We Have Taken Control Of This Blog For A Special Announcement!

Why start another blog? Well, like Keely, I found myself wanting to touch on subjects that didn't deal with my raw food lifestyle. Those of you who have been following "Legally Raw" have seen me touch on politics, religion, sex, and other areas of interest.

So check out No! You're Kidding! when you get the chance, and...

Be afraid.... be very afraid....

We now return control of your mind to you, just don't waste it!

I HAVE BEEN SAVED!

No, not that! I'm not running for a political office here in the United States. Besides I'm a Raw Buddhist Lawyer. (Now that should make your head spin!)

I have found the recipe that I've been looking for this past week. I wasn't planning on posting anything for another day or two, but I've got to share this one.

I can be lazy. I'm human! Live with it!

I can't stand making almond milk. Let's be honest here. Soaking the almonds, blending the almonds, and straining the almonds, is nothing more than a major pain in the ass.

Now I'm not so lazy that I'll go buy a box of almond milk. Its not raw. OK, neither will our almonds be raw because of the idiots in our Federal Government who are listening to the lobbyists, who are paid by the people who want to sell the new machines and make money (Gee, is money really the root of all evil?) by killing our food, so they can make more money selling their drugs. (Sounds like we're playing "Kevin Bacon" doesn't it?) Besides, boxed almond milk is too expensive, and usually tastes like crap.

In walks Kate Wood (LOVE YOU KATIE!) with her book, "Eat Smart, Eat Raw". On page 156 you'll find:

Nut Milk

2 Tablespoons almond butter
8 ounces water

Blend for a few minutes. Strain and serve. Add date, banana, or apple concentrate if sweetener is desired.

How much sweeter can making almond milk get. So I say get lazy. There's nothing wrong with saving time. Oh, and go buy the book!

Kara and Murmur too of course. (Yeah, don't worry. The person this last sentence is meant for gets the hidden message. Just keep wondering. I'm not telling!)

How Time Flies!

Has it been five days since my last post? It seems like only five hours! Sorry, but life's been tough, and my heads been spinning from all the work at work.

I know, I know, stop whining, we've all got a lot of work! But its a national past time for Americans, ranking right up there with baseball, football, Britney Spears' private parts, and the drugs we take. Isn't America a wonderful place to live? We can be so high class at times!

The really nice thing about whining is that it takes our mind off of all the more important things in life. No, I'm not back to Britney. I'm talking about your life.

NO, not your life in a "tabloid" way. Sorry, unless you're married to an alien (outer space alien), or have the inside track on where a politician hides their brains these days, your life just isn't interesting enough to make one of the rags (i.e. Fox News).

What I'm talking about is your day to day interactions with yourself. This doesn't include the person you love and live with, your children or anyone else that you co-exist with. I'm talking about that person you look at every morning in the mirror.

Don't try to break the mirror. Just remember that you're not stuck with that person. You can change who you are. You can wear different clothes. You can stop your road to cancer, and throw away the cigarettes. You don't have to eat the same foods as everyone else eats for fear of being considered crazy.

Let's stop and look at that last sentence. That's so well written I think I'll repeat myself. Add a little color and bold type. You don't have to eat the same foods as everyone else eats for fear of being considered crazy.

Guess what? There are people out there who already think that you're crazy. They think you're crazy because you cross your legs when you sit down. They think you're crazy because you snort when you laugh (that one can be hard to refute!). They think you're crazy because you are you!

Should you care? Many of you do care. But you can't do a thing about anyone's but your own thoughts. You can't control what anyone does with their own lives. The only person you can control is yourself!

Oh, I hear it now. But I love them! IF YOU LOVE THEM LET THEM GO!

We've all heard that line before: "Let them go". I consider this the true meaning of love. Let the person walk their own path. Let them make their own choices. Let them learn their own lessons. This doesn't mean turn your back on those you love. Your job is to stand beside the path, and be ready when they ask for help. Your job is not to lead them down your path. Let them walk their path, as you walk your path.

So don't worry about the looks you get when you sit down with your Tiffin full of medjool dates stuffed with almond butter, a fluffy green salad, and a great big piece of "Spinach Stuffed Meatloaf" from The Daily Raw. You've got the right to make your own decisions as to how you want to lead your life.

Thank those around you who mean well, and let them continue on their own path. Don't be surprised if one of those people approach you on the sly and ask for more information on your raw lifestyle. Give of the information freely, without being dogmatic, or preachy. Even the carnivores have a right to eat the little animals of the world.

Be open to the world around you, and allow others their freedom. We live in a wonderful time. There are so many challenges and opportunities for growth in our world. But first we must learn to listen to those around us, and allow them their freedom too! (Oh, could that open a whole different train of thought!)

As a side note, I had a wonderful experience last night! (There's a tabloid writer somewhere just hoping that this will be the next paying article...SORRY!) I love teasing a friend about her email program. She uses Outlook (OK, that's a really big mistake. Check out Mozilla and their browser's ThunderbirdFirefox! Neither program has locked up on me yet, Bill Gates!). Every now and then Outlook changes the dates. I'll get a response from her to a recent email that appears to have been sent three months earlier.

This person has her own blog. I noticed last night as I was catching up on some 125 blog entries that I've missed over the last several days that she posted on March 10, 2007, and sent her a note that her computer "barfed" again.

Each person sees life differently. She's used a different date format. 3-10-2007 isn't March 10, 2007, its the third day of the 10Th month, 2007 or October 3, 2007.

Remember, or worlds are different. Accept that truth, and then revel in the experiences, and choices before you. Live life to its fullest, and never be afraid to say you're wrong....

Thanks again for the lesson:



(I just love the country western theme. Oh, I've got some better pictures. I'll share them, and tell you more about her next week. I just won't share all the pictures I've got. She's definitely "Daddy's Girl".)

BEAT ON THE BRAT WITH A BASEBALL BAT!

"We have received an inestimable gift. To be alive in this beautiful, self-organizing universe - to participate in the dance of life with senses to perceive it, lungs that breathe it, organs that draw nourishment from it - is a wonder beyond words."

Gratitude: Where Healing the Earth Begins
By Joanna Macy
Shambhala Sun, November 2007

I stopped by my local bookstore this evening on the way home from work. Keely's off to her mother's until Friday, and I'm free to run around the house in my underwear without being yelled at. (Hey neighbors! You thought the full moon had set? HAH!) Of course, I make no promises that I'll publish this post without some type of typographical errors, (or saying something to subject me to the wrath of Keely) but I'll give it a shot!

Joanna Macy's article was the first thing I opened the magazine to as I took it out of the bag. I thought what a wonderful quote to use for this posting. So sitting down with my laptop, Star Trek Voyager playing on the TV in the background, and The Ramones singing "Beat on the Brat with a Baseball Bat", I went totally blank.

I'll speak to Macy's quote latter this week, but something more important came to my mind, based upon this experience. I remember hearing David Wolfe talk once about how he tried to use every minute, in every way possible. At that time when he ate his breakfast, he'd sit reading a book.

How many of us will sit and watch TV while eating, or think about how we'll get the kids to soccer, softball, baseball, that meeting with their parole officer, bible class, or an myriad of other topics? (I wonder how many of you just passed over the parole officer without a second thought?)

This isn't the first time, or the last time, I'll refer to Buddhism. I'm not out to convert anyone, as it is not a religion but a way of thought. It helps me center my thoughts when the world gives the illusion of spinning out of control. Buddhism talks about living in the present, and dealing with that which is before you.

When we listen to our child, spouse, coworker, or fellow human, we should listen, and not think about our next appointment, or meal.

When we walk down the street, we should put one foot in front of the other, feeling the slap of our foot on the concrete or earth.

When we pick up an apple, and bite into its flesh, we should experience our teeth cutting through the skin. We should embrace the gift of how readily the flesh gives of its juices to provide nourishment to our bodies. We should taste the earth that grew the tree, and the rain which watered the tree to produce the fruit we eat.

No matter what we ingest we should honor, and thank the food for what it gives us. Not only should we honor the fruits of the earth, but we should honor our body by picking the right fuel to provide the nourishment our body needs to carry it through life.

Never think that the foods that I eat, or any "raw foods guru" says you must eat for proper nourishment is correct. We are each individuals, and must discover that which is best to maintain our body in proper relationship to our environment. I don't believe that an Eskimo could exist on the same diet that someone living along the Amazon would need to survive.

Don't try to pack every activity known to humanity into your day. When you eat, try doing nothing but eating. Listen to that which you ingest, and honor those who brought it to your table. Experience your food, don't inhale your food.

Through right action, the enzyme rich foods will digest easier, and provide that needed to enhance your lifestyle.

Oh, and don't play the Ramones while eating or typing. There's a time and a place for everything. Punk rock does absolutely nothing for the digestion, or your train of thought. Might not help the headache either.

LET'S GET REAL!

Have you been reading the blog "Raw Food, Right Now"? You need to read it "right now".

I recommend Heidi and Justin's blog because of their common sense approach to a raw lifestyle, and because of their continuing support of The Raw Divas.

Like all lifestyles the raw foods "movement" has its fanatics. These are people who feel you're going to hell if you don't eat 100% raw. Sure, its possible, but unless you're going to adopt a monastic way of life its not easy to change. Its not easy to make the commitment.

About 5 years ago I spent a week at a Buddhist retreat in Estes Park, Colorado. It was a retreat hosted by Thich Nhat Hanh. He explained that people shouldn't turn their backs on their religious background. I came away believing that Buddhism is a practice to help people embrace, and enhance their lives. I have grown to realize that this teaching doesn't apply to just our spirituality, put applies to all portions of our lives, including what we eat.

It would be wonderful if we could turn our backs on cooked foods, and embrace raw foods without ever giving a thought to cooked foods. But let's get real!

In my case I've got a 50 year history with cooked foods. When I was growing up I ate lobster, roast beef, and all types of animals. Should I look at back at that person as evil? Of course not. It would be like cutting off my hand because of a hangnail!

I could go on, and on, about the lunacy of some in the raw foods movement. We need to remember that we are all on a search for health, that leads us down different paths. Some are longer paths, and some are shorter paths, but they lead to the same end. Don't walk away because you can't live up to someone elses expectations. Adding even a little raw foods to your diet is much better than eating an all cooked diet!

So make sure to check out "Raw Foods, Right Now". I love it when they rant.

Oh, and don't forget to listen to Heidi's first Podcast with THE RAW DIVAS! Tera and Amy are really doing great things for people who want to add more and more raw foods to their life. They realize the necessity of communication and community. They realize that we are all searching for a better life. The Divas realize that there are no correct answers to our questions, except those answers we find for ourselves.

Yes Honey, You're Right, I'm Wrong....

Isn't it hard to admit when we're wrong? It shouldn't be. There's absolutely nothing wrong with being wrong. When we realize that we're wrong, we turn the corner down the right path.

Well, I was wrong, and I owe my wife an apology. She was right.

We were in Youngstown, Ohio the other day, and she'd misplaced some weapon that she uses for knitting, and threatening my continued existence with at other times.. She said, "I haven't lost it, I just haven't figured out where I put it yet."

Five minutes later I stopped my head from spinning over the perceived insanity of that statement, and got the car back under control. Unfortunately, my headache lasted for the rest of the night.

People can be really dense, and I'm among the densest at times. It took three days for me to realize the importance of her message.

Today I came out of the local co-op. I was buying what I needed to make the spinach stuffed meatloaf recipe that Teri posted on The Daily Raw (drool). I crossed the street without becoming road kill along with some neighborhood squirrels. There were two posters stapled to the telephone pole. Two families had lost their cats and were offering substantial rewards.

I've been in one of those mellow, a little more laid back, moods. I thought of these two families who had "lost" someone they loved that were a part of their lives.

I then proceeded to bash my head against the pole. I had an epiphany.

Our society has developed an attitude that things end. Our lives end. Our job ends. Experiences end, etc., etc. etc.

But do things really end? Not really. Our bodies don't end, they change. By saying we've "lost" something we've declared an end to some thing's existence.

The term "lost" is not as positive as "I just haven't remembered where I left it". My wife's approach to what she couldn't find at the moment was a much more positive and a much more mature approach to life in general.

No "religion" (provide your own definition for that one please. I'm not touching it.) that I know of, preaches an end to life. Life doesn't end, life changes. The body doesn't really die, it changes.

We don't lose friends, we gain new friends.

Think of how much fulfilling our lives can be if we shift the way with think from a life of loss, to a life of searching for the changes that we place around us every day.

Will you find what you thought was lost, or might you find something that far exceeds your expectations. That my friends is part of the lesson, and the real crux of the journey.

How does this apply to raw foods? How doesn't it apply to raw foods.

Take the first step, and trust your instincts by answering this question on your own. Don't lose things anymore, change your lives and the way you think. Start your journey anew.

You might even surprise yourself....