Vegetarian Living

[Deleted]

Okay. Here is something: Why do meat-eating people like to call themselves vegetarians? Seriously, I want to know. I have met tons of people over the years that eat fish that call themselves vegetarians. You're not - you're a pescatarian. But, okay, fine. I can deal with it. Then, I meet the occasional person that is a "vegetarian" except on major holidays (turkey on Thanksgiving, ham on Easter, etc.). Um... okay. I guess.

But this past weekend, I met a vegetarian. Okay, cool, nice to meet you. We have something in common. But, no. She has developed her own personal definition of vegetarianism, you see. She eats fish all the time, she eats deli turkey all the time (because it's not "on the bone" it is okay), she eats hamburgers once every three months or so. Let's see... Is it just me or this woman less vegetarian and more picky eater?

I just don't get the point of labeling yourself something completely inappropriate and untrue. Very odd.

[chonies]

I have to confess to being a "chicke-tarian," but I will explain my views on the situation.

I was a straight-up vegetarian for ten years. Didn't buy new leather shoes, didn't eat Altoids because they had gelatin, ditto anything else similar. I refused to pick meat out of anything, and wouldn't anything that meat had touched. I also would refuse meat if it was served when I was a guest, etc. Then, I moved to a portion of the world where bacon is a condiment, and "vegetarian" means it's okay if it's just chicken broth, and everyone says, "Oh I could never be vegetarian." First of all, the bacon was annoying, but there were no meatless options, at all, except grits. Bacon came in potato salad, salads had meat, and special ordering something at a restaurant was a pain, mostly because there were no guarantees anyway. None of the stores sold falafel mix, or dried fava beans, or anything. Even the vegetable sources were kind of sketchy. I also thought it was unethical to order a meatless burger at McDonald's (or other fast food, not counting Subway) because I didn't like their business practices. The Subways here didn't carry the veggie patty that they did where I had been living.

So, one day, I just snapped and couldn't handle the lack of options anymore. I gave in. I ate meat for a few years--roasted pork tenderloin, Thanksgiving turkey, ham at Easter, menudo, carne asada, etc. I did know a few people who didn't break down, but that was their choice. Now, I'm much closer to being a vegetarian than a carnivore, but I do eat more chicken. I was somewhat ignorant of nutrition science when I was veg and ate a lot of carbs. Now, I also pay more attention to the economics of food--I don't know if it's "better" to eat grain-fed, organic, humanely slaughtered cattle, or to eat fries and the meatless dishes at Burger King, but it's something I puzzle over on occasion. I also know a lot of hunters now who eat what they kill, and not just to justify their hunting.

I have only cooked one item of meat in my house in the last year--a plank of salmon. I order chicken or fish sometimes when I go out, but one of the other things that sticks out the most is remembering giving my host family in Africa some attitude when they served me a dish that had fish in it, and I was a bratty America college kid. But that said, I think I'm still in the process of figuring it out. From my perspective, there's no point in being a vegetarian if there aren't any healthy, tasty options. Vegetarian cuisines around the world are tasty and delicious, because they came from places where better ingredients were available. If I move to a major city, I think I would go back to being more rigidly veg, but generally I think it's a process and a mindset.

That said, Mulva, your friend sounds like a piece of work. Also, though, there are whole lotta folks who call themselves one thing and then don't act on it. Deli turkey because it's not on the bone? I call b.s. She kind of sounds like a drama queen.

[Deleted]

Yeah, I totally get not being a vegetarian - especially where your choices are so limited. I'm in the Northeast and vegetarianism is somewhat common here. Well, common enough that I can always find 3 or 4 options on a menu when I go out. And if not, I just don't eat there because there are plenty of other places that would love to have my business. It's just so weird to me that she feels the need to (mis)label herself. I mean, you don't have to have dietary restrictions. It's not a requirement.

[Deleted]

Mulva, it annoys me when people who aren't vegetarians claim to be. I think they do it to be trendy. I don't condemn meat eaters. I know vegetarianism isn't for everyone, and I respect people's choices. However, I hate it when people do something just to be trendy. Usually these people are the most obnoxious and give the rest of us a bad name (at least in my experience).

[Deleted]

Exactly! I guess that's what annoys me so much - the fact that it gives the rest of us a "bad name" in some ways. Half the time when I tell people I am a vegetarian, I get the smirk and eye roll accompanied by, "Yeah, but you eat fish, right?" NO. "Oh, but you think wearing leather is perfectly fine, right?" NO. "Well, it's just a phase. When is the last time you ate meat?" 12 YEARS AGO.

[Yossarian]

Mulva, in my personal experience, some people who call themselves "vegetarian" use it as a euphemistic shorthand for "dieter." They will eat lean meats like chicken or fish but avoid anything fatty like red meat, some cuts of pork or dairy. But they'll wear leather and hoe into fish. Obviously, not all vegetarians or pescatarians do this but some do. And it annoys me too! Being a vegetarian has certain ethical/lifestyle implications so being a "vegetarian but ..." is kind of disingenuous, IMO. And this comes from a carnivore!

[batmom]

You know, it's not a contradiction to be a vegetarian and still wear leather. It's not always a decision rooted in animal rights.

[kateln]

I eat chicken and fish, and don't call myself a vegetarian. But then again--I can't imagine life without seafood/cheese/eggs/and yummy, yummy chicken.

However I do try to limit my intake of such stuff to a few times a week, and stick to a vegetarian diet more often then not. I call it "psuedo-veggie".

[Deleted]

We vegetarians are murderers according to the Swiss government.

[kateln]

May 4, 2008 21:14:55 GMT -4 @dichterin said:

We vegetarians are murderers according to the Swiss government.

Uhm.

So, is it wrong that I really want some veggies now?