Archives for October 2011

An Anthropologist by the name of Barbara J King got a gig on NPR to ostensibly critique “The Paleo Diet.”

The problem is: the problem is baked into the cake. We live in the Neolithic Zoo Human, where everyone’s problems are your problems and everyone’s expenses are your expenses…while everyone’s well being is theirs alone, and their fortunes are guarded to the death…so you lose, if you don’t care to spend your life paying attention. Individualize the gains and profits. Socialize the costs and losses. Create a perfect storm of tribal antagonism…only these tribes count into the hundreds of millions in America and now, worldwide. And who profits from such antagonism? That’s the cleverness, because, the lefties think it’s the corporations and the righties think it’s the politicians. The righties don’t realize that the big corporations are getting what they’ve paid for — with a big fine now and then for show, passed onto you — and the lefties don’t realize their knights in shining armor politicians are bought and paid for like cheap whores.

…Newsflash: they’re all whores: the white collar scam-scum, and the politician scam-scum. …Do you see your local coffee artisan, cheese artisan, clothing artisan, organic farmer — and I could go on and on — as part of this problem, or a spark of solution?

Both they — the whores — need things, which ought to come as no surprise: that you remain relatively helpless, needing guidance…seeking authority that’s passed down through filters. To sum it up, they need dependents. And the Barbara did exactly what she was supposed to do. I dunno, but I find it difficult to find her article as serving science and honest inquiry more that it serves: don’t do it!

Barbara made all the goofs one can make in such an article. And while there are now a number of valid critiques, I’m going to focus on only one.

…Oh, wait, can’t resist this one, because it’s so fucking stupid.

In a few days, the world’s population will reach 7 billion. Only a tiny fraction of this number still makes a living by hunting and gathering, the way all our ancestors did before about 12,000 years ago. […]

Our ancestors began to eat meat in large quantities around 2 million years ago, when the first Homo forms began regular use of stone tool technology. Before that, the diet of australopithecines and their relatives was overwhelmingly plant-based, judging from clues in teeth and bones. I could argue that the more genuine “paleo” diet was vegetarian.

Shorter Barbara: skip that last 2 million years of evolution, in favor of all the elements that brought us to that point. Just forget it ever happened. Anthropologist? Biologist?

Oh, OK, one more example, but more of ignorance than of the aforementioned abject stupidity.

Here’s where science most forcefully speaks back. First, ancient hunter-gatherer groups adapted to local environments that were regionally and seasonally variable — for instance, coastal or inland, game-saturated or grain-abundant (eating grains was not necessarily incompatible with hunter-gatherer living). Second, genes were not in control. People learned what worked in local context for survival and reproduction, and surely, just as in other primates, cultural traditions began to play a role in who ate what.

“”paleo is equator to arctic/antarctic circle, and sea level to 16,000 feet, and everything in-between.” Someone said that a time or two, and you’re at the right address. This speaks to the last two italicized words in the title, which is that this simply doesn’t compute, because paleo is not a specific set of prescriptions and proscriptions, but a general evolutionary framework, and then you’re on your own. That is, you really do have to figure this out on your own. I have no doubt you’re competent to do so.

Uh oh…you don’t need the Barbara, and of course, along with NPR, that can be worrisome. People who make their life’s work, in part, to minister to the poor Zoo Human Animals really resent anything that doesn’t ultimately conclude that you need to consult with the “authorities,” First.

Don’ try this at home.

Her last paragraph was the main point of her entire post, if you’re used to seeing such things:

It’s not paleo-fantasy that’s going to help us negotiate a healthy future, the 7 billion of us together, on this environmentally-endangered planet.

She’s a collectivist — a “commie” on my worst days — and that’s just my personal schtick, so welcome commies, if you’re inclined to read on. Let me ask you a very simple question: Do you really have to worry about the problems of 7 billion people? Here’s one thing for sure: no one will ever come knocking at your door to tell you that his & hers in Ethiopia got a windfall and that you’re due reimbursement. The simple fact is that you are not evolutionarily endowed — as may be a bee hive or ant hill — to concern yourselves with the misfortunes, dangers, risks, or shortfalls of everyone else.

This is purely a scam that is largely self-perpetuating at this point, because everyone really believes they have a voice, and power at the voting booth, when they would be far better off, and would get a lot more out of it, just jerking, or making little circles — depending upon gender. But I digress to the real.

You know what? I cherish the fact that there are people in this world who really actually care, and that they don’t try to force others to help — or write an article for NPR. They actually get up off their asses, put their values to bear, and really do something. Because…at a point, nutrition, even if porridge in a bowl, has to go from field to processor, to packager, to truck, to ship, back to truck…and finally, bowl to mouth. It’s an individual endeavor with life & death consequences for which some have my utmost respect — even those diametrically opposed to me ideologically — because they put their ideology into actual physical action and that costs them.

But with the nature of the media, now, everyone pretends. Not many are actually feeding the starving (that’s meant literally, because human beings actually starve to death). Is Barbara? No, I doubt it. She’s simply content to write an article for the most elitist of institutions (yes, you read that right) pretending to the exact opposite (I listen to local Public Radio/NRP/PRI exclusively).

It’s really the most tawdry sort of bullshit. Forget that you have found your way. It’s not “sustainable” for 7 billion. …Notice that I never even try to take up that argument because, principally, as a selfish bastard who cares about myself, loved ones, friends and blog readers, I simply can’t care. Let me be be explicit: It’s not I don’t want to, or refuse. I simply recognize reality: I can’t “care,” not really, and even if I was to go spoon gruel into the mouths of children with distended bellies and weep my eyes out daily — because that’s exactly what I would do — it would never make a dent and ultimately, I would be forsaking what I really love the most, which is my own life for my own sake, and my loved ones and friends for theirs.

We’re not God, because he’s not real either — obviously — and neither are we Super-Human. We’re just part of the whole messy, purposeless spectacle — except for the purpose you can make for yourself. We’re limited, just like everything else, and while division of labor makes super-creativity possible and is largely what has allowed for the feeding of 7 billion people anyway, it’s not my fault or pleasure, and it’s probably not yours either. God didn’t make 7 billion people. People fucking made 7 billion people.

To the extent I can largely eat what I want, I choose for myself, most of the time, to eat the best, which means I go to the market, come back, cook it at home. While Barbara didn’t explicitly make an argument for Pop Tarts, Hot Pockets and Pizza Hut, I’m pretty sure she wants you to keep supporting some of the largest corporations in the world with your purchases of breads and cereals. Really? Because it’s ‘not Healthy for the Planet, not for 7 Billion,’ if you choose your own way?

You have one fuck of a hell of a lot on your shoulders. So Feel the guilt.

My last post asked “Why Are You Paleo.” And people actually got the individual connotation. While this might get Barbara’s panties in a bunch because people are going it on their own, and NPR might have to reevaluate their inherent snobby demeanor they like to think of as “excellence in broadcasting,” here it is, just selecting select goodness out of 135 comments, at this writing:

~ I am the sort of woman who says FUCK BEING WEAK and FUCK HURTING and FUCK BEING LESS THAN AMAZING. I am paleo because it helps me to be amazing, a mean and lean and whip-smart primate who can survive just about anything.

~ Us crossfitting paleo steak eating people do not tone anything the fuck down. If anything, we get louder, more obnoxious, and are the devil to deal with.

~ I’m paleo because when you take a young, strong, healthy human male eating processed crap and feed him real food he becomes unstoppable; physically, mentally, and emotionally.

~ Because I do not need a book to do it. I can strip down to my pure humanity and follow my ‘gut’ while checking my results. I swerve and change as needed.

~ I am paleo because today my blood pressure was 110 over 70, and in January of 2010 it was about 190 over 140. I weighed about 215 back then, today I am about 145, and I am not a weak lean.

~ I’m paleo Because I Chose to be, it Makes Sense, if you’re even marginally intelligent you can’t fuck it up. My paleo is -MY- paleo, the journey is individual, validation from peers is nice, but I don’t need it to be healthy. I’m paleo because I was Tired of being sick, Fat and unhealthy. I keep learning and applying paleo, it’s a lifestyle with more than Diet to offer. I did this for my four children, so that I will get to see their children.

~ I’m paleo because I accept my personal responsibility for my own life.

~ Because once you have experienced the joy of a nice big steak for breakfast, there’s no going back to a bowl of cereal.

~ I’m paleo because it’s the only diet that doesn’t leave me hungry all the time.

~ I am Paleo-ish because I got tired of people telling me that how I felt was “just getting older”. I looked at my grandmother, who lived in good health until the ripe old age of 99, and my great-aunt, who lived in good health until 95, and I called BS. If they could feel good, look good, and have boundless energy right up until weeks before their deaths, then, damn it, I wanted the same thing. So, I ignored everyone and kept looking. I found paleo via Nourishing Traditions (which made a lot of sense but didn’t work for me) and I was stunned at how quickly I felt better. From that I found Crossfit and have just gotten stronger and healthier at 48 than I’ve been in 15 years.

~ In ’02 i was dx with non-hodgkins lymphoma in my stomach. A bit of radiation, nothing to it. A clean PET in ’07 and ’09 and onc cut me loose. I got fat. 6′ 265. Double-bypass in ’06. Stumbled across Devaney, then Sisson, then here, then Peter, then Masterjohn. Easily shed 80 lbs. and read a lot about ketogenic diet, near-ketogenic diet and just did a lot armchair research into paleo in a concerted cancer direction.

Did you get the Fuck You! in all of that, because that’s certainly the theme, as it should be, Barbara. And there’s a lot more Fuck You! where that came from, and with over 100,000 readers per month you can be fucked almost endlessly.

There are about 135 stories, there, and I’m not 100% sure, but I’d bet a lot that not a one single one of them counted on anything the Barbara is peddling, or anyone else trying to prop up the #FAIL of status quo and conventional “wisdom.”

The main reason to consider the Barbara a moron is not really because of her post, but her ignorance, and willingness to spread her legs wide open so easily.

But the worst of it is her stupidity, or lying.

When I’ve interacted online with paleo-diet fans, though, I’ve found the great majority to be measured and thoughtful. With them, I worried aloud about the consequences of urging even more carnivory than we’ve already got.

Either she didn’t interact much, or she’s lying. That’s probably a better final judgment than having interacted a lot, and then written such an ignorant and stupid piece of crap.

Finally, I sure hope to hell that she didn’t consider any of my readers “measured & thoughtful.”

Update: Oh, my. Joyce Slaton at Chow.com makes a silly ignorant fool of herself.

Sometimes I’ll put up a post in an euphoric buzz of exuberance — in the act of writing it — and then begin to regret it. …Never seriously enough to take it down, materially edit or qualify it. Now and then, I don’t get the comment enthusiasm I was expecting, but that always goes with the territory. You can never tell what’s really going to resonate and why, and since you also can’t predict comments or how some comments will beget others, it gets complex quickly.

And so I do what I always do: try to be as real as possible and see what happens.

But I tend to get into an almost trancelike, tunnel-vision state, where I cannot even tolerate the slightest interruption in the train of thoughts going through my head — most of which won’t be remembered long enough to have a shot at being in the final draft; that is, when I hit the Publish button, for better or worse.

It’s usually the heavily profane posts that lend the most buyer’s remorse; but just the other day, I had the same sort of thoughts about admonishing everyone to go to Paleo hell with me. It’s not like I don’t talk about a cheat meal now and then, or my scotch. But this was a post devoted to paleo debauchery.

And what happened? For the most part, I felt like I was heading up PA (paleo Anonymous) for a time. Only, most everyone used their names, they didn’t admit to their inherent helplessness and above all, there were no calls for a “Higher Power.” People really seem to have a handle on what they’re doing, and they’re doing it all by their little ol’ selves. …That can’t be good. Independence? Oh Nos!

Andrew had a beef with it. That’s a link to a nice, short comment exchange. To answer the unanswered question, I use religious terms metaphorically, sarcastically, or both, because I’m a recovered religious person who took it so far as divinity school (as a surrogate for a real first year of college). And unlike other recovery programs where you’re helpless forever, in need of support from real terrestrial entities, imagined heavenly ones, or both, I broke with it in a literal middle finger to the heavens in symbolic gesture, in October of 1990, and was instantly recovered, for life. Not for a single microsecond have I ever had the slightest doubt about it, and since, have just felt an obligation to help others to recover, because…it’s just so fucking awesome.

Same impetus today, but there’s far more enthusiasm in me helping others instantly recover from unhealthy eating habits than there is in instant recovery from unhealthy faith and belief habits…and paleo is simply the most effective tool — just as Rational Recovery beats The Church of Alcoholics Anonymous hands down.

Andrew’s other beef was with the — my term — “snapshot” of what he perceived to be anti-intellectualism in the post.

After all, there are all those good folks out there digging through PubMed each and every day to deliver to you that which you could not have possibly known otherwise: that an evolutionarily appropriate diet, focussing on Real Foods is going to give you a foundation of suitability from which you can then build individual optimality.

Do we really need confirmation over and over and over and over and over that the saturated fats and lipoproteins in natural plant and animal foods is OK; indeed, even good for us?

What in the fuck are we searching for?

So in honor of sayin’ fuck all that, for good…

He did not take this out of context. For one, it’s well within the overall spirit of the post, and for two, it’s in a comment thread for the post itself. Fair game both ways.

But is it in the context of my overall approach, over four years at this thing? Well, that was the brunt of my comment that ends the thread, linked above.

But I don’t want to rain on, disparage, or otherwise even discourage Andrew. I read his very intellectual and more than sufficiently referenced blog and will continue to do so. This is Andrew’s approach, and I prefer a shtick. But this is not to say that I did not engage in the somewhat intellectual. For the first 2-3 years, I heavily posted on dietary studies, saturated fat, cholesterol, nutrition, and primitive societies that serve for falsification of conventional wisdom, and just plain wisdom. Even though I was pretty much immediately convinced, I wanted to do two things: really get into it and build an archive.

That archive is there for the searching.

Becoming somewhat of a very well read blog (110,000 visits and 180,000 page views so far this month), I really take to heart my personally perceived “social responsibility” to do what I do best. I can’t ever save the world, but all ya’ll can help make a dent, and I’m just here to keep you charged up with whatever it is you seem to need; which, in any case, I don’t really know…so I just do what I do, fearing to do otherwise. It’s life and death…when you’re talking about visitors in the hundreds of thousands from who even knows where, or what for. You simply have no idea who is going to to be stricken next with that life changing middle finger; and that’s all, and only, what I’m always and will always be about.

So why are you paleo? Does it matter why, other than that it seems to work for you and yours? Does it matter how Orthodox you are? If you’re a paleo blogger, do you do it to signal how righteous you are? How about Twitter, the quintessential den of paleo Righteousness? Why do you search PubMed? Why do you tell everyone about any study that seems to let saturated fat and cholesterol off the hook? Is it only from intellectual motivations and learning, or an an agenda to be regarded as authoritative?

I’m authoritative. When it comes to me. And that’s why I’m paleo. I can tell the world to fuck off, and still be healthier, look better for my age, and have substantially more general well-being than the lot of them.

Let me know in comments exactly why you’re paleo and what that decision has done for you. I would also like to know if you consider yourself recovered, or if you’re taking it one day at a time, and will for the rest of your life be a “recovering SAD eater.”

I’m Paleo-ish because I fucking love it. …And psychologically, keeping it real, I do love to feel superior to others, and this is the best way I’ve found. Recover from religious fantasies, and you also get the — FREE BONUS! — chance to live in my psycho-mastubatory world, where virtually everyone is broken, or a moron.

…If you’re into that. Or you can just cuddle up, content in your own skin, and that works too (for girls) :)

~ I told you I would come to dominate the world. Mail Online: Free the Animal!

A new restaurant, called Sauvage, has opened in a former Berlin brothel. Although the name might suggest something unusual, it is just an attempt to serve diners a Paleolithic diet. Yes, I mean the foods that our caveman ancestors consumed, basically meat and berries rather than bread, muesli or spaghetti, though you can bring your own wine, which is a major concession to modernity.

This is part of a wider movement, which started in the US, called ‘Free the Animal‘. This involves replicating the lifestyle of cavemen. Apparently you lose a lot of weight, gain muscle mass, and an improved sex life.

I particularly like the bit about an improved sex life. If that doesn’t motivate you, what will? That link in the quote refers to a Der Spiegel article about the restaurant that also links to a February, 2010 Der Spiegel piece where I’m interviewed along with Art De Vany, Erwan Le Corre and John Durant: A Stone Age Subculture Takes Shape in the US.

~ Diane Sanfillippo talks some real sense about five minutes into her Podcast #9. It’s about confirmation bias, and she mentions and links to my very crude way of expressing that notion. Thanks, Diane! Ballsy.

Update: It was actually Liz @ CaveGirlEats talking about my post. Alright, two ballsy girls then.

~ Have you taken The paleo Diet 101 Quiz on Veri, yet? If you haven’t, please do and please participate. Veri is a new endeavor with a great motto: Learn. Teach. Play. Anyone can do any of those things or all, and I’ve found it quite a bit of fun, actually. So, you can start a quiz or participate in an existing one such as the aforementioned, that was kicked off by my good buddy Patrick Vlaskovits of PaleolithicDiet.com, a free newsletter that doesn’t come out too very frequently and deals mostly with the lighter, fun side of paleo. Check it out too.

So not only can you participate in the paleo Diet 101 quiz, but once you’ve answered all the questions, you can even submit questions of your own, and what’s even more, you can link to one of your own blog posts, that of a favorite blogger, or really anything out there that educates on the topic of your question. So, if the question is answered wrong, the visitor has an opportunity to be taken to the link provided, in order to learn why they got it all wrong.

Pretty cool. Check it out. Currently, there are multiple questions in each of the following categories: The Diet Basics, Diet & Nutrient Truths, Do’s & Don’ts, The paleo Effects, and paleo Literature. I have 2 or 3 questions in there myself. See if you can spot them.

~ Those of you who like to go to restaurants and, you happen to have an iPhone or iPad, there is the coolest app available now, and it’s free. Check out this very short demo. You can download it here. Here’s their blog.

It’s really slick. And if you’re still not convinced, here’s a couple of screen shots (click on it to open the full size).

MealTime

I an email exchange with the developer, he told me that you are able to search in all metro areas of the US and Canada, and most major areas of Europe.

When I downloaded it I was instantly able to see several restaurants within only a few miles that I was very interested in trying, including an Ethiopian restaurant I had no idea existed. I’ve only had it one time, and that was in Djibouti in 1990. It was excellent, very meaty, you eat with your hands, and they roast their coffee beans while you’re having dinner. I found a lot of other places to try as well.

Perhaps the developers might be interested in including a “Paleoish” filter if there’s enough interest.

OK, but not before we know what we’re missing.

• Researchers Zero in on the Perfect Diet for all Humans
• The Paleolithic Diet is the Diet For One & All, Scientists Say
• Locusts Formed an Important Part of the Paleolithic Diet

And so if I’m not going to hell for that bit of disrespectful chicanery, perhaps this’ll do it.

Do you know how to cheat well? First off, let me say that “cheat” is really the wrong word. It should rather be on the order of “sin,” or something like that to more convey the gravity of going off doctrine. After all, there are all those good folks out there digging through PubMed each and every day to deliver to you that which you could not have possibly known otherwise: that an evolutionarily appropriate diet, focussing on Real Foods is going to give you a foundation of suitability from which you can then build individual optimality.

Do we really need confirmation over and over and over and over and over that the saturated fats and lipoproteins in natural plant and animal foods is OK; indeed, even good for us?

What in the fuck are we searching for?

So in honor of sayin’ fuck all that, for good, I’m putting up photos of my most recent sins; one at a restaurant, and the other, still digesting here at home.

This is from a small stand that’s been around since long before I was born: Happy Hound, in Los Gatos. They do dogs & burgers. But they also do BLTs. Click to enlarge.

Big BLT

The bun is toasted, and the bacon counts six thick strips. The frys are to make me regret it, as well as the loads of soy oil-based mayonnaise. This was a couple of months ago and I still have mixed feelings over my sinful decision, owing to the digestive distress felt for hours afterward. And I’ll still likely have to face paleo Judgment Day, someday. Sin now, pay later.

I’ve been eating really good with excellent feeling for far too long, though, and so today, I had had enough. Somehow, three Thomas English Muffins ended up in the fridge at the end of my wife’s grills & frills weekend, and I had been eying them. For a day. My wife was misnamed Beatrice. “Eve” would have been more appropriate for the temptress.

It’s never my fault.

It was over 30 years ago that I had an idea: tuna salad on a toasted English muffin would taste very good. …And there was light. And it was good.

Broiler toasted English Muffins

By this point, it was all over. You actually have to cut the Thomas’ in half on your own, giving credence to the illusion that you’re really not selling your soul to the Devil.

The tuna is very special, however. One might say Godly, but then one might risk cataclysm in putting it together with the Devil’s handiwork. I’ll let High Seas Tuna worry about that. It’s their job, and I paid them well for my last batch.

I make my tuna salad differently about every time. I have no recipe, just principles: lots of mayo, pickle, other crunches. … An aside about mayo: I don’t do the various Paleoish versions of home made, and that’s because it’s been a couple of months since I had a drop of it. I’ll just chalk it up to laziness and sin when the rare opportunity presents.

In this case, it was the can of tuna, drained, juice of a half lemon, half handful of chopped onion, half handful of chopped celery, half handful of chopped cornichon (gherkin) pickle, a pinch of salt, pinch of pepper, pinch of powdered garlic, pinch of dry dill weed, and 1/8 teaspoon of yellow Indian curry.

The last is that “secret ingredient” that when you don’t know, causes you to ask, “what’s that?” For this batch only, which was a single can, I also put in about a tablespoon of Greek olive oil and just a dash of apple cider vinegar. Then, you mix it up, smash it down and let it sit to cure for at least an hour.

Sin Well

Problem was, there were three English muffins, but I wanted to leave one for Eve, if nothing else but to reflect on what she had done to me. I mean, who knows? This could kick off three thousand years of Epically Proportional paleo Purgatory… A few dozen intrepid, inferior bloggers might get together and write a paleo book that ends up being The Paleo Book to End All Paleo Books (kinda Biblical) and 3,000 years from now, my wife is still known as Eve, but I’ve been redubbed: Adam.

And if there was any doubt, I used the rest of the tuna in a corn tortilla.

Sin Very Well

Alright, time to go look for the rods, switches, cat o’ nine tails and the sjambok.

When people order an omelet with 6 or 7 ingredients at a restaurant, or relate to me the one they made at home and how many different things they put in it, I’m always left to wonder when they’re going to learn to cook a real omelet.

Eggs are the primary ingredient, by definition. And while a plain omelet cooked on low in lots of butter is a wonderful thing — you should try it to get your bearings on the base ethic of the thing — there is certainly room for an ingredient or two — just enough to stand out, but not enough to make you forget what the hell you’re doing.

As plainly and directly as I can make it: raiding your fridge to make an omelet is just plain lazy. Worse, it’s an admission of a total lack of imagination in cooking.

I’m typically a single ingredient guy. Just like when I do have a pizza, I prefer a simple one to an “I don’t know what I want, so make it a combination.” I like pepperoni. Some onions are a nice touch, or, black olives — but not both.

So Beatrice was off this weekend for the umpteenth “girls’ weekend,” and having been unable to locate either the party hats or kazoos since Friday evening, I decided to do an omelet Sunday morning while football was just getting started. My choice was mushrooms, since I had a half of a tub left, I hadn’t eaten since sometime in the afternoon yesterday, and it was time to use them. Mushrooms keep very well if, 1) you don’t enclose them in plastic like a moron, and 2) if you dispense with the Frigidaire craze of…I dunno…the 30s? Stop putting shit in the refrigerator unnecessarily! I swear to God: next time I see tomatoes in the fucking fridge, I’m going postal. Tomatoes should never experience cold. Ever.

So let’s cook a simple omelet. I began with pastured Kerygold butter & onions. You can click on the images for the hi-res versions.

Sautee thin sliced onions

Then it was on to the entirety of the mushrooms once the onions were well on their way, because in the end, I want the onions totally caramelized & toasty — which really brings out the flavor.

Just about ready to add the egg

As you might have noticed, I never use non-stick pans. In the case of an omelet, it will stick, but if you’re patient, keep the heat low-medium, and shake the pan side to side, the moisture from the egg should eventually unseat the stickiness. Just keep jostling the pan. Also, when you move the cooked egg about to make room for the raw egg, use a fork so you don’t scrape your fat off the cooking surface like a spatula does.

I had on hand some New Zealand Grassfed Cheddar. Unlike cafes and some people at home, a little is plenty for even a 4-jumbo-egg omelet.

Sliced thin

Because this was so enormous and it looked so cool with the ‘shrooms on top, I decided to finish it under the broiler, along with the cheese.

The cheese is but a light enhancement, nothing more

And there was nothing left but to eat it, which I did outside amongst the falling autumn leaves.

Buttery and mushroomy

So there. And by my standards, using three ingredients is pretty steep for me. Sometimes I do plain, but let the butter brown first. Other times, I’ll do just onion, but a lot of it, and the onion is well toasted.

Give it a try. See what you can do with one, and only one ingredient.

I have a number of unpublished food pics, most from home cooked meals, but some from restaurants. I think I’ll just put them out there today and a 2nd set over the weekend. Let’s begin with the very last meal, breakfast this morning after a 26 hour fast, breakfast to breakfast, which is the toughest interval in my book. You can click the images for the hi-resolution versions.

Hick’ry Pit: Chili Verde Omelet & Half Portion Hash Browns

Mom’s Oktoberfest Meal: Rouladen, Mashed Taters, Red Cabbage, Sauerkraut & Green Beens

Oktoberfest: Grilling the Brats

Oktoberfest Spread

Palacio Restaurant: Seafood Omelet

Thea Mediterranean: Bacon Wrapped Dates

Homemade Corned Beef Hash & Eggs

Grassfed Burgers with Bacon & Melted Camembert Cheese

Thai Green Curry with Fish; Sir Fried Crunchy Veggies with Olives

Enormous Beef Ribeye Steaks with Potatoes and Red Wine Reduction

OK, that’s ten of ’em, and I’ve got another batch that I’ll put up next time.

Eat well folks.

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Mark is looking to score this book on the New York Times best-seller list to gain exposure for the Primal Blueprint message, so he’s put together a loaded special offer. Basically, you order 1 or more copies between October 18 and 24, email your receipt to a special email address and Mark kicks you back a bunch of freebies. It’s a win-win. You get a great book for less than 15 bucks, and a bunch of free gifts, and you and Mark both get to help take the Primal movement mainstream. Check out the details of Mark’s special offer below and pick up a copy of the book today.

In terms of the book itself, I have a copy in my possession and it’s everything Mark says it is in his introductory video, below.

In terms of what I think of the book, well, I think it’s probably going to become the go-to book for the newbie. It’s very, very heavy on the practical and to the point and concise on the theory. It contains dozens, if not more, full-color images and illustrations. Virtually every page contains a color photo, many inspirational but even more valuable, many instructional. For instance, it’s one thing to list a bunch of good and bad foods, but actually seeing pictures — and seeing the side-by-side difference between real food and junk food takes it to another level.

It’s also nicely peppered with before & after pictures and stories.

In short, this is really the book to give friends, family, co-workers and colleagues who have been impressed with your own transformation. And if you yourself are new to Primal / paleo, this might just be the practical guide you need. You can read it in a few hours, and you can get started the very next day. Each day has a specific list of things to accomplish that take you deeper and deeper into the Primal experience at a relaxed pace and before you even know it, in only three short weeks you’ll be on your way to that transformation.

But OK, didn’t Mark already publish the Primal Blueprint, and doesn’t it go really into depth? What’s the advantage to this over that, and what’s the difference, anyway? Well I wondered the same thing and because Mark & I are friends who chat every now and then, I rang him up yesterday and asked him.

The Primal Blueprint takes a broader, more philosophical perspective that requires the reader get deeper into the science, the evolution and the back-story before getting into the “meat” of it. That works well for a LOT of people. For The 21-Day Transformation we took all the observations and questions we’d gathered from tens of thousands of user experiences through the Primal Blueprint, Mark’s Daily Apple and our forum, Primal Leapers and PAST seminar attendees, and then used that input to reframe the Primal experience for those who prefer to cut to the chase (“just give me the meat, Mark. Just tell me exactly what to do”). It’s a wholly new experience, with new insights, new clarifications on older ideas, and a ton of added value. Plus, it’s more visual and succinct than The Primal Blueprint, making it an easier, quicker read for folks who want to jump in right away.

And it’s only 13.77 at Amazon. How can you go wrong, especially with all these freebees?

What Do I Win for Helping Put This Book on the NYT Best-Seller List?

Order 1 Copy and You Get:

1. Access to the exclusive, password-protected ebook – “Primal Living in the REAL World”: In this 130-page eBook, hundreds of Primal enthusiasts share their challenges, solutions and practical tips for how they get – and stay – Primal. It’s like having the advice of 300 coaches. In it you’ll read hundreds of answers to these and numerous other questions: What is the first thing a person should do to kick start their Primal life? What do you think is the most important thing one should understand as they attempt to go Primal? What was the biggest hurdle you experienced when going Primal and how did you overcome it? And of course, the most important one, What do you usually eat for breakfast?

2. Access to the exclusive, password-protected audio interview – “21-Day Total Body Transformation”: Download a 60 minute, free-wheeling Q&A podcast in which Mark discusses the 8 Key Concepts that everyone needs to know to go Primal. Among many other topics covered, Mark discusses why your body prefers burning fat over carbohydrates and how you can use this knowledge to become a fat-burning beast instead of a sugar burner. Also, listen to Mark riff on why grains are totally unnecessary and why 80 percent of your body composition is determined by how you eat.

3. $10 Gift Certificate to PrimalBlueprint.com: Spend it like cash and order whatever you want, perhaps a cookbook to go with the 21-Day Transformation book? This means for a net 5 bucks you can grab a copy of Mark’s new book today. (The coupon code is good for any single product at PrimalBlueprint.com and expires on 11/30/11.)

Order 3 (Or More) Copies and You Get:

1. All the aforementioned benefits – the $10 Gift Certificate, the exclusive eBook and podcast, plus…

2. Audio recording of the original Primal Blueprint (released in 2009) – Listen to The Primal Blueprint on your phone or MP3 player with this abridged, digital (MP3) audio book voiced by Mark Sisson. The audio book is four hours long, and covers all 10 of the Primal Blueprint Laws and then some. This is the book that started it all and retails for $26.99. Grab 3 or more copies of the the 21-Day Total Body Transformation and you’ll get it for free.

3. Plus an additional $10 Gift Certificate to PrimalBlueprint.com, bringing the total to $20. Maybe this is the perfect opportunity to try a PEK, Primal Fuel or Master Formula on for size!(The coupon code is good for any single product at PrimalBlueprint.com and expires on 11/30/11.)

Order 8 (Or More) Copies and Help Change The World!

Buy 8 or more books through mainstream channels and Mark will send you one book for every two books you buy! Buy eight and he’ll send you four more. Buy 80 and he’ll send you 40 for free – seriously…and he’ll autograph each one of these promo books! And, of course, you’ll get all the aforementioned freebies.

Do your holiday shopping early. One common frustration from Primal enthusiasts is how to get friends and loved ones on board. This book is the perfect calling card to introduce someone to the Primal Blueprint. Why not reduce the hassle of holiday shopping and give each of your deserving friends and loved ones the gift of life transformation?

100 copies – Personal Touch: A 30-minute private phone consultation wherein you and Mark discuss anything you want. (Well, almost anything.) Mark doesn’t do one-on-one coaching anymore so this is a rare opportunity. Yes, you also get the 50 free signed books and all the aforementioned freebies!

1,000 copies – Executive Decision: Could you co-workers use some guidance and motivation to get in shape? Mark will fly out to your location, present his Primal Transformation seminar and spend the day helping get your co-workers/employees get Primal!

How Do I Win?

1. Order your book(s) online or at your local bookstore before midnight Monday, Oct 24.

2. Email your receipt to the appropriate email address:

If you purchase 1-2 copies email your receipt to [email protected]
If you purchase 3-7 copies email your receipt to [email protected]
If you purchase 8 or more copies email the confirmation that your order has shipped to [email protected]

To reiterate, for 8 or more books, please email Mark the confirmation that your order has shipped (not your initial email receipt) to the appropriate email address above. Also, please include your shipping address so Mark knows where to ship your free books. Please allow 30 days for processing and shipping of your free books. Mark’s going to have a lot of books to sign!

Low-techies can fax receipt copy to 310-317-4424.

3. You will receive your e-gift certificate, eBook download instructions, podcast download instructions, and all other freebies by reply email. (Please be patient. The Worker Bees will be reviewing receipts and sending you instructions on how to access all of your freebies within 24 hours.)

If you have any questions about ordering, or this promotion, please call 888-774-6259 (or 310-317-4414).

Fine Print:

Unfortunately, Kindle and other digital books don’t count toward the NY Times best-seller list, nor this promotion.

Books purchased in physical locations (e.g. a brick-and-mortar Barnes & Noble) count, too. Just scan and email your receipt to the appropriate email address above, or fax it to 310-317-4424.

The 8 book offer only applies to book orders placed in the United States. While international orders won’t impact the New York Times best-seller list Mark will extend the 1-2 and 3-7 book offers to anyone around the world.

Order Your Copy of The Primal Blueprint 21-Day Total Body Transformation Today!