Here.

www.MelindaBarbosa.wordpress.com

Alignment.

Not the kind you get flat on your stomach at a chiropractor, like my friend Nikki assumed, but the kind of alignment where every step and thought in your day is put in motion through a purpose.  I search for alignment in outfit choices, hairstyles, home decor, and even in my food (i.e. this never-ending 30 Day Vegan Challenge).

In a constant state of self-improvement, I pine through Pinterest, articles from Oprah.com, and in the hundreds of blogs that I follow for the holy grail. In that never-ending search for a "better me," I seem to come up empty and with the same old me, just with clearer skin.



New shoes and a new bronzer (I am dying over Mac's Gold Deposit, fyi) are great temporary fixes, but soon I find myself at my desk or on the couch feeling unfulfilled. I took a couple of days off of work and threw some money down for a two night/three day stay at a hotel a few train stops from my house. I highly suggest this to anyone who, like me, is extravagant and self-absorbed.

Being alone gives me time to think. No distractions. No expectations. And only one question to answer: "What the FUCK am I doing with my life?"

Here are my answers, thus far:

1. Figuring shit out.
2. Taking selfies.
3. Eating more green stuff.
4. Growing my bangs out.

5. Getting my nails filled.
6. Reading articles.
7. Not following a writing schedule.
8. Helping babies.
9. Putting together a presentation for a national conference.
10. Fighting the patriarchy; one micro-aggression at a time.

What are you doing with your life?

Vegan Week 2

Technically 13 days. 

something blue.

trying something new.

Recipe: Vegan Girl

How to Make a (temporary)Vegan

1 cup of Impulsivity

1 cup of Too Many Documentaries on Netflix

3 tablespoons of Fear

A pinch of fandom for Jay Z and Beyonce 

1 teaspoon of some psychic wisdom

Stir them up and you've got a girl sitting on the porch of her rented vacation condo who makes the decision to go vegan. There really is no rational reason for someone to give up grilled cheeses and relish and mustard topped hot dogs when they don't have to. But I'll be honest, when I got my annual physical this past October, I was bracing myself for high blood pressure or early on-set diabetes. With a family history and my own personal love for cupcakes and caramel swirl in my Dunkin' Donuts coffee, I thought the lab results were going to have me searching for a coffin for an early death. 

I came away with a clean bill of health and I threw my hands to the gods. Fast forward a few months and a little investigation and I was ready to take on a new challenge. 

Impulsivity

Trying new shit is fun and entertaining. I'm not much for jumping off cliffs or moving halfway across the world, but trying a new lifestyle... is my thang. I'm only doing this for thirty days. I figure that is enough time to try it out, hate it, accept it, then move forward. 

Too Many Documentaries on Netflix

Chickens too fat to walk? Vegetables sprayed with something I can't pronounce to make them ripen? How do I avoid that? 

Fear

I still don't know what caused Victor's cancer. The doctors don't know. It was stomach cancer. Is it our air? Hair products? Cell phones? Food? Water? No one knows for sure. His death was horrible, depressing, and unbelievable. Yet, the idea that a relatively healthy 30 year old could be so sick is beyond terrifying. I don't think it's preventable and his sickness was not caused by something he did or didn't do, but something is killing us. Is it wrong to think that it might be the food?

Fandom

I dismissed Jay Z and Beyonce's 22 Day Vegan Challenge as some privilege laden activity, but what if it wasn't? What if the Illuminati had given them some secret knowledge about how to live forever? 

Psychic Wisdom

I visited a psychic in November who told me that I would meet my future husband at a farmer's market or somewhere with lots of produce. Ummm... veggies and a man? Sign me up.