The Lusty Vegan: True Life, My Boyfriend Eats Meat

"Oh baby, Your plate looks very fleshy" (Image from iwantheish.com)

By Zoe Eisenberg

So this is the last Lusty Vegan post in 2011, as next week we will be on hiatus! I have no idea where this year went, honestly. I often feel like it’s still 2010. Yesterday, Ayinde  and I were having a conversation on Twitter about the fact that Ayinde (look at me blowin’ up your spot!) has never dated a vegan. For me, a single vegan male is sort of like a unicorn—I hear about them but I really don’t believe they exist. Heck, I’ve never even dated a vegetarian! Dating someone who doesn’t share one of your largest lifestyle beliefs can be challenging, sort of like dating someone who supports a different political party than you. I remember getting in screaming matches years ago with an old boyfriend about our opposing views on abortion. Now just sub out “abortion” with “eat meat” and you can imagine a similar situation. “IT’S MY BODY AND I CAN EAT MEAT IF I WANT TO EAT MEAT BUT I DON’T WANT TO EAT MEAT BUT DON’T YOU TELL ME WHAT TO DO WITH MY BODY AND THE MEAT THAT I HYPOTHETICALLY COULD HAVE…” I’m sure the neighbors probably wouldn’t be too thrilled.

Some vegans, dubbed vegansexuals, will only date vegans. Others are more lenient. I am of the second party, mainly because I don’t want to be judged for what I eat, so I won’t judge my mancandy for what he puts in his body—even if I don’t want it anywhere near me.

My last boyfriend was an omnivore but he liked to eat healthy. And, because we lived together, well I think Samuel L. Jackson said in best in Pulp Fiction; “My girlfriend is a vegetarian, which pretty much makes me a vegetarian.” We shopped together, and cooked together, and so it was very rare that any meat ever crossed our threshold. Cheese yes, meat no. When we prepared meals, he would sometimes sprinkle some cheese on his bit at the end, but other than that, he ate vegan a good deal of the time. I never heard him complaining—although he did lose a good 5 pounds during the time we lived together, and this was sort of jarring as he was already a really slim dude.

Although I never preached to him about what he put in his body, we had many conversations about the reasons that I am vegan—from nutrition to politics. So I guess it didn’t shock me too much when he announced—all on his own and without any prodding from me, I swear!—that he is giving up meat and going veg. The only downside to the situation was that he, no-joke, announced it a few days AFTER we broke up. Go figure.

The guy I am seeing now sometimes asks me hypothetical questions about what it’s like for a vegan to date an omnivore. A few nights ago I was watching him eat some chicken that resembled dog food (no really, he made that reference all on his own…) and he asked what I would do if hypothetically, he had chicken in his teeth and then I kissed him and somehow the meaty bit ended up in my mouth. To answer his question, there is only one type of meat I am okay with putting in my mouth, and on top of that, I am pretty sure I would be grossed out if ANY of his masticated food ended up on my tongue, regardless of if it were chicken or chickpeas. He’s lucky he is so good looking…

So, what are you inter-dietary dating dilemmas? Are you a vegan dating an omnivore? A vegan dating a vegan? Where did you meet? Do you have fist-pounding arguments about food politics and bacon? I would love to know!

The Lusty Vegan is a lifestyle and sex column focusing on living and loving as a twenty-something year old vegan. More rants from Zoe Eisenberg can be found at www.sexytofu.com. Follow her on Twitter @Sexytofublog.