I think I'm at least 1,000 miles from anyone here 
I welcome the idea though!.. I'm still waiting for someone here to have an RPD-party on the beach 
Hi, lovely! We
will have an RPD party on the beach! Get yourself over here!
i know how yon and gs feel about there meet up when i just had a conversation with sully last night... it feels so great! rawzi supposed to meet me in brooklyn, ny, instead she met with my parents in georgia. so, i'm also waiting to meet up with our paleo friends nationally and internationally. Yon, if you want, you can stop by my home too for couple of days on your way.
Hi Raw, if I'm ever back in the NYC area, I would love to pay you a visit.
So earlier this afternoon, I had the closest thing to a date in over a year and a half.
I spent the most wonderful afternoon doing things I have never ever done before with an amazing, handsome man: making a $15 Jerky Maker, actually making jerky (slicing and seasoning), seeing how a legendary RAFer prepares his food, trying melted rendered fat mixed with raw ground beef, and trying a very fatty cooked bacon-rendered fat-stirred egg mixture with a bit of alfredo sauce, cheddar cheese, and tapatio mixed in - an impromptu Mexican-inspired topping for the raw ground beef. OMG, it was sooooooooo gooooooooood!!!! Tonight was my first time trying rendered fat and this rendition prompted me to exclaim, "I didn't know rendered fat could be so good!!!"
OK, so it wasn't really a date and he's married, but I had the most awesome time with Lex! He had all the components of the Jerky Maker ready for me and showed me what to do. I'm so proud of myself, I actually made a Jerky Maker! It is my pride and joy and Lex helped me make it... making it is simpler than one might expect, but if I did it on my own, it would have taken me 50x longer because I'm a perfectionist AR. This was so perfect. I was measuring, cutting, taping, screwing screws, cutting tube, splitting electrical cord, connecting wires - everything! I feel so accomplished. Lex also had meat and seasonings for me, showed me what to do, and my jerky making with my new Jerky Maker started right then and there (the smell is glorious) in his incredibly tidy and well-organized garage!
As my jerky was becoming jerky, Lex showed me what he eats, how he prepares it, and let me sample it. (He was out of pet food mix and I was a bit relieved.
) And it is completely true - his meals are def swimming in fat!
Swimming...
swimming. Saw it with my own two eyes. Lex answered all my questions and we talked about lots of different things. As a newbie, I wanted to meet with Lex to get inspired and perhaps "solidify" some kind of commitment to RPD...
Instead - I feel somewhat upside down, backwards, inside out... in a state of much confusion. It was a bit unsettling and discouraging at first (I felt discouraged by me, not Lex), but I'm not upset. I see this as a very beautiful, essential, and self-actualizing thing. My head is still swimming with all these new thoughts and ideas and I'm questioning everything about my WOE, my motives, my priorities, my true desires - how do I truly want to live and to eat? What truly matters to me and am I living according to my core values? Am I being true to myself and living authentically - according to me and only me?
I had wanted to wait until I was like 90% RPD for awhile before I met Lex, but I'm glad that I didn't wait and that I met him as a newbie. I would rather do some soul-searching and questioning now than to do it all down the road and have a nervous breakdown.
Lex didn't really say anything to me that he hasn't probably said in his Journal - so you all know where he's coming from - but it meant a lot to hear what he had to say in response to my questions, experiences, and the things that I said. Basically, I'm in a state of confusion (which is good) and unsure about what kind of commitment I want to make to
any sort of WOE, if any, and yes - I was totally inspired by Lex. Meeting with him made me realize that I'm not really sure about some of the things that I thought I was sure of... He inspired me to open my mind even more and to be open to thinking differently from how I'm accustomed to thinking. And I learned so much from him (about RPD, health/nutrition, and beyond all that) and about him (what a stellar baker he is!). He is very much a doer (really gets things done) - and a gracious giver - and I so appreciate and admire him. (His garage and shed are neater than my bedroom is.)
Before we met, over the phone Lex warned me, "Prepare to be disappointed." I understood why he might say that - people regard and respect him so highly and build him up, I think - so I told him not to worry, that I knew he was human and that I'd be sure to lower my expectations... Well, I was so excited to meet him but decided not to build him up too much in my head - I was just going to appreciate my time with him - and even with moderately high expectations (couldn't help it), he still exceeded my expectations and I just think he is the most super awesomest!!!!
He is as sharp, vibrant, funny, honest, modest, confident, authentic, and charismatic as you might suspect him to be. I had sooooooooo much fun and I can't wait for my jerky to be ready to eat!
So, yes! Meet-ups are just so wonderful... My RPD BFF (she knows who she is!) will hopefully visit SoCal soon - we'll probably pay Lex a visit, go to an AV potluck (that would coincide with her visit), have an RPD party on the beach, etc. and we'd love to meet other RAFers who want to visit SoCal at the same time. Doesn't that sound like fun?? No date has been set - so, plenty of time to start saving for the trip!
Topic: Yon and GS meet up - you should too! (Read 19903 times)