Vegans on TV

I woke on Wednesday to see that I had received a text from my Dad.  It said: "They're talking about Vegans on the 8:40 segment of Good Morning America."   He is three hours ahead on the East Coast, so I had plenty of time to still tune in to see the segment when it aired in California.  It was a quick little interview with Kathy Freston, but her message was great:  eating a diet of things that grow in the ground or on trees greatly reduces many health risks such as heart disease and diabetes.  It also adds years to your life, and just makes you a healthier, happier, and slimmer person!  I don't know why everyone is NOT a vegan!  Click on this link to see the segment:


The Veganist on Good Morning America

I love that the Vegan diet and life stlye is being more loudly proclaimed throughout this country of fast-food restaurants and massive beef and dairy industries.  A few weeks ago, JT told me about an interview she had seen with Bill Clinton advocating his new Vegan diet.  After his heart bypass surgery, he desperately needed to change his eating habits, and what better way than to be a vegan!  I mean, come on, if the former President of the United States can do it, why can't more people do it?

Bill Clinton is a vegan

I forwarded the above link to my husband, a lover of steak (but also happily adapting to the vegan meals I prepare at home), and he sent it to his friend that worked with Clinton on a foundation in Africa several years ago.  Both guys were impressed, and even PH said he's going to go Vegan now too (right after his next grill party, that is... yeah, yeah yeah.)

It seems that I almost have everyone I know now convinced of a Vegan diet, right?!  Sadly, that's not true.  If I have to hear my friends ask me where I get my protein and calcium one more time I might ninja-chop them all.  What do they think vegetables and whole grains consist of, air?  People also seem to think that there's absolutely nothing to eat if one does not eat meat.  Hello, have you heard of those colorful, tasty things called vegetables?  You can barbecue them right up on the grill next to (but not touching) your precious ribs.  Also, there is such a thing as a salad without egg crumbles, grilled chicken and blue cheese dressing.  If you take the carne asada out of that burrito, what do you get?  Beans, tomatoes, lettuce, and a flour tortilla.  All those things I can eat.  What if you take the ground beef out of the pasta sauce?  You still have tomatoes, garlic, basil, and some yummy pasta, hopefully made out of whole wheat and whole grains, but even if it's just regular old pasta, I can still eat it.  I can even go to a pizza place with you, just order half a pizza loaded with veggies and no cheese, please. One of our friends had us over for a pizza party at his house a while back.  I was thrilled and touched that he remembered I was a vegan, because I found a whole lovely cheese-free pizza waiting there, just for me!  He made it with whole wheat dough, olive oil, garlic, ground pepper, mushrooms and onions.  It was so delicious!  Thank you ML! 

You know, it's the simplest things like a home-made vegan pizza that make me realize, maybe my efforts aren't in vain.  :)