Music, er...Tuesday?

Normally I save stuff like this for a Friday, but I just can't wait. This is spectacular. Amazing.

Profoundly Moving Decay

I just discovered that the love of my life, the man I quietly pine for in my loneliest and most nostalgic moments, was married last July. I sort of feel like weeping for my own selfish loss, but more than that, I am devastated that we became estranged and I missed the opportunity to be there for him and support him on what I'm sure was a beautiful and amazing day. For that, my heart is now officially broken and I am officially weeping. Struan, should you ever read this, please know that I am so profoundly sorry that I ruined what could otherwise have been an amazing post-romance friendship. In a cruel twist of fate, there is a Cher song playing on my iPod right now--"Do You Believe in Life After Love" and I'm not sure what my answer would be to that question at this exact moment. I didn't even know I owned that song. This sucks.

Vegan Lent

Hello! It's been a really long time since I've updated this thing. Wanted to share my plan for a Vegan Lent. I told myself that when I got back from my birthday weekend in Florida, I would do a vegan detox (which I do every once in awhile to clear my system and hit the reset button, so to speak). Then I realized that it was Lent, so I decided to "go big or go home."

Mainly, I wanted to give up meat, because as tasty as it is, eating it conflicts with my values. I wouldn't mind eating meat that locally and sustainably raised (in good conditions) and humanely slaughtered, but for this exercise, I wanted to give it up completely. Giving up meat has never been a problem for me, so that's more or less the easy part here.

Now, cheese. Cheese is amazing. I love it. But dairy is one of the hardest things for your body to digest, and it's terrible for you. The human digestive system is not designed to process the lactose of other mammals. It's as simple as that. So, I decided to give it up FOR THE MOST PART.

I will not throw away any food that's currently in my house, because being wasteful also conflicts with my values. I will not purchase any meat or dairy products, but if I'm out with friends and cannot settle on a vegan menu item, I give myself permission to eat dairy.

I haven't decided about eggs yet. And I'm not getting all picky with gelatin and honey and all the other fru-fru details. And chocolate is OK once in awhile, but I won't buy it for my house.

So that's it! I'll keep you posted. Today is day three. Going well so far :)

-Mandy