Skinny Bitch

Have you seen this book???? I have to say that I borrowed it from the library simply because of the title and figured it had to be a sassy read with a title like that! I was right! The authors were shamelessly dropping F-bombs all over the place in between moments of informative concern.

One would think that with a title like Skinny Bitch that this book would primarily be about diet and exercise, but no. I was shocked to read the things they were writing about. The major motivation for this book is to inform the readers about the greed, corruption and overall lack of concern for the public within the food industry. It relays graphic accounts of the horrible abuse the animals suffer for the sake of being food for the American consumer. The book outlines the corruption and conflicts of interest that go on within the FDA, USDA and even the EPA. Oh my God, the EPA even!!!!!!! Aren't they supposed to oversee our organic food handling??? YES! Apparently they can't be trusted!

The book makes an EXTREMELY strong case to go vegan. Afterall, the meat we eat is being injected with hormones to make the animals grow faster and fatter for slaughtering and antibiotics to keep them from getting sick......and being sprayed with pesticides to keep the bugs off of them. So now you know why 8 year old girls are growing breasts and getting their period. And this also explains why people are becoming immune to antibiotics or developing allergies. Also, contaminated meat still gets a passing grade because it's all about money and greed....and if the meat doesn't go to market, there's no money to be made. This information was making me sick......and I don't even want to go into what they do to chickens or how milk is handled! Basically, the food pyramid is BS and was only put in place by the FDA so each food category could get their fair share of the profits to be made. Even the sugar industry has their hand in the cookie jar. Did yo know that when ASPARTAME gets ingested, a chemical reaction occurs that turns it into formaldahyde?? This product is not fit for human consumption and yet it got passed through corrupt means. It's sickening and disheartening. It makes me want to buy a huge piece of property and grow all my own food so I know what I'm eating.

I'm still on the fence in terms of whether or not I'll go completely vegan, but I have made significant adjustments to my diet that include A LOT more fruits and veggies and organic foods from trusted sources(which they tell you about in the book). In fact, it's changed my thinking so much that I definitely make sure to wash all my fruits and veggies now (espeially if they aren't organic) before I eat them. The food industry doesn't care about our health and if the chemicals they use on the meat and produce lead to cancer, alzheimers or a host of other horrible diseases.....allergies included! I used to think the produce industries would go that extra mile and clean the produce to ensure that their food was completely safe for human consumption right out of the packaging. Nope, that was a silly thing to think. Why do you think there has been such a significant rise in allergies over the past years? Duh! Think about all the crap we have been ingesting into our bodies! It makes me angry that our food industry is so corrupt and that the government would allow such things to go on.

Yes, this book will make you think about food, government and our country in a whole new way. It opened my eyes and now that I know what goes on, I can't turn a blind eye to it anymore. I'm aware and will make every effort to see to it that I and my family eat only the best foods that are handled with human consumption in mind. If you want to be informed, read this book. If you don't want to give up your meat group, don't read it! This book will change you!

Until next time.......

Thanks for reading!

Kristen

Icelandic Bands.....Period!!!

Is it a problem when I can hear a bands music in my head when I'm not playing them on the stereo or my iPod? Or if I need to sneak away to listen to my iPod just to get a fix of their music? Is this a problem?

My obsession with Sigur Ros continues! To make matters worse, the lead vocalist for Sigur Ros has his boyfriend, Alex Somers in the band, Parachutes......which also happens to be an Icelandic band with an equally magical sound as Sigur Ros.....actully more airy. Still though, what is it with these Icelandic bands????

I think I need to see for myself. I'm angling to have my next vacation be to Iceland to get a feel for what inspires this amazing music.

Attached is a link to a You tube video for a Parachutes song that has me in its grips. Just click the title of this post to take you there.

That's all for now!

Thanks for reading!

Kristen

Heima

Okay, so a week or so ago, I did a search on my DVR for any upcoming programs on Sigur Ros and found their documentary film they did for their Takk tour. I scheduled the recording and have been so excited to see this film that I've read so much about. It was run on the Sundance Channel.


After a morning of selling my wares at an elementary school tag sale, I was happy to come home and find the program recorded, so I settled in with some lunch and watched in awe as these amazing musicians went through the motions of creating, bonding and sharing.


The movie is called Heima, which in Icelandic means "at home". The movie is filmed soley in Iceland after the band has returned home from touring the world to promote their Takk album. As I've mentioned in my previous post, Takk means 'thanks' in Icelandic and the film portrays the band playing unannounced, free concerts all over Iceland as their way of giving back to their community for showing their support. It's such a touching gesture and one that makes me love this band even more. They simply seem so unaffected by their fame and popularity, unlike other bands who become famous and suddenly they are too good to speak to a common person. The members of Sigur Ros don't seem to be that way. They are very appreciative of their good fortune and take the opportunity to show their fans just how much they appreciate their support. The cinematography is stunning! You get a true feel for the Icelandic landscape and for the people. I've decided that I will add Iceland to my bucket list as one of those places that I must experience before I die.



What moves me so much is clearly seeing the emotion with which the lead singer delivers his songs. He sings from his heart and he plays from his heart......the whole band plays from their heart and I can't seem to get enough of that. It's such a pure inspiration to me to feel such passion through music. I can literally feel the passion in their music and I suppose that's why I remain fixated on them.



Until next time......

Takk fyrir lestur!
(thanks for reading!)

Kristen

Yoga

The first time I EVER did yoga was when I was working in Stamford, CT and the gym was in the same building as my office. I remember feeling so intimidated because I had no idea what I was doing. Would my posture be right? Would I lose my balance when I had to hold a pose? And worst of all......do I look like a yogi in these clothes? Yes, I was that preoccupied with how I looked in a class that would challenge me to juggle breathing with posturing, stretching and contorting. Strangely, I found that after all that, I was as mellow as a jellyfish on muscle relaxers. In fact, I was so at peace and relaxed that even my overly chauvinistic and needy boss couldn't rile me up. It felt so good, I had to go back. And so I did.

Now, almost 7 years later after having two kids, I'm finally able to get back to doing yoga on a regular basis. Yes, roughly 7 years have passed since I had last done downward facing dog. I did have a couple of opportunities to indulge my love of yoga over the years, but they were few and far between. A video here, a class there, but nothing regular to help me keep my peace of mind in check.

And even though it took me THIS long to get back to yoga, I myself would've thought I'd been practicing all along......and perhaps others in my class would've thought so as well. The postures, poses and vinasa flows all seem to come so naturally. Depending on the day, my balance may be great....or not. Just today I wasn't able to stay in half moon pose with my leg off the floor. Then there are other days when I could stay in tree pose all day, focusing on my dristi point. One of my other favorites that always "poses" a challenge for me is eagle pose, but I always feel so accomplished when I'm able to hold the pose without even so much as a tremble.

I love it when the instructor really pushes the class with challenging poses. It helps me to find my range of flexibility and work to become even more flexible.

I once read that a flexible body is an indication of a flexible mind. If that's the case, then I'm doing pretty good, but I'd like my mind and body to be this flexible:

My friend, Lissy is a yoga instructor at Kripalu Wellness Center in Lenox, MA and she is such an inspiration to me. She has been studying yoga for years now and just got back from studying in India. How wonderful for her. She can do reverse warrior.....and really any other pose like no one I've ever seen. In this shot, it's reverse warrior. I'll have to find out her secret for becoming so open through the ribcage.
For now though, I will take comfort that I am incredibly open through the hips, which allows me to do butterfly and pigeon pose with ease. I can hold my own in class and when a challenging pose presents itself, a little voice inside of me says, "Bring it on!".

Thanks for reading!

Namaste!

Kristen

Rufus Sewell

One of the first times I came across the actor, Rufus Sewell, was when I watched Dangerous Beauty with Catherine McCormack. Aside from being a great actor with a very disarming charm about him, he has these HUGE green-hazel eyes that I can't help but love. He's been in at least 34 different films, the most notable films being the following:

Dangerous Beauty
Macbeth
Bless the Child
A Knight's Tale
The Legend of Zoro
The Illusionist
Tristan & Isolde
The Holiday
The Eleventh Hour (TV Series)

I did a search on my DVR for movies that he's in and found a GEM! It's a film called At Sachem Farm. It's a story about a young man who feels he has all the answers until his seemingly crazy uncle shows him the truth about life. It's a heartwarming story about succeeding in life by doing what you love instead of conforming to societies ideals about what success looks like. GREAT FLICK!

It's a shame about his name though.....why would anyone name their child Rufus? Must be a family name.

Thanks for reading!

Kristen

Sigur Ros

I would say that I discovered the Icelandic band, Sigur Ros about a year and a half ago while cruising iTunes looking for new music to add to my collection. One of their songs, Glosoli was on iTunes on someones iMix. I listened to it and loved it immediately. The song was ethereal and dreamlike in its feel. I felt transported by their music and over time found more of their music on iTunes and downloaded their 4th album, Takk.

Takk is Icelandic for "Thanks". Given the huge following the band had acquired to that point, the name of the album was certainly appropriate. The whole album seemed to take me out of my current reality. The sound was like nothing I've ever heard before. The contrast between the light and airy falsetto voice of Jonsi Birgisson (the lead vocalist) and his guitar which he plays with a cello bow.....and the chimes and horns and string section that all come together to create this incredible sound is so moving to the core. Listening to their music has spontaneously brought tears to my eyes on many occasions and I can only chalk it up to the purity with which they play.

There is an honesty to their music. They haven't sold out to some huge recording label. They make their music according to their terms and with what inspires them. Their music is art! If you ever get the opportunity to see them perform live, you will understand exactly what I mean. They played at NYC MoMA last June and Current TV documented it. Here's the link:
http://current.com/items/89173668/sigur_r_s_moma.htm

Not only is their music artistic, but the videos that accompany their music are so artfully done that to both hear their music and see the images, one almost can't help but be swept away by the overall affect. It is truly beautiful, overwhelming and poetic. Below are some of my favorites from Sigur Ros posted on You Tube.

Glosoli (Glowing Soul)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwQmDvuORY0

Saeglopur (The Seafarer)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yjurf5d6X0

Gobbledigook
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJuDE8heHRI

All the videos, to me, depict a fearlessness in childhood innocence. The song Gobbledigook is a portrayal and interpretation of mother nature and her mischievous "helpers". Given that Jonsi and the band sings in Icelandic, I had to go searching for the lyrics and their translations. Here's the rough translation for Gobbledigook found on Lyricwiki.com.

http://lyricwiki.org/Sigur_R%C3%B3s:Gobbledigook

You can find translations for most of their other songs at http://www.lyricwiki.com/ as well.

Gobbledigook is the first track off their newest album, Med sud i eyrum vid spilum endalaust (With a buzz in our ears, we play endlessly). This album is quite different from Takk. It has more tracks that have an upbeat feel to them, whereas, Takk feels as though it was inspired by the dark, somber, contemplative winters in Iceland. Med sud has more of a feel like it was written and inspired by the hope and promise of spring and the magic that seems to bring life back to the earth after the cold dark winter. It's definitely worth a look and listen.

Well, that's all for now. My fixation with Sigur Ros hasn't abated just yet, so I'm sure I will post some more tidbits for you soon enough.

Until next time......

Thanks for reading!

Kristen