A Walk on the Beach

For those who would like to listen,  A Walk on the Beach.mp3

Sunday morning knees missing the sea paying the fee for sins and mercy
while heathens feel no need to kneel since what is real is immune to the faithful
a walk on the beach puts ideas in reach that teach not preach
a run in the surf's bubbling mirth as you swerve from life unearthed

We persevere making it clear life we revere shouldn't be feared
if there's a plan it was made by man life takes a stand against the scam
priest is a middleman a businessman that really began as the bogeyman
the fools with their rules make children tools in their schools
We need a purge to emerge and converge on a surge
that limits and inhibits the thickets of bishops
we exist to assist those who resist fantasies twist
on what is real this is the ordeal to reveal and not conceal

For man is the buzz he's a whiz at the quiz
priestly assassins in their mansions filled with contradictions and immoral passions
from the womb leading us to doom as they presume in their costumes
to pretend they transcend those who are condemned and resent
the attack on humanity with a tenacity that lavishly destroys reality

Spitting on Your Grave

April 1st I decided to give a vegan diet a try. Many claims are made by those who follow the diet, so thought I'd experiment on myself and see how much of the diet is hype and how much is real. I have stayed vegetarian for most of the last decade, so didn't think it would be much of a problem to get rid of eggs and dairy, the last vestiges of my omnivore diet. 

I was wrong.

Apparently I was eating enough eggs and cheese to satisfy the craving for meat. In fact, I was eating so much dairy that I started to gain weight while being vegetarian. This after losing weight when I first started ignoring meat. Though I felt better, and was eating more of what nutritionists advise, I still managed to knock down enough slabs of dairy that I was reversing the trend.

So this is the first claim that I thought would be easy to prove. Followers of a vegan diet consistently weigh what they should. Though there may be an exception, the generally held thought is that a vegan diet will control your weight. After one month of abstaining from animal products, (as much as one can), I can say that I lost 8 pounds. Not bad considering April sucked in Michigan, rain, cold and then more rain. Not out as often as I normally would be, hoping May will be a better month; I need some exercise.

Big ugly guy is getting a little trimmer. 

It has been fairly easy to stick to the plan, even with those who would derail my goals. During the first week of the diet, I was invited over to a friends house for dinner. The couple served these giant steaks, (bastards were as big as the plate), with large smiles. Bitches were testing me, I know it. Big steak eating grins, incisors polished to a deathly glow; messing with the man. I ate my polenta and greens amicably while envisioning smacking those smiles off their faces; sorry, it's how I think.

Then this last week the woman and I were invited to sub for a couple in a monthly euchre tournament. Of course they started off with a nice dinner, a dinner that included not one damn thing that I would eat. Bowls of nuts were laying around, so I snacked on that and drank my wine. The hostess comes over and tells me how hard it is for the body to digest nuts. I agree amiably, but am thinking, how's that carrion doing for you? Really? You're telling me nuts are hard to digest while your stuffing your mouth with, as best I can tell, horribly cooked meat? The wife still eats meat when we go out, she confirmed my thoughts, the main part of the meal, which was beef and noodles, was not very good. 

Nothing pisses me off more than not cooking meat correctly. Torture the poor guy for a few years and then kill him so someone can burn the fuck out of it and throw it in the garbage. Great.

I keep telling myself that it's okay though. Accidents can happen, and certain events can change people, but I have a plan. Eat as healthily as possible. Simple as that. Science agrees, it is not too hard to do, and barring an uncertain future I should live a fairly long and healthy life.

At least long enough to spit on their graves. 

Tripping on Soy

Nobody get excited, this is not a vegetarian/omnivore post, I'll irritate you another time on that subject.

I did recently turn vegan, just to see what effect it would have on my health; basically I'm my own guinea pig. Being a vegetarian for years I thought that giving up eggs and cheese would be fairly easy.

I was so wrong.

Possibly the cheese and eggs were enough to satisfy any craving for meat products I might have had. Now, I'm trying to find foods to keep me comfortable. I have bought dairy replacements for butter and dairy, have not for cheese. No eggs makes for, at least so far, not a varied breakfast.

Started using a few products that mimic meat, makes for a fast meal at times. I have simulated breakfast sausage, Italian sausage and hunks of a meat looking substance to throw on skewers and grill. Not that I need to replace meat, but I do need to replace convenience every so often.

FYI, just to keep all things fair, I do kick and beat the fake meat before I use it.

My first trip to the store last weekend was productive in searching for replacements. As I used them through the week I noticed a common theme, everything was soy based. Soy milk, soy butter, soy creamer and soy in all the fake meat products. Not all were organic, and since much is genetically modified, it makes for an unhappy vegan.

Too much of anything isn't good for anyone. The only fun thing I hear, (from Jean Marie), is that massive soy intake may enlarge male breasts. Can't wait to shop for a couple of training bras, I'm sure the ladies department clerks will be thrilled with my input.

Soy milk tastes like beans, doesn't work well in anything but cooking. Acceptable on cereal, but not much good for anything else. Soy creamer, sweetened bitter beans. Soy butter was again okay, but still had that aftertaste of beans.

This week I went out and searched harder for products. Now I have non-dairy milk that is made from coconuts, the only ingredient listed. Good stuff. Have another Earth Balance butter replacement that is vegan made without soy, much better. Bought hemp milk, have not tried that yet; not sure if I should drink it or poke a couple of holes in it and smoke it.

My point is, if anyone decides to cut down on animal products, or might be lactose intolerant, skip the soy, there's so much more to try.