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Green Lips, Chocolate Kelp and the Desert Sky
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Green Lips, Chocolate Kelp and the Desert Sky

Happy 2011, darlings! How is everyone’s year going so far? Tell me what’s exciting!

First off… I have a new project I’m working on that I’m very excited for. Right now it’s still a secret, but I’ll give you a hint… It has to do with SPIRULINA!

Indulge me… What do you love about spirulina? Of course, that’s if you’ve tried it yet… Have you? What’s your favorite way to eat it? When are you going to join us in the green lips club?

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Holiday Vacation + Fruit Dip!
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Holiday Vacation + Fruit Dip!

Happy New Year! Last week I returned from my holiday vacation with my family. This first pic is a super simple raw vegan pate I made to dip fruit in. It’s simply equal parts medjool dates and brazil nuts, with a little water to make it the consistency you desire, and a pinch of salt. It tasted great with pomegranates too 😉

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Beauty in the High Desert
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Beauty in the High Desert

This weekend, to enjoy the 75-degree weather, I went on one of my favorite hikes/climbs outside of Patagonia, Arizona – a slot canyon called Flux Canyon.  The outdoors, natural beauty, sunlight, exercise, and amazing friends makes for one delightful experience.  The above picture is of one side of the slot canyon.

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Starlight and Painting: An Update
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Starlight and Painting: An Update

I find myself less able to rub in the days of AZ warmth at those of you living in cold climates… It is getting chilly here! With the shorter days and colder temperatures, I’ve found myself moving from long bike rides after a day of work to long walks with a flashlight in the dark. Although I’m partial to the glory of flying down a hill on my bike surrounded by majestic mountains and cacti in the warm, blazing sun, my new evening communions with the night, replete with the sparkling, star-packed Arizona sky are certainly energizing.

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Receiving in Order to Share on Thanksgiving
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Receiving in Order to Share on Thanksgiving

The Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center hosts 100-200 people each year for our Thanksgiving potluck and day-long celebration. The Thanksgiving celebration starts with a group meditation. Meditation is a perfect way to start a day focused on gratitude. It allows us to be present to the abundant, overflowing blessings in our lives. Not only that, meditation returns us to the place prior to thought and form, the “nothing”. Gabriel Cousens, a spiritual teacher of mine, teaches that the nothing is where the “something,” all that exists, comes from. On a day where our gratitude is usually associated with situations, people, things, and circumstances in the “something”, it is profound to touch in with the place prior to all that, to its source. “Everything comes from the Divine” and “everything the Divine does is for the best, for you” are profound teachings to meditate on for Thanksgiving.

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Ending and Breaking My Fast
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Ending and Breaking My Fast

Saturday was my last day fasting, and I was feeling so great I wanted to continue!  It’s amazing that after one gets over that threshold of day 3 or 4, it often feels so euphoric, natural, and easy that people just want to continue.  What did I do on Day 7?  After a week of not eating?  Went on a BIKE RIDE.  That’s right!  I fully enjoyed my 7th day, spending time outside and going to sleep before 9pm.

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Green Juice Fast Days 4-6
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Green Juice Fast Days 4-6

Daaaaaaaaaay SIX!  Can you tell I’m feeling good?  Yes, feeling good.  Great, in fact.  Days 4 and 5 were really smooth and easy.  All the days through day 5, I was impressed to notice that not only did I feel focused and creative, I felt more focused and creative, and could stay that way for more hours in a day than I normally can.  Often I hit a point after a certain amount of hours of focusing intellectually and/or creatively where my capacities for effectiveness in both those areas fall away a bit.  Not since fasting.  I’ve been really productive this week, felt really enthusiastic about my projects, and felt like my creative channel is much more open.

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Green Juice Fast Days 1-3
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Green Juice Fast Days 1-3

Today is day 3 of my fast and I am feeling wonderful.  So far, this fast has had the least amount of detoxification symptoms of any I’ve done.  I’ve had better mental clarity and focus and been able to work, in my observation, even more effectively for the same amount of hours per day.  My energy has been pretty stable aside from a few extra naps that I normally wouldn’t need if I weren’t fasting (I really almost never need naps).

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Free Download: My Interview with Olympic Medalist Catherine Garceau

Free Download: My Interview with Olympic Medalist Catherine Garceau

Available for FREE DOWNLOAD NOW:

My interview with Olympic Medalist Catherine Garceau on raw food nutrition, spirituality, athleticism and emotional eating! It was so much fun and we got into some really dynamic conversations and topics!

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Blue Manna
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Blue Manna

Thankful Thursday! What are you thankful for? Here’s a list of random things I’m feeling appreciative of in this moment:

The sunlight, eternally beaming down its deliciousness on me. Ain’t no Vitamin D deficiency up in herrrr.

Plinky.com, my favorite new website. Prompts for writing. Gets through writers block and is just plain fun.

Music. Enjoying Empire of the Sun, Band of Horses, and MC Yogi today.

Books. Currently reading Women Who Run with Wolves, Three Cups of Tea, The Ringing Cedars of Russia, and ReWork.

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Saguaro Cactus Fruit Harvesting!
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Saguaro Cactus Fruit Harvesting!

Saguaro Cactus Fruit! The gems of the desert, the rubies of the sands, the gifts of the dunes. How can I illustrate your majesty and deliciousness in words, saguaro cactus fruit?

Nothing like a little poetic and dramatic intro to start off a post about one incredible food. The Saguaro Cactus is seen in most classical Arizona pictures – tall and skinny, with a couple ‘arms’. What most people don’t know is that on the very top of those arms, for about 2 weeks every year, one of the most amazing fruits in existence is in season. Harvested throughout history by indigenous tribes, the saguaro cactus fruit is an incredibly potent, medicinal, and surprisingly very sweet fruit.

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Patagonia Raw Birthday Party Photo Recap
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Patagonia Raw Birthday Party Photo Recap

Hello hello!

Last night, I enjoyed attending the birthday party for the Tree of Life’s General Manager, Yosef. It was another enjoyable Patagonia community party, enlivened with inspiring and joyful conversation, overflowing with raw food delicacies, and slicked out with pool fun. Some photos to recap (my apologies for the poor lighting in some pictures):

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