How to be Vegetarian

Nine years ago this fall, I took a trip to India with my good friend, Laura. We arrived to a land which had quite a lot of errant trash scattered about the streets and hillsides, as well as chickens running around who also appeared to be eating up that trash. It didn't take a lot of deep thinking to decide that maybe it was best to stick with the non-chicken, vegetarian plan. For three weeks, I didn't touch meat. It wasn't hard. In India, about 50% of the population is vegetarian so we were in good company.

When I returned to the States, I didn't have a particular plan to stay vegetarian, but at the time was dating a guy who was vegetarian for mostly ethical reasons. He fed me tasty meat-free food like roasted beets with goat cheese, marcona almonds, and more. After a while, I decided to try out the vegetarian lifestyle. He left the picture but continues to have an impact on me.

I'd never been a big meat eater, so it was a fairly natural transition. Years of being a student with limited funds meant that meat was low on the totem pole of affordable foods. I'd always been not very fond of the texture/gristle, not so good at cooking it, and not keen on handling raw meat.

My early years, I spent a lot of time with fancy vegetarian cookbooks making things that took a long time, ingredients and caused a fair amount of digestive distress (gas!). It was not until I moved overseas that I learned to simplify my diet for the better all around. I no longer include much beans, tempeh, or heavy grains as dietary staples, but instead feature vegetables as the main course.

Rather than complicated recipes, I rely on salad in the summer (mostly arugula, mixed greens, spinach) and cooked veggies (mostly broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, asparagus) in the winter. Or winter salads, which means cook some veggies and throw them on a bed of cold greens and drizzle with pumpkin seed oil or cheese, and you have a meal. Most days I have an apple and some nuts as well. Decaf coffee with a tiny splash of half & half is how we start our day.

I've experimented with veganism but I don't think dropping the small amount of cheese, butter and cream that I consume would be beneficial enough for health reasons to go that route. As well, drawing black and white lines in the sand can make it harder to get through life and enjoy food and social activities, which are something we all should do.

So my nine year anniversary is coming up this month. If you're thinking about going vegetarian, I'd say go for it. And if you don't think you are sure, well just try to be mostly vegetarian. There's nothing wrong with that and you'll still benefit healthwise and help improve animal welfare and the environment.

I personally find it easier to just be vegetarian, and have that particular line drawn. I feel great and as well have completely normal blood work, in case you were wondering - low cholesterol, normal iron, normal cbc, and normal blood sugar/HbA1C.

First Thanksgiving Dinner with Just the Charlies.

Charlie & Charlie stayed home this year with Oatie & Bailey. We knew of some people in town, but didn't have any invitations until the day before. Since we have some hermit tendencies we were pretty happy not to have to decide what to do. We thought it would be nice to have our own quiet holiday. Also, we've not had a lot of time alone in our two years together, so when we do, we treasure it.

Though I've been a vegetarian for about eight years now or so, I've never really been into fake meats. One of the reasons I gave up meat was because I didn't really care for it anyway, among other things, and I was trying to go to a healthier lifestyle, which meant that I didn't want uber-processed foods. Occasionally one must break with your values. A national holiday is a good time.

We'd seen the Tofurky roast in the New Seasons ad on sale and decided it was the year to break out the Tofurky. My mom has a long standing love affair (not) with all things tofu, so I go out of my way to harass her about it, even going as far as sending a Tofurky card in the mail to her last year. (I know she loved it secretly.) We did a little research and discovered that Tofurky is made about 60 miles from Portland, in Hood River, OR. The company was founded in 1980 in Forest Grove, OR (where I went to optometry school), and during the first seven years the founder lived in a tree house to save money. Wow. Those people are real hippies!

The dinner was a joint effort- Justin bought a few small sides at New Seasons (green beans, sweet potatoes, and stuffing, so we wouldn't have too many leftovers), Gluhwein (which being the heavy drinkers that we are, never got around to opening) and beeswax candles for the table, as well as a beautiful cheese ball (which we also didn't get to eat until today but was super tasty). I made the mashed potatoes (had no idea three russet potatoes made so much!), some vegetarian gravy (super yummy, also a first time), a all-organic, natural pumpkin pie and homemade crust (thank god I got the Grandma Agnes pie-crust gene), and some Light Rolls (which are a southern thing, but basically light and buttery dinner rolls). Surprisingly we didn't have any fails. I rarely use recipes and often screw things up a bit, so this was pretty great.

Justin set the table and we arranged the dishes for photos and timer pictures and then sat down to our little meal. It was quiet and peaceful and really lovely. The two dogs were treated with tastes of almost everything (even the pie) and I think enjoyed the day too. Earlier, I'd taken them for a walk in the park, so no one gained any weight (I hope).

 

This year, I'm very thankful for a lot of things- mostly having a good family and my Charlie by my side. I'm thankful he didn't give up on me when he could've (when I ran off to Oregon) and thankful that we've been having such a nice and happy life. He has a really large calming effect on me, which is not so common. We get along and have so much in common and meander through life at about the same pace. We've found peace and tranquility in Oregon again and things are moving in the right direction. I'm thankful to have a job, and to have been lucky enough to find work whenever I needed it. I'm thankful that I was able to be a gypsy for five years and return to home with Justin, coming full circle. We are thankful for everything we have, and try not to take it for granted.

It's getting more mainstream.

"Progress not perfection," states Kathy Freston in a Vanity Fair interview this month regarding transitioning away from animal products. She changed from a southern fried-chicken girl, to a vegan. She recalled, "Once I missed a tunafish sandwich with mayo on toasted wheat bread more than anything. Six months after I went vegan, I snuck into a deli and took one home. And, of course it wasn't nearly as good as I fantasized. It tasted well, fishy." I've had similar experiences.

Vegan was formerly a dirty word, bringing to mind extreme outliers who eschewed all animal products, but lately, I've seen it popping up in more and more places. It's slowing seeping into society as a practical way to honor life. I am not personally strict vegan, but I am mostly vegan, and if I can chose for not harming animals, that is the choice I try to make. The author sums it up at the end by saying, "It seems to me now that the case for eating meat is about as convincing as the old arguments in favor of smoking." He stopped eating meat after the interview and reading The China Study.


Full article: The Vegan Monologues by John Heilpern
The China Study

The Modern Vegetarian Kitchen

I don't normally put much out here on cooking, being the single person who's slightly on the lazy side when flying solo in the kitchen. But since I've been in Germany, I ordered this cookbook, which is pure delight for someone who's interested in, or committed to, vegetarianism. I've made enough recipes now to know they actually turn out, taste good, and are straight-forward, even including prep tips and such. I've cooked for years, and yet sometimes things like the proper way to brown mushrooms, or slow cooking onions and garlic, or how to clean and chop leeks, were things that I appreciated being noted in this book and part of the reason the recipes turn out so good. He also gives options to create food vegan or vegetarian. And the ingredients are readily available, even here in Bavaria, Germany.

I'm a committed vegetarian, on my sixth official year. Prior to the officialness, I was mostly vegetarian anyway, and it wasn't a big departure from my normal train of thought to embrace the realm completely. As I've ventured further down this road, I've read many a quote which support my thoughts. Most recently:

"Once I would have ordered bacon or sausage for this meal, but not lately. The more I had come to believe in the indestructibility of life, the less I wanted to be a part of even illusory killings. If one pig in a million might have a chance for a contemplative lifetime instead of being skrockled up for my breakfast, it was worth swearing off meat. Hot lemon pie, any day." - Richard Bach (not that I agree with lemon pie for breakfast...)

It's not my nature to force my ideas onto other people. I choose to quietly follow my values for the most part, influencing by example, rather than discussion. Choosing vegetarianism initially involved intense justification for my choices, not for the faint of heart. But in the last few years, I've noticed the acceptance from my family for my choices, and positive changes in their views and their own food choices. I do believe in my heart that not eating animals is the kindest way to life and that's really how I approach my life here on this earth.

http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Vegetarian-Kitchen-Peter-Berley/dp/0060392959 Average rating: 5/5 stars

On going semi-veg: failure.

I recently decided that I'd try to switch to mostly (rather than strict) vegetarian. This was partly because I'm not a black and white person and also because I didn't want to flummox people when I came to visit. So I've had some fish and some meat recently. It's not going great. Suffice it to say, my digestive tract doesn't like me.


Then I read the NY Times today: E.Coli shows flaws in ground beef inspection. Watching the cows being hosed down prior to slaughter along with the interview of Stephanie who ended up paralyzed from tainted beef, didn't do anything to help me move away from vegetarianism. It's not the fear of having an e.coli infection myself, it's more of the actual process of getting meat to the table- the lack of regulation in the food industry and the treatment of the animals.

The last piece is that Carrie and I watched Food, Inc today at my favorite movie theater in the whole world, the Laurelhurst. The movie investigates the changes in the food industry in the last fifty years, the changing role of farmers and generally makes you think. It's not anything new to me, but if you haven't pondered where your meal is coming from lately, it's worth a watch.

I think I'll continue to be vegetarian, though lax it a little, so if I'm somewhere where there's meat being served, I won't alert my hosts of my dietary preferences, but I probably won't be eating much meat anytime soon.

I'm sitting here freezing in my office. (Do they have the a/c on or do I have circulation problems?) I've started a new assignment given by one of my friends (Fiona from Edmonton) to take a picture every day. I figured I might not do it if I wasn't being held accountable in some way, so I've started a very straight forward photo blog. Yes, a second blog. It matters in no way if anyone sees it, rather it forces me to remember to take a picture. Day 5 and I am liking it. What I See

Last night I went to an animal rights movie. I have an aversion to those things, but I thought I would check it out. I can't see how I'd be able to turn back from veganism. I started out vegetarian because I thought that it was healthier and I really didn't like meat anyway. The more I read about it, the more it seems a good choice. The more I know animals, the less I want to eat them. I really want to be their friends. I think about the horses who were posing for me in the south island when I was talking to them and the cute lambs and then sweet Oatie and Blackie. I can't eat them. It's not even a question anymore.

Oh God, am I becoming a bigger hippie, earth-lover by living over here? It seems so. I thought so last weekend when I was in the south island. How much I love the trees. The water. Being in nature. Simplicity.

I've now passed the halfway mark for New Zealand, which something to contemplate as well. I can't say that I don't like it here. I'm finally starting to understand the country and the people. They are more reserved initially, but quite authentic actually- which can come across negatively, but when I step back, they're quite nice all around.

I also realised that I don't feel any rush to return to the USA. I don't even know what will happen when this is all done. I'm such a planner in life that I feel like I should know what's around the next bend, so I can start making lists and checking them off. But there's a freedom in just jumping in and seeing where you land. I guess that's what I'm doing.

Something to contemplate

Last night I came across the UN Food and Agricultural Organization report and it seemed worthy to share here.



Regarding the production of greenhouse gases:
18% are a result of animal-based agriculture
13.5% are a result of ALL forms of transportation combined

(It was noted that going vegetarian has more of an environmental impact than switching to a Pruis or simiar car.)

We might consider reduced dependence on animal products to help stop global warming. Even just reducing meat consumption a few times a week will make a difference.

Other reasons for adopting a vegetarian lifestyle include compassion for animals and improved health.