When American Idol's Ruben Studdard played PETA's hometown of Norfolk a little while back, he stopped to chat with our very own Dan Mathews after the show. Before I go on, I should note that while Dan's job (hanging out with celebrities at shows) may seem more glamorous and exciting than mine (writing about it), appearances can be deceiving: For instance, while Dan is working long nights attending awards ceremonies and movie premieres and so forth, I get to spend my evenings relaxing and watching Prison Break with Princess Cuteyface. So take that, Dan Mathews. Anyway, Ruben lost 100 lbs this year after adopting a vegetarian diet, and he and Dan talked about everything from Ruben's favorite vegetarian foods to the band's reaction to his new diet. There was a great piece about the story in Us Magazine's blog today, and we're hoping we'll be hearing more from Ruben in the near future. Here's some of what Ruben told Dan about why he went veg:

I ain’t never told nobody this—but it was a thing about cleaning up your temple. I think it was like a Seventh-Day Adventist magazine, and they were talking about "try vegetarian." … It was like, "OK, that’s what I need to be doing right now." And it's been really great. I totally see a difference in my skin, everything. Vegetarianism is a better way if you’re really trying to live a healthier lifestyle.

… My favorite dish is from PF Chang's: the Buddha's Feast. It's hands-down my favorite dish. And the tofu lettuce wraps. My favorite brand now is Morningstar. Anything Morningstar, I love it—except for the sausage links. … Every week, it gets more surprising, the amount of options you have as a vegetarian, because you never before would have been looking for those different options to satisfy your hunger, so to speak, so it's really refreshing.