2011 Bucket List - #25 Eat Something I Never Have Before

#25 - Eat Something I Never Have Before

Growing up, we each had the foods we liked to eat, even though they were terrible for us, and the foods we attempted to stay away from, despite being nutritional for our growing bodies. Regardless of the preference, we often had to eat both, and basically took the bad - vegetables and fruits - in order to enjoy the good - pizza, burger, and fries. Somewhere in between the teenage years and young adult-hood, our eating habits were formed based upon our new found freedom to make choices without influence from mom and dad (or because they just said to do so).

As the years continue, our eating habits are somewhat formed for the long haul as we return back to those old habits of trying to eat healthy to keep off the pounds, while still keeping a terrible side of the diet to keep things enjoyable. And with that, comes the shameless likes, dislikes, and usual norms that any pattern-filled interest cycle has. Add the reasoning of cultural influences with the nurturing norms, and our eating habits and interests slowly see boundaries evolve. 

Which brings me to #25 on the 2011 Bucket List: Eat Something I Never Have Before.

Unlike a lot of people, I am not very picky when it comes to my meals and the types of foods to eat. Now that I am older, my mother always says how lucky she was that I was not picky, peculiar, or had "preferences" as some would like to say, about food. If there was food on the table, I ate it. And if I didn't like it, I still did. Oddly enough, as an adult,  not only can I see the weird reasoning behind such an action, but the sheer luxury in it for a parent.

Yet, I still carry that same weird characteristic with me today. A characteristic that benefits my tag-team partner who has the luxury of experimenting with recipes, and also has the luxury of a human disposal if she cannot finish her meal, no matter what it is. 

With such a weird tendency to try anything and to eat anything, I really wanted to branch out and continue to eat different foods. After all, there is a big world out there, and many, many types of food have yet to be devoured. 

During our honeymoon in St. Lucia (Or our Full Timeout), yours truly tried three different types of food that were not only new to me, but range in the matter of extreme. 

The first was crab meat. Yeah, I know, c'mon man, really? Well, I've never had the opportunity to eat crab meat. So, yeah, sorry for the letdown. Heck, I've never had lobster, which still alludes me. Nonetheless, the crab meat was a nice try. A simple, sort of safe, and pretty tasty attempt. I thought I accomplished this task for the year until I met the next step...

I ate sushi. 

Sushi may be another common food, but the sheer idea of eating anything raw has always been my boundary. I like my food thoroughly cooked. Burgers with no pink inside. Steak well done. Eggs with no yolk. You get the point. So the sheer idea of eating raw fish has always grossed me out. But hey, I was on a roll, and well, I couldn't post write about crab meat. Ah mean, c'mon, crab meat?!

So after being coached by a fine couple from New Jersey, who were some sort of angel-sent sushi experts, I managed to eat sushi. I managed to wolf down a few sushi rolls of raw fish dabbed in soy sauce and numerous other sauces to hide the fact (and thought) that I was eating raw fish. 

Awesome. Scratch crab meat, #25 was met after eating sushi, right? 

Wrong. 

The urge to continue experimenting last week continued and the exploring didn't stop there. Afterall, my trip was all inclusive, and by gosh, I was feeling froggy. 

So I leaped...

...and ate raw octopus. Or as my tag team partner stated as I stared at it laying lifeless on my plate, "that's like straight up octopus!"

I knew this was the challenge I was looking for, and by gosh, it was the type of moment and triumph that would make for a good decent DP post. 

After lifting the tentacle up with my chops sticks, I placed it in my mouth and began to chew as others around me watched in curiosity, just waiting for my response.

Hnmmm...no taste.

I'll let you know right now, octopus, no matter what you try dipping it in, is about as neutral a food in taste and flavor that you can have.

Then I began to chew to complete the process. But I continued to chew. And chew. And chew some more.

And I chewed a bit more. And some more.

Until I finally managed to get it down. 

I did it. I ate octopus. I ate something I never have before. #25. Boom.

And while the very thought of eating octopus made me nauseous afterward more so than the food itself, I eventually got over it by eating some "normal things" like beef, rice, and vegetables. 

Back to the norm. Back to the cycle. Retreating like a young child to the ideals mom and dad instilled. 

I'm sure octopus was never in anyone's household. Good or guilty pleasure. 

My mom's reaction upon hearing of  the #25 fate, "You actually ate that? Ugh!"

I guess all the foods under "Ugh!" are the ones mom and dad set up beyond our current food boundaries.