give me revolution!

Yes, I know that Jamie Oliver is not the first chef to use fresh, whole foods.  He is not the first to educate and to give back to the community.  He is not the first to use his celebrity status to move an idea forward.  And he is not the first to make monumental, positive changes happen.  But I’ll tell you what…Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution is inspiring and it is making a difference.  And it is happening because one person decided that he cared enough to use his resources, his know-how, and his status to do something.  And for that, I admire him tremendously.

Recently, I have been reading Fast Food Nation:  The Dark Side of the All-American Meal by Eric Schlosser.  It is a frightening account of the “evolution” of the American diet and business of fast food.  It details everything from marketing strategies targeting children, the horrors of feeding lots & slaughtering houses, the injustices found within the fast food system including poor wage, dangerous working conditions, lack of training & benefits, to the exploitation and eventual demise of hardworking and honest cattleman and farmers all for the benefit of the fast food giants that have become more popular than about any other thing that you could possibly think of.

What I love about Jamie Oliver or people like Eric Schlosser, Michael Pollan, or Wendell Berry is that they appreciate and understand the importance of our relationship with food, with the earth, and with our communities.  They understand that health and well-being comes from a holistic and natural approach and that it is vital to understand where we are, where we have been, and where we are headed if we continue down the same path.  But not only do they strive to understand, they strive to educate and involve others to promote positive and lasting change.  They understand that revolutions such as these do not happen if one is silent, but rather, they happen when one person takes a stand and says, “No more.”

Change is difficult and slow-moving sometimes.  But I find comfort in the fact that there are others out there who espouse to the same beliefs and actually motivate me to make those changes in my own life and to then look outward in order to be of help to someone else. 

There will certainly be more posts on this subject as I have rediscovered my interest in this.  But for now, check out Jamie Oliver’s show and let the beginnings of revolution stir within.

1 part bobby + 2 parts flay = crushing, happy, smiling girl

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Start with Friday, April 16, 2010.

2.  Add in 6:45pm.

3.  Combine with 23rd Street & 6th Avenue, New York, NY (heading East).

4.  Combine with Bobby Flay + wife (optional)

5.  Mix in a completely discombobulated, blushing, having-trouble-breathing, so close you could reach out and touch him, crushing fan (me).

THE RESULT:

crushing, happy, smiling girl!

(Make sure to watch the video above from :15 to :25.  This is how I felt when Bobby crossed my path.)




P.S.  While I do have a huge crush on Mr. Flay, I'm not as crazy as I might seem right now.  Promise!  (Don't worry, Bobby.  I won't be stalking you or your lovely wife.) 

flaaames on the side of my face...

As a child I grew up on the both the game and movie Clue.  We loved the game and spent hours fighting and figuring out "who dunnit" and yes, sometimes there were casualties other than Mr. Peabody as a result of those ever-changing mysteries.  Still the same, we loved the game and as such, we loved the movie as well.  Many, many classic lines can be pulled from its archives but one that finds its way into my brain more often than you can find Obama addressing the nation on public television, was uttered by the "prudent" Mrs. White played by Madeline Kahn:


"It...it...the...fee..it...Flame. Flames!  Flaaaames, on the side of my face, breathing-breathle heaving breaths..."

Now very recently, I found myself living this expression a little more often than I'm accustomed to.  These were moments when I could actually feel the rage swirling within me, churning in my gut and surging upwards towards my face and through my eyeballs.

What caused these imaginary but all too real flames to ignite the sides of my face?  Well, it was the MTA, of course. 

Four times--count 'em--FOUR times within the last few weeks, I have been kicked off the train and forced to seek other modes of transportation.  At the height of morning rush hour or after a long day's work, a signal malfunction, a sick passenger, or a fire on the tracks have all interfered with my travel. 

Four Reasons Why I Rage:

1.  Other modes of transportation:  Let me clarify, other modes of transportation means walking or finding a bus or making your way across town to take another functioning train.  But mostly it means that you just have to walk.  If you have the money and the luck, you could also hail a cab.  The problem here, however, is that once you empty out an entire train load of passengers, every cab--yellow or otherwise--is immediately snatched up.  So not only are you terribly late for work and left in a most inconvenient spot, but also you are fighting hundreds of other passengers for that same overpriced ride. 

2.  Sick passengers:  I get the reason for caution when there is a malfunctioning train signal.  But I do NOT understand why the MTA insists on taking a train out of service when there is ONE sick passenger.  Wouldn't it make more sense to simply remove the passenger from the train, take them to safe and secure location, and assign a train personnel to stay with them until help arrives?  For the life of me, I cannot understand why they have to empty the entire train so that the passenger can be attended to more quickly.  You would think that it would be easier for an emergency response team to navigate an empty platform as opposed to one that is full of disgruntled passengers. 

3.  Out of service buses:  When a train is pulled out of service they sometimes set up shuttle buses as an alternative.  On one of these most recent episodes, the shuttle bus announcement was made.  Obediently, passengers filed out of the subway station and headed in both directions to find the nearest bus stop to wait in the rain.  The buses came, but not like you would expect.  Empty Bus #1:  Out of Service.  Empty Bus #2:  Out of Service.  Empty Bus #3:  Out of Service.  Empty Bus #4:  Out of Service.  Empty Bus #5:  Out of Service.  Jam-Packed Bus #6:  too full to let any new passengers on.  Empty Bus #7:  Out of Service.  I kid you not, out of 12 buses that passed us, only three stopped for passengers.  Two of them were too full to really allow anyone on.  

4.  Twice in one day:  On one lucky day, this happened to me on the way to work and on my travels home.  Yeah, I was not a happy commuter.


Yes there are positives to the MTA.  Sure I no longer have to look for parking.  Sure traveling here is much more inexpensive than owning my own car.  Sure I can read or close my eyes or just zone out if I want in the middle of my travels.  Sure its the greener way.  But sometimes MTA hell makes me want pack my bags and flee to a car friendly part of the world.

free stuff!!!

There are many obvious reasons as to why I love New York.  The people, the culture, the energy, the fast paced way of life, the style, and the stars.  But one of the things that I have really come to love and appreciate are the free things that are being handed out left and right.  ALL.  THE.  TIME! 

Given that New York City is one of the most influential hubs for trend setting in the world, it behooves companies of all walks of life to promote their product and their ideas in a big way in the big apple.

My favorites within the last month:

--Burger (Goburger.com)
--Turkey burger & fries (Goburger.com)
--Plastic, spill proof coffee mug (Starbucks)
--Stainless steel or aluminum water bottle (Claritin)

I LOVE FREE STUFF!!!