Sunday, February 20, 2011

A Twinkee is Still a Twinkee


Vegan Myth: Being vegan means being healthy!

Hey, Hoppy, what's with that, you shout! How can you say that is a myth? Well, in general, that statement is true--a vegan lifestyle is healthy but--there is always a but--you have to do it right. One thing that drives me crazy about all these pro-vegan authors and gurus is they tend to leave the impression that all you have to do is go vegan and your body will be right as rain.

HA! I am living proof that THAT, dear friends, is not true.

I am vegan, yes, but I am also overweight and still deal with chronic issues such as asthma and tendonitis and some GI problems. Much of this is my own doing and people who right now are being bombarded with all these wonderful books about going vegan need to get this straight up front: you have to do more than just go vegan. You have to change your relationship with food altogether. The fact is, if you eat for the wrong reasons, for consolation, out of anger or frustration, or just because you are just addicted to food, then just going vegan isn't going to cut it. There are lots of vegan processed and junk foods out there that provide just as much comfort and pleasure as those items made from animal carcasses and byproducts. And if you mostly consume those food items, then guess what? You're not going to be 100% healthy and you are certainly not going to lose weight. Trust me, I know what I am talking about. For me, going vegan was the easy part. The hard part is doing it right because the truth is, I eat when I feel sorry for myself, which has been very frequently these days.

Botton line is this: irregardless of what you eat, if you consume more than you burn off, you will gain weight. It doesn't matter if that Twinkee is vegan. It is still a Twinkee and it will end up on your hips. Instead, we need to move our hips more and reject the processed crap, comsume whole foods, and eat to live, NOT live to eat. When we do that, then truly we can say that being vegan means being healthy.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Everybunny Loves Somebunny Sometime


Woodstock and Cinnamon

Though this was taken well before Woody's spondylosis disabled him, his love for his beloved Cinnamon has not diminished, not has hers for him. This is a true bunny love story. These two rabbits have never--NEVER--had a spat. Truly a match made in rabbit heaven.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

You're No Bunny Till Some Bunny Loves You



Willow and Ghirardelli wish all the rabbits out there a very happy Valentine's Day weekend! They would wish for carrots in bed for that day, but they get breakfast in bed every day, the spoiled little bunny buns!

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Ronald Reagan and Ruby


Question, folks: what do Ronald Reagan and Ruby, my diva white rex rabbit, have in common? They share a birthday! Today Reagan would have been 100. Ruby is 9 years old, but acts not a day over 2.

To be fair, we don't really know if Ruby was born on this day. We know she was born in February, per the breeder from whom my husband purchased her (first rabbit, we didn't know better, yadda yadda, this is a story for another time, if I haven't already told it somewhere in my blogosphere.) We just decided to select this date to celebrate her birthday, both for purposes of better memory retention and for honoring Mr. Reagan. The hubby and I are both fans, much to all my liberal friends' horror, no doubt. : )

Anyway, here's to you, my pretty diva bunny, who not only changed my life but enabled me to save other lives, both lagomorph and others, thanks to my vegan lifestyle. It is safe to say I never would have become a vegan if this rabbit had not come into my life. I and thousands of animals who would have been eaten otherwise owe her everything.

All great change in America begins at the dinner table.
Ronald Reagan

The Hoppy Vegan

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Give a Bun A Reason to Bink



February is Adopt a Rescued Rabbit Month. Please consider taking a rabbit into your home. To see if you are the right person for a bun, please visit www.rabbitwise.org to learn all you can about these wonderful animals.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Happy Year of the Rabbit?

February 3 is the Chinese New Year, and 2011 happens to be the Year of the Rabbit. It remains to be seen if indeed this will be a good year for bunnies. Given that in Shanghai, people are mailing rabbits to people, resulting (surprise, surprise) in the deaths of many of these animals, I am not very optimistic.