Starting in Two Days

Hi,

I went shopping at the Dekalb Farmer's Market and my fridge is full of fresh veggies. My plan is to start, in earnest, on Saturday with the Raw Food Program that I am kind of making up as I go along, for now. I have been looking up information on the internet and have included a link to The Best of Raw Food.com website. As I said earlier I will be going to a class on Sept 25th that my doctor will be teaching, but I want to get started now. How hard could it be? I've been experimenting a little. At the farmer's market I got some raw peanuts, almonds, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seed. I also bought a bag of small gala apples and two grapefruit -- all of which my doctor said I could have on the program. I bought some green veggies, too.

I am not completely unfamiliar with the program, having read about it in the nineties when I was a vegan for a few years, but never actually decided to try it. I had read some pamphlet sized books written by some teacher from the 1800's who was advocating eating raw food even way back then. I know that they make "recipes" of many different types, using raw foods, and I believe my doctor will be showing me some of these types of things in the class. I wanted to see what is available on the net and discovered this area is just like any other on the net, everyone has a book or DVD or Video to sell you. My gosh, does no one just share information anymore? Perhaps the fault is mine. I've been using search engines, and I'm sure the folks selling things are using SEO to get their stuff at the top of the list. Perhaps if I go a little farther down the list, I might actually find some free information. I used to have a book on eating raw, but I think I gave it away.

What with the price of the class that I have only half paid for, and being on unemployment, I have to be careful with the spending, or things start going down the tubes fast. My emission inspection and plate renewal for my car is coming up soon, too, but, gratefully, my car is old, so the fees are low.

Over the past few days I have been paying attention to eating the things I have to get out of the house. I noticed that it was like the last fling before a diet, but I'm not eating outside the boundaries that I have been eating within for a couple of months now. I had some roasted nuts, and a block of colby/jack cheese. Some peanut butter and a partial loaf of Ezekial bread.  Almost all of that is gone now and I am beginning to eat the fresh raw stuff.

When I talked with my doctor in her office she had mentioned that I could sweeten things with fresh dates, so I bought some. I had never had a fresh date before, only dried. I always liked them, but they are so sweet when dried that I don't eat them very often because of the sugar content. I had no idea even what they looked like, but read the signs at the farmer's market and bought a package of them. They are yellow, which surprised me. When I tried my first one, I discovered that they have the same texture as an apple. How odd, since when they are dried, the inside is sort of mushy and soft. There is a medium sized seed inside which comes out easily and when I tasted it for the first time, I recognized the flavor from the dried dates, but it is, of course, fresher. They are very filling and one at a time is more than enough for my tongue. At one point I ate a small apple and a date at the same time and could almost not stomach the sweet overload.

I've tried putting a mixture of the raw peanuts, sunflower seeds, almonds and pumpkin seeds in a bowl and eating them with an apple, too. That is also very filling. Tonight I had a large cucumber and two small tomatoes for dinner and that was filling for a while. After that was when I had the nuts and the apple.

I had bought some of the long green onions for salads but they are a little too strong for me. I don't like to be overpowered by raw uncooked onion, so I will save those for the chicken curry that I am planning on making for the dinner on Sunday at the church. I am wondering how I shall deal with the food at the dinner and have thought that maybe I should not eat there. I am making the curry to get rid of the chicken in my freezer. I wanted to make something tasty that I don't believe they will have had before. I have never noticed any curry dishes there before.

Well, there is lots more to say, but I am tired and going to bed.

Be back soon -- Lord willing!

--Marcia