tattoos, dreams and unknown bloggers

I'm in a very 'listy' mood this week. Yes, I just made up another word. -I met a girl while I was waiting in line for coffee that had a Latin word tattooed rather largely on the inside of her right forearm. I asked her what the word means and she crossed her arms and said very bitterly, "it means 'I've made mistakes'", and then looked off in the opposite direction. Hindsight is 20/20 because I wish I would have then said "There's forgiveness, you know". I didnt. Opportunity lost. Pray for her. -I had a dream on Monday night set in the 19th century that included proposals, fainting, tears, and lots of dramatics. I love how God entertains me in my sleep! -On that note, my dreaming dry spell is over! Now if only I could get my interpretation chops back in line, I'd be set. -Today I am contemplating for what I am thankful. I want to be prepared for the inevitable Thanksgiving tradition of sharing my Thanksgiving list with the fam. -Dave Barnes is my music of choice for this holiday weekend. I want to book him for a special event that I hope takes place sometime in my life. I wonder how much are his booking fees... -My current list of favorite 'not personally known to me' bloggers is as follows: Maundering Pondering All These Things Flowerdust.net Lynse Leanne Matt, Liz and Madeline Pinkhairedgirl.net Ragamuffin Soul Whitaker Woman OK, enough listiness for today.

Happy Holidays and other randomness

-Have you ever had dreams that are so vivid you wake up and still feel a physical touch or emotion? Try having 3 of those dreams in the last week...intense!  

-The holiday season should prove to be interesting this year...especially since they are not traditionally very vegetarian friendly.  I guess I'll be enjoying the sides...I have always liked the sides better than the Turkey anyway.

-I'm in a wedding on Valentines Day.  Not the best of days for a single person to be in a wedding, but at least my friend is ordering a vegetarian meal for me!  Considerate friend FTW!

-Jess, my uber talented cousin, has a shop on ETSY.com.  Check it out here ---> JCF Designs

-I've finally mastered turning in my library books on time! This is a huge improvement from a few years ago.  I was on a self-imposed ban from renting DVD's or checking out books. Lets just say that I spent way more than the items were worth in late fees a few times too many.

-I hate when someone tramples on my friend's feelings...not cool. 

-Spiedy got married?!  I have no words.

-The Biggest Loser always makes me cry.  I love seeing people achieve something perceived to be impossible.  It inspires me to keep doing what I'm doing even though the results can be slow in coming.

-Last but not least...photoshop gone terribly wrong.

I've gone veggie!

Yes, the rumors and twitters are true. I, Alison Hunt, have become a vegetarian.

You may be asking why on God's green earth would I give up yummy steaks, awesome cheeseburgers, and fabulous chicken. The answer is simple:

I cannot in good conscience eat meat from abused animals.

You may or may not know that most of the animals that are slaughtered for food are raised on factory farms. Factory farms are places that breed animals for food. They keep animals in cages slightly bigger than their bodies, medical needs go untreated, they are injected with growth hormones...do you want me to keep going? I could, you know.

I do understand that not EVERY farm treats their animals, but how can I guarantee that the meat I buy at Publix is not from one of these farms? I cant. Not even organic meat is guaranteed to be "factory farm free". [side note: my friend Angela grew up on a farm that had their own cattle slaughtered for food for the whole family. I would DEFINITELY eat meat from her farm! Their animals are treated as God intended them to be treated and they aren't injected with all sorts of unknown chemicals.]

I've known for a long time how animals are treated on these farms, and happily kept eating meat on a regular basis. A few weeks ago that all changed though. Out of nowhere (well, from God) I started feeling conviction about eating meat! This was more of a shock to me than how the animals are treated.

I started praying and asking God to show me why I should be convicted about eating meat because at this point I had not connected it to the factory farms. I also began researching vegetarian diet needs, and saw some pictures of factory farm animals. Then God hit me like a ton of bricks and basically told me "I never intended for the animals to be treated that way. Not even food animals."

To be honest, I didn't stop eating meat right away. I had to sit on that word for a time, I read Genesis, thought about how shepherds took care of their flocks throughout the Bible, and prayed some more. As the days wore on, I began feeling nauseous just looking at meat, both cooked and uncooked. I knew I had to make a decision and be obedient to what God was asking of me. So, I gave up meat as a faith based decision. I didn't go veggie because it fashionable, or because I value animals higher than humans, or just to lose weight. I went veggie because eating meat crosses my conscience, and I'm responsible before God for the decisions I make. One thing I am committed to is to not go on a "Veggie Crusade" to convert all my friends. However, I will freely talk about all of the reasons I based this decision on, and what people do with that information is up to them. I am very fortunate to have several vegetarians in my life. They are helping me, along with my own research, to know what to eat to get all of the nutrients I need, and how to safely transition. Don't worry, I'm not going vegan.....that's too extreme. If you want to know anymore about my decision to go veggie, please feel free to contact me! -A