I turned vegan after someone told me the truth about dairy cows - how they spend their four short lives alternating between a rape rack and a feedlot (naturally, they live 20-25 years) before going to the slaughterhouse. And I used to be someone that could live off mac/cheese but that was enough to make me turn vegan instantly and I've never looked back.

When I was in grade school, I had a ham sandwich for lunch nearly every day. I LOVED them. But my favorite book (and movie) at the time was Charlotte's web. I also had a friend in the neighborhood whose family was vegetarian. Once I put two and two together (Ham sandwich = cute pink oinking pig) and watched Wilbur the pig scream "I DON'T WANT TO DIE" in that infamous cartoon, it was all over. I told my parents I was done for good, and for some reason, they went along with it. I can't thank them enough for nurturing my eccentricity. When I tell people that story, they always say, "Ha, my parents would have laughed at me, cooked meatloaf for dinner and said get over it." Thank you, thank you Mom and Dad for letting me grow on my own!

So I've been a vegetarian for 16 years. Over the last few years, I started eating fish, but then recently read "Eating Animals" by Jonathan Saffron Foer (excellent, excellent book) and am almost entirely vegan now. It started off as a lenten promise, then shockingly, I grew sad when it was time for it to be over. I give myself 1 cheat day/week, which usually involves a pizza binge or penne with vodka sauce. Go ahead, hate me, judge me...but I'm trying! :)

Foer's Eating Animals. If you haven't read it yet, do.

I saw him speak at the Harold Washington branch of CPL and was expecting to be totally turned off by what I was sure to be a judgmental, pretentious, and condemning speech. It was none of the above. The logic and the compassionate of the things he said were undeniable, and he related his message in a completely non-assuming, "it's each person's individual choice" sort of way. Intrigued, I vowed to start attempting to eat less meat and to read the book.

After getting about 1/2 way through, there was no longer any question left--I knew I was going to cut meat of my diet altogether. I didn't even have a choice in the matter; it was just what needed to be done. I think if everyone were to expose themselves to the truths that make up the meat industry, they wouldn't be able to allow themselves to continue eating it in good conscience. Lord knows I can't, and I went in to the reading *convinced* I wasn't going to let any silly fiction author alter the way I chose to live my life.

But he's right. Eating meat is all about forgetting. Forgetting our innate connection to the animals themselves and how the food on our table is a direct result of their suffering, forgetting we're not even eating real "meat" anymore anyway, but a gut wrenching and vomit inducing cacophony of antibiotics, growth hormones and other steroids, and other nasties such as feces and bleach, and forgetting the effect this seemingly simple meal is having on the environment and the world around us. I'd never put so much thought into a meal before I read this book, but now, I'd never go back.

I became a vegetarian 20 years ago (I was 20) after becoming interested in environmental issues from a friend who was getting involved in that. I was interested in learning more about it in general so I bought a book called "The Green Lifestyle Handbook". I had no idea it would change my life so much.

I was reading the chapter on Water Issues and it mentioned about how much water is wasted making a pound of ground beef and than as a side it mentioned how the animals were treated. And I was thinking"What do you mean how the animals are treated?" Up until that moment, I thought that the cows for our hamburgers lived out their lives at a nice clean farm, hung out with their cow friends and families and died of old age and instead of going to a cow graveyard, they made use of the meat by making hamburgers. Boy was I in for a shock...

The Green Lifestyle book had some references to books in the back. I believe one of them was a PETA book and Animal Liberation. I had to find out what in the world the whole story was. Back than, there wasn't any YouTube or Peta videos - just a few books really with some black and white pictures in them. In one of the those books told the story of factory farming and a few not very detailed pictures. That was all it took. I think I must have cried for days.

I was so mad but I knew I couldn't shut down the factory farms all by myself by writing nasty letters but I had to do something because I knew I couldn't be a part of this anymore so I learned about becoming a vegetarian which seemed like the best way for me to remove myself from the cruel system and make a difference. I gave up a diference type of meat each month at the beginning and I never looked back. I didn't know any other vegetarians so I wasn't the heathliest one (lots of Cheetos and mac and cheese) and it a long time for me to become vegan. There was lots to learn. There were very few outlets in Chicago at that time for vegetarians: Chicago Diner, some small health food stores and I think Sherwyns - even fewer vegan options around. It is so much better today and easier to be a vegan than it was 20 years ago. I look back on my 20 years and I am so happy to see how much change there is.

I love being a veg and wouldn't go back for anything. The hardest part of going veg back than was getting rid of my 80s suede boot collection because finding non-leather boots and shoes was impossible! So much easier now!