Day 151: Kitchen finally 100% vegan (except for the mollusks)

First of all, obviously I cannot count.  You might notice this is post 151 after posts 152 and 154 hahahahaha!  Oh well, this is not a blog about counting!

Second of all today is the day I have finally arrived, at least in my kitchen.  I went through every nook and cranny looking for semblances of my former life.  Here is what I found:

“Peace begins in the kitchen”

My timeline to a vegan kitchen (except for the clams ugh):

2 – 3 years ago started noticing things on the web or on the news and saw a few documentaries.  Became curious and highly disturbed

1 year ago decided I wanted to eat ‘cruelty free’ but did not even know what that would mean at the time

8 months ago began studying, researching, and replacing old products with new ones for example mayonnaise with veganaise

4 months ago realized with horror that cruelty free eating could not possibly include eating ‘humanely raised and slaughtered’ animals or dairy.  Could not put the phrase ‘cruelty free’ in the same sentence as ‘slaughter’.  Had a huge epiphany – in order to be cruelty free I had to be vegan.  Ugh I never saw that coming!

Tried to find some loopholes, thought cage free eggs was one but alas it isn’t.  Researched vitamin B12 and mollusks and felt that would be the last thing I would hang onto and not sure if I would give up.  I don’t even like clams.  But I don’t believe in supplements and vitamin B12 is necessary.  Also still struggling with line caught fish.  Continuing to replace old products in my kitchen with new ones.

Today – tada!  Everything except the clams . . .

I have a 14 year old son and although I am not making him vegan I am also not giving him access to non-vegan food while in my home.  (Bye bye mac and cheese spirals made with water and vegan margarine haha!)  It’s taken me a while to come around on honey but I can use maple syrup so why not give it up?  And as far as eggs are concerned I really did not think I could live without them.  Until I realized they are totally unnecessary in baking.  If you leave them out it all still comes out basically the same or just use egg replacer if it’s like a pancake or something.  Cakes do not even need eggs in them – I know because I made one without eggs and there was no difference.  Go figure!

The last bit of my former life left in my kitchen are a few cans of clams.

I studied mollusks and some of them have no central nervous system and research suggests they feel no pain of any kind whether physical, mental or emotional.  They do not have families or cry or scream.   Someone told me, I guess they were hardcore vegan, that eating a clam is like shooting someone who is in a coma in the head.

Well, maybe.  But then again I don’t think it is quite the same.  Other clams do not feel pain or weep for other clams.  But if someone is in a coma and another person shoots them, their friends and family will weep and feel pain.  And for me, that is the difference.

I keep the clams because I do not believe in supplements and am trying to live a natural life.  There is little vitamin B12 in vegan food (I stopped washing my mushrooms but studies suggest there is no way to know if I would ever derive enough B12 this way).  The whole B12 conundrum is why I call myself an omnivore with a conscience and not an herbivore.  Ironically clams have just about the highest B12 of anything you could ever eat so it just feels like it’s meant to be.  I also know that in the natural world if I were the only person alive I would probably be near water and would probably naturally eat them as part of my diet.  No need for a weapon or a farm or a slaughterhouse or any other disrespectful downright unnecessary means.

Any thoughts or studies or comments on vitamin B12, clams or other similar mollusks welcome.  I am also struggling with line caught fish.  I feel this is something I would naturally do.  Is a fishing pole a weapon?

Thank you and as always, happy eating!