This week's adventure wasn't planned which is what makes it so good. I'm going to be a vegetarian for a week. I have a list of things that I want to try as part of this series and I keep coming up with new things all the time that pique my interest. And ever since week 1 when I turned off distractions and learned better time management, my mind has been clear enough to allow new ideas and suggestions to enter it. This particular one came to me Saturday February 11th when Jenny and I were at the Milwaukee Bucks game. I had won 2 tickets to the Miller Lite Home Court on Bucks.com and we got to watch the game from the box on the club level, 3 free beers and free food and snacks. That's us in the background of this lovely picture of a father taking his daughter to a basketball game. They didn't take a picture of us. Jenny has been a vegetarian for almost a year now but for most of her life she has been picky on the kinds of meat she liked and rarely ate red meat. There haven't always been the best options for her and she really had to be creative at times when we went to get something to eat. And although things are getting better in stores and restaurants, things are still tough for a vegetarian in a meat eater's world. The only thing she could eat there was cheese pizza and chocolate chip cookies while I was chowing down on a hotdog, pepperoni pizza and popcorn chicken. As I dipped some chicken in ranch and popped it into my mouth I said to Jenny something like this - "I don't know how you do it. I could never give up meat. Chicken is just too good." And that is when she challenged me to try not eating meat. So here is where I hope to know what it's like to be her. At least when it comes to her chosen vegetarian lifestyle.
Tonight, Wednesday February 22 we went to the grocery store to buy some things to put together a dinner with no meat. Jenny had some fake meat crumbles that resembles ground beef and we decided to make some sloppy joes. We mixed in some red and green peppers and some onions. We also had a salad with lettuce and spinach with carrots, onions and peppers mixed it. I looked up a couple of recipes and realized I didn't have a whole lot of time to prep or cook for dinner tonight. So I'm going to save that for another night this week. So if you're reading this and have a good vegetarian recipe that I should try out please send it my way. You know how to reach me. Fake meat sloppy joes and salad was a really easy thing to throw together which goes to show that it isn't that hard to live a certain lifestyle whether if you are doing it for a week to try it out or if you are doing it to Rage for Timmy. If it is something that you believe in for any reason you will find a way to do it. Sticking to it may be a whole lot harder then just doing it for a few days but I'll probably figure that out in a few more days.
Jenny said that there is a world of difference between eating vegetarian and eating healthy. Just because you cut out meat doesn't mean that you cut out all the bad things for you. So before you think that this has anything to do with health that's not why I'm doing it. Although I could stand to eat more fruits and vegetables to supplement my diet. Case in point - we are potato chips with our dinner tonight. Jenny warned to go easy on the carbs and cheese because when you aren't eating meat you tend to try to get nutrients from other sources that aren't as good for you or contain higher amounts of bad things that raise your cholesterol levels. I'd try and sound smart about health and nutrition but I'm not a doctor. Even though I have been watching nothing but Scrubs for the last few days. Eventually I'm bound to pick up something other than asshole rants and where to go in my head when I need to escape it. But it's not getting in the way of my writing, working out or playing guitar. I did all of three of them tonight. So don't worry that all that work I put in during weeks 1 and 2 is going to waste right now. This is intended to be a continuing adventure and be able to flow freely from week to week and if I keep this sort of thing up there is no reason to believe the I can't change my life for the better. Because after all that's really the reason why I'm doing this.
So much was made about former Milwaukee Brewers' 1st baseman Prince Fielder's decision to go vegetarian. He did it because his wife shared with him pictures and information on the treatment of animals that are used for food. I'm not gonna get into that because I'd like to eat steak, bacon and chicken wings without crying and hating myself. When Fielder went veggie people went crazy because they thought he's see a drop in power due to him not getting enough protein and other crap that you get from eating animals. And after a while of not eating meat people were surprised that he didn't lose any weight or build any muscle. I used to kid people that I knew the reason for it - doughnuts and Twinkies are still vegetarian. I kid the big man but only because I love him so much. I haven't really gotten into it yet but I'm gonna miss seeing the man in a Brewers uniform. Best of luck in Detroit pal. This is not the time nor place for this but all I'm saying is don't expect me to get in better shape by dropping the meat for a week. It doesn't work like that. But I have made a concentrated effort to cut back on the booze, snacks and sweets so if I drop a couple of lbs then it's because of that. Oh, and going to the gym probably will have something to do with it too. Weight doesn't lose itself. Damn I wish it was that easy.
If you want to give me shit because I'm doing this for the wrong reasons then fine. If you want to praise me for trying something new then fine. If you want to do nothing then fine. All I know is that I'm living my life, trying new things and having a hell of a good time while doing it. Truth be told I've never felt better. But I still know that there is so much more to look forward to and every day presents a brand new adventure. And I'd rather feel like that then how I've been feeling over the past year. No one should ever feel like that. Things will never be the same but there is no reason to sit around and wallow in it any longer. Life goes on and so must I. Meat or no meat. But I swear to God if I smell bacon I will drop any plans that I had to go a week or more without meat and go swimming in it like Uncle Scrooge.
- pookon -
email: pookondotcom@gmail.com
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