So...you just eat salads?
No! I eat pizza, pasta, fries, Chinese food, ice cream, and a million other things. While I enjoy the occasional salad it is by no means a staple of my diet. I am a human and I eat human food, not rabbit food. Salad is not filling enough to be a meal, since it is just filled with veggies, which are mostly water. I might have a salad before my dinner, but it is in no way a compete meal in my book.
How can you be against eating meat? It is natural! Do you think its wrong for a lion to eat meat?
I do not have a problem with eating meat. What I have a problem with is how people eat it. Animals are tortured and mass killed in ways crueler that you can imagine. That is what I am against. When lions and other wild animals eat meat they work hard for their kill, eat every last bit of it, and then don't eat again for a week. Humans eat over eat meat, and then just throw it away without an ounce of respect for the animal that gave its life just so you could eat it. Go out and kill a deer with your bare hands and eat that.
You don't eat fish? But vegetarians eat fish.
Vegetarians do not eat animals. Fish is an animal. Therefore vegetarians do not eat fish. There are lots of people that don't eat land animals like chicken and beef but they still eat seafood. Those are called pescatarians. And while that is a dietary choice that cuts out forms of meat, like vegetarianism, they are not the same.
You eat cheese? But vegetarians don't eat cheese.
Vegetarians do not eat animals, but they still eat foods that comes from animals like eggs, milk, and honey. Vegans do not eat any animals or anything that comes from animals. People that decide to become vegans, in my book, have an amazing amount of will power that I wish I had. It is a very admirable life choice, but I chose to be a vegetarian, so I still eat cheese.
Do you wear leather?
No. I refuse to wear anything made of leather, which makes shoe shopping difficult, but much cheaper. I also do not wear pearls.
How do you get enough protein?
Soy. I consume a lot of soy products, as well as many kinds of nuts and beans which are almost completely made of proteins. My doctor says I do not have a protein deficiency, nor an iron deficiency for that matter.
Do you love vegetables?
No. Actually I don't like most veggies. People might look at a menu and tell me they have a great grilled veggie sandwich that I would love. But if there is eggplant, peppers, onions, or mushrooms, then please count me out. I hate veggie lovers pizza, and I usually pick out half of the veggies in my vegetable fried rice. I'm a vegetarian, not a vegetable eater. It means I don't eat meat, not that I only eat vegetables.
Is your whole family vegetarian?
Nope. My dad eats chicken, turkey, and fish regularly, but only eats red meat about once a year. My mom is usually dieting so she tends to eat a lot of vegetables. She wont order meat at a restaurant, but will try a bite of someone's steak. The only other vegetarian in my family is my big brother. He gave up meat only a few years before I did, in his 20's. I chose to not eat meat completely on my own.
Is your whole family vegetarian?
Nope. My dad eats chicken, turkey, and fish regularly, but only eats red meat about once a year. My mom is usually dieting so she tends to eat a lot of vegetables. She wont order meat at a restaurant, but will try a bite of someone's steak. The only other vegetarian in my family is my big brother. He gave up meat only a few years before I did, in his 20's. I chose to not eat meat completely on my own.
When your family cooks meat at home, doesn't it smell so good you want to eat it?
It depends on the food. To be honest, the smell of steak and burgers makes me nauseous. I will admit that cooking chicken smells great. I am not going to sit here and say that meat isn't delicious. Just because a food smells or tastes good, doesn't mean that I'm just going to drop all my beliefs and eat it. Smelling meat as never made me consider eating it again. And at the times that I mistakenly eat meat (recently a piece of pork got into my veggie fried rice) I find myself feeling disgusted once it hits my taste buds, and I spit it right out.
Do you get grossed out when your friends and family eat meat in front of you?
Not at all. People often make a big deal out of the fact that they are eating meat in front of a vegetarian. When I was a kid and was newly meat-free, it did used to gross me out. But now I can honesty say that my boyfriend eating a burger with me while I eat my veggie burger doesn't gross me out. People eat meat, that's just a part of life. However, going to the meat section at the supermarket does make me feel queasy.
Do you try to convert meat-eaters?
A long time ago I set a ground-rule for myself that I would never become one of those preachy vegetarians that screams at people to not eat meat and act like I am better than everyone. While nothing would make me happier than for people to cut meat from their diets, I will never force my opinions on anyone else. If someone willingly comes to me and is thinking about being a vegetarian, of course I will do all I can to support them and make that happen.
It depends on the food. To be honest, the smell of steak and burgers makes me nauseous. I will admit that cooking chicken smells great. I am not going to sit here and say that meat isn't delicious. Just because a food smells or tastes good, doesn't mean that I'm just going to drop all my beliefs and eat it. Smelling meat as never made me consider eating it again. And at the times that I mistakenly eat meat (recently a piece of pork got into my veggie fried rice) I find myself feeling disgusted once it hits my taste buds, and I spit it right out.
Do you get grossed out when your friends and family eat meat in front of you?
Not at all. People often make a big deal out of the fact that they are eating meat in front of a vegetarian. When I was a kid and was newly meat-free, it did used to gross me out. But now I can honesty say that my boyfriend eating a burger with me while I eat my veggie burger doesn't gross me out. People eat meat, that's just a part of life. However, going to the meat section at the supermarket does make me feel queasy.
Do you try to convert meat-eaters?
A long time ago I set a ground-rule for myself that I would never become one of those preachy vegetarians that screams at people to not eat meat and act like I am better than everyone. While nothing would make me happier than for people to cut meat from their diets, I will never force my opinions on anyone else. If someone willingly comes to me and is thinking about being a vegetarian, of course I will do all I can to support them and make that happen.
