Wet Picnic

God bless the 80s!

Birthdays

My relationship with birthdays has changed over the years. As a little girl it was my favorite time of the year - all eyes on me, mami would clean my room and make strawberry shortcake, papi would dress the house with pink garlands that spelled my name. Materialistic and a bit narcissistic by nature, birthdays fueled my two great loves: attention and stuff.

As i got older it was all about the magnitude of the gathering, the coolness and sexiness of the party being a representation of the self. Outfits would be planned all the way to the tiny ring on my fake-tanned, left foot, carbohydrates banned until further notice... friends and crushes would coalesce - uncontainable curiosity and excitment flowing.

I'm not sure when things took a turn, so i can only speak of what i feel today. i am very excited, yet it isn't the attention or the stuff driving my excitement. As i begin to climb 30, gratitude for what I have had, meets with the unfolding of a very significant decade. Rather than picking dresses and sending evites I feel like I'm preparing for a rite of passage of a sort; reincorporating the old, birthing something new. The idea of the Saturn Return seems very relevant and it is interesting that my mother and father, to some extent, are going through this simultaneously with me.

"Astrolgers define the Saturn Return as an astrological phenomenon that occurs at the ages of 27-30, 58-60, and finally from 86-88, coinciding with the time it takes the planet Saturn to make one orbit around the sun. It is believed that as Saturn "returns" to the degree in which it occupied at the time of birth -- approximately every 29.5 years -- a person crosses over a major threshold and into the next stage of life. With the first Saturn Return, a person leaves youth behind and enters adulthood. With the second Return, maturity. And the third and usually final Return, a person enters wise old age".

I understand that being present, in the now, is one way to eternal happiness, and I'm definitely contradictng myself by looking forward at what's to come. Yet I think that's what it's about, being in the grey with everything. I'm approaching the next portion of life at one with the grayness of ambivalence. Not here or there, in-between knowing and not-knowing, having and not having - in this space we can create.
Without a blueprint, and in the now, yet attentive of what's to come.

motherlover!

I had a sociopathic boyfriend once...

Good One!

Quinoa Soup

I know, Quinoa, sterotypical white-californian food. .The indingenous grain is tasty and low-carb! My mom passed on this recipe, but I make it different. It's pretty quick, super healthy and stores well for almost a week.
What you need:
1 cup quinoa
1 small onion (chopped, fine)
1 carrot (chopped, medium)
1 red bell pepper (chopped fine)
1 garlic clove (sliced, thin)
1 white corn on cob (slice off kernels)
1 small sweet potato (cut into cubes 1" thick)
1 lemon OR 1 orange
2 collard green leaves (cut into 1 inch strips)

olive oil (i use coconut oil) salt, pepper, red chili flakes.

Saute the bell pepper first until softened, add onion and garlic. once onion is transluscent add carrot, salt (a lot it will be diluted later by the water) and pepper, chili flakes.
Add quinoa and saute all ingridents for 1 minute. Slowly pour 6 cups of hot (or boiling) water. Once mixture starts boiling add sweet potato, reduce heat cover and let simmer until sweet potato is cooked (10-15 minutes).
Add corn and collard greens cover and allow to cook with low to no heat (you want corn to have some crunch) for 5 minutes.
Add lemon/orange squeeze. SERVE!

The Science of Cultivating Positive Emotions

Positive Psychology is a relatively new branch of psychology which is becoming increasingly popular and researched, and I'm happy about it. Similar to humanistic psychology (my personal orientation) which supports happiness, self-determination and human potentiality - it works. I think it provides a much needed shift away from traditional psychoanalysis and the medical model in general, where pathology is the focus of treatment. Yet being happy and tuning into positive emotions is not necessarily about smiling more or thinking positive...like much of what occurs within the psyche and relationally; it is complex, and more grey than black or white. Yet again, the notion of being present is underscored....i enjoyed this interview w/ Positive psychologist Barbara Fredrickson.
Thrive!

ELLE Street Chic en BA

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