Wow, this is a long post. I think I might be getting better at surviving as a conscious eater in restaurant situations. (I hesitate to use the word "dieter", mostly for semantic reasons), but one thing I could still use work on is reacting to the grief I get from my dad when I don't eat everything on my plate. I'm 23, and yes, I still live at home, but it's only a stopover, and only for another month. ;) I'm the only vegetarian in my family, so he finds cooking for me a challenge. I suppose his generation said to finish everything in front of you. I'm just trying to make healther portion sizes and assert some control over what goes into my body, but he sees that as a failing on his part as the chef.

He does seem to attach food with love and excessive pride, so I could take over the kitchen one night a week. But what about the other six? This question isn't even about him, because he's doing nothing wrong, it's just a feeling he gets. I admit that my late-night jogging after he goes to sleep makes me part of the problem. (Kind of the undoing of my former late-night bingeing. It just seems like the time of day to do something about it.) I hide many accomplishments in many walks of life because I doubt how long I'll have them. But how do you deal with loved ones who seem to be keeping a scorecard of what you eat?