Dirty Rotten Vegan Cheaters

I have a friend who is a vegetarian, and has been for years. But one late night last year, he broke down and ate a sandwich that had three different kinds of meat in it. As he was eating it, someone commented that they thought he was a vegetarian. "Not tonight I'm not," he mumbled into the meaty sandwich.

I wasn't there that night, but I have heard the story retold many times. People always chuckle when it is told. Except for me. "He's supposed to be on my team," I think to myself, feeling as though it is a personal betrayal.

But I don't have a perfect record either. When I was in the eighth grade, I cheated on my vegetarianism. It was the only time I have (knowingly) eaten meat since I was seven years old. It was at the Boston Marathon and I scarfed down two hot dogs within one minute. I spent the entire night throwing up, my body rejecting whatever it is they put into hot dogs anyway.

I've cheated on my veganism many more times than that. There were several nights in college where I would have bit your fingers if you tried to take my slice of pizza away from me.

So how hard should we be on ourselves for slipping up on our commitment to not eat animals?

When I went to see Jonathan Safran Foer speak about his book Eating Animals, he said it irks him when people give up years of committed vegetarianism because they eat one cheeseburger. He explained the flawed logic of this all-or-nothing approach: "I flew a plane here, which took a lot of fossil fuel, really terrible for the environment. That doesn't mean I'm going to always leave my lights on every time I leave my house."

In the words of Scarlett O'Hara, tomorrow is another day. A slip up is not a reason to throw in the towel on vegetarianism.

Cheating is going to happen, especially if you are new to the game of ethical eating. I consider myself lucky that I have no idea what most meat tastes like. And I don't miss the way I ate before veganism, but I cheat when I'm careless or lazy. Vegan food isn't always readily available. If I could have ordered a vegan pizza those late nights in college, I definitely would have.

The longer I've been a vegan, the less I cheat. It used to help me to reread The Ethics of What We Eat by Peter Singer and Jim Mason, as a way of recommitting myself to veganism. I don't need to do that anymore, as I write and read about the atrocities of factory farming more often thanks to this blog. Since I started blogging, I have only cheated once with a salad that I forgot to order without cheese.

To prevent yourself from cheating, occasionally revisit what motivated you to become a vegetarian, whether it was a book, a blog, a place like Farm Sanctuary, or a companion animal. Veganism does take time to get used to; give yourself time to adjust.

Animal products are everywhere. There's bone char in white sugar, insect coloring in red candy, casein in soy cheese, anchovies in Bloody Marys, gelatin in your medicine tablets. Do your best to avoid animal products, but don't flog yourself too badly for slip ups. Support vegan and vegetarian restaurants. Vote with your dollar in the supermarket.

Also, remember that cheating is never really worth it. You'll feel just terrible in the morning.

Photo Credit: Chromoz.com