Vegetarianism and India

Let's see. Where to begin after five crazy and ridiculous months. Well first of all, I went to South Africa this summer to do research on mother-to-child transmission of HIV and what the public hospitals and NGOs are doing to prevent infections of children. Although it was amazing, it was one of the most frustrating and difficult experiences of my life. I met so many neat people that have experienced more in their life than I ever will, and I think it's made me a whole different person. Coming home was strange at best. Culture shock definitely set in when I got home rather than when I was in South Africa. I miss the people, the culture, and the food. I think I'm the only person to go to Africa and gain ten pounds. When I got home, I frequently heard "No wonder there are starving kids in Africa, you ate all their food!" But in reality, it was not the quantity of food I ate but the quality; virtually no vegetables but plenty of starch. Bleached, heavy, fattening starch. But ohhhh, it tasted so comforting.

So, now that I'm home, I'm experimenting with this whole new idea of vegetarianism. Not because I want to save the animals or any PETA stuff like that... but if you think about it, being a vegetarian is a much more efficient way of getting nutrients. As a primary consumer, you bypass the unnecessary waste and energy expended in raising cattle or swine for human consumption. More pollution is produced per year by the meat industry than transportation by 17%! And if you don't believe it, I have sources. Not to mention, there are great meat alternatives available and it is a much healthier lifestyle. I've been consuming so many vegetables and whole grains, tofu and Meat of Wheat. All quite tasty and my body likes it too. I also have rediscovered good juice. I missed my Odwalla and Green Goddess when I was in South Africa. They had juice but it was always loaded with artificial sweetener and they drank it so strong!

School is picking up in awesomeness every day. I absolutely love my classes every since I changed my major to Political Science this semester. And it's FINAL. NO MORE CHANGING! Mostly because BYU looked at my transcript and forebade me from ever entering an advisement office ever again. I think they programmed my ID card to set off some kind of alarm. Seriously. But that is alright with me because I'm thriving in my classes. I'm taking an international relations class with one of the amazing women I have ever met and I tore up the test yesterday. Not to mention I LOVE studying for them because I'm learning so much. For 20% of the test, we have to memorize where every country in the world is and shade in the 10 she gives us. We got Belarus, Syria, Armenia, Ecuador, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Japan, France, Cuba, and Zimbabwe. Pull out a map and try to identify those. There is this awesome website called Ilike2learn.com (how fitting!) and it has these little quizzes you can do. I recommend it.

What else, what else? I'm working full-time at a home security system company called Platinum Protection. In fact, I'm here right now working oh so hard. I really am not minding the hours or the work because it's fairly easy and for about half the time I'm here I get homework done or watch movies. Speaking of movies, I am so into foreign films right now. Amelie, a French film with Audrey Tautou, has pretty much changed my life and by the end, I was swept away. Moreover, a Danish film called After the Wedding had me and two of my roommates bawling by the end. Also quite a moving film-- they just do not produce such great cinema in the US! I think my old friends and my family think I'm the biggest freak loner nowadays because I would rather be tucked away in my room with one other foreign-film lover (my roommate Katy is my new favorite) and watch a quality film and then discuss the amazing implications.

I am going to India next summer too. Living in a village. Sleeping on a mat. Showering with a bin. Sheer lovelyness.