One step forward

For several months, I have been suffering from stomach pains. Nothing really serious, but enough to make me feel uncomfortable. While wasting time instead of writing my next essay for the OU looking on the internet, I realized it may have to do with the massive amounts of dairy products that have crept into my diet. It was time to try life as a vegan.

I've been a vegetarian for almost 20 years, and have flirted with becoming a vegan for the past year. Last summer, we visited a dairy farm in Michigan. Don't worry, I don't have any tragic stories about evil farmers and cows being kept in tiny pens. The cows were actually treated quite well - they all had names, got fresh food, and got to spend time out to pasture. BUT, one question would not leave my mind while saying hello to all of the ladies. Where are the boys? That was the first time it really hit home that my dairy consumption was in a way supporting the slaughter of male calves (bulls? calves don't seem to merit that masculine sounding name!). The same thought then started to creep in about the roosters . . . does my egg consumption contribute to the nugget factories by default?

The yucky tummy thing and the "boy questions" made it easy for me to give up dairy and eggs for a few days to test it out. The coward (and glutton) in me has been reluctant to go vegan, because let's face it - vegans are even more freak show than vegetarians. My German family already thinks I am crazy - can I really take it up a notch without being attacked? I know, I shouldn't care what other people think or say, but sometime it is simply exhausting always being the one considered to be "a problem".

The thing is, after two days dairy free, I felt fabulous. My skin glowed and my mood was fantastic. Could this really be due to giving up dairy? It was easy to test this theory - and my personal scientific experiment began. We had several packages of (really yummy and really expensive) raclette cheese in the fridge, set to expire this weekend. For the sake of science, I invited some friends over for a raclette dinner and enjoyed the smelly, fatty cheese, knowing it might be my last.

Well, internet friends. I went to bed with a slightly rumbly tummy, and woke up to extreme stomach pain, with all the fixin's. So, now I am allowed to be vegan because of lactose intolerance, not for being a batshit crazy treehugging foreigner.