Friday, November 6, 2009
England
I did have a wonderful trip back to England and New York and will write about it soon. I just wanted to get some pics up of the land as people have been asking about it:)
Back in Cozumel
After a month of being at home in England (via New York) I am finally back on my little Island with my BF. It was wonderful to see my BF again as the month appart was very difficult (thank goodness for skype!).
Its taken a week for me to get relaxed into the pace of life here again, get over my jet lag, get back into a healthy eating and exercise regime and get my stuff in some state of organization. Those of you who know me well will know that I am not a happy bunny when things in my life are not in a state of good order. Just before I left the Island the external hard drive on my computer started to overheat. Good timing, in a way, as I was able to buy a new drive in the US and bring it back with me. The frustrating thing has been setting the thing up. I'm almost there and for now have worked out a system for cooling my old external drive down with fans while it is at work. Life is returning to the kind of order I can deal with. The Archers (my favorite radio show) is again accessible and I am happily able to watch my favorite TV shows again. I'm back at yoga and meditation and my yoga studio has added three new classes which I am really excited about. Work is slow but set to pick up by the end of the month, which gives me a nice easing in period. We have a tropical storm approaching us right now, which is bringing a lot of rain with it. Great weather for tidying the apartment, cooking and getting some work done on my computer.
Apart from seeing my BF the most exciting thing about being back has been seeing the progress on our piece of land. BF worked hard while I was away, buying materials, organizing contractors and generally supervising the building of the wall which will surround our property. The wall is 2.4 meters tall (the tallest it can be without a more detailed and costly planning permission than the one we have). Anyway building work has gone well. All of the labor has been paid for and we have most of the materials. Here is the foundation of the wall:
The wall that you see on the right hand side of the back of the land is on the property behind ours and we plan to build our wall right up against it. We don't want to share any wall with our neighbors so that we can do what we want with it. Here is the first part of the wall built:
The gaps you can see have now been filled with rebars and cement to make the wall strong. The contractor has also made it round most of the back of the property and part of the other side. It has been an expensive job and has taken probably as much materials as it will take to build the ground floor of the house. When the contractor is finished building the wall he will cement over it to make it look nice and protect the bricks. We'll build the front part of the wall with rocks so it looks nice and doesn't need to be painted every year or so. We're very pleased with it as we both like our privacy. It will be wonderful to sit in our own little private back garden:)
Unfortunately the tropical storm which will be with us into next week has put a halt to building work for the time being. I am pretty calm about this though. A friend advised me to keep all thoughts of finishing our house out of my head. He said if you get excited about completing in any kind of time frame you will be faced with dissappiontment after dissapointment. Very good advice - slow but sure, I'm just excited that the building of our new home is underway!
Its taken a week for me to get relaxed into the pace of life here again, get over my jet lag, get back into a healthy eating and exercise regime and get my stuff in some state of organization. Those of you who know me well will know that I am not a happy bunny when things in my life are not in a state of good order. Just before I left the Island the external hard drive on my computer started to overheat. Good timing, in a way, as I was able to buy a new drive in the US and bring it back with me. The frustrating thing has been setting the thing up. I'm almost there and for now have worked out a system for cooling my old external drive down with fans while it is at work. Life is returning to the kind of order I can deal with. The Archers (my favorite radio show) is again accessible and I am happily able to watch my favorite TV shows again. I'm back at yoga and meditation and my yoga studio has added three new classes which I am really excited about. Work is slow but set to pick up by the end of the month, which gives me a nice easing in period. We have a tropical storm approaching us right now, which is bringing a lot of rain with it. Great weather for tidying the apartment, cooking and getting some work done on my computer.
Apart from seeing my BF the most exciting thing about being back has been seeing the progress on our piece of land. BF worked hard while I was away, buying materials, organizing contractors and generally supervising the building of the wall which will surround our property. The wall is 2.4 meters tall (the tallest it can be without a more detailed and costly planning permission than the one we have). Anyway building work has gone well. All of the labor has been paid for and we have most of the materials. Here is the foundation of the wall:
The wall that you see on the right hand side of the back of the land is on the property behind ours and we plan to build our wall right up against it. We don't want to share any wall with our neighbors so that we can do what we want with it. Here is the first part of the wall built:
The gaps you can see have now been filled with rebars and cement to make the wall strong. The contractor has also made it round most of the back of the property and part of the other side. It has been an expensive job and has taken probably as much materials as it will take to build the ground floor of the house. When the contractor is finished building the wall he will cement over it to make it look nice and protect the bricks. We'll build the front part of the wall with rocks so it looks nice and doesn't need to be painted every year or so. We're very pleased with it as we both like our privacy. It will be wonderful to sit in our own little private back garden:)Unfortunately the tropical storm which will be with us into next week has put a halt to building work for the time being. I am pretty calm about this though. A friend advised me to keep all thoughts of finishing our house out of my head. He said if you get excited about completing in any kind of time frame you will be faced with dissappiontment after dissapointment. Very good advice - slow but sure, I'm just excited that the building of our new home is underway!
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Progress on our Land
Before...
After...
We hired a contractor to do most of the clearing, but two days ago, aided by two of BF's friends, we removed two truck loads of undergrowth and trash from the middle of the land. I helped initially but after the first tarantula limbered out of the branches, I decided to retire. Hard work I do not mind, but tarantulas clawling on me is something I cannot do! My retirement was well timed because the tarantula's husband or wife was discovered soon after. On the up side, we found two tortoises (one was a baby). I hope they stick around when we're moved in.
Yesterday my current landlord was having a wall demolished on his property. Our land has some very large slabs of flat rock in the middle of it. We will build our foundation on top of this rather than dig it into the land. This will mean a small wall (about 1.5') that will need to be filed with rocks. We decided to take the rubble from the wall onto our land. 30 buckets and 3 car loads later, with aching limbs we managed to accomplish the small pile of rocks you see in the center of the 'after' picture. Poor BF carried most of the buckets, but I would say I carried a good 1/3 of the total, and I have the sore muscles to prove it. The pile looks bigger in the flesh!
Here is a rough sketch of the wall we are planning (this should keep the dogs/ poop off the land):
I'm off to England for the month of October, leaving BF in charge of the project. I'm hoping the next update will show quite a lot of change, but I've been counseled by my friend Fernando, that when you are building a house you have to not focus on it becoming completed, just take things little by little as there will be MANY set backs!!!
After...
We hired a contractor to do most of the clearing, but two days ago, aided by two of BF's friends, we removed two truck loads of undergrowth and trash from the middle of the land. I helped initially but after the first tarantula limbered out of the branches, I decided to retire. Hard work I do not mind, but tarantulas clawling on me is something I cannot do! My retirement was well timed because the tarantula's husband or wife was discovered soon after. On the up side, we found two tortoises (one was a baby). I hope they stick around when we're moved in.Yesterday my current landlord was having a wall demolished on his property. Our land has some very large slabs of flat rock in the middle of it. We will build our foundation on top of this rather than dig it into the land. This will mean a small wall (about 1.5') that will need to be filed with rocks. We decided to take the rubble from the wall onto our land. 30 buckets and 3 car loads later, with aching limbs we managed to accomplish the small pile of rocks you see in the center of the 'after' picture. Poor BF carried most of the buckets, but I would say I carried a good 1/3 of the total, and I have the sore muscles to prove it. The pile looks bigger in the flesh!
Here is a rough sketch of the wall we are planning (this should keep the dogs/ poop off the land):
I'm off to England for the month of October, leaving BF in charge of the project. I'm hoping the next update will show quite a lot of change, but I've been counseled by my friend Fernando, that when you are building a house you have to not focus on it becoming completed, just take things little by little as there will be MANY set backs!!!
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Juice Fast Over!!!
My 5 day juice fast is over and I feel great - super healthy both physically and mentally. It made me think that people who follow macro-biotic or raw food diets may have something. I'm resolved to try and keep my diet more healthy and well proportioned. Eating enough to sustain your body without overeating and making yourself sluggish while digesting food. I'm resolved to stay off the coffee and diet coke for good now and no more pre-dive chocolate bars.
I would say though my skin has retained a sensitivity to the sun which I think may have some from some deficiency due to relying solely on juicing - or perhaps some nutrient has done that. Going to go back to juices for breakfast from time to time and plan to do another fast in the New Year, but perhaps with porridge for breakfast so I can continue to dive.
I would say though my skin has retained a sensitivity to the sun which I think may have some from some deficiency due to relying solely on juicing - or perhaps some nutrient has done that. Going to go back to juices for breakfast from time to time and plan to do another fast in the New Year, but perhaps with porridge for breakfast so I can continue to dive.
Friday, September 4, 2009
Juice detox day three
Today was the best day so far. Last night I went to yoga and meditation. I think the yoga really helped to work some of the toxins out of my system and my nasty headache started to lift. I slept really well last night, aided by a torrential rainstorm. This morning, I made a beet, celery and apple shake for me and BF. He's being very supportive and joining me for my morning juice. I felt full of energy on the way to and at work. We had some clients who one of the other instructors will teach and one client for me on Sunday. I'll prefer diving on Sunday as it is my last day of fasting.
When I got home after work (at 10.30am! just like to throw that in to remind myself of how lucky I am) I prepared for my salt water flush. I made 1 liter of water with just two teaspoons of sea salt. It was such a horrible prospect to drink this mix that I decided to add a little freshly squeezed lime juice. Actually it was not so bad. The idea is that the stomach can only hold two cups of liquid. I drank 4 which flushes the salt mix right through your intestines flushing out any matter. Within 5 mins the salt water mix began to take effect. No stomach cramps or pain but out it all had to come. No more food in this lady - jut freshly squeezed juices!! It feels pretty clean and I feel full of energy.
So far this has been an interesting experience. I think it is a great exercise in mental control. This is one of the aspects useful to yogis in fasting. You need to mentally be in fasting mode. It will be intolerable/ impossible if you are continuously thinking of chocolate or marmite on toast or... (you get the idea - I cant bear to write any more about delicious foods). You need to be in flight mode. Once I get on the airplane, I don't think of the hours of long journey I have ahead, I just concentrate in the now and then on sleep, actually. Or the frame of mind you take to the dentists - just concentrate on other things until it is all over. Actually because of the nutrition you are getting from the juicing real HUNGER is not a huge problem. A juice or water will keep hunger at bay for the most part.
Another aspect of fasting is that the clearing of toxins also clears out emotional baggage. I have to say that after the excesses of my trip to New Jersey and Sue's stay I was not feeling to hot mentally. I was worrying feverishly about things which weren't worthy of the worry. Now I feel much more at peace. Going to yoga again tonight. Tonight's class is an advanced class so it will be much more physically taxing. Still when it is over I intend to flop right into bed.
In retrospect I think it would have been a good idea to prepare for the fast by excluding coffee, fatty food, etc. from my diet - this would probably have aleviated most of the headaches of days 1 & 2. It is clear to me now that living as I do in Cozumel not only makes me feel good, but it is almost necessary for me. I can't cope with the way excessive living makes me feel and I can't cope with New York or England without excessive living. My body is not designed to be able to cope with all of the rich foods and alcohol. I get easily depressed when I live like that and honestly the only way I can get through the days living in a big stressful city like New York is rewarding myself with a big fatty meal with friends and definitely far too much alcohol. Even one glass of wine at night is enough to send me off balance, into a pre-depression worry, the next day.
So this has been a great experience so far and one that I will repeat, probably in November as work is too hectic in the New Year and fasting will not give me the calories I need to dive every day.
There is one little downside to all of this goodness and that is that I am starting to take on a reddish color from all of the carrots and beet juice I am consuming. I'm going to concentrate on green vegetables this evening!!
When I got home after work (at 10.30am! just like to throw that in to remind myself of how lucky I am) I prepared for my salt water flush. I made 1 liter of water with just two teaspoons of sea salt. It was such a horrible prospect to drink this mix that I decided to add a little freshly squeezed lime juice. Actually it was not so bad. The idea is that the stomach can only hold two cups of liquid. I drank 4 which flushes the salt mix right through your intestines flushing out any matter. Within 5 mins the salt water mix began to take effect. No stomach cramps or pain but out it all had to come. No more food in this lady - jut freshly squeezed juices!! It feels pretty clean and I feel full of energy.
So far this has been an interesting experience. I think it is a great exercise in mental control. This is one of the aspects useful to yogis in fasting. You need to mentally be in fasting mode. It will be intolerable/ impossible if you are continuously thinking of chocolate or marmite on toast or... (you get the idea - I cant bear to write any more about delicious foods). You need to be in flight mode. Once I get on the airplane, I don't think of the hours of long journey I have ahead, I just concentrate in the now and then on sleep, actually. Or the frame of mind you take to the dentists - just concentrate on other things until it is all over. Actually because of the nutrition you are getting from the juicing real HUNGER is not a huge problem. A juice or water will keep hunger at bay for the most part.
Another aspect of fasting is that the clearing of toxins also clears out emotional baggage. I have to say that after the excesses of my trip to New Jersey and Sue's stay I was not feeling to hot mentally. I was worrying feverishly about things which weren't worthy of the worry. Now I feel much more at peace. Going to yoga again tonight. Tonight's class is an advanced class so it will be much more physically taxing. Still when it is over I intend to flop right into bed.
In retrospect I think it would have been a good idea to prepare for the fast by excluding coffee, fatty food, etc. from my diet - this would probably have aleviated most of the headaches of days 1 & 2. It is clear to me now that living as I do in Cozumel not only makes me feel good, but it is almost necessary for me. I can't cope with the way excessive living makes me feel and I can't cope with New York or England without excessive living. My body is not designed to be able to cope with all of the rich foods and alcohol. I get easily depressed when I live like that and honestly the only way I can get through the days living in a big stressful city like New York is rewarding myself with a big fatty meal with friends and definitely far too much alcohol. Even one glass of wine at night is enough to send me off balance, into a pre-depression worry, the next day.
So this has been a great experience so far and one that I will repeat, probably in November as work is too hectic in the New Year and fasting will not give me the calories I need to dive every day.
There is one little downside to all of this goodness and that is that I am starting to take on a reddish color from all of the carrots and beet juice I am consuming. I'm going to concentrate on green vegetables this evening!!
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Day 2 almost over
Its almost 6pm on the second day of my fast and I am still nursing an almighty headache. I am hoping that yoga tonight will help work some of these toxins out of my system so that the headache leaves. My BF made today much more bearable by collecting three fresh coconuts for me. I drank one fresh, right off the tree and another a little later with strawberry and pineapple juice. A great cocktail mix BTW!!
I have to say I did not anticipate this headache and I am also feeling mentally groggy. I think I will walk to yoga tonight because driving seems to require a little more concentration than usual. I am drinking plenty of water and this week I may buy some Ice Lollipop makers as the pulp from the fruit juices I'm making would taste great frozen.
two days down three to go. Tomorrow will be like cresting the hill. I do not know how Allie managed to do this for 10 days. I am going to feel a tremendous sense of satisfaction after 5.
I have to say I did not anticipate this headache and I am also feeling mentally groggy. I think I will walk to yoga tonight because driving seems to require a little more concentration than usual. I am drinking plenty of water and this week I may buy some Ice Lollipop makers as the pulp from the fruit juices I'm making would taste great frozen.
two days down three to go. Tomorrow will be like cresting the hill. I do not know how Allie managed to do this for 10 days. I am going to feel a tremendous sense of satisfaction after 5.
Day 2 am
Well yesterday I went on to drink:
4. cucumber and lime
5. lettuce, tomato, cucumber and mint
6. pineapple, strawberry and flax
I felt OK when I got into bed - a little tired but not super hungry and then my goodness, through the night did I feel bad. All of my body ached (joints and muscles) and I had the worst headache. A bit like the worst hangover in the world without the nausea and dehydration. I also feel a bit emotionally weak. Detoxing is supposed to clear all of the toxins from your body AND mind though, so I hope to feel like a ray of sunshine by next week. OK off to make a breakfast juice.
4. cucumber and lime
5. lettuce, tomato, cucumber and mint
6. pineapple, strawberry and flax
I felt OK when I got into bed - a little tired but not super hungry and then my goodness, through the night did I feel bad. All of my body ached (joints and muscles) and I had the worst headache. A bit like the worst hangover in the world without the nausea and dehydration. I also feel a bit emotionally weak. Detoxing is supposed to clear all of the toxins from your body AND mind though, so I hope to feel like a ray of sunshine by next week. OK off to make a breakfast juice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
