Author Archives: Tracy Weber

Five Tips for a Happy and Healthy Plant-Based Thanksgiving

Hi all! Please welcome Vanessa Chamberlin to the Whole Life Blog today. A vegetarian Thanksgiving has been my tradition for well over a decade. I highly recommend it, and these tips can help you figure out how! Of course my yoga teacher/sleuth Kate is also vegetarian, so she would approve as well. Neither of us cooks, so please let us know how the recipe turns out!

Tracy

Thanksgiving is such a great holiday. We take time to be with our loved ones and be thankful for our relationships, our health, and our opportunities. It’s a time to celebrate the harvest and all of the wonderful flavors and colors and textures of autumnal foods – and the best part? All of the best fall foods are plant-based! And there are plenty of ways to celebrate and incorporate them into the holiday season.

With Thanksgiving approaching, I wanted to give some of my best holiday tips so that you can feel joyous about the holiday and celebrate what Thanksgiving means to you while still doing what feels good for your body.

Here are five tips for a happy and healthy Thanksgiving:

Have fun planning a menu. Don’t limit yourself by thinking only of traditional foods. If you’re cooking for a larger group and they’re expecting their holiday favorites, there are ways you can emulate those foods with a healthier recipe, like mashed cauliflower instead of mashed potatoes. But if your guests are adventurous, go outside the box! There are tons of amazing seasonal recipes you can make to celebrate harvest time without loading them full of meat and dairy, but you could also look to other cultural dishes to really explore the world in your menu.
Invite people who share your values. This might be easier said than done! It can be a fun way to recharge with people who actually share your values and will appreciate every second you put into planning and cooking for them. People are often busy visiting their families, but with many people living far away from loved ones, an invitation to a fun plant-based holiday gathering can be a great thing.
Start a new tradition. I love this! Traditions can be anything, whether it’s Frisbee in the park, watching a certain movie, or silly things like hiding something that everyone has to try and find. Have fun with it. If you’re not sure what to do, look up traditions of other cultures and use it as a teaching lesson for your kids.
Spend time with your loved ones creating memories. What may just be a silly song or movie time or a walk through a pumpkin patch today, could end up being one of our most cherished memories. Remember that the holidays aren’t just about food. It’s about spending time with your loved ones, celebrating the reason you can come together, and being thankful for what your blessings.
Take time for yourself! It’s not uncommon for us to spend so much time trying to make an enjoyable experience for our children and loved ones that we end up exhausted at the end of the day or weekend. Make sure that you have time to unwind. Get in a workout, meditate, and relax. Whether you enlist help making food or spend some time prepping for your meal in the days before, do what you need to do to keep from getting burned out and overscheduled during the holiday.

Keep in mind that your holiday can still incorporate your healthy habits. There’s no reason why post-Thanksgiving fun can’t be a walk around the block or an hour at the park. You can even pick up a football and play together! The most important thing is to take this time to recharge and take time to feel the joy of gratitude for your blessings, the things you’ve worked hard for, and the people who love you.

Here’s my favorite holiday recipe for Cauliflower Mash to get you inspired for your plant-based Thanksgiving!

Cauliflower Mash

• 1 lb. bag frozen or fresh cauliflower
• 1/4 cup fat-free soymilk
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp poultry seasoning
• 1 tsp nutritional yeast
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch
• 2 Tbsp water to mix with corn starch
• 1 Tbsp fresh parsley

In a pot, steam cauliflower for 10-12 minutes or until very soft. Drain well using a colander. In a saucepan, combine soymilk, garlic, 1/4 cup water, Italian seasoning, poultry seasoning and yeast over medium heat. When it begins to boil, slowly mix the cornstarch/water mixture into the sauce, stirring constantly until thickened.

When cauliflower is cool enough, squeeze as much water out as possible. Place the cauliflower in the processor or high-powered blender and blend for about a minute. Add sauce and fresh parsley to cauliflower and process until creamy and smooth. If it’s too thick, you may adjust the consistency by adding a little bit of soymilk. Makes 4 servings.

Vanessa Chamberlin is a Certified Holistic Health Practitioner and Lifestyle Coach and author of The Fire-Driven Life: How to Ignite the Fire of Self-Worth, Health, and Happiness with a Plant-Based Diet. For more information, please visit, www.vanessachamberlin.com and connect with her on Twitter, @vkchamberlin.

Home Again, Forever Changed

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I suspect that most of you already know, but I’ve spent most of the past two weeks unexpectedly out of town, and not for a fun reason.

Just before Christmas ten months ago, a nurse convinced my mother—who had refused to have a mammogram since her first one thirty years ago—to finally get the lump she’d been ignoring scanned. The mastectomy to remove the cancerous breast took place a few days later. A week after that, we learned that the cancer had spread to both of Mom’s lungs. Since her cancer—which we now knew was stage IV—was aggressive, she went through equally aggressive chemotherapy.

Who knew all of that would be the easy part?

Time went on; the roughest of the chemotherapy treatments were completed. Mom’s hair, fingernails, and toenails started growing back. About five weeks ago, we celebrated her second completely clear scan. We all breathed a sigh of relief knowing that we had more time, hopefully years.

A few days later, Mom started to act confused.

When she told me three weeks ago that the cancer had spread to her brain, she had already completed ten of her thirteen radiation treatments. I knew time was short, but I still thought we had it. At least a few months. I decided to spend her last Christmas with her.

Later that same night, she was hospitalized for a severe nosebleed. I won’t go into any more specifics other than to say that a few weeks after Mom’s clear scans, I found myself on an airplane to Montana with a single goal: get her out of the hospital so she could die at home.

If I’m honest, the week I spent getting her home and sharing her last days was beyond brutal. But I did find a few gifts. Someday I’ll write more about that time and the dichotomy that was my mother. For now, as I fly back to Seattle on my way home from her funeral, I mainly want to say thank you to the Whole Life Yoga teachers and teacher training students who have both helped me and had patience with me during the past two weeks. As I said at her funeral, the world permanently changed the day my mother was born. Mine permanently changed the day she died. I don’t know where any of this will lead me—yet—but I’m open to figuring it out.

To everyone reading this blog, I offer two learnings:

Life on this earth is a loaner, and we don’t know how long we can keep it. Live today as if it will end tomorrow.
Women, get your mammograms. I honestly don’t know if my mother’s story would have had a different ending with early detection, but at least she would have had a fighting chance. Life is too precious to waste due to embarrassment or fear. You owe yourself better than that.

To Mom: I’m sorry your life ended this way and that you never got to visit Hawaii or live in that little house in Seaside. Our relationship was never easy, for so many reasons. But I can say with absolute honesty, I loved you. You will be missed.

Tracy Weber

My newest mystery, KARMA’S A KILLER, is now available for pre-order from Amazon Barnes and Noble.

It’s a Goodreads Contest!

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Today’s blog article will be short, sweet, and to the point. I’m running a contest on Goodreads to give away three advanced, autographed copies of my most recent Downward Dog Mystery, Karma’s a Killer.

Enter to win at the link below, and good luck!

https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/159348-karma-s-a-killer

Good luck, and I hope you read and love it!

Tracy Weber

Every Day’s a Gift

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Every Day’s a Gift

I’ve thought about writing this blog post for years. I finally did it the other day while I was sitting at the vet with Tasha (the inspiration for my mystery series) and waiting for her to go in for an MRI. The lesson was powerful for me, and I hope it someday helps you, too. Then again, perhaps you’re smarter than I am and don’t need it. 😉

Tasha-dog recovering from her MRI with best buddy Teddy

Love comes to us in packages we don’t expect—some we may think we don’t even want.

Mine, as most of you know, lives in the form of a 100-pound German shepherd named Tasha. An animal who has changed my life in so many ways. An animal who is the inspiration for my mystery series. An animal who has connected me with some of the best people in my life. An animal without whom, I wouldn’t be writing to you today.

But our life together has been far from easy.

When she was four months old, Tasha started exhibiting significant health and behavior problems. In spite of the best veterinary care, four trainers and three animal behaviorists, by the time she was two, the problems had gotten worse. Euthanasia was mentioned more than once as a reasonable option.

I never considered it.

Then she hit age three, and we had a particularly bad day. I remember thinking that night—perhaps even muttering it out loud—that my life would be easier if Tasha died.

Tasha and the universe discussed it for two weeks, then decided to grant my wish.

The only noticeable symptom on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving eight years ago was that Tasha didn’t want to go on her afternoon walk. By six that evening, I cradled her head in my hands and told her I wasn’t mad at her anymore. At eight, I told my husband, “I have a bad feeling about this.” He thought she was fine, but didn’t argue. We took my lethargic-but-otherwise-healthy-looking dog to an emergency vet.

At nine, the emergency vet told me that Tasha’s spleen had twisted. If there was no cancer—a big if—Tasha had a fifty percent shot of surviving the surgery to remove it, and then a fifty percent shot of surviving the forty-eight hours after surgery.

Then she handed me a hospitalization and surgical estimate for an amount most people would pay for a used car and gave us a choice: pay and take our chances, or euthanize. Tasha wouldn’t live the night otherwise.

Euthanasia was not an option.

I collapsed sobbing outside the clinic, convinced that I had made this happen. That my stupid, not-even-true wish was going to take my dog’s life. My husband, being smarter than I, said something like, “Well, if you wished this, take it back!”

I never prayed so hard in my life.

By midnight, Tasha had obtained two blood transfusions so she’d be stable enough for surgery. At three a.m., I received a call saying that she had survived surgery. Forty-eight hours later, the vets let her come home and agreed that she would live provided there was no cancer. The cancer-free biopsy came back a few days later.

I could finally breathe again.

Why do I write about this? I will never forget that night or the gift of getting my girl back. She mellowed as she got older and the behavior issues lessoned significantly, but no matter how bad the day—and there have been a few bad ones since then—I have cherished my girl.

Every night I say a prayer thanking God, the universe, and whoever else is listening for giving her back to me. I know that every day I’ve had with her since then has been a gift. Each prayer ends with the mantra, “May Tasha have a long and happy life.”

We all have days that seem unbearably tough. Times our loved ones disappoint us. Times we disappoint ourselves. My challenge to each of you is to find gratitude—and express it—even on those days.

Every one of them is a gift.

Tracy Weber

Every Day’s a Gift

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Today is my weekly posting for Inkspot, the blog for authors of Midnight Ink. I’ve thought about writing this blog post for years. I finally did it the other day while I was sitting at the vet with Tasha (the inspiration for my mystery series) and waiting for her to go in for an MRI. The lesson was powerful for me, and I hope it someday helps you, too. Then again, perhaps you’re smarter than I am and don’t need it. 😉

http://midnightwriters.blogspot.com/2015/10/every-days-gift.html

Namaste

Tracy Weber

And if you want to show me some love, you can preorder my newest mystery, KARMA’S A KILLER, now at Amazon Barnes and Noble.

Yee haw, yippee, and yahooey!

Check out Tracy Weber’s author page for information about the Downward Dog Mysteries series. A KILLER RETREAT and MURDER STRIKES A POSE are available at book sellers everywhere

How Cool Is This! Yoga Dolls! These Ain’t no Barbies, Baby!

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Hi all! I have a number of things going on in my life right now that are demanding my attention, so today’s blog article will be short, though totally worth checking out.

Recently a Facebook friends sent me a link to an article, saying that there were finally yoga Barbie dolls. As it turns out, that statement was only partially true. The AZIAM Girlz are the world’s first yoga doll series, but they are not made by a major toy manufacturer, and it shows. The dolls have been created by Alanna Zabel, a yoga teacher who (among many other pursuits) teaches yoga workshops to young girls. The eight planned dolls will each be named after one of the 8 limbs of yoga, and 10% of the profits will go to the charity each doll is associated with.

Better yet, they can really bend and do asanas! From their website: “Each doll has been designed to move with full range of motion in her hips and knees – she moves just like you! She also has a built-in spinal extension to allow for forward and back bending”

Now of only I could get the manufacturer to dress them in Downward Dog Mysteries t-shirts. My favorites are the ones below, who look like three of the major characters in my Downward Dog Mystery series:

This one looks like Kate–stretching out for her walk with Bella

Wouldn’t this one be a great Rene? She’s a fashionista and everything!

Totally Tiffany–chillaxin’ at the beach

My one quibble is that there aren’t any male yogis in the line that I’ve seen, or German shepherd dogis (dog yogis), an error I hope they rectify in the future.

You can purchase or pre-order these lovelies at http://www.aziamgirlz.com/collections/the-worlds-first-yoga-doll. Even better, they’re running a Kickstarter campaign. It looks to me like they have a way to go to meet their funding goal, but I’m going to support them anyway. I think it’s awesome to have young girls play with such positive role models.

I hope some of you join me!

Namaste

Tracy Weber

And if you want to show me some love, you can preorder my newest mystery, KARMA’S A KILLER, now at Amazon Barnes and Noble.

Yee haw, yippee, and yahooey!

Come visit Whole Life Yoga in Seattle, and check out Tracy Weber’s author page for information about the Downward Dog Mysteries series. A KILLER RETREAT and MURDER STRIKES A POSE are available at book sellers everywhere

A Meditation to Find Joy

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We all have within us the ability to experience joy, if only we remember to look for it. The meditation below is one of my favorite tools for clients experiencing anxiety or depression. I recommend keeping a journal nearby, so you can write down thoughts, ideas, and commitments to yourself when you finish.

Sit comfortably, with your spine erect and the crown of your head floating up toward the ceiling. Sitting either in a chair or on the floor is fine, as long as you are physically comfortable.
Allow your eyes to close, or if this is too challenging, keep your eyes at “half mast” gazing quietly at a place below and in front of you.
Notice your breath—without intentionally trying to change it. First notice the warmth and coolness of the breath as it enters your nostrils. Notice the movement of your rib cage and belly. How does your spine move with each breath? What other sensations can you feel?
After you feel comfortable and relaxed, ask yourself the following question:
- What brings me joy?
Don’t try to audit or evaluate the answers that come to you. You may hear words, see images, feel sensations, or experience emotions. Allow whatever you experience to float across your consciousness.
After a few minutes, change the question to:
- How can I invite more joy into my life?
Again, there is no “right” response. Sit quietly with whatever comes to your attention.
If your attention wanders at any time during the meditation (and it will!) simply notice it, then invite your attention back to the sensation of the breath. When you feel ready, ask yourself the question again.
Continue this meditation for 10 – 15 minutes. Note any thoughts, ideas, or personal commitments in your practice journal.

I hope you enjoy the practice!

Namaste

Tracy Weber

And if you want to show me some love, you can preorder my newest mystery, KARMA’S A KILLER, now at Amazon Barnes and Noble.

Yee haw, yippee, and yahooey!

Sunsets, Suffering, and Finding Peace

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Why is it that every time I write about life’s suffering, I’m thinking about my dog? I adopted Tasha-dog eleven years ago this week. I was missing something in my life, though I wasn’t sure what, exactly. I had a lovely husband, a fulfilling career, four (yes four!) cats, and lots of friends.

But I was still lonely. I had been pining for a German shepherd for approximately thirty years, since my family rehomed the German shepherd of my childhood. My visions of Tasha were laughable, in hindsight. Perfectly behaved, she’s not. Healthy, she’s not. Cat loving…well, let’s not even go there. She was everything I thought I didn’t want, but ended up being exactly what I needed, and more.

She is the biggest source of joy in my life.

And the source of my most debilitating anxiety.

The other night, I was thinking about how many times Marc and I have almost lost her, due to the many diseases she’s had to live with or overcome. Her imminent death has been predicted countless times, by vets I usually ended up firing.

But now that she’s eleven years old in a breed whose average lifespan is ten to twelve, even I have to admit, she’s approaching the sunset time of her life. In the past three weeks, she’s been plagued by a neurological issue of unknown origin. It may resolve; it may not. It may stay the same as it is now, or it may decline until we have no choice but to end her suffering. We continue to do tests, but as of this writing, all is one big unknown.

Oddly enough, the most challenging part of this for me is that her neurological status cycles, and my mental health seems to cycle with it. One day she seems better, the next worse. One day I’m optimistic and happy, the next, devastated.

The Yoga Sutras clearly predict my suffering. You see, I’m attached to this girl. I hesitate to say she’s like my child, because that’s not how I think of her. But she is as important to me as any living being has ever been. And I will inevitably have to say goodbye. I knew that the day I adopted her. As crazy as it seems, I signed up for this.

My work now, as Tasha and I walk down this sunset path together, is to not be attached to the good days, because the good days won’t last forever. If I can somehow learn to be present without gripping the good, perhaps I’ll have more peace during the inevitable challenges.

Then again, maybe I won’t.

Maybe grief is simply part of life’s process. Another obstacle to overcome that helps us appreciate the blessings of life while we have them.

Regardless, the Sutras say that meditation helps overcome suffering, so it’s time for me to reignite my practice. If you care to join me, this is one of my favorites.

If you’re willing, please send Tasha happiness, her doctors wisdom, and me peace.

Namaste

Tracy Weber

And if you want to show me some love, you can preorder my newest mystery, KARMA’S A KILLER, now at Amazon Barnes and Noble.

Yee haw, yippee, and yahooey!

Mystery Writers of America Character Development Workshop: A Pictorial Review

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Today is my weekly posting for Inkspot, the blog for authors of Midnight Ink. This week I post a photo review of a recent workshop I attended called “The Art of Character Development.” I really did take the class, I swear! But was it before or after the Zombie slot machine ate my brains? You’ll have to read it to find out. Check it out, and please share!

http://midnightwriters.blogspot.com/2015/09/attending-mystery-writers-of-america.html

Namaste

Tracy Weber

And if you want to show me some love, you can preorder my newest mystery, KARMA’S A KILLER, now at Amazon Barnes and Noble.

Yee haw, yippee, and yahooey!

Check out Tracy Weber’s author page for information about the Downward Dog Mysteries series. A KILLER RETREAT and MURDER STRIKES A POSE are available at book sellers everywhere

What Color is Your Filter?

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A little over a year ago, my husband took some videos of me walking my dog to send to her hip surgeon, who practices in Idaho. Tasha, although limping, looked like her normal gorgeous self. I never looked worse. My voice sounded like two pieces of Styrofoam rubbing together, and my “rear view” was considerably more panoramic than I would have preferred. My Facebook friends assured me that the camera added ten pounds (I hoped it was twenty) and that my perception of my appearance was distorted.

Of course, they were right. Distorted perceptions are part of the human condition. Before we are born, the filters of our minds are clear. Unclouded, if you will. But as we mature and experience life, our minds become conditioned. The yoga teachings equate that conditioning to seeing the world through one of three quartz crystals.

The Smoky Quartz Crystal. The mind that sees through a smoky quartz crystal perceives the world as darker than reality. The Debbie Downer of minds, for all of you Saturday Night Live fans. In my smoky quartz crystal mind, my rear end grows larger; my voice, more screechy; my dog’s limp, more pronounced. The smoky quartz mind is prone to depression, anxiety, and negative thinking.

The Rose Quartz Crystal. The mind that sees through a rose quartz crystal, on the other hand, sees the world as more optimistic, colorful, and charmed than reality. The Pollyanna of minds. Seeing through a rose quartz crystal inevitably results in disappointment. We ignore risk and postpone appropriate action. If I saw that same video through a rose quartz filter, I might missed my dog’s obvious pain and not taken action to help her.

The Clear Quartz Crystal. The mind that sees the world through a clear quartz crystal sees things as they are. No better, no worse; no attachment, no fear. When we experience life through a clear quartz crystal, we are grounded enough to see the truth without being derailed by it. We experience life as it is, in this moment, free from the conditioning of our past.

Most people think yoga is about stretching your body. Yoga’s true purpose is clarifying your mind. What color is your filter? If your answer is anything other than looking-glass clear, yoga can help.

Namaste

Tracy Weber

And if you want to show me some love, you can preorder my newest mystery, KARMA’S A KILLER, now at Amazon Barnes and Noble.

Yee haw, yippee, and yahooey!

Tracy Weber – Whole Life Blog

Yoga, dogs, and mysteries… what could be more fun?

Author Archives: Tracy Weber

Five Tips for a Happy and Healthy Plant-Based Thanksgiving

Home Again, Forever Changed

It’s a Goodreads Contest!

Every Day’s a Gift

Every Day’s a Gift

Every Day’s a Gift

How Cool Is This! Yoga Dolls! These Ain’t no Barbies, Baby!

A Meditation to Find Joy

Sunsets, Suffering, and Finding Peace

Mystery Writers of America Character Development Workshop: A Pictorial Review

What Color is Your Filter?