‘Tis the season to be merry, so I’ve been told. Though looking around out there at all the grumpy, stressed out faces, you’d think that the world was about to end. Oh yeah, it is… tomorrow. Well, the hell with it, might as well go out with a bang on 21 12 2012. So in that vein, here are some happy and fun aspects of being vegan and vegetarian.
The first item up for grabs is for men, though I’m sure that many women will appreciate this benefit too. There was a recent article in Men’s Health magazine that suggested that if you wanted better sex, well, go vegan!
You can read the article on Men’s Health, but I think the video explains it even better. This will offend some of you, that’s probably why it was done by PeTA in the UK. They seem to have a more relaxed and fun approach to sex and nudity. Note, there is no nudity in the vid… just a ton of innuendo. And for those of you squeamish. NO veggies were hurt in the making of that vid.
Seeing that the article comes from the ubermainstream Men’s Health, it should be no surprise that they water down the message suggesting that you don’t have to become “fully vegan”. Still, any move towards the vegan ethic is a great start.
And those of us who are vegan should be pleased with the news. Go and have some apocalypse sex before the Mayan calendar ends and Planet X or the Zombies come for us.
Next up for us in the happy and fun benefits of the vegan diet is the Tofurky roast. I had one for Thanksgiving and I’m gonna have two over Christmas and New Years, along with two different kinds of Field Roast, roasted potatoes and steamed Brussels sprouts and baby carrots.
Turtle Island Foods who manufacture the Tofurky line of products will be selling their 3 millionth Tofurky roast, they might even have managed that by now. The neat thing about Turtle Island Foods is they are still an independently owned and operated company, manufacturing out of Oregon. What are you having for Christmas dinner?
Two more happy vegetarian stories to share with you, though one, from my perspective is a bit of a bitter sweet tale. Tying in with our PeTA video and Men’s Health article about becoming vegan for a better sex drive, this one is about Ramjeet Raghav.
Ramjeet Raghav, has just had his second son with his wife. And as he says, “I do it three or four times a night.” I’m assuming he means sex. And how is he able to maintain such stamina? On a vegetarian diet. Even more remarkable, and this I’ve kept for last, is that Ramjeet is 96 years old. Yes, you read that right. 96!
The bitter part of this bittersweet tale is that his young son might not have a lot of time left with his father. Even if Ramjeet becomes the oldest person to have ever lived, he’ll likely only crack 122 years, which will leave his son at 26 when he passes. An interesting aside, Wikipedia has a list of the oldest verifiably lived/living people in the world.
Though interestingly, the oldest lived person Jeanne Calment was and remains so far, the only person to have made it to 120 years or more. Nevertheless, I digress.
But lastly, and along with the vegetarian and vegan motif of a healthy sex life, comes someone to share your life with. And this is where the longest married couple comes in. Karam and Katari Chand have been married for a wonderful 87 years. The key, according to Karam has been making his wife laugh and their vegetarian diet.
Wonderful story. If you can overlook the fact that it started off a little creepy. Karam – the husband – is 107 years young and his wife – Katari – is 100. That means that when he was an adult of 20, he married a child, the then 13 year old Katari.
But who am I to judge. Those were different times back then in a different country to the one I live in. They’ve lasted 87 years and seem happy. I’d be delighted with half that much wonderful time spent with my loved ones.
And in that vein. Please consider sparing a turkey or pig for Christmas dinner. If you think that it is morally wrong to hurt or kill a sentient animal unnecessarily then don’t eat them. Because it is unnecessary to eat animals for human health. All major health organizations agree. So if you eat them, you do so not out of necessity, but for the simple, base pleasure of taste. And to be a party to torture, cruelty, violence and death indiscriminately is immoral because it is unnecessary.
Spread the love and joy of this season a little further from your compassionate circle. Spread it outwards towards our furry, feathered and finned friends and siblings.
Wishing you a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Peaceful Bodhi Day, Warm Winter Solstice, Joyous Kwanza, Cheery Krismas, Fun Festivus and Hopeful Omisoka.*
* Those are all totally legit celebrations that occur during this time of year.