My penultimate post in the series. (I like that word’penultimate’ is makes the term “next to last’ sound so special) But my thirty days are coming to an end. Next month, I will try another 30 day experiment in another area of the diet/fitness realm. But I also want to post what I liked and didn’t like about going vegan as well as if I plan to continue being vegan beyond August. I’m am still mulling it over.
Day 25 “Beyond the plate” Veganism
Sir Paul McCartney is arguably the most famous Vegan in the world. He has been so for years. Ringo Starr is too (I didn’t know that before, I just looked it up). They both look pretty good for their mid-seventies.But I digress, the point is Sir Paul is not only Vegan but refuses to buy or use animal products whatsoever. Not even leather. This for me just doing my 30 day thing is a bit advanced but I can see the merits. For now I am just trying to be mindful of what items I use or wear in daily life and take inventory. I also will endeavor to employ this mindset when I make purchases in the future. But isn’t even petrol an animal product? (dead dinosaurs and such). If you buy something plastic instead of leather isn’t it just the same thing? What are your thoughts?
Day 26 “To each his own”
I had a ‘friend’ (probably closer to associate/acquaintance) say to me only half joking “So are you going to have a cow if I eat a cheeseburger in front of you? Wow, kind of a jerky thing to say. Short answer of course not. Even if I continue down this path I don’t ever want to be “that guy”. This is a personal choice. Do I thing eating animals is “morally wrong” ? I can’t really give a short answer for that but mostly no. I do think the meat industry is cruel and and not really healthy. I’ve seen the footage of meat processing centers and they are disturbing but I want to live by example not proselytize. There are a few life choices I have made that deviate from the standard, but they work for me. But kind of like cigarettes as an ex-smoker, I will never judge you, but if you are smoking around me I may keep a bit of a distance for health reasons. I have heard once you’ve been vegan for a while even the smell of meat makes you nauseous. I can never imagine the smell of bacon making me ill, but perhaps we’ll see.
Day 27 IHOV International House of Vegans
IF you like “ethnic” food, Veganism will definitely work for you. There are many types of world cuisine that have embraced vegetarianism. Ethiopian, Indian, Thai even Italian (less the meatballs) This comes in nicely if you are eating out with friends and have some say in where you are going. I mentioned in an earlier post I was at a restaurant in Iowa at my family reunion that had no vegetarian options whatsoever (except maybe a baked potato with no toppings. But it was in a small town and probably not much call for vegan menu items so I understand. But in most larger cities you can have a nice variety and your omnivore friends can also find something for their palette as well.
First off, I would like to thank you for this informative series of articles on vegan food. Second, I would like to engage you on this question of the morality of various vegetarian and animal-based diets. I was an ovo-lacto vegetarian from 1978-1983. As far as purchasing products, my choices have always been more governed by what is sound for the environment, right down to the fact that I will use a manufactured item to death, rather than to own another manufactured item. The invent-new product-manufacture-market-buy-use-become “obsolete cycle has got us right here to this environmental catastrophe we are living in .
But I think you will get a kick out of this article that I wrote 15 years ago when I was on a mission to loose 35 pounds, which I did, and kept it off, except for that last stubborn 5 pounds. It’s a valid consideration, but it’s pretty funny, too.
http://jandris.ipage.com/jimpers/diet11.html
Very nice post. I feel the same in a lot of ways. I am still not sure I have the resolve to go Vegan long term. Going the ovo-lacto route seems more plausible. I definitely admire those who can sustain their convictions,
Anyone who can use the word “penultimate” in a sentence is the bomb!
Thank you It doesn’t get to be used often so I like trotting it out.