I'm Back!

Steam Powered Preservation Society Showcase
International Folk Alliance Conference
w/ Aaron Youngberg (Finders & Youngberg), Slias Lowe (Atomic Duo)
and Dango Rose (Elephant Revival)

Wow - it's been a while!
I guess if I don't tell myself that I'm going to update EVERY SINGLE DAY I don't update.

Life got a little crazy there for a bit right after we started our $2 per day expansion diet. When we first started with the $2 per day, we could not believe the wealth of food that it provided! If we just stick to oats, rice, beans, and sprouts, we don't really need to spend the full $2 each. On the other hand, the minute we added in hearty greens and vegetables, our two dollars went really fast!

We mainly have been keeping it to the diet that we were eating on our 30 day project with the occasional treat added in. Our daily totals have been averaging around $2.38.

We did make a big exception this past week, though. We were down in Memphis for the International Folk Alliance Conference. Now, I did prepare by taking a rice cooker and lots of dry food to cook in it. We made oats, coffee, rice, and beans in the hotel room. It was a busy conference, though and it wasn't really possible for us to take the time to cook all our meals in the hotel room. We ate out 1 meal a day while we were there. That certainly did not fit into our $2 per day. We took a hiatus from our parameters and indulged a bit - it was really the only way we were going to get food and when you're getting up at 8:00am for workshops and then staying up until 5:00am to see/play music, you definitely need food!!!

Since we've been home, we are back to our oats, bananas, rice, beans with the occasional hearty green thrown in. I started a new job this week as Director of The Folk School of St. Louis and we got a big surprise when one of Ryan's students brought us a huge home cooked meal plus snacks to make my first week of work easier. What an unbelievable treat to have someone cook such goodness for us - Thanks Eileen!

My plan is to update a bit more often as we continue to explore the gap.
Thanks for reading.

Just a little bit of food for thought,
Kelly

First Day To Eat Whatever We Want!

Funny, we had looked forward to getting to eat "whatever we wanted," but the first day off the dollar a day diet, we ate pretty much like we've been eating for the last 30 days.

We started the day with steel cut oats and coffee, had beans and rice with a sprout salad for lunch, and rice for dinner.

We were at the Atomic Cowboy for open mic and we did decide to use our tab to splurge and have a glass of wine and a small serving of guacamole and chips. The wine was good, but one glass was plenty - I didn't feel the need to have more (those of you who know me know that this is unusual). The guac and chips were also good, but the chips really didn't set that well - they seemed greasy and salty even though I know they aren't overly so. It was nice to celebrate a little. All in all we spent $1.38 for the day.

Today we went a step further. Every month we meet Ryan's uncle for lunch. We met today at a Thai restaurant - his treat. It felt weird to be in a restaurant. We got basic food. Ryan had steamed veggies over rice and I had steamed veggies over rice noodles. The food would be considered healthy and good, but after our austere eating habits, it seemed like junk food to us. The meal was modest and only cost $30 including tip for the three of us to eat and I was thankful that Ryan's uncle was treating, but I couldn't help thinking the whole time that I could eat for a month on the money he (on our behalf) had just spent. I'm glad I did think that rather than overlooking it. We went to the market today and just couldn't bring ourselves to spend much. We got some onion, garlic, and peppers for seasoning and we got some dark leafy greens. It all seemed exorbitant and expensive and it is compared to the way we've been eating. We did find that we could easily add those things to our diet and eat for $4.00 per day for both of us.

The meal we had for lunch also fed us for dinner since there were plenty of leftovers. So today all we had besides the restaurant food was some coffee and some tea. Our daily total came out to $.44!

We are looking forward to our continued exploring of the gap and will continue to share.

Just a little bit of food for thought...

Kelly

Day Thirty!

Today is the last day. It feels good to have accomplished our goal of eating on a dollar a day for 30 days. I am thankful for the things we have learned, for the deepening of our awareness. While I'm excited to add more variety to our daily meals, I am very cognizant of the fact that many others in the world don't get to make the food choices that I am privileged to make.

With that in mind, it's hard to imagine going back to our previous food lifestyle. We've decided to extend this project a little. We are going to raise our daily food allowance to $2.00 per day per person. We are also going to allow ourselves to share food with others and accept our tabs at local venues where we are playing. The thought of spending two whole dollars on myself for food each day sounds so exorbitant. I'm going to have to concentrate to actually spend that much. I'm excited to continue a somewhat austere food lifestyle and feel that keeping parameters will help deepen, strengthen, and broaden our thoughts, ideas, and compassion.

I plan to continue to update the blog entries from time to time and will definitely update tomorrow! I'm thankful for all the encouragement and support we've received while exploring the gap and hope you will continue to explore with us.

Daily Meals ~

Breakfast ~ steel cut oats with coffee

Lunch ~ lentil, bean, and barley stew

Dinner ~ sprout salad

Daily Total ~ $1.38

Monthly Total ~ $53.63

Just a little bit of food for thought...

Kelly

Day Twenty-nine

One day left of our 30 day project. Many of you have asked what we are going to do "next" and what we are going to eat on Monday when this project is over. We've been debating that exact question now for about 30 days! We both feel that we've learned and grown during this experiment and in all honesty, it feels a little sad for it to end. We've definitely been in "the zone." Throughout the years, Ryan and I have done many cleanses, detoxes, and special food diets (thanks to all our friends who have cooked accordingly for us for all these years). This one has definitely been different than the previous projects. We were talking about it today and I think that the difference has been that this dollar-a-day diet has had meaning beyond ourselves. We have felt a solidarity with humankind and a desire to gain understanding and awareness. While it hasn't been easy, these things have gotten us through the hungry times and the cravings and allowed us to think outside of our personal desires. I want deeply to keep this awareness present and real in our everyday lives. Tomorrow we will set out the parameters for our next step...

Daily Meals ~

Breakfast ~ steel cut oats with coffee

Snack ~ popcorn

Dinner ~ lentil, bean, and barley stew

Daily Totals ~ $1.65

Just a little bit of food for thought...

Kelly

Day Twenty-eight

A friend shared this on Facebook this morning. I think it's pretty exciting that a St. Louis based organization is making this big of a difference in the world!

Check it out...

Wings of Hope

Daily Meals ~

Breakfast ~ steel cut oats with coffee

Lunch ~ rice and white bean "stew"

Dinner ~ popcorn

Daily Total ~ $1.30

Just a little bit of food for thought...

Kelly

Day Twenty-seven

We've reached day twenty-seven. Hard to believe that our 30 days is almost up! I find myself wishing that the 30 days weren't almost over. This month has been really good in so many ways and I feel like I have so much more to learn! We're not sure exactly what we are doing to do when the 30 days come to an end. I certainly want to remain conscious of the things I've been learning. We've got three days to decide our next move...we'll see!

Daily Meals ~

Breakfast ~ steel cut oats with coffee

Lunch ~ lentils

Dinner ~ rice

Daily Totals ~ $1.18

Just a little bit of food for thought...

Kelly

Day Twenty-six

I engaged in a ritual today that I look forward to all year long (no, it did not involve making myself bleed or chanting any spells). I planted the year's first seeds. Every February, I pull out my little seed pots, my soil, my worm castings, and my precious seed packets and get my hands dirty. It always puts me in a joyful and introspective mood when I plant things. Today I kept thinking about how exciting this first planting was and how within a few weeks time, I will be seeing little shoots and sprouts pushing up through the dark soil and reaching for the light.

This 30 day project has made me feel that way personally. I feel like a little seed that's been planted and is struggling and yearning to reach the light. I love the analogy of growing seeds and personal development. I am reaching and reaching for the light and growing steadily and surely towards being the person that I want to be: a person who is compassionate, conscious, and aware.

The growing seeds will be a reminder to me to continue my own personal growth even when that light seems hard to find.

Daily Meals ~

Breakfast ~ steel cut oats with coffee

Lunch ~ pinto beans and rice

Dinner ~ rice

Daily Totals ~ $1.43

Just a little bit of food for thought...

Kelly

Day Twenty-five

Among the goals of this project was the desire to shift our personal consciousness and increase our awareness. Something that goes a long way towards doing that, I think, is compassion.

Being compassionate is not always my first response towards others, but that is something I'm working to change.

Ryan picked up Karen Armstrong's book, "Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life" at the library recently because he thought it would be a pertinent book to read during this project. He was right. We are both reading it now and it is well-timed.

Here is an except from the cover notes of the book: "The twelve steps Armstrong suggests begin with 'Learn About Compassion' and close with 'Love Your Enemies.' In between, she takes up 'compassion for yourself,' mindfulness, suffering, sympathetic joy, the limits of our knowledge of others, and 'concern for everybody.' She suggests concrete ways of enhancing our compassion and putting it into action in our everyday lives, and provides, as well, a reading list to encourage us to 'hear one another's narratives.' Throughout, Armstrong makes clear that a compassionate life is not a matter of only heart or mind but a deliberate and often life-altering commingling of the two."

A deliberate commingling of heart and mind. For me, this was a call to action. A call to not only be compassionate emotionally, but also intellectually. A call to not just show compassion to those less fortunate, but also to my peers and colleagues. To cut some slack, to put myself in their shoes, to not be so exacting, to not take it personally, to open up my heart and mind and search for understanding. Henry Ward Beecher said, "Compassion cures more than condemnation." And the Dalai Lama says, "Compassion is not religious business, it is human business, it is not luxury, it is essential for our own peace and mental stability, it is essential for human survival...If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion."

Daily Meals ~

Breakfast ~ steel cut oats and coffee

Lunch ~ popcorn

Dinner ~ rice and beans

Daily Total ~ $1.60

Just a little bit of food for thought...

Kelly