Food Revolution Summit

There is a Food Revolution Summit beginning on Saturday and running for a week - and it's free to participate.

Best-selling author John Robbins is interviewing 21 leaders to discuss movements for healthy, sustainable, humane and delicious food.  From April 28 to May 6, three interviews will be broadcast daily and you can listen in for free.  They include "cutting-edge, disease beating, health activating, age-reversing information".  Here is the schedule.

The speakers include Joel Furhman, Dean Ornish, Neal Barnard, T.Colin Campbell, Joseph Mercola, Vandana Shiva, David Wolfe and many more.  They will highlight the latest thinking on preventing and reversing heart disease, cancer, and diabetes; the truth about GMOs, soy, raw foods, and grass-fed beef; the social, ethical, and environmental impact of what we eat; and how to inspire yourself and your family to make healthy choices.

Click on this link to sign up - Food Revolution Summit  I think it will be very informative.  If you can't listen in to the live interviews, there is a downloadable package for a fee.  See you there?

Cleaning for a reason

I just came across a great resource: Cleaning for a reason.  They are a non profit organization that serves the entire United States and Canada. They partner with maid services to offer professional house cleanings free of charge to help women undergoing treatment for cancer.

To date, they have helped more than 9,000 women with cleaning their homes with more than $1 million worth in donated cleanings.

The service offers cleaning of your house once a month for four months during treatment.  To sign up, you need to register on the website and then have your doctor fax them to say you are in treatment for cancer.  It's as easy as that.

Here's a (old) youtube of Oprah talking about the service in 2009 (thus the numbers are different from that quoted here)
 

What a wonderful service for those who are struggling through cancer and its treatment.

They are always looking for new cleaning services to volunteer their time, and also for donations to support their work.

Everything is tickety-boo

It's that time again for my weekly post where I share with you the things that have happened this week that make me feel that "everything is tickety-boo". 

Tickety-boo is more than just a feeling, it is a state of mind.  It doesn't mean that everything has be wonderful, just that you look for the good in your life and focus on that.   It's all about valuing the good things around you.  A way of looking beyond difficult things and appreciating the often simple, little things that make a difference.

As I write my "everything is tickety-boo" post each week, I hope you'll get the idea and take time to think about what has happened to you this past week and how it can help you feel tickety-boo.

• not having to drive into the city twice, or even once, this week
• the sunshine and heat - we've had days in the 90 degrees this week 
• getting my "500 mile" badge from fitbit - in recognition of having walked 500 miles so far this year! I wonder where that could have got me if I'd kept going in one direction?
• harvesting our first lettuces, cilantro and greens from our new raised beds :-D  Gosh, lettuce is so flavorful
• seeing a great horned owl in the vineyard while it was still light - and seeing two stellar jays dive and shout at him to go away!

• enjoying new cookbooks
• catching up with friends
• feeling supported by my book club buddies
• a friend and my neighbor commenting on how well I look
• enjoying the colors of a blue tailed skink as he scuttled by me

Hope you've been feeling tickety-boo this week too!  Anyhow good wildlife sightings?

10,000 steps update

In January, I reported on my 10,000 steps goal - i.e. that I committed to walking 10,000 steps every day.  I thought I'd update you on my progress.

I still wear my fitbit everyday to count my steps (and other things) and now I focus on a goal of 70,000 steps a week. I've found that some days I just couldn't get 10,000 steps in with other time constraints, so instead I have a weekly 70,000 goal so my daily average is 10,000.

I therefore allow myself a "day off" - during which I generally walk 7,000 steps, and then I make up the difference during the other days of the week.  It was my dad's idea to take a "day off" each week. I bought my parents a fitbit and they have upped their walking too since they started using it.  My dad's goal is 5,000 steps a day - and last week, one day he walked more than 16,000 steps so got his "15,000 step" badge!  He likes to take Sunday's off as a day of rest!

I always achieve more than my weekly goal...and am thinking maybe I'll up it sometime soon.

My walks have really become a habit that I look forward to. I've taken to listening to audiobooks on most of my walks.  They make the time past quickly and as they are mostly educational books, I feel I am learning something, while also getting some exercise.  But some days, I just enjoy the peace and quiet and watch the birds, deer, rabbits, and squirrels along the way.

Did you start something at the beginning of year to benefit your health and are still doing?  Doesn't it feel good?

(So far today I've done 16,137 steps and the day isn't over yet.....)

The benefits of a smile

"Today, give a stranger one of your smiles. It might be the only sunshine he sees all day"

Did you have a big smile on your face today?  Here are some of the health benefits of smiling:

• smiling makes us attractive - we are drawn to people who smile
• smiling changes our mood
• smiling is contagious
• smiling relieves stress
• smiling boosts your immune system
• smiling lowers your blood pressure
• smiling releases endorphins, natural pain killers and serotonin
• smiling makes you look younger
• smiling helps you stay positive
• smiling lifts not only your spirits, but observers' spirits too

So if you didn't smile much today, make a point of smiling at a stranger tomorrow.

Everything is tickety-boo

It's that time again for my weekly post where I share with you the things that have happened this week that make me feel that "everything is tickety-boo". 

Tickety-boo is more than just a feeling, it is a state of mind.  It doesn't mean that everything has be wonderful, just that you look for the good in your life and focus on that.   It's all about valuing the good things around you.  A way of looking beyond difficult things and appreciating the often simple, little things that make a difference.

As I write my "everything is tickety-boo" post each week, I hope you'll get the idea and take time to think about what has happened to you this past week and how it can help you feel tickety-boo.

• being touched by movies - laughing and crying.  This week was the Sonoma International Film Festival so I took a few days out and watched some wonderful movies. 
• realizing that something I'm doing just isn't working out for me so deciding to not participate anymore
• thinking the rain maybe be over - or nearly - and now it's time for sunshine
• getting excited about family coming over to visit in May and June
• having a lovely dinner at a friend's house
• dehydrated carrot ribbons.  Tried this today and they are yummy and crunchy and crispy.  A nice little portable snack.  And because the ribbons are so thin, they dehydrate very quickly.
• seeing all the California poppies flowering. While they flower all summer long, they are always at their brightest at this time of year.
• my parents finding a new home for themselves
• singing all day at the cathedral and sharing lunch with the choir
• smelling the flowering lilac by the gate and thinking of my friend Janet who loves lilac

I hope you've felt tickety-boo this week, and have been noticing all the wonderful things around you. I wonder what will make us feel tickety-boo this coming week?

Hold my hand

I love reading research studies - it stems back to my days as a research scientist.  I think you'll like reading my review of this one I found last week.  It is a study conducted at the University of Wisconsin demonstrating the power of holding hands.

The study looked at the effect of holding hands on pain and fear.  Women we given mild electric shocks to induce pain and also cues beforehand to elicit fear and anxiety. Functional MRI measurements were taken of the brain activity to look for changes in pain levels and emotions.

When the women were alone and receiving shocks, they felt fear and pain and the areas of their brains responsible for emotion were particularly active.

When a male member of the research team, whom they didn't know, held their hand during the shock, the women felt less fear.

When the women held their spouses' hands during the shocks, their brain activity calmed markedly at every level.  The act of holding the hand of someone you love reduced pain, and fear and anxiety.  This effect was also directly proportional to the love they felt for their partner - i.e. the marital quality.

So remember this when you are with someone who is anxious, fearful or in pain. Reach out and hold their hand.  Whether they are your partner, friend, a child or a stranger.  That simple act of hand holding can have a powerful effect on them.  And even if they aren't in pain or fearful, still hold their hand!

If you'd like to read the study, here is the link: Lending a hand

Anti-cancer - a new way of life

One of my favorite books about cancer is "Anticancer - A New way of life " by Dr David Servan-Schreiber.  He got brain cancer at an early age and set out to understand the complex inner workings of the body's natural cancer-fighting capabilities. The book is both a moving personal story and also exposes the facts on the roles that environment, lifestyle and trauma play in our health.

The books is a wonderful preventive book for all of us, as well as a healing book for those with cancer.

Here's an interview with Dr S.S:



I highly recommend everyone read his book.

Everything is tickety-boo

It's that time again for my weekly post where I share with you the things that have happened this week that make me feel that "everything is tickety-boo". 

Tickety-boo is more than just a feeling, it is a state of mind.  It doesn't mean that everything has be wonderful, just that you look for the good in your life and focus on that.   It's all about valuing the good things around you.  A way of looking beyond difficult things and appreciating the often simple, little things that make a difference.

As I write my "everything is tickety-boo" post each week, I hope you'll get the idea and take time to think about what has happened to you this past week and how it can help you feel tickety-boo.

Photo by davidhofmann08

Here is this week's list:

• seeing all the different wild flowers growing when we went hiking today - including the fritillaria in the photo above
• seeing pretty yellow and periwinkle colored moths and a snake on our hike
• singing, singing, singing.  As it's Easter week, I've been doing a lot of singing this week.  
• finishing my exams. Yippee!
• looking forward to the upcoming Sonoma International Film Festival this week, and choosing the movies I want to watch
• reading a new book which has a really different perspective on things and has made me think 
• laughing at Harold my pet parrot who scared away a hawk that flew into the porch.  You'd think Harold was so brave with the noise he made, but he's a really scaredy bird!  Obviously a window as protection helps!
• eating the best carrot dish ever - a "freshly dug"  carrot salad.  It was so yummy.  Had it for lunch at Bardessono in Yountville.  Confit carrot, carrot chips, fronds......lots of textures and every mouthful made me want to stop and savor it fully.
• hearing a little boy singing to himself as he waited for his mum at the post office.  He kept singing the same line  of a little song again and again  and jigging around as he sang it.  Soooo sweet!

Hope you've had a great week too.  Did something make you sing for joy this week?

Health benefits of ginger

I am a big ginger root fan.  I just love the taste of it - warming and a little spicy.  I could add it to most things - sweet or savory - and frequently do.

It has many health benefits, as well as tasting yummy.  Here are some highlights:

Photo by FotoosVanRobin

• Anti-inflammatory - ginger is a powerful anti-inflammatory that helps reduce both pain and inflammation. In a study published in the Journal of Pain, arthritic patients were given small amounts of ginger daily for three months. The majority of patients had significant improvement in pain, swelling and morning stiffness by eating ginger daily.  In another study, ginger was found to be superior to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) such as Tylenol or Advil because NSAIDS only work on one pathway in the body.  Ginger, on the other hand, blocks the formation of the inflammatory compounds prostaglandins and leukotrienes and also has anti-oxidant effects (greater than Vit E) that break down existing inflammation and acidity in the body within the joints. 
• Digestion - ginger balances COX-1 - an enzyme responsible for the gastric mucosal integrity, and is an antispasmodic. Thus is very effective for gastrointestinal disturbances, alleviating nausea, travel sickness, indigestion, IBS, loss of appetite, heartburn, bloating, ulcers etc.   I remember my sister always used to have ginger biscuits in the car when her boys were younger and whenever they felt a little car sick, they had a ginger biscuit and felt better. Similarly, my mother-in-law always used to eat a chocolate covered piece of ginger after dinner every night to help her digestion.  

Photo by Huffiz

• Cancer - several studies have demonstrated ginger's anti-cancer effects on several types of cancer including some of the most aggressive and difficult to treat: lung, ovarian, colon, breast, skin carcinoma, prostate and pancreatic
• Antibiotic - it is particularly effective against staphylococcal infections, and useful for respiratory and periodontal infections
• Antifungal - Fungal infections are among the most difficult to treat, but ginger has anti fungal capabilities
• Radiation - prevents vomiting and taste distortion associated with radiation
• Chemotherapy - ginger is very effective in reducing nausea associated with chemotherapy

..... and more.  The range and severity of conditions that ginger can help is stunning - and the research continues.

Here are a couple of ways to use ginger:
Ginger Tea:  Peel a 1 inch cube of ginger (the easiest way to peel it is to use a spoon, rather than a knife).  Slice it thinly or grate it.  Boil in 1 and 1/2 cups of water for about 10 minutes.  Add lemon/lime and/or stevia/honey, as desired.  Pour into a cup, relax and enjoy. More beneficial than ginger tea bags.

Ginger soak for aching muscles: Grate 4 teaspoons of ginger and seal it in a cotton/muslin bag.  Place the bag under running bathwater and then soak in the bath so as long as you want!

Ginger Glycerite: 1/4lb fresh ginger.  Chop the ginger roughly and place it in a food processor.  Add 1 cup food grade vegetable glycerin and process until the ginger is nearly incorporated into the liquid. Place mixture in a pint canning jar, mark with the day's date and leave on the counter for two weeks, shaking the jar every other day or so.  After two weeks, strain the mixture through muslin or cheesecloth and squeeze out as much of the liquid as possible. Discard the ginger.  The glycerite will now keep for 6 months.   Mix the glycerite with water, sparkling water, tea, or use as desired.

Grate or chop and use in soups, smoothies, salad dressings, marinades, yoghurts, and just about anything else!

What's your favorite ginger recipe?  How will you get your next healthy dose of ginger?

Everything is tickety-boo!

This is going to be a weekly post for me where I share with you the things that have happened each week that make me feel that everything is tickety-boo.

Photo by Abaraphobia

Tickety-boo is more than just a feeling, it is a state of mind.  It doesn't mean that everything has be wonderful, just that you look for the good in your life and focus on that.  It's not being false, it's just valuing the good things around you.  A way of looking beyond difficult things and appreciating the often simple, little things that make a difference.

As I write my "everything is tickety-boo" post each week, I hope you'll get the idea and take time to think about what has happened to you this past week and how it can affect your life positively.

So here is this week's list:

• the smile of stranger
• seeing the bright blue color on the back of bluebird in the garden.  That flash of brilliance was stunning
• my parents having an offer to buy their home
• sharing my home with lots of friends for my choir retreat this weekend
• making time to do lots of cooking and try new recipes
• surprising people with "secret" ingredients!
• hearing my parrot sing along with both the piano tuner this week, and also during our choir retreat.  How lovely that a bird wants to join in our music making
• seeing twin boys running with their dog
• watching the two turtles in our pond trying out the new duck house and also seeing a few ducks in the pond come for a viewing. 
• chatting to my nephews
• tidying my studio and having lots of new ideas
• taking a break from studying and feeling refreshed from it.

Hope you had lots of things that helped you feel tickety-boo this week too.  Here's to another week full of them :-D

144 foot xylophone in the middle of a forest

TED has a "ads worth watching" campaign to raise the bar for online advertising.   I love this ad that they featured which plays a 144 foot xylophone in the middle of a forest.  The ad is for a Japanese phone.  Beautiful.