Uhh....where is the follow up to "How..."?

I was unemployed, my marriage was on the rocks, the wife was threatening to walk out and take the kids with her, the creditors were knocking at the door, every second letter was a cash demand, my family had all but disowned me.
Things were bleak ......... real bleak !!

@NigeeBaby please explain.
i know that i am more diplomatic in real life since i play

So, by playing almost 300 Diplomacy games in those five months, you've had no time to find a job, no time to spend with your wife and kids, no time to answer the door for creditors, and no time to make money?

I've got myself a job, I'm currently on a fabulous holiday with my wife and kids in Sharm El Sheikh, I've given up eating meat and I'm getting fit and losing weight.
I've done a football youth coaching course. Life is good and the stockmarket is falling to a level where it will be good to buy again soon, this was after we divested our pension investments from shares to cash.
And I owe it all to this Diplomacy website and all of the lovely people here :-)

Glad I could help.

I've even agreed a repayment schedule with my creditors

How did Wibdip help get you a job?

Not buyin' it...and giving up meat is retarded. Just sayin'...

Eh on the meat thing. I could give up just about all meat but fish. I just like fish to much. That's more a personal choice then something that I can see Webdip having changed in him.

Hmm, I gave up meat six years ago, and as far as I know, I'm still not retarded. Must be my diminishing capabilities due to not eating meat.

Glad things are going well, Nigee.

My wife has been a vegetarian for 20 years; I lasted one day before I needed at least some chx parmesan. She is far from retarded as well... much more accomplished than I. =)

We are omnivores. God/evolution/whatever made us that way. We should eat meat *and* veggies. That's why I like potato-based vodka martinis with my steaks.

Evolution doesn't MAKE anyone a certain way. Evolution is the process of change whereby random mutations lead to adaption or extinction. It's not prescriptive. We have a warm-blooded metabolism that allow us to survive outside. I'm still going to live in a house. It's not natural, but I really prefer having a roof. I have legs that have evolved to let me walk long distances. I'd still rather take the bus, and I hope God can forgive me for going against his design. I have teeth and a digestive system that allows me to eat both plants and animals. Guess what? Fuck nature.

But Vaft, the human body not only allows you to consume both plant and animal, it requires enzymes from both. You do your body a disservice by not consuming animal protiens.

I eat vegetarians.

Not sure if you're trolling Draugnar, but enzymes catalyse chemical reactions, they break down food, they're not IN food. If you mean nutrients, that would have been true in the 19th century, but thankfully science once again kicks nature's ass and gives us synthetically manufactured dietary supplements. It's pretty damn easy to go vegan with just a tiny bit of planning in the western world. That being said, I do drink milk and eat eggs, because I can't be bothered. Still no need for me to eat meat.

No need but sometimes it sure tastes yummy.

@Vaft - incorrect. Enzymes are also contained *in* the foods we eat.

From http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=120

enzymes

Virtually all living things - including those we cook and eat - contain enzymes. Enzymes, which act as the spark plugs for the vast majority of chemical reactions that make life possible, are a sine qua non for life.



The issue is we over sook our food and deactivate the enzynmes they contain quite often. A rare steak is better for you, enzyme wise, than a boiled carrot as the steak has more active enzymes and raw carrot has more than the steak.

over cook...

I'm sure it's yummy. I'm not advocating anything here, people can do whatever they want. Personally, I sleep better knowing that nothing had to die just so I could have a tasty bite, and I refuse to support the disgusting meat industry. It doesn't bother some people, fair enough. But I get provoked when people keep reiterating the myth that we NEED meat, which is demonstrably false. It might be true for some individuals who are intolerant to other forms of food containing essential nutrients, and for children/pregnant women it can be too risky, but for the vast majority, it's just not true.

Draugnar, oh, it didn't occur to me that the enzymes in the food would have any impact. It's never been mentioned in any of the nutrition books I've read, which is why I thought you just used the wrong word. I'd be careful with a site that only lists alternative medicine as its main sources though.

@Vaft - I actually support you in going vegetarian, but would encourage you to think about how the dairy cows and farm chickens are kept. Theirs is no life of luxury. That is why I have switched to free range meat, eggs, and dairy as much as possible. I also have gone vegetarian at lunch time when I can't confirm the source of the meat. If we go to Chipotle, I will get the chicken or steak salad as they are dedicated to free range/open range and organic products.

Draugnar, I simply couldn't afford free range meat when I went vegetarian. And right now, I don't even want to eat meat. I haven't done it in so long that it actually makes me queasy to think about it. I try to eat only eggs and milk produced in good conditions, it's worth the extra money. Thankfully Sweden has a good system of labeling with regular inspections of producers who claim to be animal friendly. It's not ideal, but it's just a bit too much effort to go vegan. Being vegetarian has had almost no impact on me, I have to be a little bit more careful with what I eat, but I have gone in for checkups now and then and after six years, there are no deficiencies to be found.

Draugnar, I have sort of the same approach, but I wonder how much you trust labels like free range or organic? I went vegetarian basically because I felt like I could no longer rely on those kinds of advertisements.

"I sleep better knowing that nothing had to die just so I could have a tasty bite..." the typical delusion of a vegetarian. Yeah....nothing died when they tilled the land to plant your vegetables. lol

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/vegetarian-myth-review/#axzz1wwoYzSQr

There is so much wrong with vegetarianism, including the health consequences of an improper diet - we are *meant* to eat meat...crazy enough, meat contains everything we need for our bodies...which, I might point out...are mostly made of meat...

Any vegetarian...hell anyone that eats period...should do a lot of reading on this guy's web site....lots of actual *scientific* information on how the biochemistry of the body works, how food is used or not used by the body, etc.

Odd thing...lots of vegetarians lookin' out for the animals believe in evolution...and yet deny the basic evolutionary fact that man is designed to eat meat.

So...yeah...vegetarianism is stupid.

"but I wonder how much you trust labels like free range or organic? I went vegetarian basically because I felt like I could no longer rely on those kinds of advertisements...."

So...the meat you eat that says it is free range or organic is bad...but the vegetables aren't? lol Oh how we willfully blind ourselves and make excuses.

"and for children/pregnant women it can be too risky,..." So being a vegetarian is a great lifestyle...but it's inherently risky for pregnant women and children. why? Because of the risk of nutritional deifiency that will likely NOT occur with...MEAT. Delusional nonsense.

As far as organic goes, that is now regulated by the USDA

http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome?navid=ORGANIC_CERTIFICATIO

Unfortunately, the USDA definition of free range only applies to chickens and basically just requires them to have access to the outside. If kept in pens outside the barn during the day, they can be labeled free range. But there are a few farms I know locally where I can get beef and chicken and eggs and milk that you can see are free/open range. And Chipotles prides itself such that they wouldn't dare lie for fear a whistle blower would call up a major network and their business would be crippled. There are truth in advertising laws,m but more importantly, there are newspeople wanting to make a name for themselves who would love to bring down a big name company.