Days Eleven, Twelve and into Thirteen

I had been mostly raw for the last several days until yesterday when I got together with my friend Michael for dinner. Michael is also a vegetarian, so while I knew that we might not go an entirely raw place, we'd inevitably end up someplace wonderful, which we did. I had a vegan meal at a new place called "Stuff I Eat" in Inglewood not far from where he lives.

I had the $10 Lunch Burrito (seasoned tofu, black beans, wild rice, savory sauce, fresh salsa, guacamole and mixed greens). It also came with a side salad and a few chips. The burrito was fabulous, although the tortilla seemed to have been pan-fried slightly which made it a bit oilier than I would have liked. I also drank a bottled superfood drink that I don't recall the name of (at $6 a pop I certainly hope it was packed with nutritional power because it was kind of bland, but I can't blame the restaurant for that since they didn't actually make it). We topped off the meal with a slice of raw berry pie ($7), which was utterly delicious(it tasted like one I've made in the past with cashews and coconut butter as the base). The atmosphere was charming and down to earth and the people were friendly, so I highly recommend the place overall -- but bring cash, they don't accept plastic! (I had to run down the street to the ATM at B of A so we had enough for dessert, which was certainly a good move but cost me a $3 fee)

I've been throwing whole bags of spinach into my smoothies lately (unless my daughter is sharing -- it still tastes a bit too green for her to really enjoy I think; we'll work up to it). I've found that the tastiest balance for me seems to be a bag of spinach (6 oz.), a banana, the juice of one lemon, and some water. I was putting mangoes, pears, papayas and other fruits into my smoothies, but the result seemed to be that the really distinct flavors of these fruits were getting lost in the overall mix. Now I save those for snacking alone. The problem with smoothies is that I don't find them filling for very long, so I either have to eat frequently or pair them up with some "solids" -- generally something made with seeds or nuts. Maybe this will change over time, maybe it won't, but I don't think I'm overdoing the fat yet because I seem to be losing a bit of weight already after two weeks on this diet. Not a lot, but somewhere between 2 and 5 pounds (it's hard to say exactly given I have about a 2-3 pound fluctuation range from day to day, but the range itself has started centering itself on a lower number than it had before).

I'm still having trouble getting motivated in the morning without my usual treat of coffee, but that could result from a combination of factors: the lack of a caffeine-based jumpstart, the fact that I'm on sabbatical instead of my usual structured work schedule of waking to an alarm and getting to work by 7 am, the fact that I'm alone in the mornings (hubby and daughter don't tend to rouse until 11 or noon), etc. etc. Clearly I need to work on the psychological as well as the chemical/physical aspects of this: i.e., setting up some concrete tasks and routines for myself, establishing a new ritual. Of course I'm also inclined to wait on that and give myself a bit more respite and freedom, which is also part of what sabbatical is about.

Here's what I've been putting into my body for the past couple of days:

Day Eleven:

• 10:30 am: 2 Autumn Squash Cookies, mineral water
  
• 12:30 pm: Raw Granola and brazil nut milk
  
• 1:45 pm: Raw Snack Mix, mineral water
  
• 3:45 pm: Mango
  
• 7:30 pm: Green Smoothie (1/2 bag organic spinach, banana, juice of one homegrown lemon), Salad (1/2 bag organic mixed greens, sunflower seeds, 1/2 avocado, 1/2 organic tomato, 1/2 red bell pepper, cilantro dressing leftover from making Kale Chips)

Day Twelve:

• 8 am: Green Smoothie (6 oz. bag of organic spinach, banana, juice of one homegrown lemon), 2 Autumn Squash Cookies
  
• 10 am: Larabar, apple pie flavor
  
• 2 pm: 2 Raw Tacos (Romaine leaf "shells," raw vegan sour cream, hot sauce - not raw, avocado, Ani's Scramble, Raw Chili, organic tomato), Pear
  
• 5 pm: Vegan dinner at Stuff I Eat (Lunch Burrito, chips, salad, superfood drink, raw berry pie)
  
• 11 pm: Salted peanuts (not raw)

Day Thirteen:

• 8:45 am: Raw Granola and Almond Milk