Original Post Date: 5/8/2009
I didn’t think it would be for his
love of animals. So was it for health issues?
I really didn’t know. Why would
someone who enjoyed chicken, ribs, fish, sausage, bacon, and numerous other
meats as part of his daily diet suddenly decide to become a vegetarian? If it wasn’t for the animals and it wasn’t for
his health what was the dealio? A few weeks later he decided he was ready to
begin his journey on the road to vegetarianism - and for what?? Self-discipline. Understanding the possible difficulties that
he might face ahead, I volunteered to become a vegetarian for moral
support. I went all balls out.
In order for this to work I knew that
I would need to do some research. What
do vegetarians eat other than vegetables?
There was no way I could only eat vegetables. I actually Googled “How to become a
vegetarian the easy way” and clicked on the first link that met my
qualifications Zen Habits How To Become a Vegetarian The Easy Way. We were going to progress in phases.
Phase 1: Reduce red meat consumption to twice a week
eliminating all red meat by the end of the second week. Not too hard - we had stopped purchasing red
meat several years ago and only consumed it limited times throughout the
year. Done.
Phase 2: Reduce pork consumption to twice a week
eliminating all pork by the end of the fourth week. Simple enough… As with red meat, we had stopped purchasing
pork several years ago and consumed it even less than beef throughout the
year. Done and Done.
Phases 3 & 4: Reduce chicken and turkey consumption to
twice a week eliminating all poultry by the end of the sixth week. Not so easy.
For years chicken and turkey were primary staples in our home served 3-4
times a week fried chicken, turkey tacos, spaghetti & turkey meatballs,
chicken stir-fry and turkey breast could always be found in the fridge for
sandwiches.
Finally a challenge…
I decided that we would end this torrid affair with a tribute to some of our favorite dishes. My homemade chicken pot pie which I had only began preparing a few months prior, and a recent family favorite, was the first to make an entrance. Other desired dishes, such as, baked chicken, hot wings, turkey meatloaf and chicken fried rice followed; and little by little made an exit. As the end grew closer, we looked forward to trying new meals and creating new favorites. Then I realized that Thanksgiving was just around the corner and we would be turkey free. We feasted on our first purposely meatless meal – vegetable lasagna. Unsurprisingly unexciting, at least we still have seafood.
Finally a challenge…
I decided that we would end this torrid affair with a tribute to some of our favorite dishes. My homemade chicken pot pie which I had only began preparing a few months prior, and a recent family favorite, was the first to make an entrance. Other desired dishes, such as, baked chicken, hot wings, turkey meatloaf and chicken fried rice followed; and little by little made an exit. As the end grew closer, we looked forward to trying new meals and creating new favorites. Then I realized that Thanksgiving was just around the corner and we would be turkey free. We feasted on our first purposely meatless meal – vegetable lasagna. Unsurprisingly unexciting, at least we still have seafood.
Phase 5: Reduce seafood consumption to twice a week
eliminating all seafood by the end of the eighth week.
Thus far, we had moved along
according to schedule; completing Phases 1-4 with little or no difficulty. Our
journey to vegetarianism was almost to a close.
“Hear Ye! Hear Ye! We attempted to tame the T-Rex and it appears
we shall be victorious.” Famous last
words…
Another holiday had come and gone -
our traditional Christmas dinner was replaced with salmon and baked
potatoes. There were no plates to take
home. There were no leftovers to devour.
Dinner was over and so was our last and final phase. However, we were not ready for it to end.
For whatever reason, we simply weren’t ready.
The T-Rex had not been broken. Did our lack of beef and pork consumption
make it harder?
Technically, Phases 1
and 2 were too easy. How could you
possibly miss what you didn’t have? In
our case, we had eliminated beef and pork for years replacing it with fish and
chicken. Perhaps it was because I counted
down the remaining days, which inadvertently made it harder to say goodbye. It
could also have been because of the many species of seafood. There are just too many selections and two
weeks isn’t enough time to try them all. Plus, I had totally convinced myself
that fish wasn’t meat – its fish!
I'm Just Sayin'...(Damn!)
