I was a vegetarian until 3 years ago, so I know all about how hard it is to be able to socialize with non-veg peeps without the whole stigma, social pressure from meat-eaters, and the general feeling of akwardness that comes from choosing a different lifestyle than most people that we know and socialize with….
I went back into my old eating habits (I was born and raised in cattle country by a family of meat eaters) for simplicitiy’s sake and due to budget constraints when I relocated to Texas and moved in with my current non-veg partner. It was simply too hard to make multimple meals, keep things separated, etc. But he’s always said he’s open to giving it a shot, trying new things, etc. When I recently introduced him to some literature about the why’s and how’s of living a vegetarian lifestyle, he started to understand better the reasoning behind my decisions to stop contributing to animal cruelty. So in 2010 I’m ready to go back to a vegetarian lifestyle, and this time I hope that WE can both stick with it!
I’m more prepared thist time around since I have learned a lot more about vitamins, protein intake, fiber, etc… Being a vegetarian doesn’t necessarily mean that those who don’t eat meat eat healthy, balanced diets. I’ve met plenty of vegheads before that ate extremely unhealthy diets and abuse drugs and/or alcohol on top of that. I also met other “vegetarians”who were quick to judge meat eaters and never wasted one opportunity to to preach others about living a “animal cruelty lifestyle” but were secretely eating hotdogs or burgers. That is just wrong! I don’t intend on preaching others about what to do or not do… but I also hope that I get some respect on my own personal decisions as well. I know the beginning will be hard, just like it will be quitting cigarettes again. But I’m determined!
