glimmer's Vegetarian Lifestyle Change

Rule 1 - If you or someone close to you eats meat...you have to make up for it

I will pay for it in blood! Nah, just kidding. If you all didn't know this about me, I have been a vegetarian now for about 7-8 weeks. It's honestly been so easy that I haven't been keeping track of the time! Many of you may think that being a vegetarian is impossible, but I would argue that, sure being a vegan sounds impossible, but not a vegetarian!

A vegetarian can still eat cheese, eggs, and milk, some of my favorite things in life. I have tried to cut down on these too to be a bit more on the vegan "scale", but it is very difficult for almost everything I eat is cheese. I've also tried to cut out bread - just for my health - another impossible feat. So, you may be wondering: glimmer what do you actually eat? Here's an example of my every day meals:

Breakfast - Two boiled eggs with salt and pepper. Side of mixed fruit. Full glass of water.

Lunch - (Varies) Mashed potatoes, peas and carrots. Full glass of water.

Snack - (Usually a dessert of some kind) Piece of chocolate, banana chips, etc. Half a glass of water.

Dinner - (Varies even more) Gluten-free noodles and tomato sauce, corn tortilla quesadilla, whatever I feel like experimenting with that day! Full glass of water.

I've tried to turn my snacks into just drinking water, as I don't consume enough, but we are getting off topic. I decided to become a vegetarian not for my health, but simply because I don't want to eat animals any more. This was before my love of my fish, Shark, as I never ate seafood in the first place. Honestly, I just decided, as I have moved on in life, my tastes should too. I don't need to eat meat to live. We don't need to kill harmless animals for food. Plus, there are so many ways to eat the food we love as a vegetarian option!

For example, I've found bean burgers really aren't that bad! I have yet to try vegan cheese and other meatless meats, but there are so many alternatives out there. And GOOD alternatives, unlike gluten-free cookies or bread (sorry anti-bread people). On this lifestyle change (I won't say diet because diets are usually implied as a temporary change), I'm eating fine and am perfectly healthy. Okay, I did gain some weight on the beginning of it, but honestly it was just a lot of mac n' cheese and having no idea what to eat.

So, going on to my vegetarian rule number 1! If my friends or family eat meat around me (or TELL me about it), then I will secretly make up for the poor animal that died to be consumed. I can hear you rolling your eyes (wait...clicking your tongue?). Yes, the animal died anyways to become food. But, because it is expected! These poor animals are bred to be eaten. That is no way to live. Animals feel pain and can have emotions, as we have learned from many studies over time. So, why have we not changed our meat consumption ways over time?

Sorry, didn't mean to go on a mini rant there. To be honest, I don't know all the facts and maybe one day I will be one of those people with the PETA shirts splashing blood on people dining outside an Outback Steakhouse, but for now, I am just being a vegetarian, secretly giving a silly prayer from my friends and family for eating meat. I'm not perfect either. I will still, on occasion have a hamburger or pop a chicken nugget in my mouth. And, as you'd expect, I feel a lot of regret for it. I also don't think they taste as good as they used to. This girl ate a lot of bacon cheeseburgers in her day, but now she drives by a Wendy's without a second thought.

I have decided, as of right now, to do something I hate for every hurtful action I see or do that implies the harming of animals - poetry. I HATE writing poetry. I kind of hate reading it to. Without further ado, here's a piece I wrote (yes, it's horrible, feel free to laugh at it):

Secret Tuna Salad

I loved this place.

Quiet Korean family-owned,

Delicious fried rice,

Even better was the potato salad.

I thought it was potatoes,

Maybe some celery.

Instead tuna fish –

Swam its way into my stomach.

I regret the deliciousness that made it there.

Mistakes will not be made again.

At least at the Korean family-run lunch place.

Yes, I ate an accidental tuna salad! As I sat muching at my desk I was like "damn this is really good", but on the first bite I knew it had fish in it. Yet, I paid ten dollars for it, so I continued to eat. And I continued to feel awful. It even made my stomach a little upset later too.

I do my best to not eat meat when I can and I've done a pretty good job. The people around me still eat meat, which I don't mind too much, but I wish I was more assertive about my preserving animal life facts. Remember that last sentence, as it will lead to my next vegetarian rule.

Love,

glimmer

P.S. I may post some more of my vegetarian poetry (literally named that as a Word document on my desktop), but it is all just as bad. So, I'm sorry! I'm usually not one to bash on myself as it isn't the right thing to do, but poetry and me do NOT mix well.