Spring(ing) Ahead! And Shrimp...

Hoo boy! It seems that about a month into serious change many of us get kind of cocky, thinking we've got it a down pat, and therefore start improvising/changing/neglecting the base of what we started out to do. With the GAPS Intro diet that a group of us are doing, and several are blogging about, many are finding this to be true. It's not the overwhelming feeling of the first few days. Instead, we have gotten comfortable, almost in a rut, and tend to either stop there (" 'cause I'm feelin' so great now!"), or add new things too quickly ("I haven't reacted to anything so far, so I'll speed this up a bit..")

And then we find out why it's a good idea to always be slow and methodical when implementing radical change. Boom. Die off, or overwhelm, or reactions from something we can't identify because we added 3 foods in 2 days. So, back to the place where we last felt great, and move forward slooooowly. If I were to start a new exercise program I would do the same thing: work up to my ultimate goal methodically. It only makes sense to allow ourselves to grow into change.

I had another migraine yesterday. Migraines suck, but I learn a lot if I slow down enough to hear their message. I really think these are being caused by tense jaw muscles, despite what my dentist last said. I spent hours during the night focusing on relaxing them and that seemed to help. I am trying to make a new habit, so I will just keep reminding myself, gently, to release the muscles. I know that I will have to be especially kind when I catch myself clenching my jaws--something that started when my bridge was replaced 3 years ago. It seems that I should just be able to stop such an unnecessary and damaging action, but I just find myself doing it--and by then my head is aching.

There were some other possible triggers (including going into Goodwill, where the smell was really strong yesterday), and they do layer, making it more likely that I will react. But the muscular pattern of the headache was the same as the clenching (until the headache settled in my right eyeball for a few hours. I am pretty sure eyeballs are not involved in jaw clenching.)

By late morning I was eating, mostly recovered and had things to do... I stayed home and fairly quiet (no kids!), but did work on a couple of projects, including headcheese, which I will write about tomorrow. This, despite the fact that our mechanics were busy working on the engines, rattling the pans and cups hanging in the galley with their efforts to get them started. Hard to concentrate with that noise and diesel fumes, but the work was mostly physical and easy.

In the late afternoon a neighbor alerted us to a shrimp boat with wares to sell. Yum, the first prawns of the season! The Captain headed over with a bucket and some cash, returning with four pounds of active crustaceans. Chippy really wanted to make the acquaintance of a prawn! He loves it when we have oysters, because he always gets to eat any muscle or flesh clinging to, and to lick the juices out of, the top shells. Blondina also will catch tiny fish for him to eat fresh, so he knows and loves seafood. Why should shrimp be any different?

Of course, when face-to-face, the situation is a little different! Those prawns are armed! (See photo at top of page.) They sport what appears to be a bayonet where the rest of us have noses. Yikes. Chippy was a bit disturbed, even when I gave him one of his own to eat. It's still sitting in his dish, four hours later. Somehow, I think the cat is not impressed by the eating quality of this particular bit of seafood... The rest of us, though, ate every bit, simply boiled and served with seasoned homemade mayonnaise and a fresh salad (which I started eating in the last few days.) 

I love Spring meals! So easy to prepare, the flavors are sparkling, the food is so fresh and nourishing. It is a lovely thing indeed to be able to eat such wonderful food, full of life, and to know that it is healing as well. No suffering, at least as far as meals go, just joy and pleasure.

Baden and a couple of the other bloggers have found that daily blogging is becoming difficult, something I have also been noting. I have never written daily before, and while I really enjoy it, I am finding that sometimes it conflicts with living and the other work I need to do: caring for my family, preparing foods for the winter, working on my thesis. I am going to try to write on the weekdays and take weekends off to see if that's a better rhythm for my life. If you have particular issues you would like me to address, note it in the comments or send me an email. I have a couple of such posts in the works already, and I'd love to do more.


Happy Day!

Any stumbling blocks you have noted in your life? Have you found a solution that works?

Contentment

Yesterday was full and lovely. I missed you, and writing for you, but it was a late night...

The Professional cooking breakfast with a Smile!

Our breakfast was elegant and delicious--thanks to The Professional's hard work and her crew, 9 year old Blondina and our 13 year old neighbor, The Comedienne. They made me a festive Mother's Day banner and set a sweet and abundant table. Everyone was stuffed and didn't eat again until dinner.

The Blogess nettling, with gloves, but yes, I got stung on my forear

In the afternoon, The Captain and I went on a foraging hike to a nearby park that is essentially a wild ravine, sliced in two by a creek that rushes down from the Olympic Mountains. It is filled with dappled light, the sound of the creek and raucous crows, the smell of green. Other than a few folks with dog,s we were alone. We filled my huge gathering basket with nettles, saw gorgeous trillium, nodding bleeding hearts, salmonberry blossoms, tiny yellow pansies, and one false morel. While it was cool down by the boat, it was balmy on the trail.

I have moved on to baked and grilled meats; though I don't feel a distinct craving for them I wanted to be able to eat more meals with the family. So for dinner we had burgers and all the fixings (see Saturday's post, for the whole menu) and a fun time, before rushing off to see Grandmom and Granddad. It has become a Sunday evening ritual, to watch a movie at my in-laws, share treats, and hang out. I actually am having an easier time not being able to eat any of the treats, than I was when I was eating more widely. I bring a knob of ginger, set my tea up before the movie and sip it all evening long. This keeps me happy and I don't miss things like ice cream and popcorn (before I would eat dates and nuts, and every so often nibble on the popcorn--and I would always regret it).

I don't have brilliant things to say tonight. I am just feeling cozy, happy with where I am right now. I am helping a couple of people work out some food issues and this always gives me something to reflect upon. Then I read this wonderful post by Dr. Campbell-McBride and realized that I should just tell all of you to read it, because I can't say any of this any better. Every time I read something she writes I love her philosophy more and more...Go read it and let me know what you think! (And while you are there, subscribe to her blog).

Intro, Day 3: Finding My Groove

I am now getting into the rhythm of Intro. I love rhythm, whether it's the seasonal cycle of weather and plants or Middle Eastern music that makes me want to dance. I think it might be my Cancerian self, ruled by the moon and her phases, that makes me so. Whatever it is, when I hit my stride, it makes me feel confident and more energetic, full of ideas and ready to take on a challenge--or at least to keep moving forward (those of you doing Intro may understand how hard it can be to just keep at it at times).

Today I felt truly in my GAPS goove. I woke early (for me) and was fully awake--there was no way I was going back to sleep, as I usually might. I got up with energy, had my lemon water and started a new soup. I heated some ginger tea to hold me until breakfast (because of the thyroid medicine timing--I'll write about that in one of my next posts), heated my breakfast soup, organized supplies for the day.

Each Wednesday Blondina (our youngest), who is homeschooling, goes to Tribal Edge, a primal arts training center about 40 minutes from our home. We carpool with friends and today it was my turn to drive, so I planned to spend the day on the land, five acres surrounded by national forest and tribal lands. Usually I would run errands in the closest town, but today I thought I might enjoy four hours with nothing I must do--pure luxury!

Previously, when I have stayed the whole day, I brought sketchbooks or reading and kept mostly to myself, allowing the kids to interact with Ben (Tribal Edge's director), the land, themselves. Today was different, and very sweet. I toted my big dutch oven with the oxtails and neck bones that had been cooking since the early morning to the land, along with thermoses of ginger tea and chicken soup, an onion and some salt. I would finish the soup in the outdoor kitchen on the land, with some foraged greens and fresh air.

Part of the outdoor kitchen

I opted to start the soup on the propane burner and go gathering, instead of having the kids build a fire--they had other things to do at the moment. I felt like someone out of another time, traipsing past the woodpile and compost pile toward the edge of the woods with my basket and clippers. I noted the blackberry canes leafing out (promising fruit in August), abundant vanilla leaf, lush dandelions in the clearing, vibrant nettles all around. Dandelions and nettles were what I was after, and I quickly filled my basket to the brim with the pungent fresh greens (nettles smell almost peppery when freshly cut).

I should interrupt this narrative with an aside: yesterday I was flipping through Gut and Psychology Syndrome and excitedly noted that Dr. Natasha had included a recipe for nettle soup! How had I missed that during earlier readings? She even includes nettles on the list of therapeutic ingredients for juicing! Oh man! I have to tell you, I have an almost romantic relationship with nettles. I crave them, adore them, they feed and energize me, and every so often, if I am not gentle and mindful, they lash out. Just like a lover. Somehow, having Dr. Natasha's approval is almost like my mom telling me my guy is o.k. with her.

Nettles may be the ideal spring food. As if having fresh greens after months of cabbage were not enough, add to that the incredible nutrition and tonic attributes, the delicious taste, the emerald green, the aroma (mmm, sorry--I mentioned that already!). How can I explain the healing, whole-ing, experience of gathering the perfect food and preparing it for myself and to share? I get to wander in the dampness at edge of the woods, in the sun and the drizzle, in fresh air, listening to the eagles, crows and other birds rejoicing in the Spring. The plants, the air, the creatures all communicate, and I have the time to listen. I do get stung on occasion, which is a great reminder of where I am--and that I am.

Ah! Nettle Soup...

Into the bubbling soup go the nettles. When they wilt, I retrieve them and chop them finely. I add the chopped dandelions and taste for salt. And then I do what I do best: feed us all. Mmmmmmmmm.

P.S. Greens are actually hard on some people's guts, so, as with most vegetables on Intro, each of us has to decide whether we are ready for them. I have been eating nettles for weeks, have no diarrhea, and cooked the greens well, so for me this worked. It might not be o.k. for everyone on the third day of Intro!

And speaking of the nitty gritty of Intro, I added an egg yolk today, so I am on Stage 2. (See Baden's blog for a very thoughtful discussion) No issues that I detected, though I did get a bit irritated when my 16 year old daughter (The [cooking] Professional) monopolized the head (our bathroom) for so long that we all got off to a late start this morning. Some irritations are for cause!

All in all, a lovely day! Aside from nourishing food, it was filled with much laughter, companionship, and fresh air. What more do I need?