LIFE. It’s all about learning how to love people unconditionally while they are here and release them valiantly when it is their time to go. To be able to love with all your might and let go with every ounce of grace you can goes hand in hand. We are not meant to be on this planet forever. We are not meant to hold hands with other physical beings forever, see the same eyes forever, exchange the same words and relish in the same thoughts forever.
Every day we must anticipate CHANGE.
Change. It can feel like a slap in the face sometimes yet is the one constant in life along with death and taxes. We have to roll with it or risk being run over by pushing against it. It comes in waves, sometimes storms. It can go against the grain, and yet we need to be able to catch onto the wings of change and somehow keep afloat. Compromise with multiple angles and adhere if we want to survive. Stay sane. Allow our minds to grow forward, up, and out into a bubble of optimism.
Breathe in with serenity and breathe out with ACCEPTANCE.
Acceptance. It is never about what we think it’s about. We think we need to learn how to understand other people and their mindsets, their opinions, their faults, their struggles and it has nothing to do with that. Acceptance is within YOU. Once you have that grandiose understanding of who you are, what you’re about and take a fine tooth comb through your own emotions until you can grasp that intricate little piece of YOU that you’ve been struggling to understand. Only then will you understand that acceptance of others comes naturally once you have reached the root of what YOU are all about.
It is about loving yourself unconditionally and understanding the art of FORGIVENESS.
Forgiveness. It has nothing to do with apologies and forgetting the wrong that has been done to you. It has to do with loving yourself enough to do RIGHT to your soul. It is the greatest gift you can give yourself. You have to love yourself enough to let go of anger. Respect yourself enough to know your own worth. You don’t deserve the doubt, the regret, the wonder of trying to figure out everyone's baggage. Their wrong doing is not your burden to bear. Love and let go. Realize the reward of an honorable conscience and a well rounded heart. And so continues the journey of LIFE.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Monday, September 3, 2012
Can't get enough of these yummy balls :)
~Nutritious and delicious Energy balls~
1 cup dry oats (I use a mix of steel cut and old fashioned oats)
1/2 cup ground flaxseeds
2/3 cups organic coconut flakes
1 1/2 tbsp. Navita’s Naturals chia seeds
2 tbsp. Navita’s Naturals Raw Maca powder
1/2 cup roughly chopped 80% cacao chocolate (I use Ghiradelli)
1 cup peanut butter (I use MaraNatha organic)
1/3 cup organic honey
1 tsp. vanilla
Method: Stir all of the ingredients together until blended. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1/2 hour to firm up. Roll into golf ball size bites and store in the fridge. Enjoy!!
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Just a lil' blog about equality, hypocrites, and nasty chicken sandwiches
If you’ve peeked at the news at all lately you’d know that the CEO of Chick-fil-A restaurants has willingly put his foot in his mouth when admitting his distaste for same sex marriage and stating that he’s for the biblical form of family unions. Obviously, since this is a country divided by politics, women and men are on the edge of their seats just waiting for the next controversial remark to slide off of a citizen’s tongue in order to let chaos ensue and protests run rampage in an effort to fight for their rights and beliefs. CEO, Dan Cathy holds his ground. He’s a christian after all and well, they just don’t believe in the actions of same sex love, according to him.
Free speech or not, it’s probably not wise to state that you and your company are against same sex unions unless you intend to spark some major protests and risk a quick boycott on your business. On the other hand, those who support his position are lined up at the door ready to proudly purchase their fat ridden sandwiches and milk shakes as a way to condone his right to free speech and agree with his statements. Things are never really about what they’re about, there’s always underlining issues and emotions that make people do the things they do, in this case it’s whether or not to purchase a chicken sandwich based on a remark by the CEO.
Some people support the fact that Dan Cathy had the balls to stand up for what he believes to be right and some people want to cut off his balls for saying it, either way people are all fired up...which leads me to question: Should this guy get a bad rap for stating what (unfortunately) other people in the world are (still) thinking? Well yes I suppose. If you’re going to say something you have to be willing to take the multitude of backlash that comes along with it, you open yourself up to the barrage of opinions and supposedly “unholy” like relationships that (like it or not) exist in the world today. The good, the bad, and the ugly will trail after every word you speak, especially if you announce it to where the world will hear it.
It is 2012 people, times have changed things. This isn’t just about whether or not someone condones your sexual choices. It is about equality. It is about rights. It is about humanity, civil decency, and respect to our fellow citizens. This is how people fight for their liberty in 2012. You make a comment about being anti-gay and it will not get brushed off people’s shoulders. It’s not always about what the bible says to be right or wrong, if you’re going to bring out the good ol’ Leviticus 18:22 verse that states “thou shall not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is an abomination,” then you better also follow everything else that the bible says you are not to do unless you'd like to risk looking like a hypocrite.
For example, Leviticus 19:27 states, “Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of they beard.” (Hmm...Dan Cathy has a shaved head and no facial hair. Is he disobeying God’s command?) Leviticus 19:28 states “Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.”(Hmm...Dan Cathy has his own motorcycle gang called Moo Cow bikers and has been quoted saying: “I think we all need more friends with tattoos, ponytails and earrings!”) I could go all day with this but you get my point here!
I am not anti bible and I am not anti-God. I believe that whether you are straight, gay, tranny, bi-tri, purple, spotted, unicorned, what the hell ever, sleep with whomever and buy what you want and marry who you choose to, as long as you do not hurt anyone else by doing it that is OK by me. WE are equal. But hey, since I’m on a bible verse role here, let’s whip out a few more shall we? Make your brain like a sponge and absorb them please:
Corinthians 3:16
"Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple."
Genesis 1:29
And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food."
Proverbs 21:21 He who pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor.
Proverbs 15:17 Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred.
By the way, this is the first blog that I have ever quoted bible verses! I don’t obsess over all of it’s hidden meanings and rules, but I only stated these things because:
Every Christian in support of Dan Cathy who is against gay marriage needs to know that they are appearing to be a hypocrite if they stand in line for their Chik-Fil A sandwich in an effort to back his statements. Why you ask? Well for starters, God intended for us to live, eat, and survive off of the earth, hence his “seed.” He did not state anything in the Bible about consuming monosodium glutamate (MSG) which is one of the main ingredients in the sandwich. So if you point your finger at the gays and say they’re living in sin, well so are you my friend. Fix your diet. You should be treating your body like a temple and honoring your physical and moral self. Eating chemically laced foods is in violation of God’s will. You should not be poisoning your body. Your gift of life is being invaded by toxins with every bite from Chik-Fil- A. Yes it is. Here are the ingredients in their sandwich:
• monosodium glutamate (twice!)
• soybean oil
• sodium aluminum phosphate
• dimethylpolysiloxane (an anti-foaming chemical) <---that’s a filler in breast implants!
• high fructose corn syrup <----GAH! Don't even get me started on this one!
• ammonium sulfate
• soy lecithin
• sodium benzoate
• polysorbate 80
• yellow 5
• blue 1
• potassium sorbate
• TBHQ
The longer list can be found below:
http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Food/Menu-Detail/ChickfilA-Chicken-Sandwich#?details=ingredients
If you claim to follow the teachings of Christ and yet practice gluttony and willingly eat things that are toxic you are living a lie and will go to hell. Right? If you claim to be a Christian but do not practice good nutrition, all the prayer in the world will not save you from disease, diabetes, and Alzheimer's. You are abusing your temple and God helps those who help themselves. Clean your body and clean your mind. Fast food is toxic to your temple and you are disrespecting God when you disrespect your body.
Seriously though, doesn’t this whole battle of gay rights vs. chicken sandwiches seem a bit ridiculous? If you’re that worked up over his comments just stop eating his unhealthy sandwiches. You’ll outlive the guy and his asinine thoughts won’t matter anyway! Let the supporters of his restaurant clog their arteries and get fat. Wake up!! Quit being programmed like a robot to eat this junk just because a commercial glamorizes it by having a gorgeous set of red lips tease you into eating it. You are smarter than that!
I think I’ll go eat some fruit and fuel my temple now. In closure: Eat to live, don’t live to eat. Love yourself and you will learn to love all others. Don’t get your panties in a bunch over all this chaos --stupid people say stupid shit all the time, we just don’t hear about it. Acceptance of same sex relationships is just around the corner and if you stop eating drug laced Chick-fil A sandwiches you may still be alive to see it.
Free speech or not, it’s probably not wise to state that you and your company are against same sex unions unless you intend to spark some major protests and risk a quick boycott on your business. On the other hand, those who support his position are lined up at the door ready to proudly purchase their fat ridden sandwiches and milk shakes as a way to condone his right to free speech and agree with his statements. Things are never really about what they’re about, there’s always underlining issues and emotions that make people do the things they do, in this case it’s whether or not to purchase a chicken sandwich based on a remark by the CEO.
Some people support the fact that Dan Cathy had the balls to stand up for what he believes to be right and some people want to cut off his balls for saying it, either way people are all fired up...which leads me to question: Should this guy get a bad rap for stating what (unfortunately) other people in the world are (still) thinking? Well yes I suppose. If you’re going to say something you have to be willing to take the multitude of backlash that comes along with it, you open yourself up to the barrage of opinions and supposedly “unholy” like relationships that (like it or not) exist in the world today. The good, the bad, and the ugly will trail after every word you speak, especially if you announce it to where the world will hear it.
It is 2012 people, times have changed things. This isn’t just about whether or not someone condones your sexual choices. It is about equality. It is about rights. It is about humanity, civil decency, and respect to our fellow citizens. This is how people fight for their liberty in 2012. You make a comment about being anti-gay and it will not get brushed off people’s shoulders. It’s not always about what the bible says to be right or wrong, if you’re going to bring out the good ol’ Leviticus 18:22 verse that states “thou shall not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is an abomination,” then you better also follow everything else that the bible says you are not to do unless you'd like to risk looking like a hypocrite.
For example, Leviticus 19:27 states, “Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of they beard.” (Hmm...Dan Cathy has a shaved head and no facial hair. Is he disobeying God’s command?) Leviticus 19:28 states “Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.”(Hmm...Dan Cathy has his own motorcycle gang called Moo Cow bikers and has been quoted saying: “I think we all need more friends with tattoos, ponytails and earrings!”) I could go all day with this but you get my point here!
I am not anti bible and I am not anti-God. I believe that whether you are straight, gay, tranny, bi-tri, purple, spotted, unicorned, what the hell ever, sleep with whomever and buy what you want and marry who you choose to, as long as you do not hurt anyone else by doing it that is OK by me. WE are equal. But hey, since I’m on a bible verse role here, let’s whip out a few more shall we? Make your brain like a sponge and absorb them please:
Corinthians 3:16
"Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple."
Genesis 1:29
And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food."
Proverbs 21:21 He who pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor.
Proverbs 15:17 Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred.
By the way, this is the first blog that I have ever quoted bible verses! I don’t obsess over all of it’s hidden meanings and rules, but I only stated these things because:
Every Christian in support of Dan Cathy who is against gay marriage needs to know that they are appearing to be a hypocrite if they stand in line for their Chik-Fil A sandwich in an effort to back his statements. Why you ask? Well for starters, God intended for us to live, eat, and survive off of the earth, hence his “seed.” He did not state anything in the Bible about consuming monosodium glutamate (MSG) which is one of the main ingredients in the sandwich. So if you point your finger at the gays and say they’re living in sin, well so are you my friend. Fix your diet. You should be treating your body like a temple and honoring your physical and moral self. Eating chemically laced foods is in violation of God’s will. You should not be poisoning your body. Your gift of life is being invaded by toxins with every bite from Chik-Fil- A. Yes it is. Here are the ingredients in their sandwich:
• monosodium glutamate (twice!)
• soybean oil
• sodium aluminum phosphate
• dimethylpolysiloxane (an anti-foaming chemical) <---that’s a filler in breast implants!
• high fructose corn syrup <----GAH! Don't even get me started on this one!
• ammonium sulfate
• soy lecithin
• sodium benzoate
• polysorbate 80
• yellow 5
• blue 1
• potassium sorbate
• TBHQ
The longer list can be found below:
http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Food/Menu-Detail/ChickfilA-Chicken-Sandwich#?details=ingredients
If you claim to follow the teachings of Christ and yet practice gluttony and willingly eat things that are toxic you are living a lie and will go to hell. Right? If you claim to be a Christian but do not practice good nutrition, all the prayer in the world will not save you from disease, diabetes, and Alzheimer's. You are abusing your temple and God helps those who help themselves. Clean your body and clean your mind. Fast food is toxic to your temple and you are disrespecting God when you disrespect your body.
Seriously though, doesn’t this whole battle of gay rights vs. chicken sandwiches seem a bit ridiculous? If you’re that worked up over his comments just stop eating his unhealthy sandwiches. You’ll outlive the guy and his asinine thoughts won’t matter anyway! Let the supporters of his restaurant clog their arteries and get fat. Wake up!! Quit being programmed like a robot to eat this junk just because a commercial glamorizes it by having a gorgeous set of red lips tease you into eating it. You are smarter than that!
I think I’ll go eat some fruit and fuel my temple now. In closure: Eat to live, don’t live to eat. Love yourself and you will learn to love all others. Don’t get your panties in a bunch over all this chaos --stupid people say stupid shit all the time, we just don’t hear about it. Acceptance of same sex relationships is just around the corner and if you stop eating drug laced Chick-fil A sandwiches you may still be alive to see it.
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Lookey what I made ~~~
I did it! I created something yummy and somewhat good for you using things I had in the cupboard plus a creative imagination...and hot damn the thing actually turned out! For once I actually wrote down and measured the things I added so that I can no longer say “Oh I just threw some stuff together” when someone asks me for the recipe. So here it is, I think I’ll call it .....
“GOOEY COOKIE PIE”
Ingredients:
1 15 oz. can garbanzo beans
1 15 oz. can butter beans
1 cup organic oats
1/2 cup applesauce (unsweetened)
3 tbsp. coconut oil
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. celtic sea salt
1 1/2 cups coconut palm sugar (I use nativa’s naturals)1 cup ghiradelli 60% cacao chocolate chips
Mix it all together (except the chocolate chips) and blend up well in a food processor. Stir in the chocolate chips. Use coconut oil to grease a glass pie baking dish and pour in the batter. Cook at 350 for 35 minutes and let it cool for 10 minutes before devouring.
Mmmmm...... I think this may be gone by morning. Love it.
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
A little random chant about life :)
The quality and enjoyment of your life has NOTHING to do with where you live but HOW you choose to live.
It has nothing to do with how many people you know, but how well you actually know yourself.
It has nothing to do with how much money you have, but whether you earned it in an honorable fashion.
It has nothing to do with how big your home is, but how big your heart is.
It has nothing to do with how much you know about the details of others peoples lives, but how much you truly care to discover about your own.
It has nothing to do with how expensive the car is that you drive, but how worthy the driver is of the car.
It has nothing to do with where you came from but where you plan to take yourself, how you plan to get there, and the amount of integrity you dedicate to following the path you set.
It has nothing to do with who thinks what about you, but how much time you care to dedicate to the opinion of others.
It has nothing to do with circumstance and everything to do with creating your own destiny.
It has nothing to do with “could have been” or “should have done”, but everything to do with “Today I will” and “Now I can.”
It has nothing to do with the past, everything to do with the present. It has nothing to do with what was, but what CAN BE.
It has nothing to do with the possessions in your life, but the people in your life. It has nothing to do with those you chose to forget and everything to do those worth remembering.
It has nothing to do with worry, regret, and grudges for they should drop away as easy as the sunset. It has EVERYTHING to do with gratitude, forgiveness, and LOVE.
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Mother's Day: It's not just for the living
Yup. I’m the crazy girl who went and bought a Mother’s Day card even though her Mom is passed away. I didn’t do it because I forgot that she died, so I guess I could be even crazier. I did it because I wanted to. I felt better after doing it so it can only be a good thing.
All month long it felt like I was bombarded with “deals” catering towards MOM and what I am to buy that special mother in my life. I got hundreds of emails from local spas, beauty shops, Godiva chocolates and they’re over priced decadent red boxes, from jewelry stores to bakeries, all the damn coupons for Kohls, Herbergers, Macys, and every other store on the face of the planet all boasting MOM MOM MOM. BUY BUY BUY. STAB STAB STAB.
You can’t turn your head down an aisle in Target without seeing signs or balloons screaming Mother’s Day at you and damn it... I want a Mom that I can see not just feel, but whatever presence I get will have to do because her feet no longer make prints on this earth, even though they float through my house daily (this I know) and she tip toes all over my dreams at night (yes it is possible to have full conversations with the dead in a subconscious state of mind). I want to pick up a phone and call her. I want her voice. I want her back in the physical world and that is not going to happen. It sucks and that’s it. Happy Mother’s Day isn’t as happy as I would like this year.
So this card aisle in Target has been beckoning me to invade it for weeks now and purchase a card for my Mom in celebration of Mother’s Day. Quite frankly I was tired of the whole mind debate over whether buying a card would then depict me as clinically insane or whether one may see it as mental/grieving therapy shit. I opted for the latter and perused the Mother’s day card section today. It took a very very long time (well maybe 20 minutes or so) to find a card that was somewhat appropriate for the departed mother. It was not easy! They really need a “trying to get over the loss of a mother during mother’s day” card section. There is none. Yes there is a need (hence ME). I could literally feel my Mom’s spirit peek behind my shoulder as I browsed. I could feel her softly giggle/sigh about it, doing that rolling of her eyes thing (but not really rolling them because she never wanted to be rude so she would sort of close them and roll them under her lids discretely and then open her eyes again). Then she’d say “Oh Melanie...” I know she’s getting a kick out of this which in part is why I did it.
I finally found a card that made me laugh. A photo of little girl purchasing a pair of designer shoes for 50% off and saying “Thanks Mom you taught me well!” This is true. Past, present, future, whatever. I can always thank my Mom for passing down her love to shop! I picked it up and bought it. Now I’m going to write it out. Yes I am. I am going to write this card to my Mom because I KNOW she will see it because she’s still around. I want her to know she will always be a part of my life and will never be forgotten. She will always be worthy of thanks and always be deserving of a Mother’s Day card even if her hands can’t hold it. I will lay it open on my night stand until this weekend passes and hope her eyes can see it. I know they will.
So I’m not fit for the loony bin just yet. I’m simply trying to let her know that I will always be a proud and thankful daughter who will take the time to cherish her memory. I will always have a place in my heart that will feel her love because dead or alive you never stop needing and appreciating your Mother and your Mother never really leaves you either. She just switches forms. That's it.
All month long it felt like I was bombarded with “deals” catering towards MOM and what I am to buy that special mother in my life. I got hundreds of emails from local spas, beauty shops, Godiva chocolates and they’re over priced decadent red boxes, from jewelry stores to bakeries, all the damn coupons for Kohls, Herbergers, Macys, and every other store on the face of the planet all boasting MOM MOM MOM. BUY BUY BUY. STAB STAB STAB.
You can’t turn your head down an aisle in Target without seeing signs or balloons screaming Mother’s Day at you and damn it... I want a Mom that I can see not just feel, but whatever presence I get will have to do because her feet no longer make prints on this earth, even though they float through my house daily (this I know) and she tip toes all over my dreams at night (yes it is possible to have full conversations with the dead in a subconscious state of mind). I want to pick up a phone and call her. I want her voice. I want her back in the physical world and that is not going to happen. It sucks and that’s it. Happy Mother’s Day isn’t as happy as I would like this year.
So this card aisle in Target has been beckoning me to invade it for weeks now and purchase a card for my Mom in celebration of Mother’s Day. Quite frankly I was tired of the whole mind debate over whether buying a card would then depict me as clinically insane or whether one may see it as mental/grieving therapy shit. I opted for the latter and perused the Mother’s day card section today. It took a very very long time (well maybe 20 minutes or so) to find a card that was somewhat appropriate for the departed mother. It was not easy! They really need a “trying to get over the loss of a mother during mother’s day” card section. There is none. Yes there is a need (hence ME). I could literally feel my Mom’s spirit peek behind my shoulder as I browsed. I could feel her softly giggle/sigh about it, doing that rolling of her eyes thing (but not really rolling them because she never wanted to be rude so she would sort of close them and roll them under her lids discretely and then open her eyes again). Then she’d say “Oh Melanie...” I know she’s getting a kick out of this which in part is why I did it.
I finally found a card that made me laugh. A photo of little girl purchasing a pair of designer shoes for 50% off and saying “Thanks Mom you taught me well!” This is true. Past, present, future, whatever. I can always thank my Mom for passing down her love to shop! I picked it up and bought it. Now I’m going to write it out. Yes I am. I am going to write this card to my Mom because I KNOW she will see it because she’s still around. I want her to know she will always be a part of my life and will never be forgotten. She will always be worthy of thanks and always be deserving of a Mother’s Day card even if her hands can’t hold it. I will lay it open on my night stand until this weekend passes and hope her eyes can see it. I know they will.
So I’m not fit for the loony bin just yet. I’m simply trying to let her know that I will always be a proud and thankful daughter who will take the time to cherish her memory. I will always have a place in my heart that will feel her love because dead or alive you never stop needing and appreciating your Mother and your Mother never really leaves you either. She just switches forms. That's it.
Sunday, May 6, 2012
The real life Barbie Doll. I can't believe this!
I honestly thought someone had made a really large Barbie doll and was taking photos of it so I never really clicked on the articles that followed until today. Then I became obsessed. How can this be? How can she look so much like a freakin’ Barbie doll? This is crazy! Even if she had a ton of surgeries, how does one actually accomplish this? Did she go to the plastic surgeon with all the calculations of hip, breast, and waist measurements to be translated from barbie to human form and say “create this?” I look at the photos and I’m not going to lie...my jaw dropped. I could not believe this was an actual human being!
Her skin looks like porcelain. Every part of her body looks airbrushed. Her breasts are exactly like a Barbie dolls. Were her ribs removed? Are her eyeballs made of painted glass? How can she see then? Her eyes are designed just like Barbie’s. This shit is crazy to me. Were her nipples removed like Barbie’s? I don’t even want to think about her vagina. Did she get her hips extended? Do they make hip implants? How does her waist get so tiny? Does she eat at all?! She seems to be obsessed with fulfilling her dream of becoming a Barbie doll. If you google her name over 10,000 pictures will pop up so she definitely has her vanity intact. I still cannot believe this is a real person!
People obviously have their opinions and question her mental stability as well as call her names like freaky and insane, but I have to say (besides the fact that she may be risking her health to accomplish this look), the girl doesn’t lack in determination. How many people would spend that much money to accomplish this? Her recovery time from surgery as well as the risks along this journey did not stop her. She wanted to be a Barbie doll and she IS the closest living form of the doll I have ever seen. There is no denying that every photo of her gets a double take and a WOW. I have never seen anything like it. I will say it one last time and then I am done obsessing: I can’t believe this is a real person!
I wonder what she looks like when she smiles though? I bet she’ll get the teeth done next, or rather one big connected piece of white porcelain.... I wonder if she’ll get her feet permanently arched like Barbies. Does she have a pink car? Would she make her boyfriend turn into Ken Doll ? Ugh. It never ends!
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