We can take a lesson from California

Nothing can be done except little by little." Charles Baudelaire

As someone who is nutritionally aware; reads food packaging labels (and understand them), keeps the fridge and pantry stocked with healthy food choices (and the occasional treat), and tries hard to set a good example for my family (which means having balance and including the once-in-a-while trek to the local ice shoppe), I tend to notice food related nuances in the places I visit.

Just back from California (loved San Diego), often recognized for their health-conscious way of life, there are several "little things" the food industry has done there that could ultimately make a big impact on North America's overall obesity issue. Things like:

• Starbuck's had skim and 2% milk instead of homogenized (3.25%) milk, along with half & half (5%) cream instead of table (10%) or coffee (15%) cream
• Several more juice and smoothie options at fast-food type establishments
• Every coffee shop I passed has a bowl of fresh fruit or fruit cups for purchase
• Most quick-dine places I passed had salads on their menu, with dressings served on the side in a lot of cases

And I am sure there are others (but I was only there for a day so didn't get that much time to truly investigate).

So for a little math (I love crunching numbers). If you have 2 ounces of cream in your coffee/tea every day, and you drink on average 2 mugs of said beverage everyday, switching from coffee cream to 2% milk would save you 31,645 calories a year. That equals 9 pounds of fat. So by making that one little change and doing nothing else you could loose almost 10 pounds in a year. That seems reason enough to me to make a switch, but the added bonus of reducing your fat intake and being more heart-healthy is gravy (low fat gravy).

So think about the other little things you could do to make your and your family a bit more healthy; parking purposefully AWAY from the mall entrance, making a family walk after dinner part of your daily routine, switching to fresh (organic if you can stand the price) veggies and fruits when ever possible. All these little things add up to a much healthier lifestyle and more energized life. I know we have slipped a little in most of these areas and I plan on regrouping starting now.

Gotta go, Whole Foods is calling my name.

Turn a corner and you are in a different world

I always loved running...it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs." Jesse Owens

Seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet. That captures a rave run I had today.

In San Diego for client work I took advantage of the three hour time difference to go for a run, and I am so glad I did. As I asked the concierge "which way to Balboa park" he pointed me left out of my hotel but warned it was it was an uphill climb all the way to the park. For a millisecond I considered heading the other way, but before I knew it I was on my way up the mile climb to perhaps one of the best runs of my life.

Why was it so great you ask. Did I run a PB? Nope, kept my usual plodding 9 minute mile pace. Was I feeling really strong? Not particularly; S&V chips, diet coke and a Chai latte does not a runner's diet make! But even if was a little off my stride at first, I found my groove the second I entered the park, and it continued to be fed by the feast of what I found inside its gates.

Flowers; Azealias, Anomones, Black Eye Susans, Rose of Sharon. People; couples of all kinds, rockers, skaters, runners, walkers, bikers. Dogs; big dogs, little dogs, dogs with all their gear, dogs with coats, dresses, even a dog with a hat! And more dogs. Miles and miles of paths and trails could have had me lost very quickly had I chosen a path less trodden. The path I did chose, while sometime paved, and other times covered by cobbled stone showed me a splendor of sights; geometric sculptures, Chinese gardens (yes, again with the flowers), fountains and more dogs (yes, again with the dogs) : )   I even saw a young Peruvian bride in the most colourful dress I have ever seen. There were museums and art galleries. A zoo, and I even saw Mary Poppins (ok, it was a statue, but it looked just like her).

I am not sure how long I ran, but it was one of those days I could have kept going and going. Reluctantly when I came to yet another fantastic foot bridge that led to another adventure of desert path, I turned around and retraced my steps back to the hotel and enjoyed the experience all over again.

Really the only thing that would have made this run even better is if my long time running partner and friend had been by my side to share the experience with. Next time.

Is it so wrong to want the best for your kids?

Warning: This post is the opposite of an Attitude of Gratitude.

In the first place God made idiots. This was for practice. Then he made school boards." Mark Twain

How is it that we live in a country where a straight forward, fundamental, required element such as education can be so f****d up?!

Where two programs considered part of Ontario's Special Education Program (Enrichment and French Immersion) cannot be managed so that kids don't have to choose one over the other. We are stuck so that E cannot follow an IEP (individual education plan) unless we put her in an English school; and if we did that she would have the choice of two programs. That is right, not one but TWO.

So in the process of trying to figure out some stuff for E's schooling I had perhaps THE most frustrating 18 minute phone conversation of my life with the school principal. It went something like this (picking up the conversation 10 minutes into it) ...

Me: Well that doesn't make sense that we cannot take part in the one-day-a week program because she is in French Immersion. Isn't it all part of the same school board? 

Principal: It doesn't matter if it makes sense that is the way it is. You can voice your opinion but it won't make a difference. (Yes, she actually said that to me.)

Me: So by identifying that E qualifies for an IEP (individual education plan) if she stays where she is means nothing to her education at your school.

Principal: Correct. Nothing changes.

Me: So let me get this straight; you won't work with me, or other parents in this situation to find a solution so that our kids get the equal support as the kids on the other end of the spectrum.

Principal: It would be wrong for me to do that [advocate for that support].

18 minutes that seemed to go on for 3 hours. Truly bizarre. That is all I can say about this situation.

How is it that the kids that need more of a challenge than the regular curriculum generally offers (or teachers make time to provide) have to take a back seat to the kids who are struggling to keep up (and how she doesn't work with the parents to evaluate what really is in the best interest of those kids as well). How a school principal can take such little interest in ensuring all kids get what they need in the interest of towing the school board line and because it is easier is beyond me.

I can see why others (not me) take up the option of home schooling or private schools.

Get over it already

We achieve inner health only through forgiveness - the forgiveness not only of others but also of ourselves” Joshua Loth Liebman

We all make mistakes. Some big. Some small. Some that can be only classified as just plain idiotic cause we knew better before the mistake but that the behaviour we executed would caused the error and then were surprised by the outcome. Some call it shortsightedness. To me, especially when it is me that make the faux pas, it is just plain dumb.

So why is it so difficult to "get over it" when we make a mistake? And why does it seem that the time it takes to forgive is inversely proportional to the degree of stupidity/avoidability of the error? Compounding that complex equation is that we are all too ready to tell someone else "no worries" or "forget about it" when they make a mistake, but can't heed our own advice knowing that what is done is done and can't be undone so every minute or second spent reliving and wallowing is wasted time, and something else we can add to the list of remorseful actions. We humans are a weird bunch.

All that being said, you may be looking/expecting some sage words of advice on how to stop this ridiculous behaviour, or perhaps a platitude that can be recited in these instances of self-berating (and wondering what I did to stir up these thoughts enough to write about them ... well I am not telling). Unfortunately all I have to offer is; Get over it already! Nobody is perfect; we all make mistakes. Learn from them and try not to repeat the same mistake.

Wise words I myself need to consume, digest and carry forward.

Busy, busy, busy.

You are worried about seeing him spend his early years in doing nothing. What! Is it nothing to be happy? Nothing to skip, play, and run around all day long? Never in his life will he be so busy again." ~Jean-Jacques Rousseau

JJ was right on the money with this quote, and it can be applied to us grown up kids as well.

We all have busy lives (with or without kids), but how often do we take stock in what we are busying ourselves with. Work; meetings, reports, research, .... House; cleaning, fixing, finishing basements, gardening, ... Life: everthing else. My generation seem to have a fixation on doing it all, and doing it all right now, but not really noticing what exactly it is we are doing and how it affects those around us.

I have known for a while, but this week I realised (again) just how much this go-go-go attitude is affecting our kids. And not necessarily in a good way. When was the last time you saw a kid just lay back and watch the clouds go by for more than a nano-second? Or while away an afternoon just kinda hanging out? Or not feel withdrawal symptoms if they haven't interacted with some form of electronic devices in more than a couple of hours? Seriously; can a kid not survive a 4 minute car ride without their DS/PSP/iTouch?! (These questions can all be posed in relation to adults as well.) We just don't take the time (often enough) to slow down an just "be".

This past weekend was great; spent loads of time with the kids (mine and others) and tried really hard not to answer the question of "Mum can you  (fill in the blank) with me?" with the usual "I would love to but ...". So we rode bikes, went to the zoo, baked, threw the frisbee (Thanks P!), played in the garden and saw a movie while the house remained in a state of disarray, laundry (and dogs) lay unwashed, and other tasks on the perpetual To Do list remained undone. It really was a great weekend.

Similiar to this blog, I am going to try and maintain a commitment to just let things just happen, at least some of the time. That is not to say that homework will not take priority over bike riding when there truly is only time for one or the other. Or that the piano will go unpracticed on any given day (10 minutes really is an entirely reasonable amount of time to ask of an 8 and 5 year old), but when given the choice of playing outside with the kids or getting dinner on the table on by my own self-imposed dinner time, then bust open those doors cause here I come ...with perhaps a couple of T.O.'s to stir a sauce or flip a load of laundry.