"You're Drinking the Blood of my People"

An abbreviated version of a story told by Dr. Vandana Shiva author of Water Wars: Privatization, Pollution and Profit

In Kerala, India, Coca-Cola was extracting millions of gallons of groundwater.  Water levels fell at rates of up to 500 feet below the surface of the earth.  Locals suffered from horrible man-made water shortages. Traditional drinking-water sources, ponds, water tanks, waterways and canals were polluted with the sludge that is left as a result of soft-drink manufacturing.  At this particular plant locals said that Coca-Cola was extracting up to 1.5 million liters per day.  The soil became arid and depleted, affecting crops, dehydrating humans and their livestock.   The Coca-Cola company was draining the community of it's vitality.  

As the local communities realized what was happening they took action. People rallied and protested at the headquarters.  Some reached out to local government agencies and sought to get the actions of Coca-Cola exposed to the world. The community knew that they needed help.  

Dr. Shiva was asked to join the community and stand with them in solidarity.  She explains the sight as this:  there were groups of women protesting in front of the plant and hundreds of police with their weapons.   Unnecessary precautions speak volumes to these gravity of these situations.  It was a scene that exposed the reality of the evils that are occurring as a result of corporate driven greed.  Dr. Shiva asked what message the community wanted to send to the world.  The female leader of the group replied with this: 

"When you drink coca-cola, you drink the blood of my people." 

After many efforts and tragic endings resulting from the operations, the local government performed an investigation. The company failed to comply with the request for details and the license was cancelled. Coca-Cola even attempted to bribe the assembly president A. Krishnan, with 300 million rupees, unsuccessfully.  Coca-Cola was kicked out of Kerala.  Now investigations are taking place around the country as governments that aren't so easily corrupted anymore, choose to stand for their people. Coca-Cola is moving out of Varanasi and other localities by force.

THIS is not an isolated event. Here the water was being extracted for soda, but it happens every day for manufacturing processes that require water. 

A woman from rural South India who is effected by water extraction. 

I spend most of my time at yoga and fitness studios and I find it very ironic when I see people drinking from one-time use plastic water bottles.  They are caring for themselves and yet very unaware of how their beverage is causing harm to others and our planet.  

Part of my mission is to educate people (in a loving way) about their impact on the world both at home and globally, as well as give them an opportunity to be the change. I am not smarter or kinder than anyone with a plastic water bottle.  It is just that I have sought out to witness first-hand the destruction that water privitization causes.  I would like to offer some of the information that I have found to you. 

I once drank bottled water.  I thought I was making the healthy option at the very strategically placed soda vending machines around campus.  It eventually stopped when I took the time to consider the impact of my bottles and heard of the water privitization that was occurring in Africa from Nestle waters.  I thought if I recycled it was enough. Turns out it's not. Even recycling doesn't get rid of the plastic waste that takes forever to break down on our planet fast enough to balance out this practice. 

Nestle, Coca-Cola & Pepsi-Co are just as bas as Monsanto if not worse.  At the 2005 World Economic Forum, Nestlé' received 29% of the vote as the 'world's least responsible company' - twice as many votes as the next on the list (Monsanto).  Nestle believes that water is not a right and that it should be sold.  Nestle claims that water as a fundamental right to all, is an extreme idea. 

Every day millions of gallons of water are extracted out of the ground domestically and abroad.  That water ends up at your gyms, schools and grocery stores for profit.  Bottled water costs on average $346 per year, per person; tap water: 48 cents per year, per person (Consumer Reports).   Where is all this money going and when is enough profit enough?

As a yogi, I believe that the convenience of a plastic water bottle could partially defeat the point of our practice.  In this practice we take the time to consider, very thoughtfully, the impact of our words, thoughts and actions.  Together, we should educate people on the true cost of bottled.  We have a duty as global citizens, to protect our resources and eachother.

At the head of the Ganges the water is clean and plentiful. By the time it reaches the Sea it is depleted and polluted. Check this article out from TIME Magaine.  

What can you do to make a difference in your community at home and abroad? 

1. Purchase a reusable water bottle and fill it. If you are worried about the quality of your water buy a filter (if you want to get rid of fluoride puchase a Berkey).  It takes time and effort but our planet and people are depending on your contributions. 
2. Find out where water is being extracted cheaply in your community and sold -with an exorbitant profit margin- back to you.  This doesn't just happen in third world nations, it is occurring in the USA in communities near you. The closest to me that is having a large negative impact is the Poland Springs facility in Fryeburg, Maine. You can see the legal battle the town is in with Nestle here.
3. Conserve your water. Do you really need to take a long hot shower? The days of over-consumption and excess seem to be coming to and end. We can see companies such as REI closing for Black Friday. Individuals are actively choosing to step away from the materialism and consumerism that big businesses are pushing on us. Less is more. 
4. Look at labels, these companies have many branches. These brands do more than just sell water as a commodity. When you purchase something from them, you are supporting these practices by default. 

Please consider your purchasing practices more closely. Ask, where does my dollar, my energy end up? I would like to dedicate this post to Professor Vernon Domingo who helped direct my endless curiosity into a purposeful mission. 






Want to learn more? Check out several documented cases of companies performing similar operations: 

• Nestle Waters in California during the worst recorded drought in history.
• Nestle Pure Life Water in Pakistan, a protype to take over the world's water.
• Nestle Pure Life in BC Canada, extracting during drought. Extracting for free and selling back to Canadians.
• Coca-Cola and Pepsi in India committing hydro-piracy.
• Water Privitization Conflicts around the world: India, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Nigeria, Mexico, Malaysia, Australia, and the Philippines. They’ve now spread to Canada, England, Turkey, Colombia, Guatemala, Morocco, New Zealand, South Africa, El Salvador, and even China.
• Video: Nestle taking water from California during the drought. 
• Video: Dr. Shiva speaking about Water Wars  

‘Nestlé is the global leader in the exploitation of water across the globe. It has 67 bottling factories and sells in more than 130 countries. In Pakistan, Nestlé invented a “blue-print factory” that could be used to create new factories anywhere in the world. Pakistan was chosen as the model because it is the only country in the region that has an unregulated groundwater sector, meaning that anyone can simply dig a hole and extract as much water as they want for free.  'Pure Life' brand water has been produced in Pakistan, Asia, Africa and South America and is marketed as “capturing nature in its purest form”. In short, Nestlé now owns and distributes “nature” on every continent.’

 (New Internationalist) 

Hosting a "GREAT" Party

Throwing our annual Soppressata making party! Every January!

Mike and I came from party throwing families.  We've learned a lot and made a lot of observations about what can help to create a great gathering.  We were both taught that what you put out and offer for your guests is a direct reflection of how much you value the relationships.

This was a particularly hilarious night. Wooly Fair pre-party
where the guys decided to wear my yoga pants to the festival.

We absolutely love to host parties because we love the people that are in our lives and who will continue to come into our lives. There is nothing better than spending time with our friends and family. We love to share the laughter, memories and fun times with people. There is something incredibly healing about attending a good gathering. The afterglow of these events lasts for much longer than the event itself. I always wake up the next morning with a huge smile on my face and find myself laughing about some of the hilarious things that happened the evening before.

Tim Ferris, author of the Four Hour Work Week talks about having dinner with close friends at least once per week. This is a standard that I have adopted in my life for about three years now. Mike and I make an effort to reach out to some of our closest and most treasured friends even when we are tired and may not feel like it. Many say it is especially important in those times to reach outwards to the connections who, by doing nothing at all but being themselves, help bring you back to earth. This is a practice in grounding. It is not selfish because the hope is that you are reciprocating this for others. The point of friendship is to love eachother, nourish eachother, pour in to eachother and recieve eachother's gifts.



Our hopes in hosting a party is that everyone will have a refuge from their week and have a great time that brings them into the present moment.  Having fun and being supported by like minded individuals is a very quick way to encourage this in myself, so I assume it works for others as well.  I believe that fun games, intelligent conversation and great food are ingredients for a more highly evolved community.

Making paella for friends this summer!

It is incredible to see the connections that people make when the atmosphere is right. The bottom line is, that great gatherings remind us that we are not alone. We each have our unique experiences of our own lives and day to day living, but we can come together at any given time, setting most of that stuff aside to simply be with eachother.   Conversations lead to learning which grow the mind, laughing and dancing are healing to the soul, sharing meals together is an ancient tradition which bred community and fostered relationships. For me, hosting is really an opportunity where my given can go unspoken: I am taking the time to do something for you because I really care about you. I feel the same way when my friends and family have me over for an event or dinner. It warms my heart and my spirits to feel that radiating love!  

I realize that people have restrictions in being able to hold parties and host big events. I face many obstacles too, such as dropping a lot of money at Whole Foods, coming off an exhausting work week or just not feeling like being "on", the gatherings will generally take priority because I know we are all going to feel a lot better in the thick of it.  I talk a lot about self-care and though this may seem against self-care, if done in the right way, spending time with these people is actually very healing and grounding.  It can take the whole group to a new perspective of joy and community.

Soupy Party! Everyone got a stick!

If you can't throw a big event, ask your friends to come over for a glass of wine or an appetizer. Pick a game you can play together, ask stimulating questions ( I love Danielle LaPortes conversation starters) and be with the people- no distractions just connection.  Make it look however you want, just make sure you put a lot of love into it. That is really the only ingredient you need for success.

Although people may not realize the effort that Mike and I put in to hosting a party, I hope that they reap the benefits whether consciously or sub-consciously (if my friends are reading this: it is because we really care about you and want you to have a GREAT time!)


Here are some of the recommendations that I have for hosting a "GREAT" healing party:

1. Guest list: Everyone on your guest list should be a no brainer. They should lift your spirits when you are with them individually or in a group setting. There are times for throwing parties when you might not know people so well, but this isn't one of them. You want this to be an atmosphere of solutions focused, uplifting friends- who you know genuinely care and want to be there. 
2. Recipes: This is VERY important to me. We live a very organic and wellness focused lifestyle. OF COURSE when my friends come over I want to feed them nothing but the best, only the things that I would consume. I mean to cast no judgement, but don't spare the cost when you are treating your most beloved friends. Feed them the same caliber of ingredients that you would consume, whatever that may be.  I have to hold my breath at the register sometimes but I know that it is always worth it. I want to feed my friends a nourishing, high quality meal because I value them. I also like to write out recipe cards in front of the dishes so that people can take home ideas and know exactly what they are eating. 
• For example: I spent about $350 on food for a party of 20 people, I budgeted out ahead of time the price per head and the nutritional balance per head (carb/fat/protein ratio) that would leave guests feeling satisfied and nourished. Come up with a number that feels good. If you don't have the budget to throw a party this way, throw a pot luck and if your friends think like you do, they will bring food that they would also feed themselves. It's the law of attraction. 
3. Entertainment: This is really Mike's area of expertise and I love to learn how he does this! He comes up with the coolest games that I usually have not heard of. I like to involve finger paints and things that can get pretty messy. He has more feasible solutions that will leave people laughing hysterically but not dirty the house completely either. We play the paper bag game, spudknocker, team charades, drawing games, language games. We clear a room for space so that things don't get knocked around, create a killer playlist that will keep the vibe going for the evening and then introduce the games very lightly. If people are having great conversations we don't want to break them up. When you feel like the party is hitting the hump of people considering bed time, bring out the fun stuff! Generally it works and people are nearly peeing their pants laughing (myself included). 
4. Atmosphere: This is also Mikes area of expertise, he is a self-proclaimed college party expert. Things to consider: Climate- is the temperature going to be alright for the evening? Airflow- how can you keep it from getting to hot or too cold? Noise- make sure you give the neighbors a heads up that you are throwing a party. Find a good level of sound for music to not overpower conversations but to also be noticeable that a killer track is playing. Space- feng shui! Set up your home in way which people can move with ease from food, to seating to party games. Make sure you have enough seating for at least 70% of the people, keeping some standing promotes conversations and mingling. Lighting- mood lighting is for real. You can gauge this throughout the night, but generally restaurant dim lighting is where it is at. Decor- Take the time to get some freshly cut flowers, light your more expensive candles and put out your best smelling hand soap. These small touches show people that you really do care about them and want them to have a great experience. 
5. Theme: I LOVE a good theme party. It isn't always neccessary but it can be a lot of fun. I always have a theme and the guests may not even realize it. Generally it helps me with menu planning. I pick a centerpiece dish and then everything else revolves around it. I will tend to stay to a particular ethnic theme for cooking because the flavors will not collide and compliment eachother quite well. Tie this into your beverage choices, what will pair well with the meals? If you don't know you can find it all on the internet. I love to look up wine pairings, beer pairings and liquor ideas when cooking for others. It gets me out of my usual routine and pushes me to try things that I haven't done in the kitchen before. 

I would love to hear your ideas for hosting great parties! Please share any ideas below! xoxo 

UN dinner.  Everyone made an ethnic recipe and used the microphone to announce their meals,
at our small table. It was hilarious. Excuse the photo quality, look at the smiles! 

Some people just have a gift of bringing the love with them wherever they go! CB that's you!
This photo was taken at her going away party hosted by our friends.
They knew how to throw a GREAT party.  

Seeds of Life

The life of a seed reassures me that nothing in this world is as it seems.  I am writing this piece because of the overwhelming amount of questions I am receiving about seed saving, the work that I am doing and how to get involved on an individual basis.

I'm a proud seed!

Here is what I have come to realize for myself:  We have become so disconnected to the very things that allowed us to grow in the first place.  Seeds are small and for at least the past century have been on a downward spiral of neglect and being taken for granted.  This is a very big problem because for thousands of years before this, ancient cultures built traditions based off of growing seasons and seed saving.  Seed was the most fundamental source of life.  It was also a basic right to save, grow and harvest from the bounty of seed. 

Since ancient times, seeds were one of the most sacred commodities of mankind.  Seeds ensured the nourishment and survival of humans.  We are beginning to re-realize the very special connection that we have to seed and to nature which faces us with reality: sadly the lack of understanding we have in our food system has caused a lot of confusion for society as a whole. 

From one seed comes thousands of generations of life, nourishment, variety, resiliancy and teachings. The magic of the seed is the knowledge it passes from one generation to the next.

Imagine if we were so grateful for our food that we threw celebrations in honor of our harvests again? We owe A TON of gratitude for the teachings and wisdom that the earth has provided for us.  Seed is not a commodity, it is a selfless and limitless gift which intends to be spread and shared.

Are we seeds?

I believe my teacher Vandana Shiva, we are indeed seed.  We are all seeds that have come to where we are from sacred knowledge that has been passed on from the beginning.  This is something that can not be exactly explained by science.  Every seed contains possibility of life for many future generations.  As humans WE contain seeds (call them eggs if you want) and we are possibility of life for many future generations!  Just as knowledge is stored in plant DNA I believe it is passed in all forms of DNA.  Nature is always evolving and adapting.  Perhaps we should be paying closer attention to our own stories and become more aware of how we have evolved and adpated from our past generations, it would probably teach us quite a bit. Check out Vandana Shiva if you are interested in learning more about this concept, or ask any elder in your community who used to farm how it was different! I think you would be surprised. I am learning so much from elderly farmers in our community.

Seed can teach us many things about life, purpose and growth.  What is the miracle of life?  What creates resiliancy and desire to thrive?  These largely unanswered questions are held in the magic of seed.  We must be more comfortable and satisfied in not having all the answers, but being grateful that the possibility exists.  The seed has inherent knowledge which many scientists are working very hard to understand and as a result, we might be making some mistakes that are possibily disobeying the laws of nature.  The miracles of nature are ever changing and evolving, this is something that is at the moment out of our ability to comprehend and that is actually VERY ok.

Food for thought: When we ask genetic engineers where they get the seed to create GMO crops, they will never tell you where they got the seed they spliced to begin with. They did not create life, they altered it. Is there any precautionary principle, is there anything sacred anymore?

If you also believe that we are all seeds then the following may be true: Our children are divine and more evolved versions of us. 

If we are all seeds, wouldn't that mean that our offspring would be regarded as having our genetic and spirtual knowledge passed on, remembered and possibly in a higher form?  What if we could recognize our children as our teachers, so we could more closely connect to the ways we are meant to love, live and survive? I ask these questions because I believe it is a possible reality for us in the future. When we can surrender to greater knowledge than our own and trust in the ways of nature that have over and over again proved that Life is divine and will prevail, then we will move to a state of enlightenement as a race. 

Why should we follow the cycle that nature has drawn for us?

Quite simply because: nature always wins.

It is the tiny seed that falls into the crack and finds the will to grow which will break down the largest stone.  In our society we see nature win back all the time- in abandoned homes, vacant lots and patios which won't stop sprouting little signs of life. In the end, the cycle of nature always prevails, we are not exempt!

Live in harmony with your planet and she will love you back.  As idealistic as the statement sounds, if we could go back to the most basic of our human needs, the earth has provided all that we could ever need to survive.

Spend time outside. What do you really see around you?

Here are three things that I encourage you to do as a holder of possibility of life for many generations to come: 

1. Save a variety of seed. This is not a difficult thing to do. Could you find one plant that you particularly enjoy and commit to saving seed and creating a tradition around it? Take your family to the garden center, pick out an organic local variety, grow it at home and harvest the seeds (you can find all sorts of techniques online specific to the plant you choose) and grow them again next year! With patience you will watch life evolve in front of your very own eyes! Get excited about being a guardian of life. 
2. Learn more about the food system. Food doesn't come from a truck, a bag or a can. Learn where the things that end up on your plate came from. Wouldn't it be a beautiful day to purchase things that had stories rather than simply contents? Who grew your food? What is their story? Why are they doing it? When you do this with food, start to do it with other things such as your clothing, home goods etc. You will feel much better about purchases that you make! 
3. Spend more time in nature. Even if you don't believe in organic, non-gmo or even healthy dieting. No one can deny that spending time outside is heavenly. Take a walk in the woods, go for a hike, get in the water. Pay a little closer attention to what you see. Nature is not novelty, it is life. What can you gather from your experiences outside? Perhaps it will evoke some deeper questions. 

Thanks for your time beautiful people! Love and light all day, all night. xoxo 

Stop working on it.

In my previous post I spoke about skirting around the person we want to be. I challenged myself and readers to step into that person and realize that it is who you already are.

A reminder in Outer Sunset San Francisco that
 every moment you can begin again.

I can't tell you how many times I hear people say they are working on something. I am sure that you have too. You might not only have heard it, may you have said it yourself (I have said it!). Countless times I claimed I was working on being a better listener, a better lover, a better friend... but they were empty unquantifiable promises.  How can the people that we love trust that we are being our best and giving the best of ourselves to them when all we say is that we will work on it? I am not here to shame or call anyone disingenuous, but I have trouble believing myself and others with these statements.

What I have come to understand about saying that I was going to work on something was that I didn't want to work on it at that moment.  I was making an assumption that some day I would, or someday it would magically happen and become easier.  It meant I  genuinely thought that this was the ideal way of being, but that I wanted to do this in the future, not RIGHT NOW because it wasn't convenient and I didn't know how.  Saying that I was working on it was the lazy band-aid solution that would put my mind, as well as anyone else that I had let down- at ease... at least until the next time that it happened.

Wanting to work on something and actually doing it are very different realities.  Identifying desire to work on something implies that you are not already suited for it.  It suggests that there is work that has to be done before you can name yourself a great title.

I remember from my time working at a progressive company, one of the things that we learned in our communication series was to stop diminishing our power. We learned just how much power we were taking away from ourselves every time that we said we were "working" on something.  By saying we weren't already capabale of being great at all of these things meant that we didn't actually know who we were capable of being.

Since that day in 2009, nearly every single time that I have had a difficult time communicating with someone or felt that I had let someone down, I rememebered that it was a choice. Who am I going to choose to be in that moment? This requires great patience, understanding and compassion with yourself.  Self-awareness and ability to recognize and admit your shortcomings is vital to the process.

I now find myself sharing this lesson with people that trust me, echoing the great words of my teachers: you already are a great _____.

1. How to discover that you are already that better _________!
The fact that you are able to identify what it would mean to be a better ______ means that you are capable of choosing it. You already have all the pieces to the puzzle, now you just have to put it together. It feels weird and vulnerable because it requires you to bring your head and your heart together to create the communication and relationship that you know is possible.

Example: You are having an argument with your partner. You flex your self-awareness muscle and recognize the behavioral patterns that you are displaying: defensiveness, wanting to be right, shaming the other until they surrender into your power. Stop right here! Take a deep breath and decide what outcome you would like to see from the relationship, NOT THE INTERACTION.  

This is a crucial part to being the best _______.  In the moment you may choose wrong, but you have the ability to stop, apologize for not choosing the better option in the moment and recommit.  Here is how the dialogue might sound in the middle of the confrontation: Honey, I'm sorry. I realize that I have been fighting you out of wanting to be right. I am committed to making this relationship work for both of us and I want to treat you with the love that both you and I deserve. I still believe that I am right, but I am willing to put that aside for the sake of you and our relationship. I love you.

Hopefully that sounds pretty clear. If it doesn't that's okay, create your own dialogue but remember what you want at the end of the day for everyone.

2. Make the choice in the moment! 
Not everything you are "working" on is evident to the people around you. We all have internal dialogue and notice behaviors that we like or dislike. When we have the awareness to see that we are not being fully present with others or that we have a continual habit that we see holding us back, it is your personal responsibility to catch it.

3. Ask someone to hold you accountable. 
Accountability is huge, it is often the difference. See people spending lots of money on life coaches and therapists? It's for good reason! Most of us need that push and accountability to access our full potential.

Imagine what it would be like if we could hold ourselves accountable just as we hold others accountable. What is it that allows us to treat ourselves with no integrity and lack of commitment sometimes? Certain people are better at holding themselves accountable than others. These people often feel that mediocrity is worse than failure, I know because I am engaged to one of them! The accountability, standards of excellence and desire to thrive are remarkable, I believe these are behavioral traits of Olympic athletes and very successful business people. When you are in something you can't see the whole picture, this is when advice and observations from outsiders can truly elevate our awareness and strategy.

I am nowhere near that point in my life and I might not ever be, so instead I make observations of myself and ask loved ones and dear friends to call me out on bullshit when I am not doing what I said I was going to do! Even better, when I say I am going to work on it, they say "No- be it right now". Like that! It is an instant switch, from not listening to a great listener... simply by doing it!

4. Forgive yourself often. 
This is where "working on it" gets mixed up. If you focus on your ability to be, you will succeed most of the time, but this doesn't mean it is without err. If you didn't mess up from time to time you wouldn't be human. When you do make a mistake and you weren't listening or you were being self-serving, notice it choose to change and let go of it. You are still awesome it was just a momentary flub. It doesn't mean you are working on it, it means you messed up but you are great as ever. This mental switch was a huge gain for me, my self-confidence in being a better person sky rocketed and as a result my relationships were elevated.

What do you think?
What are you going to give up working on?