Where it's at

Veganism, Baby.

I heart plant foods, darlings. A lot. I'm feeling mighty fine; I'm full of energy, in a very good mood, and quite alert. Mind you, I've only got two speeds right now: stop and go. When my body says it's time to sleep, I really need to be no farther than three minutes away from a bed. No, seriously.

And although my weight hasn't yet dropped, my fat percentage has. What I love best about following a vegan diet right now is the fact that I get to eat a lot of food and I'm not getting fatter. There are many caveats that I could add, but it goes without saying that obviously I don't eat a lot of processed or junk foods. But it doesn't bother me, because I'm discovering so much new and delicious food! I'm enjoying food and eating so much right now! I feel that my palate has become even more sensitive, so it's pretty trippy. Actually, in an almost literal sense it is. I remember a period of time in university when I was experimenting with drugs, and how it felt the first time I ate chocolate after smoking ganja. The pleasurable experience I associate with food lately is someone akin to it, minus the paranoia and forgetfulness. If you'd had that 1st chocolate experience on ganja, you fully understand the euphoria I'm talking about.

Also, I love how much my health has improved, and although ethical considerations are not my primary concern, I do feel relieved to know that I'm doing something with the money that I spend to contribute to sustaining the environment and to promoting the ethical treatment of animals. As a Christian, I believe what the Bible says in Genesis about the role that God has given to humanity as stewards of the planet. However, there are examples of good and poor stewardship in the Bible, and I don't think that God wants us to tyrannize the planet, you know? Anyway.

The downsides to this new way of eating are:

1) It's kind of expensive. The cost of natural and organic and whole foods are a lot higher than processed pseudo-healthy foods available at the supermarket. There aren't a whole lot of foods that are clean and chemical-free out there. I've got to get informed about co-ops and local organic farms otherwise once this school tour is over and I get poorer, I'll never be able to afford eating this way.

2) There's a fair bit of preparation involved. There aren't a lot of healthy convenience foods, vegan or otherwise out there. I mean, Eating clean has always involved a fair bit of prep time if I want to have a healthy, balanced, and varied diet. Whether clean eating involves eating animal foods like I did before the New Year or not, food prep and planning occupies not an inconsiderable bit of time out of my very crowded schedule, but also more head space than I've been accustomed to allot to thinking about food. But I suppose it's just because I've grown up one way thinking about food, and what it means to get what I need to eat healthily, and now I have to learn a new way of thinking about nutrition. My friend and colleague Matthew, who's been a vegan for four years, says that once you get the hang of it, you don't have to devote such a lot of time to thinking and planning, that it becomes automatic and more instinctual to eat a healthy, balanced vegan diet. I hope so.

3) A whole foods vegan diet is a bit bulky. Let's put it this way: my insoluble fibre intake has increased dramatically, and it's taking a wee bit of time for my system to adjust, which causes me some embarassment on a social level. And let's just leave it at that. No need to spell it out. We all know what I'm talking about. There's absolutely no need to put too fine a point on the fact that my digestive sytem is working overtime. To talk about how often I fart or go to the bathroom is completely unnecessary, not to mention in poor taste. Right. So no talking about that.

Um, anybody want to see a picture from one of the shows I did last December? I was filling in on a gig for a couple of corporate Christmas parties and as it turns out, some members from the gym where I work were at one of the parties. I confess to having felt a bit embarassed about the fact that anyone I know had seen me shakin' my moneymaker onstage while singing a Pussycat Dolls song, but oh well. Yadda yadda yadda, Show Business, yadda. I found out later that they didn't realize it was me until the next morning. Which makes sense. When you consider the shapeless, gender-obscuring uniforms we wear with the pastiness and my zombie-like expression (as I've been awake since 4 a.m.) I doubt even my mother could recognize me.