02.15.05

my hero al roker

Posted in philosophy, life at 11:50 am by

Breakfast - Took the advice of commenters and actually ate breakfast this morning. I treated myself to the fine coffee they serve at the British Petrol (BP) station, and ate a bran/granola breakfast bar. I washed that down with a ‘Sparty’s’ coffee. Sparty’s is a vending stand that populates the Michigan State campus. Both coffees were taken black, thank you very much.

Yesterday, I actually made it through the day on fairly little. I was amazed. Dinner, which I haven’t mentioned yet, was a bowl of Zatarain’s Dirty Rice. I’ve actually found that it helps to eat food with a generous amount of ‘three-mile island’ hot habanero sauce mixed into that food. If you can successfully wound your esophagus during the eating process, it becomes less appealing to overeat. The Zatarain’s was even one of those frozen ones that comes in the ‘one serving size’ portions. This is vital for me. You see, if I’m given free reign of my serving sizes, bad things happen. I’m pretty likely to go hog wild. I’ve been known to eat upwards of 6 or 7 grilled brats in a sitting (with sauerkraut of course.)

I’m going to miss those days. For most people, eating only 2 hamburgers, or 3 brats would seem like a strange goal to set for one’s self. For me, I’ll be cutting my caloric intake by about 100 percent. It’s sort of depressing to me, really. I love food. I’d hate to admit that I’m adicted to it, but I just might be.

People like Al Roker give me hope though. Al loves food. Possibly, he loves it even as much as I. Even after his gastric bypass surgery Al continues to enjoy that food he loves, even though he enjoys less of it. Me, I love that feeling of being just full. It’s satisfying to me. I don’t eat for sustenance, I eat for satisfaction. I guess I’m like most Americans.

Satisfaction, we hold, is our lot in life. We deserve it. If we do all the right things, it will come to us. Satisfaction is the reward for hard work, right? If this diet is to be successful for me, I’ll need to challenge my traditional beliefs about the nature of true satisfaction. I’ll need to redefine it. Satisfaction will no longer be able to be the feeling I get when I’m full, but the feeling I get when I’ve done the right thing. When I’ve eaten properly.

This is exemplifies one of the big bones that I like to pick with the Church. There’s a fundamental undercurrent that satisfaction is something that one arrives at when one is ‘right with God.’ The problem I see with this is that it implies that satisfaction is some sort of end goal. In my opinion, to be ‘right with God’–whatever that means–one must be dissatisfied. Dissatisfied with their life, their actions, etc. I think it’s a paradox of sorts.

Many churches espouse that satisfaction is something external to a relationship with God. Satisfaction is attained through that relationship with God, but is something that God ‘gives’ you when you’re right with her. Satisfaction, real satisfaction, cannot come through any earthly gift. Not money, not power, not prestige, you cannot find it in ’saving a great many souls for Jesus,’ or winning people over for Christ, satisfaction can only be found in God. Nebulous, eh?

The great paradox, though, is that when one truly becomes satisfied in God, they realize that they are dissatisfied in themselves. They’re poor, wicked, despicable people. Satisfaction then can be found in the process of coming toward God–or betterment, I think if you’re not a ‘God’ person–, all the while being dissatisfied in one’s self and finding satisfaction in the process of change.

Which brings me back to Al Roker. Al found satisfaction, in living a healthier lifestyle. He’s probably dissatisfied every day that he can’t pound back a full slab of baby backs, or can’t enjoy all 20 ounces of prime rib, and he’s also probably just dissatisfied enough with his weight loss progress that he finds the wherewithall to keep going, day in and day out.

Al Roker, what a champ.

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my hero al roker

Posted in philosophy, life at 11:50 am by

Breakfast - Took the advice of commenters and actually ate breakfast this morning. I treated myself to the fine coffee they serve at the British Petrol (BP) station, and ate a bran/granola breakfast bar. I washed that down with a ‘Sparty’s’ coffee. Sparty’s is a vending stand that populates the Michigan State campus. Both coffees were taken black, thank you very much.

Yesterday, I actually made it through the day on fairly little. I was amazed. Dinner, which I haven’t mentioned yet, was a bowl of Zatarain’s Dirty Rice. I’ve actually found that it helps to eat food with a generous amount of ‘three-mile island’ hot habanero sauce mixed into that food. If you can successfully wound your esophagus during the eating process, it becomes less appealing to overeat. The Zatarain’s was even one of those frozen ones that comes in the ‘one serving size’ portions. This is vital for me. You see, if I’m given free reign of my serving sizes, bad things happen. I’m pretty likely to go hog wild. I’ve been known to eat upwards of 6 or 7 grilled brats in a sitting (with sauerkraut of course.)

I’m going to miss those days. For most people, eating only 2 hamburgers, or 3 brats would seem like a strange goal to set for one’s self. For me, I’ll be cutting my caloric intake by about 100 percent. It’s sort of depressing to me, really. I love food. I’d hate to admit that I’m adicted to it, but I just might be.

People like Al Roker give me hope though. Al loves food. Possibly, he loves it even as much as I. Even after his gastric bypass surgery Al continues to enjoy that food he loves, even though he enjoys less of it. Me, I love that feeling of being just full. It’s satisfying to me. I don’t eat for sustenance, I eat for satisfaction. I guess I’m like most Americans.

Satisfaction, we hold, is our lot in life. We deserve it. If we do all the right things, it will come to us. Satisfaction is the reward for hard work, right? If this diet is to be successful for me, I’ll need to challenge my traditional beliefs about the nature of true satisfaction. I’ll need to redefine it. Satisfaction will no longer be able to be the feeling I get when I’m full, but the feeling I get when I’ve done the right thing. When I’ve eaten properly.

This is exemplifies one of the big bones that I like to pick with the Church. There’s a fundamental undercurrent that satisfaction is something that one arrives at when one is ‘right with God.’ The problem I see with this is that it implies that satisfaction is some sort of end goal. In my opinion, to be ‘right with God’–whatever that means–one must be dissatisfied. Dissatisfied with their life, their actions, etc. I think it’s a paradox of sorts.

Many churches espouse that satisfaction is something external to a relationship with God. Satisfaction is attained through that relationship with God, but is something that God ‘gives’ you when you’re right with her. Satisfaction, real satisfaction, cannot come through any earthly gift. Not money, not power, not prestige, you cannot find it in ’saving a great many souls for Jesus,’ or winning people over for Christ, satisfaction can only be found in God. Nebulous, eh?

The great paradox, though, is that when one truly becomes satisfied in God, they realize that they are dissatisfied in themselves. They’re poor, wicked, despicable people. Satisfaction then can be found in the process of coming toward God–or betterment, I think if you’re not a ‘God’ person–, all the while being dissatisfied in one’s self and finding satisfaction in the process of change.

Which brings me back to Al Roker. Al found satisfaction, in living a healthier lifestyle. He’s probably dissatisfied every day that he can’t pound back a full slab of baby backs, or can’t enjoy all 20 ounces of prime rib, and he’s also probably just dissatisfied enough with his weight loss progress that he finds the wherewithall to keep going, day in and day out.

Al Roker, what a champ.

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