Pioneering, Poi and Pendants...

Interestingly, a UK ‘food watchdog’ company recently published its annual ‘ten top trends’ report for the coming year, in which it stated they are anticipating a ‘raw food revolution’. WOW. This seems to be a pretty ‘mainstream’ organisation - their name is 'Food and Drink Towers' - and it seems their yearly reports are held in quite high regard by those in the food industry...very interesting to see they’re noting the raw food shifts currently in motion worldwide...here’s a little of what the report shares:

“Superfoods will get more specific, as the European health claims regulation makes an impact, prevention will be the aim of the health game, and we’re preparing ourselves for a raw food revolution.”

Yeeeeeeeeeeeeee-HAH, food for thought indeed ;) You can see more about this report HERE.
http://www.responsesource.com/releases/rel_display.php?relid=36128&hilite=

on January the 18th I had:

1 quart water
1.5 cups tulsi tea
little bunch of GORGEOUSLY vibrant black grapes
3 cups watermelon/orange/grape juice
avo mushed with diced cilantro, tomatoes and garlic, salt and chopped lettuce, served with cucumber sticks, sunflower greens and lettuce leaves
2 cups water
2 cups celery/cucumber/zucchini/broccoli juice
1 mango
bowl of soaked dried mulberries, blended with hemp seed and tahini, served with RINGING CEDAR nuts :O WOWOWOWOOOWOWOWOWW :)
3 cups water

OooooOOooooo, we had a fun trip to a place that sells Anastasia goods today – ‘Anastasia’s Garden’ - in Robina on the Gold Coast. They had all the books, cedar tree pendants, cedar spoons, nuts and oil. I was very excited :) We got a box of the DELICIOUS little cedar nuts, like Anastasia eats, out in the Siberian forest – VERY similar to pine nuts. The Monarch and myself also both got cedar pendants :) I’ve wanted a cedar necklace ever since I read the description in the first Anastasia book about the healing power these pendants can hold and bring. Here is an excerpt:

“Those who wear a small wooden cedar pendant on their chest evoke feelings of love and goodwill in themselves and others. Those people gain talent, creativity aptitude, and luck. Any cedar morsel, given to people by Nature itself (do not use chopped down trees) help to overcome illnesses. There are many healers who feel this power, but do not forget about your role - the "medallion" is nothing but an accumulator of your Love and your Light, which it gives back to you whenever you need it. These Siberian Cedars have positive power, and people who wear the pendant notice an increase in their mental and physical health.”

We’re going to get some pendants for the RawReform Store soon too, to spread the light onwards :) We’re falling in love with ours...I'll let you know when we've got some in the Store :)

on January the 19th I had:

1.5 quarts water
1 medium papaya
1 pint zucchini/beetroot/celery/cucumber/orange juice (tasted oddly like...water...)
bowl of soaked dried mulberries blended with tahini, with Siberian Cedar Nuts stirred in, plus mulberry pieces
3 cups water
1 pint celery/cucumber/romaine/sorrel/fennel/alfalfa sprout/unidentified-greens juice
big bowl of green smoothie – well, actually, more like ‘puce’ colour, from the blueberries: blueberries/banana/mango/romaine/’tree spinach/sunflower greens/alfalfa sprouts
3 cups water

Ok, so the winner of last month’s RawReform Giveaway has just been announced – I know it’s rather late in the month - well, here is the final verdict ;) The winner of the Cobra Poi set was the delightful Kristy Eggleston. To be in with a chance of winning, all you had to do was email in your A to the following Q:

‘What have been your top THREE raw food highlights of 2007?’

We had some LOVELY answers from y’all – seems like a great year was had by many – hurray :) Here was Kristy Eggleston’s winning entry, picked at random:

"My top three RAW highlights of 2007 are:

1. Curing my allergies to fresh fruits! Can you imagine!!! My body had become so toxic over the years on a SAD diet that I developed an allergy to fresh fruit. I had to live without fresh fruits for 10 years!!!! Get this...I could eat them if they were cooked -- Phewy, no good!

2. Curing my allergies to nuts! Yep, you betcha..couldn't eat those either. One beautiful hazelnut would have me seeing black dots in my vision, closed up throat, and down for the count. Couldn't even attempt a nibble! Get this...I could eat SAD peanut butter, of course! Phewy, no good!

3. Hearing David Wolfe present a lecture at my school, The Institute of Integrative Nutrition (New York City), in November. Having my picture taken with him and hanging out with him at his raw chocolate charity event all evening. NEED I SAY MORE????!!!!! It was the BEST DAY EVER!

Happy New You (and Mr. Monarch)! Happy New Me! Happy New Year!!
With gratitude,
Kristy"

Thanks for sharing Kristy – and thanks to all the rest of you too who sent in your Raw Reflections – we’ve put up a selection of entries on the RawReform Prize Giveaway page HERE, so you can check that out too, for more inspiration ;)
This month – win a free copy of ‘Raw Success’ on e-book – yes, as part of his green-ing mission, Mr Monarch has now made his latest book – ‘Raw Success’ available as an e-book, reducing the amount of paper needed to make printed copies…you can see the new e-book HERE. You can also be in with a chance of WINNING a free copy, by emailing in your answer to the following question:

If you could speak to any of the Raw Food Pioneers of by-gone days and ask them a single question, whom would you connect to and what would you ask them?

Examples of pioneers who have passed to the other side include:
Dr. Norman Walker, Arnold Ehret, Bernard Jensen, Paul Bragg, Dr. Ann Wigmore, Herbert Shelton, St Louis Estes and Hilton Hotema...
Send your answers in to angela@rawreform.com and the winner shall be selected at random and with much joy in February ;)

Enjoy :)

One love,
Angela. xxx

Onwards, with Gratitude...

Ooooo, here we go then…out with the old, in with the new…I hope you’ve had a great year so far and that the closing moments of 2007 find you in loving company, with joyful thoughts and a blissful vision for our next…13 moons :)
We’d still love to hear your raw reflections from 2007 if you’d care to share :) The current RawReform Giveaway prize is a pair of our uber-popular exercise toy – POI – and to be in with a chance of winning, just email in YOUR answer to the following question:

‘What have been your top THREE raw food highlights of 2007?’

…what in the world of raw food has inspired or uplifted you this year? What stands out in your memory? Who did you love sharing recipes with? What helped you to stay motivated? Which recipe made a difference in your enjoyment? Send your answers in to angela@rawreform.com. We look forward to reading and sharing your responses :) The winner will be picked at random and with joy in a few days… :)

on December the 29th I had:

2 cups water
3 cups watermelon/orange juice
big chunk of watermelon
big handful of cherries
2.5 cups green smoothie: mango/banana/red dandelion/romaine/tatsoi swirled with goji berries and incan berries
3 cups water
1 pint tatsoi/fennel/cucumber/bok choi/red dandelion/radish/red pepper/random greens/mizuna/carrot/apple juice
little bowl of soaked dried prunes blended with hemp seeds
3 cups water

Are you looking for a yummy raw place to hang out next year? Here’s a little site that you might find useful: http://www.rawcommunities.com. This has a list of – you guessed it – raw communities, worldwide…PLUS, remember to check out the Raw Permaculture Course in Hawaii in February if that appeals to you: www.livingmandala.com aaaaaaaaaaaand – guess what? There’s ANOTHER Permaculture Design Course coming up soon at another raw-friendly place: Punta Mona Community in Costa Rica. Their course runs from Jan 28th – Feb 10th at their eco-community on the east coast. I didn’t actually tread on Punta Mona ground when I was in Costa Rica this time last year – came VERY close though and I’ve been in contact with some of the lovely people there, who grow muchos amazing greens and rare plants…it’s an incredible community by all accounts – check it out at www.puntamona.org for more info :)

on December the 30th I had:

3 cups water
slice of watermelon
1 pint tatsoi/fennel/cucumber/bok choi/red dandelion/radish/red pepper/random greens/mizuna/carrot/apple juice
big handful of cherries
1 cup water
½ an avo mashed with 2 tbsp raw pesto, mixed with diced tomatoes, alfalfa sprouts and a pinch of Himalayan salt, served with romaine leaves and flax crackers
1 quart water
1 pint green lettuce/fennel/cucumber/mizuna/ginger/apple/celery juice
little bowl of soaked dried apricots blended with hemp seed, swirled with slices of fresh banana and cherries
2 cups water

Tomorrow – January the 1st 2008 – the RawReform website is 4 years old. WOW :) Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to yoooooouuuuuuuu…what an extraordinary four years it has been…if you’ve ever wondered how the site started, here’s a little insight from a piece I wrote recently:

“British health magazine Zest wanted to run a piece on my story for their January 2004 ‘new year, new you’ edition. I was thrilled. My partner at that time was an extremely talented web designer and began to suggest we put up a website about my transformation too, to share this message. I laughed at first. At that point, the internet did not play much of a role in my life, other than reading about raw foods and emailing friends. I had certainly never considered having my own website. The more we talked about it though, the more I came to like the idea. It was in Greece in the summer of 2003 that the name ‘RawReform’ was given to me, as I wandered the sandy beaches, pondering which name would suit this venture. I began writing out the content for the website that autumn, which was a hugely cathartic experience for me. It helped me so much to see clearly the patterns I had lived out with food. I was also terrified. I had never spoken honestly with many of the people in my life and now I was about to bare my soul to the world. How would my family and old school friends react when they read my truth?
It took my partner just a few days to put the first website together. Then on January the 1st, 2004, the day my article was published in Zest magazine, RawReform.com went live…I was thrilled…and terrified ;) In the end, the reactions of my family and friends were mainly filled with love, appreciation and kindness. Mostly, people said they felt sad to read how miserable I had really been all that time, underneath the façade. Some seemed surprised that I was sharing so much personal information with the world. Others were silent. The whole experience left me with a huge sense of relief and fulfillment. I had shared my truth with the world and it did not seem to have back-lashed on me ;) I felt encouraged and supported to go on sharing my truth. People seemed to respond with great enthusiasm to my before/after pictures. After all, as the saying goes ‘a picture speaks a thousand words’ and many people seemed to draw inspiration from my photographs.
The journey of RawReform has continued to expand exponentially since those simple beginnings…and I had no idea at that point of what would unfold over the coming years via this website, my little portal to the world… ;)”

…and who knows what 2008 will hold for all of our ext-RAW-dinary adventures…I wish you yummy goal setting and even more delicious fulfillment of your deepest desires in the coming months… :)
Thanks for all your messages, comments and support this year – it is all greatly appreciated…

One love,
Angela (and Mr Monarch ;). xxx

Sidestepping the 'Shopocalypse' ;)

Ooooo, the latest RawReform Newsletter just went out and the Prize Giveaway for this month is a pair of our beautiful poi :) Here’s the info:
Now YOU can simultaneously exercise, play, tone your upper body, impress the kids, improve coordination and much more… ;)
So, as the year draws to a close, many of us use this period as a time of reflection and celebration of what was shared in the last 12 months…I know personally it’s been an amazing journey – from a Juice Feast in Costa Rica to an intensive speaking tour of the US, announcing my engagement to Mr Monarch in England, launching the RawReform Store, hanging out all over Canada speaking at festivals, passing many an hour writing my new book and coming down under here to Australia for a summer of sun, sand and seasonal produce…I feel very blessed…
In the spirit of all things reflective and delectable, we’d love to invite you to send in YOUR 2007 RAW REFLECTIONS…what in the world of raw food has inspired or uplifted you this year? What stands out in your memory? Who did you love sharing recipes with? What helped you to stay motivated? Which recipe made a difference in your enjoyment? We wanna hear YOUR raw highlights. So, please send your answer to the following question to angela@rawreform.com:

‘What have been your top THREE raw food highlights of 2007?’

We certainly look forward to reading and sharing your responses to that :) The winner will be picked at random and with joy in January :)
(p.s. if you’re not yet signed up for the RawReform Newsletter and would like to get it, you can subscribe HERE.)

on December the 15th I had:

1 quart water
2 cups orange/sugar cane juice
1 pint cucumber/celery/mizuna/all-kinds-of-greens/carrot/apple/ginger juice
piece of Monarch raw pizza with handful of delicious homegrown sunflower greens
3 cups water
bowl of papaya flesh with lime juice
1 cup cucumber/celery/mizuna/all-kinds-of-greens/carrot/apple/ginger juice
a cacophony of cracao at a raw chocolate party – chocolate with lemon myrtle, rose, cashews, chocolate mousses, chocolate drinks… (Result=feeling drunk and now hangover today. Eeek ;)
1.5 quarts water

I’m EXCITED…tomorrow (Tuesday for me) I’m starting a 7-Day Psyllium-Bentonite Cleanse…eeeeeeeek :) Been a looooooong time since I did one of these – 4 years or more I think…I did one with the uber-fabulous Dao and Sho of Karuna Detox Retreats in Devon, England. It was a bit different to the one I’m going to do now though...back then we just used carrot juice for the whole week and quite amazingly to me now, at that point I’d never yet done ANY colon cleansing…it was a tremendous experience for me and I’m excited to play again now. This time round I’m going to be ‘administering’ the whole thing myself (with the support of the Monarch of course ;) and using mainly green veggie juice. I’m basically going to be doing a modified version of Bernard Jensen’s cleanse from his book ‘Dr. Jensen’s Guide To Better Bowel Care’…I’ll be drinking veggie juices instead of taking the supplements he recommends…I have been wanting to do this for MONTHS now and it kept clashing with my schedule…I am SO excited that tomorrow is finally kick-off day… ;) Let’s see how it unfolds…

on December the 16th I had:

2 cups watermelon/pineapple juice
little bowl of banana/mango ice cream
slice of watermelon
3 cups mizuna/kale/cabbage/cucumber/zucchini/carrot/apple/ginger juice
1 avo mushed with finely sliced garlic, diced tomatoes, Himalayan salt and Alive Hummus, served in romaine wraps
3 cups water
2 cups mizuna/kale/cabbage/cucumber/zucchini/carrot/apple/ginger juice
2.5 cups green smoothie: mango/banana/romaine/mizuna/parsley/sunflower greens
2 cups water

There seem to be SO many wonderful films around at the moment that people are recommending to me…wow…how blessed we are…today I’d love to mention ‘What Would Jesus Buy’ for example – which is Morgan Spurlock’s latest project (the ‘SuperSize Me’ man). I haven’t had the joy to see this yet myself – I would definitely go and see it if it was playing here however…
This film seems to be a humorous, yet inspiring exposé of the commercialism that drives the Holiday Season…now, apparently no movie companies would back Spurlock up on this project because they wouldn’t want to lose their ties with the big corporations…ho-hummmmmm…so, Spurlock’s piece is relying mainly on word-of-mouth for advertising…it follows an outlandish ‘preacher’ called Reverend Billy and his ‘Stop Shopping Gospel Choir’ who travel around, passionately sharing their views on consumerism at malls and shopping centres…their aim is to ‘Stop the ‘SHOPOCALYPSE’ which is defined thusly:

‘Sho•po•ca•lypse [shah PAW kuh lips] n.
The end of mankind from consumerism, over-consumption
and the fires of eternal debt!’

Sounds intriguing…you can see the trailer and show-times here: http://wwjbmovie.com…hope some of you get to see the whole documentary soon too – lemme know how it is if you do ;)

One love,
Angela. xxx

Poi, Passion and Publicity... ;)

OOoooooo, seems like lots of you have been getting inspired about POI dancing – YAY :) That’s great, I’m happy to see that…maybe at next year’s Raw Spirit Fest we can have a big poi dancing session all together ;) Some questions abt poi have been coming in too…
1. Do we have different colours of poi available in the RawReform Store, other than red?
YES, we do – we currently have 5 colours available: black with white, blue with light blue, red with white (shown here), pink with white OR lime green with yellow. If you would like a specific colour, you can leave a note as you order, stating the colour you’d like ;)
2. Can you dance with fire poi?
Yes, I can. In fact, I learnt to poi dance with fire poi. I rarely do it though. I also got many bruises from the fire poi while I was learning, as they are MUCH bigger and heavier than the soft practice poi we sell. I definitely recommend starting out with the practice poi and later moving to fire spinning with GREAT caution, if that interests you ;).

on October the 7th I had:

1 quart water
3 delectable little yellow dragon fruit
1 pint celery/cucumber/mizuna/tatsoi/spinach/cabbage/apple/ginger/all-kinds-of-greens juice
2 cups water
bowl of avo mushed with alive hummus, sprouts, chopped tomatoes and Celtic sea salt, served with flax crackers.
3 cups water
2 mangoes
2 cups water
1 pint celery/cucumber/mizuna/tatsoi /spinach/cabbage/apple/ginger/all-kinds-of-greens juice
3 cups water

NEWSFLASH: There is still space available in the ‘Green Retreat’ house in Ojai, California. This is a fabulous opportunity to share space with loving, open, raw-food-friendly peoples in a beautiful setting…There’s lots more info HERE – and please note, there’s no requirement to be 100% raw to join the fun – just mindful of what you’re feeding your body and mind ;) Please also feel free to pass the info on to anyone else you think may enjoy to know abt this opportunity… ;)

On October the 8th I had:

1 quart water
1 pint celery/cucumber/mizuna/tatsoi/spinach/cabbage/apple/ginger/all-kinds-of-greens juice
2 cups water
handful of cherries
chunk of jackfruit
2 cups celery/cucumber/mizuna/tatsoi/spinach/cabbage/apple/ginger/all-kinds-of-greens juice
3 cups water
1 egg fruit
2 cups water
1.5 cups celery/cucumber/mizuna/tatsoi/spinach/cabbage/apple/ginger/all-kinds-of-greens juice
2 small mangoes
little bowl of avocado mushed with tandoori spice hummus, diced tomatoes and Celtic Sea Salt, with cucumber sticks and ‘bitter gourd’ salad (VERY bitter ;)
3 cups water

Wooooow, looks like maybe the ‘mainstream’ media in the UK at least is catching on to sharing some more raw foodie info…a few days ago the Guardian published a story titled ‘Is Cooked Food Dangerous?’…To find out what their conclusion was, see the piece in full here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,2221384,00.html

All blessings,
Angela. xxx

ACTIVATE... :)

Yeeeeeeee-HAH :) Warning: excited outburst follows…
I am VERY excited to announce that we now have POI for sale on the RawReform website. Have you ever tried poi dancing? I think it’s a FANTASTIC form of exercising…I’ve been learning/practicing for about 4-5 years…I used to teach myself out in the snow at night in Iceland when I was first learning ;) I LOVE it…I find it so beautiful and graceful…it’s also great for toning the body (especially upper body), improving coordination, meditating, inspiring kids to be more active and much more… ;) The poi we’ve just started to sell are soft, GREAT for beginners and a bargain at $15 a set – an ideal ‘stocking-stuffer’– see HERE.
I filmed a quick 3 minute YouTube video demo of me poi dancing on the beach yesterday, so you can see what it’s all about if you’re not familiar – see here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRpdEsBYVoU

If you’re after a bit more in-depth instruction than that, we also have a FANTASTIC full-length instructional DVD from super-fit raw food wonder-girl Tonya Kay, called ‘How to Spin Poi’…see HERE...

on December the 3rd I had:

7.30am to 11.30am 1.2 quarts water
12pm 1.2 quarts watermelon/orange juice
1.30pm 3 cups cucumber/carrot/tatsoi/parsley/apple/wild celery/all-kinds-of-greens juice
3pm 2 slices of Mr Monarch’s fabulous raw pizza – base of ground buckwheat and coconut flour, topping of avo mushed with curried hummus and chopped tomatoes, dusted with a layer of coconut flour. Three little cacao/dried apricot/coconut flour balls.
4.30pm 3 cups water
5.30pm 1lb cherries
6.30pm 2 cups water
7.30pm 2.5 cups green smoothie: mango/banana/sultanas/romaine/all-kinds-of-random-greens blended, then swirled with goji berries – yummmmmm ;)
9.30pm 2 cups water
10.30pm 2 cups water

Ooooo la la…what’s the timeline all about then…??? ;) Well, one of you stunning cherubs wrote in to request an approximate Stokes feeding timeline…so, the last couple of days have been closely monitored and the results are…thus…hope that helps make some more sense of it all…I tend to just have water the first hours of the day, then light stuff to ‘break into’ the day, like fruit/juice etc, then my heaviest meal in the middle of the day, then more fruits/juices/green smoothies later, wrapping up ingestion of solids around 7.30 – water again after that…

on December the 4th I had:

7am to 11am 1.2 quarts water
11am 2 cups cucumber/spinach/parsley/pineapple juice
11.45am 1 juuuuuuiiiiiicy mango
12.15pm 2 cups water
12.45pm slice of Mr Monarch’s exquisite pizza: base of ground buckwheat and coconut flour, topping of avo mushed with curried hummus and chopped tomatoes, dusted with a layer of coconut flour. ½ a brazil nut/carob raw bar
2.30pm 2 cups water
4pm big slice of lush watermelon
5pm handful of yummmmy flowers out on my foraging run
6pm 3 cups cucumber/romaine/sprouts/all-kinds-of-greens/carrot/apple juice
7.30pm 3 cups green smoothie: mango/banana/sultana/romaine/all-kinds-of-greens, swirled with goji berries
9pm 2 cups water
11pm 1 cup water

Two little reminders for you:

1. Although it is somehow already a few days into December, there is still time to enter the current RawReform prize giveaway, to receive three tubs of delicious Ulimanamana raw chocolate balls – yummmmm ;) To be in with a chance of winning, all that is required of your dear self is to send in your answer to the following Q:

What is YOUR favourite recipe containing raw chocolate (cacao)?

Send your answer to angela@rawreform.com and the winner will be picked at random and announced very soon. Enjoy :)

2. Myself and Mr Monarch shall be presenting presently in Brisbane…next Saturday to be precise, December the 8th, commencing at 1pm at Ahimsa House…full details on the RawReform events calendar HERE…we do hope to enjoy the pleasure of your company should you happen to be in the area…
(FYI, we are also delighted to announce that events are in the works for Byron Bay on January the 12th, Adelaide on January the 15th and Perth on January the 23rd – more details to follow... ;)

One love,
Angela. xxx

Processed Food Feels So Wrong...

In the latest thrilling installment from 'The Kitchen's Alive with Living Enzymes', Maria von Chia meets some delightful young ladies for a tea party, during which they discover the joy of raw foods...

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=i87l4pJ0Xcc

Here are the lyrics:

PROCESSED FOOD FEELS SO WRONG...

Processed food feels so wrong, just gimme
Rays, absorbed straight from the sun, for
Me, someone who eats raw food, moving
Far away from junk food gunge
So, I'm gonna just eat raw...
Lara Bars are good for snacks
Tea can be made in the sun...
Just keep away from toxic, cooked and processed…

…food feels so wrong, just gimme
Rays, absorbed straight from the sun, for
Me, someone who eats raw food, moving
Far away from junk food gunge
So, I'm gonna just eat raw...
Lara Bars are good for snacks
Tea can be made in the sun...
I'll just keep on eating RAWWWWWWWWWWWW :)


On September the 28th I had:

1 litre water
1 delicious persimmon
1.2 litres celery/cucumber/apple/baby greens juice
bowl of avo mashed with spirulina, lemon juice and Himalayan salt
500ml water
1 small papaya
300ml sesame seed milk sweetened with dates
1 apple
700ml celeriac/cucumber/apple/romaine juice
1 nori sheet and abt 1tbsp of sunflower seeds
500ml water
½ galia melon
handful of dried pineapple
500ml water

Mmmm, it’s been fun to edge back into the world of solids these past couple of days…today I’ve been eating small amounts, often and it feels really good to me…might continue this way for the next days…tomorrow I am movin’ on again…to Vancouver this time…
I’ve had a wonderful stay here in Alberta…the raw family I’ve been staying with are simply delightful – as I’m sure you can tell from the video above, with the two youngest members ;) I’ve been getting a LOT of kiddie time here and it’s been a real blessing…as I’ve mentioned elsewhere, I avoided all contact with children for many years, as an obese person, due to fear of what they might say about my weight…it’s been a steep learning curve for me in recent years, therefore, starting to interact with younger humans…I enjoy it more and more though – we’ve been dancing with poi, playing basketball, hanging on monkey bars, making cookies and more…it’s been a very active week – well, for some of us at least…the mum of the family actually fell while we were out hiking a few days back and broke her shoulder…eeeeeeeeeek…that was a bit intense and she has been resting ever since, drinking mainly juice and sesame seed milk – for nutrients (esp. calcium) and quick healing…please do send her some loving healing vibes for speedy recovery ;)

Ok, so…adios Alberta…Vancouver, here I come…Matt and I speak at the Taste Of Health Expo this Sunday…hope to see you there ;)

One love,
Angela. xxx