Recently, while casually perusing my Twitter feed, I came across a tweet by Your Daily Vegan that caught my eye. It said, “I’m reading this blog today and really diggin’ it which means you should check it out too”.

Now, I’m not one that needs a lot of coaxing to check out a cool vegan blog. And since Your Daily Vegan was doing the recommending, I knew I’d be in for a treat. So I clicked the link, and discovered Vegan Burnout.

Have you ever started reading something that kept you so entertained that you couldn’t put it down? This, my friends, is exactly what happened. I started reading posts from the last few days, then months, and before I knew it I was hungrily digging through the Vegan Burnout archives for more. Shannon, the voice behind this blog, has such an amazing way with words and descriptions that I find myself laughing out loud and not-so-patiently awaiting her next post. Vegan Burnout is smart, hilarious, relatable and totally inspirational. This blog is comfort food for the intelligent vegan brain.

Shannon is the kind of girl I’d like to be friends with. If I didn’t live in Vancouver and she didn’t live in Baltimore, I’m quite certain we’d be total besties. And since we can’t exactly meet up for a cuppa coffee and a chat, I’ve arranged the next best thing: a P+S interview with the Vegan Burnout herself. I am so excited to introduce you all to Shannon!

P+S:    What inspired you to adopt a vegan lifestyle? Was there a transition period for you or did you jump in with both feet? How long have you been vegan?

P+S:    I see you live in Baltimore, Maryland (pictured above). What is the vegan community like in your area? Do you feel well-supported or isolated in your lifestyle?

VB:    Baltimore is a good town for vegans. It’s not New York or Portland, obviously, but we have some amazing vegan-friendly restaurants, including one (it’s not in Baltimore, but it’s not far) that recently went totally vegan. We have Trader Joe’s and some small health food stores, but even better is My Organic Market (MOM’s), which is an incredible organic grocery with locations throughout Maryland and the DC metro area. We buy everything there! There’s a vegan meetup group that hosts happy hours. I’ve run into a lot of the same people at meetups and bake sales and the like, which is nice. The community is small, but active.

P+S:    Is Red a vegan too? How about your adorable pup Lucy?

Lucy is vegan. She eats Natural Balance Vegetarian kibble. I think we switched her over in the fall or winter of 2009, and she’s never been happier or healthier. We make sweet potato chips and other treats for her, and she loves Primal Strips vegan jerky. Sometimes we’ll buy Mr. Barky’s vegan biscuits, but her favorite thing is almond butter in her Kong. She loves canned pumpkin, too.  (Today’s Vegan Burnout post features some carob dog cookies! Check it out!)

P+S:    What do you love most about being a vegan? What are your biggest challenges?

VB:    I love showing people that my lifestyle is not some weird fringe asparagus-worshipping cult, although if you’re going to worship a vegetable, asparagus would be a good one. I love seeing their faces when I tell them that vegans eat chocolate! I love learning about new foods and figuring out what to do with a vegetable or fruit I’ve never seen before. I love it when my coworkers ask what I brought for lunch because it smells so good, and when my sister asks me to cook mushrooms and tofu for her. I love how healthy I feel, knowing that I’m nourished by foods that didn’t require the torture and deaths of sentient beings. I love hanging out with the animals at Poplar Spring Animal Sanctuary, letting my heart be opened by them. I love knowing that I’ve saved lives.

I do not love being stuck picking at the raw veggie tray during marginal social gatherings. I do not love being associated with PETA or any other group that does more harm than good by claiming to advocate for animals while exploiting women and/or perpetuating the “happy meat” myth. It’s not the worst thing in the world, but I don’t love the hours I spend doing Internet recon before we travel, finding places we can eat. And while it’s not an issue yet, I am quite sure that I will not love the boatload of uninformed criticism Red and I will take for raising vegan children. Just back it up now, haters.

P+S:    One of my favourite things about your writing is how frank you are, especially when confronted by people who challenge your lifestyle choices. What's your most satisfying comeback when people make snarky remarks about being vegan? What do you say to people when they present the old "humans are meant to eat meat" argument?

Ha, I love that the blog has created this impression of me as a fierce vegan warrior. Luckily, no one has tried that “humans are meant to eat meat” nonsense to my face, and when it happens online, I have the luxury of ignoring it because I have a policy of not feeding the trolls, ever. Actually, the blog doesn’t really get any trolls, so maybe I’m really only popular in my own mind. Still, it’s hard to believe people continue using such obvious derailing techniques. “Oooh, look at my sharp pointy canine teeth!” Yes, yes, very impressive. But people behave defensively because they feel threatened, and they feel threatened because they know there’s a better way to live. The bottom line is that some people will be receptive, and some won’t, but I try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt and just be my awesome vegan self. When someone says, “I could never give up cheese,” I tell them that I used to say the same thing. The most important thing, I think, is to not back down, to not shrug and be that meek, self-deprecating vegan. Don’t let anyone bully you! Let your freak flag fly! I’ve called it a draw many, many times, but I don’t shrink from confrontation anymore. The more you learn, the more comfortable you’ll be defending your position. If you show yourself to be outspoken and well informed, people are less likely to pick on you.

Besides, milk is full of pus and eggs are chicken menstrual products. So there.

P+S:    Do you consider yourself an activist? How and why?

VB:    Since starting the blog, I have slowly adopted the “activist” label. It was a little scary, because I never saw myself as an activist before—just a girl trying to do her best. I didn’t want to get in people’s faces or organize protests, which is what I thought activism was. I had to broaden my definition. One of the incredible things about veganism is that it’s a very powerful form of lived activism. People notice I’m eating something that looks different to them, so they ask about it, and maybe we’ll have a chat about veganism or animal rights. Maybe all they’ll think is that they met a nice vegan, but that’s important, too. Once I realized that I had powerful tools at my disposal—my blog, social networking, my research skills, my own big mouth—I started thinking of myself as an activist. The goal of any activist is to raise awareness and create change, right? So, why not me? Why not you?

P+S:    I think that Vegan Burnout is one of the freshest, smartest and funniest vegan blogs I have ever had the pleasure to come across. Why did you start a blog? Who are you hoping to communicate to?

VB:    Aw, thank you so much! I think I started the blog because I was tired of talking to myself, honestly. I was spending more time reading animal-advocacy sites and blogs, and I had all these ideas that just wouldn’t fit in the comment box. I figured it would save Red from hearing me rant every day! Also, I think there was subconsciously a more practical reason. I got my Master’s in poetry, but my writing had completely stalled. I wasn’t writing a thing, and I hated that. Working on the blog was a way to get on a writing schedule and play with words.

It’s so terrible, but I’ve never really considered my audience. Thanks for making me think about that! I hope my blog appeals to people like me, I suppose, who like their veganism with a chaser of sass. I don’t really have a defined focus, do I? I write what I’d want to read, not that there is a shortage of that, but I wanted to be part of the conversation. I didn’t want to censor myself, either! I hope that if people come for the snark and the goofy stories about my dog and getting tattooed, they stay for the serious stuff and learn a bit more about animal rights and the whys of veganism instead of just the hows.

P+S:    How do you decide what to write? What is your blogging process? And what are your favourite blogs to read?

It’s a Vegan Dog’s Life was an invaluable resource when I started researching vegan dog foods, and her recipes are Lucy-approved! easyVegan has taught me a lot about the intersection of oppressions, which is so important. The Voracious Vegan and Vegan Feminist Agitator have become friends and mentors. Animal Rights & AntiOppression is a group blog that I love for its commitment to justice on all fronts and honesty about privilege and linked oppressions. I hang out on the PPK forum, which is a good place to meet awesome vegans and get into weird conversations. I’m working on expanding my yoga practice, so I’ve been adding more yoga blogs into my daily reading. Eco Yogini is wonderful. Go Fug Yourself is my daily dose of frivolity, and it’s so funny and well written that I would read it even if I hated fashion. The Deportee’s Wife, which is written by a close friend, truly brings home, in real time, the reality of how busted the United States’ immigration system is. And I’m addicted to Salon, especially their Broadsheet lady-blog.

P+S:    What advice would you give to someone who's thinking about becoming vegan, but isn't sure where or how to start?

VB:    The Internet is your new best friend. It will help you find shopping lists, substitutions for non-vegan foods, nutritional info, a supportive vegan community, and witty things to say to everyone who will ask you about your inevitable protein deficiencies. Knowledge is power. That said, it can be overwhelming! Take a look at what you eat on a daily basis. Veganizing your breakfast might be as easy as switching to soy or rice milk with your cereal. If you don’t know how to cook or don’t like it, you’ll want to learn, one meal at a time. Plus, it will save you money. A take-out vegan is a broke vegan.

Also, some people are insta-vegans and some take it more slowly. I don’t denigrate either kind. It took me a while to get here. I understand the people who advocate for that “cold tofu” approach to eliminating animal products, but it isn’t feasible for everyone. I try to meet people where they are. I don’t want to restrict my compassion. If your goal is to go vegan, then I love you, and don’t let anyone tell you that you’re not making the switch fast enough for them.

VB:    Mmmm, potato chips. I’m still working on the portion control aspect. And buffalo tofu! We made a big batch on Super Bowl Sunday and ate almost all of it while watching Puppy Bowl. Some might say that really excellent dark chocolate is a guilty pleasure, but I try to eat a little every day and don’t feel the least bit guilty about it.

------

Having been vegan for awhile now, it is a very rare thing indeed for me to feel that tingling rush of inspiration when I read about someone else’s vegan journey. Now that I have a little Vegan Burnout in my life, I’m feeling that charge again. Shannon is living a principled life, and she makes no apologies for it. And her vegan moxie is totally contagious.

So, you guys need to stop whatever you’re doing and check out Vegan Burnout. And you need to do it right now. I guarantee you’ll be glad you did.

Heartfelt thanks to Shannon for her kind participation in this interview!