Gothic Granola

Due to holiday baking and general baking, I ran out of coconut sugar. For 2015, I'm still on the low-sugar kick (as in minimizing white sugar, organic sugar, the granulated stuff) because it was very helpful in maintaining a stable mood. Don't need to throw off my meditation practice because I've been eating blood sugar spiking foods, eh?  

Before I had my licence/parents would let me drive, for the super-early National Honor Society morning meetings, Ownie Mom would drive me to school. As usual, she gave me breakfast: a thermos of Earl Grey tea, a pot of Stonyfield Farms organic, low-fat yoghurt (chocolate please!), maybe an apple, and a bag of enhanced trail mix. Trail mix with more stuff became my vice in later years: GORP, M'n'Ms, peanutbutter-filled pretzels, and Quaker Oatmeal Squares. Of course I ate it to stay awake in 2006-2008. I made it for myself and ate it to fill some hunger for the same love and care for my success in 2009-2010.

I don't like pants. I don't like to wear pants that cover my calves. Simply do not like the feeling of cloth on my shins, particularly in the less-sensitive spots (voluntarily wearing short pants in single-degree temperatures growing up did that).  Leggings don't count as pants since they're borderline between tights and pants, and I like tights/stockings/knee highs/socks in general. The temperature has been hovering in the single digits Fahrenheit. I must be getting old because I rolled down my pants to go for a walk on Thursday.

Music of the moment:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pl3vxEudif8

Four Pieces of Advice What did my mother teach me how to do? What didn’t my mother teach me how to do?! Let’s not go there. We are spiritual beings having a material experience, and material experiences have limitations. Meta-discussion out of the way (not sorry, as a religion scholar, I must always make such concessions), here’s a recipe and the advice.

To touch is to heal To hurt is to steal If you want to kiss the sky Better learn how to kneel  On your knees boy --“Mysterious Ways” by U2 My virtues pick was “Forgiveness” a few times in the last few months.  Even if you can't make reparations to the exact same person--you never really can, anyway--you can do better by others, to improve yourself.  I think I know why it’s coming up so much; there are four or five years of bad habits of which I need to let go in order to make my health coach studies my healthiest student experience yet. On Sunday, I stocked up on grains, I cleaned my room, I recycled old clothes, and I made the rice kickasserole of the previous post.  By taking care of my life, I got ready to do (one of) my art: cooking and learning about nutrition.  Anton Chekov said, “If you want to work on your art, work on your life.”

You can burn peanut butter.  I was melting peanut butter for the granola I made last weekend and while assembling the rest of the granola, I had it on the burner over high heat, and I burned it.  Oh well, char adds flavour!  Besides, the peanut butter was showing its true Goth nature by showing up to the granola party wearing black.

Part II of III for food involving vegan and GF beer. For when you have the munchies or need the hair of the dog.