I'm Single and Ready to Mingle... for charity of course

Last week, as I was driving to my long over-due haircut appointment, I heard an ad on the radio for *Five in Five*. You can read all about it here http://fiveinfive.org.au

Basically, it's a challenge to go on five dates in five weeks with five different people...WHY? For charity of course! The catch is, it's dating the old-fashined way. No online profiles or facebook stalking. Instead the dates must be recommended by people I know and (hopefully) trust. 

I decided I was up for the challenge and signed up when I got home. The challenge started the very next day so I knew I had to get cracking straight away. Over the next few days I told all my friends, my family and colleagues about the challenge. But,  still no dates and I was due to head off on a week-long work trip.


Week one is now over and I have been on 0 dates! I have also been on 3 flights and in 4 cities, letting people know about the cause in each place. While I have been away, my cupids (colleagues) have been busy at work and thanks to them and their networking I have 3 dates in the pipeline!! 

I sent a text message my brother to let him know about the progress. The conversation went something like this:

Me: I just got my dating update from the girls at work. They've organised 3 dates for me - a policeman, a cardiac scientist and a stunt man... that's a wide variety of conversation topics I'm going to need to cover!

 Bro: Haha. OMG You should blog this insanity.

So here it is... a blog series about my experience of facing my fears and going on five dates, with five strangers in five weeks. All in the name of raising funds to help break the cycle of social disadvantage in our community.

And... I don't think the challenge has to stop there. As easy as coffee and dinner dates would be, let's make this FUN. Here are some of my date ideas so far. What was your favourite date?

- Mini Golf
- Hiking
- Kayaking
- Stand Up Paddleboarding
- Play a board game
- Cook together
- Laser tag
- outdoor movie / drive in
- Rock climbing
- zoo / aquarium
- cultural festival (It is Chinese New Year after all)
- Feed the ducks at the park
- Cycle around the city
- Take a class - Yoga, Cooking, Art
- Go to the Science Centre / Museum
- Go and see a live band
- Indoor rock climbing
- Go to the natural rock pools

Goly Gosh there are so many options! This is going to be SOOOOO much FUN!!

If this sounds like fun and you want to get involved, there are several ways that you can:

1. Join in (single and awesome people only)
2. Date me (a perfect opportunity for those who have been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to ask me out on a date)
3. Recommend a date (aka set me up with your single friend, son, colleague, neighbour, cute guy at the dog park...)
4. Sponsor me to reach my target of $200 for local charities (it's all about the money). 

The link to my sponsorship page and more information is:

http://my.artezpacific.com/personalPage.aspx?registrationID=532976&langPref=en-CA&Referrer=http%3A%2F%2Ffiveinfive.org.au%2F

Inspiration is everywhere

Thanks to the enormous level of support I have received for this blog over the last few months, I have decided to dive in the deep end of blogging and open this up as a platform for sharings on yoga, life and health. The new website is still being designed but I promise let you know as soon as it's live. Thank you again for your support and I look forward to sharing with you again soon.

Until then, I will be writing posts ready for it's launch. The exciting news is ... inspiration is everywhere!

Let today be THE DAY!

"Be honest, when was the last time you leaped out of bed, threw open the window and said, 'Thank god I'm alive! This is the most glorious day, and today I'm going to do something so fabulous it will change my entire life?" - Katharine Neville

Be grateful for your body

 An important reminder from the girls at 'Like Chocolate for Women'

I will be different tomorrow

I will grow 
I will become something new and grand
but no grander than i now am
Just as the sky will be different in a few hours
its present perfection and completeness
is not deficient, so am I presently perfect
and not deficient because
I will be different tomorrow

Wayne Dyer

Incredible Edibles from my Veranda Veggie Patch

“A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness; it teaches industry and thrift; above all it teaches entire trust.” – Gertrude Jekyll

It's been a while since I had my own garden but my love for growing and nurturing our green friends started early for me. As a 6-year old, moving to a new home, I negotiated with the family that yes, I would take the smallest bedroom on the condition that I could have some of the garden. That little meter square of dirt became my sanctuary. I would walk home from school each afternoon and tend to my garden while I waited for mum to return from work. I would tend to it all weekend, digging the dirt with a tiny shovel and letting my imagination run wild. I grew everything from azalias to zinneas and at one point it was a 'flower pressing factory' filled with violets and pansies ready for the flower press.  Those flowers then found their fate in my homemade recycled paper or in a vase in my bedroom.

My move to the beautiful Sunshine Coast (and the ever-increasing price of greens) has prompted me to rediscover my passion for the pastures. A couple of months ago, I created a veranda veggie garden using some old pots and poly boxes from the green grocer. I planted lettuce varieties, asian greens, green beans, kale, strawberries, tomatoes, celery, chillies and all of our most-used herbs. I love watering it every morning before work, it really does bring me back to earth and create space in my mind before I set off on my day. I love using that time each morning to see what's thriving and ready for our dinner table that night. Michael and I can't eat the lettuce fast enough to keep up with its growth spurts, our herbs are thriving and we've already put our favourite Ayurvedic Tomato Curry on the menu for next week when our tomatoes should be bursting red.

There's something pretty rewarding about growing your own veggies. It saves you money, is gratifying for the soul and you have complete control over what you are putting in your body. I recommend it to anyone, even better if you can enrol your child, niece or nephew or young neighbour and help them learn while having fun.

Here are the geen beans I picked from our small garden on the weekend. So fresh and delicious in our soup!

Here are some tips to get the best from your beans:

• The secret to maximising your production is to pick them often.  The more you pick, the more they will grow! 
• Beans are at their best when young and tender because the seeds inside haven't over-developed.
• If beans snap crisply, they are perfect for eating.  If they feel spongy when lightly squeezed in the middle, they may be too mature to enjoy so allow to dry out and save for seeds.
• To prolong your harvest, aim to pick and freeze beans on the same day.  First rinse in cool water, drain and then trim the ends and cut to your preferred length before blanching in boiling water for 3 minutes.  Plunge immediately into iced water to stop them cooking. After 3 minutes, drain and package into freezer bags, removing as much air as possible to avoid freezer burn.  If you follow these instructions, your beans will keep in the freezer for up to 6 months!

ENJOY!

Excerpt from 'a life of balance'.

"...The universe's only purpose is to enable us to embrace our magnificent true nature. All of creation vibrates with magnetism. We are in a continuous state of exaltation. To know this love is to become this love. We are not fish, bird, animal, human, microbe, and molecule. We are energy in a gross and subtle (embodied and cosmic) state at once. When we learn to tame and garner our forces, we become love. Love is not an emotion, it is our ultimate state of being."

Ayurveda: A Life of Balance; The complete guide to ayurvedic nutrition and body types with recipes. By Maya Tiwari.