Hello,
Perhaps I'll break the ice with a short discussion on  all of my hurdles
and "impurities" to get to 100% raw.  For the past 10 years I've been a
relatively healthy eater.  That is, brown rice, tofu, carrots and seaweed
never seemed like a torture sentence to me!.  Slowly I started eliminating
things that I truly didn't like-yogurt, ice cream, diet coke, chicken,
cooked fish. It's funny, but there were some foods I insisted on trying
again and again thinking maybe that dish wasn't right.  I never liked
Italian food, but couldn't figure out why.  Now that I pay more attention
to my body, I realize that the tomato sauce is too acidic and burns my
tongue.  Anyways, here I am trying to get to a diet that I feel
comfortable with.  One that allows me to maintain my weight, make me
feel good, etc. but I am still experimenting (all bodies are different).

One vice I have tried to give up time and time again is coffee.  I don't
know what it is, but I really resist.  Other things like cigarettes
(nasty, I know) and alcohol were easy.  The strange thing is that after I
drink it, I feel a little not so ggod, yet I continue doing the same
thing day after day.  Luckily, I have it limited to that one cup in the
morning.  I can't even really enjpy it that much because it is something
I don't want to do (maybe I do?!).  After the morning coffee and a bagel,
I can go on with my day eating only veggies and fruits.

I am experiencing some other changes which may be related to eating a
relatively clean diet, or it could be coincidental.  I am craving space
and simplicity, oh, and solitude.  I have been paring everything down in
my apartment, getting rid of books I won't read again, throwing away
letters, magazines, old papers etc.  I've visited the thrift shop a lot
to drop off old stuff.  The emptier, the better.  This is how I've been
feeling about my body as well.

I've also had to confront my fear of hunger.  That is one thing that has
been known to worry me.  If I know I won't be around food for 5 hours and
am not hungry before-hand, it has been my tendency to eat anyways because
maybe I'll starve to death (yeah, right!).  Has anyone else had anxiety
over this at all?

As far as solitude goes...Noise bothers me much more now and I don't know
why. Before at the gym, I would use my walkman every time without fail.  One
day, I took the earphones off because they were bothering me....the
freedom I felt.  In my apartment I listen to music intentionally rather
than background "fill up the quiet" music.

What are my goals?  I don't know exactly.  I would like to give up the
coffee/bagel thing at the coffeeshop every morning.  Each day I spend
$1.93 which adds up in a month.  I do enjoy the" being around people but not
being around people" feeling that coffee shops exude.

That's enough rambling for now.  Comments, encouragment, constructive
criticism all welcome!
Meredith