food for thought

I really love magazines! I think they're some of the most fun things to get in the mail, a nice surprise. I subscribe to several scrapbooking mags, and of course a travel magazine too. But this weekend when Sal and I were browsing in a Barnes & Noble, I came across a new magazine that really spoke to me. It's called VegNews and, as the name implies, focuses on vegetarianism. But this mag is different than other veggie mags....rather than obsessing over recipes and healthy eating (cooking is just not my thing!), its theme is the vegetarian lifestyle which, in addition to a meatless diet, includes cruelty-free choices when shopping, traveling, decorating, etc. It covers the whole "eco-package", and I love it! (And, of course, the magazine is printed with soy ink on recycled paper.)

After flipping through an issue, I came home and went online to subscribe. Their website has a cool list of 222 Reasons to be Veg, here are some of my favorites:

# 13 not eating the bodies of tortured souls;
# 17 resisting cruel fashion trends without a second thought;
# 30 being the change that I want to see in the world;
# 34 watching loved ones and strangers slowly evolve toward vegetarianism;
# 39 looking into the faces of animal companions without guilt;
# 45 meeting brilliant, compassionate, creative people who advocate for the voiceless;
# 48 viewing non-human animals as fellow earthlings rather than as mere objects;
# 63 being the voice for the voiceless;
# 74 being consistent (claim to love animals? prove it!);
# 86 becoming a conscious consumer***;
# 108 treating all animals with the same respect and consideration;
# 165 vegan online shopping***;
# 168 cruelty-free Thanksgiving;
# 185 snuggling up in a warm, not-down comforter;
# 187 my vegetarianism gives me a sense of purpose in life - I can't imagine living any other way;
# 208 wearing my own skin and no one else's;
# 213 the music of Paul McCartney (there are lots of famous vegetarians!)

*** Certainly, being a conscious consumer isn't easy....I sometimes have to search hard for shoes, purses, etc. that are "cruelty-free" (i.e., not made of leather or other animal products). And I say that as someone who loves to shop and enjoys cute shoes and fashionable purses as much as the next gal. Products made from leather, suede, down, angora, etc., are ubiquitous, but I by-pass them and keep looking. I buy items that say "man-made materials" on the label, and I've had great success finding fashionable products at stores like JCPenney, Chadwick's, and Payless Shoes, among others. (A woman once asked me if my purse was a Chanel, but it was from Payless, and made entirely of synthetic materials!)

P.S. ~ happy birthday to my brother-in-law, Paul in Philadelphia!