From a vegan diet back to the omnivore I was before…

It was around 2013 when my friend challenged me to cut out dairy from my diet as a way to help reduce allergy symptoms because when I have symptoms, they hit hard and last as long as a month or more. I readily said “Yes” and doubled down by removing meat from my meals, too.

Fast forward about 7 years and I changed my diet a little bit. I decided I’d eat fish but only fish caught off my dad’s boat. I figured if Jesus ate fish His dad provided, I could do the same. Plus I was living in Nashville so the opportunity to eat fresh-caught fish was so low already, the adjustment wouldn’t be very drastic.

Then this year, 2024, on Easter Sunday I was sitting in a restaurant having lunch with family after church and everything changed. It wasn’t because of the food served that day, but in a moment of decisiveness, I determined within that I had been sticking with the vegan diet now just out of habit and ritual. I knew it was time to add meat back in. I didn’t change anything I consumed during that Easter meal but within a week or two, being vegan was a thing of the past. I was tired of limiting myself that way.

Another funny part of the story, and maybe it affected me subconsciously, that friend who challenged me years earlier, he was a vegan at the time but I had talked to him earlier this year (2024) and he said, “Oh yeah, I changed my diet years ago and started eating meat again.” I said, “That would’ve been good to know!!” Not that I was doing it for him but there was a sense of camaraderie with both of us being vegan, living in Nashville, etc.

Now we’re both normal again, I guess! I didn’t regret becoming a vegan and I don’t regret ending that era, either. The full picture, though, is that I haven’t added dairy back in very much. I actually love being able to pick and choose what I want from normal food and vegan-prepared food, as well. I see it as being able to enjoy the best of both worlds.

What have I enjoyed the most since going back to meat? Sliced turkey, sliced ham, chicken parmesan, and lots more. What do I still eat from the vegan days? Beyond burgers, Daiya brand cheese, almond milk.

How about you? Have you been vegan or vegetarian then gone back to eating the food you’d been avoiding? How did it make you feel?

-Out of the Wilderness

Caplyta Little Light Song Doesn’t Make Sense!

I don’t typically write two posts about the same commercial but there’s something I didn’t address in ;title;. First of all, most people probably love “This Little Light of Mine.” It’s a nice, warm melody and positive lyrics. Plus the nostalgia of an old gospel song means a lot to a lot of people. Secondly, and this is more of a personal preference: I don’t mind when artists or writers change the lyrics of songs but keep the melody of the original. Melody is 90% of what I like about songs anyway. Of course, lyrics can make or break a song so even that 10% is important. This is where Caplyta kind of totally and completely ruined “This Little Light of Mine.” Here’s the ad…

The Light Is Dark? The pharma-taylored lyrics pretty much make no sense.

This little light of mine
Has been dark for quite some time.
Then I let in the light to help see
more of the light inside of me.

My confusion from this ad might be permanent! Never have four lines been more contradictory. Science tells us that a light, by definition, can’t be dark. They’re opposites. A better choice of words would be “…has been dim for quite some time.” Next, when have you ever needed a light to help see more light? It’s why we don’t use flashlights in bright sunlight. Science. A better line would be, “…let in the light to help me add to the light people can see.”

Who’s writing these jingles anyway? I’m here to help, just message me for my rates! 🙂

-Out of the Wilderness

I’m not getting a beagle, I’m not getting a beagle!

A friend of my niece got a new puppy and she brought the little guy over. Eight weeks old. A German short-haired pointer. Just about the cutest puppy you’d ever see. Floppy ears. Puppy breath. It was a great reminder that puppies can be so, so cute. And I had watched a video a while back of an adult beagle doing the Westminster Agility Dog Show and she was adorable.

Beagles are SO tough. They will press you on every side and when they get in trouble, look at you like YOU’RE the problem. But they have such charm. I lost my first dog a few months ago, a troublemaker named Piper and I miss her every single day. Asia, my second dog, is almost 15 years old and has some beagle in her makeup but she hardly acts like a beagle, which I’m pretty much always thankful for. And yet, when I saw that little pointer my niece’s friend brought over, I couldn’t help but miss Piper, to think that having a beagle isn’t THAT bad. Their mischievous side that often costs money in one way or another. Their snuggles. The howl. Those ears.

I’m not getting another dog. I’M NOT GETTING ANOTHER DOG. Once my baby Asia passes, I’ll go awhile without a companion because I haven’t been without a dog since 2009 and I just want to see how life shapes up in that next chapter. But goodness, gracious if a beagle isn’t my next dog, something must have influenced me a lot to go in a different direction.

I miss you Piper my girl!

-Out of the Wilderness

Distinct hats designed with style, depth, and they’re pretty nifty, too!

If you would’ve told me that in December of 2025 I’d be partnering up with my sister to design and sell hats I would’ve thought you needed a bowl of chicken noodle soup and a nap. But I’m the crazy one here, because you would’ve been correct! I’ve wanted to go into some kind of business with her, Erin–my sister, because she’s got the drive, the know-how, the grit to get things done but what is there to do that hasn’t already been done, you know? The waters were stirring for a while and one day a couple of months ago she said we oughtta do patch hats. There are a million patch hats out there but we believe we can make unique designs that stand out in a crowd.

Dreaming a little dream, we got to work and before I make a short story long, here’s where we’re at: Our venture now has two hats, designed completely by us, that both of us are truly pumped about. And they’re on Etsy, scan this QR code or click here to go there.

We very much want you to share the excitement with us (which is kind of the whole point, I guess!), so take some time, check them out, and we’d be tickled to death if you take a chance on one or both of them. More to come for sure, and I’m also excited to share the backstory of the designs. Both are connected to where we come from– one by location, the other by blood. Tallahassee, Florida for the green trucker cap and our amazing family and specifically our extraordinary brother, Nathan, with the gray and black cap.

Take a look, scan the code, snoop around, and I sincerely hope you love what you see. Feel free to reach out here with questions, or message us on Etsy or by email– WildHatDesigns@gmail.com.

-Out of the Wilderness

Atlanta lifts COVID restrictions… 4.5 years later?

I knew southerners were slow but wow. Dawgs, this is doing nothing to end stereotypes, come on! Dekalb county, which includes some of metro Atlanta, ended COVID restrictions this past week and yes, you read that right. It’s been 4.5 years since COVID hit and 3.5 years since most things returned to normal. Meanwhile Dekalb was letting people work from home, offices closed, for 4+ years. 👀

Per Decaturish…

DeKalb County announced Wednesday that it is ending its COVID-19 state of emergency and that all employees will need to return to the office, with some hybrid work allowed. CEO Lorraine Cochran-Johnson signed an executive order that confirmed the end of the emergency and outlined the county’s post-emergency work plan.

They’re also reminding residents to check their computers for the Y2K bug, upgrade their tube TVs for plasma flat screens if they can, watch a great new movie called Home Alone, and vote for OJ Simpson as “Best Husband of the 1980s.”

-Out of the Wilderness