meat free and sauce free

[babalon_93]

There are two goals I have for the rest of this year*. By the start of next year I would like to have transitioned to a vegetarian/almost vegan diet** and also transitioned to a completely open source computer environment

Comments

[stephiepenguin]

The environmental impact you make by eating less/no meat is pretty excellent, so long as you pay attention to all the other stuff (which I know you will/do!).

I have found that 'not being to hard on myself' is what has worked best for me. I mean, I still try very very very hard not to consume any animal products, but things like - I found out that one of my favourite things (kaya) is very not suitable for vegans, and impossible to buy without eggs, and I found this out after I got back from Malaysia at the end of last year, having spent two weeks eating kaya bao every day for breakfast. So, I didn't waste time feeling guilty about it, because it happens, I just made a note not to do it again and moved on.

I am very obsessed with food, so I am always happy to chat about it. :o)

[babalon_93]

I am pretty obsessed too so there will definitely be lots of chatting to come :)

Definitely no being hard on myself is the way to go--it is what worked for me giving up smoking. At first I would 'slip up' quite often, but just let it go without making a big thing out of it and each time it got less and less appealing. Now the idea of having a cigarette is pretty revolting to me, so I suspect I may feel the same way about meat in years to come.

[cheshirenoir]

Vegan plus fresh eggs would probably be a pretty healthy diet!

If you just want the laptop for internet / basic apps, the netbooks are a pretty attractive solution. My EEE 701 (One of the original netbooks) runs a pretty sweet install of EEEBuntu. The next version is rumored to be amazing.

[babalon_93]

I think I will most likely be doing internet, open office and gimp. I like the eees, but I really want a bigger screen for making pretty pictures :)

[grouchiegrrl]

I went vegan-with-eggs for about two months last year and I was really surprised at the way my body responded. The best things people suggested or showed me? Find the synagogue in Brisbane, and find out where the kosher shops are - they have fantastic non-dairy stuff. Asian markets have all this fantastic meat substitute stuff too. And indian markets like Prime Products have fabulous frozen stuff for the nights you need to just make a meal really quickly. They were all the best things I found.

and good luck with it! I found it too hard to keep doing without the ethical impetus behind it. But I do agree that commercial animal farming is awful, and while I have no issues about eating meat, I will make an effort to source it from a more ethical place. I should also look at cutting down how much meat I eat for environmental reasons.

Thanks for prompting me to think about it again!

[grouchiegrrl]

I should clarify - in Perth one of the best kosher shops is at the synagogue - not that you need to find the synagogue to find the kosher shops.

[foamiethegreeny]

How is being a vegetarian more environmantally sound. This seems to be the latest marketing ploy by vegetarians to further their cause with no basis in reality. Most vegeterian diets are just as environmentally damaging as those of omnivors for the simple reason that both are based on modern western farming practice. That is large monocultures based on fossil fuels. By all means go veg on moral grounds but environmental it is not. Enivornmentally there better arguements to shoot and eat ferral pests (eg goats, rabbits and camels) in Australia than to go veg. Vegetarian often argue the case on the faulty hierachial pyramid structure rather than the reality of the web of life.

[babalon_93]

Not arguing on the basis of the faulty pyramid propaganda--the pyramid makes me angry and I especially wish they would stop teaching it in schools.

Also, I have no objection to eating feral animals, I actually think that is a win win. Likewise I am fine with wild game, as long as it is killed in a sustainable manner. My problem is with the meat industry, not the practice of eating meat in and of itself.

And you are correct that a lot of plant foods are farmed in an environmentally crap manner.

The environmental argument is that it takes a lot more land and water (including that which is used for crops to feed the meat) to make enough food for a meat based meal than it does for a vegetable based one. A *lot* more. There are other reasons too, but that is the main one.