Parents on Social Networking Sites

Such as Facebook, MySpace, etc.

Don't do it. I can guarantee that you will find out something you don't want to know. My mom is very upset about my tattoo right now. I don't get it, but hey, she's my mom. I am not sure if it is the placement or the word but it bugs her. Had she not been my virtual friend, she would have never found out. Well at least not as soon as she did.

I have had the flu all week. Next year, I am contemplating a flu shot, but I have heard they aren't vegan. Vegans? This is an awful sickness that I wouldn't wish upon my worst enemy. I am hot, cold, freezing, sweating, achey, sneezy. I pretty much suck.

Must be Nice...

**I want to start this post by apologizing to any of my readers who have children. This post does not refer to you as you would never say any of this to me. I like your kids, I love my step-kid, this is just a random rant that I need to get off my chest. **

I hear this all the time, ending with all sorts of comments. "Must be nice to sleep past 6am on a weekend". "Must be nice to be able to go to [insert destination here]". "Must be nice to be able to buy [insert item here]". These comments are usually followed by: "The kids would never let me sleep that late" or "Sally has soccer this year, so we're saving for that".

I just have something to point out here. No where is there a law that says you have to have children. It's not a requirement, there are no "childless police", and and those of us who don't want kids aren't weirdo's. I have mad a conscious decision not to have kids. This was something DH and I talked about at length prior to getting engaged. I really never wanted them and he didn't want another one. (Also, I am sure that if at some point I would have changed my mind, he would not have denied me that experience. I have yet to have an urge that lasts more than a couple seconds.)

Lots of people ask me why I don't want kids. Honestly, I'm not sure. I like to sleep in. I am extraordinarily selfish. I like toys. I like vacations. Until about 5 years ago, I thought a dog would tie me down too much. I'm very lazy. I dislike suburbia. I would be a horrible example and I don't know, I guess I just knew I never wanted them.

Before some one comes in and tells me everything I am missing, or that I will never be fulfilled unless I reproduce, let me say something. Don't. I've heard it all. I think I lead a pretty fulfilling life and I don't think anyone else has the right to tell me what should make my life complete.

The other thing is at this stage in the game, I don't think we could afford a kid. Oddly, this isn't a consideration most people have prior to pumping one out, but I do. Sometimes I feel like it's hard enough to take care of myself. This is why I have a hard time getting excited when people tell me they are pregnant on "accident". WTF does that mean anyway?

The other argument that drives me completely insane is the "we wanted to try for a boy/girl" crap. This shouldn't come as a surprise to any one since I believe gender is a sham, but could you be more selfish? "I really just wanted some one with whom I could play catch." Um...am I the only one who has a problem with this statement. Even better is "Every one needs a daughter so they can see them get married".

The people I feel the worst for in this situation are my own parents, especially my mother. She really wanted to be a grandma. Sometimes I think that's the only reason that she had kids. We weren't easy and quite frankly I can't believe she had another one after me. Thankfully, there are a lot of people near her that keep having babies, so she has an endless supply of surrogate grandkids. And I think she finally understands that I stand firm in my decision.

6 Days and Counting

I think I am doing it. My husband even admitted to me that he was randomly surprised. I did have a few choice words with my FIL who I had the pleasure of seeing on Saturday. I told him that I quit, he asked for how long, and I said, since Wednesday. He proceeded to tell me that I shouldn't bother telling people if it had only been three days. I asked him how long he smoked and if he ever tried to quit. I also asked if there were any fifteen year habits he had that he wanted to try and break. He shut up.

I do have to admit, I like the smell of smoke still. I will go outside to stand with people who are smoking because I think it smells so delicious. Which I know makes me a freak.

I am trying to get a hold of my doc to see if I can go off the Chantix. I will keep using the website, because I think that it's awesome, but the side effects are starting to out weigh the benefits at this point. I only sleep for two hours at a time, I can't poop, and I have waaaaaaaaaay messed up dreams. I think even if I could lower the dose, that would help too. I'll keep you posted on that.

I think that's all the news here. Hopefully this won't turn into a quit smoking blog ;)

Veganism and Parents

A few nights ago (In fact, I think it was Friday. I am such a rock star.) I was in the Vegan Freaks chat room having a good time, chatting with some freaks.

A young lady of 19 joined us and she expressed concerns about being vegan while still living under her parents roof. We gave her the basics (buy and cook your own food, don't give into their bait, etc etc), but it got me to thinking.

I am 31 and my parents still give me shit about being vegan. My dad likes to throw hunting around in my face. My mom asks questions like "Do you eat olive oil?" (Why wouldn't I mom?) My in-laws don't understand at all. All family members tend to treat it like a passing phase. A trend if you will.

When does it stop? I don't question people eating meat, dairy, or eggs (at least not to their face). Is it just hard when your kids don't have the same opinions as you? I felt bad for this girl because it sounded like her dad could be a real jerk if he wanted to. And that can be rough.

For any vegans reading this, here are some helpful hints:

1. Don't give into taunts. That's usually what they want.
2. Don't talk about veganism over food. Bad idea.
3. You are not going to change some ones mind in one day.
4. There may be certain people you chose not to discuss your veganism with. Don't do it.
5. Stand your ground and don't be wishy washy.

(A lot of these came from Vegan Freak: Being Vegan in a Non-Vegan World)