Now, he made the first mistake of Kickstarter, which is meeting the goal too soon. But he still really could use more money. And you could really use a copy of this book, so go pledge and preorder. Or throw in 10 extra bucks to get a couple of minicomics on the side, like I did.
There’s over 50 contributors in all. This is a pretty great anthology for just learning who’s who in indie comics. Here’s a bunch of non-vegan famous names in there: Jeffrey Brown, Renée French, Alex Robinson, James Kochalka, Marc Bell, Box Brown, Noah Van Sciver, and Sam Henderson. Top drawer stuff.
I asked J.T. some questions and he answered so well I’m just gonna quote liberally here:
Originally this was going to be a comic anthology split between vegans and carnivores (omnivores, technically, but ‘carnivore’ sounds more extreme!). Once I’d made sure I had enough vegans contributing I made up a list of non-vegan artists I hoped might contribute. Once I started asking around I realized that my original idea would end up excluding a lot of talented people that either didn’t identify as carnivorous or fell somewhere further down the dietary preference chain. I thought it would probably turn out more interesting to dial back the theme to anything having to do with food and eating and allow the artists to decide how to approach the theme. Judging from the comics I’ve received thus far, I think my instincts were correct! There’s a huge variety in subject matter and tone. Some gave me autobiographical pieces, some were purely fictional, some are akin to essays and just about everything in-between. I like to think a dialogue has been created that can help all of us understand each other’s point of view when it comes to our choices about food & eating.
Where I come from, MFA stands for Master of Fine Arts, but those are just really expensive pieces of paper that don’t do a whole lot. A better use of the acronym is Mercy For Animals because they do awesome things like fight for farmed animals and against the cruelty they are subjected to. Not the other way around. Do you know about this organization? I bet you didn’t know they were this cute.
On Saturday, June 2nd, I was lucky enough to attend a MFA event called Justice For All: A Night For Creatures Big And Small. This was a $500 per VIP ticket cocktail party in the West Hollywood Hills. Pretty swank. Hillary Swank was not there, but other celebrities were, like honoree Emily Deschanel and her Bones co-star Michaela Conlin, Jackass Steve-O and that Skinny Bitch Rory Freedman. The host, Freeway The Dog, and his house were incredible and the bar was not only open, but staffed with swoon-worthy ‘tenders.
The party was catered by super Vegan chef extraordinaire Dave Anderson from Madeleine Bistro, a restaurant that is open on an intermittent basis, and Maddy’s formerly known as The Shoppe, which hasn’t even opened once yet. Culinary highlights included BBQ seitan skewers, cashew cheese stuffed dates wrapped in a smokey mushroom, filet un-fish sandos, and some sort of donut/beignet thing that I am considering starting a competitive Vegan eating team for.
The party was fun, fancy and kind of like going to the airport. You had to take a shuttle van to get there (Heeeeey, to the people on my party bus!), you had to take your shoes off, and you left with a giant bag (of awesome goodies). LAXPH (Los Angeles International Party House).
There was a silent auction of all kinds of great things n’ stuff:
And after a few hours of free swim there was a short program, the three important parts of which were:
Won.) Nathan Runkle, the founder of MFA is appx. 18 years old. Or maybe that’s how old he was when he started it, either way, I have not done enough with my life.
Too.) This video. Don’t you not even try to don’t not be affected.
Three …) people in the room donated $25,000 each. 3! Nathan raised 200K in less than 10 minutes. This was impressive, but it’s not nearly enough, I’m sure. They are fighting billion dollar industries and winning, but with ag-gag bills passing, life is about to get harder for them and Bessy The Cow. Do you have extra dollars? Doesn’t have to be five figures, if you’re so inclined, they would gladly accept whatever you can give. And/Or, you could invest in the highly anticipated Shift all Vegan restaurant & bar in Venice, as they are still in need of a few chunks of money in order to open before I die from a suspense O.D.
Not that you need an excuse to shop, but Mooshoes is celebrating its 10th anniversary this Saturday, Dec. 3, with a 15% discount on all in-store purchases, plus beverages and snacks from Blossom du Jour and Dun-Well Doughnuts.
On Wednesday, Dec. 7, head over to Pianos on the Lower East Side for some Freerange Nonfiction and listen while Hannah Tinti, Alison Espach and Alison Smith read from their animal-related books. The event’s $8 cover will directly benefit Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary. For more information on this and other happenings in New York City, check out our Events Calendar.
Speaking of farmed animals, Mercy for Animals has uncovered yet more abuse, this time by Sparboe Egg Farms, the supplier of McDonald’s eggs.
In other atrocities, the USDA released its 2010 Dairy Checkoff Report, and the results are, well, atrocious: In 2009, $108 million was spent promoting milk, while $283 million was used to push dairy products like cheese. Is this really how we want our tax money spent?
On a lighter note: Sending out holiday cards? Be sure to order a book of PETA’s stamps featuring veggie celebs, now through January. The stamps, which can be purchased online, are available as of today and feature famous faces such as Woody Harrelson, Chrissie Hynde, Bob Barker and Morrissey, plus historical notables including da Vinci, Tolstoy and Pythagoras. Celebs aren’t always the most consistent carrot eaters, but they do help expose the mainstream to the cause.
For the young compassionate people in your life: The Vegetarian Resource Group is giving away two $5,000 college scholarships to vegetarian high schoolers graduating in the spring of 2012. If you know a senior who lives and promotes the veg lifestyle, make sure he or she applies by Feb. 20.
The Clash’s Paul Simonon was arrested earlier this year while working undercover as a vegetarian cook for Greenpeace. He might not have been a vegan pirate cook fighting whalers, but protesting against Artic oil offenders gets a thumbs-up too.
Last, I’m sad to say that Marti Kheel has died. I had the privilege of hearing the ecofeminist and the author of Nature Ethics speak a few years ago, and her message was inspiring. RIP, Marti.
Or maybe you’re not interested in cooking on your day off—there are plenty of places to go for Thanksgiving dinner in NYC.
If you’re in the Philly area, gourmet vegan destination Horizons is no longer an option, but maybe Vedge will fit the bill. If burgers and fries are more your speed, a new fast food joint is headed for the City of Brotherly Love.
Who says you have to eat your fruits and veggies, anyway? Japanese artist Takaya takes a cue from Carmen Miranda and creates herbivorous headgear.
Can your cookie crush the competition? Submit your favorite recipe to VegNews’ 1st Annual Holiday Cookie Contest by Dec. 10, and you could win a KitchenAid mixer and worldwide (web) notoriety.
Finally, find out what makes a SuperVegan say, ”Tings, mon.”
One of my favorite people, Jenny Brown, is speaking at Jivamukti Café on Saturday, 11/12, from 7-9pm. In Peace Begins on Your Plate: Why Farm Animals Matter in Our Quest for Peace, the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary cofounder will talk about the way animals are raised for food and how we can be better advocates for our fellow critters.
O Canada! Why do you get your very own vegan patty from Subway but we don’t? All in good time, I guess.
Next Monday, 11/14, from 7-9pm, NY CLASS is hosting Happy Hour for the Horses at the Stonewall Inn on Christopher Street. Join super SuperVegan Patrick Kwan to learn more about the campaign to put the horse-drawn carriages out of business. Drinks specials include the “Horseless Carriage Cocktail” for $3.50, and 2-for-1 beer, wine and well drinks, plus snacks courtesy of Sweet Cheeks Vegan Bakery. Check out these and other events on our NYC Events Calendar.
I don’t have any ink, but I have a lot of friends who’ll be happy to see there’s a new vegan tattoo balm out there.
Meatless Every Days is better, but Meatless Mondays is a good start. Share this video with the omnis in your life and get them moving in the right direction.
Jorja Fox stars in a new ad campaign for PETA, asking people to investigate how their food came to be. How cool is it that the actress’s veg epiphany happened in the greatest borough of all?
