Wishing you all a year filled with Health, Love, Forgiveness, Peace, Joy, Abundance, and Learning. Happy New Year!!! ~Rue

The traditional lentils are simmering on the stove.
The ham is braising in the Coca-Cola.
The snow is falling softly on the cedars.
This year is a year of culmination and I am stoked!

A while back I wrote about how I was embarking on a journey of simplification. I've made numerous trips to my local charity drop-off and I'm still over-flowing with stuff. I'm not discouraged but I am freaked a little. Starting tomorrow I will go through one drawer per day. Just one. Instead of going through everything in the drawer I will look and pick 5 items I cannot live without. (5 because I've noticed there are drawers I NEVER open.) The rest of the contents are for: GIVE, RECYCLE, GARBAGE.

So far I've made the following changes:

Instead of buying books, I borrow from the library. If I've borrowed a book more than twice, and I really cannot live without it, I purchase a copy. This is working very well for me so far.

If I buy a new item, I go through all the similar items I own and if I haven't used them or think I never will I pack them up and give them away. Ie: shoes, handbags, etc.

I have chronic dry skin and eczema. I used to buy every single lotion/cream on the market hoping it would be "the one" that doesn't sting or cause flare-ups. For the most part, most of the lotions I purchased, did. I used to just toss them in a cupboard and forget about them. The search is over. I currently have a core group of products that always work for me and I will stick to these. I've packed up all my incompatible products and given them away!

Shoes uncomfortable? Gone.
Clothing that doesn't fit right? Gone
Accessories I have and will never use? Gone.

I work full-time and have a young family so many of the above changes are done in small bites. I am beginning to feel the difference though and it is liberating!

I've been asked this question no less than three-dozen times in the past week. Granted, I do work in an environment where I see at least 150 people/day, lol. My reply is and has always been: "I'm ALWAYS ready for Christmas!"

This is long before the tree and lights go up, a present is purchased or a cookie is baked. I have recently replied: "I am ready for Christmas in August!" I love Christmas. Christmas is truly a celebration of family (whatever your family consists of), life and love like no other. Despite my significant pagan leanings I am an old-school pre-Vatican II Roman Catholic* at my core. Christians accuse me of being pagan, pagans have dismissed me for being christian. Frankly, I don't care.

It's the Yule -tide season and Advent is in full-swing. Time to bring on the baking, halls-decking, and merry-making because longer days, Jesus, St. Nick, and La Befana are coming!

Still in the spirit of 'simplify', it has been a month since I've stopped hoarding pantry items. I've been cooking a lot more now that the weather is cooler and I am spurred on by the challenge of using only what is in my pantry. Naturally I still have to buy dairy, meat, and produce, but NO pantry items. It wouldn't be so challenging if we didn't have a 6 and a 7 year old. Our 7 year old has just recently begun wanting to try new flavours, yay! Our 6 year old who would eat whatever we gave her the first 5 years of life, has developed a penchant for finickiness. Granted, it is a very refined finickiness. Our 6 year old prefers uncomplicated fresh flavours prepared simply. Sounds like our 6 year old has suddenly become a snooty chef! Truth be told, I have a marked preference for uncomplicated, good quality, fresh food prepared simply too.

Pantry Marinara

1 can of good Italian tomatoes. I buy them whole and crush them with my hands not to impart a metallic flavour from food processor/blender blades.
4 tbsp of good olive oil
1 level tbsp of freeze-dried basil (half a teaspoon if I use the basil sold in the spices aisle)

Simmer over a low heat for about 90 minutes if you don't need it right away or, cook it on medium for 20-30 minutes when you need it quick, but you have to watch it the whole time. I season to taste once cooked because if I add the salt at the beginning, the reduction process results in a salty sauce.

Use it on anything.

I'm thinking and blogging about simplifying and ridding myself (and my family) of all are superfluous stuff. Procrastinators by nature my husband and I -and it appears we've bred the trait true in our offspring. Chances were pretty good the weekend would roll around and come to an end, without getting anything done. Unless... we should have a flood in our basement due to silly human error, and now we are motivated to empty out the basement as much as possible. LOL. ~R

Flu season is gearing up here in the northern hemisphere. Here are Nurse Rue's* simple rules to staying healthy:

1)Wash your hands.
2)Shopping carts: never touch your face when pushing a shopping cart. Wash your hands as soon as you get home.
3)Wipe down your work station at the start of your day/shift.
4)Wipe down your steering wheel daily. You drove home from the store after using the shopping cart, remember?
5)Double up on vitamin C and remember to take your multi-vitamin tablet daily.
6)Eat garlic (raw if you can digest it) daily.
7)Ingest acidophilus capsules or products daily. Make sure to keep them refrigerated.
8)Flavour your foods with cinnamon, cayenne, oregano.
9)Drink green tea daily.
10)Take oregano oil. (I rather eat oregano than take the oil.)
11)Get enough rest.
12)Get enough exercise.
13)Avoid sick people. If you can't avoid them, see numbers 1-12.

This list isn't exhaustive, but it's pretty close.

Good luck and stay healthy!
~R

*The author of this blog is both a registered nurse and natural health practitioner as well as a member of the AHNA.

Then there's all that other stuff. The stuff we keep because someone or we've convinced ourselves these objects have meaning. These objects are all that is left of a person, place, time. I know it. My dishes are for the most part the dishes my parents had when they were married. They are the same dishes my dad held onto for 30 years after they divorced. They are the same dishes I rescued from the stuff my dad was carting off to the local Sally Ann. They are the same dishes I had in my appartment. These are the dishes we eat from. Not all of them. Oh no. I actually 'topped up' these dishes with ones from the same series from eBay.

I have things in my home because my father gave them to me. I don't like them. They're not me. Yet, somehow I can't get rid of these things. These things that mean so much because when he was alive I got so little of him. So little of his time: my aunt and uncle raised me. So little of his love: he was always angry and resentful of my mere existence, I later learned. Yet, I hang on to his crap. Both literally and figuratively.

As I sit here, contemplating how I'm even going to begin telling my tale of transformation, I can't help but wonder whether there are unseen forces orchestrating it all. Perhaps those of you adept in astrology can shed some light onto what has happened to me. I'm feeling a strong drive to downsize and simplify. This drive to simplify has permeated every aspect of my life.

All the stuff I never or seldom use. All the clothing, shoes, accessories, I never wear. All the books, cds, dvds I don't love. I want to strip all my kitchen tools, cookware, dinnerware, down to bare essentials. I want to read mainly books from the library and purchase only the rare, hard to find ones I have to have.

I've already drastically reduced my makeup and perfume collection. Sold what I could, gave some away. Will give the rest away as soon as I pack it up.

I was going to color my hair and embark on the ordeal of growing it out again, but my children asked me "Why?". They love their new pixie cuts and can't imagine going back to longer, perpetually tangled, high-maintenance hair. They've suggested I cut mine like theirs and keep it natural.... We all have a hair appointment Saturday morning and I'm genuinely excited!

Taking a nap after work when I need to. Even if it means we end up having eggs and toast for supper.
If we're craving something, buy just enough to satisfy the craving.
I've made adjustments to our groceries.
We are currently using up what is in our freezers and pantry and I am only replacing what we love.

Excuse me while I give my home a quick 15 minute pick-up and get started on a 30 minute meal for dinner.

TTYS!
~R

I moved to the interior of B.C. for the desert-like climate. The last few days have been humid hell. It's probably no where near the sweltering Toronto muggy but I can't stand it. I'll be back when the weather breaks. Bacioni! ~ R

I thought of deleting all my stupid blog posts. All the shit I put on here just to 'say' something. As I was about to do so it occurred to me that the shit on my blog has the same right to remain on it as the somewhat better posts. The truth of the matter is my entire blog is one big shit and it would take a hell of a lot of time to delete it all. Time is at too high a premium right now.

So, I've decided to clean it up bit by bit as I go along.