Vegetarianism Doesn't Have to be a Full-Time Job

Right now, I'm still running strong in my full-time vegetarianism (with no immediate plans to stop) but I just across this recent TED lecture by Graham Hill (founder of TreeHugger.com) giving an illuminating speech on being a "weekday vegetarian"



For the most part, I agree -- the choice to eat meat vs. not to eat meat shouldn't be so mutually exclusive, and the choice of what to put on your plate doesn't have to be a full-on battle between the tastebuds and the environment/animal rights/good health every single time. Nonetheless, it is worth the effort to make better choices whenever possible--whether eating less meat overall, choosing meats from sustainably-raised sources and/or favoring the generally healthier white meats of fowls and seafood over red mammalian variants.

As for me, I'm taking my everyday-vegetarianism one day at a time, but I'm leaving the possibility open for eating animals should the craving strike (it hasn't yet.) And if and when I ever get back into omnivore mode--I'll know I can consume meat without feeling guilty over my body or my planet.

And I love Graham Hill's parting final food for thought... "if all of us ate half as much meat, it would be like half of us becoming vegetarians."

Urban Hike and Eat this Sunday: from Hollywood to Inglewood!

End of the hike from Union Station to Santa Monica Pier last month

Given how happy I was with last month's Urban Hike and Eat Street Foodventure, I decided to make this a recurring (hopefully monthly) affair, discovering Southern California on foot, checking out sights and scenes I would usually miss behind the wheel - and grabbing some interesting bites and sips along the way too.

This Sunday, I'll be tackling the entire length of La Brea Avenue, from Hollywood to Inglewood. This urban hike clocks in a little under 12 miles, and with my planned start time of 7:30 a.m.--I expect to the hike to conclude by 3 p.m.-ish at La Brea & W Century - after which we can ride the bus back up to the starting point for a cool $1.25.

View La Brea restaurants in a larger map

As for the eats along the route, I've chosen a sundry of places on or near La Brea: some ethnic finds (El Nido for Nicaraguan, Ngoma for "Pan-African",) healthy joints (Stuff I Eat, M Cafe de Chaya) classic favorites (Susina Bakery, Campanile) and some meaning-to-trys (Food Lab Cafe, Soul Food Kitchen.)

Of course, I don't intend on stopping and eating at every stop cited on this map -- but these are just some fun options to consider along the way (and almost all of them are cheap-moderate price eateries) and there probably will be a lot more cool, funky joints to check out once we hit the streets (which is the beauty of the hike, we can stop whereever and whenever) If it's anything like my last Urban Hike and Eat, I don't expect the day's food bill to run more than $35.

So that being said, if you care to join me on this Urban Hike and Eat (the more the merrier, and the more grub we can try and share!) contact me! But I'm planning to be at the start of the hike by 7:15 a.m.-ish; hope you can make it too!

Too full!

I am no saint and sometimes I don't follow my healthy eating habits to a 'T'. But boy does my body send me nasty reminder signals to keep me on track.

Totally ate too much Thai take-out today for lunch after a stressful morning of work, and now I feel totally grossed-out-bloated with a little cramping to boot. Ugh...

So there's my lesson today in not only getting proper portions of food but also eat slowly so my stomach has enough time to send satiety signals to my brain, allowing me to stop before it's too miserably late.