Embracing a Minimalist Lifestyle

I will attempt to go as minimalist as possible by start of the new year. Since that's only less than two months away, I will need to be swift in my actions. I have already embraced a much simpler lifestyle since my huge health shift in February 2012. Now, nearly nine months later, I feel there are others areas in my life worth improving.

We've probably moved a total of six times in the last seven years. When Kendan and I moved in together, we had hardly anything. A couch, bookshelf, dining table and basic kitchenware and bedding were all that we had. After two years in our first apartment, I still remember me bursting into tears the night we moved when we had so much left to cram into two tiny trailers (that were already pretty full).

I know how this happened. I was GREAT at organizing. When you organize all of your things in your life and home, more can fit. And that was precisely the problem! After our most recent move, we went from a two bedroom apartment down to a modest one bedroom. I still had lots of things, and knew that something had to give. We could only cram so much. During our move, I was able to get rid of a few larger items and even in our new apartment, it took a full day and several people to move all of the boxes.

I blame my shopping problem that I feel I inherited during childhood. I remember going to the mall with my mom and her looking at me and saying, "We only have one check left in the checkbook..." That to me meant: "Let's pick a good store to spend the last one!" And did we ever. I liked to think that I was a smart shopper who would only buy things on sale and mostly necessary items only.

Especially with my ~30 lb. weight loss over the last nine months, I was shopping at thrift stores more often. I was only buying a few clothes so that I could look fairly normal as my body began to change. Nothing crazy; just a few jeans here and there until I needed to buy yet another smaller size. Once I hit my six month mark, I wanted to make even more changes to my life, including the things that are in it.

Join me, either as a bystander, or someone who is also interested in making some minimalistic changes to their lifestyle, as I purge the rest of the unnecessary objects out of my life!

Looking to embrace a minimalist lifestyle? Check out my posts below!

Cutting the Clutter: The 5 C's to More Happiness
5 Lessons I've Learned by Decluttering
Top 5 Reasons for Cutting the Clutter
Cutting the Clutter: Kitchen Revamp
Sell your crap. Pay off your debt. Do what you love.

Got Milk? You Don't Need It. Infographic

Here's a fun infographic from LearnStuff.com that tells us why we seriously don't need to drink cow's milk. When I first moved to Austin at the age of 21, I went to see a dermatologist and was appalled when she told me humans shouldn't drink milk. What was she talking about?! Now, after going plant-based and learning how dairy can affect your cancer risk, I set the glass of milk down in a heartbeat. In only 42 years, cows are now producing nearly double what they used to, thanks to growth hormones and other factors! There's no better time to stop drinking milk than now.

Before I went plant-based, we were probably buying a gallon of milk every 10 days. I have no idea why we were consuming that much (cereal and mac n' cheese, I'm guessing!), but I've now switched completely to almond milk. If I had know all of this before, believe me, I would have put a stop to bringing this in my house a long time ago! Dr. Neal Barnard, founder of the Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), has discussed the link between milk consumption and an increased risk of prostate cancer.

During a broadcast of Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell on April 15, 2011, Dr. Barnard discussed the consumption of milk by children during a program about milk as part of school lunches:

"It`s hurting our kids. And the problems are that kids today are in the worst shape of any generation we`ve ever had. The risk of diabetes, the risk of obesity, the risk of high cholesterol and the heart disease it leads to, they are higher than it has ever been. And a big part of the reason is that schools, sometimes they are forced to — they are feeding junk to kids. It`s as simple as that.

And it`s not just the sugar that`s in the milk. It`s the milk itself, the main nutrient in skim milk, believe it or not, even before you add anything to it, is sugar, lactose sugar. There is fat in it, as well. The proteins, a lot of kids don`t react to it. Kids just don`t need it."

That's definitely not how I remember my childhood! I drank my share of chocolate milk in school dutifully and finished it faster than the rest of the children, thank you very much. I now enjoy a little almond milk in recipes or to top off a bowl of oats and fruit. I'll never buy cow's milk again, and I am surprised when information such as this is taken so lightly and is so quickly dismissed. From the health angle, ditch it. From the moral and ethical angle, it's pretty horrific. I'll pass on the next glass that's offered to me. No thanks!

 

Food Trailer Review: Wasota African Cuisine

My husband and I discovered Wasota African Cuisine on accident one night. While we are looking for parking at Conscious Cravings one busy weeknight, we gave up and parked in an adjacent food trailer lot. After dinner, I felt terribly guilty as we walked to where our car was parked and decided to run up to one trailer and order something small just for allowing us to park there.

I walked up and ordered a side of sauteed spinach. I know what you're thinking: "Spinach?!" I've never had a more amazing bowl of spinach... ever! We tore that bowl up when we arrived home and were hungry for more. The next rainy weekend, we hopped in the car and drove back over to Wasota. This time we ordered the platter, which includes black-eyed beans, fried plantains, sauteed spinach, jollof rice and akara. We we were hooked.

That Monday morning, I ran into a coworker who accompanies me on these trips and after giving them a rundown of Wasota, we agreed to go a couple of days later. A few of us piled into the car and headed on over for my third round of the African cuisine. I ordered the platter again and took the leftovers home for dinner that night for my husband and I to share. The platter is enough to feed four people one meal or two people lunch and dinner!

I highly recommend that you visit this awesome trailer and see how yummy their menu is for yourself. There is a vegan menu and plenty of variety. This has made it on my list of trailers that I will be frequenting more often. I look forward to trying out new items from the menu and seeing what else I can fall in love with.