Lips like sugar - I can easily give up sugar, can't I?

"Lips like sugar" is an Echo and The Bunnymen song I really like. That song came into my mind when I started to think about sugar in our food. You can listen to it here.

Hallo meine Lieben,

so here is the deal: I have read countless times about the health benefits of cutting out sugar from your diet. Looks like the average person consumes 150 pounds of sugar a year and that can't be healthy. Too much sugar messes up your metabolism which gives you an elevated risk for developing high bad cholesterol numbers, high blood pressure and diabetes. I already have high blood pressure because of my kidney disease so I thought it can't hurt to give this whole thing a try. So this is not a sugar cleanse, it is just me trying to eat healthier. 

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My plan is to cut out refined sugar for 5 days and then see how I feel. I am not saying that I will never eat sugar again but I am curious to see what effects it has on my body. I don't want to lose weight, it is just about doing the best for my body. I am not an expert, I am just trying to find a way that works for me. So I am sorry that I can't give you any health advice. 

I have to admit that I did not plan this at all. I have read about it last night and decided to start this morning. Probably not the best way to do and I expect that there will be lots of struggles but we will see how it goes.

Here are the first problems I had.

Problem #1. 

There is sugar in pretty much everything you can buy. 
I already eat mostly fresh stuff like veggies and salad etc. But there are still some packages products I usually buy and now I have to make sure to read all the ingredients even more carefully. I guess I am already an expert here because I am a vegan and used to reading the ingredients before I buy something. But I am still shocked that there is sugar where I did not expect it.

Problem #2. 

There is sugar in my plain soy yogurt. 
I eat a bowl of fruits with plain yogurt, walnuts, raisins and coconut flakes every single day. Last night I checked my plain yogurt and it has sugar in it. I did not expect this at all to be honest. I thought that my plain yogurt would be fine but now I need to go and search for a yogurt without sugar in it. I already went to the supermarket but they did not have any vegan yogurt without sugar. I will have to go to the health foods store tomorrow. I also realized that my "milk" has sugar in it but I found some rice milk without sugar in the supermarket. So I can still enjoy my coffee. 

Problem #3. 

I love sugar in my tea.
Yes, I know. It is not the healthiest thing but I do love my tea as sweet as possible. But yeah, I decided to do this cleanse so I have to drink my tea plain. So this morning I made my usual peppermint tea and expected the worst....but: it was actually pretty good. (Yes David, I know, you told me so.) So I guess this won't cause any problems anymore. I did not expect it to be so easy to give up the sugar in my tea. 

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Problem #4.

Is there sugar in my bread?
I am a German so I do love my bread. Every morning. I eat it either with veggie meat or vegan cheese (both sugar free, thankfully!) but what about the bread. Since there is sugar in everything I expected to be sugar in my bread too. So I had to go and ask the woman in the bakery for the ingredient list and hey, no sugar in my bread. Life isn't so bad after all!
And yes, I am aware of the fact that bread means carbohydrate and that carbohydrate means sugar. But I don't want to cut out carbohydrates from my diet. That is not what this is about. I want to eat less sugar and that is why I am cutting out the refined sugar. Nothing more, nothing less. I need my pasta and bread. 

Well, so far I don't have any sugary cravings but I am sure that I can't avoid them. I expect them to bother me tonight. 
I will keep you updated.


Have you ever cut out sugar from your diet? How did it work?

I confess...

Hallo meine Lieben,

I hope you are all enjoying your weekend. I haven't done this in a while and I think it is time to make some confessions...

Confession #1.

I am a bit proud of myself because I made a cake today which looks good AND tastes good. The one I made before only tasted good. 

Confession #2. 

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I started crying this morning when I read the news that the Copenhagen Zoo killed a 18 month old baby giraffe who was perfectly healthy. Just because they say they have to avoid in-breeding. I have never heard such a bs before. The scientific director Bengt Holst (aka Dr. Evil) says that Marius' (the baby giraffe) genes  "were already well represented among giraffes at the zoo." Statements like this make me sick to my stomach. These zoos breed endangered animals just to kill them? They killed Marius by a bolt gun, not a lethel injection. That would have contaminated the meat...which they are planning to feed to other animals. I have signed a petition, I wrote to the zoo...and hearing these news just totally shocked me. The world is so sick. You can read more about it here. 
RIP little Marius. 

Confession #3.

All this made me so angry and sad that I think I have nothing else to say today.


What do you have to confess?

Five Things. A fluffy bus, the sidekick series, animal testing and confetti shoes.

Hallo meine Lieben,

happy Friday to you! I hope you have a fantastic weekend ahead of you!
Please check out my friend Celeste's post as well! She is on her way to Iceland and shares some facts about this fascinating country. 

1.This bus.

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I would love to travel in this bus. Who would not? It's a Japanese bus by the way. It is also fluffy in the inside and you can share your space with some teddy bears.

2. Some bad news. 

I have read about this topic a lot over the last couple of days but I still don't completely get it. I am talking about The Safe Cosmetics and Personal Care Products Act of 2013 (SCPCPA). This legislation is intended to overhaul the way that cosmetic products are regulated in the U.S. Which basically means that animal testing would be mandatory for cosmetics products. And I guess I don't need to explain that this would mean a huge step backwards. Up to 11.5 million animals (and I am talking about rats, bunnies, cats, dogs....) would be required to test the cosmetic products on. Can you believe this? Other countries stop animal testing but America wants to make it mandatory. I still hope this isn't true. You can read more about this topic on Logical Harmony. Tashina explains everything you need to know. You can also find a press release at leapingbunny.org. 

3. A foxy pillow.

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I found this in an Etsy shop called iotaillustration and I totally feel like I should own it. I think the cats might like it as well. They are huge pillow fans. 

4. The Sidekick Series.

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The Sidekick Series is a youtube series featuring rescued animals and their humans. I think this is such a fantastic idea to raise awareness and help to get more animals adopted. There is already a video available where Emily, the Chief Cat Lady behind the Sidekick Series, talks about her cat B.K. I can't wait to see more fantastic videos over the next couple of weeks. You should definitely check this out because you will love it. Trust me.  Next week you will get to meet Hans, the dog of the Chief Dog Lady Suzanna.

5. These shoes. 

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I also found them on Etsy. Maybe I should think about not spending so much time on Etsy because it makes me want to spend so much money. These are from a store called goldenponies and they are made of cork and faux leather. I am officially in love. 

Have a fantastic weekend!

Random Thursday. IMO The best online shop is....

Hallo meine Lieben,

welcome to another Random Thursday and thanks so much for reading and linking-up. Lin, Em and I are happy that you are a part of this lovely tradition. 

I guess most people love to shop online, even if it is just window shopping. I love to get lost in the countless online stores searching for stuff I need. I mean, come on, it is definitely better than being in a crowded store on a Saturday afternoon. So yes, I admit that I love filling my virtual shopping basket with stuff I might or might not need. 

Tea stores.

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There is a little store in the town I went to school at run by two old sisters who sell almost 200 different kinds of teas, chocolate, coffee, tea pots, candy and stuff like that. I could spend hours in the store, sniffing at all tea (they have little metal boxes with all the teas inside and you can open all of them and smell them) and picking loose tea from all the huge jars. It makes me so happy, I can't even tell you. 

So online tea stores are only second choice but they are still better than a lot of other stores. You can't smell the tea but you can imagine the smell and spend hours reading through all the ingredients. And of course you can find lots of teas you have never thought of before. Tea stores are definitely a winner. 

Book stores. 

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(Maybe not better than ALL people but definitely better than a lot of people).

Well, I guess this is no surprise. I could spend hours searching for new books I want to read. I do judge books by their covers but when I like the title I give it a chance and read the blurb. There are millions of books out there and internet book stores are definitely a good source to find the books you like. I am always open for new recommendations. 

Vegan online stores.

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When you live in a small American town or in a tiny village in one of the smallest states in Germany then you don't have the best vegan options. But thankfully there are lots of great online stores out their which offer everything from coconut milk ice cream to vegan Parmesan cheese and rice milk chocolate. It's vegan paradise and I always get inspired browsing through the huge selection which you don't have in a small town supermarket. 

VeganEssentials is pretty awesome. Or Vegan Cuts. In Germany I really like alles-vegetarisch.de. 

ModCloth.

I need this ModCloth dress.

You honestly find the cutest dresses at ModCloth. I love to look at all their beautiful clothes and dream of buying all of them. I even bought my wedding dress in this store, believe it or not. Also one of my favorite bags on earth is available in this store...I have been thinking about buying it forever...maybe soon. 

You can also find pretty awesome deals at asos.com.

Etsy.

Well, you can find pretty much everything you want on Etsy and that is why I can spend hours on that website wanting to buy countless things. 

I forgot to mention the Lush online store. You can never have enough bath bombs...

What are your favorite online stores? Can't wait to check them out!

A polite pigeon, a puffer fish and my favorite English words. (Ten On Tuesday)

Hallo meine Lieben,

how is your week going? Hope you are all doing great. I am sorry for my lack of posts lately...I can't even tell you how much it sucks that I don't find as much time for blogging as I want to right now...there are so many things I want to share with you. So please bear with me.

You can link up with Alyssa for Ten On Tuesday here.

1. My favorite fish is the puffer fish.

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2. But honestly, I like all animals. And I am that kind of person who needs to stop when she sees an animal, says "Aww" and wants to pet the animal. NO matter if it is a cat, a cow, a rain worm or a snail.

3. One time I started feeding birds in a park and a pigeon flew by, landed on my knee and let me feed her. That was a fantastic experience.

4. When the half time show of the Super Bowl started, I realized that I had absolutely no idea how Bruno Mars looks like.

5. My favorite English words are "indeed" and "rubbish" (I guess because this one reminds me of Blur).

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6. I will go to my hair stylist on Friday and I am thinking about cutting it off quite a bit. I am just not made for long hair. 

7. I always read more than just one book at the same time. Currently it's 4. 

8. Wise words by a fantastic man.

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9. Please don't buy products from L'Oreal, Maybelline, Cover Girl or other companies that test on animals. There are so many vegan and cruelty-free products and we can only make a difference when consumers stop to buy from companies which test on animals. Every consumer counts. You can find a list with cruelty free and vegan make up products on Logical Harmony (which is a fantastic blog by the way.).

10. You can find a list of companies that do test on animals here. I know that there are many companies to avoid but trust me, it is possible and not that complicated. And it makes you feel so much better. Don't buy Proctor & Gamble or Johnson & Johnson products. They are the worst. You can find a cruelty free shopping guide at leapingbunny.org. Thanks for your support.

Have a fantastic week!

Five Things. A shocking fact, a sweet temptation and a fascinating read.

Hallo meine Lieben,

happy Sunday! I hope you are having a wonderful Sunday! Will you watch the Super Bowl tonight? Do you care more about the game or the commercials? Which team will win? I have to admit that I still don't completely understand the rules...

You can check out my friend Celeste's post here.

1. Some inspiration.

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Because sometimes you just need some motivation. Especially on a Sunday. 

2. Some facts. 

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Did you know that to date, the EU has banned 1,100 chemicals in cosmetics; the Food and Drug Administration in America has banned only ten? Can you believe this? How is it possible? This really shocked me. For example: Cover Girl waterproof mascara (a brand you should not buy anyway because they do really cruel animal testing for all their beauty products) contains the same ingredient (petroleum distillates, an oil by-product) as Dr. Scholl’s Wart Remover—both of which are illegal in Europe. How nice. Who would not want to have that stuff in their eyes...
You can read more about this here. 

3. The perfect reading spot.

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I am in desperate need of a vintage chair like this one. It would be the perfect place to hang out and read. Then I would just need a fire place and a globe bar.

4. Something sweet.

I planned to bake some vegan cinnamon rolls this morning but when I wanted to start I realized that some of the most important ingredients were missing (no, not cinnamon). So I decided to make some muffins instead and I have to stay that they turned out really great. I used what I could find and made cinnamon muffins with chocolate, marzipan, almond and vanilla yogurt. The dough tasted so good that I ate half of it before I ate the muffins but I guess that is the best part of baking. Will share the recipe soon. 

5.  A book.

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I recently discovered my love for true crime books and I am currently reading this one. I have to say that it is fascinating and shocking at the same time, there are so many things I did not know before. I definitely want to check out more true crime books. 

Have a fantastic Sunday!

Random Thursday. Worst travel experience.

Hallo meine Lieben,

welcome to another Random Thursday and thanks for reading and participating! I hope you are having a fantastic week!

I have to say that one of my worst travel experiences is connected to one of the best vacations I ever had....if that makes any sense. 

David and I decided to go for a road trip to Colorado and Utah. We drove all the way from Ohio and things were fine the first 1,5 days. The evening of the second day I started to feel really bad but I thought it would be better the next day and there is no reason to worry. 

I climbed an arch. Surprisingly,  I did not fell down. 

I spent a pretty painful night in a hotel room but was positive that I would wake up feeling fine. At that point I did not know what was wrong yet.

The next morning I woke up feeling even worse than the day before but I did not want to say anything since I did not want to ruin the vacation. Plus it was my birthday. 

We got ready to drive to our next destination and I felt so miserable in the car....still pretending that things are fine. 

We wanted to camp the following night and David was excited to do some hiking and see some fantastic places. When we arrived at the camp site I felt as miserable as never before but I thought that I had to be brave and fight against the pain so I helped setting up the tent and collecting fire wood. I could barely walk but as I said, I did not want to admit that anything was wrong. It was our first real vacation together and I wanted it to be memorable.

I already had a feeling of what was wrong because I had these problems before...but I think I wanted to suppress the thoughts of it because that would definitely ruin the vacation. 

I tried to look completely healthy. Sunglasses help.

But yeah, the next day I woke up even worse and I was not able to deny it anymore. I admitted how bad I felt...I guess it was obvious. But I did not admit how terrible I really felt. David had planned a hiking trip for that day but there was no way I could participate. But I told him he has to go anyway and I would stay there and read. I am sure that was really disappointing for him (and I am sure he thought that I was a pussy but as I said, I never felt so bad I my entire life and that means something because I already had some really nasty and painful stuff). I wanted to be brave...to not ruin the trip. I did not think about ruining my health at that point. Which was probably stupid...

But yeah, when David came back in the evening I knew that I needed some help. I knew that something was wrong with my kidneys again. But I did not say anything about it. In case you don't know, I have a stupid kidney disease so I have problems with my kidneys all the time. Infections, kidney stones and so on. 

So we went to a pharmacy and I tried to explain my problems to the pharmacist without saying anything about my kidneys (stupid, I know). He thought I have altitude sickness and some other diseases I did not have. He told me to see a doctor but as I said, I did not want to go to not ruin the vacation.

So I got all kinds of stuff you don't need a prescription for. Herbal teas, cranberry pills and so on. I also bought a thermometer....I took my temperature and was shocked to see what it was more than 104 degrees but did not admit it. 

I have to admit that it was kind of relieving to have to crawl trough tiny holes since it gave me a reason to spend some time on the ground which made me feel better. 

So yeah, I still don't know how I managed to survive this vacation but I went to all the places we wanted to see...even when I had to sit down every 100 meters and it took forever to get to places. I stayed in the hotel rooms when David went for an adventure that I could not take part in....I refused to go to a doctor and I just thought that I have to be brave. I even went rafting. I just had to sit there and try not to fell into the water.

As I said, I have never felt so sick in my whole life. But I made it. Is it stupid to feel proud? I guess it is. It was definitely stupid not to admit how bad I feel. I risked my health. 

(If kidney infection is not treated promptly, there is a risk of serious complications, including kidney damage and blood poisoning (sepsis). It is usually treated with antibiotics. In many cases, patients with kidney infection are hospitalized. Found here.)

I mean, I know my health problems. 

When we got back from vacation I finally went to see a doctor and of course, I had a really nasty kidney infection. If you ever had a kidney infection that you know how that feels. If not, I read on the internet that people describe it as the worst pain they ever felt. I agree. And I had a whole in my eye once. 

So yeah, I finally got treatment and it took me a while to recover but gladly I did.

I know that I will never be so stupid again and will run to the doctor as soon as I experience that pain again. 

But yeah, the vacation was fantastic because I saw some awesome places I had never seen before. But I do admit that it would have been even better without the nasty kidney infection.

How can you get sick at such a fantastic place?

(And a recent one: the stupid Parisian woman who decided to crash into my car definitely helped me to have another bad travel experience. You can read about it here.)

So now tell me....what was your worst travel experience?