Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Faltering
Well, at first I was gung-ho, head-on, full-tilt, let's go, let's go, ra ra ra. Then I began to question whether or not the decision was one I could live with for an extended period of time, let alone for life. Then, I fell off the wagon. The veg wagon. My decision to become a vegetarian came back to mock me. OK, it's not like I ran out into a field and bit a chunk out of a cow's backside. Truth is, at this point, the thought of eating beef, pork or chicken still kinda skeeves me out. However, last night I got hit (smacked down, more like) by a mad craving for hot dogs. We happen to have turkey hot dogs in the house, along with turkey chili. Oh, and turkey bacon. Soooo....I had two turkey hot dogs, with onion, mustard and um, some turkey chili. This morning? Turkey bacon. I suppose I'm not the first person to "slip". Making a conscious decision to become a vegetarian to me, is much like going on a "diet". I am changing the way I eat, which is pretty much exactly like changing your diet to lose weight - only that wasn't the goal here. Well I suppose this wasn't a totally conscious decision. After all, I was following the signals my body was giving me. Meat had started to lose it's appeal to me, so after trying to eat chicken or ground beef a few times and finding I could barely choke it down, I stopped fighting it. But then...this. Perhaps because the hot dogs and bacon weren't in their more "natural" form, I found it easier to forget what I was eating. Still I feel kinda guilty and stupid. I'm not sure why - it's not as if I did this for anyone else. It was my decision and I am the only one I'm accountable to. I suppose I just need to find the right balance and not expect too much of myself right now. Until I learn to cook in ways that satisfy my nutritional needs and my taste buds, I should just take it slow. I'm also reminded of something I read on another blog. The author used the term "flexitarian". I believe she was getting at having a flexible approach to eating and not limiting yourself completely. So, maybe that is how I need to approach this. I can live without meat, and I know there are tasty alternatives out there. For example, the veggie burgers I've had so far (Morningstar) were quite good! Beyond that, I shouldn't be too hard on myself. I'm making the effort and that is what counts. One step at a time. No one changes their lifestyle overnight, after all. If they do, their fricken super-powered!!!
Monday, May 18, 2009
A New Day
Greetings! Today is the first day of the rest of my life...well, no shit! I coulda told you that. Isn't every day? However, today is day one of my newest blog. I say "newest" because I've created several and they've all died a slow, lonely death. I have a tendency to create them when I am in need of an outlet for venting frustration, rage or sadness. Well, lately I haven't really felt that way. I'm generally pretty happy with my life. However, I've decided it might just do some good (whether for me or for you, the reader, remains to be seen) to share my good news along with all the bad shit that comes with being a living, breathing human being. So, let me share the latest happenings with you for starters. Cool? All right, let's dive in.
I've begun to realize that lately, the look, feel and taste of meat is no longer as appealing to me as it once was. It could be that I still have not bounced back fully from a violent stomach virus I had recently which has tampered with my appetite. However, I prefer to believe it stems from the fact that eating meat makes me feel (and ultimately, look) like shit. I've read the research, seen the horrifying PETA videos that leave me sobbing - literally sobbing! - over the treatment of those animals. I've also read a book (just in the last two days) entitled "Skinny Bitch" which had some eye-opening facts to share. I won't rehash all of those facts here. Go out and buy your own damn copy! I will say that what they spoke of makes perfect sense. We have all heard the argument from meat-eaters (myself included) that we are "designed" to eat meat. But are we? One of the arguments in Skinny Bitch was that carnivorous animals in the wild are in fact, designed to eat meat because they are physically designed to hunt, catch, kill, eat and digest meat. Claws, fangs and other attributes allow for this. Another thing to point out that we all learn from watching those documentaries about wild animals is they never kill or eat more than they need to survive. When was the last time you saw a show about lions who killed like, 10 zebras at once, grazed on one or two and then said "Shit, Mufasa, I'm stuffed. I can't eat another bite. " and then walked away leaving all those extra carcasses there to rot? That's because you DON'T see that. Now consider this: we as humans do NOT have fangs or claws. We have square, blunt teeth and flimsy, wimpy fingernails (this is another factoid pointed out by those potty mouthed beauties who penned Skinny Bitch). Does that sound like a design for hunting, catching, and killing meat? Also, our digestive systems aren't designed like a wild animals...they break down the meat quickly. Our systems passes the meat far more slowly. So think about it. That juicy veal cutlet you had (from a poor baby cow, ripped from it's mother's teats, to be boxed in a closet then slaughtered cruelly...sorry, but reality sucks, folks) you enjoyed last night at that snooty, posh restaurant is still sitting in your digestive tract. Rotting. Putrefying. Mmmm, appetizin', ain't it? NOT. This aside, the treatment these animals endures on factory farms and slaughterhouses is abhorrent. Would you treat your dog or your cat like that? Course not! Don't argue that "we don't eat dogs or cats in this country". No, we don't. But why not? What makes them exempt from consumption and places them above cows, chickens, pigs and fish? Hrm? No answer to that? What? They don't feel fear? Or pain? Man, I would love to turn your ass into a cow or pig and see how you feel when they ship your ass off to a slaughterhouse and come at you with a hook or a club or a prod. Pfft! Let's not even get me started on the WASTE! We, as Americans, are wasteful, greedy beings! Our portions are enormous and therefore the demand for more meat means more animals are being slaughtered for our consumption and ultimately dying all because of our wasteful ways. Bogus.
OK, so I'm stepping off my soap box for a moment, kids. Fear not. I didn't come here to preach. But then if I want to, I will. After all, no one is holding a gun to your head and making you read my blog. Nor is anyone forcing you to do what I do. It's my blog, and I'll bitch if I want to! LOL Seriously though, this has all given me some serious "food for thought" and is inspiring me to make changes for the better. Can I help it if I want to share the wisdom? As I begin on this journey and strut, stumble and skip down this path I intend to share my experiences with you, right here. So tune in again, if you dare.
I dare you.
I've begun to realize that lately, the look, feel and taste of meat is no longer as appealing to me as it once was. It could be that I still have not bounced back fully from a violent stomach virus I had recently which has tampered with my appetite. However, I prefer to believe it stems from the fact that eating meat makes me feel (and ultimately, look) like shit. I've read the research, seen the horrifying PETA videos that leave me sobbing - literally sobbing! - over the treatment of those animals. I've also read a book (just in the last two days) entitled "Skinny Bitch" which had some eye-opening facts to share. I won't rehash all of those facts here. Go out and buy your own damn copy! I will say that what they spoke of makes perfect sense. We have all heard the argument from meat-eaters (myself included) that we are "designed" to eat meat. But are we? One of the arguments in Skinny Bitch was that carnivorous animals in the wild are in fact, designed to eat meat because they are physically designed to hunt, catch, kill, eat and digest meat. Claws, fangs and other attributes allow for this. Another thing to point out that we all learn from watching those documentaries about wild animals is they never kill or eat more than they need to survive. When was the last time you saw a show about lions who killed like, 10 zebras at once, grazed on one or two and then said "Shit, Mufasa, I'm stuffed. I can't eat another bite. " and then walked away leaving all those extra carcasses there to rot? That's because you DON'T see that. Now consider this: we as humans do NOT have fangs or claws. We have square, blunt teeth and flimsy, wimpy fingernails (this is another factoid pointed out by those potty mouthed beauties who penned Skinny Bitch). Does that sound like a design for hunting, catching, and killing meat? Also, our digestive systems aren't designed like a wild animals...they break down the meat quickly. Our systems passes the meat far more slowly. So think about it. That juicy veal cutlet you had (from a poor baby cow, ripped from it's mother's teats, to be boxed in a closet then slaughtered cruelly...sorry, but reality sucks, folks) you enjoyed last night at that snooty, posh restaurant is still sitting in your digestive tract. Rotting. Putrefying. Mmmm, appetizin', ain't it? NOT. This aside, the treatment these animals endures on factory farms and slaughterhouses is abhorrent. Would you treat your dog or your cat like that? Course not! Don't argue that "we don't eat dogs or cats in this country". No, we don't. But why not? What makes them exempt from consumption and places them above cows, chickens, pigs and fish? Hrm? No answer to that? What? They don't feel fear? Or pain? Man, I would love to turn your ass into a cow or pig and see how you feel when they ship your ass off to a slaughterhouse and come at you with a hook or a club or a prod. Pfft! Let's not even get me started on the WASTE! We, as Americans, are wasteful, greedy beings! Our portions are enormous and therefore the demand for more meat means more animals are being slaughtered for our consumption and ultimately dying all because of our wasteful ways. Bogus.
OK, so I'm stepping off my soap box for a moment, kids. Fear not. I didn't come here to preach. But then if I want to, I will. After all, no one is holding a gun to your head and making you read my blog. Nor is anyone forcing you to do what I do. It's my blog, and I'll bitch if I want to! LOL Seriously though, this has all given me some serious "food for thought" and is inspiring me to make changes for the better. Can I help it if I want to share the wisdom? As I begin on this journey and strut, stumble and skip down this path I intend to share my experiences with you, right here. So tune in again, if you dare.
I dare you.
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