Becoming Vegan

Finally I'm getting around to posting something! It has taken me a while to get started because I have a lot of ideas in my head and don't know quite where to begin. Perhaps I ought to start by explaining how I ended up going Vegan.  

This is not the first time I have given up eating meat.  Back in the early 90's I went vegetarian for a year or so just as an experiment. Unfortunately, I began to fall off the wagon with fish and chicken and it progressed to the point where I was a full fledged omnivore once again. Then in October or November of 2007, my wife watched the "Meet Your Meat" video (at least the first few seconds, all that she could take), and she decided on the spot to give up meat.  I figured since I had done it before it would be easy enough to join her in her new philosophy.  

Going vegetarian was a process, as we did continue to eat fish for a while. I always expected that the process would continue and I would go vegan eventually, as I knew that eggs and dairy were not cruelty free either, but I felt I was waiting for the right time because those things had become my primary protein sources. Then earlier this year I came across Bob and Jenna Torres's  Vegan Freak podcast, and it was clear to me that the time to go vegan had arived.  They explained plainly and forcefully how vegetarianism falls short in the goal of reducing animal suffering.  So as of February 15, 2009, I am a Vegan.

I'm not here to preach or persuade anyone to go vegan (though of course I believe with all my heart that everyone can and should), so I won't go into the details about what I learned, and this blog is not here to try to convert people.  Its purpose is to record my thoughts as I live as a vegan in a predominantly omnivorous country and in a town with a decidely dead-animal based restaurant scene.  I want to discuss the challenges and the discoveries I am making and I hope other people find this blog and share their thoughts as well.  Thank you for visiting and sharing your thoughts!