Gone Fishing

When I was in business, my real estate office was across the street from the local breakfast/lunch restaurant, which I frequented daily. It was a great source of local gossip and news, which often turned into house listings and sales.

The owner, also a "townie" and friends of both my husband and myself, started his day real early "in the wee hours" around 3AM, to bake breads, muffins and rolls. His job was hot and sweaty, standing in front of a grill all day with waitresses barking orders endlessly.

My office became a refuge for him when he needed a well deserved few minutes of break time, just like his restaurant became my salvation when I needed to "hide" from my office duties, as well as keep up on who might be selling soon.

One day I was so stressed out that a little break across the street just wasn't going to be enough. I felt I had to get completely away from the stress and the only way to do it was by leaving town.

It didn't take much to convince hubby to close the doors and sneak away for a few hours.

It was not quite time for the restaurant to be closing, but as we were leaving I noticed that it looked like there was a lull at the restaurant. So I scooted across the street and talked our friend and his wife into closing shop early and hanging a "Gone Fishing" sign on the door.

Then we head up the coast to our favorite spot for some world famous Maine lobsters and clams. AAHHH!! The good ol' days.

The "Gone Fishing" trick was our little secret escape which turned into a habit that we used every now and then. It was a little mischievous way to have a fun break in our rather hectic schedules. And nobody was ever the wiser.

Gone Fishing
Gypsy Girl

"Enlightenment for Idiots"

I just finished reading Enlightenment for Idiots by Anne Cushman.

I couldn’t put it down. I laughed and cried and thoroughly enjoyed the adventures of Amanda, the protagonist, on her search for enlightenment.

Entwined with wit and wisdom, it is sometimes hilarious, sometimes serious but always thought provoking.

It is filled with spiritual insights, and real life characters, warts and all. Some zany, some down to earth, even some that resemble people in my own life. They are sure to tickle your funny bone, as well as warm your heart.

Whether you are a yoga enthusiast or don't know a thing about yoga, and are looking for a good summer read, you'll find this book enjoyable.

Who knows you may even find enlightenment!!

Namaste

Gypsy Girl

Pyscotherapists And Drugs For Health Nuts

You gotta love it. The pharmaceutical companies have been creating new diseases for quite some time now in order to peddle all the drugs they invent to bilk us of all our money and make us a life time user.

But this is going over the edge. I don’t even know if it is the pharmaceutical companies (or their cohorts the corrupt food and medical industries) that are involved here, but it sure smells funny.

The following is a description of Orthorexia Nervosa a new “disease” relating to those of us who pride ourselves in taking extreme care of health and fitness through food and exercise.

“Orthorexia Nervosa is an obsessive-compulsive process characterized by extreme care for and selection of what is considered to be pure 'healthy' food. This ritual leads to a very restrictive diet and social isolation as a compensation. Orthorexics obsessively avoid foods which may contain artificial colours, flavours, preservant agents, pesticide residues or genetically modified ingredients, unhealthy fats, foods containing too much salt or too much sugar and other components. The way of preparation, kitchenware and other tools used are also part of the obsessive ritual. People with orthorexia often have a history or features in common with anorexic patients. They are very careful, detailed and tidy persons with an exagerated need for selfcare and protection. Women, adolescents and those who practice sports suchs as bodybuidling or ahthetics are the groups at higher risk. A short test has been suggested as a screening tool and useful for early diagnosis of the disorder. Treatment of orthorexia require a multidisciplinary team involving physicians, psychoterapists and dietitians. In some cases, antiserotoninergic drugs may be required as part of the treatment. “

So, it seems if we are diligent about taking care of health, we are all sick and need treatment because we exercise with a passion, try not to ingest poisonous genetically altered foods laced with pesticides, food coloring, preservatives, unhealthy fats, don’t use aluminum pans, and only eat whole healthy, nutritious foods and try to eliminate sugar and refined carbohydrates from our diet causing us “social isolation“.

Well, well. We all must be certifiable and in immediate need of help. Thank God I found this all out in time!! Because there is hope for us after all!!

As the article states there is short test for early diagnosis of this “disorder”. And there are “teams” of physicians, dietitians and psychotherapists waiting to help us. YIPPEE!! So hurry up and get tested!!

And please add a little poisonous dead food to your diet and quit the yoga and meditation just to be safe. You don’t want to be too conspicuous, there could be a straight jacket waiting for you.

To Your Health
Gypsy Girl

Five Things Meme

Alfia tagged me with this meme, which normally I would decline, but what the heck, here goes…

The rules:
1. Post the rules of the game at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read the player’s blog.
4. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

What were you doing five years ago?

I think that was the year we discovered South America. If so, we took a few trips to South America that year and probably a few more to other places. But since I am always traveling, and am not very diligent about dating my photos I can only be sure that I took several tri[ps that year.

What are five things on your to-do list for today?

Bridal Shower (outdoors and its is in the 90’s)

Groceries (never shop on weekends, but need food for beach. I talked my 2 daughters into letting my 3 youngest granddaughters skip school tomorrow, as it will be in the high 90’s, and we need to go to the beach….can you tell why my grandkids think I am the coolest Gram in the world!! LOL :)))

Laundry (won’t get done…too hot)

Gardening ( had planned to weed the garden…but thank God I had to go to the bridal shower…poor hubby stayed home and weeded all day… God love him!! LOL)

Reading (in the shade)

What are five snacks you enjoy?

Apples
Popcorn
Raw veggies
Almonds
Dark chocolate

What are five things you would do if you were a billionaire?

Build a sidewalk in my town from elementary school to new library(in the wisdom of our town fathers they build a new library and no sidwalk along the road to it. So the kids cannot go to the library from school anymore…how dumb is that!)

Build a park (next to my new sidewalk) with fitness and exercise stations throughout it. (I’ve enjoyed some really cool ones in Ft. Lauderdale and Honolulu)

Build housing for the needy in my favorite barrio(which is very poor) in Mexico

Start a scholarship fund for local high school kids.

Share my good fortune with family and friends.


What are five of your bad habits?

Laziness
Blogging
Impatience
Unorganized
Procrastination

What are five places where you have lived?

California
Connecticut
New Hampshire
Massachusetts
Mexico

What are five jobs you’ve had?

Teachers Aid
Real Estate Broker
Spanish Teacher
Laundry worker
Factory worker

Rather than tag five people, I will let anyone who reads this decide if they want to play along.

If you decide to do the meme, please let me know! :)

Contentment, Laziness or Age?

My daily yoga and meditation practice has taken me to new levels of contentment and tranquility. Or is it something else?

This feeling of contentment has overlapped into many areas of my life. Here are a few good examples that come to mind.

I am no longer easily provoked. Or should I say, when I am provoked, I am not as likely to react in a negative way. I look inside and see my anger or my judgment and more often than not I choose to be silent. I don’t have to be right, I don’t have to have my say. I find myself smiling inside and feeling a stillness and peace and saying “Everything is perfect in my world, just the way it is“.

I used to be unnerved if someone didn’t take off their shoes and left messy tracks in the house. And I would never miss scrubbing the house from top to bottom each week. Now if I miss my cleaning day and see a layer of dust on the furniture, I let it go. I find myself smiling inside and feeling a stillness and peace and saying “Everything is perfect in my world, just the way it is“.

I have always been an avid gardener and prided myself on my gardens being well groomed, pruned, weed free and perfectly organized. Now I “allow” them to be a bit more carefree. If there are weeds, so be it. If I don’t deadhead all the faded bloom, oh well! And if the deer have eaten 20 years worth of work on a boarder garden(this I recently discovered). Not long ago I would have been devastated to the point of tears. But I found myself smiling inside and feeling a stillness and peace and saying “Everything is perfect in my world, just the way it is“.

So what I want to know is this…Am I more content and tranquil or have I developed laziness? Or could it be that I am getting older and maybe a bit wiser and realize that it is true “Everything is perfect in my world, just the way it is”?

Namaste
Gypsy Girl

Nature's Beautiful Gifts

The Holiday weekend was perfect in all respects. We had lots of family fun at my niece’s house, lovely weather, a great cookout and a hilarious kickball game that 3 generations of family members participated in.

It is a custom in this area of New England to plant during Memorial Day weekend. So yesterday we planted our vegetable and herb garden. I love it because I can view it from my kitchen window and watch the progress each day. In just a short time we will have an abundance of fresh organic veggies and herbs at our fingertips, just a few short steps away.

It is hard for me to believe that we have been organic gardeners for nearly 40 years. YIKES!! Where did the time go. We plant enough to give to family and friends and always have plenty to store in our root cellar for the winter months.


We have several families of birds nesting in various places in our gardens. This photo is of a nest that is built on a ladder hanging on the back of our barn. Today Ronnie needed a ladder to do some maintenance work and he remembered that we have a Mamma robin nesting there. So he had to borrow a ladder from his brother in order not to disturb the beautiful blue eggs.

I love to watch the birds as they carry grass and twigs and mud to make their little nests. Right now it’s pretty quiet, the hard work is done and moms are sitting on eggs. But soon it will be a busy time again when both mom and dad fly in and out with a constant supply of food for the hungry little mouths. Fun to watch!!

Isn’t nature grand? It always provides us with such beautiful gifts, if only we stop long enough to appreciate and enjoy them. It really is true…the best things in life are free.



Life Is Good
Gypsy Girl

Praise for CRON Bloggers

In a recent post I had a little rant about disciplining myself to keep on track with my CRON(calorie restriction optimal nutrition) way of eating.

There is a whole network of CRON people out there blogging and ready to help with whatever is needed.

I found CRON through one of the yoga blogs that I read. Arturo, a fellow yogi, practices a CRON diet. So from reading Arturo’s blog about yoga I also found lots of nutritional and CRON information. He has given me lots of great recommendations from books to read about CRON to everyday CRON practicing tips. ( not to mention all the good yoga info). Arturo lives on the opposite coast and he was just in Boston for a conference. But unfortunately, we were unable to meet.

I read several CRON blogs that are packed with good information about nutrition and health.

I love Minicronnie , who lives on “the other side of the pond”. Her blog has info about getting the “most bang for your buck” (in this case nutritional value). Because she is such a wee thing, only 4’10.5” tall, she has to tweak those calories more than the average person to get all her nutrients. She does endless research about the foods that provide the most nutrition for the least calories.

Then there is The Scientific Psychic. Tony is a marvel. His blog is interesting on many levels, not just CRON.

Nennette is so supportive and helpful with CRON. Her blog reflects a lively, energetic and loving person.

Mary is somewhat of a CRON “pro” and has participated in calorie restriction studies.

The list is endless. The good thing is, they all live CR and through blogging they share their knowledge, support, tips and advice.

I have always practiced good nutritional habits. But reading these blogs and using the tracking software CRON-O-Meter , has helped keep my focus and provided a wealth of information about staying healthy and living longer.

“Your Health is Your Wealth”
Gypsy Girl