Another major print and online news source has worked up a great article on veganism.
The New York Post published “Intriguin’ Vegan: (Don’t) Say ‘Cheese’ at These Spots” on Wednesday, June 25. The article hits on celebrities in the vegan spotlight and New York City vegan restaurant reviews (simultaneously by a vegan and carnivore). It also includes a spread from a photo shoot - “V” for Vegan.
In case you don’t have an awesome coworker that periodically sends you vegetarian and animal rights articles: Last Sunday’s Washington Post featured an equally cute and educational article entitled “I Love Moo: Tales From A N.Y. Animal Sanctuary.”
With that, the Sanctuary’s tour season is now in full bloom - head to the Finger Lakes to get your fill of animal love. The Bed and Breakfast on the farm fills up quickly, but don’t be bummed if you can’t get a room - Corning, NY is just down the road and is an fun, crafty town. Be sure to meet Sally the pig if you go: not only does she have the best name ever, but she has an awesome personality, too!
Recently I came across an archived article, titled “Should You Become a Vegetarian? Think Before You Eat,” from Ebony magazine’s July 2003 issue. It’s a good read, and good press coverage of a vegetarian diet, but I’ve devised a quicker way to decide if you should become vegetarian or not.
Answer each question with a yes or no:
1. Do you want to be healthy?
2. Do you like living animals?
3. Do you respect your body?
4. Do you believe that you are what you eat?
5. Do you feel that no creature should live a life of torture, confinement, abuse, and general mistreatment?
6. Do you like to eat delicious, nutritious, colorful food without feeling guilty?
7. Do you want to feel physically, mentally, and emotionally better?
8. Do you hate touching and preparing raw meat?
9. Do you want to be trendy and jump on the green-friendly or educated-consumer bandwagon?
10. Do you want to be in the company of celebrities like Paul McCartney, Carrie Underwood, Kristen Bell, Emily Deschanel, and Tobey Maguire?
If you answered yes to at least one of these questions, then you should become a vegetarian! (And if you answered yes to all of them … what are you waiting for?!)
France and Canada have a satirical TV show about a family of environmentalists called The Tofus
. How have I missed this show and where can I catch episodes from the two seasons that it ran (2004-2006)?
The family of activists, made up of Mom, Pop, Chichi, Lola, Buba, and Curly the pet sheep, decide that urban life is not for them. They pack up and move to a farmhouse in the fictional town of Beauville.
It’s hard to tell without seeing the cartoon whether it’s offensive or not, but any show that touches on subject such as environmental organizations, animal rights, vegetarianism, green living, and pacifism is a step forward in my book.
The show, which has been translated into French, English, and Turkish, is no longer being produced, and does not seem to be on DVD yet.
I continue be amazed and delighted with even the smallest of vegetarian reference in movies and TV shows. This week, three movies in a row chimed in with a nod to the veg-friendly.
1. Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont: 
When a widowed, aging, Mrs. Palfrey decides to check in to a London hotel for a bit, the concierge checks her in as normal, asking her all the basics and detailing the for her the hotel’s schedules and rules. He begins to tell her about meals, then stops abruptly. “You’re not (*pause*) a vegetarian … are you?” he asks. She bumbles over a quick, “No. no…” And then he responds: “Good. Because we don’t cater to them.”
2. Blue State: While working on the Kerry campaign in 2004, John declares that he will move to Canada if Bush wins. Since you know how that election turned out … John heads to Canada with Chloe, a woman who responded to his ad for a traveling companion. As they head off on their journey, John is explaining how he has the whole trip planned out, step by 
overly detailed step. But then, just as the concierge in Mrs. Palfrey did, he stops. “Wait. Are you vegetarian?” he asks Chloe. “No! Why, are you?” Chloe responds. “Of course!”
Later in the film, I was at first taken back when John sleeps under a buffalo-skin blanket. But then I thought, being a passionate political man, the character is probably vegetarian for global warming, avoidance of big business, and other Democratic reasons. He is not an animal rights person.
3. No Reservations: Netflix has pegged me as a fan of food-related films. I thought this odd at first: Do I really enjoy watching meat being prepared alongside my romance tales? But 
this movie reminded me why I like them: There is always a animal rights or vegan reference.
In No Reservations, the chefs are in a hustle and bustle mode and become flustered and enraged when a patron sends back a foie gras entree, declaring it improperly cooked. A food staff woman on the peripheral adds, in a sing-songy voice, “Foie gras is cruelty to animals.”
I just love being acknowledged and knowing that the thought was put into other viewers’ minds, regardless of whether it is slanted toward the positive or negative outlook.
She’s perhaps one of PETA’s most outspoken celebrity supporters. Spending her time serving food to those in need, speaking up when the media assumed that the hot dog she was eating was made of meat, and starting a petition to help the harp seals.
Who is the wondrously outspoken, animal-rights activist? Why, it’s Pam Anderson, of course! And now she’s found yet another way to act on her beliefs.
Not long after holding a fund-raising, private estate sale at her home, Pam will be auctioning off her beloved 2000 Dodge Viper (shown here) to collect more money for PETA. Anderson’s Viper will be auctioned off during the “Julien’s Auctions’ Summer Entertainment Sale of Hollywood Memorabilia” event on June 21 and 22 at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.
“I’ve been working with PETA for 15 years. They’re kind of my ethical advisers. With them, I see actual results,” she told reporters with the AP.
What have you done for the animals lately? Remember, it doesn’t have to be a huge gesture: every small detail makes a difference. As Gandhi once said, “Be the change you want to see.”
I am really starting to love Oprah. Here’s what she had to say yesterday:
The Morningstar veggie sausages are a keeper—nice flavor and no pig had to sacrifice its life.
MorningStar Farms has a lot of great meatless items to choose from, including several vegan options. My favorite from this company is the Meal Starters Grillers Recipe Crumbles, which act in place of sauteed ground beef (a.k.a. dead, chopped up cow).
I just sat down to watch The Last Mimzy and not 20 minutes into the movie … we have a veg reference!
Sitting around the dinner table, with Iron Chef playing on the TV, Noah and Emma begin to eat with their mom. A clip of the show that they are watching shows a live crab (or could have been a lobster) being held down, and whacked with a mallot.
Emma jumps. Questioning why they had to do that, why would they kill him when he didn’t do anything to them.
“What about that chopped-up cow?” Noah teases.
A hesitant Emma, with a bite of hamburger in her mouth, asks, “What chopped-up cow?”
“What do you think hamburger is?”
She thoroughly spits out every ounce of meat in her mouth.
From there, it’s just your basic plot of a young girl saving the planet and securing the future of mankind through a time traveling stuffed bunny rabbit.
Have you held or attended a vegan potluck lately? If so, you may have encountered an FBI mole.
Allegedly, the FBI has been approaching people about working their
way into organizations that might hold protests at the Republican National Convention (RNC).
One Minnesota college student who was approached, and asked specifically to “show up at “vegan potlucks” throughout the Twin Cities and rub shoulders with RNC protesters, schmoozing his way into their inner circles, then reporting back to the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force.”
Apparently there is also video reports of undercover cops previously acting as protesters, instigating rage, and performing staged arrests which led to riots.
Read the Minnesota student’s (he is remaining nameless) report of being confronted by the FBI and details of past, known cases of police infiltration into groups including vegans, churches, and theater troupes at the Minneapolis and St. Paul City Pages.
I expect stand-up comedians to be offensive, but usually their jokes are based in truth to some extent. Last Comic Standing Tempe, Arizona performer Christina Pazsitzky - who has previously been a cast member on MTV’s Road Rules - appears to have a hatred for vegans, but in her attempt to make fun of vegans misses the boat completey.
In her stand-up routine that got her through to the next round, Christina describes dinner with a vegan as a nightmare. Not word for word, but from my memory, here’s what she said:
I have a cousin that’s one of those vegans, and going out to dinner with her is a nightmare … Is there mayonaise in this tuna salad? There is? Well, instead of mayo can you make mine with unicorn tears?
How does that come close to imitating vegans at all? If anything, that pokes fun as people who start “I’m vegetarian” and then go on to explain “I mean, I eat chicken, but that’s it.”
Want a real imitating joke on vegans, Christina? Think like Screech and comment on a vegan’s farts; point out that vegans have a stronger bond and relationship with labels than their showers. Stereotype vegans with a play on truth, not with crazy unicorn tears.
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 …
Pop quiz time!
What female celebrity started a blog this week to track her 21-day, vegan cleanse?
Her first entry included some great vegan PR:
“Well, I feel like I got baptized in Vegan Land today. … Wow, wow, wow! I never imagined meatless meals could be so satisfying. I had been focused on what I had to give up - sugar, gluten, alcohol, meat, chicken, fish, eggs, cheese. “What’s left?” I thought. Apparently a lot. I can honestly say every meal was a surprise and a delight, beginning with breakfast—strawberry rhubarb wheat-free crepes.”
Click the “more” option to find out. (more…)
It’s all about the little joys in life for me, like hearing a reference to vegetarianism in a hit CBS drama.
On Numb3rs this Friday evening, in the new episode “Pay to Play,” there was a hilarious tofu mention:
Charlie discover that a group of rappers have created a mathematical algorhythym that analyzes music and determines how popular it will be. He uses the snacks that two different agents are eating to explain this theory.
Special Agent Liz: You lost me, Charlie.
Charlie: Ok, uh… candy bar, nice, and what is that?
Special Agent Liz: Flavored tofu chips.
Charlie: This is perfect. So I tested both rappers’ music. Hunter’s scored high marks; his raps are like candt bars. At least, according to the algorhythym they’re exactly what you’d expect people to want, they’re big sellers. However, Two-by-four’s songs scored significantly lower.
David: So according to the algorhythym Two-by-four’s stuff is like musical tofu?
Charlie: Ahhh… you stole my punchline.
Don: So why do they sell?
Special Agent Liz: Maybe some people like tofu.
You can watch the whole episode at CBS.com, this scene occurs at the 20 minute mark.
I haven’t been able to figure out which kind of soy chips were featured in the show - they were turned backwards so as not to offer a product placement ad. The backside had an image of cherry blossoms, but no Web sites show the back of their products. SO … if you are looking for some “flavored tofu chips,” Genisoy has a lot of soy snack options, Revival Soy has several flavors of chips - they even offer an 11 pack that lets you try one bag of each flavor, and Good Housekeeping magazine online has a taste test review of several brands of soy chips … because, “some people like tofu!”
**Side note: I love finding references like this so much that I have added a category (to the right and down a bit) called “Mentioned in the Media,” where you can find all posts like this one at once.
When Morgan Spurlock’s documentary Super Size Me came out in 2004, and gained instant fame with it’s coveted win at the Sundance Film Festival, I thought: it’s a 
cool idea to film your demise while eating nothing but McDonald’s food for one month, but I don’t need to watch it because I don’t eat fast food.
Boy was I wrong! This movie was phenomenal!
To begin, I had no idea that his girlfriend was a vegan chef. Having been eating her healthy, delicious cooking for so long, it’s no wonder Morgan tosses his fries when trying to eat his first super-sized meal.
But here’s where the shamelessness comes into play. If my review of this movie gets the most “I Like this Review” clicks on the social/movie site Jaman, then I win $1,000 from Whole Foods!
So if you have a second, won’t you please head over to Jaman - an online, social, movie-interest community - and check out my review of Super Size Me? My username is “SallyAndersen” and my review is all about sex. Seriously.
This is a photograph of the last moments of the life of Kentucy Derby second-place winner Eight Belles.
The young filly finished the race, despite being repeatedly, mercilessly whipped by her 20-year-old jockey Gabriel Saez. At the end, she appeared fine. Then, Saez galloped her out (a sort of cool down and celebration) for a quarter of mile.
She collapsed, having broken both front ankles.
Fighting, no doubt, to calm concern in the crowd, vets and officials rushed to Eight Belles’ side. And immediately euthanized her.
Saez won $400,000; Eight Belles was murdered in front of all the Kentucky Derby attendees - but, I guess if you are one to attend and bet on any animal sport, you are not one to be bothered by a needless killing of the animal. I mean, if you bet on her to win, she still finished and got you a decent return, right?
Of course every animal rights group is quickly throwing punches at the event, but PETA’s voice is strongest, making CNN headlines today for lobbying the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority for further investigation (i.e. Did Saez know the horse was injured?).
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)
» Sally-Andersen
