Master Cleanse – Day 20

Well, I made it to day 20. The last few days were a bit rough as I was a panel member for an academic validation panel which took me through a number of banquets and sitting in the middle of a lunch buffet (not recommended for those who fast). In a couple instances, soup was served to me (as the waiter was not informed of my fast) which I politely declined, but was left sitting in the middle of the table. This brought up an interesting inner dialogue about will vs. waste vs. understanding the significance of the situation at a deeper level. Although I mentally was planning on 20 days of fasting, I’ve been brought up with the values (conditioning) of not wasting food. This value has lead to the nickname of “garbage disposal” at the end of family meals where I usually finish off whatever is left (which from a physiological need perspective isn’t probably healthy). It was interesting internally watching the “keep the fast” vs. “drink the soup and not waste it” dialogue. This lead to a deeper exploration into why the soup was served, not at a causal level (no-one told the waitress that time), but at a deeper level of why things out of your control happen when they do. This led into a deeper dialogue on intention, unconscious intention, free will and choice, and consequence (karma). The thing that got me out of this dilemma, interestingly enough, was looking at the soup (egg drop). I just looked at it and knew that I wouldn’t be eating it. Not that it didn’t look appetizing, but it was quite an interesting experience.

Reviewing the academic program at the Academy of Performing Arts (they are offering a new MFA in Theater and Entertainment Arts) rekindled my passion for theater. They offer a lot of shows there and there is quite a collection of talent! I brought my daughter to watch the choreography show yesterday night. When I was at Berkeley, they had a student rush program which enabled students to buy last minute tickets for $4USD to see shows like (in dance) Alvin Ailey, Dance Theater of Harlem, Merce Cunningham, Trisha Brown, Laura Dean, Paul Taylor, Pilobolus, Martha Graham, etc. Really glad to have found a local source and to also find a hotbed community of performing arts creators!

Back to the diet… In preparing to go back to food, I’ve been researching food and eating more. There is a great site here: http://www.rawfoodexplained.com/index.html that addresses many of the issues of modern diet (e.g., things like wheat, fast food, dairy, etc). It may be a bit extreme for most people, but I think it is important for people to know as much as they can about what they are eating. So much of contemporary media and education keeps us ignorant in this realm. Another great video on genetically modified foods is located here: http://pods.zaadz.com/realizing_health/discussions/view/96153. In addition to Supersize Me (highly recommended), Fast Food Nation just came out on DVD which I will try to pick up today. I’m also a fan of Linklatter (Waking Life, Scanner Darkly) and am interested to see how he presents the material in a dramatic context (though the film didn’t do very well at the box office).

I’m down to 155 pounds. My tongue is still half coated, but improving. I experience slight dizziness whenever I get up to my feet fast. I’ve been meeting a lot of new people, making friends, and having great conversations (coherent). I’ll probably move from lemonade to orange juice between today and tomorrow and slowly transition towards solid food. My wife breezed through to Day 10 with very little incident. She's amazing!