It's not impossible to find vegan options where I live, but it is difficult at times. I live near Nashville, where there are some great vegan restaurants, but I don't live close enough to go there on the fly. Tonight my boyfriend called me on his way back into our town and asked if I wanted to meet up at a bar/grill that's right in-between our houses. It's so close we can walk, which is a plus, and we like the scene there. They have a huge menu, but it's still hard to find something that's vegan but not high in fat. I'm avoiding avocado, etc., due to the relation I've found between a high-fat diet and my skin issues, which can be severe. I hate being that person that has five special stipulations tacked on to the end of my order. Part of this is because it often comes back the wrong way regardless (whether at this particular grill or elsewhere), and part of it's because I don't want to seem like I need special attention or I'm too high maintenance.
However, all of that is beside the issue I had tonight. I wasn't even hungry when my boyfriend asked me to join him for dinner. However, we haven't gotten to spend much time together lately and he just graduated, so I felt like a late dinner and a drink together would be a nice way to sort of check back in with each other. And that is exactly what began this train of thought; sometimes I go out to eat simply to spend time wtih my friends. I need to remember that, if I'm going to do this, I must be determined. If I've already eaten enough for the day, I need to be honest with myself about that. There are things to occupy one's hands-- water with lemon, some crudites-- if that's the issue. Otherwise, the focus should be the conversation. I didn't make a good choice tonight, and now I feel heavy, greasy, and not proud of myself. I also find the idea of doing yoga not so good, although I'd planned to earlier. Sometimes intense kundalini and digestive issues don't combine. So I challenge myself: Next time I go out to eat, I will not order a full meal, but eat a HCLF vegan meal at home (which, let me be honest, I sometimes do both anyway), and perhaps just have a light drink or something at the restaurant.
Just some thoughts for the day. I see many more restaurant/wedding/holiday/birthday meals coming before the end of this DietBet, so I need to plan for them!