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| Pretty long haired Feral |
I haven't had a lot to blog about lately, but I thought I'd start with a little better picture of one of our feral cats. You can't tell too much here, but she has long sleek black hair and is really very pretty. I wish someone would give her a home, but although she will allow DH to pet her, won't let me or anyone else get too near. Sometimes she's gone for a few days and I think, oh good, someone has taken her in... but alas, she always returns eventually.
Next is a healthy snack I had discovered a while back and am enjoying again. It's dried Okra and we find it at Central Market. Probably doesn't sound like a great snack to some, but I really like okra and only cook it when I'm making gumbo... so to use it as a snack (like nuts) or just add it to our dinner as such has been a great new discovery for us.
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| Dried Okra |
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| Dried Carrots (good also, but Okra better) |
And since I'm talking about health, I will also mention that I am trying a no-dairy diet. This is my second week. It's not been too bad. I do love whole milk, cheese, unsalted butter, and cream (evaporated milk in my tea)... and do miss it... but I'll survive. We bought Silk vanilla almond milk, almond coconut milk, and a coconut cream. All are OK... not the same, but OK. Hot chocolate made with coconut milk is actually pretty good. I'll go back to dairy next week and see if I notice any real difference. Someone told me that if you have any gastric problems, the first thing they tell you is to give up dairy. Since I do... on occasion... I thought I'd give it a try.
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| orchids... I think |
And these flowers are all over the mall where DH and I walk each week. They've finally taken down all the Christmas decor and brought in all kinds of spring flowers. These particular ones we thought were really beautiful.
Started writing this a few days ago, but never got around to posting it. Since I'm back on the pottery wheel, I thought I'd post a few pics of new clay pieces... but forgot to take pics at the studio. Haven't done anything on the wheel since last Spring, so I'm trying to get my muscle memory back. Doing OK, but not great. Have decided to work mainly on the wheel and not do any hand-building this semester (although I may do a little animal sculpting).
Oh, and I heard that the groundhog did see his shadow... so we will probably be getting 6 more weeks of winter. Well, we really can't complain around here as the winter has not been too bad... so far.
Hope you have a great weekend! Time to take my tea and book and settle in...
she is a pretty little feral too!
ReplyDeletei haven't eaten dairy for years, you get used to it after awhile, i don't bother with anything in my beverages anymore & take them 'black' with honey; i do crave cheese every now & then so i usually get goats or sheep, tried buffalo cheese the other week, quite a strong flavour that one has but nice. my daughter & i made custard using rice milk at xmas just so i could enjoy pudding with custard :))
hope you feel better with your gas soon
thanx for sharing
Selina, I stayed off the dairy for 2 weeks, now I'm gradually putting cream back in my tea to see how that goes. If no probs, I will add a little more dairy back gradually. As for goat and sheep products, I find them much too strong. I haven't tried rice milk.
DeleteI'll pass on the dried okra and dried carrots, but I *have* found that I quite like the organic dried coconut strips a local grocery store is carrying. I devoured the sea salt and pepper ones (first bag), and bought the natural/unflavoured ones as my second bag. Both are good!
ReplyDeleteI hope the non-dairy helps. I've been having a LOT of gastric troubles since early August, have been on Pantaloc for some months, soon to finish that. I'd actually like to go to a naturopath and have the blood work done for food sensitivities, because right now all grain except white rice is out of my diet (always have had problems with all grains--not gluten). I've also discovered that not only am I lactose intolerant (which I knew anyway), but I can't drink lactose-free milk or eat most cheeses or yogurt, etc. without gumming up my throat to excess. TMI? Sorry. Oh, btw -- do you take any vitamins or supplements? I was taking 1000 - 2000 mgs of vitamin C daily, for months last year, and that's within daily recommended limits, but I've recently discovered that excessive vitamin C can cause gastric problems. I've been off it for about 10 days, but since I'm still on the Pantaloc, I can't say whether stopping it is helping. Maybe my own system just can't take that much vitamin C, I don't know. Never had a problem with just 500 mgs per day, which I was taking for years prior to this last.
Anyway, that's a very long way of saying you need to look at everything you're ingesting, even natural health products!
Good luck!
Kim, I'm not had problems with grains... unless it contains too much fiber... like 9 grain breads, etc. I use cream of wheat and whole wheat pastas, brown rice, etc. with no problem. Yogurt will give me a migraine, and tofu gums up my throat. I don't take any vitamins or supplements... just try to eat healthy. And my gastric problems only pop up on occasion - maybe twice a year, but I have never been able to determine the cause.
DeleteI use half and half in my coffee and love cheese, not sure I could do without for two weeks. Ha, gluten free is kind of a pain but a must for me. I try to look at all the labels to see what's in good, if there are two many it's usually not good.
ReplyDeleteTwo weeks wasn't too bad, Linda. And I don't think gluten is a problem for me. I also read labels and agree if there's a bunch of ingredients I don't recognize, won't use it.
DeleteI'll be interested to know whether you notice any difference when you start up with dairy again. :-)
ReplyDeleteWill post the results, DJan.
DeleteI'm not certain I could live without dairy. Cheese, milk (skim) and yoghurt are some of my favorite foods. I've been trying to cut back on carbs - did well over Christmas but into the new year the pounds are adding up again. I know most of that is due to inactivity, if I moved more and ate less I'd be ahead of myself.
ReplyDeleteI've never tasted okra but have heard it's texture is slimy. I assume dried it wouldn't be the same as fresh.
Hope you remember your camera next time you go the studio - love to see your pottery.
The little feral girl is adorable. It's a shame she won't let other near her.
I agree it would be hard to live without dairy. But if I have to 'limit' dairy, I will. So far I'm not convinced that dairy is the problem, but we'll see. Eileen, I think Okra tastes wonderful... have you never had fried okra? The dried is similar to fried (without the fat). But you are right about it being slimy when cooked in other ways. Chicken,sausage, and Okra gumbo is pretty good though... :)
DeleteI hope spring comes soon
ReplyDeleteI hope so too, Adam.
DeleteWe had a stray kitten visit us over the summer. It didn't seem feral, and was actually quite tame. I suspect someone abandoned him nearby. We couldn't keep him because of my husband's allergies, but I was fortunate that a friend's cat had died and she was looking to adopt another one. It worked out great and both Linda and the kitten are happy. I've been off dairy (except for yogurt with active cultures) for over a year. I love hot chocolate made with vanilla coconut milk. At first I missed the cheese, but it didn't take long before that passed. Just recently someone gave me a taste of okra chips. They were pretty yummy. Would love to see your pottery. xo
ReplyDeleteLove that place in Mousehole, West Cornwall on your site! And so glad your stray kitten found a home. It seems that many people are allergic to cats... even our Vet says that they are creating a separate room for those who are sensitive. And as for the no-dairy diet, I don't miss the cheese as much as I thought I would.
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