"Snow" Day

Today is a snow day. More specifically an 'inclement weather' day. 

It was a little touch-and-go around 6:58am when I checked my work e-mails and didn't see any office closure notifications. Then I checked the school district website: closed! That used to be the only criterion for office closures but somehow the closure of government offices in the city in which our office is located (Dallas) is now included on that list of pre-requisites. 

Dallas' government offices never close for bad weather (which likely accounts, in part, for the perpetual grumpy demeanor of all government employees; yes, this is a stereotype, but it is also a fact). So our office remained open for business - but we were urged to use our 'best judgment' and 'choose safety' as we decided whether or not to brave the accident-riddled roads and slick pavements. I had a choice to make: Go to work through ice and sleet and snow and gusting blades of ice? OR Stay home and warm and wait it out like a smart, evolved, life-preserving being? The latter, please!

Alas, the company came through and closed the office officially. Dallas finally announced (around 8:45am) the closure of its court system for Tuesday. 

Bear in mind 'treacherous' and 'gusting' are relative terms. Wisconsinites would likely scoff and smirk condescendingly at our softness.

can you see the icicles??

For now I'm sipping my third giant mug of coffee this morning and enjoying the slow progression of a day with minimal and pleasant expectations. 

(I started my coffee pot and noticed after a couple of minutes that no coffee was being made; the coffee pot decided it was done making coffee for me after 6 years of loyal service. So I turned to my reliable and non-electric French Press.)

It's not that I'm especially tired or caffeine-starved; mostly I just want to have something warm in my hands - whenever I glance outside to see icicles dangling from my patio and little snow flakes coursing sporadically through the air, it makes for a cozy contrast. The sun decided to peek out for 3 seconds just now and make the snow flakes look more like silvery glitter darting around my backyard. Kevin would say they are fairies. <3

I've decided my to-do list for today is as follows (subject to change/whims):

1. Morning yoga. I never do yoga in the mornings - on a Tuesday, most especially - and so I plan on taking advantage of this very quiet morning to stretch and salute the day and let my brain know that I want it to engage and be happy and centered today. Stress be damned; I am striving so hard to ignore its skill at destroying my happiness and contentedness - one day I will forget what all the stress was about and simply recall having been happy or unhappy. I really don't want to look back on my life and feel I was pointlessly disappointed and needlessly let down by completely unmemorable and unimportant rifts and strifes with people who pass in and out of my life like little flecks of snow on the grass.

2. Watch the last episode of 'The Office' Season 6. Kevin finished it last night after I simply had to go to bed. I knew I'd have to get up earlier to allow for the atrocious weather and road conditions which I have thankfully been saved from after all. At least I have been up since around 7 this morning. I'm so glad I didn't go back to bed, however tempting that was, for sure.

3. A little housecleaning. Dishes, laundry, maybe a touch of ironing (at least that's warm!) and some Swiffer-ing.

4. Cooking! I think a big pot of something yummy like potato soup or chili would suit the day.

5. Hmm ... I guess that's all. *smile*

New Year's Resolution: To treat my body better

This winter I resolved to change my habits for the better. Someone once said something about insanity and doing the same things over with the expectation of a different result. I'm over doing the same thing over; over and done. I'm ready to really change my habits, make them better and heathier, smarter. New year; new start ... here's hoping I can make it last.

Speaking of new starts, check out my new haircut. Now you see it now you don't! I decided to go extra short. I have wanted to for so long and finally did. It is one of the most liberating things I've done and I don't see myself 'going back' for a long time.

Before ...

After ...

One of the facets of my self-improvement is fitness. Since September (ish) I have been doing yoga at my house with a friend three evenings a week. It makes me feel better, more connected, more vibrant. I used to do yoga ALL the time. When I was living with my parents (over 6 years ago) and going to school in the mornings, I would come home and have lunch with my mom and then spend sometimes all afternoon and evening studying, reading, listening to music and practicing yoga in my room. My parents said I was 'cloistering' myself. I believed I was taking care of myself. I still do.

I think yoga has the power to restore my body; I have already seen it happening over the last few months. I feel stronger and more centered. I feel more at rest mentally; this is huge - no other pratice has had the ability to do this for me. I can't believe I allowed myself to drop the practice of yoga for so long knowing its healing power. It's a rush of energy, strength and peace throughout my body ... a connection with something great within myself. I can't imagine not doing yoga; I know life with yoga and life without it: life with yoga is a much better way to live.

So ... I continue my yoga practice 3 times a week. I supplement it with healthier eats and happier thoughts - I find the latter comes even more naturally with the incorporation of yoga into my routine. I eat more raw foods, fruits and vegetables and less animal products - no meat (sometimes a piece of tilapia), but still eggs from time to time and my Greek yogurt drizzled over almond granola. I try not to eat sugar and desserts (honey in my tea though). I make lots of tabbouleh and raw cabbage salad dressed with olive oil and lemon juice, steamed broccoli, curried chickpeas. Between meals I snack on apples, bananas, grapes, almonds or a glass of So Delicious Dairy Free. My goal is to go entirely vegan this year; I haven't gone 'cold turkey', but I'm making the shift.

Here are a couple of recipes for raw, vegan foods that I adore. They are nothing but pure goodness for your body and mind.

TABBOULEH:

I love tabbouleh! I could eat it every day and not tire of it.

You can find my full recipe here.


RAW CABBAGE SALAD:

I first made this salad (not exactly the same) a couple of years ago. I was actually making a 'regular' (lettuce) salad and thought it would be nice to add some raw cabbage for crunch (not to mention heart health). I loved it. This version is now all cabbage and no lettuce so I guess it's technically a slaw, but I don't drown it in a fatty mayo dressing; just some olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice.

1/2 head cabbage, green or red, grated or chopped into small pieces
1 tomato, diced small
1/4 green bell pepper, diced small
1 carrot, grated
1/3 large cucumber, peeled and diced small
2 green onions, chopped (greens and whites)
1 T capers, drained and rinsed
2 eggs, hardboiled and coarse chopped (obviously if I was a pure vegan I wouldn't include this)
1/2 cup parsley, chopped

drizzle of olive oil
juice of 1/2 a large lemon

Combine all the prepared vegetables and toss with the oil and lemon juice. Season with Kosher salt and fresh cracker pepper.




Leftovers for lunch today.


RawFoodRecipes.com is a great website I stumbled upon in my quest for health. It's a great resource for all things vegetarian, vegan and raw.

Let me know what you are doing this year to make your body and mind a better place to live. And please share your healthy recipes, too!!