To "vee" or not to vee (Or, am I going to seriously try to go vegan or not??)

[stormkeeper_lovedoris]

Doris and I have been kicking around what to do now that our test Vegan Month is over. At one point we left it thusly: we'll be mostly vegan but be non-vegan a few times a month (say when I'm traveling or on game night). But this few times a month thing, I already haven't been sticking to. (And it's only November 3rd!) ) I already felt like I missed Trader Joe's bean and cheese burritos, so I went and got some. I already decided to eat the piece of Fannie Mae candy that was inside a candy box in the break room yesterday. So what am I really doing and what should I do?


One view:
- Go cold turkey or not at all. Be vegan all the time. It's too easy to make exceptions and they snowball, as I've already found out.

Another view:
- Don't go cold turkey; you're just not going to be able to stick with it. Whether it's business travel where you're lucky to find any *vegetarian* food or game night when you want to eat real pizza, there's no way you're going to be vegan 100% of the time.

But:
- Maybe you should take a step back and ask yourself what is the right thing to do. Like, why am I interested in veganism in the first place?

Well, let's see....the dairy industry is as cruel towards animal as the meat industry. (Yeah but you work for a restaurant chain which has meat and dairy all over the menu! Ugh. I love my job and my employer, and have been living with this cognitive dissonance for the past 19 years) And while I'm at it, I can add that I hate the fact that most clothing is made in sweatshops and yet I occasionally buy new clothes. I'm not 100% ethical all the time.

There's the health reason - Based on what I've read, I think most dairy products are not healthy at all. Especially cheese; it's hard to make any sort of argument for it being nutritious. Eggs might have a lot of protein but they are loaded with cholesterol, and there are way better sources of protein. But I am pretty healthy overall right now. I mean, I don't have high cholesterol, and cheese may be full of fat but there are plenty of vegan junk foods that are too. I'd love to be slim and trim, but that's realistically not happening. Maintaining a size 10 is pretty much what I can do now.

So where does this leave me? I guess my main thing is that I want to reduce animal cruelty and take a stand in this regard, but it's hard to do that when your purchases support industries like the dairy industry. But using the clothing example above, I don't buy 100% of my clothes from fair-trade companies or from thrift stores. Rather, I do as much of that as I can while still splurging on store-bought clothes from time to time.

There. I think I found it. Keep my dairy consumption as low as I can, but I'm not going to aim to be vegan all the time or even 90% of the time. But treat cheese and eggs as splurges, like splurging on a dress at Macy's. Resolved!

Comments

[rhoda-rants.livejournal.com]

Choose your battles. Sounds like a plan. It's tough. I know I could never give up cheese, even if I did decide to drop meat altogether, which I haven't. Here's something you might find interesting though, from Captain Awkward: http://captainawkward.com/2014/11/13/645-talking-about-food-and-animals-and-justice/

It's mostly about trying not to evangelize or police other people's food choices, but this is the relevant part for you I think:

"You cannot achieve moral purity; it is not humanly possible to refrain from compromise. Forgive yourself when you have to do it; forgive others when they do it; be at peace with the fact that the world is an imperfect place and you are doing your best."

[stormkpr.livejournal.com]

I love that quote. It makes a lot of sense to me, Thanks for sharing it.

[megan-moonlight.livejournal.com]

The quote posted above is very good. Many people feel differently about being vegan or vegetarian.

I'm vegetarian for a couple of years now (but focus on vegetables mostly, not as much on dairy products).
Finding places with vegetarian and vegan food is difficult, but I prepare majority of my food myself anyway (I always preferred it that way - that way at least I know what I'm eating. But I also have a soft spot for vegetarian pizza and fries). When buying something already made, some people (who sell pastry, for instance), don't always know what they're selling and can't answer questions about how it's made - the same goes for clothes. So, as you said, it's difficult to control some things either way.

I think you should find what will be best for you, and try to do what will make you happy and satisfied.

[stormkpr.livejournal.com]

I, too, really love to prepare my own food. And Doris is an amazing cook; I just travel more than I'd like, usually for work.

Amen to your last line!

[megan-moonlight.livejournal.com]

I'm bad at cooking, but it doesn't stop me from preparing my food *lol*

[nytshd3.livejournal.com]

FYI on eggs:
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/expert-answers/cholesterol/faq-20058468

Obviously I know health stuff isn't your only concern, but just thought you should know :)

[stormkpr.livejournal.com]

That's a great link - thank you.

And even if they were really bad on cholesterol, I suppose moderation is key like anything.

[nytshd3.livejournal.com]

Yep... if you're going through 3 dozen eggs a week, unless you're on a baking spree or something, you probably need to reevaluate.

That reminds me, Bruce was telling me about this breakfast restaurant in Atlanta and he was reading me part of the menu, which included a 6 egg omelette. I said holy fuck, dude! Later, after he had gone there, he told me that he and his colleague were sitting next to someone who had ordered the 6 egg omelette and he was shocked at how huge it was. He said that when I was talking about how huge it was, he thought I was being ridiculous, but that the actual omelette was the size of his forearm.

[stormkpr.livejournal.com]

You know I like a good omelet and I like to eat, but even I'm like ew!