Within/Without

Peace. I am one who cooks dinner every night. I'm old school like that. We only do fast food maybe once a month? I don't cook dinner on Tuesdays or Saturdays. Keeps me from becoming resentful. I am also one who gets bored eating the same old thing over and over again. I have been experimenting with different cultures and their food. And I have been adding some interesting things to my repertoire. I thought I'd share with you some of the foods I've made Putting an asterisk next to the food that I have never made before. Asian Week Fried Rice Egg foo yung Mongolian Veggie beef* Curry Fish in coconut sauce Mei Fun I only made 1 new thing that week so it was easy Mexican Week Bean Burritos Tacos Chick-un Chimichangas* Fish Enchiladas* Yo! Those chimichangas were so damn good! I also made enchilada sauce for the 1st time and that isht was good too! I have visions of making a chimichanga out of Thanksgiving leftovers.... The fish enchiladas were so so. I ...

Peace. I quit the Elimination diet. It wasn't doing anything for my feet. It seemed like it was working at the start, but my feet got worse. Especially after it started getting cold. It got so bad in spots that the skin just started to split and bleed. So I went to to the dermatologist. I have issues with the dermatologist.... but she did make a good point. I had restricted my diet so much and my feet were not improving. So.... it's over. The bright side is... I'm back on cheese! BUT.... The Dermatologist did a reasonably good job and advising me on treatment. (1) I got a cortisone shot. I knew that was coming. And you know what? It has stopped the frank stinging pain of this flare. (2) Topicort for my face seems to have stopped the face flare cold. (3) She told me about a technique called “occlusion”. You shower... while still damp add your intense moisturizer.... wrap afflicted areas with saran wrap.... cover with something. I used long socks... and wait. I did this o...

Peace. This is an sneak tip update... My boss has accused me of viraly infecting his computers. I haven't. Does he think I do internet porn all day in full view of the clients? But you know how bosses are. I so hope expect to find the position of my dreams before I'm 45.... I am still on the Elimination Diet. Here is the scary thing. I think I like it...... Since truly restricting my diet, I have gotten it down to a core of foods that don't bother me. I have said no to milk products outside of butter. And when it comes to butter, I don't eat it by itself. I eat it cooked in foods. And I avoid, though not completely soy. (I had some tofu to go bad and once you smell that....) I avoid adding sugar and salt to foods. And I avoid processed foods for the most part. Processed foods are of the devil! The 7 bought some cookies... generic chips ahoy I think... And I had 1. That 1 made me want another when I was clear I wasn't hungry. So I had the 2nd. Then I got a ...

Peace. I didn’t do an update last week on my elimination project, because it was shark week. Shark week has its own set of challenges. But now that it’s over I can honestly say that I think the Elimination Diet is starting to work. I have noticed that my foot skin is starting to heal. It crusted, now it’s coming off. The coming off isn’t sexy because (a) it itches and (b) its unsightly. But I can see true healing of my feet, ankles and legs. Yay!!! The flip side… Yes, I’m healing. But it’s not an easy process. I can’t eat what I’m used to eating. So I have been struggling to find alternatives. Precise can eat anything… and does! So there is always food looking me in the face. And I have had to exert quite a bit of will power to not devour the food. Just because I know it’s bad for me, doesn’t mean I still don’t want it. I sooooo do. And it’s not fair to ask him to eat as I am when he doesn’t have the same issues. I don’t’ think he can handle it. Now shark week…. Ever since I’ve...

Peace This is a girlie post. You have been warned… I just learned something very interesting about my facial skin. But I gotta give you some back-story first… I have always had normal skin. It’s never been oily and it’s not usually dry. If it leans in any direction it’s to the dry. Yes, I never had a pimply phase, pimple scars or big pores. But dry skin wrinkles faster. This Black WILL crack. I kinda wish I had a bit of oil, because every blue moon (cycle) when I get some, it gives me a lovely glow. But in the last few years (since I turned 40) the pendulum has swung to the dry side. At first it was just a tight feeling. Now it’s an outright flaking in my t-zone. I have upped my water intake, do moisturizing masks, added oil to my skin care regimen; I even started drinking a tablespoon of EVOO to make my coat shiny. All to no avail. I now keep moisturizer in my makeup bag. Well…. I have been doing my eyebrows lately… and btw, I LOVE what doing my brows has done to my face. Mys...

My elimination diet: No Gluten (even though I know I don’t have a gluten issue), Dairy, Soy Caffeinated Coffee, Sugar or Nuts. I already know I can only eat small quantities of night shades. Corn is genetically modified and eggs are questionable. I don’t eat a lot of eggs anyway. I don’t particularly like the taste. I had a store bought green smoothie this morning that blistered my tongue. I has pineapple in it. Pineapple does that to me. It’s on the list. Of the produce that elicits a flare in me, I noticed that I don’t flare if the produce is cooked. Yet another reason I probably will never be 100% raw. This being the 1st week I’m not sure of what I’m experiencing other than detox. Nothing has settled down as yet. Apparently, I need to eat like this for a moon cycle and then start adding foods back 1 at a time. Here is the kicker… the weather is changing. In a month’s time, the weather could possibly be completely different than it was when I started. Oh well… no more egos f...

Peace. Ok… Stuff be happening. I really like the place I’m at right now in life. I’m not old, but I’m not young anymore either. I’m at a place where I have a confidence and discernment. Folks just can’t just fool me at will. I can see things for what they really are. People, there is nothing wrong with getting older! I just wanted to say that for some reason. Maybe someone needed to see that. I have been trying to avoid doing a long term cleansing diet. I don’t like not having the easy options. But I have been suffering consistently from excema for no less than 5 years. Normally when I have an excemitic outbreak, it lasts for a season and then it will clear up completely. But for the last half of decade I have had irritating patches somewhere on my body. It’s not be in the same spot, but it’s always somewhere. It's currently trying to take hold of my face and you know that cannot happen. Excema is an auto immune disease. So…. Time to embark on the elimination diet. Which esse...

Peace. I have not been feeling 100%. I don’t feel like myself. I don’t look like myself to myself. I have low energy and I sleep all the time. Yet… I find myself with bouts of insomnia. My appetite hasn’t changed. I haven’t changed jobs, or moved or anything that could trigger a feelings like I have. My diet is still the same. I am worried about the fish supply, but that is another build. And I don’t know if it is because something is physically/physiologically wrong with me or I’m just getting old. I have been to see a doctor or two and all they say is lose weight and menopause is approaching. I cannot accept that. I have been roughly the same weight for the last 20 years and I have always felt good. And yes my hormones might be adjusting, but my cycle comes like clockwork every month and has not let up a bit. Plus… I’m not anywhere near 50. So…… I decided to do some natural treatments. I have decided to take on a 3 day Fruit Flush. http://www.loadedwithexcuses.com/images/Jay%20...

Peace. Yes I’m in crux of a hormone imbalance. Yes I can be salty and sweet. No, you don’t get to say anything about it! This chick came into my office yesterday and decide to judge what I was eating. I had a bag of Limon chips, a Twix and a Coke on my desk. A perfect PMS trinity. She got a bit and then realized where she erred and apologized. This post is dedicated to her and all the other people who caught an elbow for misspeaking.... I’m a woman still of childbearing age. Monthly… and still pretty damn regularly… I experience a 5 day shedding of my uterine lining. SO THE FUCK WHAT! I’m not ashamed. Why should I be? Most women experience the same shedding that I do. That’s a rite of passage in a human female’s life that marks her entry into the Woman’s Cipher. It is nothing to be ashamed of or feared. When I first got my period, like many young girls, I was unaware and unprepared. Your first cycle is very different from the rest. I thought I was pooping on myself. And I was you...

Peace! I tend to blog about healthy concerns. Making this blog at times entirely too serious. But I’m a girl. A girly girl at that and not the least bit ashamed. So today… We are talking about my hair! I have had locs since 2008. I said I would either loc my hair for my 40th bornday or sooner if something traumatic happened that I felt I needed to mark the day. My father died in 2008. I had my loose hair braided so that I didn’t have to think about hair while traveling and mourning. But when the hair came down I 2-strand twisted it and never looked back. I would have allowed the braids to become locs if I had had the foresight to get box braids instead of cornrows. When locs are short you can’t wait for them to get long. But now that mine are long I find them hard to control. Especially since I cover my hair almost all the time when I leave the house. When I run, I might run bareheaded but usually I wear a visor. That counts. Currently, my hair is passed my back bra strap. My goa...

Peace. I did it! I successfully completed a race! It was a race to support HBCU’s. Although I don’t think any money went toward any HBCU’s. I think it was just an opportunity for alumni to rep their school and do something healthy in the process. I paid $25. I got a shirt but no medal. Oh well. As with anything that our people do… It started a bit late. People were far too overdressed. And of course there was a party afterward. It was such a friends-and-family event. It looked like “old home week” in the line up. It was well attended (well over a 1000 people there) and I thoroughly enjoyed myself and plan to possibly run it again next year. Now on to the logistics…. That's my alma mater all front and center! I’m not sure if this is how it’s done, but I didn’t get the race route until the day before the race. I wish I would have known that there were true hills in the race. I don’t run hills. I don’t like hills, therefore I avoid them. Had I known there were going to be hi...

Peace. I know my last few posts have really been rants. But, I think I needed to feel that level of frustration to put things in perspective for me. Whether on the internet, with doctors/professional or in journals; you can find advice to support whatever you feel like doing and the contrary. So at the end of the day… you need to be doing what seems and feels right to you and keep it moving. That’s what I’m doing. Oh, I’ll still try new things every now and again, but I need to feel positive about what I do. So this weekend I crossed and half crossed off items from my fitness bucket list. Remember, last year I planned to run a 5K and didn’t. Well this year I signed up, paid for and picked up my shirt and bib. All I have to do is complete the race and I can check that off! In preparation for my race I have been running a 5k almost daily. And I’m staying truly hydrated. I installed a “drink water” app on my phone that harasses me every few hours. And I have been keeping water all a...

Peace. So…. I had another vertigo flare this past Sunday. Luckily it didn’t last long, just a few hours. Because I recognized what was happening allowed me to jump right in and get the meds on board. Here is what I think triggered it…. A combination of not eating and it being hot. Sunday was the 1st 90* day of the season. I HATE eating breakfast. I hate eating early, I hate breakfast foods (except for pancakes… love them joints). I hate the way I feel after eating it. Even if I don’t eat a lot, I still come down with the “itis.” So most days I just skip it. Even Ayurvedically, my dosha (Kapha) says don’t eat it. So I cooked for the 7, but didn’t eat myself. I also didn’t run. My phone wasn’t charged and by the time it did charge it was just too hot. So I was all mellow and chilling in the house. I was watching a show on TV that had just a mild amount of action (I’m thinking that watching a lot of movement is another though mild trigger)… all of a sudden my head is hurting, swirli...

Peace. I have been feeling some kind of way of late. I had a vertigo episode and it completely dropped me on my ass. I had aftershocks for about 2 weeks afterward. It totally stopped my May eating challenge. And that and some other things got me thinking… Why do I even bother??? I was reading an article that said smoothie/juice consumption is dangerous. I have also been inundated with articles and testimonies of the dangers of raw food veganism. Even vegetarianism has been deemed and “unhealthy trend.” The juice articles go on to say…. juicing methods remove the produce's fiber, drinking juice omits one of the key benefits of eating fruit, while delivering huge amounts of sugar and calories. It was also mentioned that it could actually cause crystal/stone formation! My vertigo could be a result of crystals in my ear apparatus. I’m not saying that I buy into this but damn….. I am striving to develop healthy habits so that I can maintain vitality into my later years without devel...

Peace. This is more of a vent than a Build….. Yesterday’s run SUCKED… and sucked hard. I am really disappointed with my body and it’s resistance to getting better at running. Last year I was running like 16-20 miles a week and now… I can barely get in 2 miles per session. Yesterday my legs felt like lead. I tripped twice, but didn't fall. I checked the calendar and I am not close to shark week so I cannot think of a reason why that run was just torture. I have been eating well. It wasn’t my feet, or the shoes, no was I ill in any way. I wasn’t even over hot. I know these runs happen but I prefer to know the reasons why. Anywho… I signed up and PAID FOR a 5k on June 28th. I need to get back to 4 miles as my regular run by the end of the month. All next month I want to improve my speed. Phooey….. Peace

Peace! Ok. I have been kinda ghost this month with my posting. I am still on the good foot. I am still doing am smoothies. I realize that I don’t just dislike breakfast foods; I dislike the entire meal. I never want to eat it. So smoothies work out just fine in my life. I’m not like the god who adores scheduled meals and will eat 8 pieces of vegan bacon. SMH… Grazing is my thing. I have been good with eating salads for lunch. It actually works out lovely because I can pre-make a salad and have it ready every morning to go into my lunch bag. I only eat 3 of the 4 days I work so 3 servings doesn’t take up a huge area of the refrigerator. So that means I’m raw until dinner. I can eat a raw dinner, but mostly I just eat whatever. Sometimes I don’t and that’s cool. With 2 out of 3 meals raw and the 3rd might possibly not exist… I am high raw!!!! This month is May (Master Allah Why?) So…. That means I’m Raising the Rod. If you are a long term follower, you know that means I am implementi...

Peace. I’m a little more than half way into my April Challenge of Solar Eating. I think I have it together now. It really is just a matter of planning and remembering that I’m not eating solid food at night. When I check the weather in the morning, I look at the sunrise and sunset times. That is how I determine when to start and stop. The weather also tells me what kind of food to eat that day. So It’s useful for various reason. I don’t feel any different per se…. I have been sleeping through the night without having crazy dreams. I’m not waking up starving or anything like that. I haven’t been running much (though that is about to change) so I can’t speak on how I feel exercise-wise. The only oddity is rainy days. Those are the soup days. That’s kinda hard to remember to take it easy on those days, but I have planned and prepared with stocking up on soup. All and all…. I’m going to continue. You knew I could. I did do the T.H.E.M. How to Eat to Live for 6 months last year and was ...

Peace. Since my fast has been over… and you know I had plans for how I was going to eat…. I have kept like 50% of my resolutions. I want to get closer to 80%. One resolution I have kept is the morning smoothie. A proper smoothie in the morning will keep hunger back and jumpstart the fruit/veggie requirement. Requirement isn’t quite the right word… but you get my point. Every morning I get 3 servings of produce in said smoothie. I don’t shoot for a lot of protein because I’m going to get that in the food. I think of what my body is needing and shoot for that in a smoothie. I am mostly concerned about my iron deficient anemia. I feel very strongly that if I can get my iron levels consistent I would feel stronger. Chronic anemia is a beyotch. And supplements is not how I want to control it. They constipate me and when poo finally does make it out… it itches. I don’t need any assistance constipating myself. It takes 24 hours for food to leave from mouth to behind. And that is just the ...

Peace. Last week I took my 1st sweat at a sweat lodge. I wanted to wait to articulate my feelings. A visit to a sweat lodge was on my hippie bucket list. I was VERY excited when the opportunity fell into my lap. And the timing was perfect. I was coming off my annual fast… Right before the Asiatic New year (solar holiday)…. During a full moon (lunar holiday). And all the elements were represented. The Fire, the Steam, the Wood and me… The Earth! All at the perfect concentric-ness. It was sublime. The sweat lodge was a dedicated lodge with a wood stove inside. The keeper kept it going and fed the stove and a fire directly outside the lodge. He also had herb infused water that he threw on the wood stove that gave off steam and threw on us. The location of the lodge was on a land trust in the middle of the city. That in itself was amazing to me. You just don’t expect that in an urban environment. Original people were the organizers of the sweat. I appreciated that. I don’t trust hi...

Peace. Y'all know I'm a "tryer". My newest thing to try is Kombucha. It's a fizzy fermented drink. It is pretty damn tasty too. Because it is fermented it is loaded with probiotics and enzymes. I have discussed how I don't trust that my stomach makes all the enzymes and has the flora to give me bountiful health so I thought this would be good for me. The 7 heard that it was powerhouse of healthy goodness. So..... I found a recipe. Now I could buy Kombucha in the store... But the price is about #3.50/20 oz bottle. No... Sorry... ain't about to fix my mouth up to fall in love or get addicted to something that costs that much. That's a pack of cigarettes for a beverage! What is Kombucha? Kombucha is a naturally carbonated fermented drink made from sweet tea. Kombucha is consumed all over the world. It has been part of many cultures for thousands of years. Kombucha popped up in China over 2,000 years ago, and has been traveling the world in vario...