Primal Journal - Siobhan page 89

[Siobhan]

Back in to report my lab results -

Total cholesterol - 179 (optimal <200)
LDL 98 (optimal <100)
HDL 70 (optimal >60)
Triglycerides 55 (optimal <150)

Fasting blood sugar 79 (normal <90 or 70-99 - depends on the source)

Notice I am in the 'optimal' category from WebMD on every number. There is also an 'acceptable' category, which I sneer at. Wish I knew the breakdown of my LDL, as I understand there are two different kinds, one is harmless.

Anyway, I hit all the targets and got the maximum discount on my health insurance.

I am also happy to report that Slim Cat is happily tucking into the healthier Fancy Feast. There is hope for us all.

AND I think my fingernail is going to heal up instead of fall off. Must be accelerated healing from all the fat I consume.

[Siobhan]

Slept like a rock for eight hours. Wish I could report that I woke up refreshed, but I woke up and thought "I could sleep for another week!" I do feel pretty energetic, though, and I have a farmers market to go to this morning. Can't wait to sink my teeth into those tomatoes - they are outstanding this year.

[Siobhan]

Slept very, very well once again. It is finally cooler and I think I was just a little worn out from many nights of work and many hot days of trying to sleep.

Yesterday I didn't journal or really think about what I ate - just ate what I fancied, primal of course. Made a primal pizza with an eggplant crust - it was okay, but zucchini or spaghetti squash are better IMHO. Ate a whole pint of wild blackberries, possibly the best I have ever put in my mouth. Some eggs. A terrific wild mushroom called 'chicken of the woods' or something. Almost unbelievably good. I will be purchasing a couple of handfuls of that next time. Very clean, meaty taste, great texture. I will have to get more adventuresome about mushrooms.

Work tonight, am still kind of tired! Good think since I will probably sleep some more.

I hung this on the door between my hallway and living room. Slim cat looks exactly like this iconic poster cat. I just hope it doesn't look too college dorm-y.

424px-Steinlein-chatnoir.jpg

[Calibunny]

Hi Siobhan! I'm really enjoying your journal! I started reading it a few days ago (you had me at "goat"!) and i couldnt stop! i just HAD to know what happened next. Let me tell you, I am ready to pack up and move to Maine! The only thing i knew about Maine was from reading Stephen King novels, and he didn't make the state come alive like you have. I live on the cool and foggy coast of central california, and we don't have hot summers like you! How is that possible, when you are so much farther north? Its August, and i think its MAYBE 61 outside. *sigh*

Like many of your other readers, I am seriously envious of that food co-op! I thought we had good farmer's markets here, but obviously Maine is the superior state for produce and grass fed meats.

When I first started reading, there were many times I wanted to make a comment, but couldnt until i got caught up. whew, what a relief when I finally got to the last page! Hopefully I don't sound like a stalker or anything just wanted you to know that I am enjoying reading about your primal journey, and you have inspired me to become a better cook! And maybe to even get a cat..lol

Lorinda

[Siobhan]

Wow, thank you Lorinda! I'm glad you found it entertaining. I should go back to the beginning and read the whole thing myself again. It has been quite a ride. I have been thinking of adapting parts of my journal into a memoir, probably just for family and friends. I would add more bits about Maine and less about food as I think my audience would find that more interesting. Maine is a wonderful place, although the California coast is pretty wonderful too. Everyone here is wondering why it is so HOT. Never used to be, lots of old timers never, ever saw 90 degrees. Now it is routinely in the 90's! But not for long, thankfully.

Here I am at work. I grabbed the wrong container out the fridge and now I don't have much to eat. Oh well, I will survive. I'm remarkably full on a very small piece of beef, one mushroom, and some strawberries. The worst thing is I left my Kindle Fire at home. Can't get Youtube on the work computer! Grrrrrrrrr. I need a laugh or two.

[Coll]

Siobhan, isn't it so irritating when you forget things and then you're stuck for the whole shift. And when you were planning on doing something with it you have the whole time to wish you could be doing it, lol. Glad that slim cat is doing well with his healthier food! I must say that Maine sounds much more attractive after reading your journal for a while. Less food regulations, more rural, beautiful scenery - what is not to like!? Did I miss something else?

[Siobhan]

Well, it does get pretty darn cold here, and there is normally no shortage of snow and ice in the winter! But I like those things, as long as I have a nice snug comfortable home. I am actually looking forward to winter because it is going to be so beautiful from my new treetop home. And we do have a LOT less food regulations. We have great food here, and it is getting better all of the time as the locavore movement gets more popular, and people are seeking clean food.

Today is a 'meh' day. I am sorry to report that. I'm a little short on energy, tired, probably dehydrated. I think I have just worked a lot and worried too much. After an energetic start to getting my place all tidied and uncluttered, I have let things go and now I need a major cleaning festival in addition to the tidying and uncluttering. As an excuse, although a fairly valid one, it has been wickedly hot, no real way to cool down the inside of my home, and it is very hard to sleep much of the time. This morning I was treated to some sort of full-on construction-heavy machinery somewhere close by. After working my fourth night this week, that was not welcome. And it is now really hot again. Okay, enough of that. Must drink some water, maybe with some lemon or lime in it.

Update on my induction burner that I purchased a few weeks ago - I love it. If you have an opportunity to use or convert to an induction stovetop, do it. That has been the one saving grace in this heat wave. I can still cook on my burner. Of course it still throws off heat, but not nearly as much as the propane burner. And so clean and fast. I like it so much I am going to invest in at least one really good magnetic pan. Currently I am using my old (actually new) cookware with a conversion plate, which works fine but magnetic cookware will be much, much better. Also, I can use cast iron which is cool AND cheap.

I bought some bread-and-butter pickles at the farmers market. They are stupendously good. They also contain sugar. I wonder how much? If I just eat a few, is that a lot of sugar? Is the road to hell paved with good intentions?

I am off to drink lots of water now.

[Siobhan]

Once again I slept and slept but am still tired. Am so tempted to go back to bed, but I have slept for 9 or 10 hours. I got up to feed those rompin' cats at 5:30 and went promptly back to sleep. They are crazy in the morning, running from one end of the place to the other, throwing their toys around. I slept through it all. I want to go to church and I am working tonight, so I dragged myself out of bed.

[Siobhan]

Well, I am glad I went to church because the service was spectacular. The sermon was extremely powerful, the music was challenging and almost disturbingly emotive. Really energized me! Also had a nice conversation with some friends afterwards. Now I have to wind down and rest for work tonight. But I am really glad I am feeling better.

[Siobhan]

I made another discovery in my n=1 primal experiment - one that will send shudders down the spine of vegetarians everywhere. I really need to eat meat. Over the past week, my meat consumption has fallen dramatically as I have eaten mostly vegetables, fruit, coconut oil, olive oil, small amounts of cheese and butter. I have gotten most of my protein from an egg or two and protein powder in smoothies, which is whey protein. I looked over my food journal and my energy level fell every day, and I was hungry after meals at times, feeling unsatisfied despite having eaten a reasonable amount of food. The missing component was meat. I bought a chicken yesterday and had some this morning for breakfast with a lovely ripe peach and I don't think it is just the church service that energized me. I had a substantial amount of beef for lunch and now feel really good. I've eaten small amounts of meat - 2 oz. or so but I don't think it was enough. Despite having eaten a fair amount of meat today, my overall calorie count is still pretty low. Meat. Yeah.