12:15pm
So apparently my Dad is reading this blog. He e-mailed me this morning and said he was concerned. While very sweet and daddy-like, I wish people wouldn't worry about me or give me those looks when they find out what I'm doing. Fasting is definitely a departure from the "norm". Not eating for an extended amount of time does sound extremely unheathly- and it is if it's not done properly! To all of the critics and skeptics out there: this is something that I chose to do for my health after doing quite a bit of research and thinking. People have been fasting safely for thousands of years for health, spiritual and religious reasons. I don't expect you to read this blog and jump right into your own fast- do more research than just reading Accidentally Awesome! There's a huge amount of material out there- in print and on the internet. In my research, I have discovered that there are a lot of differing opinions on certain aspects of fasting- so be critical when you do your own reading. Not everything out there on the internet is good information of course.
I thankfully also have many many friends who have fasted in the past, and they've been a great resource and watchdog for me. I plan on continuing this blog through the process of breaking the fast, so you can all see how I recover and handle food again. While the fast has not been the easiest thing I've ever done, it hasn't been all that hard either. It's amazing how after the first few days you lose your hunger! I feel so empowered by this experience, too. I know now that I have control over myself I didn't know I had. It's a cool feeling to know that I am powerful!!
172.8->171.6
Friday, October 16, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Fasting Blog- Day 9
12:35pm
Yuck... it's confimed: I have bad breath. My gal pal at work said she was reading my blog last night and read the part about my icky mouth. She told me that she noticed some pretty funky breath yesterday. I think I can feel it being nasty right now. Gosh, I need to get those on-the-go toothbrushes. This afternoon, I promise!
I had another tiring walk to work this morning. I think it's getting harder every day. It's really the stairs that get me. I'm one of those people who can't stand the slugs who "ride" the escalator instead of walking up them. How lazy can someone be??? I have found myself longing for the easy way up the stairs this week- I get so winded by the time I get to the top of a single flight. Go figure- both escalators at BOTH T stations I go to every day are under repair!! Sigh.
Well, at least I'm nearing the homestretch here. My original goal was to make it through Monday, and then break the fast on Tuesday morning. Unless I get ill over the weekend, I'll try to stick to that goal. That will end up being 13 days total: 3 days of juice fasting at the beginning to ease into the process then 10 days of water fasting. The weather forecast for the weekend looks crummy so I'm not sure what I'm going to do to fill my time. Last weekend went smoothly because I had stuff to do. We'll see how things shake out.
173.4->172.8
10:05pm
Loooonnnnngggg day. My dogs are tired. I ended walking quite a bit today. I got those "Wisp" on-the-go toothbrushes finally, and y'know- they didn't really kill my monster breath nor did they even taste good. AND they cost $9 for a 16-pack. Not so thrilled there. I went to a talk at Harvard, and my friend dropped me off by the Harvard T station. I was already to cross the street to go down to the subway, but I turned around and there it was: The Harvard Coop. Ahhhh!!!!! I got sucked in, and I bought another vegan cookbook. Haha. 1000 Vegan Recipes. Mmm... it was really the page on lasagna that sold me. :) BED.
Yuck... it's confimed: I have bad breath. My gal pal at work said she was reading my blog last night and read the part about my icky mouth. She told me that she noticed some pretty funky breath yesterday. I think I can feel it being nasty right now. Gosh, I need to get those on-the-go toothbrushes. This afternoon, I promise!
I had another tiring walk to work this morning. I think it's getting harder every day. It's really the stairs that get me. I'm one of those people who can't stand the slugs who "ride" the escalator instead of walking up them. How lazy can someone be??? I have found myself longing for the easy way up the stairs this week- I get so winded by the time I get to the top of a single flight. Go figure- both escalators at BOTH T stations I go to every day are under repair!! Sigh.
Well, at least I'm nearing the homestretch here. My original goal was to make it through Monday, and then break the fast on Tuesday morning. Unless I get ill over the weekend, I'll try to stick to that goal. That will end up being 13 days total: 3 days of juice fasting at the beginning to ease into the process then 10 days of water fasting. The weather forecast for the weekend looks crummy so I'm not sure what I'm going to do to fill my time. Last weekend went smoothly because I had stuff to do. We'll see how things shake out.
173.4->172.8
10:05pm
Loooonnnnngggg day. My dogs are tired. I ended walking quite a bit today. I got those "Wisp" on-the-go toothbrushes finally, and y'know- they didn't really kill my monster breath nor did they even taste good. AND they cost $9 for a 16-pack. Not so thrilled there. I went to a talk at Harvard, and my friend dropped me off by the Harvard T station. I was already to cross the street to go down to the subway, but I turned around and there it was: The Harvard Coop. Ahhhh!!!!! I got sucked in, and I bought another vegan cookbook. Haha. 1000 Vegan Recipes. Mmm... it was really the page on lasagna that sold me. :) BED.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Fasting Blog- Day 8
11:15am
I feel pretty great this morning. I slept a lot again last night, and I didn't want to get get out of bed this morning because I was so comfy (plus it's effin cold this morning outside). My boss said I look radiant today. I feel kinda radiant! I'll tell you what's NOT radiant: my mouth. My mouth is icky icky icky. There's been some sort of chemistry shift in my mouth, and I don't like it. I don't think I have bad breath- it just has a funny consistency/texture. I've never brushed my teeth so many times a day in my life. I should go get those new on-the-go toothbrushes that don't require any water.
I've been thinking a lot about how I'm going to break the fast. I think I'm coming up with a good plan. It basically involves a very lengthy process (a week or longer) of phasing foods back into my diet. I plan on continuing my blog to talk about that process. The first food I plan to eat: 1 kiwi... with a spoon. :)
175.4->173.4
5:10pm
Let's Talk About My Pee-Pee!
I will try not to be gross. Firstly, I was surprised to discover that the color of my pee-pee remains a rather deep yellow despite the amount of water I'm drinking. Today, I got to work in the morning, and I probably drank around 2 liters of water over the course of the day. I was a little surprised (this happened yesterday, too) that I didn't have an urge to go to the bathroom until 4pm or so. When I did go, though, Katy wuz racehorse. I usually have to pee-pee every 20 minutes when I drink so much water in a day. I'm not sure why this has happened the last couple of days. I will ponder it. Also, I noticed in my racehorse-like alleviation today that there was also little tiny bits of stuff in my pee-pee. I can only imagine that this has to be crap my body is flushing out. It's kinda of interesting to see this stuff happen!
I feel pretty great this morning. I slept a lot again last night, and I didn't want to get get out of bed this morning because I was so comfy (plus it's effin cold this morning outside). My boss said I look radiant today. I feel kinda radiant! I'll tell you what's NOT radiant: my mouth. My mouth is icky icky icky. There's been some sort of chemistry shift in my mouth, and I don't like it. I don't think I have bad breath- it just has a funny consistency/texture. I've never brushed my teeth so many times a day in my life. I should go get those new on-the-go toothbrushes that don't require any water.
I've been thinking a lot about how I'm going to break the fast. I think I'm coming up with a good plan. It basically involves a very lengthy process (a week or longer) of phasing foods back into my diet. I plan on continuing my blog to talk about that process. The first food I plan to eat: 1 kiwi... with a spoon. :)
175.4->173.4
5:10pm
Let's Talk About My Pee-Pee!
I will try not to be gross. Firstly, I was surprised to discover that the color of my pee-pee remains a rather deep yellow despite the amount of water I'm drinking. Today, I got to work in the morning, and I probably drank around 2 liters of water over the course of the day. I was a little surprised (this happened yesterday, too) that I didn't have an urge to go to the bathroom until 4pm or so. When I did go, though, Katy wuz racehorse. I usually have to pee-pee every 20 minutes when I drink so much water in a day. I'm not sure why this has happened the last couple of days. I will ponder it. Also, I noticed in my racehorse-like alleviation today that there was also little tiny bits of stuff in my pee-pee. I can only imagine that this has to be crap my body is flushing out. It's kinda of interesting to see this stuff happen!
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Fasting Blog- Day 7
10:40am
I slept like a baby last night. I keep getting these compliments about my skin. People are saying that I look really tanned or bright. I did go to Hawaii earlier this year and got the best tan of my life, but I think the fast is actually making my skin look nicer.
The walk from the T stop to work today was a bit of a challenge. The last thing I have to do before getting to my office is to go up a flight of stairs. I was really winded by the time I got to my office- more so than at any point yesterday. My muscles are still pretty achy. I'm going to ask my neighbor (massage therapist) if she can help me out with some body work today or tomorrow. I read something about people having muscle tightness, and it's because of the build-up of toxins in muscle tissue- especially in the lower legs. That seems to make sense.
I'm back at work today, and I'm glad to be busy. We'll see how the day goes.
176.0->175.4
6:55pm
I did really well at work today. My tummy has been feeling a little oogey late this afternoon. It's not a hungry feeling... just an oogey feeling. I did another saline wash when I got home, and it was the most productive one yet. I think I'm going to sleep well again tonight. I'm beat.
I slept like a baby last night. I keep getting these compliments about my skin. People are saying that I look really tanned or bright. I did go to Hawaii earlier this year and got the best tan of my life, but I think the fast is actually making my skin look nicer.
The walk from the T stop to work today was a bit of a challenge. The last thing I have to do before getting to my office is to go up a flight of stairs. I was really winded by the time I got to my office- more so than at any point yesterday. My muscles are still pretty achy. I'm going to ask my neighbor (massage therapist) if she can help me out with some body work today or tomorrow. I read something about people having muscle tightness, and it's because of the build-up of toxins in muscle tissue- especially in the lower legs. That seems to make sense.
I'm back at work today, and I'm glad to be busy. We'll see how the day goes.
176.0->175.4
6:55pm
I did really well at work today. My tummy has been feeling a little oogey late this afternoon. It's not a hungry feeling... just an oogey feeling. I did another saline wash when I got home, and it was the most productive one yet. I think I'm going to sleep well again tonight. I'm beat.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Fasting Blog- Day 6
11:20am
I had vivid dreams again last night. I dreamed that I was eating melon and orange slices to break my fast, but it was only Day 5, and I hadn't intended on breaking the fast so early. I was a little distraught that I had given up so early without really intending to. The orange slices tasted sooooo good. :)
Two physical changes to mention... My mouth feels icky. There is definitely a change in my mouth chemistry- I might have really bad breath, but I can't smell it. It seems drier than usual. Brushing my teeth and tongue works, but only for a while. Also, I keep finding little red bumps on my torso that last for a day or so. I can only imagine that these are formed by the toxins leaving my body.
I felt a tiny bit hungry last night, but I feel great this morning. I'm going on a Boston adventure today. I'm heading to Downtown Crossing to do a little bit of shopping. I've got the day off, and I really don't want to watch TV all day.
Officially ten pounds down since the start and two more since yesterday! 178.2->176.0
3:15pm
I spent the afternoon tooling around Boston, and I found myself getting super tired by the end. I literally shopped til I dropped. haha. I found myself in Borders looking at vegan and raw cookbooks, and they didn't really make me hungry. I'm headed out for another walk in the cemetery with friends now. I probably don't have the energy for it right now, but it's a gorgeous day, and I want to spend the time with my friends.
I did another saline wash when I got home. Boy does it feel weird. You can really feel the saline working its way up your system. Interesting sensation. I recommend it. :)
I had vivid dreams again last night. I dreamed that I was eating melon and orange slices to break my fast, but it was only Day 5, and I hadn't intended on breaking the fast so early. I was a little distraught that I had given up so early without really intending to. The orange slices tasted sooooo good. :)
Two physical changes to mention... My mouth feels icky. There is definitely a change in my mouth chemistry- I might have really bad breath, but I can't smell it. It seems drier than usual. Brushing my teeth and tongue works, but only for a while. Also, I keep finding little red bumps on my torso that last for a day or so. I can only imagine that these are formed by the toxins leaving my body.
I felt a tiny bit hungry last night, but I feel great this morning. I'm going on a Boston adventure today. I'm heading to Downtown Crossing to do a little bit of shopping. I've got the day off, and I really don't want to watch TV all day.
Officially ten pounds down since the start and two more since yesterday! 178.2->176.0
3:15pm
I spent the afternoon tooling around Boston, and I found myself getting super tired by the end. I literally shopped til I dropped. haha. I found myself in Borders looking at vegan and raw cookbooks, and they didn't really make me hungry. I'm headed out for another walk in the cemetery with friends now. I probably don't have the energy for it right now, but it's a gorgeous day, and I want to spend the time with my friends.
I did another saline wash when I got home. Boy does it feel weird. You can really feel the saline working its way up your system. Interesting sensation. I recommend it. :)
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Fasting Blog- Day 5
2:30pm
My body felt a lot better this morning, and I slept well last night- despite a couple of bad dreams. I also didn't have light-headedness and nausea like yesterday... AND It's a gorgeous day in Boston! I walked to CVS on Centre Street (taking the longer, scenic route) to grab a couple of things. I probably walked a total of 2+ miles, and I definitely felt beat afterwards. I've been having the most discomfort in my calves and lower back- tightness in my calves and achiness in my lower back. I'm not sure what to do to help that- maybe some stretching. I'll try that later. I'm still drinking lots of water and fasting tea. I think the tea helps me to feel human through this. I'm used to drinking a lot of water, but when it's really the only thing I'm consuming, it's nice to have that flavor and warm in my mouth a few times a day.
So I took the plunge (haha) and did a saline wash today. I have to say- it really wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. It was really easy to administer (even by myself), and it was pretty effective. I won't gross you out with much more detail than that. I heard that you really need to do this if you want to get the most out of a fast. The stuff that is stuck in there is full of toxins, and you can take a huge load off your system by cleaning it out. My friend said that he was feeling pretty ill while fasting, but after he did a couple of saline washes, he felt much much better. I got the dual-pack so I'll do it again tomorrow.
180.8->178.2 This is the first time I've been below 180 since I can remember! My big goal will be to keep all this off once I start eating again.
My body felt a lot better this morning, and I slept well last night- despite a couple of bad dreams. I also didn't have light-headedness and nausea like yesterday... AND It's a gorgeous day in Boston! I walked to CVS on Centre Street (taking the longer, scenic route) to grab a couple of things. I probably walked a total of 2+ miles, and I definitely felt beat afterwards. I've been having the most discomfort in my calves and lower back- tightness in my calves and achiness in my lower back. I'm not sure what to do to help that- maybe some stretching. I'll try that later. I'm still drinking lots of water and fasting tea. I think the tea helps me to feel human through this. I'm used to drinking a lot of water, but when it's really the only thing I'm consuming, it's nice to have that flavor and warm in my mouth a few times a day.
So I took the plunge (haha) and did a saline wash today. I have to say- it really wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. It was really easy to administer (even by myself), and it was pretty effective. I won't gross you out with much more detail than that. I heard that you really need to do this if you want to get the most out of a fast. The stuff that is stuck in there is full of toxins, and you can take a huge load off your system by cleaning it out. My friend said that he was feeling pretty ill while fasting, but after he did a couple of saline washes, he felt much much better. I got the dual-pack so I'll do it again tomorrow.
180.8->178.2 This is the first time I've been below 180 since I can remember! My big goal will be to keep all this off once I start eating again.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Fasting Blog- Day 4
11:45am
Whoa... woke up this morning and was really light-headed. I became a little nauseous while putting on my make-up. I've had some water, and I'm making some tea. I'm feeling a little better, but I hope to be more recovered in the next half hour before I have to go out for the afternoon (Tosca Live in HD... rock!!). Breathing deeply seems to help a lot.
181.8->180.8 this morning
6:35pm
Thankfully, I recovered from my illness this morning pretty quickly. I felt fine by the time Chris arrived to go with me to the opera, and I continue to feel good now. My friend Chris also recently did a fast, so it was great to talk to him about his experiences. He has recommended daily enemas. We'll see if I do that. ;) I also thought that maybe I would spend the money I'm saving on food this week on going to a spa for a professional high-colonic. I'll think about it.
I'm still not feeling hungry. I do have a strong reaction when I smell food, though. Food smells totally awesome everywhere. While I don't feel sick like I did this morning, I definitely feel weird. I think it's a little like an out-of-body experience.
Chris and I went for a walk in the cemetery when we got back from the opera, and I was surprised to find myself feeling a little winded, and I had very tight calf muscles. I'm the girl who can walk 4 miles without breaking a sweat. It was strange to have such a light walk be so taxing. I also have some muscle pain in my back.
I'm planning on a trip into Boston to see my school's wind ensemble play tonight. I figure I should stay active while not being too physical. Another concert sounds like a great idea.
11:50pm
Exhausted. I did a lot for a gal on a fast. My muscles are very sore as I'm getting into bed tonight. Still no hunger. I hope the muscle pain won't keep me from sleeping well tonight.
Whoa... woke up this morning and was really light-headed. I became a little nauseous while putting on my make-up. I've had some water, and I'm making some tea. I'm feeling a little better, but I hope to be more recovered in the next half hour before I have to go out for the afternoon (Tosca Live in HD... rock!!). Breathing deeply seems to help a lot.
181.8->180.8 this morning
6:35pm
Thankfully, I recovered from my illness this morning pretty quickly. I felt fine by the time Chris arrived to go with me to the opera, and I continue to feel good now. My friend Chris also recently did a fast, so it was great to talk to him about his experiences. He has recommended daily enemas. We'll see if I do that. ;) I also thought that maybe I would spend the money I'm saving on food this week on going to a spa for a professional high-colonic. I'll think about it.
I'm still not feeling hungry. I do have a strong reaction when I smell food, though. Food smells totally awesome everywhere. While I don't feel sick like I did this morning, I definitely feel weird. I think it's a little like an out-of-body experience.
Chris and I went for a walk in the cemetery when we got back from the opera, and I was surprised to find myself feeling a little winded, and I had very tight calf muscles. I'm the girl who can walk 4 miles without breaking a sweat. It was strange to have such a light walk be so taxing. I also have some muscle pain in my back.
I'm planning on a trip into Boston to see my school's wind ensemble play tonight. I figure I should stay active while not being too physical. Another concert sounds like a great idea.
11:50pm
Exhausted. I did a lot for a gal on a fast. My muscles are very sore as I'm getting into bed tonight. Still no hunger. I hope the muscle pain won't keep me from sleeping well tonight.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Fasting Blog- Day 3
10:45am
So I got home last night after walking home (4 miles) and was pretty darn exhausted. I got into bed with the cat and watched a movie. I fully intended to go upstairs to my neighbor's place to watch the Red Sox playoff game, but I fell asleep by 9pm. It turns out that I didn't want to watch that game anyway- our Sox were shut out 5-0. Grrr...I woke up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. Twas not clear piss- even though I drank sooooooo much water yesterday. I betcha that is a lot of bodily junk being expelled. :)
I woke up this morning a little groggy- probably because I had slept so long and erratically. I've had a few little hunger pangs this morning, but nothing that doesn't go away in a couple of moments once I turn my attention away from it. Today is still supposed to be a juice/orange day. I'm waiting to see how work goes- whether I'll actually need it today. Time will tell.
I lost another 2+ pounds since yesterday: 184.4->181.8
3:45pm
I'm almost at the end of my work day before a three-day weekend. I think I'm ready to not have any more juice (not that I've been drinking much of it anyway- only one 6oz cup earlier). I was just thinking to myself how fasting would be easier at home where I can relax, veg-out and not be responsible for much. However, just last night I was thinking how much easier it would be to be at work where I have stuff to keep myself occupied! I dunno. I'll just have to find ways to keep mentally busy this weekend while taking it easy physically. Maybe I'll work on some more paintings this weekend.
Karl, my awesome boss, asked me what I was doing for lunch today, and I reluctantly told him I was fasting (reluctantly because I've gotten such negative reactions from people so far). Karl, however, seemed pleasantly surprised! He has done them in the past. He even produced a bag of Yogi Fasting tea from his office, and I showed him that I already had lots of it! It was nice to finally come in contact with someone else who understands the experience.
6:15pm
I had considered walking home again today, but as I was packing up for the day, my knees still ached from running last week and my lower back was sore (no apparent reason). I decided to listen to my body and take the train home instead. Watching Walk the Line in bed.
6:15pm
I had considered walking home again today, but as I was packing up for the day, my knees still ached from running last week and my lower back was sore (no apparent reason). I decided to listen to my body and take the train home instead. Watching Walk the Line in bed.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Fasting Blog- Day 2
11:50am
Everything is going pretty well. I got a box of Healthy Fasting tea (Yogi Tea) and a bottle of low-sodium vegetable juice from Whole Foods on the way home. Last night I had a cup of the Get Regular Yogi tea thinking it might be good to flush out whatever is in my system, but even after having some cramps in the late evening, nothing ever happened. I suppose there is nothing in there to flush out. I've got one more bag of that tea which I'll drink tonight. I also had a mug of the vegetable juice. It was pretty hearty... for juice. I think it helped me get through the evening.
When I woke up this morning, I didn't feel hungry at all. The Subway sure smelled good as I walked by, but I guess is always smells good in the morning! I've had one glass of juice this morning and some of the fasting tea. I started feeling a little funny in the last hour- dizzy and tingly. I should probably get up an walk around the building. Oh, and the scale read 3 fewer pounds this morning. (187.4 -> 184.4)
1:00pm
I'm already looking at what I will break my fast with. Is that bad? It's not like I'm planning on a cheeseburger and fries- I am a vegan after all! I guess I'm curious if there are still kinds of vegan food that should be avoided. I'm looking at eating mostly raw for at least the first day: tomato & basil salad, my homemade guacamole with some kind of healthy cracker, Bananas, valencia oranges, etc. I'm going for the more alkaline foods. I really don't want to gain back the weight I'll lose. I'm going to try to jump right back on the horse with my runs... maybe I'll wait until the second day of breaking the fast.
I do feel pretty good, and I'm planning on walking home today (~4 miles). I'm still on juice so I figured that such a long walk will still go okay. If I end up not feeling good, I can always jump on the train.
2:35pm
I'm feeling anxious about getting started on the water-only phase. I shouldn't think of the small amounts of juice as "cheating". I need to see it more as "preparing" for the rest of this experience. It will probably make the rest of it easier! I should embrace this. I'm also on my third cup of fasting tea today. It helps to squash the oral fixation... so much more effective than water. The box says you can drink like 10 cups of this stuff a day if you want. I'm reusing tea bags anyway.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Fasting Blog- Day 1
2:45pm
I decided to try a fast. I had read about their benefits in the past but had never actually tried one. I have decided to start off with a juice fast for 3 days (through Friday), and then I will switch to a solely water fast this weekend. I still have some good organic valencia oranges that I don't want to waste, so the plan is to eat one orange today, tomorrow and Friday and drink the juice to ease myself into this. I have a couple of bottles of organic anti-oxidant-rich juice from whole foods for work. I think I will stop there again on the way home and pick up a bottle of juice for the house plus some herbal tea. It seems to me that satisfying a food craving might be alleviated by the making and drinking of tea. I've been feeling hungry, and I've been trying not to think about it too much. I'm drinking water hoping it helps. I have also been a little sensitive to food smells today- I feel like I'm smelling everything. I'm a little worried about when I get home- about being bored and wanting to cook.
3:45pm
I just went to Whole Foods with Ashley- she wanted a snack. I saw all sorts of foods I'd like to eat right now, but I had a thought: I will eventually be able to indulge in bread, fruit, cupcakes, whatever again! Just not right now. It's not that I won't eat anything ever again! That made me feel better. Fasting Blog- Introduction
When I decided to go vegan earlier this year, I had read several books that mentioned the benefits of fasting. The idea is that your body uses a huge amount of energy on the digestive process. If you take away that task, then the body goes to work cleaning out all the crap! The most compelling argument/explanation of the benefits compares fasting to sleeping:
I found that very interesting. Also, think of the work "breakfast". In the morning, you break your nightly fast with food in the morning! I've also been eating extremely healthily lately and exercising a lot, but the weight loss has stopped- I really don't think it should have! I'm hoping that fasting will kick my body into gear.
So here it is... a brief description of what I'm doing. Here is my fasting goal:
Wednesday October 7-Friday October 9: Juice Fast (3 Days)
Saturday October 10-Monday October 19: Water Fast (10 Days)
Tuesday October 20: Break the fast with juice, fruit, raw foods
Wednesday October 21: More regular food, first day of rigorous exercise
The following posts will chronicle my successes or failures. Wish me luck!
If you're interesting in more information on the benefits, facts & myths about fasting, please check out these websites:
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Could this be the first solar activity of Cycle 24? I hope so!
The solar physics community is abuzz this week. No, there haven't been any great eruptions or solar storms. The source of the excitement is a modest knot of magnetism that popped over the sun's eastern limb on Dec. 11th, pictured below in a pair of images from the orbiting Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO).
It may not look like much, but "this patch of magnetism could be a sign of the next solar cycle," says solar physicist David Hathaway of the Marshall Space Flight Center. For more than a year, the sun has been experiencing a lull in activity, marking the end of Solar Cycle 23, which peaked with many furious storms in 2000--2003.
"Solar minimum is upon us," he says.
Above: From SOHO, a UV-wavelength image of the sun and a map showing positive (white) and negative (black) magnetic polarities. The new high-latitude active region is magnetically reversed, marking it as a harbinger of a new solar cycle.
The big question now is, when will the next solar cycle begin? It could be starting now! "New solar cycles always begin with a high-latitude, reversed polarity sunspot," explains Hathaway. "Reversed polarity " means a sunspot with opposite magnetic polarity compared to sunspots from the previous solar cycle. "High-latitude" refers to the sun's grid of latitude and longitude. Old cycle spots congregate near the sun's equator. New cycle spots appear higher, around 25 or 30 degrees latitude. The region that appeared on Dec. 11th fits both these criteria. It is high latitude (24 degrees N) and magnetically reversed.
Just one problem: There is no sunspot. So far the region is just a bright knot of magnetic fields. If, however, these fields coalesce into a dark sunspot, scientists are ready to announce that Solar Cycle 24 has officially begun. Many forecasters believe Solar Cycle 24 will be big and intense. Peaking in 2011 or 2012, the cycle to come could have significant impacts on telecommunications, air traffic, power grids and GPS systems. (And don't forget the Northern Lights!) In this age of satellites and cell phones, the next solar cycle could make itself felt as never before.
The furious storms won't start right away, however. Solar cycles usually take a few years to build to a frenzy and Cycle 24 will be no exception. "We still have some quiet times ahead," says Hathaway. Meanwhile, all eyes are on a promising little active region. Will it become the first sunspot of a new solar cycle?
Stay tuned!
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Monday, December 10, 2007
Teddy? WTF???
So I was cleaning my room tonight, and I found my old teddy bear, "Teddy". I looked at him and thought, "What the hell happened to you???"
Let me tell you a couple of things about this teddy bear. First off... I still remember the first time I saw it. We were at a craft fair or flea market- something like that- and from the moment I laid eyes on Teddy... I knew I had to have him. The next thing I remember is throwing a complete hissy fit at my parents until they they agreed that it was worth $15 for me to shut up.
One more silly fun fact about me and teddy... I once tried playing hide-and-go-seek with just me and teddy. I hid him in the chest by our front door. I didn't find him again for over a month. What was my IQ at that age?? haha
I remember one incident for sure... my cousin's golden retriever, Sandy, got a hold of him once at the Cape house and gave him a good lickin'. However, WHEN THE FUCK DID HE GET AN AUTOPSY, HOW AND WHY???
Ideas? Theories? I'd love to hear them. Perhaps Teddy's sad history is buried deep in my subconscious... along with other childhood memories!!!
I'm giving a special award to whoever comes up with the best story!!!! (submissions due via blog comment 12/31/2007 11:59pm)
Monday, December 3, 2007
Geminid Meteor Shower This Week!! Go outside and look up!!
Mark your calendar: The best meteor shower of 2007 peaks on Friday, December 14th.
"It's the Geminid meteor shower," says NASA astronomer Bill Cooke of the Marshall Space Flight Center. "Start watching on Thursday evening, Dec. 13th, around 10 pm local time," he advises. "At first you might not see very many meteors—but be patient. The show really heats up after midnight and by dawn on Friday, Dec. 14th, there could be dozens of bright meteors per hour streaking across the sky."
The Geminids are not ordinary meteors. While most meteor showers come from comets, Geminids come from an asteroid—a near-Earth object named 3200 Phaethon. How does an asteroid make a meteor shower? Comets do it by evaporating. When a comet flies close to the sun, intense heat vaporizes the comet’s "dirty ice" resulting in high-speed jets of comet dust that spew into interplanetary space. When a speck of this comet dust hits Earth's atmosphere traveling ~100,000 mph, it disintegrates in a bright flash of light—a meteor! Asteroids, on the other hand, don't normally spew dust into space—and therein lies the mystery. Where did Phaethon's meteoroids come from? One possibility is a collision. Maybe it bumped against another asteroid. A collision could have created a cloud of dust and rock that follows Phaethon around in its orbit. Such collisions, however, are not very likely.
If this scenario is correct, Phaethon-the-comet may have produced many rich streams of dust that spent hundreds or thousands of years drifting toward Earth until the first Geminid meteors appeared during the US Civil War. Since then, Geminids have been a regular shower peaking every year in mid-December.
"It's the Geminid meteor shower," says NASA astronomer Bill Cooke of the Marshall Space Flight Center. "Start watching on Thursday evening, Dec. 13th, around 10 pm local time," he advises. "At first you might not see very many meteors—but be patient. The show really heats up after midnight and by dawn on Friday, Dec. 14th, there could be dozens of bright meteors per hour streaking across the sky."
The Geminids are not ordinary meteors. While most meteor showers come from comets, Geminids come from an asteroid—a near-Earth object named 3200 Phaethon. How does an asteroid make a meteor shower? Comets do it by evaporating. When a comet flies close to the sun, intense heat vaporizes the comet’s "dirty ice" resulting in high-speed jets of comet dust that spew into interplanetary space. When a speck of this comet dust hits Earth's atmosphere traveling ~100,000 mph, it disintegrates in a bright flash of light—a meteor! Asteroids, on the other hand, don't normally spew dust into space—and therein lies the mystery. Where did Phaethon's meteoroids come from? One possibility is a collision. Maybe it bumped against another asteroid. A collision could have created a cloud of dust and rock that follows Phaethon around in its orbit. Such collisions, however, are not very likely.
If this scenario is correct, Phaethon-the-comet may have produced many rich streams of dust that spent hundreds or thousands of years drifting toward Earth until the first Geminid meteors appeared during the US Civil War. Since then, Geminids have been a regular shower peaking every year in mid-December.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Today's Special: Katy's Brain Diarrhea
I am bored at work today. I started my job two weeks ago so I don't have too much knowledge about anything yet to find something worth-while to do today. It's the day before Thanksgiving. All is quiet at 1340 Centre Street.
It's my burfday this Sunday, and I've started to notice crow's feet in the corner of my eyes!! I know I'm not old, but I'm not getting any younger!
I have exactly $12.61 in my checking account right now (and that's after I shifted the last of my savings' account money into my checking account!), and I'll need to take my container of change to Coinstar after work today so I'll be able to afford enough gas to get myself to Cape Cod later today. I've been spending a lot less money on unnecessary things recently, but I've been without a paycheck in three weeks thanks to my job transition. Those bills are still due regardless.
Last weekend, I took the telescope outside on a beautifully clear night in Chatham and pointed it towards Comet Holmes/17P. It was absolutely amazing! According to articles I've read over the last few weeks, the comet combined with it's debris field is larger than the sun! That's pretty gosh-darn impressive. I thought it looked like a jellyfish or a horseshoe crab through the telescope. It was white and fuzzy, and had a beautiful curve on one side of it. While I was outside, I also saw a great meteor streak by- almost a fireball it was so bright! Thank you Leonids!
I've been feeling really bummed lately about "losing" a friend of mine. He is an ex-boyfriend who I thought I was on good terms with, but he hasn't given me the time of day in almost two months, and it's really starting to bother me that he's written me off. I had a dream about him last night, and it was a beautiful dream. I ran into him on our street, and he ran up to me and gave me a huge long-lasting hug. It was one of those dreams we've all had... a beautiful dream we wake from and damn it to hell... it wasn't real. All I want is my friend back and to not feel like I've been forgotten.
I went to Medway yesterday, and spent all afternoon and evening in the recording studio for my band's new album. There's nothing like recording tracks for an album... it's like someone takes a big ass mirror and holds it up to your face so you can see every single imperfection and blemish. In the end, I finished recording my trombone parts for three songs and my vocals for one. Hopefully, that will be the longest and hardest day I have in the studio. I tried not to get frustrated, but I think everyone shares the same experience... oh wait... except for S.J. Tucker. She is amazing, and every single take of her vocal tracks were mind-blowing.
Also in band news, we're heading out to Goshen in western Massachusetts on Friday for a big party/DVD shoot. I have no idea what this is all going to look like, but it's going to be something like the band with all our friends around a bonfire having a blast... in the freezing cold. I have to decide what I'm going to wear exactly. Jason says we should all have a tribal look. I'm thinking all black and some crazy hair falls... somehow wearing enough layers to look both fabulous and stay warm. The party is also a four-way birthday celebration for Jason, Jake, Tiffany and myself. We're going to Sag-it-out, yo.
That is all the brain diarrhea for now, I think.
To end on a light note... check out this funny shit:
It's my burfday this Sunday, and I've started to notice crow's feet in the corner of my eyes!! I know I'm not old, but I'm not getting any younger!
I have exactly $12.61 in my checking account right now (and that's after I shifted the last of my savings' account money into my checking account!), and I'll need to take my container of change to Coinstar after work today so I'll be able to afford enough gas to get myself to Cape Cod later today. I've been spending a lot less money on unnecessary things recently, but I've been without a paycheck in three weeks thanks to my job transition. Those bills are still due regardless.
Last weekend, I took the telescope outside on a beautifully clear night in Chatham and pointed it towards Comet Holmes/17P. It was absolutely amazing! According to articles I've read over the last few weeks, the comet combined with it's debris field is larger than the sun! That's pretty gosh-darn impressive. I thought it looked like a jellyfish or a horseshoe crab through the telescope. It was white and fuzzy, and had a beautiful curve on one side of it. While I was outside, I also saw a great meteor streak by- almost a fireball it was so bright! Thank you Leonids!
I've been feeling really bummed lately about "losing" a friend of mine. He is an ex-boyfriend who I thought I was on good terms with, but he hasn't given me the time of day in almost two months, and it's really starting to bother me that he's written me off. I had a dream about him last night, and it was a beautiful dream. I ran into him on our street, and he ran up to me and gave me a huge long-lasting hug. It was one of those dreams we've all had... a beautiful dream we wake from and damn it to hell... it wasn't real. All I want is my friend back and to not feel like I've been forgotten.
I went to Medway yesterday, and spent all afternoon and evening in the recording studio for my band's new album. There's nothing like recording tracks for an album... it's like someone takes a big ass mirror and holds it up to your face so you can see every single imperfection and blemish. In the end, I finished recording my trombone parts for three songs and my vocals for one. Hopefully, that will be the longest and hardest day I have in the studio. I tried not to get frustrated, but I think everyone shares the same experience... oh wait... except for S.J. Tucker. She is amazing, and every single take of her vocal tracks were mind-blowing.
Also in band news, we're heading out to Goshen in western Massachusetts on Friday for a big party/DVD shoot. I have no idea what this is all going to look like, but it's going to be something like the band with all our friends around a bonfire having a blast... in the freezing cold. I have to decide what I'm going to wear exactly. Jason says we should all have a tribal look. I'm thinking all black and some crazy hair falls... somehow wearing enough layers to look both fabulous and stay warm. The party is also a four-way birthday celebration for Jason, Jake, Tiffany and myself. We're going to Sag-it-out, yo.
That is all the brain diarrhea for now, I think.
To end on a light note... check out this funny shit:
Friday, November 16, 2007
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Cats discuss geopolitical issues.
It's nice to see that in this day of age, we can still have a healthy, yet heated debate, and still kiss and make-up in the end.
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Shirtcockers.
Shirtcocker: A man who wears a shirt but nothing from the waist down.
We've all seen them at Burning Man. Men, usually extremely hairy, strutting around with their junk waving around in all its "glory". Although there are plenty of men walking about completely naked, most people find the shirtcockers are a little more visually offensive. They are making a point that they want people looking at their stuff.
SO... I was a bit horrified to make a certain connection last night. Our friend, Porky Pig, IS A SHIRTCOCKER!!! AAAHHHHH!!!!!
Monday, October 1, 2007
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Get to know your friend, The Sun!
Whoa! We're up to 19 days with NO sunspots on the sun! WTF? You can thank the stupid solar minimum.
Cool shit, eh?
Now, because we don't have fancy-pants sunspot activity to distract us, we can focus on other cool stuff about our friend, The Sun. You may have heard that it takes light approximately 8 minutes to travel from the Sun to the Earth, yes? Well, light is generated by fusion deep inside the sun's core. How long does it take light to escape from the sun's core?
How does 10,000-100,000 years sound to ya? It's true!
Check out this nifty NASA article about it. From http://sunearthday.nasa.gov
Sunlight is produced through nuclear reactions in the sun's core. Originally born as energetic gamma rays, after billions of collisions with matter, this radiation reaches the surface and escapes into space. How old is sunlight by the time it reaches the surface?
Most textbooks say that it takes light between 100,000 years and 50 million years to escape. You would be surprised to know that this simple, and very popular, question seems to be without a firm answer! The reason has a lot to do with the assumptions that textbook authors use in making the calculation. Most astronomers are also not particularly interested in a high-accuracy answer, so they tend not to bother doing the tedious calculation exactly. It is actually a very complex problem in physics!
Most textbooks say that it takes light between 100,000 years and 50 million years to escape. You would be surprised to know that this simple, and very popular, question seems to be without a firm answer! The reason has a lot to do with the assumptions that textbook authors use in making the calculation. Most astronomers are also not particularly interested in a high-accuracy answer, so they tend not to bother doing the tedious calculation exactly. It is actually a very complex problem in physics!
Once a photon of light is born, it travels at a speed of 300,000 km/sec until it collides with a charged particle and is diverted in another direction. Because the density of the sun decreases by tens of thousands of times from its lead-dense core to its tenuous photosphere, the typical distance a photon can travel between charged particles changes from 0.01 cm at the core to 0.3 cm near the surface. As a comparison, most back-of-the-envelope estimates assume that the sun's interior has a constant density and that the 'free path' distance for the photon is about one centimeter. It is these estimates that find their way into many popular astronomy textbooks.
Once you know, or assume, a typical distance between collisions, you also have to figure out how many steps the photon has to take to travel from the core to the surface. This is called the Random Walk Problem. The answer is that, if you take a sequence of N random steps, each for example of one meter length, the distance you travel from the starting point will be the square-root of N. After 100 random steps you will travel about 10 meters, but it will take 10,000 steps to travel 100 meters, and one million steps to travel about one kilometer, and so on. Because the density of the sun changes from the core to the surface, it is common to represent the interior of the sun as a collection of nested shells of matter, each with a typical average density. You then calculate how many steps it takes for a photon to travel through each shell. During each step, the photon travels at the speed of light so you can calculate the time required for each step. By multiplying this by the number of steps taken, you can calculate how long it takes the photon to traverse each shell, and then add up all the times for the other shells.
When this random walk process is applied to the interior of the sun, and an accurate model of the solar interior is used, most answers for the age of sunlight come out to be between 10,000 and 170,000 years. Rarely do you get answers greater than a million years unless you have made a serious error! Why do you still see these erroneous estimates of '10 million years' still being used? Because textbook authors and editors do not bother to actually make the correct calculation themselves, and rely on older published answers from similar textbooks.
Cool shit, eh?
Katy... out!
Friday, September 21, 2007
Baby On Board
Quick anticdote from Burning Man...I was doing my usual late-afternnon activity on day, hanging out on the couches on our Esplanade-frontage front porch watching the world go by.
A guy rode by on a bicycle with a "Baby On Board" sign attached to it. There was a rope attached to the back of the bike, and he was dragging along a wood board with a doll baby lying on it.
Baby on board. Brilliant!
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
WTF, CNN.com?
I'm sorry, but if I remember correctly, CNN.com used to have actual relevant news! If you've been a frequent visitor to CNN.com over the years, you must have noticed that the headlines have become quite sensational lately.
Sure sure... they're no Onion. They still report on the major headlines, but take a look on the right side of the screen under "Latest Headlines". When I see some of those headlines, I say to myself, "WTF, CNN?" What is happening? Is America becoming that dumb? No wonder we have stupid, evil assholes in Washington! No one is paying attention to ANYTHING that matters anymore!!! Don't even get me started on local news broadcasts.
Here are some actual CNN headlines for ya...
Crocs, kids, escalators could be dangerous mix
Armless man quizzed in neighbor's death
Man puts rattlesnake in mouth, gets bitten
Bikini-clad 'Obama Girl' now hot for troops
They've obviously changed their approach to news to attract more, dumber people!!
This sucks. Now I've worked myself up into a tizzy.
If I were in charge, I would require that every person must take a basic test before voting in a general election. It would be a kind of "politically stupid" test to weed out the people who don't know anything about our country, political issues, and the candidates.
Don't get me wrong, I don't want to make this "test" so hard that it eliminates too many voters. I would definitely avoid limiting the voting base to only college-educated Americans. It seems to me that people should be able to correctly answer questions like "How many states are there?", "What state was George W. Bush the governor of before becoming president?", or "How many illegal immigrants did Mitt Romney have working on his lawn?" (just kidding on that last one). If you can't answer simple questions to demonstrate your basic knowledge of what's going on, your vote should not count.... or at least... not count as much.
If we can spend millions and millions of dollars on bullshit space probes to check out Pluto, we must have some cash lying around to employ some really smart people to come up with a fair test like this. We could call it the "Voting Qualification Test" or something like that.
Pluto is cold. It's fucking far away. There's nothing there. Get over it.
Let's face it. The reason we're knee-deep in shit right now with the war, global warming, oil prices, the struggling economy, etc is because we have an "elected" fucktard in the White House. People in 2000 and 2004 heard all sorts of soundbites and talking points repeated over and over and over again... until they accepted these little nuggets of shit as the one and only truth. Hearing the term flip-flopper was starting to make my ears bleed in 2004. Unfortunately, I think it was this simplistic, dumbed-down horseshit that too many people actually believed that resulted in our situation. Some of those idiots could have been weeded out with my little system!
And I don't want to hear any shit from you guys saying I'm disenfranchising people because that's exactly what my little test intends to do! It eliminates the lazy assholes (republican, democrat, independent alike) who can't pick up a newspaper, watch a debate, or god-forbid check out CNN occasionally to become more informed about the issues.
Voting Qualification Testing for all!!!
Rant over.
Sure sure... they're no Onion. They still report on the major headlines, but take a look on the right side of the screen under "Latest Headlines". When I see some of those headlines, I say to myself, "WTF, CNN?" What is happening? Is America becoming that dumb? No wonder we have stupid, evil assholes in Washington! No one is paying attention to ANYTHING that matters anymore!!! Don't even get me started on local news broadcasts.
Here are some actual CNN headlines for ya...
Crocs, kids, escalators could be dangerous mix
Armless man quizzed in neighbor's death
Man puts rattlesnake in mouth, gets bitten
Bikini-clad 'Obama Girl' now hot for troops
They've obviously changed their approach to news to attract more, dumber people!!
This sucks. Now I've worked myself up into a tizzy.
If I were in charge, I would require that every person must take a basic test before voting in a general election. It would be a kind of "politically stupid" test to weed out the people who don't know anything about our country, political issues, and the candidates.
Don't get me wrong, I don't want to make this "test" so hard that it eliminates too many voters. I would definitely avoid limiting the voting base to only college-educated Americans. It seems to me that people should be able to correctly answer questions like "How many states are there?", "What state was George W. Bush the governor of before becoming president?", or "How many illegal immigrants did Mitt Romney have working on his lawn?" (just kidding on that last one). If you can't answer simple questions to demonstrate your basic knowledge of what's going on, your vote should not count.... or at least... not count as much.
If we can spend millions and millions of dollars on bullshit space probes to check out Pluto, we must have some cash lying around to employ some really smart people to come up with a fair test like this. We could call it the "Voting Qualification Test" or something like that.
Pluto is cold. It's fucking far away. There's nothing there. Get over it.
Let's face it. The reason we're knee-deep in shit right now with the war, global warming, oil prices, the struggling economy, etc is because we have an "elected" fucktard in the White House. People in 2000 and 2004 heard all sorts of soundbites and talking points repeated over and over and over again... until they accepted these little nuggets of shit as the one and only truth. Hearing the term flip-flopper was starting to make my ears bleed in 2004. Unfortunately, I think it was this simplistic, dumbed-down horseshit that too many people actually believed that resulted in our situation. Some of those idiots could have been weeded out with my little system!
And I don't want to hear any shit from you guys saying I'm disenfranchising people because that's exactly what my little test intends to do! It eliminates the lazy assholes (republican, democrat, independent alike) who can't pick up a newspaper, watch a debate, or god-forbid check out CNN occasionally to become more informed about the issues.
Voting Qualification Testing for all!!!
Rant over.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Back to the Default World. Ugh.
Hey kids. I'm back. I've been back for a week, but it feels like a month or more. I think I'm finally caught up on sleep.
It was a year of many "firsts" and many spectacular sights. Here's a VERY short list of some memorable moments and events.
The Man was burned five days early by an arsonist during the lunar eclipse. (He was rebuilt and back up on Thursday! Yay!) You may have heard about this. It made the national news. Me and two friends were right by The Man when it happened. The arsonist was chased by Black Rock Rangers right past us.
We had incredible dust storms on Thursday and Friday afternoons. The one on Friday was worth it, though. We had a full double rainbow appear over the city afterwards.
The Augerid meteor shower DID happen on Saturday morning. I viewed it from the trash fence... away from the city lights and smoke. I saw about 35 meteors in 40 minutes (that's really impressive).
I witnessed my good friend Annie marry her soulmate at the Temple of Forgiveness at dusk on Friday night.
The Man was burned five days early by an arsonist during the lunar eclipse. (He was rebuilt and back up on Thursday! Yay!) You may have heard about this. It made the national news. Me and two friends were right by The Man when it happened. The arsonist was chased by Black Rock Rangers right past us.
We had incredible dust storms on Thursday and Friday afternoons. The one on Friday was worth it, though. We had a full double rainbow appear over the city afterwards.
The Augerid meteor shower DID happen on Saturday morning. I viewed it from the trash fence... away from the city lights and smoke. I saw about 35 meteors in 40 minutes (that's really impressive).
I witnessed my good friend Annie marry her soulmate at the Temple of Forgiveness at dusk on Friday night.
I was attacked my a mob of zombies.
The "Crude Awakening" burn/performance was the most bone-chilling, but also beautiful thing I've ever seen.
I participated in the Monkey Chant at Center Camp on Friday afternoon. Ask me about that later...
I spun fire with my great friends Jewels and Wheylan on Sunday night (the last night I was there) for a wonderful audience. Burning Man was the reason I started spinning in the place. It made my experience complete. I received some of the best compliments of my life afterwards (while fighting back tears of joy).
All week, several people told me that I possess "great energy". The cab driver taking me home in Boston Wednesday morning echoed that sentiment... "you're a very nice, friendly lady, nice to talk to". It really struck a chord with me... that so many people pointed out the exact same trait over and over again.
The "Crude Awakening" burn/performance was the most bone-chilling, but also beautiful thing I've ever seen.
I participated in the Monkey Chant at Center Camp on Friday afternoon. Ask me about that later...
I spun fire with my great friends Jewels and Wheylan on Sunday night (the last night I was there) for a wonderful audience. Burning Man was the reason I started spinning in the place. It made my experience complete. I received some of the best compliments of my life afterwards (while fighting back tears of joy).
All week, several people told me that I possess "great energy". The cab driver taking me home in Boston Wednesday morning echoed that sentiment... "you're a very nice, friendly lady, nice to talk to". It really struck a chord with me... that so many people pointed out the exact same trait over and over again.
Life changing again.
Check out this video for starters.
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