Yesterday was Day 12 of the Outback Vision Protocol. We're cruising right along. Nine more days to go. Will I have 20/20 vision by then?
The ingredients as I've said before, are many and varied. I thought it might be helpful for anyone else taking the challenge to know where to find things.
But then the obvious fact is that not everyone resides in the same part of the country. So where I find things and where you find them will vary widely.
Anyway, here's what I did.
Recipe calls for..
...coconut cream. Found in a metal can at Food Maxx. After opening the can I put the remainder in a jar in the fridge. One can will easily be enough for the whole protocol but it will not stay good in the fridge for 3 weeks. I would recommend freezing it in recipe-sized portions.
...maca powder. Amazon helped me out with this one. Click here to see the one I purchased (and,no, I don't have affiliate links). This can will give you enough for the whole family and then some. It is plenty, plenty.
...coconut water. I searched high and low at Food Maxx for this one and finally found a few cans (like pop cans). Then I saw that "our" Aldi (in Winchester, VA) carries it. And I believe Walmart has it too. Mama saw some at Food Lion, as well. You'll need at least six cans.
...bee pollen. Amazon to the rescue again. But then I saw it at Walmart. Here is what I got from Amazon. Again, it's enough to last and last.
...dried goji berries. Check it out. I think again, I may have seen some at Walmart after ordering online from Amazon. One bag is plenty for the 21 days but if more than one person does it, you may need a second bag. Maybe.
...coconut milk. A cardboard milk carton from Food Lion lasted for about half the time.
...egg white protein powder. I never did find; so I use a whole raw egg from our farm hens. I read the other day that egg yolks are good for your eyesight so it at least doesn't hurt. And whatever that powder is, you'll only need 3 Tablespoons in the whole protocol.
(By the way, I asked customer service about some of these things and they only replied that substitutes should not be made. They did not answer my question about where to find items.)
...dark chocolate chips. I used a dark chocolate bar or unsweetened baker's chocolate.
...fresh or frozen bilberries. Research told me this was a wild blueberry so when I could not find fresh or frozen bilberries I purchased frozen wild blueberries from Walmart. Then I found pure bilberry juice at Vitacost so I got that. You can find it here.
...tart cherry juice. Food Lion and Walmart both had this.
...black currants. Vitacost had pure juice. That's all I could find. You can find it here.
(The last 3 bottles of juice I mentioned are more than enough for the whole time.)
...ginger-flavored kombucha. Found at Walmart. One can is enough. This one is Asian pear and ginger flavored.
...fresh Pomegranate juice. I used Pom, found at Walmart. One can will do.
...organic, unfiltered apple juice. One bottle from Walmart is plenty.
...spirulina powder. Capsules from Walmart. Maybe you know of a better option? You will only need 1 Tablespoon total.
These are only the items that I had a bit of trouble finding. There are many more ingredients but I am supposing you'll be able to find them without too much sweat and tears.
If you have any questions, I am happy to answer what I can.
AND! I am happy to report that I have not needed my glasses for two days straight now. No, that doesn't mean I wasn't reading. I was reading without glasses!!!
Happy, happy dance! And another smoothie....
Words for your intrigue-
Harangue
Griffin
Dynamism
P.S. Happy birthday to sister Verina!
The wind is blowing; rain drops are spattering the glass doors. This morning the snow was falling. Later there was rain. Then the clouds parted and blue sky shone through. You never know what will happen next.
And isn't it that way with all of life? I awoke feeling fairly chipper but after everyone had their breakfasts and were on their way, I felt weary. These smoothies are making me feel a bit rough. Must be working out toxins.
After a couple smoothies-turned-salads, the ingredients have normalized into very palatable drinks. There has been no noticeable change in my eyesight yet but I didn't really expect that there would be, this soon in the game.
We spent time reading from the Bible about Israel's change in leadership from Moses to Joshua. Have you ever wondered how Moses and Aaron died? Moses, yes. God buried him and no one knew where his grave was. But we're told he would die "as Aaron did".
...thou also shalt be gathered unto thy people, as Aaron thy brother was gathered. Numbers 27:13
Of Aaron's death it is recorded that he climbed a mountain where his priestly garments were given to his son. And he died there. He had strength to climb a mountain. But then he died? How was it? A heart attack? God just took his spirit from him? How was it for those watching? Many unanswered questions.
The conversation yesterday turned to wolverines. Which reminded me of the story of a boy who lived with a badger. The younger ones had never read the story (Incident at Hawk's Hill) so I introduced it to them by reading the introduction and first chapter. Christopher took it from there and finished it.
Matthew and Melvin spent time planting food plots for the deer. They report sprouting peach seeds in their plots. (They dumped food scraps there throughout last summer.) They plan to plant them - in the plot and in the orchard.
Both Melvin and Christopher are in books that they keep gravitating to whenever they have a half chance.
These books occupied my reading time today. Skimming the first (Constructing the Universe), reading the first few chapters of the second- War Torn Valley (about Mennonites during the Civil War) and starting the intro of the third (The Canterbury Tales) before I finally succumbed to sleep.
From the intro of Joe Montana (which I read on Monday)-
"A Winning Attitude
In math class, I learned that the whole is equal to the sum of its parts. Sports has taught me that the whole is either greater than or less than the sum of its parts. Teamwork is seldom, if ever, a fifty-fifty proposition. Teamwork is whatever it takes to get the job done.
There is no time for the measurement of contributions, no time for anything but concentrating on your job. Believing in doing whatever it takes to get the job done is what separates a successful person from someone who is not as successful." -Chuck Knoll
So true!
Interesting fact- The small town of Ismay, Montana changed its name to Joe in honor of this "greatest quarterback of all time".
We recently finished Mathematicians Are People, Too (as a read-aloud). Real people took an interest in math and wrote the books we can read today that explain the hard-to-understand concepts. They were boys and girls once upon a time, as well.
March has come in like a lion. Banished are all thoughts of gardening for awhile. Although I do plan to do some transplanting again tomorrow. Seedlings. Indoors.
The sky yesterday morning-
Other places received much snow yesterday but it only sleeted a bit here.
And one parting shot-
I had said the wind didn't do much here but it demolished the boys' basketball hoop! They have spent hours playing there. Now they'll need to find some other means of letting off steam.
New words-
Incipient
Argosy
Assiduity
Thomas recently read of a protocol that has the potential to heal one's eyes of various maladies that impair sight. He bought the information, I scavenged the grocery stores and internet for all the ingredients and today is my first day of trying it out.
There are three smoothies to make and drink per day for seven days. The process is repeated thrice, for a total of twenty-one days. Every smoothie is different (yes, every- all 21). The one I slurped this morning was okay. Blackberries, banana, coconut cream and maca powder.
The one I'm trying to get down now is a bit torturous. This one has a carrot, a beet, an apple, a pear, kale, lemon and ginger, blended in water.
Oh, it's pretty enough. That doesn't make it easier to swallow, unfortunately. The pulp and the ginger is what gets to me. The flavor really isn't so bad.
The man who sells the information says his wife came back from near blindness (macular degeneration) to 20/20 vision. And he says it will do the same for me.
It is no fun to tote reading glasses around so I'm hoping this will keep me from needing prescription glasses or even reading glasses. If I can just stomach all this stuff! I'll give it my best shot, that's for sure.
He says there is a 60 day money back guarantee. So at $27 or $37 it doesn't feel like a big risk.
He also says you can get all ingredients for pennies at your grocery store. This is incorrect. There are some ingredients I still haven't found.
Can you tell me where to find black currants? Or bilberries? Some of the ingredients I ordered from Amazon, but I haven't been able to find these two items for a very affordable price anywhere.
I'll try to keep you posted on the effectiveness of this protocol.
Words for today-
Maudlin
Extenuate
Vagary
