Introducing Angie-in-Japan

I'm originally from Florida but have spent the past 15 years working in Japan; seven years as a teacher in the public school system and eight years in the Japanese wedding industry. I am very active in the professional basketball circuit here in Japan, and am now planning on building a health-centered B&B (focused on organic food, exercise, massage/detox and natural healing) near Niigata City, which is located on the Japanese Sea Coast.

When I first came to Japan, I was FAT, at least by Japanese standards. Anyone peddling weight loss products in this land of wafer-thin women is bound to make a killing in a land where 'thick' people have a hard time finding clothes, can't fit into Japanese-designed train or plane seats comfortably and find it hard to say 'NO!' to Japanese hosts who plop mounds of food on their plates when they visit a home (as if all foreigners eat THAT much food in one setting). Some of my foreign female friends even refuse to go to the beach here, mainly out of fear of being harpooned by local fishermen.

Naw…that last one was a joke!

But Japanese women are, for the most part, pressured to weigh around 45 kilograms (99 pounds). I find that too unflatteringly TINY for my taste since I want to keep those devious curves that GOD has undoubtedly blessed so many of us Black women with. But not at the expense of losing good health. My mother lost a leg to diabetes and I'm doing all that I can to keep both of mine. We embrace the thought that we are 'big boned' and many Black women, in my opinion, use that idea to keep holding on to unhealthy weight. I thought I had those big bones, too, until I pulled a muscle in my back while moving furniture about 11 years ago. I went to a Japanese doctor who took x-rays of my spine. I was ANYTHING but big-boned. The x-rays showed that my spine was actually about 1/4 smaller than that of an average adult spine, so he suggested that I take some of the excess weight off. I did and now feel and look so much better as a result. Still got my curves going on, though!

At 41, I am finally coming into my own, and I love the healthy version of the woman I am transforming into. It feels like some long, overdue metamorphosis that was not encouraged in the Black community when I was growing up. I know the importance of keeping my body healthy. I gladly accept that I am worth every bit of 'trouble' it may take to cook a meal or commute to the gym. Here are some other things I do to keep my health in check:

Get annual check-ups and diabetes test (AIDS test included; easy on x-rays)

Eat fresh food: I buy organic, local produce whenever I can. You won't find too many boxed or canned foods in my home

Soymilk only: research shows about 90% of Asian & 70% of African people are lactose intolerant

Chew each mouthful of food about 30x before swallowing: colon cleaned once a year (sorry if that was TMI for some of you but I feel it is vital)

Go to the gym 3-5 days a week: focus on biking, walking and weights. I plan to start waking up earlier to get my morning walks in; nightly walks starting soon

Buy a vegetable or fruit that I have never eaten each month. Vegetables = 50% of my meals, fruit = 20% rice/soup = 20% and meat at 10%

As for meat, I eat fish and other seafood about 99% of the time

Drink a gallon of H2O a day - mostly before, during and after exercise

I rarely use salt to season, preferring the natural taste of the foods I eat to that of seasoning and high-fat sauces

I take supplements, especially those with extra iron and calcium, to ensure better health

I do not take medicine

My regimen includes a few other things, including only putting what I need to eat on a plate and when I'm full, I STOP eating. No more forcing myself to eat everything on the plate! Leftovers are snacked on later. I rarely go back for seconds. I do not go to all-you-can-eat restaurants. Though it may be a bargain on your wallet, it's terrible on your thighs and waist!

In Japan we have a product that works to draw toxins and poisons from the body. I use this on my food to take off pesticides. I use a similar product made specifically for human consumption that helps clean out my body. This has done WONDERS for my appearance and skin tone.

Also, my hair (which I now have in locs) is growing like I never thought possible. On my 3rd year of growth since I did the India Arie thing and "...cut it all off" and now it's down the middle of my back.

I heat my bath water to 37 degrees (C) and sit in the tub for about 45 minutes nightly. (I'm lucky, as our tubs are computerized.) I’m trying to take fewer showers and more baths.

I stretch first thing when I wake up and right after saying my prayers before going to sleep. This has helped me to become more limber lately. Also, I get a massage once or twice a week. This has also done wonders for my circulation.

I don't let stress fester inside of my body anymore. I address problems in a civil manner. I take drives or sit on the beach when I am emotionally drained. Sometimes, I need to get away from everything Japanese...which often takes me to Singapore.

Oh, and last but not least, I pray to GOD for health and strength. Great meditation… Anyway, here's to becoming and staying healthy. Until next time, when I'll share a little more about Japanese culture,

Stay blessed!

Another Beef Recall?

Are you kidding? Another beef recall the day before the 4th of July.

No it's no joke and I'm not kidding. According to an article in the Houston Chronicle this morning, Kroger (which is the nations biggest traditional grocery store) has recalled it's beef in now at least 20 states, because the beef has been linked to E. coli bacteria contamination.

According to the Chron, 532,000 pounds of ground beef that was produced between May 16 and June 24 could have been contaminated, but personally speaking we all know better than that. As I mentioned earlier this week I watched 15,000 angry protesters in the streets of South Korea that don't want our beef, but according to our own grocery stores apparently we don't even want our beef either.

I called and spoke with a woman from the United States Department of Agriculture who couldn't give me a list of any "definite" states affected by the recall, so what I've done is compiled a list of from the articles that I read. The other states included in the recall are: Texas, Ohio, Michigan, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, New York, and Pennsylvania. You can click on Arizona and find many of these states listed, and she named New York and Pennsylvania directly. I'm still trying to find the last three.

By the way, the others stores included in the recall are Fred Meyer, QFC, Ralphs, Smith's, Baker's, King Soopers, City Markets, Hilander, Owen's, Pay Less,and Scott's This type of recall isn't anything new. In fact I posted just a few months ago when Cargill Inc. recalled 1 million pounds of beef for the second time in a month due to E. coli bacteria contamination.

But it seems we will never learn.

Korea to U.S. - We Don't Want Your Food!

As I watch my Sunday dose of the old glube tube, I get a quick glance of people rioting, and screaming at the police in South Korea. I see fires burning, pipes swinging, people yelling and screaming. I eagerly wait for the main topic of the story to return, and the two minute commercial break to end.

Then my mind begins to wonder. Did one of their officers shoot an innocent man 50 times and kill him, or did something even worse happen?

Well as the story unfolded, I learned that thousands of South Korean protesters (15,000 to be exact), were rioting against their governments decision to resume importing beef from the United States after a five year ban was imposed due to Mad Cow disease. And have been doing so for weeks.

Scary, yes? In fact this instantly gave me a dose of deja vu. I'm not talking about last weeks tomato scare, or the fact that the US used to be the third largest supplier of beef to South Korea and lost a $754 million annual market when it was closed. No, what's more scary is the fact that the Koreans seem to be paying attention to something we've forgotten. After all, it was just only last September that Cargill Inc. recalled 1 million pounds of beef for the second time in a month due to E. coli bacteria contamination.

Here, silence after the initial furor died down, while over there, mass social action.

Kim Eun-joo, promoter of an online petition against the decision which has already collected more than 100,000 signatures explains: "The treaty is unjust because it endangers the health of my fellow citizens. It does not mention safety controls, and permits any kind of meat to be exported to our country.

This is truly amazing and if nothing else, one would think it provides an eye opening opportunity for many Americans to think about the quality of our food. But unfortunately most of us just don't seem to get it.

My Garden Part 3

Hi everyone, it's time for another garden update. Click on the pictures for bigger images.

For the past few days it's been raining pretty good, yet my heirloom plants in my new unestablished (or poor quality) soil are still growing extremely slow. But they aren't dead.









My guess is that they won't do much this time around until I can get enough compost in the soil.

As you can see my yellow watermelon is growing out of control. But where are the bananas this year?

I've dug up my garlic, and jarred many of my red beans,I've also manage to create a couple jars of pickles so far.








So far I've received two nice big tomatoes, (and two nice big horn worms) and you can see another getting ready to turn red. The first one the birds ate, so my 10 year old helped me to create a scarecrow. I hope it works.

I'm getting ready to add a bit more compost to the new boxes in hopes to have a healthy happy fall garden. I'll keep you posted.

Lessons From Cuba - Urban Farming

Risking the visceral reaction garnered when anyone says anything positive about Cuba, I found this interesting article concerning how that nation is, and has been dealing with the global food crisis. From the online edition of Newsweek.

(HAVANA) For Miladis Bouza, the global food crisis arrived two decades ago. Now, her efforts to climb out of it could serve as a model for people around the world struggling to feed their families.

Bouza was a research biologist, living a solidly middle-class existence, when the collapse of the Soviet Union — and the halt of its subsidized food shipments to Cuba — effectively cut her government salary to $3 a month. Suddenly, a trip to the grocery store was out of reach.

...Cuba's urban farming program has been a stunning, and surprising, success. The farms, many of them on tiny plots like Bouza's, now supply much of Cuba's vegetables. They also provide 350,000 jobs nationwide with relatively high pay and have transformed eating habits in a nation accustomed to a less-than-ideal diet of rice and beans and canned goods from Eastern Europe.

I think there might be a lesson here if we choose to learn it.

Organic farming is on the rise here in the U.S., mainly because the profits for organically grown products has soared through the roof during the last few years. However that's taking a very narrow view of the overall impact that agriculture and the production of food has on the economy and our health.

With fertilizer use suspected of helping create oceanic dead zones, the still under examined role pesticides and their impact on human health, genetic modification of plants and seeds restricting countries abilities to produce and control their own food supply, and the sheer amounts of petroleum needed to produce food and get it to market, the agricultural sector in this country has long moved from the idealized "family farm" into the realm of big business. Really big business, much of it subsidized.

Most food is not produced anywhere close to where it's consumed, which is one of the reasons the increase in the price of gasoline has marched in lockstep with a corresponding increase in the price of food. Ultimately, like many other aspects of our economy, its unsustainable, and though the mounting global food crisis has yet to reach our shores, can it be that far off?

I don't know, but I do know there are plenty of open areas here in Houston, and I do have a backyard, so...

Eat Well, Live Better: Turmeric/Curcumin

Ahh, back to my comfort zone and away from the politics for a bit.

For me that's food and health, and today I'm posting about Turmeric, the spice that gives our curries and mustard that beautiful vibrant yellow color.
Turmeric is a member of the ginger family and has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for hundreds of years as a way to treat a number of problems such as indigestion, inflammation and arthritic pain. Turmeric also has a powerful anti-inflammatory compound called curcumin that according to a study done by the University of Chicago in 2002, inhibits a cancer-provoking bacteria ( H. pylori) associated with gastric and colon cancer. In addition, another study was also done in 1999 by the University of Leicester that demonstrated curcumin's ability to slow the rate of prostate cancer cells once they become resistant to hormonal therapy.

Curcumin also slows the growth of melanoma, according to the journal Cancel. While it's believed that the higher the dose, the more effective it is at stopping the growth of this deadly form of skin cancer, research indicates that even low concentrations over time can also be effective.

Here's a lot of additional information Turmeric/Curcumin information and resources.

So knowing all of that, how do you incorporate more Turmeric/Curcumin into your life going forward? Well, here's a tasty and healthy start.

Lentils Recipe using Curcumin

• 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 cups of water
  
• 1 cup red lentils, sorted and rinsed
• 1 Tbs. coconut oil
• 1/2 cup of white chopped onion
• 1/4 cup of bell pepper (any color)
  
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
• 1 cup coconut milk

Bring broth to a boil then add lentils. Reduce heat to medium-low, and add all your other ingredients, until lentils are tender. Cover, and remove from heat.

Season to taste with salt and pepper, a squeeze of lime juice, and sprinkle with fresh chopped onions.

Serve over brown Jasmine rice and enjoy!

My Garden: Part 2

One would have thought that I knew better, but sometimes I get to moving so fast that I end up forgetting about the "gorilla" in the room. What do I mean?

Last year I ordered an Acerola plant over the internet. The plant was two feet tall on arrival, and shipped bare root. Several months prior I had begun a tiny compost pile, and I mixed my compost matter in with my potting soil and a few other things and my plants soon more then doubled in size. My aloe plants went crazy too, but I was really irritated by the smell of the compost heap. So I didn't start one this year up until a few weeks ago.

Well shame, shame, shame on me! The soil is the most important part of growing a garden.

A few weeks ago I showed you a picture of my two new garden boxes, filled with nice, fresh, and dead organic gardening soil. When I say dead I mean the soil had been stripped of all of it's nutrients, which I didn't know that at the time. So now my plants are all bright yellow and not really growing. As a gardener I know it's the soil because I dropped the same watermelon seeds in my older established box a week ago and they are doing better then the plants I planted a couple months ago.

Being an organic gardener, I wouldn't dare use any kinda Miracle Grow type product or anything like that, but let me tell you what I did use that didn't work:

-Seaweed emulsion
-Leaf mold compost
-Fish emulsion

I'm seeing very slow results but nothing like it should be. The good thing is I learn from my mistakes and started another compost pile. The materials haven't decomposed yet but when they do I'm sure it'll work better then anything else I've used. Just like last year I hope. If all else fails the compost will be READY and alive to mix in with the soil for the fall harvest of collard greens, mustard greens, garlic bulbs and other stuff.

Am I a bit disappointed? Well, yeah, a little. But a master gardener once told me that "You're not a real gardener until you kill a plant."

I may be on my way to being a real gardener then. We're just gonna have to ride this one out ya'll.

The Best Laid Plans....

Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans.

We had every intention of going out on Saturday afternoon to what is my favorite music and cultural event, the Houston International Festival. The plan was to hook up with some friends, eat some good food, and enjoy the music, culture, and arts on a beautiful spring day. Yeah, that was the plan.

Didn't happen.

In short, minutes before walking out the door we had a relatively major plumbing disaster, so I spent the afternoon cleaning up, well, let's just say a mess. Neville Brothers? Not on Saturday. A major disappointment to say the least.

But there's good news. The iFest is a multi-day, multi-weekend event, so we went Sunday instead, and had a pretty good time. The theme was Out of Africa - The Three Journeys, and the cultural performances were very good.

We caught a portion of the National Dance Theater of Ethiopia's performance, a stage reenactment of a slave auction in Huntsville, TX, and a Brazilian capobeira demonstration. There was even a replica of the solid rock churches from Ethiopia. In other words, pretty cool stuff.

Then there was the music. We saw in whole or in part performances by Trudy Lynn and the Houston Blues Stars (blues), Karina Nistal and the Rebel Crew (latin), Step Rideau and the Zydeco Outlaws (zydeco), the Jones Family Gospel Singers (gospel), and headliner Taj Mahal (uncategorizable).


So while I didn't get to see the Neville Brothers, overall this wasn't exactly a bad day's entertainment. Not to mention I have an excuse to go to New Orleans and catch them on their home turf. I can live with that.

Were any of you there on any of the days? Drop us a line in the comments and let me know your thoughts on this years event.

My Garden

I'm always talking to people about gardening, so today I decided to show my little garden. I'm no "Master Gardener" and man do I wish I knew one, because that would keep me from running to the specialty garden shop way across town once a week. But I do know a couple of things.

Anyway this year I've planted

1.) Many heirloom tomatoes, and a couple of traditionals;

2.) Red, yellow and orange bell pepper plants, and one jalapeño pepper plant (which I read that most are red, we just pick them pre-mature);

3.) Two types of heirloom watermelons, one orange melon & one ice box sugar baby melon;

4.) Cucumbers

5.) Large kidney beans & black turtle beans (although the black beans never sprouted)

6.) Sweet corn

7.) One Irish potato plant just for fun

So, are there any other gardeners out there? Let's hear from you!

*Updated with a few pictures (click pic for larger image)*

That Home Made Jam Recipe

As promised here is that homemade STRAWBERRY & KIWI jam recipe. After making this jam you won't ever want the store bought stuff again.......................well unless your in a meeting and the only thing they offer you are those little jam packets that are packed with sugar and not much fruit.

I used:

6 cups cut up strawberries and 2 Kiwi to make 3 - 9 oz jars

1/2 -1 cup sugar (I used 1/2 cup but you can add up to 1 cup)

2 Tbls lemon Juice

Simmer ingredients in large pan for 10 minutes - 15 minutes or until you get a jam like consistency.

While berries are cooking boil your glasses in hot water.

Place mixture in the glass jars and either place in warm hot water for 10 minutes. Now if you plan to keep in the refrigerator there is no need for the last water bath.

Allow to cool completely before storing in the pantry or the refrigerate.

Happy Jamming.

--

The Terminator (Seeds)

Last year as I began my garden, I couldn’t help but to notice how wonderful my cucumbers were growing. I’ve grown cuc’s in the past but nothing quite like this. So after I gave plenty away and ate a bunch, I looked into the cabinet to take another look at the package of cucumbers that had done so well. I knew they were organic seeds, but on the package there was this weird label right next to the word cucumber that said “hybrid.”

Well forgive me for being naive but I had never heard of a hybrid seed before and was very curious as to what it meant. I thought organic was enough?

Well… I was wrong and surprised to learn that a hybrid seed is a plant that has been artificially pollinated to create a cross between the best characteristic of that plant. But most importantly the seeds of this plant will not reproduce if saved and replanted the next year. Terminator seeds in other words.

Who thinks of this stuff? Well, you know who, corporations and agribusinesses.

The top 10 largest seed companies control half the world’s commercial seed market. If Terminator (seeds) is commercialized, corporations will likely incorporate sterility genes into all their seeds. That’s because genetic seed sterilization would secure a much stronger monopoly than patents — instead of suing farmers for saving seed, companies are trying to make it biologically impossible for farmers to re-use harvested seed.

So for all of you seed savers and garden growers I would suggest that you purchase “heirloom” seeds. Heirloom seeds are an old-fashioned seed that has not been hybridized. These seeds have been handed down from generation to generation and will produce the same plant without having to buy new seeds every year.

Stay posted for a great strawberry & kiwi jam recipe. Yum!

Holiday Cookies

Hi Guys.

You didn't think I would leave you for the holidays without giving you one of my favorite recipes well did you? Well this is truly a favorite cookie recipe for myself (and not just because I use oatmeal) but it's also a favorite for my family as well. If you follow the recipe to the letter they will come out perfect every time.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1/2 c.coconut oil (not the cheap stuff)
1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 c. oatmeal
1-3/4 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
12 oz. pkg. chocolate chips
1/2 c. pecans

• Heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Cream butter and sugars in large bowl with electric mixer.
• Add eggs and vanilla. Beat to combine.
• Grind oatmeal to a powder in processor. Combine with flour, salt, baking powder and soda. dd dry
• ingredients to creamed mixture and beat slowly, just to mix. Stir in chocolate chips
• and pecans. Batter will be stiff, and using ice cream scoop, shape into balls about the size of golf balls.
• Drop on sheet 2" apart.
• Bake at 375 degrees for 7 to 9 minutes.
• Let cool 1 to 2 minutes

Note: the cookies will be a bit lighter in color then the traditional chocolate chip cookies so don't over bake.

*****Okay now for all you people who would like one of "MY" favorite recipes, well you can't have it! No just joking.

My Cookies

Ingredients:

About 2 cups of cashews
1/3 cup of coconut flakes
4-5 non dry dates (soft)
About 7 pecan halves

• Mix all of these ingredients in a food processor until items are still a bit chunky and not quite a puree
• Taste it to determine if a dash a cinnamon or more or less of an item should be added

What makes this recipe so unique is you have to continue to taste your ingredients until you have reached your desired taste. The down side is these cookies require that you use a food dehydrator, but I suppose you could very quickly bake these cookies to dry them out a little bit.

Good Luck :-)