Questions That Have Been Plaguing Me Today

[jedusor]

Why do gay guys always think I'm hitting on them?

How the hell am I going to pay for college?

Why do I have to open two separate programs in order to view my first-year Common App and my transfer Common App at the same time, instead of being able to switch between versions like I can for all the other differences between applications?

Is that peach beer vegan?

How hard would it have been for Pier 1 to cancel today's shift yesterday so I could have gone down to the Bay Area with Mom, instead of calling me half an hour before I was supposed to be there?

Why do I never unpack right when I get home?

Why did I put off so much of my to-do list until after the Hunt?

Where are my nail clippers?

Will I ever learn to write thank-you notes as I receive gifts instead of leaving them for months and then forgetting who gave me what?

Should I file my own taxes this year?

What's that funny smell coming from behind the couch, and why am I really, really not tempted to investigate?

When did this whole "being a grownup" thing start to happen?

What's the name of that Nightwish song in the lyrics meme Kat posted, the one that used to be one of my favorite songs but whose title somehow eludes me?

Why does the inside of my lip hurt so badly?

Comments

[draughanten.livejournal.com]

-backs away slowly, making no sudden movements-

[pr1ss.livejournal.com]

Most vegans eat fermented foods. Those foods have been eaten by micro-organisms, (yeasts.) These microbes used to be lumped in with plants, but are now in a separate category. Mushrooms are eaten by most vegans, but they have some animal-type qualities as well. Reading the label never hurts, but beer is just fermented plants, and may have added sugar.

[hahathor.livejournal.com]

Actually, many beers contain either isinglass (which is a fish-based product) or gelatin (which comes from horses) as a clarifying agent. Larger commercial beers may skip this step, as they will filter the beer (removing much of the flavor in the process), although large commercial brewers may be less rigorous in ensuring that the machinery that mills their grain is kept clean of animal products.

Commercial beers do not generally list ingredients (if they did, I doubt anybody would drink Budmilloors), but many microbreweries will tell you if they use animal products for clarification. I know that Anchor Steam is entirely vegetarian; that's the only one I'm sure about.

[pr1ss.livejournal.com]

Yuck! I don't want to eat anything made from a horse.

[hahathor.livejournal.com]

Anything that's got gelatin in it probably has collagen from horses' hooves, bones, or other bits. So if you're eating jell-o, gummi bears, sour patch kids, marshmallows - you're probably eating horse. Many jams, jellies, cremes, and aspics use gelatin, as do a number of diet foods, which use gelatin to simulate the mouth feel of fat.

Also, in addition to clarifying beer, both gelatin & isinglass are used to clarify juices (esp clearish juices like apple and pear), ciders, and vinegars. I don't believe these processes need to be indicated on the label. And yeah, that does kinda suck.

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

both gelatin & isinglass are used to clarify juices (esp clearish juices like apple and pear), ciders, and vinegars. I don't believe these processes need to be indicated on the label.

Aw, shit. :(

[530nm330hz.livejournal.com]

I don't believe these processes need to be indicated on the label.

But they will make the item in question tref. So if you see a hechsher (kosher symbol) you know they haven't used animal gelatin.

(On a related note, European wines sometimes use blood as a clarifying agent.)

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

Huh. That could be helpful. I don't even know what a hechsher looks like, though, and Google isn't helping much.

I don't really like most beer or wine, so it's not usually a problem. As long as Malibu and Kahlua stay away from the horse bones, I'm good alcohol-wise. Vinegar and fruit juice, though- that's definitely something to worry about.

[530nm330hz.livejournal.com]

Kashrut.com has a list of certifying agencies and their symbols. Long story short: anyone can establish themselves as a certifying agency, which simply means that they send someone to supervise the production of food and put their symbol on the package. Some agencies (such as the OU or Kof-K) are very well-known and well-respected; others are just one or two people and you have to ask around to find out if they're reliable.

I should also note that while all the major kashrut agencies don't allow animal gelatin (some of the minor ones do on the grounds that by the time it's gelatin it has stopped being food and it doesn't matter where it came from; that gets back to the question of deciding whether one will rely on a particular certifying agency), I don't think any of them would object to fish-derived items as a clarifying agent so that won't necessarily help vis-a-vis veganism. (Kashrut defines "meat" as having blood, not icher.)

I hope this is more useful than confusing!

[toonhead-npl.livejournal.com]

Because I know you were totally checkin' out my butt. That or you were hoping I would buy you a drink. How do you tell the diff?

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

I'm under 21 and about to go into serious debt for college, so chances are good it was the latter. ;)

[toonhead-npl.livejournal.com]

* cry *

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

Aw. I'd be happy to check out your ass if that would make you feel better! :P

[toonhead-npl.livejournal.com]

Okay now I am touched by the profound creepiness of my original message :P

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

ZOMG! CREEPY OLD HOMOSEXUAL! HAAAALP!

(Ahahahaha, the TV in the next room just started talking about Oscar Wilde.)

[toonhead-npl.livejournal.com]

lol suuuure it did ;)

[kohl-eyed.livejournal.com]

The funny smell is clearly a portal into another world. It has the misfortune of leading into a sewer.

Also, "It takes a real man to put his tongue on another man like that..." (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_2Fdxrkka0&) From Make Me a Supermodel.

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

Sadly, it did not turn out to be anything of the sort.

[kohl-eyed.livejournal.com]

:( Ah, yeah...I just ready.

[kohl-eyed.livejournal.com]

lmao...I make so many typos.

*read

*dies*

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

What exactly is Princeton teaching you, woman? Hmmmm? ;)

[kohl-eyed.livejournal.com]

XDDD apparently not typing.

[velvetpanda.livejournal.com]

*hugs*

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

Aw. *hugs back*

(If you didn't like my story about finding a massive bug on my neck a while back, you're definitely not going to like what the smell turned out to be.)