to be or not to be

I have always worked very hard trying to be a bon vivant. It's not my nature, but its what I aspire to. My inner ascetic has a much louder voice. I would like to do things because I enjoy them, be more process-oriented rather than product-oriented, that whole human-doing rather than human-being thing.... I am working on it really and I think I have gotten a lot better in my "old age" (yes, I am regularly being reminded that I am getting old lately, thank you.)

What does this have to do with my paleo trial, you might ask? Well, I think that is the reason I have been resistant to jumping into a very strict form of it. I get a little uncomfortable with inflexibility around food (I'm sure a knee-jerk reaction to the fanaticism of my youth- which was oh so long ago, I hardly remember!) Anyway, I was extra flexible last night and I have been REALLY flexible around my favorite vice (wine) all along. Alcohol is not recommended at all on the paleo thing if one has an auto-immune disorder (but I chose to ignore that, in deference to the inner bon-vivant I am trying to nurture.)

Anyway, I'm feeling pretty crappy today and yesterday. Ugh. So I think the time has come to really put this theory to the test and do it properly. So, along with grains, legumes and dairy, I am going to do a week without wine and really limit eggs, nuts and tomatoes too.

(If you are interested in reading more about the connection between grains and autoimmunity, this is a good article to begin with: http://www.beyondveg.com/cordain-l/grains-leg/grains-legumes-1b.shtml#autoimmunity or "The Paleo Diet" by Loren Cordain)