Living Green (Intro)

For the last few months, I’ve been learning about and dabbling in living green.  I could go on and on about what humans, particularly Americans, are doing to this planet, but I think you’d be better served picking up a copy of An Inconvenient Truth.  Whether I agree with or believe all of what is said about what is happening to this planet is irrelevant; the fact is, it isn’t hard to reduce your waste, and many of the things involved in protecting the environment also make life a bit simpler.  Plus you might just save a few bucks here and there.

The Plan
Each week, I will tackle a new project that will benefit the environment.  Projects can range from tiny tasks like buying canvas bags for shopping to large undertakings like replacing a leaking pipe in the sprinkler system, and everything in between.

Throughout the week, I’ll report on what I’m up to, challenges I’m facing, and any other experiences involved, and I’ll also provide you with enough information to get things moving yourself.

Goals and Motivations
I’ve been meaning to “go green” for a while, and the weekly task should get me on track.  Hopefully, I can inspire other people out there to get out there and tackle similar projects of their own to take their part in cleaning up this world for our children.

Going Paperless
To kick things off, I took some time out during the work day to collect all my bills, statements, catalogs, and other junk mail.  From energy bills to retirement fund reports, I changed my accounts to only receive online statements and cancelled all paper statements.  For catalogs, I either visited their websites or had to call their 800 numbers to let them know that I no longer wished to receive their catalogs in the mail.  I had the companies that I still order from either send me online catalogs or nothing at all.

This entire process ate up 15 minutes of my day.  A bill, a few sheets of paper, isn’t that big of a deal to me, but you add that to each different bill you’re getting, and each different credit card or bank statement, and every different catalog you may have once ordered from, and multiply that by twelve times a year, and you just might end up with a significant pile of wasted dead tree.

For tips on going green, check out TreeHugger, or any of the other sites out there you can find by simply typing “Go Green” in your Google search bar.

336 & The Art of Simple Food (The Diet, Days 1-5)

On Saturday (Day 1), I went to get a blood test to measure my cholesterol, and the pastrami sandwich from Friday told me that it was probably going to be ridiculously high – not because a meal the day before affects your cholesterol so drastically, but because I had eaten a pastrami dip from The Hat and that wasn’t too uncommon of an indulgence.  The result: 336.  For reference, here’s what the American Heart Association says:

Your Total Blood (or Serum) Cholesterol Level

Less than 200 mg/dL: Desirable
If your LDL, HDL and triglyceride levels are also at desirable levels and you have no other risk factors for heart disease, total blood cholesterol below 200 mg/dL puts you at relatively low risk of coronary heart disease.

200–239 mg/dL: Borderline-High Risk 
If your total cholesterol falls between 200 and 239 mg/dL, your doctor will evaluate your levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol, HDL (good) cholesterol and triglycerides. It’s possible to have borderline-high total cholesterol numbers with normal levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol balanced by high HDL (good) cholesterol.

240 mg/dL and over: High Risk 
People who have a total cholesterol level of 240 mg/dL or more typically have twice the risk of coronary heart disease as people whose cholesterol level is desirable (200 mg/dL).

And so the diet begins.  But five days in and I’m already fighting off urges.  The convenience of driving to the burger joint down the street.  The satisfaction of devouring a prime rib.  The food coma.  I went home on Sunday afternoon only to find that my parents had eaten a Taiwanese breakfast and in front of me, basking in an aura of deliciousness, was a chinese donut (it was a yeo tiau, for my Mandarin-speaking people).  I thought to myself, “Self, who’s going to know if you take a bite out of this thing.  Just a small bite won’t do anything.”  But I resisted the urge, and four days later, I’m still thinking about it.

The Art of Simple Food
It’s not all desperate pining for fried goodies though - there have been some brighter moments.  I finally started training in the art of making risotto.  For instruction, I turned to one of my favorite cookbooks at the moment: Alice Waters’ The Art of Simple Food.

For any aspiring cook/chef or even a hobbyist such as myself, I think this book is a must-have.  Chef Waters explains every step thoroughly and makes the process clear to the reader, including common pitfalls, beneficial tips, and suggestions on making each recipe your own.  Here’s the link to it on Amazon.

Even though my risotto has been suffering from being a bit too gooey, the taste has been rather satisfying.  My stomach, however, doesn’t feel the same way my taste buds do, and two hours later, I’m usually hungry for something else.  So far, I’ve been able quell my stomach with an apple or an orange, but I don’t know how long that can last.

Progress Report
I am happy to report that I have stuck to my guidelines through five days, particularly including the 1 cup of fruit and 1 cup of veg, and as long as I can have a short memory of the things I’ve eaten, I should be able to stay on track.

The Diet (Intro)

Among other things, I am going to start using this blog to track my eating habits and slowly hop on a course towards a healthier lifestyle.  Although dieting is typically associated with weight loss, the goal of my diet is to lower my cholesterol, which has been high my entire life.  I’ll update from time to time about what I’m eating and what’s going on in my beef-starved head.

The Plan
For the next 3 months, starting on October 20th and ending on January 20th, I will be living with the following rules concerning my diet…

1) No Red Meat – Technically, red meat includes beef, mutton, horse, duck, and goose
2) Nothing Else High in Cholesterol – Including but not limited to eggs, butter, lobster
3) Nothing Deep Fried
4) No Fast Food – Subway is okay.  That’s about it
5) More Fruits and Veggies - 1 cup of fruits and 1 cup of vegetables per day

I’m giving myself 2 days of exemption from the rules in preparation of the looming holidays – one day for Thanksgiving (deep-fried turkey) and one day for Christmas (roast).

Plan Length
You might be wondering why I’m only doing this for 3 months and not shifting my entire lifestyle.  Well for one, just taking on an instant lifestyle change is hard.  I can’t come to terms with never eating red meat for the rest of my life.  And more importantly, I don’t believe it’s necessary to entirely cut red meat out of the diet, nor is it necessary to live by such a stringent set of rules.  As long as everything is done to its own degree of moderation, you can still live a healthy life.

But for now, 3 months seems like a good test of wills and an accurate glimpse into what life without red meat might be.

Saying Goodbye
For the next 3 months, if you ever find me fetal in the corner of a room with a bad case of the shakes, it will probably be due from withdrawal of one of the following things: El Taco Nazo fish tacos, milanesa sandwiches from Tito’s Market, #19 at Langer’s Deli, beef dips from Philippe’s, prime rib, In-n-Out burgers and fries, and Popeye’s fried chicken.

Goals and Motivations
The main goal of this experiment is to prevent having a heart attack at 30.  Most people that know me know that I have a family history of high cholesterol; coupled with poor eating habits, my cholesterol is at dangerously high levels.

But on a lighter note, I also hope this whole journey will provide some insight into myself.