Wednesday 30 April 2008

Last Chance to Volunteer@ Raw Spirit Fest for $150...

Public Service Announcement:
If you’re thinking of registering as a volunteer for the Raw Spirit Fest in Arizona this September 12-14th, I’d highly recommend doing it NOW, as the volunteer price increases from tomorrow, May the 1st, from $150 to $200. I had intended to give a little more warning on this one – sorry ;) I hope you’re still able to register today though if this is smthg that excites you :)
Volunteers get 6 free nights’ camping, access to all the festival fun (during and outside of helping times ;) plus a free raw vegan meal daily, in return for 5 hours of helping out per shift, with a minimum of 15 hours total shared. Some of the things you could be assisting with include:

Volunteer J.O.B.s (Joys Of Being ;)

1) Set up/ Breakdown: before and after festival requiring good physical condition to set up tents, stages, etc..

2) Hygiene: maintaining the pure atmosphere of the festival

3) Food Service: preparing meals for attendees

4) Registration: administrative duties pertaining to registration.

5) Floats and other: anything from security, vendor assistance, stage work, parking, food and water pick up, presenter assistance, etc.

...and many other different joyful adventures – you can read all about it in the ‘volunteers and jobs’ section under the 'Info' category, HERE. ENJOY…and I hope to see you there :)

MUAH :)
Angelelelelelelalalalalalalalalalalalalalalaaaaaaaaaaaaa. xxx

Tuesday 29 April 2008

Thailand Video and Raw Food Study Course ;)

We’re in Chanthaburi now – the durian-growing capital of Thailand and hence, most likely, the world ;) The smell of durian is just in the air here in many places and as it is harvest time right now, there are enormous stacks of the fruit EVERYWHERE. It is absolutely incredible to see, for us. On the bus on the way here from Bangkok, we saw literal truckloads of durian passing us on the roads, while all along the roadsides, markets are stacked high with the ‘king of fruits’ and open warehouses reveal enormous containers of the spiky spectacle...it’s phenomenal...
We went out for a wander today to the local markets in the area we’re staying in. The market vendors were amused to see our enthusiasm for their fruits, especially the durian ;) (See the video below for evidence ;) There were so many amazing fruits available, including sapodillas (another one of the Monarch’s favourites), rambutan, mangoes, jack fruit and something I’ve never seen anywhere before which tasted like a cross between a white sapote and a grapefruit – bizarre ;) Things seem SO inexpensive here – like less than $1 US for a whole fresh durian, opened on the spot by the vendor. WOW... You can check out our adventures on video HERE:


on April the 28th I had:

2 quarts water
1 coconut water with wheatgrass powder stirred in
a ‘gourmet’ raw feast at Rasayana raw restaurant in Bangkok – WOW :) We tried various things: green veggie juices followed by spicy coconut soup, vegetable sushi, coconut noodle pasta, live pizza, raw papaya salad, banana/carob pie and carrot cake.
1 quart water
little handful of gojis
1 fresh durian
2 cups water

Yesterday we visited the Rasayana raw food restaurant in Bangkok. It is a beautiful little tranquil oasis of living cuisine amidst the hustle and bustle of Bangkok. Rasayana is attached to a healing centre that offers colonics, massage, saunas, yoga and other therapies. It was SO nice to be able to access organic, fresh, loved-up raw food and green juices. The menu was wonderful – a yummy blend of more traditional Thai flavours with common gourmet raw items such as spiralised pasta, pizza and so on. The food was absolutely delicious, gorgeously presented by very attentive staff and above all, very easy to digest, which is always a huge bonus ;) There was very little fat involved in the dishes we chose – most of the dishes contained lots of veggies covered with OUTSTANDING dressings and sauces – that is a great ‘secret’ of raw food prep – get a FABULOUS dressing to work with and you can persuade people to eat all kinds of veggies ;) LOL...we loved it. I also loved the experience of being in a restaurant with a WHOLE menu to choose from again. It’s a long time since I was in a raw restaurant and having a whole menu to choose from feels, to me, almost like being a ‘mainstream’ eater again, with many choices available, instead of trying to piece together a limp salad from a menu in a place that has minimal interest in raw ;) I would DEFINITELY recommend checking out Rasayana if you find yourself in Bangkok.


On April the 29th I had a fruity day of:

1 quart water
1 lady finger banana
2 coconut waters with wheatgrass powder
a handful of rambutan, a few jack fruit pods, ½ a sapodilla, 1 bizarre sapote/grapefuit-like fruit, a couple of durian pods
1 coconut water with wheatgrass powder
4 rambutan, 4 jack fruit pods, half a gorgeous little pineapple and 1 lady-finger banana
3 cups water
2 lady-finger bananas, a couple of durian pods, the meat of a young coconut, plus a handful of goji berries with pine nuts
1 quart water

My GOODNESS, there’s quite a tempest of yum brewing over on ChiDiet.com – have you seen? They are almost ready to re-release the ‘Raw Food Home Study Course’, based on Ann Wigmore’s teachings. It’s officially going on sale on Thursday, May the 8th. This is the completely updated, comprehensive version of this home-study course that has already helped people all over the world GO and STAY successfully raw, with an emphasis on greeeeeeens, cleansing, growing, exercise and other ‘Wiggie ways’ ;)
We were fortunate to see a preview copy of the course and it is RAMMED with information. Wow. Containing a complete 300-page 13-step study manual, 10 DVDs, a huge recipe book, audio interviews with transcripts, books from Ann Wigmore herself, a ‘free’ consultation and much more, this course is a BOUNTY of wisdom from one of our Raw Food elders, condensed, organised and handed to you in a package for easy digestion ;)
As a special launch prize, ChiDiet are GIVING AWAY 2 free sets of the course, along with a free 1-hour consultation with the man behind the course – Jim Carey. You can click HERE to find out more about that. Jim is also going to be doing a live call with Victoria Boutenko this Thursday, which anyone can join, where they’ll be discussing what a yumster Ann was, along with giving away ANOTHER free copy of the course – WOW – that’s 3 free copies you could win this week ;)
We often get emails from people asking WHERE they can go and study something about raw foods. Well, there aren’t yet a vast number of places to do that – and this course can be an ideal solution ;) Just learn in your own home, at your own pace. Maybe even buy a set among friends and enjoy it together – that tends to help with the motivation ;) You can find out much more about what will be in the course, as well as get a FREE Ann Wigmore e-book called ‘Why Suffer?’ and see a nice little video presentation by Jim called ‘Dispelling the Raw Food Myths’, by clicking HERE.

One love,
Angela. xxx

Sunday 27 April 2008

Thailand Durian Magic...

We’re in Thailand now, as those of you who read Mr Monarch’s blog will be aware ;) We arrived last night to Bangkok and we’re in a yummy state of bliss already, even if we’re still in the city right now ;) Fresh durian, pineapple, papaya, rambutan and longans right out on the street outside our hostel, elephants walking in the streets, countless salesman and hawkers selling their wares...and HEAT – I haven’t been anywhere so warm and humid in quite a few months – it feels funny to have my arms exposed again and feel my skin, rather than being wrapped in layers ;) It is HOT here – it was about 30C/86F when we arrived last night – WOW ;) We’re off to hopefully find Bangkok’s very own raw food restaurant today – Rasayana – see HERE.
I’m not sure how much internet access we’ll be getting the next few weeks, so bear with us if you send messages and don’t hear back swiftly ;)

on April the 26th I had:

1.5 quarts water
1.5 cups pineapple juice
½ meal of blended gojis/almonds, with a little grawnola alongside ;)
1 quart water
little handful of seaweed
1 tbsp wheatgrass powder
1.5 quarts water
other half of blended goji/almond meal, with a little grawnola
handful of fresh sprouts and seaweed, a selection of little ‘bliss balls’ ;)
2 cups ‘kapha’ tea
3 cups water

Thanks for all the yummy messages that have been coming in about the ‘Raw 5 Years going on 6 Years’ video myself and the Monarch posted last week ;) We’re glad to hear many of you have been enjoying it too – it was certainly fun to film ;) Here’s a comment left by one reader - Lyn - about the video, that I found amusing ;)

“Angela, your new Maria von Chia clip made my day! Matt's inner von Trapp captured on film was priceless! Thank you again for your daily blogs, you are truly inspirational. Love from Lyn in Manchester, UK”

If you haven’t seen that particular YouTube offering yet, you can access it HERE – let your ears soak in the subtle pleasures of raw food musical world ;)

on April the 27th I had:

1.5 quarts water
3 cups pineapple/celery/fennel/spinach/romaine/parsley juice
1 DELICIOUS cherimoya
2 cups water
meal of mixed sprouts, ½ avocado and seaweeds
2 cups water
little blended meal: soaked dried figs blended with spirulina and almonds
1.5 quarts water
handful of sprouts and seaweed
2 cups water
1 fresh coconut water and a few durian pods (here we go ;)
3 cups water

Have you seen RawMom.com yet? If you haven’t, this is another little side-venture from those lovely Raw Divas Tera and Amy that I would HIGHLY recommend. WOW. RawMom.com is a blog written by 7 actual, literal, living, bonefide Raw MOMS, who live all over the world :) They each write one day a week, sharing tips and guidance on their areas of interest and there is some FABULOUS info in there to access. I am just so delighted to see that there’s a clear place for people who want to bring up little raw magic monkeys to get guidance from others who are living this way, have gone down the path already and have a wealth of experience to share. I love it :) We even got the chance to meet one of the seven lovely ladies this weekend when we spoke in Melbourne – Joanne came along and it was lovely to meet her, along with the inimitable Gala Darling and many others we have connected with previously via the internet – THANKS to you all who came along... ;)
Now...on with the durian munching ;)

One love,
Angela. xxx

Friday 25 April 2008

Emotional Eating Stops HERE... ;)

OOOOOOOO, I’m so excited – I have a VERY yummy new announcement to share. Myself and those raw-markable Raw Divas, Amy and Tera, have teamed up to bring you the *ULTIMATE*, complete package for dissolving cravings and emotional eating patterns...

This ‘Diva’s Guide’ Pack contains more than 10 components, including:
*a complete copy of my latest E-book, ‘Raw Emotions
*an hour long interview between Tera and myself, exploring my emotional detox and raw journey, along with guidance for others
*a full transcript of the interview between myself and Tera
*’The Empowered Diva’s Food Journal’ – guidance to track YOUR eating habits
*an hour-long tele-seminar on using EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) to eliminate cravings (I used EFT extensively myself at the start of my raw journey, as you can read abt in ‘Raw Emotions’.)
*a full transcript of the EFT teleseminar
*a fully-illustrated guide to using EFT for yourself
*’A Diva’s Guide to Cravings and Emotional Eating’ E-book from Tera and Amy, including explanations of WHY different foods are addictive
*’Busting Free’ – a companion workbook for taking action on emotional eating patterns
*interviews and reports on different cleanses (e.g. Master Cleanser, Mono-Mealing) that can help you release food habits

Written by three raw women who have been through the wibbles of emotional detox and come up smiling, this is a truly unique offering and surely the most loved-up and GENUINELY effective programme for handling cravings, bingeing and emotional eating ever seen... ;) (…and it doesn’t have to just be for women, by the way ;) There is a WEALTH of knowledge, experience, research and inspiration offered in this programme and we’re delighted to share it all with you. If you’re ready to jump in to some ext-RAW-dinary transformation work, we’re right here to show you the tools and tips that worked for US. You can access the whole programme and read more about it HERE.
ENJOY :)

on April the 23rd I had:

1.5 quarts water
1.5 quarts watermelon/orange juice
1 persimmon, 1 apple
1.5 quarts water
little meal of mixed sprouts with karengo/wakame seaweeds
1 quart water
little pot of magical Monarch ‘leftovers’ cake – an extraordinary creation produced using all the random leftovers from our stay in NZ – like dried papaya pieces/diced figs/dried cherries, flax/almonds/hazelnuts – a whole cornucopia of things = YUMMM
1.5 quarts water
mug of ‘bedtime’ tea

We are now in Melbourne and feeling very blessed to be staying in a GORGEOUS cedar house complete with clean air, Eucalyptus trees all around, an extremely sweet cat and dog, beautiful merry birds chirping in the garden and lovely hosts. YUM :) The Monarch and myself went on an INTENSE 1.5 hr bike ride around the area yesterday evening, including a visit to the most amazing kids’ playground I’ve ever seen. It was huuuuuuuuge, like a big wooden house or castle or something, with all kinds of different play areas. We had great fun climbing up the rock-climb walls, then sliding down the fireman’s pole, over and over again ;) One of my favourite ways to release energy is going to playgrounds and playing on the swings, or swinging on the monkey bars or smthg...I love playgrounds and think it would be fun if more adults played in them too. It often seems like there’s a cultural assumption that only children would want to play and have fun outside... I like the quote ‘we don’t stop playing because we get old; we get old because we stop playing.’ Adults frequently seem to stand at the edge of playgrounds looking bored or anxious ;) Hmmm...how about joining in? While the ‘ideal’ of course might be that we’re all so engaged with our gardens or jungle treks that going and playing on a pile of metal and wood seems absurd, for most people at present, a trip to play at the local playground might be just the ticket for some fun exercise ;) LOL...
We speak here in Melbourne tomorrow – Saturday the 26th, from 1pm – more details HERE, we hope to see you if you’re in the area ;)

on April the 24th I had:

1.5 quarts water
1.5 cups pineapple juice
2 DELICIOUS ‘custard apples’
1 tsp wheatgrass powder
2 cups spinach/carrot juice
little bowl of outrageous yum: soaked goji berries blended with pine nuts (so rich that I couldn’t finish it ;)
1 quart water
2.5 cups celery/spinach/romaine/fennel/cucumber/zucchini/carrot juice
1 quart water


on April the 25th I had:

1.5 quarts water
3 cups pineapple juice
1.5 cups celery/spinach/romaine/fennel/cucumber/zucchini/carrot juice
1 ‘custard apple’
2 cups water
2 cups spinach/celery/carrot juice
bowl of kale salad: ‘dinosaur’ kale finely sliced down, with mushed avocado, grated cucumber, finely diced tomato/spring onion/olives and lemon juice, followed by a little cacao ball treat ;)
3 cups water
3 cups celery/parsley/cucumber/romaine/fennel/spinach/carrot juice
bowl of buckwheatie grawnola with pecan/dried fig mylk
3 cups water


Three Yummy Thoughts For Today:

It is good to have an end to journey towards, but it is the journey that matters in the end.
- Ursula le Guin

And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.
Anais Nin

If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams and endeavors to live the life, which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.
--Henry David Thoreau

YuMmMMMMMmmmmmmmmm :)
All love,
Angelaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. xxx

Tuesday 22 April 2008

Raw 5 Years, Going on 6 Years...

OOOOOOOooooo la la – that cheeky young maiden, Maria von Chia has been up to some more ‘Sound-of-Music-Inspired’ mischief on YouTube...you can check out her latest warblings HERE (watch out for the mystery guest ;)...

Here are the lyrics in full:

-----------------

Raw 5 Years going on 6
by Angela Stokes

You wait little girl,
With an empty plate,
For raw food inspiration.
You wonder how to be healthy,
When surrounded by temptation... (Temptation...)

You’ve been raw 5 years, going on 6 years,
Baby it’s time to think.
Better be careful how much you detox...
And how much green juice you drink.
You need someone, who’s been raw longer, showing you what to do...
I’ve been raw 7 years, going on 8 years. I can take care of you.

Totally unprepared were you, to face the world of raw.
You thought that it was just about food –
There’s really SO much more...
Physically, emotionally, mentally, socially,
Your life’s flipping inside out.
You want to be healthy, as a raw foodist?
I can show you what it’s all about...

I’ve been raw 5 years, going on 6 years,
I know that I’m naïve.
Fellas may bow and offer cacao and willingly I’ll agree.
I need someone, older and wiser, showing me what to do.
You’ve been raw 7 years, going on 8 years.
I’ll listen to you...

Totally unprepared was I, to face the world of raw.
Yes, I thought that it was just about food...
I see there’s so much more…
Physically, emotionally, mentally, socially,
My life’s flipping inside out.
I want to be healthy, as a raw foodist.
So show me, what it’s all about...

----------------

You can check out all of Maria von Chia’s musical meanderings on the following YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/RawReform.


on April the 21st I had a juicy day of:

1.5 quarts water
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
1.5 quarts celery/spinach/cucumber/J. artichoke/dandelion/parsley/carrot/apple juice
3 cups watermelon juice
2 reishi mushroom capsules – PHEW ;)
3 cups beetroot/apple/celery/spinach/cucumber/J. artichoke/dandelion/parsley/carrot/apple juice
2 cups water
1 quart zucchini/celery/apple juice
2 cups water

MMmMMmmmMMmmm, thanks for all the yummy feedback that continues to come in for ‘Raw Emotions’ – it’s so lovely to hear abt the shifts y’all are enjoying...here are a couple of recent comments:

“THANK YOU for "Raw Emotions"!! …this couldn't have come at a better time for me as, despite embracing raw food wholeheartedly, I've been struggling with the emotional side of things after so many years of food having been my best friend/worst enemy. It has your characteristic warmth and intelligence on every page, and has so obviously been created with a lot of love. I'm reading it slowly so as to relish what is already proving to be such a great source of comfort and strength as I tread my path away from the darkness and into the light! Congratulations and Thank you! ~Kaye xx”

I love your book! Really! Such a fabulous resource for anyone wanting to do any 'feeling' work. You've managed to put so much in the same manual, and introduced it in such an easy gentle manner! Thank you! Victoria.”

WOW, thanks for the feedback :) If YOU haven’t dipped into the flow of Raw Emotions yet and would love to, you can get more details and read an excerpt HERE – enjoooooooooy :)
...and yes, for all of you who have been asking - we will get Raw Emotions made as a printed version too, as soon as possible (it's an e-book format at the moment). We're currently securing a yummy eco-friendly printer to work with...we hope to have it available within the next couple of months in the printed version... ;)

on April the 22nd I had:

1.5 quarts water
3 incredible persimmons, 2 feijoas and the last few grapes from our orchard haven
3 cups zucchini/carrot/cilantro/celery juice
bowl of grawnola with sesame/dried apricot mylk, plus extra maca and vanilla powders stirred in = yummmm ;)
2 cups water
12oz zucchini/carrot/cilantro/celery juice
bowl of blended avo/basil/garlic/lemon juice/seaweed yum, with mixed sprouts stirred in
1.5 quarts water

Thanks to Gina for passing on this recent lovely request from Victoria Boutenko, who has a stack of old editions of ’12 Steps to Raw Foods’ to give away to libraries, shelters, prisons and so on – read on for more info:

“Dear Friends, Since publishing the new edition of my “12 Steps to Raw Foods” book, I have retrieved lots of copies of an older version from bookstores. I consider the new edition to be so much better, that I encourage everyone to read the new one. The old ones, I have stamped “not for sale” and am currently giving them away to those who absolutely cannot afford to buy a new one. I have sent one copy to every library that you mentioned already in your emails last year, when we were sending out the damaged copies of “Green for Life”. If you know of any more places that could use a free copy of that book, please email me the address. That could include schools, libraries, home schooling groups, shelters, orphanages, ashrams, prisons, nursing homes, hospices, vegetarian groups in third world countries (who can read English), retirement communities, juvenile probation centers, hospitals (hee hee hee) and wherever else you can think of. I have approximately 500 copies left. I would appreciate donations towards postage. Thank you for your help! Raw Family Publishing 280 East Hersey Street Unit 7 Ashland , Oregon 97520 Victoria@rawfamily.com

NICE WORK, Victoria :) Ahhhh, what a love she is :) I hope many of you have suggestions for her of places to send the books and spread the good message far and wide ;)

One love,
Angela. xxx

Sunday 20 April 2008

Tweet-tweet... :)

I did it :) After countless promptings, I’ve jumped in and joined Twitter – eeeeeeeeeeek ;) For anyone who isn’t familiar with this service, it’s a way of keeping in contact with all your favourite online peoples very quickly and easily, via the web or your phone by text, by posting short little summaries of what you’re up to, which other people can ‘follow’ and you can ‘follow’ them too ;) In many ways it’s similar to sites like Facebook, MySpace and so on – yet somehow like a mini/condensed/very current version of that kind of interaction. You can go and write a few words there at any time you feel inclined, to connect with others in your network – I think it’s rather sweet and does definitely conjure images in my mind of many little birds all perched on telephone wires, chattering away to each other ;) You can check out my profile at http://twitter.com/RawReform - just click the ‘FOLLOW’ button under my name to get my updates, or if you’re not yet a member, you can sign up for a free account first ;) Tweet-Tweet ;)

on April the 17th I had:

1.5 quarts water
½ a watermelon
little meal of mung bean sprouts, wakame seaweed fronds and pumpkin seeds – yummmm ;)
1 quart water
1 pint celery/spinach/parsley/dandelion/Jerusalem artichoke/carrot greens/zucchini/carrot juice
bowl of graaaaaaaaaawnooooooooola with sesame seed/dried apricot milk, swirled with cinnamon and vanilla powders = yum
1.5 quarts water

on April the 18th I had:

1.5 quarts water
3 cups celery/spinach/parsley/dandelion/Jerusalem artichoke/carrot greens/zucchini/carrot juice
handful of fresh figs straight from the trees, plus some outrageously divine concord grapes
1 quart water
big handful of mung bean sprouts mixed with wakame seaweed fronds and pumpkin seeds = yummmmm
3 cups celery/spinach/parsley/dandelion/Jerusalem artichoke/carrot greens/zucchini/carrot juice mixed with wheatgrass powder
½ a watermelon
1 quart water

We’re in Wellington now on the Nth Island of NZ and WOW it’s REMARKABLY cold here at the moment...I haven’t worn so many clothes at once in many, many months. I seem to have about half my wardrobe on most of the time right now – so much for raw foodists not feeling the cold ;) There are times I’ve felt that kind of energy – this is not one of them though – I’ve been such a cold-climate-dodger the last few years, it feels absolutely absurd to me to be in cold places now ;) I think of Anastasia living virtually naked out in the forest in Siberian winters and...shudder ;) (BTW - the '9th' Anastasia book is out now - 'Rites of Love' - seeHERE. We're on book 6 at the moment...)
We spoke here in Wellington a couple of days ago with a really nice group in a cozy warm room – yumm ;) We’re back off to OZ in a couple of days – we’ll be speaking in Melbourne next Saturday, the 26th – hope to see you there if you’re around...more event details on the RawReform site HERE.
Dear Mr Monarch also just confirmed that he’ll be speaking in LA in June – book your tickets now – it’s filling up fast. He’ll be speaking on June the 14th at 7pm in LA – see this link for all the details: http://rawfood.meetup.com/202/calendar/7749240/


on April the 19th I had:

1.5 quarts water
3 cups spinach/dandelion/carrot tops/parsley/Jerusalem artichoke/ carrot juice
fresh apples/feijoas/persimmon/grapes from the orchard
handful of sunflower seeds and wakame seaweed fronds
2 cups spinach/dandelion/carrot tops/parsley/Jerusalem artichoke/ carrot juice
1 plate of yummmmmy, simple raw potluck food – mainly veggies, a couple of chunks of coconut flesh and amazing coconut-chocolate :)
2 cups water
3 little apples and 3 little feijoas
2 cups water


on April the 20th I had:

1.5 quarts water
1 persimmon & 2 feijoas
1 tsp green powder
3 cups celery/dandelion/spinach/zucchini/carrot juice
big bowl of buckola cereal, with sesame/dried apricot mylk, plus almonds and mulberries = yummmm. I LOVE grawnola :)))
1 quart water
3 cups celery/dandelion/spinach/zucchini/carrot juice
2 apples, ½ an avocado and masses of seaweed – karengo and wakame
1.5 quarts water

There are some very exciting raw unfoldings happening of late in ol’ London town. There are now apparently THREE new eateries serving raw food – WOW :) Must be time to head back to Blighty soon, methinks ;) First up is the surely sublime ‘InSpiral’ – where Master Alchemist Joel Gazdar seems to be creating merry raw mischief in the kitchens. Joel is without question one of the most talented and innovative raw chefs I’ve ever met – he is also one of the first raw foodies I ever met in the UK :) I’m so excited for him and all else involved, that this new project seems to be unfolding with grace, yumminess and joy in Camden... They are hosting a series of lectures called ‘New Horizons’ every Tuesday, during which Joel and others share cutting-edge info for a loved-up, mineralized and exceptionally vibrant life...joining the New Horizons line-up on Tuesday April the 29th is none other than Miss Magic herself, for the London launching of her new book, Raw Magic. Kate will be giving a talk, signing books and making outrageously divine cakes, as she is wont to do ;) You can join in the magic munching at InSpiral Lounge from 7.30pm on Tuesdays for the New Horizon talks. Dear Suki has very generously been filming many of the talks so far and posting them to YouTube – you can check them out HERE: youtube.com/sukixocolatizoe. You can also see more about New Horizons on MySpace HERE: myspace.com/ournewhorizons. Enjoy :)
The other two new raw-friendly eateries of note in Londinium are Saf, which is the London branch of the seemingly uber-fabulous Saf raw/organic/vegan restaurants. The first Saf was opened a while back in Turkey, with Chad Sarno heading up the chefs...now it’s London’s turn for the yummy flow. London Saf is in Shoreditch, in the East End and by all accounts I’ve read/heard so far seems to be bringing much yumminess to raw dining experiences there...yummm - I hope to check it out in the summer ;) You can see more abt Saf HERE. Our final London munchy raw space of the day is ‘Alchemy’, not to be confused with a raw place of the very same name that was kicking around last year – this one is hosted in a yoga/holistic therapy studio in Camden and seems to cater for a mainly liquid lifestyle judging by their online menu – juices and smoothies seem to abound – see more abt Alchemy HERE...ENJOY :)

One love,
Angela. xxx

Wednesday 16 April 2008

Taking Action...

Greetings :)
I hope all is flowing magnificently with you...we are into our last week here in New Zealand and I’ll be a little sad to be packing up and heading off again – it has been such a blessing to be here these last few months :) Well, onwards we trot nonetheless – we speak in Wellington this Saturday, the 19th, then hop on up to Melbourne for a public natter on the 23rd ;) More event details HERE. We shall certainly enjoy to see you there if you’re around...
In the meantime, Lisa over in dear ol’ Blighty wrote in to say:

“Hi Angela, i love your and Matt's blogs and am wondering whether you take any supplements appart from the meals you list on your blogs at all? I've also read your Raw Emotions and think it's absolutely fantastic! keep up the good work love&peace Lisa”

Awwww, thanks petal ;) Great question – indeed, I’ve often thought to blog a little blurb about this very matter, to share my thoughts and habits...thanks for the impetus to actually do it ;)
So, the answer is YES, I take 4 main supplements:

*kelp tablets (about 3-5 a day of THESE ones from Dr Christopher)
*Threelac probiotics (1-2 a day)
*Therapeutic Enzymes (1-3 tsps a day)
*B12 tablets (whenever I remember ;)

Of course, I’m sure we’re all aware that FOOD is our main ‘medicine’ and source of nutrients...these are just 4 things that seem to look a bit more like ‘medicine’ and that I add in to the mix for an extra ‘punch’. I guess we all have different perspectives on what we consider ‘foods’ or ‘supplements’ – so, for instance, I eat green powders regularly – to me, they’re a food, whereas other people might think they’re a supplement...
In any case, those are the main 4 items that I consume regularly that seem ‘supplemental’ to me. Why do I take them? Let’s see...kelp I take to support my thyroid. Probiotics I take to help the friendly stomach flora guys. Ideally I use the ‘Freddie’s Blend’ probiotics – they need to be kept refrigerated though, so they’re not the best to travel with. I’m using Threelac at the moment as it doesn’t need refrigeration and is VERY powerful. ;) I take the Therapeutic Enzymes because they amaze me – they feel SO powerful and have helped people heal from all kinds of conditions – so, I like to wonder about all the goodness they’re bringing me now as someone who doesn’t really deal with any health issues; preserving my enzyme bank = wow :) I take B12 as a back up – this vitamin is such a little courtier of controversy and the debates about where to get it from really don’t excite me, so I just bypass all that and take a tablet whenever I remember and my levels are now fine (whereas a few years back I had a severe B12 deficiency, before I started to take tabs).
Other things I consume that might be thought of as supplements include: seawater (dropped into juices), maca powder, seaweeds, bee pollen and the occasional cup of Natural Calm ;)
Hope that helps ;)

on April the 13th I had:

1.5 quarts water
1 quart watermelon/orange juice
1 tbsp wheatgrass powder
meal of mung bean sprouts/wakame seaweed/pumpkin seeds
1.5 quarts water
3 cups spinach/dandelion/lettuce/cucumber/beetroot/carrot juice
bowl of ‘grawnola’ with sesame seed/fig ‘mylk’ – YUMMM ;)
1.5 quarts water

on April the 14th I had:

1.5 quarts water
1 quart watermelon/orange juice
1.5 cups spinach/dandelion/lettuce/cucumber/beetroot/carrot juice
2 cups water
1tbsp green powder
1 quart spinach/dandelion/lettuce/cucumber/carrot juice
3 cups watermelon juice
2 cups water
2.5 cups spinach/dandelion/lettuce/cucumber/carrot juice
1 quart watermelon juice
2 cups water

If you are not yet tuned in to the work of Mike Adams, I would STRONGLY recommend getting on over to his main site: NaturalNews.com (used to be NewsTarget) and dipping into the incredible flow of info he shares there. Mike writes on health freedom, natural remedies, disease prevention, raw lifestyles and soooo much more. I truly see Mike on the front lines of ‘health freedom’ – his integrity, honesty and commitment are outstanding. He sends out free emails regularly with summaries of current stories – you can sign up for those updates on NaturalNews.com.
Mike has a new project though that I’d REALLY like to give attention to here – he has created a FREE national radio show in the US called ‘The Health Ranger Show’, which he is currently asking people to help get syndicated on radio stations ALL over the country – WOW :) This is exciting news...imagine radio stations everywhere playing a FREE show that gives GENUINELY useful, accurate information about health, rather than where to buy more pharmaceuticals ;) Imagine all the people whose lives might be jiggled a little more into a healthy direction as they listen to that info... This is a HUGE opportunity to spread the healing message... SO, how can you play your part? Mike is asking people all over the US (and Canada too, in fact ;), to call their local radio stations and ask them to pick up ‘The Health Ranger Show’ for their scheduling. All you need to do is go to this page: http://www.naturalnews.com/radioshow.html and click the link for YOUR area – you’ll find contact details and full instructions there on what to tell the person at the radio station. Yeeeeeeeeeeee-HAH :) I’m excited about this project – I feel this could really have a HUGE impact – I’ll be calling some stations in Cali tomorrow and I hope you will also take a few minutes, to make some calls in your area, if you’re in N. America... Here’s to vibrant health for the masses ;)

on April the 15th I had:

1.5 quarts water
1 pint veggie juice: cucumber/carrot/beetroot/dandelion/lettuce
meal of sprouted mung beans with wakame seaweed fronds & pumpkin seeds
1 quart water
1 pint veggie juice: cucumber/carrot/beetroot/dandelion/lettuce
bowl of grawnola: buckwheaties/sunflower seeds/coconut/sultanas/cinnamon/vanilla powders with sesame/fig milk, plus spirulina and maca swirled in – yummmmmm ;)

on April the 16th I had:

1.5 quarts water
1 pint SPICY veggie juice: spicy sprouts/dandelion/clover/celery/cucumber/beetroot/carrot/lettuces
meal of fresh figs, straight from the orchard :)
2 cups water
little meal of mung beans/wakame seaweed fronds/brazil nuts/pumpkin seeds – yummmmmmmm ;)
1 quart water
1 pint SPICY veggie juice: spicy sprouts/dandelion/clover/celery/cucumber/beetroot/carrot/lettuces
bowl of YUMMMMMMMY grawnola, with sesame mylk, cinnamon and vanilla powders – we are SO blessed ;)
1 quart water

Ok, I feel a bit like this is turning into a film review blog – lol - there are just SO many amazing films out there and we’ve been watching a lot lately...they inspire me SO much and I feel excited to then pass that info along to y’all – I hope you enjoy ;)
So, this evening we watched SUCH a beautiful little documentary called ‘One Man, One Cow, One Planet’, all about Peter Proctor, a kiwi farmer who is nearly 80 years old and yet leading a bio-dynamic revolution in farming, all across India. WOW. After years of hands-on work here in NZ, Peter saw the potential for turning around the ailing chemical-based agriculture system in India, where crops were failing, soil was dying and farmers were literally committing suicide en masse in desperation. In this documentary, we see Peter joyfully travelling all over India, helping farmers everywhere to get back to simplicity, regenerate their soils and produce incredible crops. I have NEVER seen greens growing in India at all and yet the lettuces and other leafy crops shown on this film looked phenomenal - enough to inspire an outbreak of ‘Green Leaves’ ;) lol...seriously, it’s INCREDIBLE to see what this one passionate, caring, generous guy has helped co-create there...you can check out more about this film HERE. ENJOY :)

One love,
Angela. xxx

Saturday 12 April 2008

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 ;)

-----------------
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.
-----------------

One love,
Angela. xxx

Thursday 10 April 2008

Green Leaves :)

Well, the mischievous musical membranes of my right hemisphere appear to have been at it again and here is their latest creation, over on YouTube:


Enjoy :)


As I’m sure most of you are aware, this is an adaptation of ‘Green Sleeves’, a beautiful English folk song reputedly written by King Henry VIII for one of his many wives...well, it used to kind of be my ‘signature’ song when I did more singing and less raw food munching...
The inspiration for this raw food interpretation of the song came from dear Mr Monarch himself. During our lengthy road trip last weekend down to Christchurch and back, I was reminiscing about when I once sang ‘Green Sleeves’ on national radio in Sri Lanka. All at once, he piped up that we ought to create a raw version called ‘Green Leaves’ and so...I got to work ;) Car journeys like that are great for headspace and flow for me...

Here are the lyrics in full:


Green Leaves
By Angela Stokes

Imagine foods that lift you up,
Restore your health and feel balancing.
Green leafy veggies do all of this
And combine well with almost anything...

Packed with enzymes and nutrients,
Greens even give us great protein.
Yet so few people get enough,
It’s time for us all to go more GREEN :)

Green leaves in all our juices,
Green leaves in our smoothies,
Green leaves in our soups and salads,
There’s so many ways to enjoy greens...

Greens can help us to alkalise,
Detox and re-mineralise.
Your skin will glow from the inside
And SPARKLY will be your eyes.

There’s kale, spinach and romaine,
Sprouts, cilantro, arugula,
Parsley, dandelion and purslane
And so many wild greens to discover...

Green leaves in all our juices,
Green leaves in our smoothies,
Green leaves in our soups and salads,
There’s so many ways to enjoy greens...

I would my dear encourage you,
To enjoy your greens more liberally.
You’ll feel more healthy and vibrant too,
So gather your greens up and join me :)

Green leaves in all our juices,
Green leaves in our smoothies,
Green leaves in our soups and salads,
There’s so many ways to enjoy greens... :)


ENJOY :)
All love,
Angelalalalalalaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. xxx

Wednesday 9 April 2008

Who'd like a slice of Raw SPAM...???

HELLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO :)))
I’m back :) Apologies for being suddenly ex communicado this last week – Blogger decided to run some tests on this blog, checking for spam – well, I guess they realised in the end that no raw foodist would likely be spreading SPAM around ;) LOL...and so we’re back in business...yeeeee-HAH... :)
I hope you’ve had a great week – we’ve been having fun. We went down to Christchurch, further south in New Zealand, where we spoke to a lovely group of vibrant beings...we heard some great healing stories, including a plumber whose knee was so inflamed, he could barely touch it or walk – he felt like he’d ‘tried everything’ to relieve it and didn’t know what else to do…then he heard abt the idea of colonic irrigations to relieve stress on the body and ‘unplug the sink’ of the blocked-up colon ;) I guess maybe it appealed to his plumber’s mind and he got to work on making his own enema kit from a few things he had laying around, used the enema and found that within 2 DAYS his knee was back to normal :))) WOW – we love hearing stories like that :))) People picking up simple concepts, taking responsibility for their OWN health (instead of turning to a doctor/allopathic pills, for example) and relieving their symptoms…beautiful :)
Thanks to all of you who came along to the talk...we speak next in Golden Bay on April the 13th, then Wellington on the 19th, Melbourne on the 23rd...see you there…??? ;)

Ok, hold on tight for an unprecedented TRIPLE-whammy of food logs today:

On April the 3rd I had:

1.5 quarts water
1 quart watermelon/tangelo juice
1 pint cucumber/dandelion/lettuce/spinach/cabbage/carrot juice
about 12 fresh figs, straight from the trees
2 cups water
3 cups cucumber/dandelion/lettuce/spinach/cabbage/carrot juice
little bowl of Mulberry magic: dried mulberries blended with sesame seeds, water and spirulina
little meal of pumpkin seeds with wakame seaweed fronds, then avocado, karengo seaweed and apple slices stuffed in romaine lettuce leaves
1.5 quarts water


on April the 4th I had:

1.5 quarts water
2.5 cups watermelon/orange juice
1 pint ‘Chocolate Milk’: spinach/romaine/carrot juice
bowl of figgy pudding: fresh figs blended with oranges and lucuma/maca/vanilla/cinnamon powders
2 cups water
1 tbsp green powder
handful of wakame seaweed with pumpkin seeds
2 cups rooibus tea
½ a watermelon
1 quart water

We had a really interesting link sent through a couple of days ago from Kate Magic. CLICK HERE and see which way you see the dancer twirling – clockwise or counterclockwise? People who mainly use the right side of the brain (creative, flowing, intuitive, open) see the dancer turning clockwise, whereas those who tend to be in their left hemispheres (logical, linear, detail-orientated, data-crunching ;) see her spinning counterclockwise. What do YOU see? I think this is fascinating. When I first looked, I only saw her spinning clockwise, on and on for ages, then suddenly it flipped, when I was laughing at one point, then after a while, back to clockwise...the Monarch on the other hand was flip-flopping between each direction from the outset – I guess that makes him...ambi-hemispherical or smthg ;) It was very interesting to be looking at the same image at the same time, with one of us seeing it going in one direction and the other in the opposite direction – wow ;) For those of you who are interested in hearing more abt left/right brain antics, you can check out the video from Jill Bolte Taylor on TED.com that Mr. Monarch recently recommended on his blog – he LOVES it ;)

Ok, left-brains at the ready – more food logs to digest...

on April the 5th I had:

1.5 quarts water
2 cups watermelon/orange juice
1 tbsp green powder
bowl of blended apples/mulberries mixed with ground flaxseed and spirulina
1 quart water
meal of cucumber yum: grated cucumber, mushed with avocado, finely diced onion, mixed sprouts and karengo seaweed, stuffed in lettuce leaves, with wakame fronds and pumpkin seeds on the side :)
1 quart water
2 pears
1.5 quarts watermelon/orange juice
2 cups water


on April the 6th I had:

1.5 quarts water
1 quart watermelon/tangelo juice
24oz celery/parsley/spinach/lettuce/sprouts/carrot juice
belly-full of fresh figs picked straight from the trees, along with the first persimmon of the season, a little handful of delicious concord grapes and 2 apples – YUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM :)
1 quart water
20oz celery/parsley/spinach/lettuce/sprouts/carrot juice
cucumber yummm: grated cucumber, mushed with avocado, finely diced onion, mixed sprouts and karengo seaweed, stuffed in lettuce leaves, with wakame fronds and pumpkin seeds on the side :)
1.5 quarts water

I’m VERY excited to announce that there is going to be a RAW OLYMPICS taking place this December, from the 13th -17th, at the Kalani Resort on the Big Island of Hawaii. WOW :) I hope we can be there...spaces are open right now for people to register to attend, compete and get involved in any way that helps their right brain hummmmmm ;) The basic idea is that raw foodists’ bodies, abilities and health can literally be in a different league to other athletes – so, let’s gather all those on this journey who might want to sweat, bounce and jiggle together, on a more ‘even’ playing field of all-raw kiddies ;) I am particularly intrigued by this event, as I’ve long felt drawn to suggest there ought to be a ‘Cacao Olymics’ event at the Raw Spirit Festival, wherein participants would ingest large amounts of the ancient brown stuff and see what super-abilities pour forth, as they go about tasks like high-jumping, long-jumping or rope-skipping ;) LOL...well, while I still think that would be fascinating to witness, I’m also delighted to see that someone is taking the far more sensible approach of simply having a RAW Olympics, not based around cacao ;) Hmmm, I wonder if the attendees will be ‘tested’ for cacao before participating...???
You can explore more at http://www.rawolympics.org.

On April the 7th I had a juicy day of:

1.5 quarts water
60oz watermelon/orange juice :O
2 cups water
16oz celery/parsley/spinach/carrot juice (potassium broth)
1 quart beetroot/celery/apple juice
1 tbsp wheatgrass powder
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
3 cups zucchini/carrot juice
2 cups water


on April the 8th I had:

2 cups water
1 quart nettle tea/water
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
3 cups celery/dandelion/lettuce/zucchini/carrot juice
handful of fresh figs, 3 outrageous ripe persimmons, 2 apples – all picked by hand, straight from the orchard – BLISS :)
3 cups water
3 cups celery/cabbage/zucchini/lettuce/carrot juice
bowl of cucumber yummmm: grated cucumber, mushed with avocado, finely diced onion, mixed sprouts and karengo seaweed, stuffed in lettuce leaves
3 cups water

Thanks for all the juicy feedback that continues to flow in about ‘Raw Emotions’ – it’s so rewarding to hear about your experiences. One blogger, Tanisha, had this to see about the book:

“This book is by far one of the best books I have read on how to stop utilizing food as a comfort. I bought this book and 3PM on Saturday last week and finished reading it by 9PM. It is not a short book but it kept my attention. Angela talks about how we use cooked foods to comfort us, and gives tons of tips on how to push away the food and eat only when necessary.”

Thanks Tanisha :) You can check out her whole post HERE and if you have not yet delved into the vibrant flow of Raw Emotions yourself, you can pick up your own copy HERE.

ENJOOOOOOOOOOOOY :)
All love,
Angelalalaalalaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. xxx

Wednesday 2 April 2008

Delicious Co-Creation...

OOooOOOoooo, yumminess...we went to a meeting about Anastasia today :))) It was arranged by a woman in this area who has been reading and loving the ‘Ringing Cedars’ series of books, just like we and many millions of other people have :) She decided to create a space for those who are interested to gather together and share the impact these books are having on all our lives...I found it fascinating to hear what other people get out of these books – the different perspectives, the different things that stand out for people...for me, as I think I’ve made clear by now, these books represent pure truth and love – I just LOVE reading them and the visions they create and awaken within me...and I see the main message I take from them as the importance now for us all to get growing food – get to the land, get connected, enjoy the intimacy with nature and the ecstatic dance with freedom, no longer wrapped into a self-destructive, ailing system...We’re reading Book 6: The Book of Kin at the moment and it’s just soooo delicious...one of the bits that tickled my fascination nodules the most so far was some comment along the lines that humans get bored living in the buildings they do because THEY DO NOT CHANGE – they stay the same, more or less, year in, year out – you might move a piece of furniture here, hang up some other curtains there or smthg...yet it’s fundamentally the same – it doesn’t breathe, shift, grow or really interact...compare that to living outside all the time – think how different that would be – your landscape and environment would be constantly shifting, there would be endless new fascination to explore...I found this very interesting – I think it was introduced in the context of people getting bored in their marriages too, if I’m recalling accurately – same house, day in, day out, same people, same interactions, stagnating...hmmmmmmmmmmm...interesting stuff...this all led me to reflect on my own restless, nomadic behaviour so far in life, moving from place to place so often – I began to ponder if perhaps this has been driven in part by a desire to keep the landscape moving, yet without enough familiarity/will to choose living outside as my solution – so I’ve kept on moving houses/areas instead...there is definitely something in me that still jars against the reality of living outside...though we do sleep with huge windows completely open, so it’s pretty much like sleeping outside in THAT sense...well, we’ll see how it unfolds from here... ;)
If you want to dive into the Anastasia collection, you can see them HERE...

On March the 31st I had a juicy day of:

1.5 quarts water
36oz watermelon/mandarin juice
36oz lettuce/pak choi/dandelion/carrot/zucchini juice
2 cups water
40oz watermelon/orange juice
1 tbsp green powder
3 cups beetroot/apple/cabbage juice
1tbsp wheatgrass powder
3.5 cups apple/lettuce/cucumber/garlic/hot pepper juice
3 cups water

SOooOooooOoo...this was my FIFTH juicy Monday in a row, playing along on the skirts of the Global Juice Feast...which must mean those of you in full juicy mode have been at this for...wow, more than a month now, if you started on March the 1st...I hope you’re all having a wondrous time with it. I’m enjoying my weekly check-ins to juicy world...I might even keep it up after the GJF wraps us this time round...we’ll see...it just feels like a really nice break to me each week – I barely even notice it anymore as an ‘event’ in fact, which is interesting to me when I think back; if you’d asked me to spend a day on JUST juices 6 or 7 years ago, I would have most likely FREAKED OUT and thought I’d never make it through the day – these days, in contrast, it seems like a nice BREAK ;) LOL...how our perspectives can change...

on April the 1st I had:

1.5 quarts water
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
1tbsp wheatgrass powder
2 handfuls of fresh figs, from the trees here
2 cups water
8oz cucumber/lettuce/sprouts/carrot/cabbage juice
16oz carrot/spinach juice
bowl of cucumber yum: grated cucumber mushed with sunflower seed pate, avocado, finely diced onion, karengo seaweed, mixed sprouts, served in lettuce leaves
2 cups water
½ watermelon
2 cups water


on April the 2nd I had:

1.5 quarts water
1 quart watermelon/orange juice
1 pint zucchini/spinach/pak choi/cabbage/carrot juice
2 cups water
little bowl of Monarch Mulberry Magic – he’s at it again, that Monarch has created a magical greeeeeeen treat using just dried mulberries blended with ground almonds and spirulina powder - yummmmmmmmmmmm
3 cups water
3 cups zucchini/spinach/pak choi/cabbage/carrot juice
bowl of figgy pudding: fresh figs blended with fresh tangelos, stirred with yacon/lucuma/vanilla/cinnamon/spirulina powders
3 cups water

I would love to ‘big up’ Think Arete again today...I know I’ve mentioned this site before – I’ve just been loving the daily messages so much from them though, I wanted to recommend checking it out again. If you haven’t been there yet, basically the idea is that Brian Johnson (the guy who created Zaadz – which is now the beautiful Gaia Community) is collating together all his favourite nuggets of truth, beauty, ‘wisdom’ and so on from all that he has read and heard over the years from self-help resources to ‘spiritual’ books, wellness seminars and so on. It’s great fun :) Every day he emails out a short ‘big idea’ mail shot, if you sign up for it (free) – this might be anything from relationship guidance to an inspiring quote, to a simple idea that could revolutionise the way you create YOUR reality ;). The by-line of the site is ‘concentrated wisdom for the busy self-actualizer’ – love it...and that’s exactly what you get – no fluff, no hype, just short, simple, useful, positive, funny nuggets every day to boost your yumminess vibe ;) You can check the site out and sign up for your daily hit of yum HERE: http://www.thinkarete.com

ENJOY :)
One love,
Angela. xxx