Meet Miss no Meat

Today, I went and celebrated three little girls' birthday, of my family.
As appetizers, there were some saucisson, chorizo, peanuts, little sausages and smoked salmon on toasts.

Then, the main course was some meat cooked in the oven with potatoes and mushrooms and fortunately, a zucchinis gratin.

I say "fortunately" cause, I'm a vegetarian. Each time I confess my way of eating, people just look at me, full of surprise, like "what, so it really exists?" or sometime it can also be like if I had confessed something disgusting.

And so, just after that, people will always ask bunch of questions like "why? for how long? but what do you eat then? do you eat fish? do you eat bread? but carrots also have a soul, why do you eat them?"... yes, sometimes, reactions can be stupid! But, fortunately it doesn't occur too often.

I have a friend, whose husband is also a vegetarian but because he doesn't like the taste of the meat. My reason is more an ethical commitment and moral conviction, I don't eat meat because I don't see meat in my plate as food but as a dead animal that was murdered! What I mostly dislike is baby animals served as meat like lamb or veal. I've always been close to animals, I used to ride horses for few years, we had a dog for 16 years but, it took me 17 years to actually realized that the meat I was eating was in reality killed animals. It just happened. Since then, I stopped to eat red meat I had never been found of anyway, then paté and rillettes, ham and other by-products from meat, I didn't stop all of a sudden, cause after all, there was some food I liked.

So it was like "okay, next week, I stop eating this, next week I stop eating that". I, somehow, kept eating chicken and turkey (something some people couldn't understand), not that I wanted to but, for some health reasons, because your body can't stop eating some much type of food so quickly. And I kept doing that for 7 years, until one day, I couldn't bear eating it and also because I was kind of fed up with always eating this. So, since September 2006, no meat at all.

To answer some questions, some vegetarians eat fish, others don't, there are no rules! And why do we eat vegetables? Cause they don't reproduce, they're not living beings like even sea shells are. =)

Being a vegan/vegetarian can also be a matter of health concern and environment. You have the superior level, the veggies! For me, they're more or less aliens! lol Cause, I don't understand all their reasons even if I know them. I try not to wear leather, I certainly do not wear fur (!) but not wearing whool or eating eggs, dairy and honey... goes a little beyond my conviction. I understand these people want to fight against the animal conditions, I also do but... I find it a little extreme. Anyway, after all, they're not hurting anyone, that's the total contrary and that's what counts! Of course, as I respect this choice of way of living, I'd like people to respect mine... that's another story.

I always say, "you don't criticize Muslim people who don't eat pork or Jews who only eat Kosher, etc. so, take this as my religion (I'm atheist...) and give me a break".

When, I announced my relatives and friends my choice, some didn't seem bothered, but my dad or my grand-ma (dad's mom), thought it was gonna be a phase or that it was some kind of diet. Believe me, you can be a vegetarian and not be skinny!! lol My grandma used to say "it will pass, you'll see, you'll go back to eating meat one day". Well, that day still hasn't come yet and I don't think it will ever come as it got even worse as I stopped eating any meat more than a year ago! Sometimes, people say "in the Jungle, animals kill and eat each other". Sure, but I'm not an animal and we don't live in the jungle.

I never imposed my choice on the others, sometimes, when I'm invited for dinner for example, I will remind it to the person, if that's someone I know well, if not, I'll eat what I can eat, sometimes not much, but that's how it goes. Fortunetely, I have some relatives and friends who also think about me!

Another aspect of being a vegetarian is that, some people think you eat disgusting food like tofu and other soya-made food. Well, it now exists lots of good vegan food, tofu steaks that taste like chicken, I swear, I made some people tasted them and they were surprised! I'm also a little into the organic food and there are now a variety of meals you can have for lunch or dinner even if you don't eat meat. Vegetarians do not just eat vegetables! lol

And to end this (one way, so far) conversation, isn't it said that vegetarian people live longer and have less risk of having serious deseases?! ;o)

This speeach may sound a little vicious to you but I wanted to take the occasion of this blog to create this post and talk about being vegetarian.

Feel free to comment!! =)

Update: just saw this sentence on a blog about the vegetarianism "Animals are my friends, thus, I do not eat my friends". I like it, it sumps up everything.