HAPPY RAW YEAR!

Hey Jill - are you there? I know we've had the holidays and you've had school and a new boyfriend and the kids and it's freaking cold over there in Ohio and yes I've been nutty busy and I know we've slacked off from writing each other on FB but I just wanted to take a moment and say what a year 2010 was for us, huh? We went from being a couple of gals who vaguely remembered each other from college to raw buddies to blog partners to good friends. And while we didn't get to that raw 90 day finish line together - I think we both got a LOT out of it, right? And yeah I've been flip flopping back and forth about going forward with this blog but today I woke up and I realized I'm NOT flip flopping about going raw again. Raw brought me closer to the me I want to be than I've ever been. That 12 day raw green smoothie fast we did last year still haunts me and I can honestly say I've never felt better, more spiritual or more optimistic in my life. And I want MORE of that. What blows my mind is that stumbling onto raw green smoothies was like discovering a magical elixir - one that makes you happier than you've ever felt in your life - that turns back the clock - that makes you feel more alive and beautifuler (that's a word right?) and smarter... suddenly you can 'hear' the universe talking back to you - and on a daily basis strange coincidences happen - so mysteriously perfect and meaningful - you feel DIVINE -

AND YET....

the moment you step away from it... you slowly forget... until it's just a vague memory - an impossible dream you once had. You go from MAGICAL ELIXIR to finding yourself sadly staring into the dark abyss while dipping Nilla Wafers into a mug of rum and looking/feeling like Jabba the hut. (Funny, I couldn't find a picture of Jabba dipping Nilla Wafers into a mug of rum but I did find this - close enough.)

(I'm holding back the urge to go off on a tangent about the whole Jabba the hutt/Princess Leia in the bikini image is a perfect visual metaphor for how COOKED FOODS vs RAW FOODS makes you look/feel. Remember the chain around Leia's neck???.... hmmm)

BUT NO MATTER because it's a NEW YEAR! - and there's real magic in that. A new opportunity for a fresh start - another chance to be the best versions of ourselves and I know my best self is mostly raw.

And yes I said I would start on Jan. 2nd but I forgot it's a Sunday and it's hard to start anything on a Sunday. So I'm starting TODAY. Right now. For reals. What am I starting? I believe I've come up with the perfect plan for me. I'm kicking off 2011 by doing a 7 days of raw green smoothie fast (and no wine!) Then I'll go raw with the exception of one meal a week. I think knowing I have one meal a week ironically will keep me raw longer and besides I'm kind of convinced now that you don't have to be 100 percent raw to reap the healthy benefits. I think if I'm at least 80 percent raw - I'll transform and get the GLOW. Knowing I can have that one cooked meal means I can give into a craving of beans and rice - or have a date night at Osteria La Bucca. I do well with parameters but if they are too strict I think I set myself up for failure. I realized last year that anything I can't see myself doing forever - is too strict. But I think this is a plan that I can live with and most represents my ideal life.

So what do you say Jill? What are your raw resolutions? Wanna make 2011 the year we finally find SHANGRI RAW?