Bigotry is alive and well

Indiana.

Georgia.

North Carolina.

The bigots in power are coming for us. By the way, I'm sure I'm missing some states.

A huge breathe of relief swept the country when the US Supreme Court legalized same sex marriage. We celebrated. I cried.

The bigots also took a breathe and got to work creating plans on how they could continue battling us, mainly in the name of religious liberty and safety.

If you offend by religious beliefs, I don't need to do business with you.

Because I am worried about my five year old daughter, a trans woman should not be able to use a restroom labeled for women.

These are the arguments, and bigotry is the reason. Plain, simple bigotry.

In South Dakota the governor actually vetoed the anti-trans bathroom bill. The governor in Georgia has not signed their anti-gay bill yet, and I am happy that dozens of business have criticized the bill and even my beloved The Waling Dead cast will leave Georgia if the bill is signed.

I love the support. But can we get in front of this? Are there enough of us who believe that these bills are ludicrous to ensure they are voted down? If we as communities voted in droves would less bigots come to power, even in states that are filled with bigots like Georgia and North Carolina?

Dan is going back to voting, you're thinking. Yes I am.

We have the power. We have the power to crush bigotry. We have to act.

Please speak out. Please register to vote and vote. Please email your state representative if they are considering voting for a bigoted bill.

Thank you for reading.

Restaurant review: One Veg World in Pasadena

I am ecstatic to write this review!

One Veg World in Pasadena is pretty close to where we live and has become a constant in our lives. The food is perfect for us and the staff bring a level of hospitality and kindness that is rare in the restaurant world these days.

One Veg World in Pasadena is the sister restaurant to One Veg World in West Covina. It opened in July of 2015 and recently began serving breakfast. My review is based mainly on breakfast as it is my favorite meal and there are not a lot of vegan breakfast options around. Or I should say vegan breakfast options on the level of One Veg World.

First, they have donuts! They are delicious. All yeast-raised with either plain glazed, chocolate, cinnamon-sugar or chocolate vanilla. I know from experience that if you love donuts you will love these. I have indulged in many of them!

My next favorite would be the sausage breakfast muffin. They have several types of breakfast muffins and this one is my favorite. You can get it alone or as a combo, which means you can get Vietnamese coffee and garlic kale alongside if you wish. The garlic kale is dreamy. I can't think of another word. If you decide to get the breakfast muffin, it comes with ketchup on it so if you don't like ketchup for breakfast (like me) ask for it without the ketchup.

One Veg World has other options for breakfast, including a delicious tofu scramble.

We have also been for dinner and the cauliflower hot wings are delicious as are the tacos and the zesty serendipity dishes. They also have a lunch buffet Monday through Friday.

As you know, I rate restaurants based on food and service. The staff at One Veg World set the standard for kindness and hospitality. They welcome each customer and bring a refreshing amount of hospitality to the restaurant world. I simply cannot say enough about every single staff member I have encountered.

Go. Dine. Relax. Have a donut. Enjoy a meal. If you live in the area even better. If not, they are located just south of the 210 at the Lake exit. Go south, make a left on Colorado and they will be on the right.

Here is their website for more information: One Veg World

Thanks for reading!

Expo West and the Natural Foods industry

It has been eight years since I was last at Expo West and my has the world changed. I will write more about this incredible trade show, and wanted to pass along what I experienced just yesterday while walking amongst the hundreds of booths promoting every natural food product one could imagine.

I decided to come to Expo West to learn about the newest amazing vegan food offerings and to start  a long-term process of finding out how companies in this industry, an industry that Mike and I financially support every day, are in welcoming transgender people to work for them. More specifically, I want to see if companies have gender identity and/or gender expression in the non-discrimination policies.

For those of you who are vegan or love vegan food, I can tell you that your food choice world is expanding even more than what I had thought prior to coming to Expo West. Companies like Daiya, Gardein, Tofurky, Miyoko's, Nada Moo, Bull Dog, Follow Your Heart and Vega blew my mind (and taste buds) with new products. Although many of these products won't land until later this summer or fall, I guarantee you you will not be disappointed.

There were several booths where I literally camped out for several minutes while continually "tasting" their new product. The same one I had just tried. They were that good. Of course after five tastes of the new Gardein breakfast pocket I decided that I should really move on. And yes, I will be back today!

From chickpea snacks to vegan caramels to juices and nutritional drinks, I continually walked away from booths with a huge smile on my face.

I also had dozens of conversations with companies about non-discrimination policies and will write more in-depth on those later. I will say that when you gather so many companies there are an equal amount of opinions and human resource-relayed policies. I will also say that wearing a press badge that has "The Gay Vegans" on it helped me many times in remembering that I live in a world that, even in a professional setting like a trade show, anti-gay bigotry and discomfort towards gay people exists.

More to come!

Thanks for reading!

The slaughter of Yellowstone bison

 
My trips to Yellowstone have been magical.

In 2005 we did our honeymoon there, an incredible back-country trip along the Yellowstone River. That trip, and every other trip we have made, we have always seen bison. No matter how many times I have seen bison, it still always takes my breath away.

Even though I live in Los Angeles now, I try to stay abreast of things that were important to me while living in Colorado, and the work that the Buffalo Field Campaign does in Wyoming and Montana is one of those things.

Please read this press release, from this week. As I write of often in my blog, we have the power to make change when we use our power. In this case, it is speaking out for these majestic creatures who have no voice. It can be a simple email or phone call or even just letting people know about what is happening.

To take action click here.

Thanks for reading. And here is the press release:

YELLOWSTONE BEGINS BISON CAPTURE
After Hundreds Killed in Boundary Hunt, Park Service Captures 150 Wild Bison for Slaughter

For Immediate Release:
March 3, 2016

Contacts:
Stephany Seay, Buffalo Field Campaign, 406-646-0071 / bfc-media@wildrockies.org
Mike Mease, Buffalo Field Campaign, 406-646-0071 / mease@wildrockies.org

Yellowstone National Park - Park rangers have begun capturing wild bison in the Stephens Creek trap within Yellowstone National Park. Since February 20, approximately 150 of America’s last wild buffalo have been trapped. According to park officials, all are destined for slaughter. "Yellowstone's slaughter of wild bison is as lacking in scientific reason as it is in public support," said Buffalo Field Campaign's Stephany Seay. 

The Park Service claims that they are reducing the wild bison population due to the threat of brucellosis, a livestock disease originally brought to North America by Eurasian cattle. There has never been a documented case of wild bison transmitting brucellosis to livestock. Elk, who also carry brucellosis and have transmitted the disease to livestock numerous times in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming, are free to migrate from Yellowstone and are managed by hunting based on sustainable populations in available habitat in Montana.

BFC habitat coordinator Darrell Geist says the state of Montana and Yellowstone National Park refuse to manage wild buffalo like wild elk, an alternative that would put the government out of the buffalo capture for slaughter business. "Montana is blessed with an abundance of public lands but cursed by a statute that stands in the way of managing migratory buffalo as a wildlife species," said Geist. “Few people know that MCA 81-2-120 is almost entirely funded by the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture to back Department of Livestock management of wild buffalo. Without American taxpayer funding, Montana and Yellowstone National Park would have to changes their ways."

Yellowstone and the other Interagency Bison Management Plan partners have stated that they want up to 900 wild bison killed this year. Over four-hundred have already been killed by hunters. The agencies aim to kill hundreds of wild bison every year until they drive the population — now estimated at 4,400 — down to just 3,000 animals. This population target is a result of livestock industry pressure to address unfounded brucellosis fears, and Yellowstone’s false premise that there are “surplus” wild bison. 

BFC executive director Dan Brister questions the faulty science that Yellowstone and IBMP partners are operating under. "There is no such thing as 'surplus' wild bison," said BFC executive director Dan Brister, "Yellowstone's target population cap of 3,000 animals is nothing more than a politically derived number that has nothing to do with carrying capacity." 

Yellowstone's capture for slaughter operations adversely impact the wild population’s natural immunity to introduced diseases, including brucellosis, and increases the risk of more virulent and persistent strains arising in the wild population. Cumulative impacts of management actions pose a significant threat to the viability of wild buffalo remaining in Yellowstone.

Under the voluntarily agreed to Interagency Bison Management Plan, Yellowstone National Park and the other IBMP agencies continue to operate under faulty assumptions and outdated information, in contravention of the agency’s mandate to use the best available science to inform decision makers and the public.