follow your art

thanksgiving sed day 30

kittylefish — Tue, 01 Dec 2015 04:04:34 GMT

well, it's done. i managed every day in november. well, theoretically, as soon as i figure out wth i'm grateful for today, lol. besides finding out that today is not the last day for open enrollment for health insurance for a january start date, lol. i think i'll go with it being chilly enough to cuddle up under warm blankets both in bed and on the couch. also that i did the leg shakey thing again today, lol. somehow collapsing for half an hour and not doing anything but lying there felt like a good ending to today. ;)

and then there's this:

Dear Friends,

Holidays have you feeling frazzled? As a special holiday gift, I am offering a complimentary energy tune-up session (via phone or Skype). You will feel calmer and more grounded and more able to deal with the many demands upon your time.

This offer is limited to the first ten people who contact me by December 10th to schedule an appointment before January 31st. Feel free to share this if you know someone who might be interested.

more about what i do here: https://sites.google.com/site/loveisouressence/

tips for self-love

kittylefish — Mon, 03 Aug 2015 04:05:51 GMT

hi, guys, i keep meaning to post and getting distracted. i don't seem to have oomph for follow-through lately. however, i just saw this and shared it on facebook, and i want to share it here too because i have found these tips invaluable and they've made a huge difference in my life and happiness. maybe someone else out there can use them too.

this was posted by louise hay, who wrote a book called you can heal your life, in which she covers these things in more depth.

I have found that there is only one thing that heals every problem, and that is: to love yourself. When people start to love themselves more each day, it’s amazing how their lives get better. They feel better. They get the jobs they want. They have the money they need. Their relationships either improve, or the negative ones dissolve and new ones begin.

Loving yourself is a wonderful adventure; it’s like learning to fly. Imagine if we all had the power to fly at will? How exciting it would be! Let’s begin to love ourselves now.

Here are 12 Commandments to help you learn how to love yourself:

1. Stop All Criticism.

Criticism never changes a thing. Refuse to criticize yourself. Accept yourself exactly as you are. Everybody changes. When you criticize yourself, your changes are negative. When you approve of yourself, your changes are positive.

2. Forgive Yourself.

Let the past go. You did the best you could at the time with the understanding, awareness, and knowledge that you had. Now you are growing and changing, and you will live life differently.

3. Don’t Scare Yourself.

Stop terrorizing yourself with your thoughts. It's a dreadful way to live. Find a mental image that gives you pleasure, and immediately switch your scary thought to a pleasure thought.

4. Be Gentle and Kind and Patient.

Be gentle with yourself. Be kind to yourself. Be patient with yourself as you learn the new ways of thinking. Treat yourself as you would someone you really loved.

5. Be Kind to Your Mind.

Self-hatred is only hating your own thoughts. Don't hate yourself for having the thoughts. Gently change your thoughts.

6. Praise Yourself.

Criticism breaks down the inner spirit. Praise builds it up. Praise yourself as much as you can. Tell yourself how well you are doing with every little thing.

7. Support Yourself.

Find ways to support yourself. Reach out to friends and allow them to help you. It is being strong to ask for help when you need it.

8. Be Loving to Your Negatives.

Acknowledge that you created them to fulfill a need. Now you are finding new, positive ways to fulfill those needs. So lovingly release the old negative patterns.

9. Take Care of Your Body.

Learn about nutrition. What kind of fuel does your body need in order to have optimum energy and vitality? Learn about exercise. What kind of exercise do you enjoy? Cherish and revere the temple you live in.

10. Do Mirror Work.

Look into your eyes often. Express this growing sense of love you have for yourself. Forgive yourself while looking into the mirror. Talk to your parents while looking into the mirror. Forgive them, too. At least once a day, say, I love you, I really love you!

11. Love Yourself . . . Do It Now.

Don't wait until you get well, or lose the weight, or get the new job, or find the new relationship. Begin now—and do the best you can.

12. Have Fun.

Remember the things that gave you joy as a child. Incorporate them into your life now. Find a way to have fun with everything you do. Let yourself express the joy of living. Smile. Laugh. Rejoice, and the Universe rejoices with you!

processing emotions

kittylefish — Mon, 20 Apr 2015 02:48:03 GMT

just discovered this saved draft when i went to post today. oops.

this is from a post i read on fb about processing emotions. i'm copying it here since i think not everyone will be able to read it on fb, plus this way i will be able to find it again when i need it. and i will.

often it seems like running from our emotions can be the main business of being a human. this note explains why processing our emotions is so important, and also how to do it.

Processing Emotion, the beginning and end of all Autonomy.
April 2, 2015 at 1:14pm
I've written a 640 page book on Consciousness, and in the end all of what I say is geared toward one reality, and that is that processing emotion is the primary need of a Consciousness, and the answer to "How do I proceed?" basically every time its asked.

I can only tell you that it's the most powerful tool ever. It's the only thing close to freedom. It is like bottled courage, divine presence and confidence all wrapped up into one beautiful package. Process emotion. That's it.

Every coaching/mentoring/advice situation I'm in boils down to processing emotion ... what is the emotion and how do we process it.

And every issue we have with our growth and expansion? It's us trying to run from processing emotion by using one of a million techniques to get away from having to sit confidently with ourselves and hold space during discomfort. And don't get me wrong, even when we are committed to this practice in such a way that it becomes a habit, it still doesn't work every time, and that is humiliating and infuriating (that's of course another reason why we do anything we can to escape having to do it).

Now before we get too abstract, let's look at what processing emotion is.

1) Experience an emotion. This is something that happens to us. We get emotionally activated.
2) Recognize the emotion.
a) Know it's present.
b) If we're practiced, figure the characteristics of the emotion (this takes years, and is not necessary to do all at once)
3) Allow the emotion. Specifically STOP YOURSELF FROM RUNNING AWAY AND ESCAPING THE EMOTION. Say "this is the emotion I'm feeling and I'm just going to sit here like a boss and feel it for a minute, or as long as I can."
4) Engage the emotion. Walk up to it and shake it's hand. Feel it. It is your body talking to you. Let it wash over you.
5) After it has finished with you, allow it to leave, and VALIDATE that the moment of the emotion has passed (this will give you confidence in all future moments where processing is difficult).

There are so many things we have, so many mental constructs built to keep us from doing this. Religions are based on releasing us from being accountable for this and they do pretty well on membership if I have my facts straight.

Free Will? If you have Free Will you don't have to process emotion because you can just 'choose" to not be influenced by unresolved emotion. Bullshit. If we don't sit with an emotion, stay present for its life cycle? We have yielded our right to keep it from influencing every decision we make. If we toss our hands up and shut our eyes? The passenger of the car takes over steering duties. This is why we always feel like shit isn't our fault. We're not steering, our unprocessed emotions are.

What I see everywhere is people being motivated PRIMARILY by their long history of unprocessed emotions. If we haven't processed it? It's got a hand in our every decision and behavior. True story.

Our being able to plead ignorance about this is wearing on my nerves. And don't get me wrong, this is still my biggest focus. NO ONE gets out of this. We are all living in human bodies, and having a human experience. The purpose of that may or may not be "Integrating momentary emotional connection and experience to find resonance and rapture" ... but I think it is. And even if it's not? Processing emotion is still our most important job.

Having issues with the spouse? Process emotion (anger, fear, resentment).
Trying to grow emotionally and expand? Process emotion (guilt, fear, doubt).
Trying to allow abundance? Process emotion (shame, self doubt, guilt).
Trying to forgive? Process emotion (anger, fear, sadness).
Trying to feel better about your life? Process emotion (regret, shame)
Trying to be a better driver? Process emotion (road rage, dystopic distraction)

Wondering what is wrong in a certain situation? Have you processed the emotion? Odds are you haven't.

We are souls having a human experience. This is true. What we rarely say is that this human experience is simply beyond the capability of a soul to endure with decades of acclimation. And rather than face this stuff head on, the manipulators and power vendors of the world realize that if they can give us a justifiable way out of this, THAT WE WILL TAKE IT EVERY TIME. We're not cut out for processing emotions. We can pretty much trace every personal and societal issue back to this fact. No joke. I've been looking at it since I finished the book and to be honest this ONE thing is

1) the thing that souls have a hard time with doing in a human body
2) the only thing we nee to get good at doing in a human body

If someone comes to you with a problem ... think to yourself ... what emotion is not being processed, and how can I help this person process that emotion (this applies to yourself also)?

Thing is we have to help convince each other that it's worthwhile to try. To hold space for ourselves and others.

Many people have asked me how I got to be where I am. Many people want to be where I am. My life is really badass. This, this is the long and short of it. There is no way around it.
We cannot get to "Peace" or "Home" without processing emotion. Why? Because the threat of having to process emotion we don't want to process is so great that we will never feel safe. EVER. IS THAT CLEAR?

Have a feeling like heartbreak? Run toward it, or you'll be running away forever. Our HOME IS IN THE PAIN. OUR CRUMBLED BONES ARE THE FOUNDATION FOR OUR FUTURE PEACE. This is The Opportunity of our entire existence. Coming to peace through processing the chaotic emotion of this frail human body. This is "Life Purpose" level stuff.

Safety and Home does not lie in the removal of stressors, but in the habituated ability to process them and move forward with confidence. PERIOD.

I want to note the scene in Fight Club that goes with this....

here's the scene from fight club:

snape fest prompt claiming happening now!

kittylefish — Fri, 10 Oct 2014 22:45:35 GMT

Originally posted by snape_fest_mod at Help Spread the Word!

<center><a href="http://severus-fest.livejournal.com/4276.html"><img src="http://www.sleepycheetah.com/comm/claimingpimp.jpg"/></a></center>

hp_halloween!

kittylefish — Sat, 04 Oct 2014 07:13:37 GMT

additional good thing - i just signed up for this little gift exchange thingy. seems pretty low-key, which is the proper speed for me, lol. perhaps you would like to join us?

Originally posted by shadowycat at hp_halloween is back! We'd love to have you be a part of the fun!

hp_halloween is a quick Halloween themed double drabble fest. You write 200 words for someone, and someone else writes 200 words for you. Sign-ups are Here on LJ and Here on IJ and will remain open until October 11th. Posting happens on October 31. Won't you come and join us? :D

writing challenge completed for september

kittylefish — Wed, 01 Oct 2014 05:37:51 GMT

i know i have other things i mean to write about here, and i'm too tired to remember what they are at the moment, but i'm here now because it is september 30th, and i have succeeded in my writing challenge for the entire month of september. that means i've written a minimum of half an hour every day this month. on all but one of those days, i made my 500 word goal.

posting my entire month under the cut for my own edification, lol.

monday - 618
tuesday - 519
wednesday - 671
thursday - 1223 :)
friday - 578
saturday - 589
sunday - 606
total - 4804

m - 565
t - 697
w - 545
t - 371
f - 580
s - 1410
s - 566
total - 4734

m - 561
t - 732
w - 543
t - 563
f - 785
s - 1190
s - 553
total - 4927

m - 620
t - 583
w - 1233
t - 551
f - 659
s - 556
s - 554
total – 4756

m – 614
t – 540
total – 1154

grand total for the month: 20,375.

a friend pointed out this quote to me: A day when I write is a happy day. A day when I don't write is less happy. This is not discipline-- it is affection, enthusiasm, adventure.

i hope i remember that the next time my devotion flags, lol.

hiiiiii!!!

kittylefish — Sun, 21 Sep 2014 06:23:15 GMT

i know i've thought of a bunch of things i've wanted to post at various times over the past few days, but the only thing i can think of right now to say is that i've been continuing my writing streak, writing for at least half an hour every day, for 20 days now, and i've written 500+ words on every day except one, when i got home late and i was just too tired. but still, i wrote 300+ words that day. and i am extremely close to being finished with the first draft of my long-languishing ss/hg wip. i'm so excited about that. i've actually written the ending now; i just need to go back and check wherever there is a @@@ and see if there are still missing scenes or if it's ready for the revision process. i'm quite excited about this. it's 70,000+ words, which makes it the longest thing i've written. very excited. :D

so i had read half of that book 'write fearlessly' and reached the part where he talked about fear of finishing, and that is what kicked my butt into gear to finish this thing. well, then i quit reading the book for some reason, but i picked it up again the other day, and actually, it was a better time for me to read the next part now that i'm writing again, so maybe that's why i quit for a bit, lol. it's an awesome book, and now i really want the other one of his that logospilgrim recommended, writing in overdrive. it's on my amazon list now, just need to wait until i can spend some money on books again, lol.

and in a fit of insanity, i believe i've decided to sign up for nanowrimo this year. i probably won't play to win it, but that last time i did it, it did keep me writing every day, even if the word count is pretty ambitious given the amount of time i have to write each day. i'm thinking i might aim for 1000 words a day and see how that goes. it feels awesome to be writing again, even though i have no idea how the words are, let alone the story, lol. thank goodness nobody has to see it until i do a rewrite. ;)

and that's it for me tonight. i hope you are well.

oh, also, the heat finally has broken here, thank heavens. today i was walking outside at around 4pm and it was lovely, and there was a breeze. *happy sighs*

The Fun Starts Tomorrow!!

kittylefish — Fri, 19 Sep 2014 02:34:45 GMT

signal boosting in case anyone out there hasn't already seen this. go leave your fascinating snape-centric prompts!

Originally posted by teddyradiator at The Fun Starts Tomorrow!!

Because that's when severus_snape begins taking prompts. This Snape-centric comm is tailor made for anyone who loves our dear Potions Master. All forms of fic, art, craft, EVERYTHING, is your choice to create! Please go over and check it out - it's brand spanking new, and ready to promote some Snape-love!

something good

kittylefish — Wed, 07 May 2014 04:29:10 GMT

so i got a pleasant surprise - a new review on ashwinder for my story in the restricted section. stormdragonfly liked my story so much she gave it a little rec and made me a banner! my favorite part is that this story was for the free of commas challenge on tpp, and she appreciates how well i accomplished that challenge. *beams* so yeah, this just made my day.

€

and it doesn't hurt that dark, brooking snape is dark and brooding.

mememememememememememe!

kittylefish — Wed, 23 Apr 2014 06:30:22 GMT

from several of you.

If I were a month, I'd be may
If I were a day of the week, I'd be sunday
If I were a time of day, I'd be sunset
If I were a ~~planet~~ heavenly body, I'd be the moon
If I were a direction, I'd be west
If I were a piece of furniture, I'd be a bed
If I were a liquid, I'd be water
If I were a gemstone, I'd be rose quartz
If I were a tree, I'd be a jacaranda
If I were a flower, I'd be a tea rose
If I were a kind of weather, I'd be a little bit overcast
If I were a musical instrument, I'd be a thumb piano
If I were a color, I'd be purple
If I were an emotion, I'd be love
If I were a fruit, I'd be a peach
If I were a sound, I'd be laughter
If I were an element, I'd be oxygen
If I were a food, I'd be cotton candy
If I were a place, I'd be the beach
If I were a material, I'd be cotton
If I were a taste, I'd be sweet ;P
If I were a scent, I'd be citrus
If I were an animal, I'd be a cat
If I were a body part, I'd be a hand
If I were a facial expression, I'd be a smile
If I were a song, I'd be dancing in the moonlight
If I were a pair of shoes, I'd be flip flops

on a more positive note ...

kittylefish — Wed, 02 Apr 2014 05:20:07 GMT

today marks a significant one-year anniversary for me. that's right, one year ago on april 1st, i started the 30 day green smoothie challenge and the rest is history. since then, i have started nearly every single day with a green smoothie. there have been a few days when i didn't have time to have the smoothie before i left the house in the morning, so i had it in the evening instead. there have only been two, or possibly three days when i have not had one at all. there've also been days when i had several, lol, so in the end, i'm certain i've had well over 365 green smoothies in the past 365 days.

to celebrate, here are three delicious recipes under the cut.

Healthy Orange Julius

1 fresh or frozen banana
1 orange, peeled
1 lime, peeled
2 cups spinach
1 cup almond milk*

Apple Pie Smoothie

1 fresh or frozen banana
1 apple, cored
2 leaves kale, stems removed
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1-inch piece ginger root
1 cup almond milk*

pineapple orange crush smoothie

1 orange, peeled
1 cup pineapple
1 or 2 ribs celery
1/2 cucumber
1 cup water or coconut water
optional additions include 1-inch piece of ginger, handful of parsley and/or cilantro

*if you used unsweetened vanilla-flavored almond milk, it's even more delicious.

to be honest, it's not only about the smoothies, although that's significant. it's also that i picked a positive thing that i wanted to do and i've managed to fully integrate it into my life. it's useful to have something to point to to show myself that i can do this, lol.

call for stories for elm books

kittylefish — Sun, 23 Mar 2014 03:52:51 GMT

Elm Books proudly presents Gen-E Books: children's books for a diverse America. Help all our children by writing and publishing what they want to read.

We are looking for short stories (1000-5000 words) about kids of color that will grab readers' attentions--mysteries, adventures, humor, suspense, set in the present, near past or near future that reflect the realities and the hopes of life in diverse communities including African American, Latino, Native American, Asian, urban, rural and international. Stories should be aimed at a middle grade audience (2nd to 6th grades) and written in clear, straight forward prose. Black and white line illustrations welcome, no color illustrations. No sex, graphic violence, explicit drug use or slavery. Collection to be edited by Lee Mullins and Jess Faraday.

We are also looking for middle grade novels, 20,000-50,000 words.

If interested, contact Leila.Elmbooks@gmail.com.

"Books will be judged by the nature of their content and the color of their characters."

finally!

kittylefish — Mon, 17 Mar 2014 05:48:47 GMT

i will not tell you how many times i clicked on the damn thing to get these, lol.

Follow your spirit, and, upon this charge
Cry 'God for Harry, Kittylefish and Saint George!

Which work of Shakespeare was the original quote from?

Look like the innocent flower, but be the kittylefish under't.

Which work of Shakespeare was the original quote from?

cleaning up the f-list

kittylefish — Tue, 11 Mar 2014 04:05:55 GMT

hi, guys. i'm going to be doing some tidying up of my friends list, and also creating a new filter for when i babble on about personal stuff. this will involve eliminating people with whom my last interaction was when i friended them back, lol, as well as a few people who i think are no longer active on lj or no longer interested in being my friend (as evidenced by lack of commenting on my posts or responding to my comments on their posts). anything i post related to fanfic or calls for stories for elm books will be public, so everyone will still be able to see those posts. however, since the bulk of what i post is unrelated to either of those things, i prefer to keep those posts a little more private.

if you are someone with whom there's been interaction in recent memory, you will be kept on the f-list (and probably also on the new filter, once i get around to creating it, lol, unless you tell me you'd prefer not to). if you think i might delete you according to the criteria i set forth here and want that not to happen, best speak up, lol.

fae love!

kittylefish — Fri, 14 Feb 2014 06:21:24 GMT

dear friends, that collection i co-edited, fae love is now available for a limited time on smashwords for just 99 cents. trust me, it is a huge bargain at that price. six fantasy romance stories for just a buck. there are two writers from our corner of fandom included (as far as i know, anyway - and neither of them is me, lol). i find it vaguely annoying that the entry says 'by [my co-editor]' when the stories are by six amazing writers, but i guess there was no space to list them all, lol. i'm excited that the book is out and available. it's not a huge collection, but i'm very happy with the stories in it. for 99 cents, it's a steal.

meme from akatnamedeaster

kittylefish — Fri, 07 Feb 2014 05:12:07 GMT

akatnamedeaster posted this on her journal, and i thought it seemed like a fun idea to share. i hope you will think so too!

1. What was the first fanwork you produced?

2. Do you still like it or is it something that makes you cringe when you happen upon it?

3. Got a link or is it one of those things you'd rather hide deep in the bowels of the internet and hope no one ever stumbles across?

my answers.

1. my first fanfic was a snily, called Stealing Glances, written in the wake of the revelations in the final book.

2. hmm. i just reread it, and while i see that there are some minor issues, i still love it, lol. it's the story that made me leap into writing fanfic, so it's such a special baby to me. it's funny to remember how terrified i was to put dialogue into these characters' mouths, so it goes on as little snapshots sans dialogue for a while, lol. and then it kind of explodes into an entirely different story. but i like it anyway. :P

3. here it is on tpp and here on occlumency.

book meme

kittylefish — Tue, 21 Jan 2014 05:43:56 GMT

book meme, snagged from luvsev and dreamy_dragon73.

In a text post, list ten books that have stayed with you in some way. Don’t take but a few minutes, and don’t think too hard — they don’t have to be the “right” or “great” works, just ones that have touched you.

Dave’s Song by Robert McKay
Persuasion by Jane Austen*
The Gift by Hafiz, translated by Daniel Ladinsky
The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda
Orlando by Virginia Woolf
Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu
Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

*so the real reason why i did this meme is because both luv and dreamy mentioned pride and prejudice, so i needed to represent for persuasion. lol.

call for stories from elm books

kittylefish — Mon, 13 Jan 2014 04:34:29 GMT

another call for detective stories for elm books. this one is to be called death and a nice cup of tea., focusing on female protagonists.

SUBMISSION CALL – DEATH AND A NICE CUP OF TEA

Don’t be fooled by the cozy-sounding title – anything goes for this new anthology from Elm Books – well, almost anything.

What we’re looking for is female protagonists. Professional, amateur or accidental sleuths; old, young, gay/straight/bisexual, cis, trans, the first female president or that deceptively sweet-looking soccer mommy next door – you name it. If your MC identifies as female, we’d like to meet her. Your protagonist doesn’t have to be the sleuth – she could be the perp, for example – but she does have to be the main character.

Also – mysteries only, please. You know—a story about a crime and its solution. We’re happy to consider any setting: historical, contemporary, futuristic, alternate-universe, supernatural – the only limit is your imagination.

And just one more thing: somehow, tea has to figure into it. Why? Just because =)

As always, please no graphic depictions of violence or sex. These things can figure into the plot, but we won’t print long, drawn-out descriptions of sex, cruelty or gore.

We’re eager to publish stories by and about people from traditionally underrepresented groups. The world is too big and interesting to read the same old plots from the same old perspectives!

Deadline: June 1, 2014
Intended publication date: Fall 2014
Payment: Share of royalties

Full MS to Jess Faraday at jess.elmbooks@gmail.com
Check out our other anthologies at: http://www.elm-books.com

a poem

kittylefish — Fri, 03 Jan 2014 08:57:57 GMT

so on new year's eve morning, i woke up too early after too little sleep. not enough time to go back to sleep, and no will to get out of bed, lol, so i gave myself reiki, and while i was doing that, this poem started coming to me, so i'm sharing it here. i probably need to add some punctuation and capital letters, at least.

i am a lover of the universe
sometimes i cheat on the earth
with the sky
or the sun
with the moon
i give myself freely
to mountains and rainbows
holding back nothing
i devour galaxies
and they grow in me like sunflowers
watered by the morning dew
or my own tears
my heart is clear
as morning's first light
natural
as a baby's first breath
untroubled
as the calm
at the center
of the storm
i breathe in and out
with the earth
i expand and contract
with galaxies
i birth stars
with every breath
i am living
breathing
human
divine

happy christmas!

kittylefish — Tue, 24 Dec 2013 20:40:45 GMT

a friend of mine has made a fabulous christmas playlist that i'm going to try to share here. i'm listening to it at work - one of the partners asked me to come in for a few hours in case people were calling. i don't plan to be here a minute after three, lol. anyhow, hope this works and if it does, hope you enjoy it.

and even if you don't bother with the playlist, have a fabulous christmas if you celebrate, and if not, enjoy whatever holidays you do celebrate. xoxo

dear santa ...

kittylefish — Mon, 23 Dec 2013 07:14:15 GMT

stolen from voxangelus.

Dear Santa...

Dear Santa,

This year I've been busy!

Last Sunday I pushed astopperindeath in the mud (-17 points). Last week I turned kmhmd in for tearing the tag off a mattress (3 points). In June I got in line at the supermarket at the same time as someone else and I didn't yield (-8 points). In November I gave errandofmercy a life-saving blood transfusion (50 points). In October I pulled over and changed camillo1978's flat tire (15 points).

Overall, I've been nice (43 points). For Christmas I deserve a red Radio-Flyer wagon!

Sincerely,
kittylefish

waves

kittylefish — Sun, 24 Nov 2013 08:07:51 GMT

since luvsev left, i've been editing like a crazed editing thing. theoretically i'll finish that tomorrow, though there might be something else that i still have promised - waiting to find out about that. i do plan to post about the visit, but not tonight - bed is calling. for now, all i will say is that we had a fantastic time, it was every bit as lovely as i'd imagined, and i look forward to her coming to see me again some day, hopefully soon.

also, i totally dropped the ball as far as posting about the smoothies. if anyone is interested, i can do catch-up posts with a couple of recipes a day. however, if nobody is interested, i'm not going to bother, so if anyone wants to see those recipes, please do comment to this post.

hope you are all well and ready for the impending holiday season. i'm certainly not ready, lol.

smoothie challenge days 12 and 13

kittylefish — Thu, 14 Nov 2013 08:02:04 GMT

oops. in the excitement of luvsev's arrival yesterday evening, i apparently forgot to do my smoothie post, so today will be days 12 and 13.

Day 12: Electrolyte Energy Booster
2 celery ribs
2 cups pineapple
1 cup spinach
1 lime, juiced
1 cup coconut milk or water

Health benefits
Pineapple, coconut and lime are so good together both in terms of flavour and nutrition. The pineapple will reduce inflammation in your body, coconut milk will nourish your skin and your hair and the lime will help you fight off infection and bacteria. It may also remind you of a beach vacation, which is an added benefit of this awesome smoothie.

this was pretty yummy. the coconut milk gave it a nice creaminess that balanced out the tartness of the lime. so each sip went from pineapple, to tart lime, to creamy coconut milk goodness. it was pretty yummy.

Day 13: Living Well Green Smoothie
1 frozen banana
2 heads baby bok choy
⅓ bunch cilantro
1-inch piece ginger root
1 cup coconut water or water

Health Benefits
Bok Choy is an amazing source of calcium. Calcium is important for our bones and teeth, but did you know it is also important for proper muscle contraction? All minerals play many different roles within the body and are so important for overall health and wellness and calcium is no different. Remember that the body works together as a unit!

i'm not gonna lie, when i saw baby bok choy on the shopping list, i was alarmed. especially after the debacle with attempting to juice cabbage or cauliflower or whatever it was, lol. but this combination surprised me by actually being pretty good. i think that the sharp bite of the ginger mitigated any bite that the bok choy might have had, and the cilantro gave it a nice flavor; naturally, the banana added some sweetness and body. an odd thing is that this smoothie did start separating a bit before i managed to drink it all, but it was pretty tasty despite my misgivings.

and luvsev is here! today i had to work, so just came home and we had dinner and watched a movie - perfectly low key, and yet perfectly lovely. future days will have more exciting activities. :)

smoothie challenge day 11, etc.

kittylefish — Tue, 12 Nov 2013 05:05:23 GMT

Day 11: Creamy Dreamy Cleanse Smoothie
1 cup fresh or frozen pineapple
½ avocado
2 cups green leaf lettuce
1-inch piece ginger root
1 cup water or coconut water

Health Benefits
Avocado is one of the most nutrient dense foods you can eat. It is a complete protein, meaning that it contains all essential amino acids your body needs to function. It is a rich source of healthy fats including omega 3 fatty acids. It is also a good source of calories to provide you with lots of fuel for your day! It will add a creamy, thick consistency to your smoothie which is nice and satisfying.

this smoothie has me concluding that after banana, pineapple is perhaps my favorite smoothie ingredient. this is a delicious, tasty smoothie. go make it right now - you won't be disappointed, lol. the avocado makes for a creamier texture. the leaf lettuce is pleasant, so it just kind of lightens the pineapple so it tastes a little more green. i think i suck at reviewing, lol. but what matters is, this one is really yummy, lol. hmm. i could make another - i still have half an avocado ...

and in other news, it's almost tomorrow! and tomorrow, luvsev gets here! i just have to ~~pretend to~~ work until 6:00 and then go retrieve her from the airport! i am so excited, i just can't even -

smoothie challenge day 10, etc.

kittylefish — Mon, 11 Nov 2013 03:00:13 GMT

Day 10: Citrus Punch Detox Smoothie
1 frozen banana
3 leaves kale, stems removed
1 lime, peeled
2 oranges, juiced
½ lemon, juiced

Health Benefits
Citrus fruit is amazing for helping rid the body of excess mucus. Excess mucus can block your bodies ability to properly absorb nutrients. Including citrus fruits into your diet can help to reduce mucus levels in your body and increase the amount of nutrients you are able to get from your food.

well, if you make this smoothie, you will have the advantage of knowing that the oranges are for juicing. i did not, so i bought navel oranges, which i like to eat, instead of something like valencia, which are good for juicing. my oranges were not as juicy as i would have liked, and i ended up having to use some water for part of the liquid, as there just wasn't enough. also, my kale leaves were rather large, so yeah, lots of kale, little orange juice, no bueno. it still tasted good, though, despite that, so i imagine if i made it with juicier oranges it would be even better. a little tart from the citrus, but overall pleasant enough. i might want to add a little ginger to it, though maybe if there had been more orange juice, i wouldn't have felt it was lacking in any way.

i'm editing this because i just got a message on fb from one of my nieces, who just picked up my juicer earlier today. some of you may recall that i attempted to start juicing and gave up because the juicer was impossible to clean, and i hated it, and had resolved to give it to the amvets - who i naturally had not yet called to come haul it away. well, she commented on fb that she made a smoothie recipe i shared there, and she mentioned that she'd like to start juicing but didn't have a juicer, so i told her she was welcome to take this juicer if she wanted to try it, making it utterly clear why i was getting rid of it, lol. well she picked it up earlier today and they already used it, and then used that juice in a smoothie that they made. this makes me so very happy, plus it's great that her kids will learn at an early age how to eat this sort of thing; she told me they really love the green smoothies. :D