Day 77

When we lived in FNQ in 2008 we had the most incredible view from the lakehouse of the gargantuan Bartle Frere silently watching over us day and night. I mentioned on day 67 about our adventure to the top of that grand old sage and the words of Hilary that inspired me: "It’s not the mountain we conquer but ourselves". As I began my week meditating on those words I felt as if they are becoming a reality more and more as I press through barriers that have stood in my way and it's so exciting! I am not needing as much sleep now so I have decided to arise at 4am when I am naturally waking and have my Hour of Power (HoP) before heading off to the gym around 5:15am. So I had planned my HoP for the week on Sunday evening and today I got off to a great start! The Dedicated Cyclist from New Zealand has been inspiring me with his green powered meals so this week I am focusing on loading up on even more greens. In addition to my green smoothie I am having big bowls of all things green - brocoli, courgette, cucumber, asparagus, green beans, sprouted lentilles du puy (french green lentils), avocado & pepitas, topped with an olive oil, coriander, apple cider and mustard dressing. I haven't eaten raw brocoli in the past but am discovering it's quite nice in a raw veggie salad. The health benefits are simply wonderful, in fact it has been called a miracle food. Having said that I all food in it's natural state has life-containing power that we can use to nourish our bodies. As the cooler season enfolds us lets follow the advice of Hippocrates and consider everything we consume so that our food be medicine and our medicine be food! Adieu....  

Day 75 & 76

Another weekend is slowly packing up to make way for the challenges of the week ahead. I love my Sunday evening's - a time to enjoy a final evening of rest and relaxation and to take a few moments with a lovely pot of tea and my Cara's 9 to plan my week and make sure that I take a balanced approach to life. Our friend Peta is off to Mongolia in a week to live in a yurt and complete a two year assignment with the Red Cross so on Saturday evening we all gathered to celebrate this exciting new opportunity and her upcoming birthday. It was lovely to see our Chinese friends Grace & Bob; and meet their daughter Emily (fifteen months) so a dinner date at Hong Kong Cuisine (I do love their yum cha!) is already in the pipeline for April. Sunday we had a big country drive to the Sunshine Coast, we're doing a little renovating at the moment and had to pick up a door which was also not too far from a raw foodie cafe I discovered online about a week ago. Our itinery took us to Maleny today (a motorbike swap meet was on) so we dropped in to visit the Maple Street Food Co-Op. We have some a group looking at starting a local co-op here so it was good to touch base with a good model for the project. After a scenic drive to Mapleton we headed down the mountain for a lovely lunch of buritos and a medditeranean platter at It's Rawesome Cafe before picking up the door and heading home to a few chapters of Just off Fifth.

Day 74

Friday evenings are great for unwinding and getting ready to enjoi a restful and relaxing weekend. My colleague and I took a road trip to Toowoomba today and the boys were enjoying cracking carrot jokes whilst I munched on green beans and almonds as we began our workshop around 10am. It's good not to take yourself too seriously and I read this week that being able to tell a funny story about something silly you've done is good for the mind & soul. I've got so many but can't think of anything right now (next post!). We enjoyed a lovely game of badminton in the garden at sunset before my man got picked up for footy with the lads so I've had some lovely Cara time this evening: a long overdue phone catch up with my friend, listening to my music, playing around with ideas for new catalogues, uploading photos from our trip to Vietnam last September and dreaming about new places to visit, sumptuous food to eat, fresh roses every morning and indulging the senses in all that a new place has to offer. So much still to discover....

Day 73

I am yet to master sprouting sunnies, the most deliciously sweet and crunchy sprouts on the planet. I planted a whole box full and one lonesome sprout popped up. Unlike other sprouts they grow in soil not water so a green thumb is required - here are some tips and I shall continue to experiment. Sprouts are full of the life force of nature and if you really want a boost of energy - add some sprouts to your diet. There are so many different types and the more variety the better! Many people have been commenting to me over the last few days about being on the final leg and even the man of the house said to me the other day "Oh I'm going to do the rest of the 100 days raw with you" [mind you those sentiments lasted a few hours until we dropped in to pick up some nori paper for the sushi and he slipped a couple of packets of chips, a bag of snack size snickers bars and some crumpets into the basket]. It may sound odd but I've almost forgotten that I'm eating differently and it just seems normal to me now. I think back to when I wrote in my journal over a year ago that I wanted to eat raw food - it was only a seed of a thought at the time but I have continued to meditate on the concept and now it has become a reality. Everything begins in the energy of our thoughts just like a tiny seed that sprouts into something incredible: “Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions.” Albert Einstein. What can you imagine to life this year.....?  

Day 72

What a relaxing day, I usually work Wednesday's but today I had an RDO scheduled which came at a great time after a demanding few days last week was overtime earlier this week. A colleague is on leave this week and he flicked a matter that was listed for a hearing yesterday so I spent half of Monday preparing and yesterday in court. We worked up quite an appetite visiting our favourite vintage haunts and by 12:30pm my green smoothie and raw bircher was definately burned up so I decided to make my first attempt at raw sushi for lunch. It was quick and easy - grated courgette in lieu of the rice, your favourite raw fillings and voila! Light and delicious! This evening we had Wine O'Clock, one of our casual networking functions with the local women's network. It was lovely to see everyone and a few of us took the opportunity to linger a little longer discussing life, work, fashion, food, politics & relationships. It's so important to make time to meet new people and then follow up on the 'keepers' by investing quality time in building healthy, supportive friendships. So another gals night is booked and I look forward to getting to know these two gorgeous gals some more.   

Day 70 & 71

So a double post at the beginning of the week (oops) I started the week meditating on the thoughts of what is our purpose and how does one find true joy, satisfaction and fullfilment in the post-modern world and I've distilled a few thoughts on the full life - to bring forth your gift, to love without fear, to empower and to show compassion. Here is a photo of the raw pad thai we had after yoga last night and tonight was a raw sashimi salad with the leftover bean sprouts - you do have to use them up pretty quick otherwise they go gooey. I was going to do Vietnamese salad but it was dark after our run this evening and the pumpkin has grown so much that my mint is lost somewhere under 'the blob' vine - let's hope we get some pumpkins for our raw linguine! So the Japanese version was impromptu this evening and I threw in some cool 'ear' mushrooms that I've been loving in everything. I look forward to strolling the streets on two wheels over the next few days for bike week and whilst it is not something out of the ordinary for me to be lost in my own world cycling along, I'd welcome company anytime....

Day 68 & 69

My other half departed early this morning for a day of adventure activities with the boys and I was left to enjoy a most sumptuous sleep-in. I won't tell you what time I eventually arose but let's just say that after having my green smoothie and morning tea ritual, it was early afternoon when the brunch bell rang and I decided to try this raw version of Bircher museli which I discovered earlier this week. I had some brazil nuts nicely soaking so I made my first attempt at nut milk. Some muslin for straining the milk is on my 'to buy' list as well as some nice glass jars for storage but I think I am hooked! I didn't have any apples but figs made a nice substitute but I'll have to try it again, next time soaking the museli overnight. Overall it was delicious, the cinnamon really gives it a beautiful flavour. So a most enjoyable Sunday eating, reading, writing and doing a spot of photography. I've also been planning this weeks menu - sushi, buritos, pad thai, olive putanesca, feta & wild rocket tarts and cherry tomato & caramelized red onion mini quiche with lemon thyme cream cheez. So with an exciting menu of raw cuisine and bike week (here's a little article to inspire you) this week is looking most delicious!!