It's a long way off at the moment, barring a life shattering accident, but if/ when I have children, is it right that I would bring them up vegetarian?
Since turning, it dawned on me I will probably have the responsibility of feeding tiny humans of my own one day who can't fend for themselves, so it would make sense that I try to pass on the veg baton, right?
My choice to not eat meat would stand for even less in the grand scheme of things if I can't at least influence my offspring to make the same choice, so while I'm in charge of their morals in the early years, I would definitely make our collective living a meat free zone.
This may seem oppressive on my part, but isn't all parenting? and of course they will be allowed to make their own mind up when the time comes, and sneak off to confirm the fables they've heard about beef burgers should they so desire. However, hopefully by then I'll have conditioned them so that they throw up or feel a sharp pain in their spine anytime they see meat.
I wouldn't make it so black and white and poison their minds with "look, you either kill innocent animals for no reason, or you don't", but I would pass on what I have learnt and what it means to me, because I trust that what I know, and what I will come to know is of worth to them.
Whilst this may want them to rebel and eat meat as if it were the forbidden fruit, I'll have done my bit. Though it's probably incredibly naive and ignorant of me to say as a non-parent, but ideally I think I would be happy for my future progeny to ignore my lessons on life if they come to not truly believe them. Even though they are just kids and, what do they know!?
I can see the poor things now, sitting at school with chickpea sandwiches; everyone else is finishing off their mum's leftovers of last nights roast and sneering at how weird it is to never have eaten a chicken wing.
But fuck those kids, my children of the future! Use shock and awe, threaten to put their cat on a spit and chew at its deep-fried legs, how would they feel about it then!?
I quite like these invented children of mine, I've grown so close to them over this post, they've got guts. Maybe i'll try to speed up their existence and set up a test tube experiment in my room.
Having finally offloaded the last bits of meat in my freezer, the slate was wiped clean, and I was excited to stock up on some new products and go in search for items that wouldn't usually make the list.
I was mostly interested in meat-replacement services like Quorn and Tofu as I had never thought or looked twice at these products before I turned. Though, I have had Quorn before in the uncanny shape and demeanour of a sausage, I can't quite remember how I felt about it at the time, but I don't think it was at all negative. This time around I bought Quorn 'chicken' and 'beef' and await the response of my body to these fungi in disguise.
I've seen mixed reviews of Tofu and wanted to make my own mind up, but unfortunately I couldn't find any inside the belly of supermarket beasts Aldi or Tesco and so will look elsewhere. Unless I missed the secret passage that I'm to be lead down by whispering a code word inside one of the workers ears.
I'd hoped I wouldn't experience any kind of food snobbery, especially being a vegetarian noob after only just converting, but as I found myself skipping the 'poultry' 'beef' and 'fish' aisles there was an inkling of thought that slipped through, telling me I was more morally accomplished for throwing butternut squash in my trolley instead of a leg of lamb.
I was handed another moral dilemma as I was searching for eggs and having to check with my conscience which ones to get. Now I have to look for organic, free range, 'don't worry we gave them warm clothes and fed them treats in a luxurious garden before we forced them to shit out an egg' eggs, so as to not have a double standard about how I believe it is wrong to kill an animal for food, but that its OK to keep them cooped up in a shit filled B&B until they've eaten so much they might explode.
There I was, however, shopping in a supermarket, creating the demand for these shithouses by feeding a mass producing grocery retailer. But until I have enough space to house chickens and cows that can produce eggs and milk with a smile on their face, I will continue to be a cog.
I wasn't tempted to meat-out during this shop, despite my accompaniment for the trip flashing steak cuts and chorizo sausages in my eye-line, s/o Dan Morris for doing so.
Eating meat has finally stopped making sense.
The idea of converting to a vegetarian lifestyle has been sat patiently at the back of my mind for a large chunk of time. While it seems to me now that there is no logical reason to continue eating meat, two weeks ago my brain couldn't comprehend a day without it.
While I attempted to understand these barriers, I found myself back home after my mindless weekly shop where i'd purchased meat as a force of habit. I'd bought enough to last me a couple of weeks at least, but as I prepared the beasts for the freezer I found myself repulsed by the idea of how convenient it was for me to do so. I get hungry, there's nothing to eat, I purchase the goods, and I'm fulfilled, painless.
Being so far removed and only seeing the end product as I would any other grocery, makes it a perfectly impersonal process, i'm sure that if I was handed a knife and told to bring steak for a household I would come back bearing the gift of canned beans and a loaf of bread.
These thoughts got the ball rolling, however I knew my actions to abstain from meat would not affect the world at large, so why should I be the one to never visit that familiar roast ham haven ever again? Besides, wouldn't, given the chance, the animals that are slaughtered do the same to me in my shoes? I'm just lucky enough to find myself at the top of the food chain looking down; selecting what will sustain my deserving human body for the minute, it's just the way it is.
Then I reminded myself that no decision I have ever made has affected the world at large, so this is no kind of excuse, I wish instead to change the world inside my head, whether it sends the animal kingdom into a frenzy to break free and run into my open arms to congratulate me or not.
As for my stance at the top of the food chain, I do not feel I deserve that status, nor do I need it. If it were the case that I had to eat meat or starve to death I would be selfishly and infinitely thankful to our ancestors for teaching the generations to feed, but not now, not with all of the alternatives that are available to experiment with and discover.
Aside from the obvious nutritional value, I feel I have no real obligation to meat. Aside from beef burgers of the cheese soaked, red in the middle with all the toppings I desire variety, I know I can look back on my meat filled days with a short lived glance.
Being shown the website www.theppk.com/ by a friend who has recently taken the plunge into vegetarianism helped me to find a bunch of recipes that eased the pain of thinking i'll never eat for pleasure again.
I shall be using this blog space to describe in detail the hallucinations and night sweats I experience with my withdrawal symptoms, but mainly just to mark my progress and commentate new food experiences. .
