So exclaimed my dear friend, Tae, in reaction to my tweet about having vegetarian bacon.

Yes, meatless bacon.

I know they sell a number of imitation things—and one particular brand doesn’t really do it very well, in my opinion—but, to find something like this in an Asian grocery store? Furthermore, manufactured by a Taiwanese vegetarian product company?

Maybe I should backtrack here.

As a tradition of sorts, I’ve decided to go vegetarian for a month every year. It was so hectic last year, though, that I wasn’t able to do my vegetarian stint, so I decided, as a part of my 2010 resolutions, I would be vegetarian for the first two months. I guess it’s a little bit like cheating, since there are only 28 days in February, but that was something I realized after the fact

Anyway, after hearing this, most people would frown and gasp, as if it were the end of the world, and ask, “Dear God, why oh why would you do that?”

And then, smugly, with a certain kind of smile, I would reply, “Because I can.”

Nothing drives a person crazier than the thought of someone going temporarily vegetarian. They can accept it when someone goes full-time vegetarian, but short-term? They think I’ve entered the 9th-ring of Hell, or something. They secretly pray for me.

Well, really, it just goes to show how little will power people have, doesn’t it? I’m not Catholic, but I do know that Lent exists in order to challenge people to abstain from something for 40 days, to practice will power (or so I think—I could be wrong). Coming from a Buddhist family, I’ve gone to temple and thoroughly enjoyed the vegetarian meals I’ve received (for free, no less). A vegetarian meal is nothing short of normal, for me and my family. My mom has gone through phases where she would be vegetarian for years, and I would always enjoy having parts of her meal. It was never guilt-driven, it was never something I did to prove a point—I simply enjoyed it, a concept that people seem unable to grasp.

So, the short of it is: I do it because I can. I do it because I can prove a point that I don’t have to rely on meat. I do it because I like it. I stopped craving meat after awhile, and it was nice.

On to the real point of this post:

Tee hee, “black papper.”

There is a nice, large, conspicuous sign in Hawaii Supermarket that says, “Vegetarian Food” in the freezer area of the store. I didn’t notice it until now—not sure why—but I peered over one of the open freezers, and saw what I thought was normal bacon. A weird item to have in an Asian grocery store, sure—but wait! It was meatless bacon! Well, then! For $3.49, I figured this would be an interesting venture.

It says to keep frozen, but it also says it’s fully cooked, so it can be served hot or cold (haha, who eats bacon cold?!). I decided to go down the hot route, and popped the brick in the microwave to let it thaw. Then, I sliced them as bacon-thin as I could, fried it until it was a little brown, and served it with my breakfast this morning.

Perhaps I should’ve let it brown more in the pan, and perhaps I should’ve eaten it while it was piping hot, but all things considered, it wasn’t so bad. I certainly wouldn’t call it bacon, but it was at least a decent-tasting … vegetarian meat thing. Even the boyfriend approves!