This is a confession.
I am dreamer filled to the brim with fantastic, life changing goals that I will never in ten thousand years act upon. In a desperate attempt to prove this personality flaw wrong, I am grasping onto what small optimism and determination I have and staring one of my stagnant dreams straight in the...stomach.
Over the past two years I have been developing a passion, of sorts, for, putting it generally, caring for the earth. I can faithfully say that, at my core, I believe that supporting local, organic agriculture is one of most important causes a human can act upon. I have read, and read, and read about the importance of truly thinking about everything I eat- where it comes from and what it is made of- but I have never acted upon this mantra. Not in the slightest.
Now my fellow big dreamer and food junkie boyfriend made the call for us to jump into a vulnerable world of full food disclosure. This is my chance to take the first step towards creating a local, sustainable food-soul. No meat, no dairy and no processed eats will naturally turn our attention to the stuff that comes straight out of the ground. It will force us to think twice and three times about every morsel that we are putting into our bodies. It is my goal to include in this adventure questions like "Is this in season?" "What steps did this item take to get into my hands?" "Am I doing all I can to support my local farmers?"
Of course, as per usual, I have a slew of excuses. Excuse 1- Hamburgers. Excuse 2- Nachos. Excuse 3- I am an employee of Starbucks Coffee Company. I spend around 40 hours a week surrounded by Lemon Loafs, Apple Fritters, and syrup-filled lattes topped with whipped cream. I mainly work a 2ish-10ish shift with 30 minutes in between to heat up a frozen sandwich or down a bag of popcorn and call it "dinner". And (of course) i'm always hungry after I punch out for the night and (of course) McDonald's is conveniently located right in between my store and my apartment. It is convenient to just use my work discount and eat the food there for my meals. It is convenient to just run out and grab something to eat when I don't "have time" to visit the grocery store. It is this convenience that stands between me and my natural self.
I plan to murder this convenience issue right from the start with carful, specific planning. I WILL plan my meals in advance. I WILL stock my kitchen with the rights foods and be prepared for the moments when I don't "have time" to cook. When I find myself surrounded by a pastry case full of delicious, marked-out goodies, I WILL be armed with the right evening snack.
To summarize, my half of the Natural Couple's goals are as follows--
1) To plan my meals/snacks a week in advance.
2) To buy locally when possible.
3) To have finished Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by the end of these 3 weeks. (Side note- this is a book I have been trying to read for the past 1 1/2 and if you are at all interested in eating locally you should check it out yourself!
http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.com/
4) To include at least 2 hours of physical activity weekly.
Please keep up with us if you can! The more people that I think are invested in this adventure with us the more I will be motivated to see it through.
Thank you, and bon appetite!
