Raw food diet or not?

As the semester is beginning to get more and more intense (workload wise),  Nigel and I have been struggling with finding time to exercise and to cook (good meals).  It’s such a shame that the weather is getting “Southern California” people friendly and that I am at the same time in the heat of mid-terms ( Oh how hot! Lol).  One solution that we thought of (actually Nigel’s sister suggested it) is maybe going on a raw food diet.  The cooking time will simply just consist of washing the fruits and vegetables.  And because we would be eating so healthy then (I believe) we won’t need to exercise as often during the week.  It’s like killing two birds with one stone!  Perfect J

I know that a lot of people claim that eating raw food (and only raw food) has many advantages to your digestive system, immunity may aid weight loss and often gives an energy boost.  Like many other issues these statements have been contested.  And some also say that the disadvantages of a raw food diet are also plentiful.  For example, not cooking your vegetables above (I think 118F) doesn’t kill food borne illnesses like Salmonella which causes diarrhea and other discomforts… Also, it is said that cooked vegetables contain nutrients that the raw form of the same vegetables just doesn’t have.  So, when a carrot and a tomato are cooked they each give off certain nutrients that they wouldn’t have, had they been eaten raw.    

Having been a very strict vegetarian for four years, I know that a change in diet can have a tremendous effect on the body (and mind).  I think that extremes are always dangerous.  Maybe we’ll do like two or three days a week where we will eat raw food.   I guess that I am fearful of depriving my body of crucial vitamins and minerals that I need.  I’ll think it through… J

LSAT Weekend!

February the 11^th marked the end of a very tense time (3 to 4 months) for both my husband and I.  This last month before the exam was definitely the most challenging for both of us.  My husband enrolled himself in an LSAT prep course.  And for a little over a month, my husband in addition to holding a full time job would attend an LSAT prep course from 6 to 10pm … on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays.  Never did he complain and never did he ever show any type of physical or mental withering.  

In our situation, that little saying that goes “you just never stop meeting someone” has been incredibly applicable.  We’ve only known each other for less than a year and I feared that I had maybe rushed into our partnership.  You know?  It’s just natural to always faintly doubt at my age.  Nonetheless, the side of Nigel that I saw during the past couple of months has helped me meet a side of him that has only made me fall farther in love with him.  I sincerely think that I would have broken down somewhere between the second and third week of his busy schedule.  It was very impressive to see his commitment to his goal.

Everything definitely cumulated for me on February the 11^th.  He left to take his test at around 8 in the morning and came back at around 1:30pm.  These were the longest hours of my life!  Meanwhile, at home, I was trying to finish as much school work as possible.  I wanted to clear the rest of the day for pure LSAT celebration.  I got the most pressing work done but I got very little else done.  I was nervous.  First of all, this test is only supposed to take about 4 hours.  I began to worry about him.  What about if someone did something to him on his way to the test?  Should I call someone?  What about if someone did something to him on his way back from the test?  Should I go look for him?  I was creating a million scenarios in my head that lead me to believe that I had to go look for him.  Maybe it was just me panicking? Maybe… I was set on launching my one woman hunt party if he wasn’t back by 2:00pm.  But alas!  He made it home before 2:00pm.  After I bombarded him with all of my questions we began calling our family members to tell them about the test.  Then we watched TV, listened to music and just had good quality time.  Then!  We took off for SushiJ.  It was a great way to end February the 11^th. 

Baptist Church it is?!

Since the International Educational Program, like many GSE master’s degree programs, is a one year program, I have had quite a struggle to find “the church” to go to.  I was raised Catholic and I will always claim myself a catholic nonetheless it has been the norm for me to not necessarily attend Catholic Church when I am out of California.  I usually attend a church that has a warm community of people, regardless of the religion.  

I cannot complain about Philadelphia’s church communities.  I have attended church in many different places and they have all had great community but I didn’t exactly saw myself as being part of any of them.  I don’t exactly know why… But!  I think that my church odyssey has come to an end.  Today I attended a Baptist Church in Wayne Pennsylvania where I was blown away by how progressive everyone was.  They accepted everyone.  They explicitly stated their embrace of all communities no matter your race, sexual orientation/identification, class, etc.  My jaw was on the floor.

I fit here.  In my mind god can be summarized in two words: love and tolerance.  It’s that simple.  This church completely embodies this. I am very happy and blessed to have found this church.  I hope to start bible studies next Sunday.  I needed this for some time now.  I need to be “spiritually” nourished.  This will definitely help me become a more dedicated student and an even happier person.