If you're thinking about a new career, changing the way you eat, getting into yoga, doing something good for the world, or you just need beautiful gifts with a story, plan to drop by Heather Haxo Phillip's and Bashir Anasta's eclectic house party and gift sale: Part Fair Trade Palestinian products and part raw food cooking.

Taste, Learn, Shop

Arrive at their Victorian home ready to bring good things to your life:

Inspiration from passionate entrepreneurs: In thinking about your own career in 2011, consider a recent Psychology Today article's advice that "job seekers must be flexible and adapt their talents to a variety of settings." 

Heather channels her passion for good health into several outlets, to share and help others. She is a raw food chef, teaches raw cooking at Cafe Gratitude and Whole Foods, wrote a "Healthy Holiday Survival Guide" book, and teaches yoga.

Bashir's career has included engineering and finance. He wholeheartedly dove into creating a fair trade import business for a cause (see below), suddenly becoming an entrepreneur. I met Bashir at an entrepreneur's Meetup group, a great activity for your "resolutions" list if you want to network more. 

Samplings of 2011 Olive Oil from the West Bank: Just hand-picked and pressed last week in Palestine, this deep green buttery olive oil has a slightly peppery finish. Growers pick the olives by hand from hillside orchards, and the oil is made in small batches. Bashir went the extra mile to get this oil in time directly from the co-operatives for the holidays, marshaling help from his neighbors to pack off shipments to eager olive oil devotees.

Palestine has been hard hit by embargoes on its olive oil. Bashir explains how Holy Land Olive Oil became the first company in the U.S. with a "Product of Palestine" label: "It all started with an email from Ta’ayush, (an Arab-Jewish partnership in Israel working for peace and against the Occupation) which urged local Bay Area activists to buy Palestinian olive oil from an agricultural cooperative in the West Bank." (more info)

Soon-to-be-famous chai and raw foods: Enjoy fresh apple cider, dairy free Nogs, and Bashir's popular Chai which is currently served around events in Oakland. Sample desserts by the Living Vision's raw Patisserie. Particularly if you haven't tried raw desserts yet, you may find they are even richer than the richest "cooked" pies and cakes you've tasted.

Unique affordable gifts: Bashir works with ceramicists in the West Bank, paying them a fair trade price for hand-painted small dishes and tile styles from modern to ethnic, many under $10. You will also find olive oil soap  and antiquities. You can also discover Heather's latest book and raw food gifts.

Event Details:

2900 35th Ave just off 580 in Oakland, in the Fruitvale / Laurel District
When: Saturday, December 18, 2008 -  3PM to 7PM