October 1st Happy World Vegetarian Day

October 1st is World Vegetarian Day! And did you know that the whole month of October is National Vegetarian Month? Pretty exciting!

Now I usually try to keep pretty quiet about my vegetarianism but since today is the day to celebrate such things I thought I would answer a few questions publicly that I tend to get asked a lot.

You're a vegetarian?
Yes.

Are you a vegan?
No.

What type of vegetarian?
I don't eat meat. So yes to eggs and milk products. No to anything that is flesh. I think it's called an ovolacto-vegetarian. I'm not totally sure.

But what about Aaron?
He's still alive, happily eating meat and adamant that he will never stop.

How do you eat together?
It's pretty easy. If we make a casserole half gets meat, half doesn't. If we have pasta Aaron will add chicken to his. If we have tacos or burritos, I'll eat beans while Aaron eats meat. If Aaron wants pork chops sometimes I'll eat a meat substitute like a bean burger or I'll eat something left over in the fridge.

Are your kids going to be vegetarian?
I don't really care but they're probably not going to get too much meat from me.

Where do you get your protein?
milk, eggs, beans, lentils, gluten, cheese, and soy

Why are you a vegetarian?
This is the hard one. I don't like to get too preachy.
I started getting into the whole vegetarian thing as a kid. I really liked animals and the idea of eating them was repulsive. As much as my mom hoped it was just a stage, I never managed to grow out of it. Now I just find meat sort of gross. That's all I usually tell people when they ask.

So here's the addendum:
I also think the factory farming, where most meat comes from in America, is disgusting and cruel and does not respect the sanctity of life. It's also dangerous to have so many animals penned in so close together. They become vulnerable to disease making it necessary to use large amounts of antibiotics, which in turn helps breed immunity in the bacteria creating a potential health risk to humans. I'm not saying this alone, the World Health Organization agreed in its recently released annual report. If you want to read more go here. Eating less or no meat is also an environmental choice as not eating meat cuts down on the use of resources. And I feel healthy and happy not eating meat.

That being said, I think everyone can choose how they eat. I know some people have absolutely no interest in going cold turkey (he he) but just cutting down on meat or buying it responsibly can make a big difference.

So think about celebrating Vegetarian Day Today. There's some delicious vegetarian food out there. If you live in C-ville, Ming Dynasty has some tastey fake meat concoctions that are really fun to try.
I get some amazing recipes from here. And if you are curious or interested in trying out the vegetarian thing you can go here. Warning: That last link can be pretty sad. It shows some factory farming stuff.