Fasting Day…

You’re going to have to forgive the glut of blog entries. Our Internet connection was down last night and, so, we haven’t had a chance to post. And, yes, but “we” I mean “me”… fuck grammar.

Anyway, our Internet connection was down because – SOMEONE STOLE IT! You heard me right. Someone hijacked our wireless router and shut us the fuck out. But this is not an entirely bad thing. I’m going out tonight and will buy (should have by the time you read this, really) a new Wireless-N network, upgrading into better security, etc., but especially better security. Also, I have the bastards IP address so I’ll be blocking them out.

And that’s only part of Fasting Day.

Yes, that’s right. Today is Fasting Day. As you might have heard me mention, I’ve picked one day – today – and am on a water fast. You’re probably thinking I was hungry this morning, hungry by lunch, and have been hungry all afternoon. You would be right. In fact, I figure I’ll be hungry all night.

So, why fast? What’s the point?

The point is that we lived in a spoiled country and we are totally blind to how spoiled we are. Most people in the world go hungry. Most people in the world go without. For one day each week, at least for a while, my plan is to live like the rest of the world. That’s been called strange but there are many people who fast. Many of the world’s religions encourage fasting. The only reason my fasting is strange is because, well, I don’t have to do it.

I don’t have the lunacy of religion as an excuse. Just empathy. Scary.

I’ve been surprised at how much it’s already opened my eyes. We are, in the west, surprisingly surrounded by food. I’m at work and I’ve been running into food all day. It’s amazing what I don’t even recognize on a normal day – food is everywhere and yet so much of the world and so many in our own country go hungry.

Here’s something else that I’ve found interesting. Time slows when you fast. And not just a little. I can’t imagine combining fasting with meditation because my day has seriously crawled by and I’m busy at work. I think the reason for this is we segment our day looking forward to our next meal. What will we have for lunch? What’s for dinner? What can I have for a snack? I guess that’s one way I break up my day and today, without food to look forward to, has been glacial in pace. It’s really amazing.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m seriously looking forward to breakfast tomorrow. But, until then, I’m fine. A little hungry, sure. But fine.

(Since I wrote this, I had to endure the Fry's Impulse Aisle. For those who know what I'm talking about, I made it through without eating a thing. Will Power, Babay!)