May 29, 2006

Happy holiday weekend. I feel that with every blog entry I find myself apologizing for not having done one sooner. It’s hard to get to everything, although I have hired an awesome part-time assistant. I feel very blessed to have found her. Her name is Joya. Someone told me that means “jewel” in Portuguese. I think she is one.

A problem I’ve discussed with other authors is that many of us feel that we’re “word-drained.” It’s interesting: we used to write only our books and articles for publication, but now a lot of us, myself included, are also doing blogs and newsletters and presentations, as well as composing emails for hours every day. It seems, then, that when we sit down to really write, our brains are kind of cleared out. My response to this is to do my writing for publication early in the morning when I’m freshest. I can meditate first, and go to the gym, but other than ME care (ME=meditation and exercise), writing has to be the first act of the day.

And I am pleased to report that the book in progress, Fat, Broke and Lonely, is, I do believe finally revealing itself to me. It’s been tough, like decoding a puzzle, but it’s coming through. I have six months left to finish the writing and I do believe that will be enough.

Some rather glittery things have been going on that I do want to share with you. This past Friday evening I was invited by my friend, the amazing soprano Sherry Boone (www.operaathome.com), to an wonderful evening honoring author, Nobel Laureate, and Pulitzer Prize winner Toni Morrison who is leaving Princeton University after twenty years on the faculty there. The event was held in the Allen Room in the Time-Warner Building (the fabulous room with floor-to-ceiling windows and a view of Central Park, where Ellen Degeneres did her show when she was in New York a few months ago). Sweet Honey in the Rock performed; Phylicia Rashad and Tavis Smiley were among those doing readings; and Morgan Freeman and Bill Clinton were among those giving tributes to Ms. Morrision (I was two rows behind Bill Clinton: I kept telling myself, “You’re really not in Kansas anymore.”)

Sherry Boone, my friend and confidante, sang the most moving aria, with lyrics by the multi-talented honoree. I was ready to jump up and start the first standing ovation of the evening, but magically and wonderfully President Clinton and Toni Morrison beat me to it! I was practically in tears. Someone I know and love, and someone that I know works very, very hard both at her craft and at keeping real life afloat as an artist in this city, was honored by a man who led the free world and a woman who’s received a Nobel Prize. I will hold that image and that memory in my heart for a long, long time.

It was a totally amazing evening. Afterwards, I went out to hail a cab and the heavens opened with an extremely generous rainstorm. Taxis were hard to come by and I stood there literally watching my vintage blouse shrink its way from having full-length sleeves to three-quarter. When a cab finally showed up, I took off my favorite heels to wade through a puddle to the taxi door. It was so, I don’t know, Breakfast-at-Tiffany’s-like? I smiled till my jaws ached.

And that was my second glittery shindig in a week! (Something is happening; I’m just not sure what….) Anyway, the previous Saturday night was the 20th Annual gala for Farm Sanctuary (www.farmsanctuary.org), the first farm animal shelter and refuge in America. The president and cofounder of Farm Sanctuary, Gene Bauston, was the guest on my radio show that day and because I’m “press” now, William and I were invited to the VIP reception. This was a genuine paparazzi event: I’ve never seen so many flashbulbs outside the E Network. Among the luminaries were Moby, Mariel Hemingway, Alicia Silverstone, James Cromwell, Swoosie Kurtz, Greg Germann (whom we’d just seen in Friends with Money), Loretta Swit, Lindsay Wagner, Joan Van Ark, Persia White, Daryl Hannah, and the very personable Rep. Dennis Kucinich.

My mother-in-law was a supporter of Kucinich’s candidacy for the Democratic nomination in the last election and we asked if he’d write her a note. He did, and signed it “Best wishes and love…” I’m not sure our country is ready for someone who signs notes to supporters with “love,” but I look forward to the day that we will be. (Rep. Kucinich is going to be a guest on my show with his lovely bride Elizabeth. I don’t do politics on the show so they’re going to talk about how they found true love. The story, which is delightful, is on his website: www.kucinich.us.)

The most thrilling and inspiring part of the evening, however, was that it was for the animals. This is a cause so close to my heart. There was something to celebrate, the recent ban in the city of Chicago on the sale of foie gras, “fatty liver,” called “the cruelest food in the world.” It’s been denounced by Pope Benedict and outlawed by a dozen countries and the state of California. The Chicago ban is another step is a compassionate direction. A campaign is beginning to get a ban enacted here in New York City. It will be a struggle since many fancy restaurants believe that serving it is essential, but I want to be part of the movement to educate people about this and hopefully help the Big Apple go foie-gras-free just like the Windy City. (If you’re interested in this, there’s a website: www.nofoiegras.com).

Yesterday’s guests on A Charmed Life (Martha Stewart Living Radio, Sirius 112) were an integrative cardiologist Patrick Fratellone, MD, (www.fratellonemedical.com) and raw food chef and author Rhio (www.rawfoodinfo.com). Her cookless book, Hooked on Raw, may be my very favorite raw food recipe book. And she was kind enough to provide the following recipes to share with you. So I’ll sign off with appreciation for your support of my work and your interest in my goings-on. My very best,
Victoria

Blueberry Jello

1 pint blueberries
2 bananas
1/2 lemon or lime, juiced

1) Blend all the ingredients in a blender. Pour into custard cups and chill. Makes 4 custard cups. Keeps for 2 days in the refrigerator.

Hibiscus Punch

Hibiscus is a flower which is dried and much used in Mexico as a refreshing beverage. This punch could be the original Kool-Aid. If kids ask for Kool-Aid, try giving them this instead.

FOR 2 QUARTS OF PUNCH:

1 1/2 quarts of filtered water
1/4 cup dried hibiscus flowers
1 pint of mixed fresh fruit juices (try orange, tangerine and/or pineapple juice)
3 tbsp. raw honey or to taste
garnish with a few grapes

1) Put the dried hibiscus flowers into 1 1/2 quarts of filtered water, stir and let sit at room temperature overnight or for at least 3 hours. The water will become a beautiful shade of pink.

2) Drain the flowers and discard. Transfer the hibiscus water to a punch bowl, add the other ingredients and blend well. Refrigerate until cold.

3) When ready to serve, float grapes in the punch bowl. Serve with a slice of tangerine on the rim of each glass.

If you want a gallon, double the recipe. Keeps for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator.

Almond Milk

1 cup soaked almonds (soak overnight in filtered water)
3 to 3 1/2 cups filtered water

1) Drain the almonds.

2) Put the almonds into a blender with 1 1/2 cups of filtered water and blend well.
Add the remainder of the water and blend again.

3) Pour the mixture into a cotton or muslin bag or cloth and squeeze out all the milk. This is simple, plain almond milk.

For Sweet Almond Milk

4) Put the plain Almond Milk into a blender and add a few pitted dates and a little ground vanilla bean and blend well.

Yield: Almost a quart. Plain Almond Milk keeps for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. The Sweet Almond Milk keeps 1-2 days. After storage, the milk separates - so shake well before using.

Note: To grind a vanilla bean, put into a coffee grinder.

Note: You could use the same basic recipe to make Macadamia Milk, Brazil Nut Milk, Sunflower Milk, Oat Milk... you get the idea. There is no limit to the kind of milks you can create from soaked nuts, seeds and grains or a combination of them.

Hearty Buckwheat Porridge

1/4-1/2 cup hulled raw buckwheat
10-15 almonds
1/4 cup raisins or currants
1 banana
1 small mango (or other fruit like papaya or berries)_
1/2 cup filtered water
additional filtered water for soaking the buckwheat

1) At night, soak 1/4 to 1/2 cup raw buckwheat in one cup of filtered water.

2) In the morning, strain and rinse the buckwheat well. It will release a mucilaginous liquid, but keep rinsing until the water is clear.

3) Heat up 1/2 cup filtered water on the stove only to the point where you can still put your finger in, and then turn off the flame. Pour the hot filtered water into the blender, add in the rest of the ingredients and blend to a cream.

Serves 1

May 15, 2006

Hi, everybody –

Thanks for stopping in. I think I’ve found a part-time assistant and I’m thrilled. I’ve been so overwhelmed that the thought of a lot of those details easing up is absolutely delicious. I’ve chosen someone who’s very good with web stuff so I will soon be doing links and other web things I’ve not ventured into before.

I had a beautiful Mother’s Day and hope you did, too. Adair came over to watch the last three episodes of Big Love that I’d saved for her on Tivo. Then we went to her place to walk the dogs in Morningside Park---a lovely, woodsy, hilly place behind the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. It’s so rustic---you’d never believe you were in Manhattan. Mother’s Day dinner was at Zenith, a vegetarian restaurant we like in the theater district on 48th Street, Restaurant Row. And Adair gave me some feedback on my new book.

I admire her so much. She works hard---she’s on fulltime now at the health club where she works, plus training her personal clients, going to auditions, voice classes, rehearsals and performances, and being a wife, “mom” to two dogs (one an elder, one a puppy), co-homeowner, and volunteer dog-walker for a shelter. She’s also gone back to the Chinese studies she started when she was eight, taking classes and working with a language partner.

It’s interesting to look at her today, at twenty-three, and think back on our home-schooling past. I was of the “learning from life” philosophy and followed her lead quite a bit. Her interest in theater put literature and history into the curriculum; our travels broadened her horizon and led to the Chinese studies; math we did because we had to and science she’s become much more interested in now than she was as a kid. The home-schooling experts I read at the time emphasized that education should be a never-ending process, and I see that in my daughter today. (So I’m a boringly proud mom. Please allow me this Mother’s Day indulgence.)

I’d like to share with you the link to Body & Soul magazine. If you’ve been to my site or followed my blog, you know I’m a contributing writer there. They’re now featuring all their contributing writers---people like Cheryl Richardson, Jennifer Louden, and me---on their newly designed website, www.bodyandsoulmag.com. Take a look: I think you’ll like what you see.

It’s 7:30 and I’m still at my desk. Gosh, having an assistant will be like a day at the beach. Maybe I’ll even take a day at the beach! Have a wonderful week. Look closely at everything.

May 13, 2006

Hi, everybody. Ya know how awful you feel when you totally screw up? Well, I did. I had a very busy day with a breakfast meeting, a writer’s meeting, and my radio show, but I’d scheduled to meet a friend after the show at the Museum of Modern Art. I didn’t look at my day planner this morning and the meeting with my friend was totally off my radar. I did the other things and left the show with the idea of meeting my husband and his daughter Sian in Central Park. The train I’d intended to take wasn’t running, so I came home instead, looked at my planner, and now know that I am way overscheduled and overwhelmed. Hiring an assistant has become my top priority. I met two lovely women who applied for the position and I’ll meet one more on Monday. After that, I have to make a choice. It won’t be easy since all of them, and so many others I corresponded with, have such a lot to offer, but I need to get someone started sooner rather than later. “God is showing you something,” the mentor I called this afternoon reminded me. I think what He’s trying to show me is: You need help NOW.

I’m doing something fun you may be interested in: recording a downloadable audio of Fit from Within: 101 Simple Secrets to Change Your Body and Your Life. I did the first chunk of reading on Thursday and will finish up two afternoons/evenings this week. When everything is ready, it will be offered through a company called http://www.simplyaudiobooks.com/. For the first thirty days it’s available, it will be free---no kidding. I’ll let you know when it’s out.

And my friend and colleague Gail McMeeken, MSW, has a wonderful e-book hot off the cyber-presses. It’s called Boost Your Creativity, Productivity, and Profits in 21 Steps. Find out more at http://www.creativesuccess.com/. (Gail is the author of 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women, one of my favorite books.)

I hope all of you who are mothers will have (or did have) a beautiful Mother’s Day. I’ll spend the day with Adair---church, lunch, dog-walking, Macy’s---and we’ll meet up with Sian, who’ll be in a makeup seminar at MAC all day, and William for dinner at my favorite restaurant, Caravan of Dreams. ‘Nice name, isn’t it?

All the best,
Victoria