Like I promised on the Gentle Tiger Acupuncture LLC Facebook page and I’m sure it was also there on our Twitter page, THE beef stock recipe that will leave you feeling full and satisfied, whether you drink it straight, which I recommend in chronic and/or serious illness, but also if you’re working on losing weight, increasing energy, feeling satisfied without overeating or working to gain some weight (How can I lose weight OR gain weight with this Miguel? – the body as a self regulating organism will know what to do with this fat – it’ll either use it to help flush out toxins thereby losing weight orrrrrr hold onto it and help you gain a healthy amount of weight). And let’s remember that it’s just a danged good beef stock even if there’s NOTHING wrong with you.

BEEF STOCK from Nourishing Traditions – Sally Fallon

About 4 lbs of beef marrow and knuckle bones

1 calves foot, cut into pieces (optional)

3 pounds of meaty ribs or neck bones

4 or more quarts of cold filtered water

½ cup vinegar

3 onions coarsely chopped

3 carrots, coarsely chopped

3 celery sticks, coarsely chopped

Several sprigs of fresh organic thyme (or from your pesticide-free garden), tied together.

1 tsp of dried green peppercorns, crushed

1 bunch of parsley (either curly or flat)

     Good beef stock must be made with several sorts of bones: knuckle bones and feet impart large quantities of gelatin to the broth; marrow bones impart flavor and the particular nutrients of bone marrow; and meaty rib or neck bones add flavor and color.

     Place the knuckle and marrow bones and option calves foot in a very large pot with vinegar and cover with water. Let stand for 1 hour. Meanwhile, place the meaty bones in a roasting pan and brown at 350 degrees in the oven. When well browned, add to the pot along with the vegetables (this is why you’ll need a BIG pot). Pour the fat out of the roasting pan into the pot, too. Add cold filtered water to the roasting pan, set over a high flame and bring to a boil, stirring with a wooden spoon to loosen up coagulated juices. Add this liquid to the pot, too – we want it ALL. Add additional water if necessary to cover the bones; but the liquid should come no higher than within 1 inch of the rim of the pot, as the volume slightly expands during cooking. Bring to a boil. A large amount of scrim (or scum – same thing) will come to the top, it is IMPORTANT to remove this with a spoon. After you have skimmed, reduce heat and add the thyme and crushed peppercorns.

                Simmer the stock for at least 24 hours and as long as 72. I personally shoot for 48 hours. Just before finishing, add the parsley and simmer another 10 minutes.

You will now have a pot of rather repulsive looking brown liquid containing globs of gelatinous and fatty material. It doesn’t even smell all that good. But don’t despair. After straining you will have a delicious and nourishing clear broth that forms the basis for many recipes.

Remove the bones with tongs or slotted spoon. Strain the stock into a large bowl. Let cool in the refrigerator and remove the congealed fat that rises to the top. Transfer the stock to smaller containers and to the freezer for long-term storage.

Note: I strongly recommend you remove the marrow from the bones and spread on whole grain or sourdough bread. Your dog or someone else’s will love the leftover meat and bones. The congealed fat you collected as it was cooling can be used to make pemmican or put outside for the birds to eat.

p.s Coming your way soon, my next blog post will be about water. ooooooh, I cannot WAIT! I can hear you all scooting to the edges of your collective seats and holding your breath. Well, don’t hold it too long and make sure you get up and stretch from that soon to be uncomfortable position on your chair and hold true, the blog post will be here next week-ish!

Hey there fellow travellers – I told you a while back that we were looking for another practitioner in Suite 25o to join with Gentle Tiger Acupuncture and Will Power Flower Massage and Astrology (see post 10.11.09). And THEN I informed you that we’d found someone but wasn’t letting the cat out of the bag (see post 11.18.09). Well, you’ve waited patiently and now that time is OVER! Both Will and I are very proud to include Beth Chierbright into our Suite 250. Without further ado, here’s the scoop on Beth – read on!

Hello, my name is Beth Chier Bright RN, BSN. I am happy, grateful and very excited to be joining Miguel (Gentle Tiger Acupuncture) and Will (Will Power Flower Massage and Astrology) with my own Healing Touch energy work. I believe these 3 modalities will amplify the already amazing wellness, balancing and growth that occurs here in Suite 250 of the Quarry Arts Building.

I’ve been an RN for 20 years. My specialties are Hematology, Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant which has been my focus for 15 years. My other areas of expertise include Home Health Case management for 2 years and most recently 6 years at UW Hospital clinic treating patients with a myriad of diseases and conditions such as Crohn’s, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Anemia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Osteoporosis and Kidney and Bone Marrow Transplant preparation and post transplant complications.

I’ve been studying and practicing integrative & alternative medicine for 15 years. I’m a few months from becoming a Certified Healing Touch Practitioner, I’ve found Healing Touch to be a great complement to my nursing practice. Being a nurse working with people experiencing a wide spectrum of different illnesses, I’ve found there is need for a holistic approach to healing & wellness. I’ve utilized Healing Touch with my own patients and they are giving me great feedback. I’m also finding a growing number of people looking to add complementary & adjunctive therapies to their health care.

Healing Touch is an Energy Therapy in which practitioners use non-invasive techniques in a conscious, heart-centered and intentional manner to facilitate physical, emotional, mental and spiritual healing/health. The Healing Touch practitioner often uses only his/her hands placed in the patient’s bio-field or near the body to facilitate healing. Some examples of what Healing touch can facilitate is the clearing of energetic obstructions, balancing energies that are out of alignment, relieving physical pain, alleviating emotional trauma/ duress and mental distress to create the space for your mind, body and spirit to realize and return to its original health.

To find out even more about Healing Touch therapy, please click on this link www.healingtouch.net

I’ve had more than a handful of requests in regard to another class on this topic. I am working on it and will keep you posted.  For now check out my reply to Tracy who was concerned about discerning the difference between herself and her power animal. It’s posted under “Metaphysical/Shamanic” after the April 4, 2009 blog about “Meeting your spirit guides and power animals”.

May it be full of laughter, joy, loved ones, pleasurable food and drink and that all the trials and pain you’ve endured be softened by years end…

Stay on the couch, bundle up with loved ones, two legged and four footed and turn on your favorite holiday movies -

1. A Christmas Story – “You’ll shoot your eye out, kid!”

2. The Grinch – Animated or Live (if you have little ones, stick with the animated, the live version with Jim Carrey is a LITTLE scary. Some critics panned the live version, but I don’t agree. I think it’s pretty good.

3. A Muppet Christmas Carol – Oh, it’s just classic Jim Henson with Kermie, Piggy, Fozzy, Rizzo, Gonzo, et. al. Michael Caine makes a great Scrooge – both before and after his inner transformation from cold hearted, iron hearted butthead to generous loving human being.

 I’m sure you have your own favorites, please share them with me. I understand that we can’t all stay home in inclement weather, so if you MUST go out, let’s get some things in check here. I’ve included a top 10 list of important items to have on hand or have ready in case of travel in inclement weather.

1. Properly filled tires – maximizes gas mileage, increases better handling of your vehicle

2. Gas tank filled up the night before – this minimizes getting in and out of the car the next day. Also, if you do go off the road, it’s important to have enough gas to keep the heater going in case it takes a while for help to come. I looked up the temp at which gas freezes, 3-4 different sources I found said that it’s basically -97 degrees F. That’s even cold for WI. I have this superstition, based on my own rationale that despite this figure, a gas tank that is full will NOT contain frozen gas by morning than one that is on or near E. Feel free to set me straight on this idea.  

2.5 Speaking of freezing, they sell windshield cleaning fluids with lower freezing temps than the average windshield cleaning fluid. I have found that the stuff that requires more effort by Mother Nature to freeze is purple and usually costs a little more, but if you’ve ever had frozen windshield cleaning fluid (present company included), you’ll know it’s worth it. And make sure you check levels before leaving the house.

3. An auto first aid kit is a GRAND thing to have in the car just for GP (general purpose), but doubly important in case of inclement weather. A space blanket (some come in the car first aid kit), a flash light with fresh batteries (may also be in the car first aid kit). There are several different models, sizes, styles to choose from online. They contain things like: Motion sickness tablets, accident report forms, light sticks, an emergency whistle, etc. 

3.5 Make sure you’re up to date on your oil change(s). Thinner, cleaner oil assists to ease starting up your vehicle in colder weather and moves more quickly through your engine to aid in quicker warm-up. Also, in general regular oil changes decrease wear and tear on engine parts, maximizing engine life.

4. Jumper cables – In case you have to start a campfire while waiting for help to arrive, LOL! just kidding – the reason I think is obvious. If your car battery dies/stalls and you need to start it up, you’ll have the ability to do so with jumper cables.  

5. Candles – if you can’t keep the heat on in your car and you get stuck, 1 candle is enough to heat the interior of your car to a tolerable level. It won’t be roasting, but you won’t freeze. Carry a few. My suggestion is to  put 5-7 tea candles in a kit/container. Tea Candles last about 20-30 minutes each.

6. Road flares – for placing on the road in case of limited visibility and you’re still in the road or near it and can’t move.

7. A cell phone charger cord that is cigarette lighter adaptable. Not all cars come with a cigarette lighter anymore, so pay attention to that before you buy this type of charger cord. Remember too, that if your battery dies/stalls you may out of luck in this regard, but if you were charging your cell phone before the accident, you’re in luck!

8. When it IS cold out – a.k.a. inclement weather in winter, pack some non-perishable foods – trail mix (the chocolate has sugar and the nuts have great protein and fat), bottled water, whether yours or store bought, canned food is an option too.

9. I know that On Star, Tom Tom and Garmin have wonderful GPS systems, but you may not always have reception…despite these companies reassurances, so a good old fashioned paper map of your county and the surrounding areas or a map of wherever you are is a good idea.

9.5. Oh and don’t wait to get through ooooooone more winter to get brand new tires that you should’ve bought when it was still warm, but were wondering if it would fit in your Xmas budget.

10. And throw in a good book of your favorite holiday recipes that you’ll be cooking once you’ve contacted the police, insurance company, family/friends, towtruck and are sitting waiting for rescue in your nice warm vehicle. Okay, any book will do. You say You’d prefer to play on your cellphone to kill time? I suggest you save the battery for any calls you may need to make, in case the tow truck can’t find you, your family needs information, etc. who knows?  -  besides when do any of us with kids, jobs and bills to pay have time for a good book besides at bedtime or on the toilet – LOL!

Alright, I’m sure many of you have many of your own practical ideas for what to keep in the car and how to maintain your car for inclement weather. Please share. thank you – Miguel

p.s. Crank handle powered flashlights exist and are a good idea if you don’t want to deal with batteries. They only need to be hand cranked in order to charge. It will make reading at night in your warm stuck car more practical, too.

thank you! YOUR PATIENCE IS MOST APPRECIATED. Below are the two links for the raw milk spot in this month’s newsletter. Click on the first for the update on the “state of raw milk in the state of wisconsin” and the second link is to Dr. Mercola’s article about “raw milk vs. pasteurized milk”. Read on divine humans!

1. http://thecountrytoday.com/printstory.asp?id=BLPB553Q001#

2.http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/11/12/Choosing-Between-R
aw-Milk-and-a-Dead-White-Liquid.aspx

HEY! Come back when you’re done with the articles and read the blog below…it’s chock full of updates on the goings on at Gentle Tiger Acupuncture LLC and there’s stuff you can use and info you won’t want to miss! below…low…ow…w… (that’s an echo, FYI – LOL!)

thank you – Miguel

Hello All -

I received confirmation this last week that the person Will and I hoped would accept the offer to be in the Quarry Arts building along side Gentle Tiger Acupuncture and WillPowerFlower  Massage and Energy Therapy HAS accepted. The references have come back with glowing praise! I am excited. I am also not going to reveal anything about this new person until either next week or the week after. I’ll have to play it by ear and see how it turns out… Stay Tuned!

p.s. The pic of Grover and a young President Barack Obama (just kidding about the Obama part, it’s not him) is because they’re both cute and I couldn’t very well put a pic of the new practitioner.

Oh a newsletter, a newsletter! I am very remiss and upset about not getting a newsletter out to the faithful Gentle Tiger Acupuncture Newsletter readers. My deepest apologies. Life is moving very quickly and I am working hard. I DO need to pick up this ball and run with it. I believe that I will shorten the content matter in each newsletter until I can streamline the process, which is still what takes me so long. No worries, the quality of the content will not suffer one iota. I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night if that happened….update – since the beginning of this post I am very close to being done with the newsletter for November/December. So watch out!

My main man Will Power (a.k.a. William F. Hayes) is STILL offering his buy one massage get one free (that’s 2 – 6o minute massages for the price of 1) If you haven’t take advantage of this offer, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING ON?! LOL! I don’t know how long he’ll be offering this deal. I keep forgetting to ask…so get on it! How many people would not like a massage as a gift? I’m sure there are a few, but we’re not talking about them. We’re talking about the millions of people (I’m not making that up – MILLIONS do get massage on a yearly basis)…okay here’s the facts on that piece of info…

Approximately 47 million American adults received a massage in the last year (the “last year” mentioned here being 2004) – an increase of two million more people than in the previous year. Source: AMTA (American Massage Therapy Association) 2005 Consumer Survey…

okay, millions of people DO get massage, soooo here’s the opportunity for you to get one for you and someone else (saaaaayyyyy for Christmas?), for a GREAT deal! You could also just keep the second one for yourself and even combine it into a 2 hour massage. Call Will – Willpowerflower Massage and Energy Therapy 608-238-1622

A little note here for you – Dandy Blend is now in the office. Dandy Blend? What’s that? I’ll give you the scoop on that in the upcoming newsletter. Keep your eyes peeled.

One more thing, please notice the link at the bottom of the home page to www.balancepersonaltraining.com. My friend Eric Foxman is the owner of Balance Personal Training and his website has a nice blend of healthy recipes, videos, tips and other information that are useful. Eric believes that safety, fun, and results are what personal training with him is all about. And right now he has a butternut squash dip recipe that looks phenomenal!

And lastly, here is my much coveted recipe for FANTASTIC Chai! My friend Leesa Walters, passed it on to me many moons ago and I’ve given a few people this recipe, but I’m ready to unleash it on the world and you! It’s also starting to get cold on a regular basis and this is a great warm up drink with health benefits. My only reservations with the actual recipe will be cleared up RIGHT HERE – I do not recommend soy, rice or almond milk. I do recommend cow milk, preferably raw, but if you can’t get it (call me if interested) make sure your organic milk is ONLY pasteurized and NOT homogenized. I will speak more about raw milk in the upcoming newsletter. woo hoo! Enjoy! 

1 quart cow, soy, almond milk

1 cinnamon stick

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon dry ginger

3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1 teaspoon black peppercorns

2 tablespoons to 1/2 cup sweetener (brown rice syrup, sucanat or honey)

Bring water to a boil in a large saucepan and add peppermint tea in a tea ball. Remove from heat

and steep 20 minutes. Remove tea ball or tea bags. Add milk, spices and sweetener (unless you are

using honey, in which case wait until the chai is finished to stir it in). Heat and steep on low heat for

an additional 30 minutes.

Comments: Kapha is best off using soy milk and the minimum of sweetener, preferably honey.

serves 6

prep time: 50 minutes

 Thank you avid Gentle Tiger visitors and your comments/feedback are truly welcome. – Miguel

For the record, I don’t usually blog about what I need, but the OLD adage, “ask and ye shall receive” keeps going through my head, so here it goes. Will Hayes (massage therapist and astrologer extraordinaire) and I have discussed it and we would like a 3rd person practicing with us in suite 250 of the Quarry Arts Building. Now this can’t be ANY person, this person has to be special. There has to be that synergy that makes itself known within the first 30-60 seconds of meeting with this person. We feel like that’s the only way it’ll work. Will and I are looking for a trinity. That word “trinity” invokes higher consciousness, sacredness, an understanding of things unseen, of subtle energies. And that’s what we need, so below is the scoop in greater detail!

Today is your day! A beautiful space in the Quarry Arts Building would like another practitioner.

Hello,

My name is Miguel F Cardenas and I own Gentle Tiger Acupuncture (www.gentletigeracupuncture.com) and share a three treatment room suite with William F Hayes, owner of Willpower Flower Massage and Energy Therapy. We are located on the West Side of Madison and looking for a 3^rd practitioner to share this amazing healing space with us.  We are both there on Mondays Wednesdays and Fridays. The space is open for sure the other 2 days (Tuesday and Thursday. If you want less than 2 days, discontinue reading. We’re not offering any less commitment than 2 days as week) and possibly one more day, which would total 3 days (I would like to talk more about that with you if you feel you need 3 days). Here are the details that we feel pertinent to this opportunity:

1. The energies of Will’s practice and my practice overlap. Yours will too, so it’s important to understand how we are already and that you fit and that we are right for you.  The following will give you a little intro to how things flow.

-           We interact with each other,  talk about our medicine, our experiences with practice and our training and sometimes how they overlap with each other, etc. 

-          Both Will and I feel that you need to fit with the groove and feel of the office, not just with your modality, but your personality. It’s a comfortable atmosphere based on mutual respect, friendship and the highest level of professionalism.

-          There will be a once a month meeting where we come together and regenerate each other’s practices with marketing tips, thoughts, ideas and creativity that amplify everyone’s practice.

-          We’re looking for a third person to increase the already strong bond that Will and I have to create community based on mind, body and spirit connected health and wellness.

Now for the business details

1. There are many bennies to practicing in the Quarry Arts Bldg. Here are just a few (some are building related, the others are suite related).

-          Laundry machines: washer and dryer onsite (not in the suite, but down the hall).

-          Your own key to the suite.

-          An address/mailbox for receiving your business mail located by the suite door.

-          I will mention you in my Gentle Tiger newsletter and website as a new practitioner in the space.

-          Will and I would like to plan an open house once you’ve established yourself in the space (that may take a month or 2) . That opens up a whole world of client getting opportunities, community building and networking possibilities. I also want some good food at this shindig, so that’s good, too.

-          I’ll do my best to open up some space in the storage closet for your stuff. It shouldn’t be too difficult; it takes me a bit to figure out where to put my stuff and what if anything I can just throw away. No worries, we’ll make it work.  

-          Underground FREE parking for you and your clients.

-          There are big garbage cans for bagged garbage, loose garbage and recycle in the parking garage for your sanitation needs. – We have to remove our own garbage from our suite, but the Quarry Arts bldg staff puts the garbage and recycling bins to the curb.

-          Elevator and stairwell access.                                                    

-          Listing on the Quarry Arts website and door of the suite*

-          Contact with many other wonderful practitioners of the healing arts.

-          Posting your info and business cards by the elevator (not just in the suite)

-          There is a shower area, kitchenette and sauna available to all tenants.

*There is a charge for your name and practice name on the door to the suite, because these details are taken care of by the owners of the building. It will be applied professionally and will conform to the style of the rest of the listings on the suite doors throughout the building – trust me, it looks good. Listing on the website and for your name/practice name to be on the door is contingent on the signing of a 1-year sublease. We want to know that you’ll be around for a while.

What else? What else?

Ummmm, yes – there is a monthly rent charge, duh. For 2 days (access to 1 treatment room +waiting room for clients/patients) = 270.00 and for 3 days (access to one treatment room + waiting room for clients/patients) = 333.00

So, if you have any further questions and are super interested, please call 608-204-0100.

Hello true believers! I am sure that it’s obvious to at least a few of you, that October’s Gentle Tiger Acupuncture e-newsletter has not arrived in your inbox, please be assured that it’s on its way. I am just putting some finishing touches and it will be to you soon. thank you for your patience. – Miguel

The Gentle Tiger Acupuncture Events Page has been updated, but before you get to it, go below and read about Will Power Flower Massage and Energy Therapy. It’s great stuff.