Breakfast- 1/2 lb red seedless grapes, a 1/2 gallon smoothie: 1 head Romaine, 4 bananas, 2 Valencia oranges, 2 cups water

Lunch- 10 large juicy sweet red plums

I've always had difficulty getting my mind around the concept of Dr. Graham's July 3 calendar entry.  I believe that in adopting healthy habits such as leading a raw food lifestyle, our body can heal and repair itself.  So how does this jive with Dr. Graham's quote?  I asked him about this once when I saw him and he described it this way.  If you hit a tree with an axe, it will, in time heal, create new growth and cover over the wound.  However, within the tree, a scar will always be there, even if the tree is healthy.

I'm on Jinjee's (of http://www.thegardendiet.com/) daily email list and yesterday she share her thought about General Mills purchasing LaraBar.  "Yesterday I read about Larabar being acquired by General Mills. Today I read that 600 Starbucks coffee shops are being closed down. I think these moves in the corporate world reflect a shift in human consciousness - we want to be healthier!  In joy!  Jinjee"

I agree with Jinjee!

Breakfast- 1/2 large watermelon

Lunch- 1 1/2 lbs red seedless grapes

Dinner- 10 Medjool dates, a 1/2 gallon smoothie of 1 head Romaine, 4 bananas, 2 cups water

Breakfast- a 1/2 gallon smoothie of 1 large bunch dandelion greens, 1 medium sized pineapple, 6 Medjool dates

Lunch- 13 Medjool dates, 1 large head Romaine lettuce

Dinner- 7 Medjool dates, a smoothie: 1 large bunch of spinach, 5 Valencia oranges, 1 grapefruit

The dates were not so great addition to the breakfast smoothie but the pineapple didn't taste very sweet and I felt that I needed something else sweet in it to boost my calorie intake.  Unfortunately, the result did not taste fabulous and I don't recommend it.  My cupboard is full of fruit that is not quite ripe yet.

Dinner was after working out at the gym and I felt really hungry.  I thought about having a handful of pecans and a big salad for dinner but I thought about it and I  said to myself, "Stephen, you know that it is nearly impossible for you to eat just one handful of pecans. Just let it go for tonight and make a smoothie." 

That sounded like pretty good advice to me and I listened.  The spinach/orange combination was pretty damn good and I didn't miss the pecans one bit!

"Tomatoes are especially vexing because of the complex path they take from field to fork.  Because tomatoes are perishable, suppliers typically rely on more than one grower to fill orders.  Once the tomatoes come into a processing facility, they're usually sorted based on ripeness, size and grade, not origin.  Sometimes, the FDA says, tomatoes picked in Florida are shipped to Mexico for packaging before being returned to the U.S. for sale.  Once tomatoes are sliced, diced and mixed for salad bars, deli counters or supermarket salsas, tracking their provenance becomes nearly impossible."

I added the italics.  Can you believe this, how many people, pairs of hands, handle conventional food before it is sold to consumers?  How many runny noses drip on our food?  How many fingers that just wiped or picked a nose, scratched inside of and ear, or picked something from between a tooth touch our food?  How can we not expect to have outbreaks of disease?  I'm not faulting the behaviors; these are all very normal human animal actions.  It's when we forfeit our responsibility to take care of our health & food that we introduce countless unknown factors into our lives and put our health at risk.

Making a conscious effort to know where our food comes from would benefit every one of us. 

Breakfast- 1 large cantaloupe, 1/2 gallon smoothie of 1 lb green leaf lettuce, 3 bananas, 1 cup blueberries

Lunch- 1 large cantaloupe

Dinner- 16 oz. carrot/celery juice, a salad: home grow by me Romaine lettuce, mint, parsley, basil, cucumbers; 3 store bought tomatoes; 1 tbs each tahini & coconut butter, juice from 1/2 lime, 1/2 tsp dulse flakes, 6 diced black olives

I didn't eat enough calorie wise today just due to my schedule, logistics, what was ripe, etc.  However, it was a sublime pleasure to eat food grown in my own little garden plot in the Clinton Community Garden on West 48th St.  I was filled with such gratitude for the food.  I picked the cucumbers and other ingredients at dusk and within 20 minutes I was sitting cross-legged on my living room floor eating/merging with what I had grown.  I feel silly writing the word "merging"; it seems excessively poetic, but that's how I felt, it's not easy to describe.

I've been enjoying eating all raw again and I am enjoying the results, namely abundant energy, mental clarity, fitness, etc..., all the things I've experienced before.  I don't want to recommend doing what I did, going back to eating cooked food for while, because it was a personal decision made for reasons too multi-faceted to write at the moment.  I'll probably eat some cooked food again on some occasion in my life, but not today.  I've never stopped believing that we're meant to eat raw, but I guess there are many roads to getting there.  We probably never "get there", we just keep experiencing the unfolding process-there I go again, getting poetic.

Breakfast- 4 very large Navel oranges

Lunch- smoothie: 1 large pineapple, 1 large bunch dandelion greens, 1 1/2 cups cold water, blended

Dinner- Planning to have: 2 avocados diced, 10 medjool dates chopped, 1 large Navel orange chopped, 1/4 cup shredded coconut, all mixed together

The pineapple/dandelion green smoothie is a great sweet/bitter combo.  The minerals that are in the greens taste bitter but they really heighten the sweetness in the fruit.

I'm writing my dinner plans before I eat because I'm working on Law & Order tonight.  My report time is 6:00 PM, right at my dinner time, so I am preparing my meal and taking it with me to eat once I get to the set.  The avocados and dates are very hearty and filling so I'm counting  that filling up on this will pre-empt and cravings I might have for the food that is always around the set.  I'm sticking with my 3 meals a day plan so this will be it!

Breakfast- 6 medium Navel oranges

Lunch- 2 Hass avocados diced and mixed with 9 chopped Medjool dates and 1/4 cup shredded coconut

Dinner- 2 large grapefruit

I had an appointment right in the middle of my usual dinner hour, 5:30-6:30 PM, and by the time it was over I was feeling very hungry.  It wasn't real hunger so much as it was just a craving to eat.  The craving wasn't for raw food either and the debate in my head started about what to eat -vegetable fried rice, pasta, soup, etc.  It was beginning to get late and I knew that I didn't want to go to bed stuffed with cooked food and not sleep well and wake up feeling off kilter tomorrow. Also, I'd eaten all raw today and why not just stay raw?  But I wanted comfort food!!!! 

I decided that I could buy some oranges at the Amish Market and eat a few.  I knew I'd sleep well if I did that.  But I don't want oranges,  I want cooked food!  Some part of me felt like a temperamental child who didn't want to eat what his parents were giving him for dinner.  Somehow, I walked myself to the Amish Market and bought some oranges and grapefruit.  I decided to eat grapefruit because, first, I like it, and second, I thought it might be better to eat in the evening close to bedtime because it has less sugar.

Now that I've eaten the grapefruit I am totally satisfied and have no desire to eat anything else, definitely not cooked food.  I didn't get my leafy greens today, maybe tomorrow.  Today it was enough to just stay raw.

Breakfast- 1 large pineapple

Lunch- smoothie: 1 large bunch dandelion greens, 3 bananas, 1 lb strawberries, blended with 2 cups water

Dinner- 5 bananas sliced and mixed/sprinkled with 1/4 cup shredded coconut, 1 tbs cacao powder, 1/4 cup raw tahini

...early afternoon:

I've been making raw vegan chocolate(cacao) cream pies that my neighborhood health food store, Nice-n-Natural, is selling.  The pie has a walnut/coconut/date crust and tastes delicious.  I don't eat cacao very often because it is stimulating and gets me too rev'd up, similar to caffeine, but it's great for an occasional treat.  Many people say that cacao doesn't rev them up; I'm not one of those people.  I can also make it with carob, but the cacao is more popular.  In case you're in the neighborhood and want to try the pie, Nice-n-Natural is located on Ninth Avenue between 46th and 47th streets.

...this evening:

Late in the afternoon I started having a mental debate in my mind regarding what to eat for dinner.  I'd had a very full day with lots of different things going on, with the possibility of work related changes, and lots of feelings connected to it all.  Food that seemed appealing was comfort food -nachos, pasta, cheese quesadillas, etc. I resisted the urge to go directly to a restaurant and I came home to change clothes and relax for a moment.  I drank a large glass of water.  Sometimes cravings are a symptom of dehydration.  I really didn't "want" bananas, but after relaxing, breathing, and sitting still I decided to eat them with all the fixings I've mentioned.  I feel glad that I was able to navigate through the feelings and make the dinner choice that I made. 

Breakfast- fresh fruit left over from last night's Seder: 3 tangerines, strawberries, figs, grapes

Lunch- 10 Honey tangerines

Dinner- Smoothie: 6 large leaves chard, 3 bananas, 1/2 pint strawberries blended with 2 cups water; from Westerly Natural Market, 1 slice Miss Lillian's Raw Brownie Pie

Breakfast- 9 Honey tangerines

Lunch- a smoothie: 1 large pineapple, 1 head Romaine lettuce, blended with 2 cups water

Dinner- 1 avocado, 4 large navel oranges

On my way home this afternoon, the debate about what to eat for dinner started in my head.  I've felt increasing light and open as the day progressed.  I recognized the terrific raw food lightness and I didn't want to interrupt it but also my stomach felt empty, I felt vulnerable and I wanted something heavy to eat-maybe raw milk cheese, some cooked diner food, etc....  I feel really glad that I ate what I ate for dinner.  I ate early and I'm planning to sleep really well.

Breakfast- a smoothie: 1 lb strawberries, 3 bananas, 1 head Romaine Lettuce, blended with 2 cups water

Lunch- 9 Honey tangerines

Dinner- from Westway Diner: Spinach pie, romaine and tomato salad, cup of barley vegetable soup 

Breakfast- 9 Honey tangerines

Lunch- 4 Bananas

Dinner- a few bites of Chinese food

I've been struggling with a detox, coughing, phlegm, tiredness.   I felt okay during the day but tired at night.  I felt conflicted about eating Chinese food but got it anyway.  As it turned out, when I started eating it it just didn't have any flavor and I stopped and threw it away.

Breakfast- 4 large Navel oranges

Lunch- 6 medium sized bananas

Dinner- Potatoes and pasta at Fridays

Once again, I made it through a strenuous day and stayed raw until the end of the day when I felt tired and was stranded for a few hours in a strange town. 

Breakfast- 8 Honey Tangerines

Lunch-from Ruthie's at Chelsea Piers: 4 almost ripe bananas, 1 sliced fruit cup; from Law & Order Craft Service: a few pieces of sliced watermelon, Honey Dew and Cantaloupe

Dinner- I'm saying except that it was a combination of plastic packaged junk food snacks from the Law & Order Craft Table 

I was okay until the job ran late, I was feeling tired from a detox that I've been going through, and after breaking after a long take on the set I saw people descending on the craft table and I followed.  

Breakfast- 9 Honey tangerines

Lunch- a smoothie: 1 head Red Leaf lettuce, 1/3 papaya, 7 strawberries, 1 pineapple, 1 1/2 cups water

Dinner- 1 large carrot shredded, 1 very juicy grapefruit sliced into small pieces, 1/2 cup raisins, 1/4 cup filberts, all stirred together

I have felt very energetic this afternoon and my food today has been sooooo satisfying -and easy to prepare!  I resisted the desire to eat breakfast at the diner this morning and I am very glad that I did.  I've felt very clear and present all day and have accomplished quite a bit.

I'm working on Law and Order, the TV show, tomorrow and I hope I can successfully navigate through all of the food they have there.  I'd like to stay raw solely based on how terrific I feel today.