Skinny Bitch

I had a friend to buy Skinny Bitch (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0762424931/ref=pd_po_rvi_2/102-8483185-6456139) about a month ago. She used to be the catering director at a Ritz Carlton in DC  and is now one of the most highly sought after party planners in DC. She used to always hassle me about being vegetarian and was shocked by the fact that I don't drink. (not even red wine <gasp!> ) 

Over lunch she started talking about wanting to take care of herself more and paying attention to what she ate.  (she was eating a hamburger while she was telling me all this.)  We then went to a book store to load up on wedding magazines, to get inspired and to steal ideas -remember she is a wedding planner and I am a wedding photographer, noone is getting married except our clients. 

While walking out I spotted this book.  I had read about it in VegNew a few days before and was intregued by it.  She saw me eyeing it and picked it up.  The subtitle of the book is a no-nonsense, tough-love guide for savvy girls who wat to stop eating crap and start looking fabulous!  I told her I had seen it somewhere and that it was supossed to be great.  She bought it on the spot.

She  told me she had started the book before going to bed and couldn't put it down. She stayed up all night reading it. 

She called me early the next morning she called me horrified, disgusted, and a bit pissed off. After finishing the book she went to the kitchen and threw out every meat product she and her husband had. When her husband woke up she told him that they were going to be vegan. He was shocked but said, "If that's what you want to do, okay."  (I LOVE Michael!)

The next day I took her to Whole Foods and explained the difference between tofu,  miso, seitan, and tempeh and how to prepare them.   We picked out veggie burgers, snacks, and healthy staples.  

 With our arms loaded down, we went back to her house and I demonstrated a few recipes that she could adapt and make vegetarian. And she has been vegetarian ever since. (the veganism was too hard for her to keep up going to restaurants and tastings all the time.)

She was pissed off at me for not telling her all i knew about the meat industry and animal rights. She couldn't believe that i had not told her all this "life or death information." And i agreed with her, i should have. I then realized that I shy away from that vegetarian/animal rights soap box. I haven't learned how to inform those around me about vegetarianism with out preaching. there is this very thin line that i don't want to cross. I don't want to be one of those freakish vegetarian preachers that give vegetarianism a bad name. I want to inform and educate. i think that being so shy about pushing the line i don't say enough.