When listening to the Dandy Warhols’ song Bohemian Like You, I like to pretend that they are singing to me.
… But if you dig on vegan food
Well, come over to my work
I’ll have ‘em cook you something
That you’ll really love‘Cos I like you
Yeah I like you
And I’m feeling so bohemian like you
Yeah I like you
Yeah I like you
And I feel …
After a weekend in New York City volunteering at the Farm Sanctuary Gala, I have lots to share.
Friday evening I got a chance to meet and eat with several Farm Sanctuary staff members. I had an amazing dinner out with the communications team at Caravan of Dreams, a phenomenal vegan, kosher, and raw food restaurant in the city.
Saturday night was the gala itself. Here’s what stick out in my mind about the event:
1. Zora Andrich, who is known for her appearance on the reality series Joe Millionaire and has since become a spokesperson for Slim-Fast, worked as a volunteer. With the number of people whispering about her presence, she easily could have made a red carpet appearance but chose to volunteer instead.
2. Bones star Emily Deschanel has a deeper voice in person, and is super mellow and friendly. 
She was one of the few top names in attendance that perused the silent auction section (where I was stationed). She bid on several fashion items including purses and clothing, winning a set of organic shirts. She also bid $3,000 at the live auction for an autographed, box set of Skinny Bitch and Skinny Bitch in the Kitch, including a lunch with co-author Rory Freedman.
3. Speaking of author Rory Freedman … her outfit. Wow. Shown here, is Rory wearing an ’80s homecoming dress: silver metallic fabric, off the shoulders with a ruffle around the neckline, and gathered just below the buttocks.
4. Comedic actor Kevin Nealon bumped into me, as did Russell Simmons who was by far my favorite speaker of the evening. As he was introducing award-winning yogis, he brought up the Biblical subject of man having “dominion over animals.” I was in awe of his smooth voice, and eloquently delivered message that God asked us to take care of and look out for his creatures - not to torture, abuse, and control them.
5. Emcee Melissa Rivers and hostess Heather Mills pleasantly surprised me with their speaking skills, stage presence, and likability.
6. The Piraros made quiet a showing. Bizarro comic artist Dan donated two auction pieces, one was a hilarious restaurant scene: a hippie mom saying “Do you have to do that in public?” to a 
woman feeding her baby chicken breast meat. Dan also bid on several objects, including a statue title “Pig-Headed” which was a blind-folded person form the waist up, a pig on his head, and situated on a grill. Dan will swear to you that he has no idea who attempted to close this silent auction early, right after his bid. His wife Ashley Lou - who was one of the PETA members who showered in Times Square - showed up with pink hair. Love it!
7. House’s Lisa Edelstein was announced as Linda. Last year her last name was said wrong.
8. Susie Essman of Curb Your Enthusiasm looked nervous before going on stage to host the live auction. So I, not knowing who she was at the moment, chatted her up.
9. Hal Sparks was hard to recognize because he now has girl hair: long, luxurious locks.
10. True Whitaker, shown here arriving with her mom Keisha Whitaker, was dressed adorably. Yes it’s over the top, but chances are she felt like a princess.
11. One of the most popular silent auction items was an autographed, complete set of The Golden Girls, including a signed photo of Rue “Blanche” McClanahan. The many gorgeous paintings of farm animals were popular, too, as well as all the vegan handbags, wallets, and purses.
12. The ice sculpture was dropped. It shattered.
13. I spied one guest with a leather Louis Vuitton bag, and another one wearing Christian Louboutin leather shoes. Don’t think I didn’t notice.
And the most important … Kristen Bell couldn’t make it. I cried.
Stay tuned and find out about the goody bag contents, auction items, and donations (including one for $1 million!).
…literally.
A Scent of Scandal is an L.A.-based, brother-and-sister venture that creates all-soy wax candles with pure cotton wicks, making them better for the environment and you than the average candle. They are vegan; they are cruelty-free, and they support great organizations like 
PETA, Sea Shepherd, Compassionate
Cooks, and Farm Sanctuary.
But A Scent of Scandal doesn’t just give a portion of their proceeds to such non-profits, they create “Candles for a Cause” - scents in their honor! The two “Candles for a Cause” that just hit the market are: “A Roll in the Hay,” a grass-scented candle in a tin donning Farm Sanctuary’s logo; and “Rock the Boat,” an ocean-scented one with Sea Shepherd’s logo on the tin. For $15 each, with 15 percent going to charity whose candle you buy, you’ll get 30-35 hours minimum of good vibes and scents.
And as for the scandalous name? Perhaps a few of the other candles’ names and scents will help you figure that one out … “D-Cups” smells like melons; “One Night Stand,” margaritas; “Teacher’s Pet,” apple; “Tighty Whities,” fresh laundry; and “Knocked Up,” baby powder.
Choosing soy candles with metal-free wicks such as the ones from A Scent of Scandal produces no CO2 and 90 percent less soot than traditional candles. Click on the picture here - the Candles for a Cause logo - to check them out on A Scent of Scandal’s Web site, where you can order a few candles for yourself, or bulk amounts at wholesale.
Mother’s Day is less than two weeks away, and despite many people’s false belief that it is a Hallmark-devised holiday, you’d be a fool not to take the time to tell the moms, grandmoms, aunts, etc. in your life that you appreciate them. Moms of pets count, too!
This year, you can get momma a gorgeous bouquet or some delectable yummies, while supporting organic farmers and the Humane Society.
Organic Bouquet is teaming up with the Humane Society of the United States to educate the public on the importance of buying organic, including: harvesting practices that “improve the quality of farm working conditions, minimizing damage to ecosystems, 
conserving biodiversity, and enhancing environmental quality for future generations.”
Plus, because they love and appreciate what the HSUS does for animals and people, 5 to 10 percent of your purchase at Organic Bouquet will be donated to the HSUS. In addition to bouquets, the online store features chocolates, other plants, wreaths, flowering teas, and gourmet baskets such as the wine lover’s collection.
Now, back to that myth about Hallmark conspiring Mother’s Day …
The tradition of reserving an entire day, once a year to worship mothers dates back to ancient Greece when an annual festival was held for Cybele, the mother of Greek deities.
Today’s American holiday for mommies comes from Britain, by means of social activist Julia Ward Howe, post-Civil War. She started a call for peace, writing the Mother’s Day Proclamation.
The Jarvis women (Ann, and daughter Anna) were also crusaders of Mother’s Day with their attempts to institute a Mother’s Work Day (Ann) and a Memorial Day for Mothers (Anna) who lost children in the war.
Today, Mother’s Day is the number one day for people to dine out, according to 
the National Restaurant Association. So, in addition to sending mom some organic flowers and goodies, take her out for a delicious vegan meal!
Check out Wikipedia’s Mother’s Day entry for more on the history of the holiday, including when and why it is held in countries worldwide.
The phenomenon started with the gag site “Stuff White People Like” and has flourished from there. If a group of people can be stereotyped into liking the same things as one another, then there is a blog out there listing all of these things … except vegetarians and animal rights activist. (Check out a bunch of them via BuzzFeed).
So here you go (I’m allowed to because I am guilty of most of these).
Stuff Veg*ns and Animal Rights Folk Like
* Buttons, patches, stickers and pins declaring their position on topics such as fur, animal testing, eating meat, etc. Quite often worn on either a tote bag or a messenger bag.
* Showering … haha, just kidding. They don’t shower as often as their counterparts.
* Arts and crafts.
* Animals - duh. But pets, too. Cats and dogs, but weird ones especially. They might have a bunny that hops freely around their apartment, a chicken roaming their backyard, or a piglet that sleeps with them. All rescued, of course.
* Telling other people what they cooked for dinner last night.
* Fresh, local, natural foods such as fruits and vegetables.
* The color black, hooded sweatshirts, dark-rimmed glasses, and big combat-type boots. Though now there are more and more “lipstick vegans.”
* Making new, cooler clothes from old ones.
* Pamphlets.
* Playing the guitar, learning to play the guitar, or at least talking about how they have always wanted to play the guitar.
* Frugality.
* Reading novels … and then telling you which ones you should read.
* Piercings and tattoos.
* Childhood nostalgia: strawberry shortcake, building snowmen, coloring books, cartoons, etc.
* Hummus.
* Meeting other vegetarians.
* Dreadlocks, uneven haircuts, and other self-styled ‘dos that require little to no maintenance.
* Traveling.
* Indie entertainment - the less popular, low-budget movies, music, and places.
Feel free to add on through the comments!
NOTE: These photos came up first when I searched for vegan images; each is linked to its original source.
We have seen elephants painting pictures before. They seem to have fun creating the pieces that sell as fund raisers for sanctuaries, but usually develop artistic skills about equivalent of a 2 year old: they smash the brush around, pay no mind to color choice, and scribble lines and dots.
But making its way around the Internet right now is stories of an elephant that can paint self-portraits and flowers, with an amazing eight-minute video of him actually painting an elephant holding a poppy that is embedded at the end of this post.
Thanks to viral media, the video clip is spreading quickly, but has unfortunately lost connection to the actual project. So here’s the scoop:
The Asian Elephant Art & Conservation Project is a not-for-profit organization that works with elephants to promote change in Asia. The AEACP longs to see a day when elephants are not endangered, and the people of Asia are not struggling to get by. In order to help their cause, they provide elephants with art classes and sell their works strictly to benefit the AEACP.
If you would like to help them in their mission, there are a number of items for sale on the Web site. The video clip seen here comes from a documentary that you can purchase. There is also original, certified elephant artwork priced in the $200 to $500 range (the one seen here went for $500 recently). Those on a smaller budget who still want to support the cause and have a piece of the elephant artists will enjoy the book Elephants Can Paint Too.
If you bit your nails in Mr. Schick’s metal shop class at North East Middle School he attempted to use the gross-out factor to break you of your habit.
“You know you are chewing crushed beetles right now. That’s what they make nail polish out of,” he would tell us impressionable ‘tweens.
Now the Museum of Science in Boston - with their Cosmetic Chemistry class - and the New York Times - who reported on it - are going with the same strategy.
Whale puke, skunk oil, pulverized fish scales, crushed bugs, and pig fat were some of the ingredients dissected from perfume, lipstick, lip gloss and other makeup products by the museum’s students.
Dr. Chi-Ting Huang, a museum volunteer, leads the class with a purpose of spiking these youths’ interests in chemistry and science. After discovering that cosmetics contain some weird, Fear Factor-ish by-products, Dr. Huang helps the participants create their own vegan lip gloss!
So it seems the tidbit of icky-ness that my former metal shop teacher stuck in my brain is true: chewing on painted nails could mean that you are chewing on crushed beetles. When the cochineal beetle is crushed, it creates a carmine red that is approved by the Food and Drug Administration as a color additive. But a point that Mr. Schick missed - these beetles are not only in your polish, but also lipstick, sports drinks, and other fake red products.
Good to note: animal testing is not the only reason to buy from vegan beauty product companies.
The wise and inspirational Maya Angelou turns 80 on April 4.
To honor her life and work achievements, here are some motivational and thought-provoking words of hers that can relate to animal rights:
“A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.”
“We allow our ignorance to prevail upon us and make us think we can survive alone, alone in patches, alone in groups, alone in races, even alone in genders.”
“If you find it in your heart to care for somebody else, you will have succeeded.”
“The needs of society determine its ethics.”
“While I know myself as a creation of God, I am also obligated to realize and remember that everyone else and everything else are also God’s creation.”
“The honorary duty of a human being is to love.”
“I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back.”
“You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.”
“When we cast our bread upon the waters, we can presume that someone downstream whose face we will never know will benefit from our action, as we who are downstream from another will profit from that grantor’s gift”
It always seems to happen that once you are thinking or aware of something, it pops up everywhere. Whether this is a coincidence of timing or that you are noticing it now because it is on your mind, I can’t say. But vegetarian and vegan references are everywhere!
1. On the front page of today’s free newspaper the Metro, the “Did you know” 
section read: “Some lipsticks contain fish scales? The substance pearl essence is obtained primarily from herring and is a by-product of large-scale commercial fish processing. It’s used o give some beauty products their shimmer.”
2. I rented the cancelled FOX TV show Kitchen Confidential because it starred Bradley Cooper (yummy!). Turns out, on disc 1 of the first (and only) season, there was an episode about Bradley - who plays a head chef - dating a vegan, or “level five salary killer” as he first calls her.
3. Year of the Dog is Molly Shannon’s quirky new movie that Netflix recommended to me. It is promoted as a “canine-themed comedy” where Shannon’s 
secretary character’s “life takes a temporary nosedive when her beloved dog, Pencil, suddenly dies.” Apparently, from there she becomes engaged in the animal rights movement. Mom saw it already and says that it is a must watch; that I will relate to it fully!
4. Fashionista is not a vegan Web site, but recently posted a great read called Is Your Makeup Vegan?
5. The Bag Lady told readers about vegan designers Matt & Nat, displaying one of their latest chic purses available at Alternative Outfitters vegan boutique.
How about you? Do you bump into animal and vegetarian references in your life? Do they still catch you off guard? Do they still excite you?
Hope everybody had a fantastic Easter Sunday!
I rustled up my digital camera this weekend, charged up my batteries, and have taken photos of everything that I have been meaning to show people since about New Year’s. Since I was talking about animal-friendly spring crafts last week, I took pictures of some of my recent artistic creations.
First up, here is my new wreath on the front door to my apartment. I found the twisted-wood base at the Dollar Tree (they pretty much always have them there), wrapped fabric ribbon around it and tied a big bow at the end. I used a hot glue gun to help hold the silk daffodils, leaves, and baby’s breath in place. Everything was from the dollar store - even the glue gun; being frugal is fun, too!
I plan on making several small ones like this with my class this week to donate to a local long-term care facility (old people home). We have already made them gift baskets that included stationery, homemade cards, pens, stickers, etc. and they loved them!
The second photo is of decoupaged tiles that work well to double as coasters because I used Mod Podge which is waterproof when dry. I also put felt on the reverse side, so as not to scratch up the table. The collage is made up of a tissue paper background and a magazine picture in the center. From left to right: pansy flowers, a praying mantis, and a monarch.
Making things is fun; showing them off is just as rewarding! So thanks for checking out my crafty ventures!
Consider making something yourself. It’s relaxing, very zen. Plus, the end result can be a great source of pride. And if you feel that you don’t need more stuff lying around - donate what you make!
This is the second year now that I have had to decide whether or not to dye Easter eggs in the arts and crafts class that I teach at my community center.
Last year, I chose not to, but did not address the issue either. I did not mention why we were not coloring eggs. I did not really find another Easter craft to take its place either.
This year, however, we made lots of fun Easter and spring-themed crafts. Plus, I talked to everybody about why I am not comfortable dying eggs! They all listened, quite interested in what I had to say.
So if you are not comfortable with the facts of mass-produced eggs (i.e. if baby males hatch they are suffocated, ground alive, or otherwise disposed of since they are useless and it is considered more cost-effective just to get rid of them), and don’t have a local farmer to buy from, here are some great egg dying alternatives:
* Boo-Boo Bunny: I already gave all of mine away so I can’t show photos, but they work great in baskets or alone. Use permanent markers to draw whiskers, mouth, and nose, and in place of googly eyes for younger kids. An ice cube fits in the bunny’s belly area and it becomes an ice pack for boo-boos.
* Easter Cards: cut two identical, big ovals (eggs) out of construction paper. Leave one solid, and cut one in half with a zig-zag, cracked egg-looking line. Decorate the solid one with a greeting, a chick, etc. Then glue just the top and bottom edges of the split oval pieces to the solid one. The card opens like cracking an egg!
* Spring Animals from Jars. Plus, anything that you find on Summer’s site will be animal-friendly!
* Fill Easter Baskets: Make it a group event. Fill them to give to friends, each other, or to donate - women’s shelters and long term care facilities both love receiving this kind of thing!
* Pom-pom Friends: Glue felt feet and beaks, googly eyes, yarn hair, pipe cleaner arms, etc. onto pom-poms. Try making your own pom-poms, too!
* Two Words: Styrofoam Eggs
* Memory Game!!: This was my favorite game as a kid; I think I loved it because I could honestly beat adults. Why not make your own set of cards? Make spring and Easter drawings, then cover the backs with all the same paper, fabric, felt, foam, etc.
* Wreath: Picture to come of my new door decoration! Dollar Tree - and other stores - sells twisted, wooden, plain wreaths of varying sizes. You can also get faux flowers, fabric ribbon, plastic eggs, and more. Add some palm leaves or a cross. I change mine every season!
Maybe it’s because I see the potential for a great conversation starter. Or maybe I can blame it on my parents again (I mean, I did play with models of wombs - removable babies included - at the various stages of gestation as a child). But for some reason I can see past the morbid reality of Etsy artist Jellibat’s crocheted vivisection victim bunny rabbit and find it utterly, darkly, funny.
Unfortunately, the only posted “Test Bunny” is already sold. I have hopes for more to appear soon; however, until then browse her shop! She has plenty of monkey love, licking dogs, dust bunnies, two-faced lions, cats, bats, and “jelli things” dressed up like Marie Antoinette, burlesque dancers, and robots.
***In all seriousness though, this is only comical to me as a light-hearted step aside from the truth and harsh reality of the pain that these animals endure “in the name of science.” If you are not aware that vivisection - animal testing - occurs every day, every where, and effects every one, please educate yourself (it’s okay to click: this site is NOT gory! Hooray for being able to find the facts without seeing visual gore!).***
With opening weekend sales of $45.1 million ($10 of which is mine), the latest Dr. Seuss book turned into a movie is a quickly becoming a blockbuster hit!
Horton Hears a Who!, as originally penned by Seuss in 1954, already held several human rights and moral implications - as do many other of his stories. When turning the 70-page book into a screenplay, however, the movie’s writers really took these implications and ran with them.
The movie version of Horton Hears a Who! - featuring the voices of Jim Carrey and Steve Carrell, and taglined “One Elephant One World One Story” - includes touches of human rights, mob mentality, helping one another, a higher power or being, intolerance of differences, and even has an emo/punk kid that is misunderstood by his father.
Of course, there are also plenty of animal rights issues that can be deduced from the story as well, though they are not the main focal point.
If you have a sensitive child, I would recommend screening the movie first or waiting for it to be released as a rental because there is a mean mother kangaroo and a scary vulture. Plus, the issues addressed will undoubtedly bring up a lot of questions that you may want to discuss as the movie runs.
I do highly recommend this movie!
Adults will love it; kids will love it. Men, women, boys, and girls will love it. People who want to think and have important issues brought to mind will love it.
Check out the Deflocked archives, or reflect back to my other favorite strip.
Anything and everything that you've ever wanted to know about living a vegetarian lifestyle, from recipes and dietary concerns to animal rights and veganism ... and the occasional straightforward, factual post that may make you think like never before.
Living Without Meat Author(s)
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