This was a great weekend. Friday after work, I had the husband pick up some Firehouse Subs for dinner after hopping online to do some quick research. I picked from the under 500 calorie sandwich section and went with a turkey and cranberry. It was pretty good and I enjoyed the fact I could investigate the food before I ordered. I really don't eat out all that much. One, it's expensive. Two, I have no control over what is happening with the food and for me, that is quite important since I have had allergic reactions in the past. And three, it tends to tear up my stomach if I eat out more than two times in a row.

But if you are willing to do a little research in the upfront, you'll find, especially in the age of the internet, nutrition information is easily accessible for many eateries. It is interesting that most people will do incessant research concerning the purchase of a car or television or phone BUT aren't one bit interested into discovering what composes the items they devour and run through their system. Are we so conditioned to mindless acceptance when it comes to industrialized food that we blindly trust that whatever is out there really won't add to our waistline or deteriorate our health?

How is it we have become so complacent? I remember when I was younger, fresh fruits and vegetables were relatively inexpensive, junk food was pricey. You could get an apple for a quarter but twinkies were fifty cents but now that has flipped gears. With the exception of bananas, fruit is quite expensive in the budget of average Americans. I only can buy cherries once a year because I can't afford 6.99 a pound weekly during the cherry season but I read constantly how beneficial they are to the body. Why the HELL is this a reality? And see, this is where my mind begins to wander off and believe in the possibility of a giant conspiracy, I'm just saying.

Not too long ago, relatively speaking, being fat or obese was seen as a status symbol. There was even a "Fat Man's Club" which catered only to the portly man who could afford such luxuries as abundant food. To be obese was to be rich and powerful because almost everyone else was thin, poor, and weak. Being fat made you part of an elite group, in fact, skinny men tried to stuff their shirts and trousers to be seen as someone who had achieved success. Mind you, how do you fake a double chin? I imagine all these desperate men walking about with fat bellies and skinny faces wondering why no one was buying it.

So you flash forward to modern times and it's exactly the opposite. Most Americans can not afford organic fruits and vegetables and if you happen to be someone with kids who is on food stamps, holy shit, you're nutritionally fucked. Between being pressed for time or money, the average blue collar family struggles to get meals high in fiber and vitamins and low in salt and sugar. The next time you go to the grocery store allow yourself some extra time and wander through the frozen "family" entrée section paying particular attention to Stouffers. Turn over a box of Salisbury Steak or Grandma's Chicken and Vegetable Rice  and discover the sodium level. Once you do, we'll talk. Ridiculous is all I have to say. Do you think Paul Bulcke, the CEO of Nestle (which owns Stouffers) fed that to his own kids as they grew up? I doubt it.
So we eat crappy food, feed our kids crappy food and then wonder why everyone in the family is on three to four medications.

What a mess, and as obese people, let's get real, we've contributed to this vortex of crap. I shovel food in my face because I'm looking for a quick fix to feel better, I'm looking for an easy answer to cover up the emotional or mental issue I am having instead of dealing with it and working it through. I've helped to create the overall gluten that is hurting the most vulnerable amongst us. A few years ago, California did a study estimating that between restaurants, farms, and grocery stores almost six billion ton of food gets thrown away each year...just in California. Many businesses are so afraid of getting sued over food, they throw it in the trash bin instead of donating it. WTF? This is insane.

So starting this week, I will use $10 of my grocery budget to purchase healthy items for our local food pantry. I know it's not a lot but it's a step in the right direction in changing my relationship with food. I have to work to have food not own me, I need to own it and dictate where I want it to go and what I want it to do. I am not its servant, I am its boss!!!