Food for thought- literally

I have what I refer to as 'vegan on earth moments'.These are the moments that make me feel so very different.
I feel like the freak, the radical..the stranger in a strange land.
Let me give you an example: My local grocery store was having a small fund raiser and they were selling lunches that included a hot dog, chips and a coke. They had the bbq going, they had little "health tips" pamphlets to pass out and they were pretty happy to be raising money for a good cause. I wanted a closer look and as I approached, I noticed that the fund raiser was to support an animal shelter. My immediate reaction was a mixture of confusion, shock, anger and disbelief. I truly wondered how they couldn't see the irony in what they were doing!
Without a whole bunch of editing of my thoughts or words, I approached with a forced smile and said "Does anyone else see the irony in the fact that you guys are serving dead animals to people to raise money to save animals??" and "Hotdogs, a coke and chips seem kind of unusual to be handing out with a pamphlet on health tips, dont'cha think?" I wasn't loud, I wasn't hostile or mean but did I handle right? Possibly not.Was I friendlier than I felt inside? Absolutely. My questions were met with a nervous laugh from one, a few inquisitive head turns from others and a boisterous laugh from the chef himself. His laugh was sincere. I believe it just didn't cross his mind to connect the dots on this one. Rarely are we born thinking this way, we are victims of a lifetime of marketing and some of us will just never see the contradiction in something like this.
 In hindsight I suppose I could have suggested they consider serving veggie dogs next time but who knows...
So there you have it, a 'vegan on earth moment', a moment when I stand alone and want to find my people; the people who understand immediatley how I feel.

Why Vegan?

This video says it all...

Oatmeal, Hiking, and Black Bean Burgers

How does a vegan start her day? With a fabulous cold, summer oatmeal, that's how! This is so simple and leaves no thinking in the morning because you make it the night before. Add some non-dairy milk to the oats, a few magic ingredients and wake up to a seriously refreshing summer breakfast. You can run over here to view the whole recipe.

After breakfast, time to hike. I love summer mornings and I love early summer morning hikes even more. I can't hear cars, tv's or any distractions. I hear nothing but the rustling of the trees and the crunching of earth below the deers hooves. It's somewhat comforting to know that the animals around me at the park get to live there safely. I like to start my day in their world.

A quick mention about our dinner... sweet potatoe fries and black bean burgers.  Delish! Click here for the details!

Mmmm!

Perfect quiet

Right by the lake

Sunday night dinner...nom nom nom nom

First Post!

Welcome to Vegan On Earth! I'm looking forward to sharing my experiences, my thoughts and my delicious vegan meals with you and hoping that you take something away from it that makes you smile, ponder or act. Living a vegan life for me is not simply about a diet change, it's a belief system that says that all sentient beings belong here for their own reasons and not to be used or abused by humans. Living vegan is not a sacrifice, it's a choice that is so easy I can't imagine another way. There are times when being vegan makes me feel like I'm truly from another planet but that's okay with me, I wouldn't change a thing. Im just following my heart and hoping to make my footprint on Earth a little lighter.