Take Two on Day One

Well, kids here's what we learn from this unfortunate predicament: whenever you write anything you're proud of, strange and invisible forces of nature will undoubtedly conspire against you and make it disappear. So, now that I'm on my second attempt at a beginning, forgive me if my tone is a little sarcastic and rude. I am just not in the mood to be technologically trifled with. Moving on...

While I feel like I've just explained to you the purpose of this blog, I must soldier on and do it again. *sigh* But in all honesty this is a pretty exciting prospect for me (and hopefully it will be for you too). For the first time I have the opportunity to not only hold myself accountable for my actions, but also any prospective readers. You hear that people? I'm going to hold you personally accountable for my successes and failures. No, not really, but support is always nice, and knowing that you've got people counting on you to pull through, conquer adversity, and blog about it. So, now that I've got a reason to keep myself on the path toward a cleansing gluten-free diet, I really have no excuse to fail. Right?

And so it begins, my quest to abandon all that is good in the world (i.e., cakes, cookies, and, most of all, bread) and find satisfaction in the alternative... albeit the sometimes dry and overpriced alternative. Why? Because I've reached the point where I can no longer fool myself into thinking that taking a bite of this or a bite of that isn't going to affect me--it is. It always is. And I'm left kicking myself wondering why, yet again, I took my chances and stole a bite of a roll at the dinner table. Is it worth the rumbling, nauseous feeling in the pit of my stomach? Sometimes, but those occasions are few and far between. Most of the time I'm just talking myself into the excuse that "it's not like I have Celiac Disease, it's just a gluten allergy." But who am I kidding? It certainly feels the same, and I have the blood tests to prove that it's not just some weird ailment I've talked myself into (although, at times I think it is, and, at other times I wish it were).

Regardless, taking that small bite of a lethal wheat-ridden substance is much like eating and entire cake. You can convince yourself all you want that it's okay because you're doing it "just this once," but in reality, just this once still amounts to a painful stomachache. And if there's one thing I've learned it's that you can't make bargains with your stomach.

Anyway, so here I go, jumping off a precipice of deliciousness into highly less appetizing prospect that is gluten-free food. But (there is a but) just because it's gluten-free doesn't mean it has to be any less delicious... or so I've been told since I discovered my allergy almost a year ago now. And here comes the second part of my quest, my quest for deliciousness. I'm going to cook my way through some gluten free cookbooks, test this and that, and tweak things to make them as good if not better than their gluten counterparts. Now, while I wish that I could do this whole cooking thing a la Julie and Julia, I can't. I have to face the facts that I am a college student with even less time than I have money. So, upon the suggestion of my lovely roommate Sam, I will dedicate my weekends to trying out several gluten-free recipes and sharing my successes and failures with you fine people (I'm assuming you're fine... don't let me down). So cross your fingers and wish me luck!

--Eve