No, its not, animal-based cheeses or Americas fetishistic love for bacon.
Its saying no to free stuff.
And look, I get it, its hard for some people to wrap their heads around!
Mostly, you should be prepared to meet your own needs instead of raising a moral stink about it.
You might even make some converts along the way.
The journey can be hard (but itsgetting easier!
), so if youre somewhere on this path, congrats!
And dont feel afraid to speak up.
Its a deeply personal choice, not a fad diet, so explain it that way.
Rejecting gifts without being a jerk
Expected gifts (holidays, birthdays, etc.)
Starting that conversation ahead of time is always a good thing, anticipating it, she said.
Rather than saying, Oh you got me another non-vegan thing, thanks for noticing I changed my life.
Thats not the winning etiquette response.
If someone does misfire on a gift, dont make it seem like they are forgetting intentionally.
Take them aside later and express gratitude but explain the dilemma.
Unexpected gifts
Gifts that come out of the blue are a little trickier.
In the case of unexpected gifts, acknowledge the gesture and address the issue with the gift-giver later.
You dont want to embarrass someone in front of a table full of people, Post said.
My hope is we can start being a lot more respectful about personal choices.
Instead, engage with the family or food tradition in other ways, Post said.
At best, take it as a learning opportunity to show off the new ingredient alternatives youve learned about.
They make for bad travelers and bad guests, Anthony Bourdainonce told Playboyof vegans.
Theres so much more to a culture than even just its food.
But even the food, theres not just meat, most cultures have vegetable-based dishes too, she said.
She noted that we dont hold meat eaters to the same standard.
Post agrees that its OK to reject food or other offers when traveling.
I completely disagree with Anthony Bourdain, who I love very much and respect very much, she said.
That will spare you from a lot of of awkward situations.
Research may also prove your destination might be more vegan friendly than you thought.
That means the country does have the language and recipes necessary to produce deliciousvegan dishesalready.
Theres this whole tradition there of vegan food that most people visiting probably dont know about, she said.
I ended up learning all these words related to lent and fasting, she said.
Most vegans learn to be self sufficient because we are consciously worrying about being a burden on others.
selection of vegan goodies.
Overall, rejecting anything free should be met with the same patience and understanding.
Being a jerk about it is a good way to get all vegans labeled jerks.
Its also a good way to never get offered free things again.
