- People who have gotten to know me since I became vegan (coworkers and grad students) are much more accepting and supportive of it than people I have known all my life. The people who knew me in my chicken and cheese loving days seem to think it is a phase rather than the lifestyle change that it really is.
- With that said I have found great support in my mother-in-law who has sent me some exceptional cookbooks, as well as a vegan nutrition guide that I am constantly referencing.
- People are brainwashed by our commercial food culture. I lent Michael Pollan's In Defense of Food to a coworker and she told me "I'm sort of liking that propaganda book you gave me." She doesn't realize that the book is full of common sense and it is government subsidized meat, egg, and milk industries that are pumping out the propaganda.
- I love talking about veganism, animal rights, and health to anyone who will listen. We sell a book at work called The Big Vegan Cookbook and I had the best conversation with a customer about it the other day. She ended the conversation with "I don't really ever get to talk to anyone about this, thank you!"
- That Big Vegan Cookbook? We've sold 4 copies since Monday. Yes, I have kept a mental tally. AND my manager ordered copies of my favorite cookbook, The Veganomicon, on my recommendation. Obviously vegan books sell!
- I have the most interesting problem while getting dressed: everything is too big. A skirt that I've had since 2005, that used to be a squidge tight and made it a little difficult to breath, now hangs at my hips. So I weighed myself. Since August I have lost approximately 10 pounds.
- I work a full 8 hour day. Some of my coworkers guzzle coffee to keep going, but I end the day still so full of energy that I hit of the gym. I have only been working out since the end of December and since it has been sporadic (a whole week off because of my back twinge) I reason that my weight loss has to do with my diet.
- Vegan baking is my new passion. I plan to make mini pies tomorrow and blueberry scones for Saturday. Yum. Nothing is better than a homemade baked good.
7 comments:
I just looked at Forks Over Knives. The name sounded vaguely familiar, but I haven't seen it. The kindle edition of the book is only $4.99, so I think I may read it! Thanks for the recommendation.
I think it's hilarious and wonderful that you apparently take such little notice of your weight that you just realized one day that you've lost 10 pounds in a few months! Though I do find that I obsess much less about my body's appearance when I'm doing great things for it, so it kind of makes sense.
I've been looking up homemade recipes for ketchup, mayo, and veggie stock (which I know you blogged about some time ago!) and I'm excited to commit to trading in the new recipes for the stuff currently in my fridge/pantry (which I've decided to rally through instead of tossing out & immediately replacing, for economy & practicality and my hatred of waste)
Have I mentioned lately that I love your blog? I do! And thank you for being one of my very tiny handful of readers & commenters on mine!
Ryan bought me an adorable set of greeting cards for my birthday and they totally remind me of you. I will have to send one your way soon.
Ciao!!
Have you ever gone down the rabbit hole of ex-vegan blogs/interviews? It's really interesting to read, but super frustrating (and I'm not even vegan). It makes me happy to read that you're feeling so happy with your lifestyle!
I was a true vegetarian for 11 years and found that my family was extremely hostile to the decision as were long-term friends. You'd have thought I had decided to stab myself in the face! The conversations we had never really seemed to go anywhere. I found that over time the decision has to be made on your own. You can lead the camel to water, but you can't make him drink I suppose! I found often that the best thing to do was let them go about their eating habits as long as they did not give me a hard time about mine. If by chance they were curious about finding out more about factory farming I would know where to guide them with lots of resources.
Interestingly enough it was Pollan's Ominvore's Dilemma that got me eating some meat & fish in the last year or so. I now will eat these things occasionally if I know where they come from, their practices etc. (local or wild). I think Pollan makes a good point in the book about the danger of going down the nutrition route, and also what it means for our food culture. Especially in places where some of these cultures are dying thanks to big industry, factory farms and chain restaurants.
PS: Have you looked at any of Fran Costigan's vegan baking books? I have found her recipes are tried & true & sooo delicious!
You do look way amazing lately, and I think it's the shed pounds but also this general healthy glow you have! Your skin gorgeous and your baked treats? I'm assuming delicious. Such an inspiration!
I don't know if I could comit to the whole thing just yet, but I have been eating more vegn or at least vegetarian meals lately and yes yes yes! I notice so much more energy and so much mor mental alertness!
Yay for being vegan! You rock :) I've been vegan for about 12 years now and it will just become second nature to you. Plus you're helping animals and getting healthy. What could be better?
I've never understood the hostility people have toward vegetarians and vegans. It makes no sense to me. I'm happy that you're finding support! And, even though I'm not vegetarian/vegan, I recognize the food industry's propaganda and try to make more conscious food decisions.
Baking! Do share how your weekend baking adventures turned out. I want to bake something this weekend, but I don't know what yet...
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