In support of Novus's 2014 Food Drive efforts, the VP of Global Sales and Marketing, Samson Li, took the pledge to participate in the SNAP challenge. The SNAP challenge encourages participants to spend only $1.50 per meal in order to get a sense of what life is like for millions of low-income Americans facing hunger. You can find more information about the SNAP Challenge here: http://feedingamerica.org/get-involved/hunger-action-month/snap-challenge.aspx
During the SNAP Challenge, Samson kept a detailed log of his experience. For the next five days we will share his journey with you. Please see below:
Day 2- May 25th
Good morning! As planned, I made my Italian sausage into a meat patty and put it in a hamburger bun. I also had a glass of milk. No salt was required, as the patty was very salty already. Good deal, as seasoning also counts! If I would have tasted this patty in my normal meal, I would definitely complain about that because it is very salty! I was not able to have coffee because I could not afford it. It has been almost 10 years that I have not had coffee with my morning breakfast!
Before I knew about the hunger challenge, I booked a 9-hole golf game, thinking that it was lucky that the program did not prevent a daily spending limit on entertainment! The golfing did consume a bit more energy that I thought, because I was walking and the game was slow, with the people in front of us playing very slowly. I spent almost 2.5 hours on 9 holes, which consumed extra energy indeed. I started to regret a little bit of playing, but then I thought I could use it as a weight loss opportunity.
I went home for lunch. I had steamed corn and one slice of pizza. I felt full enough, for the time being. One hour later, a reminder popped up on my iPhone. 17:00 Dinner at Charlie-Gittos in Chesterfield with friends!!! OMG, I totally forgot about that. What was I going to do in the restaurant when everybody was enjoying the excellent Italian food? I was thinking either we postpone the dinner or I excuse myself. Neither of those options worked because this was a farewell party for my son Shawn and my wife Stacey for their summer break back to Hong Kong for 2.5 months! This was the only night available so I had to go!
I told everyone that I would go but only to watch everybody else eat. I was embarrassed to tell the waitress that I could only have tap water and the free bread. Everybody was laughing as they know that I like eating and drinking a lot! My friends and family were preparing to see me fail but I did not! It was, of course, very tough watching people eat the delicious shrimps and steaks and drink the bubbling beer and wine. It helped that there were so many people there to help “monitor” me. In a way I was promoting the program and I asked them to join me.
I was eating the free bread that was given before the appetizers were served. It was very good bread and I took three slices. I thought that this could be cheating, though it is theoretically free, it was actually included in the paid meals my friends and family purchased so I stopped eating. My stomach was full of bread and water and I could definitely feel it.
As a night person, I normally go to bed late. At 10:00pm, I started feeling hungry. I tried to resist the feeling by not thinking about it, but finally I could not manage and decided to eat an apple. It was not enough as I still felt hungry, probably because of no protein. The first day passed with lots of temptation and a hungry stomach at bed time.
READ ABOUT SAMSON’S MEMORIAL DAY IN TOMORROW’S BLOG
