Has this ever happened to you?

Amy SF

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  1. Vegetarian
Not everything we veg*ans have experienced is a shared experience, but many are. Has this happened to you since you became veg*an? (Please note not everything has happened to me, but I've read enough to know that they've happened to someone, somewhere.)

You become pregnant, and everyone you know expects you to start eating meat again, "for the baby". They are all upset when you tell them you won't.

You have relatives visiting from out of town. You live in an area with good veg*an and/or veg*an-friendly restaurants with wonderfully creative menus you can't wait to treat them to - and they want to eat at IHOP.

Every year you keep getting Christmas and birthday gifts of soaps and lotions and candles from great-aunt Bertha that are not cruelty free or free of animal or other objectionable ingredients, because she's old and that's what she's been buying for decades and nobody else ever complained about them.

The server at the restaurant and the friend who hosts the dinner party you attend don't seem to understand when you try to explain to them that you don't eat anything made with chicken broth since that, too, comes from an animal, because according to them, "it's just a little broth. It's not the actual chicken."

You're asked, in all seriousness, if you can have a real Christmas tree in your home because that, too, was a living thing that was killed.

Nobody gets it when you point out the irony of an aquarium serving tuna fish in their cafeteria. Or, if they do, they laugh and go right back to eating their tuna fish and talking about wanting to see the sharks at the aquarium.

You're asked if you can eat ________ (fill in some random vegetable or fruit) because the person asking is confused about what veg*ans actually eat.

Someone tells you they knew you were a veg*an because you LOOK veg*an.

Someone is completely surprised that you're veg*an because "You don't look veg*an, at all."

Your mother insists on announcing to absolutely everyone, everywhere, that you're veg*an, despite the fact that you can tell people yourself, you don't want to make a big deal about it, and you don't think it's necessary for certain people to know about it.

Someone offers you something you can actually eat, such accidentally vegan cookies, and then suddenly changes his or her mind, saying, "Oh, I forgot, you don't eat these", without asking YOU if you can eat them. When you say you CAN eat those, they're completely confused.
 
Hmm, how best to answer...

You become pregnant, ... No, impossible for me.

You have relatives visiting ... Yes, always. Actually, it's even worse, when I go with my family to a place I have never been that has an awesome vegan place I always wanted to try out, there's never-ending complaining about why we could not have gone to a pizza place or McDonalds instead. Either because the food is "not good enough", or alternatively, because it is perceived as "too expensive"

Every year you keep getting Christmas and birthday gifts ... luckily not. But yeah, 20 years ago, that was the case (but I was not vegan, then)

The server at the restaurant ... Yes, often enough. Now, I don't know what is typically considered to be the knowledge that a server should be striving to acquire to do his job better, but to me, this looks just like it.

You're asked, in all seriousness, if you can have a real Christmas tree i ... No. But then, I have been using a plactic Christmas tree for some years (for reasons of laziness, not tree protectionism)

Nobody gets it when you point out the irony of an aquarium ... Indeed, "normal people" are typically not great at getting the irony...

You're asked if you can eat ________ ... Yes, always

Someone tells you they knew you were a veg*an because you LOOK veg*an. ... Actually, quite the opposite. (Covered in next paragraph!

Someone is completely surprised that you're veg*an because "You don't look veg*an, at all." .. There we go. Quite a few people have told me that "I don't look like a vegan". Well, nicer than saying that I am fat.

Your mother insists on announcing to absolutely everyone, everywhere, ... Luckily, not any more

Someone offers you something you can actually eat, such accidentally vegan cookies, ... Yes, all the time
 
You're asked if you can eat ________ (fill in some random vegetable or fruit) because the person asking is confused about what veg*ans actually eat.

Yes!

One of my friends said that being vegan meant I couldn't even eat bread. Apparently, bread contains eggs.
 
My mum used to announce to people I was vegetarian when there was no need for it. I asked her to just let me tell people if I felt it was going to be relevant to the situation, like if they were cooking or serving me food. She was trying to be helpful but I told her it was just opening the door for a barrage of questions about my lifestyle that in some situations I preferred to avoid answering.
 
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My mother felt it necessary to tell her computer guy when he came to set up her computer. He then asked me if I ate dairy (in a VERY concerned manner), because someone he knew stopped eating dairy and got very sick and had to be rushed to the hospital.

Me:

IMG_1075.GIF
 
One of my friends said that being vegan meant I couldn't even eat bread. Apparently, bread contains eggs.
OMG, this. I can't tell you how many times someone said that to me, lol.
 
My mother felt it necessary to tell her computer guy when he came to set up her computer. He then asked me if I ate dairy (in a VERY concerned manner), because someone he knew stopped eating dairy and got very sick and had to be rushed to the hospital.

Me:

View attachment 12742
Before my sister became ill, anytime we were out together, she would feel the need to tell people I was vegan. I hated it but I think her motives were well intentioned. I think, sometimes, people are in awe of veganism so in her mind, she was bragging about me, haha. I just don't like the attention and then, the subsequent twenty questions.
 
My mum used to announce to people I was vegetarian when there was no need for it. I asked her to just let me tell people if I felt it was going to be relevant to the situation, like if they were cooking or serving me food. She was trying to be helpful but I told her it was just opening the door for a barrage of questions about my lifestyle that in some situations I preferred to avoid answering.
Exactly.
 
Not everything we veg*ans have experienced is a shared experience, but many are. Has this happened to you since you became veg*an? (Please note not everything has happened to me, but I've read enough to know that they've happened to someone, somewhere.)

You become pregnant, and everyone you know expects you to start eating meat again, "for the baby". They are all upset when you tell them you won't.

You have relatives visiting from out of town. You live in an area with good veg*an and/or veg*an-friendly restaurants with wonderfully creative menus you can't wait to treat them to - and they want to eat at IHOP.

Every year you keep getting Christmas and birthday gifts of soaps and lotions and candles from great-aunt Bertha that are not cruelty free or free of animal or other objectionable ingredients, because she's old and that's what she's been buying for decades and nobody else ever complained about them.

The server at the restaurant and the friend who hosts the dinner party you attend don't seem to understand when you try to explain to them that you don't eat anything made with chicken broth since that, too, comes from an animal, because according to them, "it's just a little broth. It's not the actual chicken."

You're asked, in all seriousness, if you can have a real Christmas tree in your home because that, too, was a living thing that was killed.

Nobody gets it when you point out the irony of an aquarium serving tuna fish in their cafeteria. Or, if they do, they laugh and go right back to eating their tuna fish and talking about wanting to see the sharks at the aquarium.

You're asked if you can eat ________ (fill in some random vegetable or fruit) because the person asking is confused about what veg*ans actually eat.

Someone tells you they knew you were a veg*an because you LOOK veg*an.

Someone is completely surprised that you're veg*an because "You don't look veg*an, at all."

Your mother insists on announcing to absolutely everyone, everywhere, that you're veg*an, despite the fact that you can tell people yourself, you don't want to make a big deal about it, and you don't think it's necessary for certain people to know about it.

Someone offers you something you can actually eat, such accidentally vegan cookies, and then suddenly changes his or her mind, saying, "Oh, I forgot, you don't eat these", without asking YOU if you can eat them. When you say you CAN eat those, they're completely confused.
-- Haven't ever been pregnant, so that one is N/A. :D
-- Yes on the IHOP/equivalent vile chain place that offers only iceberg lettuce with a few shreds of carrots or a plain baked potato.
-- Yes on the lotions, lol. I usually re-gift them if I can.
-- Yes on the chicken broth
-- Yes on the Christmas tree
-- Yes, on the aquarium, though it's usually a variation involving farms/zoos rather than an aquarium. Also, the people who are all about (certain) animal rights but have no compunction about scarfing down a steak dinner or a hamburger.
-- Yes on the vegetable questions. I've been asked if I can potatoes, beets and other veggies because they were once alive.
-- No on looking/not looking vegan. :D
-- Yes on my mom, lol! She is better about it now, though, because I think she's informed everyone she knows. :D
-- Yes, on the cookies, lol.
 
I've had people surprised that I'll eat bread, rice, and pasta! Esp rice, and no one knows why they'd think that!
I remember Jim Gaffigan making a joke about seafood restaurants at Sea World- "were they the slow learners?" That made me sad....
And yes, being offered, but then taken back, food that is totally appropriate! It's funny, like they're teasing, but then it backfires...
 
Your mother insists on announcing to absolutely everyone, everywhere, that you're veg*an, despite the fact that you can tell people yourself, you don't want to make a big deal about it, and you don't think it's necessary for certain people to know about it.
I prefer not to bring up veganism in casual discussion. Not looking to start a debate, which veganism always seems to do.

You're asked if you can eat ________ (fill in some random vegetable or fruit) because the person asking is confused about what veg*ans actually eat.
Peanut butter has butter, right?

I've never been told that I look vegan, I've never been told that I don't look vegan.

Yes!

One of my friends said that being vegan meant I couldn't even eat bread. Apparently, bread contains eggs.
Must suck to be allergic to eggs, it means you can't eat bread.
 
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I know, what were we vegans thinking eating bread? Haha.:D So many people suddenly become experts on nutrition on meeting vegans.:rolleyes:
I would like to *like* this about a million times. It drives me absolutely bonkers when nonveg*ns go on and on about nutrition when a lot of them eat nothing that resembles a healthy diet.
 
I would like to *like* this about a million times. It drives me absolutely bonkers when nonveg*ns go on and on about nutrition when a lot of them eat nothing that resembles a healthy diet.

I remember reading a while ago that a vegan was at work on her lunch break and a work colleague started lecturing her on nutrition and the dangers of a vegan diet. She said the person doing the lecturing was eating a bag of crisps (potato chips) and drinking a soft drink for their lunch.:rolleyes:
 
I remember reading a while ago that a vegan was at work on her lunch break and a work colleague started lecturing her on nutrition and the dangers of a vegan diet. She said the person doing the lecturing was eating a bag of crisps (potato chips) and drinking a soft drink for their lunch.:rolleyes:
Exactly what I'm talking about, lol. Some of these people would be eating pizza or burgers and fries. I would take them a bit more seriously (well, probably not, haha) if they were eating vegetables or a salad or something. :D