True confession: I like food. I'm a little bit of a closet foodie (see photos below for proof). This is evidenced in the slight excess of me that exists. I'm a bit on the...zaftig side. Yeah, I'm working on that. Stop silently judging me. But I wholeheartedly think that food should be good, and that it is to be savored. Isn't the ability to create baked goods one of the things that separates us from the lower primates? We conquered fire, and tamed wild fowl for their eggs, and learned to cultivate cacao. This led eventually to the civilization builder that is chocolate cake. And possibly led to the French Revolution, too. But still. Cake, people - it's a powerful thing. I believe it was Descartes who said "I bake. There fore I am."
But I understand, in this day and age, the disconcerting disconnect between modern people and their food. I have acquaintances who either don't or can't acknowledge the horrible conditions in which a lot of our food is farmed, shipped and processed. Which is why I made an effort to shop for produce grown more locally, and have begun small-scale backyard gardening. As the saying goes, fresh is best. And I don't believe that all food labeled organic or foods produced using more "sustainable" methods than factory farming should be as prohibitively expensive as they are at specialty stores like Whole Foods. It's markup for profit margins. You're paying for a lifestyle aspect of the food itself.
Of course, meat is a problem. If I lived in a more rural area, I might be able to get fresh beef and pork fairly readily. But I don't, so I have to buy my questionably butchered meat sanitized and shrink-wrapped for my protection. Fine. But I am allowed chickens within the city limits, and that is something I'll be exploring this spring. The neighbors up the street have a growing flock, and I plan on only using my birds for eggs. Feel free to call me a hipster. It's okay. I'll wait while you get it out of your system...
Now, the abstaining from refined sugars thing. I can't do it. I just can't. For me, flavor and texture are really key components to the experience of eating. Comfort food falls into certain categories for me, mainly: chewy (or gummy), sweet, crunchy, savory/tangy, and cakey. I'm not a big chocolate eater for chocolate's sake. If it's there, sure, I'll eat it, but I don't seek it out. Instead, if I'm peckish I'll beeline for chips or popcorn. I'm also a sucker for desserts - the more decadent, the better. But my biggest weakness is really gummi candies - especially Swedish Fish, which are basically sugar and artificial flavors and colors that don't exist outside of a lab. They just hit that happiness trigger in my taste receptors that connect to the pleasure center in my brain.
In general, my philosophy about food is that not only is it fuel for my body, it's also a large part of the social and emotional experiences of one's life. And you never know when you could develop a sensitivity, an allergy, or a condition that could inhibit the inherent enjoyability of your favorite foods. So enjoy - eat while the eating is good! (This is the part where I stress all things in moderation, blah blah, etc.) Besides, who wants to be that person who, at the very end of their life, on their deathbed, is suddenly struck by the thought "I really should've eaten that Twinkie...?"
(Yes, I *am* that person who takes pictures of their food...what, you didn't believe me??)
Salut!





No comments:
Post a Comment