Pork Tamales

Start with 1 1/2 cups of NM Red Chile Sauce. 

Cook a 3lb pork roast on the stove and "pull" the cooked meat. 

Combine the sauce and meat.  This is your tamale filling. 

Combine 4 cups masa, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt and 1 1/3 cup vegetable shortening.  Mix it into a fine texture.  Add 3 1/2 cups of broth and mix until very smooth.

Fill your tamales by pressing out some masa and adding filling. 

Roll and tie into bundles. 

Add your tamales to a steamer. 

Cover with more husks and steam for about 1 1/2 hours or until the dough is firm. 

New Mexican Red Chile Sauce

Start with a bag of New Mexican Red Chiles. 

Clean a couple dozen pods. Remove the veins and seeds. 

Wash the cleaned pods very well. 

Sautée the dried pods in a tsp of vegetable oil. Toast them a little while stirring them constantly. 

Cover with 4 cups of broth and sprinkle a tsp of dried whole toasted cumin seeds on top. Boil over medium heat for 15 minutes. 

While the chiles cook...

I used fresh oregano from my garden. A tablespoon or so chopped finely. 

Sautée a tablespoon of minced garlic and the oregano in a deep skillet with 1 tsp of oil. 

Once the chiles are cooked and cooled slightly, carefully blend everything to a very fine purée. 

Pour your blended chile into the skillet with the sautéed garlic & oregano.

Add 1 tablespoon of honey and 1/2 tsp of salt. Stir well and simmer over low for 10 minutes. 

Makes 4 cups of New Mexican Red Chile Sauce. 

Can be used for enchiladas, added to soups or as an ingredient in tamales. 

I used mine for pork tamales.  I'll add that recipe next. 

A Purpose-Driven Life

I listened to a great TED speech by well-known pastor Rick Warren. He made mention of a best-selling book he had written on living a purpose-driven life. 

It sounded good and I enjoyed his speech, so I bought the book. 

I've been reading it and, to my surprise, I haven't liked it at all. 

The entire premiss of this "purpose-driven life" is living a lifestyle that is based on eternal purposes.  In other words, to live for the promise of the reward of Heaven. To accept Jesus Christ and live for the purpose of Judgement Day.  

That's a good thing, in the respect that it means you'll do lots of good works. I mean, if you know you're facing this big judgement thing, you're gonna tow a certain line, aren't you?!  Of course. So, there's nothing really bad about that. 

So, what is it that I think is so wrong with this manifesto for purpose (Christian)-driven living?   It just seems like a lot of rules to follow. I think living with a purpose is easier than that.  Defining a purpose and goals and doing it with an open and honest heart, should be good enough.  At least in my book.

My recipe for a purpose-driven life would never fill all the pages of a book like Pastor Warren's.  It's just a few simple steps actually...

1.  Determine your values. What is most important to you in life?

2.  What do you want to be known for?  What's your legacy?

3.  What are your God-given talents?  What are very best at naturally?  What were you meant to be?

Look at your list - this is your purpose. 

Next, fulfill your purpose by defining goals that will help you achieve it.  

Write down your goals. 

Write down the steps to achieving your goals.

And, there ya have it! A purpose-driven life.  

As a side note, I'd like to say that I did not arrive at this recipe for a purpose-driven life very easily.  And, I'm still in the midst of defining my own purpose and the goals I want to achieve in this lifetime.  

I know that one of my purposes here is as a healer. One of the ways that I achieve my purpose and heal, is by sharing information that helps others. Like here on this blog. :)  I would appreciate it very much, if you have read this far and I've still got your attention, that you'd please take a minute to share this page with someone else that you think may benefit from it.  It would help me a great deal, and I would appreciate the help very much!  Thank you! :)

That Sweet Jacob

My youngest son, who just turned 21 a few days ago, used to tell me when he was younger, "Mom, Martin and I would be best friends if he was kid alive today."

I'd ask who he was talking about. 

Who is this Martin character?

This cute little 7 or 8 year old little boy would act like I was sooooo clueless (a look I'm well-accustomed to) and tell me he was talking about MLK. 

Duh, Mom!

My most imaginative and self-assured child, who sees past race and class. I am so proud that he values connections over possessions, and that he has a tender heart.  What a lucky thing it is, that he was able to grow up in a city so rich with culture and history, such as Atlanta.

I'm pretty sure he was right, he probably would've been BFFs with "Martin" had they been kids at the same time.  That sweet Jacob!

Jake & I - a few years ago at Thanksgiving

@earthreiki Visual Poetry & Social Media

Lately, I've been taking a few pictures and adding some words to them with the awesome iPhone app Visual Poetry. 

I post these to Instagram, Twitter and Facebook sometimes. Search for @earthreiki or click on any one of these links to follow Life Is Crazy Good on social media.

Enjoy! :)

Laughter ~ The Best Medicine

What is absolutely free and relieves anxiety and pain almost instantly, improves health over the long term and has no side effects?

Laughing! 

Laughter Yoga, Laugh Therapy or Riso Terapia as it's called in Spanish, has been practiced by traditional healers all over the world since Biblical times. It relieves physical and mental symptoms. Laughing releases endorphins, reduces stress and improves immune function. 

Laughing doesn't require a lot of time or money and anyone can do it.  There are even groups called Laughing Clubs springing up all over the place.

Don't feel so good?  Try laughing, it truly is the best medicine!

Stand Down ~ Helping Our Homeless Veterans

Chiropractors, Reiki practitioners, massage therapists and other healers can ask to provide services to our Homeless Veterans through these events called Stand Downs.

These 1-3 events are held all over the country. 

Here is a list of the rest of them for 2014.

http://www.va.gov/homeless/docs/StandDowns/Stand_Downs_08182014.pdf

I found a step-by-step guide on how a practitioner could go about participating:

http://www.energymagazineonline.com/content_assets/Archived_Articles/How_to_Have_a_Stand_Down.pdf

Weekend Women's Retreat

Don't miss this amazing retreat in the North Georgia Mountains!

 For more information:

LoveMeAgainRetreats.com

 

Cooking As Meditation

My therapy when life is hectic - baking bread.  

Besides making cheese, it's my favorite kitchen meditation.  Not only is it highly rewarding, but it frees my mind.  

Here are some tips for using cooking as a meditation, followed by my favorite recipe for the perfect loaf of bread...

~Start with a clean, quiet space.  Turn off cell phones, TVs and get rid of other distractions before starting.

~Create a sacred space in whatever way you choose - sage, prayer, Reiki, etc. 

~Be mindful in everything you do, paying very close attention to each detail as you cook.  Use all of your senses and notice everything...the way each ingredient tastes, looks, sounds and feels.  Notice the essence and characteristics of everything - the water from the faucet, the sizzling of a pan, the clinking of a dish, the yellow of a yolk, the veins in the skin of an onion, and so on. 

~If your mind starts to wander, bring it back to the food.  Stay in the moment and don't worry about anything else.  Remember, this time is for you to relax.

~You can add gratitude to this meditation by being thankful for the different things you use in cooking. For example, take flour... If I look at this bag in my hand, I imagine everything this flour has passed through to get to me. As I touch it and rub it between my fingertips, I am filled with gratitude for the rain and sun and soil that it took to grow this. I  am grateful for the farmer that brought these plants to life, and to all of the steps along the way that it has gone through to become a part of the bread that my family will eat. 

~You can choose different recipes for specific intentions.

I find that making cheese is helpful when I'm seeking encouragement through some kind of transformation. There's just something restorative for me when I can see a few simple ingredients, turn into something amazing.  

I like to bake bread when things in life seem out of my control. The kneading and waiting, just brings me back down to earth. It puts me in charge of the outcome. Not to mention, it also fills the house with the most wonderful smell known to man - fresh baked bread!

White Bread Recipe

Makes 2 loaves

Ingredients:

2 tbs shortening

2 1/2 tsp salt

2 tbs sugar

1 cup warm milk

1 cup warm water

1 package (2 1/4 tsp) active dry yeast

6 cups (approximately) white flour (unbleached bread flour preferred)

Instructions:

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm milk. Stir in shortening, warm water, salt and two cups of the flour. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. 

When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.

Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and form into loaves. Place the loaves into two lightly greased 9x5 inch loaf pans. Cover the loaves with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).

Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for about 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the bottom of the loaf sounds hollow when tapped.

Life Is Crazy Good Facebook Page

Life Is Crazy Good has a new Facebook page.  Please check it out. If you like it, please be kind enough to share it with your friends. 

http://facebook.com/lifeiscrazygoodblog

Energy Lab

I have a large finished basement with a separate entrance that I have used in the past for holding workshops. 

It's a well-lit space with 2 large treatment rooms, a greeting/sitting area, and an area for workshops and classes.  I have held a few classes there in the past and I have an alter here where I have meditated many times.  

Basically, it is a wonderful space that I haven't done too much with. I have tote after tote stocked with the most awesome little things - crystals, buffalo teeth, deerhide, corn husks, sinews, turtle shells, leaves, seashells, musical instruments, glue guns, glitter, bird feathers and more. I even have a full drum set down there, with a mic and a space where we can hold Family Music Nights.  I also have all of the tables, chairs and supplies necessary to host workshops of up to 15 people comfortably. 

I used to want this area of my home to be a space where I could practice with clients- with the 2 big treatment rooms and so much privacy, it's perfect. But, I haven't felt called to build a business around my energy healing practices - Reiki, shamanism and crystal healing.  At least not in the traditional sense anyway.  I am mostly interested in working with nature and applying what I learn to global issues. I like research. I'm fascinated by the science of all of this stuff we call Universal Life Force.  I am a student, as well as a researcher and teacher.

I would like to design my basement around these passions, and this is what I had in mind...

When you walk in, you are in a sitting area with comfortable chairs, an alter with pillows around it and a small stage with musical equipment. This area is naturally sunlit and a wonderful place to sit and meditate. 

The windows and door open up into a small forest with a creek running through it. From inside, you can hear the babbling brook in the woods. There is often deer spotted here, as well as the sound of the birds and squirrels that fill the area. There is a large woodpecker that calls this backyard home. He can be heard throughout the whole neighborhood, wearing his beak out on all of the trees. 

A pic from one of my workshops in the past.
That was a happy day!

This sitting room is open to another, larger room. The second room is for workshops or meetings. There are tables, chairs and cabinets here and I imagine it being used for classes or guided meditations. I want to purchase Kirlian photography equipment to place in one of the treatment rooms, so I figured I could teach some classes about that technology here in this workshop area. 

Beyond this room is another small sitting area and a large separate treatment room.  This is where I would like to setup what I'm calling an "energy lab."  This is where I'd put a desk, a computer and the equipment for taking photographs of the bioelectric fields of people, objects and environments.  I'd also like to have a Reiki table on the center of the room and a small alter. 

The sitting area just outside of the energy lab could be used for clients to relax before or after a scan and/or treatment.  I would like to set up gentle lighting here and a table with water and the supplies for hot tea.

The other separate treatment room is off of the sitting area.  I think I will keep all of my personal crafts and things in here - sewing machine, personal alter, my desk, my books, my favorite chair and things like that. I want to suspend a large silky cloth on the ceiling and paint a darker color on the walls. With the right lighting, some pillows and a nice rug on the floor, I think I can make this a place I will always want to be. 

So, while I've never really wanted to have Reiki clients perse, I still would like to share my work with people by researching and teaching them. Part of that involves providing them Reiki treatment.  

I already love to teach, so holding workshops should come easy.  Those classes, along with offering aura scans, would enable me to pay for the equipment and for the design of the basement as I have envisioned it. At least I hope it would pay for it. I guess I'm curious if people would really be interested to coming to one of these classes, or receiving a bioscan in my basement. On one hand, this idea sounds really cool and totally doable. On the other, it gives me anxiety, thinking that no one would actually be interested. :(

But, I figure this - how about I give it a shot. Like my friend told me the other day, even if I never pay back any of this investment, it was still worth it, if not just for the sheer fun of doing it. "Look at it like a few trips to Europe worth of fun."  I think I may just follow her advice and do it! 

So, be on the lookout for an energy lab, there may be one coming soon near you.  If you're in the Atlanta area anyway, I'd say that it's more than likely to be true in the near future. 

An Open Call for Ideas:
Have an opinion on this energy lab thing or researching and treatment with Kirlian photography?  Would you be interested in receiving a scan or attending a workshop?

Please shoot me an email and let me know about it. I'd love to hear your input.  

Click here to email me.

                                                                                                       

Pictures from previous workshops I've help in my basement

                                                                                                       

Setting My Renaissance Soul Free

Leonardo da Vinci was a painter, sculptor, architect, musician, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist, and writer.  

So, why can't I be a career woman, yogini, Reiki master, gem grubber, shamanic practitioner, professional clown, mother, chef, cheese maker, goat farmer, world traveler, writer, photographer, painter, sculptor, teacher, student, chemist and gardener?  

Well, I have been or will be all of these things, plus some, I am sure.  

See, I'm just not satisfied with mastering one single thing.  But, I am far more than a mere dilettante. I am more of a modern day Renaissance woman.  

Some in society would see my various interests as mental illness or ADD or just some desperate act of trying to find myself.  There's also this inner critic I have battled for years. The voice that keeps telling me that it's more noble to conform to the idea of becoming really good at just one thing and sticking to that.

But, I can't help it - learning curves turn me on!  I just feel like the world is full of possibilities and that I want to experience as many different things in this lifetime as I possibly can. 

I was recently chatting with a friend of mine about these different interests of mine. I told her about a graduate level class in Bioelectricity that I was dying to take. Then, I jumped to my passion of creating an energy lab in my basement for the study of auras.  I told her of all of these different things, and then some. 

At one point, I stopped and that inner critic started in on me again. For some reason, as I reflected on the diversity of everything I wanted to tackle, I started feeling like a fraud. Like a dabbler. Basically, I was feeling ashamed. So, I asked her if she thought maybe I was nuts.  She assured me of my sanity, and explained that I was simply a Renaissance woman.  I am sure she was right.  

Understanding this part of myself that yearns for diversity and freedom, has been profoundly important in allowing me to lean into the discomfort of being something other than what people think is normal. Doesn't mean I'm crazy or selfish or a failure, just means I'm special. I'm good with that! 

If you want to be a lot of different things in this lifetime, I would encourage you to set your soul free and do it!

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."

Robert A. Heinlein, Time Enough for Love (1973)

Cleansing Crystals Under a Full Moon

If you believe in the healing power of crystals, it's important to know that most stones will need to be energetically cleansed from time to time. As crystals are used, they can accumulate negative energy and become a little out of tune, so to speak. 

The easiest and most powerful way of cleansing a crystal, in my opinion anyway, is by the light of the Full Moon.

Just place them outside at dusk on the evening of the Full Moon. The day before or after, work just as well. Put your stones in a place where they can see the moonlight.  Don't worry if there are clouds, it will still work fine. Worry about the rain though, at least for certain stones. 

I like to place my crystals directly on the ground. I feel like it charges it up with the Earth's energy as well.  You can also place your stones inside, near a window.  

One night is normally fine for most crystals, but you can place them out for as many of of the 3 days of the Full Moon as you want.  

Just let your intuition guide you!

I'll be placing out this beautiful Druzy Quartz pendant I bought today.  It's new to me and this month's Supermoon couldn't come at a better time - it's the biggest and brightest of the year.  This Aquarius Full Moon brings such good vibes - I'm so excited that my new stone will be bathing in her moonlight. 

Here are the dates for the remaining Full Moons of 2014:

August 10, September 8, October 8, November 6, December 6

Creating a Healing Candle

I am currently burning a 7-day candle that I received from my Reiki Master in my last Reiki class.  I created a healing candle, which is easy to do. These are the steps I followed:

I first set my intention for this candle:

"Create a healing, loving light through and around me. A calmness that stays with me."

Next, I cleared the energy of the candle with Reiki, but this could also be done with moonlight, or any in several other ways (another topic for another day).

I used 3 Reiki symbols on both the bottom and top of the candle, they were:

~A power symbol, to amplify the energy of this candle and it's intention.  

~A distance symbol, to send this energy, healing and protection into the future, so that it stays with me.  I also used this symbol to send the healing to past hurts. 

~A symbol for emotional healing, to help me heal on the inside. 

I selected a few items that are sacred to me to place in front of this candle as it burns for 7 days. 

~A piece of coral I picked up near Clearwater, Florida a few years ago.  This coral represents to me the ocean, and when I meditate on it, I am reminded of how the water heals and restores me. 

~A river rock that was found by a friend of mine in the Smoky Mountains. When I sit with this rock, I imagine the river flowing over it, shaping it into this beautiful, smooth stone.

~A piece of raw rose quartz. I can feel a peaceful, loving energy flowing from this stone. I meditate on it becoming one with the intention of this candle. 

I placed my healing candle and sacred items on the bathroom counter and am letting it burn down completely. 

I meditate on my intention with the candle and sacred items daily, as long as it continues to burn. 

If you have a safe place for a candle to burn continuously like this, I would encourage you to try this at home.  Use any items you feel drawn to, and set an intention that is clear. Light the candle and meditate on these thoughts daily as it burns. 

Sooner or later, these thoughts and intentions will begin to manifest in your life. 

Grilled Spicy Citrus Tequila Flank Steak with Fresh Tangelo Pico

Cooking for my family is number 1 on my list of things that make my life crazy good!  Here's a recipe I created for our Sunday Dinner this week...

Grilled Spicy Citrus Tequila Flank Steak with Fresh Tangelo Pico. 

Served with Spanish rice and spicy black beans. 

Enjoy!

SPICY CITRUS MARINADE;

This Spicy Citrus Marinade is perfect for a flank steak that will be grilled, sliced and served in some warm corn tortillas. You can also easily transform it into a dressing, or a delicious Tangelo Pico, by adding 1 diced tangelo, 3 large diced tomatoes and 1/2 large white onion diced to the marinade. 

Combine all of these fresh and organic ingredients:

~Juice of 2 tangelos and 3 limes

~1/4 cup chopped cilantro

~1 large or 2 medium jalapeños - veins & stems removed, diced really tiny 

~1 heaping tsp of minced garlic

~A few pinches of salt, pepper & ground (or whole-I like whole) cumin

~1 oz Tequila Blanco

~1 tsp sugar (optional)

~2 tbsp oil (veggie or olive or whatever you want to use - this is optional too though)