I second the brownies! (But that's my solution to everything!)
There is a chance that your omnivorous housemates will feel that, just by being vegan, you are making judgements about their own lifestyle choices. But it's probably just as likely that vegan housemates are openly judging of their choices. I think the best you can do is not fall into the latter category and hope they don't fall into the first.
Bonus points: if you demonstrate that vegans can be reasonable and acceptable of others, you give vegans a good name!
I've lived with non-vegan roommates, as well as my non-vegan parents, but I find that to be different than living with roommates. As long as they're nice people, I'm sure everything will go fine. And I support the idea of making vegan baked goods, since it shows them how yummy vegan food is!
The only trouble I've come across was when I first moved in my roommates, one of them used my sharp cutting knife to cut raw meat, since I hadn't explicitly said for her not to. I spent an embarrassing amount of time with soap and boiling water sanitizing that thing. So, if there are certain knives or anything you don't want them to use, I'd just be clear about it.
Also, a plus about being the only vegan roommate is that no one will steal your food!
Ugh. Not necessarily true. I've ONLY lived with omnis and they ALWAYS have stolen my food! Some of the nicer ones have offered me some of theirs and I've constantly had to explain BUT I DON'T EAT YOUR FOOD!
Yeah, my old omni roommates had a bad habit of using my pots and pans if they didn't want to clean their own dirty ones... i spent a lot of time scrubbing things too...
I agree with what everyone's said, especially about giving them vegan goodies. It could also be helpful to let them know you're just starting off, so you're kinda learning about the living with veganism thing as they are, too. Perhaps as you're experimenting with meals, you can offer them to your roommates. Include them in your journey, and they would be less inclined to pass judgment, you know?
I also have to echo what heroincookie said about how zie told hir own roommates in a casual way. You don't want to be making a "moment" out of it- it'll probably be easiest to just mention it.
> It could also be helpful to let them know you're just starting off, so you're kinda learning about the living with veganism thing as they are, too.
I second this. I noticed that in the beginning, through my own insecurity, I could be very harsh/judgmental. I think the "look what I bought now, hihi, seitan looks like brains in a jar", coupled with an occasional "oh, oops" and some "damn this is tasty" is indeed a better way to go.
whenever i had roommates, i usually just did my own food thing. however, if it sounds like you all are expected to share meals, you could just tell them that you're vegan and while you'd be happy to cook for them and hope they'll enjoy eating new and different foods, but otherwise they're not obligated in any way to accommodate you. i've had more luck with people being friendly and understanding as long as they're not expected to accommodate. it also means they may occasionally try to cook for you to be friendly
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There is a chance that your omnivorous housemates will feel that, just by being vegan, you are making judgements about their own lifestyle choices. But it's probably just as likely that vegan housemates are openly judging of their choices. I think the best you can do is not fall into the latter category and hope they don't fall into the first.
Bonus points: if you demonstrate that vegans can be reasonable and acceptable of others, you give vegans a good name!
Good luck!
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The only trouble I've come across was when I first moved in my roommates, one of them used my sharp cutting knife to cut raw meat, since I hadn't explicitly said for her not to. I spent an embarrassing amount of time with soap and boiling water sanitizing that thing. So, if there are certain knives or anything you don't want them to use, I'd just be clear about it.
Also, a plus about being the only vegan roommate is that no one will steal your food!
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I've ONLY lived with omnis and they ALWAYS have stolen my food!
Some of the nicer ones have offered me some of theirs and I've constantly had to explain BUT I DON'T EAT YOUR FOOD!
grumble...
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I also have to echo what heroincookie said about how zie told hir own roommates in a casual way. You don't want to be making a "moment" out of it- it'll probably be easiest to just mention it.
And: welcome to veganism!
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I second this. I noticed that in the beginning, through my own insecurity, I could be very harsh/judgmental. I think the "look what I bought now, hihi, seitan looks like brains in a jar", coupled with an occasional "oh, oops" and some "damn this is tasty" is indeed a better way to go.
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