New memeber/New and struggling veggie

June 7, 2004

HI Leia,

I'm 46 and my parents still don't approve of my vegetarian diet! Lots of people

make comments, it's just the way it is. I bring veggie burgers to barbeques

(extra too in case someone is interested in trying one). I'll also bring a dish

of mac & cheese to a family buffet, so that I know that I won't be hungry. I

try not to make a big deal over it, I try to stay low-key.

I cook for my husband and three sons in their 20's, so we don't just have meat

in the house, but I have to cook it! I try to plan meatless meals as often as I

can for them, but here and there they want chicken or cheesesteak sandwiches.

I feel pretty strongly about not eating meat, but it really took me a long time

to stay strong to my feelings. When I was your age I was a vegetarian, but I

remember that it was really hard. I went off and on eating meat until just

recently, when I decided that this is it, I needed to commit to my belief.

Don't be too tough on yourself. Give yourself time, and you will become more

independent eventually and it'll get easier. Now, if you can avoid meat

whenever you can, you'll be doing good. As you eat less and less of it, it'll

get easier for you to find ways to get around it without making a big deal

around your family.

As for the dogs, they are carnivores, and when I tried to feed my Shih Tzu

otherwise she rebelled too. What can you do? Dogs are dogs

I hope that this helps you sort things out,

Sue

Leia <girlbaby16 wrote:

Hi there, I'm Leia

I joined a while back and am just now getting around to posting. I'm

pretty new to the veggie lifesyle and to be perfectly honest I'm

having a lot of trouble with the transition. I can't even call myself

a vegetarian b/c I can't seem to get over my occasional love affair

with chicken. This isn't helped by the fact that the few chickens

I've met in person were kinda mean so I wasn't inclinded to feel as

sorry for them as I would say a cow. I decided to go veggie for the

health benifits anyway so animal rights (while very important to me)

wasn't my objective.

So whats my problem exactly? My family is a real meat and potaoes

crowd of people and they strongly disapprove of my new diet choices.

I still live at home so I find it difficult when the family fires up

the trusty 'ol B-BQ and cooks steaks. I have by the way had not much

trouble at all giving up red meat. cheers for me lol.

Now I'm sure it would be alot easier if we didn't keep meat in the

house except when somebody plans to cook it and eat it for dinner

that night. Thats not an option though not even when I move out and

live on my own. Here I should insert that I etch out a living as a

dog professional trainer/dog show handler and am going to college. I

tried vegetarian options to the meat I use in training (mainly

hotdogs) and they just didn't cut it. The dogs simply refused. That

and we feed a specialized diet which includes meat and other raw

ingerdients. No kibble here. I have my own beliefs about dog

nutrition and am not ready to argue them. Soooo while I am aware of

the vegetarian options for dogs I've tried them and met with failure.

I am at this very moment thinking about stealing a hotdog from the

dog stash and feasting

I'm hoping to make new friends in this group who can give me the

occasional virtual smack when I need it to help keep me on track and

help me with the inspiration and motivation I need. I'm a blank slate

looking for guidence (and recipes) in the world of the non meat

eater.

Can't wait to get to know you all !

~Leia

June 7, 2004

See thats a good idea, bring your own yummies to eat. Only thing is

I've got the contend with Grandma (who by the way is comming tuesday

for three weeks- ah kill me!). Grandma is the kinda person that you

have to agree with everything she says and you have to worship her as

a cook and master kitchen mistress. The faimliy raves about grandma's

pot rost, or grandma's potatoe salad, or macaronice salad, or meat

loaf... you get the idea. She is also a diabetic which in her book

makes her an expert on nutrition. We spent two weeks at visitng my

grandparents over christmas and it was awful. Even though I offered

not only to help cook but to buy extra veggies she would have non of

it. Whats more she refused to cook extra helpings of the few veggies

she included in meals. Lets face it a 8 or 10 oz can of green beans

isn't going to feed six people or eight people very much. It was a

very tuff christmas. Although thanx to her refusals to accept my new

dining style, and getting the flu, I actualy came home 10 pounds

lighter. How many people can boats that after christmas holidays ?

lol. And just to toot my own horn I'm proud to report I got over my

hotdog craving, (and it wasn't because I went an ate one), and had a

meatless dinner yay I feel a lot better than I did this afternoon.

Even better, confidence renewed, I am surfing for veggies recipes so

I can have all the meals planned and be the one to cook while granny

is here(don't tell her I called her granny- she'll have my head!).

It's kinda fun trying to imagine what things are going to taste like

and planning the meals. LoL, guess that tells you I'm easily amused.

~Leia

June 7, 2004

Haha, love the comment about chicken. I had a similar experience back

in January when our kennel club had the annual awards dinner. The

menue was centered around meat, the choices were chicken or fish.

Apparently the side dishes didn't matter. So I asked (politely of

course) what the side dishes would be in case there were different

for each meal. I was questioned as to why it matter and I said I

wasn't planning to eat the meat and was curious what I would be

eating instead. I told the lady that it was no big deal I would

probably and if the sides were the same (which they were) I would

take the chicken home to the dogs to use in training. The planner

told me that of course I should choose the fish b/c fish was a

vegetarian option. I kind of looked at her a second before realizing

that some people for reasons unknown to be (and if you know why I'd

love to be let in on the secret) don't consider fish a meat. Anyway

this person informed me that it was very rare for a veggie to not eat

fish. How else was I supposed to get protien. It was a cause for

great puzzelment to me for a while since I had not read fish (or

beans and rice) was the only source of protien She also flouted (sp?)

the fact that she was a registered dietician(spealling??). I almost

make a point of looking her up and down and asking what on earth

kinda diets she followed- but refrained. That would have been rude

and anyway she was only trying to help. Really she's as nice as they

come. As of mashed potatoes I read in a book a while back that they

potatoes were the veggie that was the least nutritious. Wether thats

true or not I dunno, but it was in a book entitled " Eat to Live " .

Can't remember the name of the author.

~Leia

, rwhitt1212@a... wrote:

> Keep up the good work... some people (kin included) just don't get

it.

> I always like it when you say you are veggie and they say well you

can eat

> some chicken can't you?

> To some of the older folks opening a can of green beans peas, or

corn

> throwing some butter on it is fixing veggies....oh don't forget the

mashed

> potatoes. Don't let others get you down...

> Robin in NC

>

June 8, 2004

hi Leia, I been a lacto/ovo(easy on the ovo)vegetarian for over 15

years now. I was on and off vegi for over a year before I totally

went for it. I got so sick of that do you eat fish question that

instead of telling people I'm a vegetarian, I just say that I dont

eat dead animals which gets nicely to the point without any

confusions. now I notice you wrote that its a little hard to get used

to eating all vegetarian. well an easy thing to do is instead of

focusing on " vegetarian " food, eat stuff you like and are familar

with but make it vegetarian. for example if you like mexican food

such as tacos made with lawrys taco seasoning, go ahead and make them

but instead of using ground meat, use either a meat substitute or

textured soy protein which btw I have a taco recipe in the files

section. what you will get is something which tastes exactly like the

tacos you are familiar with but they are now vegetarian. also there

are many good frozen vegetarian dinners out there but you seem to be

a good cook. anyway dont let the meatheads get you down.

stay cool, Dave

June 8, 2004

Hi Leia, Sorry to hear that you ran into mean chickens. My chickens

would sit in your lap and loved to be petted. Now roosters *are* mean

suckers.

Jim

, " Leia " <girlbaby16> wrote:

> Hi there, I'm Leia

> I joined a while back and am just now getting around to posting. I'm

> pretty new to the veggie lifesyle and to be perfectly honest I'm

> having a lot of trouble with the transition. I can't even call myself

> a vegetarian b/c I can't seem to get over my occasional love affair

> with chicken. This isn't helped by the fact that the few chickens

> I've met in person were kinda mean so I wasn't inclinded to feel as

> sorry for them as I would say a cow. I decided to go veggie for the

> health benifits anyway so animal rights (while very important to me)

> wasn't my objective.

> So whats my problem exactly? My family is a real meat and potaoes

> crowd of people and they strongly disapprove of my new diet choices.

> I still live at home so I find it difficult when the family fires up

> the trusty 'ol B-BQ and cooks steaks. I have by the way had not much

> trouble at all giving up red meat. cheers for me lol.

> Now I'm sure it would be alot easier if we didn't keep meat in the

> house except when somebody plans to cook it and eat it for dinner

> that night. Thats not an option though not even when I move out and

> live on my own. Here I should insert that I etch out a living as a

> dog professional trainer/dog show handler and am going to college. I

> tried vegetarian options to the meat I use in training (mainly

> hotdogs) and they just didn't cut it. The dogs simply refused. That

> and we feed a specialized diet which includes meat and other raw

> ingerdients. No kibble here. I have my own beliefs about dog

> nutrition and am not ready to argue them. Soooo while I am aware of

> the vegetarian options for dogs I've tried them and met with failure.

> I am at this very moment thinking about stealing a hotdog from the

> dog stash and feasting

> I'm hoping to make new friends in this group who can give me the

> occasional virtual smack when I need it to help keep me on track and

> help me with the inspiration and motivation I need. I'm a blank slate

> looking for guidence (and recipes) in the world of the non meat

> eater.

> Can't wait to get to know you all !

>

> ~Leia

June 8, 2004

Fish was the last thing that I was giving up when I decided to get serious about

not eating animals. I knew that fish farming was cruel, fish belong in the sea,

but I just read a bunch of interesting stuff about fish, how they take care of

their own, how they have feelings, mourn lost loved ones, etc. So, even though

I have a bunch of fish in the freezer to broil, I'll make it for the guys in the

house and I'll just have something else that night.

My sister left her huge goldfish with my Mom when she went to college. My Mom

said that every day when she came to feed him he'd be waiting, facing the door,

then come up to the surface waiting for the food. She said that he reminded her

of the way that her dogs act. Well, no more fish for me!