Hey there, former vegan gone back to veganism (finally)!

[rotary phone]

I was vegan for a period of time about a year and a half ago. I'm not sure why I went back to meat eating. Just weak-willed then, I guess. So, now I'm just past the toilet stage of detox (which I remembered, but not accurately), and have suddenly ended up with loads of energy, am working out a lot, etc.

I live with 2 roommates: a meat eater, and another meat eater who doesn't eat beef, which is probably just residual from her being a vegetarian when she was young. The one roommate is horrified at my decision and thinks it's hilarious. Our fridge is 85% meat and dairy, and then there's one tiny little 8 inch shelf area carved out for my 'gross' food. So, since i don't have full refrigerator access, I don't get to buy as many fresh and frozen things as I'd like. I do keep vegan Boca burgers on hand, and most of the vegetables I eat are frozen. But, as far as pre-cooking and storing things for later, it's almost impossible. There's no room, because all the crap that I won't eat, is taking up most of our food storage area.

Anyway, I would say most of my reasons for returning to veganism are health related; I'm really sluggish, have a lot of weight to take off, and I feel physically bad after eating any animal products. However, eating 'healthily' includes eating morally for me, and I think the 'right' way to eat is vegan anyway. I think I knew the whole time I was meat-eating again that I was just making excuses for myself, and I really have no story about why it took me so long to come back. The mass amounts of animals who suffer and die each year because humans see them as food, and unworthy of respect, is unnecessary and atrocious.

So, anyway! I also watch a LOT of television, I work nights on the weekends, and I hang out with my kid when I have any free time. Have had a pretty hard time maintaining friendships due to constantly having to defend myself (yeah, not explain, defend) about veganism, or any choice I make for that matter, instead of being supported. So! I've been mostly alone and on my own and all that, for a while.

I'm not a stranger to forums, so I know how all this stuff works. Look forward to hanging out and learning a lot here.

Thanks for reading!


<3 Laura

[leedsveg]

Hi Laura

Glad you've joined us. :thumbsup:

Leedsveg

[missbettie]

nice to meet you!

[Clueless Git]

.. due to constantly having to defend myself (yeah, not explain, defend) about veganism ..
Hi Laura :)

Know exactly what you mean there ...

Fortunately, on the basis that "the best defence is overwhelming offense", if you have a dig around here you should quickly be able to compile yourself a quite formidable arsenal.

My personal favourite offensive is to tell people that I'm not actualy a vegan but a cannibal who has vowed not to eat 'inferior' meats untill me and my cannibal mates can get the laws against eating people repealed, btw.

That and offering to eat people pets...

I find that looking at peoples pets and discussing exactly how I would cook them, given the chance, offends people quite a lot.

[rotary phone]

Haha! I just find myself not eating around others, and not sticking around to hang out when they eat their meals. It always turns into something stupid.

But, I am happy with the steps I'm making and quite confident that I'm doing the right thing.

[pat sommer]

Welcome aboard Laura!

Glad to hear the self-defense exercise isn't getting you down. Karma's strategy sounds hilarious; mine is to go along with the 'gross vegan food' label as a running joke -never taken it to heart. Ah, the power of vegetables to gain some personal space.

[harpy]

Greetings Laura - I think people will probably get fed up with talking about the grossness of your food soon, but can't you assert your right to have a bit more room in the fridge if you need it? It doesn't seem fair, that.

[sandra]

Hello and welcome from me too Laura! :)
I love the way meat eaters say what we eat is 'gross' when they eat the insides of dead animals etc. I hope you can negotiate with them for more space in the fridge too........as Harpy says, it isn't fair! :(

[Mollfie]

Hi, welcome!

I just wanted to say that surely if there are three people then the fridge/freezer should be divided into three? That's what we always did when I lived in shared housing. We would each have a shelf in the fridge and the freezer.

[rotary phone]

Yeah, one would think everything would just be divided into three, but unfortunately it never happens that way. A 12x14 pan of meaty cheesy crap, lasagna, bowls of cooked hamburger meat, and oh right, the main meaty roommate buys like 2 things of sour cream a week and NEVER finishes what she buys, so cleaning out the fridge really means purging 10 cartons of half-eaten sour cream. Gross. :/ I'm pretty sure there is crap in the freezer from when I moved here 8 months ago too. They're really the least aware people I've ever lived with! But, I'm slowly making room for myself in the fridge. I have like 4 things of milk; chocolate soy, plain soy, vanilla almond, and rice, and I always have tofu floating in water somewhere. I just try to keep it all on the top shelf because they're not super careful about sealing containers and god knows I don't want any drippy dead animal stuff on my vegan beverages!

The vegetable issue isn't so bad, since I don't need to refrigerate most of it until I've cooked or prepared it, but it IS pretty frustrating to want to make.. lentil soup, say, and have nowhere to put it. So, I'm living off canned beans, and cooking single serving stuff, which is daunting, but much better than the meaty, cheesy alternative. Ugh. I'm proud to say though, that most of it is still disgusting to me and I haven't had to look at dead animals to talk myself out of anything.

The vegan bowel movements are still pretty shocking to me. I'm regularly a constipated person (is it kosher to talk fridges and poop in the same post? ha!), so going 3 times a day always convinces me that my innards are becoming outtards. Hahaha. But, I do feel loads better. I'm still in the process of making a recipe arsenal for myself of quick healthy meals and such, so once I have a hat to draw from, I think it'll be much easier.

Thanks for all your replies, you guys are really encouraging. I'm not sure if I'd be able to do this without outside support. :)

[sandra]

We're all here for you Laura! :)