Saturday, April 6, 2013

Paleo on $100 a Month day 6 - Tater Tots

I woke up this morning with a weird taste in my mouth, not from all the ham, but really just thinking about how many of my internet friends were having trouble this week.  I thought back to how many of us had created Facebook accounts to share our journey, and then some nasty, spiteful, or just generally mean person disrupted the process.  Many took down their blogs and posts.

The original tater tots
Well, sure, I hide somewhat behind a whole flock of screen names.  I used to share pictures from time to time to friends, but took them all down after a certain busy bee started crabbing about "red-faced low carbers".  Yes, I do have a red face from time to time, sometimes as red as the sweet potatoes that will hopefully be underneath the plants you see here, as red as the red shiso in a row behind.  And even if I weigh 125 or 225, I am still old and female, and therefore, subject to derision by many in the paleo crowd, who will be more than happy to use my pictures as some sort of fuel to buttress their particular macronutrient-ratio or male-domination argument.

See, this thing isn't really about weight, or age, or macro ratios.  It is really about just living your e-life and having to deal with creepy bullies.

This past week's holiday celebrations brought another opportunity to share and argue (with some) about what I eat.  I am tired of defending my way of eating, a way that has brought greater health and sanity to me, when not being temporarily distracted by internet busybodies.  When one attendee at the dinner suggested that I should look into this pattern of falling into controversy, I did take a look.  For a few days.

Today I am writing about it.  I will not shut up because some people are psycho on the internet.  I will not take responsibility for the creepy behaviors displayed by some here, no, I will not let them hang their silver bracelets around my neck.  I will not take the blame for the obesity crisis.  I will continue to enjoy cream in my coffee.

Today, I was all set to write about how long it takes to secure food.  The tiny plants in the photo may produce sweet potatoes for Thanksgiving.  Then again, the plants may struggle and produce large tubers only by the end of the second year.  The shiso plants behind them are weeds, but the seeds only germinate after a longish period in the cold damp soil.  This season's freeze took out almost every single pepper plant, but gave me hundreds of shiso plants in return.

I got onto my EMF-spewing computer this morning, only to be greeted by this wonderful article, trying to make me feel guilty for eating the way I do.

"Adding cream and sugar to your daily coffee won't kill you, but most people won't like what can happen."   So, what will happen?  Will I die of a heart attack?  Get attacked by a dietitian?  Shamed by an obesity researcher? Should I have been shamed into running this idea past Kresser first?

 Nope.  Nope.  Not gonna do it.  I may just have to stay away from celebrations chocked with all sorts of ritual food, and then being told I must not eat it.  Being told as I am pouring cream into my coffee that there are studies showing that low carb diets kill people, and then having that person not be able to produce any of these studies.  Being told that by people who are very sick and red-faced.  Well, they should be red-faced, but for the bad behavior, not the diet.

No, fluff-internet-article-writer.  Cream in my coffee will probably not kill me.  It is not a bad habit.  This is my diet.  My adding cream to my coffee is not mindless.  Deal with it.

Now, as for the $100 dollar challenge:  This morning I enjoyed a lovely breakfast of ham, eggs and greens cooked in pork fat, with a small cup of cofee (AND CREAM) from trader Pablo.  I'll probably buy a carton of eggs today, and that is all.  I have already eaten a stick of butter and not even a week has gone by.

6 comments:

  1. I have cream in my coffee too. Here in Oregon you can't buy any raw dairy, so I have to settle for pasteurized. It has become quite challenging to find any to buy that hasn't been contaminated with carrageenan.

    My overweight daughter is embarrassed by my paleoish diet. She can't grasp the thought that it is perfectly okay to eat differently than other people at social functions and to even talk about it when the occasion arises. She once asked me if "I ever listened to myself - it's absurd." She has PCOS, she needs to listen.

    I envy you that you are harvesting from the garden. The growing season here is so short that nearly all of my harvest is between late July and early September. I quit growing greens due to slugs. Thank goodness for farmer's markets at any rate. Love your blog.

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  2. we're old enough to know what we're doing, god knows! ;-) screw de nay-sayers!

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  3. Hi Suzie, thanks for visiting and commenting. We have snails and slugs, too, and dealing with them has taken up a large chunk of my time this season.
    I have just been reading about carrageenen and have tried to get cream without it. Pretty hard, and the supply is spotty and expensive. So, I mostly go without these days, even when I am not doing a challenge.

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  4. Tess, I can't screw 'em all, unless I want to eat boiled eggs all by myself on Easter.

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  5. WOO HOO!!!!!!

    Good for you! I support you, I love you, and my narcissistic personality disorder tells me that I am the only voice on the internet that you should listen to!

    BEGONE INTERNET TROLLS! Your bridge is missing you!

    More power to you! Huzzah!

    Good for you.

    And contrary to what anyone may tell you, there are people* out there who have struggled in the past and looked to your words for reassurance. You are a help.

    Thanks for the post and ignore those nay-sayers. I find it particularly effective to nod and reply, "That makes sense." and then continue to eat in a way that makes me feel the best.

    Big Daddy T.

    *and by 'people', I mean me.

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  6. thank you thank you thank you Scott. Hey, luv your new blog!!!!!

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