I am a Vegetarian

"I am a Vegetarian" Every time I say this I usually get a "why?" somewhere among the crowd. Although vegetarianism has caught on and has become popular in the last years. Many times I find myself having to explain my decision.

It all started with a class on environmentalism I took last summer. In that class, I became acquainted with Michael Pollan and his book The Omnivore's Dilemma. The biggest impact that book had on me was the story of a calf that the author purchased in order to follow the meat-making industry. I was in horror. The more I read, the more I needed to know so I read a lot and eventually the only sensitive solution that I found was to give up meat altogether. In reality, it's not like I  cannot eat meat but I simply choose not to. I am not a radical vegetarian either. I go out with friends and they order meat and I have no problem with that. But in my house and what I cook and eat is always meatless. As a matter of fact, I can't remember the last time I held a piece of raw meat in my hands. I have to admit that the idea is a little repulsive. That's habit for you... :)

Anyhow... I have been a vegetarian for about 6 months now and I have to say that I feel great. My skin looks better and since starting the competitions to lose weight, I have learned a bunch of new and interesting recipes that I would have never thought of trying had I been a carnivore. My shopping bill is smaller and I know that my impact on the environment has also been reduced. I get that it's not for everyone, but perhaps you can consider reducing your weekly intake of meat.

Here's one of my favorite TED Talks. This is Graham Hill (TreeHugger.com) on why he became a weekday vegetarian. (The video says 8 minutes but he's presentation is only 4 min long)