Go Raw Chicago

Happy Belated Green Smoothie Day Everyone!  Woohoo! (meant to post this on Friday)

I had a spinach/frozen grape (with seeds)/soaked fig/chia/bee pollen smoothie.  Yum!  It powered me up for a 20 something mile bike ride too!

I’ve been meaning to write a review on two raw-food related DVDs I recently watched.  The first is called “Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days” and the second is called “The Ultimate Encyclopedia of the Raw Food Lifestyle.”

Do you know anyone with diabetes?  Even if you don’t, I highly recommend watching this documentary.   The movie follows the lives of six people with either type 1 or type 2 diabetes who go to the Tree of Life Center in Patagonia, AZ.   Under the guidance of Gabriel Cousins and on-site natural doctors, they commence to eat an all raw-vegan diet for 30 days.  All their meals in this documentary look absolutely gorgeous–I’m warning you.  I was a bit jealous!  The Tree of Life Cafe provided all-you-can-eat buffet lunches and dinners for the participants and event taught them some raw food 101 classes!  Hard to believe, some of them didn’t like the raw food too much, and the looks on their faces when they first saw what they were going to eat for the next 30 days was priceless but you’ll have to see it for yourself!

I think all of the individuals are very easy to relate to because so many of us too have tried to overcome illnesses by doing something we didn’t want to do.  In the end, the documentary makes it’s point and, no surprise, raw food can and DOES cure most cases of diabetes.  It is a very touching documentary on human emotion and support though!

As for the other DVD, the Ultimate Encyclopedia of the Raw Food Lifestyle , I was impressed because it really gives you a comprehensive guide to the hows/whys/and whats of raw food.  It covers the spiritual aspects, detoxing tips, and has TONS of recipe demonstrations as well (which I found to be the most entertaining to watch!).  There are lots of raw food authority figures in both DVDs.  It’s a two disc set and was fun for my raw food meetup and me to watch together (we had a movie night at my place a while back).  If you are interested in learning more about these DVDs, just click on either of the links above.

Exciting stuff–all these raw food dvds coming out.  The Encyclopedia is something very similar to what I’m working on.  Except my DVD will be aimed more for young people and take place in more city-like locations and situations and be more interactive.

On a completely different note, here is an interesting article on the Olympics by Mike Adams if you’ve been watching.  It might make you think VERY differently about the Olympics!:  http://www.naturalnews.com/023862.html

~L

This week Chicago was blessed enough to have the founder of Sacred Chocolate, Steve Adler, speak at two raw food meetups (not my meetup group, but another local raw food one) explaining the creation process and many tastes of his Sacred Chocolate.  Last night, I was there to see him speak at Cousin’s.  I tried to hold myself back from sampling all the chocolate flavors that late at night but it was just too hard.  Needless too say, the cacao definitely opened up some pathways in my brain last night and was up scribbling ideas late into the night.  It was fun though.  My heart wasn’t beating out of control or anything.  I was just awake and happy and thinking of things I wanted to do today and in the future.  When this happens I usually want to get up and get some of these to-dos out of the way so I can go to sleep but I just don’t have the spiritual energy to do it.  Physically and emotionally, I could.  But my spiritual body just does not want to be up doing ANYTHING at those ungodly (or Godly?) hours of the morning.

Anyway, here are some notes I took in my head from last night that I’d like to share with you all:
•    There are now 17 (wow!) flavors of the Sacred Chocolate Bars.
•    Cacao bars are ALL about the variety of bean.
•    The flavor of each batch of bars could be different (and usually are slightly), depending on the temp it gets to (110 versus 114), the cycle of the moon, the bean batch, etc.  It is the most challenging alchemy to regulate.
•    His cacao never reaches above 114 degrees F.
•    His bars have 100% of the actual cacao fruit skins ground into the bar (this is because he wanted to get all the mystical properties and benefits of the skins into the bars).  This takes the process an extra long time.
•    He’s always coming out with new flavors.  Two of the latest are Immuno Mushroom and White Passion.
•    White Passion will not keep you all night or stimulate you like the other bars would if you’re really sensitive to cacao solids.
•    He is still really happy with his choice to use maple sugar (not raw) in his bars because it is hands down the best tasting and smelling flavor/aroma.  He always exploring other options though.  He may create a bar for diabetics in the future

•    What does he do when he eats too much cacao and needs to get grounded again? Drinks wheatgrass!  Steve drinks 8-16 ounces a day!
•    Steve would like his chocolate facility to one day be in an enormous pyramid (that would be a sight!).

•    He does not currently do public tours but sometimes shows groups of little kids around (he has a six year old daughter).
•    He only has 5-6 employees working with/for him.  Amazing!
•    He would like to one day create celebrity bars–for example: an “Oprah” bar with all of the superfoods she wants in it.
•    The best way to enjoy his chocolate is to let it just melt in your mouth.  No chewing!! (We got to sample ALL of the flavors last night.)

•    The mint and ginger flavors are his favorites; the Vegan Milk is the best selling flavor.
•    The Ginger was my favorite!
•    The Amazonian bar the most medicinal.  If you let it melt in your mouth, you might experience ten or more flavors at different times.

Steve also announced to us last night that his products will now be available through a brand-spanking new Multi Level Marketing (MLM) company called Elements for Life .  I had just signed up to be part of this company/team yesterday morning!  Talk about synchronicities!   It’s the first ever raw superfoods network marketing company and won’t even be unveiled to the public until the Raw Spiritfest , in mid September.  I’ve had a go at Mary Kay and Amazon Herbs before and just didn’t feel a complete connection with either.  But this opportunity has been just the one I (we??) have been waiting for.  Check out the links below if you’re interested.  Even if you’re not, the audio recording with David Wolfe on the superfoods is really educational.  David Wolfe, Gabriel Cousins, Daniel Vitalis, and all of those raw food authorities are behind this company up too!  The energy, integrity, and mission behind this company is completely pure and of the highest vibe.

Please contact me if you’re interested.  I’d love to work with you!

https://www.noblelifeelements.com/usa

http://instantTeleseminar.com/?eventid=3716715

~Lenette

Hi all,
Last week I talked to the people over at Barefoot Connections and am so happy to now be an affiliate, or representative, of their products.  Like I mentioned in my last post, their bed pad has really changed everything for me in the last three weeks.  I’ve been sleeping about 100 times better.  I’ve been falling asleep quicker, having longer cycles of REM sleep, more vivid dreams (I can remember most of them in the morning too!), and WAY more alertness and focus throughout the day.  It’s really amazing.  This product is not only for sleep though and I definitely encourage you to read more about it on the website, http://www.barefoothealth.com.   Connecting with the earth every night, can also reduce inflammation in the body (great for athletes), rebalance hormones, and throw off EMFs your body has absorbed throughout the day.  And, if you’re already great at sleeping, you may find yourself needing way less and feel refreshed hours before your alarm clock even goes off.  I am not really one that can tell the effects of a new supplement or superfood on my body right away.   This is one of the few products where I actually could feel the difference within the first few days though.

The manufacturer, Earth FX, is selling three products mainly: sheets, bed pads, and a recovery bag.  The bed pads are the most economical product though and with the recommendation of Dale, over at Barefoot Health, I bought the king-sized pad and now have it over my fitted sheet vertically across my bed, so my entire body can lay on it at night, instead of must my legs and feet. (It’s not really a “pad” but more of a sheet of special material with conductive silver yarn woven through it).  I think this is one of the best investments I’ve made in my health in the last year.

So here’s the discount:  Whether you order off the website, www.barefoothealth.com, or call them at 800-620-9912 and speak to Dale (which I recommend—she’s been researching this product and what it does for 7+ years), you will get a 10% discount with the code: BHRC100.

Here is some more great info too:  this is the link to the Barefoot Revolution newspaper.
http://www.barefoothealth.com/pdf/Barefootnewspaper.pdf

This is getting big, I know it.  It’s better than the whole magnet deal too (I believe) in terms of body recovery time.  I just saw on www.thebestdayever.com that an interview with the founder of the company is coming out tomorrow.  David Wolfe, Truth Caulkins, Len Foley and all the others in that group are already onto this company’s products and experiencing the benefits.  I can’t wait to hear this interview ☺

Again, you’ll get a 10% discount if you go to www.barefoothealth.com and use the coupon or gift code section of the shopping cart and use the promotional code:  BHRC100

Please let me know what you think if any of you decide to try this out (and there is a 60 day money back guarantee too!)

~Lenette

David Wolfe mentioned on an interview lately how instead of having A.D.D., like most people have, to flip it around and focus on “ADD”ing in things.  I’ve always taken this to heart.  This post is on my recent addition of two new things to my routine.

It’s funny how you don’t really “hear” or “get” things until you’re truly ready for them.  I’ve heard about the 5 Tibetan Rites dozens of times in books I’ve read by health and detox authorities but I never really saw myself doing it on a regular basis.  I’ve also heard about the seven chakras dozens of times, but never thought too much of them.  When I was at Erehwon in LA, talking to Truth Calkins about health and jing and staying youthful, he mentioned the 5 Tibetan Rites about a dozen times.  He is obviously a HUGE fan of doing them and it sounds like he does them routinely, twice a day.  While there, he turned me onto this book, the Ancient Secret of the Fountain of Youth: Book 2.   When I got back to Chicago, I got ahold of this book, read it, and ever since I’ve been doing the Rites every day!

It’s just like “going raw” or “going vegan”—it’s critical that you know the WHYS before you do it for yourself.  I guess this is because the WHYS really make you WANT to do it.  It’s not good enough that it sounds healthier or like a good idea.  You really have to arm yourself with the information in order to inspire yourself to reach the higher ground.

Since I’ve been doing them I’ve felt wonderful.  The best I’ve felt in months actually.  I’ve been sleeping better (this may be because of something else I’ll recently added in though), been meditating better, and been experiencing a heightened state of alertness and lucidity throughout the entire day.

It only takes about 10 minutes to do them too.  I follow along with a video I found on YouTube so it doesn’t feel like I’m doing it all by myself.  It kind of keeps me on pace too.  Here’s the video and here’s a printable version of the Rites if you’d like to check it out for yourself: http://www.mkprojects.com/pf_TibetanRites.htm

So my morning routine, now that I’m working from home permanently, is now: water, Tibetan Rites, mediate for 10 minutes, trampoline for 5 minutes, more water, get on the computer till hungry, more water….green smoothie time!

Here’s the other thing I’ve just added into my Health Toolbox: a Barefoot Connections bed pad.  This pad allows me to sleep while “Earthing. ” You can check out the site I got mine from at www.barefoothealth.net  Here is an explanation, from the website, on what “Earthing” is:

“Many people have noticed that they feel better when they spend time barefoot in the outdoors. Now we know why!

“Earthing™ (re-connecting with the earth) is a recent idea. It is based on scientific evidence confirming the long-suspected necessity for barefoot contact with the earth. Modern science has determined that standing barefoot on the earth (or otherwise connecting to the natural frequencies of the earth) has a wide variety of effects on the human body.

“Standing barefoot on the earth (or otherwise connecting to the natural frequencies of the earth) connects the human body with an unlimited supply of free electrons resident in and on the surface of the earth. Standing barefoot on the earth also connects the human body with rhythmic cycles of the earth’s energy field. These are essential for synchronizing biological clocks, hormonal cycles and physiological rhythms.

“Because our modern lifestyle prohibits most people from spending time in direct contact with the earth, Barefoot Connections™ products were designed to help make the connection - in the comfort of your own home or work place. In today’s world, re-connecting with the earth (Earthing™) could be one of the most important things you do!”

The two biggest benefits of this are 1) “Earthing™ supports the neutralization of free radicals that research has revealed cause pain, chronic inflammation, and auto-immune disease” and 2) “Earthing™ supports the synchronization of biological rhythms and influences the hormones that regulate sleep, stress and many other functions.”

Maybe this is why I’ve been sleeping so much better (or maybe it’s this in conjunction with the Rites).  Either way, I’m a much happier girl now, as you can imagine!  (I’m doing a three day fast right now too to add to the rejuvenating and balancing effects I’m experiencing right now.)

Note: if you DO happen to want a barefoot product of your own, please wait a couple more days; I’m working on a discount code that will get readers of this blog a % discount!  Lucky you!!

That’s all for right now.  I hope you’re all having the best summer ever right now.  I went and checked out the farmers market down the street from me last Sunday and made some beautiful kale chips with two HUGE bunches of kale (for only $5 too).  I can’t wait to try them after I’m done with this fast.  I also bought two HUGE heads of cabbage for only $2 each and made a big batch of sauerkraut yesterday.  Now I can’t hardly wait for the 100+ tomatoes in my garden to finish ripening!

If you’re interested in making kale chips yourself, here’s a blog post from last year: http://tinyurl.com/6pkghm

~Lenette

Last Saturday was our Mulberry Maddness Meetup and I have to say, I’ve never had so much fun foraging for wild food!  Gathering fruit is so much more fun to do with others than gathering for greens is.  Maybe because none of my friends out here are really into wild edible greens, but more likely because fruit is just so much more exciting and satiating to pick and eat on the spot.  We found not one, but two mulberry trees at the Magic Hedge and foraged to our hearts content.  One was a white mulberry tree and one was a red mulberry tree.  One berry for me…one for my cup…one berry for me…one for my cup… I’ve never been too crazy about the Navitas dried Turkish mulberries so I wasn’t sure how I’d like them fresh.  Fresh is SOOO much better!  The red ones are even better than the white (IMHO).  I’ll definitely have to do another foraging meetup soon ☺

I’m back to work now after taking a very relaxing month off.  I’m working for myself now on an online business but creating a sort of daily weekday schedule nonetheless.  It feels good.  I work for 45-90 minutes and then take little breaks inbetween (thanks to Dhru from We Like it Raw for this advice).  I don’t get burnt out and I come back to my computer feeling refreshed and inspired for my next round.

Right now I’m working on creating a raw food lifestyle DVD, the content being very similar to what I covered in my classes last year.  I’m currently working on the website and will soon be working on the script and then I’ll be filming.  I just love talking and teaching about raw foods and really spreading the word and inspiration. The website will be www.rawfooddvd.com or www.sunfooddvd.com, not sure just yet (or both!).  As far as I know, this will be the only DVD teaching/showing how to successfully incorporate a predominantly raw food diet into your lifestyle, not just about how to make raw foods.  How exciting!!  I really hope I can make an impact on others this way.

Some local news: I’ll be giving a talk to Doc’s Juice and Smoothie’s (a 100% organic café in Bucktown) this Saturday at 1pm.  I’ll be talking about the whats, whys and hows of green smoothies.  There will be free samples of several types of green smoothies too so if you’re around, stop on by!  Here is the link if you want to RSVP (please do!)

Above is a pic my bf and I made to bring to out friend’s pizza party last weekend.  While everyone was eating homemade pizza (which I can still appreciate the smell off ) , we were eating some homemade raw pizza of our own.  The crust was a dehydrated buckwheat sprout and flax seed cracker, the cheese was a macadamia nut and cashew pate, the marinara was a recipe from the Raw Foods Made Easy book , and all of this was topped with avo, olives, jalapenos, basil, sprouts, and marinated (in some Braggs) mushrooms.  We made extra so our friends could try some out and it was a good thing because everyone who did loved it.  Raw pizza rocks!  When is someone going to open up a raw food pizza joint??? Hmmm….

Well I’m back from California as of Monday and what a trip!  I went for a wedding I was a bridesmaid in on Saturday but I also really needed to reconnect with my brother and all of my close friends from college.   I also wanted to show my boyfriend around, as he had never been in Southern California before.  We stayed with my brother in Seal Beach in Orange County.

We really crammed it in but we did it all—saw all of my close friends (for the most part), went to four raw food restaurants (two of them twice), went to an awesome farmers market in Santa Monica, experienced 4th of July fireworks at Doheney beach, saw and had a 45 minute consultation with the famous Truth Calkins at Erewhon (he made us the best superfood, Jinged-out ice creams ever!), put in about eight hours of drive time (which is just what you have to do when you live in California), went to an awesome wedding, and went surfing with my bro.

I have to say that my bf and I are quite the experts at traveling and staying raw.  We make killer salads by making a quick stop at a farmers market, Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods.  And we just love checking out new raw food restaurants.   This trip, we went to Euphoria, 118 Degrees, AuLac (twice) and Erehwon (twice).  Next time we plan on going to Terra Bella and Cru for sure.  The meal at AuLac was definitely the best EVER.  Really.  Da Bowl was my bf’s favorite salad (the Salad Song is my fav), the Imagine (the risotto with sea veggies) was our favorite entrée ever, and the chocolate ecstasy cake was by far the best raw food dessert we’ve ever had.  It was like an ice cream cake with oreo cookie crust!  I don’t know how they do it.  Chef Ito was there both times too and it was really nice to see him again (although, I have to admit, I don’t know what he’s trying to say to us half the time).  I totally respect his vow of silence and raw food making talent though!

At Erewhon, I had a completely new raw food experience.  Truth made me this drink that wasn’t even on the menu.  Here is a complete list of what it had in it: maca, cacao, mesquite, roasted maca, tocotreinols, protein powder, eucamia bark extract, chaga, ionic minerals, he sho wu, cistanche, ionic minerals, pumpkin seed oil, ghee (that’s right—ghee.  I was totally trusting Truth and his expertise though), stevia extracts of chocolate, vanilla, and English toffee, zylitol, and almond milk.  He made all of this into an ice cream by using ice as a base and it was out of this world.  He even sprinkled on bee pollen for me!  This was so good that I had to go back on Sunday for another ☺

We were also pretty lucky to have gotten what felt like a full-on consultation and tour by Truth as well.  What a treat!  I was also really happy to purchase a couple of his “Cacao of the Tao” chocolates that I had heard about on the bestdayever.com.  (They are pretty darn awesome-tasting by the way.)

All in all, it was one of the best trips to California ever.  It’s so exciting going to a new raw food restaurant too.  Too bad I wasn’t a raw fooder while I was living there.  Oh well ☺  It’s nice to be back in Chicago though.  I have a feeling we’ll be getting some new places to eat at too.  Also—here’s some neat news.  Shazzie from the UK has made an e-book for people to bring to their favorite restaurants that might be open to expanding their menu to include some raw food items.  I checked out the e-book and it’s really great.  It gave me some ideas for some new recipes to try out myself too. Here’s the link to have to e-book mailed to you .

~Lenette

Hi friends!  If you’re in Chicago, I hope you’ve been out enjoying the good weather we’ve been having.  I certainly have been.  This week marks the first week of cubicle freedom for me.  Last Friday was my last day in the office.  I’ll now be working full-time for myself!!  I’ll be working on a series of raw food lifestyle dvds—based on the classes I taught last year; some short e-books; speaking at Doc’s-the local 100% organic juice and smoothie bar about green smoothies and the value of having/using a Vita-Mix ; and blogging more often.  For fun I’ll be exercising more, spending time in my garden, studying up on and eating more wild foods, putting together more Chicago Young and Raw Events, and making full use of the Bucktown Wicker Park Library, reading and learning all I can.  I’ll also be mediating and learning Reiki !!  (The bf and I will be taking a Reiki class in order to get “attuned” this Saturday morning.)  I’m so exciting and so appreciative of this precious gift (of a good severance package) I’ve been given.

My garden is thriving from the recent thunderstorms we’ve been having and I’m just loving it. Last night my boyfriend came over for dinner and I picked all kind of fresh greens from my blooming garden.  I made us the best salad ever- with freshly picked romaine, Boston lettuce, parsley, spinach, and some delicious radishes.  Of course I threw in all kinds of other goodies too, carrot, sprouts, avo, sweet peppers, and more.

Last week the Chicago Young and Raw Meetup Group had a raw food picnic potluck in the park.  It was so much fun.  We even ended up feeding some random guy in the park who wanted to join us.  You should have seen the look on his face when he tasted his first forkful of kale salad (with gojis and pine nuts in it).  It was crazy.  He was like “what IS this???”  It’s always nice to share the best food ever with strangers and turn them onto what’s out there to enjoy.  It’s definitely not all about caviar and filet mignon

What else is new?…  Here is a really neat trailer about an upcoming movie about food and just how big a role it plays in our life.  I’m not sure when it’s coming out but I’ll be there on opening night for sure!   Check it out at http://foodmatters.tv/trailer.html

Also, talking about simple holistic healing:  I’ve been having a few issues with super-tight shoulder and neck muscles lately and just bought this really simple kit with two rubber balls and I can’t tell you how much it’s helped lately.  Every morning I just lay on these two balls and it’s HEAVEN.  It’s called the Miracle Ball Method .  You can find it on Amazon if you have any sort of back, shoulder, neck problems and don’t really want to pay up the $$$ to see a chiropractor.  It feels so wonderful that I just know it’s doing the same sort of benefit—without all the pain.   Just click on the link above to see what I’m talking about.

That’s all for now kids.  Much love to you.  Muuah!

~L

Hi all,

Sorry to have been gone for so long.  Last weekend, my boyfriend and I went to Colorado Springs and had a really amazing time.  We went biking in the Garden of the Gods, experienced some really fresh mountain air at the top of Pikes Peak, got to sample some mineral water for several different natural springs, did some hiking, and even got a psychic reading.  It was all pretty awesome.  Here are some pictures of the trip below.

<–sampling some natural spring water in Manitou Springs.  It tasted very minerally and not as clean-tasting as I was hoping.

<–Ponderosa Pine trees smell just like butterscotch!

There are no raw food restaurants in Colorado Springs (yet) but with the help of Lara Bars and Safeway’s organic produce section, we did pretty darn good diet-wise.  There was also a great organic restaurant in Manitou Springs that we ate ate twice.   My advice for travelers is to bring some organic fruit for the first couple mornings and also some tupperware containers and utencils for making your own salads when you go grocery shopping, along with some Lara Bars, bee pollen, and Vitamineral Greens.  I bring Celtic Sea Salt and stevia too whenever I travel.

<–”Seven-Falls” behind me.  What a gorgeous day and view.

<–Garden of the Gods from afar.  Very appropriately named!!

Anyway it was a fantastic trip as you can see and it really is true that you can eat well –raw-vegan-organic pretty much anywhere!  (well Lara Bars aren’t organic but close enough ;)  I was hoping to do more wild food foraging and was studing my book the entire way there on the plane but there wasn’t much that I recognized.   There’s always my front yard though!!

I found out yesterday that I was in the Chicago Redeye on Monday.  Here is the article.  It’s about detoxing and the pains and gains of it.  It’s short and worth the read.

Two other tidbits:  I just bought myself a Q-Link because I’ve been feeling like it might give me some more energy (and more energy is always a great thing).  I think it’s really been helping me.  It didn’t go off when I went through the airport metal detector either. There are some really good deals on these on Amazon now.  I think the price has really gone down substantially and could be worth it.  I’m not a huge fan of wearing it as jewelry so I just safety pin it to the middle of my bra and it seems to work.

Also, I think I’ve found my replacement for Kombuchas.  I really love Kombucha (mainly the carbonation of it) and have been brewing my own in my apartment.  However, it takes quite a while to brew if you want to get all the sugar out (about 2 weeks) and I’m only making about 5 1/2 bottles worth at a time so it goes pretty fast.  But I just discovered this great drink called Talking Rain at Costco last night!  It’s fizzy, organicly favored sparkling artesian spring water, and it has zero calories and no artificial flavorings.  It’s perfect.  And it was only $9 something for 24 bottles so that’s about 42 cents per bottle.  Pretty good compared to 3.50 or so per bottle.  Just thought I’d share that with all you Kombucha addicts out there… ;) 

P.s.  I am also looking into taking a reiki 1 class so if any of you have done this or have any recommendations on where to take this class please e-mail me.  Thanks so much!
~Lenette

<–one of two of my new 4 x 4 square foot gardens (surrounded by tons of wild edibles ironically enough!)

Happy Friday Everyone!!!  Need some upliftment?  Here are some short but effective audio clips to get you in the mood ;)   I try to listen to these every morning now.  I’m a such a nerd, I know!    http://www.soundboard.com/sb/laugh_track.aspx

The Chicago Green Fest last weekend was awesome.  I think it was the biggest so far.  It’s always fun running into friends from the local raw food community, sampling new products, supporting local companies just starting up, and browsing through the gorgeous organic clothing.  I’m not sure what booth/product was my favorite, but my friends and I all got a health reading at this one particular booth and each got a print out of where we stood with our digestion, adrenals, hormones, sleep, etc (there were about 30 points of measure)-and we thought this booth was well worth visiting.  The testing method was new to me but the guy said the readings were usually pretty accurate.  He put a clip the hand of tip of my left index finger and then wet an electrical probe and pressed it onto the outside of the middle bone of my right index finger.  The guy pressed down with the probe for each health measure and obtained a number on the computer.  Funny enough, I was slightly outside the ideal range for water!!  That was a great wake up call for me though.  I am now really focused on making sure I get at least 3 liters of water in me a day (not including juices, teas, etc.)  The basics are always a great thing to re-focus on

I’m seeing wild foods everywhere right now!  Clover, plantain, dandelion, wild violet, rhubarb, lambsquarters, lemon sorrel, and garlic mustard (I LOVE garlic mustard).  I think I’ve been thinking about and studying wild foods so much lately that the universe is literally putting them right in front of me everywhere I go!  I borrowed a book on wild edibles from the library last month, wanting to identify everything in my front yard.  It turns out I have four of the above eight wild foods in my front yard alone.  I feel so lucky.  I plan on going to the Magic Hedge near Montrose beach in Chicago soon to check out what else is going off now that spring is in full gear.  Probably mulberries, wild apples, and tons more.  Check out this post I did last year on wild foods for more info on the Magic Hedge.  I think the next young and raw meetup will be an intro to wild foods in my front yard and then a field trip out to the Magic Hedge.  I’m VERY excited…

One last thing for today to spark that ever-expanding mind of yours:  I found a great source for some free e-books on superfood health from Mike Adams, “The Health Ranger.”  He’s such an awesome guy that has started up a website called http://www.newstarget.com/, a completely independent website dedicated to educating us on health info the FDA doesn’t want us to know about.  The website is

http://www.truthpublishing.com/Articles.asp?ID=131 and gives you access to about 10 free e-books.  I’ve already read/skimmed through four of them and have learned a ton of new info.  Also, here are some great youtube videos of him I’d highly recommend.  This is a series of about eight though so watch them when you have time.  His knowledge base is huge and this is not your everyday information.  You’ll definitely learn something new from him.   Enjoy and have a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend!

~Lenette

Last weekend I continued my shopping (I feel like it’s been a real scavenger hunt) for supplies and ingredients for my square foot garden.  It seems like it’s been years since first talking about this and I am just SO excited to get started.  However, I’ve encountered a few challenges:  I’m finding that not a lot of gardening supply centers carry organic transplants, composts, copper shovels, etc–at least not in Chicago.  I REALLY thought these things would be more prevalent and not at all hard to find but I guess I was wrong.  Chicago is striving to be the “greenest” city in America.  Why not start with the actual greenery?  Organic gardening materials are definitely the most sustainable and earth friendly way to go.  Oh well.  I’ve posted some want ads on Craig’s list.  Maybe someone is making organic compost in their kitchen using some sort of automatic composter and has some extra to unload.  The universe will line it up for me, right? Right!  It would definitely be a great business for someone in the Chicago to take on–making and selling organic compost.  It’s a great way to promote growing your own food too, or the whole Anastatia Movement. 

One thing I did see (and smell!) at the garden supply center that I thought was pretty cool was a bag of cacao shells.  I wasn’t sure how to use this in my soil mix so I didn’t buy it.  I’ve heard David Wolfe say that cacao shells add a lot of nitrogen to the soil.  The bag that I saw was sitting in the sun and smelled SO good I was seriously ready to take it home and use it as potpourri (maybe someday soon.  It would be a pretty neat idea.  I wonder if anyone has done this?).

On another topic:  Are you interested in trying out young green coconuts but don’t have $400 to take a vacation to the tropics?  I was pondering this question myself the other day and decided to start Googling.  If found this business in Florida, Broward Palm Trees, where you can order a case of 12 (I don’t know why 12) young green coconuts for about $5-$6 per coconut, depending on where you live.  Expensive I know, but it’s FedEx that really gets you because I spoke with the guy and he sells them for only $1 each!  It’s just an option.  Maybe if you can get five other friends together you can go in on a box together for $10-$12 each.  If you are anything like me-I know you’ve spent more than that on good food and superfoods before.  Why not try something new?  OR….if you can get together a bunch of friends and order a crate of 400 you can get the cost down to about $3 each.  Maybe if you’re in New York or California it would be possible to get this many willing people together.  Just putting it out there… It would be a good reason to put an event together

Have the best weekend ever,

Lenette