Marianne > If you think such questions as mine are a waste of time, please
just delete it. If people can't ask questions I don't know what this list
is for.

Nope.  I don't feel that your questions are a waste of time.  Perhaps
misguided, which is why I felt moved to come out of lurkdom to comment.

Marianne, my post began with the statement "I hope this doesn't come across
as calloused or lacking in sympathy."  It apparently did, and for that I am
sorry.  It was not my intention.  My later choice of the subject line
"Impatience" was a public acknowledgement of the probability that, perhaps
due to the circumstances of my situation, I am lacking the virtue of
patience.  It was absolutely not to be taken as a statement that your
comments are not worthy of attention.  The bottom line is that I am trying
to help, as this board's charter says "to provide support to those adopting
the paleo way of eating," and feel that I can do so if you're interested in
what I have to say.

Now, if I may comment on one thing you said that I feel highlights the
absolute crux of my message.  You said, "every expert I read contradicts
every other expert I read, and says that eating what the other experts said
to eat is bad for me and will cause unpleasant problems."  Assuming you're
on board with the paleo diet and the purpose of this board, you've got a
very powerful filter at hand for the myriad dietary advice out there.
After doing so, not a whole lot is left to generate angst (that leftover
material is what I call the 10%).  Cordain, Eades, Audette just don't
differ that much from a practical standpoint.   And, as Jo, Ken and others
have said, I personally feel comfortable using a combination of my head, my
body, and the occassional checkup from a doctor to verify that I'm doing
the right thing with respect to this paleo thing.  My personal results are
good evidence for me that I'm doing things right, but I can empathize with
others who aren't getting the same signal.

You know what?  I'll quote Jo, because I think she said better than I what
it was I was trying to say:  "... when Jim was talking about the 90% and
the 10%, he wasn't referring to the proportion of fats in the diet, but
rather that simply by switching to the paleo diet you are already making a
huge improvement to your health. 90% is just a rough estimate of that
benefit. Sometimes after reading the posts here I find myself worrying
about the details, so I for one find it useful to be reminded that it
doesn't have to be complicated unless you want it to be."