Breakfast: It’s the last day of January. A whole month of 2017 has passed. We wake up every morning and think, “oh no, is that psychopath still president?” We have endured almost 2 weeks of the new federal government administration. I am inspired by the prostests all around the country. How do we stay focused and inspired when the rights we fought for over the decades seem to be crumbling around us? I think of a line from Voltaire’s Candide: “Let us work without reasoning…it is the only way to make life endurable.” Get back to work. There was a long day ahead with lots to do. But first, a nourishing breakfast of Oatmeal with Raisins, Walnuts, Bananas and Chia Seeds.
Breakfast:
Lunch: I got ready for my weekly radio show. I was speaking with my friend and colleague Linda Long, author of Virgin Vegan and Great Chefs Cook Vegan. She just came back from an extended stay in Kuwait where she gave numerous vegan cooking classes. I thought it would be fun to talk with her on It’s All About Food. Gary prepared a pot of Noodle Soup for us to have when we got back from rehearsal later this evening. I took a cup for lunch. It’s our basic soup recipe that we have been making a lot of while staying in Gary’s brother’s pool house for 9 weeks, working on a production of Fiddler on the Roof. It consists of Whole Foods low sodium Vegetable Broth, Ancient Harvest Corn/Quinoa noodles. To this we add different things. Today, the soup has Red Onions and Tofu.
Dinner: After 6 hours of rehearsal we came home. I was glad the soup was ready for us. Gary made a fantastic salad with baby Greens, Herbs, Garbanzo Beans and Balsamic Vinegar.
The soup was perfect, exactly what we needed.
I really like reading your materials, I would appreciate you not disparaging our President regardless of party; make this about amazing food, not politics. I would say the same thing whomever is in power. At my core, its about how foods can change lives, how we co-evolved with plants and how human physiology can befit from consuming a plant-bsed diet which I research and put into use in an evidence based practice.
Hi Gerald,
Thank you for your message. I am the co-founder of Responsible Eating And Living, and the creator of the What Vegans Eat blog. The mission of Responsible Eating And Living is to provide materials and content to help people transition to a plant-based, vegan diet and a more planet-friendly, sustainable lifestyle. I became a vegetarian as a teenager because I did not want to kill nonhuman animals. Over time, I have learned about the horrific treatment of nonhuman animals raised for food as well as for other purposes including clothing and medical testing. I decided to be a voice for the voiceless. As a vegan activist, I do what I can to encourage people to eat plant foods and leave the nonhuman animals off the plate. As a cancer survivor, I have also learned the powerful healing properties of nutritious plant foods. As a teenager I never understood why people were poor and hungry. I have better knowledge of what is behind food insecurity today although I can’t say I understand it. Throughout human history, many people have used their power, authority and privilege to exploit. This includes the exploitation of human animals, nonhuman animals and the planet we call home. Educating about this exploitation and what to do about it is a part of the “responsible living” portion of this nonprofit. It has been a hard fight over the decades to put in place legislation to protect our air, our water, our soil and our climate. It has been a hard fight over the decades to improve the lives of humans through civil rights legislation. On my radio show, IT’S ALL ABOUT FOOD on the Progressive Radio Network, which is produced by Responsible Eating And Living, we’ve covered topics including food insecurity, GMOs, food subsidies, animal agriculture, Big Ag – important topics that are related to our food system. Before the Nov. 8 2016 election, there was plenty of work to be done but there was always hope and things seemed to be moving in a positive, more inclusive, more just direction for society. In the two weeks since the new government has taken over, we have seen protections to ensure life and liberty abolished with the stroke of a pen. Informative webpages are disappearing from the White House website such as described in this article regarding transparency with animal welfare: http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/02/trump-administration-blacks-out-animal-welfare-information.
Now back to the blog. The main purpose of the blog is to show people what vegans eat on a daily basis. It answers the question I hear so often – “What DO vegans eat?” I have found that getting healthy, delicious plant food into people’s mouths is one of the best ways to get them to stop eating animals. We continue to create new recipes at Responsible Eating And Living to do just that. You would like me to separate food from politics. I wish I could but it is impossible. Our current food system is governed by politics. Access to healthy food is controlled by politics. You might get a better understanding of this by reading Michele Simon’s blog: http://www.eatdrinkpolitics.com/blog/ and Marion Nestle’s blog: http://www.foodpolitics.com/. The current administration’s actions to-date along with the prior actions of the individuals in charge do not appear to support responsible eating or responsible living. As an activist who is passionate about the health of all living things and the health of this planet, I will continue to speak out about injustice.
Kind regards,
Caryn