Eat Me.

Anything you can do we can do vegan.

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Rennet


The photo I describe below. From the Oklahoman by Sarah Phipps.


So I was going to totally make fun of this photo I found on google image search from the Thousand Hills Mission website. Then I took two seconds to read the website and they provide much needed veterinary assistance to rural animals in developing nations. I'm a jerk but the photo is still pretty awesome.



So I was just browsing through the Sunday paper and came across a photo of "Seaboard Farm No. 62" in Hennessey Oklahoma. The picture is of a stereotypical farmer type Oklahoman man (heavyset, thinning hair, 35-ish, John Deere tee) managing his way through debris of a large hog shed that the roof had blown off in a recent tornado. It's an interesting photo because you can see the rows of metal pens with the really large hogs inside. Some of the little blue pens are covered with scraps from the roof and you can't see the pigs but in other pens the pigs are sort of propping themselves up on the bars of the pens with their snouts to the sky looking around like "what's that blue thing up there!" And it is really cute but other hogs are sort of looking in at their neighbor's pen like "hey are you o-k under there?"

(Just re-reading that made me wonder if there is any sort of academic situation in which I could study the effects of natural disasters on mass farming practices... or write a really sappy pro-vegan children's book.)

At any rate it made me think about 1, how much I hate hate hate factory farming (c'mon - Farm No. 62? Of how many?) and 2, how I like to tell people that cheese is made from pig stomachs. Reason number 2 spurned me to look up the uses of swine rennet and I must stand corrected. Swine rennet is not used to produce cheese. Actually a majority of the hard cheeses in the United States are produced with genetically engineered yeasts. Yeasts modified with calf genes. Produced by Pfizer and blessed by the FDA.

It seems like the cheap-o soft cheeses like mozzarella on most pizzas are made with citric acid *phew* and that assorted other cheeses are made with vegetable rennets - which totally breaks down my argument that being vegetarian yet eating cheese is a terrible contradiction - but then again some are made with "milled frozen cow stomach." And since cheese producers are not required to label what sort of coagulating agent they use to produce their cheese good luck trying to figure it out.

It is sort of an odd thing for me because I wonder if I will always be vegan and think the first thing I would break down and eat might be some sort of dairy product. But then I remember we stopped eating all that in the first place because Amos is lactose-intolerant. Problem solved.

Now I am thinking I should start a little section of the blog called "hypothetical situation." For example on a podcast I listen to dealing with some vegan issues there is a sound byte they use that is a voice saying "What if a monkey made you a sandwich? Then would you eat it?" Because it is such an odd thing and we get (and make up) so many stupid scenario questions about veganism. So here is the first installment of this section.

This first scenario I just made up myself right now on the spot. First scenario: make a list of "food" I would never want to eat again in order of sadness to me (top being the most sad the bottom being least sad):

Pigs
Cows
Chickens
All manner of sea creatures
Eggs
Dairy
Venison

Second scenario: If I found a turkey leg in a dumpster would I eat it? I think this question boils down to 1, would I eat from dumpsters and 2, would I eat meat if it were free and I was starving and dumpster diving at a renaissance fair. Ok - I made this scenario up as well. But no - I would not eat a turkey leg from a dumpster. An 8$ loaf of bread in its original packaging sitting on top of everything in another bag with only other breads as its bag mates - yes. But not turkey legs nor other body parts.

Third scenario: Is elephant-riding vegan. Amos and I were debating this one the other day because he said if breaking an elephant is anything like breaking a horse then it is totally not vegan. But I said I thought elephants were most likely smart enough to just let people ride them so maybe it was vegan. (Or maybe I just want to delude myself into thinking I can guiltlessly cavort around town on my elephant whenever I please.) At any rate the jury is still out on this one although Amos still says no to elephant rides.

That is all for our new fun "hypothetical situation" situation and this post.

Nevermind - I have a new section called "funny photos I find on the internet looking for other stuff. See beginning of post.

Monday, May 19, 2008

Marrow Drive

The National Bone Marrow Drive is providing free testing kits to the first 10,000 people that sign up at their website. A fellow Pankaker let us know about this - three kids in her graduating class succumbed to leukemia around the same time right before matriculation. So if I am correct their parents have set up a program in honor of Mother's Day to provide free testing kits to add significant numbers of possible donors to the registry. From what I hear the usual cost or donation to be tested is around 50$. You get a little swab in the mail, swab your cheek then send it back in a pre-paid envelope.

Friday, May 16, 2008

Stack of Birds

I keep chanting this mantra: I will start collecting art, I will start collecting art, I will start collecting art. I love love love this Love-Birdstack print by Justin Richel.

On the same site, Little Paper Planes, I also found these little pocket size artsy fartsy books entitled Where I Get My Calcium and its sister (brother?) book Where I Get My Protein by Bexx Casswell. Super cute, super informative. The same site also carries beautiful jewelry like this begonia vintage necklace by We Dream In Color.

Friday, May 9, 2008

Destination Japan



From the MOMA Store comes this cute lid for your pots, pans and microwavable items. Since we don't cook with pork this little silicon pig can be multi-purpose to prevent splatter and be the only little animal (besides our two cats) in the kitchen!

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Thai Shout Out

I just need to give a quick shout out to an amazing Thai restaurant in the 'burbs so I can recycle their take-out menu that has been sitting on my desk for about 2 months now. CK Pad Thai - hats off to you for having the best fried tofu, spring rolls, special soups, pad thai, curries, sticky rice and an awesome staff that is always friendly and can make anything vegan.

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Hamburgers... no thanks.

As long as I am on a streak linking articles about why being vegetarian and vegan rocks I will continue with an article about meat and carbon emissions.

Eggs... no thanks.

This is exactly why I don't eat eggs. (Don't worry, just a ABC 7 news piece, not a link to Earthlings or anything...) I am glad to finally see some recognition of farm animal abuse in the media. And thank you to Mercy for Animals for bringing STANDARD INDUSTRY PRACTICE for the treatment of laying hens to the media's attention. And for getting that treatment on videotape. Gemperle (the factory farm owner) says of the practices shown on the video made by Mercy for Animals "What I saw on that video is not what our company does" and that the practices are "in violation of our high standards for animal welfare." Well obviously those practices are what the company does and there is no standard for animal welfare based on the company's common practices. But he did say one thing I can only hope for: "They won't stop until they destroy animal agriculture." Because this is how ALL eggs are produced that you buy at the grocery store and your local diner. (Unless you shop and eat at a very special very expensive grocery store or diner.)

And if you haven't gotten bored yet and have read this far eggs contain no dietary fiber, 6 grams of fat and 212 milligrams of cholesterol. Tofu is way better since it won't give you salmonella, high cholesterol and comes in a low fat version. It also has more protein by weight and per calorie than eggs. Plus tofu doesn't need to be prevented from becoming cannibalistic when kept in close quarters with other tofu. It's really easy to ditch eggs completely so maybe I should do a post about replacing eggs in one's diet?

P.S. My tofu vs. eggs nutritional value source is here. Since I can't run to the kitchen and look at an egg carton or anything ; )
P.S.S. I also didn't know the battery hens lived in the cages for 2 YEARS. 2 YEARS! But at least they are gassed instantly the second their egg production diminishes... oh wait.
P.S.S.S. The rant continues... people were shocked?! to see where the eggs came from?!!!! Where the hell did they think they came from?!!!!

Sunday, May 4, 2008

CSA box for April 30th 2008

My fridge is again bursting at the seams with leafy greens.

CSA box for April 30th 2008

Asparagus MI
Celery CA
Chives IN
Melon FL
Parsnips WI
Ramps WI
Sorrel IN
Spinach WI
Watercress IN

I swear I shall work on a post about wonderful San Fransisco soon!