I never thought I'd seriously try to maintain an official blog. I admit, I was a blogger before there was such a thing as a blog. A good 10 years ago, I would post my adventures from going on tour all across the USA with my boss, a popular folk musician. Back then, I would post my "Road Diary" to my personal web page, at about 2 AM each night, using dial-up connections in one shitty Motel 6 after another. I enjoyed doing it, I had my fans, but once I stopped touring so massively, and I settled down with a husband and a cat, well, I didn't have much to say.... and what I did have to say could be summed up in a Facebook status update!
Anyway, here is the basic premise this blog is about. I have been a vegetarian for 22 years, and vegan for 14 years. I will say right up front that I am not the World's Strictest Vegan, and I'm not going to have any arguments about my diet from the vegan police. I could probably be better described as an Extremely Strict Vegetarian With A 99% Vegan Diet, but for this blog and for clarity, let's just call me a vegan.
Growing up, I was an extremely picky eater. I didn't like any vegetables or condiments. I lived off of total garbage... The likes of bologna sandwiches, chicken fingers and Yodels. When I stopped eating meat, at age 17, I remained as picky. I added tofu to my diet, but still mostly subsisted on bread, pasta and cheese. When I became vegan, at age 24, I knew something had to change, so I learned to cook.... but still, I lived off of pasta, bread and fake meat. I barely ate vegetables. I didn't like vegetables! Yes, a big hurdle for a vegan to overcome! And here's my confession: I *Still* don't like vegetables!
Over the years, I have made a conscious effort to expand my palate. And I must say, I've been very successful! I eat things now I never would have touched 10 years ago, ranging from kale to tomatoes to malt vinegar to ketchup! However, I still have a way to go.... so, here is my goal, and the point of this blog is to track this experiment: I am going to learn to like (or at least teach myself to tolerate), EVERYTHING that is vegan. I figure, my diet is already limited, due to my ethical beliefs and health concerns, so I should not eliminate a single food that I COULD eat as a vegan, but that I refuse to eat, due to pickiness! Basically, I will say YES to everything, again and again, until I manage to acquire a taste for even the most horrible things, like grapefruit, raw onions and (get this) Champagne! ;-)
That's the plan! More details to come!!!
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