Friday, December 12, 2008

Snowin'


Hmm, I see I haven't written much of a personal nature lately. I guess that's because I'm in winter mode, kind of half hibernation and half reading/watching movies.

Today we ventured out in the snow to have lunch with a friend of Richard's who was in the city doing his Christmas shopping; he picked out a Vietnamese noodle/soup place that I don't think we would have discovered on our own. The perfect day for a steaming-hot bowl of veggie pho!

I tucked in some supplies for the evening - library books and soy nog - so that I can enjoy the snowfall without actually having to be in the middle of it. The tree's glowing and Sophie's very happy (Richard bought a big piece of carpet to use as a rug this winter, which gives her lots of traction for binking and lots of space for sprawling/napping).

We've been watching season 6 of Curb Your Enthusiasm, and I'm reading a weeeeird book that a total stranger recommended to Richard, House of Leaves. It's kind of like Pale Fire, only mixed with some Henry Miller and a soap opera written by H.P. Lovecraft.
And on that note, there's an important video I want you all to watch. (It's not gross - actually it's cute!) With rabbit meat becoming increasingly inexpensive and more widely available, we're going to be seeing a lot more of the same atrocious corporate-farm conditions for rabbits that other animals currently suffer. I'm not being a meat cop, here, I'm just letting everyone know that rabbits are currently classified as "poultry" by the USDA. This circumvents the Humane Slaughter Act (apparently there was a petition started in 2005 to have rabbits included under this act, but it didn't receive the requisite 5000 signatures), meaning that rabbits can be killed under the same dismal conditions as chickens, turkeys, etc. If this bothers you, please watch the video below and do your part. The bunnies would thank you if they could!
Needless to say, I think all food animals should be included under this act.


6 comments:

Bridget Jones said...

Thanks for the update, SME! Sophie looks sleepily happy, and am glad all's well.

I'm in the same mood these days. Time to rest!

tweetey30 said...

That book sounds familiar..

tshsmom said...

Look at all the chins on Sophie!
I LOVE that carpet. It would look really nice in our bedroom.

I've got a nasty stomach flu right now, so I'm not gonna watch your video. As much as I dislike stupid chickens, I still believe that ALL animals should be humanely slaughtered. I can't understand people who can work in inhumane conditions in a slaughterhouse.

S.M. Elliott said...

The video's not one of those PETA horror shows; it just tells you who to contact and shows a bunny frolicking. ;)

Hope you feel better soon! Richard's got a stomach bug right now too. Fun. I was gonna call, but I think I'd better let you rest instead. Love you, get lotsa fluids!

S.M. Elliott said...

I like the rug, too. It's close enough to gray that bunny hair barely shows up. ;D

Laura said...

I can't watch the video because thse things upset me. I'm with you, I think all animals (including people) deserve humane and dignified treatment. I eat meat, and I don't think it's wrong to eat meat because it is kind of the natural order of the food chain. However, I think forcing farms to hold animals in humane conditions and slaughter them with dignity would a) make for healthier meat products and b) raise the price of meat, thus making us consume less of it, which is healthy for us.