Last year, I blogged about a spate of articles published in college newspapers, and written by reporters who decided, for the hell of it, to go vegan for a week. None of these people went into it with any preparation or enthusiasm, and the articles consequently made veganism seem like a stupid ordeal.
Well, The University of North Dakota’s newspaper has just published a new article titled — you guessed it — “Vegan for a Week.” And once again we see a reporter who tries to take up being vegan without a shred of preparation, and unhappily (and unsurprisingly) finds himself eating bags of Fritos late at night for lack of knowledge about healthy alternatives.
But there is one difference between this piece and similar articles in the genre: this guy isn’t going out of his way to be a dick about things. He recognizes that this experiment has been botched from the outset, and freely admits that:
I wasn’t particularly prepared to go forth with the new lifestyle, and I never had the drive that leads most people to make the choice to go vegan.
And he offers this sensible advice:
So for those looking to take the step towards a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, take my advice and research the hell out of the topic before making the commitment.
Over the course of one week, I went from confident to desperate in less than 24 hours and I experienced numerous streaks of hunger, fatigue, and general agitation.
For people reading this blog who are edging towards veganism, but are still fearful about going in unprepared, now seems the perfect time to mention I’ve just finished typesetting a new book for aspiring vegans. I’m hoping it’ll be out by Thanksgiving. Sign up for my announcement email list if you want to be notified the moment it’s available. Link.
