Final Weigh-Ins

Me: 154.5 lbs (down 14.5 lbs from my 8/31 chicken-wing-induced high)
Ten Racks of Ribs Currently in My Slow-Cooker: ~16 lbs

Could be a good night to make up for lost time. See you at 12:01am!

The 0.1108% Factor

The life expectancy of an American male is currently 75.2 years (902.4 months), which means I have just squandered a full 0.1108% of my lifetime meat-eating capacity. Here's hoping I can make most of that up overnight on Tuesday.

Yup, we're really in the home stretch of this now, folks. Just under 65 hours to go. And if that man to the right can go ten days without without food or drink (or passing any urine or stool, I might add), I can certainly last 2 and a half more days without a burger.

See you at MeatNight Madness.

You're Invited!

Together we have raised over $3500 for Excel Academy (and lowered my cholestorol by an estimated* 13 points). No Meat September has been a huge success, and it's almost time to celebrate! Please join us for:


It's a carnivorous extravaganza, the perfect excuse to be late to work on a Wednesday, and open to all No Meat September contributors (or make a contribution of any size at the door).

Please RSVP one way or the other by clicking "comments" and leaving your message below (need to know how many ribs to pick up -- in addition to the 3 racks for myself!). Hope to see you there!

*estimated by me

My Fellow Vegetarians...

Wanted to alert you all that Trader Joe's Vegetable Masala Burger is actually pretty tasty. Of course, calling it a "burger" is akin to calling me a "vegetarian" (doesn't the FDA regulate things like this? or are they too busy keeping E. coli out of our diets?). Far as my recollection goes, this "burger" has only two things in common with a real burger: it's round and it's intended for human consumption.

Oh yeah, and one more thing: fry it in a deep puddle of olive oil and it doesn't taste half-bad.



PS. Blerbs, you're still a nimnitz... there's no way I'm giving up the Grade A boeuf for pretenders of this nature.

Worst Prediction Ever

"You're going to love being a vegetarian. Your body is going to feel so good, you're never going back to meat. I guarantee it." Frankie B, certified nimnitz, 8/30/08

Blerbs, in case you were wondering about the accuracy of your prognostication, here's a preview of my breakfast menu for Wednesday, October 1:

Ah, meat... how I miss thee.

Actually, Not So Bad

Had the Smart Ground fake taco meat... and have to say it wasn't horrible. Or maybe after 2+ weeks of this thing, my standards have gone way downhill. Regardless, we're over the hump and into the home stretch.

No Picnic

The Annual U of Wisc Alumni Club BratFest was, shall we say, no picnic for those of us adhering to No Meat September. While the bronzed beauties below provided quite a temptation, I held tough-- spending most of my time with the Cheddar and Sour Cream Ruffles.

For those of you scoring at home...

JK consumption of brats at U of W BratFest
2007: eight
2008: zero

The dream is still alive, and by midnight tonight we'll be halfway to BreakFast RibFest (12:01am on 10/1, and you're all invited).

My Brief Flirtation with Veganism

Amanda DiBart: old friend, and relatively new vegan. Hadn't spoken with her in years, but she noticed my plan on Facebook and (along with fiancee Gina) invited the whole fam for a vegan dinner.

I was skeptical. I prepped for the evening with a visit to the "vegan" entry on Wikipedia. And although pretty sure I wouldn't much miss isinglass (click it, I dare you!) or shallac, I did hedge my bets by having a large pre-game lunch.

Turns out the lasagna dinner was excellent! Might even have gone for thirds, had Katrina not inquired: "mmm, what is this stuff that tastes like cheese?".

Regardless, it was a great meal and a nice excuse to connect with an old friend. At the end of the night, Amanda scratched a check to Excel Academy. The boys gobbled up every crumb of our meat-, wheat- and dairy- free dessert. And I didn't even eat the Powerbar I had stashed in my car for the way home, just in case.

Veganism last night. BratFest later today. This No Meat September is getting interesting.

Not Helping the Cause

A hearty thanks to my esteemed supervisor, Rick Corcoran, who was "kind" enough to send me the video below. Before you hit the play button, grab some Windex: if you haven't had meat in 11 days, this may make you lick your screen.

Really Want To Thank My Family

Gotta say that Katrina, Grady and Leo have been very supportive of this no-meat thing. On most days, they have given up the delicious cheeseburgers and roast chicken, just as I have. It can't be easy. Not that I had any doubt, but this month's effort really has me seeing them a whole new way...

Katrina L Emmerson = Team Player

Nice work last night by the former Katrina L. Emmerson, firing up Cashew Croquettes with Tsaziki Sauce (below). While I don't think it's a candidate for our post-September menu rotation (unless we can mix some bacon bits in there?), it's one more day the faux meat doesn't make it out of the fridge. And it's one of the few September meals where I didn't leave the table hungrier than when I got there.

I've got a week under my proverbial belt, and no ground boeuf under my actual belt. Outside chance I may pull this off...

PS. If that makes you hungry, be careful clicking here

Dunkin Donuts: meat-free treats since 1950

... and a great antidote to feeling kinda hungry

photo credit: Jeff B (also "credited" with eating 4 of my donuts)

Food Dreams

Last night I dreamed that I was eating a slice of pepperoni pizza. Not the kind below, but the kind where the cheese is on top of the 'roni, somewhat obscuring it. Katrina busted me. I feigned surprise (as in "oh, no idea those spicy red circles were in there") but there was no escape... it was all over.

Luckily this was just a dream. But as my stomach growls through Day 5, I'm not sure that dreams can't become reality in this great nation of ours.

The No Meat September Diet?

Weighed in at 157 on Day 3, down 12 lbs from my Quaker Steak-induced high. If I continue shedding pounds at this rate, I'll be a svelte 47 lbs on September 30. Could I have discovered the next Atkins?

I'm Kinda Hungry

Three days into this thing, and I've learned an important lesson: Turns out you can get pretty hungry by not eating meat.

That's why I just went out and stocked up on tofu, protein shakes, meatless buffalo wings, and multi-colored beany mixes. Hopefully this stuff will fill me up... if not, I may have no choice but to resort to fruits and vegetables.

Surprisingly Delicious

Thirty-six hours into the month, and still haven't resorted to Dunkin' Donuts. Today's lunch was a "fiesta" of veggie goodness, thanks to the fine folks at SmartOnes:

I've already emailed the company to let them know that the "fiesta" would be a little "mas grande", so to speak, were they to throw a few slices of sausage in there. But for now, we're more than 5% through September... and the dream is still alive.

Thank you for your support.