Sunday, October 26, 2008

Its Blast Off Time

Since I started writing Green Leaf Reviewer about two weeks ago I have been questioning a lot of the things I do and how focused I really am on the environment. Not to say that the planet as a whole is not a priority for me because it definitely is -- I recycle, upcycle, drive a fuel efficient car, barely drive anywhere, turn lights and electronics off, yada, yada, yada -- but when it comes to taking care of me, I question if I have lost complete focus. One of the things I said in the welcome message over there is that the environment is everything around us so truthfully, that means my own body as well.

I have been inspired lately with all these great healthy recipes I have been reading about and this past week Matt had to have a tooth pulled.

How do those things relate some of you may wonder? Well fear not for in my ability to weave seemingly random and unrelated topics into one roller coaster ride of a blog post I would love to share it with you.

A couple weeks ago Matt had such a bad toothache that he actually sat in his chair one Friday night and cried from the pain. He had already made an appointment for the following Tuesday but I suggested to just go there in the morning instead and explain the situation so perhaps they could squeeze him in as an emergency appointment. Luckily they did and he came home with a temporary filling. He was feeling much better and booked an appointment for this past Thursday to have the wisdom tooth extracted.

He went in for a three o’clock appointment on Thursday and while he was having an impacted tooth yanked out I was briskly walking the bike path with my friend S, the twins and her Mom. We have decided to try to walk together at least once a week and knowing that I will finally be doing even a little exercise is a great feeling. Matt called to say he was done and drooling so I picked him up and we headed home where he could nap off his pint of blood loss and I could get some sewing done.

For the following few days he was allowed to eat only soft foods and since he was feeling a bit more energy, and a need for a walk himself, he headed down to the supermarket to pick up something edible that would help fill him up. Just as a quick reference point here my Grampa used to tell me I must have a hollow leg with the amount of food I could pack away without gaining any weight. Well if I had one hollow leg Matt surely has two so eating broth for three days was not going to cut it. I gave him a small list and he came home with blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, apples, vanilla flavored Carnation Instant Breakfast, milk and Cream of Wheat.

After making the pesto last week I had some leftover cilantro and was no longer nervous that my (very underutilized) blender was going to explode so I pulled it back out and decided to try my hand at some smoothies that might fill up Matt. I am a lover of fruits and veggies but have frequently said it would be beneficial to own a juicer because I am never going to be the person who just grabs for fruit to snack on but if I were to blend them all together and have a yummy drink well that I could do all day!

I took a handful of blueberries, raspberries, four strawberries, a third of a Macintosh apple, a few chopped sprigs of the cilantro, two packets of the vanilla Carnation instant breakfast and eight ounces of milk and blended it until it was pancake batter consistency. I hesitantly handed it over to him waiting to hear “blech!” but to my surprise he loved it! I loved it too but what we both really loved most was the way we felt about an hour after drinking it.

Those of you who know me are fully aware that I am a proponent of marijuana, but I will tell you something, never in all the years I smoked did I ever feel a high like that. It was like my brain and body were on this complete cloud of clarity; like a sugar high without the jitters. I had energy I could not burn off no matter how I tried and instantly began looking for the permanent placement for the blender on the counter because this was definitely going to happen again.

Today we had another for breakfast but this time I also added a bit of carrot, more apple and reduced the cilantro and strawberry (too many seeds). I can not even express how great I feel and how much I am looking forward to experimenting with alternate fruits and veggies to make this even healthier. Although I made this with cow milk it could easily be exchanged with soy and I am sure there are vegetarian/vegan alternative protein powders to add instead of the vanilla Carnation Instant Breakfast so I will begin my search for those.

Even though some situations may seem bad at the time they are happening, they can certainly prove to be great in the end. If it were not for Matt’s toothache and subsequent extraction I do not think that either of us would have gone walking or started eating healthier just yet. Timing is a wondrous thing.

9 comments:

ginger said...

yay! isn't it great how the food we eat makes such a difference in how we feel? if it's protein powder you're looking for there are some good rice protein powders out there for those who want to forego (too much) soy and whey (since that's dairy). i use chlorella powder. it's green, but unless you use too much you can't taste it (it only takes a tsp or 2 per person)....and it's quite the perfect food all it's own. and if you need it sweeter try some agave nectar.

i think marijuana should be legalized so it can be regulated and sold like alcohol...and because it's not dangerous if used in moderation. i just don't like it personally. and i don't understand how people don't figure out that it's really just the plant's toxins that makes them feel "high." do we go around eating poisonous food for the high? okay, well. mushrooms...i guess we do, haha!

anyway! i'm glad you're no longer afraid of your blender. and i'm glad matt feels better too. :)

xoxoxo

pastrywitch said...

I'm glad Matt feels better - toothache is abominable. So is "we can get you in next week" - sheesh.
The fruit buzz sounds good - did you find that mental clarity goes along with that? I could really use some of that.
Walkies! My favorite! Enjoy the fall weather - it's gorgeous. Here anyway, and hopefully where you are.

pastrywitch said...

Also, marijuana should be legalized, and the taxes used for underfunded educational programs like art and music. And reading. A nation of readers would be awesome.

Bridgete said...

I agree about legalization of marijuana. It's no more dangerous than alcohol or cigarettes and if it's legalized we can regulate it, put warning labels on it (don't toke and drive?), and tax it.

Oh, and yay about the discovery of smoothies! =)

High Desert Diva said...

The energy boost is encouraging, but the C. Instant B-fast kind of freaks me out...what's in it? I'm glad you're going to look into alternatives. I'll be interested in reading what you come up with.

I love smoothies, but usually only drink them in the spring/summer because I'm half frozen the rest of the year.

Moonchild Dancing! said...

Ooooh smoothies! I love them. Last week I had my two wisdom teeth pulled also and so I feel for your man there. I also only drank smoothies and organic health drinks for 3 days after and WOW! My energy was up.. I felt amazing. Need to do it more often. :) Peace!

Judi FitzPatrick said...

Hope Matt is now allowed real food that is not squishy. Glad you are planning to keep eating the healthier foods. I agree with HDD - Instant B'fast is scary to me.
Love ya, Mum

Kala said...

You have inspired me to pull out my blender too - are you sure it won't explode???:)

Beki - TheRustedChain said...

I used to use my juicer daily and I've never felt healthier! It was the exact feeling you described. Just filled with energy, bright, alert.

But I'm lazy and it was a pain to clean.
And I'm poor and tons of fruits and veggies cost a lot.

So I stopped. Haha!

But we do make smoothies pretty often and they're a good substitute.