The Morning Of The Day After Day 10

Wow, I done did it.

In a way, I feel as if my body has gotten so used to it's current diet of saltwater and lemonade that I could go on for another 10 days, perhaps even the full 40 days (the maximum recommended length of time for the Master Cleanse). But it is my tongue and my brain that are allied against me. . . perusing online menus, paging through cookbooks, and dreaming about food. In fact last night I had a dream in which I broke my fast by eating a hard boiled egg.

So was it worth it? I think so. My energy level has skyrocketed (at least until the sun goes down), my mood has been elevated, my skin has cleared up, and things happened behind the bathroom door that I don't even want to go into (anecdotes available upon request).

Now to work up to eating what I have discovered is the meal of my dreams (literally): lamb shank with israeli couscous, hummus, warm pita, and salad.

Jim Henson's "Time Piece" (1964)

"Time Piece" is an experimental short film produced, directed, and written by Jim Henson, who also played the leading role. Henson began the project in the spring of 1964 and continued to work on it for nearly a year, between commercial projects and various Muppet television appearances. The short film premiered in May 1965 at the Museum of Modern Art and was distributed through Pathe Contemporary films to arthouse theaters and the film festival circuit. It played in New York City along with the French feature "A Man and a Woman."

Thank you to DJ No Breakfast for originally posting this.

Some Observations On the Morning Of Day Seven

1. Wow, one week without food and I'm not dead.

2. My fingernails are harder and smoother then they ever have been.

3. My tongue has turned white.

4. I feel calm yet alert at the same time. It's. . . weird.

5. Yesterday I cried (when I heard MLK's last sermon) and snapped (at a busdriver) for the first time in ages.

6. Yesterday I also went to a bar for the first time on my cleanse and I was amazed by how sad and dirty it was.

7. I'm walking a lot lighter then I ever had before.

The Evening of Day Three. . .

And I can't really say that I feel hungry. I feel pretty good, actually. Maybe just a little jittery. But peaceful at the same time. It's strange.

One thing that I have to say is that it's getting more difficult to fall asleep at night. However, I have been able to still snooze till 10:30 (which after a month and a half of not working I've come to discover is when my body naturally wakes up).

Actually, something funny just happened. My roommate Erin and I were talking about some friends of hers who happen to be Israeli, and every time she used that term I could not help but think of hummus. It's not that I was hungry for it, I simply wanted the experience of eating it. Of tasting it. The feeling was centered on my tongue, not my stomach.

Speaking of my tongue, it's started to turn white. I'm told that this is normal on the Master Cleanse.

For your pleasure and mine, here are the foods I am most craving to be on my tongue:

1. Macaroni and Cheese

2. Zuni's Chicken Dinner for Two

3. This Crazy Good Ethiopian Raw Beef Dish I Got at Axum Cafe Exactly Week Ago

4. Hummus

5. Lamb Shank

6. Cobb Salad

7. Cottage Cheese and Spicy V8

8. and a Carnitas Super Burrito, of course.

Master Cleanse!!!

So yesterday morning I started the Master Cleanse, which is something I've wanted to do for years now. The fact that I'm currently not working and that it's the beginning of a new year was an opportunity I could not pass up.

For the uninitiated the Master Cleanse consists of:

1. Drinking a quart of salt water first thing in the morning.

2. Drinking between 6 and 12 glasses of lemonade throughout the day. The lemonade consists of purified water, fresh lemon juice, Grade B maple syrup, and a dash of cayenne pepper.

3. Drinking a laxative tea in the evening.

And that's it. No other food may be taken for the duration of the cleanse. However, you can drink as much water as you want. The minimum suggested length for the cleanse is 10 days, which I'm shooting for.

I'm almost done with my second day, and here's what I've noticed so far:

1. The lemonade is delicious.

2. The last half of the first day was tough. I was constantly salivating and could not stop thinking about food, specifically macaroni and cheese. Actual hunger pangs were surprisingly few and far between.

3. I dreamt about food the entire first night. I even had a dream in which I mistakenly broke the cleanse by eating some leftover meatloaf.

4. The quart of salt water was MUCH more difficult to take down this morning. I shudder to think about tomorrow morning. A friend of mine who has done the cleanse before suggested I use a straw to bypass the taste buds. This makes perfect sense to me and I will utilize it should tomorrow morning be as harsh as I anticipate it to be.

5. SMELLS. Smells are so much more vivid to me these past few days. I feel like Daredevil. Simply walking down the street today I was flooded with so many different smells and specific memories tied to the those smells. It was amazing.

Tomorrow is supposed to be the most difficult day of the cleanse. I'll let the two of you know how it goes. . .