Globetrotter Packs

Globetrotter Packs

I'm thinking of taking one of these along with us on the trip. They seem to be the answer to alot of travel q's I've had recently. The option to communicate is key. Take a look see.

The Thrill of Common Interests

It is funny how you really don't know what you've got til it's gone. I, not even 24 hours away from my lady am feeling the effects already. I'm not talking about being love sick or even missing the attention that only your partner can give. I'm referring to our shared raw food lifestyle and the love and passion we have for it. Any day we were together we would make sure we both ate…and ate enough. I would try to make something we've never had, tasty, and cross over capable. It is exciting seeing some one fully enjoy a 100% raw dish that you made. It creates bonds the same as family sharing a huge meal together.But today I seemed to be content with a huge salad, some bars and simple fruit. Gaby is naturally this kind of raw foodie but I love to do over the top dishes for the both of us. I may be premature since it has only been a day but I will soon find out. I have gotten used to having a vitamix and dehydrator. Now I will "downgrade" if you will, but the most important thing is that I still have! And I am very grateful for that. With every closed door you see more open ones ahead. One of the many bonuses I have to being in St. Pete is the abundance of citrus trees. And soon enough the avocados will be begging to be plucked from burdened trees. Not to mention my city is so bike friendly and runner friendly. Also the beach is never farther than my feet's/wheels ample capability to get moving. Back to my original point, it so critical to have people around you who value and share in the same things you do. I will never take this for granted again. There is a certain appeal to it all and I need more people around me who can give me that thrill. This also a huge tip that I give to you. Surround yourself with people with common goals, intrests and lifestyle. The transition or journey will have a lot less bumps and be that much more enjoyable. Peace and blessings.

Easy Raw Lasagna…. Anybody can do it. I just have to remember the recipe! Lol

 

    Raw Lasagna

• Zucchini
• Tomatoes
• Sun dried Tomatoes
• Dates
• Spinach
• Olives
• Cashews
• Lemon Juice
• Italian seasoning
• Salt
• Pepper
• Garlic
• Union
• Olive oil
• Water
• Mushroom
• Nutritional yeast or yeast

That's pretty much it.

I'm going to make it tomorrow and there will be a step by step slide show with measurements.

You don't need a dehydrator only a blender. A peeler for the zucchini but you can just cut it thinly with a sharp knife. No excuses there's always a way to make tasty raw food.

Click here for more Healthy Meal options

Healthy Raw Meals

*Raw* Mexican Corn Bread

• 3 cups fresh corn
• 1 ½ cups green bell pepper
• 1 cup flax seed
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• Small hand full cilantro (leaves)

That's it!

In a food processor, chop the corn and bell pepper. Add everything and process until almost smooth.

Gaby and I liked it just like that.

You decide though b/c once we dehydrated it at 115 degrees for 3hrs on both sides we were in heaven!

For raw foodies like us having bread is exciting.

Either way was awesome try it and let us no what you think.

Our new used bikes for the tour!

Mine is the Red Varsity and T's is the black voyager.

They cost $20 for both out of someone's yard and $204 dollars to get them fixed up with tires and cable and all that jazz.

The pannier and rear rack on T's bike was $20 used from a local bike shop.

Total: $244

So far that's not bad. We need the things I listed in the Bike list post.

(http://rawroamers.blogspot.com/2010/02/bike-tour-what-we-think-we-need-to.html)

And we're done! I think…. Hope.

 

African American raw food cycling chicks…Whew. What a title.

I want to find more women or men like us. I don't know anyone in my community that's doing what we are. I know you're out there and I hope you find this post which is why the title is so lengthy. Get in contact with us. Let us know your story. Hopefully we can inspire some people to live their dream of optimal health! AHhhh.

Bike Tour: What we think we need to start.

1. 
   
   Panniers :    
   Gaby needs front and rear rack, front rear and handle bar panniers. (searching craigslist asap.)
   T needs front rack, front and handle bar panniers. (again searching craigslist)
2. Helmets
3. Light *for night riding.
4. Milk crates
5. Water bottle holders *I think 3 each
6. Rim * T's is bend
7. Air pump *for on the road
8. Multi tool kit * For me I loose everything.
9. Florida Map
10. Something for protection. * Maybe a knife or gun?
11. Clothes * I think I want to get some shirts made.
12. 
    
    Food * of course
    I'm not sure what clothes to take but I no I need those butt pad shorts! Wouldn't it be wonderful if they made me look like I had hips… Hmmmm I'll have to see about that.

*UPDATE!*  I got my rear rack last weekend from a garage sale for FREE! I wish I could thank the family again and again. It ment so much to me. The whole family got involved. They brought us tools to get the old rack off of the even older bike. This was no easy chore. Some of the screws just weren't in agreement with the whole thing. Anyways not only did they help and give it to us for free; The whole family made sure we had oranges. Kids in range from 3 to 10 were climbing like monkeys and the father and grandma were jumping around the tree. The mom even came out with a ladder for me. What a morning! I'll never forget how I got that rack and just so you no the best oranges in life are free. Manifest your day!

Raw Valentines Day? H-NO We went nuts....

             Yesterday was Valentines Day and I had a ball! It was the best Valentines Day ever and I can’t wait for the next one to roll around. It’s crazy to the both of us but this is our third lovers’ holiday together. My, how time flies. Anyway, the reason for me tapping on the keyboard this freezing February morning is to tell about our adventures in food yesterday. We started off the day like many others, with a big smoothie and water. I was far from satisfied as we began to ride thru the city. Our destination was the movies. The theater we went to was in the boonies over a half hour from our current residence but luckily we were in striking distance from the local and plentiful health food store. I figured we could stash some stuff in our back pack and eat that in the movie since we couldn’t eat anything in there anyway and I for one could feel my stomach touching my back. Gaby had some alternative ideas. She told me that she wanted to eat some popcorn at the movies. WHAT!!! Popcorn I thought to myself, she was a funny girl, but she was very serious. I thought about it for a second but couldn’t see myself eating that after a month and a half eating 100% raw. Then a little voice to me said,” T, eat the popcorn, live your life, don’t let it live you”. Being an internal wrestling pro I never fully embraced the idea. I thought she would let it go after we got some food. So enter the health food store to get some coconut juice for sure since I could feel a headache trying to come on. I thought maybe I was a little dehydrated and this would knock the subtle pain right out the park. We also got some our favorite “crackers” (at least until I get a dehydrator) Flax Snacks, pizza flavored of course and a couple handfuls of almonds, plus two avocados to seal the deal. The idea was to open the avocado and scoop it with the crackers, ummm yummy. While strolling thru the isles Gab found her way to the cheese section and sampled not one but two cheeses. Then I knew she was very serious about eating the popcorn at the movies. We were going on two weeks strong on a lovely vegan lifestyle. But I can understand how the smooth, creamy taste of cheese can sometimes cause you to slip up, especially for some one only 2 weeks in who wasn’t very gun ho about it in the first place.

                Exit Whole Foods and enter almonds into my mouth. Now I’ve got something in my stomach and feeling better every second there after. As movies time got closer I got a little more nervous about putting something cooked with processed additives on it in my mouth. Then I thought about the almonds I was eating and the olives that I put on my salads. I don’t know for sure if the almonds are blanched, steamed or what ever. I also don’t know for a fact if the olives had been thru anything extra to stay so damn tasty inside that can so why should I be so silently critical of myself and my lady for wanting to indulge in the other side just for a day. So I asked her one last time if she was serious about eating cooked food today. A simple yes was directed to my ears. I thought to myself…Well maybe I can get some tasty Thai today as well. When we finished browsing the mall and a sporting goods store looking for gear for our bike trip we made our way to the ticket and concession stand. Some how we chose the slowest line possible. People that got in a line after us had already found their seats and were enjoying previews. Maybe it was a sign that this was the wrong move, for the popcorn of course. Finally the turn was ours and I ordered the large popcorn, of course with butter in the middle and on top. If I was going to eat it I was going to enjoy it, damn it. Gaby took a handful while walking to the theater and before I knew it I had put my tongue into the huge tub of calories and fat a pulled back three or four pieces of yellow popcorn. It didn’t even dawn on me that I was eating it until I swallowed it. Then I was fine with it. Usually we can only pick over a medium popcorn but this time we totally devoured it. I couldn’t believe we ate the whole thing. It was like nothing to us, although we were left with an empty feeling in our stomach. Being the “thrifty” people we are we got to see a second movie for free! Leaving the tempting smells of fatcorn behind and the splash of high fructose corn syrup with coloring in the distance, we moved toward an unknown destination.
        
                    We discussed eating one last cooked meal but really didn’t want to spend the money. Finally we decided it was a special day and we should just do as we pleased since we both were not ready to return home and remained shorted nutritionally. Not that what ever we chose would be the healthiest thing for us but this day…anything went. We both thought about what we would most like to eat and it came down to Thai or Indian. I wanted Indian cuisine but felt happy to go for what I knew she really wanted. She had gone all out for me today in the way no one has ever done for me thus made me feel loved superiorly. Not being able to spend much private time has weighed on us and on my mood. I wanted to take full advantage of this alone time. We stopped at a Thai place that we had seen earlier and got a cozy table in the jam packed restaurant. For starters we ordered veggie egg rolls which were basically spring rolls. Gaby ordered her favorite…Thai noodle soup and I got what I know best tofu and broccoli. The rolls came out and I was surprised how hot the food was in my mouth. I could eat anything fresh out the pot or pan before but this food really brought the heat, but still very, very good. Next Gaby’s noodle soup came out. I could tell she was enjoying every fork and spoonful of it. She offered me some but I only took a forkful. I wanted her to really enjoy her food. It took over 10 minutes for my food to come out but the elated mood I felt couldn’t be altered. I knew that Thai food served small portions but the amount of broccoli was a little less than pleasing. I order on the menu this time and got the amazing tofu which came with the obvious tofu and some assorted veggies. I desired only the tofu and broccoli. Maybe this had some thing to do with the trace amount of veggies. The sauce was decent and the over all meal very good.

                 I asked Gaby how she felt and she said “heavy”, I too felt the same but it was very strange. Although my stomach was full I still wanted to eat more. I felt like I was missing something, what could it be? I came to the conclusion that my body was craving all the wonderful raw foods it had been feasting on since the first of the year. It also could be all that salty popcorn and cooked food leaving me dehydrated and craving water. What ever the feeling was I wasn’t particularly fond of it. Nor was I looking forward to subjecting myself to it any time soon. We drove home feeling tired and unsatisfied. I believe the lesson for the day was love is best served hot, moods are batter mild and food should be enjoyed at room temperature ( or raw to all my fellow raw foodies). Now we plan on doing a detox/fast. I need one week to eat the food the no one else will eat and to get my mind right. The fast should last for about a week. I hope it will be simple since I already have done a four week fast.

Til next time, good eating and great love!

T's before and after photos!

Three years ago I hit the peak of my physique. I was 130 lbs with six pack abs and cannon’s for arms. I looked forward to the opportunity of taking my shirt off any where just so I could show the world what I was working with. I was very proud of myself and very confident of what my body could do. I knew that I had only gotten to this point by running, doing crunches and a few other work outs. I was running 5 miles with no problem and felt like I could do anything. When I left Orlando and moved back home to St. Petersburg I noticed a little weight gain. I told myself that it was nothing and that I would get it under control and return to my prime self. That day never came until over a year and a half later and damn near 35 lbs heftier. The difference was food and exercise. In Orlando I was eating very well and exercising vigorously. That went to eating like my body was starving and not exercising unless it was walking my dog. I tried to change it by eating less but that didn’t work. I went on a will testing month long juice fast and lost 20 lbs but gained it all back plus some. So I exercised more but still didn’t see the change that I wanted. The ultimate problem was the food that I was eating. While on my own I bought all my own food and hardly ate processed food or junk food with the exception of some soy products. I was very healthy. But back in the comforts of home I found myself eating what my family ate plus some. I looked in the mirror one day at m girlfriend’s house and was shocked at what I saw. I felt disgusting. Even then, that didn’t change me. It wasn’t until I moved to Hawaii and started to eat almost exclusively from a home grown garden did I start to see my real self emerge. Junk foods were seldom consumed and I cooked the majority of our food. I could feel and see the results of eating a huge plant based diet (lifestyle).


I can remember eating Thanksgiving dinner with my family a couple months before I left. My uncle commented that I had gained a lot of weight and how did I do so being a vegetarian. In response I told him that I eat everything that you do besides the meat. Being who I am of course I was upset but not upset enough to fully change my life. I knew how to eat properly but for some reason failed. It could have been due to a lack of will, caring or motivation. Now I have the motivation to do what I need to keep losing the weight I want plus stay where I need to be. That comment gets to me in a good way now. What was I thinking! To me eating mostly plants is the key. I still lost weight eating cooked veggies and fresh fruit but I prefer all raw food now. It has so many pros and no cons that my mind can conceive. Give it a try and I’m sure you will feel the same way too.
                                                              
2 years ago                                                                      

1 year ago

Now!

31 Days Raw! We made it but not without struggle. Now run.

Raw January 31st 2010

Today was our last day eating any animal products at all. The only thing that we have been holding onto is cheese. We have been dependant on it to hold us over like a baby and its pacifier. It’s kind of pathetic actually to witness. It is always in the front of my mind when I prep meals but I don’t miss it when we don’t have it, at least not too much anyway. But I know this has been a long time coming. First I gave up red meat, and then it was poultry, then seafood. But the time has finally come where I feel comfortable enough to drop my last “bad habit” of eating the milk from any animal, be it raw or not. I always tell people when we discuss milk and such that whom ever was the first person to pull on a cows nipples and drink the white, sticky stuff that came out of it was a brave and strange mother…you know the rest. Then I proceed to say would you drink the milk of a monkey? Or even another person? For some reason the thought of drinking another humans milk freaks them out more than the monkey milk. Why, I don’t know cause it’s what we survived on for at least a year on this earth so we kinda should already have a taste for it. Anyway, back to what it has to do with us. It is the last step in our transformation on this food journey as far as excluding the harmful, processed foods. It may be hard but it is necessary. I can already feel some lonely wine in my belly ;-( But at the same time I can foresee the positive effects. Sticking to this lifestyle change will make it virtually impossible for me to gain weight (as long as I stay away from too many nuts). We can officially consider ourselves 100% RAW VEGANS!!

Running for the health of it.

The saying always goes “When one door closes another will open” is very true. In my case though the door has been wedged open trying to lasso me in for some time now. Back when I was living in Orlando a couple years ago I started to run, and I mean really run. I ran my longest distance at 5 miles and ran for over an hour at a time. That was when I was in the best shape of my life and felt the most positive about my body. Now 2 years later after a weight gain on 30 lbs and a loss of 20lbs I have dropped enough weight to where I feel comfortable to run again. I got the most awesome running shoes for Christmas and have only logged 1 disgraceful mile on them. Now it is time to get my 500 miles out of those bad boys. I plan on running at least one mile tomorrow and walking another mile. I will be training with Gaby so it should be a lot more fun than just doing a solo run. I have to think about some one besides myself. Gaby has never run like I have before so I guess you could consider her a beginner. Like I said I have some experience, plus I have completed a half marathon. Don’t worry about the time just know that I finished it, lol. So this should be very interesting for us. We have run once before on the same route we will be running tomorrow so it will be fascinating to see how far we get. It’s time to really get on the ball, and once this baby starts rolling with momentum…we ain’t stoppin’!