Another Wednesday – and back to work I go. (Yes – I do have a job) As much as I would love to sit at home and work on the blog all day – just like everyone else, I gotta pay the bills. Some day – maybe….. 
What I Do
I am a Technician for a prominent Semiconductor Company. Meaning – I’m a Maytag Repairman – sort of. Our operators run the machines that make all those wonderful chips that are in your computers, laptops, and cell phones. And when the machines break – I go fix them. Well – try to anyway. I’ve been doing this since the early ’80′s now. It’s not glamorous – but it pays the bills.
I took a little 9 year sabbatical away from the industry in 1999. Which was nice. I started my own Computer Repair Business which was doing very well – up until the economy sank in 2007. My wife had just got laid off, her job paid the health insurance, my storefront lease was about to run out, and sales were way down…… It really wasn’t a hard decision to close up shop and get back in the bunny suit. Good thing too I guess as the computer seems to be rapidly going the way of the dinosaur. Not too many to fix anymore. Sigh – but it was good while it lasted.
Yes – I wear one of those funny clean room ‘bunny’ suits. I also work 12 hr shifts (which is the hardest part of all).
Staying Vegan While at Work
Working 12 hr shifts does not allow me a lot of time to do much more than eat and sleep on the days I work. So how do I manage my Vegan lunches? Easy. Make a big pot of something….be it a soup or a stew, and take a starch to accompany it.
A typical lunch for me will be a bowl of stew (Green Chili Stew, Beef-less Stew, Minestrone Soup, Lentil Soup), a baked potato, a peanut butter & jelly sandwich, and some fruit. One big pot of stew will last me all week.
Don’t you get tired of eating the same thing every day?
I get asked this a lot. No – not really. I know that what I take will fill me up and keep me from getting hungry later. Plus I also know that a few days a week the cafeteria is open and if I need to I can get a nice salad from the salad bar. So no – I do fine with the same meal every day. I make sure it includes lots of veggies, a starch, and some fruit – so I’m covered nutrition wise.
Other Cultures
Working in this industry also gives me the unique advantage to see first hand what other cultures eat. I have the privilege of working with a lot of great people from other countries – Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Indian, Hispanic, and Filipino….and you know what I see ? Rice. Lots and lots of rice. Oh sure they will eat some meat – but the majority of their calories usually comes from rice.
Which is exactly what Dr. John McDougall talks about in his book, The Starch Solution.
“All large populations of trim, healthy people, throughout verifiable human history, have obtained the bulk of their calories from starch. Examples of once thriving people include Japanese, Chinese, and other Asians eating sweet potatoes, buckwheat, and/or rice; Incas in South America eating potatoes; Mayans and Aztecs in Central America eating corn; and Egyptians in the Middle East eating wheat.”
“Wherever you look, the primary source of calories for human beings has been starch and when they’ve consumed those calories, they’ve had no type 1 or type 2 diabetes. They’ve had no multiple sclerosis, heart disease as far as we know. … They don’t have coronary artery disease. They don’t have multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, etc.”
And that is exactly what I see ever day. These folks are for the most part pretty darn healthy.
Blog Schedule
Anyway – a little about me, my friends, and my work. Now you know more than you ever cared to know about me 
Given that I work these long hours, 3 and 4 days every week, I cannot post on the blog every single day. Why don’t I blog at work? Um….not really encouraged. In fact it’s probably frowned upon. But….
You CAN count on a new post every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.
That’s my commitment.
And as time allows – I do post on my Facebook account throughout the week so you can always find me there.
See you in a few days!
