yogurt - gluten free, dairy free, soy free but not YUMMY free!

So I like to record all the yum dairy free and gf and egg free stuff on this blog every now and then.

I must say I have tried some real horrible cheeses and mac and cheese and whatever else substitutes they create out there. And the usual substitute of SOY can still be quite inflammatory....

So the latest is by Daiya. Who makes a HORRIBLE soy cheese that I personally feel tastes like plastic.

However, they make a deeelish coconut Yogurt! Now, not like other coconut yogurts I have tasted, they only have the yogurt bacteria but may not have the Calcium added. So just a note if you are looking for the calcium part of yogurt this maybe missing.
But particularly their blueberry greek yogurt is something I would get again.

Try it!

So a Greek orthodox, a Shiite, a Sunni, a Christian and a Catholic walk into an Antique store.....

.... and so the jokes go!
And it was laughs, cries, dancing, cooking and eating all weekend long.
We were just missing one other friend, who would round off the variety as an Atheist. I've already given her the heads up on another gathering, she is a hoot!

A couple weeks ago I had a gals weekend cottage get together with my old classmates from 17 yrs ago. Sure some of us kept in touch with one another here and there, and we may have run into each other at conferences or workshops.

But this gathering was a surprising blast!

As one of my friends said, "it's just like we are back in school, getting together at Second Cup on Fridays after clinic, talking about school and teachers and life again".
I say, timing is everything and we were really glad those grind days were over and as much as we liked each others company back then, by the time we graduated we had enough and were ready to move on into the working & making money world, no need to keep in touch! I guess we had to have so much time off and life experiences before coming all together again and truly enjoying every moment.

I didn't think much of it when my bf said to have some deep conversations with them before the weekend started.

But that we did! We come from different backgrounds and as much as we work in the same profession, there is still a variety of private and public clinic environments, large and small clinics. Some came from strict families, broken families and loving ones. Some are married, divorced, dating, single, have children, can't have children and are childless. Some have homes, cottages, condos. Some believe in a God, a greater being, are strong in their faith, question it, doubt it and have rejected their faith and are just spiritual.

I can't really pinpoint any specific Ohm instances, but what we did enjoy the most was that we were free to say what was happening in our lives; with no big judgement; no implied suggestions on how to live life or what to believe; no measuring tapes; no competition of who has the most or is more successful; no envy of have and not haves, but more inspiration to what is possible; lots of encouragement; admiration for each other and where we all were in life, even if we aren't all exactly where we want to be; acceptance of our odd personalities/quirks/humor; maybe even got a better understanding of why each person is the way they are due to their obstacles in life; a lot of respect for each other and dare I say, love and thankfulness that we know each other.

It makes me wonder what is it that draws certain people together and others apart or not draw them together at all? Their values? Kindness? Generosity? Sense of Humor? Sense of fun? Sense of fairness? Sense of reason? Life values? Unsaid understanding of each other? What makes us enjoy someone's company and conversation? What makes one bring out the best or the good in another person? What is the connection?
If I can just pinpoint this specifically and narrow it down to a science, maybe even with all the differences in this wide world, we could be that much closer to peace.

Ohmmm. Amen.

diary free

I am still thinking about this cheesecake - nearly a month later!
Too bad it has nuts in it, for my niece and nephews sake. Because it is so good I just want to give this to everyone!
Recipe here .... I have yet to try making this ... when I have a spare 4 hrs to kill...
Thanks Doug McNish!

In other news, our Prime Minister cried today...

#saveChristmas #savethespiritofchristmas

Text from a friend, in our group thread yesterday:

D :
"So my work Xmas party is called 'non denominational holiday gathering' (eye roll emoji)
      And we're doing  a gift exchange. So here are a few things I saw that I can give as my gift" (angel emoji)

D:

 "and the best one...."

Another friend, K, (Hindu, if you need to ask) commented.

K :

"haha. Go for it. Yes it bothers me that it's not called Christmas. Christ was born on the day therefore its not Ramadan it's not Diwali its Christmas ugh. Annoying."

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A good 5 yrs ago or so, I had a patient wish me Merry Christmas and handed me a little present, as she always did each year around the same time. Mrs. S was about 85yrs old at that time. She is Jewish and  from South Africa. This particular year she told me that it is a shame what she has been noticing, how people are trying to get rid of the word Christmas from this day. She went on to say, that she is not sure who is being "offended" because if someone said Merry Christmas to her she would not be offended. She would simply say that she doesn't celebrate it but thank you, you too. 

-------------------------------

About 2 or 3 years ago another separate patient of mine wished me a Merry Christmas during his appointment. He was about 70 yrs old at that time and also Jewish. "It's terrible what they are doing to you guys" I asked what he meant. "You know, what they are trying to do to Christmas, to stop saying it and all. It's pretty bad. That you are not allowed to say it anymore." 

--------------------------------

So it  makes me wonder.... Who really is being offended, and what exactly is the offence that is being done to them? I've heard it all "politically correct" , "some people are offended because they used to be religious (particularly christian or catholic) and now they are not." "you are offending all the people that do not celebrate christmas" "people are feeling left out". "its not being inclusive". 

Lets stop for some simple reflection beyond what the status quo accepts without critical thinking. 

Political correctness. Questions to ponder. What is so political about a religious holiday or celebration? Or is it simply that they (politicians I assume?) are trying to make a religious holiday or celebration more political for their own benefit? And if so, how can we also make Hannukah, Diwali, and Ramadan more political too? Do religious celebrations have to be political? And what purpose would it benefit to eliminate the religious name from this celebration, what can they gain?

Used to be Christian or Catholic. Ok that is their own personal journey. No one is forcing them to celebrate Christmas. No one is forcing them to go to Mass. Why eliminate the name of it? Maybe they choose not to celebrate it at all. That's ok. Or maybe they want to still celebrate it (not the religious part of it) but want to participate in the unfortunate diversion from the meaning of Christmas - the consumerism aspect is what draws them to it. Then do so, call it what you like to yourself - holiday, gift giving gift getting, winter celebration - whatever you want to call it.... but do not force that on others, do not force others to get rid of it just because you did yourself. Heck if every vegan forced meat eaters to only eat like they did..... 

Offending all people. From the above examples it is obvious that Christmas is not offending those that do not celebrate it themselves. If I celebrate my birthday with my friends and family in a restaurant, shall I stop because it is offending all the other patrons in the restaurant who are not celebrating their birthday that day? And to top it off I give them a day off of work, is that offensive? In fact, for the most part, those that do have their own religious celebrations seem to respect other religious celebrations. That is what it comes down to, isn't it? Respect. Respect of other people's religions, even if it is not of your own belief. Though it is true that, in any religion or without a religion, no one  should tolerate disrespect of a human being. How is it that Christmas itself is disrespecting a fellow human being? 

People feeling left out. Actually, during this time (though unfortunate because it should be all the time) is when people start to give. To notice more people in need, more Christmas dinners, Christmas present and food drives being held for those who are hungry and those who are lonely. I have a couple who are patient's of mine who invite all those that they know who are possibly going to be alone during this time. They open their doors to those in need. Though it should be everyday that this is being done, what other times do people tend to do this (Thanksgiving, Easter...). In fact the stores are packed and parties galore around this time, so it seems to me that people want to be a part of this celebration. And what is great about it, is that they can, no one is policing them to say NO you cannot do this because you do not have the right religious denomination, no one is saying they are not allowed. Are they afraid to celebrate it because they feel that they are being forced to accept all the religious beliefs that go with it?

Inclusive. In a day and age as this time we call NOW, everyone is more aware of being culturally sensitive, diverse, open to other cultures, other religions, other practices. In Canada apparently we pride ourselves on our diversity and acceptance. Well how is it then when it appears to be intolerant of a specific religion, a specific "holiday". I have been to stores to buy my Christmas cards and it is becoming harder and harder to find cards that say Christmas. Why is it ok to eliminate this word for this special day and yet we do not eliminate other religious holiday words? You can be passive about it and say "who cares what you call it" but it actually means something to the people who celebrate it, and it simply does not seem fair. You do not have to be Christian or Catholic to celebrate Christmas or the spirit of Christmas, nor do you have to be a certain culture or nationality or skin colour to be Christian or Catholic.  But call the day like it is.

Christmas.

And everyone is welcome to celebrate the Spirit of Christmas. 

Inclusive

I think there are a lot of people who grow up not knowing the meaning of inclusive.
Even in simple conversation or in passing a familiar person in a hallway or in group settings or even when addressing strangers.
Maybe it is even worse in the ever growing selfie society we have. Pretty much paying attention mostly to ourselves than those around us. Whats mine is mine and not yours.

Just a thought for the day, and to be specific, this moment.

Anyhow carry on with your day!

Anyway.....

Well, another year has passed and for some strange reason I am thankful and humbled.
I really feel I don't deserve this much attention.

Yet I am filled with a bit of anxiety still. Another year brings a little reflection of where I am not and where I want to be, what I want to do, what it is I have done so far, where am I going, all wrapped into one anxiety ball. I've been hearing about living in the present, through all the de-stress meditation guidelines that have been floating around. Easier said than done I suppose. This year ahead will bring some changes too in the workplace. Hopefully they will only be pushes toward positive notes in the end, but I can't help but to feel sad....

I guess unfortunately with all this anxiety and maybe other things I have not yet reflected upon, it has resulted in .............. road rage ! haha but not really haha.
I've been a bit agitated, cursing other drivers, the traffic, weather and such all in the comfort of my "sound proof " car, and gesturing to other agitated drivers in the silent film / universal sign-language mode we are all familiar with....
It all makes me wonder, whats been bugging me lately?! Whats up with my temper? I chalk it down to the anxiety ball that I mentioned earlier or maybe the sad state of the world that I cannot change, yet it seems so strange given the fact that I am pretty darned thankful for a lot of things in my life....

Anyhow, it doesnt help that my agitation is being spread to others in this world. Hopefully I can keep myself in check.
Yesterday evening I came across this during mass:

Mother Teresa's Anyway Poem

People are often unreasonable, illogical and self centered;
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you've got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;
It was never between you and them anyway.

This vegan, dairy free stuff is .... yummy?!

Hard to believe huh.
I've been reading lately how dairy can be bad for you. It kinda makes sense. The only milk that we were meant to drink was from our mama's and it is supposed to be filled with stuff to make us grow strong and natural immune helping stuff .....
The milk from cows and other animals helps that baby animal grow... and lately has been pumped with antibiotics and growth hormones etc....
And those who are lactose intolerant or have some kinda intolerance to dairy well - we know the side effects of that....

So, I've been open to these non dairy but dairy like foods lately.
Except soy - only in moderation. It is an inflammatory food.

This is what I have found to be pretty good so far:

Loblaw's Earth Island: dairy free, soy free cheddar and mozzarella (btw, the Daiya products taste pretty gross, do not accidentally get that brand).
 
Doug McNish's Public Kitchen: I've only tried the butternut squash Mac and Cheese and the cashew lemon cheesecake. Wow! I'd eat these even if I was not dairy sensitive. I cannot wait to try more from here. All vegan, mostly gluten free.

Planta: Fancy dancy resto with some gluten free and vegan dishes - so creative and tasty!