Now, I have to be vegan!
Posted by dl-bailey on Nov 21, 2009 · Member since Oct 2008 · 286 posts
Today, I had an epiphany when I was protesting in front of McDonalds. How can I feel content just not eating animals. Yes, I may not contribute to the suffering of chickens. Doesn't the cow whose milk I drink also suffer,too? So, for the time being, I will become vegan - it maybe forever. However, I say this to not psych myself out. This may take sometime. The diet part will be easy. I have eaten a vegan diet before without any problems. It is finding inexpensive vegan products that is difficult.
We're all cheap ass broke bastards. We can help you find inexpensive alternatives.
Yea I have no money! Being vegan can be cheap as vegan chips :D
Food stamps make it quite nice.
This is a positive thing, be happy :)
It can be done.
My transition to veganism was rather sudden too. At first I kind of thought I *had* to eat vegan alternatives, but I think life is just as tasty without them. It's really the "fake ____" that's expensive, and fancy health food (not necessary, just interesting). Even fake ____ and fancy health food can be cheap if you shop at the right places, usually ethnic markets.
if I think somethin is too expensive, I figure out an alternative I can do home made. Ex: I dedicate one day a month (well more like..... 3-5 hours depending on what I'm doing) on making a ton of seitan from scratch. I make different kinds and freeze it. I boil some of the seitan for "chicken", put some of it in a blender for "ground beef", bake/flavor some like pepperoni, make some into luncheon meat type slices, I keep most of it boiled though cuz i can always blenderize or it fry it up like bacon later on. Usually only takes me 3 hours. Only takes longer if I'm multi-tasking.
Oh, the food is no problem. Already a lacto-ovo vegetarian. Also, I cook from scratch and am a great shopper. Even personal care products like shamppo and lotions aren't too bad. I already buy these at health food stores. (Have been buying petroleum free products for a while. Almost all are also vegan.) I am already have way there.
It is just buying shoes, that I think will be difficult. I wear a size 11.
On a brighter note, someone accussed me of being 17. For real! She wasn't even trying to flatter me. HaHa!! I'm 28.
People have been accussing me of being older than I am, even since I was 10. (at that time, it was 13 they thought I was).
people think I'm in my 20s now.
totally not a compliment, I don't think?
Not that that's far off, but it scares me to think what I will look like at 40. :|
Is it wrong to not do the shoe/clothes part also? I'm vegan and I don't really have any leather or anything like that but, is it wrong to have stuff like that? I'm allergic to wool so thats good. I guess I just haven't really educated myself on the clothes shoes thing yet. Is patent leather real leather? Oh and can anyone tell me what kinda fabrics have animal hair in them? I know wool but, sadly I don't know any else. Maybe silk? : :-\
Silk, yes.
And I believe it is bad because the wool industry is just as the others: abusive and exploitative.
People have been accussing me of being older than I am, even since I was 10. (at that time, it was 13 they thought I was).
people think I'm in my 20s now.
totally not a compliment, I don't think?
Not that that's far off, but it scares me to think what I will look like at 40. :|
Don't worry. People use to think I was 5 or so years older when I was in my teens. Now, they think the opposite. People are not that great at detecting people's real age.
I think it has a lot to do with how you dress and act not just your face. Most of what I wear is youngish. Think that everyone assumes I am a teen until I start talking.
Also, never drink, smoke or use narcotics and don't live a stressful life. These are the biggest agers. I never did any of these things. Eat well and do regular exercise. I did swim for 5 years and now ride my bike everywhere. Never wore sunblock, though. Personally, I don't see how putting chemicals on your body can prevent cancer.
Silk, yes.
And I believe it is bad because the wool industry is just as the others: abusive and exploitative.
Felt is also made from animal products. Patten leather isn't real leather. Its a plastic. Anything else I should avoid?
People have been accussing me of being older than I am, even since I was 10. (at that time, it was 13 they thought I was).
people think I'm in my 20s now.
totally not a compliment, I don't think?
Not that that's far off, but it scares me to think what I will look like at 40. :|
Don't worry. People use to think I was 5 or so years older when I was in my teens. Now, they think the opposite. People are not that great at detecting people's real age.
I think it has a lot to do with how you dress and act not just your face. Most of what I wear is youngish. Think that everyone assumes I am a teen until I start talking.
Also, never drink, smoke or use narcotics and don't live a stressful life. These are the biggest agers. I never did any of these things. Eat well and do regular exercise. I did swim for 5 years and now ride my bike everywhere. Never wore sunblock, though. Personally, I don't see how putting chemicals on your body can prevent cancer.
I used to get that all the time too. I was like 15 and people thought I was in my 20's. I also used to smoke and drink and party way to much starting at 17 till I as 22 so, don't do those things because they age you. After I stopped all that I started to look younger. Also I have to recommend sunscreen if not for the whole cancer thing do it for wrinkles. I used to be an esthetician and I have seen so much sun damage on women. Even young women in there twenties. Always put at least spf 15 on your face, neck, chest, and top of your hands everyday. These are the places you start to age first and the first places you will start to see sun damage. Maybe it's because I live in Florida and we get a lot of skin cancer cases diown here and I've seen what kinda scars you get from having it removed. It freaks me out so I use sunscreen everyday.
Patent leather is real leather. It just has a coating of some sort on it
Patent leather is real leather. It just has a coating of some sort on it
I think it can be either. I have a wallet with a real patent leather insert, but I know some is fake. Just like any leather-like product. Gotta check individually.
For felt, it depends what it is. The crafty stuff is usually polyester (or acrylic? something artificial.). But yeah, I'm sure there's still felted wool around somewhere.
Apparently, I have looked 15 since I was ten. Now 21, almost 22. The other day on the way to school TWO separate random people were like "shouldn't you be in school?" (I was going to class at ~11am). Yeah, I'm pretty sure they meant high school, because random strangers won't know i'm going to the grad school at what time classes start o_O So don't worry, dessie, it may reverse on you at some point.
Regarding shoes, I'm a size 10, and sometimes it's a challenge, but usually not. I guess it depends on what type of footwear you have to wear for work and everything. I often wear running shoes (either men's or women's), and generally it's saucony brand because they have a lot of leather-free ones. I can usually get away with sneakers in clinics, because even though some require more formal wear, really sneakers are way safer than any dress shoes. But in that event I also have ballet flats and mary janes, the former from Target and the latter from Ross. Sometimes we have to wear boots when we go out to farms, but there are wellies and traditional over-the-shoe boots (rubber). I guess whenever I'm at those types of stores I kind of glance over the shoes and check out anything I'm interested, and occasionally I get a non-leather, size 10 shoe.
It sucks getting 10 or 11 women's shoes period, vegan or not. I hate it most for formal shoes - there actually are a reasonable amount of synthetic ones I come across, but the problem is the shape of the shoe: it's like shoe manufacturers just double the length of a size 5 shoe or something. It's long enough to be a size 10 or 11, but just as narrow as a girl's shoe! I don't even think that my feet are "wide" for my size, they just make that size of dress shoes ridiculously narrow. If I try them on (and manage to get my foot in without breaking it), it makes my foot look fat! Haha.
/rant
as far as shoes go for me, I'm waiting until the ones I got pre-vegan wear out before I buy new ones, and the new ones I buy will be durable and vegan. Gives me time to research, save up, etc. I think they actually need replaced soon....
I just ended up giving up a lot of things like personal care products. My life is now simpler.
See the problem is I love shoes. I guess it's my latin side. I especially love high heels. I've looked at the vegan shoes and I just don't think there me.
But, then I feel really bad thinking about something having to die so I can wear it's skin. I cried today at the flea market watching all the puppies in the cages waiting to be sold. It was so sad for me. I think the people there thought I was nuts but, it really made me sad that they treat puppies as a business. I just had to share that somewhere so thanks for listening.
I'm definately not a fashionista. So, vegan shoes don't bother me. Does Payless carry non-leather shoes? They are one of the few stores that have shoes above a size 9.
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