yup thats the way. i can deal with dairy (not in my pans though!) but i have a no meat kitchen. i find if your clear about you boundaries thats what helps and if your partner has a problem with it then they need to deal. being vegan takes some thought and is usually a hard won battle. meat eaters quite ofetn dont think, why should they as they are the majority...so it dosnt do them any harm to have athink.

beside my issues with meat eaters is they same with food in general, if they have respect about what they eat i will respect them.

I cant date non vegetarians. All hell breaks loose...I did a no no and bitched at my date tonite after he ordered his burger at a restaurant...told him I wouldnt kiss him and that I thought meat was murder...well..needless to say that put an end to the night, AND the potential relationship.
Sigh.
It wasnt the right place or time...but it had to be aired eventually...probably better now than him finding out after getting more emotionally involved. He smokes too..ew..
JOhn

Hear hear!

I was very resistant to ever becoming a vegan because of the unpleasant Vegan Police I had encountered in my travels. They were always busy ramming their ideals down the throats of anyone unfortunate to be within earshot and any world outside of veganism (art, socializing, etc) was not existant or strongly colored. And living in self-ritcheous, PC police state Seattle, they were everywhere (well, the ones who weren't at the tattoo parlor)

I refused to ever be part of that scene and made a vow to always eat cheese.

For four years, I happily dated a fellow vegitarian, and foodwise, things were fine. Then we broke up, and I decided I wanted to try my hand at being a vegan - not because I was all concerend about cows, cancer, or air polution, but because of the challenge. I picked up "How It All Vegan" - still, in my mind, the best vegan primer so far written. The authors' take on compassionate living - and allowing others to make their own food choises - was excatly what I wanted to hear. In the years since (three plus) the more aulturistic reasons for veganism have certianly become cemented in my reasoning.

For the last year, I've been dating a meat eater. He very much enjoys all sorts of food and is excited about the challenge of cooking vegan. He respects my choises, I respect his, and we get along fine. Slowly, he has become more veg and now prefers not to eat meat. 100% vegan will never happen and that is okay with me.

I work for a toy and novelty company that makes many bacon products - bacon bandages, bacon tape, bacon wallets, ad infinitum - and I love them. They are so rediculous and so funny. Meat, as a gag, is a good thing. And damn, I miss bacon.

The problem I have with some meat eaters is their instant revolted reaction to me mentioning that I am a vegan. It is something they simply cannot understand and their brains reel with the thought of only eating vegies. I am met with any number of incredulous questions - questions not of the currious, but of the inconsiderate. If a potential date ever responded like that, all bets would be off immediately.

In group situations, particularly at work, I find that three years into my vegan adventure, any effort to accomidate my food choise is largely ignored or only half-heartedly humored (salad is not food - or not the only food). I have to fend for myself - which is fine considering local food choices consist of Azteca and Subway. Friends are more considerate, and again, my lover would have to be.

I guess what it comes down to is respect - respecting people's food choises, allowing them to make their own decisions, and being accomidating (to the extent that they aren't baking a pig in a pit in your back yard).