My omnivore sister, Michelle, drove all the way from San Diego to go with my husband and me to meet my reader, Cowgirl, and her friends at the Los Angeles Farm Sanctuary (thanks sis!). Unfortunately, Michelle had a mix up with a GM cow and went home looking like this!
Now I’m really worried about GMO’s 😉
Due to an unfortunate series of events, we were late. I get nervous when I’m late, and I was already feeling my typical anxiety about meeting new people. When we met Cowgirl and her friends, Mike and Kellye, however; they were so warm that I quickly felt comfortable.
We sat down at a picnic table and had a lovely lunch of veggie wraps that I’d made, chips and crackers with delicious homemade guacamole and salsa Mike and Kellye brought and wonderful raw, sugar-free homemade Snicker Bars that Cowgirl made. I loved how she wrapped each bar in plastic wrap and then tissue paper, an idea I may steal for wrapping Christmas goodies this year.
Mike gave my sister a bottle of salsa to take home (I’m sure he would have offered one to my husband and me if we were fans of spicy food, but we’re SO not!). He also told us that he and Kellye volunteer at an animal shelter and that he gives a bottle of salsa to people who donate to the shelter. For those of you questioning the humanity of humanity, that should give you hope!
After lunch, we gathered with a large group of people on the farm grounds for a tour. As our guide spoke about the history of the sanctuary and the suffering of factory farmed animals, I took photos of the chickens and other animals milling about.
We’re NOT finger lickin’ good!
Then as we toured the farm I took more photos, including some of Cowgirl and the lovely black cow she met and fell in love with the last time she came to the sanctuary. I should note that hearing Cowgirl’s story of her connection with this cow had a big impact on me – it’s what prompted me to stop buying leather shoes!
The lovely Cowgirl and her beautiful steer
One of the few really “happy” cows
The most frightening animal on the farm! 😉
Cowgirl took some lovely photos too – here’s my faves!
I’m a honking vegan – honk, honk!
He’s actually paying attention to me and not to that other girl!
It was great to meet Cowgirl in person, and I hope we’ll get together again soon!
Who says e-friends aren’t “real” friends?
I have more to share, but this post is getting long so I’ll end with a photo of all of us and a request that instead of eating a turkey for Thanksgiving this year that you contact the Farm Sanctuary to adopt one.
Oops, a bit blurry
Honk, honk!
Honk If You're Vegan 
Lovely post
It always amazes me how huge cows/ steers are! Sounds like you had a great day Celeste :-).
I was amazed by their size too! We were told that the cows at the sanctuary were unnaturally large due to genetic engineering. Thanks for stopping by! Celeste 🙂
Hi Celeste 😀 I see you and the goat really bonded …… you both have such lovely smiles 😉 Ralph xox 😀
Aww thanks Ralph! The goat seemed to like my smile too, or maybe it was just the fact that he thought I had food for him. I guess I’ll never know. 🙂
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Loved it:). My little one turned 3 yesterday and we had a petting zoo in our back yard. It was so much fun to see the 2 & 3 years olds running around the animals, feeding them and petting them and learning about them 🙂
What a fun party Sonal! How did you manage a petting zoo in your backyard? Celeste 🙂
The lady had gates where she created a gated big yard for the animals… She had brought lama, a hairy donkey, sheep, goats, chicken and a bunny..
I did that last year for my older one and they all had fun :). Surely a hot among kids. There are farms who offer mobile petting zoo for schools, churches, fairs and private parties!
You’re such a fun mom chica! 🙂
:).. Ask my girls..they will tell you how mean I am..lol 😉
Love the pictures! The animals look so healthy and happy. It makes me so happy to see that! I’m hoping to make it out to a farm sanctuary up in NY sometime next summer (when they open up for tours again now that it’s too cold) … Cannot wait and your post made me even more excited!!!
Love your pictures, I bet that was so fun and welcoming and heartwarming. I love the animals so much, I wish I could visit there, too!
Always a pleasure to hear from you Stacey! Wish you could have come – that would have been great!!! 🙂
Ah, looks like you all had an amazing time and you got some lovely photos 😀
Aww thanks Poppy!! It really was a fun day. I think I remember you saying that one of your goals is to have your own farm sanctuary. I hope you realize this goal chica! Celeste 🙂
Thank you, lovely that you remembered that. I hope I do too, every day I get closer! My home is already some kind of bunny sanctuary, just need a bigger scale 😀
Glad you had a great time!
P.s sorry for the delay in replying, message went to the back for some reason!
Looks amazing! I’d love to visit Farm Sanctuary someday and see the rescued animals. Animals who can live in peace and are not exploited for profit and human wants.
Lovely photos and sounds like a great place to visit. IS this a different trip than the one you talked about in an earlier post?
Same trip! It just took me a while to finish writing about it! 🙂
It looks like a great day ☺️ what a wonderful experience
Great post! I love the sheep at the top. I had a pet sheep for many years just like that. Contrary to belief, they are very individual in personality and highly intelligent 🙂
I loved that sheep! I’ve never been around sheep before, how lucky for you that you used to have a sheep. Thanks so much for your comment – I appreciate it! 🙂
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Such lovely photos! This sounds great!
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So lovely, Celeste!
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It was so great meeting you, Michelle, and your awesome hubby! And I love the playful captions you wrote for this post. Definitely let me know if you are ever up in LA and want to grab lunch or something. 🙂
Life’s too short not to have a little fun! And yes, we’ll get together again for sure!!! 🙂
I love seeing the animals and reading what you guys ate for lunch! (A small potluck, kinda, huh?) Love it! Also, on a more shallow note: CUTE haircut, honey!
Thanks for your lovely comment!! And I have to laugh at the haircut comment because I’m in the process of growing my hair out and it’s currently driving me CRAZY! Your comment made me think that maybe it doesn’t look as bad as I think it does. Thanks! 🙂
SO much cooler than Disneyland! Looks like so much fun was had!
those chickens look tasty…lol…. I am just kidding 🙂 I am eating more and more fruits and veggies…
Haha – I used to love chickens with feathers and all too. 🙂 But seriously, I’m glad that you’re eating more fruits and veggies girlfriend. You don’t want to get the big C (cancer!). Celeste 🙂
Nope…
This is lovely Celeste! Thank you! Your grateful reader, Stacy
Aww thanks! I appreciate you for reading and for writing your wonderful blog girlfriend!! 🙂
Cute post! 😀 I’m liking the ‘e-friends’ ‘real-friends’ rhyming phrase there 🙂 I hope to visit California when I go to the states! But will probably hang around the New England area, my brother’s living in New Haven, CT.
-Iz
Well if you do get to California, you’re welcome to stay with us for a few days if you like. I’d love to have you!! 🙂
Woohoo! Fingers-crossed I get to stop by California when I move into college in August 🙂 I was going to apply to Pomona college in Claremont but my dad averted me from doing so 😛 Are you very far from LAX?
-Iz
Sorry it’s taken me SO long to get back to you, but I got backed up with e-mails over the Thanksgiving holiday. Anyway, I’m about an hour from LAX (when there’s light traffic anyway). I’m actually closer to the John Wayne Airport. I know you’re gonna love it here! 🙂
Not sure whether I will stop at LAX or John Wayne on the way to Massachusetts though. Most likely, I will be there in April to look at colleges! Exciting!
Also!! I’ve heard a few things about California leading the green movements in the states, is this true? (not sure if you’re interested in eco-stuff or not)
-Iz
Let me know before you come out in April. I’m guessing you’ll be going through LAX, but it’s not too far from me. If it’s on a Saturday or Sunday I might still be able to meet you. And yes, California is pretty green and I’m certainly into eco stuff. Even California, however; is not nearly as green as we should be to make a difference. 🙂
Woohoo! Exciting! I know that California may not be the leading green city, but the best in US you think? Despite the traffic.. haha. I ws going to apply to some colleges in California, but realized that I probably will not be able to standestand constant sunniness… it would be hard to study do you think??
-Iz
I hate to be the one to break it to you, but California isn’t constantly sunny. It’s a huge state, and the weather varies dramatically depending on where you are. Even Southern California isn’t sunny all the time. The Southern California coast get’s a lot of fog, especially during May and June. In fact, we get so much fog during those months that we call it “May Gray and June Gloom.” It does rain less here than in many other places, which is nice.
I personally think it’s a great state to go to college in (it’s where I went to college!). Of course, there are great colleges in a lot of other states too. Deciding what college to go to is a big decision, but I’m sure you’ll make a great choice. Good luck with choosing!
Hi Celeste!
So sorry for the late reply! I have been super busy with my college application.
It’s great to hear that California is not all too sunny. Although since having been in Thailand for a week now, I am very addicted to the humid warmth. The weather is so nice here in the ‘cold season’.
But unfortunately, I don’t think I will be applying to any colleges on the West coast.
What college did you go to in California by the way?
You must be familiar with doctor Campbell, who’s a professor at Cornell University, having watched the documentary ‘Forks over Knives’. I’m applying for Cornell University, hoping to major in nutrition. It’d be great to hear lectures from him! I’m currently trying to get a hold of a copy of The China Study. Have you read any of his books??
-Iz
Now I’m the one to apologize for the late reply!! I’ve been on vacation and SO busy with the holidays. Anyway, I’m sure you’ve never heard of the college I went to. I went to Cal State Stanislaus. Not on the same level as Cornell, but I still feel I got a good education. And yes, I’m familiar with Dr. Campbell. I’d LOVE to hear a lecture from him too!!! Good luck with your college selection. Oh, and Happy New Year! Celeste 🙂
Haha. Very late reply indeed (Possibly later than I have). Will we be able to expect some interesting ‘veg vacation’ posts from you then? I am eager to hear about your adventures! You were right, I’ve never heard of your college, but I will let you know about what college in the US I get into… Also, just to let you know, I’ve moved back to Thailand from New Zealand; not sure if you will be interested in my posts on my ‘Thai adventures’. It does have some info on vegan dining over here 🙂
-Izzy
Yes, I’ll be posting some vacation posts soon (I’m still playing catch up, however; so I’m not sure when I’ll get to that). My sister’s spent time in Thailand and loved it. I’d like to visit one day too, so I’ll check out your posts to see what you’re up to there. I am VERY curious about what college you choose, so please keep me posted! Celeste 🙂
Thanks Celeste! I am rather apprehensive more than curious, about what college will accept me! It is still a long time away, until I find out in May. Unfortunately, Celeste, I have gone back to eating animal products. And so I may not be posting much on ‘vegan’ eating, but there are still of course, lots of foods in Thailand that vegans can enjoy.
-Izzy
I certainly don’t judge you for going back to eating animals. Besides, I have the feeling that you’ll change again one day – time will tell. As far as your apprehension about what school will accept you, I hear you. It’s a hard thing for most people to deal with – you are not alone. I will also tell you that what school you go to doesn’t matter that much to most employers. What’s really important is that you have a degree. Any college that you go to is perfectly fine. So I hope you don’t let it stress you out too much. Have a lovely weekend! Celeste 🙂
Thank you so much Celeste for your kind note! (You are so nice! – a somewhat trend amongst vegans?). It really lifted me up after finding out a bad score on a standardized test 😦
As for my blog, I will still include contents which vegans will still find interesting and informative for their diets (since my mum is still a vegetarian). Stay in tuned for my vegan’s food guide to Thailand’s floating markets! 🙂
-Izzy
Loved the photos and the post.
Thanks Mom! I always appreciate your support! 🙂
Yay. I love Farm Sanctuary. I helped adopt Martha at Farm Sanctuary this year 🙂
Yea!! That’s so cool! 🙂