SHOUT VEGAN!

Thank you for visiting the site and following my progress as a new vegan mother. As it has now been over a year since I became a new vegan I don't feel so new at it, in fact, I feel I have learnt so much I need a bigger place to shout about it and have therefore built a new site which I would love you to visit.

www.shoutvegan.com

This is more of a magazine than a blog and is still in its early stages. If you have something you feel you could contribute please let me know, otherwise I hope you come and visit me there instead of here.

And if you found this site as you are on a similar journey then please look back at the posts over the year.

I often sound negative about the difficulties faced as a vegan but I would not have my life any other way and feel so rewarded by the choice to not exploit or harm animals in my life. I hope this is something you now or soon will experience as it is a wonderful way to live. Miller and Heidi continue to be happy, healthy and somewhat silly children who love animals and would never knowingly eat them.

I also hope the new site will give more chance for discussion and maybe even a place to make more new and supportive friends,

Love,


Jill xxx

PS The new site, Shout Vegan, is named for exactly that reason, sometimes I feel I should apologise for being vegan, then I realised that was just ridiculous, I should shout about it x

PPS Do I ever shut up? But if you want to follow the yoga, then visit my other sites:
www.yogababy.tv
www.yogababy.ning.com
And keep up with our artistic efforts at...
www.barklive.com

Bye x

Vegan Wine

So I am back from my training course in Brighton and it was so nice to be soemwhere that vegan food is widely available. Of course you need to know where to go but that doesn't take long to find out. Waitrose was handy for a quick hummus, carrot and salad sandwich, the Sanctuary cafe beautiful for home made vegan soups and salads and the selection of thai restaurants with so much choice of vegan, especially tofu dishes was lovely. Paskins Town House where I stayed was a delight and possibly make the best vegan breakfasts going...but enough of that! Today I want to talk about something else....Wine!

I never stopped to think about what was in the wine I drink. Usually I think carefully about everything, especially the food I eat as so many animal parts turn up in the least expected things and clothes and shoes need to be checked out thoroughly for animal skins etc but wine, well, wine is just grapes isn't it?

NO!!!

I watched a documentary about what was in wine and I must say I was and still am horrified! Not only at the amount of sugar and additives I have been gulping down but also how un-vegan most alcohol is. I have, until yesterday, been drinking Guinness twice a week as I discovered last year that it was an easier cure for my low iron than using iron tablets (and no, the low iron isn't because I don't eat steak as my mother and grandmother, huge meat consumers, both have this too) yet now I have learnt that stout is fined using fish bladders. Yum. So, no more Guinness for me. Well, at least I can enjoy a glass of wine. Um. No, actually. Most wines too are fined using fish bladders, or if not, using egg whites. Some wines even contain traces of milk. Put you off? Yes, did me too. So what do we vegans do? I have looked around and found a few sites which list vegan wines, usually listed by which Supermarket you can get them. It doesn't help me so much seeing as here in Norway you can only buy wine from the government wine store and they have only a limited selection of which I have no idea if they will contain traces of animal parts and secretions or not. I did send them an email two days ago but no reply as of yet and I am not hopeful of any reply at all (that's how some things work here). So if you know of a truly informative website which lists many vegan wines please let me know and I can email the goverment store and request them.
Of course, I could go teetotal and cut out all alcohol (some vodkas and other spirits also use animal parts in the processing by the way) but I don't really want to.... but I won't make animals suffer for my wants so we will have to see...!

Today's post is one where I share some information I have found which I feel is really valuable to the vegan/vegetarian cause. The below excerpt is from this months Time magazine. The article is called 'Skip the Steak'. In doing so you can save the lives of animals who suffer on a daily basis. You know what you should do. Just do it.

Skip the Steak
By Bryan Walsh

Which is responsible for more global warming: your BMW or your Big Mac? Believe it or not, it's the burger. The international meat industry generates roughly 18% of the world's greenhouse-gas emissions—even more than transportation—according to a report last year from the U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization.

Much of that comes from the nitrous oxide in manure and the methane that is, as the New York Times delicately put it, "the natural result of bovine digestion." Methane has a warming effect that is 23 times as great as that of carbon, while nitrous oxide is 296 times as great.

There are 1.5 billion cattle and buffalo on the planet, along with 1.7 billion sheep and goats. Their populations are rising fast, especially in the developing world. Global meat production is expected to double between 2001 and 2050. Given the amount of energy consumed raising, shipping and selling livestock, a 16-oz.T-bone is like a Hummer on a plate.

If you switch to vegetarianism, you can shrink your carbon footprint by up to 1.5 tons of carbon dioxide a year, according to research by the University of Chicago. Trading a standard car for a hybrid cuts only about one ton—and isn't as tasty.




And here is the Guardian's view

UN says eat less meat to curb global warming
· Climate expert urges radical shift in diet
· Industry unfairly targeted - farmers

* Juliette Jowit, environment editor
* The Observer,
* Sunday September 7 2008
* Article history

A joint of beef

A joint of beef. Photograph/Alamy

People should have one meat-free day a week if they want to make a personal and effective sacrifice that would help tackle climate change, the world's leading authority on global warming has told The Observer

Dr Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which last year earned a joint share of the Nobel Peace Prize, said that people should then go on to reduce their meat consumption even further.

His comments are the most controversial advice yet provided by the panel on how individuals can help tackle global warning.

Pachauri, who was re-elected the panel's chairman for a second six-year term last week, said diet change was important because of the huge greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental problems - including habitat destruction - associated with rearing cattle and other animals. It was relatively easy to change eating habits compared to changing means of transport, he said.

The UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation has estimated that meat production accounts for nearly a fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions. These are generated during the production of animal feeds, for example, while ruminants, particularly cows, emit methane, which is 23 times more effective as a global warming agent than carbon dioxide. The agency has also warned that meat consumption is set to double by the middle of the century.

'In terms of immediacy of action and the feasibility of bringing about reductions in a short period of time, it clearly is the most attractive opportunity,' said Pachauri. 'Give up meat for one day [a week] initially, and decrease it from there,' said the Indian economist, who is a vegetarian.

However, he also stressed other changes in lifestyle would help to combat climate change. 'That's what I want to emphasise: we really have to bring about reductions in every sector of the economy.'

Pachauri can expect some vociferous responses from the food industry to his advice, though last night he was given unexpected support by Masterchef presenter and restaurateur John Torode, who is about to publish a new book, John Torode's Beef. 'I have a little bit and enjoy it,' said Torode. 'Too much for any person becomes gluttony. But there's a bigger issue here: where [the meat] comes from. If we all bought British and stopped buying imported food we'd save a huge amount of carbon emissions.'

Tomorrow, Pachauri will speak at an event hosted by animal welfare group Compassion in World Farming, which has calculated that if the average UK household halved meat consumption that would cut emissions more than if car use was cut in half.

The group has called for governments to lead campaigns to reduce meat consumption by 60 per cent by 2020. Campaigners have also pointed out the health benefits of eating less meat. The average person in the UK eats 50g of protein from meat a day, equivalent to a chicken breast and a lamb chop - a relatively low level for rich nations but 25-50 per cent more than World Heath Organisation guidelines.

Professor Robert Watson, the chief scientific adviser for the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, who will also speak at tomorrow's event in London, said government could help educate people about the benefits of eating less meat, but it should not 'regulate'. 'Eating less meat would help, there's no question about that, but there are other things,' Watson said.

However, Chris Lamb, head of marketing for pig industry group BPEX, said the meat industry had been unfairly targeted and was working hard to find out which activities had the biggest environmental impact and reduce those. Some ideas were contradictory, he said - for example, one solution to emissions from livestock was to keep them indoors, but this would damage animal welfare. 'Climate change is a very young science and our view is there are a lot of simplistic solutions being proposed,' he said.

Last year a major report into the environmental impact of meat eating by the Food Climate Research Network at Surrey University claimed livestock generated 8 per cent of UK emissions - but eating some meat was good for the planet because some habitats benefited from grazing. It also said vegetarian diets that included lots of milk, butter and cheese would probably not noticeably reduce emissions because dairy cows are a major source of methane, a potent greenhouse gas released through flatulence.

Break out!

We had some visitors yesterday. As we were going about our daily activities at home, Matthew told me to have a look in the garden. Upon doing so I saw four cows wandering around, enjoying the grass! The had found a gap in the fence at the back of our house and thought they would take a little trip. As our garden has nothing that the cows could have done any damage too we left them to it. Heidi and Miller had a great time stood on the balcony mooing at them and the cows mooed back each time! They hung around for most of the morning and when I looked out in the afternoon they had gone. Not back to the field. Just gone. Maybe moved to a different field, maybe dead ready to go on someone's plate. I feel such affection for cows, even more so when I get in close contact. They are beautiful animals, such gorgeous eyes and lashes and such soft skin (much preferable when still attached to the cow). I took a video which I will post when I can figure out how to do it on my new camera! One of them was very curious about our old Volvo and kept circling around it giving it a good sniff, the others were out exploring and seemed to be having a jolly good time.
I notice cows everywhere. Maybe other people do not see what I see - well I know they don't! A few days ago I drove past a field where I saw one cow with such full udders. It looked so uncomfortable and the cow could hardly walk properly. It reminded me of when I began breastfeeding Miller and how sore I was when he missed a feed or when I woke in the morning if he had slept for longer than usual. I wanted to stop and get out of the car and do something but what do I do? Do I go in the field and try and milk the poor thing, what do I do? I did nothing and I felt so bad for my inability to act. Yet this is just one animal and this is an animal in what I would could a good situation (not that there is such a thing in truth), out grazing on grass for one thing unlike the majority of dairy cows who never see a field now....
I have to stop this blog post now, it's too upsetting...

What about Protein!

What about it? What is the big obsession with protein? When I tell people I am vegan it is usually the first thing they say to me, followed by 'What about Calcium', usually followed by a disapproving glance or two.

I thought it would be useful to share with you foods which have a high protein value. If you are a vegan you can rest assured you are getting enough protein if you are eating a varied and healthy diet and if you are not vegan you can read this and put your minds at rest that we are not all going to waste away from protein deficiency. Infact although protein is essential to our diets, most people eat far too much which can interfere with our ability to absorb calcium. We only need protein to account for 1 of every 10 calories we consume. The average vegan male needs to be consuming around 55-70 grams each day and the average female around 45-60 grams. After each food I have listed how many grams of protein are in a typical serving.

Lentils (1 cup cooked - 18g), Soyamilk (1 cup - 7g), Brown Rice (5g), Jacket Potato (4g) Wholewheat bread (1 slice - 3g), Spinich (5g), Baked beans (12g) oatmeal (1 cup - 6g), Broccoli (4g), Peas (9g), Peanut Butter (8g), Tofu (11g), Bagel (9g), Spaghetti (8g), Almonds (4g), Cashews (5g), Soya Yogurt (6g), Sunflower seeds (6g), Black beans (1 cup - 15g), Soya beans (1 cup - 29g), Kidey Beans (1 cup cooked - 13g), Chickpeas (1 cup cooked - 12g)

So you can see that a vegan diet is not devoid of protein. If you are a vegan and still concerned just make sure you have some of the above list in you home ready to use. We usually make up a batch of hummus (chick pea dip) which we snack on regularly with pitta bread, tortilla chips or raw carrots. I also make up nut mixes to have as snacks (which Heidi, my 3 year old loves - almonds, cashews, walnuts (for omega 3) and dried fruits). If you make salads or breads, throw in some sunflower seeds and linseeds (for omega 3 also). Marinade some tofu in soy sauce and add to a veggie stir fry, add spinich to your favourite pasta recipe, have baked beans for breakfast on a saturday morning - maybe experiment making veggie sausages - I came up with some great ones last week made with cooked red lentils and soya pieces mixed with soy sauce and breadcrumbs. Just experiment!

Ok, that's today's post. It won't stop people asking the question but at least you have some facts at your disposal!





Cashews 1/4 cup 5 2.7
Almond butter 2 Tbsp 5 2.4
Brown rice, cooked 1 cup 5 2.1
Spinach, cooked 1 cup 5 13.0
Broccoli, cooked 1 cup 4 6.8
Potato 1 med.
(6 oz) 4 2.7

Sources: USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 18, 2005 and manufacturers' information.

The recommendation for protein for adult males vegans is around 56-70 grams per day; for adult female vegans it is around 46-58 grams per day (see text).

Elephant Hunt

This morning I began work at the studio by researching the life of Jumbo the Elephant for an idea I have for a short film. As I was meandering around I went further into the history, wondering how Jumbo, the famous circus elephant, was captured. It seems his capture came as part of the ivory trade with his parents being killed and Jumbo being caught for export. I then had a look at the ivory trade and researched how elephants were hunted and killed. I thought, as many of you probably thought, that elephant hunting was now illegal and only practised by rogue hunters outside of the law. Um, it seems that is where I am mistaken as I found this website and have been gobsmacked for the last fifteen minutes reading articles on the site. I would really advise you visit the site and do whatever you feel needs to be done to change this horrific 'sport'.

http://www.safaribwana.com/HUNT/elephant07.htm

The site tells you how great it feels to bring down a beast (nice choice of word) the size of a London bus (not that hard with a big gun, should it really make you feel strong?). It is a challenge. Go enjoy yourself! If that's not for you, you can try murdering another animal of your choice, perhaps leaving cubs without a mother, just to make you feel nice.

This has made me angry and I apologise if this blog entry is not as in depth as it could be but now I need to go and do something about the absolute horrific nature of some individuals. I will today write my short film, not about Jumbo but about the injustices being carried out today towards living, breathing, intellegent animals who deserve people standing up for them.

Well, Summer seems to be over here in the Arctic, not that we really had one in the first place! The nights are getting darker now, we have said goodbye to the Midnight Sun until next year. I am just over the flu that has knocked me out for around two weeks and to top that off I had serious toothache resulting in my having to have one of my wisdom teeth out on Monday so now I hope that is the end to illness and pain for a while!

I plan to revert back to the plan of posting up some articles and research which I feel are important to the vegan cause so this will be my last personal post for a little while as I dig up some interesting facts about the meat and dairy industry!

Life as a vegan is so wonderful, I cannot express how it makes me feel other than saying it gives me immense strength to speak out, not just for the animals but for anything I believe is injust. I feel empowered and no longer just go along with general opinion just because I am afraid to be different.

I have taken the step to gain further yoga training and am due to take my first weeks intensive course in Brighton in the UK next month. I have reserved a room at a vegetarian hotel called Paskins, the children will come over with me and stay with family and Matthew is staying put with the dogs. This will enable me to further my plans for a yoga studio here in Northern Norway. Our Yoga baby web tv show is also flourishing with plans for the new show running smoothly too.

I have also been in contact with a society for the welfare of animals in Norway who are sending me some leaflets in norwegian that I can distribute here. It does not seem to push the idea of veganism but it is a start and they are heading in the right direction. After seeing a course advertised locally for 'learing how to put up electric fences to stop livestock escaping' I am even more determined to raise awareness of animal suffering here. It's a steep hill but I am feeling fit!

Wishing you all a pleasant day,
Jill x

Summer Flu

I am taking a little time out as I have been ill with flu for 2 weeks! Good job I know how to make great vegan soups! Back soon x

Latvia

What can I say about Riga other than GO! I think it takes its place at the top of my favourite cities list. I had rad so many conflicting reports about Latvia's capital and some do have some truth to them, for example, beware of paying more in some taxies than others, try and avoid the moronic groups of tourists all staring at the same thing at the same time etc but to be honest if you have any nounce (common sense) about you at all you will find your own way around, do some research about great places to go and you will probably like us, have a wonderful time here. The Musuem of occupation should be on your list even if just to be aware of what the people here have been through and of course you have to indulge in a little cafe culture too. The people we encountered were very freindly and helpful (contrary to what we had read), our hotel (The Nordic Bellevue) was a pure delight and Bjørk in concert at Riga Arena was really special.

In terms of being vegan in the city, well, really it wasn't a problem. I contacted the hotel by email in advance and explained we were vegan. We were given our own soya milk each morning and tratedby the chef to a mixture of vegan breakfasts including baked mixed beans and olive oil toast, fried mushroom, potatoes and broccoli which did sound odd fro breakfast but I really enjoyed it and fresh fruit salads. Out in the town we found a lovely pizza place called Il Patio where they were only too happy to make cheeseless pizzas, a japanese restaurant which I cannot recall the name of but it was opposite the hotel had a heap of vegan food on the menu. I sampled around 4 dishes there during our stay including potatoes in black bean sauce and vegetable singapore noodles and all were delicious. Where we could not find vegan dishes we simply asked the waiter and they spoke with the chef and prepared us something with no trouble at all. Indeed on our first night we arrived at 11pm. It was past 12 when we went in search of food having not had a vegan option on the flight. The 4 rooms restaurant in the main square happily made us a fresh vegetable pasta with olive oil and potato wedges with a salad. What more could you ask for?

So all in all this was a wonderful trip. We will certainly return. Next time we will take the children rather than leaving them at home with the folks. There is a beach resort near the town which we did not have time to get to but we will perhaps stay there on our return.

Now it is back to work and play!

Our neighbours

These adorable cows have been moved into the field opposite our house. Yesterday Heidi and Miller were playing in the paddling pool on our small balcony and were overjoyed to see the cows and spent the first ten minutes mooing at them from across the road. The cows are so friendly and come down to see what you are upto when you go to collect the post. I am not going to spend this post talking about what may or may not happen to them later, I guess I will leave that upto you. What I will say is that Heidi and Miller are becoming even fonder of animals.

The other day I was looking in a dog manual to see if I needed to take Paris, our black 11 year old Labrador to the vet about a sore she has on her leg and Miller was fascinated by the book which has pictures of all different dogs in it. It has since become his favourite thing ever (apart from potato & veggie cakes and dark chocolate rice crackers - much to my sofa's dismay!) he carries it around everywhere, cries if Heidi takes it off him and points at the dogs and says 'der'.

I also now have acquired some bumper stickers for our cars and I put one on my old beat up volve that says 'Love animals, don't eat them'. Matthew (my husband) says it makes me look like a drifter but frankly I don't care. I am feeling rebellious!

My parents arrive on Thursday so I must have a clean up soon, considering my mum once said I was the messiest person she knew! Oh well, you can't have everything! x

Arctic Fox

This is an Arctic Fox. Isn't is just beautiful!

We took a trip to the Polar Zoo recently. Yes, as a rule I don't agree with Zoo's unless they are for conservation but this zoo is pretty good as zoo's go, the animals have so much natural space and a lot of attention. It is like being out walking in the mountains. What a gorgeous animal this is. I was hypnotized by it. The kids loved the trip which we took with Grandma after I had returned from the yoga holiday. Heidi in particular fell in love with the Reindeer.....which people eat as you know...
Miller loved the wolverine, which I had never seen before and is possibly one of the most amusing animals around, with the biggest claws I might add!


So just wanted to share these lovely pics, have a nice day x

Animals in Norway

I was surprised last week to find out the area I live in is known for horse meat. Shocked and horrified...yet what is the difference between eating horse and eating lamb? There is no difference, it is just what we are culturally conditioned to. Eating horse is disgusting but so is eating any corpse of an animal, raised and killed in an oppressive and painful way. As the horse eating came as a shock to me I thought I would find out more about where I live and below are some extracts from the Norwegian Animal Welfare website. Even though these are just facts (no comment on the suffering of these creatures), they still to me make sad reading.

Fur farming

The Norwegian Fur Breeder´s Association organizes the approx. 600 fur farmers in the country. Norwegian farmers produce mainly fox and mink pelts. Saga Furs of Scandinavia does the international marketing of all Scandinavian fur. Oslo Fur Auctions is a main participant in the Norwegian fur trade.

Farm animals

Norway produces eggs, chicken and turkey for own consumption. Usual high intensive breeds are used. Battery hens is the usual production system in egg production. The Centre for Poultry Research aims at serving the poultry industry.


Geno is the Norwegian association for breeding and keeping of cattle. Geno´s cow breed, NRF, is genetically composed to serve a combined dairy and meat production.

Fish farming, fishing and marine mammals

Norway hunts both seal and whale. The Ministry of Fisheries provides information about marine mammals. In March 2004 the Norwegian government presented a Report to the Storting on whaling and sealing (White paper to the Norwegian parliament) explaining Norway’s policy on marine mammals.
Farmed fish is Norway´s second biggest export product. Salmon is the most usual fish bred in captivity. Norwegian Seafood Federation publish facts and figures about fish farming.

Wildlife

Angling and hunting is popular in Norway. This includes small game hunting, big game hunting, as well as freshwater and seawater angling.

Statistics Norway provides plenty of statistics on hunting in Norway.

Vegan Outreach

Just a very quick post as I have just come across this site whilst looking for more ways to spread the message of veganism. You can download leaflets, posters etc and the site is full of ideas! I feel I have a lot to do!....

http://www.veganoutreach.org/

Meat and Misery!

Home from the yoga holiday and feeling healthy and revitalized. However I did suffer a vegan moment during one of the nights out. It came as most of the girls ordered mixed grills and a huge array of animal parts arrived at the table. I just could not bear to see so many hacked up animal corpses. Animals who did not deserve to die, animals who did not ask to be born just so they could be killed after a short life to end up on a dining table. I felt so sick and upset at the scene that I had to leave the table and sit away from the group whilst they ate. The rest of my night and the following day was spent wondering how my refusal to engage in an inhumane and cruel lifestyle was making any difference to the animals. I was looking at a small bowl of Parmesan cheese brought with my spaghetti napolitana (even though I had asked for no cheese) and thinking how a newborn calf had been killed for the rennet in its stomach to make this and then looked up and saw everyone else in the restaurant stuffing meat in their mouths. Are my choices making any difference at all when everyone else continues to eat corpses of defenseless beings, beings which experience pain, suffering and despair at our hand? I was so deflated but now I come home with renewed vigour to stand up for what is right. I feel I must do so much more to raise awareness of animal treatment, even if it means that some people will dislike me for it. I do not mean that I will start protesting outside the local slaughterhouse (yet), only that in future, when people say to me, 'Do you mind if I eat this infront of you', I will say 'Yes, I do mind but surely it is the animal you should apologize to, for it is the animal that has been killed because you did not feel like ordering vegetarian lasagne today'. Harsh. Yes, it is harsh but I feel I must live my truth. For years I tried to fit in, desperately in need of approval and acceptance. Maybe now I have realized my love of a compassionate life stands higher than that.

Cretan Night

Hi from Crete,
The yoga holiday is going wonderfully. Everyone is relaxed and refreshed and we still have two more days. I have taken a little break from the heat to check my emails and thought I would write a little update. Last night we went to a Cretan night and were supposed to be served traditional Cretan food. What the students got was a pork chop and potatoes, it not only looked disgusting (and a have a picture to prove it and will post it later) but I think it tasted pretty bad too. My vegan food (which I hoped would be really good) consisted of a bowl of vine leaves. After a complaint I was also given a bowl of deep fried courgette which was just awful! So far it has been hot and miss with the vegan food options. I have been able to buy soya milk and vegetable margerine, baked beans and salad. Apart from that it has been limiting. In the restaurants I have had both good and bad experiences. One night I had a traditional Cretan meal of beans, potatoes and carrot ina tomato sauce which was so good and another night a no cheese pizza which was also a delight. One meal I must recreate at home is stuffed tomatoes and green peppers (a rice and veg stuffing) as I loved it! The bad choices have come when I could find nothing to adapt on the menu and the chef has just thrown a bowl of fried veg at me with no effort to even make them taste nice! It has been a little tough to see the amount of meat being eaten in restaurants, especially if people say it isn't much good (poor animal, to be killed and chopped up and then criticized) but that's what happens when your awareness is raised. All I know is that it gives me more strength to spread the message of vegetarianism and veganism.
Til next time x

Last minute running around!

Just getting my last things organized before we leave for the yoga holiday on Saturday. Grandma arrives tonight so the kids are going to have a real treat when they wake in the morning and find her here! The owner of the villa is kindly buying some essentials for me so I can have a cup of tea with soya milk! I am trying today to leave the websites in a good state in case I cannot update whilst I am away. I started a new social network for yoga and health which is picking up nicely - www.yogababy.ning.com but I really want some more members so if you or anyone else you know is interested in anything yoga related, please spread the word. Yoga Baby is going really well now, we have been in magazines and on the news so viewing figures are up! I will be filming a new show soon too so looking forward to that. It's all go here! Speaking of which, Mr Miller just woken from his morning nap so I'd best be off!

Helpful vegetarian & vegans!

I have had a great deal of support since turning vegan from many places and this is so encouraging. Although most people I encounter on a daily basis have no idea why someone would choose to be vegan, I found the internet is a wonderful place to meet people who do have a similar view on compassionate living.

Just the other day I was wondering how easy it would be for me to get soya milk and basic supplies whilst on a yoga holiday next week in Crete so I thought I would search google for vegetarian+Chania (the nearest town to where we stay) and 'The Green Terrace B&B' popped up. As I could find no other information in the time I had I sent them an email (not really expecting a reply as I am sure a b&b would be busy at this time of year and I am not a guest) but the next day I received such a nice email back, with details of where I could get supplies, complete with directions and some further information which may be really useful to me. So I would like to say thank you David and Kathy for your kindness. By the way the place looks beautiful so if you are ever thinking of a trip to Crete, drop them a line - their website is www.thegreenterrace.com.

So now it is less than a week until my students and I travel and my excitement is tinged with a little nervousness. I will miss the children and my husband desperately I know but at the same time am truly looking forward to catching up on some rest, practicing yoga twice daily and enjoying the Greek culture. I will try and post whilst I am away depending on the internet access where we are staying and am hoping to get some stunning yoga pics whilst there. This will be my first holiday as a vegan so as for my vegan experience....I will let you know!

Eating only Rabbit can kill you.

I watched an episode of a UK tv programme I like called 'QI'. It's a quiz show without really being a quiz show, based on peoples general ignorance! Here I found an odd piece of information but worthy of sharing. The topic which dominated the show was 'If you eat only Rabbit you will die'. This was taken as a huge joke at first until fully explained. Rabbit contains protein. Protein = good in most people's opinion. However, rabbit does not contain anything else the body needs, no fat which the body can use and no vitamins or other nutrients useful to survival. A diet of only rabbit can lead to starvation/death. The joke during the show was to make sure you eat Rabbit with peas and carrots. Rabbit meat actually also draws vitamins out of your body so I think you would be much better off not eating Rabbit at all. Not to mention how adorable Rabbits are, and lambs, and calve, and chicks, ducklings and piglets.....



I did find some research to back up these claims and as usual found lots of other things that really got my back up. Below is one of them. So dignified. Let them sniff life, then kill them, aren't we such a humane species....

If you have to buy meat, or if you'd like to earn some extra money, think about raising rabbits. Rabbits are popular because they have lots of babies that grow quickly into big rabbits that you can eat. One healthy doe, can produce five litters of six rabbits each year. That is about 30 kilograms of meat a year. The meat, when cooked, tastes like poultry meat: rabbit curry and chicken curry taste just the same.

When your buck and your does are living in clean, dry, safe hutches, you are ready to think about breeding your rabbits. To breed the doe, put her into the cage with the buck in the early morning or evening when it is cool. Watch her carefully to make sure she mates. It should take only two or three minutes. If she does not mate, you can try again later. After she has mated, put her back in her own cage.

Thirty one days after mating, her litter will be born. Three days before the baby rabbits are due, give the mother a nest box where she can give birth. Put a little soft, dry grass in the box and the mother will mix it with her own fur. The nest is also a warm, dry place for the young rabbits. There are usually 6 to 10 babies in a litter. The baby rabbits will not open their eyes for about two weeks. Do not touch any of the baby rabbits until they are 7 days old. If you touch them, you will change the way they smell, and the mother won't feed them. If you must touch them, rub your hands over the mother first. That way, you won't change the way the babies smell. The rabbits will be ready to eat in only four months. You can wean them at 2 months of age. When the baby rabbits are weaned, it's time to breed the doe again. Feed them for 2 more months and, when they weigh 2 kilos, they're big enough to eat.

(Info from farmradio.org)
(Rabbit image courtesy of Jeff Clow)

The Circus is in town

Hey everyone, the circus is in town!

Maybe I'll give it a miss. In case you've missed it, I live in Northern Norway. Circus Merano are Norway's touring circus. These are just a couple of creative commons pictures I found but if you want to look at Merano's website www.merano.no, you can find birds, dogs and goats as well as the elephant and horse, performing for the happy children.

I mention the fact that I live in Northern Norway for a good reason and that is because it is a long long way from anywhere else, including southern Norway. I have seen these circus trucks traveling and the conditions look none too comfortable. When we needed a car two years ago, Matthew drove to Trondheim, the next major city south from us to get a better deal. It took him 11 hours to drive it and that's only a little way down! I cannot think what these animals go through during these journeys. Yet I guess that's nothing compared to how they were trained to perform such wonderful crowd pleasing tricks.

I have always had a huge problem with circuses that exploit animals. Why can't a circus build a reputation on the clever things 'people' are capable of? Yet if people decided to boycott circuses that use animals, these companies would be forced to make a change. Yet the audiences still come. Those who would 'rather not think about it' keep this inhumane activity going and prolong the suffering of animals such as these. For those who say these animals are happy, they are not. Both you and I and everyone else knows it.

As I passed the poster for the circus the other day I was playing a CD in the car. It is Heidi's favourite CD and used to be one of my old albums entitled 'The Runaway Train'. Just as we passed the poster, 'Nellie the Elephant' came on the stereo and I sang it all the way through to Heidi's amusement. We listened to it 3 times with Heidi joining in as she learned the words.

Please let you children grow up knowing that animals deserve better.

Reindeer

Today Heidi, Miller and I took a trip to the next town below us, Bardufoss, whilst Matthew spent the day at the studio editing and uploading Yoga Baby (that's one good husband I have!) On our way we passed a family of Reindeer om the main road. I was able to stop and get a couple of pics so thought I would post them up. It also reminded me that people here, including my friends, eat Reindeer meat. I remember just before I left the UK seeing Reindeer meat listed as a delicacy in an upmarket (apparently) supermarket. It doesn't bear thinking about when you see a family of animals like this, doing no harm to humankind, just going about it's survival. What happens to the children in this family when its mother and father are caught and killed, or shot in the name of sport (hunting is a popular pastime still)? Does anyone even care. Well, they should. Heidi was thrilled to see these beautiful creatures and I would never ask her unknowingly to eat the flesh from one of them. How could I and be a caring and conscious individual? Not when our survival doesn't depend on it. I just hope the family I saw today and which brought such a moment of joy to us, will live a peaceful and natural full life.