Fascination with Fasting (Part Deux)

A few things I learned from my first few attempts at fasting. I have a feeling several of these might leave you more experienced fasters (and maybe those who aren't) saying "Well, DUH." If so, consider this my light bulb moment.

Fascinated With Fasting

I've recently become re-fascinated with fasting. I'm no stranger to fasting. Early in my weight loss I instituted a bi-weekly 36-hour fast. After going Primal I fasted intermittently off and on. I haven't really fasted in a while though. I've gotten rather comfortable having a full belly and couldn't bear the discomfort of hunger pangs. One twinge and it was time to eat.

Just prior to Thanksgiving, the idea of fasting was brought back into my line of sight. It was initially in the form of spiritual fasting and prayer. I didn't fast and pray, but the idea stuck in my head that giving up some food might be a good idea. I decided that the days prior to Thanksgiving I would fast- not to quell damage done for the gluttony- but to truly feel thankful for the food I would be eating.

Pumpkin Ketchup

What does a redneck do when she's out of ketchup?

Make ketchup out of something she has.

And this redneck has a crap ton of pumpkin.

Making ketchup out of pumpkin isn't that crazy an idea, is it? I mean after all, pureed pumpkin has roughly the same texture as tomato paste. Maybe a little more water content, but that can be worked with. Similar taste- fairly bland, but a little sweet. Nothing remarkable about either ingredient that would spell disaster for a girl who only wants a little ketchup for her sheep testicles. (And this is why you read my blog, I know.)

Spiced Pumpkin Mash

Super-simple, extra-cheap, deliciously sweet, spicy, savory side dish?

Yes.

First project to come out of the pumpkin factory is this Spiced Pumpkin Mash which I found on the internet and tweaked to my own liking. Truth be told, I needed a "squash" dish for Thanksgiving dinner. Well, pumpkin is a squash technically, so guess what. We're eating pumpkin.

Slut-Shaming

I don't profess myself to be a feminist- at least not politically speaking. I'm certainly not what you would call a Femi-Nazi. I recognize there IS a difference in the sexes. We are different, albeit equal.

Perhaps I am something of a feminist by nature, and that's what has drawn me not only to Paganism, but more specifically to being a daughter of Artemis. She was a rule breaker, defying the gender roles of her culture. She wore her hair like a man, and ran wild through the forests, untamed. Anyone who sees me would recognize that I'm a non-conformist, with a somewhat androgynous style. Perhaps that's why I feel so close to Her. And yet there's something in me that's strangely domesticated. On one hand, I believe that men and women have their natural roles, and I appreciate them, but on the other I'm all for women being liberated from society's dictation of their thoughts and behavior.

I touched on it slightly in my post, "Revolution." Our culture has a definite opinion on how a woman should look, and it has shaped how we treat ourselves and others. Sure, men may be somewhat to blame for such critical views of women, but more often than not we women are the ones most at fault. We do it to ourselves. Too fat, to thin, too boney, too muscular. We judge others and ourselves. Big boobs, little boobs, big butts, no butts. Women are expected to look a certain way to be pleasing to... who? Everyone but themselves apparently.

Winners and Losers

What's the difference between winners and losers?

We just wrapped up the election and clearly there were winners and losers. Some got a shiny new job, some got to keep their seats, and some were sent home. Better luck next time. As for we the people, our guy either won or lost, thus reflecting their victory or defeat upon us. For the politically minded, it's akin to having your team in the Super Bowl.

I had a couple of conversations with a friend, full of friendly ribbing, about the election. We voted for different people. He voted for the President, and I voted for Romney. (You can stop reading now if you want. I understand.) My guy lost.

**Don't worry, this post isn't about politics. It's just an example.**

The Pumpkin Factory

I'm a happy little scavenger today. This weekend I've managed to turn my kitchen into a pumpkin factory.

As a master of living Paleo on the cheap, and a willing and proud opportunist, you can imagine my delight when I found I was able to take advantage of an entire crop of unwanted pumpkins, for FREE.

One can eat only so many pumpkins in a season, so as much as I wanted to take every last useful gourd home, I limited myself to however many would fit in the back seat of my car. That number would be ten. Ten pumpkins. Ten very large pumpkins.

Woohoo!

Got lots of stuff going on here today!

So how's everyone doing? Have a good Halloween? Are we ready to set the clocks back, vote, and hunker down for winter?

Nope, not really.

Well, I did have a good Halloween at least. By the time the 31st got here, I'll admit I was pretty Halloweened out, but it was nice spending a couple evenings with friends. Now I'm nearing the end of a nice and relaxing 5 day vacation from work. Not that I've been all that productive- got the car fixed and did laundry, and that's about it. I'm finally getting caught up on some blog stuff though- some writing and reorganizing content, and trying to make the place a little more functional.

I'm interested in input from you all. Is there anything you would like to see, or anything that just doesn't quite "work" for you?

I'm also working on making some pages for different types of topics so that you can find just what you're looking for. Paleo (or mostly Paleo) recipes, Pagan things, random health notes, or just ramblings about my daily life. I'll have everything organized into their own pages for you.

Hang in there if things get a little wonky. It gets worse before it gets better, right?