As the sun begins to stay out later and later each day, I'm feeling so alive and excited for what the upcoming months have in store. I know this is going to be a great year, I can just feel it. So I've decided it's time I start documenting it!
My life isn't that exciting, but I like it. Some of the most important things to me are health and nutrition, animal welfare, music and photography!
My fascination with health and nutrition began with a nearly crippling case of hypochondria. I've always had a bit of health anxiety, but within the past few years it's gotten so much worse. Every pain in my body is taken as the start of a disease. In my mind, I've had every cancer there is. It was affecting my life so much a year ago that I was having a lot of panic attacks. I think much of my anxiety in general comes from a lack of control...not being able to shape my own future. So, I tried to think of ways that I could control my heath. And from reading and researching, I quickly learned that what we put in our mouths plays an enormous role in the health of our bodies. Duh! It's so simple, but I never really thought of it. So, now I'm taking control! Some of the ways I'm doing this are by limiting the amount of chemicals entering my body. This means buying organic fruits and veggies and switching to more natural beauty products. I'm also taking control of how much processed food I eat. I'm trying to consume a cleaner diet consisting of whole foods packed with nutrients. And finally, I'm moving toward a vegan diet. I've been a vegetarian for a very long time, but not a very good one. I've been changing that and eliminating dairy - a disgusting health offender - from my diet. Optimum health is a huge reason for my tendency toward veganism, but animal welfare is just as big of a concern.
Of course, as I've gained knowledge about nutrition I've also learned a lot about the animals used for food in the U.S. And I'm trying my best not to be a part of it. Now, I promised I wouldn't rant about the meat and dairy industry in my blog and that I'd only post happy things about animals. But I will say one thing just to give a little context about why I choose to eat the way that I do. One of the biggest things that stopped me cold was to learn that cows don't just give milk all the time. They have to be pregnant to do so. What? How ignorant was I to not know this? What an error on my part! It's my responsibility to know and understand how the things I put in my mouth came to be. I owe that to myself and my health. But this was news to me. And you can guess what happens to the babies that come from a pregnant cow. They are of little use to the industry. As the years go by, animals in the food system are being killed at younger and younger ages, but what's done to babies in the dairy (milk and eggs) industry hurts my heart. This industry is far more cruel than the meat industry in many ways. And I come home at night and look at my babies and think of how lucky they are that they will never know that kind of pain, loss and suffering. I tell them all the time how good they have it because they have been chosen (for whatever reason) to be the animals that we make part of our family rather than put on our plate. And I know life isn't perfect for all cats and dogs either. But animals farmed for food are so grossly mistreated that it makes my stomach churn to think about it. And I try to do what I can in my tiny little life to stop it. After all, when it comes to a cat or a pig or a cow or a dog....what the hell is the difference? They are all innocent, emotional beings that are totally defenseless against us. And I try to treat them all with the kindness and compassion that they deserve.
Finally, onto happier subjects...music and photography! I'll definitely be writing a lot about music in this blog since it pretty much consumes my life. I'm new to the Philly area, but I'm beginning to venture out for some shows with co-workers and friends. I'm so excited to explore this new city and the local artists it has to offer! And I'll keep everyone posted on what I find! And as far as photography, I'm only just learning. I want to get out there a lot this spring and summer and I'll post a bunch of pictures here!
So, welcome to my blog! It's gonna be a great year <3
