Veggie Tales

Not eating meat for breakfast wasn’t a big deal since I normally get coffee and a pastry of some sort. When I hit lunchtime on Day One, I was craving a roast beef sandwich piled high and topped off with mustard and lettuce. Then I remembered, today is the day I become a vegetarian. Since it was around 3pm and I hadn’t eaten anything since around 9:30am, I was too starved to think about my options. I ordered a caprese panini from the sandwich line, and then after it was heated to perfection, I took it back to my dorm room to eat with some carrots and red bell pepper hummus. Now I know that my caprese sandwich had tons of mozzarella cheese on it, but hey, it was the only thing I knew I liked and was vegetarian at the same time. In my book, I was killing two birds with one stone. On the other hand, dinner was more of a struggle. I was hoping the dinner special would be something fantastic, but a falafel gyro did not sound that exciting, and I had no idea what falafel was. I later googled it, and according to Wikipedia.com, it is made from ground up chickpeas, and/or fava beans (I love chickpeas, which makes me sad I didn’t get the gyro). I decided to make my own vegetable stir fry with tofu over brown rice. It was…decent. However, I wasn’t a fan of how large the chunks of tofu were. I could feel the mushy texture with every bite. I later had a snack of wheat thins with goat cheese to fill me up. All in all, despite finding out I had strep, day one was successful.

Luckily, the rest of week one went by without too much of a hitch. In Benson (my school’s dining area) on Wednesday, the special was succulent prime rib, with steamed vegetables and a baked potato. I started salivating at the tempting thought of biting into the moist, slightly pink flesh. Instead I ordered this:

The vegetarian special substituted the prime rib for vegetarian chili, and it was the best meal I've had so far. Thursday morning I had an omelet, which I normally get with veggies, ham and cheese. Who would have thought that the loss of ham would be so noticeable? The salty taste was absent from my palate, and I was not nearly as satisfied as I wanted to be. That same night I went to Pizza My Heart and had a delicious slice of vegetarian pizza. I risked the consequences of eating dairy because I was craving something familiar. The experience of trying foods I have never considered before is enticing, but exhausting. Soy meat is the ‘exotic’ food I want to attempt to eat before this project is over. I didn’t think I would be craving meat as much as I am. Whenever I’m itching to give in to my temptations, I imagine the faces of all the cute animals I am no longer eating. It helps a little bit. So far, so good.

            Now, my lovely readers, you might be wondering how this was all making me feel. Despite having strep, this week was one of the best weeks I’ve had in a while. I don’t know if it’s because I’m no longer subconsciously guilty about eating fuzzy animals, or if I’m just having a good week. Whatever it is, I feel amazing. I haven’t made it to the gym this week, so I don’t know how my being vegetarian is going to affect my workouts. My overall mood and energy levels this week have been better than usual, and I’m excited to see if this feeling stays consistent.

            When I came up with the plan to become a vegetarian I thought it would a piece of cake. My first week was pretty hellish. With every passing day, my respect for vegetarians grows. Controlling my urges is not as easy as I anticipated, every time my eyes land on a piece of meat, especially red meat, I cannot get my mind off of it. It makes my meals less enjoyable because I keep focusing on what I can’t have instead of enjoying all of the yummy things I can have. I knew this week would be the hardest, and that it will get easier with every passing day. I’m optimistic that I can stick it out for the entirety. Keep your eyes peeled for my post on soy meat, I’m sure it will be interesting to say the least.

Works Cited

“Falafel.” Wikipedia.org. Wikimedia Foundation, 24 Apr. 2013. Web. 24 April 2013.