it's been a while

uh, a while since I've posted.

things have happened. well, my cleanse thing happened. and I guess it's still happening, because I'm slowly reintroducing foods I couldn't have, and so far, so good. Soy, yes. Tomatoes, so far so good. Still to come: corn. oats. dairy? wheat? Not so sure on those last two, because I already KNOW that wheat and I don't get along. These few weeks without it only confirm that. As for dairy, I love dairy. LOVE it. But I have a very strong (spidey) sense that it, like THE MAN, also keeps me down. So I'm gonna stay away a while longer.

Today, we did this BBQ for the campus community. Basically, 5,000 people (or so) showed up. There were Natural Angus Beef burgers, Garden Burgers, Salad w/Ranch dressing, pretzels, Tim's Cascade Potato Chips, Chocolate chip cookies. Oh, and don't forget the buns, cheese, lettuce and tomatoes for those burgers. Oh, and Passover Matzoh bread, which is one of my favorite things ever.

It was a lot of food, and kind of a bind for me. The Vegan Gardenburgers have wheat in them. In the past, I would have simply grabbed a beef burger patty, and made do, but I didn't, because I'm taking a break from eating meat. I might have considered the chips junk food, but I needed me some calories, so I ate some. And then I got creative and had some salad, sans ranch, with mustard and relish. And then I came to my senses and went to a nearby cafe and ordered steamed rice, to go. And yes, I ate that way too fast, but I needed some fuel. See, I'd been moving (stuff, including me) for 6 straight hours. My gas tank was empty. And there were clearly a few more hours to go.

I guess I'm thinking about how the cleanse and having a dietary agenda helped me steer through a rough day. A month ago I'd likely have fueled myself on cookies and a burger and anything that happened my way. There'd have been a lot of coffee and black tea. Today felt different, and the most amazing thing happened when I got home. I took off my clothes and they really didn't reek. I guess that's the reward that keeps me on this path I'm exploring.

I am so frickin' elated to not be a stinker.