Gas-guzzlers, Greens and Gardening...

WOW. We watched ‘Who Killed the Electric Car?’ a couple of nights ago. WOW. If you haven’t tapped into that info yet, I’d recommend it – I was pretty amazed at what I absorbed from this documentary. I thought it was really well-made – in general, a documentary about cars is not likely to hold this gal’s interest for that long – THIS one I found fascinating though...I would summarise it thusly: about 100 years ago, pretty much everyone had electric vehicles, if they had one at all, in the US. Then ‘gas’ vehicles started to be introduced and took over (kind of like some people have electric ovens and some have gas ovens ;). In more recent years, primarily due to environmental concerns, car manufacturers started to create electric vehicles again, with greatly improved performance – fast, ‘flashy’, ‘green’, ‘clean’ (compared to gas-guzzlers), cheaper to run and so on. GREAT solution all round, right? Yep...unless you’re part of the petrol industry of course... So, basically, all the new electric cars that had been made got rounded up like some kind of pest and literally CRUSHED by car-crushing machines, left to rust up in car graveyards. :O ??? ...and so, the electric car was effectively snuffed out again...at least at the time this documentary was made... Quite extraordinary...imagine the time, energy, money, effort and resources that went into creating all those cars, that were then just scrapped almost immediately. Well...the documentary fortunately also turned the spotlight onto new solutions at the end too – from ‘hybrid’ vehicles, to the next generation of electric cars and so on – I would be fascinated to know more actually abt what has happened SINCE this film came out, as I’m sure this controversy must have had a big impact on many people...as for me, I thought this was a really well-made piece – it was informative, funny, upbeat, well-structured and thought-provoking...I’d definitely recommend it if you haven’t seen it yet...you can see more abt it HERE if you’re interested... ;)

Ok, double-whammy food log time, peoples:

on April the 9th I had:

1.5 quarts water
2 cups celery/cabbage/lettuce/carrot juice
2 handfuls of fresh figs and 2 apples, all from the orchard here
1.5 quarts water
1.5 cups celery/cabbage/lettuce/carrot juice
meal of mung bean sprouts, pumpkin seeds and wakame seaweed fronds all munched merrily together
1 quart water

on April the 10th I had:

1.5 quarts water
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
3 cups celery/zucchini/cabbage/lettuce/carrot juice
1 quart green smoothie: peach/apple/spinach/parsley/sprouts/dandelion, with goji berries swirled in for chewability ;)
1 quart water
cucumber yum bowl: grated cucumber mushed with avocado, mixed sprouts, finely diced onion, karengo seaweed, served in lettuce leaves
1 quart water

THANK YOU for all the yummy feedback that has been coming in about my latest YouTube outburst ‘Green Leaves’ ;) I know some of you had issues opening the links to the song from the last blog post – apologies for that – here it is as a simple link you can hopefully all use: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gz1Uu_r5ROA.
Remember too that you can always see ALL my videos on the RawReform ‘channel’ on YouTube – that can be seen at: http://www.youtube.com/rawreform.
‘Green Leaves’ even got its first review, courtesy of Ms. Blaqberry over at Hi-Rawkus.com, who said:

“Here’s another beaut from Ms. Stokes that’s sure to make you smile! I found myself giggling with delight at her absolutely creative lyrics focused on the importance of greens. This tune will be hummed a lot, methinks. I’ll admit that I can imagine myself singing a bit (possibly even a doing quick twirl) while prepping my next green meal. Yes, really. [laugh] How about you?”

THANKS :) You can check out that whole post HERE.

on April the 11th I had:

1.5 quarts water
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
3 cups spinach/celery/parsley/cabbage/sprouts/carrot juice
a cacophony of cracao – UH-OHHHH ;) hemp seed/cacao brownies, butters and trail mix = whacked out of all balance for rest of day, in loved-up, blissed out, cracao-land ;)
1.5 quarts water
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
½ a watermelon
1 cup spinach/celery/parsley/cabbage/sprouts/carrot juice
1 tbsp wheatgrass powder
3 cups water

on April the 12th I had:

1.5 cups water
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
3 cups hardcore green juice: dandelion/spinach/mixed sprouts/celery/zucchini/carrot
handful of fresh figs and persimmons from the orchard
small amount of cracao brownies and spread
1 quart water
2.5 cups hardcore green juice: dandelion/spinach/mixed sprouts/celery/zucchini/carrot
meal of mung bean sprouts/wakame seaweed/pumpkin seeds, followed by a few more bites from the cracao monster ;)
1 quart water

I’ve been pottering muchos in the garden here the last few days and LOVING it – even if I am not yet on a piece of land that feels like ‘my motherland’, I can still nurture someone else’s – especially as after all, ultimately, it’s all the same thing ;) Yes, in response to the question many of you have been asking, the garden in the background of the ‘Green Leaves’ video is the place we’ve been taking care of for the last 2 months – it is divine and we leave in a few days ;( Time to shimmy onwards...in the meantime, it’s been a real blessing to get my hands in the soil here and connect a bit more the last few days – and synchronistically, one reader – Marie – sent in this lovely little article abt the benefits of gardening, which really spoke to me – enjoy ;)

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Healing Benefits of Gardening
by Melanie Waxman

Exercise - Muscles are developed through digging, lifting and raking. Walking, weeding and mowing provide aerobic activity.
Connecting to the earth helps us to be in the here and now, and to get grounded. Best of all, the enjoyment and focus of working and creating in the garden makes exercise easy.

Stress relief - the serene beauty, sights and smells of the garden are relaxing, calming, can lower blood pressure and inspire meditation and reflection.

Structured learning - gardening stimulates the mind on a daily basis and is considered one of the top three "excellent mental workouts".

Improved Self-esteem - The hard work and dedication in the garden provides a great sense of accomplishment and increased self-esteem.
There is nothing more wonderful than watching your labor transform into flowers, fruits, and vegetables brimming with vitality. Experiencing all the aspects of the growing season provides a great sense of creative achievement.

Social Interaction - Gardening is a marvelous group activity for the whole family as all ages can participate. Harvesting the delicious fruits and vegetables give gardeners the opportunity to share them with friends and neighbors.
April is a great time to get started in the garden. Even if you only have a small space or a balcony, gardening can be enjoyed with containers and pots. I encourage everyone to have a go and harvest the benefits on all levels.
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One love,
Angela. xxx