Li-i-i-i-isa... Don't E-e-e-e-at Me! (or What Kind of Vegan Are You Anyway?)

Many readers of this blog are acquainted with my previous attempt to reduce my culinary dependence on animals, "social meat eating," in which I would eat meat if I was with company in a situation where communal dishes were being shared, family-style. This failed because I would just find many occasions to go to family-style restaurants. While my sociable eating benefitted, the animals (and environment) did not. Understandably, many friends were amused by the social-meat-eating paradigm, so open was it to accomodating my carnivorous recalcitrance. I eventually gave up on it and went back to meat-eating.

I never tried vegetarianism. I had noted with some dismay that when some I knew switched from meat-eating to vegetarian diets, their eating relied very heavily on cheese, milk and eggs.

For a while, I tried no-meat-at-home, but this shared the same flaw as "social meat eating," and I just ended up eating out a lot.

For these reasons, I decided to be a realistic vegan.

Vegan because it was difficult to logically draw the line between meat and dairy/eggs, as well as between food and other products (leather, cosmetics, etc.). Realistic because I realized that lapses and occasional exceptions were not The End OMG Total Failure. I also have to admit that I like the hard-core-ness of being vegan. In a way it's easier to explain being vegan than being vegetarian.

I liken this stance to those who realize both that lying is wrong, yet who cannot honestly (ho-ho) say that they have never told a lie, and realize that some lies are worse than others.

Another way I think of it is my animal-exploitation-minimization program, akin to the risk-management strategy when it comes to STD-transmission prevention. Frankly, coming up with a veganism that I can stick to is more important to me than being The Perfect Vegan for a few months or years, and then giving up.

How has my veganism been fast-and-loose?

1) Once a month I eat meat (I may be phasing this out)
2) If after the fact I find out that something I'm eating has animal products in it, I don't freak out or even stop eating
3) I used to eat ethical eggs from a CSA (but I have since let my share lapse)
4) Sometimes I eat snacks with animal products if someone else paid for them
5) I'll eat the free cheese at Rainbow Grocery
6) I've sneaked tastes of food with animal products in it that someone has made in their home, because I can't stand not knowing how their cooking tastes. I'm a curious (and judgmental) old bugger.

But really, my best answer to "what kind of vegan are you?" is "what kind of vegan are you?"