Good books: Kind Diet & Art of Non-Conformity

I’ve never done a book review, and rightly so because I have so little time to read that when I do it’s gotta be a book that I REALLY wanted to read. So I thought I’d share two of my most recent reads that are also both feel-good books.

1) Chris Guillebeau‘s The Art of Non-Conformity

Chris Guillebeau is one of my heroes. He’s a writer that spent four years doing volunteer medical work in Africa, wrote e-books on how to travel the world on air miles and make a living blogging, and someone who will never have to apply for a job again. But while reading his e-books have led me to tuck them away into a “read” folder on my computer, his new book The Art of Non-Conformity is one that can inspire any average person to follow his footsteps to living an extraordinary life, on their own terms.

I must admit, one way to kick me in the ass to buy it was the fact that he came to Vancouver on his book tour. But, I was able to get it signed and take a picture with him, and when he asked me about myself, I proudly told him that I was in my fourth year running my business, knew I was destined for something bigger, and that his book would probably help me to figure out what that was.

I’m still figuring out what THAT is, but in the meantime his book gave me food for thought not only on how to dream BIG but how to ground things into reality. Some of the gems included are:

- Finding the path to doing what you love.

- Getting out of your comfort zone and facing the fear of change.

- Good vs. bad businesses; needing to escape to something, if you take the leap to quit your job.

- Saying no for your own good.

- Leaving a legacy.

If you’re able to have a glimpse at the chapters, it gives you a better idea of the sections of the book. Even if you’re not planning world domination anytime soon, it’s an inspiring read that will hopefully lead you to discover more of what you want to get out of your life.

Me with Chris Guillebeau at Chapters Robson

2) Alicia Silverstone‘s The Kind Diet (www.thekindlife.com)

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Strombo at 2011 EPIC Expo!

I had the honour of hearing media icon George Stromboulopolous speak at the 2011 EPIC Sustainable Living Expo at the Vancouver Convention Centre yesterday. EPIC blew my mind last year, and I never new Strombo was into sustainability and living green, so I was interested in what he had to say. He was interviewed by the gorgeous Erin Cebula of Global TVBC and ET Canada.

He started out by saying that he started living sustainably for health – the health of himself and the planet.  He also started to become more aware of the Earth’s climate change when he watched videos of polar bears no longer living on ice. Erin asked if there was an “aha” moment that sort of stimulated the movement, and he cited an interview by the one and only Bill Nye the Science Guy (from the ’90s). Being raised by a religious mother, he was taught to believe in an afterlife. But when he started to think about what life should be like if there was no afterlife, he realized that this life might be all we have.

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my new & true Green products

I’ve wanted to do a post on a while about the eco-friendly products I use daily. The truth is, I don’t use many.

PriceSmart, which opened by my place in the King Edward Village, has been my new favourite place to shop for groceries. It’s no CHOICES, and doesn’t have a pharmacy where I can my contact lens solution, but they have some great veggie options for food and a great shelf of natural beauty products.

1) I started by moving from Secret’s Flawless Clear Gel Vanilla Scent (which I originally used to avoid white marks on my black shirts, to no avail) to Lafe’s Natural and Organic Deodorant Stick.

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