Meet the peta2 Staff: Shan

Hometown: Norfolk, Virginia

About me: I’m pretty shy until you get to know me, which causes many to think I’m aloof or uninterested. I enjoy robots, debate, horror movies, and Danzig, but not necessarily in that order. My number one priority in life is helping those without a voice, like the many neglected animals in the world.

Fave bands/artists: Integrity, American Nightmare, Unbroken, Earth Crisis, Ignite, Pulling Teeth, CURSED, Living Hell, Panic, Minor Threat, Bad Brains, Sick of it All, Cro-Mags, Joy Division, Bauhaus, The Sisters of Mercy, New Order, Clan of Xymox, VNV Nation, Nine Inch Nails, Skinny Puppy, Chemlab, The Smiths, Morrissey, The Cure, Danzig, The Misfits (Danzig era only), Sunny Day Real Estate, Jawbreaker, Alkaline Trio, The Faint, Ladytron, and many, many more.

I like: Parenthesis (No, really?), Morrissey sing-alongs, Temptation Vegan Cookie Dough ice cream, Suzanne’s "Ricemellow Crème" (vegan version of marshmallow fluff), Ayn Rand, Nietzsche, Kafka, Glenn Danzig’s undeniable allure, dance parties, majestic unicorns (but only the majestic kind), doing my friends’ makeup, beating you at Guitar Hero, the Carolina Hurricanes, Hockey in general, Salvador Dali, graffiti art, my bicycle, collecting vintage tin robots, tattoos, lurking the internet (and maybe even you), my ever-expanding record collection, and supporting local bands, shows, and venues.

I hate: smoking (no, thanks!), drinking (no, thanks!), drugs (no, thanks!), the myth that it's difficult to be vegan, bad hygiene, apathy, Bjork (sorry, Bjork!), companies that continue to test on animals, when people fail to realize that Harold & Maude is probably the best movie ever, "environmentalists" who aren't at least vegetarian, tattoos of Taz in a dream catcher on a rainbow with dolphins underneath jumping over an American flag framed by a tribal sun. Just sayin'.

Why you went veg: My mother tells me that when I was 8 years old, I told her that I didn't want to eat meat anymore. When she asked me why, I told her that I didn't want animals to be killed. Pretty straightforward answer from an 8-year-old, huh? I think I ate a lot of grilled cheese sandwiches during that part of my life. Fast-forward seven years, and I was making more of a connection between the animals I saw on farms and what was on my plate. It wasn't difficult for me to realize that going vegetarian was going to save so many animals from being killed for my palate. I eventually went vegan because it just made sense. If I'm not going to support the cruel treatment and killing of animals on factory farms and in slaughterhouses, why would I support the cruel treatment of animals on dairy farms? I don't want any part of that. There are way too many alternatives that taste great and are better for animals, your body, and your conscience, so please go veg.

Is it true that when you were a child, you once got a dead cricket out of your swimming pool, did chest compressions on the little guy, and brought him back to life? True story. I swear. Ask my parents. He hopped away sideways.

One thing you must do before you die: I really, really want to hang out with koalas in their natural habitat. They’re definitely my favorite animals, and absolutely the cutest things on the face of the planet. I have been known to watch hours of koala videos on YouTube.

So tell us about this beluga whale you have at home… OK, he's not a beluga whale. If he heard you say that, he'd be so upset. Recently, I adopted a large male cat from an animal shelter in Norfolk. His name is Mr. Chow, and my boyfriend and I were the only people even to look at him during his stay at the shelter. Mr. Chow is 24 pounds of kitty love, hence the beluga whale comments. He is my shadow and my alarm clock, is a terrific companion, and gets along with my rabbit, Princess BunBun. Why anyone would leave him behind boggles my mind.