Vegan for a Month: Day 9

It's good to get some information in your system, when you're about to make a change in lifestyle, even for a shorter term eyb. As someone who built up about three years of veganism in smaller chunks, I wanted to read up on some supporting literature, while also looking for any drawbacks that might occur, any nutritional deficits that I might be inviting.

The two main bits of media that I took in while transitioning in December would certainly be considered advocacy of a more vegetarian and, by extension, locavore diet. Readers of this blog would be sympathetic, I'm guessing, to many of the ideas expressed in them and may have already taken in the works.

As someone who lists the books that I read, I noticed that I'd recently consumed two by Anthony Bourdain, the world-renowned chef, traveler, author, curmudgeon and champion of meat-eating. In response, I picked up "The Face on Your Plate" by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, a writer unknown to me, despite myriad titles to his credit. He's a sensitive man, and I don't say that with disrespect. The process of killing animals for food revolts him at that base level, he's even squeamish around sustainable family farms that grow animals for meat. The book's smart and you'll learn something about how your meal came to be; for sushi fans, his describing the way eels are killed will be something you won't forget the next time you're checking off boxes at your local sushi restaurant. His calls, though, for more happiness for farm animals is one of the ideas that probably won't resonate with most Americans. On the other hand, his discussions of how he, in his late 60s, keeps up with his young children, while still able to work out at a highly effective clip might sway more. In fact, his advocacy for a Meatless Monday is likely pointing to a way to bring people into a more vegetarian lifestyle, if at a slower pace. For those that labor over books, it's a quick, "readable" read.

"Food Inc." is a film that's made a mark in a short period of time, the 2008 documentary (available for online streaming at Netflix) tackling factory farming, American families and their over-reliance on fast food, the ability of companies like WalMart to make a major dent in the ecological future of our world, and a variety pack of other major-and-minor themes involving our country's food production and checkout line desires. Though it's a strident film, with clear points of view from the first few frames, the doc's got enough subtlety to not wear you out with jackhammering of messages. (That said, I watched it in two sittings, so I might be countering my own point; the early section on chicken farms might have you walking around the block, on a search for some perspective.) The film's probably going to find an audience already caring about these issues, but if it somehow made it into schools, public television and other mainstream viewing circles, the effect could be profound. The images and messages explored are so universally troubling, only the most unthinking people could resist making some change for the better after watching.

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Oh yeah! An update, or two, on the last entry. Lost five pounds the first week of the vegan plan. Ate one massive pot of healthy soup to do so; once exercise kicks into higher year, the results should even even better. And the sugar cravings are largely past. There's still that temptation to grab an Amp when they're around, but those afternoon and early-evening crashes are starting to abate. Shew.