BAD NEWS:
I am sad to say Trader Joe's has disappointed me for a second time, the first time being when they didn't hire me in Boston. I seem to be getting to a point in my life where DIY ethics are becoming more relevant: bosses abusing you and places not hiring you, then start your own organization; public transit too slow and expensive, then ride a bike; furniture for your apartment too expensive and fancy, make your own; restaurants serving mediocre, overpriced food, make your own. Sometimes in life if you want something done right you just have to do it yourself, and in this case making pesto. While eating some tasty whole wheat pasta with Tofurky Italian sausage, broccoli, mozza, feta, and pesto prepared by my beautiful girlfriend Tara something compelled me to read the ingredients of the pesto. There already seemed to be too many ingredients in a condiment that traditionally consists of just olive oil, basil, garlic, and pine nuts when I came across this ingredient "Rennet (animal)." What is this? Some kind of squirrel or gerbil? My research tells me it is a stomach enzyme in young cows that helps them digest their mother's milk. Apparently it is used a lot in the production of cheese and is what keeps curds separated from whey. While rennet can be derived from plant sources the ingredients specifying "(animal)" tells me that it is likely harvested from the stomachs left over from veal production. I don't want no dead cow enzyme in my body and Trader Joe's y'all betta check yo' self.
GOOD NEWS:
My quest for a good looking vegan shoe has come to an end. My stank feet have found a new clean, fresh home and my filthy old shoes will get vacation. As many who have been on this journey may know the selection is slim for vegan shoes: classic canvas vans, some mediocre-looking skate shoes, weird shiny fake leather shoes, some straight up ugly shoes, and maybe a few odd hemp shoes thrown in the mix. The vans are alright but not my thing and not too original and the other ones are enough to make me reconsider my ethics, buy all shoes second hand, or just go barefoot for the rest of my life. But now I can sleep at night thanks to the shoe company Supra releasing a line of vegan shoes to their roster last holiday season, two of which I approve of! I know those who know me may not believe it, but I am picky. I chose the Diablo shoe that is a mid-ankle skate shoe, which is what I was wanting. So booyah to Supra! Now if only they would make their own shoes instead of making China do it.
To end this post I will leave you with some lyrics to the song "Be Healthy" by the hip hop group Dead Prez. It is kind of relevant, but it is also just an awesome song. This is for Tara:I don't eat no meat, no dairy, no sweets
only ripe vegetables, fresh fruit and whole wheat
I'm from the old school, my household smell like soul food, bro
curried falafel, barbecued tofu
no fish though, no candy bars, no cigarettes
only ganja and fresh-squeezed juice from oranges
exercising daily to stay healthy
and I rarely drink water out the tap, cause it's filthy
Lentil soup is mental fruit
and ginger root is good for the yout'
Fresh veg-e-table with the mayatl stew
sweet yam fries with the green calalloo
careful how you season and prepare your foods
cause you don't wanna lose vitamins and miner-ules
and that's the jewel
life brings life, it's valuable, so I eat what comes
from the ground, it's natural
let your food be your medicine (uh huh)
no Excederin (uh uh)
strictly herb, generate in the sun, cause I got melanin
and drink water, eight glasses a day
cause that's what they say
They say you are what you eat, so I strive to be healthy
my goal in life is not to be rich or wealthy
cause true wealth comes from good health, and wise ways
we got to start taking better care of ourselves, be
healthy y'all . . .
4 comments:
I have heard that they use rennet in most ice cream too. I am not vegetarian but sometimes milk products gross me out more than actual meat.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this!
Ummm, wow! Too bad i love pesto and pretty sure ive eaten the one from Trader joes since its my favorite grocery store! I would have never been suspicious of pesto ingredients! Now im pissed. Thats pretty disturbing/disappointing.
Im not vegan, just vegetarian, however, id rather lick the T.L sidewalk than drink milk..and yogurt is sometimes a struggle to swollow.
tiff
I love this Dead Prez song, and think its ill how ethical your mind works. You are live inspector gadget without gadget arms. Thanks for the shout out :)
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