Vegan diet, vegan life

When I was in bi-lingual Montréal recently I quickly figured out the difference between végétarien (vegatarian) and végétalien (vegan) on menus. Except that I then realised it's not quite that simple and there is also a French word végan. I think I'm right in saying that végan goes beyond diet and refers more to lifestyle, avoiding... Continue Reading →

August 18, 2017 4

Hobson’s Choice

I visited my parents at the weekend. My mum, slightly freaked out by my new eating habits and unable to conceive of cooking a meal without meat or fish, booked us all in at a favourite local restaurant. There was much angsting over the menu, even on the internet before we left home. What would... Continue Reading →

August 15, 2017 4

Food on the go

Readers who know me in real life often ask me about what I'm eating now. I've written now and then about the shifts in eating habits that are occurring, and I know this intrigues them (as well as making socialising a little more difficult!). In the last 18 months I've gone from being staunchly omnivore,... Continue Reading →

December 30, 2016 4

Sunday is not the day of rest

Before Yoga found me and took a hold of me Sundays meant this: a lazy lie-in, followed by a cooked breakfast (with lots of bacon!), an afternoon nap, and then a slightly miserable evening involving alcohol in an abortive attempt to avoid thoughts of work the following morning. OK, so this is a slight exaggeration or simplification,... Continue Reading →

April 24, 2016 7

Springtime — the start of something

Spring is a great time of year for new beginnings. So much more so than the start of the calendar year, I think. New Year with its traditional guilt trip of resolution-making and self-improvement seems serious; springtime by contrast feels fun and optimistic. Turning over a new leaf in various ways (no pun intended) simply feels... Continue Reading →

March 27, 2016 0

Beginner brain and pomegranates

I'm guessing (from the wisdom of my two and a bit years!) that one of the secrets of a long-lasting yoga practice is to retain the 'beginner brain', to keep seeing things afresh, finding novelty in the familiar. Keeping it vital. It's a nice attitude to have in life too and I've been trying to... Continue Reading →

November 12, 2015 2

Zero Waste Week starts at lunchtime!

So I just found out it's zero waste week in UK, and some other European countries, starting tomorrow. The website calls for pledges -- so sign up here if you're game! I'd not heard of Zero Waste Week until recently, and I was initially a little put off by the name. Zero Waste? How can... Continue Reading →

September 6, 2015 5

Philosophy and Prosecco — the bookends of my week

It’s been a bit of a week of gritty conversations. Not bad conversations necessarily. Just some big ideas, some open questions, and maybe there’s a radical solution kicking about somewhere. In all cases only time will be the judge. These conversations have had a philosophical, even existential, quality: - what is the relationship between meditation... Continue Reading →