UNK student celebrates her "Pledge to be Veg" |
| Posted by Administrator (admin) on Apr 22 2009 at 12:46 PM |
Photo by Sam Bates
Freshman Kari Connot will be serving vegetarian tacos to her friends for her one-year vegetarian anniversary.
By Sam Bates
Guest Writer
"Meat is murder." Not exactly a phrase heard every day in Nebraska. However, there is a place where this is heard multiple times a day. That place would be the offices of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), the animal rights organization that supports vegetarianism.
UNK freshman Kari Connot lives by this very slogan on a daily basis along with "Love Me - Don't Eat Me" and "Meat's Not Green."
"I am a member of PETA and I get newsletters and information just keeping me up-to-date on activism that they're working on at the time. It helps me keep informed on what I can help with," Connot said.
Connot, an Ogallala native, is celebrating her one-year anniversary this month as a vegetarian and is including her carnivorous friends in her festivities.
She plans to serve vegetarian tacos to show that "being vegetarian doesn't mean that you have to eat salad all the time."
But what would possess a teenager who grew up raising cows and pigs for 4-H to give up meat altogether?
"I did research on peta2, and I realized the benefits not only for my body but also for the animals that you can save by becoming vegetarian. I decided that it was something that I wanted to take part in not only to save animals but also to challenge myself," Connot said.
Connot says finding acceptable meals on campus varies daily. She prefers breakfast because it always guarantees something good such as french toast or hash browns. Otherwise, the food choices are hit or miss.
"There are good days and there are bad days," says Connot. "The salad bar in Chartwells is very helpful. They always have a great selection of salad and raw vegetables. For other choices it's pretty limited, but for the most part it's satisfactory. I do wish that Chartwells would label the food that is meatless because sometimes I have no idea what I can and cannot eat."
She also says going out to restaurants is not as difficult as many people think. Most places have at least one or two things without meat. One of her favorites is the black bean burger. "They put a twist on the regular hamburger, and they are much healthier and extremely delicious."
But being vegetarian doesn't mean Connot likes all of the meat substitutes out there.
"I am not particularly partial to soy dogs or tofu dogs because they do have a strange flavor, and I think that really throws me off. They're just not very appetizing to me," Connot said.
One of the hardest aspects of becoming vegetarian for Connot was gaining the acceptance of her family and friends. She was the subject of many jokes at mealtimes but had to stick it out until they were able to understand or get used to it.
"At first my family didn't really know how to take it, mostly because they didn't know what to serve me for dinner or lunch. But after they got used to that they sort of accepted that it was something that I was very passionate about."
"A lot of my friends were the same way. I got made fun of a lot for not eating beef as a Nebraska native, but in the end they all came to accept it."
Ultimately, being vegetarian is something Connot says she has enjoyed and she will probably not be picking up a Big Mac anytime soon.
