Like A Prayer

The strangest thing just happened … A group of people just came into my store. Two young girls and an older gentleman.

One of the young ladies came up to my desk and was visibly nervous. She started prattling on about a scavenger hunt and was I sick? And could she help. It was very confusing.

I said “What? You’re on a scavenger hunt? What does that have to do with me being sick? I don’t understand.”

Then she clarified that they were on a “Spiritual Scavenger Hunt”. She explained that she was a Christian and that she prayed for words this morning and that God had given her and each of her friends a list of words to find today so they could spread the word of God.

NORMALLY I am really put off by this kind of in-your-face stuff but I found the girl interesting so when she told me she was a Christian – I told her I was a Jew and made her high-five me. 🙂

Honestly. I felt kind of trapped. I’m behind my desk. There is no way for me to get away from people who make me uncomfortable so I decided to engage with them and I asked her what words God gave her for her scavenger hunt.

Yellow. Hot Dog. Mustard. Baseball Hat. Sarah.

She told me that they had bumped into a man who was making hot dogs and he was wearing a yellow shirt and a baseball hat and offered mustard as a condiment.  🙂 After they spoke to him they were walking down the street and saw the name of my store and decided to come in. She asked me if I wanted her to pray for me.

Normally overt expressions of fire and brimstone religion makes me uncomfortable but lately I’ve started to think about prayer and how this kind of Christian prayer is really just a concentrated moment of positive thoughts and I do that all the time – only I call it meditation.

So I asked her what she wanted to pray about… she said “Why don’t we pray for your continued success with your store.” I smiled. “I would love that…”

Then she asked me about why I don’t want people eating animals when God put them on the earth to serve and I talked a little bit about my journey to veganism. As we continued to speak I found out that she lives on a farm and has cows, chickens, pigs that her family raises for meat. I asked her why she felt that “Thou shalt not kill…” didn’t apply to the animals on her farm. She didn’t have a real answer other then to say that the bible says animals are here to serve us.

I decided to leave that one alone and instead I gave her a FOA Vegan Starter Guide to check out. 🙂

The older gentleman asked if he could pray for my health. He said that he felt like I had amazing energy and he wanted to pray for my continued health. I told him he could.

The prayer was a little… um… intense so I was desperate to change the subject and take the focus off of me so I asked them what else they had on their list and we talked about that. They told me that they were anxious to find everything on their scavenger list so they wouldn’t disappoint God and I said “Maybe what God wants is for you to pay attention to everything that happens in-between finding all the words. Don’t you think that the destination is not as important as the journey?”

The young girls smiled and said “I am so happy I met you today.” We shook hands and I told them to have a good day. As they left the store I could hear the girl say to her friends “That lady is cool. I’m glad we met her.”

Now I have LIKE A PRAYER stuck in my head… God works in mysterious ways. 🙂

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Mikel!!

Wahooo! I’m very excited. My friend Mikel is moving to Victoria and joining the Tattoo Zoo team.

He’s the one who did the Unalom tattoo on my thumb.

Mikel starts work at TZ on May 3rd. Check out his portfolio HERE and then call TZ (250-361-1952) for an appointment!!

Don’t be tardy to the Mikel party! He books up fast.  🙂

 

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NEW STOCK

I just got in some new stock from OrganicFair chocolates. These chocolate bars are made here on Vancouver Island and have some of my favourite flavour combinations. Don’t forget – I ship worldwide so if you’d like to try one or all of these sweet treats you can purchase them HERE.  🙂

KASMIR: Kashmir, India, was once described as Heaven on Earth. The Kashmir bar contains a divine blend of spices that are all found in the Masala Chai (spiced tea) that is enjoyed by the people of this region.

PROVENCE: Heady summer afternoons in the south of France filled with fragrant lavender, fresh rosemary, sweet ripe oranges, and fabulous food. This bar combines that sensory experience with chocolate! Enjoy!

SAKURA: Sakura means cherry blossom, and every spring Japan celebrates the sakura with a beautiful festival. Ginger is revered in Japan as both medicine and an integral part of culinary tradition. This bar blends food with medicine and celebration.

CANADIANA: Canada has a long history for both its sweet and salty culinary traditions. Salt being the ultimate flavour enhancer, we combined the salty with the sweet, bringing you a surprisingly delicious chocolate experience. A truly unique Canadian souvenir to be enjoyed both abroad and at home. Oh Canada!

And lastly …

SALT & PEPPER BARK: I have a deep affection for all things salt and pepper so this Salt & Pepper Chocolate Bark by Organic Fair rings all my bells!!  🙂

In other news … have you met Henri?

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Raven

My friends Jayde and Danny had a baby last night and guess who got to be there to shoot photos?? 🙂

Meet Raven. He’s 7lbs 9oz of awesome.

It was the craziest most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. I can’t even put into words how cool it was …

Eeeeek! I can’t wait to spoil Raven!! I love him so much already!! 🙂

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Victoria Vegan Fest update

Howdy howdy – just a quick report from our meeting last Wed!
All our Captains gave updates on their areas, and we brainstormed more ideas for each – too many to list in this email, but we’ve got lots of fun things shaping up for adults and kids!

There will be more fundraising events coming up, will keep you posted on these as they materialize. One item we didn’t get to: if we were to do more movie nights, any ideas or suggestions for movies? They can be fun or silly, or documentaries (something like Blue Planet?)

We also previewed draft logo and t-shirt designs, and they’re looking really good!!

And finally, our big Bake Sale is coming up quick, and we need to get posters on this out ASAP! Hayley is our Promotions coordinator, and if there’s an area of town you can cover, please send her a note to let her know where, and arrange getting some posters.

It’s really important that we get the word out, so please don’t be shy! The money raised there will be our primary fundraising for the event, so we gotta make this count – our goal is $2,000! Please be sure to spread the word – on Facebook and Twitter, mention it to friends and family and co-workers (got a busy coffee room at work? Get a poster up there too!)

And note in your calendars – the next meeting will be April 18th, same times and location, hope you can join us!! These are open to everyone, not just Captains, so let’s see you there! =)

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Win the Ultimate Vegan Getaway…in New West!

Check out this super cool vegan contest !! I want! I want!!

In partnership with Tourism New Westminster we’re bringing you a great reason to celebrate the Vegan Culinary Destination that is the city of New Westminster!  Experience first-hand why this part of the Lower Mainland is a top notch foodie and fun paradise.  Visit New West and you could win;

Our Getaway Grand Prize:

•    One Night Deluxe Accommodation at The Inn at the Quay
•    Welcome Basket From Karmavore Vegan Shop
•    Lunch from Crepe Des Amis at the Fabulous River Market
•    Guided Tour from Fraser River Bike Tours & Rentals
•    A Dinner Feast at Wild Rice
•    Delicious Breakfast at Coming Home Cafe
•    Yoga Class Package at Shine Wellness Space

Our Stunning Second Prize:

•    Wine Tasting for Two at Pacific Breeze Winery

How to enter:

Pick up and drop off your New Veganminster Passport at any of the following locations:  Crepe Des Amis, Karmavore Vegan Shop, Coming Home Café or Shine Wellness Space.

Visit any of the businesses listed in your New Veganminster Passport from April 2nd to April 30th and receive a stamp in your passport when you follow the instructions listed. The more stamps you collect the more chances you have to win!

Hand in your vegan passport at any of the drop off locations and you will be entered to win the prizes!

For complete contest rules and regulations click here.

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What The WHAT?

Gerry and I were walking home the other night and saw these leaned up against a building …

“Do these fiberglass dummies make me look short?”

On Wed we had our 3rd meeting for the Victoria Vegan Fest. All the Captains attended and gave us an update on how the planning is going.

So far so good. Things are moving along nicely … if you’d like to volunteer to help organize or help on the day of the festival. Please contact Dave and he will keep you up to date with all the latest news.

In other news … my hair is now long enough for a pony-tail. 🙂

In other-other news Sarah’s Place has new Spring/Summer hours. We are now open Tues-Saturday (11-6) and Sunday (12-5). So please come down and visit … Fergus is almost always somewhere in the store.

Remember. If you want to pet him – to go for his neck/chest. Don’t reach for the top of his head or he will walk away and you won’t get another chance.

He really doesn’t like the top of his head touched …  🙂

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Two Wolves Killed and Dumped

Two wolves were killed and thrown into dumpsters in Tofino. 🙁

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Purple Rain

Saturday night was the Purple Rain Movie Night fundraiser so I pulled out the boots I bought in 1985 (on Kings Road in London UK) for the event and even wore purple pants for the occasion! I am such a geek!! 🙂

Since the movie was being shown in a storefront just a few doors down from my store – I littered the sidewalk with arrows so people could find their way.

We had a table full of snacks … Cookies from Sarah’s Place. There were Chocolate Peanut Butter Squares from Diana. Zucchini-Chocolate mini-cups from Ailsa and Raw Chocolate Mousse cups from Paradox. And popcorn thanks to Dave. Thanks so much to everyone who brought goodies.  🙂

Fergus kept the ladies company while we waited for everyone to arrive …

Everyone brought their own pillow to sit on … but halfway through the movie my 43 year old back was not happy. I think next time we need some chairs (or a lazyboy for me).

Everyone had a great time watching Purple Rain… I mean. How can you not. Prince is KING! 🙂

We were able to raise almost $150 for The Victoria Vegan Fest coming up in July.

The next fundraiser is the World Wide Vegan Bake Sale on April 28th. If you’d like to donate goodies to the bake-sale – please contact dave@friendsofanimals.org

The more $$ we raise for VictoriaVeganFest the better the festival will be! 🙂

We are thinking about doing another movie night to raise more $$. What movie should it be? Goonies? Spaceballs? Desperately Seeking Susan? Breakfast Club?

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Victoria Vegan Festival – Meeting

Hey everyone!
A reminder of our 3rd meeting on Wednesday, April 4th, 6:30pm at Green Cuisine as usual (come down at 6pm to get a bite and chit-chat before.)

It’s important that all Captains attend so we can ensure you’re all moving forward well, and all other volunteers encouraged as well, I’m sure more items will come up. See you there!  🙂

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