I Too Am Fed Up With Gluttony

I've given a lot of thought to "gluttony" lately. I have friends who talk about food, usually meat, as if they are describing a Picasso. They search the globe for the most exotic meats and attend private suppers in underground locations. I see others who don't look to food as an elitist club, but instead gorge on snacks and meals that can tally more calories and fat than I consume in a day.

Today I wondered why I get so emotional about this. I wondered if part of me is angry that I live such a clean life (low-fat, vegetarian diet, no alcohol, no cigarettes, workout most days of the week), while my friends consume gobs of grease, sugar, fat, and alcohol, and yet I'm the one with cancer. I'm fighting for my life with every bite I take and every ounce of sweat and the rest of the country is either obese or well on their way to becoming obese. And if I'm being honest, I am angry. It's not that I wish everyone else had cancer; it's that I wish they appreciated their bodies more. I'm frustrated that my friends will discover what mortality means, and it will be too late -- they will have slothed themselves into an early grave. (I did, in fact, just turn "sloth" into a verb. I'm standing behind it.)

I also get angry, though, on behalf of the animals. I've said it over and over and over again, but if we can live our lives in such a way that does not harm another life, why on earth would we not choose to do so? It just seems so selfish to me to murder animals for food, when the evidence is showing more and more that not only can we live without animal protein, but we're actually healthier without it.

Right after I discussed with Tommie this afternoon my concerns about being so angry about gluttony, his March issue of The Atlantic magazine arrived in our mailbox with a teaser on the front cover that reads: "Tasteless: The Moral Case Against Foodies." Kismet!

B.R. Myers' book review, "Gluttony Dressed Up As Foodie-ism Is Still Gluttony," has given me the validation that I truly needed today. I'll let you read the article for yourself and draw your own conclusions, but for me, it felt so wonderful to read this artfully crafted argument against this world of high-brow gluttony.

Why I'm a Vegetarian

I love animals. That's why I'm a vegetarian. Simple as that. About six or seven years ago my love for animals was becoming so overwhelming that I was finding it harder and harder to eat meat. Tommie felt the same way, so we decided to try eating meat-free meals a couple times a week. Over time we realized that we really preferred those meat-free meals.

At the same time, I was extremely ill with recurring digestive problems that years later were determined to be symptoms from a tumor on my pancreas. By the end of the summer of 2005 (I believe it was) we decided to stop eating all meat. I did so with one caveat though. I was so sick, that I couldn't bare the thought of feeling worse, so I decided to become a vegetarian as long as it didn't make me more ill. My exact words were, "I'll switch to being a full-time vegetarian so long as I can do so and still be healthy." (Emphasis now shows the irony of that word, since I was sick as a dog back then.)

Here I am five and a half years later, and I haven't once questioned my decision. As you can see from the food I'm eating from this blog, I'm enjoying a rainbow of delicious foods that are fueling my body to be stronger than I  have ever been in my life. Without medical intervention my immune system is strong enough now to fight the cancer on its own, and I am sure that it is my whole foods, plant-based diet in conjunction with exercise, that is making me so strong.

Most of my friends eat meat. Most Americans eat meat. Many of my friends are overweight and unhealthy, and something like one third of all Americans are the same. I know that I'm not going to change the world, and I'm not going to change the minds of my friends, but here's some food for thought:

If you could eat delicious food that makes you feel and look amazing and can help you reduce many of the medicines you need to take, while at the same time save the lives of helpless animals, wouldn't you want to do this? Would you consider at least trying this?

I'll help if you want to give it a try. Your body, your taste buds, and countless animals will thank you.

Lentil Saute with Indian Flavors

Continuing with our lentil theme... Tonight's dinner demonstrates that you can have the same protein two days in a row, in this case lentils, but still enjoy very different flavors and textures.

Tommie stepped up to the plate (pardon the pun) and cooked dinner, while I was away playing at the Pilates studio. He cooked it perfect: lentils, onions, garlic, some chocolate mint from the garden, some top-secret spices, and topped off with plain yogurt.

I came home in time to help with the rice and followed Jack Bishop's "Simplest Rice Pilaf" recipe. 99% of the time I make rice this way: a little butter, heat up a cinnamon stick, toast the rice in the pot and then add the water. It's crazy what one cinnamon stick can do to a pot of rice. Out of this world.

We're going with a 4.5 for tonight's meal. It's a perfect "Crap! We have nothing to eat! Oh wait, I always have lentils, garlic, and onions in the pantry... I know what I can make!" meal. If you're a vegetarian, you want to add this one to your repertoire.