I’m becoming uncomfortably attached to this increasingly comfortable lifestyle. I like being reminded of my resourcefulness. It has forced me to take note of how huge portions have become. I eat almost exclusively leftovers. By leftovers, I mean what someone else can’t finish and would normally throw away. I haven’t even gotten close to the dumpsters yet. I can’t imagine the bounty I will encounter there. No wonder America is so fat.
I’m pretty sure I’m going to have to keep this up for a while longer, I haven’t been able to buy any of the things I really want yet. Now I need a root canal so that will dip into all the money I’ve saved. I wish health and wealth would cooperate more fully and stop getting in each other’s way.
The less food I buy, the less everything else I buy. I’m so afraid to go near a store and be tempted that all my spending is majorly decreased. I’ve been carpooling to work. I’m in search of a serious road bike. I want to decrease my living costs en totale so I can focus on living the high life in my tiny, inexpensive apartment1.
Day 22
At lunch the HR woman who sits near me gave me her leftovers from a Greek place. Pretty ridiculous. And by “ridiculous,” I mean delicious.
That night I went on a date and ate Shepherd’s Pie at Family Wash
I’m not very good at going on dates so I didn’t eat much.
Day 23
Today a coworker offered me Sunchips, but ate them. Luckily I had gotten a text from Holly in accounting telling me to eat her leftovers in the break room’s fridge. They turned out to be the same Greek stuff that I got yesterday. Score.
This time there was some pita bread (upper left corner).
I went home for a second to let my dog out before tutoring and ate a piece of that pizza I got from the photo shoot. It held me over really well and I did 8 miles at the gym. No problem! I feel great. Once I was home I ate some dried fruit left over from the Nashville Film Fest.
Day 24
I wasn’t able to find anything for breakfast or lunch today, then a coworker who just started reading these articles showed up with this.
I feel it needs no further explanation. Needless to say, I don’t feel so good.
Dinner. Last piece of pizza from the photo shoot.
Day 25
Today it took a long time for me to get to eat. I cooked a can of photo shoot tuna in a pan. I also ate some dried fruit. Rough. I feel like I must have eaten something else too, but I think I just drank some hot chocolate that my grandma brought me when she visited a couple weeks ago. That junk can be really filling. Topped off the night be hanging out in a hot tub with some friends and eating a few doritos. Those things are sick, but I really needed them at the time.
Day 26
Today I was supposed to go canoing. There was a triathlon going on, so I was unable to use the lake. Jesse bought me a low fat blueberry muffin from Panera. I’m sorry about becoming so lame about pictures. I was so hungry by late afternoon, I thought I would die. I scoured my cupboards and found a can of refried beans. I had some left over corn tortillas from a parental visit and some photoshoot cheese. Combined, they saved my life. I promise I’ll do better with the pics tomorrow. I’m a little bit ashamed of my laziness.
Day 27
Today sucked for a little while but really got good near the end. The joy started when a coworker gave me an orange.
When I got home I used a bunch of free stuff I got from the photoshoot to make this
I’m calling it “baked FREEti.” It’s kind of like baked ziti, only not good.
It helped me make it to see my friend and banjo player play with another band. Pretty good night.
Day 28
Kick started the day with a banana. I got to my desk and it was laying there looking luscious.
I later discovered it came from an inspired coworker. She gave me that serious cookie also. I feel so supported. Camaraderie, folks, is key.
For lunch I ate a bunch of FREEti leftovers
At tutoring, one of my students gave me the rest of her peanuts because they were not salty enough.
When I got home from working out, I was WRECKED. I did freaking 12 miles uphill in 34 minutes on the bike. So i rewarded myself with a bunch of gross junk that I either found or was given…
World’s smallest, weirdest burrito.
Just when I thought life could get no better, my roommate decided to make peanut butter cupcakes.
They were more like muffins, but they were completely delicious.
Today is technically my “last day.” I don’t think I’m going to quit yet though. I never did get around to the whole dumpster diving scene. I really mean to. My Whole Foods contact just emailed me about getting some bread. Gotta make that happen yet. No, I don’t think I’m ready to quit freeganism.
1. I have yet to find said apartment, but have not given up.
