Back to meat, again.

 I have been very torn with my meat relationship for most of my adult life. Before January, I was a vegetarian (well, I ate fish every so often, so I guess that made me a pescetarian.) But this past New Years Eve, I made it back to the dark side. We had a party, there was meat, and the permeant smell sent me aflutter. I couldn't resist it. I dove head first into a bowl a rotisserie chicken and there was no looking back. The next day, I felt guilty. Like really guilty. I thought "how could I be so aware of our food system and still have the desire to eat meat?"

A few years back, I read two books that sparked a bulb to be a conscious eater; Michael Pollans "The Omnivores Dilemma" and "Skinny Bitch," which is mostly a book about our corrupt food system and how it affects our diets. But then over time, approximately four years, I was observing the growing culture of Artisan butchers and its cool factor, and the exotiscm surrounding it. Living in New York City, specifically Williamsburg, so many people love the idea of throwback careers (like said butchers or craft beer brewers, even chocolate makers) and creating an edgy spin on it.

I consider myself somewhat of a foodie, and felt left out when I could not delve into a conversation about prime meats and their best seasonings. I had ideas! But in a sense, it was against my dietary religion to share them. With my knowledge, wasn't I suppose to educate people about the flaws of eating meat? I was torn and salivating at the same time...

But then, on New Years Eve, I could not take it anymore. The wild beast within shoved people aside with the sight of meat propelling me forward. When I took the first bite, I sighed. "Man, this is good," I thought. There was no turning back.

However, I'm happy to report that over time I've come to terms with my introduction back to the world of meat. And I sort of love it. So much so that I made sliders for an Oscar party on Sunday and enjoyed every minute of smashing the ground meat together into perfect tiny patties, mixed in with bits of cremini mushroom and seasoned with an abundance of salts. That said, moving forward, I still plan to remain a conscious eater and will try to follow a diet of some traceability, which basically means knowing where you're sourcing your food from.

Now the only question is: what's for lunch?

How about you guys? Any vegetarian/meat struggles? Are you a big meat eater or would you never ever touch it?