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After a few weeks of trial run, I think I can safely declare that I'm more or less vegetarian now. I won't be going as strict as vegans; in fact I still consume eggs (though this may change in the future). I'm fine with non-meat dishes cooked with meat as well, such as pork rib soup (but expect me not to touch the meat, of course).

The reason for this change in diet is primarily due to my love of animals, or more specifically, not wanting to kill them. There are other reasons as well, such as environmentalism and a healthier lifestyle, but these are relatively minor factors.

This decision has been tumbling in my mind for a few months, and the "trigger" came when I went on a road trip in Australia. I was quite concerned with road kills and I kept my fullest attention on the road as much as I could. I wouldn't want these animals dead, even if they don't look really cute (e.g. Tasmanian devil). Then it dawned upon me that there is pretty much no difference between killing them by running them over with a car or eating them, except that in the latter case you get someone to clean up your own shit. And witnessing the carcasses along the way does contribute quite a bit to this realisation.

Perhaps unfortunately, the "trigger" did not have an immediate effect. It did made me come to a vow that I ought to at least attempt vegetarianism, but with the ensuing chaos until the recent vacation, I could not put this plan into action. But after a "conversion" week of mixed diet for a week and two weeks of vegetarian food (including one during ICT), I think I can stick to vegetarian diet forever.

It's not so difficult to switch after all. In fact, there are no terrible desires for meat or some sort of psychological or physiological symptoms. The greatest difficulty, however, comes from my family, especially my mother who was quite upset that I won't be able to eat much of the food she cooks. After some discussion, we came to a compromise: when I'm at home, I'll eat a minimal amount of meat. So perhaps I should not call myself a vegetarian, but a semi-vegetarian. But that's only like during the weekends; most of my meals are still vegetarian.

That being said, my greatest fear now is that I will hinder other people's meal plans when we go out. To that, I say that it's alright to choose whatever they want, since most eateries will have a vegetarian option nowadays. Moreover, I'm not that strict, so if one or two bits of mince meat falls into the noodles, that's perfectly fine.

And for those who are sick of vegetarian advocates zealously advertising the merits of vegetarianism and cruelties of meat eating, fear not: I won't.


*: Nom: Onomatopoeia related to eating; often used with LolCat