Terms of engagement

A privilege is a special advantage available to some, and not to others. Having a privilege is not inherently bad or good. I love king cake, and had the privilege of being in New Orleans during king cake season (aka Mardi Gras). That privilege is inconsequential to some, and makes others a bit jealous. I'm not a bad person for being in New Orleans, or for loving king cake, or for eating it when I could, and those poor souls who love king cake, but couldn't get any, are not bad people because they missed out. Though they might be sad people. Sad, king-cake-less people. But some privileges are much more substantial than access to delicious baked goods. It may not be such a big deal if I joke about the fact that not everyone who wants king cake can have it, but shouldn't it be a big deal if I joke about the fact that one group has the special advantage of full human dignity, while another does not?

Of Dogs and Lizards: A Parable of Privilege is an excellent explanation of privilege, its perks, and its pitfalls. It's fairly brief, and also funny—if you haven't already read it, it’s worth checking out!

New juice excitement

I've been continuing to experiment with juices, and have just started to branch out with the greens. T. recommended that I try sneaking in a little spinach, to to try it -- she said I wouldn't even taste it. So, I put a little bit into a celery/carrot juice I've gotten fairly comfortable with. I could definitely taste it, but it wasn't bad. So, today, I took the full plunge and tried a modified version of this kale, spinach, and pear smoothie for breakfast. I forgot to take a picture, but it suffices to say that it was very green. Surprisingly enough, it was also very delicious.

Blend one big handful of spinach, a handful of kale, 1 cup of orange juice, and several ice cubes. Add 1 banana, 1 pear, and honey. Blend. Pour over ice.

It was a little sweeter than I'd drink regularly. Next time, I'll try a fresh orange, either less pear or no honey, and maybe 1/2 a lemon. And I'll remember to freeze the banana. I didn't feel hungry afterwards, but wasn't quite satisfied, either -- I'm not sure yet how much green juice or smoothie I'll have to drink for it to substitute effectively for a meal.

New Year, New Adventures

I don't think my allergies have adjusted to being home in New Orleans as quickly as my psyche has. Or maybe my sinuses are just not as good at repressing their responses as my psyche is. Whatever the case, I feel like coming home has been pretty easy, so far: there's obviously some angst -- new year doesn't really mean new personality -- but, for the most part, I feel like I'm kind of ok with being here. I'm definitely feeling good about being so close to family and friends I've lived far away from for quite some time. But, I'm not sure my respiratory system is feeling the love. I thought it was allergies (it probably was), then I felt like I was fighting something off (I probably was), and then there a random sore throat, which has sort of come and gone for several days. This is the stage at which I might go to a doctor, if not for the continued unemployment, and it's resulting lack of health insurance; instead, I took advantage of the fact that I'm unemployed by dosing up on cold meds and going back to sleep.

When I got up take a second crack at Tuesday, I decided that it was as good a day as any to embark on one of my new adventures for the year: juicing. Fruits and veggies, not steroids. I ran across a "detoxing" recipe that's supposed to be helpful when fighting a cold, so I started with that one:

4 carrots
4 celery stalks
one small cucumber
one small apple
1/2 lemon

The recipe also called for 1 beet, which is *obviously* not happening. I added a chunk of ginger, or at least I think I did -- I know that I peeled it, but I have no memory of putting it into the juicer, and thought I'd sat it on the counter. But, it's nowhere to be found, and the juice does have a little bit of a gingery sharpness to it, so I'm guessing it's in there.

I was skeptical about drinking vegetables, but it's surprisingly tasty. Though I suspect it would be tastier with a shot of vodka in it. I don't really care for Bloody Marys, but I always want to like them -- it's like they're almost delicious, but not quite. Now, I wonder if a Carrot-Ginger Mary would work...

But I digress. New year, new adventures. I've moved; I'm still looking for a job and trying to figure out a new direction; being unemployed sucks, except for the part where you can just go back to sleep if you wake up feeling sick; and my first attempt at juicing was successful enough that I'll keep doing it. 

And happy new year.