I first had the idea for this dessert several weeks ago, probably while snacking on some vegan vanilla buttercream frosting (left over from my first and only batch of VEGAN TWINKIES!!!, natch). As sugary sweet and headache-inducing as it can be, that shit is ADDICTIVE. (Even more so when you’re scooping it up with bits of chocolate bark, all tortilla chips -n- salsa styley! I know sick right!) And yet I don’t think I’ve seen a buttercream-flavored ice cream, like, ever. Clearly Big Ice Cream has been criminal in its oversight! Luckily, I’m on the case. Agent Garbato, NNU. Neglected NOMZ Unit.

This recipe is not for the faint of heart, people. Even though I made a slightly less sugary ice cream base than usual, the cup of powdered sugar in the frosting more than makes up for it.

I stuck with a basic vanilla ice cream recipe (a variant of that found in Wheeler Del Torro’s The Vegan Scoop, which is similar to A Vegan Ice Cream Paradise’s own concoction), but you can just as easily use your own favorite recipe. I can’t imagine that vanilla buttercream would taste gross when blended with chocolate, strawberry or green tea ice cream, you know what I mean?

The buttercream recipe is the same I used for the Twinkies – i.e., the Cream Filling from Shmooed Food – but again, feel free to sub in your own favorite recipe and flavor. Vanilla ice cream with strawberry cream swirls, anyone?

I was able to fit a full dish of frosting in my machine but you can always mix in any extras later – or use it as a topping. Along with plenty of cherries and sprinkles, of course!

Whatever you do, send me your ice cream not-porn!: fuck yeah vegan ice cream.

Please and thank you.
 

Shane shot this video of the cats Wednesday night. The way that Ozzy and Lemmy were scoping each other out, he anticipated either a bout of playing or fighting (or some combination of the two) – but what came next was much more hilarious:

You can practically hear Ozzy laughing on the inside.

(By the way, that weird sparkly eye effect later in the video? That was just Shane messing around with his camera’s effects. It’s kind of creepy, actually, like Lemmy’s half-anime or something. *shudder*)

Shane (kidding, obvs): So, do you want to see Hop?

Me: Uh, no.

S: Why not? It’s about an Easter Bunny! Who craps vegan jelly beans!

Me: You don’t know that they’re vegan.

S: Sure they are, if he gives them to you freely.

Me: They’re only vegan jelly beans if he’s a herbivore. If he, say, ingests horse bones so that his body has gelatin with which to manufacture them, then they aren’t vegan.

(Pause.)

Me: I cannot believe that we’re discussing this.

Two geese, swimming in the pond, waddling through the pastures. I’ve been watching them all week. At least one week, possible two. Watching, wondering, revering, daydreaming. Could it possibly be the same pair from last year? The same mother and father who built a home within a stone’s throw of our own, nesting and laying and incubating, eventually welcoming their children into this cruel and beautiful and remarkable world in the relative safety of our pond and its shores, teaching them to fly, swim, graze and live?

Have the birds I fell so in love with last year returned?

Ducks Unlimited (ugh, I know, it was the first useful result to come up!) suggests yes:

When do they breed?

Generally speaking, Canada geese do not breed until they are two or three years of age. Breeding takes place earlier in the year than it does for most birds so that their young hatch right when the plant food they need is in its prime.

When it comes time to choose a nesting site to lay the eggs, the female always returns to the same area where her parents nested. While there are exceptions, females will usually return to the same nesting area every year.

Do Canada geese form families?

The Canada goose is a very family-oriented bird. Usually in their second year of life, Canada geese find a mate and stay together for life. However, if one mate dies, the other will re-mate.

Breeding takes place earlier in the year, with nesting usually happening from late March to early May. Once the eggs are laid, the female incubates them until they hatch around 28 days later.

During the nesting and incubation period, the male stays near the nest and keeps a close eye on the female and the eggs. If a predator should threaten them, the male will attempt to protect the nest by luring the predator away.

Wherever they are, I hope they’ve survived. The babies, too. And maybe I’ll be lucky enough to witness the birth of another generation again this spring. ‘Twas by far the highlight of the season.

Last updated on 4/18/11 @ 11:15 AM CDT.

Jump to:

1. Introduction / Choosing a Charity
2. Human-Centered Disaster Relief, Vegan & Non
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4. Vegan Fundraisers
5. Armchair Activism
6. News & (Somewhat Vegan) Views
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Before and after the quake, Arahama in Sendai. This image shows one continuous landscape across the rectangle–at center, see the roadway sloping slightly upward from left to right across the black bar. In the original, dynamic version of this image, the black bar can be scrolled left and right across the landscape.
Credits: Google, ABC, GeoEye
Source: cnet.com
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It’s a startling picture of how dramatic and destructive Friday’s massive earthquake actually was.

The quake, which has upgraded to a magnitude 9.0 by the Japan Meteorological Agency, may have shifted the position of Earth’s axis about 6.5 inches, Richard Gross, a geophysicist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told the Los Angeles Times. The quake likely sped up the Earth’s rotation, shortening the day by 1.8 microseconds, Gross said. Also, the main island of Japan appears to have moved 8 feet, a geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey told CNN.

To help illustrate the damaging power of the quake and the ensuing tsunami, Google has compiled a collection of high-resolution before-and-after satellite images that depict the areas affected most by the devastation.

“We’re working to provide this data directly to response organizations on the ground to aid their efforts,” Ryan Falor, Google Crisis Response team, said in a Google Lat Long Blog post. “We hope this new updated satellite imagery is valuable for them as well as everyone else following this situation to help illustrate the extent of the damage.”

ABC News has created a presentation of the images, overlaying the before and after images for each specific area for a more immediate representation of the quake and tsunami’s devastating effects.

(Source: cnet.com)

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…’cause eight years ago today, we welcomed a scrappy little monster named Peedee into our lives!

3/15/03 – Peedee and Ralphie play together during Peedee’s first few hours home. fyi, the maroon-colored harness and collar didn’t last but a year before Peedee chewed through them; now his color is black. Just one of many reasons why we call him the Peedee Monster.
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Oh my dog, I can’t believe that Peedee used to be Rennie-sized! And Ralphie was so tubby. It’s a wonder what taking up digging did for him! Like Tae Bo for dogs, I tell you what.

Anyway, I’ll probably take the lil’ guy (“lil’ guy”? wtf! my baby is almost nine years old!) walking this afternoon, once the weather warms up. Until then, here are some warm, cozy photos I took of the dogs lounging in the afternoon sun last month. Around 4 PM, the sunlight hits the couch in the office, at which point everyone crowds the cushions, jostling for maximum exposure. A half hour later, most of them have jumped ship; you can find them scattered on the floor, panting and trying to cool off. Super cute.

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Trigger warning for violent imagery, some of which involves female nudity, under the jump.**

A subsidiary of the department store Beymen, blender bills itself as a “concept store.” (Caution: meat-loving hipsters ahead!) The “concept” (scare quotes because the whole concept of a concept store is way too fucking pretentious for this thrift store shopper to stand), as you may have already surmised, involves the pairing of fashion with misogyny, the conflation of sex and violence, and the linkage of women and nonhuman animals: consumable objects, unite!

With several locations in Istanbul and Ankara, Turkey, blender doesn’t just sell clothing and assorted shiny baubles; oh no! Nor are body dysmorphia and low self-esteem its only wares. Ever the hipster-catering douchebags, each blender store is also home to a butcher shop! Because nothing accents a $500 white angora scarf quite like ghastly blood smear stain. (No, really!)

Curiously, blender attempts to sell its audience on this concept by treating at least half of them like pieces of meat, too!

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3/11/05 – A photo from O-Ren’s (then Angelica’s) Petfinder listing.
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New feature! Because everyone adores my furkids as much as I do, yes? Every Friday, a new picture (or series of) of the furkids. It’s like Jennie’s Wordless Wednesday, but on a Friday.

Seriously, though, this is mostly for my own benefit. I haven’t made a habit of writing about my furry friends during this blog’s (almost!) five-year run – navel gaze much? – and thus never realized how much I might enjoy it. And in the absence of more traditional, paper and print albums (which I stopped keeping years ago), these “fluffy fun” posts will, I imagine – someday! – become a cherished keepsake.

To pile on the sentimentality, today also just so happens to be O-Ren’s 7th birthday and the six-year anniversary of her adoption day! It’s a total coincidence, I swear; I’ve been thinking about reviving the old “Friday Random Cuteness” feature for a few months now, long before Rennie’s big day was on my radar. But since it is her day, this edition of furkid friday will be a special one, dedicated to my little lady. I love her something awful, and I’m sure you will too.
 

2/14/11 – As a Valentine’s Day present to myself, I dressed the dogs in some pretty new outfits (Dollar Store, holla!) and snapped a few quick photos. With her pink sparkles, Rennie was my fairy princess!
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Trigger warning: while the picture primarily rests on the narrator’s face, there are a few brief flashes of disturbing images, including a “downed” cow and a “dairy” cow suffering from mastitis. You can listen to the audio alone if this is likely to upset you.

This video made the rounds on Facebook a few weeks back, and – while I meant to post it right away – I wanted to transcribe the audio first, so that those who can’t view the vid can at least get its gist. So if I seem late out of the gate, that’s why.

This is a short but powerful piece; whereas one vegan described it as

Angry and strident, but well-done and packs a wallop.

and, in the same breath,

Likely counterproductive for viewers over, say, age 20, but perfect for pissed off teens.

(let head-scratching commence), this 32-year-old begs to differ. Angry and strident, yes; but also a heart-wrenching appeal to our shared kinship with nonhuman animals – who, like us, love and care for their families; experience a wellspring of emotions, including pain, fear, joy and empathy; and are traumatized by the unceasing bodily violations to which they are subjected in the name of convenience and privilege. A mother is a mother is a mother. Sisters, us all.

In my estimation, this is a message that only becomes more powerful and potent with age.

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You’ve got something that I want. And do you know what I’m going to do to get it?

I’m going to confine you in a rape rack and I’m going to forcibly impregnate you. I’ll likely confine you afterwards.

Then, when your baby’s born, I’m gonna kill it. Then I’m gonna take what I wanted from you.

I’m going to hook you up to a machine that’s going to suck your secretions from you until you bleed. You’ll likely get infections. Your body will swell with puss from where the machines have been sucking you. And after a while, you’ll be so sore that you won’t be able to walk.

Then I’m going to market your secretions as a “product.”

I’m going to tell everyone that if they want to be healthy and strong, they must drink your secretions.

I’m going to put posters up in schools.

I’m going to tell parents that if they want their children to grow up big and strong, then they must feed your secretions to them.

I’m going to make your secretions part of the standard food pyramid, so that everyone will accept that drinking your bloody, puss-filled secretions is healthy for them.

I’ll add addictive flavors and sugars to make people drink more and more of your secretions.

I’ll make them love it.

I’m going to make it so ingrained into their culture that anyone who argues that drinking your secretions isn’t healthy is deemed as “crazy.”

You know that this is blatant violation of your rights to your own body – but I’m going to call it “farming.” “Dairy farming.”

And you know why I’ll get away with it?

Because you look different from me.

And you can only moo.

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Vegan cookies are distributed at a Prop 8 rally in Riverside, CA, circa 2008.
CC image via Flickr user lierne.

For this edition of Intersectionality ‘Round the Interwebs, let’s start with some shiny happy news for a change, shall we? Namely, cross-movement bridge-building with vegan nomz and bowl-a-thons!

(Take note, carnists and defensive omnivores: vegans are not, in point o’ facts, all single-minded activists who prioritize nonhuman over human animals. Also: we are quite capable of multitasking, thankyouverymuch.)

Vegan Protest Fuel: Feeding the protesters in Madison, WI

Vegan Protest Fuel is the first of two projects I’d like to share with y’all (and, if you happen to have a little extra scratch laying around, encourage you to contribute to). Started just last week in response to the ongoing protests in Wisconsin, the good folks at Vegan Protest Fuel deliver vegan food to peaceful protesters defending their rights – because “Everyone Needs to Eat.” Naturally, their first campaign is feeding “the tenacious heroes in Madison, WI, who are fighting to preserve their precious collective bargaining rights and for economic justice in their state against a radical conservative governor and assembly.” Over time, they hope to expand their program throughout the United States and, possibly, the world.

Powered by tofu: it’s not just a slogan on a tee, yo.

See also: Food Not Bombs, Food for Life Global, HIPPO, A Well-Fed World and Ample Harvest.

Team Vegan Vixens: Bowling for abortions in the National Abortion Access Bowl-a-Thon!

Team Vegan Vixens needs your support in the National Abortion Access Bowl-a-Thon! Held throughout the month of April,

The Bowl-a-Thon is a nationwide series of local events that allow community members (you!) to captain your own bowling team, participate in a kickass national event – and raise money to help women and girls pay for abortions they couldn’t otherwise afford.

Abortion Funds are local, grassroots groups that work tirelessly to help low-income and disadvantaged women who want an abortion and do not have enough money to pay for it. Abortion Funds help women pay for their abortions, help them buy bus or plane tickets, and even offer women a place to stay when they have to travel for an abortion. Abortion Funds make a difference in women’s lives…and you can join them!

With $236 raised so far, Team Vegan Vixens is currently the top fundraiser for the Chicago Abortion Fund, which ranks #8 overall. Help Team Vegan (Vixens!) represent by pledging your support. Or sign up to participate your own bad self!

Fuck yeah, pro-choice vegans.

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is the name of a new vegan meme / tumblr blog by @VeganMudblood, which you should totes check out. Also: like (favorite? friend? I’m not down with the tumblr speak.*), share, add to, etc., etc., etc.

Here’s my submission. The first of many, no doubt. (Expect a slew to appear the next time I’m feeling particularly lazy, aimless, or in need of a good procrastinating.)

To be fair, the speciesism-denying human pictured above never actually proffered this defense on her own behalf – though at least one commenter on her popular feminist blog did. (No, really!) And yes, it is in point o’ facts a square in the upcoming Speciesist Feminist Bingo II.

* Speaking of which, I tried to create a tumblr account so I could follow Speciesism-Denying Humans, but my both of my blog names are already taken! Looks like I’m gonna have to think on this for a bit. URLs are a weighty decision, you know.

Updated to add: I blame the kyriarchy. IBTK, for short.

The weekend before last, Shane experimented with a Potato Pizza (using this recipe) at my request. (NO NOT LIKE THAT YOU SILLIES!) For those too lazy/apathetic to click through, basically what it boils down to is this: a rosemary crust, plied with olive oil, and topped with layers of potatoes, presoaked in saltwater and sliced paper-thin. Voilà! Potato Pizza.

While it sounds delicious in theory, the end result came out rather dry. Because they’re sliced so thin, the potatoes crisp up almost like potato chips during baking. So it’s much like eating chips on bread (which, I admit, I do often enough). But really thick, really chewy, really doughy bread. Either way, not very exciting or pizza-like. Enter: cheesy mashed potatoes!

I had the idea to replace traditional red sauce with cheddar cheese-flavored mashed potatoes, to help moisten the pie up a bit. On top of that: some extra cheese shreds, along with vegan bacon (FOR PROTEIN! Joking! That was a joke.), followed by several layers of potato slices to trap all the oozy goodness in.

Y’all, this pizza is amazing!

Granted, you’re likely to lapse into a carb-induced stupor not long after ingesting a slice or two, but still. So worth it! Just don’t nom and drive or anything.

I went with Vegan Gourmet cheese, but if you’re looking for a lower-calorie, less-processed option, you can use nutritional yeast to flavor your taters. And for an autumnal-themed dish: mashed potatoes with gravy and Tofurky slices in place of bacon! Oh, the possibilities.

Anyway, here’s the final recipe. More pizza dishes to come…

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* For the VEGAN win! But for reals, is there any other kind?

** Life in the pizza utensil biz is so rough. Not!