Going Vegan: Week 2 (by Susan)

As detailed in George's post today, George and I had a great day skiing at Winter Park.  It was good to just get out and enjoy the fresh mountain air, the snow, and the sunshine, and of course the company of the fabulous Geo!    Tomorrow George goes in for his port surgery and then he starts chemo on Monday.  We're both a little apprehensive - wondering how it will go and how he will feel.  This last week we both went through a little anger phase, just being frustrated with the universe for handing us this thing to deal with.   And then there are the interminable logistics of everything - waiting around in doctors' offices, George getting poked, prodded, and tested in every conceivable manner.  This is absolutely NOT the way we had intended spending 2010.    So it was good to have a little vacation from everything today and just have fun. 

I realize that I have embraced the vegan cooking thing just as something to DO that is constructive and that could possibly help both of us.  I think as a caretaker/spouse you can feel so helpless when you see someone you love going through these challenges, and this feels like an action I can take. 

So, my personal diet story - after two weeks on the vegan diet (OK - I cheated once and had cheese) - I feel GREAT!  The initial cravings and stomach upset have subsided, and now I feel very satisfied with the meals I am eating.  I feel lighter and have a lot of energy.  I have also noticed that my senses of taste and smell has become stronger - is that crazy?  I am actually enjoying my food more, because I feel like I can really taste the flavors of fresh vegatables, fruits, legumes, and grains.  Maybe animal protein puts a coating on everything, including your taste buds.    I am figuring out how to make lentil stew in the crock pot and flawless rice in our brand new rice cooker (see picture below).   Rice cooking at this altitude has always been a challenge - rice comes out mushy on the outside and hard on the inside.  But it came out perfectly in the rice cooker!  Maybe I will try to make vegan sopri in it (ask my Mom about my trials and tribulations making sopri, our traditional Italian Christmas dish, at high altitude).   Maybe by the time George is done with chemo I will be a fabulous vegan cook!