Traditional Medicinals is the brand of tea that I’ve taken a major liking to lately. I’ve long been fond of Throat Coat for the real soothing, numbing, cooling sensation that it gives my wintertime sore throats. I’ve also been enjoying the Female Toner tea both for its flavor, and warmth. Who knows if it really does anything special for my cycle, but I appreciate it as a comfort food/drink. I do try to match up beneficial herbs and such when choosing new teas. I tend to gravitate toward the ones with licorice in them (which is groovy for ABs!!!). Anyhow, this isn’t much of an enlightened blog, but I did want to share my recent fascination with the Traditional Medicinal Teas; I find them in the organics section of my local market.

Eat compliantly and be well…

Is that a captivating title or what? I’m referring to Tea Tree Oil, apparently nature’s miracle cure…If you think that you detect a bit of sarcasm in the previous comment, you would be right. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been using and will continue to use tea tree oil for years. Firstly, I love the smell and secondly, it works. I do however, remain a New Yorker at heart with an undying devotion to the art of skepticism, cynicism, and most importantly—pragmatism.

I went online before writing this blog. When I googled tea tree oil there were two hundred fifteen million hits arriving in just over one tenth of a second. While I might here take a moment to marvel at the magnitude of my internet service, I shall resist the temptation to digress. Most of the sites were commercial (and admittedly informative), though a few were not (those that weren’t seemed mostly to be Australian research or government sites listing the studies currently underway…I’m sure some more digging would unearth a bit of unbiased information about the stuff, but the stories seem to be consistent amoung the commercial sites). There seems to be a plethora of facts out there about the oil with ranging uses including a toe nail fungus cure (my current use), a cold remedy, a yeast infection healer, an oral antiseptic, a bug repellent and a cleaning aid. At $22 a pop for a small organic sample of the stuff from my local health foods store, I don’t foresee myself dumping any of it into my cleaning water anytime soon. And as for putting it full strength on sunburns, cuts, cankers and the like…all I know is that my skin is a bit too tender for that kind of treatment.

I don’t have anything earth shattering to add or deduce. I do love the stuff, but I don’t know that I’ll be stocking every cabinet in my home with some derivation of an over-commercialized, well marketed product. Much like Epsom salts, witch-hazel and good old Boric Acid, I prefer to keep a small bottle of Tea Tree Oil in my arsenal of fine home remedy/care products. Having a variety of tried and true items that have benefited folks through the ages appeals to the pragmatist in me…what can I say, I was born and bred a New Yorker!

Hey all…so sad to have been out of the loop for so long, but it appears that my wee wireless seeking computer is back on line (or on air as it were). I’d like to share a tale of woe rising from a moment of weakness at a bistro on Sunday. I succumbed to the sweet temptation of a Chicken Caesar wrap with beer battered fries. Oh, the joy I felt at such a guilty indulgence. It really did taste good, made even better by the time spent with my hunny while the sun and light breeze gently warmed the patio area.

I’m glad that the memory is so fine, because (you know what I’m going to say) the after effects are truly wicked. I felt a little crummy before bed on Sunday night, but Monday…woe to me for suffering through Monday. As always with chicken, my breasts were tender and screamed at being held captive in a brassiere suddenly three sizes too small. My whole tummy was bloated beyond the worst period bloat you could conjure, and insanely tender as well. A standard avoid soreness clamped down on my throat, and a general irritability colored all that I did throughout the day.

So many bumps and obstacles throw themselves across the path of wellness demanding that we maintain constant vigilance. I’ve learned over these years of dedicated BTDing that a stumble or two is necessary for continued growth. The stumble allows for reflection (how can one not reflect when nothing in one’s closet fits in the morning when in the evening prior it did!) and a rededication to continue on the journey for life.

It seems that my lot in the BTD is to navigate the slippery slope of “life compliance.” I’ve written on this topic before, and yet I still find myself needing to process it here in the blog. With a couple of years of dedicated food compliance under my belt, making beneficial food choices is second nature. Occasionally I’ll have to double check a third or fourth ingredient in Typebase or CR4YT…but I’m usually correct in thinking that that ingredient is neutral. Nearly all of my main dishes contain as the major ingredient a bennie, and any sides are a good mix of bennie and neutral (remember that neutrals are important to the diet for variety, vitamins, texture, and color). When I feel crummy after eating an avoid (or a multitude of avoids), it’s a consequence that I knew I was going to experience.

However, and this is a big HOWEVER, I just can’t seem to get the life compliance down. I still over extend myself. I still don’t get enough restorative sleep. I still allow far too much stress into my life. I still don’t exercise as much as I would like. These are all frustrations that block my progress time and again. I get sucked into life at a breakneck pace with too many obligations everywhere else but with my own self. And truthfully, as I peer into the near future, I realize that I have more than my own self to hurt with this behavior. Once I am married I become a family with my partner, and I don’t do him any good when I’m frazzled (all the time!).

I’ve yet to achieve clarity on this issue, and expect to blog on it again. I have every good intention in the world to strip away the useless noise from my life, but somehow it always reappears. I suppose that if any part of the diet had to be a challenge, I’m thankful that it’s this piece because at least the good eating gives me the strength and energy to tackle this obstacle!!

Here’s hoping that this finds you well and compliant…

I’m not gone forever, only out of commission temporarily. The condo closing and move all went well, but I’ve put myself in way over my head with MAJOR home projects. Living under construction is taking its toll, and as of yet, there is no internet service at the new place. (Right now, internet is the least of my priorities.) I can’t and more importantly won’t blog or even check in at work…very inappropriate time use for a teacher, but I will try to make an effort to tap into a wireless network on the weekends to get a blog out.

Hope that this finds you well and compliant. More later…