I guess I can say that I’ve been on a strict Paleo diet since I started the raw food diet last September 3. And, in spite of the food orgies I’ve been going to in Manila this week, I have, more or less, stuck to the Paleo parameters.

Last night, I went to a party at Rose, the Japanese restaurant at the Fort owned by Adam Lieberman, and managed to turn down:

• alcohol
• sushi
• ice cream

I never thought I’d ever have the will power to turn down ice cream, but I did.

This afternoon, after a big lunch at Kainan Augusto at Kapitolyo, Pasig, I thought I had managed to successfully stick to Paleo once again (with the exception of the rice paper on the lumpia but, again, a negligible amount that I won’t stress about).

Highly recommended at Kainan Augusto at East Capitol Drive, Brgy. Kapitolyo, Pasig.

Until we got to Mad Mark’s Creamery & Good Eats. I absolutely lovelovelove cookie dough ice cream and, if it’s on offer, I cannot say no. Mad Mark’s had it under the moniker “Half-Baked”. I had to declare today a cheat day. And cheat I did. We tried a total of six flavors of ice cream. (Verdict: Could be creamier, but not bad. The over-all winner was the English Tea Macademia ice cream, but I still really really loved the cookie dough ice cream. You can give the Madagascar Vanilla Bean and the Roasted Pecan a miss.,)

A mad mess at Mad Mark’s, down thee street from Charlie’s, also on East Capitol Drive.

Since I was already full of dairy, if I was going to suffer for it, I thought I might as well push it to the limit and get a milkshake at Charlie’s.

Thought I’d try something new so I ordered the Salted Caramel Milkshake at Charlie’s. Not my thing. Found it too sweet.

It’s been more than an hour now. I’ve sat at home, awaiting the lactic acid to turn my insides into mush. So far, nothing. No cramps, no belly rumblings, not even the urge to hurl. This is very strange. Anyone who knows me knows how sensitive I am to dairy. Normally, after just a few minutes of ingesting the stuff, I’ll be doubled up in pain and rushing to the bathroom.

Could I have kicked the intolerance??? (Pleasepleaseprettyplease…) If that’s true, then my life would be absolutely perfect.

Of course, then it would call into question everything else I’ve had since I’ve gone off raw food. With everything I’ve been eating – and drinking – I haven’t been sick – at all. Maybe the negligible amounts of non-Paleo food that I consumed are now completely negligible in any amount. Could it be that raw food has cured me of all food allergies that I might have had? Hmmm… Is that even possible? If it did, well, fine, I’ll take what I can get and, umm… hooray for raw!

Now, I’m kicking myself for giving Adam’s ice cream a miss last night. Stupidstupidstupid!