So, this post is about a week late. With moving Dr. Man back and working in the lab to get ready for Major European Conference, I just... well.. forgot. The last week of June was a bust. I tried to figure out things to make in the microwave at Dr. Man's before we moved him and I was prepared to do so. What I wasn't prepared for was how tired we were after packing/moving all day. Plus, Marie came up and helped us move. I felt bad subjecting her to poorly made frozen dinners just because I was doing this challenge. And I have no willpower whatsoever to go to a restaurant and not eat (reason, excuse... po-tay-to, po-tah-to). Then coming back to the house there was the lack of food issue. No food leads to a very grumpy Amanda. That triggered an episode whereby Dr. Man practically shoved me in the car, drove to a restaurant, and begged the staff to just give me something--anything-- to eat.
However, I did learn a lot about my own eating habits. I tend to eat worse when I go out to eat. By this I mean that when I go out to eat, I almost always get dessert. But if I have dessert-type food at home, I'm more of a take-it-or-leave-it kind of girl. Also, I'll eat a salad with some sort of protein on it (chicken, etc.) at home, but I won't if I go out to eat. I do this mostly because it seems silly to pay so much for lettuce and I think that I'll be hungry again later (at home I can have more to eat if I do get hungry later, which rarely happens).
Another thing I noticed was all the lack styrofoam! I usually end up with some food to take home and 9 times out of 10, I was given a styrofoam container to take it home in. I usually feel very guilty come trash day with my puffed up garbage bags full of styrofoam, but this past month I was able to skip a trash day completely! I just didn't have enough trash to fill up my trash can (I keep said trash can outside) and just couldn't be bothered to roll the half-empty thing out to the curb. I was very proud.
All-in-all I don't think that I'll try this same challenge again. It was a bit too much of a challenge for me. It did make me realize that I need to plan more (for packing lunches and having back-up food in lab) and find better (read: less expensive) ways for me to hang out with my friends. My budget was extremely happy with the lack of eating out and I think that I need to evangelize this to my fellow grad students.
Sounds like you did pretty well, but yes, it takes some planning.
ReplyDeleteI think it's pretty impossible to not eat out when you're moving, in my experience
ReplyDeleteHypoglycemia Girl: It takes a lot of planning and I'm a born procrastinator. The two rarely mix well :-)
ReplyDeletePyscgirl: Yep, I've proved that empirically now :-)
sounds like me!
ReplyDeletewe sure picked a tough month for this challenge. I don't think I'm going to have time to wrap up my month but I like your wrap up and concur with most of your conclusions.
ReplyDeleteEvery couple of months, Daver and I decide that we're NOT GOING TO EAT OUT. But we do, and then we feel guilty, and then we give up. It's not something I could commit to, even if I wanted to. I give you mad credit for even trying.
ReplyDeleteHypoglycemia Girl: A kindred spirit! :-)
ReplyDeleteJennie: We definitely did pick a difficult month (especially with your defense!).
Aunt Becky: Thanks. It turned out to be more difficult than I thought. However, Dr. Man found out how much he alone spent on eating out and he's made this grand proclamation about never doing it anymore. I give his chances as slim to none.
I have the most success avoiding restaurants when I plan a weekly menu and buy what I need for all the meals on the weekend. That way, I get home from work knowing what I'm going to make and having everything I need to make it. I prefer that for many reasons, but I don't always make it happen.
ReplyDeleteCommitting to this challenge during a move was crazy! I bet you would both feel much better about it if you did it during a normal month. So you shouldn't feel too bad for having only limited success during a crazy month. That's still a big success!