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Barbarella Fokos

Barbarella Fokos is a Reader contributor. See staff page for published articles.

Happy Tummy

SDaniels, I like that you ended your thoughts with a suggestion to bring all of us together. For that, I will add a little fact that I left out of my column (one I didn't feel necessary to include, because when I set out to write this, it wasn't a piece about general dining/dinner party etiquette, so much as a rant about a particular faction of preaching extremists who annoy me). So here it is: Before inviting friends to dinner, David and I always ask if they have any dietary restrictions. For example, my friend Rosa is allergic to shellfish. I treat my friend Jessica's restriction to meat the same way I treat Rosa's restriction to shellfish, and no one goes home hungry. David knows how to cook excellent vegetarian food, as he was once a vegetarian. It is true that when shellfish or meat are in the house, neither Jessica nor Rosa bat a lash, for they are as accepting of my dietary choices as I am mindful of theirs. Otherwise, we probably wouldn't be friends. Mike1, I too am an atheist. I have suffered the attentions of fanatical Christians who have attempted to convert me (three of whom tried more than once -- there must be some kind of prize they get for saving extreme sinners). With the religion analogy in mind, I can understand what you mean by the pervasive aggression against vegans. I could have just as easily written an article about the three categories of meat-eaters, fitting myself into one. But I didn't. Maybe some day I will. For now, this is the one I wrote after the cat-lady vegetarian lectured me. These were the thoughts I had. People may agree with my thoughts or disagree with them, but I had them nonetheless. I'll start working on a menu for that dinner party, SDaniels. Wait a minute! I forgot I don't cook. I'll see if David's up for it. ;)
— April 14, 2009 2:47 p.m.

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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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