WARNING: You're gonna want some food after reading this.

Holy crap. A Christmas miracle has happened - two post in one week. Hellz yeah. I thought that today I would blog about my journey of giving up certain meats (everything but fish).

As of today I have been somewhat meat free for seven months and 15 days. No, I am not counting down until I can have a chicken sandwich from a well-known fast food restaurant. I can say that I have become a master of cooking pasta, rice and egg salad. Soon you will be mine chicken sandwich.

Luckily, I haven't had to deal with too many cravings. They mostly happen when I am stressed. For instance, the last time I wanted a juicy hamburger was the week before finals. It could easily be said that that week was the worst of the semester for me academically. I really didn't each much because I didn't have time to stop and cook. It was so tempting to go to Zaxby's or Micky D's and pick something up. Really it wasn't the temptation of meat, but the attractiveness of the quickness and ease of fast food. However, during that week I did get some fries from Micky D's; they were heavenly.

This leads me to the next point. I have actually spent less money since starting this. Normally, I would eat out at least three or four times a week...if not more. I do go to the grocery store and drop some money, but that usually once every two weeks. The only place I tend to go out to eat often in Rome is Panera. That place is one of my many guilty pleasures. My Panera card gets a lot of use.

Tomato sandwiches are awesome. One of my many discoveries.

As far as trying new foods, this has worked. I have enjoyed finding the deliciousness of certain fish, tomatoes and dare I say it, some types of onions. *gasp* (Onions are something that I have always hated) I have also learned how to cook a lot of things like shrimp and ravioli. I know that I would not have been able to do this if I could not eat fish. Even when I started this crazy experiment, I was not a fan of fish. In that regard, my mind has changed.

Don't get me wrong. This has been great, but there are certain things that I miss.

I miss hot dogs the most. Ironic. I know.

I'm glad there has not been a need for chicken noodle soup. I don't know what I would do.


London Broil is something that is hard to watch others eat.

Being a southern lady, fried chicken is something that test my discipline.

On June 1st 2011 I will be enjoying a little bit of meat. I know that my eating habits have changed. There are certain moments when I can't wait to get my hands on a burger and there are others where I lose my apatite thinking about meat. June 1st 2011 isn't the end of this journey, but merely a turning point. I look forward to it.

4 out of 5 roses.

"Where is your backbone?" -There for tomorrow

I suck. No really. I do. I suck terribly at keeping up a blog. I'm not even going to make some stupid excuses like "I was busy" or "Life happened." Nope. Nada. Not here. Instead, I'm gonna jump right in on this thing.

Fall semester senior year in one word: Experience.

(I would have picked life lessons, added a hyphen and BAYAM. one word. But that's cheating...)

I learned a lot.

Not only did I learn things from my 18 hours of classes, but from certain experiences. Through the experience of getting my toes wet in the "real" world, I learned to not underestimate myself. I do this more than I should especially in the getting a job frame of mind. In November I attended a job fair which was all about sports where I gleamed two job offers. I was shocked. Sports is not an area that I had seen myself working in; however, that's changed.

The job market is like the life of a dino: eat or be eaten.

Move. I learned what this word truly means. Through all of my trouble this semester I learned that I have the ability to keep moving even when I feel like crumbling to the ground. Even though pain and sorrow suck, they showed me that I am truly my strongest when I feel like I am the weakest. Realizing that is priceless. It makes me thankful for my experiences this semester.

I lost a lot.

The source of my anguish this semester was of my own doing. I broke up with my then boyfriend of 2.5 years. That was one of, if not, the hardest things I've done in my life. I don't regret it. I know in my heart, soul and spirit that I made the right decision at that moment. By doing that, I lost one of my best friends. I lost a piece of my identity.

I gained a lot.

However, when I broke-up with him I gained something back. I gained the ability to focus on myself. The ability to give myself what I need: time. I need time to prepare myself for these traumatic things called "graduation/real world/omg what are bills?" moments. I gained the true realization that only I know what is best for me. I was able to prove to myself that I am becoming a full fledged adult.

Thanks to my lovely roomies for dealing with my depressing/moody/throwing shoes self this semester.

Yeah, saying this semester sucked could be the understatement of the year. I know that it was the worst in my college career thus far. However, it could also be said the be semester that forced me to grow up some. It might just be the semester that gave me the courage, the strength and the patience to not be afraid to go against others expectations.

I'm torn in rating this semester. Pain says give it negative roses. Wisdom says give it five. Compromise is key.

Three roses.