The Ultimate Sacrifice

I make sacrifices for animals.  I haven't eaten exactly what I have wanted to since 2002.  I used to like the taste of pizza, burgers, and bacon.  I don't refuse to buy non-vegan foods because I love veggies or because I'm a health nut.  I certainly don't want to live forever.  I do it for the health, and well being, of animals.
I hate cooking, eating, pooping, pissing, and living.  All I want to do is write, create, and enjoy other people's creative works: good movies, TV shows, music, and books.  But I can't support myself with my writing.  I need a boring, soul-destroying menial job to pay my bills. 
What did the monks achieve when they protested the Vietnam War through self immolation?  Who knows, but their actions will live forever as long as human civilization exists.  For example, one of my favorite bands, Rage Against the Machine, put the image of one of these monks, fully engulfed in flames, on the cover of their debut album.
I have thought about combining my wanting to die with my desire to help animals.  Inspired by the monks I just mentioned, I have considered setting myself on fire to protest animal cruelty.  I'm at least 99.9% sure I'll never do that.  I don't mind dying before I'm elderly (to say the least), but I don't want to go out with that sort of pain.  I don't want to burn my little finger, let alone my whole body.  It's not what mama's little baby deserves.  I have also thought about a hunger strike to protest animal cruelty.  I could begin posting video online and say that I won't eat until animal cruelty is wiped out completely or every single person in the world is at least a vegetarian (preferably vegan).  Regardless, it would be a virtually impossible goal, because animal cruelty is so prevalent, so socially acceptable; the situation is so incredibly dire, so far away from where I want it to be, where I think it should be.  So the world wouldn't change as much as I wanted it to, certainly not in the time I needed it to, so, assuming I was able to do it, I would starve to death online.  Again, 99.9% sure I won't do this.  As someone who has spent plenty of time being depressed and suicidal, I have done quite a bit of research when it comes to ways to kill oneself.  I read that starving yourself to death is a very painful way to go, and I believe it.        
I feel the need to mention that I am not advocating anyone do these things at all whatsoever.  After all, it is extremely unlikely that I would do them.  These are just thoughts.  I'm only expressing myself, which is something I feel the need to do.  I may take my own life one day, but, if I do, I will try to avoid pain as much as possible.  If you are passionate about defending animals, the best thing to do is to remain ALIVE, so you will be able to continue to fight for them.  You won't be able to do anything when you're dead. 

Corpse Dragger

Today, after writing about animal cruelty, I went for a walk.  It rained all day today; usually that would stop me.  But the upcoming work schedule has me working till 10:00 pm the next 3 nights.  I just don't exercise when I work till 10:00 pm.  I could exercise before work, but I tend to fart around home prior to the commute: old habits die hard.  So I felt the need to do it today: despite the weather.  I dusted off an umbrella that probably hadn't been used in over a year.
As I was descending a steep hill that leads to a river, I saw someone approaching me.  It looked like he was dragging something, and he was stopping periodically.  Great, I thought.  I need to piss badly, and I can't have him interfering with that.  You used to be able to piss in public, and if someone saw you, they could go fuck themselves.  But now every asshole has a cell phone and can call the cops to snitch on you.  I was also wondering if he was a freak.  I saw a freak yesterday.  He was kicking a book hard against some vertical concrete: among other crazy things.  I watched him, because he was approaching my parked car, and I wanted to make sure he didn't do anything to it. 
It turned out the man had been fishing.  He was dragging 2 very large dead fish behind him.  He said hello to me.  Though I didn't want to, I returned his greeting.  I couldn't help it; I was raised with manners.  I don't understand why people, that I walk by in parks, insist on talking to me.  I don't want to talk to you outside a park; I don't want to talk to you inside a park.  I just don't want to talk to you.  I took my piss; then I started to walk up the hill.  I was wondering if he was going to ask for help dragging the fish.  Of course I wouldn't.  The only question was how rude and loud I was going to be if he asked.  Of course he didn't ask me.  I just passed him silently. 
I have compared meat eaters, and leather wearers, to cavemen before.  Cavemen, and cavewomen, used to eat meat and wear furs, so it fits.  They also used to drag the animals they killed.  The guy with the fish is a caveman.  He hasn't evolved.  Those that have evolved are non-violent, and they eat healthy foods: like fruits, veggies, nuts, beans, seeds, and whole grains.  As I mentioned, I passed him (easily).  I wasn't burdened by the weight of dead flesh, and that's how I live my life.       

Fear

Lil' furball

Fear is evil.  It keeps us from doing things we should.
However, let me make a quick detour and tell you about spinach.  I have had problems with depression and OCD.  Lately, though, I've been feeling pretty darn good.  Why?  I pondered the situation and realized that it had to be the introduction of spinach into my diet.  I always knew I hadn't been eating enough dark green leafy veggies, but after hearing Dr. Oz extol the virtues of spinach as a natural source of calcium and as something that helps detoxify the liver, I decided to make it a regular part of my diet.  Eat as much raw organic spinach as you can.  It's important it be organic, because spinach is one of the dirty dozen; it soaks up pesticides like a sponge.
Back to fear.  I was thinking this would be a triumphant blog post.  I planned to title it "3 in 2," because, I told kids to leave local wild animals alone 3 times in 2 days.  I was proud of myself.  I got better at it too.  I became nicer.  They say you'll get more flies with honey than with vinegar.  Well, the other night, a couple of young guys (20s-early 30s) were hanging out on the picnic table that can be easily seen from my windows.  They were smoking and laughing.  I'd rather hear my music than them, but, whatever, it wasn't too late for them to make some noise.  Then I noticed that one of them was approaching my building with a stick in his hand.  I immediately suspected that he picked up that stick to attack or terrorize a small wild animal.  I began to monitor the situation.  However, I was also a little scared that these guys would see me looking out the window at one of them and confront me about it.  Which I don't care about presently.  But if I were to make enemies with these guys and buy a car, then I'd be worried about it being vandalized.  So I wasn't as aggressive about looking at what they were doing had they been kids.  I never saw this man do anything wrong.  Both of them were laughing about what he was doing, or threatening, to do.  That was the end of it.  I'd like to think, that if he continued to act like that, I would have gotten involved.  Regardless, I feel like a coward when it comes to that incident.  I've pondered things thoroughly since then, and I've come to the conclusion that the nice, funny approach is the right way to go.  If you want to change the world, and I certainly do, practice nonviolence, treat people with respect, and, as Patrick Swayze's character said in the great film Road House, be nice.          

A letter written by a pig to humans.

This is how we want to live.

This is how many of us are forced to live, because people eat our dead bodies..

Please, please, please stop confining us cruelly and killing us.  Life is hard enough in this world.  Why are you making it a nightmare for most of us?  There are people out there who say we're at least as smart as dogs.  So why do you kill and eat us and not them (for the most part)?  Just like you, we want to be happy.  We want to be free.  We want to be with our young uns.
I live in a tiny stall.  It is just barely big enough to contain my body.   It is metal, and the floor is hard.  I have no soft bed to sleep in.  I don't even have enough room to turn around.  I can't walk anywhere.  This is my life 24 hours a day/7 days a week.  How would you like to live like that?  The first time they put me into this stall, I couldn't believe it!  How could they expect me to live like this?  When they went away, and I realized I would be stuck here, I panicked.  I tried to get out of here.  All I could do was throw my body against the walls: trying to free myself.  I did it for hours.  I exhausted myself completely.  I realized that, no matter what I did, I would not be able to free myself.  That's when I gave up, lied down, and began to cry.  This is my life.  I'm forced to stay in this stall, and I never get to leave it.  From what I've heard, I'll only get to leave this stall when it's time for me to be murdered, so people can eat bacon, ham, and pork chops.
I've heard about pigs that are so lucky.  They are people's pets.  People love them and treat them like many people treat dogs and cats.  I've heard about pigs that push soccer balls around, then put them back into their toy boxes when they're done.
Please stop eating meat.  You don't need to.  It's so much healthier to eat fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds, beans, and whole grains.  It's much less cruel to do so as well.  

Backwards World

If you eat meat, I hope you choke on it.

I believe human society is backwards in 2 major ways.  I think it is backwards to be a meat eater.  I am hoping, that in the not-too-distant future, the trend will be reversed.  I hope it will be commonplace to be a vegetarian or vegan, and meat eaters will be the minority.  Of course, I'd rather meat eaters not exist at all.  HUMANS DO NOT NEED TO EAT MEAT TO SURVIVE.  If you think you wouldn't get enough protein without meat, think again.  Mac Danzig was very competitive as a vegan MMA fighter in the UFC.  It is healthier to eat fresh veggies, fruits, beans, nuts, seeds, and whole grains.  That is part of what is so frustrating for us animal-loving vegans and vegetarians; most people would rather contribute to the suffering of animals by eating meat, which frequently destroys the health of the meat eater.  Not only are you being cruel to animals, you're being cruel to yourself.  It's backwards.  It makes no sense.
Another way in which this world is backwards is amazing to me.  There is so much unhappiness in this world.  So many people are depressed, miserable, living lives and working jobs that they can't stand.  Tons of people commit suicide every year.  Don't believe me?  Look it up.  The media doesn't report it because the CDC has asked them not to, because it leads to copycat suicides.  Yet, most people become biological parents.  It blows my mind.  I've written it here before.  I think virtually everyone who brings someone into this cruel world does so for selfish reasons.  If someone wants to be a parent, why not adopt?  There are always kids who need homes.  Why bring another person into the world to suffer?  Life sucks.  I wish I had never been born.  I've never brought anyone into this world, never gotten a woman pregnant, but it's been done to me.  I am the result of a teenage pregnancy.  I am paying for the mistake my idiot parents made every day of my life.  Parents are supposed to be obeyed and respected.  That's a bunch of crap.  There's nothing wrong with hating biological parents.  They brought you into a world filled with pain, brutality, and death.  People who refuse to bring another person into the world, and adopt instead, are heroes.
Say or think what you want, but I don't eat meat, and I'm not a parent, so at least I'm not a hypocrite.    

A Letter Written for Humans from a Chicken

This is how we want to live.

This is the current reality for many of us.

Dear Humans,
Please stop eating us.  Please stop putting hens in tiny cages and taking their eggs.  Please stop being mean to us and start being nice to us.  What did we ever do to you to make you treat us the way you do?
Many of us are crowded into window-less warehouse-like buildings.  We're crowded in so tightly; it is so stressful for us.  We never get any relief.  We end up pecking each other becasue of the stress we experience from these crowded conditions.
I remember how I was treated when I was a chick.  I was kept in a drawer with a lot of other chicks.  I was tossed onto a conveyor belt.  It was so scary.  Why would you treat living beings like things?  Not only do you treat animals that way, but you treat baby animals that way.  Why are you so cruel to us?
I've seen people throwing live chickens against a wall as hard as they could.  I've seen people stomp on live chickens too.  I don't understand why.  Humans have been victimizing and brutalizing us for so long now.  Why would you be so angry at us?  We're just living completely under your thumb and control.
Cholesterol is bad for you, but you continue to take our eggs and eat them.  And egg farts are the worst.  Hens are forced to live in such tiny cages.  The cages are stacked on top of each other, so they poop on each other.  Our feet were meant to walk on dirt and grass: not a wire cage floor.  Sometimes our feet grow around the wires of the cage floor, and we end up trapped where we stand.  If you want to know how we're really treated, there are many places to get info.  You could read books like Animal Liberation by Peter Singer.  You could go to the websites of PETA and Farm Sanctuary.   
Dr. Joel Fuhrman is a very smart man.  I heard him say that chicken meat contains about as much nutritional value as white bread does.  You'd be much better off if you didn't eat us: or our eggs.  You should stop eating processed foods, dairy, sugars, and meat.  You should eat fresh fruits, veggies, beans, nuts, seeds, and whole grains.  You'd be happier and healthier if you did.  You could stop eating us animals and instead free us or take care of us as beloved pets.  We've seen how well some of you treat dogs and cats.  Why are they so lucky and we're so unlucky?  Please, please, please start treating us well.  We want to have happy lives too.    

Loneliness

Bumpkin

I am a natural loner, but it doesn't mean I want to be that way.  Loneliness can feel like being crushed.  Sometimes, we call a friend and wait to hear back from him or her.  If loneliness is crushing you, and you want to talk to your friend, then don't wait for him or her to call back; call again.
Last week, I discussed the dirty dozen of fruits and veggies.  On the flip side, here are the clean 15 (source-PBS).  "All the produce on 'The Clean 15' bore little to no traces of pesticides, and are safe to consume in non-organic form." This list includes:

• onions
• avocados
• sweet corn
• pineapples
• mango
• sweet peas
• asparagus
• kiwi fruit
• cabbage
• eggplant
• cantaloupe
• watermelon
• grapefruit
• sweet potatoes
• sweet onions

Making Your Own Hummus Is a Reason to Live

I love it.

 I'm serious.  I made hummus today.  In addition to standard ingredients like chick peas, olive oil, and salt, I added plum tomatoes, garlic, and hot sauce.  It is red, and it is very good.  Why would anyone kill themselves when they can make any kind of hummus they want?  It just doesn't make sense.  These are some of the ingredients I plan to use in hummuses of the future: spinach, kale, parsley (Yes, the next batch might be green.), onion, leeks, mushrooms, and spicy peppers.  And there will be more.  Making a green one with veggies like kale, parsley, and spinach will be key.  I tend to get stuck in ruts.  I'm in one now.  Even though I've been doing well eliminating refined sugar and processed foods from my diet, I've really only consistently been eating carrots, split pea soup, hummus, and corn.  So, technically, pretty much the only veggie I've been eating are carrots.  The hummus is a great opportunity to break out of that rut.  I love hummus.  I know I like it with spinach in it, because I've bought the spinach and artichoke variety of it several times.  I'll just have to make sure to buy organic spinach, because spinach is one of the dirty dozen.
Everyone who cares about their health and that of others should know about the dirty dozen.  They are the fruits and veggies that tend to soak up the most pesticides.  It is recommended that, if you eat any of them, you should only choose organic varieties.  According to PBS' website, this is the dirty dozen:      

• celery
• peaches
• strawberries
• apples
• domestic blueberries
• nectarines
• sweet bell peppers
• spinach, kale and collard greens
• cherries
• potatoes
• imported grapes
• lettuce

Taking the Plunge

Groundhogs are hibernating.

It's time.  Over and over again now I've read, seen, and heard that a diet that contains no alcohol, processed foods, refined sugars, lactose, caffeine, and GMO foods is the way to go for physical, mental, and emotional well being.  I currently have some processed foods in my home.  That's fine.  I will finish them.  I think it's wrong to waste food.  The plan is to not purchase or acquire anymore.  I plan to not buy anymore sugar, coffee, chips, bread, etc.  So what does that leave?  All vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, beans, and whole grains.  Although I also plan to do without wheat and gluten.
This decision has been reinforced by what I've been watching lately on PBS.  I usually don't watch these sorts of programs, but I watched 3 self-help/diet shows.  I forget the name of one of the guys, but the other 2 were hosted by Deepak Chopra and Joel Fuhrman.  What all 3 men had in common was they recommended a diet rich in unprocessed, whole foods like veggies, fruits, nuts, seeds, and beans.  I was most impressed by Dr. Fuhrman's presentation.  I plan to read at least one of his books: especially the one that contains a lot of whole foods recipes in it.
I went out for a walk yesterday.  As soon as I left my building, I noticed a squirrel foraging in the snow behind a bush that some sparrows live in (year round).  My neighbors have made a habit of putting food there for the animals.  I suppose that's why the squirrel was foraging there.  They forage on the grass.  What do they do when it's covered with snow?  I went back upstairs and got a whole, still-in-the-shell walnut.  I tossed it behind the bush.  Unfortunately, we got about 5 inches of snow last night.  I hope a squirrel will get that nut.  I don't know anything about nuts freezing.  Even if it did freeze, I can picture a smart squirrel lying on top of it to defrost it.
Also, while out walking yesterday, a man offered to give me a ride in his car.  It was cold out, and it was snowing.  I was very close to home, so there was no chance I would accept his offer.  I said "no thanks."  Almost immediately, I thought, this guy is probably a good Samaritan, but, it's also possible that he's a serial killer.  Even for a full-grown male, like me, getting into a car with someone you don't know could be a fatal mistake.  Crazier things have happened.  Of course, it didn't help that I had just recently watched the movie version of The Lovely Bones, which involves a girl trusting a man that she shouldn't have.      

I Saw a Skunk

playful pup

The skunk was not dead, and of course I'm not referring to seeing one on TV or in a photo.  It was nighttime.  I looked out my window and saw an animal walking around.  At first, I was thinking cat.  Then I took a closer look.  She was a skunk!  It was the first time I had seen a live skunk in the flesh.  It was exciting, but the skunk didn't do the moonwalk or anything; she was just foraging like all the other animals around here do.
Darn that Adam Sandler!  A few weeks ago, I watched You Don't Mess with the Zohan.  I enjoyed it; it was pretty funny.  The problem is that there is so much hummus in the freaking movie.  It obviously is in there as some kind of joke.  His character even puts out a fire by attaching a hose to a giant tank of hummus.  I was liking the movie, but I was thinking that it would probably lead to me buying hummus, and it did.  I love hummus, and I hadn't had it in a while.  Sure enough, because of Adam Sandler, I've eaten pounds of it since watching that movie.  I've been eating it every day.  It does make such a great chip dip.  Now I'm trying to turn it into a positive situation.  I bought a package of carrots; even though I don't like carrots by themselves.  The plan is to use the hummus as a veggie dip: instead of a chip dip.  I plan to try dipping cucumber slices into hummus too. 
I discovered another great product: Bird's Eye (frozen) oriental stir fry.  It is so good.  It contains broccoli, carrots, sugar snap peas, and other (oriental) veggies.  It comes with a delicious sauce to put on it.  I rarely go to restaurants.  The first time I had it, I thought it was as good as something I'd get in a Chinese restaurant.  I've been eating it almost every day.  Life is short.  We must treat ourselves well: especially when we're talking about a food that is vegan and healthy.
Today and yesterday were pretty good days.  My car died recently.  That has been difficult to deal with.  Who looks forward to buying a car?  I can only think of rich people, and I am not rich.  So it's been a tough time for me; that's why I posted those song lyrics last week.  Life can be hard, but we must press on and try to improve things.

Love Animals

Happy doggy!

I don't fully relate to people who aren't vegans or vegetarians.  We don't need to eat meat, and we'd be much healthier if we didn't.  It's so tragic that people are willing to destroy their own health in order to ensure that animals like pigs, cows, chickens, and turkeys will live miserable lives in captivity until they are unnecessarily murdered.
Watch the documentary Forks Over Knives.  It is an eye-opening experience.  The basic message is don't eat meat, dairy, and processed foods, and you will be much healthier.  If you think that movie is a fluke, then watch Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead.  In that doc, a man who was overweight and on several medications switched to a diet that contains lots of fresh fruit and veggie juice and lost a lot of weight.  He was also able to get off of all the medications he had been on.  This man also convinced an obese truck driver to eat mostly fruit and veggie juice.  The transformation was incredible.  The truck driver was miserable as a meat eater.  Once he consumed mostly fruit and veggie juice, he lost weight and seemed to be much happier. 
That's an important message.  When you eat foods like broccoli, which is basically a superfood, you're eating all-natural medicine.  As many know, delicious blueberries are rich with antioxidants.  Instead of eating dead meat and popping all sorts of pills, you could eat fresh fruits, veggies, nuts, beans, seeds, and grains.  If you're overweight, you'd probably lose weight.  If you're a pill-popper, you might be able to ditch most, if not all, of your medications.
They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks.  I guess not.  It's pretty clear that people would rather get heart disease and cancer than stop eating meat.  How about this?  You're an adult, so maybe you should have control over what you put in your mouth and make smart decisions instead of stupid ones.  And maybe you shouldn't be poisoning your kids with unhealthy foods like meat. 
I suppose that it's been like this forever.  A small part of the population cares about ALL animals (not just pets), and the majority doesn't give a damn about most of them.  It's sad.  Just be careful.  If you're mistreating an animal, and someone tells you to stop, you'd better listen.  If I'm the one telling you to stop, and you don't, you might get your face smashed in.