Vulnerability and Shame

A new friend (and hopefully a friend who will become a close, long lasting friend) sent these videos to me about an hour ago. I watched them and immediately knew I wanted to share them with you. Each video is a little over 20 minutes, but I promise you that they are absolutely worth your time. So please watch, and tell me what you think. Be kind curious...and honest to yourself and others.

Vulnerability



Shame

I Need Your Help!

I finally have my laptop back!
Oddly enough, the two things that I mourned over losing the most were my iTunes and a cook book that I made on my laptop full of great vegan recipes that have been shared with me or that I have found online.
The good thing is that I was able to recover all of my songs on iTunes (I'm not going to lie...I was in full panic attack mode), the bad thing is that I lost ALL of my recipes. Ones that I used quite a bit, and ones that I had been so eager to try.

So now, I need your help. I would like for you to share your favorite vegan recipes. I don't care if it's desserts, breakfast, drinks, whatever! Now, I'm no gourmet chef, so let's not go all Iron Chef on me.
Either comment below, send me a link on here or on twitter (Tommy9008) or find some other creative way. Please no carrier pigeons.

I shall be working on catching up with my blog friends and fill you all in on the happenings of the past month or so. Baby steps so I don't end up burning myself out just yet!

Thanks kids! Be kind, be curious, be giving!

Dooooon't Yooouu Forget About Me

I haven't abandoned you. I promise. I have SO much to blog about!

But here's the thing...
Technology has failed me.

My laptop crashed.

Guess who was stupid and didn't have a back up hard drive?

The death of my hard drive was over a week ago, the beautiful white corpse of my MacBook lay peacefully on my shelf.

Hopefully this week or weekend I will be able to get a new hard drive. It also helps that I have a friend who is willing to install it for free.

So, I hope you don't forget about the blog and stay tuned for some pretty great reads (or at least I hope good reads).

I shall hopefully be back soon!

2012-The Beginning

Well, I had about 2 holiday related posts planned...
Then the holidays happened...
And the posts didn't...

I don't really have anything to say about the holidays because they didn't seem very holiday-ish this year. And now it's 2012! Wow! 2011 went by crazy fast, yet parts of it seem so far away. At the end of each year I usually make a massive post about my life over the past year. This year, nah. Why rehash all of the ups and downs? Why not just cherish, learn and grow from them? I like that idea. At the beginning of each year I also usually say that I'm going to do this and that and the other thing. This year, I'm still doing that to an extent. I'm doing it for myself, and myself only.

I know what my goals are for the year.
And I'm not talking about being a better person or donating more. I feel like that should be an everyday goal, not some distant thing that you feel is something nice to strive for.
I'm talking about life changing things.
I know what those goals are.
You don't.
And that's ok.
I have noticed over the past year that when I speak of my current situation and my future plans, I know what I need to do for me. But others overruled my plans/ goals as "ridiculous" or "wishful thinking". I was told that I was "existing, not living". That was a knife in the heart. Just because you THINK you know a person, it doesn't mean you do. There are days when I feel so full of life and love that I can hardly handle it! I contribute to the universe numerous ways, every day. As does everyone! It's in your hands to make it a positive contribution. This year I am making sure I don't let anyone get me down with THEIR negativity.

Contrary to popular belief, the Mayan calendar does NOT end in 2012, but instead begins a new cycle. Apparently 2012 is to begin a sort of spiritual rebirth for the universe, ourselves, mankind, etc. If this is true, then I am beyond excited. I think we all need a rebirth, but why wait for some prophetic calendar cycle to run out? I hope that in 2012 we can all begin to love and accept and tolerate and embrace and grow. Let's put an end to radical politics and using religion as a weapon. Let's finally open our eyes and hearts to what goes on our plate and into our bodies, as well as what is ripped from our ground and and being buried under concrete, what's being thrown in our streams and oceans, what's being poured in our waters. Let's love, laugh, give, live! Let's think of health not as a pesky thing we have to keep checking on, but a beautiful gift to take care of!

I am so grateful for YOU.
You who read my blog, who comment, contact and follow me on twitter. Who offer your opinions, advice and gratitude for my posts. I want to continue sharing as much as I can. I have most recently started another blog. It's called Jagged Little Thrill. It's a space where I can share some of my writings and hopefully connect with you on a different level. There is some light, some dark, some beauty, some reflection. I hope you continue to enjoy this blog as well as my new blog and are eager to share with other readers.

May the year bring you all you deserve. Be kind, be curious, be positive, be reborn.

For all of you :-)

Thanksgiving

I don't agree with Thanksgiving in the U.S. I just don't. I think it's kind of a horrible thing to celebrate. The tradition is awful. I am all for being thankful and acknowledging what you are thankful for, but you shouldn't have to pick a day out of the year to do it. You should be thankful everyday. And the turkey thing. Why is every American holiday based around a dead animal of some kind? Whether it's burgers on the grill for the 4th of July, turkey for Thanksgiving or ham for Christmas. We say how thankful we are for things, then go kill an innocent animal to feed ourselves and others. To me, that just doesn't add up. Then there's the reason we celebrate Thanksgiving. Let's be real, there was no White Man chowing down with the Native Americans. White Man came and stole from the Natives and killed them. I will not celebrate that. How could you? But as America, we like to ignore the horrible things WE have done and try to make it into a celebration. Now, that is the end of the ranting. I know, depressing. I just had to get it out.

Now, as for my Thanksgiving. I went to my grandmas along with the rest of my family, as is tradition. I ended up only really being able to eat sweet potatoes. That's it. Later in the evening I fixed a completely vegan fest for myself, my sister and her fiance. I didn't want to make a big meal for only myself, so they agreed to eat whatever I made. Kudos to them! I will gladly toot my own horn because it was delicious. The only disaster was when the lid came off of the salt canister and dumped the entire contents on my freshly roasted brussel sprouts. I swore like a trucker and threw a fit. Tears and all. But then I simply washed them off, roasted them a bit longer and all was well. The menu consisted of roasted brussel sprouts, homemade cranberry sauce, some sauteed mushrooms, baby carrots in a dill sauce (the same from Easter, my sister demanded them), and herb "sausage" stuffing that was a bit disappointing but I will work on, couscous and Tofurkey with an absolutely delicious rub that Anneka from Plant Happy Life shared with me. Everyone loved it! There is something so satisfying with making a big meal that everyone enjoys! Now for the pictures. I hope you had a kind and cruelty (and stress!) free Thanksgiving!


I had never seen brussel sprouts on their stem thinger before. My inner 5 year old loved it!










The colors look quite dull, but that's only because I used my phone to take the pictures. Everything was so vibrant looking! The cranberry sauce was made with apple cider to take away some of the tartness. I love cranberries, and this was delicious! The picture of my sister from the Easter post has become kind of famous with the family, so it had to be re-created!

Tommy-Kitchen Warrior

These are a few of my favorite things!

I have to have a little ramble session. It's over one of my favorite companies...they rock my world. They make personal care items, tableware and kitchen accessories. Since I don't have my own kitchen and all...I have only purchased personal care items, and I absolutely love them.


Preserve Products. Get to know them. They are very affordable and my order is usually at my door in a few days. Most of their products are made by recycled yogurt cups! How great is that?!

Now, I'm not picky about razors. As long as it gets the job done...it's fine. To be completely honest, I hate shaving. It is truly a pain in the arse. This is why you will likely see me walking around with some scruff and stuff. However, these razors are great because they are so light. You can purchase packs of the blades, andthe handle is completely recyclable!


I absolutely love what they have going on with their toothbrushes. As with their razor handles, these guys are made from recycled yogurt cups! And here is my absolute favorite part....you can subscribe! Yes! You can! You can order a toothbrush subscription! You will pick the color and bristle hardness of your toothbrush, then choose if you want to get a toothbrush every 2 or 3 months! They come in a case that, once your next brush arrives, you stick your old one back in the case and toss it in the mailbox to be sent back to them! It just can't get any easier. Well maybe it can with the fact that it's so affordable!


If you should happen to get anything from their site (I highly recommend you do!), let me know what you think of their products, packaging etc!

Be kind. Be curious. Be an on-line shopper!

13 Years Ago...

13 years ago today, a young college boy was brutally beaten then tied to a fence in the middle of a field and left to die. He was discovered early in the morning, at first thought to be a scarecrow because his face was so severely disfigured, his body held little life. 5 days later, he died. His death rocked the entire nation and outraged millions. The reason for such a hateful act? He was gay. Rest in peace Matthew Shepard, you will NEVER be forgotten. I know one of your favorite singers was Tracy Chapman, and with mine being Natalie Merchant..this song is for you. Though you're body is gone, you continue to teach and inspire everyday.