Photo by Crissy Pascual / Union Tribune
I awoke this morning with a sore throat. And while the prospect of having next week off is reassuring, it doesn’t change the fact that it hurts to swallow. Yet, despite the pain, it was nice to see an article about the One Dollar Diet Project in today’s San Diego Union Tribune.
Tanya Mannes, the writer of the story, spent an evening with us last week, asking questions, collecting video footage, and even venturing to eat a low-cost meal of beans and rice with a small glass of Tang. While the meal itself left much to be desired, Tanya’s story hit the spot.
Mannes also put together a short video to go along with the story where you can see us cooking, and talking briefly about the process and the cost of that meal.
We hope you enjoy it!
Warmly,
Christopher
*NOTE: If you’re new to this site and want to start reading at the beginning you’ll have to click “older entries” and start from Day One otherwise you’ll be reading in reverse; which could be interesting too.
*If you think what we’re doing is interesting, inspiring, or just plain nutty, consider SPONSORING our efforts. Simply enter in an amount, click “update total” and follow the prompting. If you don’t have PayPal, it will let you use a credit card. At the end of the of the month all proceeds will go to the Community Resource Center (here in Encinitas, CA). We will post evidence of donations at the end.
One Dollar Diet Project 
I came to your blog based upon the article that was in the UT. A very interesting project and certainly eye opening. I just finished reading a book called “Hungy Planet- What the World Eats”, which visits different parts of the world and looks at what a typical family there would eat in a week. It included cost information. If you are not familiar with it, definately check it out. Good luck with your next project. I got a laugh when your celebratory dinner was Sipz. I LOVE their grilled veggie salad.
Kerri, you cutie pie! What a huge idea this is! It was a thrill to stumble across the article in the U-T, by sheer accident since I never ever read it, and then realize 2/3’s of the way through that you are the SDA teacher whose creativity, hard work, and bright spirit most inspired me during my brief time there. Well, my dear, this is quite a lesson you’re teaching us. Thank you and Christopher. And please don’t wither away. . .
Alex Finlayson, the 3-mo. English teacher
I was very pleased to see the UT picked up your story. I stumbled onto your blog through a link to the NYT article about you and was a little irritated that the local news hadn’t covered it at all!
I just watched the video where you eat bean burritos. I really don’t get why you describe are so disappointed with what you were able to eat on your $1 a day budget. I understand missing fruits and vegetables or dining out with friend. However, beans & rice, home-made tortillas, oatmeal….these are all delicious and satisfying food choices that many people choose to eat on a daily basis.
Lucia, I don’t believe that they were necessarily disappointed in ‘what’ they were able to eat on the $1 a day budget. It seems that they were actually quite proud of what they discovered they could make while meeting budget — the disappointment (to me, anyways) seemed to stem from the fact that they really didn’t have many other options to create variety. Yes, I **LOVE** beans and rice, but if I had to eat bean and rice burritos for more than four or five meals in a month, I’d be losing my taste for the dish quite quickly.
Love your blog. Just found it today. Was really hoping to be able to see the video of you preparing some of your meals, but it seems to have been taken down. What a daunting task…you both are applauded for your efforts and I’m looking forward to purchasing and reading your book.