Day Seventy-One: It's So Hard to Find a Good Restaurant These Days...

One of the first things my boyfriend and I bonded over was our love of Mexican food and flavors. If it has some sort of cheese, diced tomato, and chilis in it, we will eat it and love it. But despite our love of flavors South of the Border, we are hard-pressed to find a really good Mexican restaurant near us. But thankfully, a lot of people love Mexican food, so there are plenty of restaurants near us...unfortunately, none of them are good enough.

My favorite Mexican restaurant is a staple in my life. My parents have been taking me there since as far back as I could remember, and I always loved it. I love the atmosphere, the delicious Tex-Mex flavors, the music, and the free mints they give you when you're done eating. And it makes it even better that it's a local, home-grown business, devoid of any outside chain influence. The best part about the place is that completely by coicidence, I will be living exactly one block from it in two weeks. Beautiful.

Unfortunately, my Mecca of deliciousness is a bit pricey for anything more than a special occasion. And, unfortunately, my beau has a stubborn streak with restaurants, and one bad experience is enough to scratch it from his list of eateries. He once went to the bar on the first floor (the restaurant is on the second) and was thrown a snide comment about tipping (which he always does more than adequately), which was enough to make him angry. Thus, my favorite restaurant is not somewhere we can go together. Lame.

We've had bad service at a few other places, and others are simply too far to drive to. But we finally thought we found the perfect spot for us to go when a new, large, very authentic restaurant opened up about ten minutes from us. So we've been there a few times now, and all has been well. We had maybe one bout of bad service, but the food is so good and so affordable that we set it aside. But last night, after a lovely meal, we got a free gift with our meal that is never welcome and lasts a lot longer than the lingering, delicious taste of guacamole and chipotle peppers.

So, do we go back?

I'm seriously beginning to doubt it. But if anyone knows of a good, affordable, independent Mexican restaurant in the area with a good track record and a nice reputation, PLEASE let me know. Because I'm getting desperate.

Day Sixty-Eight: Marshmallows

As is probably evident to anyone who actually reads my blog by now, I am a somewhat adventurous eater. I will try almost anything once if it can be eaten, unless it comes from an animal that I can't bear to look at either alive OR dead, or from a part of an animal that I feel is absolutely not meant to be eaten. I will not, for example, under any circumstances, ever try eyeballs, tripe, or bone marrow. But aside from that, I'm open to a lot of different foods, I just haven't had the opportunity to try a lot of things (mostly because I'm too poor to go to restaurants that serve unconventional foods, or I don't know how to cook them myself). But there is one food, and actually the ONLY food, that completely grosses me out: marshmallows.

I. Hate. Marshmallows. Texture is a huge thing for me when it comes to eating. I love crunchy, I love melty, I and I love velvety. I do not, however, love the undescribable texture that is marshmallow. To me, although it tastes simply of sugar, the texture is a gooey mess that immediately adheres to the inside of the mouth as soon as it comes in contact with saliva, and clings like a spider monkey to your gums and tongue. To even think about it sends me into mental convulsions. When I eat a marshmallow, I feel like my mouth is being assaulted by a sugary, slimy, napalm that attacks my senses and feels like culinary nails on a chalkboard. Needless to say, I avoid it at all costs.

Unfortunately, it puts me at a culinary disadvantage. I don't eat Rice Krispies treats, several kinds of ice cream and a bunch of kinds of candy. It hurts my heart when perfectly good and delicious foods, like hot chocolate, cereal, and sweet potatoes are marred by a food I consider as inedible as an insect. And naturally, the Easter season makes me queasy.

Stores are lined with walls and walls of colored sugar-covered birds and rabbits, that while appealing and colorful, are deceitful. In rare cases (twice in my life, in fact) that I have attempted to eat a Peep, I have taken a small bite and given the rest to my Peep-addicted mother. I watch in disdain as she sets packages and packages of Peeps out weeks in advance to stale just slightly, so they get a mildly chewy texture. I have tried, in vain, to do my own doctoring to Peeps such that I might find them tolerable, but all methods have failed. Staled peeps still get slimy. I've tried to put Peeps in the microwave for a very short amount of time, with the hypothesis that the microwave will suck the moisture out of the Peep and make it crunchy. Instead, it just got untolerably chewy and brown (I never was very good at science).

Although my tastes have evolved slightly throughout my life, such that I now eat things I have not enjoyed in the past, such as asparagus and coffee, I still cannot enjoy a marshmallow. I don't know if I will ever not hate them, but I did successfully eat a single mini marshmallow in college on a dare without gagging. But at least during this Easter season, marshmallow and I are still in an epic battle. I hate them, and they taunt me.

Day Sixty-Four: Bad Food is Delicious

Within this epic health-kick I have going on, I made a few minor errors. For one, I had a couple of Bloody Mary's on Saturday night and topped them off with a greasy, delicious, authentic Philadelphia cheesesteak. And yesterday, after making my peanut-allergic boyfriend some oil-saturatated Chinese food (because he'll die if he eats the real thing, more than likely), I bought a bag of Hershey's Special Dark Minatures. And although I felt guilty about the Chinese food (because I'm not a huge fan of Lo Mein), the cheesesteak and the chocolate were delicious, which just shows me that no health food, no matter how good it makes me feel, is a replacement for good, amazing junk food.

There's a reason so many people eat junk food: because it tastes amazing. Sure, it might make you feel pretty terrible and possibly gain weight, but it's so delicious, that every once in awhile it just absolutely has to be had. I still enjoy my Kashi products, and eating good, lean meals make me feel more energetic and lighter. But there's something about a juicy, greasy, cheesy sandwich at midnight that just makes you feel alive and happy about life. Would I want one everyday? Probably not, because I'd feel terrible. But eating delicious, greasy food while I'm having some fun just makes the experience a little more fun. I love granola, but I also love nachos. I love carrots, but I also really love dark chocolate.

So I came home from work, at a sensible, well-portioned meal, and then ate five pieces of candy. And you know what? I don't feel bad about it. Eating some bad food every once in awhile is not going to kill me. Eating it on a regular basis, however, will. But it's the little things in life that really makes it worth living. If I were fifty and diabetic, I might have to eat like I do. But I don't, and that's what makes it better. I have the youth and the freedom to choose how I eat without having serious consequences. So sit back and eat some chocolate and a cheesesteak every one in awhile.

Day Forty-Eight: Restaurants, Though Delicious, are Evil.

I am on a major health kick, and so far it has been proving pretty easy. But when it comes to healthy eating, I am a "go big or go home" kind of gal. I am trying to eat only lean meats and proteins whenever I can, eat more vegetables, more whole grains, and I'm paying attention to the caloric content of the foods I eat, simply because I'm curious to know what healthy foods I thought were healthy before, really aren't. Basically, the whole thing is an experiment to see how healthily I can eat for how long, and how my body reacts (in which I am also eliminating as much added sugar from my diet as I can, just to see how I feel. That means no cookies, no cake, no chocolate, and no sugar in my oatmeal. So far, so good.).

At least, the process is easy when I'm making food for myself at home. This morning, for example, I had two hard-boiled eggs sprinkled with salt on a piece of wheat toast. It was only 250 calories, full of protein, not high in sodium, and I also got some whole grains. It also kept me full from 8:00 AM through to lunch at noon, which is unheard of for me, as I get hungry like every 2 hours. Pretty good deal. Lunch also wasn't too bad. I had a bowl of Kashi Go Lean! Crunch with fruit on it, and that kept me full until, around, 4 PM, which could have been better, but it wasn't bad.

The problem came when I was out at the mall with friends and got tummy rumble-ies. My plethora of healthy options was...the food court. I knew it was going to be a challenge, but I didn't realize how much of a challenge. I headed for Chick-Fil-A, and got the healthiest thing I could find -- a Chargrilled Chicken Cool Wrap with Light Italian dressing. The wrap was basically a salad of lettuce, a couple carrots and some red cabbage, with a couple pieces of grilled chicken inside a thick tortilla wrap. And I used a quarter-packet of the dressing, which was about 25 calories. I felt proud. Until I got home and looked up how much I had eaten. That measly wrap, which kept me full for a whopping three hours, was 415-ish calories (the "ish" is for the estimated dressing I used). I ate some pork tenderloin, a cup of green beans, and a little bit of pasta last night, WITH butter, and that was less. I was astounded, and annoyed. I realize tortillas are not really that healthy of a choice, but come on -- aside from that I was eating a frickin' salad, and a sad one at that. I was not pleased.

I know it's difficult to eat healthy when out on the go or at a restaurant, but is it honestly possible? I know a lot of restaurants offer "healthier choices," but they're still loaded with sodium, and are really, really boring (wow, salmon covered in "signature" grill seasoning (a.k.a. salt, salt, and more salt, and some spices) and a side of overcooked broccoli, all for only 350 calories? No way! I'm totally not missing out on eating the bacon cheeseburger!). And healthier protein options, such as salmon or grilled chicken, are always smothered in some kind of cheese or cream sauce that throws the whole notion right out the back door.

With this in mind, if anyone who's trying to live a healthier lifestyle wants to "treat" themselves by going out, what's the treat? You're eating something probably ten times not as good as what you could make yourself for the same amount of calories and a higher amount of sodium. It's really depressing. It makes me want to screw the whole thing when I get out and do it right, and get the chicken strips. And it definitely poses a handicap when going out with friends, if you're always the one who wants to go somewhere where you can get something not absolutely terrible for you. If it's not a national chain restaurant or a restaurant designed around allowing healthier options, it's probably not going to make the cut. That eliminates diners (unless you're happy with a really, really sad salad bar), pizza and sandwich joints, most chinese restaurants (although some serve brown rice, chicken and vegetables. Woo.), and just about all Mexican places. So, basically, anywhere fun. Mexican is my weakness, by the way -- I don't make sacrifices when it comes to tortillas, guacamole, and marinated beef.

No wonder America is so fat -- it's extremely difficult to find anything truly healthy on a menu. I'm not sure how long this health kick of mine will last (the longest it's ever lasted me has been a month, which isn't too bad, I think), but so far the results have been...hungry. But apparently we're designed to eat every four hours, so I think that's a good thing. But it's awfully inconvenient.

Day Thirty-Five: Me vs. Taquitos

Due to a freak one-foot snowstorm that attacked Southern New Jersey this weekend, my cousin and I were extremely limited in our entertainment for the weekend. So when the white stuff started to fall out of the sky at 11 AM, ominously and steadily sticking to cars, roads, and grass, we looked at each other and said, "uh oh". With a small sense of panic and enormous ambition, we created a list of things we would most definitely need if our party would be snowed inside. So, off to the liquor store and the grocery store we went. The bounty that we returned home with was of enormous and very impressive proportions. I myself alone bought three boxes of Girl Scout cookies, 3 avocados, guacamole mix, Triscuits, and a bottle of Raspberry vodka. Not too bad, right? Definitely the makings of a feast of indigestion, but not awful yet. My cousin, however, bought a bag of chips, another box of Triscuits, Taquitos, pretzel bites, ice cream, more vodka, and for the sake of not feeling too guilty, a bag of carrots. Now, we were facing a frightening buffet of gassiness.

We started by splitting the box of Taquitos for a late lunch. The serving size, mind you, is three. We each ate ten. This was followed by a food coma and laying on the middle of the hardwood floor groaning in discomfort. But oh, we weren't done yet. After a brief respite, I made up some lovely guacamole, and promptly ate half of it. My cousin ate a third of it, and then ate a handful of Girl Scout cookies, then passed out. Now, we were starting to feel a little sick. But a couple of hours later, after some carrots and a nap, we decided it was time for dinner. But nothing we bought was worthy of being our biggest meal of the day. So in the snowstorm, we ordered two personal-sized pizzas, complete with melty, cheesy, greasy goodness. I ate two pieces and could not get off the couch for the rest of the night.

My cousin, however, was a stronger opponent than I. She made herself a bowl of low-fat ice cream with Girl Scout cookies on the side, as I watched in dismay and nausea. I felt awful, I looked awful, and I am now still recovering, with the aid of some vegetables and lots of water. What have I learned from my fun-filled, gluttonous weekend of deliciousness? The body was definitely, absolutely, not made to run solely on boxed Taquitos, processed food, and pizza alone. There's a reason vegetables have been such a staple of our diet for so long. I did not manage to feed myself anything yesterday that my body could use as fuel to keep myself going throughout the day. To me, it's like trying to run your car on bacon grease.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not stupid: I did know before that what I was doing to myself wasn't a good idea. But never before in my life have I eaten that terribly for such a long period of time. I now know where my threshold lies, and I think I came very close to crossing it. So now I'm on a health kick, not because I feel guilty, but because I feel half-dead. Come on vitamins, get in my belly and help me function as a human being.