Forget it. I’m changing everything.
Now I’m focusing my attention on a career change into programming.
First step: Learn Ruby.
I’ve already started intensely learning my new craft with the help of my awesome brother-in-law programmer. With his help, I’ll be sure to transition nicely.
For now, this is the direction I’m going in.
As for the original purpose of this blog… Eh, we’ll see. I might still pursue my wild edible series… Maybe.
Later.
As I’ve been extremely busy with my wild edible courses and other life things, I think I’ll update on a weekly basis only regarding my personal diet. I typically update on a daily basis, but it just takes up too much of my time as I like to post photos and recipes. I’m considering condensing this information and maybe just listing it more simply, but we’ll see how it goes.
Without even noticing or trying, I just realized yesterday that I’ve actually been 100% raw vegan this week. Well, actually, I lied. I did have some gluten free toast on 2 days. So … 99% raw vegan? 
I am very surprised that this time around my healthy diet is a total breeze. I am having zero issues adjusting. I’m not even craving “bad food”. I think this time around I have a genuine appreciation for the food I’m consuming and I also intensely understand and am able to connect to my food personally. I’m growing my own sprouts, I’m foraging wild edibles — I am providing for myself and it makes it easier somehow. I value my food more and it definitely makes a difference.
So, a quick recap/summary of what I’ve had this week. I’ve been pretty bad at keeping track and I’ve been all over the place with studies, life, finding a new apt, etc. So I’ll just be recording from memory here. This time around I wanted my diet to feel more natural, not so calculated and constricting. Does that make sense? Before, when I planned everything, it seemed more stressful. I felt like I HAD to eat this pre-planned meal or else I failed and felt bad. This time around I just go with it and make whatever I have on hand. This way works much better for me now that I am comfortable with the diet and know what I’m doing. OK, so, RECAP:
I noticed that as the days passed by … the less food I consumed. I think I jam packed my body with so much nutrition and awesomeness that now it’s catching up and detoxing hardcore. I experienced amazing energy the first part of the week, but now on Friday I am going through the tired detox phase … I think my body is now trying to use the awesomeness I got throughout the week and has started working hardcore on the cleansing phase. I just want to nap and let my body do it’s thang.
If you noticed Friday’s list … no solid foods most of the day. I felt really tired and sleepy all day today and felt like my body wanted a rest from solid foods. I didn’t really experience any hunger the first half or so of the day, so I let my body fast and just drank purified water and coconut water most of the day. Nearing 6pm I started to feel hungry so I made myself some awesome tacos. Simple, yet totally satisfying. Easily one of my favorite meals in the world. Now that it’s night time (around 9:40 pm), I have a lot of energy!!! WEEEEE!!!
It’s been a fantastic week. I am very pleased. I need a little more variety in my diet here with greens and such, but I made the mistake of making one trip to the grocery store and buying an insane amount of food, so I was just stuck with what I originally purchased. I think I’ll just do several little trips to the store throughout the week instead that way I can buy what I’m currently in the mood for and I’ll have more variety. I’m also going to start foraging for wild edibles. Hopefully I’ll be moving to downtown soon, walking distance from Washington Park and fairly close to Forest Park. It’s going to be awesome.
Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!!! Next week I’ll try to post actual recipes. This week was just too crazy.
A lot of amazing ideas have been coming to me this morning as I sit and drink my chamomile and rose petal tea. I think this website will see a lot of new content soon.
These are the wonderful ideas flying around in my head. They’ll eventually make it down on paper. Or, well, onto the internets. Where to start? Hmmmm…. Not sure, I just know that I am super excited to start all of these things and to finally jot them all down and keep a record of everything.
I really think I was born to make manuals and how-to’s. I genuinely love it and I have made so many on my own time as well as in my career. I think every single job I’ve held I’ve ended up making at LEAST one extremely detailed how-to manual on either specific job descriptions or procedures I’ve personally established at the company. Big shot, I know. I just love to teach/train/make manuals.
LET THE TEACHING BEGIN.
I’ve decided to begin a very healthy diet again. This time around I don’t think I’ll be 100% raw vegan like I was last year, but still moderately high raw.
I think for the first few days I’ll be primarily raw vegan so I can push through the detox phase. I am very familiar with the process this time around so I think it’ll be a breeze (well, compared to the last few times)!
This morning I made myself a simple and delicious green smoothie.
This is the first time I’ve added coconut water in a green smoothie. It’s absolutely delicious! I bought a 12 pack of it yesterday. It’s my recent addiction for sure. I can’t have enough. The recipe above made about 1/2 gallon of green smoothie, so this very was pretty much my breakfast and lunch. For snacks in between I had a Spirulina & Cashew Raw Revolution Bar.
You know, it’s incredible to me that the body knows exactly what to do when given what it needs. My diet hasn’t been horrible, but it hasn’t been amazing, either. This is the first time I’ve had a green smoothie in quite a while, so I definitely wasn’t consuming the amount of greens I should be. After consuming maybe just a quarter of my 1/2 gallon smoothie, I started experiencing runny nose and a lot of sneezing! The detox started quickly indeed. I’m fine now, but man it hit me hard. I LOVE IT THIS TIME AROUND. Why? Because this time I know the process. I know what it means and it makes me happy that my body is detoxing and getting rid of the crap inside (to put it bluntly).
As for “dinner” I had a delicious Balsamic Kale Salad and Lemon Quinoa dish from Whole Foods. Yeah, I was lazy … and I’m low on cash this week after paying bills. So I figured $3.12 for a salad from Whole Foods wasn’t a bad deal. Photo of my meal down below.
Balsamic Kale Salad Ingredients: kale, almonds, walnuts, parsley, dried cranberries, red onion, balsamic vinegar, nutritional yeast, vegan worcestershire, garlic, rosemary, tamari, maple syrup, brown stone ground mustard, xanthan gum.
Lemon Quinoa Ingredients: quinoa, red peppers, currants, scallion, lemon juice, cilantro, coriander, cumin, paprika, salt, pepper.
Besides the change to my diet, I’ve also decided to make some healthier changes in other aspects of my life. I am now sprouting! I currently have 5 mason jars filled with: snap peas, radish, alfalfa, broccoli, and sunflower seeds. My sprout containers pictured below. I can’t wait for these babies to sprout. This is my first actual try at sprouting. I also now use shampoo made from organic lovely things with no horrible chemicals in it, upgraded my bath soap to some fancy artisan soap (pictured below), got a dry brush, laundry detergent, dishwasher soap, etc etc etc … Everything will be updated, organic, and natural.
I’m also about to start taking better care of my colon by doing a good cleaning. Enema time!!! The last time I did an enema I couldn’t deny the transformation. It was an incredible experience. Before I do this, though, I have to make sure to get good quality probiotic to take afterwards to replenish the good bacteria in the colon. Can’t do it unprepared.
So, all in all … big health conscience changes in my life. Will also be upgrading to a better located apartment and getting a bike. So, better location and more exercise for me!!! Positive changes all around. I haven’t felt this good in a long, long time. About time I take care of myself and really get in tune with everything. Finally balancing everything out.
Life is so good. As long as I have health, love, and positivity … what else could I ask for? Also, to add the cherry on top of my (healthy) sundae here … I found out today that my sister and brother-in-law are having a baby GIRL. What amazing news. Keep the awesome stuff coming, life. BRING IT.
It has been 3 months since my last update.
I remember that post precisely. It was the turning point in my depression. I allowed myself to fall into depression after the big break up. I really let myself have it for a couple of months. I secluded myself from everyone and just kept to myself so I could sort everything out in my mind. Then came a night when everything made sense and I decided to stop being depressed and start being AWESOME. Barney style. Well, maybe not so pervy. Just awesome.
So, where am I 3 months later? Have I made any progress on the New Year Resolutions that I had set out for myself? Well… let’s see.
Other than that, I have not done more. I am currently looking into starting up running. I’ve always wanted to become a runner and, well, run consistently.I think so far I’ve made intense progress. Just a few months ago I thought my life had ended and there was nothing to look forward to. Now I have more than enough goals to keep me extremely busy. Sometimes I wonder if I have too many goals! But nonsense. Life is good and no matter what happens, life goes on.
Can’t wait to see where I’ll be in another 3 months. My focus is currently on my wild edible escapades, raw food and spreading my positivity to others. I think I’ll start documenting this. Especially my transition back into raw food. Transitions are always fun and people seem to very much enjoy the photo and recipes I post.
Deep cleanse coming … stay tuned.
So I had a marvelous idea late last night as I drifted off to sleep.
Maybe not at that exact moment, seeing as I was just drifting off to sleep for the night… but I need to wake up in life. How many of us are sleep walking through life? I’ve been quietly observing myself the past few weeks and I have found that my mind has constantly been buzzing with the same thoughts: I’m so bored. I don’t have enough friends anymore. She’s gone and now I don’t have anyone. There’s nothing to do. I don’t know how to move on from this.
I’m the only one keeping myself from moving on. I’m not being myself right now. I’m allowing myself to stagnate. So I’m bouncing back. I’m reminding myself of who I am. I’ll start with the things that I know for sure about myself and go from there. What do I know for sure? Well, I know that I love learning new things. I like helping people. I like doing things that make me feel good mentally, physically and soulfully. So, let’s start there.
So those are my goals for the coming months. Early 2012 New Year resolutions. Decided to keep a blog as it keeps me accountable. It’s easy to give up if it seems like no one is paying attention. I know from experience this truly helps. My 30 day raw food experiment was a breeze because I had this website. This is next.
What are your goals for the new year?
<3 lucycou!
Why hello there.
Very, very long time no see. I know this has been incredibly sporadic. I think I’m ready to get back to this website and bring it back to it’s original purpose – raw food, health and love.
At least, that’s what I think the original purpose of this website was for. 
Doesn’t matter! I will be moving out this weekend. Finally getting my own place with only one other roommate. Which means… drum roll…. I FINALLY HAVE MY OWN KITCHEN AND SPACE TO MAKE RAW FOOD. You have no idea how excited I am about this. It’s going to be awesome.
I really, truly miss having my own kitchen space. I work a really early shift and am up and about by 3:45 AM. Right now I live with 3 other people, one of which is currently living in the living room… so it’d be pretty rude to get up so early and use the Vitamix to make green smoothies… You know what I mean?
But Friday is officially move out day and I will finally have my space again. Insert happy sigh here…
Look forward to raw food, health and love… bringing back the original purpose of this website.
Smile!
<3 lucycou!
ps. How am I doing since the break up? I am holding up surprisingly well. It’s still a tinge sad, but I am mostly feeling positive about it. I still support her. I will always love her. Part of me thinks that in the end, it’ll work out again between us and we’ll both be better people. If not, we’ll still be better people in the end. Works out no matter what.
Wow.
I cannot believe that the last time I updated this blog was in Janurary. It has been almost 9 months. That is just ridiculous.
Well, there is definitely a lot to catch up on. I think this website is about to see a lot of changes and new material. I have no idea what direction it’s going to take off in… and honestly it doesn’t really matter. I just need an oulet for everything that has recently happened.
Let’s start.
It’s been about a month now since Katrina and I broke up. WHAT?!?!? Yes, I know. We had a lovely 5 year relationship/engagement, but now it is over. We’re actually still living together, which makes things incredibly difficult, but we’re managing it. We will figure it out soon.
To make a super long, complicated story short… We’re too fundamentally different. We had a fantastic relationship and we have both learned and evovled so much together, but we mutually agreed that we could no longer continue being together without making each other unhappy.
However, this doesn’t change the fact that it is extremely difficult to get over. I won’t lie. I am completely and utterly heartbroken. It’s been about a month and I’ve already lost a significant amount of weight. Not sure if that’s a good thing or not… I sure am looking good though! (Ladies… gentlemen… both are welcome…)
The hardest part about all of this is that we both know that we still love each other. We’re just too different and we’ve realized that we just can’t make it work without us both compromising too much of ourselves. It’s just fact now.
So going forward… I think this blog will now be about finding myself again and other awesome junk like that. I’m planning on doing a LOT more interesting things in the days to come. I want to post as much experience on this thing as I can and share awesome things with as many people as I can in hopes that I can make others’ lives interesting as well.
LET’S ALL GET OUT OF THIS FUNK!
This concludes my first update in much too long. More to come.
I dared myself to go outside - RIGHT NOW! - and find something beautiful in this rainy weather.
I received an e-mail today from a stranger. She found my website and found it inspiring, she wanted to thank me. She originally found me by googling “chose/choose to be happy”. She found my post How to Choose To Be Happy. It helped her.
To be honest, I was completely surprised that this person found my website. It has been weeks, months since I really updated it. Somehow I lost my way, I forgot all about it during my move to Portland. It’s a sad thing.
This stranger, among other things, wanted some advice on finding a purpose. It made me think. Really think. I’ve been thinking a lot about purpose the last few weeks. Katrina, my fiance, finally decided what she wanted to do. Anyone who knows Katrina knows that she absolutely LOVES babies. Anything related to babies. Pregnancy, birth, babies, toddlers, parenting – anything! She loves it all. Well, she finally decided that she wanted to start taking the important steps towards becoming a certified doula. I was ecstatic. Sure, we’d have to figure it out financially… but that is not a problem. It’s completely doable.
I’ve been getting really excited for her. We’ve been thinking about all of the extra things we can start doing to make it into a profitable business. Doula classes, pregnancy yoga classes, couple classes, photography/video during the birthing process, birthing tub rentals – so many different things we could offer! Then it really got me thinking… I don’t need to find my purpose. All this time, I’ve had one. It was just hard to pinpoint.
I love helping people. I truly, genuinely LOVE to help people. I love seeing other people get excited about THEIR passion. I love helping them, in any way I possibly can, to get to where they need to go. This entire time I’ve been looking for a “standard” purpose. Woodcarving. Flying airplanes. Reading. Writing. Medicine. Raw food. Sure, all of these are great, all of these interest me deeply… but they’re not my PASSION. There’s a difference. A passion is something that I will go completely out of my way to do. Something that I am ALWAYS in the mood for. For me, that’s helping people in a big way.
If a friend or family member ask me for money – BAM! It’s there. No questions asked. I keep a reserve for this purpose. Even if I have to deprive myself of a few things, I ALWAYS have a savings account just in case. Anyone asks for help? I will always say yes. I am always available. I see someone on the street who needs help? BAM! I’m there. How can I help you? How can I assist you?
These are the things that make me happy. I am genuinely excited to share with people what I know. I love teaching people. I’m a very happy and positive person and I always get e-mails and people who just come up to me to ask how I do it. How do I manage to be so happy most of the time? I am always willing to tell people, to share what I know. I want others to be happy too.
So I think I should keep this website going. I still have no clue where it’s going, if anywhere, but I figure that I should keep it updated with things that mean a lot to me. I’ve gotten several e-mails during the course of keeping this website updated from several wonderful people thanking me for sharing what I know. I don’t want to let these people down. I don’t want them to think I just gave up on it. Who knows if they’re even still keeping up with my posts. It doesn’t matter. I just need to share and keep it out there. Someone will always benefit from it.
Look forward to more posts. Especially healthy posts. I need to get back on tract. I need to keep inspiring others to reach their goals.
Much love to everyone.
Lucy
Photo by Katrina
I’m currently sitting in bed wondering how long it’s going to take me until I get this healthy thing right.
It’s been a long road. I’ve gone from 100% cooked food to 100% raw vegan. I’ve tried everything in between and in all different combinations. I’ve done all of this within the last 3 years.
Today I ate an entire box of Trader Joe’s Ice Cream Bon Bons. They were absolutely delicious. It’s been about 2 hours since I ate them (oh, and I followed it with an ice cream sandwich) and my body is feeling it now. I just feel slow. Tired. I have a slight headache.
I’m glad I started this very long journey 3 years ago. I’ve learned a lot. I’ve felt the alienation that comes from being completely different from everyone else (in several ways). Trust me, living in Texas and being a 100% raw vegan is TOUGH. Texas was extra hard, but it’s pretty tough no matter where you live. Raw veganism, even just living a healthier lifestyle, is not the norm. At least in my experience.
I’ve been thinking a lot about this recently. Wondering exactly why it has to be so difficult. I’ve changed my complete mindset on the matter several times. I’ve went from “Ohh… I feel so terribly sad, empty even, that I can’t have this or that food anymore to comfort me,” to “I don’t need this or that food. I understand why it’s not the best option for me. I sincerely do not want to put it into my body.”
Then fast forward a two or three days of being excellent and I’m downing a bacon cheeseburger from Burgerville down the street. What happened there? How did I go from being completely determined and inspired to be healthy to not caring at all? How am I able to so easily go back and forth and justify both actions? So very easily see the logic and rightness behind two completely different actions?
I don’t believe in right and wrong. I believe in consequences. I do the right thing most of the time because I enjoy the after affects. I feel good when I do good. I don’t do bad things because I don’t want the consequences. I don’t have to worry and stress about getting caught by the police. I don’t have to worry about covering up my lies to get away with certain things. I just don’t find it rewarding.
So if I live my life by this certain code, why in the world do I constantly slip from my healthy regimen? I benefit in EVERY SINGLE WAY when I’m living a healthy lifestyle.
1. I always feel fantastic after a good work out. Every single time. I have never gone on a walk, run or workout session without feeling amazing afterward. Even if I end up feeling a little naseous. It is ALWAYS worth it.
2. Eating raw vegan food always feels good. Every bite is thoroughly enjoyed and eaten without any guilt. I never have to worry if my food is cooked thoroughly enough or not. I never have to worry about feeling sleepy, tired or nasty after eating healthy. It’s just never an issue. I always feel light and happy.
3. I get to enjoy the every day benefits of being healthy. You know those little aches and pains that you assume are normal? The slight congestion in the morning that you think doesn’t really bother you? The almost unnoticeable eye boogers and bad breath upon waking? If you’re female, any menstrual pains at all? All of these things aren’t “normal”. They don’t exist when your body is working the way it’s supposed to. These are only a few benefits.
So why is it so hard? Good habits are formed by positive reinforcement, right? It’s the way we train dogs or any other animal. Do something good and you’re rewarded with something positive. It happens every single time anyone attempts to be healthy. We always get rewarded. Why do we ignore this? Are we the only species in the world that cannot be trained? I feel like a moron that just can’t GET IT. I keep messing up over and over again. I used to have a dog that I felt like I could just not train no matter what. I tried everything. I eventually just concluded that the dog was stupid and untrainable. Who’s untrainable now?
Wild, undomesticated animals don’t get diseases. They don’t die from these totally preventable diseases. Humans do. When have you seen fat animals in the wild? Even fat human beings who don’t live typical, modern lifestyles? They’re all healthy. Vibrant. Alive.
I can talk about this until I’m blue in the face. I can ramble on and on and list a bunch of statistics and facts. But what’s the point? None of it matters.
What is important for me? What will give meaning to my life? When I sit and think about it, the only thing I can think of is health. I want to be healthy. I don’t want to get cancer or disease down the road. I don’t want to die that way. But I also don’t want to alienate myself and live a lonely life. I moved to Portland, Oregon. There are more people in sync with my values here than ever. Why am I making it so difficult?
When I lived in Texas it was difficult because I had made friends already before I went raw vegan. My mistake was attempting to make those friends understand and accept my new lifestyle. The difference this time around is that I can start creating my new circle of friends exactly the way I want it to be. Instead of people who think BBQ’s are a great way to have fun (and, honestly, there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with that – it just isn’t my idea of a good time), I can begin anew and make friends with people who feel the way I do about life.
I’m much better at staying healthy when I have some way of recording it publicly. I don’t write this down for anyone else. I write it down for me. It’s a way to keep myself accountable. If I write it down, it’s recorded. I can go back and see how many times I’ve messed up. I can visually see what I’ve done wrong. If I don’t keep a record, it’s easy to forget and repeat my mistakes over and over. It’s a sure way to prevent myself from succeeding.
So let’s begin anew. Starting over from page one, yet again. I am in a new city. I am incorporating a new mindset. I’m getting a new place. It is the perfect time to start over and begin creating new, positive habits.
The only thing stopping me is myself. The most important lesson I’ve learned throughout the years is that I am the only person responsible for myself. My significant other is not responsible for me. My parents, siblings or friends aren’t responsible for me. No one is. There is only me.
Our choices define us.
Who am I choosing to be in every moment?
All I have to do is decide. Remember: not deciding is deciding.
Make up your mind and just do it.
Easier said than done, right? It shouldn’t have to be. I genuinely want to disprove this saying. It should never be easier said than done. It should be easy to do every time. Why should it be any other way?
Life is amazing. It’s an incredible thing. We should never have to settle for a mediocre life. I want to make it amazing.
