I wish just I'd been honest...

[busy45bee]

Context: I'm a vegetarian. I offer to bring a dish to dinner if I'm invited.

On Sunday we were invited to SIL's house. They are big on their meat dishes and I did my usual of offering to bring something veggie. They said 'no all good!' so we took that as food would be provided.

We arrive and BIL's mum (SIL's MIL) has come along and done some of the cooking. She's made me a salad...with bacon lardons. She said 'I hope that's ok, it's just on top' and instead of saying anything I nodded and thought how the heck am I going to get out of this one.

I had salad wrapped in a napkin in my handbag. I stealthily dropped it in there as I reached to scratch my ankle. I flicked bacon on the floor in the hope that the dog would eat it when no one was looking but that was hard as there were 9 people around the table.

I told my DH that it was amazing and he must try some. He gobbled it up. My MIL realised what was happening and decided to be part of the bacon smuggling. She made a big fuss about how delicious it looked and practically swiped it off my plate which was just too theatrical.

Now we look like weirdos who go crazy for bacon salad. I'm worried it's going to become a staple at family gatherings and I don't know how to get out of a perpetual bacon cycle.

Just say I'm a vegetarian, it's not that difficult.

I'd go NC

Why on earth did you just nod?? It really isn't hard to say, I'm a veggie and that's bacon so clearly no, it isn't ok.

I assume they know you are vegetarian ?
If so how is bacon a vegetable??

I don't think it's too late to be honest with your SIL. I wouldn't tell her about the salad in the napkin but I would say other people ate it instead of you.

Tell her you didn't want to hurt her MIL's feelings but you really don't eat meat or anything that has come into direct contact with meat.

Hopefully she will see the funny side and appreciate you not making a big deal out of it, well apart from in a slightly bonkers fashion.

I'm so confused about the logistics of the salad-in-handbag and bacon-flicking... But yeah just laugh it off and tell them you're vegetarian!

Why didn't you just say that salad with bacon isn't something you can eat?

I really want to know why you had salad in your handbag! Do you always carry it with you?

Next time just say No that’s not ok because I’m vegetarian . I appreciate that you’ve written this in a lighthearted manner but it’s frankly ridiculous.

Omg this is sooooooo hilarious, I'm literally spitting my tea at the phone here I'm laughing so much, 😂😂😂bacon salad....... Stooooop just too funny

I had salad wrapped in a napkin in my handbag. I stealthily dropped it in there as I reached to scratch my ankle.

What? You had salad already in your handbag (in the traditional salad container of a napkin) and dropped what in where?

Ooh tricky - just out of interest, why didn't you say 'ah, sorry no, I'll need to take the bacon out, don't worry il sort it' and take it to the kitchen to disassemble? Or was it quite thoroughly dressed so would have taken too long. Honestly who puts bacon on a vegetarians food, that's very funny.

you know the real answer...

you don't have a salad problem

you have a dh problem

ltb

also I suggest counselling

I cannot get my head round that you just didn't say no I can't eat that as I'm a vegetarian.

I'm a vegetarian. No way would I eat that.

We arrive and BIL's mum (SIL's MIL) has come along and done some of the cooking. She's made me a salad

So, this suggests she knows you're vegetarian and made this specifically for you. At this point why didn't you just say "oh, that's really kind of you, but as it has meat in the salad, I'm afraid I can't eat it unfortunately. Bacon lardons are meat"

Why would you go ahead and accept a specially made 'vegetarian' meal just for you without pointing out it isn't vegetarian?

This is reminding of the Royale family episodes where Emma says she's vegetarian and nana asks if she can eat wafer thin ham. ..

This cannot be real. No one behaves like this in real life.

On the off chance it is do not throw food on the floor for someone else's dog.

In future just say - I’m a vegetarian, I don’t eat animals.

Years ago DH bought a quiche for SIL when we did a BBQ. This was because SIL is vegetarian. Yep, he bought quiche Lorraine because “bacon isn’t meat” 🤦‍♀️

I know I should have just said I couldn't eat it. I was thrown off because I wasn't expecting BIL's mum to have made food for me, and she's really friendly and quite old. It was a genuine mistake.

It was my dog who got bacon flicked at them btw

The stress of the situation is causing my grammar to be all over the place, just look at my title 😂

It's not that big a deal but you are going to have to set the record straight if you don't want a lifetime of family gatherings where you go hungry and have to find creative ways of disposing of unwanted bacon.

Whilst I found this somewhat hilarious, you are correct you should have just said something!

I just hear Phoebe from friends

17 bathrooms And I threw up in the closet.

I just would be thinking you were a pretend vegetarian who eats bacon and a bacon sandwich etc.

So I would be owning up or forever nobody will believe you are

She sounds mad too! Does she not realise the animal is just as dead on top or underneath the lettuce..

Really?