Imagine a world where you were able to live your life exactly the way you wanted to... happily, healthfully, satisfyingly, fun, eating whatever you wanted– without anyone being harmed in any way.
What if I were to tell you that it is possible?
My story is pretty simple. My name is Ashley and I was born and raised in the South Jersey area.
I come from a Conservative family who enjoys eating their meat and potatoes. Taco Tuesdays, late-night trips to the diner for bacon and sausage breakfasts, or to Philly for steaks with friends and family were a common happening. I believed in the myth that I would be a dead woman if I wasn't eating animal meat for my protein.
Cosmetology had my heart for the longest time, ever since the early days of dance recitals and watching my mother do her makeup in the mirror as a kid. It really is no surprise that I would end up attending beauty school and working in the esthetician and makeup artistry world for a few years.
I was just simply enjoying my life being your typical basic B. Although I was aware that my purse was made of genuine leather, my makeup “may have been” tested on animals, my rosé probably wasn't vegan and that my cheesesteaks obviously came from someone, I continued to live callused to those facts, ignoring my own conscience and imagining that nothing was actually the worst case scenario. I was only living my life as I knew it, had learned it and repeated it...being a human. Yet what had never entirely processed in my mind was the idea that for some of the smallest choices I had been making my entire life, a huge cost was being paid by innocent, sentiment, voiceless beings.
May 2016 was when everything in my life changed. I found myself face to face with very graphic pictures of a beautiful, orange tabby cat who was the subject of a cruel lab experiment at University of Wisconsin. This cat was brutally tortured and "accidentally" killed, in ways I couldn't even begin to describe to you without my blood boiling. The story had broken so many hearts and spread so widely that even celebrities including James Cromwell had gotten involved in exposing the story to the public (Cromwell was actually arrested because he was so passionate about the cause that he "disrupted" a board meeting at the university, and there is a video of it on YouTube). Having, at this point, several beloved cats of my own, I couldn’t ignore my conscience any longer. I was sickened. At worst I had only imagined animal testing was nothing more than just simply running a lipstick down a pig's back and seeing if he broke out. But...not hardly.
I decided that if this was “for science”, then I couldn’t even imagine what “for food” looked like either. I easily became a vegetarian right on the spot, and after doing 15 minutes worth of research online, my drawers were emptied of every product that was tested on an animal, and I vowed to do everything possible to never contribute to animal cruelty ever again.
I never planned on being a voice for animals. I never planned on volunteering as an animal shelter transporter. I never planned on leaving the beauty industry for good...or being so active in the cruelty-free movement, guest blogging for organizations like NAVS in Chicago or for me, an introvert, to be helping strangers with pointers for their debate homework on the issue of animal testing and going meatless. I used to make fun of vegans and vegetarians. I used to think my UGGs came from animals who were already deceased. I used to believe animal testing was necessary for safety. I used to believe my cravings and convenience were more important than another beings’s life. Then I realized I was no longer living in accordance to my values or to the importance of being a voice for the voiceless.
Maybe you also have never realized the way some of your own choices may have made a negative impact on animals. You're not a bad person for this. Honestly probably none of us had any real idea of all the avenues that even contributed to animal cruelty, and even when we did, most of us still weren't able to make the connection between the bacon and a sentiment animal being right away- whether that was due to force of habit, pride, taste buds, or “need” for convenience.
That's why this blog exists. I want to educate people in a nonjudgemental way. I want to help others realize the large impact that a few small lifestyle changes can have. We have all been conditioned to live a certain way, but if there is a better lifestyle out there, why wouldn't we accept it? The benefits would positively impact our health, the rainforest, wildlife, the water, world hunger, our planet and, of course, our beloved animals. Going cruelty-free or plant-based isn’t that weird, too extreme or completely impossible. Living a life that reflects your love and care for animals is doable, unselfish, rewarding beyond measure, inspiring to others, and it certainly doesn’t limit people at all from amazing places to go for entertainment, things to wear and delicious things to eat, and if my heart was able to do the 360, so is yours!
I strongly feel that as innovative and intelligent human beings in this day and age we shouldn't compromise our ethics for a lipstick or a laundry detergent. We live in the 21st century where the world's smartest individuals have developed a wide variety of veg food that tastefully (and often healthfully) mimics the real thing, cruelty free brands and medical and educational alternatives to animal tests, vivisection and dissections in the name of (smarter) science. What a time to be alive!
Please start somewhere- over hundreds of thousands of animals depend on our kinder choices for their survival. Do not be afraid to start because of failure. You will fail, but you will also learn, grow and do better every time. With open arms I invite you to walk the narrow road with me, choosing the path that allows us to live our best lives, lessens our imprint on the earth, promotes peace and makes animal cruelty and exploitation a thing of the past forever.
All questions, comments, collaborating, sponsoring, advertising and product reviewing requests can be directed to crueltyfreewithashleyv @ gmail.com
What if I were to tell you that it is possible?
❤
My story is pretty simple. My name is Ashley and I was born and raised in the South Jersey area.
I come from a Conservative family who enjoys eating their meat and potatoes. Taco Tuesdays, late-night trips to the diner for bacon and sausage breakfasts, or to Philly for steaks with friends and family were a common happening. I believed in the myth that I would be a dead woman if I wasn't eating animal meat for my protein.
Cosmetology had my heart for the longest time, ever since the early days of dance recitals and watching my mother do her makeup in the mirror as a kid. It really is no surprise that I would end up attending beauty school and working in the esthetician and makeup artistry world for a few years.
I was just simply enjoying my life being your typical basic B. Although I was aware that my purse was made of genuine leather, my makeup “may have been” tested on animals, my rosé probably wasn't vegan and that my cheesesteaks obviously came from someone, I continued to live callused to those facts, ignoring my own conscience and imagining that nothing was actually the worst case scenario. I was only living my life as I knew it, had learned it and repeated it...being a human. Yet what had never entirely processed in my mind was the idea that for some of the smallest choices I had been making my entire life, a huge cost was being paid by innocent, sentiment, voiceless beings.
May 2016 was when everything in my life changed. I found myself face to face with very graphic pictures of a beautiful, orange tabby cat who was the subject of a cruel lab experiment at University of Wisconsin. This cat was brutally tortured and "accidentally" killed, in ways I couldn't even begin to describe to you without my blood boiling. The story had broken so many hearts and spread so widely that even celebrities including James Cromwell had gotten involved in exposing the story to the public (Cromwell was actually arrested because he was so passionate about the cause that he "disrupted" a board meeting at the university, and there is a video of it on YouTube). Having, at this point, several beloved cats of my own, I couldn’t ignore my conscience any longer. I was sickened. At worst I had only imagined animal testing was nothing more than just simply running a lipstick down a pig's back and seeing if he broke out. But...not hardly.
I decided that if this was “for science”, then I couldn’t even imagine what “for food” looked like either. I easily became a vegetarian right on the spot, and after doing 15 minutes worth of research online, my drawers were emptied of every product that was tested on an animal, and I vowed to do everything possible to never contribute to animal cruelty ever again.
❤
I never planned on being a voice for animals. I never planned on volunteering as an animal shelter transporter. I never planned on leaving the beauty industry for good...or being so active in the cruelty-free movement, guest blogging for organizations like NAVS in Chicago or for me, an introvert, to be helping strangers with pointers for their debate homework on the issue of animal testing and going meatless. I used to make fun of vegans and vegetarians. I used to think my UGGs came from animals who were already deceased. I used to believe animal testing was necessary for safety. I used to believe my cravings and convenience were more important than another beings’s life. Then I realized I was no longer living in accordance to my values or to the importance of being a voice for the voiceless.
That's why this blog exists. I want to educate people in a nonjudgemental way. I want to help others realize the large impact that a few small lifestyle changes can have. We have all been conditioned to live a certain way, but if there is a better lifestyle out there, why wouldn't we accept it? The benefits would positively impact our health, the rainforest, wildlife, the water, world hunger, our planet and, of course, our beloved animals. Going cruelty-free or plant-based isn’t that weird, too extreme or completely impossible. Living a life that reflects your love and care for animals is doable, unselfish, rewarding beyond measure, inspiring to others, and it certainly doesn’t limit people at all from amazing places to go for entertainment, things to wear and delicious things to eat, and if my heart was able to do the 360, so is yours!
I strongly feel that as innovative and intelligent human beings in this day and age we shouldn't compromise our ethics for a lipstick or a laundry detergent. We live in the 21st century where the world's smartest individuals have developed a wide variety of veg food that tastefully (and often healthfully) mimics the real thing, cruelty free brands and medical and educational alternatives to animal tests, vivisection and dissections in the name of (smarter) science. What a time to be alive!
Please start somewhere- over hundreds of thousands of animals depend on our kinder choices for their survival. Do not be afraid to start because of failure. You will fail, but you will also learn, grow and do better every time. With open arms I invite you to walk the narrow road with me, choosing the path that allows us to live our best lives, lessens our imprint on the earth, promotes peace and makes animal cruelty and exploitation a thing of the past forever.
❤
All questions, comments, collaborating, sponsoring, advertising and product reviewing requests can be directed to crueltyfreewithashleyv @ gmail.com
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