Colours of the Wind

This week has been fabulous windy weather here in Penang (at least, compared to the previous weeks). My hot-dry blues are slowly fading away. I like waking up to the calm sun early in the morning. No, not quite. I like waking up in the morning, knowing that it is raining. And what I really love is the extra wind in the evening.

I am one of those people who have Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). It is self-diagnosed of cause. How appropriate are those initials! Anyway, I always notice my mood changes in the hot and dry weather. My appetite even changes where I eat more as if I was a bear going into hibernation.

I feel more trapped during the hot and dry season. I miss being outside, I miss having the fresh air blow through the windows in the house.

The cool weather brings on more freedom for me. It felt like a rebirth in more ways than one. I think that the time of year certainly increased that feeling for me.

So this weekend when we turn the clocks ahead I will look forward to longer days, more sunlight, and those sweet little breeze...

Do you ever get SAD? Do you notice your mood changes during the winter? Does the lack of sunlight affect you? How do you deal?

Orange Love

Something I really need to do more of on this blog is to share some of the ways to improve my health over the past few years. One of which is how I changed my diet. Of cause, this change was initiated by me getting kicked in the ass by lots of sickness! But what is important is that I am in a better place and am treating my body better.

One of the things I have found that makes me feel all kinds of good are mandarin oranges. I try to keep myself hydrated (which is so important during the hot-dry season) but sometimes I just get tired of the taste of water, or should I say lack thereof!

What I learned is that oranges (or generally, citrus fruits) help your body absorb all the water you drink better than water alone. They also help your liver do its job which is to get rid of toxins. Not to mention lots of Vitamin C.

I get many headaches most of the time from the hot weather. Before I go running for water, I try some oranges. Most of the time I find that it gets rid of my headache. If for nothing else oranges taste great and give you a good source of Vit C!

Anyone else love the orange?

For the Love of Chocolate

Ok I'll admit it... I am a chocoholic, ever since I was a kid. Anything with chocolate from ice-cream, to candy, to cookies, and cake. That was my downfall. I don't know about you but chocolate just gives me the urge to have more. Imagine white chocolate filled with crunchy nuts, and cookies with thick dark chocolate, that’s food made in heaven!

Before I get off on the flavourful trip down memory lane, the point I was going to make is related to health. I am sure everyone has heard about the health benefits of dark chocolate, or they called it cacao, which is the actual cocoa bean used to make chocolate. Dark chocolate has antioxidants as well as heart healthy benefits.

In my quest to become healthier, I have changed my diet in many ways but the hardest has been giving up some of the things I love. I think that we still need to have those foods we crave as long as it is in moderation to be successful at our diet and healthful eating habits. So I was happy as a clam to find out that dark chocolate was good for me!

Cacao is now pretty easy to find as an ingredient in most dark chocolates out there. The labels will read "60% cacao" or "70% cacao" and that is what you want to look for. Cacao is the unprocessed chocolate straight from the bean. It is the main ingredient used to make all chocolate.

Any other chocolate lover’s out there? What is your favorite way to enjoy this delight?

Finding the Sun

I have a dog at home, a girl. Whenever she feels unhappy about something, she will lay herself in the sun. Wherever it is, wherever she can find it, is where you will find her. No matter how hot, she practically burns herself to fully worship the sun.

Over the weekend I was having a bad, panicky morning and as I sat on the couch worrying about stuff, the stuff I can’t control I watched my dog laying on the floor in front of our car porch. It has become her spot, it is the spot in the house where there is the most sun.

 

The sun is so intense at times that the floor gets very warm. There she was flopped on her side just laying there taking it all in and I could tell she was enjoying every minute of it. Peaceful and serene. That was what it looked like to me.
 
I couldn’t help but feel a little jealous. Which may sound crazy to some of you but its true. As I watched her soaking up the light and the warmth, I wanted to enjoy it too. I thought, “Wow, she has it figured out”.

That is really all we need, the sunlight, its warmth, and a place to just lay down and relax. We need to have more time in our lives, in our days to just sit back and face the light, enjoy the moments.

The moments away from the chaos, the anxiety, and the fear. Sometimes it can consume us and when it does it can steal so much time. Time that is too precious to waste.

I think there is so much to learn from our animals. My dog has taught me many things about life. In my many observations of her going through her day, for her, it is all about food, sun, love, and companionship and not necessarily in that order. I need to focus on more of those things during my day. OK, maybe not the food but the others, yes.

I need to look for the sun in my day, in all the things that I do. If my dog can figure it out, than why can’t I?

Where do you go to find your sun?