Vegan Horror Film "Revenge of the Hamburgers" Seeks Funding

The vegan horror film Revenge of the Hamburgers has launched a crowdsourcing initiative to help raise funds for this film to be created. The film sounds like a madcap, bloody, and all-together satisfying horror film for animal-lovers as farm animals finally get their revenge...

10 Ways to Celebrate World Vegan Day

Happy World Vegan Day! November 1st marks the global celebration to recognize just how far veganism has come since the The Vegan Society was first founded in November 1944. World Vegan Day was founded by Louise Wallis in 1994 when she was Chair of The Vegan Society to commemorate 50 years of the vegan movement. Since then, veganism has grown immensely and November 1st is a day to acknowledge all the great work has been done as well as sharing veganism with others.

It has always been tough for me to celebrate World Vegan Day since it falls right after Halloween, but this year I wanted to bring attention to this day and do something to celebrate! And founder Wallis gave a great explanation in a recent interview as to why she chose this date for World Vegan Day: "Well, we knew that The Vegan Society was founded in November 1944, but we didn't know the exact date. So I suggested November 1, as this was easy to remember, and made sense culturally - with Halloween and Day of the Dead falling either side. It's a traditional time of year for feasting, celebrating, and for remembering forebearers, and those no longer with us - which, of course, includes animals." 

There are lots of ways to celebrate World Vegan Day, whether you are vegan or just vegan-curious. Check out 10 ways to celebrate today (and every day) below:

Kick Off Summer With Plant Fest at Tanaka Farms

Plant Fest returns to Tanaka Farms in Irvine, California this weekend for two days of vegan food and fun! Parking and admission are both free, and the event will be held Saturday, June 2nd and Sunday, June 3rd, 2018 from 10AM to 3PM. It is the perfect way to kick off summer, with vegan vendors, food trucks, cooking demonstrations, special speakers, all on a working farm!

Over 20 vendors will be there selling both vegan food and cruelty-free merchandise. Check out the list of food trucks, vendors, and schedule of events below:

Attend A Worldwide Memorial Service For Animals On National Animal Rights Day

Image from NARD's Facebook page

This Sunday, June 3rd, 2018 marks the 8th National Animal Rights Day, an annual day observed across the world on the first Sunday in June to memorialize the billions of animals killed each year. The worldwide event is held in multiple cities, including Los Angeles, and its purpose is to give a voice to all the animals and raise awareness for their rights. This event is powerful, emotional, heartfelt, and inspiring and I highly recommend attending if you can! More info on the event, including the one in LA, is below.

How to Make Earth Day Every Day

Happy Earth Day! Though this is the one day a year where we acknowledge our commitment to making the earth a better place and preserving its beauty, wouldn't it be great if you could make Earth Day every day? Well, there is one simple lifestyle shift you can make that will help the Earth more than anything else you can do, and that is going vegan or adopting a more plant-based lifestyle. Now, before you click away from this article, I want you to seriously consider the positive impact you could make by going vegan - for example, did you know that going vegan has been shown to cut your carbon footprint in half?! And did you know that even if you combined all the greenhouse gas emissions from cars, trains, planes, etc. in the entire world that animal agriculture still produces more pollution (per this study)?! Or that on average a vegan person saves roughly 1,100 gallons of water every day? The water needed to produce a just a quarter pound of beef is 660 gallons of water and 600 gallons of water to produce a single gallon of cow’s milk.

Plant Fest at Tanaka Farms This Weekend

This weekend Saturday, September 23rd and Sunday, September 24th, Tanaka Farms in Irvine, California will host its first ever Plant Fest featuring vegan food trucks, cooking demonstrations, speakers, cruelty-free vendors, fresh fruit and veggies, live music, and farm tours. Tanaka Farms has partnered with SoCal VegFest to host this event as a fundraiser for the Animal Protection and Rescue League (APRL) - a 501c(3) organization. More below!

Watch Now on Netflix: Okja (2017)

I finally mustered up the courage to watch the Netflix original film Okja - I heard it could be a very emotional film, so this past Friday night I curled up on the couch with some popcorn, my cat Havoc, and plenty of tissues. Now, I normally stick to recommending horror movies to watch, but since this film was so powerful (and contains some horrific elements) I think everyone should watch it. More on my thoughts on it below.

Happy Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day!

We celebrate Earth Day to honor our planet and to reflect on how we can better take care of it and preserve it for future generations. There are lots of things you can do this Earth Day (and every day) to make a difference - recycling, composting, reducing what you buy, volunteering to pick up trash along your local beach/parks, mindfully purchasing local products and food, and so on. However, the biggest impact you can make is to go vegan!

On past Earth Days (here and here), I've written about how going vegan can greatly reduce your footprint on the world, but I just like to reiterate the huge impact going vegan has on not just yourself, but our planet, and how it is the single biggest positive change you can make for the environment, for yourself, and for the animals!

Spring Fundraiser for Loveland Farm Sanctuary

Loveland Farm Sanctuary

Help bring an animal sanctuary to Orange County! Loveland Farm Sanctuary (LFS), a non-profit organization, is working to raise funds to build a farm animal sanctuary right here in Orange County. They aim is to build a sanctuary where rescued animals can have a safe haven to live out the rest of their days showered with love. The sanctuary would also be open to the public, where members of the community could connect with farm animals and see how emotionally complex and unique they are, and hopefully make the connection that these wonderful animals don't belong on a plate, but rather deserve to live out their lives in peace.

Recap: Circle V - Vegan Music + Food Festival 2016

Circle V at the Fonda Theater

The first Circle V was held this past October 23rd, 2016, and was the first ever vegan food and music festival held in Los Angeles! All proceeds benefited Mercy for Animals, an amazing non-profit organization that is dedicated to preventing cruelty to farmed animals and advocates for compassionate food choices and policies, As soon as Circle V was announced months ago I knew I MUST go!

The daytime portion of the event featured vegan food from top vegan restaurants, vendors selling compassionate, cruelty-free makeup, apparel, and accessories as well as talks from famous vegans making a real difference in the animal rights movement. The nighttime portion was a concert featuring musical acts Cold Cave, Blaqk Audio, and Moby (all who happen to be vegan)!

Wish List: Vegan Tees I Want NOW!

I discovered two rad vegan tees in the past couple of weeks that are worth sharing here. I have a TON of tees, so I have some strict requisites for buying new ones. First and foremost, I like my tees like I like my coffee - black and bold. And secondly, while I like them bold, I like the lines of any designs to be clean and simple. Finally, I look for designs that are slightly weird and/or dark-themed, which I suppose you could call goth or metal.

The two t-shirts below (both from small companies based in the UK) fit my requirements perfectly! I may just have to splurge on them and have them shipped across the ocean to me. Check them both out below:

Esoteric Order of Vegans tee

The obscure cult of the Esoteric Order Of Vegans. Worship Elder Gods whose maddening influence will not only scramble your brains, it'll scramble your tofu.

Los Angeles Vegan Street Fair 2016 Report

The second Vegan Street Fair was held this past Sunday in North Hollywood, California! This year promised to be bigger than last year (read about last year's event HERE!), with more space, more ticket options, and (most importantly) MORE FOOD!

It was held just a few streets over from last year's event, but on a wider street with much more space, and it grew from about 40 vendors to over 90! The vendors were mostly restaurants and food vendors, but there were also clothing companies, vegan lifestyle magazines, animal rescue and sanctuary booths, and many more! Some of the food vendors this year included Blue Window, SunCafe, Casa Coqui, Vegan Pizza, The Ridiculous Baking Co., and soooooo many more!

The Herd, the First Feminist Vegan Horror Film

I recently watched the horror short The Herd, which has been dubbed "the first feminist vegan horror film", and I was absolutely blown-away! It is such a visceral, disturbing short film from the talented Melanie Light (I previously reviewed her short film Switch on my old horror site - an archive of this is available HERE). This short comes at a perfect time, as February is Women in Horror Month (in past years I covered this awesome event on my old horror site - full archives of these articles are available HERE)!

This award-winning short is directed by Melanie Light, written by Ed Pope, and stars Pollyanna McIntosh, Victoria Broom, Charlotte Hunter, with Dylan Barnes, Jon Campling, Francessca Fowler, Andrew Shim and Sarah Jane Honeywell.

In the short, young women are imprisoned in dirty, small pens, artificially inseminated, and when they give birth they have their newborns ripped away (male babies are simply discarded in a trashcan to die, females are kept alive, but raised to suffer the same fate as their mothers), are poked and prodded, tortured and taunted by their captors, hooked up to milking machines, and when they are unable to produce babies and milk, killed. It is horrifying how these women are treated, and early on you develop a seething hate for their tormentors. Who in their right mind would treat a human being this way? If you expand that thinking a bit more, you may ask, who would ever treat a sentient being that way?? Shockingly, this kind of treatment happens every single day to dairy cows.

First Ever SoCal VegFest Spooks Up Fun and Food November 1st in Costa Mesa, CA

SoCal VegFest is Orange County's first ever vegan festival and will showcase delicious vegan food and beautiful vegan products on Sunday, November 1st, 2015 at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa! The event will also feature special guest speakers, cooking demos, live music, and much more! Entry is FREE and I hear they may have some Halloween and/or Dia de los Muertos activities planned as well.

Come out and cure your Halloween hangovers with some delicious vegan food and hang with some fun, friendly veg peeps! More details below...

Earth Day is Everyday if You're Vegan

Happy 45th Earth Day, a wonderful day to be grateful for our home and reflect on how we might change our habits to preserve and protect the Earth and all the lives it contains. As Gaylord Nelson, the founder of Earth Day stated, “Our goal is not just an environment of clean air and water and scenic beauty. The objective is an environment of decency, quality and mutual respect for all other human beings and all other living creatures.”

How can we achieve this "environment of decency, quality and mutual respect for all other human beings and all other living creatures"? Well, we can start by treating everyday like Earth Day! The simplest and most effective way to do this is adopting a plant-based diet! If you decide to ditch dairy, eggs, and meat, your impact will be tremendous. Not only will you help the environment and all those that live on this Earth, but with by focusing on a plant-based or vegan diet, you will also improve your own health and help save animals from unimaginable cruelties.

Vegan Bake Sale to Benefit The Gentle Barn this Sunday

Come buy some delicious vegan holiday treats this Sunday, December 7th at The Gentle Barn animal sanctuary in Santa Clarita, California! This is the first holiday-themed bake sale that is happening at the Gentle Barn, and it looks like it will be the biggest one yet! That means you can stock up on baked goods for the holidays to gift or just enjoy them yourself! Here is a sneak peek at the goodies you could be enjoying:

• Cupcakes from Courtesan Cupcakes, Luscious Organic Desserts, Sprinkles and Sensitive Sweets
• Bundt cakes from Biggie Bakes
• Various goodies from Life is Sweet Bakeshop 
• Brownies from Native Foods
• Cheesecake and cookies from Bloom Confections
• Raw desserts from Feel Good Desserts
• Various desserts from other bakers, including snowballs, gingerbread and candy cane muffins, sticky buns, holiday cookies, s'mores bars, and much, much more!

Besides the bake sale, a trip to The Gentle Barn will let you meet some truly amazing rescued animals. This sanctuary takes in abused and neglected animals that no one else wants and rehabilitates them, letting them live the rest of their lives in peace. In turn, they use rehabilitated animals to teach their visitors about these amazingly resilient and loving animals. You can pet, hug, cuddle, and spend time with most of the animal residents, which is truly a life-changing experience in itself!

Go for the treats, go for the animals, and spend time with some inspiring people and animals!

Here are the details of the event:

LOCATION: The Gentle Barn
ADDRESS: 15825 Sierra Highway, Santa Clarita, CA 91390
DATE: Sunday December 7th, 2014
TIME: 10am – 2pm
FOR MORE INFO: Facebook Event

You can read about my past visits to The Gentle Barn here!

Bring Cowspiracy Documentary to Orange County

Written by Sarah E. Jahier

I heard the best news last night! The documentary Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret, is scheduled to screen in Huntington Beach, CA on Thursday, September 4th, 2014! However, there is a minimum amount of pre-sale tickets that must be sold before the screening of this fine documentary can happen, so please buy your tickets now!

SoCal Vegan Bake Sale at The Gentle Barn this Sunday!

Written by Sarah E. Jahier

Eeeeeek...I apologize for the last-minute announcement, but I have been so crazy busy lately (traveling, new job, moving, and so on) and I am sad to say I haven't had much time for blogging! BUT I did want to tell you about a magical upcoming event this weekend in SoCal! In honor and in support of the Worldwide Vegan Bake Sale, The Gentle Barn, an animal sanctuary in Santa Clarita, CA, will be hosting a vegan bake sale this Sunday, May 4th, 2014!

My Visit to The Gentle Barn and Vegan Bake Sale Fundraiser

November's visit to The Gentle Barn - 

(from left to right, clockwise) Vegan Bake Sale, vegan baked goodies, 

a cute piggie, me grinning (I was so happy to be able to buy so many vegan 

sweets and support The Gentle Barn at the same time!), and a turkey friend!

Last weekend I had the pleasure to visit The Gentle Barn, an animal rescue and sanctuary located in the hills of Santa Clarita, California, to participate in a vegan bake sale that raised money for the sanctuary. This was my second time to this magical place, and it was so amazing to spend time with the loving animals, be around like-minded individuals, and help raise money for a worthwhile cause.

Vegan Bake Sale to Benefit The Gentle Barn this Sunday in Santa Clarita, CA

Hi Boils and Ghouls! It is time for another vegan bake sale at The Gentle Barn in Santa Clarita, CA!

What: Vegan bake sale to benefit The Gentle Barn
When: Sunday, November 10th, 2013 from 10AM - 2PM
Where: The Gentle Barn, 15825 Sierra Highway, Santa Clarita, California 91390
Tips: A $10 donation is required for entry into The Gentle Barn. I also recommend bringing cash for the vegan bake sale (plus a container if you plan on buying several items), The Gentle Barn's own snack bar and gift shop, and vegan hot dog stand Frankens, who will be vending this Sunday! Spend your money on a good cause and local business! More info after the jump!