Bahhh. Now is the transition from classes to fieldwork. I have to work on my thesis as well as apply for jobs. I am very glad to be done with classes forever though. Now I can study things I actually want to study.

Applying for jobs is a lot of work though. I want something interesting, more than anything. We shall see.

I have a new side interest: reading blogs of people doing the "paleo" diet. It's so funny, because they're so similar to the raw vegans, though what they allow is much different: meat, meat, some veg, berries, some starch, cooked is generally okay. As far as doing what they think is natural, and searching for the perfect diet, they are nearly the same. I feel like an anthropologist, wading through the claims of perfect health and all-problems-vanishing. It's true that we can control more than we sometimes think--but far more often, we have no control over things that happen.

In the meantime, I am thinking that a great sandwich would consist of: 80% chocolate squares with a nut butter inside. Not perfect anything, but delicious and not too sweet. Mmmm....

Herbal teas!

Today is a beautiful day! I'm finishing up classes, getting ready for the summer and looking over my resume. In the background, the sky is so blue and it's warm enough to wear dresses.

I've been experimenting with herbal teas a lot lately, going by my gut feeling. I imagine what each will feel like, once taken into my body. I've been spending a lot of time by the bulk herb and spice jars at the coop! I'm also gathering edible weeds again, and juicing them with lemons. It doesn't always taste that great, but I know it's good for me.

Some of the teas:
-hibiscus--high in vitamin C, it makes up "te de jamaica" in Spanish (not sure which countries). I add this because it tastes good. Adds a red hue. I wonder if this is the major ingredient in that "Red Zinger" tea (Celestial Seasonings).
-nettle--recommended for allergies. It can often be gathered, just watch out for the stinging! It was pretty cheap in bulk, so I just bought that.
-pau d'arco--supposed to be good for lots of different things. Just tastes like bark or something. It's very mildly bitter, so not hard to take.
-licorice (the real stuff)--sweet, supposed to help with digestion at times
-mint--I sometimes add for the flavor
-echinacea--I *love* the flavor of the Traditional Medicinals echinacea teas. However, the bulk tea isn't the same as their particular mix, so it doesn't taste the same. It doesn't taste like much at all. I should figure out what else is in it, that I like so much, if it can be pinned down to one herb. Maybe it is that mix, though.
-Yerba mate. The bitterness feels right for me at this time, and it gives a gentle morning boost.

Other ones I would like to try:
-lemongrass (yummy)
-cat's claw (had this in Peru, supposed to be good for almost everything, harder to find here)
-there was a bulk decaffeinated mango green tea in bulk at Greenstar. It smelled sooooo good!~

Beautiful summary day today! I went to the farmer's market and a compost fair--I am in love with the idea of a composting toilet (recycling nutrients!). They do NOT smell, but you have to manage it like any compost pile.

I also went shopping in the bulk herbs and spices section. I must have spent 20 minutes, looking around, trying to listen to my gut: "How will I feel if I ingest this?" In the end, I left with not as much as I wanted (but I have ideas for the future!): onion granules (more for flavor than medicinal purposes), hibiscus (for tea), nettle (for tea--helps with allergies), and ginger (for medicinal purposes). I've been making loose teas with my mini-French press, originally for coffee (got it for my bday). It works great.

Have also been mixing coconut flour with water or almond milk, cinnamon, and a little stevia powder. Coconut flour is expensive but I love it so much!

It's spring again today! Flowers spray the air with their sent and the sun dances in the sky. 1.5 weeks of classes left, then finals. I'm learning about fruit trees in one of my classes right now. It's a pretty reductionist class, but I still like hearing about fruit.

My new favorite flour is coconut flour! It is naturally a bit sweet and delicious, and makes great cookies. Would make a nice grain-less cake, too. Use some good quality coconut oil to stick it all together..mmmm.... I added cinnamon, too.

It's a rainy, chilly day. I'm going to have to take a hot bath :)

reading reading

I'm looking for new books to investigate through Amazon. The reviews that are 4 or 3 stars are usually the best--they will honestly point out flaws without being married to ideology, like many (not all!) of the 1 or 5 star reviews. I'm going through the Paleo books--like raw vegan but with meat instead of so much fruit and veggies, and some of them do cook. So interesting how similar they are; now I can clearly see why people distrust all ideologies. People just take what fits and ignore what doesn't. (note: many of them tried a strict vegan or raw vegan diet. So there are more similarities than not).

Partly it's fascinating to me because it's so different from what I like--instinctively, I think it's better to avoid eating animals, but the Paleo meals sounds so disgusting to me! I really never liked animal fat, and it wasn't because my parents discouraged it at all (they didn't). It's so interesting that some people have completely different preferences from me. It's a little easier to stomach reading about than the typical SAD food eater, because at least the Paleo people are minorly concerned about animal welfare. Anyway, I do like raw vegan food (just not the restrictiveness) and I am not going "Paleo" at all, but I like to read about experiences totally different from my own. (FYI--my favorite kind of meat, right before going vegetarian, was dry, white chicken. It seemed more like paper than an animal. This is not what the Paleo eater recommend eating. They are 180 from me).

Who can be so strict forever? I like hanging out with vegan-friendly people (vegan-friendly enough to share a vegan meal with me, but do whatever they feel is right for them), and leaving it at that. Whatever else they do, as long as they are nice enough and trying their best, is fine. I want to keep mellowing out as I age ;)