Confession #34: I was a vegetarian for years

If I told anyone that knows me today that I was a vegetarian for several years, they would probably laugh in my face. But here is the honest truth. I love animals and I am not convinced that anything deserves to die for me. I am 100% opposed to animal cruelty, abuse, and torture. 

I guess I have several dilemmas when it comes to living the vegetarian lifestyle, which is why I am no longer a vegetarian. First of all, my undeniable craving for red meat is truly an every day battle. I knew when I first became a vegetarian that it wasn't going to be easy; however, it was even harder than I imagined. Every day I would pass billboards for burgers, watch commercials for steak restaurants, and witness what seemed like everyone I knew chowing down on some kind of meat. I felt like I had just quit smoking and temptation was everywhere. I was definitely not one of those vegetarians that could say, "oh I wasn't really that crazy about meat anyway" or "I just really love vegetables". I was the vegetarian that wanted to end suffering but drooled over anything that contained meat. Thankfully, this is my most embarrassing reason why I am no longer a vegetarian. I find it is best to embarrass yourself in the beginning of your blog post so that you have time to redeem yourself. 

Second reason: living as a vegetarian while everyone around you and everyone who lives with you eats meat...makes it next to impossible. I became a vegetarian after my mother decided to try it for the same reasons. She would cook a meal for me and her, and then a separate meal for my brother and father. I know she got tired of this very quickly. But, I will point out that my mother has willpower that I do not possess. She is still a vegetarian to this day. After I moved away for college, I realized how difficult it was to get a nutritious vegetarian meal when you are broke. I lived in a dorm and my source of food came from the campus dining hall. Their dining choices were so limited that I found myself eating a bagel and a salad for lunch and dinner every single day. Not only was I dealing with personal struggles, I was also coping with peer pressure. Essentially, my friends all thought I was some weird hippie and they would always try to tempt me into eating meat.

And my final (but probably my most important) reason was due to health concerns. Due to being very deficient in certain vitamins, not eating meat worsened my situation. It was towards the end of my first year of college that I finally caved and gave up being a vegetarian. I do regret it sometimes because I was doing something that was important to me and I felt like I was making a difference. It is something that I will probably try again in the future, but for now I will have to do my part in alternative ways. I have a lot of respect for people that are able to maintain that lifestyle.

Confession #33: I hate it when my appointments get canceled

This is what I may have looked like today when my happy butt drove 35 minutes across town for a hair appointment, only to find out that my hair dresser didn't feel well and already went home for the day. Cool. Oh and they can't reschedule me for a month. Even cooler. Here's to hoping that the unintentional ombre look is a good one.

 (*Please note that I am not completely a cold-hearted woman and I do hope that my hair dresser feels better soon).

Confession #32: I am bad at making cupcakes

It's a sad, but true story. I watch cooking shows and read recipes and I always think, "Wow...I could do that". But sadly, no. My attempt at making chocolate chip butter cream cupcakes was a fail. They taste pretty good but they look terrible. I put the homemade icing into a plastic sandwich bag, cut a hole, and tried to make pretty decorations but it was just a big let down. I couldn't even get the cupcakes into a round shape. Most of them ended up looking like four-leaf clovers (but hey, they could be a big hit for St. Patty's Day). I will just have to make sure to only feed my concoctions to men---they are the only ones who can look past food presentation (and sometimes even taste) and chow down.

If you want to try to make these cupcakes yourself, Martha Stewart has a really great recipe:
Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

Confession #31: I only drink organic milk

Before you think that I am some kind of organic nut, I will point out that milk is the only product I buy that has to be organic. Sure, if I see organic produce that isn't too pricey, I will purchase it; however, I will not refuse to buy produce if it is not organic. 

For a long time I drank organic milk just because that is all my mother would buy for us. I never questioned why. When I graduated high school and moved across the state for college, I was presented with a dilemma. At my grocery store, a half-gallon of non-organic milk costs $2.49, whereas a half-gallon of organic milk costs $3.79. That means I can buy 3 half-gallons of non-organic milk or 2 half-gallons of organic milk. I'm sorry, but a broke college student is going to pick the cheapest option every time. That extra money will most likely be spent on dollar tacos at Taco Bell.

So when I finally got curious as to why people choose to spend more money on organic milk, the research astounded and disgusted me. I will point out some interesting facts for you to mull over (from here and here):

1. Farmers are treating cows with a hormone called rbST to increase milk production. Some researchers have found that this hormone can lead to cancer of the colon, breast and prostate.
2. Many cows that are treated with rbST develop a condition called mastitis, which causes the farmers to treat the cows with antibiotics. This, in turn, causes milk-drinking humans to develop an increased resistance to antibiotics.
3. Cows are also treated with reproductive hormones. It is unknown what kind of damage this can cause to humans but come on....it can't be good.
4. Organic milk contains more essential omega-3 fatty acids.
5. Organic milk comes from cows that are fed grass, instead of feed that can contain meat and growth hormones.

I will point out that some researchers argue that pasteurization eliminates many of the toxins that cows come into contact with. I read one research study that claimed that 90% of hormones are killed during pasteurization. I think it is important to point out both sides but, at least for me, I do not think it is worth it to risk 10% of those hormones entering my body. I would rather pay the extra $1.30 and have peace of mind. 

Confession #30: I am a Libra!

According to astrology, "Librans too are among the most civilized of the twelve zodiacal characters and are often good looking." So clearly I was meant to be a Libra ;). Jokes, jokes. But on a more serious note, I am social and compassionate which is symbiotic with being a Libra. I would readily admit that one of my biggest character flaws is that I am too sympathetic. I allow people to walk all over me while maintaining a smile.  

Strangely enough, the Libra is the only sign that is neither an animal nor a human. It is the only inanimate object. Our scales represent our need for justice and total balance. If you have ventured through some of my older posts, you may have stumbled across Confession #4: I am a good-natured realist. In the beginning of this post, I mentioned that people always perceive me as being a very sociable extrovert; however, when I take personality tests, I usually come out as an introvert. As I was researching Libras, I found it very interesting that this can be typical of Libras. This site states that

 "[Libras] can be quiet and shy if not persuaded to come out of their shell. Ironically and in spite of their introverted nature they make excellent debaters, often proving a point from out of seemingly nowhere."

I am not sure if our zodiac signs really do play a role in our day to day lives, but I find it comforting that we can look to astrology to begin to define ourselves. 

Confession #29: Three months until Christmas and I am way too excited.

I am probably the only person in the world who gets excited when Christmas is 3 months away. It's not about Father Christmas (lol) or the presents. It's about family time and, as corny as it sounds, the traditions of Christmas.

Every year on Christmas, I wake up to the sound of my mother's favorite CD of European Christmas songs and the smell of the turkey already in the oven. I come downstairs and my mom begs me to eat breakfast but I refuse and tell her that I am saving my stomach for dinner. We open presents together and I am just so thankful that I am surrounded by people that I love. It is pretty great to look around and see people who have been added to the family (and let me just add that I am so excited to have nieces and nephews in the future).

After presents, we just lay around and wait for mom to tell us that she burned the parsnips for the 10th year in a row. We always offer to help her in the kitchen but she always refuses. In the past couple of years, however, she has let me make cornbread muffins. Since we are not from America, this is a very new and strange item at our feast.

Christmas dinner is always wonderful. We keep to the European tradition and pull Christmas Crackers with each other (if you don't know what that is, it is a colorfully wrapped tube that 2 people pull like a wishbone and there are surprises inside). We wear paper hats and tell each other jokes....we are a pretty goofy family.

And every Christmas night, we play board games. I know reading about my traditions is probably not very entertaining, but I just get so excited about it. The only thing that would make Christmas better would be if it snowed for once!

Confession #28: I am a sucker for pumpkin scented candles.

The first day of fall has come and gone. And just as if mother nature knew, the good old southern state I live in finally cooled down yesterday. I was able to wear one of my new infinity scarves and I even ogled over some fall boots. But nothing screams fall to me like pumpkin candles. It is such a good feeling to come home and open my front door and smell pumpkin and cinnamon in the air. I think the only better smell in the world would be the aroma of a pumpkin pie in the oven.