Giving up

Well, last year, you may remember, I tried the giving something up for Lent practice, borrowed from my Catholic friends because I've yet to find any good agnostic rituals (an area where we agnostics really show a sad lack of initiative). The thing I chose to give up was coffee. Not all caffeine. I'm not suicidal. Just coffee. And I say "just" coffee. There wasn't any just about it. It was tough. But I found it a really valuable exercise in getting out of my normal routine, and examining how one particular vice affects my life.

This year, I wanted to do something big again. And I needed to decide fairly early so that I could properly prepare for Mardi Gras. What if I thought I was giving up booze, but then the next day I actually gave up chocolate. I'd spend all of Fat Tuesday consuming the wrong bad thing. What a waste. And as I thought about it, it became pretty clear, pretty fast what I should go for.

I'm giving up meat. For a girl who's very clear that she has canine teeth and stereoscopic vision for a reason, giving up my carnivorous ways, even for a short span will be a hard row to hoe. But if I'm in, I'm going whole hog. So to speak.

And let me be clear, I'm giving up meat, not going vegetarian. For some reason, in my mind there's a distinction there. I'm still who I am - a definite omnivore with heavy carnivorous leanings. I'm just changing the way I am who I am for a little while. I think. I'm still working that bit out.

And I'm still working out the logistics. Giving up coffee was pretty straigtforward in execution. Don't fill up my cup. Done. Giving up animal protein has some more far reaching implications, healthwise. I need to make sure my body is getting what it needs, in a different form. And I'm definitely not going to try to attempt a vegan diet. Again, not suicidal. But I need to figure out getting complete proteins and all that stuff. And what things I need to avoid eating because they have hidden chicken broth or bacon bits (Texans think beans flavored with ham is a vegetarian dish). Ow. This is already making my head hurt.

But I have two friends who've decided to try this with me out of solidarity. And another friend who I eat with pretty often who's committed to being sensitive about where and what we eat. Plus, I've got a good vegetarian resource that I can bug about my diet. So, I'm pretty optimistic that I have the support system I'll need.

Now I just need to start planning on Mardi Gras. Now where did I put that woven bacon thingy recipe?