Yin and Yang

Random Peep:  "So, you're vegan, right?"

Me:  "Well, I mean, not wholly, I guess...but sorta'ish?"

RP:  "You either 'are' or you're 'not.'  What do you mean 'sorta?'  So, you're a cheeeeeaaaater.  What's the point, then?"

I can't tell you how much this all-too-often conversation comes up and annoys the hell out of me.  Society is so obsessed with extremes!  Here's the deal, folks...let me break down my thoughts on my fascination with Veganism thus far:

1.  Ultimately, if done right, I think it's the most healthy thing we can do to our bodies, as well as raw juicing and exercising.  I truly believe in the benefits of this food lifestyle, especially Vegan Rawism...but that doesn't mean I am a 100% vegan all the time.  It's just like knowing Triathlons are probably really good for our health...but we're not all Triathletes.  

2.  Vegan baking is easier, and a lot of times, better tasting than non-vegan baked goods.  I can not stress this enough!  I almost always bake vegan now.  Plus, I don't keep any eggs, and dairy milk was only introduced to the fridge once Steven and I started living together, although he's not opposed to drinking non-dairy milk.

3.  Knowing vegan substitutes is awesome when you're in an ingredient bind!  Honestly, one of the coolest thing about veganism is the much longer shelf life of the ingredients.  No more spoiled eggs and milk!  You know how awesome it is when I want to add cream to a soup, risotto, or sauce and don't have any cream on hand....BUT I do have a butt-load of cashews in the freezer/fridge?!  SCORE!  Or, when I want to make a batch of muffins spur of the moment and know I don't have to worry about not having any of the essential ingredients because they've gone bad?!

4.  Vegan foods are good, and fun to make!  I love, love, love learning new trades!


5.  I truly believe in the cancer/illness theories stemming from the pH balance of our bodies, and a high plant-based diet and raw juicing  help bring about a more alkaline body pH.  


6.  In my opinion, there is not, nor never will be, a vegan substitute for any red meat product, bacon, or gourmet cheese.  The one and only true-blue undeniable craving I get is for red meat.  To hell with chicken, and all that other stuff; that's easy for me to leave out if I want.  And honestly, the craving really only pertains to a bleeding ribeye steak or old school pot roast dinner...not for ground meat dishes, necessarily.  So yes, I avoid eating these foods on a normal day-to-day basis, but when I NEED a steak like a pregnant woman needs a pickle, I'll eat one and not feel bad about it.  I've probably had about four steaks in the last year (which were prepared for me), and as the daughter of Jim "T-Rex" Cunningham, that's saying a LOT!


7.  For me, Veganism is MUCH more about health than it is about animal rights.  Yes, I'm all for animal rights and humane treatment, but I don't have anything against un-fenced hunting, and the slaughtering of TRUE free-range, humanely treated stock animals.  I, personally, do not feel comfortable shooting a cow, deer, or pulling the head off a chicken, but I don't think there's anything ethically wrong with that if done properly.
  
8.  I will NEVER deny the gracious food cooked for me by someone else, vegan or not.  It's rude, period.  Nor would I ever feel comfortable making a scene at a restaurant about their limited choice of vegan options, or make a group of friends change their dining place due to my restricted food lifestyle.  THIS, alone, is the main reason I could never be 100% vegan.


9.  As a culinary enthusiast, and not a nutritionist, I will always indulge in the best tasting, most creatively prepared foods when those moments present themselves.  My love for culinary art will always ride side by side with my fascination with food science and theory.  Neither fully trumps the other.  It's like the dichotomy of one's head versus their heart ;-)

                   

So, I wish I had ten reasons, but whatever.  If I had to sum up my life philosophy in one sentence, it would be: No matter the field of interest, always approach it with a healthy balance of your heart and your head.  Be a "flexitarian!"

Blurbs of a self-proclaimed hermit, both by choice and force.

Denton.  "Den-Ton" as our favorite Ukranian realtor says.  For the rest us, we'll continue on with "Dent'n."  I can't believe it; Steven and I have been here for over six weeks!  Well, not much has change since I last graced my blog's presence, but Steven is as busy as ever with football.  So, that leaves me...here...weird...and somewhat lonely...but not entirely.  Those who know me, and I mean REALLY know me, know "loneliness" really doesn't bother me in the slightest.  I'm a self-proclaimed, and proud-to-be, hermit...but, you see, it's also a curse.  My toes start to become roots, and I become all too comfortable in this hole I've created.  I literally have to force myself to leave the house.  I break up outings into town into small intervals so I can space them out evenly over the week.  I have to stay in the habit of entering the outside world at least every other day, or I'll never leave and will start creating the OCD world I worked so hard to destroy years ago.

There's also a difference between being a hermit because you can be one, and being a hermit because you're forced to be one.  A sense of pride comes with the self-proclaimed hermit; you know, the "I deserve this" mentality.  A feeling of shame comes with the latter.  I'm having a hard time finding a job.  I've applied to at least 30 various openings, both part-time and full-time, ranging on the scale from grocery and retail stores to salaried/benefits careers.  I'm calling this the "Tweener" career phase theory.

My degree's in English Lit/Comp, and right after graduation I worked as an all around assistant/office manager/bookkeeper for a one-man show.  I loved my job, and my boss.  Hell, my job entitled being skilled at a little bit of everything!  Unfortunately, I don't think it comes across like that on a resume.  PLUS, I'm in a major college town, so the competition is fierce in a little pee-didly career field like mine.  I've also realized the importance of networking.  If I were out of work in New Braunfels, I don't think it would be but a couple days before word got around and I'd have opportunities presented to me.  Here in Denton, I don't know anybody; I don't have a work networking history here, or a social history, for that matter.  There's nothing that makes me stand out from the tons of other applicants.

To add to it, I'm in the "Tweener" phase!  As I mentioned previously, I have been contemplating furthering my education towards a more specific route.  Through much research, soul searching, and blind jumping, I narrowed my options down to nursing/med. therapy or teaching.  I've toyed with both ideas for years, but to make a long story short, getting my teaching certificate came in first place primarily due to less debt, less time, ability to start certification process instantly, and wanting to be in the same world as Steven.  Passion for education?  Check!  Can work with middle and high schoolers????  Not so sure.  Oh well, we'll see.  Even if I just teach for one year and hate it, I will have easily made back the debt it took for me to get certified.  No brainer, here.  I've always seen myself in an educator/impact type role, but more on the college field instead of the middle/high school fields.

Sooooooo,  that makes it even more difficult for me to get a job!  As of result of needing to place attention on my teaching cert. program and the eventual student teaching I'll be doing, I'm just looking for a little part-time and somewhat temporary job, but apparently I'm "over-qualified" for all those jobs.  What the hell?!  I'm over qualified for the jobs my under-qualified experience is forcing me to look into!  Brother!  So, it looks like substitute teaching may be my only option, even though both Steven and I do not want me to do it because he fears it will give me the wrong impression of teaching due to how little control you have over someone else's classroom full of the most wild students because their "real" teacher's gone for the day.

What's a girl to do?!?!?....besides paint her whole house...which I already did.

Man, sorry for this whole disorganized rant, but I'm just feeing so low on self-esteem right now, and anxious with all the classic worries that come with being unemployed.  More uplifting stuff to come in the next post.

Peace out,
Claire