Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/tinybuddha/~3/zjfi5UqnGLk/

“Who does not thank for little does not thank for much.” ~Estonian Proverb

I remember the moment so well: I had been seeing a new guy for a few months and I was staying the night for the first time. Up until that point he hadn’t seen me without heavy makeup, as I was careful to always look completely put together while with him.

That night I had to make a decision.

I could fall asleep with my makeup still on, or I could remove it first. Did I feel comfortable enough to let him see me without foundation, eyeliner, or mascara? Would he still like me?

For many people this might not be a tough decision to make (and truly, I have nothing against makeup or those who wear it), but for over a decade I had worried constantly about anyone seeing me without. I had over a decade of time to build up unhealthy attitudes about my appearance.

Any time I spent the night away from home, from trips and staying with friends to dating, I would get up around 5am to redo my makeup and get back into bed before “waking up.”

It was exhausting, but the only way I felt comfortable around other people. Going to the beach or the pool was a real struggle.

I remember this particular moment so strongly because when he saw me the only thing he said was “you loo…

Source: http://www.sonima.com/meditation/reducing-racial-bias/

With all that’s happening in our country and around the world, the need to strengthen our capacity for empathy is more essential than ever. A recent study from the University of Sussex in the UK found that a simple loving-kindness meditation, also called metta meditation, could have a profound impact on perception and racial bias, while increasing one’s overall sense of well-being and positivity.

The research from Sussex shows that the act of loving-kindness meditation not only benefits our physical or mental health, but could also permeate society as a whole. In the study, a non-meditating group of white individuals were taught loving-kindness meditation and were asked to direct their practice toward a gender-matched black individual. Post-practice, test subjects were assessed and scored based on the Implicit Association Test, which measures positive and negative association. Typically, individuals project positive association more strongly to their own ethnicity, but following the seven-minute loving-kindness meditation, positive associations and “other-regarding” emotions were more prevalent, signifying the reduction of racial bias. “This indicates that some meditation techniques are about much more than feeling good,” explained Alexander Stell, lead researcher in the study, “and might be an important tool for enhancing inter-group harmony.”

The practice of loving-kindness meditation consists of consciou…

Source: http://romanfitnesssystems.com/articles/jedi-workout/

It’s here it’s here its HERE.

After a long wait, a movie that has always seemed to be far, far away is upon us.

If for some reason my clever allusions have not made it clear, I’m talking about Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the JJ Abrams-helmed seventh entry into the epic space opera that began nearly 40 years ago.

To say that my love of Star Wars is life-long is not an understatement. True story: Return of the Jedi was the first film I ever saw in theaters. Despite being shy of 2-years old, my parents took me to see the movie when it came out in 1983 1.

Anyway. I’ve been a huge Star Wars fan my entire life. I’ve seen the movies. I played the games. While Knights of the Old Republic probably absorbed more hours of my late teenage years than any other game, there’s still a place in my heart for the SNES version of Empire. Great game.

I even read most of the books in the expanded Universe, and can give you a pretty specific breakdown of the Skywalker family tree, starting with Anakin and ending with Cade, along with some highlights of their adventures.

For fuck’s sake favorite episodes of Muppet Babies were the ones where they played out their Star Wars fantasies.

<img class="aligncenter wp-image-50981" src="http://i1.wp.com/romanfitnesssystems.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/IMG_8784.jpg?resize=…

Source: http://greatist.com/live/women-trouble-sleeping?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-

Quick: Think of someone snoozing and snoring.

Did you imagine a guy? Men are more likely to snore than women, and they also have less trouble falling asleep. The Cut spoke with sleep experts to find out the scientific reasons for this sleep disparity between the sexes. Here are three reasons women may spend more time counting sheep than men:

1. Hormones

Estrogen fluctuates throughout your menstrual cycle, and research shows it can affect your circadian rhythm.1

Works Cited
Estrogen receptor 1 modulates circadian rhythms in adult female mice. Blattner MS, Mahoney MM. Chronobiology international, 2014, Feb.;31(5):1525-6073.

2. Periods

Speaking of menstrual cycles, periods come with oh-so fun side effects, like cramping and bloating, that make it harder to sleep.

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3. Pregnancy

Growing a tiny human…

Source: http://www.foodpolitics.com/2015/12/house-spending-bill-food-issues-summarized/

Thanks to Helena Bottemiller Evich of Politico Pro for doing the homework on food issues covered by the omnibus spending deal just agreed to by the House.  Here’s my quick summary of her summary.

GMO labels: the effort to preempt local and state GMO labeling initiatives failed as a result of the efforts of 30 representatives who opposed the measure.
Country of origin labels repealed: the meat industry scores a win in the House vote to repeal the measure.
Dietary guidelines: I discussed this one in yesterday’s post.  The House wants to block their release on the grounds that they are not sufficiently scientific (translation: the meat industry doesn’t like advice to eat less meat).
The Clean Water Act: it survives.
GMO salmon: it will have to be labeled.
Food safety funding: up more than $132 million to $2.72 billion in discretionary funding. This is a big win for the FDA. It also proposes $1 billion for the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, also above the president’s request.
Trans fat ban”: delayed until FDA’s formal rules go into effect in June 2018.
School lunch flexibility: Riders allow schools to ignore whole grain requirements and block sodium restrictions pending further research.
Chinese chicken out of schools: Prohibits purchasing chicken that was processed in China for school meals or other federal nutrition programs.
More kitchen equipment: Schools get another $30 million for school equipment grants.
Horse slaughter: Bann…

Source: http://www.sonima.com/videos/exercises-for-golfers/

Watch video on YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmCXr22D_bA

As all golfers know, there’s much more to the sport than just standing around and intermittently whacking a small ball with a club. It takes an incredible amount of power and athleticism to drive that ball clear across the lush green lawn toward the tiniest, barely-visible target. To meet the demands of the underestimated sport, you need to be strong, flexible, and, most importantly, well-balanced.

In this 20-minute video, Pete Egoscue, an alignment expert and founder of the Egoscue Method, breaks down the key alignment and stretching exercises for golfers. Start with a 10-minute warm-up that includes some simple, yet crucial drills, such as foot circles and hip lifts, to promote stability and strength. From there, do a few cats and dogs to stretch your spine. It’s a good idea to do these in between each exercise to reset your body every time. Next, move onto kneeling groin stretches and upper spinal floor twists. Lastly, finish with a 30-second Downward Dog. Now you’re ready to go play like a champion.

Once you’ve worked the course and scored your hole-in-ones, take 10 minutes to cool down before getting into your car. Do a few easy and relaxing moves, including static back (careful not to doze off here!), cats and dogs, a counter stretch, and forward bends. Wrap it up with Downward Dog. Aim to hold the pose for a minute, if you can, before heading…

Source: http://www.thefitbits.com/2015/10/race-report-color-run-brighton-2015.html

They call it the Happiest 5k. They’re not wrong, really.

The 5ks I tend to run these days seem to be a grit-my-teeth, push-my-hardest PB attempt or hungover parkrun, which doesn’t always turn out to be fun at all, if I’m honest. Rewarding sometimes, yes, but not necessarily fun. 
The Color Run is different. (Still hurts my brain to use the American spelling, but I’m soldiering on). You can’t really call it a race – it’s not timed, and there’s not a pacer in sight. This is the second time I’ve done it, the last time was in 2013, the year it first came to Brighton.

It’s refreshing, and fun, and silly, and awesome. It reminds me why running is great, something for all the family to get involved with, whatever your ability. 
Last Saturday it felt like there were a million people all lining up together for a right old jolly, there were no pre-race nerves, no serious elite athletes limbering up and checking Garmins, no judgement, no pressure, no reason not to smile. 
Families and runners/walkers of all shapes and sizes came to play, (maybe a few too many actually, as it was very crowded for the first couple of kms). I kinda also wish it wasn’t so crowded so that everyone could run through the colour stations rather than shuffle through in an orderly queue, as it’s much more fun getting pelted with colour at full speed, but hey ho. 
The post-run rave at the end was a delight, as ever, although I realised that sadly I’m no…

Source: http://www.fannetasticfood.com/2015/12/18/gingerbread-pecan-butter-recipe/

Friends – I have a new favorite nut butter: gingerbread pecan butter. Who needs sugary cookies when you’ve got this? This is my latest McCormick partnership creation (last month’s: Vegan Kale Artichoke Dip recipe <- great for holiday parties), and I promise you’ll love it, too.

Even better is that this makes an excellent holiday gift! Whip up a batch, pop the nut butter into little mason jars, add a ribbon, et voila! Happiness, delivered.

<img title="gingerbread pecan butter gift idea" style="border-left-width: 0px;border-right-width: 0px;border-bottom-width: 0px;float: none;padding-top: 0px;padding-left: 0px;margin: 0px auto;padding-right: 0px;border-top-width: 0px" border="0" alt="gingerbread pecan butter gift idea" src="http://www.fannetasticfood.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/…

Source: http://summertomato.com/ask-darya-what-should-i-do-if-i-dont-have-a-local-farmers-market/

Hi guys,

Today we have another episode of Ask Darya, where Stacey from Denver asks:

“I love your idea of shopping at farmers markets whenever possible, but I’m located in Denver, where farmers markets tend to run from June/July through October-ish. What would you suggest as an alternative during the rest of the year? Should I order produce from a CSA and have it shipped to me? Should I find a farm that does pasture-raised poultry/meats and order through them?”

It’s a good question, and I offer a slight reframe on the value of farmers markets and share some of the solutions I’ve been using since moving to NYC from California.

Want me to answer your question? Submit it on the Ask Darya page.

Cheers,

Darya

…

Source: http://www.foodpolitics.com/2015/12/weekend-reading-mark-pendergrasts-fair-trade/

Mark Pendergrast: Beyond Fair Trade: How One Small Coffee Company Helped Transform a Hillside Village in Thailand.  Greystone Books, 2015.

Mark Pendergrast is the author of the definitive history of Coca-Cola, For God, Love, and Coca-Cola, about which I have warmly appreciative things to say in my own contribution to that genre, Soda Politics.  

He writes a “semi regular”column on coffee for the Wine Spectator, and this is his second book on coffee.  The first was Uncommon Grounds: The History of Coffee and How it Transformed the World.

Here, he focuses on the Doi Chaang Coffee Company, the result of a business partnership between a Canadian coffee company and a coffee-growing hill tribe in Thailand.  This is an inspiring story of social entrepreneurship at its best. Sometimes these things work.  It’s worth reading about how this one did.

…