Day 1 of the Master Cleanse went well

Day 1 of the Cleanse went swimmingly. There's nothing remarkable to report, really. I spent the past weekend in bed, reading a wide variety of books, from a Booker-winning effort from Aravind Adiga ('The White Tiger'), to a Pulitzer-winning snooze-fest from another Indian, this time a lady by the name of Jhumpa Lahiri. The book is a short-story collection called 'The Interpreter of Maladies', and while there is little doubt that the author is supremely gifted, her books often feature indistinguishable characters who are more-often-than-not Ivy-League educated Bengali migrants. It's tired. I followed these 2 books with the unswervingly rewarding Miss Christie, a Hercule Poirot mystery called 'Murder in Mesopotamia'. It's a book straight from my childhood (most Agatha Christie's are), but it was still 3 hours well spent, delving into a world at once alien but yet so familiar.... I loved it!


My diet is going well. Today on the way back from work, I stopped at the grocery store and purchased some buckwheat flour, a substance of which I must confess my utter ignorance until about 24 hours ago. I made 2 pancakes from them, mostly to see if buckwheat is a good substitute for regular white flour. It is. I didn't eat the pancakes, for obvious reasons, but I know that there is light at the end of the tunnel - I can stay on a gluten-free, sugar-free, meat-free diet until March or April 2009 and then see what my health profile looks like. Once I get off the master cleanse in mid- to late- November, I intend to eat a healthy, balanced but hypocaloric diet for another 3-4 months before going off to see a doctor again.

Meanwhile, at work today, I was told by a young African-American man, in the most unashamedly condescending tone, that I (i.e. SiddonLookMode) am not 'aware of the way things are done in the USA'. You can imagine what followed from me: this is a man who works for me, and who is still a probationary employee. I think he was astounded by the gentle, yet thorough tongue-lashing he received. By the time I was done with my 5-minute speech, he apologized and said he would never speak to anyone in such a manner. It was 5- minutes well spent.


I'll be back tomorrow.

Cheers,
Siddon-look-mode-activated