Challenge Report, Day FOUR

from Brian (pastor)
It's day four of the food stamp challenge and I am settling into the routine. While boring and not nearly as filling as my normal diet, it has been ok. I think several things stand out at me.
The first thing I see is the emotional connection I make with food. If I have a rough day, am feeling a little stress, or even have something that I am positive about and want to celebrate, it usually involves food in some way. I connect food with emotions so much that I didn’t realize, until the means were no longer there, of how often I feel pulled to eat because of how I am feeling.
The second thing I have experienced is a periodic sense of hoarding or protecting my food from my family. My young sons do not understand what daddy is doing, and I got a bit defensive when they wanted some of daddy’s cereal, knowing that I barely have enough to make it a week. I was tempted to claim my one year old son as part of the challenge with me knowing that he’d bring in an additional $21 for me for the week even though he wouldn’t require that much! I know it’s somewhat twisted thinking, but I wonder how much of that thinking exists in long term situations.
Finally, the biggest realization for me to date has been that I have options while many on food stamps do not. I may be able to ‘make it’ on this diet, but as someone who doesn’t have to do it, I realize my increased options are luxuries and freedoms others don’t have. I might be able to make it on $3 a day, but I’d also have the option of grabbing some fast food. I might be able to scale back on my food budget, but I have the option of purchasing comfort foods, or healthier foods, or better meats, or whatever. And for me, this has been one of the bigger realizations.
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from Dana (low-income. She's on the Challenge, not her children.)
Ok I have to say by the third night, dinner was already harder, because it was my third night eating some sort of chicken drumsticks. I felt like I was walking like a chicken. I baked it with only salt seasoning packets for a long time because I hate seeing the blood veins...ew. I made plain rice which I ate with plain yogurt. My kids had eaten almost all my tea biscuits, (Bear in mind, they have their own food, are eating good AND I am cooking for them.) My biggest problem so far has been my horrible habit of not eating breakfast and only drinking a caffeinated drink all morning. I could see now why I crash so hard in the afternoon and why my diet is so horrible. I will blame the computer for no breakfast.
On the 4th day I also didn't want breakfast and my oatmeal is still unopened. I love oatmeal too, just don't know if I can hack it without milk. I don't know how some people bought Hamburger Helper or hamburger without the extra stuff, but it's ok. I am low-income and am used to and DETEST Hamburger Helper. I don't even know if I would eat it if I was starving, at this point. Anyway, no breakfast and had to make a run to sell beadwork. I cheated. I bought a 20 oz. coke on the way home at about 2pm. I was so tired I needed the caffeine...or thought I did. I took two drinks and it tasted so bad, like syrup. I gave it to my son when I got home.
So when I came home, ramen noodles for lunch which my two youngest immediately thought was for them, so I shared two packs. A couple of my dwindling tea biscuits...and I am telling you, if you never saw them, look for them. Mine were 50 cents and if I knew my kids love them I would have paid the extra two dollars on the Chips Ahoy.
So anyways...supper was purely veggie because if I look at another drumstick today I might puke chicken skin. I ate rice, with lima beans from the can, and spinach from the can. (very small cans, I saved half for later.) I put butter and pepper packets with it all and it was screaming from dill weed but I ate it.
Tomorrow is another day. I made it with only a little cheating. I think tomorrow will be another chicken day if I can get a pack of bbq sauce for it at the local convenience store. Good luck everyone else.