Jubilation

This is a time where I feel history happening right as I live. It is an incredible feeling. I will never forget it.



Picture by superspade.

Vegans of Color Postings

While I haven't been posting here, I've posted at Vegans of Color. Check it out:

Cattle, Mavericks, and McCain and why that campaign ain't got a thing to do with real mavericks.

Black Dog Syndrome on the plight black dogs (and cats) face in shelters.

I've cooked up a storm lately, baking yummy apple cobbler (from The Joy of Vegan Baking) and toothsome tofu nuggets (from You Won't Believe It's Vegan, my new favorite cookbook), maple roasted yams and garlicky kale. But I'm too much of a hungry hoarder to ever take pictures. Plus, my camera sucks.

Jivamukti Yoga and Veganism

In light of what I posted on Thursday, the Hip Tranquil Chick podcast episode I'm listening to now is perfect because it's a wonderful marriage between yoga and veganism. It's an interview with Sharon Gannon, co-creator of the Jivamukti method of yoga. This method "emphasizes vinyasa, scriptural study, devotion, prayer, music, chanting and meditation as well as animal rights, veganism, environmentalism and political activism."

I'm listening to it now and can't wait to read more about this method and go to yoga tonight. I am feeling very tightly wound and anxious today so I really need it. Last night, I had an upsetting conversation with Brian. My chest felt like it was balled up into tiny knots, which is how I normally feel, and I didn't know what to do with that feeling. Not just in that moment but with the rest of my life. Worrying into the future is always a surefire way to get nice and calm so instead I rolled out my mat while Luckie was sitting outside in the yard and did some heart openers: warrior poses, dolphin pose instead of downward dog because of my messed-up wrists (my yoga teacher says dolphin is actually harder but tell that to my dysfunctional wrists), child's pose, bridge pose, cobra and final relaxation. And it's crazy, but I did feel my chest unwind. I felt relaxed. I went to sleep without having to turn on the TV first.

For more information:
Scroll down to January 13, 2008 for the Hip Tranquil Chick shownotes on this episode
Jivamukti Yoga School

Renewal

A few weeks ago, I had a craving for salmon teriyaki, a meal I occassionally enjoyed buying from a restaurant around my job. I didn't give into this craving but for a few moments throughout the day, I thought, "Hmmm, salmon sounds really good right now." I knew I wasn't going to eat it but I kept thinking about it.

Since then, every once in a while, the thought pops into my head, "I wonder if I'll ever eat meat again," or "Cheese. It does taste good." I don't do anything with the thoughts. I just notice them. They go away. I'm vegan now and, unless I'm at a nonvegan restaurant (like I think I may have to go to tomorrow for work and the damn place doesn't even have a web listing on a search engine, let alone a web site for me to peruse), I do not find it in the least bit difficult to be vegan. Still, 27-plus years of eating animals and their by-products can still be slightly formidable in the face of just months of vegetarianism and veganism.

In the last week or so, I've been obsessively listening to the Hip Tranquil Chick podcast and loving it. Totally getting my yoga on, journaling, really focusing on me, so much so that I did yoga poses while Brian painted inside my mother's house (I did help, too; I just took some yoga breaks!). This is in contrast to what I've been focusing on in the past year, which has mainly been Brian and veganism. At work, I usually listened to Food for Thought, Vegan Freak Radio, Animal Voices, and others. I spent a majority of my waking hours thinking about animals and food. I'm not saying getting into yoga and other subjects is making me want to eat salmon. Yoga has that whole ahimsa thing going for it, so delving into yoga only strengthens my commitment to veganism. What I am saying is, I took a little break from Hip Tranquil Chick today and listened to the latest Vegan Freak and Food for Thought episodes. I saw the picture in the upper left hand corner of this post with the shownotes for the latest Animal Voices episode on Farm Sanctuary's pig rescue and almost started crying. I knew the answer to the question, "I wonder if I'll ever eat meat again?" No. I won't eat animals again. Not as long as my eyes, ears, head, and heart are open. Since veganism is still new to me and still something I don't automatically share with people, I still need to do work to reinforce my dedication to and practice of it.

Links to Discussions on Veganism and Animal Rights

I am unable to post now due to work responsibilities, Luckie's continuing health issues, and my RSI. But I have been keeping my eyes and ears open to vegan happenings on the internets and wanted to share some interesting links I've come across in the last week or so:

* "So the point i am getting at is that we need to be careful not to view ourselves, vegans, as standing upon an ethical pedestal. Just because we don’t consume animal products does not give us moral high ground. If we wish veganism as a movement to grow, then veganism must become informed by all movements for justice, compassion, and non-violence. Rather than limiting ourselves to non-humyn animal suffering, we must also critically approach ability, gender, class, race, age, size, sexuality, and other categorizations that have been used to create violent hierarchies. To do this, we must put a great deal of effort on our own persynal growth and awareness." from "Getting to the Core Principles of Veganism" by vegankid.

* A discussion on the convergence of animals, work and class on this Animal Voices interview with Jason Hribal entitled, "Animals Are Part of the Working Class."

* Vegan and animal abolitionist scholar Gary Francione on VeganFreak Radio, parts 1 and 2.

* I had the pleasure of listening to and briefly speaking with lauren Ornelas at the Let Live Conference in Portland when Brian and I were there a few weeks ago. I want to write about that experience here and on Vegans of Color but until then, The Food Empowerment Project is one lauren Ornelas' endeavors. Here's an interview with her from Satya magazine.

* On a more lighthearted note, I just ordered this adorable passport case from the tinymeat shop on etsy. I love bears (and Brian thinks I am a bear...one of those sillysecretcouplesthings) and the case pictures a bear who travels. That is so me.

37 Wolves and Counting Murdered

From the NRDC Action Fund:

A mere 30 days after the Bush Administration stripped Yellowstone's wolves of their Endangered Species protection, the Northern Rockies have been turned into a killing field.

Thirty-seven wolves are already dead. Hundreds more are being targeted by Wyoming, Idaho and Montana, which have waited years for this chance to put their plans for extermination into action...

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) -- and 11 other groups -- filed suit this week in federal court to stop the killing and restore the wolf's desperately needed Endangered Species protection.The court action comes not a moment too soon. Eyewitness reports of the latest wolf-killing rampage have been heartbreaking to people all over the world who care about wildlife.

On the very day that these wolves lost their Endangered Species protection, a crippled wolf named "Limpy," one of the most photographed wolves in Yellowstone's famous Druid Peak pack, was shot to death when he ventured outside the park.

Another wolf was stalked for over 35 miles by snowmobile before being overtaken and shot.

Another was found dead on the side of the highway, his still-warm body torn apart by bullets. And, tragically, at least four female wolves have been killed just prior to the denning season, which could doom some of the region's wolf pups...

You can help by telling Congress to ban the poisoning of gray wolves and other wildlife.

Inspiring Change

I really needed to read the post, "You Can Do It. Really, You Can," on Elaine Vigneault's awesome blog that acknowledges how challenging it can be for many people to stop consuming animal products:

Every now and then I have one of those moments where I realize what it must be like for meat-eaters to go vegetarian or vegan. The most recent moment was when I read Mary Martin’s suggestion a week ago:

Stop buying products made with corn. You may have already done that. I’d also add rice to the list of products not to buy. Even wheat."

My first reaction was: WHAT!? I CAN’T DO THAT!

I felt like she was telling me to cut out half my diet. What the hell would I eat...

And then I realized that’s what it feels like to meat-eaters when someone suggests they go vegetarian or vegan...

You can do it. Really, you can. It will get easier the longer you do it. There are just two ways to transform your diet: quickly or slowly. It’s your choice. Do whichever feels comfortable to you.

As I said in the comments to this post, I've come along way. I've gone from eating meat every day of my life--sometimes several times a day--to not touching the stuff and I've maintained that way of life for over a year. I've gone from saying, "I'll never be vegan. Need cheese too much," to saying, "OK, I really want to do this because it's right for me," and envisioning what I'd be like as a vegan. From saying, "Well, maybe I'll buy leather shoes because I don't live near Moo Shoes," to returning a pair of unworn, just purchased leather flats because, on second thought, the idea of wearing newly bought dead animal just out of convenience seemed unthinkable.

Lately I've really been struggling with whether or not I could be vegan, feeling like I'm missing some chromosome other vegans seem to have. Brian and I went into a fancy food shop in Princeton this past weekend and, though I didn't even glance at the meat counter and found its contents tragic, I looked longingly at all the pastries full of butter, eggs, and cheese. I felt self-pity at the thought of never being able to eat a grilled cheese sandwich or putting cow's milk in my Earl Grey tea again. But I know that there's an abundance of food for me to eat that doesn't involve animals suffering. I know that almost all the great changes in my life have taken time, dedication, and focus. I know that I usually get what I want and do what I feel is right in my heart. I may meander in getting to where I know I want to be. But I know I'll do it and look back and remember when I was scared and just smile, knowing there wasn't much to fear after all.

Mutual Menu is giving away one copy of Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. To enter to win and for more details, please leave one comment here.

Mutable Menu

I saw pigs in a truck while driving to work this morning.

I see many trucks on my commute along I-287 every morning and afternoon. I normally don’t check the trucks out unless one of them is obnoxiously and dangerously cutting off cars that are a fifth of their size, which happens often enough. The sides of the trucks are usually emblazoned with company logos for supermarkets, soda, moving companies.

The body of this truck carrying pigs had no logos, just metal open slates for air. I knew there were animals in there and peered to see what kind. At first, I could only see the walls of the truck, nothing else. As I got right beside it and took a better look, I saw the backs and tops of heads of pigs. Immediately my stomach dropped and I stopped looking.

For a few moments, I imagined what would happen if I followed the truck and tried to stop whatever was going to happen. The pigs were pretty big so I guess they were going to a slaughterhouse. I thought about just tailing the truck to wherever it was off to and pleading (screaming and crying) with the driver to let me have them. This seemed impossible for a number of reasons. One, I doubt any business person and animal-owner would hand over their property to me and I wouldn’t be able to afford what a truck full of live pigs probably costs (although I would have no problem being able to pay for the pigs once they are turned into ham, bacon and chops; I’m pretty sure pigs are cheaper when they’re dead). Also, who knows where the truck would end up? I’m already late on my way to work. Finally, what good would it do? Let’s say the truck and I end up in some alternate universe where my hysterics persuades all interested parties to hand over the pigs to me. Then what? I take them home? The dog has 100 new siblings?

I did what was practical, convenient and less painful. I drove way past the truck and went to work. I thought about how there didn’t seem to be that many pigs in that one truck given how much meat I see in a supermarket. I started thinking about how many trucks have to travel everyday just to fill up the Stop and Shop in my neighborhood, let alone all over the world. It seemed incomprehensible, the number of animals and miles. I thought about how this is the first time in my life I’ve seen pigs in a truck. I’ve seen horses before but never pigs or cows or chickens or sheep. The animals being transported and killed are truly invisible but once they are dead, processed and package, we can’t escape it. We don’t have to because it’s ok once they are in the refrigerated section. Just another product to pick up like the cereal and toilet paper.

When I told Brian about my idea for Mutual Menu, I wanted it to be about how vegans, vegetarians and omnivores could happily coexist without anyone’s proverbial feathers being ruffled, no dish being questioned. I’d write about making chicken and tofu using the same recipe or how I was buying all my steak from Whole Foods now because it’s humane. I was so excited and happy! Everyone would get their cake and eat it too. Just as quickly as the blog was up, though, I stopped eating chickens and pigs and cows. Then I stopped eating the fishes. Now it’s been a while since I’ve bought cheese but I’ll still eat it in a restaurant. I once told Brian that maybe we’d have to change the name of the blog if I went vegan because then the menu wouldn’t be so mutual. As soon as I said that, I didn’t need him to point out the huge idea I was missing. I realized which way the mutuality could go. I’d be extending it the animals. I didn’t have to change the name. I’d just change myself.

Mutual Menu is giving away one copy of Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. To enter to win and for more details, please leave one comment here.

Random Fridays: Piglets, Painters, Plasma and More

I know I may be one of the last people on the Internets to have heard about Randy Pausch’s “The Last Lecture,” but better late than never. His lecture was part of a series at Carnegie Mellon Univeristy where members of the university community would share everything they would want to share if it were the last lecture they were ever to give. I finally listened to Dr. Pausch's lecture this week and was definitely moved, not just by the fact that the lecture is among the last Dr. Pausch will give (he is dying of pancreatic cancer), but because I always enjoy learning how people who love their work accomplish that feat.

In life, Dr. Pausch says, you’ve got to decide if you’re a Tigger or an Eeyore. I can relate to melancholy Eeyore more than bouncy, cocky Tigger but I’ve decided that I'm neither. I'm more of a Piglet:

A ‘Very Small Animal’ with a generally timid disposition, he often conquers his
fears and seems to want to be brave…Piglet himself can read and write, at least
well enough for short notes.

In honor of all the piglets, why not sponsor a rescued one at Catskill Animal Sanctuary (CAS)?Being greeted by the pigs when Brian and I first visited last September was one of the highlights of our trip. The pigs were very gracious hosts and allowed us to rub their bellies and coo at their piglets. I loved all the animals there and I pretty much love all animals but I do have a soft spot in my heart for pigs.

A lighthearted blog post I enjoyed this week was on the site, Book A Week with Jen, where one entry explores the long ago and simpler days before Gossip Girl when the Sweet Valley Twins reigned.

This weekend, Brian and I are going to take his mom to the Lee Miller and Frida Kahlo exhibits at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA). I’ve been dying to see the Kahlo exhibit for months and, though I’m not as familiar with Miller's life and work, after reading a bit about her in a Philly paper, I'm excited to see both exhibits. And yes, as I first time visitor to the PMA, I will be running up those steps a la Rocky.

Brian and I are also donating blood. I’d never donated blood before meeting Brian but he is a veteran. I didn’t know my blood type prior to donating and now I know that Brian and I share the same type, A positive (as a co-worker sarcastically remarked when I told him this fact, "How romantic"). It is the type that, according to the diet book, Eat Right for Your Type, means you should be a vegetarian, which, hey, I agree with. Other blood types should be too, though.

There Will Be Typos

Because I really don't have time to post but I do have some stuff to say. Here's a small roundup of enjoyable and edifying links to hopefully whet your appetites as much as they did mine:

One of my favorite blogs, I Blame the Patriarchy (IBTP), has gone vegetarian! "Eating hamburgers and radical feminism are mutually exclusive."

IBTP links to a post on Gary Francione’s blog on the link between a certain faction of postmodern feminism and animal-welfarists. You know, the wink-wink Bust-reading/stripper-admiring kind, of which I was when I was like 19. Oh, and then there's a post on vegan strip clubs . Oy and vey. The hipsters make my head hurt even though I’ll be guiltlessly chomping on their vegan doughnuts when Brian and I head out to Portland, Oregon this June. Also, Brian and I think that only hipsters complain about hipsters...except for us. We complain but are not hipsters. We are thoroughly unhip and way behind the times.

Vive Le Vegan’s Dreena Burton has heaps and heaps of vegan recipes on Canada’s Food Network site. The chocolate raspberry truffle tart with coconut crust (swoon) alone is work a click or two over.

Finally, if you’re in Philly and looking for some tasty fast food, why not hit up the Viva Las Vegans food truck in University City. Actually, I cannot personally vouch for the tastiness of their goods as I have yet to eat there but Brian has. And he likes it.

Federal Agencies Seek Alternatives to Traditional Animal Testing

Here's a little non-food related news but some very good news for animals and advanced science:

A new plan to further reduce, refine and replace the use of animals in research and regulatory testing commonly referred to as the 3Rs was unveiled today at a symposium marking the 10-year anniversary of the Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Validation of Alternative Methods (ICCVAM). The plan identifies priority areas for research, development, translation, and validation activities necessary to achieve regulatory acceptance of alternative test methods. A cornerstone of the federal government's five-year plan is the formation of partnerships with industry and other national and international stakeholders to achieve measurable progress...

Traditionally, chemicals, consumer products, medical devices and new drugs are tested on animals to predict toxicity on humans, but scientists, like those involved in ICCVAM, are working to promote the development and validation of alternative test methods. Alternative test methods are those that accomplish one or more of the 3Rs of reducing the number of animals used in testing, or refining procedures so animals experience less pain and distress, or replacing animals with non-animal systems.

William Stokes, D.V.M., director of NICEATM, the NTP office at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) that administers ICCVAM, highlighted some of the progress made since ICCVAM was formed, including the fact that ICCVAM has evaluated more than 185 test methods since its inception in 1997. Many of these methods need further development and validation before they are ready for regulatory consideration. However, several are now in widespread use around the world for routine safety testing, resulting in notable reduction and refinement of animal use. "We've made great progress in the past decade, and with the help of our partners we can do even more to increase the pace of developing and introducing alternative methods."

You can read the entire National Institutes of Health press release here.

My Food Resolutions for 2008

One of its main tenets of Brazen Careerist's latest post on making resolutions you'll keep is that you should make only one or two goals. As someone who has made only one resolution that I've ever actually kept (vowing to lose weight January 8, 2005, doing so, and then keeping most of it for those three years), I've learned that a goal is not unlike writing an outline for a school paper: break down one idea into smaller, manageable parts. My overall culinary aim this year is to eat consciously, to really think about what I eat. Not obsess or create an eating disorder but to, as often as possible, think about if what I'm eating is what I want and if it supports my beliefs. To that end, here we go:


1. Learn how to grow a container garden
I don't know what happened this New Year's Eve but while my mother and stepfather were out partying (with silly string, no less) until 3 AM, Brian and I spent the evening making and eating hot-sauced glazed tempeh (recipe courtesy of Veganomicon), roasted sweet potatoes, and too-bitter rappini; doing a crossword puzzle; watching an episode of My So-Called Life; and then setting the alarm for 11:30 PM so we wouldn't miss the ball drop at midnight. The next day, I spent a few hours at Barnes and Noble looking through gardening books and decided that, this year, I really want to grow a plant of some sort without killing it in a few weeks. I'm very much settling into my slide into domestic middle-age. Anyways, I don't want to spend $4 for a bag of out-of-season sugar snap peas anymore. And I'm sick of buying fresh parsley and only using a few sprigs of it. With the world as crazy as it is, peak oil and all that stuff, I'd better learn to grow at least some of what I eat.


2. Eat more fruit (and a little dark chocolate in moderation) and less refined, processed sweets
Before I started Weight Watchers in 2005, my downfall was greasy Chinese takeout and lots of it. I enjoyed sweets but never gorged on them. Then after dieting for a while, my sweet tooth grew. Most of the extra weight I've put on this last year is due to my need for two desserts: one after lunch and one after dinner. I'm vowing to eat more fruit throughout the day and substituting my after lunch treat with fruit and if I want to be really decadent, maybe some dried mango (yum).

3. Eat out less and cook at home more
The rest of my weight gain is due to weekends of greasy vegan Chinese takeout, not bringing my lunch to work and eating out, or bringing an Amy's Organic frozen meal or another paltry serving of food to work and supplementing it with vending machine goodies. A main culprit of eating out more is not because I have an aversion to cooking but my lack of sleep and poor menu planning. To make sure I have the energy to cook at night, I'm aiming to go to bed just an hour earlier so I am less tired and have more energy and time to devote to properly planning what I'll eat all week.


4. Eat less cheese
This gives me no pleasure but it is an attempt at virtue. Do it for the cows. Besides, cheese has no nutritional value whatsoever, unlike eggs and fish (says the pesceovotarian). Any calcium and protein in cheese is negated by all the fat. Oh, the luscious fat. I'm no monk though so I think I'll start by just eating less of it. Rather than buying grocery store cheese every week and melting it on anything edible, I'll save my cheese indulgence for the really good stuff, the stuff that isn't neon and melted.


5. Eat more beans
Listen to the recent Food for Thought podcast on beans (the episode from December 14, 2007). Beans are a staple in many culinary traditions, including the Puerto Rican one I come from. As a child, I wasn't a fan of beans. I would only eat pigeon peas, or gandules, which my grandmother would make for me. Now there isn't a bean I won't eat. I'm particularly fond of pink beans, black beans, chickpeas, and cannellini beans . Canned or fresh, I'm going to make an effort to eat beans everyday. There's really no reason not to since canned beans are readily available, priced right and just a can opener away. My lunch salad today was elevated with the addition of chickpeas with sauteed onions (recipe below). And I'm not hungry nearly three hours later, miracle of miracles.

6. Cook and more soups and chilis
I'll concentrate on making soups, chilis, rice and beans and other large servings of beans, grains, and veggies that can go for a few days. If it tastes good, I don't mind eating the same thing three days in a row but I'll keep on hand some avocado, nuts, different sauces, already cooked tofu, an egg, etc. to keep things interesting for lunch and dinner.

7. Make my own granola and trail mix bars
This might be one of those pipe dream resolutions. I may just continue to buy Clif Nectar bars. But considering bars are just some grains, nuts and dried fruit binded together with some sticky syrupy sugar, it would be much cheaper to make it. If I get around to it, I can follow this recipe from Mother Earth Living.


8. Sign up for community-supported agriculture
With Philly's own Greens Grow right in Brian's neighborhood, we have no excuse not to buy shares in a local farm and pick up weekly boxes of fresh produce. Here's more information on their CSA.

Quick Chicks with Onions (vegan)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
¼ medium yellow onion, diced
1 can (15 ounces) organic chickpeas, drained and rinsed
sprinklings of the following spices to taste:
ground cumin
ground cayenne pepper
dried Italian seasoning
salt
freshly ground pepper

Heat olive oil in small saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and sauté until translucent and just slightly browned—about five minutes. Add chickpeas, cumin, cayenne pepper, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Stir well, cook for another 5 minutes or so (until chickpeas start to pop open) and taste and adjust seasonings to your liking as you go along. I like a lot of cumin and a generous dose of cayenne for flavor, bite, and a nice orange tinge. Chill and serve over salad or eat immediately.

Happy and Dead Animals!

I know we're all friendly and kumbaya here. We want to include everyone and all that crap. I understand that not everyone can or even wants to give up eating animals. Lord knows I still eat, and therefore murder, fish (mostly salmon and shrimp). And I torture cows with my cheese addiction. And damn if I don't miss eating bacon. But this is just ridiculous. Emphasis my own but not the exclamation point at the end of the statement. They actually added that all by themselves (!):

Take a look around Philip and Dorcas Horst Landis's sustainability-focused farm. Visit their pasture-raised turkeys and chickens, grass-fed cows and lambs, and pastured pigs and learn about the benefits of a grass-based diet to animal health and happiness. As a special treat, our picnic lunch will include grilled burgers from their own cows!
From the White Dog Cafe Foundation.

'Cause, ya know, nothing makes a cow happier than being hung and slit open from top to bottom and then churned through a grinder. I mean, I'd take that over a bubble bath anyday!

Let's just get real here. If you're going to eat meat, it makes you, the human, happy. Not the confined, stunned (if they're "lucky"), slit open, and churned animal.

I'm going to make some vegan German apple cake for Brian and me this weekend and if my wonky camera decides to work, perhaps you'll even see it in its autumnal glory. And that will make us all happy...and fatter.

The Nature of the Beast

One of my favorite sayings as a vegan and angsty quasi-pacifist living in a city with an intolerably high murder rate is Kill two humans with one bullet. It's my cynical little spin on the equally deranged Kill two birds with one stone. I've been noticing lately just how many of these types of cliches have influenced my adult vernacular, especially as they relate to the most basic of human and planetary ethics and traits. There are the diet-influenced sayings like You are what you eat and An apple a day keeps the doctor away. Then there are all those that try to capture the singular characteristics of our animal kingdom. Here are a few examples: It's the nature of the beast; Birds of a feather flock together; Don't put the cart before the horse; Don't count your eggs before they're hatched; Don't put all your eggs in one basket; or, my favorite, Happy as a clam (which---up until recently---I always thought was Happy as a clown, since clowns seem like much more jubilant folk than clams).

Like most couples, friends, neighbors, family members, or colleagues who share a good portion of their lives together, Joselle and I frequently adopt each other's sayings and thoughts. Some are cliche; some are just plain malicious; and others are suprisingly profound. I've taken to Joselle's This is a slow boat to China when I think about how far off a non-exploitative, animal-friendly world really seems---despite our modern, sophisticated, semantics-obssessed society. Joselle has also commented several times as to how everyone (including the carnivore) is a vegetarian in some capacity, whereas vegetarians will not and cannot be omnivores; something that's always struck me as insightful and poignant. Pretty much everyone eats vegetables, regardless of where people are from or what the hell they believe. Folks like their legumes (Beans, beans are good for the heart). They relish their fruit and pastas and breads and all sorts of treats, which can surely still be savory without all the animal ingredients that industries try to throw at us. If that's truly the case, why do so many omnivores get turned off by the word "vegetarian"?

Maybe it's the nature of the human beast to always want to be in control of everything. After all, A dog is [human]'s best friend---not the other way around. I mean, even the language of these cliches implies the domination of humans over the rest of the animal kingdom. Even more, there are the suggestions of our need for control in the lifestyle choices that every single one of us makes about who, what, when, where, and why we eat what we eat. Vegans choose not to consume animal flesh or byproducts out of respect for the lives of other animal species, as well as in an effort to make a statement of sociopolitical oppostition to an industry that will bleed us all dry for the right price. Contrastingly, Joselle and I can't really seem to grill-wrap our heads around why so many omnivores cringe at the thought of plant-based ingredients for vegetarian dishes; at the thought of stepping foot in a vegetarian restaurant that represents healthy living and, hopefully, environmental consciousness; at the thought of eating a Heart Thrive instead of a Snickers bar from the vending machine. Why is this? Maybe it's the nature of the beast to be selective, opinionated, obstinate, and apprehensive for no clear reason.

In order for a truly effective mutual menu to work, it seems to me that everyone involved needs to have a full understanding---not just a superficial tolerance---of why we all make the decisions that we make. Whether we do something for ethics, for self-preservation (i.e., oftentimes protecting our own individual health, rather than selflessly focusing on the health of our greater environment), or for the sheer fact that we don't really care about anything accept what feels good to us, we as humans have the special gift of verbal language; a tool set that should theoretically allow us to carefully communicate our commonalities and differences with one another. That would be the first step. Beyond that, it'd be nice if we could learn to utilize an intelligence of the "superior species" to figure out how we can all just get along.

If we don't learn to compromise, then I guess birds of a feather will continue to flock together---at least until there are no more birds to stone. In fact, if we could just be a smidgeon more thoughtful about the decisions we make, maybe humans wouldn't seem so stoned themselves.