As part of my 101 goals I said I would list my top 10 movies and see if they changed in the next year as I watch different ones. I apologise for not being able to find decent quality trailers for all of them, but here they are anyway, (in no particular order) my top 10 favourite films (it was sooooo hard to choose just 10 btw!!!)
Groundhog Day -
This is pretty much a perfect movie, it's touching, it's funny, it has Bill Murray in it, I mean, it's just awesome. Andi McDowell - because of this, I can forgive her for wrecking pretty much every scene of Four Weddings and a Funeral that she was in, she's just that good! : ) It's such a simple premise, but it's done so well - a grumpy, selfish, weatherman is forced to live the same day over and over again - see, simple right? But what is done with this story is beautiful and I love it!
*(one of my) favourite quotes* -
Rita: Are you drunk or something?
Phil: Drunk is more fun.
Annie Hall -
A wonderful Woody Allen movie that is a realistic and beautiful love story. It's romantic, intelligent, witty, and Diane Keaton is just sublime. I really don't know what to say except watch it, and then tell everyone how brilliant it is.
*Favourite scene* - There are so many... This is the one that really made me fall in love with Diane Keaton though.
Edward Scissorhands -
I know I'm choosing movies that probably everyone has seen but this is just a really beautiful film, plus I had to put a Johnny Depp film in the list. I cry every time at this film (not that that should necessarily be an indicator, I cry at everything! : ) and it's almost like a silent movie in places. Johnny Depp is such an incredible actor, I mean yeah he can do the over the top Captain Jack Sparrow stuff, the kooky Willy Wonka stuff, even the gruff singing stuff in Sweeney Todd, but in this, he barely speaks throughout the whole movie and yet you fall in love with him. His eyes are so expressive, he's so vulnerable and separate from everyone else, I just love this film. You know they wanted Tom freakin' Cruise to do this film instead of the Deppmeister? How awful would that have been? Thankfully everyone involved came to their senses and with Tim Burton's direction and the surburbia sets juxtaposed with the gothic mansion of the inventor... I mean, this movie is just insanely beautiful - pure fairytale. Unfortunately I can't find a trailer that doesn't wreck the best moments of the film, so you'll just have to see it and thank me later : )
*Favourite scene* - All of it. It's just beautiful.
Cyrano De Bergerac -
Most people have probably seen Roxanne, with Steve Martin (based on this) but not this version with Gerard Depardieu. I admit, I pretty much love the Gerard Depardieu, I mean, his accent is so dreamy (as C says, he speaks French very well : ) but his acting is also so effortless. This is again, a moving love story, so sue me, I enjoy them, but it is also a chance to see French cinema at a pretty high level (I wouldn't go quite as far as "at it's best") It's a story of unrequited love and truly selfless love, and I have loved it ever since I saw it in high school French class!
*Favourite quote* - All of Cyrano's poetry - simply sublime!
Singin' in the rain -
I really wanted to pick a musical for one of my choices (cos I love 'em) but couldn't decide between this and Moulin Rouge. I know a lot of people (C included) would disagree that Singin' is the better movie, and maybe it's not, but it has a nostalgia for me that I just cannot get away from. To me, this film represents me lying on the sofa when ill and with my blanket and teddies watching this to cheer myself up. Don't get me wrong, you can watch this film when healthy too : ) Apart from the, quite frankly, completely unnecessary Broadway Musical bit near the end, the film is near perfect, and Gene Kelly makes tap dancing look macho, I mean come on! Do you need another reason to watch it? Ok, the dance routines are perfect, the songs are great, the story's fantastic, the acting's pretty good : ) and the ending is lovely. I think it's a film everyone should see at least once!
*Trivia* - The actress playing Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen), who gets her voice dubbed in the film by Debbie Reynold's character actually dubbed Debbie Reynold's voice for those scenes of the movie! How weird is that?! Or is it ironic??
Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade (and Raiders, and Temple of Doom)
With limited space on my list, I had to choose just one Indy film, and my personal favourite is The Last Crusade - James Bond and Indiana Jones in the same movie! What I love most about Indy is that he's not smooth, I mean, he's a charmer and very good looking, but he's not great at being an adventurer. He falls off things, he's scared of snakes, he makes mistakes, gets hit and captured (a lot) and underneath the rugged leather jacket and fedora, he's really just a goofy, glasses wearing, intelligent archeologist professor. So the juxtaposition of Indy with his smoother dad who he really just wants to impress makes this film my favourite of the trilogy. Plus it's a great story, and the Nazis lose! (Sorry to spoil the ending!) It's a really lovely film and is great fun to watch : )
*Favourite quote* - "Our situation has not improved..." : )
The Lives of Others -
This is a truly perfect film. It's about the monitoring of the cultural scene of East Berlin by agents of the Stasi, the GDR's secret police and the Stasi officer who is responsible for bugging and recording the actions of a playwright and his girlfriend. The true reasons of the secret police for following their actions are soon revealed and as the ideas of the Stasi officer recording them change, the film builds to a beautiful and very exciting climax. There's not really much I can say about this film, except it is brave in what it reveals about the secret police of the time, and it is exceptionally well written and acted. Moreover this film made me think. The idea that this happened, that the secret police did exist and were responsible for so many deaths... it's mind blowing. It's an emotionally powerful film and again, just beautiful.
*Favourite quote* - not from the film itself, but from the director - "More than anything else, The Lives of Others is a human drama about the ability of human beings to do the right thing, no matter how far they have gone down the wrong path."
Peter's Friends -
A film about 6 friends from university and their partners coming together for a New Year's Eve party - once again, a pretty simple idea, with lots of complications. One of the reasons I love this film is because of the brill British actors in it - including Stephen Fry (national treasure), Hugh Laurie (he of bumbling Bertie Wooster and emotionally complicated House fame), Emma Thompson (she being one of the very few people ever to win writing and actress Oscars), Imelda Staunton (Vera Drake and Harry Potter movies) and Kenneth Branagh, who also wrote and directed the film. I have to admit to being biased, I love all the actors I've just mentioned and esp. Kenneth Branagh. I would watch pretty much anything with him in it anyway, but he isn't the best thing in this : O The scenes between Hugh Laurie and Imelda Staunton as they work to overcome the death of their young son are very moving, and Emma Thompson's "fill me with your little babies" is wickedly funny. However, I do think that Kenneth Branagh's direction makes this film what it is; his very long shots - esp when they all meet again - are done to perfection and the montage of them around the dinner table is really great too. The soundtrack is great - lots of Tears for Fears mixed with some Springsteen (can't go wrong with The Boss!) and best of all, it's very British!
*Favourite scene* - round the piano! Hugh Laurie's musical talents shine through and everyone is just so wonderful in this scene.
It's A Wonderful Life -
I'd never seen this before I met C and the first time we saw this together was our first Christmas at the wonderful Filmhouse cinema in Edinburgh. I'm fast running out of adjectives to describe these films but I think heartwarming is the one for this film. It follows the life of George Bailey, a lovely quintessentially American (can you be quintessentially American or just British?) man who is pushed into becoming the head of the bank his father ran and after an accident caused by his deputy wishes he had never been born. It is a beautiful film, makes me cry twice (in exactly the same places), has the wonderful James Stewart in it, is shown every Christmas at our cinema (guess where we'll be in a few months time : ) and I look forward to seeing it with C every year.
*Favourite quote* -
Young Mary: George Bailey, I'll love you till the day I die
Some Like It Hot -
I was really torn between this and any Cary Grant film I've ever seen, but I have to be fair and choose this. It's awesome! I've seen it many many times, and every time I fall a little bit more in love with Jack Lemmon's performance - it's so effortlessly perfect! Marylin Monroe is also just wonderful, so vulnerable, and sweet, yet clearly a bit damaged and worldly (see "I'm through with love") Tony Curtis plays both the Cary Grant role, "Nobody talks like that!" and the tom cat musician wonderfully and I just can't recommend this film enough. In fact, don't just watch this - watch this, then watch The Apartment and The Odd Couple to see what a fabulous director Billy Wilder is and what an amazing actor Jack Lemmon is! I don't really want to give you a clip of my favourite scene (maracas!) in case that ruins any of the brilliance of it, so just so you have something to compare Tony Curtis' impression of Cary Grant to, here's a clip of him in Bringing Up Baby.
Alright, this isn't my absolute favourite scene of the movie, but it does show the three of them fabulously - (plus I couldn't find a trailer that didn't ruin the ending, but felt I had to post something, so...)
One film that very narrowly missed out on my list was Back to the Future (and the rest of the trilogy!) : )
This shows Michael J Fox arguably at his best (apart from Spin City of course!) He's a brilliant comic actor and these films just prove it. Add to that the fact that they are hugely enjoyable and likeable and you can't go wrong! The idea of getting in a delorian and accidentally going back in time to when your parents were in high school, making your mum fall in love with you and having to make your parents fall in love with eachother while trying to get back to the future and save a highly eccentric scientist is pretty great for a comedy sci-fi movie! Everyone in all of these films are perfectly cast and I love every second of them, I could watch them over and over. (Cheers C for getting them on DVD for me!) Plus, it's the anniversary of the films at the moment (which is why I thought I'd slip it on to the list anyway) so if Back to The Future is at a cinema near you, head to it right away, I know we will!
*Trivia* - MJF had to make this film on night shoots while still filming Family Ties because he couldn't get time off to make it - that's dedication!
Instead of giving you a clip from the films, I'm gonna share this - a stand up comedy song from the guy who plays Biff - so funny!
and also a gratuitous clip of MJF in Scrubs to show (in case you didn't already know) just what a brilliant actor he is - (from just under 2 mins in!)
It'll be interesting to see if any of the films I see this year sneak in to my top ten by the end of it. I'm already thinking about Mon Oncle... Hmmmmmm.
Anyway, I'd love to hear your comments on my choices and suggestions for great films I should see,
Peace, love and happy movie watching, : )
C
P.S - Dinner tonight is chilli - another untried recipe, this time from How It All Vegan (review to be posted later : )
Tuesday, 28 September 2010
Monday, 27 September 2010
The Lady Eve and PPP
Hi, ok, so, sorry for not posting this last night, C's just got his 'puter up and running again, so mucho L4D had to be played ; ) This post comes to you courtesy of my smartphone!
Anws, a couple of nights ago, we watched a really superb film from 1941 called The Lady Eve with Henry Fonda from 12 Angry Men (seriously, if you haven't seen it, go now and find it!!!) and Barbara Stanwyk. It's a rom-com from waaaay before rom-coms and is a brilliant, moving, lovely, witty, fast paced fabulous film! (I think rom-com may be a bit harsh actually!) I'm really lucky that C has loads of brilliant films, now I'm just gonna have to work on trusting him when he says a film is gonna be awesome - I can't believe I actually gave up the chance to watch Cary Grant films a million times over before I finally acquiesed - and Cary Grant may actually be the perfect man! The message is - trust C! : ) Anyway, I'm off track... You can see the trailer for The Lady Eve right here and then try and find it - it's really worth a watch! : )
In other news, we have also been watching a lot of Seinfeld! C's friend at work very kindly lent us a few series on DVD and I'm finally coming around to the idea that it is pretty great. I mean, it's in no way on the level of Frasier or even Friends in my view, however, it's easy watching, the characters are pretty well written and it's really starting to grow on me. If you haven't seen it, this clip from Scrubs will enlighten you as to the popular view of Jerry's stand-up aka "What's the deal with..." : ) I love youtube and of course Scrubs! Doesn't everyone have J.D. style fantasties or is that just me? Hmmmmm...
BTW, now that I know how to put youtube clips on here! I'm gonna be doing a loooot more of that! : )
Now, on to the PPP - oh man! : ) Pita Potato Pizza from the awesomeness that is Vegan a go go! : ) Gotta love the Sarah Kramer!
C and I decided to have pizza for dinner last night(it's almost a weekly ritual : ) Actually, I suggested it cos I wanted to try out this recipe really, but shhhhh ; ) and at first it sounded weird I mean, no soy cheese, no tomato sauce even, just garlic, potato, rosemary, onion, olive oil and pepper... C decided to stick with his usual style of pizza, and I don't blame him, like I say, weird right? But gotta say - yum! It was definitely different, and really starchy, I could have done with a salad to go with it, but it worked. The flavours were there and yeah, pretty yum! Seriously EVERY recipe I have tried of hers so far has been great! Please go visit her blog and buy at least one of her cookbooks, you won't regret it! : )
For those of you who don't know the Sarah Kramer, here's a clip of her talking about her book Vegan a go go : )
Peace and much love for now
C
Anws, a couple of nights ago, we watched a really superb film from 1941 called The Lady Eve with Henry Fonda from 12 Angry Men (seriously, if you haven't seen it, go now and find it!!!) and Barbara Stanwyk. It's a rom-com from waaaay before rom-coms and is a brilliant, moving, lovely, witty, fast paced fabulous film! (I think rom-com may be a bit harsh actually!) I'm really lucky that C has loads of brilliant films, now I'm just gonna have to work on trusting him when he says a film is gonna be awesome - I can't believe I actually gave up the chance to watch Cary Grant films a million times over before I finally acquiesed - and Cary Grant may actually be the perfect man! The message is - trust C! : ) Anyway, I'm off track... You can see the trailer for The Lady Eve right here and then try and find it - it's really worth a watch! : )
In other news, we have also been watching a lot of Seinfeld! C's friend at work very kindly lent us a few series on DVD and I'm finally coming around to the idea that it is pretty great. I mean, it's in no way on the level of Frasier or even Friends in my view, however, it's easy watching, the characters are pretty well written and it's really starting to grow on me. If you haven't seen it, this clip from Scrubs will enlighten you as to the popular view of Jerry's stand-up aka "What's the deal with..." : ) I love youtube and of course Scrubs! Doesn't everyone have J.D. style fantasties or is that just me? Hmmmmm...
BTW, now that I know how to put youtube clips on here! I'm gonna be doing a loooot more of that! : )
Now, on to the PPP - oh man! : ) Pita Potato Pizza from the awesomeness that is Vegan a go go! : ) Gotta love the Sarah Kramer!
C and I decided to have pizza for dinner last night(it's almost a weekly ritual : ) Actually, I suggested it cos I wanted to try out this recipe really, but shhhhh ; ) and at first it sounded weird I mean, no soy cheese, no tomato sauce even, just garlic, potato, rosemary, onion, olive oil and pepper... C decided to stick with his usual style of pizza, and I don't blame him, like I say, weird right? But gotta say - yum! It was definitely different, and really starchy, I could have done with a salad to go with it, but it worked. The flavours were there and yeah, pretty yum! Seriously EVERY recipe I have tried of hers so far has been great! Please go visit her blog and buy at least one of her cookbooks, you won't regret it! : )
For those of you who don't know the Sarah Kramer, here's a clip of her talking about her book Vegan a go go : )
Peace and much love for now
C
101 Goals - a update! : ) and a challenge!
Hi! The next bit of my post (cont. from yesterday) is about my 101 goals. As it stands now, they are updated to include yesterday, and looking at them, my record isn't really that great : S
We had issues doing the dishes every night when we were ill, and tbh over the weekend we just got a little lazy, but that's fixable for sure. Turning the light out by 1am is just needed really, but it's not happening because we're so used to going to sleep gone 2. Also we visit the hospital frequently to see a relative of ours and don't get back from there til 8:30pm - after that, dinner, relaxing, bath etc, it tends to be pretty late anyway, and then we'll wind down for bed. The trick is I think just turning the 'puter off early enough to relax ready for sleep around 1am. I'll keep working on it though. Another goal this coincides with is my reading challenge. So far I am on chapter 4 of Birdsong and it's been over a week! I just don't have enough time reading in the evenings - must do that instead of watching things on the computer. The rest of my daily goals have been going ok, getting breakfast has been hard, but I'm getting there with it, I posted A Cow At My Table on Facebook so that's one of my vegan related posts up, I'm getting through my movies too (more about that in the next post) and I haven't eaten crisps for over a week. However, with the crisps thing, I think I've just substituted bombay mix for crisps grrrrrrrrrr. So now the challenge is to be off the bombay mix too. We shall see how that goes. I feel I'm doing pretty well but there's some easy stuff I should start doing this week. I'll give another update next week : )
A bit earlier in this post I mentioned our relative who is in hospital. The fantastic news is that she's coming out of hospital next Tuesday!!!! : ) I want to make a cake for her to celebrate with friends and family, and obviously that cake has to be completely vegan for me to make it soooooo I was wondering if anyone had any tried and true vegan cake recipes. I'm leaning towards Aunt Bonnie's cake from How It All Vegan, but if anyone has any ideas, email me and let me know! : )
Okey dokey, will post about the awesome film we watched last night and also about dinner tonight - potato on a pizza you ask? What a crazy idea! Will it work?! We will just have to wait and see : )
Peace and love and happy cooking,
C
We had issues doing the dishes every night when we were ill, and tbh over the weekend we just got a little lazy, but that's fixable for sure. Turning the light out by 1am is just needed really, but it's not happening because we're so used to going to sleep gone 2. Also we visit the hospital frequently to see a relative of ours and don't get back from there til 8:30pm - after that, dinner, relaxing, bath etc, it tends to be pretty late anyway, and then we'll wind down for bed. The trick is I think just turning the 'puter off early enough to relax ready for sleep around 1am. I'll keep working on it though. Another goal this coincides with is my reading challenge. So far I am on chapter 4 of Birdsong and it's been over a week! I just don't have enough time reading in the evenings - must do that instead of watching things on the computer. The rest of my daily goals have been going ok, getting breakfast has been hard, but I'm getting there with it, I posted A Cow At My Table on Facebook so that's one of my vegan related posts up, I'm getting through my movies too (more about that in the next post) and I haven't eaten crisps for over a week. However, with the crisps thing, I think I've just substituted bombay mix for crisps grrrrrrrrrr. So now the challenge is to be off the bombay mix too. We shall see how that goes. I feel I'm doing pretty well but there's some easy stuff I should start doing this week. I'll give another update next week : )
A bit earlier in this post I mentioned our relative who is in hospital. The fantastic news is that she's coming out of hospital next Tuesday!!!! : ) I want to make a cake for her to celebrate with friends and family, and obviously that cake has to be completely vegan for me to make it soooooo I was wondering if anyone had any tried and true vegan cake recipes. I'm leaning towards Aunt Bonnie's cake from How It All Vegan, but if anyone has any ideas, email me and let me know! : )
Okey dokey, will post about the awesome film we watched last night and also about dinner tonight - potato on a pizza you ask? What a crazy idea! Will it work?! We will just have to wait and see : )
Peace and love and happy cooking,
C
Sunday, 26 September 2010
A Cow At My Table
Hi! Hope you had a good weekend! : ) Got a fair bit to post about so I'm gonna divide these up into a couple of posts, the first is about the documentary, "A Cow At My Table". I heard about this online so I thought I'd check it out. It's a really intelligently made documentary exploring "Western attitudes towards farm animals and meat, and the intense battle between animal advocates and the meat industry to influence the consumer’s mind." It pretty much does what it says on the tin! It juxtaposes images from slaughterhouses and farms with interviews with animal activists like Peter Singer and interviews with farm owners and people in the industry like Livestock Industry Spokesperson Susan Kitchen, manager of Alberta Foundation For Animal Care.
The major issue in the film is the juxtaposition of the point of view of the industry (calling dairy cows "milkers" and hens "layers", talking about them as "producers", on the one hand supposedly able to choose whether they produce or not, and on the other objectifying them as mere parts of a machine "producing" milk for the industry) with the view of the animal activists that the animals are individuals. The point is also made that the distance in consumers minds from a pint of sterilised milk in a plastic container on a supermarket shelf to the cow that was pumped to "produce" it allows what one woman in the film calls "ethical anaesthesia". I think that is the best turn of phrase I have heard to describe the disconnect in the minds of people who eat these products without thinking about the animals that it comes from, or the conditions they were kept in.
The documentary is very well made, very persuasive in it's arguments against meat eating, and also it doesn't really use images from slaughterhouses that much, except to illustrate the hypocrisy in what the industry spokespeople are saying. This means that it's not quite as "in your face" as Earthlings for example, but no less compelling. I found it hard to watch at times, mainly because of the noises of the animals in the farms, and the part about downed cows is just, well unnecessary cruelty and very difficult to accept. The ending is also highly moving and serves brilliantly to show the futility of the industry. Obviously it's hard to be objective when watching a documentary like this and in a way, it feels like preaching to the choir, but I'm very glad I watched it, and I would encourage anyone reading this to watch it, and then to show their friends and family too. It prompted a very interesting discussion between C and me last night and I hope it will do the same for anyone watching it. You can watch the whole documentary for free online here.
One of the reasons I wanted to watch this documentary is because of a disturbing story I read in Private Eye about slaughterhouse conditions in North Dorset in England and examples of animal cruelty being found that were so bad that a major supermarket chain suspended their contract for meat. "Sainsbury’s decision follows the publication of video footage allegedly gained from the plant in which cows are beaten and shot multiple times in the skull with stun bolts." You can read the full article here. It makes me really angry when I read something like this, and it actually hurts that there are people who so totally disrespect the lives of the animals that they are killing that they would intentionally inflict pain. Whether you eat meat or not, there is no excuse for the treatment of these animals that has occured. Stories like this make me glad that I don't contribute to the industry anymore but make me really sad that this still goes on and that not only are animals killed unnecessarily, but in many cases, extra torment is added to their lives.
Today more than ever, peace and love,
C
The major issue in the film is the juxtaposition of the point of view of the industry (calling dairy cows "milkers" and hens "layers", talking about them as "producers", on the one hand supposedly able to choose whether they produce or not, and on the other objectifying them as mere parts of a machine "producing" milk for the industry) with the view of the animal activists that the animals are individuals. The point is also made that the distance in consumers minds from a pint of sterilised milk in a plastic container on a supermarket shelf to the cow that was pumped to "produce" it allows what one woman in the film calls "ethical anaesthesia". I think that is the best turn of phrase I have heard to describe the disconnect in the minds of people who eat these products without thinking about the animals that it comes from, or the conditions they were kept in.The documentary is very well made, very persuasive in it's arguments against meat eating, and also it doesn't really use images from slaughterhouses that much, except to illustrate the hypocrisy in what the industry spokespeople are saying. This means that it's not quite as "in your face" as Earthlings for example, but no less compelling. I found it hard to watch at times, mainly because of the noises of the animals in the farms, and the part about downed cows is just, well unnecessary cruelty and very difficult to accept. The ending is also highly moving and serves brilliantly to show the futility of the industry. Obviously it's hard to be objective when watching a documentary like this and in a way, it feels like preaching to the choir, but I'm very glad I watched it, and I would encourage anyone reading this to watch it, and then to show their friends and family too. It prompted a very interesting discussion between C and me last night and I hope it will do the same for anyone watching it. You can watch the whole documentary for free online here.
One of the reasons I wanted to watch this documentary is because of a disturbing story I read in Private Eye about slaughterhouse conditions in North Dorset in England and examples of animal cruelty being found that were so bad that a major supermarket chain suspended their contract for meat. "Sainsbury’s decision follows the publication of video footage allegedly gained from the plant in which cows are beaten and shot multiple times in the skull with stun bolts." You can read the full article here. It makes me really angry when I read something like this, and it actually hurts that there are people who so totally disrespect the lives of the animals that they are killing that they would intentionally inflict pain. Whether you eat meat or not, there is no excuse for the treatment of these animals that has occured. Stories like this make me glad that I don't contribute to the industry anymore but make me really sad that this still goes on and that not only are animals killed unnecessarily, but in many cases, extra torment is added to their lives.
Today more than ever, peace and love,
C
Saturday, 25 September 2010
My one month veganniversary! Aka - How it all vegan!
Hi! First of all, I must give credit to Sarah Kramer and Tanya Barnard, authors of the cookbook "How it all Vegan" for the title of this post today : ) as it is very fitting indeed for the subject of this post - how it all vegan for me!
Before I went vegan, my absolute favourite foods were either sausage and cheese sandwiches, or a steak and chips. I ate these foods for many reasons, I thought they were tasty, I grew up eating meat and dairy (esp cheese) all the time, and it was normal for me to have meat or dairy products at every meal. If I was staying with my Nan and Grandad, a normal day's food would be porridge and a boiled egg with toast and butter for breakfast, grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch with cheese and onion crisps and a strawberry milkshake, some kind of meat, potatoes and veg for dinner and a bowl of ice cream for pudding.
I'd been thinking about the possibility of vegetarianism since I was 13. However at the time I didn't have much recourse to vegetarian materials or recipe books and my Mum wasn't exactly an adventerous cook. When we didn't have sausage casserole, Spag bol, or a roast dinner, we had frozen foods. Not terribly healthy. However, when I left home, went to university and discovered the PETA website, I was so shocked I immediately went vegetarian - for a week... I chatted to the only vegetarian person I knew, and all she seemed to have for dinner was pasta, chips, or takeaway food and I felt that my diet was much more varied and exciting - I mean I could have pizza with pepperoni - wow! When I look back on what I used to think vegetarians would eat I realise how much my opinion has changed! But even though vegetarianism seemed an option, I knew nothing of veganism.
A few years later, and I don't remember how this happened, I stumbled across an awesome podcast called Vegan Freak Radio. I subscribed to the podcasts and started listening to the back episodes, especially the interviews with Gary L Francione. I read his book Introduction to Animal Rights and bought Bob Torres' book Making A Killing - both of which I highly recommend. I really started researching abolitionism as a concept and how it related to veganism. I found that the arguments not only made sense to me, but seemed impenetrable. The idea that if you really care about the way animals are treated, and if you have an ethical issue with them being killed for meat, the ONLY consistent way to live your life is to be vegan and not consume, wear or use any animal products.
The problem was that as a nanny for 3 children I respected the wish of their parents that their children eat meat and dairy products and I was the one cooking for them. I couldn't see a way through this into being vegan, so I decided to wait until I stopped being a nanny and was living back in Edinburgh again. When in Edinburgh, the issue became my relationship with C. He felt that if I went vegan rather than vegetarian,
it would have too big an impact on our lives/diet/going out and would just generally be too much of a hassle. The mistake I made was in accepting this and thinking, if I can't be vegan, I won't do anything.
The epiphany came when I found the book "Vegan Freak" in a wee political bookshop down a back street in Edinburgh. I took this as a sign - I hadn't been able to find it anywhere, everyone had to order it and said it would take months, and that the new version wasn't available for a while. I bought it immediately and found I could no longer make excuses, and within a week, I was vegan. I told C that this was something I had to do, that for my consience I couldn't dither anymore, and he agreed to support me. I had my last non vegan meal (cheesy tuna pesto pasta) my last non vegan chocolate bar (milkybar), watched Earthlings and never went back.
My motivation for going vegan was like anyone else I guess, ethically I think that breeding animals for the sole purpose of consuming them is wrong. I also have a great deal of compassion for the way animals are treated and I don't want to contribute to the cruelty and animal suffering in any way. However, I didn't go vegan due to a great love of nature or wildlife - don't get me wrong, I like animals, and think a lot of them are really cute esp penguins, but it was more the consistency in the argument for being vegan that swayed me. Vegetarianism was just not enough for me. To me, knowing all about what I eat and where it all comes from has opened my eyes completely and knowing that someone like me can go vegan when I used to eat meat and cheese A LOT gives me hope that other people could make the change too. Ignorance of where our food comes from = cruelty and pain rather than bliss for millions of animals a year.
So, on the 25th August - I officially became vegan! Now that I am a vegan I really feel guilty for not doing it earlier, I can't believe I thought it would be hard, it's just so easy and fun, and opened me up to so much I wouldn't have otherwise tried. In Edinburgh, we're so lucky with great healthfood shops and supermarkets that sell vegan items that it's been so simple to find ingredients. I truly am so happy being a vegan! feel so much better in the choice of food I pick now. I thought I would crave other foods, esp cheese that I used to LOVE but nope - it's like a switch has been flicked and now that's it... I just feel so much at peace from knowing that I'm eating healthier and food that required NO CRUELTY to make. : ) As I said yesterday I care more about what is in my food, not just in terms of rogue animal products, but preservatives and e-numbers too, I want to cook and not eat processed foods, I want to be healthier and eat food that's good for me rather than the rubbish I used to. It's also made me think more about my place in the world and
how I can contribute to it, what I can do to make life better for others and for future generations...
Veganism as a diet is also just so much better for me - knowing I can't just go into a shop and pick up a chocolate bar is great, it means I've stopped picking up unhealthy snacks on the go (like crisps) and am happy eating more veg and I'm a lot more willing to try different foods. My usual repetoire of foods included shepherd's pie with loads of cheese on top, risottos with bacon and tons of cheese, lasagne with you guessed it, lots of cheese, and for me pushing the boat out with my options was having fish... Now, I'll cook soups, lentil currys, anything with lots of veg and beans and I know there's so much out there for me still to try!!! I feel lighter, happier and I even love cooking more knowing that I don't have to feel in any way guilty while I'm cooking because it's all animal free, healthy and just great food!!!
In conclusion, being vegan rocks! The only thing about being vegan that I don't like is that the whole world isn't living this way. I just want the whole world to go vegan! I'm all about spreading the vegan word and vegan love! : ) But as a vegan, if I can show people that we eat great, healthy food and are happy people who instead of being restricted in our diets are open to so much in ways that I never was as an omni, then I'll feel like I've done something to help the vegan cause! I'm a much happier peaceful person being vegan and I know now that I will always live this way and forever be on the side of oppressed animals living in the hope that ONE DAY it will no longer be that way...
Thanks for reading this reeeeeeeeally long post!
Peace and love, and go vegan! : )
C
Before I went vegan, my absolute favourite foods were either sausage and cheese sandwiches, or a steak and chips. I ate these foods for many reasons, I thought they were tasty, I grew up eating meat and dairy (esp cheese) all the time, and it was normal for me to have meat or dairy products at every meal. If I was staying with my Nan and Grandad, a normal day's food would be porridge and a boiled egg with toast and butter for breakfast, grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch with cheese and onion crisps and a strawberry milkshake, some kind of meat, potatoes and veg for dinner and a bowl of ice cream for pudding.
I'd been thinking about the possibility of vegetarianism since I was 13. However at the time I didn't have much recourse to vegetarian materials or recipe books and my Mum wasn't exactly an adventerous cook. When we didn't have sausage casserole, Spag bol, or a roast dinner, we had frozen foods. Not terribly healthy. However, when I left home, went to university and discovered the PETA website, I was so shocked I immediately went vegetarian - for a week... I chatted to the only vegetarian person I knew, and all she seemed to have for dinner was pasta, chips, or takeaway food and I felt that my diet was much more varied and exciting - I mean I could have pizza with pepperoni - wow! When I look back on what I used to think vegetarians would eat I realise how much my opinion has changed! But even though vegetarianism seemed an option, I knew nothing of veganism.
A few years later, and I don't remember how this happened, I stumbled across an awesome podcast called Vegan Freak Radio. I subscribed to the podcasts and started listening to the back episodes, especially the interviews with Gary L Francione. I read his book Introduction to Animal Rights and bought Bob Torres' book Making A Killing - both of which I highly recommend. I really started researching abolitionism as a concept and how it related to veganism. I found that the arguments not only made sense to me, but seemed impenetrable. The idea that if you really care about the way animals are treated, and if you have an ethical issue with them being killed for meat, the ONLY consistent way to live your life is to be vegan and not consume, wear or use any animal products.
The problem was that as a nanny for 3 children I respected the wish of their parents that their children eat meat and dairy products and I was the one cooking for them. I couldn't see a way through this into being vegan, so I decided to wait until I stopped being a nanny and was living back in Edinburgh again. When in Edinburgh, the issue became my relationship with C. He felt that if I went vegan rather than vegetarian,
it would have too big an impact on our lives/diet/going out and would just generally be too much of a hassle. The mistake I made was in accepting this and thinking, if I can't be vegan, I won't do anything.
The epiphany came when I found the book "Vegan Freak" in a wee political bookshop down a back street in Edinburgh. I took this as a sign - I hadn't been able to find it anywhere, everyone had to order it and said it would take months, and that the new version wasn't available for a while. I bought it immediately and found I could no longer make excuses, and within a week, I was vegan. I told C that this was something I had to do, that for my consience I couldn't dither anymore, and he agreed to support me. I had my last non vegan meal (cheesy tuna pesto pasta) my last non vegan chocolate bar (milkybar), watched Earthlings and never went back.
My motivation for going vegan was like anyone else I guess, ethically I think that breeding animals for the sole purpose of consuming them is wrong. I also have a great deal of compassion for the way animals are treated and I don't want to contribute to the cruelty and animal suffering in any way. However, I didn't go vegan due to a great love of nature or wildlife - don't get me wrong, I like animals, and think a lot of them are really cute esp penguins, but it was more the consistency in the argument for being vegan that swayed me. Vegetarianism was just not enough for me. To me, knowing all about what I eat and where it all comes from has opened my eyes completely and knowing that someone like me can go vegan when I used to eat meat and cheese A LOT gives me hope that other people could make the change too. Ignorance of where our food comes from = cruelty and pain rather than bliss for millions of animals a year.
So, on the 25th August - I officially became vegan! Now that I am a vegan I really feel guilty for not doing it earlier, I can't believe I thought it would be hard, it's just so easy and fun, and opened me up to so much I wouldn't have otherwise tried. In Edinburgh, we're so lucky with great healthfood shops and supermarkets that sell vegan items that it's been so simple to find ingredients. I truly am so happy being a vegan! feel so much better in the choice of food I pick now. I thought I would crave other foods, esp cheese that I used to LOVE but nope - it's like a switch has been flicked and now that's it... I just feel so much at peace from knowing that I'm eating healthier and food that required NO CRUELTY to make. : ) As I said yesterday I care more about what is in my food, not just in terms of rogue animal products, but preservatives and e-numbers too, I want to cook and not eat processed foods, I want to be healthier and eat food that's good for me rather than the rubbish I used to. It's also made me think more about my place in the world and
how I can contribute to it, what I can do to make life better for others and for future generations...
Veganism as a diet is also just so much better for me - knowing I can't just go into a shop and pick up a chocolate bar is great, it means I've stopped picking up unhealthy snacks on the go (like crisps) and am happy eating more veg and I'm a lot more willing to try different foods. My usual repetoire of foods included shepherd's pie with loads of cheese on top, risottos with bacon and tons of cheese, lasagne with you guessed it, lots of cheese, and for me pushing the boat out with my options was having fish... Now, I'll cook soups, lentil currys, anything with lots of veg and beans and I know there's so much out there for me still to try!!! I feel lighter, happier and I even love cooking more knowing that I don't have to feel in any way guilty while I'm cooking because it's all animal free, healthy and just great food!!!
In conclusion, being vegan rocks! The only thing about being vegan that I don't like is that the whole world isn't living this way. I just want the whole world to go vegan! I'm all about spreading the vegan word and vegan love! : ) But as a vegan, if I can show people that we eat great, healthy food and are happy people who instead of being restricted in our diets are open to so much in ways that I never was as an omni, then I'll feel like I've done something to help the vegan cause! I'm a much happier peaceful person being vegan and I know now that I will always live this way and forever be on the side of oppressed animals living in the hope that ONE DAY it will no longer be that way...
Thanks for reading this reeeeeeeeally long post!
Peace and love, and go vegan! : )
C
Friday, 24 September 2010
Sarah Kramer and her ass kicking burritos!
Hi, at the end of my last post, I was super excited to go off to make sweet potato and black bean burritos for dinner from the cookbook vegan a go go... Can I just say wow!!!! So yummy and delish! Made 2 huge portions, although they could have been divided more equally eh C? ; ) The only adjustment I made was adding spring onions instead of soy cheese to them, and it added that bit of extra kick the burritos needed. They were awesome! : ) Plus, there was just enough black bean sauce and spring onions to go over the salad! Yay!!! I'd advise all of you to check out Sarah Kramer's blog, as one of her other many blog readers have said, it's become my soap opera! : ) She is just so cool, and such a brill example of what a vegan should be.
In the last 4 weeks I've been a vegan (so not long I know...) and as I go down this road, I find I'm learning more and more about my positions on various vegan issues such as - welfarism vs abolitionism, use old non vegan goods or give/throw them away and many other aspects of veganism. On some, I've changed my view from 4 weeks ago, and on others not so much, what I'm trying to say is that you can't be definite and stuck in one mode for the sake of it. I mean obviously you have to figure out what it is you stand for and what you won't compromise on, but be willing to learn as you go and be flexible in other areas. I know in my heart that eating any animal product, or consuming any part of an animal is wrong. It is animal flesh, an animal died to make the cheese, milk, leather, beef etc that you consume, and for that reason, I know that I could not willingly consume these products again. The more flexible areas are maybe where you stand on vegan education, or the value of supporting a campaign for free range eggs when you totally disagree with eggs altogether just because it might make that animal's life that little bit better... I've learnt that veganism isn't just something that you do, or just about the way you eat, but it's something you feel in your heart, it becomes a big part of who you are. It's changed my views on the world around us, I want to be more earth friendly, I want to take cloth shopping bags rather than use plastic, I want to read non-fiction books and educate myself about not just animal rights but women's rights as well. Veganism has made me more curious about the world and about myself. I'm finding out what I will and won't stand for, what veganism is doing for me personally, and it's changing my outlook on my life.
The temptation, and this is what I didn't understand before I went vegan, is to make it them vs us, to cut yourself off as a vegan and be prepared to go head to head and fight over your belief. At first, I was willing to do that, but now, while I say "omnis", it's as a way of distinguishing people who eat meat and those who don't. When I first become vegan, it's because I felt so passionate about what I'd learned and so angry about the cruelty that goes on and that went on in my name, unnecessaily for my happiness. Reading about or seeing examples of this cruelty makes me cry and while I still am angry about the cruelty that happens, while I still want the whole world to be vegan and while I still am so frustrated that the whole world doesn't think the way I do, I feel more encompassing as a vegan now, and funnily enough less willing to fight. If you want a heart to heart, proper discussion about why I am a vegan, or why I know that I will always be this way, or why I think it's ethically wrong to consume another animal product, then here I am, but if you want to be aggressive, or defensive, or fight for the sake of it, I'm not interested. It isn't them vs us, it's all of us, every human being who can make the world that bit better through the decisions they make every day. None of us are perfect, and while I won't stop trying to convince people that veganism is easy and a pretty awesome way to live your life, I won't be quite so aggressive in the way I talk about it, but I will be no less passionate. : )
Coming back to Sarah Kramer, one of the reasons I like her so much is because she is such an awesome role model for the movement; she is out there promoting vegan cookbooks, and just in the way she lives her life, she shows that being vegan is no big deal, it is easy, it is fun, and it's healthy. That's what I wanted to do with this blog, show people that vegans eat great food, that it is easy being a vegan.
What I'm saying is - focus on what veganism means to you, show the world that far from being denied what the normal idea of pleasure is, in the form of chocolate or steak, that you get just as much pleasure from the way you live your life. Don't be a martyr and say how hard it is, or how much of a struggle it is, if you truly believe in your veganism, then you know you're doing the right thing. Work out what your limits are, what you will and won't do, and then just be a happy, healthy, consistent and awesome vegan and all will be well! : )
Peace, love and happy veganism : )
C
In the last 4 weeks I've been a vegan (so not long I know...) and as I go down this road, I find I'm learning more and more about my positions on various vegan issues such as - welfarism vs abolitionism, use old non vegan goods or give/throw them away and many other aspects of veganism. On some, I've changed my view from 4 weeks ago, and on others not so much, what I'm trying to say is that you can't be definite and stuck in one mode for the sake of it. I mean obviously you have to figure out what it is you stand for and what you won't compromise on, but be willing to learn as you go and be flexible in other areas. I know in my heart that eating any animal product, or consuming any part of an animal is wrong. It is animal flesh, an animal died to make the cheese, milk, leather, beef etc that you consume, and for that reason, I know that I could not willingly consume these products again. The more flexible areas are maybe where you stand on vegan education, or the value of supporting a campaign for free range eggs when you totally disagree with eggs altogether just because it might make that animal's life that little bit better... I've learnt that veganism isn't just something that you do, or just about the way you eat, but it's something you feel in your heart, it becomes a big part of who you are. It's changed my views on the world around us, I want to be more earth friendly, I want to take cloth shopping bags rather than use plastic, I want to read non-fiction books and educate myself about not just animal rights but women's rights as well. Veganism has made me more curious about the world and about myself. I'm finding out what I will and won't stand for, what veganism is doing for me personally, and it's changing my outlook on my life.
The temptation, and this is what I didn't understand before I went vegan, is to make it them vs us, to cut yourself off as a vegan and be prepared to go head to head and fight over your belief. At first, I was willing to do that, but now, while I say "omnis", it's as a way of distinguishing people who eat meat and those who don't. When I first become vegan, it's because I felt so passionate about what I'd learned and so angry about the cruelty that goes on and that went on in my name, unnecessaily for my happiness. Reading about or seeing examples of this cruelty makes me cry and while I still am angry about the cruelty that happens, while I still want the whole world to be vegan and while I still am so frustrated that the whole world doesn't think the way I do, I feel more encompassing as a vegan now, and funnily enough less willing to fight. If you want a heart to heart, proper discussion about why I am a vegan, or why I know that I will always be this way, or why I think it's ethically wrong to consume another animal product, then here I am, but if you want to be aggressive, or defensive, or fight for the sake of it, I'm not interested. It isn't them vs us, it's all of us, every human being who can make the world that bit better through the decisions they make every day. None of us are perfect, and while I won't stop trying to convince people that veganism is easy and a pretty awesome way to live your life, I won't be quite so aggressive in the way I talk about it, but I will be no less passionate. : )
Coming back to Sarah Kramer, one of the reasons I like her so much is because she is such an awesome role model for the movement; she is out there promoting vegan cookbooks, and just in the way she lives her life, she shows that being vegan is no big deal, it is easy, it is fun, and it's healthy. That's what I wanted to do with this blog, show people that vegans eat great food, that it is easy being a vegan.
What I'm saying is - focus on what veganism means to you, show the world that far from being denied what the normal idea of pleasure is, in the form of chocolate or steak, that you get just as much pleasure from the way you live your life. Don't be a martyr and say how hard it is, or how much of a struggle it is, if you truly believe in your veganism, then you know you're doing the right thing. Work out what your limits are, what you will and won't do, and then just be a happy, healthy, consistent and awesome vegan and all will be well! : )
Peace, love and happy veganism : )
C
Thursday, 23 September 2010
More film watching, and risotto!!!
Haven't posted for a while purely because been feeling really under the weather... Today feeling a bit better and so will give you a wee update as to what I've been up to : )
You'll remember from my last post that I really wanted to watch My Neighbour Totoro by the same guys who did Spirited Away. Well, I convinced C and we watched it together while recovering from our illnesses a couple days ago. It was so lovely! A lot more directed towards children than Spirited was, but was beautiful and just a really sweet storyline. It ended too abruptly for me and it felt like it didn't reach a satisfying conclusion, but I guess that just shows how into it we were really! : ) Suffice it to say I loved it. You can check the trailer out here.
Also in the last couple days, I marshalled my strength enough to make lemon and pea risotto from 'nomicon, the fabulous massive cookbook by Isa. I got it as a gift from C a few weeks ago as a well done for going vegan pressie, v. sweet and have been searching through it to find dishes that aren't too scary to make. Back when I was omni, paella used to be one of my fave things to have C make on birthdays or just when I wasn't feeling so great. I loved it, just rich and creamy and lemony and delish. The reason I always got C to make it was because I always figured that risottos were just too time consuming, I mean all that stirring... gee... So whenever I made a risotto, it got chucked in the oven instead and generally turned out ok.
However, when I first went vegan and tried my own risotto by veganising an old recipe, it sucked big time... Like awful!!!! So I was a little gun shy. But when making this risotto by Isa, oh man, it was amazing, and made properly on the stove!!!! It has all the tastes of summer, the lemon and fresh peas, (I really am not convinced it's autumn although the falling leaves and dark afternoons/rainy weather should be tipping me off right?) and it's just sublime. It's got easy to find ingredients and lasts the two of us for two days. I can't believe the way I used to think a risotto had to be, with tons of cheese chucked in to make it creamy. Ugh, thinking about it makes me ill really. This was just so creamy and tangy on it's own and is def a favourite vegan recipe that could be served to everyone no matter what dietary preference they have. Best of all, it's the perfect substitute for the paella I used to love. It has the same heartiness and the same flavours but is cruelty free. I now realise that when making a risotto, you need to take care of it rather than just whack it in the oven and leave it...
'Nomicon is an awesome cookbook and I thoroughly recommend it to anyone. When I facebooked my intention to make this, a vegan friend said she'd been a bit wary of cooking from 'nomicon cos of all the american ingredients lists. Looking through it, it's a lot more accessible than some cookbooks I've seen and tbh, a lot of the recipes involve things you can just pick up at the local supermarket... I can't wait to try some more recipes from it! : )
Tonight am making Sweet Potato and Black Bean Burritos from Vegan a go go, a book with a compilation of recipes from the fabulous Sarah Kramer's books - How It All Vegan, Garden of Vegan and La Dolce Vegan... Will let you know how it goes later on! : )
For now, peace, love and happy cooking,
C
You'll remember from my last post that I really wanted to watch My Neighbour Totoro by the same guys who did Spirited Away. Well, I convinced C and we watched it together while recovering from our illnesses a couple days ago. It was so lovely! A lot more directed towards children than Spirited was, but was beautiful and just a really sweet storyline. It ended too abruptly for me and it felt like it didn't reach a satisfying conclusion, but I guess that just shows how into it we were really! : ) Suffice it to say I loved it. You can check the trailer out here.
Also in the last couple days, I marshalled my strength enough to make lemon and pea risotto from 'nomicon, the fabulous massive cookbook by Isa. I got it as a gift from C a few weeks ago as a well done for going vegan pressie, v. sweet and have been searching through it to find dishes that aren't too scary to make. Back when I was omni, paella used to be one of my fave things to have C make on birthdays or just when I wasn't feeling so great. I loved it, just rich and creamy and lemony and delish. The reason I always got C to make it was because I always figured that risottos were just too time consuming, I mean all that stirring... gee... So whenever I made a risotto, it got chucked in the oven instead and generally turned out ok.
However, when I first went vegan and tried my own risotto by veganising an old recipe, it sucked big time... Like awful!!!! So I was a little gun shy. But when making this risotto by Isa, oh man, it was amazing, and made properly on the stove!!!! It has all the tastes of summer, the lemon and fresh peas, (I really am not convinced it's autumn although the falling leaves and dark afternoons/rainy weather should be tipping me off right?) and it's just sublime. It's got easy to find ingredients and lasts the two of us for two days. I can't believe the way I used to think a risotto had to be, with tons of cheese chucked in to make it creamy. Ugh, thinking about it makes me ill really. This was just so creamy and tangy on it's own and is def a favourite vegan recipe that could be served to everyone no matter what dietary preference they have. Best of all, it's the perfect substitute for the paella I used to love. It has the same heartiness and the same flavours but is cruelty free. I now realise that when making a risotto, you need to take care of it rather than just whack it in the oven and leave it...
'Nomicon is an awesome cookbook and I thoroughly recommend it to anyone. When I facebooked my intention to make this, a vegan friend said she'd been a bit wary of cooking from 'nomicon cos of all the american ingredients lists. Looking through it, it's a lot more accessible than some cookbooks I've seen and tbh, a lot of the recipes involve things you can just pick up at the local supermarket... I can't wait to try some more recipes from it! : )
Tonight am making Sweet Potato and Black Bean Burritos from Vegan a go go, a book with a compilation of recipes from the fabulous Sarah Kramer's books - How It All Vegan, Garden of Vegan and La Dolce Vegan... Will let you know how it goes later on! : )
For now, peace, love and happy cooking,
C
Monday, 20 September 2010
Duvet Snuggling and Movie Watching
This weekend C and I have been feeling slightly under the weather; well he's been feeling like crap, and I've been feeling only slightly better... All you can really do when feeling like that is snuggle under a duvet and watch some movies. It did mean however that I got to work on my goal of watching movies from my 1001 films to see before you die book. : )
The first film we watched was Mon Oncle, a kinda silent movie by Jacques Tati. We went to a film festival focusing on his films last December and I loved the ones I saw, so was more than happy to watch this one (C loves him : ) It was lovely just like the others, funny, and just so easy going and easy to watch. It's a french film, with very little talking, about a guy and his relationship with his adoring nephew, his sister and his diapproving brother in law. It doesn't require much attention to be paid which means it's a great film to watch if you're feeling not great. I just find all of his films so comforting and heartwarming : ) Check the trailer out here - and see for yourself.
We also watched Spirited Away. I know I'll get accused of being behind the times, I mean it came out a good couple years ago now, but was just never in the mood to watch it... Can't believe I waited so long, it is superb, great storyline, wonderfully beautiful and even scary animation at times, a modern day Alice in Wonderland, it was wow... I could gush for ages... Needless to say, I loved it!!! : ) Again great for when you're not feeling so brilliant, just a truly superb film! I'd recommend watching it in Japanese with Eng subtitles, it felt more like how it was supposed to be seen if that makes any sense? I'm now really wanting to see "My Neighbour Totoro" by the same director, can't wait... If I can only persuade C... hmmmmmmm Here's the trailer...
The last film we watched was Play it Again, Sam, the first Woody Allen/Diane Keaton film - so funny, and again, just beautifully done. NOT set in NY as I thought but in fact San Francisco, but still beautiful. The basic premise is a guy left by his wife and his quest to find love again. The two of them work so well together, I loved Annie Hall and Manhattan and this was just as good in my opinion. It's a quintessential Woody Allen movie and awesome. You do have to have a small suspense of disbelief to believe he's 29 tho : ) If you haven't seen Casablanca, I'd recommend watching that first as the ending features pretty heavily, as does Humphrey Bogart as Rick, although that's no bad thing : ) I'm not gonna post a trailer cos all the ones I found show the ending which would pretty much spoil it for you! However, if you like Woody Allen films, or want to give them a try, this is definitely one to watch : )
So, that was my weekend of duvet snuggling and movie watching,
Peace and Love,
C
The first film we watched was Mon Oncle, a kinda silent movie by Jacques Tati. We went to a film festival focusing on his films last December and I loved the ones I saw, so was more than happy to watch this one (C loves him : ) It was lovely just like the others, funny, and just so easy going and easy to watch. It's a french film, with very little talking, about a guy and his relationship with his adoring nephew, his sister and his diapproving brother in law. It doesn't require much attention to be paid which means it's a great film to watch if you're feeling not great. I just find all of his films so comforting and heartwarming : ) Check the trailer out here - and see for yourself.
We also watched Spirited Away. I know I'll get accused of being behind the times, I mean it came out a good couple years ago now, but was just never in the mood to watch it... Can't believe I waited so long, it is superb, great storyline, wonderfully beautiful and even scary animation at times, a modern day Alice in Wonderland, it was wow... I could gush for ages... Needless to say, I loved it!!! : ) Again great for when you're not feeling so brilliant, just a truly superb film! I'd recommend watching it in Japanese with Eng subtitles, it felt more like how it was supposed to be seen if that makes any sense? I'm now really wanting to see "My Neighbour Totoro" by the same director, can't wait... If I can only persuade C... hmmmmmmm Here's the trailer...
The last film we watched was Play it Again, Sam, the first Woody Allen/Diane Keaton film - so funny, and again, just beautifully done. NOT set in NY as I thought but in fact San Francisco, but still beautiful. The basic premise is a guy left by his wife and his quest to find love again. The two of them work so well together, I loved Annie Hall and Manhattan and this was just as good in my opinion. It's a quintessential Woody Allen movie and awesome. You do have to have a small suspense of disbelief to believe he's 29 tho : ) If you haven't seen Casablanca, I'd recommend watching that first as the ending features pretty heavily, as does Humphrey Bogart as Rick, although that's no bad thing : ) I'm not gonna post a trailer cos all the ones I found show the ending which would pretty much spoil it for you! However, if you like Woody Allen films, or want to give them a try, this is definitely one to watch : )
So, that was my weekend of duvet snuggling and movie watching,
Peace and Love,
C
When the stars make you drool....
Just like pasta fazool, that's definitely amore! : ) Last night for dinner, I made Pasta E Fagioli from the awesome cookbook Veganomicon as one of my 20 new recipe try outs for my 101 goals. It was yummy and definitely needed as we were feeling under the weather to say the least. I changed the recipe slightly (added an onion and basil, more herbs and used no salt, plus I used a can of chopped tomatoes rather than fresh ones) I also blended half of the mix to make it easier to eat...
Here it is with my adjustments, pasta fazool -
{Ingredients}
For the sauce:
{Method}
Preheat large pan on medium heat and add olive oil, onion and garlic. Saute until onion is soft and garlic is fragrant. Meanwhile bring a pan of water to boiling. Add tomatoes, veg stock, thyme, oregano and pepper to onion and garlic - bring to boil, then reduce heat to low/medium until tomato sauce is reduced and thickened. Add pasta to the water and cook according to packet. Once sauce is thickened, put on low heat to simmer. Drain pasta and set aside. Add beans and basil to tomato sauce and stir. When beans are heated through, use stick blender in pan to blend half of the tomato sauce. Leave the rest chunky. Add the pasta to the sauce and stir to cover. Serve - yum!!!! : )
It was a great meal that was really simple but also hearty and comforting. The garlic helped clear the sinuses and all in all it was just a lovely easy to make meal. It probably would have served 3 to 4 but we were really hungry after not eating much during the day, so it served the two of us with big portions fantastically well. Will definitely make again : )
Peace and Love
C
Here it is with my adjustments, pasta fazool -
{Ingredients}
For the sauce:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 6 cloves of garlic (minced)
- 1 yellow onion (finely chopped)
- 1 400g can of chopped tomatoes
- 55ml veg stock
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1tsp dried oregano
- a few dashes of black pepper
- Enough wholewheat pasta for 2-3 people
- 1 can of butter beans ( or any white beans - cannellini, navy etc)
{Method}
Preheat large pan on medium heat and add olive oil, onion and garlic. Saute until onion is soft and garlic is fragrant. Meanwhile bring a pan of water to boiling. Add tomatoes, veg stock, thyme, oregano and pepper to onion and garlic - bring to boil, then reduce heat to low/medium until tomato sauce is reduced and thickened. Add pasta to the water and cook according to packet. Once sauce is thickened, put on low heat to simmer. Drain pasta and set aside. Add beans and basil to tomato sauce and stir. When beans are heated through, use stick blender in pan to blend half of the tomato sauce. Leave the rest chunky. Add the pasta to the sauce and stir to cover. Serve - yum!!!! : )
It was a great meal that was really simple but also hearty and comforting. The garlic helped clear the sinuses and all in all it was just a lovely easy to make meal. It probably would have served 3 to 4 but we were really hungry after not eating much during the day, so it served the two of us with big portions fantastically well. Will definitely make again : )
Peace and Love
C
Sunday, 19 September 2010
Out on the "Verandah" : )
Last night was one of our friend's 40th birthday celebration, a big meal at an Indian restaurant. Normally this would be great with me, but having gone vegan, this was going to be my first meal out with a lot of omnis, and some I didn't know at that. I asked C which restaurant the meal was to be held at, and luckily it has a website with the menu online which meant I could check it out well before I went. The friend in question is great and the last thing I wanted to do was to make a fuss, or create a scene at his birthday dinner, so I called ahead to see what I could eat.
The restaurant is called "Verandah" - check the website here and the menu makes a point of mentioning how big vegetarian food is in India -"Ironically, most people in the Indian subcontinent eat predominantly vegetarian meals, either through religious choice or the price of meat...Indian restaurants are now widely seen as an unusual selection of vegetarian dishes which are enjoyable to carnivores and herbivores (that's me!) alike". I was very happy to see this, and it encouraged me... The only thing that made me slightly worried was the possible use of ghee (clarified butter) used in place of vegetable oil in the dishes. Also, a fair few of the vegetarian meals on offer seemed to include paneer (Indian cheese), or yoghurt as a main ingredient. I called and asked about the Sabzi Jhalfrezie "fresh green chilli coriander, green pepper. Garnished with a touch of ginger. Fairly hot." and was assured that they use no ghee in it, but vegetable oil instead. Also, there was no option on the menu for vegetable samosas in the starters list, but the garlic mushroom pakoras sounded interesting, so I asked about them as well - also cooked using veg oil, no ghee! Yay! So when I got to the restaurant, I already knew what I was going to have before I arrived. I'm starting to learn that as a vegan you need to plan ahead! : ) I also planned to keep it safe with plain boiled rice...
Before I went, I started to get slightly nervous, not about what anyone would say to me, I assumed since it was their friend's birthday they'd be focused on that rather than the veg*n at the table, but about what my reaction might be. Since becoming vegan, I haven't really been around people eating meat. The smell of C's cheese on toast makes me feel slightly ill, and he'd been really good about keeping meat away from me - on top of pizzas or in a takeaway, but never really in front of me... I didn't know how I would feel now, esp as an "out of the closet" vegan, so I was a little apprehensive but determined to have a great time!! (Sorry, no pics, my iPhone didn't do so well in the light of the restaurant - must get a wee digital to take pics of yummy vegan food!!)
So... we got to the restaurant and the drinks list was huge, I wasn't sure if their wines were vegan, but I know spirits are so I went for a Pimms and lemonade. I needn't have worried about my veganism making me stand out, no one forgot my drinks order! : ) I guess I'm just not ready to let summer go just yet! Anyway, they came round with poppadoms which I'm pretty sure are vegan - and dips (onion salad, mango chutney and lime pickle) I had the onion salad and mango chutney "usually fruit, vinegar and sugar" - gained from wiki here but left the lime pickle. The dips didn't come in very big portions considering there were a few of us sharing each plate, but the poppadoms were good. Our starters came fairly quickly - I had the garlic mushroom pakora which were lovely and my neighbour had the vegetable pakora, so we swapped one - both were delish, just wish there were more, and some of mine were pretty small... The channa puri that someone at the table got - puri bread with a chickpea sauce looked lovely, so next time I will definitely ask about that!
It took a long time to serve us our mains, but I guess that's what happens when they have to get 18 portions of main course and rice out at the same time. People in smaller groups were getting served much more quickly and also, we took up nearly all of the restaurant, so it's understandable. My sabzi jhalfrezie came out in a fairly large bowl - there were plate warmers on the table to sit them on - but my rice came in a small shallow bowl, it was the same for everyone. The menu claimed it was "fairly hot" but in actuality burned my mouth off - by this point I was on Cobra beer (vegan!) but Kingfisher isn't so beware(!) and so I could cool my mouth a little. It wasn't just me surprised by the heat of the meal, C ordered a medium dish as did others and were surprised by HOW hot and chilly-y it was. We're not sure if it's because it's Bangladeshi cuisine and therefore is hotter in general or not, but expect hotter food if you go. The curry itself was delicious and I ordered a side dish of Dal Tarka - a lentil dish which helped cool my mouth a bit as well. I also had some peshwari naan assuming that naan would be vegan - because of the coconut it helped cool my mouth immediately and was lovely and sweet. Unfortunately I've discovered since coming home that naan ISN'T vegan and now feel kinda guilty for eating it without being sure and not doing my research even more carefully. "Milk or yoghurt may also be used to give greater volume and thickness to the naan. Typically, the naan will be served hot and brushed with ghee or butter. " (yuk!) - wiki. We didn't have desert, so I can't comment on that side of the menu.
Overall, I'd give -
Service 3 out of 5 - the staff were friendly and attentive, and dealt with a big crowd well, but there was a really long wait between starter and main, however if we were in a smaller group my mark would probably be 4 or 5...
Food (taste/presentation) 3 out of 5 - It was delicious curry but (and I know it's not their fault) many of us misjudged our order based on their menu suggestions, which let them down a bit, and while my starter of garlic mushroom pakora (and my neighbour's veg pakora that we swapped) was yummy, there wasn't much of it, and a weak wee salad plonked on the side of the plate.
Vegan Options - 2 out of 5 - I didn't ask about the channa puri or the vegetable puri on the starters list which may well be vegan,but there wasn't even an option for veg samosas which seemed unusual. Also in most Indian restaurants there is an option for a vegetable version of their most popular curries (e.g. Bhuna or Madras) and in this restaurant there weren't. Also a lot of the vegetarian specific curries had yoghurt or cheese in, so I wasn't terribly impressed with that either. The only rice that I knew was vegan was the plain boiled rice and on the bread selection, possibly puri, but again I didn't ask (could be cooked in ghee or oil - not sure so ask!)
Value for Money - Drinks - 2 out of 5 - they have a wide selection, but their price for a beer is £5 a bottle! Quite insane considering it's £3 at the pub next door - quite expensive
Food - 4 out of 5 - small rice bowls, and small portions of dip for poppadoms (complimentary so I can't be too harsh) and small pakora portion for starters, but overall great!
I would go again, but I'd order a "medium" dish or ask them to make the jhalfrezie a bit milder - there were whole unseeded chillis in there! And I'd call and ask about the puri starters too, the chickpea or channa puri looked really delish! : ) The restaurant is easy to find, just around the corner from Haymarket Station in Edinburgh and near to the Haymarket pub, which is quite a nice place for a drink!
Peace and Love
C
The restaurant is called "Verandah" - check the website here and the menu makes a point of mentioning how big vegetarian food is in India -"Ironically, most people in the Indian subcontinent eat predominantly vegetarian meals, either through religious choice or the price of meat...Indian restaurants are now widely seen as an unusual selection of vegetarian dishes which are enjoyable to carnivores and herbivores (that's me!) alike". I was very happy to see this, and it encouraged me... The only thing that made me slightly worried was the possible use of ghee (clarified butter) used in place of vegetable oil in the dishes. Also, a fair few of the vegetarian meals on offer seemed to include paneer (Indian cheese), or yoghurt as a main ingredient. I called and asked about the Sabzi Jhalfrezie "fresh green chilli coriander, green pepper. Garnished with a touch of ginger. Fairly hot." and was assured that they use no ghee in it, but vegetable oil instead. Also, there was no option on the menu for vegetable samosas in the starters list, but the garlic mushroom pakoras sounded interesting, so I asked about them as well - also cooked using veg oil, no ghee! Yay! So when I got to the restaurant, I already knew what I was going to have before I arrived. I'm starting to learn that as a vegan you need to plan ahead! : ) I also planned to keep it safe with plain boiled rice...
Before I went, I started to get slightly nervous, not about what anyone would say to me, I assumed since it was their friend's birthday they'd be focused on that rather than the veg*n at the table, but about what my reaction might be. Since becoming vegan, I haven't really been around people eating meat. The smell of C's cheese on toast makes me feel slightly ill, and he'd been really good about keeping meat away from me - on top of pizzas or in a takeaway, but never really in front of me... I didn't know how I would feel now, esp as an "out of the closet" vegan, so I was a little apprehensive but determined to have a great time!! (Sorry, no pics, my iPhone didn't do so well in the light of the restaurant - must get a wee digital to take pics of yummy vegan food!!)
So... we got to the restaurant and the drinks list was huge, I wasn't sure if their wines were vegan, but I know spirits are so I went for a Pimms and lemonade. I needn't have worried about my veganism making me stand out, no one forgot my drinks order! : ) I guess I'm just not ready to let summer go just yet! Anyway, they came round with poppadoms which I'm pretty sure are vegan - and dips (onion salad, mango chutney and lime pickle) I had the onion salad and mango chutney "usually fruit, vinegar and sugar" - gained from wiki here but left the lime pickle. The dips didn't come in very big portions considering there were a few of us sharing each plate, but the poppadoms were good. Our starters came fairly quickly - I had the garlic mushroom pakora which were lovely and my neighbour had the vegetable pakora, so we swapped one - both were delish, just wish there were more, and some of mine were pretty small... The channa puri that someone at the table got - puri bread with a chickpea sauce looked lovely, so next time I will definitely ask about that!
It took a long time to serve us our mains, but I guess that's what happens when they have to get 18 portions of main course and rice out at the same time. People in smaller groups were getting served much more quickly and also, we took up nearly all of the restaurant, so it's understandable. My sabzi jhalfrezie came out in a fairly large bowl - there were plate warmers on the table to sit them on - but my rice came in a small shallow bowl, it was the same for everyone. The menu claimed it was "fairly hot" but in actuality burned my mouth off - by this point I was on Cobra beer (vegan!) but Kingfisher isn't so beware(!) and so I could cool my mouth a little. It wasn't just me surprised by the heat of the meal, C ordered a medium dish as did others and were surprised by HOW hot and chilly-y it was. We're not sure if it's because it's Bangladeshi cuisine and therefore is hotter in general or not, but expect hotter food if you go. The curry itself was delicious and I ordered a side dish of Dal Tarka - a lentil dish which helped cool my mouth a bit as well. I also had some peshwari naan assuming that naan would be vegan - because of the coconut it helped cool my mouth immediately and was lovely and sweet. Unfortunately I've discovered since coming home that naan ISN'T vegan and now feel kinda guilty for eating it without being sure and not doing my research even more carefully. "Milk or yoghurt may also be used to give greater volume and thickness to the naan. Typically, the naan will be served hot and brushed with ghee or butter. " (yuk!) - wiki. We didn't have desert, so I can't comment on that side of the menu.
Overall, I'd give -
Service 3 out of 5 - the staff were friendly and attentive, and dealt with a big crowd well, but there was a really long wait between starter and main, however if we were in a smaller group my mark would probably be 4 or 5...
Food (taste/presentation) 3 out of 5 - It was delicious curry but (and I know it's not their fault) many of us misjudged our order based on their menu suggestions, which let them down a bit, and while my starter of garlic mushroom pakora (and my neighbour's veg pakora that we swapped) was yummy, there wasn't much of it, and a weak wee salad plonked on the side of the plate.
Vegan Options - 2 out of 5 - I didn't ask about the channa puri or the vegetable puri on the starters list which may well be vegan,but there wasn't even an option for veg samosas which seemed unusual. Also in most Indian restaurants there is an option for a vegetable version of their most popular curries (e.g. Bhuna or Madras) and in this restaurant there weren't. Also a lot of the vegetarian specific curries had yoghurt or cheese in, so I wasn't terribly impressed with that either. The only rice that I knew was vegan was the plain boiled rice and on the bread selection, possibly puri, but again I didn't ask (could be cooked in ghee or oil - not sure so ask!)
Value for Money - Drinks - 2 out of 5 - they have a wide selection, but their price for a beer is £5 a bottle! Quite insane considering it's £3 at the pub next door - quite expensive
Food - 4 out of 5 - small rice bowls, and small portions of dip for poppadoms (complimentary so I can't be too harsh) and small pakora portion for starters, but overall great!
I would go again, but I'd order a "medium" dish or ask them to make the jhalfrezie a bit milder - there were whole unseeded chillis in there! And I'd call and ask about the puri starters too, the chickpea or channa puri looked really delish! : ) The restaurant is easy to find, just around the corner from Haymarket Station in Edinburgh and near to the Haymarket pub, which is quite a nice place for a drink!
Peace and Love
C
Friday, 17 September 2010
My First Post!!!
Despite the shameless homage to (rather than rip-off of) Monty Python, I am serious about this being a "completely vegan" blog. After all, that's what I am now! My first post is going to be a fairly long one, so stay with me, I just want to explain my reasons for starting this blog and my 101 goals for the next year.
I decided to start this blog as one of my 101 things to do in 2010/2011 - the idea came from the Project Zero site here I'll admit I got a few ideas from other people cos they sounded great, including a few from the lovely Mipa from Alien's Day Out but mainly it's a list of personal goals that I'd like to achieve in the next year. I changed my personal deadline from 1001 days to 1 year because it gives a nice timescale and I'd like to look back next year and see all the things I was able to do!
I went vegan 3 weeks ago on Wednesday (2 days ago) and I really want to get more involved in the vegan community and do something for the movement. My goal is that by highlighting veganism as a choice and posting links and recipes on here and my facebook page, people may begin to think of it as a valid choice rather than an extreme alternative to carnivorism and a life of deprivation. I also wanted a blog that documented my veganism throughout my first year as a vegan (at least! : ) that I can look back on, but also as a possible resource for other vegans. I also hope that anyone planning to come and visit Edinburgh as a vegan will find useful information about restaurants and cafes from this blog as well!
I have found that veganism, more than just being a dietary choice, presents many issues day to day and I want my blog to focus on these as well as the yummy vegan food I eat (I'm also hoping that by documenting my choices it'll help me to become more creative and healthy in my eating habits too) After all vegans do eat a lot of awesome food!
Here is my list of 101 goals to be achieved in the next year, I started today and have already achieved one goal just by starting this blog! : )
Daily goals
1) Take daily vitamin B12 supplement (1/30 misses)
2) Make the bed daily (0/30 misses)
3) Unplug all appliances at night (0/30 misses)
4) Floss daily (1/30 misses)
5) Do dishes before bed (4/30 misses)
6) Turn the light out at bedtime before 1am - excluding festivals and weekends! (4/30 misses)
7) Drink 2 litres of water a day every day for 2 weeks (0/14)
8) Eat 5 different types of fruit/veg a day (3/30 misses)
9) Eat breakfast every day (1/30 misses)
Adventure and Sightseeing
10) Have one amazing epic fantastic incredible night!!!!!
11) Plan a holiday with C
12) Have a picnic in the park
13) Go to a comedy club
14) Go camping – other than at a festival
15) Dance like no one’s watching
16) Watch a 3D/IMAX film
17) Do whatever someone else wants for an entire day
18) Attend a sporting event
19) Visit galleries/museums/exhibitions in Edinburgh (0/5)
20) Go up Arthur’s seat
21) Play chess with C and win!
22) Blow bubbles!
23) Sing karaoke
24) Try a new sport/activity
25) Go to 5 gigs (0/5)
26) Go to the theatre to see a play
27) See a classical music concert
28) Kiss someone special on New Years Eve
29) Learn 3 card tricks and perform them for friends (0/3)
30) Go to a festival
31) Donate blood
32) Get to know 10 new musical artists/bands (0/10)
33) See John Hegley at least once this year and read more of his poetry
34) Watch a sunset and sunrise
Mind, spirit and soul
35) Write a letter to yourself to open in 10 years
36) Write a letter to be opened in 1 year’s time
37) Start a personal journal
38)Start a vegan blog and keep it updated for a year
39) Blog about each task I complete and complete next year’s 101 list!
40) Try and be calmer and more chilled out
41) Tell someone I love them every day and mean it (7/365)
42) Complete “50 questions that will free your mind”
43) Make a wish at 10:10 on October 10th, 2010
44) Buy one piece of original art for the flat and put up the pieces we have already!
45) Buy and read a weekend newspaper each week for a month (0/4)
46) Do 10 things from “365 ways to change the world” book (0/10)
47) Not watch any television programmes on dvd or television for a month
48) Read at least 12 different books from the BBC Big Read list (0/12)
49) Watch at least 52 films from my 1001 films to see before you die book (2/52)
50) Watch 10 documentaries (0/10)
51) Watch 10 foreign films (0/10)
52) Complete a digital detox week
53) Make a list of my fave 10 movies/songs and see if the list changes in the next year
54) Read at least 12 non-fiction books (0/12)
55) Buy the flat fresh flowers once a month (0/12)
56) Make a list of 100 things that make me happy
Health and body
57) Take up fencing again
58) Walk (some of) The West Highland Way
59) Take part in the Midnight Cancer Walk in Edinburgh in 2011
60) Treat myself to a professional facial
61) Don’t eat crisps for 365 days (7/365)
62) Go to the dentist
63) Get a full health checkup
64) Get a massage
Awesome Vegan Food
65) Keep a food diary for a month/ Participate in Vegan MoFo (0/30 days)
66) Make my own vegan ice cream!
67) Try 20 new recipes from any recipe book (2/20)
68) Go to at least 6 Vegan Potluck Dinners (0/6)
69) Make a birthday cake for someone special
70) Try cooking or eating something with 20 different ingredients (0/20)
71) Try 3 new global cuisines (0/3)
72) Grow something edible and eat it
73) Visit new restaurants (1/10)
74) Visit the farmer’s market once a month (0/12)
For the Earth
75) Always take cloth bags when going shopping (2/10 misses)
76) Only give “consumer conscious” gifts as presents (0/5 misses)
77) Don’t buy anything except food for a week
78) Don’t buy anything with logo/brand/packaging for one month
Spreading the Love/Spreading the word of Veganism
79) Post 10 vegan related links on my Facebook page (0/10)
80) Criticise nothing for one day
81) Do 30 random acts of kindness (0/30)
82) Compliment at least one person every day (7/365)
83) Donate clothes/books etc to a charity shop
84) Go to an animal rights rally or demonstration
85) Get someone to watch Earthlings
86) Donate £5 to charity for each item on the list I don’t complete in a year
87) Help a homeless person in some other way than giving money
88) Buy the big issue once a month (0/12)
89) Sponsor an animal
Friends and Family
90) Write honest and meaningful letters to 5 people (1/5)
91) Send out snail mail (0/20)
92) Email Sarah, Solayr and Ashley at least once a week (1/52)
93) Write a thank-you letter for every gift I receive whether material or not
94) Buy someone flowers for no reason
95) For one year, forget no one’s birthday!
Creative activities
96) Take a picture of one place in every season of the year (0/4)
97) Carve a pumpkin for Halloween
98) Give 10 homemade gifts (0/10)
Random
99) Start a savings and holiday fund
100) Get my driver’s license
101) Register to start a degree through open university
As you can see, I plan to write about each achieved goal when completed on this blog and it's impact, (good or bad) on my life. I will start my first book from my Big Read List here today - I decided to start with Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks, it's a book I have started a few times but never managed to finish, but I hope that this time I will achieve this goal.
Well that's all for my first post, tomorrow, lots of pictures of yummy vegan Indian food from the restaurant we're planning to go to for a birthday dinner for a friend!
Peace and love
C
I decided to start this blog as one of my 101 things to do in 2010/2011 - the idea came from the Project Zero site here I'll admit I got a few ideas from other people cos they sounded great, including a few from the lovely Mipa from Alien's Day Out but mainly it's a list of personal goals that I'd like to achieve in the next year. I changed my personal deadline from 1001 days to 1 year because it gives a nice timescale and I'd like to look back next year and see all the things I was able to do!
I went vegan 3 weeks ago on Wednesday (2 days ago) and I really want to get more involved in the vegan community and do something for the movement. My goal is that by highlighting veganism as a choice and posting links and recipes on here and my facebook page, people may begin to think of it as a valid choice rather than an extreme alternative to carnivorism and a life of deprivation. I also wanted a blog that documented my veganism throughout my first year as a vegan (at least! : ) that I can look back on, but also as a possible resource for other vegans. I also hope that anyone planning to come and visit Edinburgh as a vegan will find useful information about restaurants and cafes from this blog as well!
I have found that veganism, more than just being a dietary choice, presents many issues day to day and I want my blog to focus on these as well as the yummy vegan food I eat (I'm also hoping that by documenting my choices it'll help me to become more creative and healthy in my eating habits too) After all vegans do eat a lot of awesome food!
Here is my list of 101 goals to be achieved in the next year, I started today and have already achieved one goal just by starting this blog! : )
Daily goals
1) Take daily vitamin B12 supplement (1/30 misses)
2) Make the bed daily (0/30 misses)
3) Unplug all appliances at night (0/30 misses)
4) Floss daily (1/30 misses)
5) Do dishes before bed (4/30 misses)
6) Turn the light out at bedtime before 1am - excluding festivals and weekends! (4/30 misses)
7) Drink 2 litres of water a day every day for 2 weeks (0/14)
8) Eat 5 different types of fruit/veg a day (3/30 misses)
9) Eat breakfast every day (1/30 misses)
Adventure and Sightseeing
10) Have one amazing epic fantastic incredible night!!!!!
11) Plan a holiday with C
12) Have a picnic in the park
13) Go to a comedy club
14) Go camping – other than at a festival
15) Dance like no one’s watching
16) Watch a 3D/IMAX film
17) Do whatever someone else wants for an entire day
18) Attend a sporting event
19) Visit galleries/museums/exhibitions in Edinburgh (0/5)
20) Go up Arthur’s seat
21) Play chess with C and win!
22) Blow bubbles!
23) Sing karaoke
24) Try a new sport/activity
25) Go to 5 gigs (0/5)
26) Go to the theatre to see a play
27) See a classical music concert
28) Kiss someone special on New Years Eve
29) Learn 3 card tricks and perform them for friends (0/3)
30) Go to a festival
31) Donate blood
32) Get to know 10 new musical artists/bands (0/10)
33) See John Hegley at least once this year and read more of his poetry
34) Watch a sunset and sunrise
Mind, spirit and soul
35) Write a letter to yourself to open in 10 years
36) Write a letter to be opened in 1 year’s time
37) Start a personal journal
38)
39) Blog about each task I complete and complete next year’s 101 list!
40) Try and be calmer and more chilled out
41) Tell someone I love them every day and mean it (7/365)
42) Complete “50 questions that will free your mind”
43) Make a wish at 10:10 on October 10th, 2010
44) Buy one piece of original art for the flat and put up the pieces we have already!
45) Buy and read a weekend newspaper each week for a month (0/4)
46) Do 10 things from “365 ways to change the world” book (0/10)
47) Not watch any television programmes on dvd or television for a month
48) Read at least 12 different books from the BBC Big Read list (0/12)
49) Watch at least 52 films from my 1001 films to see before you die book (2/52)
50) Watch 10 documentaries (0/10)
51) Watch 10 foreign films (0/10)
52) Complete a digital detox week
53) Make a list of my fave 10 movies/songs and see if the list changes in the next year
54) Read at least 12 non-fiction books (0/12)
55) Buy the flat fresh flowers once a month (0/12)
56) Make a list of 100 things that make me happy
Health and body
57) Take up fencing again
58) Walk (some of) The West Highland Way
59) Take part in the Midnight Cancer Walk in Edinburgh in 2011
60) Treat myself to a professional facial
61) Don’t eat crisps for 365 days (7/365)
62) Go to the dentist
63) Get a full health checkup
64) Get a massage
Awesome Vegan Food
65) Keep a food diary for a month/ Participate in Vegan MoFo (0/30 days)
66) Make my own vegan ice cream!
67) Try 20 new recipes from any recipe book (2/20)
68) Go to at least 6 Vegan Potluck Dinners (0/6)
69) Make a birthday cake for someone special
70) Try cooking or eating something with 20 different ingredients (0/20)
71) Try 3 new global cuisines (0/3)
72) Grow something edible and eat it
73) Visit new restaurants (1/10)
74) Visit the farmer’s market once a month (0/12)
For the Earth
75) Always take cloth bags when going shopping (2/10 misses)
76) Only give “consumer conscious” gifts as presents (0/5 misses)
77) Don’t buy anything except food for a week
78) Don’t buy anything with logo/brand/packaging for one month
Spreading the Love/Spreading the word of Veganism
79) Post 10 vegan related links on my Facebook page (0/10)
80) Criticise nothing for one day
81) Do 30 random acts of kindness (0/30)
82) Compliment at least one person every day (7/365)
83) Donate clothes/books etc to a charity shop
84) Go to an animal rights rally or demonstration
85) Get someone to watch Earthlings
86) Donate £5 to charity for each item on the list I don’t complete in a year
87) Help a homeless person in some other way than giving money
88) Buy the big issue once a month (0/12)
89) Sponsor an animal
Friends and Family
90) Write honest and meaningful letters to 5 people (1/5)
91) Send out snail mail (0/20)
92) Email Sarah, Solayr and Ashley at least once a week (1/52)
93) Write a thank-you letter for every gift I receive whether material or not
94) Buy someone flowers for no reason
95) For one year, forget no one’s birthday!
Creative activities
96) Take a picture of one place in every season of the year (0/4)
97) Carve a pumpkin for Halloween
98) Give 10 homemade gifts (0/10)
Random
99) Start a savings and holiday fund
100) Get my driver’s license
101) Register to start a degree through open university
As you can see, I plan to write about each achieved goal when completed on this blog and it's impact, (good or bad) on my life. I will start my first book from my Big Read List here today - I decided to start with Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks, it's a book I have started a few times but never managed to finish, but I hope that this time I will achieve this goal.
Well that's all for my first post, tomorrow, lots of pictures of yummy vegan Indian food from the restaurant we're planning to go to for a birthday dinner for a friend!
Peace and love
C
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