Yoga Bracelet Winners-Videos!!

WINNERS!! I decided, in the end, to make TWO bracelets... hence TWO videos of me choosing a winner... :D (Videos and a box because I really hate the 'random.org' idea of choosing, but wanted to be obviously transparent and fair). I wrote out the names and key words on the back of an old bill envelope (Nova Scotia Power I think), cut them out all the same size, folded and into an old Yule gift box they went!

You'll have to watch to see who the two lovely peeps are! (ps- I am a bit ridiculous, I apologize in advance... And I'm still wearing my work clothes....
Annnnd I said 'necklace' instead of bracelet. but I meant bracelet in the second video. Just so ya know :) )

Thank you all for your lovely words and I wish I had enough time and runes to make a bracelet for all of you!

Blessings!

Upcycled Yoga Bracelets and a Giveaway!

Practicing yoga with jewelery can be a tricky endeavour. I am a little embarrassed to admit that I still do. I may not be that lady with a zillion rings, ready to take out an eye, or with the dangly earrings clonking her in the face, but I most certainly have my 'yoga jewelery' on the ready.

Little earrings that don't move, my wedding band that barely can be felt and my favourite- my arm band hand crafted from environmentally tanned Alberta leather (I never said I was vegan). Being an environmentally friendly sparkle-obsessed yogini, that means I can justify spending a bit more on locally handcrafted jewelery... which can get dangerous for my budget. (But it's ART!).

After seeing a beautiful wrap bracelet on Etsy, followed by this amazing 'T-shirt Necklace' tutorial on My So Called Green Life, I decided that I would make my own version of a wrap bracelet. At least, I'd try!

 (This used to be a wrap- until I cut ALL the wrap parts out...)

I have a bunch of stretchy shirts that I knew I would never wear again, but I love the colour and the fabric was still good. Kellie on My So Called Green Life made the cutting look so easy, because she has a fancy fabric cutter dealy AND a measuring cutting board. To which I do not. 

Therefore a long time of cutting was involved, including fixing of the crappy cutting job afterwards. My first necklace attempt was pretty darn sad, but I gotta say my second attempt is fantabulous! As I also don't have a sewing machine, but got this little sewing kit from my Tante B a few Yules ago, I decided that I would give hand stitching a try. 

 (My impromptu messy craft table, supervised by Atreyu himself)

Wouldn't you know I can sorta rock the stitching?? YES!

Follow this up with the discovery of some runes I had bought for a former friend. Since runes really aren't my thing (Tarot is), I wasn't sure what to do with these beautiful, hand carved runes. Until now! After I do a cleansing and Blessing ritual, they will be perfect for little wrap bracelets that I can pick and choose depending on my day and the rune. I made a lovely test-run bracelet for my friend Alli's birthday and it worked beautifully. I even had time to do a quick cleansing and grounding before gifting it to her.

I also happened to have an old 'Foxy' bracelet that I no longer ever wear. After a bit of awkward sewing and threading... it is the perfect wrapped bracelet with a pretty metal sparkle. 

 (My 'Foxy' upcycled bracelet. Pretty but not as cool as the rune bracelet!)

All upcycled, all hand made by yours truly. And all (well except the necklace) perfect for an Eco Yoga Asana practice. 

Just goes to show that even the most uncrafty of us out there are completely capable of DIY-ing it. 

 (The fruits of my labour- a fabric necklace that isn't quite complete, the Foxy bracelet and a few runes!)

GIVEAWAY!

In Celebration of Eco Yoginis and my new crafty self, I would love to give away one special Rune stretchy bracelet. I have two options for fabric- the lavender purple you see here in the picture and white. 

How to win:

Leave a comment (with your email address pls) telling me what you'd like to welcome into your life right now. For example: Balance, prosperity, change, creativity, new beginnings (this is so I can pick and Bless a Rune just for you!) and of course the colour of fabric you'd like. 

I'll be choosing someone Wednesday, August 24th at 8pm Atlantic Time. WEEE!!!

Many Blessings and Good Luck!

article and photograph of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Natural Medicine and our Planet: A Cautionary Tale

My life has been a bit chaotic and my body is letting me know. Aches and pains, tired- all I feel like doing is popping extra strength Advil and sleeping. A recent visit with my cousin has brought up discussions on healthcare and natural medicine. 

Now, to be honest, I strongly believe that we need to be careful about an extremist type of view that can crop up when talking about healthcare in yogic circles. Western medicine can be helpful and life saving when necessary. That said, as a pagan and Planet Lover, I feel like we can reconnect with our roots in a lot of ways that are easier on our bodies, Spirit and Planet.

A Recap on Pharmaceuticals and our Planet:

Canadians spent 20$ billion on prescription drugs in 2005 (not counting over the counter). Aggressively tested on animals (and reportedly on our world's poorest peoples- see "The Body Hunters" by Sonia Shah).

WASTE: Big Pharma pumps out billions of pills a year; 

Water wasted per day: 266 millions gallons (way back in 1990!)

Much of the chemicals and solvents used are considered untreatable by regular wastewater treatment systems and are hazardous. 

Pollutants spewed in our air: cyanide, VOC's and neurotoxin toluene (among many others).

Pollutants in our water: From 50 to 90% of the active ingredients aren't broken down by our bodies- they're peed (and pooped). Some of them can't be broken down by sewage plants (IF your city has one, Halifax was without for over a year. All those drugs and raw sewage straight into the ocean). Anti-seizure drugs for example. Although no research has revealed that these drugs (over 100 different kinds in the US and Europe) are having an affect on humans, estrogen from birth control pills are feminizing fish all over. (Ecoholic 2006 p. 45)

'I use only Natural, Chinese-Ayurvedic-Tibetan medicine, so I'm not contributing' you say?

It would appear that many 'Natural' medicines don't really give a crap about the environment or how the ingredients are harvested. 

(Echinacea field- credit here)

Wildcrafted herbs can be some of the worse. We think of them as being 'better' for us because they shouldn't have pesticide residue, but there is basically zero regulation regarding limits for harvesting these herbs. Ingredients like ginseng (now on the Canadian Federal endangered list), wild echinacea (endangered in the US) and lady slipper (endangered in both Canada and the US), licorice root (depleted by 60% in the wild), goldenseal (officially a threatened species in Canada) are disappearing in the wild due to overharvesting (Ecoholic 2006, p.48).

According to the WWF, of the estimated 40,000-50,000 plants used in natural medicines, most are harvested from the wild. Of course, like all large crop farming, huge plantations of herbs and popular ingredients have been pushing food crops out in countries such as China. (Ecoholic, 2006 p. 48).

Since natural medicine is also less stringently regulated, contamination can be a concern. In 2005 Health Canada issued a warning that some Ayurvedic tablets were contaminated with high levels of lead, mercury and arsenic. In 2008, a study found that of 230 requested Ayurvedic products, 20.7% contained heavy metals (all of which exceeded 1 or more standards for daily metal intake). The study is fabulous, if you're interested you should check it out: 'Lead, Mercury and Arsenic in US-Indian...'.

Adria Vasil of Ecoholic recommends that you purchase authorized natural medicine with an 8-digit Drug Identification Number(DIN), Natural Product Number (NPN) or homeopathic number (DIN-HM).

Natural Medicine Musts:

Wildcrafted: if you're interested in supplements, look up your ingredient and find out if it's endangered (Nova Scotia's Species at Risk). Check out smaller, local companies with fabulous reputations.

Organic herbs are great solutions to avoid pesticides and sustainable harvesting.

Avoid animal ingredients at all costs. So many species are being killed to extinction for benefits that have not been supported by research. Never worth it.

Eat healthy, stay physically active and most importantly: don't discount western medicine. The best healthcare would be a natural, preventative balance of both eastern and western working together.

Blessings to your and the planet's health!

article and photograph copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

The Onion Known As 'Eating'

I walked through the door today, my legs and arms shaking, my heart beating my face flushed... and I wondered why this keeps happening. I felt fine leaving work, as always, but arriving home after a 20 minute walk I felt as if I could collapse (actually I did, right on the bed).

During the day today I had a jar of blueberries and strawberries, a sandwich and half a chocolate scone. Since when has that not been enough?

For the past several weeks I arrive home as above, a shaking, blubbering mess. It usually means I need to eat right away, including days when I practice yoga in the evening. There's no two hour wait- I wouldn't make it through the yoga practice.

I'm going to be honest here and admit that feeling full has never made me happy. A combination of digestive issues (IBS) and a pervasive social culture that values thinness has always left me feeling uncomfortable when full. I know I can't be the only woman out there who has a strange feeling of satisfaction when her belly is flat and empty. Even typing this makes me shudder: I am NOT that woman!- but I think it's important to talk openly about something our culture forces on us as young as prepubescence. 

It's there in yoga as well- the feeling of 'lightness', of floating. 'Diets' that are masked as 'cleansing' meant to purge our system (of what? nutrients? I'm sorry, my intestines do a pretty good job cleansing themselves naturally as they were meant to). It wouldn't take long to get caught up in micromanaging our eating around what Dosha, yoga practice, or recent health fad is recommended. The act of eating takes on another layer of spiritual morality on top of the cultural and social pressures, the socio-economic pressures and the environmental pressures making up one hell of an onion called Eating.

Bringing a lunch to work is tricky for me, since I walk 20 minutes to and from the ferry. It means carrying stainless steel and glass jars filled with food over my right shoulder. Since I'm not getting a backpack (budgeting reasons and just cuz I'm sorry, but I think they're ugly), I hate the idea of loading more than my lunch tin, my coffee stainless steel Klean Kanteen thermos and a jar of berries. 

These past few weeks taught me that I may need to. A larger lunch paired with an afternoon snack will help me arrive home in ossicular form as opposed to amoeba. I can spend more time with Andrew cooking a healthy, sustainable supper instead of something quick and easy just so I can stop shaking.

 My happy self having a 'moment' where I actually picked something up with chopsticks at 'Le Lotus Bleu' in Montréal. I ate copiously during our visit and drank lots of wine and I felt gorgeous the whole, full, time.

My brain will be happier with more nutrients during the day. I will feel better because in the end I will be eating more, which will make me a REBEL against the constant 'thin' culture we live in. My body and my yoga practice will thank me.  The planet will thank me.

My Spirit will thank me.

Blessings!

article and photograph copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com 

DIY Beet Blush: FOYF (Food On Your Face)

Makeup has definitely been a difficult eco-change in my life. I just like me my MAC products ya know? They're just so darn amazing- the down side are the chemicals... I know many of you are makeup-free gals (or makeup minimum) which I say 'Good for you!' but I like to paint my face. It's fun, evens out my skin tone and makes my sleepy eyes more awake.

So when I saw this fantastically easy tutorial by a former makeup artist on EcoEtsy I thought: I can DO that! Seriously. I can. Three ingredients? I am a GO.

We just had to buy some beets. Which typically come in bunches. Since neither Andrew nor I eat beets, the rest will get donated to Home Heather, who LOOOVES them :)

There were definitely a few little bumps in this process of making the beet blush, but in the end it ACTUALLY WORKED. Even Andrew was shocked and surprised. So here's the process with a few little editorial comments on the process from yours truly:

Ingredients:

1 beet

1 tablespoon of honey

2 tablespoons of olive oil

Equipment:

Blender or food processor

wire mesh strainer

glass container for storage

dealy to squish beet mush through the wire strainer

Step 1: 'Cut your beet in half and trim off the skin. Cut in tiny pieces'

 (the colours are so pretty!)

Ok- at first I honestly thought that despite the ingredient list calling for 1 beet, that cutting it in half meant we used half the beet. Not so- after trying to blend half the beet I quickly realized that it really didn't look like enough. **Note: you need the WHOLE beet.

ALSO- since when is peeling a vegetable easier after you cut it in half?? Too late I realized it would have been so much easier to peel the beet first then cut in tiny pieces.

Modified Step 1: Peel your beet and cut in tiny 0.5 cm pieces

Step 2: 'Add all your ingredients in the food processor and blend until liquified, strain and separate liquids from solids'

 (ew- horror movie worthy)

I saw in the pictures that she had used a magic bullet. Whoa, we TOTALLY have one of those! Score. So I gave it a whirl. It was noisy and a long and painful process. If you have a food processor please use it. Or a stick blender even.

The straining of the beet barf (seriously, it had chunks, it was weird) was not fun. I realized that Andrew and I don't actually own a metal mesh strainer or even cheese cloth. I do have a straining mechanism in my reusable tea mug... So that's what I used. 

(my ghetto straining process)

It was pretty darn awkward. I had to use a plastic spoon that I had kept from a previous outing (I know, but at least it got used!). 

After the separation I noticed that MY blush was especially liquid-y while hers looked more like a smoothie. WTF? How the crap did she 'strain' hers?? Anyhoo- I kept the weird chunky stuff in case I would need it.

Modified Step 2A: In preferably a food processor or stick blender, add olive oil, honey and cut up beet and blend until liquified or smoothie texture. 

Modified Step 2B: Using a large metal mesh strainer, strain the larger chunks out.

'Step 3: Pour liquid stain in a glass jar or other air tight container.'

This was a moot point- I had to press the chunks into the glass container. DONE! yes :)

'Step 4: Using a lip brush or cotton swab, slide the stain over clean dry lips.'

Oops, forgot to try this. Will after blog is finished!

 (before picture, I actually have face powder on to make sure it worked with my regular makeup routine)

'Step 5: Using the same tool, dab three dots of stain onto the apple of your cheeks. Smile to help placement.'

(after, I don't like a lot of blush, so it's pretty subtle, which makes me happy)

'Step 6: Blend onto cheek in a circular motion until skin absorbs the stain. Repeat on the other cheek.' 

I so didn't use any tool... I just used my pinky finger. It was clean and worked just fine. And I'm lazy and only like my kabuki brush and angled eyeshadow brush. That is all. 

'Step 7: When done, store in refrigerator for up to 4 weeks or freeze for up to 2 months.'

I was a little nervous that this stuff wouldn't wash off my face- I mean my fingers appear permanently stained right now. However, I tried it before taking pictures first. I was totally able to wash it all off to redo for the Before-After pictures no problem at all! 

Amazing stuff. It's also not as purple or pink as it appears when you first blend it up. 

I am suitably impressed. Who knew that beets could be used as blush? Now I know they're good for something :)

article and photographs copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Bilingualism: Myths and Facts

**Yoga the environment and blogging are definitely an evening-weekends thing for me. My 8-4 job, Paediatric Bilingual Francophone Consultant Speech-Language Pathologist takes up most of my thoughts and time. I love my job and am very happy to share this little bit of evidence based info for y'all. Email me if you'd like specific research supporting these statements, or a reference list.


NB: Each country has a different climate with regards to bilingualism and second language learning. In Canada French is highly valued and Canada has two official languages, English and French. However, research is showing that as a bottom line: humans are wired to learn more than one language. 

Bilingualism: Myths and Facts

MYTH: Learning two languages is more difficult than learning one.

FACT: Children are capable of learning two languages without particular cognitive difficulty. The brain does not add information, but processes it in a much more complex way and can easily handle two languages at once.

MYTH: Children who are learning two languages start talking later than those who only learn one.

FACT: Children who are learning two languages should begin talking at the same time as those who are learning only one: first words between 12-14 months, combining words ('juice daddy') between 18-21 months. If your child isn't combining words at 21 months it may be prudent to refer to a speech and language assessment.

MYTH: Mixing both languages (i.e. 'franglais') is a sign that the child has not mastered either language and should be corrected as soon as possible.

FACT: Mixing two languages (using English words in French sentences and vice versa) is natural and expected for bilingual speakers, child or adult. It is not considered a sign that the child is confused about their language development and should not be corrected.

MYTH: Acadian French isn't 'good' French and is harming the language development of my child.

FACT: Acadian French isn't 'wrong' but is simply an older version of standard French, many words and phrases originating in the 1600's and 1800's. Even grammatical differences (like 'j'allions' and 'j'avions') are older ways of conjugating verbs. Acadian French has grammatical and vocabulary rules just like all other languages and dialects and as a result is simply different.

MYTH: Learning two language is more (or too) difficult for children with a language delay.

FACT: As the brain does not process language by adding information, learning two languages isn't too difficult than learning one. Therefore learning two languages isn't too difficult for a child with a communication delay. In fact, being bilingual can help support communication skills of children who are struggling by providing them with resources from a whole other language.

MYTH: If we remove (or concentrate on) only one language this will be better for my child's communication development.

FACT: Bilingualism neither harms nor delays a child's language development. If the child has difficulty in one language, they will struggle in the other. Removing one language will not make learning the other language easier to learn for the child. Instead...

Removing one language could:

1. Limit the child to only one language for communication, whereas before the child had access to two languages.
2. Reduce the child's capacity and quality of communication with their family, community and friends.
3. Lead to a reduction in self-esteem and family attachment (we use communication to get to know each other, language binds us. If the family is using both languages and the child is only allowed to use one, this restricts the child and the family's ability to adequately communicate and connect).
4. Impact the child's self-identity with regards to their family (who may be bilingual while they are not), their community and their culture.
5. Diminish education and job opportunities (depending on geography).
6. Reduce the number and quality of language and vocabulary models.

Any questions? or Comments? feel free to comment or email me :) I have plenty of resources!

 article copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Acadian Yo: Music Jam!

A little doodiddly for you, my readers...

I'm almost embarrassed to post it here, as it doesn't exactly showcase my voice OR my guitar skills.

Still... after another visit to Montréal I feel the need to share two of my favourite Acadian songs:

'M'En allant à Saulnierville Station' by Suroît, which is actually a Québécois band (but the song is about Clare Nova Scotia... which is close to my home).

 

Hé Yaille Yaille (also by Suroît): This one's actually written from a Cajun (Louisiana) perspective. I can totally relate, except for the gumbo, cuz I was pretty darn homesick while living in BC and I also 'parle en 'Cadien' or 'Cajun'. (Cajuns are Acadian's distant cousins- we both are descendants of the original Acadians who settled in Acadie. Cajuns are those who were deported to Louisiana, whereas my ancestors hid out with the First Nations Mi'kmaq until the burning and pillaging had subsided. My Acadian village is the oldest still Acadian today, settled in the mid-1600s).

Please disregard the awkward way I'm playing... feels weird to play with a green light rolling lol. Weirdly enough, I'm not really a twangy country music kinda gal... although my voice sure sounds that way here!

Blessings!

article and video copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

Grounded in Montréal...

Shu dans la belle province... Went to Montréal pour la fin d'semaine (jeudi à dimanche), and missed our flight tonight.

So- unexpected extra night chillin' in the city. We have wine, a hotel (with a shower we can actually stand-up in, no more 'chair pose' showers!-long story...) and netflix. All is well.

I'll have more to report this week on the French adventures!

Stay tuned... (blog post to come from the airport demain!)

Thunderstorm Yoga

If it wasn't ridiculous or completely insane:

The most powerful yoga practice would be outside in a lightening and thunderstorm.

Lightening in Halifax June 2011 (Halifax NewsNet)

Lightening tonight over Cowie Hill- photo credit

Something I never realized, but while living in BC summers consisted on almost zero thunderstorms. Here in the maritimes thunder and lightening storms are a staple in the summer. Summer and lightening hang out together. I missed it.

As I type Halifax is just wrapping up an intense chain lightening+hail crazy thunderstorm complete with a hazy yellow sunset and double rainbows.

I need to figure out a way to make yoga in a thunderstorm happen without killing myself. 

I'm thinking a gazebo with a lightening rod nearby to divert possible hits. Sounds like a solid plan eh?

What Does Sustainable Healthcare Really Mean?

Sustainable healthcare. You'd think that with how much we Canadians like to go on about our 'free' healthcare that we have it all figured out. Unfortunately it's definitely far from the truth. Although I never have to worry about how much it will cost when I go to the hospital (for an emergency, to give birth... whatever), my healthcare definitely costs me money. And I'm not talking taxes.

Medications and pharmaceuticals that are often essential for treatment of diseases like cancer and diabetes (type I) aren't free under our medicare system. If we don't have an insurance plan with our job we have to pay ourselves... and our insurance doesn't cover everything. Last year my uncle was diagnosed with cancer. Sadly the drugs he needed to prolong his life are not covered under medicare. As a self employed fisherman, my uncle had no insurance and no means to cover thousands of dollars for medications.

Instead of being with his family and loved ones for longer, he passed away within months.

A few months ago, we had a special 'Coffee and Yoga' to chat about what Sustainable Healthcare means to us with the local representatives of Capital Health. It was very interesting and although didn't result in any real 'solutions', it truly was meant to begin the dialogue between a massive organizational beast (Capital Health) and the regular citizen shareholders.

The biggest message was that in order to have a sustainable healthcare system we need to take more preventative measures. The healthier our population the lower the cost on healthcare. The discussion had some nifty stats on disease, for instance 70% of cancers are preventable through lifestyle and diet. That's a whopper.

It seems foolish to invest only in a reactionary system as opposed to a preventative model.

It's difficult to see the end-picture and encourage government and shareholders to invest in programs that have negative effects: i.e. they work if people 'don't' get sick. It's difficult to measure- would that person have become a demand on the system if they didn't eat healthy?

 local sustainably harvested blue mussels at the Blue Mussel Café in PEI -YUM

 Locally caught haddock and local potatoes and veggies at Blue Mussel Café, best meal of the trip!

The trick is to make healthy eating, healthy physical lifestyle accessible to all. Lets be honest, healthy food (organic, sustainable, local) costs more than junk processed food. Eco-friendly products that are toxin and chemical free can be costly. Making your home sustainable can be costly (solar panels, geothermal heating, upcycled and sustainable building supplies).

Yoga classes are costly.

If we're going to be serious about a sustainable healthcare, making healthy food, chemical-light homes and clean air to breathe a priority is a nice place to start.

Many of these issues are larger than us to address. At the same time, we can all do small bits to help the whole. Calling your political representative and making your thoughts and views known. Start eating healthy and getting active yourself.

Give back to your yoga community and offer free, accessible (i.e. not during work-week hours) yoga classes.

What ideas do you have to make your health and healthcare system sustainable?

article copyright EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com