I'm a fraud!

Happy Birthday, Butter & Lace! Cooji, cooji, coo! My blog was born on a chilly Monday morning, after a rain-soaked weekend. I love days like this - it's cool, it's crisp, humidity still lingers in the air... it's weather that just begs for you to be sitting next to a roaring fire, with a big mug of hot tea, and endless yummy indulgences that keep you so blissful. Well... that isn't going to happen. In fact, that hasn't been happening for the past 3, going on 4 weeks now.  "Why?", you ask? Well...I had this bright idea about a month ago to "get healthy".... I know. The word disgusts me, too. I mean - "healthy" - what does it mean?! Apparently, after weeks of research, I've discovered it means eating balanced meals, full of nutrients, sans processed foods, fats, sugars, presevatives, etc.  So in a nutshell, being healthy, means being sad and pathetic. Oh well, c'est la vie, oui?  NO!  Au contraire, mon frere! Healthy doesn't have to be sad and pathetic! I'm not going to say it's been easy.

I'm a Coke (cola) whore... on a "light" day, I could easily down 3 cans... you don't want to know what my bad days consisted of. Somehow, with the aid of spices, herbs, lemon, lime, and bulbs of garlic, my taste buds have be riding the border of tolerable, and at times, even enjoyable! We'll see how long this lasts. Thankfully, we (myself and my best friend who is enduring this journey with me) allow ourselves a "cheat meal" a week, where it's no holds barred. Anything goes.  We feel like that keeps us sane enough for the remainder of the week, and gives us something to look forward to so we don't have to cheat along the way. It's our "Foodies" nights, where 6/7 really close friends get together and either cook a great meal, or order take out from new places, eat, and play games/hang out.

I do feel at times like I've abandoned my culinary roots... like now, food is just survival.  Cooking is just heating something to the proper temp to avoid poisoning and death.  My culinary degree stares at me every night as I sleep, shouting "Fraud! Charlatan! Impostor!!!!" in its French accent.  Shut up, Pierre! I haven't abandoned you! I'll figure this thing out and we'll be happy, once again! Thanksgiving's quickly approaching....God, help me!