With A Little Help From My Friends
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We can all use a little help now and then. If you’re new to veganism, thinking about going vegan, or you’re trying to help persuade a friend or family member to go vegan (at least part-time) there are plenty of resources to help. Here are some web-based tools to help the new vegan, vegetarian, or part-time veg*n:
Vegan at Heart: This is an email newsletter program that’s aimed at people who aren’t really vegan, they’re just vegan at heart. As a subscriber, they promise to send you one vegan “mission” in your inbox every day for 30 days. These missions take only 1 to 10 minutes to complete. Then, after the initial 30 days, you slow down and begin to receive weekly missions.
Veg Starter Kit: Mercy for Animals and FARM have teamed up to provide free vegetarian starter kits to anyone who asks. Simply complete the online form and receive your starter kit in the mail. The starter kit is a 32-page color magazine that explains the benefits of a plant-based diet, offers practical advice on making healthy changes, provides nutrition information, and supplies you with delicious veg recipes.
Post Punk Kitchen: Home of the PPK forums where a newbie vegan can learn from others and where old-timers can make new friends and allies.
I don’t like the word part time vegan. I am proud of who I am and it takes a lot of hard work, discipline, and dedication. There is no such thing as a part time vegan. It’s like calling someone a part time vegetarian because they ate vegetables once. If you want the name, do it full time. OOtherwise, you’re just an omnivore, deal with it.
It’s self-identification, not a label imposed by outsiders. When someone calls themselves a “part-time vegan” they are identifying more with the vegan part of themselves than the non-vegan part. They are closer to a full-time vegan than someone who wears the label “omnivore.” That’s why I will continue to allow and use words like “part-time vegan” “vegan-esque” “vegan-ish” “veg” or “veg*n”.
Moreover, after you get used to it and find your groove, being a vegan doesn’t require any extra “hard work, discipline, and dedication.” It’s just how we live and it comes naturally and normally.