garlicy polenta dome. Yes, I eat well.

Lastly, the evil candy cane Joe Joe's. Like an Oreo, only better and with no super-scary fake hydrogenated stuff!!!

December 9

I'm a Lush-aholic and I know it. I needed some face wash and a bar of new hand soap (I try to avoid antibacterial soaps and stuff as much as I can at home). My hand soap smells of candy canes, my face will smell of Christmas and the spare bar will smell of Snow Globe. Nothing like fresh, well-made, vegan products! Also, the bag is super cute too!!!

December 8

Thursday was almost full-moon and it was lovely. I had a wonderful day, my Aunt was in town for business so I was able to spend time with her. We went talking out at Deem Hills Park then to dinner at Pita Jungle (she loved it!). I love spending time with her and treasure the visits. In the end, family is what counts:-)

December 7

There is nothing like a fuzzy face at the end of the day to make me smile. Sidd is probably my favorite thing from Maine that I moved with me to Arizona. And he's a Vegan too, just like me:-)

December 6

This fountain is in front of my local library and today was the first time that I stopped to enjoy it.

December 5

This lovely Christmas card arrived as part of a package from a dear friend who knows me well enough to know that I would love the fact that the card was earth friendly.


The package contained this wonderful bag, which is hand made with fair trade labor from recycled materials. Everything that I love in items.

Today I am thankful for that friend and for friends that know me and what things matter to me.

Thanks, Friend!

December 4

I grew up celebrating Advent, so of course I had to carry to candles down to the bottom on the Canyon to light the morning of the second Sunday of Advent. This year my candles celebrate: Hope (first Sunday), Peace (second Sunday), Faith (third Sunday), Joy (forth Sunday), and Love (Christmas Eve). Yes, I know that's not the traditional reasons for the candles, but I'm not traditional and usually modify the traditions to suit me.

This was taken before hiking the last 4.5 miles out of the Grand Canyon, most of them on packed snow and ice, which made me very thankful my roommate loaned me her crampons.
I will finish the post with the words of Rich Mullins:

Well, sometimes my life
Just don't make sense at all
When the mountains look so big
And my faith just seems so small

So hold me Jesus, 'cause I'm shaking like a leaf
You have been King of my glory
Won't You be my Prince of Peace

December 3

Writing on the Chalk Board at one of the (deserted for the winter) rest stops along the North Kaibab Trail - this was BEFORE all the snow...

Trail Breaking, nothing quite like being the first person to walk on fresh snow

While I don't always love snow, there is something VERY magical and Christmasy about it.

December 2

I am going to try to post a picture a day from Dec 2 to Dec 25. It should have been the December 1, but I didn't take a picture that day.

Hiking down into the Grand Canyon via the South Kaibab Trail, 12/2

This is why I'm late posting, no internet in the Canyon!

Christmas ≠ Consumerism

I love Christmas.

It is probably my favorite holiday hands down. Glittery snowflake decorations (not much snow in the Sonoran Desert, not that I miss it!), sparkly lights, yummy cookies, the smell of cinnamon, ginger and cloves in the air. Times spent with close friends and family, enjoying each other’s company, playing games, just being - together. As a child and teen, I have fond memories of going out Christmas caroling to shut-ins, the hospital and nursing home. I still remember to happy faces of the older people, requesting a favorite carol, offer hugs and hot spiced cider. I can still sing the first, third, and fourth verses of most well known carols from memory to this day.

In my twenties, living away from my childhood home – I worked on making my own memories. In Washington, DC, I would also visit the Christmas display in front of the White House. I try to find a Christmas production of some type no matter when I live, the Nutcracker Ballet, Handel’s Messiah, a church’s Christmas play or musical. These are things I love and remember from year to year.

I hate mindless consumerism.

I have this urge to slap people when I hear the phrase ‘I need to buy Christmas.’

Christmas cannot be bought. Christmas is not things.

Since 2008, when a man was killed during the black Friday madness, I have boycotted shopping of any kind on that day. Thanksgiving (another holiday I love!) has been swallowed up and is now being referred to by some as “Gray Thursday” since many stores have started opening Thanksgiving evening. This makes me want to cry and scream and yell.

I am joining my voice with all the others, calling for an end to this madness. For an end of over extending of one’s finances, for the buying of cheap plastic things that break before the new year, for the waste, the greed.

Instead, make memories with friends and family. Make gifts (useful things!). Make Friends. Make Laughter. Share Joy and Hope and Love and Peace. Give. The Christmas I celebrate is about giving. Not getting. God gave His Son. The Wisemen gave gifts. The Sheppard’s gave their worship.

This season I will try to spend less, give more, create memories, and reach out to others on their own.

All my gifts this year will be created and/or handmade.

I will work towards giving more to those that truly need.

I will work to create memories with my friends and family and for myself since I will be spending the Christmas Season on my own (Don't worry, I'll have a crazy adventure planned as always!).

I will try to find other people on their own for the holidays and spend time with them.

Below is a video which gave me much to think about and will hopefully give you much to ponder as well.

http://youtu.be/gOxO3y21Y8w

May your season of Advent be filled with Hope, Joy, Peace, and Love.

Puffy Vegan Pumpkin Pancakes

1 cup white flour
1 cup whole wheat
1 tablespoon baking power
2 heaping tablespoons of brown sugar or sweetener of choice
1 teaspoon or so of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice or your choice of spices
about 3/4 cup of pumpkin puree (NOT pie filling!)
about 1/3 cup of apple sauce
about 1.5 cups of almond milk or non-dairy milk of choice.
Optional
about 1/4 teaspoon of maple flavoring if you have it
OR 1 teaspoon vanilla

Put everything in a bowl and mix, add more or less milk to get a thick pancake batter. cook just like any other pancake. These will be thick and puffy if you use a thick batter. I ate them with pumpkin spice coffee and topped with (vegan) butter and brown-sugar syrup.

Brown Sugar Syrup - mix some brown sugar with a little bit of water so it "melts" then spread on warm pancakes.

Chatting with friends

Me: So I have set the bar - I will not go out on a date with a guy who doesn't have lenses in his glasses

L: sometimes, regardless of what other people think, we have to have standards and I think that having lenses in your glasses is a good standard to have.

Me: Oh, so the guy in the grocery store without lenses in his glasses - well I was 90% sure he was hitting on me, yet 95% he was gay... I'm so confused!

L: maybe lensless guy was confused too

Me: LOL probably and he was maybe 23

L: Possibly he was confused as to why he couldn't see since he didn't have lenses, and figured he would feel better if he hit on you

Me: LOL -you ARE priceless my friend, priceless

L: But then you shot him down, and he was all, jeeze I better get the lenses

Me: I have a rule, if I'm 95% sure that a guy is gay I reject the null (assumed) hypothesis that he's straight and shoot him down in flames

L: But having a guy whom you are 95% sure is gay AND who doesn't have lenses in his glasses has to be an outlier

Me: and therefore should be shoot done too,

L: absolutely, and also ignored right? I was doodling a lot in data analysis class and didn't really pay attention

I love my friends and all the weird, epi/data/stats nerdy things we talk about.

Purple Streaked Hair? Why not!

That's pretty much my thought pattern. Okay, the shortened version. Honestly, I've been thinking about dying the bottom 1/2 of my brown hair, a dark purple color. I'd dye over my natural color to tone it down and no way am I bleaching my hair - I did that once and it didn't go so well.

So fast forward to Sunday:
I went to Sally Beauty Supply for some eye droppers (to measure out kitchen extracts of course:-)), and saw IT. Yup, lovely, purple-y semi-perminate hair dye. You bet I bought a tub. Once I got up I looked up directs for dyeing my hair, selected a large chunk behind my left ear and dyed.

I love it! Its more like purple-y highlights when the sun or light hits it then it is a true purple. Which is pretty much what I wanted - something purple-y that wouldn't get me looks from my co-workers and boss.

I know that if/when most people see it, they will ask "Why?" with a raised eyebrow. To which I will calmly reply: "Why not?" with a raised eye brow of my own (I've been practicing my "Why not?" look). It makes me happy. I love color, so why not add some to my hair? In a tasteful way. That won't get me fired or on a probation plan.

My challenge to you - do one "why not?" thing a week! Something that you've always wanted but not done because you're worried about what others will think. Mind that you stay in the laws and stay true to your moral and ethical leanings, but otherwise have fun! Enjoy the simple things like purple-tinted hair. Life is to full of pointless rules, don't impose more on yourself. You're never too old or too young or too this or to that, unless of course you make yourself "too."

And in other notes from the weekend - I now own a craigslisted bike and (new) climbing harness and etc from REI. Rocks, here I come!!!!!!!!!!

Live life to the fullest and "Why Not?"

Its been a year!

Its been a year since I arrived in Maine ( promptly left 345 days later). A year since I started eating a vegan diet. Yeah, I tend to do everything at once. I have to say that moving to a few place and starting over as a vegan was far easier for me then starting a vegan diet in the same place.

Anyway, what's a vegan diet? A vegan is a person who doesn't eat animal products - meat, seafood, fish, dairy, eggs.

How to I put this into practice? I cook 100% vegan and feed whoever comes over for a meal vegan food, but I allow them to bring their own cheese, sour cream, butter, etc. I do this for me and my food choices should not be forced on others - I'm just happy to feed people a vegan or vegan based meal. Also, I do eat honey. As far as I know bees haven't been genetically modified, pumped full of antibiotics, or consume massive amounts of energy to raise. I also buy it locally from bee keepers in the area and believe that it helps support the immune system. I do make exceptions, if other people have prepared me a vegetarian meal but it has small amounts of dairy or eggs in it, I'm okay with that. My intention is to try and eat a vegan diet as much as possible, without being a jerk or wasteful. A few of my friend's mom's have made me veggie meals but cooked with dairy, a my cousin's uncle fixed a elaborate meal for us not knowing that I was vegan, so I picked out the veggies and called it good. This is not a political statement for me, so I'm okay bending the rules a bit from time to time.

Why did I make this chance? Well I have been trying to live a health live style, which I think, means eating very little if any meat and animal products. I also try to avoid all things artificial, over-processed and labeled "healthy." I also buy organic when I can afford it.This means that I cook, a lot, but I love it! Over time my reasons have changed from just wanting to be healthy to also wanting to use my food choices to mirror my world view. These now include - being green, giving up meat greatly reduces your carbon-foot print, uses less fossil fuel, increases the amount of plant-based food available to people. Good for me, Good for the Earth, Good for Others, Good for the Future:-)

Is it hard to eat out as a vegan? No, not for me. I order vegan from the menu, beans and rice, pasta with red sauce, cheese-less veggie pizza, french fries and steamed veggies, veggie burgers (not a fav, but eatable!), veggie sandwiches - hold the cheese and creamy sauces, etc. Most ice-cream places have at least one fruit sorbet as well. Since I decided to not worry about the tiny details when eating out, I've been okay. About 1 in 100 people are thought to be vegan, with about 1 in 30 being vegetarian, more and more restaurants are offering vegan/veggie options and all (even Taco Bell!) will modify your order to you specifications (no cheese on the bean burrito!). If you can veganize a dish in you head by removing one or two items, the order it and enjoy!

How long will you stay vegan? I don't know - this started out as a three, six at tops, month experiment to see if I could eat vegan and enjoy it. And you know what? I did, I do and I still love it. The first set of holidays, Thanksgiving and Christmas, were a bit hard. Okay well I spent Thanksgiving in Canada solo, so I looked up a local vegan restaurant. Christmas was at a beach house with my family, so that was a bit trickier, but it worked. Everyone my friends and family, have been supportive and pitched in and eaten vegan with me when I've visited and cooked. My sister and I found the Loving Hut in her city and have enjoyed it a lot. So yeah, no plans to start eating animal products again any time soon. I also realize that I have the blessing of being single with a vegan-friendly guinea pig who happily shares kale, carrots, mango, grapefruit, cherries, cilantro, etc with me without asking for a steak or bacon (or maybe he does since I don't understand guinea pig).

So yeah, that's that in a nut shell. Well coconut shell:-) I'm going to try a post more of my vegan creations in the near future. As you can probably tell, this is something that is very near and dear to my heart. I believe in using food as a medicine. I believe that our food system is broken and that people are being poisoned by the food-like substances sold in grocery stores. This is my soap-box.

Stay Safe for Someone Else's Sake

I get told to "Be Safe," "Drive Safe," "Stay Safe," etc. A LOT. Probably because I enjoy things like rock climbing, mountain biking, hiking, mountain climbing, downhill skiing, ice climbing, rollerblading, and hitch-hike in developing countries.

My reply is usually "I have to much living to do to die young." And its true, but there is also another reason that I'm very careful when I'm out and about - Others. During my drive from Maine to Arizona, I listened to NPR. A lot. They did a story about two ice climbers who got lost on Mount Washington, NH for 3 days. Once they were rescued, they found out that a search and rescue person had been killed in an avalanche while looking for them. This was devastating for them, that their mistake had costs someone else his life.

And that is my biggest fear, not for myself, but for others. I do my best to reduce my risk of getting lost or stranded so that others do not have to risk their lives to rescue me.

To those who worry about me, relax a bit, I'm staying safe for the sake of others.

To those like me, stay safe for the sake of others.

Door = Slammed

After making my decision to move to Arizona, I'm been wondering a bit if it was the thing to do. While the road here in Maine has been REALLY bumpy, its a road that I know. And you know, do you trade the devil I know for the one I don't?

Well, I got an email the other day from my boss saying that the position I had had here in Maine did not get refunded with the new grant and that as of December there would have been no job for me if I was still here.

After getting that email, my peace about moving to Arizona has tripled. I'm happy and excited about this move. Everything has lined up perfectly and its going to work out and be AWESOME:-)

Sometimes when God opens a door and you walk through it, it shuts the other door closed behind you so that can't look back and not focus on the future. God is good that way!

Its only money

In the process of moving, I must have left my car unlocked and someone helped themselves to so money that I had in there (Yup, I learned my lesson - no more leaving money in the car!). Its funny because there was other stuff in my car as well - some jewelry, my passport, etc. but all they took was the cash. While I feel violated - I also feel thankful that they just took the money and left the valuable stuff. In terms of money - the cash was probably more valuable then what they didn't take, but its replaceable, the other stuff- well that would have been a nightmare and while not valuable - I'd have hated to have had my stuff stolen as most of it has memories attached and was given to me by special people who have touched my life. And at least with the car being unlocked all my windows are still in there. For me its a reminder that not all people are to be trusted. Also, I'm lucky because I can say - its only money and move on to always double-check the locks. Its sad that this is this is the world me live it, but then again I think its always been that way.

I'm going to hope that this was someone who was really down on their luck and need money for food and rent. Also, Karma's a pain and what goes around comes around.

This of course happens in the middle of my quest to let go of things, reduce, and simply. I guess I needed to let go of some money and be reminded that I am truly blessed because I have enough to let go. In the future, I'd like to be in-charge of the letting go and the picking who it goes to though.

A year

Okay - sooo its been a long time since my last post so a quick catch-up timeline of the high points of the last two years:

Feb 28, 2010 - completed my first Marathon in under 6 hours and had a blast though it was rough at points.

May 7, 2010 - graduated with my MPH in Epidemiology (no picture because I didn't go to the graduation ceremonies because I was to burned out from trying to finish everything so I could graduate on time).

August 28, 2010 - Arrived in Augusta, Maine to start work with the state (I'd never been to Maine, so why not just move there for a while - that was my thought behind the move!)


Okay so we're all caught up and back to the present in July 2011.

Almost a year ago I move from Florida to Maine. While I knew it was going to be a cold, dark, long winter, I still wasn't prepared. I did make it, though not always as gracefully as I'd have preferred.

I did learn may may things:

- how to shovel my car out of 18" of snow (okay - maybe it was only 12, but it seemed like 18" to this southern gal)
- that downhill skiing is awesome and scary and needs to be done repeatedly!
- when you're ice climbing you must trust the ice tools and crampons to work and keep you stuck on the ice
- that good friends/roommates are recommended for survival, but are required in my case (I love you all!)
- that sliding down hill backwards in my car is NOT fun (it was controlled so nothing was damaged and no one was hurt, but still!)

And most notably - that I was not made to thrive through cold, New England winters.

While I called a truce with winter and Mother Nature, a Maine winter really isn't something that I enjoyed or wanted to repeat - therefore Arizona here I come!!


I will miss all the wonderful people that I have met here, but I'll be back - maybe for a ski trip or a cool week on a Maine lake. I'm like a bad penny - I always turn up!