As you may or may not have heard, my paternal grandmother, Grandma Shirl, passed away on August 18th 2011.
The night after her memorial service I wrote a reflective entry in my journal that I would like to share with you.
I think there are ideals which my grandmother lived by that everyone should learn from.
August 27th 2011
~10:00 PM
Today was Grandmas memorial service. She was a very inspiring woman. I want to take from her, among other things, the drive that she had. I love that she was the type of woman who never complained. Instead, when the going got rough, she rolled up her sleeves and worked even harder.
Grandma Shirl was a master at keeping a welcoming homestead. My dad was telling me today that before school every morning there would be a delicious hot breakfast (french toast, pancakes, oatmeal etc.) for the 5 kids. Amazing.
Now I know that I'll never be all the wonderful things my grandma was, I am okay with that because I am myself and will do my own wonderful things. I do know that I would like to work towards a couple of ideals however...
-Eat well for your body, there is plenty of deserts and over indulgence to be had when you're working towards death. But when you are vigorously attacking a life in full throttle, you must eat well balanced and highly nutritious meals. (Grandma Shirl was a health nut, but after Grandpa Al passed she gave into her cravings more and became more over indulgent with her desserts.)
- Conduct yourself in a manner that commands respect and warm regards. And treat others this way as well.
-Dress yourself in a timeless fashion. Trends come and go, class is always in style and will keep your budget in line as well.
-Be disciplined for yourself and stern with others. Do not do something you know you shouldn't be doing. Restrain from that temptation and remind others to do the same
-Love your family unconditionally and welcome anybody in with open arms.
Grandma, life is worth living, and boy did you live it up! I hope to squeeze life for all it has as well.
I LOVE YOU
-Madeleine Jane Culbertson
Monday, August 29, 2011
Monday, July 18, 2011
Sustainability - Shopping!
Everybody, The master cleanse and ease out went swimmingly! I think Next time I do it it will last longer, and I will ease out in the proper fashion. :/
Now that I am done with my Master Cleanse experience however, I am feeling out where I would really like to concentrate this blog. I am a very eco-conscious consumer as well as a human rights advocate, so sustainability is a big word in my life.
Sustainability can be a hard word to define, click here to view wikipedia's best crack at it. But here's mine;
For something to be sustainable means that it comes from a renewable resource, or the model that it follows is one that will not ware out as time continues. Purchasing a sustainable product promotes causes such as recycling/ waste reduction, Fighting against human rights violations in sweat factories (fair trade), and encouraging a more cyclic pattern of materialism rather than a linear one.
Whenever possible I try to shop for a sustainable wardrobe; either at thrift stores, vintage or exchange shops or some other sustainable type of venue. Examples of these kind of stores are the following;
- Thrift stores = United thrift, salvation army
- Vintage = Usually more boutique independently owned type of things (Vintage suit in this post came from The Cleveland Auction Company)
- Exchange Shops = Platoes closet, Avalon Exchange (in coventry, Cle Hts Ohio)
- Other = Fair Trade boutiques such as Ten Thousand Villages or Revive Store in Lyndhurst Ohio, having a clothing exchange with your friends/ family, or supporting a local or online artist.
Below are examples of some items I've found at such shops
Now that I am done with my Master Cleanse experience however, I am feeling out where I would really like to concentrate this blog. I am a very eco-conscious consumer as well as a human rights advocate, so sustainability is a big word in my life.
Sustainability can be a hard word to define, click here to view wikipedia's best crack at it. But here's mine;
For something to be sustainable means that it comes from a renewable resource, or the model that it follows is one that will not ware out as time continues. Purchasing a sustainable product promotes causes such as recycling/ waste reduction, Fighting against human rights violations in sweat factories (fair trade), and encouraging a more cyclic pattern of materialism rather than a linear one.
Whenever possible I try to shop for a sustainable wardrobe; either at thrift stores, vintage or exchange shops or some other sustainable type of venue. Examples of these kind of stores are the following;
- Thrift stores = United thrift, salvation army
- Vintage = Usually more boutique independently owned type of things (Vintage suit in this post came from The Cleveland Auction Company)
- Exchange Shops = Platoes closet, Avalon Exchange (in coventry, Cle Hts Ohio)
- Other = Fair Trade boutiques such as Ten Thousand Villages or Revive Store in Lyndhurst Ohio, having a clothing exchange with your friends/ family, or supporting a local or online artist.
Below are examples of some items I've found at such shops
All the JCU Fair Trade interns from 2010-2011 are wearing Fair Trade from Revive Store in Legacy and on Lee Rd.
Vintage Pink Skirt Suit
Skirt from thrift store
Halloween outfit (Belle from Beauty & the Beast if you couldn't tell ;] ). Home made out of gold material and tank top from thrift store.
Dress for a dance borrowed from a good friend :]
These are just a few examples of how you can still look fabulous by shopping sustainably!
Hope you've enjoyed my post! comment back with opinions please!
Peace and Love <3
-Maddy Jane
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Successful Cleanse! (ease out day 2)
Day 2 of the ease out didn't exactly go as planned...
Let me start by saying that I DO think the ease out process is VERY important, and should be followed rather closely. If you do not follow this process you risk severe nausea and constipation, or worse.
So this is the ease out process;
day 1- Fresh squeezed or pure orange juice. (With PULP -- very important for the fiber).
day 2- Fresh squeezed or pure orange juice and/or fruit juice. Can also do broth if you want variety
day 3 - broth in the am, fresh fruit for lunch, fresh veggies for dinner
day 4 - regular diet, although you should definitely consider a healthy sustainable diet if you haven't already.
That said, I was weak, and may or may not have eaten regular food today.
The first day I had only orange juice. (okay okay I may have sneaked 3 raspberries, I told you, weak!). I had no.. ahem... movements in the morning, so I was worried the orange juice wasn't really working since I read that the orange juice should work its way into a movement over night. Maybe its because I had those raspberries, they could have slowed things down.
I stayed with the orange juice thing until about 3pm today, when I had a thicker soup. Not just broth, but actual soup :/ . After that it was all down hill, I had tasted the forbidden fruit of actual food. I made myself a small salmon fillet for dinner that I only ate half of and some mashed potatoes. So far so good, no nausea.. and I did have a movement tonight.
I think I'm going to try to stick with fresh fruits and veggies tomorrow however. I wish I could have been stronger today, but I know I'm going to do this cleanse again probably in january so I've learned my lesson for then!
So official results for the cleanse are;
- I lost 10 pounds (went from 136.4 lbs to an even 126 lbs)
- My hair is softer
- My body is amazingly good at regulating my temperature (my friends would be sweating and say they were dying because it was so hott and I would be perfectly comfortable)
- My skin started clearing up the last day and has been clearing up ever since
- I have tons of energy!
- My moods have been very stable and happy
- I have so much more respect for my body and more of a concern of what I put into it.
And here are some pictures of my body to show you how I look ten pounds lighter. Its not a huge difference but I think it's the skinniest I would ever want to be and it makes me feel very confident. I'm not sure if i'll be able to keep all the weight off, but I will just feed my body what it needs and see how that goes. :D
Sorry I don't look very happy in the pictures, I promise I am. Just too early in the morning I guess (took them at about 7 am.)
Please don't hesitate to still ask questions!
Peace and Love!
-Maddy Jane
Let me start by saying that I DO think the ease out process is VERY important, and should be followed rather closely. If you do not follow this process you risk severe nausea and constipation, or worse.
So this is the ease out process;
day 1- Fresh squeezed or pure orange juice. (With PULP -- very important for the fiber).
day 2- Fresh squeezed or pure orange juice and/or fruit juice. Can also do broth if you want variety
day 3 - broth in the am, fresh fruit for lunch, fresh veggies for dinner
day 4 - regular diet, although you should definitely consider a healthy sustainable diet if you haven't already.
That said, I was weak, and may or may not have eaten regular food today.
The first day I had only orange juice. (okay okay I may have sneaked 3 raspberries, I told you, weak!). I had no.. ahem... movements in the morning, so I was worried the orange juice wasn't really working since I read that the orange juice should work its way into a movement over night. Maybe its because I had those raspberries, they could have slowed things down.
I stayed with the orange juice thing until about 3pm today, when I had a thicker soup. Not just broth, but actual soup :/ . After that it was all down hill, I had tasted the forbidden fruit of actual food. I made myself a small salmon fillet for dinner that I only ate half of and some mashed potatoes. So far so good, no nausea.. and I did have a movement tonight.
I think I'm going to try to stick with fresh fruits and veggies tomorrow however. I wish I could have been stronger today, but I know I'm going to do this cleanse again probably in january so I've learned my lesson for then!
So official results for the cleanse are;
- I lost 10 pounds (went from 136.4 lbs to an even 126 lbs)
- My hair is softer
- My body is amazingly good at regulating my temperature (my friends would be sweating and say they were dying because it was so hott and I would be perfectly comfortable)
- My skin started clearing up the last day and has been clearing up ever since
- I have tons of energy!
- My moods have been very stable and happy
- I have so much more respect for my body and more of a concern of what I put into it.
And here are some pictures of my body to show you how I look ten pounds lighter. Its not a huge difference but I think it's the skinniest I would ever want to be and it makes me feel very confident. I'm not sure if i'll be able to keep all the weight off, but I will just feed my body what it needs and see how that goes. :D
Sorry I don't look very happy in the pictures, I promise I am. Just too early in the morning I guess (took them at about 7 am.)
Please don't hesitate to still ask questions!
Peace and Love!
-Maddy Jane
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Last Day (10) on the Master Cleanse
Yayyyy!!!! I'm donee, I'm very excited to have my orange juice tomorrow, it will be gladly welcomed back.
I was talking with my roommates about weather or not this has made me think about changing the way I eat/ my habits of eating. I think I do need to limit my sugar intake a decent amount, and I always think its a good idea to feed your body what it needs, but I change my eating habits slowly as I learn what's best for my body and the earth. As long as I continue to educate myself about things such as food and health benefits, or the C02e (carbon dioxide emissions equivalence) it takes to bring your food to your plate I will continue to edit my diet to what I believe is right.
Today went REALLY well, and I'm really proud of myself for sticking it all through. I Imagine I'll do another cleanse, maybe after the holidays. But for now its time to eat some food again.
My face isn't totally clear, I'll post some pictures tomorrow, But it has gotten better. I knew that acne ca be a side effect of cleansing because it is a sign of toxin elimination, so maybe now that i've eliminated some I will have more clear skin! I also bought sea buck thorn oil to try as a moisturizer.
I have tons of energy! I biked 30 minutes to the yoga studio, went to two classes as my "training," and then biked 30 minutes back. I feel completely rejuvenated.
As a side note: One of the yoga teachers I met today told me she could tell i'd been practicing for a while:))
Om
-Maddy Jane
I was talking with my roommates about weather or not this has made me think about changing the way I eat/ my habits of eating. I think I do need to limit my sugar intake a decent amount, and I always think its a good idea to feed your body what it needs, but I change my eating habits slowly as I learn what's best for my body and the earth. As long as I continue to educate myself about things such as food and health benefits, or the C02e (carbon dioxide emissions equivalence) it takes to bring your food to your plate I will continue to edit my diet to what I believe is right.
Today went REALLY well, and I'm really proud of myself for sticking it all through. I Imagine I'll do another cleanse, maybe after the holidays. But for now its time to eat some food again.
My face isn't totally clear, I'll post some pictures tomorrow, But it has gotten better. I knew that acne ca be a side effect of cleansing because it is a sign of toxin elimination, so maybe now that i've eliminated some I will have more clear skin! I also bought sea buck thorn oil to try as a moisturizer.
I have tons of energy! I biked 30 minutes to the yoga studio, went to two classes as my "training," and then biked 30 minutes back. I feel completely rejuvenated.
As a side note: One of the yoga teachers I met today told me she could tell i'd been practicing for a while:))
Om
-Maddy Jane
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Day Nine on the Master Cleanse
A friend came to visit yesterday, which made it much easier to stay distracted. It is hard finding social things to do in cleveland that don't revolve around food.
I'll admit today was a pretty rough day, for some reason I felt nauseous for a large portion of the day. I think another reason today was rough is because the end is so close and I allowed myself to fantasize about it a little too much.
I got a little too over achiever and had 3 glasses of the Laxative tea and in the end I think it didn't help the cleanse work properly, I'm sticking to just the 2 cups morning and night from now on.
My skin is not getting better, in fact it has only gotten worse, which is probably just a sign of what kind of toxins are in my body. The good thing is that as soon as a breakout comes it starts to go away, I haven't had many of the lingering ones. I'm pretty confident that with a little more time on the cleanse my skin would eventually clear up, but I'm not sure that I'm ready to take this challenge past the ten day mark quite yet.
I have 24 hours left until I am officially in the Ease-out stage of the cleanse, I've almost made it!!
I wanted to really quickly address Marc's question about healthy practices to battle the late night cravings. Every one works differently, but here is what I have been doing to stay strong to the end of the night;
- Mentally keep myself away from the thought of food
- Read a good book
- Go to bed early
- Think about how great my body feels because of this cleanse
- Think about how the day is almost over and I'm that much closer to the end
- Keep myself out of the kitchen
Thanks for the question! don't hesitate to ask questions ever after my cleanse is over and done with.
I'll admit today was a pretty rough day, for some reason I felt nauseous for a large portion of the day. I think another reason today was rough is because the end is so close and I allowed myself to fantasize about it a little too much.
I got a little too over achiever and had 3 glasses of the Laxative tea and in the end I think it didn't help the cleanse work properly, I'm sticking to just the 2 cups morning and night from now on.
My skin is not getting better, in fact it has only gotten worse, which is probably just a sign of what kind of toxins are in my body. The good thing is that as soon as a breakout comes it starts to go away, I haven't had many of the lingering ones. I'm pretty confident that with a little more time on the cleanse my skin would eventually clear up, but I'm not sure that I'm ready to take this challenge past the ten day mark quite yet.
I have 24 hours left until I am officially in the Ease-out stage of the cleanse, I've almost made it!!
I wanted to really quickly address Marc's question about healthy practices to battle the late night cravings. Every one works differently, but here is what I have been doing to stay strong to the end of the night;
- Mentally keep myself away from the thought of food
- Read a good book
- Go to bed early
- Think about how great my body feels because of this cleanse
- Think about how the day is almost over and I'm that much closer to the end
- Keep myself out of the kitchen
Thanks for the question! don't hesitate to ask questions ever after my cleanse is over and done with.
Monday, July 11, 2011
Day Seven on the Master Cleanse
And I'm back!
Sorry about the short post on friday, I didn't have much time after work to pack up and go on my trip.
A little bit about vacationing on the cleanse;
-It is not for the faint hearted
-Know that people will try to get you to eat
-Be able to stand up for yourself and defend your decision
-Make sure you bring enough of everything you need!
-Stay strong! the people you go with will be amazed at the end of the trip that you are still alive and well and have lots of energy!
-Have a sense of humor and take everything people say about your cleanse with a grain of salt.
-Relax and have FUN!!
Day 3 was definitely the hardest for me, after that the only tough time is when the late night cravings hit. but I just think about almost being done with one more day and that helps.
The salt water flush wasn't working for me. And i've heard it wasn't for everyone, so I switched to taking the tea morning and night. I may try it one more time before the cleanse is over because I really hate giving up on it.
The thing I've been craving the most out of anything is really good whole grain bread! or like, a nice crisp veggie sub on whole grain bread. mmmm
I've heard that acne gets worse before it gets better because your skin is one of the best ways that your body gets rid of toxins. This is definitely happening with me, but its not noticeably worse. Just for me it is. I'm thinking if my face isn't any better by day 10 I may go on a bit longer. I'll keep you posted on that.
Happy Monday!
Om
-Maddy Jane
Sorry about the short post on friday, I didn't have much time after work to pack up and go on my trip.
A little bit about vacationing on the cleanse;
-It is not for the faint hearted
-Know that people will try to get you to eat
-Be able to stand up for yourself and defend your decision
-Make sure you bring enough of everything you need!
-Stay strong! the people you go with will be amazed at the end of the trip that you are still alive and well and have lots of energy!
-Have a sense of humor and take everything people say about your cleanse with a grain of salt.
-Relax and have FUN!!
Day 3 was definitely the hardest for me, after that the only tough time is when the late night cravings hit. but I just think about almost being done with one more day and that helps.
The salt water flush wasn't working for me. And i've heard it wasn't for everyone, so I switched to taking the tea morning and night. I may try it one more time before the cleanse is over because I really hate giving up on it.
The thing I've been craving the most out of anything is really good whole grain bread! or like, a nice crisp veggie sub on whole grain bread. mmmm
I've heard that acne gets worse before it gets better because your skin is one of the best ways that your body gets rid of toxins. This is definitely happening with me, but its not noticeably worse. Just for me it is. I'm thinking if my face isn't any better by day 10 I may go on a bit longer. I'll keep you posted on that.
Happy Monday!
Om
-Maddy Jane
Friday, July 8, 2011
Day 4
Day 4 is going great! But change of plans I'm going to canada this weekend and wont be able to blog. But blogs will resume on Monday the 11th!
Have a good weenend every body:)
Have a good weenend every body:)
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