Cleaning - Organizing

After letting my home get into a terrible mess over the last few years, I have begun to finally make some progress in cleaning and organizing things.  My friend Phil came out a couple times and helped me to get started as this job was just so big and so overwhelming.  Phil can't sort and organize my stuff for me, but he was able to put things into boxes and sweep the floor.  Now the place has some clean spots that look really good, and I like that a lot, so am working at making those small clean areas larger.  It is almost like when you throw a rock into a still pond and the little ripples go out, out, out further, so are these clean areas going to go out, out, out further.  Today I cleaned off the top of my one standing cupboard thing and washed it all off, then cleared off a shelf until I had in my back room, putting all the books from it into a box for now.  I unscrewed the 3 huge screws that were holding the shelves on the wall, carried it to the kitchen, washed the dust off it and put it onto the top of the standing cupboard.  I then washed all the tin canisters and filled them with bulk food items, then put them up onto the 'new' shelf.  It looks pretty good.... way better than it was before I started.  Not everything I took down has been dealt with so is still sitting on the table, still needing to be washed and put up somewhere.... but where is the question.  I also have been thinking about moving all of the furniture in the living room into different spots in the hopes it will all 'work better' once reorganized... and I look at the mess at the front door and wonder what I will do there to clean and organize it.  I used to have a standing coat rack, then went to hooks on the wall but they have all broken as they were cheaply made and couldn't stand up under the weight of my coats.  I need to replace those hooks and/or figure out a different place to put my coats.  This is all a big job and a definite process to reclaim my home from the mess I allowed it to become.

Nice Surprise Too

As Friday continued, I left Superstore and headed to WalMart.  Just down the street from Superstore, a van was coming out of another business and as I drove by I got just a glimpse of the woman driving the van. "Is that...?" I wondered, the name momentarily escaping me as names often do. I stopped at the red light and the van pulled up behind me.  I looked in the rear view mirror on my drivers door and the driver of the van started making funny faces at me. "It IS, it IS..... Teresa!!" with her daughter Dusty in the passenger seat. The light turned green and, along with some vehicles in front of me, I got through it, though Teresa didn't as it again went red.  I hoped she was going to WalMart too as there was nowhere else I could pull off before there anyway.  Sure enough, they came along and saw me standing beside me truck, we waved, they came in and parked behind me.  We had a great visit there in the parking lot and I so enjoyed visiting with both women and their big dog Bruiser.  He is such a great dog and I so miss my dogs now that I don't currently have one.  We went into the store and again stood around visiting for a very long time.  When we finally did part ways, I get the couple things I wanted to purchase and headed to the check out lines.... really LONG lines as it turned out. After so much time on my feet, about the last thing I wanted or needed was to stand in such a long line up for just 2 small items.  I got into the shortest line, with only 4 very full buggies in it, knowing that still it would take 10-15 minutes for them all to get put through... then the woman behind the till told me "this line is now closed".  I walked a short ways down towards the other check outs, looking at how crazy long the lines were, then I put  down the items I had planned to purchase, and out I walked! Those items were just not that important!!  As it was I had already been on my feet too long and 2 days later am still in a lot of pain from 'pushing the envelope too far'.

Nice Surprise

On Friday, after I had another treatment at my Chiropractor, I ran some errands, starting with going to Superstore for a few grocery items.  While there, I unexpectedly met with a lady I haven't seen for some years.  Paulette was my real estate agent when I purchased my first home, all by myself, in 1985 and she was again my agent when I sold the place in 1990.  Paulette was a wonderful person to work with, very good at her chosen career and a very kind person who I really enjoyed knowing.  When we closed on the deal with my purchase of the small house on an acre of land, Paulette gave me a gift of 3 brass butterflies, having gotten to know me and that I was an avid butterfly collector, lol.  When the deal closed with me selling that home 4 1/2 years later, she again gave me a wonderful gift, this time it was the book "You Can Heal Your Life" by Louise L. Hay.  This book helped me a lot and was very instrumental in putting me onto the spiritual path I follow, bringing me into a much happier life.  Paulette is still in the real estate game with her son as her business partner, though real estate sales have been down around here lately.  From what I've heard, be it real estate louisville ky, real estate Vernon BC, or real estate Anywhere North America, sales are down.  With the current low interest rates BC banks are offering, you would think sales would be up, but I think the added expense of the HST (Harmonized Sales Tax) is making people hold off with their larger purchases. We voted down this tax after it was forced upon us against our wishes so it is supposed to being removed... and is taking 3 years to happen.  Anyway, it was really great to see Paulette and to see she is looking really great!!

Motorcycle Safety and Awareness

As I talked about in my last post,  I want to make about a 2 week ride this summer to the coast, ferry to Victoria, ride up Vancouver Island, ferry to Prince Rupert, ride back home via Hwy 16 and 97. I want to make it a ride for Motorcycle Safety and Awareness, to have lots of other riders join me, and have it widely publicized so people will see it on TV, read about it in newspapers, and hopefully think about us when they get in their cars and head off down the roads.  Here are some maps to show more about where I plan to ride.

This map shows part of British Columbia, the Canadian province I live in.

If you click on the map you will get a larger view of it.

Find Kelowna on the map... I live about an hour drive from Kelowna. 

Find Vancouver.... the plan is to ride to this area and take a ferry across to Victoria which you will see at the bottom of Vancouver Island.

In the top left corner of this map, you see Haida Gwaii, formerly called Queen Charlotte Islands.

This map shows the north end of Vancouver Island

The plan is to ride up Vancouver Island and take a ferry from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert.

 This map shows Haida Gwaii, formerly called Queen Charlotte Islands, on the left as well as many other islands and the mainland on the right.  You can see Prince Rupert on the mainland.

The ride will continue from Prince Rupert to Prince George, which you see on the 1st map, then back down to the Kelowna area.

Motorcycle Safety and Awareness

I just sent an email to British Columbia Coalition of Motorcyclists (BC COM). I want to make about a 2 week ride this summer to the coast, ferry to Victoria, ride up Vancouver Island, ferry to Prince Rupert, ride back home via Hwy 16 and 97. I want to make it a ride for Motorcycle Safety and Awareness, to have lots of other riders join me, and have it widely publicized so people will see it on TV, read about it in newspapers, and hopefully think about us when they get in their cars and head off down the roads. I have invited BC COM to be part of this event and have some other plans/thoughts to put into place.

Some things still on my 'To Do List' for this ride:
- Find sponsorship to help with costs of the trip (I was 'low income' and am currently 'no income', so need help)
       - Write to Chevron re: supplying fuel for my trike (if they say no, try other gas companies)
       - Write to BC Ferries re: free ferry rides for this trip (hey, it's worth asking, worst they can do is say no)
       - Be open to private monetary donations to help cover my expenses
       - Contact hotels/motels/campsites/friends re: places to stay along the way
- Pick a firm date for this ride to start (should I go to Boogy Bash first and leave from there, or got straight from home?)
- Contact CHBC News and invite Rick Webber to join the ride
- Get some work done on my trike so it's in top shape for hitting the road
- Take long rides to 'get in shape' for the big one
- Let lots of people know so I have lots of other riders joining me for this ride
- Get map of BC, hang on my wall and plan the route we will take.  Get tourism booklets to study, of towns along the way.

This list is just a start, I'm sure.  Other lists will be made, like what to take for food, clothing, camp gear, etc. etc. etc. This should be fun.... putting it together, then actually doing the ride.

DVD Burning Completed

Last night, Dan MSNed me a DVD burning program and I was able to burn 3 movies to a DVD for my friend.  He still came and got all his blanks so he can take them to the other friend to have more done, and that's okay.  At least I did what I said I would do.  I followed through on a promise and that is important to me.  Now, if I want to burn any more DVDs I can in future, though this is not something I tend to do a lot.  I just don't seem to need them too often.  I do plan to get the necessary cable(s) so I can plug my computer to the TV and watch my downloaded movies on the big 51".  Maybe I can even plug in to the older TV in the bedroom so I can watch movies while relaxing on my comfy bed. I am very Grateful to my friend Dan for helping me out once again.

DVD Burning

I downloaded some movies from the internet, and a friend without a computer wants me to burn him some.  He even brought some bland DVDs over today for me to do this for him. I've burned DVDs before, but not for a long time and not on this particular computer, and not with the program this computer has on it... Windows DVD Burner or something like that.  It was taking a terrible long time and not really getting anywhere.  I talked to my friend Dan on MSN and he said he could send me another program that would work better, and walk me through using it.  He uses Ashampoo all the time, apparently.  So fine, I cancelled the one I had going and he sent me the file over MSN, but after taking a long time to transfer the file, just when it's about to be done, suddenly I get a message that it can't be completed.  We tried different ways, including zip file and still it can't be sent to me.  So after hours of trying to get the program, all I have is a beastly headache and a ton of frustration.  Guess I'll re-start the Windows DVD program and just let it run all night, hoping it's finished by morning.  I could have used all these wasted hours for something much more productive.

Project House Cleaning continues

I have continued to do a bit of cleaning here and there.  The area in front of my computer desk is now partially cleaned out though still needs more attention.  I have managed to maintain the cleaned off kitchen table, counter and stove for the most part, though there are some books on the table and a few things I've been working with on the counter.  I plan to clear those off this evening before I go to bed.  I was looking online at different tables as i think it would be good to have one that folds down so leaves more free space in the kitchen between meals, and provides me with less space to stack stuff up on.  I like the amish dining tables, though none of them fold down in quite the way I have in mind.  I have seen some like what I want, but think they are antiques. Someone offered me one a year or so ago, if I cleaned up my kitchen.  I haven't seen her in about 10 months, so not sure she'd remember never mind follow through on the offer.  The table I have now is from the 1950s and reminds me of the one in the farm house where I lived for the first 12 years of my life, though mine is read and that one was grey. With a crochet table cloth on it, my table looks great!!

Veganism

I am continuing my studies of eating a vegan diet.  As I choose to eat this way for health purposes, it is important to make sure I am doing it right in order for it to be healthy. One must know how to get all the necessary nutrients from what they eat. The way I ate before was a meat based diet and I doubt I was getting all the required nutrients from it as I never ate properly.  I am now much more likely to cook myself a meal than I ever was before I started to eat the vegan way.  So far it hasn't helped me to loose any weight, however it has made a dramatic and profound improvement to my cholesterol levels in just 3 months.

As I surfed the web tonight, I came across a very good web site on veganism. They had lots of interesting things to read about, including vegan sources of proteins, Omega 3, iron, etc.  I will likely share some of that info here, but for tonight I am going to share something from another website.

Is veganism a good idea?

By: AFP Date:  2011-08-23 Place: Washington

Last week former US President Bill Clinton told American news channel CNN that he is now a vegan and eschews meat, eggs, and dairy in order to be healthier. Once famed for his love of hamburgers and doughnuts, Clinton, who had quadruple bypass surgery in 2004, dropped 24 pounds and has lowered his cholesterol levels dramatically since adopting a near vegan lifestyle last year. So, is veganism a good idea? "Veganism is one of the healthiest dietary lifestyles...if done properly," reports LiveScience of Clinton's eating regimen. "It is also one of the unhealthiest diets in town if not done properly, which is often the case." Animal products are packed with nutrients such as protein, omega-3 fatty acids (in fish), calcium, iron, zinc, and vitamin B12. This means in order to consume vital nutrients, vegans need to be extra-vigilant by eating calcium-rich dark, leafy greens such broccoli, kale, turnip greens and collards, zinc-filled nuts and beans, omega-3 fatty acids in flaxseeds, and protein-rich foods such as beans every single day, adds LifeScience. Unskilled or new vegans can also fall into the traps of making poor food choices due to limited food options, or rely on meat substitutes, which can be loaded with salt and fat. MyPyramid.gov recommends that vegans consume beans, nuts, nut butters, peas, tofu, tempeh and veggie burgers to meet protein needs. "I like the vegetables, the fruits, the beans, the stuff I eat now," Clinton told Dr. Sanjay Gupta in the CNN interview. His diet strategy now, he says, is to avoid any food that might damage his blood vessels, and to follow the guidance of famed plant-based food proponent Dr. Dean Ornish and Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn Jr., who directs the cardiovascular prevention and reversal program at The Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute.

Project House Cleaning

Yesterday I took all the stuff out of a couple cupboards in my kitchen.  I threw out several things then washed stuff that was dusty and going back into the cupboards.  I put my teas where my spices used to be as they need a whole cupboard as it turns out, but so do the spices. Odd for someone who rarely cooks.  Anyway, I decided to put in a new shelf in the one spot in order to put more of the spices. Today a friend brought me some wood which I quickly turned into a shelf.  Now instead of one shelf with spices strung all out and a lot of wasted head space, I have 2 short shelves of spices with little head space.  It looks so much better as well as being very user friendly.  Now I'm about to head into town to one or two Dollar Stores to find some baskets for organizing bagged spices and boxes of zip top bags, etc. I am pleased to have made some progress.

Yesterday was Spring,
Today... deep Winter!
That Bites!

Written by:
Alice Gypsy-Girl Price
February 16, 2012.

 

A Snow Poem

Snow Day

All dressed up and ready to go,
I went outside into falling snow.
Four inches deep it must be,
And nasty roads that I can see.
Drive in this? Of course I can,
Though an enjoyable day was my plan.
As I started to clean my truck off,
I looked around and began to scoff.
"Give your head a shake, girl." I said,
"Go back inside, go back to bed!"
So back inside I then did go,
Inside out of all that snow.
Now fully clothed, with tea in hand,
On bed with laptop I sit... not stand.
There are places I must go late afternoon,
And am hoping the snow will stop falling soon.

Written by:
Alice Gypsy-Girl Price
February 16, 2012.

I haven't had a cold or flu for so very long, I would have to guess about 15 years, give or take. So you can imagine how much of a surprise it was when I got sick.  It started with my sinuses draining, which happens occasionally so no big deal, then the coughing and trouble breathing started, including coughing up large amounts of phlegm with a good deal of blood in it.  I went to a walk-in clinic and talked to a doctor who said I had pneumonia and wrote out a slip for me to get chest x-rays done and another for me to get some antibiotics.  Being Sunday I was able to get the antibiotics right away, and had to wait until the next day to get the x-rays done.  Thursday I went back to get the results and was told that the x-rays showed I didn't have pneumonia, but did have bronchitis.  Each day, bit by bit I am better.  Now I still cough a bit now and then though it's not so bad anymore and there was no phlegm coming up today.  I would say I'm almost mended.  I am very happy that tonight will be the last of the antibiotics and the start of healing from the damage of the drugs.

My Bed

I have always loved antique furniture and was delighted when my parents one year long ago now gave me their old bedroom set.  It has the bed with head and foot boards, one of those bedroom vanity sets with the vanity and stool, and what they always called a highboy... a tall dresser with 4 drawers.  The bed was still the old style with a set of springs that the mattress rests on, no box spring.  Well, I slept on this bed for nearly 20 years, then this fall I bought a really awesome box spring and mattress, brand new.  They are the first ones I've ever bought.  I put the old springs and mattress outside in the carport for now, and put the box spring and mattress with the old bed.  It makes for one very high bed to climb up on each morning, but it sure is comfortable to sleep in all night.  I am so grateful for the comfort of this new bed and for the fact I have so much less pain all night than I did before. 

Winter Blahhhs

I need a lot of color in my life.  The current weather has no color to speak of. Between fog, snow, hoar frost, it's all looking like black and white photos... even when they are color photos.  The only real color is my new truck!!

OUCH!!!

On Monday, two days ago, I was doing my volunteer work at the local Food Bank. I had done a bit of portioning of ice tea and orange crystals when Anna came and asked me to do some filing. i was busily doing the filing when suddenly I felt an extremely sharp and nasty pain in my left wrist. I really hadn't done anything that should have caused this to happen, was just moving some hanging files in one of the filing cabinets. It took some time for the pain to dye down enough for me to continue my work. Since then, I have had a very sore wrist and pain up into the back of my hand. I'm not sure what damage has been done in there, but am sure something has happened. This is not normal.

This left wrist is the one that was damaged in a crash on September 10, 2010 when I was riding my trike and was hit by a car. The distal radius (bone at base of thumb, goes up to elbow) was shattered right into the joint line (very bad), and every bone in the wrist was dislocated. I also had several other injuries, but this one was by far the worst. I was taken to hospital by ambulance and the next morning had surgery to reconstruct the wrist, and they put a metal plate in with 9 screws to hold it all together. After the bones were healed, the metal was causing me problems, so on March 30, 2011, I had a second surgery to remove the metal. At that time the surgeon also fixed the trigger finger issue I was having since the crash. I've had physiotherapy done on the wrist until the therapist decided she had done all that could be done for it.

Since the wrist healed from the second surgery, for about the last 6 months or so, the wrist has been pretty good. It has days when it hurts more than usual, when there's some clunking going on in there, but for the most part it's been doing pretty well, all things considered.... until 2 days ago. Now I have to keep the wrist and hand wrapped for support and just live with the extra pain. If it doesn't improve over the next few days, I will be going to see a doctor about it, though I don't think they really can do much of anything to fix it at this point.

A Beautiful Day

The weather forecast for today, as of 11:00pm last night, was for a high of 2°C and 40% chance of wet flurries.

Can you imagine how happy I was when I woke to a clear, sunny day? When I took the recycling down to the end of my driveway just after 3:00am, I noticed the sky was clear and full of stars, but that doesn't mean it still will be clear by morning.

About 11:00am I looked outside and saw my thermometer was showing 7°C!! Snow is melting like crazy, steady drips falling from the roof. As the day has progress, it's now1:51pm and there are lots of clouds moved in, though still lots of blue sky showing. There is a bit of wind, and with the temperature hanging steady still at 2°C, that will melt away the small amount of snow we have at this time. I don't mind that at all.

I am Grateful

I think it's time to go get a snack... and a cup of tea... then soon to head to bed.  I am getting sleepy...very sleepy!

I am grateful to have had a good day
I am grateful for the warmth of the pellet stove that keeps my home comfortable during the winter months
I am grateful for my 51" TV
I am grateful for my laptop computer
I am grateful for the food I eat each day as well as the water and tea I drink
I am grateful for the love my cat gives to me all the time
I am grateful for each and every one of my friends
I am grateful for my very comfortable new bed that is now waiting patiently for me to go crawl in...

Thinking of a Friend

I have a lot of friends, some I see on a regular basis and some that I only see once in a while. It seems like if something happens to cause me to think of a certain person I haven't seen in some time, I end up running into them in a store or talking to someone who mentions that person I had just thought of. Today I read something on the internet about motorhome repair, just something I came across while surfing, and that reminded me of a fellow I've known for many years who makes his living doing repairs to motorhomes, RV trailers, horse trailers, trucks.  I haven't seen him for quite some time now and last time I did, it was at Nurseryland, just across the lake from where I live.  Today I was at that store for awhile.  Now I am wondering if I will see him somewhere one day soon.

Motorcycle Show

Sunday morning my friend Dan called at 4:00am... my wake up call. i got out of bed, had breakfast, got dressed, fed my birds and other such things. At 5:00am (or there about) Ray picked me up and off we went to the Vancouver Motorcycle Show in Abbotsford, BC.  It takes about 5 hours to drive there from here with a stop for gas and another stop for tea, and we were happy to have bare roads most of the way there. Going over the mountains we did encounter compact snow on the highway in the upper areas near the summit of the mountain and otherwise they were bare.

Ray dropped me off at the front door on the Tradex Centre and went to park the truck.  I went in, paid my entry and hung around looking at stuff until Ray joined me. We spent about 3 1/2 hours walking around looking at motorcycles of all makes and models as well as many motorcycle related things like leathers, boots, patches, helmet stickers, etc etc etc. By the time we had walked through all of what there was to see, my low back was hurting so bad it was nasty and I had shooting pains in my right hip joint.  As we walked outside it was raining and I had left my coat in the truck, so I was really happy to find there was a bus there to drive people back to their vehicles in the different parking lots. It was a good show, though I was disappointed that there weren't more trikes than there were.

On the drive back it was raining until we got closer to the mountains where it changed to snow and the bare, wet roads became snowy roads. As we continued on our way, road conditions deteriorated and became dangerous.  We saw a pickup truck that looked like it may have been hit by someone as it's front bumper was pulled out significantly.  A little further along we saw a mini van in the ditch and not much past that there was a pickup truck with a canopy that had obviously lost control and rolled completely over. The police were there and an ambulance passed us just down the road. Add to this the fact that two times Ray's truck started to slide and it made for a stressful trip.  I sure was glad that Ray is a good driver and didn't loose control.

By the time we got home I was very tired.  It was just after 8:30pm and had been a long day, though a good one.

Learning Online

I have been doing a bunch of research online, enjoying how much we can learn by 'surfing the net'.  I see ads on the TV for all the different courses and stuff you can get online and as I study and do research on all things that interest me, I think it's kind of like taking online college courses. I have been checking out vegan recipes and looking at recipe books this evening.  I also have been reading recipes for Quinoa in both burgers and bread.  I love learning, so having all this information at my finger tips is a real bonus.

New Look

I see Blogger has made some really big changes here.  I guess I had better do a bunch of reading and find out what all the new stuff has to offer. i really need to do more blogging... period.

Brrrrr

Up until recently we were having an unusually warm and wonderful winter. Warmer than usual temperatures, less than normal snowfall... it almost didn't seem like winter at all and we even set a record for warm temperatures on at least one day in December. Now, in the middle of January, we have been hit by very cold temperatures accompanied by wind coming from the north.  Apparently this cold weather is being blown down from Alaska.... and I for one wish they'd stop sending this to us!!  With a high of -11.4°C and a current temperature of -19°C, I am looking forward to warmer times. The Environment Canada Weather Office online is forecasting temperatures on the plus side starting Saturday and I am really hoping their predictions are right.

A Day in My Life...

Yesterday I went to K-town (commonly used nick name for the larger city about 45 minutes south of the city I live in) with my friend Phil. He had an appointment with a medical specialist down there and I went along to keep him company as well as 'just in case' he needed someone to drive on the way home. I know some of my way around that city, but not nearly well enough to insure we'd find the address he had to go to, so the day before I looked it up on my computer to insure I knew how to get there with ease. I am grateful I have computer and internet connection so I can do this, yet I still see that it would be wonderful to have a nuvi gps. With the gps I wouldn't have to look it up ahead of time and either commit it to memory or if more difficult, print out a map, etc. Anyway, all went well. We left early and stopped at Millennium Metals on our way. Phil loves doing metal work, making fancy shiny bits and putting them on his Harley Davidson motorcycle and he had run out of brass so went there to get another piece. I bought 2 nice pieces of aluminum so I too can make some of those fancy shiny bits and put them on my trike. Phil will teach me how to do it.

We got to the Doctor's office early so were happy to find there was a coffee shop in the same building so we could each have the hot drink of our choice before going upstairs. I read one of the books I took along while he was in the inner office and when he came out he told me I'd have to drive. Part of the procedure included putting drops in his eyes and his vision was too blurry to drive. He sat fairly quietly on the ride back and I could tell he was nervous about having me driving. I am a good driver, but I know it's hard for a man that is used to being the one behind the wheel to be able to give that up to anyone, especially a woman.

These photos show some of the things Phil has made for his Harley. They are done out of aluminum that he cut to shape and hand sanded and polished. As great as these look on his bike, since I took these photos, he's put brass pieces on the aluminum and WOW!! I will be taking some new photos one day soon and will share some here.

Veganism Suits Me

The other day I went to visit my Mom, about a 25 minute drive north of where I live. I took along the ingredients for a vegan dish I wanted to try making and we enjoyed Spanish Rice for our dinner that evening. I brought home the left overs and last night I fried up some Vegan "hamburger", Ground Round then mixed in the Spanish Rice. It made for a very nice meal with some still left for another time.

This evening I am going to my monthly Vegan Pot Luck Dinner (and health video) so I plan to take Spanish Rice along for my contribution. I recently found and purchased a small cookbook in a 2nd hand book store and am so delighted with it and the recipes which are pretty much simple ones and all vegan. I've never been one for doing much cooking and certainly not for reading recipe books. Veganism must be agreeing with me, LOL. I was hoping it would help me to loose some weight, though so far it hasn't. What it has done for my health is lower my risk of heart disease!!

A1C (blood glucose reading for a 3 month period, important for diabetics): Oct. 6.3 ... Now 6.1 (desired <7.0)
LDL Cholesterol "bad stuff" : Oct. 4.4 ... Now 4.1 (desired <2.0 For non-diabetics I think it's <4.0)
HDL Cholesterol "good stuff" : Oct. 1.4 ... Now 1.54 (desired >1.0)
Total Cholesterol : Oct. 7.0 ... Now 6.4 (desired <4.0)
Lipid Ratio (risk factor for heart disease): Oct. 4.9... Now 4.2 (desired <4.0)

Even as a meat eater I was keeping my A1C at a good level as well as my Blood Pressure which is 120/80. As you can see, over the last 3 months, my risk of heart disease has dropped a lot, though it needs to come down more yet. After being Vegan for 6 months I'm sure it will show even more positive change. My next test will be early April.

Winter has Arrived!

This winter has been very warm and any bit of snow we have gotten has melted away in a short time, leaving behind only the odd bit of snow or ice in shady spots. That is until the last few days!! It has turned cold and we had a bunch of snow today which will not be melting away any times soon!! It would seem that winter has finally arrived!! I guess this is good as we do need it, though I so much prefer warmer seasons. I know many people love winter and love doing winter sports such as skiing and snow mobile riding, though I love riding my trike (3 wheel motorcycle) which I only do in warmer months. I will do my best to enjoy this season as I always like to enjoy each day and find the good in it... and still I look forward to spring and the start of riding season!!

I am grateful for my friend Ray and for his new job plowing people's driveways and such. I am no longer able to shovel my driveway due to physical challenges, so the last few years I've just packed the snow down with my truck, thanking God for 4 wheel drive on this hill. Now Ray has surprised me twice by coming by and plowing me out on his way from one job to another in the truck with the snow blade.

Breakfast of Champions

I was just reading a yummy sounding recipe for breakfast. I usually eat Oatmeal for my first meal of the day, adding lots of healthy things into it. I cook the rolled oats with a pinch each of raisins and craisins (dried cranberries), then add fresh ground flax seeds (about 2 TBSP seeds before grinding), 2 TBSP each of Psyllium Husk and Nutritional Yeast, 1/2 tsp or more cocoa powder, 3 TBSP Lecithin Granules and about 1 cup of Almond Beverage. One very healthy and filling meal. Sometimes I even eat some nuts or fresh fruit with it. This being said, the recipe I just read, Chocolate Peanut Butter Quinoa and Oats, sounds like something I want to try. I think it's a bit high in calories so I would use Almond Beverage (40 cal. per cup) instead of the Soy Beverage (100 cal. per cup) to save 60 calories, or perhaps use 1/2 and 1/2 or 1/4 Soy to 3/4 Almond. I would also leave out the maple syrup.

Hmmm, but how would I get my Psyllium (for fiber) and my Nutritional Yeast (for the B vitamins, including B12), not to mention the Flax (for Omega 3 and fiber) and the Lecithin (to help reduce cholesterol)?? I guess I'll have to give this all some thought.... as I enjoy my Oatmeal.

56? Wow!

It was a quiet day for my birthday. I would have liked a bit more excitement, but oh well, not a big deal. I'm too old to worry about a thing like that anyway. Not that I'm saying I'm old, just too old to worry about silly things. I went to an Eckankar study group in the morning, then had tea at the mall with my friend Art who I haven't seen in ages. When Art left, I went into a store right beside the food court and bought myself 2 pair of black stretch pants, 2 pair for $15 plus tax. I then went shopping for some food items I needed and phoned another friend. I was planning to go visit Phil for the evening, but he wasn't feeling well, so I came home and watched TV curled up in my chair with my laptop and my cat, Mewsic. Yes, it was a quiet day, yet still a pleasant one. I was born in 1956 so I just turned 56 (wow, it's hard to believe I'm this old already) and I know that 'living my birth year' is going to be a very incredible and wonderful year!!!

Carob Peanut Butter recipe

Last week when I was 'out and about' I ended up buying a bunch of books... one 2nd hand book store on Thursday and another one on Friday. I got some really terrific deals at the one of Friday and great books at both. Several of the books are Vegetarian Cookbooks as I need to learn more about preparing meals now that I no longer eat meat or dairy, eggs, anything from animals. Well, most of the time I don't anyway, only maybe 5% of the time when eating at a pot luck or someone else's home I end up eating something with dairy in it or perhaps eggs in it. At home I am full Vegan and around 95% Vegan when out.

One of the new books I bought is called Of These Ye May Eat Freely and it has lots of great recipes that are pretty easy to make. This evening I made Carob Peanut Butter. It sounded too good and too easy not to, and wow, very yummy!! I ate some on bread and ended up eating some by spoon. Still some in fridge for tomorrow!! Here's the recipe:

Carob Peanut Butter
2 bananas or 3/4 c. apple sauce
1/2 tsp vanilla, optional
2 TBSP carob powder
1-2 TBSP sweetener, optional (I didn't use any)
1/2 cup peanut or other nut butter
Blend or stir until smooth.

Health Journal

I need to get my cholesterol levels down as well as loose weight. I have been working on this for some time now and just haven't had much success. About 3 months ago I went mostly Vegan which will help, I'm sure, and I have been taking supplements that apparently help to lower cholesterol, as well as eating more fiber rich foods. So far I haven't lost weight and tomorrow I will find out if there has been any change in the cholesterol levels as I had blood tests done Friday for my every 3 month diabetes blood sugar test as well as the cholesterol. Tomorrow I see the health nurse about my results to those tests. I know I have to drink more water and get more exercise as well as watch how much and what I eat... so I started the year off by starting a Health Journal where I will be keeping track of all I eat and drink as well as my daily blood glucose test results, exercise, how I'm feeling if that is effecting what I eat, etc. I haven't used my treadmill for several weeks and finally have started again... 15 minutes yesterday and 20 minutes today. Not a lot, I know, but it is a start and I will build up to longer. I weighed myself today and wrote that in the book too and each Thursday when I go to my TOPS meeting do the weigh in there I will record that 'official' weight in my Health Journal too. I am determined to get slim, trim and healthy!!