Don't Judge A Book By It's Cover. Or A Product By It's Label.

Don't judge a book by it's cover. Or a product by it's branding. A quick reminder.

When wandering through the grocery store, trying to make a health conscious and financially responsible decision we are faced with brand name and store name options, attractive packaging and inspiring labels. If you came across a product labeled as 100% *Natural* whole wheat bread, you would think no brainer, right? Yep, me too.

Earlier today I read an article reminiscent about the time my father brought me into his starch lab and told me to never drink the orange soda.

Azodicarbonamide (also known as ADA) is the recently made infamous material that is used in the making of spongy yoga mats and the robust yet light Subway sandwich bread. It is also a chemical used in a brand of bread that my Mom used when making sandwiches for our family for years.

Today, the Environmental Working Group, who's mission statement is to, "conduct original, game-changing research that inspires people, businesses and governments to take action to protect human health and the environment," released a list of 500 commercially sold products that contain ADA.

Reading this list, and the misleading names and branding used to mislead consumers is pretty infuriating. Sure, it's our job as the educated consumer to know what we are buying, but to make a product containing a chemical that is known to cause respiratory illnesses to people who work in development of the product look appealing and healthy just seems down right deceptive. What do you think? The bottom line is that it is important to read the labels, and understand what each ingredient is.

All we can strive for each day is to do the best we can in all things. Including what we feed ourselves and our loved ones.

Free Your Mind

As En Vogue so dutifully told us in September 1992, Free Your Mind, and the rest will follow. And they were spot on.

An exchange happened between myself and another at work today. Co-worker x was seeming to have a bad day. Or maybe it's a week. Or hell, maybe it's been a few years. But the starkness today, of how we each deal with issues differently, and really just life in general stuck out today.

A few years ago I was in that place that we all seem to find ourselves at one time or another; lonely, lost, uncomfortable, mad, ect., ect., blah., blah., blah... And one day it just changed. I suppose I was really lucky that way. One day my fog just lifted, and I felt reattached, engaged, full of color and spirit, and thankful. Maybe there really is more to it than that, maybe more than One Day My Heart Just Opened Up. But that definitely had a lot to do with it.

So, where am I now? One practice that I try to get in everyday is stretching and strengthening. This does not have to cost any money, it just has to feel good. Reach your arms up and out. Swoop up and down. Spin around. It feels good, it feels silly. It's good for you.

I listen to music that enhances my mood. Feeling good? Feel great! Feeling thoughtful? Get deep! Feeling depressed? Morrissey will cry it out with you! How soon is now, anyhow?

And just as importantly, just as I take care of my body with Pilates, and feed my spirit with music therapy, I feed my mind with guided meditation.

I get ready for bed, follow all of my rituals of taking makeup off, having a glass of wine, winding down with background noise or tv, and then when I'm ready, I'll sip on my soft sleep mask, and press play on an hour to 3 hour guided meditation. Usually I find these mp3s on Youtube for free. I plug them in and I tune out the world. I feel that having these positive vibrations of peace, understanding, meditation, gratitude and manifestation are so important to how I feel during the rest of the day. Whether through conscious listening, or passive listening, the words register, and come to light during the day.

So where does the belly fit in? For so many of us, for so many years, we may meet a need in our life with food. I am no different. I feel that most people, women in general have some sort of odd, mostly unhealthy relationship to meeting needs with food. Either we were deprived by others, deprived by ourselves, grew up in a working class environment that may have not had enough food, or worse. Either way, we can have grown an unhealthy relationship with eating and food.

However, you can still love, appreciate, and allow food to play a large part in your life, with out letting food take over your life.

Where listening to guided meditation meets my needs is in the spiritual and the physical. When I am happy, manifesting the life that I want to live, and showing gratitude for those who make my life what it is, I feel full. I feel so full sometimes I could just burst.

So, explore. Practice finding the positive, manifesting your desires, and showing an attitude of gratitude for all you have been giving today.

Your life, in all of it's facets will be magnified. It will taste better, it will sound better, you will be happier, you will be full of peace.

Namaste