The Book Nook place

I apologise in advance for any upset stomachs! :)

So, I stumbled upon a book the other week called "The pH Miracle for Weight Loss", by Dr Robert O. Young and Shelley Redford Young. As some of you might know I have spent umpteen hours finding a way to balanced thinking around food and eating habits. It has always been my belief that one should not have to cut out foods from the menu, and in ego terminology thereby "punish" yourself, and that balanced eating habits and a balanced mix is to strive for. As I have trodded along my path I have sometimes thought that it is pure lazyness on my part to think this way, as it would mean I don't have to change what I eat, just "how" and "how much". So, in a sense eat the cake and keep it!

Anyway, this book talks about how foods either makes our bodies acidic or alkaline, how foods either increase or decrease the pH level in our body, and how body fat, regardless how much we detest having too much of it, is a result of our bodies trying to protect us from too much acidic food. Meaning, we should be grateful for the fat as it, based on our eating habits, actually "saves our lives". I found this rather interesting and so I continued to read. The book mentions loads of stuff that I have read elsewhere but they add a dimension, striving for (pH) balance. Now, striving for balance is a tune I can relate to. They talk about the importance of eating food as close to raw as possible. A bit vegan-ish, I know, and in my minds eye I saw myself eating truckloads of raw broccoli and cauliflower. I sighed within but continued reading the book.

I used to be a "vegetarian" and I have only recently gone back to eating meat occasionally. I have struggled though as it hasn't felt right, and more importantly, meat just doesn't taste nice. Or, to me anyway, rather, it doesn't taste like anything. So, going veggie again hasn't been far off the radar.

Anyway, I continued exploring the book and got to the bit where they mention what to eat and what to avoid. And, as a result, I wish to share some of the things mentioned as reasons why we "should" avoid eating meat.

"Humans cannot fully digest meat, and as it goes through your system partially digested it damages the intestinal villi..."

OK...so we cannot digest meat.

"There are many reasons for avoiding animal foods, not least of which is that it is simply dead."

This had me smiling as they had already made the vegan-ish point of consuming foods raw or cooked as little as possible, and I have to say that they do have a point, of it being dead I mean. :)

Then on to something that I found very interesting: "Anatomically and physiologically humans are just not carnivores or omnivores; we are designed for the slow absorption of complex and stable plant food. That's why we have long and complicated digestive tracts, rather than the short, simple bowels of meat eaters, designed for minimum transit time.". The extension of this thought is of course: "dead meat" is travelling slowly through our intestines leading to... Uhuh, I'll leave that thought for now.

Hhmmm. That last bit made me think long and hard about going back to becoming a vegetarian. I continued to read.

They mentioned different types of meat, such as pork and chicken, and I learned something new:

Pork - pigs don't have a lymphatic system to move acid out of their body, i.e. it stays in the tissue.

And this one made me laugh out loud (in a good way!):

Chicken - they don't urinate, which means they absorb their own acidic urine into their tissue instead.

I didn't see this one coming, and I have to say I am now more or less back on the veggie wagon.

This book is an interesting read, and as with all things it is important to take what resonates and leave the rest.

So, I am toying with the idea of finding balance the alkaline way...
:)
 

I was tipped off about a blog called How to save the world a while back, where the author, Dave Pollard, talks about how the world works from an interesting perspective. I picked up from his website that he has published a book called "Finding the Sweet Spot, The Natural Entrepreneur's Guide to Responsible, Sustainable, Joyful Work". I thought it sounded interesting and it might not come as a surprise that I ordered a copy. It's been lying on my coffee table for a few weeks and only earlier this week did I begin to read it. The book is about finding that which you are good at, passionate about and that which is your purpose, and make that your day-to-day living. You might think this is just like any other start-your-own-company-doing-what-you-are-passionate-about-kind-a-book, but it's not. I find that he is looking at things from a somewhat different angle, he is offering more. Or maybe it just suites me.

I have, numerous times over the past few months, through different channels, been nudged to become my own, that I should become self employed. In hindsight I see that the Universe has been kind to me, keeping the stream of self-employment thoughts ever flowing. And since I think this is just as thrilling as it is scary, it gives me time to get used to the idea. I've come across numerous examples and situations where I clearly see and feel that self-employment is the route to go. I feel strongly that the time isn't quite right, though. I'm not meant to continue do what I'm doing, hence just changing employment status is not what is required here...

Anyway, back to the book. One ingredient that I suppose reeled me in was the fact that he says that you shouldn't necessarily go solo. You can be your own, but collaborate with others. Involve other people who are just as passionate about whatever it is that you are passionate about, and key, who complement your skill set. This set my neurons on fire asking all sorts of questions, but basically, "So, what are your gifts, what is it that you are passionate about?". I mean, I'm good at my day-job but some of the stuff that's included in my job description is OK but I wouldn't say that I'm in any way, shape or form, passionate about them. On the other hand there are other things that I am good at and that I'm passionate about. But how do you get this down on paper...

In his book, David Pollard asks you to map your passions and gifts into different areas. A process which I realise will take time, and impatient me is struggling with this bit. But I also know that rushing things won't do me any good. Another thing he repeats in the book is this, "Don't settle for less.". So, I won't. And reassuringly, over the past few weeks, I have felt that quite a few pieces of the jigzaw have fallen into place, and others have moved closer to finding theirs.

For quite some time I have 'known' that I will be moving towards a 'self-sufficient' lifestyle. Exactly what it will look like and how wide it will spread, i.e. if it will include all areas of my life, I don't know just now. I'm intrigued though.

Recent projects have shown me that there is another future. :)