September 20, 2004
The beginning of a neverending road
Nothing is more interesting than actually making vegetable juice. I mean – it’s understandable, one can always squeeze green peppers and celery, but spinach and dill? I, for one, did not think it was possible. How much water can there be in a bunch of dill? It’s like the thinnest vegetable I have ever seen. Well, apparently it works, and it also works with other leaves such as spinach, lettuce, etc. What a wonder nature is!
This was my first day on 90% raw stuff (some veggie juice, some apples)… and have been doing fairly well except that I obsessed about food and felt hungry through the day. But they say that it gets better after a while, so I am waiting for the ‘while’ to reveal itself to me: three days, seven days, three hundred seven days?
Well I am a terrible cook so I don't see myself 'cooking' any sort of fancy raw dishes (which I presume could be 'cooked', as in 'arranged' rather than cooked), so I will pretty much stick to very raw food (like in almost 'untouched', with the exception of a knife which is meant to bring it to an chewable size).
Now, the reason why I am interested in the entire raw affair is because it clearly is pretty much the smartest idea anyone can come up with. It leads to pure, undivided, perpetual health. That’s for sure… or at least, I strongly believe in that. I don’t know all that much about all the destructive effects of cooking food, but the theory is out there, and until the theory is found guilty, I will take the liberty to believe in it. Also, looking too much into theory at the expense of practice might not lead to the right decisions (yes, I do not like theories much... though they occasionally help). And since my inner voice tells me that this is right for me, I am going for it. I know it will not be easy, it might even get frustrating ('flu' symptoms and everything…) but it’s certainly worthwhile.
There is no other strategy that has made me feel generally Good before. Exercising has always worked, of course, but I would do it when I was mad; I was doing it to release all that negative energy, all that anger at certain people (so in other words I would just exercise when I got dumped!). Now, that’s not a good reason to exercise. Not sustainable either since getting dumped is not something I entertain thinking of as a 'habit'.
Furthermore, eating healthy stuff is by far the vaguest idea I’ve ever come across. Potatoes and meat were once considered healthy (several centuries ago, that is…) . Now, vegetables and fruit and whole wheat are considered healthy. Well, then, how come vegetarians don't look better (on average) than non-vegetarians? Or maybe they do and I've just missed it. I have been a vegetarian for as long as I can remember (perhaps... 6 years or so), and yet there have been times when my stomach ached because of the bad restaurant food, have been -- let's just say -- not exactly on the slim side, etc. So vegetariansm (or fishtarianism or whatever it's called) can't be the answer either.
Speaking of being slim. Yes, or rather no. I am not slim. I in fact weigh 165 lbs (edited, I'm afraid, I tried to avoid the pounds system since the numbers are higher than in kilograms! :)) and have decided that this is a beautiful round number that I am eager to forget. Rather, I want to feel better by carrying (considerably) fewer pounds, but not at the expense of feeling weak and lousy. I feel weak and lousy already, so something can't be right... Yes, I think that there is no other better option out there for me now than going raw. I am by all means convinced that this is the right strategy, and the right thing to do. Of course, I am thankful to those who have put up all the information on rawfoodism out there on the internet, which I have found and selectively read. It has been very helpful indeed.
In terms of how I shall structure this entire trip... don't know whether I shall be posting here daily (I hope I'll have the time!), or whether I shall write about what I eat, or what I feel or anythnig else... but this is, at least, the intent. If there is anyone else out there who is starting a similar enterprise, do let me know (perhaps you have a diary too, perhaps elsewhere?). All in all, I shall be around, I shall be writing, and reading. Will let you all know how this is unfolding...
Posted by Liliaak on September 20, 2004 06:34 PM