January 24, 2010
Am I really, suddenly, a vegan?
Geoff and me
Geoff and I were in a cafe in Rincón, Puerto Rico, a few days before the start of the New Year (Gregorian Calendar) reading books we plucked off the coffee house’s “book share” library. I was looking through a book on the Rolling Stones. He was reading a book on veganism. He handed it to me because he knew I’d been considering it for a while.
I curiously read bits of each chapter, and along the way, asked myself: Why don’t I eat better?
Two days later, after eating in a vegan restaurant we found a few miles inland, away from the surfer dudes, I realized I could probably become a vegan.
Of course once I articulated to my husband that I wanted to be a vegan, it was clear that I had made a public bet: my willpower versus my impulses. As someone who in the past has fallen because of a lack of confidence, I told myself that this matters but that being a vegan was MY decision, one that I could change at any time.
So far, almost a month into my new diet, I’m loving it. This makes sense for a bunch of reasons:
- WHEN I ATE COW I FELT LIKE ONE.
I have had a love-hate affair with burgers my whole life. There was nothing quite like a good burger and though I didn’t have it often, I just loved the taste, especially when it was covered with ketchup and accompanied by fries (also smothered in ketchup). But I always felt bloated and nasty AFTER the fact. (Well, not so much during my years on the college swim team. back then I could eat whatever I wanted.) From about age 30 on eating a burger meant I’d pay the price and if I had too many in a month I’d be two pounds heavier.
- BACON IS NASTY.
I have a general disdain for pork but never really cared for it. As a Puerto Rican, I’m supposed to love lechón (slow-roasted pork), but never really cared for it. Plus, it’s full of toxins and fat. (Don’t listen to the Pork Industry that tries to tell you it’s just like white meat from a fowl.)
- I WAS LACTOSE-INTOLERANT ANYWAY.
After seeing Chris Brown with a milk moustache, I was even more turned off.
(If my sister reads this she’ll roll her eyes and say “I can’t believe you wrote that for the WHOLE WORLD TO SEE!”) But a majority of Americans are, too, apparently: http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2009-08-30-lactose-intolerance_N.htm Good riddance, dairy!
Turns out those were darned good reasons.
And on the upside I feel more energetic than before and I feel STRONGER.
So far, I don’t miss meat, fish, chicken, shellfish, or any kind of dairy.
I thought I would miss yogurt, though, which I can eat without any digestive issues, but I found soy yogurt to be even more tasty. So I’m still getting my good bacteria from delicious yogurt. (I love Trader Joe’s Soy Yogurt.)
YUMMMMMY!
Another upside: I’ve already lost some weight in my midsection!
January 15, 2010
Helping Haiti
Consider a donation, please…
Among the things Doctors Without Borders is doing to help the people of Haiti is using inflatable hospitals.
Watch this video, below, to see how it inflatable hospitals were used after the 2005 earthquake in Pakistan.
November 25, 2009
What I am thankful for…
- That my mother, at 81, is still strong and healthy. We danced salsa at my wedding reception and I was so amazed that she can still bust a move.
- That at 42, I found the man of my dreams, ending a long, drawn out and crazy search for true love. Trite as it may sound, true love means you are with someone who respects you, and loves you — faults and all — and is capable of real intimacy. My Geoff is the most amazing man in the world and I am madly in love with the person he is.
- That I live in a diverse neighborhood that is progressive and while it has its issues I am inspired by the warm people I meet and the intellectuals I encounter, even if some of them are a tad cold.
- That in seven months, I’m halfway through with my Master’s degree, which I’m working on at night, because I have the love and support of a great boss and a wonderful husband who makes me dinner when I am studying.
- That I have wonderful friends who I love dearly. I don’t have a lot of close friends, but those few, (they know who they are) are people I know I can count on.
- That the values of the country seems to be turning outward, from “me” to “we.”
Happy Thanksgiving!
November 11, 2009
My HuffPost entry
Please read my blog entry on the Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cindy-rodr/what-america-can-learn-fr_b_354259.html
Add a comment as well. Thanks so much!
November 8, 2009
My thoughts on “Precious” (based on the story of oppressed blacks) and the novel “Push” by Sapphire
“Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire” is one of the best films I’ve seen in a long time, and one of the few in mainstream theaters that dares deal with the legacy that slavery created.
Obviously, that connection isn’t made in the film. But if you know your history, the thread is clear. Her life is the product of generations of oppression, bigotry, and neglect which explodes into a rage without an outlet. So it is internalized. It’s a force that can turn a mother into a monster. Sadly, the monster is us.
By us, I mean systems of government that continue to fail black and brown people: our schools, courts, so-called aid agencies. As we see in this film, generational welfare turns will into complacency, self-worth into deflated souls. And it’s journalists, the people who write the first draft of history, who were surprised by the poverty revealed by Katrina.
November 5, 2009
Angry, lonely man
When I think of Lou Dobbs, I’m reminded of Mike McGarry, a man who spent all his free time railing against undocumented immigrants on his website, through newsletters, at PR events.
Like Dobbs, he’s an angry man.
Using anger as a weapon, Dobbs has seen his ratings on CNN soar, but many people in America tired of his shenanigans and are calling for his dismissal.
McGarry’s anger has caused him to struggle to hold on to a job, to a woman, to friends. Just goes to show that there is almost always something fueling bitter resentment.
Read my column here: What_happens_when_rivals_meet_face_to_face_
September 9, 2009
Happiest day of my life…
September 6, 2009
Martha’s Vineyard
Geoff and Cindy forever
♥
Click to see more pics…
Keep reading →
June 29, 2009
Obsessed with MJ
I am completely obsessed with Michael Jackson. Since his death, all I listen to his music. Even if my iTunes is off, I am singing his songs aloud. Every day, a different song becomes the soundtrack to my day. Today, it’s “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough.”
Thursday, it took a few hours for it to sink in. He’s gone. He’s out of my life. For hours the night of his death I watched one video after another. I started with his more recent work, then to his earlier years. Then, I was obsessed with finding every Jackson 5 cartoon I could find.
I came to realize I was not alone. Everyone I know is all Michael, all the time.
Saturday night, I went with a friend to a TriBeCa nightclub that was spinning Michael Jackson songs. At one point the DJ started playing crunk and everyone started shouting “Michael!” The DJ quickly changed course and played a string of hits: “Beat It,” “Billie Jean,” and “Thriller.” We had a blast.
Of course part of that obsession is trying to come to an understanding of why he seemed so tormented. His dad beat him and berated him constantly. (Joe Jackson nicknamed him “big nose.”) He barely had a childhood and was surrounded by greedy people who viewed him as a cash machine.
I think it’s unfair to judge him. There’s no way that any of us can understand the forces that turned him into the person he became.
RIP MJ.
Don’t want to let you go. I can never say goodbye…
