My Lenten practices are still going reasonably well.
Each morning while I teach, my body aches for a diet Coke. So far, I’m restricting very well.
I’ve been getting up very early — earlier than usual — to take some time for prayer and spiritual writing. It’s definitely a stretch physically, but after nearly a week I notice it’s really starting to pay off.
And I’m trying to be completely vegan for Lent. That isn’t going as well as I’d like. I had a bagel on Sunday after my run; no cream cheese but no doubt plenty of egg in it. I had a bite of egg salad yesterday too, and on Friday, I had a protein bar with milk product in it. But for the most part, I’m doing okay.
In other news, the Matilde Mission has at long last won a quiet little battle we were having with the IRS. For eighteen months, the chinchilla charity that my wife and I helped start in honor of our first chin had been battling to be recognized as a non-profit. We were granted provisional 501(c)3 status, but the IRS kept coming back with bizarre and arcane queries, perhaps trying to make absolutely sure that the Mission is not affiliated with groups like Animal Liberation Front and other organizations that employ violence.
After spending a small fortune on lawyer’s fees (out of our pockets, not the Mission’s), we finally convinced the IRS that every dime we spend is for chinchillas, their rescue, and their housing. And we got all of our paperwork at last; we are no longer provisional.
So with that said, feel free to donate here! It’s tax-deductible, we’ve got a secure server, you can give as little as $5.00… We’ve saved the lives of a few hundred precious little ones, and we can save many more with your help.
The IRS approves.
Did your bagel have a topping? An egg wash is often used to help toppings adhere to the bagel’s surface, but otherwise (unless it was specifically labeled an egg bagel) plain New York-style bagels should be egg-free.
I would find the cream cheese tough to resist, myself. Especially ’cause I gave up butter.
I have been dairy free (save small amounts of cheating here and there) for about three years), beef-free for four, and meat free for about six months … but it can be really frustrating! So good luck in your vegan Lenten quest … I myself really like the “rice cream cheese” that I found at Whole Foods … it’s not exactly the same, but bagels can be really dry with nothing on them, as I’m sure you know. I’m not sure if it’s specifically vegan, though, as there may be some casein in it or something. But it’s still pretty good. On a semi-related note, Soya Kaas is the best fake cheese I’ve found so far … it melts great and is even good for making dairy-free mac & cheese.
And congrats on your new tax-free status!
No, no topping on the bagel — just plain old cinnamon raisin, and I had some jam on it. Maybe it was vegan after all!
Katie, thanks for the recommendation; I am still experimenting with various soy cheeses, and that’s one I haven’t tried yet…
Giving up sugar and artificial sweeteners for a while always clears my head in a wonderful way. Good luck on the DietCoke-lessness!
I sincerely hope that after a Lent without Diet Coke, you start to think Diet Coke sux. Because man, that shit is BAD for you! Rats fed Diet Coke got FATTER than rats fed regular Coke…there’s something about the chemical mixture that makes it ADDICTIVE and FATTENING (the perfect corporate product! A diet drink that makes you fat!). I think it is just really hard for the Liver to metabolize, that is what gives it that special fattening quality, despite the absence of calories)
I recommend switching to a cola product made with cola and sugar, the “health food”kind like Blue Sky. (Isn’t that funny: the kind of soda that resembles what COKE was in our childhoods, is now considered “health” soda, because it ISN’T full of non-food chemicals!) Or, if you want to have caffiene but no sugar, switch to ice tea!