Thursday, October 16, 2008

(Almost) Naked Chicken

Fun fact: My mom is a vegetarian. And I was too - for many years (much to the disdain of the rest of my family). It's a lifestyle I don't mind in many ways as I would much rather have a salad than a burger any day but it can also be rather challenging at times. It makes eating out extremely difficult. It was a practice I gave up when I moved into my fathers home after my sixteenth birthday - mostly because I knew it wouldn't be accommodated - but it's still something my mother holds fast to. She'll cook non-vegetarian dishes for the rest of us and just make separate little things for herself. And even though I'm more than aware of all the health/environmental benefits of it I've never been particularly tempted to take up vegetarianism again - until last night.

My mother was kind enough to pick up a chicken for us to roast yesterday at the store but upon bringing it home and opening it up to clean it we found this:

Yea - those are feathers. Yep. FEATHERS. Ew.

Is there not like a big long process in which all the chicken resembling parts of the chicken are REMOVED for the health/sanity of us chicken consumers?

My precondition with food is that it must not look like whatever animal it formerly called itself. I don't want to know.

I just about died upon seeing this. And just as I was gaining my composure enough to be able to take this picture my mom looks over her shoulder and goes:

"Hey [Little Brother] - will you go get the pliers?"

At which point I ran from the room, covering my mouth, and trying not to gag.

However I am now an expert on what it sounds like when an already dead chicken is plucked. Yeah. There's a sound.

I'll be spending the next week eating nothing but muffins and cornflakes - thank you very much.

10 comments:

Katie Warner said...

Ohhh yuck. I'm so sorry...

Kristi said...

Ick.

I guess I won't be making chicken for dinner tonight!!

Anonymous said...

I am a chicken farmer, and that story makes me laugh. My sisters both stopped eating chicken after working on the farm. It is funny to see peoples reactions to different things. I'm sorry you found that feather on you chicken, hopefully it won't happen again.

Marie said...

Hi Lizabell -

Lots of people who embrace yoga are vegetarians, but I'm not.

I reconcile myself to this by believing that our bodies are designed to eat some amounts of meat (probably not nearly as much as we do, but that's another point.)

After some thought, I've decided that it is actually most respectful to recognize the meat for the animal it once was. I like to thank the animal for being part of the natural cycle, and providing me with food.

And, honestly, probably the kindest and most ethical thing would be to raise the animal in realtive joy and freedom and then kill it respectfully yourself. Native American awareness-like.

Think about it.

Best to you. Enjoy your cornflakes!
Marie

Anonymous said...

You're just sick.

Brandy said...

haha this is siiiiccck...but also sickeningly funny.

Anonymous said...

Eww feathers.

Gross.

Good thing I had a big fat cow burger today and not chicken breasts.

Nikita said...

Yuck!!! I am re-considering my non vegetarian status seriously. Funny, how much a small thing can effect us.

Just call me 'A' said...

a non vegetarian diet is not essential unhealthy nor is a vegeterian diet essentially healthy. it's the cooking process that important and the type of meat one eats. hmmm a feather in a chicken created such a panic. there are more feathers from where that bird came from. :D

Anonymous said...

If I weren't pregnant and needing all the meats and stuff for energy, I'd avoid it. Normally, I don't eat meat. I have maybe one or two bites and load up on potatoes. Yeah, my ass will thank me in the years to come but whatever. I'm the same way; it can't look like what it was or I'll flip shit. That's why I can't stand eating at my sisters husbands parents house because they cook birds with the heads on and all that. EWW!

Plus chicken scares me. Dirty things!