Tommorow is V-Day

So tomorrow is day 1 of being a vegan. I didn't really choose meat-tastic meals for my last day, I just ate out with friends. I did have a BLT for lunch. Mmmm baconey goodness. For dinner we went to Ninja Sushi and I had Terryaki Chicken and some sort of mystery sushi. One of my friends, who I think thought the vegan diet had already started, asked my what I could eat that is vegan at a sushi restaurant. I told him that I wasn't vegan yet, which is why I ordered the Terryaki chicken. I did tell him that there are quite a few roles that are vegetable. There is also tofu and edemame beans and of course rice. I was sure I could find something. Having been a vegetarian in the past I am well aware that most restaurants will have at least a few vegetarian items.

A lot of my friends and family have had varying opinions on this vegan challenge. My Mom seems adamant against it because she thinks my daughter Emily will loose brain function being deprived of protein. I assured my mother that Emily will not be on a vegan diet and that she will have plenty of protein options. This is a kid that loves tofu and soy milk so I am pretty sure Emily would not balk much. For her breakfasts and lunches she will not have much change in what she eats. It will just be in the meal her and I eat together like dinner and the meals on the weekend, that she will be eating vegan fare. A lot of my friends think I am crazy but are mostly supportive. I even have a friend at work that its also doing the same challenge. I invited all of my friends to join me but most declined and said good luck. I think the good luck part might have been sarcastic.

I started a lively debate on Facebook amongst my friends when I asked advice on whether honey could be included in a vegan diet or excluded. The post and comments are below.  I removed the last names to protect the innocent and the not so innocent.

Me  Since honey comes from bees which are technically not an animal is it considered vegan?

• • Bianca -Yes I think so LMAO
  • Jenny -I don't think so because it is still a living creatures
  • Plus, I think bees are animals. They aren't vegetables of minerals
  • Joe - but vegetables are living things as well..
  • Me- Ahhh dagnabbit now what am I gonna have in my oatmeal. I don't like sugar and agave nectar is nasty. Hmmmm apple juice maybe?
  • Me Bees are insects so technically no animals but your re right they are a living creature.
  • Jenny- You haven't started being vegan yet, have you? You have some definitely NOT vegan meals coming up
  • Me No Vegan Day is Monday. Its 21 days so it will be all of September. What else is coming up besides you birthday?
  • Debra  Honey isn't a living creature, and will help with allergies if you buy locally grown! Eat a small bit everyday! Yeah for honey...honey!
  • John Jr Come on, its freakin honey!
  • Sarah  oooooh vegan diet!! So much fun! i can pass some yummy recipes your way.
  • Sarah

    As far as the honey thing goes....The term vegan was coined in 1944 and following its roots, Honey is not vegan. It is of animal bi product and due to their belief bee keeping is a form of cruelty and enslavement it is against the ethics of... Veganism as well. Modern day Veganism has encountered a huge debate over whether or not Honey should be off limits due to the nature of the product not actually containing bees. So, there are "vegans" who do eat honey, but they are probably the same vegans who also eat butter. My opinion, if you want to eat the honey, do it, but if you are trying to stay true to form, do not. Hope this helped and have fun.
  • Ginger- Besides being an animal byproduct (I'll leave it to others to determine the "animalness" of bees), vegans hold (and one can't deny) that some bees are killed, albeit unintentionally, in the honey-gathering/making process. So yes, technically speaking, honey isn't vegan.
  • Me So thats gonna be a no on honey then.
  • Jenny -Cliff also says that honey is not vegan, as biologically speaking, bees are an animal and honey is, as others have said, a by-product of said bees. He says that all the vegans he has known are anti-honey
  • Denise - ‎"Uhhh Honey..........you ain't vegan." said the Bee.

    
    

    
    In the end I concluded that honey will not be a part of my vegan diet. While there appears to be some debate even in the vegan community, I decided to stay in the safe side on no. Also in the vegan book How it all Vegan, they have this to say;

    Honey : Food for bees, made by bees. Alternatives: maple syrup, date sugar, sugars made from grains such as barely malt, turbinado sugar, molasses. 

    
    

    So since honey is off the list then I guess I will need to stock up on the above items as I prefer  honey to sugar in my cereal and oatmeal. 

    
    

    I have a lot for my shopping list tomorrow. The next post will be of me as a vegan. It's 11:00PM so one more hour to go and then its vegan tiiiiime.  I better get me some ice cream. I wonder if sorbet it vegan hmmmmmmm.