A Vegetable of a Different Color

• Hens dabbing away tears as their eggs are pried from their clutching wings.


• Cows udders chapped and bleeding from milk pumps. Them struggling to apply healing lotion with their hooves.
  
• Lobsters wrapped in burn bandages, moaning in pain as they rock back and forth.


• Runt pigs being put down because they are small (Zuckerman never knowing that the poor animal may be some terrific, humble, radiant pig).


• Innocent oxen with stumps for tails, unable to swat away flies and gnats.

These are the scenes I pictures when I think of the moral reasons behind giving up meat. No not really, I think of much more gruesome pictures, but you get the idea.

I don't really eat a lot of meat (especially if it is the slightest bit pink, just the thought of raw meat turns my stomach) and I have been considering becoming a vegetarian for a long time - I just lack the motivation. A few weeks ago I borrowed a book from my vegetarian neighbor knowing that it will paint all sorts of horrible pictures about animal cruelty. Hopefully this will push me over the edge. But I am afraid it will do just that. I am torn.

I am can come up with a ton of reasons I would like to give up meat - some moral, some shallow (have you ever seen a fat vegetarian?). But I can also come up with two reasons not to:

1. I eat a lot of chicken
2. I don't eat a lot of vegetables

See the problem? How can you be a vegetarian and not eat veggies constantly? I do eat some, salads and stuff, but I just don't see them replacing chicken. I like chicken a lot (and tuna and turkey and cold pork chops and Spam). So, the book has been sitting unopened on my kitchen table because I am afraid to read it. But then I remember that I almost threw up twice on Christmas - once making the meatloaf and once eating the meatloaf - and I know I will read it soon. We'll see what happens. Wish me luck one way or the other.

If you're ever on Jeopardy: Typically, a person's forearm (measured form elbow to wrist) is the same length as their foot.

- lada and the blowfish