anyone who trys to belittle someone for being vegetarian must have issues with themselves

[alittlethyme]

I'm not really bothered, but there is a couple of people in my new job who constantly spout ignorant anti vegetarian stuff at me. Like "can't you eat cow if it just ate grass as its vegetarian" or "don't you want to eat this" while eating some food that looks and smells grim to me.

I think they are trying to be funny, but seriously its at best ignorant . are they threatened by what I eat? Why do they have issues with it?

Anyway would I be u to reply to these (very unhealthy) looking people that I feel good and like my healthy bmi?

DP is vegetarian. Since being with him I've started to notice more of the, I dunno, 'backlash' against people who mention they are vegetarian. You can practically play bingo with the responses:

'I love meat'
'Bacon'
'What if you were starving/stranded with only a cow/pig'
The joke about knowing if someone's vegetarian because they'll tell you in under 5 mins
'Vegetarians are smug'

Tiresome and boring, and I'm a meat eater! I am yet to meet one of these apparently abundant smug veggies

Also, on the stereotyping, whenever we go for a meal you can practically guarantee that the waiting staff will almost always automatically go to give the vegetarian meal to me rather than DP

I love the scene in Green Card when he calls the vegetarian a 'cucumber'

I find it astonishing that some people think its socially acceptable to publicly criticise someone's diet and then justify this because vegetarians are 'smug and/or 'goady' or think they're 'morally superior'

Wow

And no still not seeing how the OP stating that "I feel good and like my healthy bmi?" is particularly offensive to the folks taking a weird interest in her diet. They could you know, just fuck off and leave her alone instead

EduCated

That bingo game already exists!

farm3.static.flickr.com/2736/4170866438_ac0255a0b8.jpg

Another non-smug, overweight and unhealthy vegetarian here who simply doesn't like eating anything that ever had a pulse, whether it was cute or not. It's just my choice. I've been vegetarian for so long I actually forget and panic that one day I'll forget to mention it to someone if we're eating at their house. That's just to prove that I DON'T go round telling everyone and being all preachy. I would never try to inflict my views on someone else.

I'm staggered at how many ridiculous questions I get asked and completely agree that people can ask the dumbest most goody questions they can think of just for fun. Even people you've known for years! At New Year there were 3 vegetarians in the room and 4 meat eaters and for some unknown reason 2 of the meat eaters started goading the veggies. One was my DH and the other was one of the other vegetarian's DH. I mean WHY? For goodness sake? I said, 'Seriously? Are we really going to have this conversation?'. They decided to shut up and talk about something more interesting instead. It was probably due to the amount of gin we were consuming

Vegetarian goading... it should be an Olympic sport. There's just no need for it really. Live and let live.

I been veggie my entire life. I'm happy with this but I've had a massive amount of stick for it over the years especially at school. After a while I just became immune to it. Why should I care what some random ejits think? Most of the things people say about veggies are daft anyway - cows eat grass so they are veggie food? That doesn't even make sense. Think the only option you have is to ignore.

I doubt any of my work colleagues know I'm veggie though, it what circumstances would they find out unless I mentioned it?

I've been a vegetarian for 20years since I was 9. I'm definitely not healthy at present having eaten a diet of rubbish for far too long I have 2 stone to lose. I'm attempting to go vegan and so far so good. As for other people's comments I couldn't care less they probably don't believe I'm a vegetarian anyway I'm so fat

Fight The protein! How could I forget the protein

I'm a non-smug, fat-as-fuck vegetarian.

I don't tell anyone I'm a veggie, unless I'm going to eating food they're cooking. The only person i discuss why I'm a veggie with is DH, usually when we get into one of our long philosophical discussions about absolutely everything. I have had people taking it as I'm judging them because I don't eat meat. I just look at them like this --> roll my eyes and turn away. I'm not going to explain myself to anyone.

Wow some great posts on here. The funny thing is this one guy is saying the really really common jokes as if he is hilarious and just made them up.

It only came up in conversation today as we had to book food for a work meal, I've never tried too force my diet on anyone.

I said that last comment in my op as they were calling me unhealthy when in fact I'm of very good health and they are not. I wouldn't dream of saying it aloud to them, hence why I vented on here.

Still can't decide if they are rude or have issues. Maybe both, one burps all day and eats while talking.

kay This was just so brilliant!!!

I'm a paleo eater who avoids all legumes, eggs and nightshades. I JUDGE you ALL.

Anyone else a meat eater and often orders a veggie option in a restaurant because they happen to like it?

If anyone asks why, I say "because I like it"

Don't any of the veggie's just close the conversation with that?

redtooth- I am one of those. I usually always order the veggie option.
I have never been asked why. I love the cashew nut pie at our local restaurant. My son is the same- his favourite is channa on puri or a vegetable thali.

We are both meat eaters.

Why do you avoid nightshade? I've tried to give them up before, but I regularly have tomatoes. The rest I can do without, although did eat potatoes this week as was unwell and fancied them

I am sorry but tomatoes are extremely nutritious. I don't buy the flaky paleo half baked science.

OH NO! People in RL have always assumed I'm vegetarian. Which as I'm a farming girl always confused me.

I had thought that my slightly foreign look was what did it.

I do lean towards being a bit opinionated, verging on self righteous. I had assumed I kept this hidden but perhaps not. I have a horrible feeling that people project their stereotypes of veggies onto me.

Just ignore them. I have had a constant stream of fuckwits ridicule my veggie eating habits just about all of my adult life. I even had a B&B owner laugh when I asked if he did a veggie breakfast. I tend to just tune them out unless someone has a genuine question. Interestingly, my meat eating husband lost over two stone in weight in our first year of living together in a non meat eating household.