Grilled cheese is vegetarian.

I once tried to go vegetarian. I'm an animal lover, and the softy in me just got all guilty that these poor animals are raised, sometimes in less than pleasant conditions, for the sole purpose of being my dinner. I had angst.

I read books on how to get all my vitamins and minerals while no longer eating God's creatures. I gathered recipes and tried tofu versions of things. I really gave it a shot.

But I couldn't stick to it. It wasn't that I suddenly stopped caring. It's just that I couldn't turn my back on a bacon cheeseburger (May I have some meat with my meat? Thaaaaanks.). At some point, I had to just accept a certain amount of emotional dissonance - that while I could never actually kill my own food (or watch anyone else do it), as long as it's appearing in the freezer section wrapped in plastic, I'll just not to think about the parts of the situation I don't like. Someone tries to hurt my pet cat, we are throwin' DOWN! But that chicken breast there in HEB, that's got "fajita" written all over it. My ex once told me I was a hypocrite for eating meat when I claim to love animals, but he was just trying to make me feel bad because he was being a hypocrite at the time, so he can cram it. I'm not justifying it. I'm just saying that's how it is. I like meat, and I'm going to eat meat. And I'm also going to give money to the humane society. I'm not hypocritical. I'm *complex.*

I would prefer that the means by which they raise and kill the animals I'll be eating be as humane as possible. I do pay extra for eggs from free-range chickens, for instance. I do my part to support a pleasant life for the animals. And my time as an erstwhile vegetarian wasn't for naught. I definitely eat vegetarian alot more now than I used to, and I like it when I do. I just don't want to be limited to vegetarian only. I no longer have a mindset that there must be meat involved for it to be a meal, but when I want meat, I want to be able to eat it.

Having said all of that, I had two fab-o meals this week that were vegetarian, and I thought I'd give you all recommendations, should you ever find yourself looking to eat out in Austin-town. One was at Eastside Cafe. I had the artichoke manicotti, salad with dijon vinaigrette, and mashed sweet potatoes. Oh yeah. The leftovers even rocked. The second was at Cosmic Cafe. I had the taco trinity. Super yummy, and again, the taco I took as a leftover was just as good heated up.

The moral of this story is that even if you're not interested in becoming or ready to become a vegetarian, expand your horizons, people. Open your mind. There is some way-good food out there if you're willing to give it a try. Find a friend with a spirit of culinary adventure and get out there and try some new foods! And when you're hankering for that bacon, cheeseburger, you go on and get one.