Weekend in Review

Happy Monday!

How was your Earth weekend? Mine was jam-packed with some great local art, good deeds, and good eats!

We started Friday off with a trip to the local college as the independent film students were having their year-end show. We would have never known about it except during one of our latest trips to Oso we saw our old neighbor (we lived in a duplex in Nelson before we moved to our current apartment). Her and her husband were actually in the film program together and they had a short film that was going to be shown that night. They came all the way from Vermont too which I thought was so cool! We usually just watch a movie on weekends but it felt good to do something different and support the local students. The show was by donation and all the monies went to a scholarship fund. I have to say before Ry came to attend his Fine Woodworking program at Selkirk, I really didn't appreciate art. I always wondered why that canvas painting of a bird was $1ooo. Sometimes I still don't get it, but I appreciate it because I have a little more understanding as to the effort and the hard work that goes into a piece.

So, we watched around 10 short films and they were fantastic. There were dramadies, noires, documentaries, and comedies. I was amazed at what they produced in a year. It just shows you that AMAZING things can be done when you put your mind (and camera) to it! Oh and no movie is quite the same without a treatsie or two! The hubby was kind enough to pick up some medjool dates (AKA heaven!) for me. He picked up some chocolate covered almonds for himself.
I'm not going to lie..we also shared a small baggie of organic smarties (gotta love Nelson!) that they were selling at the school. But, speaking of putting your mind to it...

This whole week I had this thought tugging at me. I wanted to do something around Nelson to help Mother Nature out a little bit. So, I decided that I would go to an area that had a lot of garbage and I would pick it up. I remembered walking by this one street and was pretty disgusted by all the trash... so this was my target! I got up a little after 6AM and got organized. I still had one rubber glove left from work so that worked out perfectly! I headed out with my tunes and my garbage and recycling bag. I hit up my target street and to my happy surprise it was all cleaned up! No garbage anywhere:) So, as I was still determined to help the earth that morning I walked around to see if there was another area that needed some attention. I decided to go next to the rail-road tracks and oh golly was there trash...trash that was really, really, old.

This is what an old plastic shopping bag looks like after awhile on the ground. I tried to pick it up and chunks of it "flaked off" onto the ground. This is detrimental. Please do not throw away your plastic bags and better yet, don't use them.

How long do you think that can has been leeching into the ground?

What's that hiding in the grass? Yep, I found one shoe. Wonder how that person liked walking lop-sided? I hope this wasn't a part of some criminal activity...you know throwing away the evidence? Okay, so probably unlikely. I've been watching way to much of The Wire lately, please forgive me lol!

I think this was a baking pan of some sort. Crazy hey?

Here's my sleepy self. And no I didn't just have a shower it poured on my when I was out there:) Check out that white garbage bag..its in a million different pieces. Who knows what those things leech into the ground.

I got a good sized bag of junk. I thought I would be able to chuck it into a garbage bin nearby but they were all locked..so I took it back to the pad with me! It really felt good to take that garbage out of the earth...it felt like a cleansing to me on so many levels. What do you give your time to that is good for the planet and your heart and soul?

After my little adventure I went home and did a little studying (It was around 7:30 at this point and the hubby was still sleeping) of The Language of Medicine.

This book is huge but it's fantastic! It's organized so you get a lot of practice with the terminology and anatomy. It's been a great review so far!

After the hubby got up we went to the gym and I got my booty whooped by my Turbulance Training workout. If you have ever done tabatha sprints (perform an exercise for 20 seconds on, followed by 10 seconds rest X 8 rounds) you know they are KILLER. It's funny how these exercises make me more out of breath than doing intervals on the treadmill. I left the gym sweaty and beat...I like this feeling as I know I've worked it:)

After the gym we hit up the Kootenay School of the Arts as they were having a show on year-end projects from classes like textiles, fabrics, pottery, jewelery making and metal. Again, some fantastic pieces were on display, some amazing talent out there!

This dress was so funky! I don't know what it's made out of, but the design is so cool! I know someone else who saw some amazing fashion this weekend too:)

Pottery amazes me! I would love to take a class one day. I thought this mug was stunning and nothing like I had ever seen before.

This piece makes me think of Alice In Wonderland. Imagine bringing this out when you have afternoon tea..definitely a conversation piece if you ask me!

Love those tea pots! I don't see an exact similarity to these tea pots and the clay beauty but there is some influence I think:) At least that's my interpretation..lol! Am I getting artsy yet? There were hundreds of other pottery pieces and beautiful jewellery and scarves...it went on and on. I really loved seeing all the handmade stuff as they were so unique.

After the show we headed out to do our weekly shopping and once we got home I was pretty tired. I haven't taken a nap during the day for a long time..but I slowly drifted off and it felt good:) After the nap we headed out for an appreciation dinner for SPCA volunteers. There was fantastic food! Everything from veggie sushi to potstickers to hummus, and even chocolate-dipped strawberries (sorry no picts this time:( It was a delicious night and there were lots of good stories too! It also made me feel like I made a small difference to the world. Then on Sunday I worked and hung out at the pad where I took another nap..lol. Getting up at 5:30 everyday took a toll on me I guess. All in all a very fulfilling weekend!

I mentioned last week that I might take part in Meghan's 3 Day smoothie cleanse..well I just couldn't do it. I was already over my budget and to buy so much more produce was going to cost too much. I want to do a smoothie cleanse soon...once all the markets are open again and I have access to better,local, and cheaper goods.

Also, I have not finished my adapatogens series yet. Shame on me, I know! I'm going to get to it this week and finish it off with a BANG! So, stay tuned.

PS DK Mommy is having a giveaway of the Clean Food cookbook. So go check it out!

Inside Oso Negro, learning to have patience, and weekend eats

Happy Monday!

How was your weekend? I had a lovely time with lots of sunshine..I even see my skin is slightly darker!Yay! I also had a little issue with my knees that I'll get to that later on. I also enjoyed a couple dandilion latte's ....I'm officially addicted! I have talked a lot about chilling at my fav coffee shop, Oso Negro, but I haven't shown you any picts. Today, I'm going to change that! The building is actually a house that they converted into a coffee shop so that in itself gives it this homey feeling.

I love all the beams and the sunken in area in the middle. They also feature local art which is always changing so it's like going to a gallery every weekend..you never know what is going to be featured.


Sweet patio hey? Its so spacious and the wood benches are gorgeous and surprisingly comfortable. As this is a very wood-loving town, it only made sense that they honored that and used the beautiful oak for the benches.

Check out this cool piece of art..something to do with the world and at axis.




Ry with the "world in his hand"...lol!

This beautiful Magnolia (I think that is what it's called) brought amazing color to the patio.

Ta Da!!! The infamous dandelion latte with rice milk..yuumm!

The hubby with his delish dark roast. Check out the curved bench:)

I love this place and for what they stand for. They brew organic coffee and roast their coffee beans in Nelson. They feature locally made treats, most of them are vegan and some are gluten-free, all look amazing. Sorry, I didn't get a picture of the goodie case. If you ever pass through Nelson in your travels, you need to stop there. Really, its a must:) And...check out my new shades....

Pink aviators!!! Oh, ya! I'm pretty bad with my sunglasses. I lose at least one pair every summer by either sitting on them or leaving them at a counter somewhere.
So, I don't buy expensive shades but I love these and I'll try extra hard to hold onto them.

As I said on Friday, I was going to go on run #2 as the weather was too good to ignore. I actually wore shorts for the first time..isn't that the best?

I was really excited to get to wear these as I've owned them for a couple of years and they never fit. You know one of those "oh these are on sale and cute" buys..lol. But a Whole foods diet does a body good:)

Besides the cute polka dots, I really love that these don't have a zipper or buttons, they just have the criss-cross tie-up on the side! I like clothing that's unique:)

The run went well and with all the vacant benches, I was able to do 3 sets of 10 push-ups on the back side of the benches along the run. It was so nice to have the sun on my face and to listen to some bumpin' music on my ipod. Yet, the next morning my right knee was super tight and somewhat swollen. I had to limp most of the day and took the day off from the gym. I was really frustrated and thought that maybe my knees were back to their old, injured self. I push myself hard, I want to do as much as I can for my body, yet, sometimes its too much. I was confused too because I felt great after my first run. If it was the running you'd think the knees would swell every time. So, I re-traced my actions of the day and remembered that I had hit my shoe very hard on a raised part of concrete the day before. So, the running must have just egged it on, so to speak. I woke up Sunday morning and it felt better and I was prepared to go to the gym but I need to learn to give my body time. It knows what to do and I wish it could relay that information onto my selfish mind would learn to lay low when needed. I decided to take another day, just to be safe. Just because I want to complete my weeks work of TT workouts, doesn't mean that my body is up to it. I'm learning (slowly) to listen to my body, but I'm no expert. I know that I did a good thing by not lifting or doing intervals this weekend, yet I feel like I failed my program. I want to overcome this mentality because in essence I won because now I won't have a major injury to deal with which could put me out weeks. Do you have patience with your body? Do you allow things to heal fully before getting back into the game?


Now onto some good eats! Friday was a pantry dinner that was lentils with onions, carrots, and cabbage with pasta sauce..kind of like sloppy joes without the bread. Delish and filling!

I love this dish as it takes so little time to make. Cooking the lentils is the only limiting factor. The rest of the dish takes 5 minutes. So, 35 minutes total = perfect!


I ate a lot of salads with an abundance of sprouts. This salad had clover, daikon radish, and broccoli sprouts. I covered the veggies with some delish tahini-miso-ginger dressing.

Oh yum! I could literally lick the bowl this stuff is so good!

I love fried onions..its my one cooked food that still makes its presence often. I also love it mixed with quinoa and then...a little ketchup. You might think that its not appetizing at all. That's fine.. It's one of those foodie things for me..and possibly me only..lol!

I made some of Averie's High Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls. This time I decided to put half of the chocolate chips into the food processor with the other ingredients rather than leave them whole. The result was an even more convincing cookie dough..yum!

Check out the little chocolate chunks..mmmm. You need to try these!

I also made some of Meghan's Superfood Bon Bons...

Ya..these rawk and the ingredients are all super dooper for you! This reminds me, her 5 Days Healing with Everyday Superfoods tutorial is on now. I'll be making some of her recipes this week and they sound amazing. If you want to get more amazing superfood recipes, grab her tutorial!

I made this recipe again that is off of Carmella's blog. It was posted by Mosaica on the Raw Freedom Community. The Indian Carrot Curry Soap is so good and I love the spice combo. We ate it like a curry on a bed of quinoa with some daikon sprouts for some added crunch. It makes a lot which is awesome because you will want seconds! You may even be lucky enough to attend one of her classes, like Bitt!

This week is chalk full of fun stuff going on, with Meghan's tutorial, green smoothie cleanse (more about this later), and its EARTH WEEK! It's time to give Mother Nature a break this week so change something in your life to a "greener" option whether it be bringing your own coffee mug to the cafe in the morning, walking to work, eating a veggie meal, or starting a compost. I'm going to be taking part in Lori and Katie's Green Week Challenge.Wahoo! It's going to be fun!





Have a great Earth Week and do something green!