Why We Went Vegan

Warning: 

Many, many, many people have asked us WHY HAVE YOU GONE VEGAN? Everytime, Matt and I would respond with -- there are many reasons we chose this lifestyle and we don't want to offend anyone with our opinions. 

But still after hearing that response, people would pry and pry and pry and pick and pick and pick. Defending their eating habits. Mocking veganism. Mocking us. And there we sat -- biting our tongue.

And if you and I have had a conversation about Matt's and my vegan lifestyle, please don't think I'm speaking directly to you. Because I'm not. This is a combination of everything Matt and I have heard, read about, thought about, etc.

Our family and friends have been completely supportive -- even when they received their wedding response cards with "can we have vegan please?" written on it. So to our family and family - thank you for your support. You rock. 

For those of you curious as to why we went vegan,

This post is my answer. This post is going to be my "go to" for all those times people keep pushing. This post will be honest and have absolutely zero sugar coating. If you want to know what I honestly think, feel, etc. then keep reading. If you are easily offended or will try to start a little bitchfest on my Facebook after reading this, then please stop reading.

This post is my opinion. Not fact. And for those of you who are worried that I will post about the horrific details that go into Factory Farming, I won't go as far as I probably should. I will share some, but I'll spare you the worst. I will, however, share my sources.

And if you can make the choice to eat it, you should at least be able to read what happens to it before you put it in your body. 

At the end of the day, we understand that FOOD is a very emotional thing. It is so present in family traditions, holidays, social gatherings, etc. 

And to be completely honest, we don't give a shit about what you eat. Nor should you care about what we eat.

Happy Reading.

KALE yeah we're VEGAN!!!

In honor of our recent lifestyle change, I will write this entire post in the color GREEN -- just like our food. 

May 3rd, 2014 marked our two month anniversary of being vegan. In all honesty, on our first day -- March 3rd, I didn't think that I would honestly be able to do it. I had the desire in my heart to try it, but didn't know if it was truly possible. The night before, I had made Matt watch two documentaries with me "to get his opinion" on what he thought. By this point, I had already thrown away any non-vegan product in our kitchen and had made the decision. I just needed to get Matt on board with me.

"I can't live without eating meat"

He was defensive and resistant like anyone else would be, but I promised him that after only watching these two documentaries, I would never talk about it again.

I knew they would get to him. He was smart. Level headed. And he loved animals. There was no way he couldn't be affected by this. 

By the time the first documentary was over, he was interested. Involved. Attentive.

By the time the second documentary ended, he was sold.

We were going vegan.

The next day, Matt posted a status on his Facebook saying:

"Just had my last carnivorous meal ever. This guy is going vegan. Doubt me, I dare you"

As he was writing the status, I told him not to post it because I didn't want people to know yet. I was fearful that we'd fail. That it would be like every other "diet" or "lifestyle change" we had tried-- But what I didn't realize is how strong we really were and how horrible Factory Farming and the inhumane treatment of animals really was. That evening, we watched another documentary. This time -- picked out my Matt -- known as "the Vegan maker." I cried the entire 2 hours --  with tears streaming down my face every - single - minute. From that night on, from that point on, I knew I would never ever eat meat again.

In all fairness, Matt and I had been cooking vegetarian for months. We were still eating hamburgers, steaks, and chicken wings at restaurants, but in our house -- it was only vegetarian (with the exception of holidays and special events). Don't you remember how much I hated handling raw meat?

Maybe that's why it was so easy. Because honestly -- it was very easy. With the exception of the withdrawals we had the first week from getting all that shit out of our body.

Since we've gone vegan, I've thought about writing this post. I imagined what I would say, how I would say it, if I would offend people, if I'd be defriended or unfollowed, etc. And the best way that I thought I could write this is with the common and beloved Q&A format.

How do you find your recipes?

I subscribe to a vegan meal planning service -- www.wellvegan.com -- that gives us daily recipes, nutritional details, a grocery shopping list, and handy tips. I highly recommend a meal planning service for anyone. They're amazing and huge time savers!

Do you actually like the vegan meals?

I thought that every single meal was going to taste like a dry, bland salad. To our surprise and delight, we have not had a single bad meal. All of the recipes we've had were delicious, creamy, mouth watering, and yummy.

Why did you and Matt go vegan?

Oh boy. Prepare yourselves.

Matt and I chose to go vegan for different reasons. I was originally interested in veganism for health benefits. I watched a documentary about a year and a half ago (Forks over Knives) that showed the positive correlation of animal protein intake and cancer. It opened my eyes and I was intrigued. About three months ago, I picked up the book Skinny Bitch for a good read not realizing that it was a book based solely on all the reasons one should be vegan. I was hooked. My eyes had been opened.

Following finishing that book, I watched Food Inc. and Vegucated on Netflix and my life was changed. I watched about how a perfectly healthy 2 year old little boy ate a cheeseburger at a famous fast food restaurant on vacation and died twelve days later thanks to e-Coli poisoning due to Factory Farming and how the cows stood two feet deep in their own manure transferring diseases back and forth to each other. How could this happen? How did we not know how BAD it truly was?

Matt went vegan for animal rights. I made him watch the two documentaries on March 2nd and he was most affected by the scenes of animal torture, animal screams, inhumane treatment, so on and so forth. The last documentary we watched called Earthlings -- "the Vegan maker" -- showed cows hanging upside down with their throats slit open -- bleeding dry onto the floor while they were still VERY ALIVE and blinking. We heard the pig screams as they had electric rods stuck up their backside (because it was the cheapest and easiest way to kill them). But sometimes -- that wouldn't do the trick -- so they'd be put in boiling water to "soften" their skin and scrape off the fur. We watched the pigs kick, scream, fight, and cry -- begging for their life -- not knowing AT ALL why it was happening. We saw a scene of a skinned fox- NO SKIN - alive, sitting up, looking around-- because "its too time consuming and expensive to kill them in the fur trading business. They'll eventually just die"

The smell of bacon will never mask the sound of a pig scream.

Like I said, we were forever changed.

We're at the top of the food chain and we're supposed to eat meat -- Who cares about animals?

The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated          - Mohandas Gandhi

I understand at one point, yes, we were the at the top of the food chain BUT until you are actively fit enough to chase down a lion and kill it with your bare hands, you have no right to say that.

And, the way I understand it -- after much research on my part -- it wasn't until AFTER Adam and Eve left the Garden of Eden that they started to kill animals for their meat. 

What is the actual percentage of children dying from e-coli poisoning. I mean I know it happened to one, but what is the actual percentage for all?

^Someone actually asked me this!! And children die/adults get sick from meat much more than you think. Also, ONE is enough to open my eyes and worry about feeding it to my future child.

Wait, is your child going to be Vegan?!

Yes. But our child will also be exposed to organic egg and dairy on a regular basis (that comes from a farmer we personally know) - so that their body can digest it should they choose to eat cake at a birthday party. They will also very rarely be exposed to organic beef (again, from a farmer we personally know) so IF they choose to not be vegan or vegetarian in their teenage or adult years, their bodies will be able to adjust accordingly BUT

In this house and at our table, we will eat vegan. They can eat the egg, dairy, and meat at Grandma's.

Are you going to remain vegan while pregnant?

IF we choose to get pregnant, then yes.

Does your doctor know?

Our doctor knows about both of us being vegan. She is fully on board and supports us. She also told me I wouldn't have any issues if we got pregnant. The only thing she recommended is vitamin B 12 as a supplement. Which we take on a daily basis. 

If you know your farmer personally, why don't you just eat the egg, dairy, and meat from them?

I can't promise that Matt will be 100% vegan for the rest of his life. And to be embarrassingly honest, I know I won't be vegan around Edward's Apple Orchard cider doughnut season. But veganism is not a religion. You can stray away and will always be able to come back. I know Matt and I will never eat meat again. As far as cheese for Matt and apple cider doughnuts for me, I can't make any promises. The reason we choose to be vegan 99% of the time is that we know its the way we're supposed to eat. We know its healthier and our bodies have shown us that.

Also, "grassfed" and "free-roaming" are terms that are not regulated. Which means practically any slaughter house/factory farm can say that -- and no one will stop them. KNOW YOUR FARMER! PERSONALLY!

Where do you get your protein?

Goodness gracious. This is the most popular question. 

Quinoa, chickpeas, almonds, cashews, peanuts, beans, chia seeds, edamame, almond milk, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, and leafy greens.

All of which we eat on a daily basis. Also -- a cup and a half of edamame (YUM) has the same amount of protein as a Big Mac.

I understand wanting to be healthier, but I don't even eat red meat. I only eat chicken.

If I were forced to eat meat again -- Chicken would be my LAST choice. Why?

There are no rules for the "proper" treatment of birds in the United States. Too many times I have read about rotten cancerous chicken falling off the line -- landing on the cockroach invested floor -- then getting picked up, wiped up, and placed back on the line. They chop up the rotten chicken, separate it, and place it with the "okay" chicken so that it gets "approved" for sale. Fucking gross.

Why not milk? That doesn't kill the cow, right?

Wrong. A female cow is locked in her stall connected to a milking machine every day of her life until she is weak enough to stand and is dragged out to the truck to get taken to the slaughter house. Also cows don't ALWAYS produce milk. Like a woman, she must be pregnant. Each year, she is artificially inseminated so she continues to produce milk. Once the calf is born, the baby is taken from her, locked in a dark room, fed a liquid diet for three months, with absolutely zero exercise (so that they can't build up muscle) and are sold after several months of food, exercise, and light deprivation to the veal industry. So yes, it does kill cows. Baby cows. 

Also, humans are the ONLY species that drink milk after infancy. Milk, by definition, is made for babies - so that they can DOUBLE their body weight in one year and grow infinitely bigger.

Wonder why this country is so obese? 

Another thing -- Humans are also the only species that drink another species milk. WHY!

Cheese, too?

A phenomenal occurrence happens in nature when a momma gives birth to her baby. Her body produces breast milk that gives off OPIATES to her newborn - so that the baby gets his/her "fix" from breastfeeding.

Like humans, cow milk does the same thing for calves. But when humans drink the cow's milk or eats cheese, they also get "hooked". Worse, in the cheese making process -- the effect of opiates grows infinitely larger. So when people say they are addicted to cheese -- they are literally addicted to cheese.

What about eggs?

First of all -- think about WHAT you are eating. Gross.

Secondly, in the egg making industry, the chickens beaks are chopped off *without any pain medicine* so that ten birds can be stuffed into 2x2 cages and they don't kill each other by pecking each other to death. Its inhumane and awful to watch.

Do you eat fish?

No.

Another thing -- if seafood consumption occurs at the same rate it has been, the ocean will be emptied in fifty years. What then?

Do you eat honey?

We haven't officially decided yet. 

I have my hesitations. 

Is beer vegan?

Yes -- most of it.

Is chocolate vegan?

Not milk chocolate -- but some dark chocolate is. And its equally delicious.

What about desserts and ice cream?

I just made the best brownies I have ever made -- and they were vegan. On Saturday -- Matt and I went to the co-op (our grocery store) and bought almond milk ice cream which tastes exactly the same and OH SO GOOD. 

On the way out, we bought a vegan cinnamon roll with frosting on top. YUM.

veganbaking.net is an amazing website for vegan baking recipes.

You can't eat pizza?

We can eat vegan pizza from Roman Candle in Middleton! Yummmm....

The last and most ridiculous statement we've heard:

Plants are living things, too......

Do you know how ignorant and UNEDUCATED you sound to me?

That's all I have to say about that. (Forrest Gump)

A couple more things:

Last weekend, we went to a wedding rehearsal dinner and were served "Chicken Parm with sliced sausage and cheese ravioli topped with cheese sauce" We were starving and we didn't want to be rude, so we scraped off the cheese sauce and ate the cheese ravioli to fill our stomachs.

Fast forward six hours -- I was puking my brains out at 2 AM until about 6 AM due to my body trying to get the food out as soon as possible.

It was only 8 weeks since I ate cheese.

Which makes one wonder:

If I didn't eat a banana or carrots for an entire eight weeks, then decided to eat them again suddenly -- would my body reject it as quickly as it did the cheese? Probably not. Makes you wonder what your body is meant to digest, right?

Food for thought.

Did you hear about the 9 million pounds of beef that was recalled due to the forging of approval for cancerous meat?  This meat could be at your grocery store or at the fancy $100 a plate steakhouse down the street. Click here to read the CNN article.

Ever wonder why the FDA and everyone else says all this food is good for you?

You'd be shocked to find out how crooked the food industry is and how "ironically" the head of some department in the FDA is also the CEO of the some dairy/meat company. Head scratcher, isn't it?

By the way,

I swear you will never ever ever hear about my thoughts regarding "what to eat" unless you ask -- and even then -- I may still be hesitant. We don't like to parade around calling people "animal murders" as much as people like to think that's what veganism is all about.

I was so incredibly taken back by HOW MANY PEOPLE seemed to care about what we ate and why we were eating it. They quickly got defensive and tried to argue our personal choices. I hope you know that we truly don't care what you eat. We've eaten salad at a steakhouse in the past two months and we've gone without eating all together. We make do.

I ask that you respect our choices and our decisions just as we respect yours. If you still would like to speak about our choices -- please do your homework first. Afterall, you can't argue a point until you know what the opposite side is saying, right?  Do your research!

Books:

The Skinny Bitch

Eat to Live

Netflix Documentaries:

Forks Over Knives

Food Inc.

Vegucated

Youtube: (one hour long)

Earthlings

Famous vegans/vegetarians:

Gandhi

Gautama Buddha

Pythagoras

Plato

Leonardo Da Vinci

Voltaire

Rosa Parks

Susan B. Anthony

Albert Einstein

PS: Matt has lost 12 pounds in 8 weeks!! Just by eating vegan. GO MATT!