Monday, July 16, 2018

Wow! That IS impressive.

Talk about getting back on the horse that threw you.

Respect!

Props! That is certainly facing it head on! Impressive!

Wow Carbon, impressive. DS#1 would call that "exposure therapy". He has to do that for some of the things that cause him anxiety!

And on an unrelated note ... I watched hardly ANY television while I was gone. But upon my first day back in the USA (yesterday morning) I was watching the World Cup final and a movie punctuated by food commercials -- which in USA television terms means fast food, sodas, coffee drinks, etc.

After eating euro-style for the past few weeks, yesterday's TV ads were an appalling demonstration of how many (most?) Americans eat every single day. As I watched I thought: There's so little nutritional value in those foods. Just over-processed, non-fiber carbs, high-fats (trans-fats and corn oil), and high-sugar.

And to add insult to injury, some of the words they used to describe those offerings were: "home cooking," "fan food, not fast food," "big beefy bliss."

Needless to say, I saw hardly any obese people in any of the places we visited in Europe.

Food in this country is a big fat mess. Literally.

It occurs to me that this trend in food is a NORMAL outcome of our American Cultural need to best "the best". We are so damn busy being productive, making sure we have the kids fully booked and scheduled with playdates and extra curricular activities, ensuring we don't waste any time during the day; that we are "multi-tasking" throughout the day to be the most productive being we can be, that Heaven forbid we take time to do NOTHING or even worse take time for self care. Such indulgences are not really socially acceptable anymore. It's not what society promotes. People who indulge in self-care are kind of "hippy dippy folks" and I say that in the most societal derogatory way (not my own opinion).

So, I don't believe so much that food in our country is a big fat mess, I believe we as a society are a big fat mess. Priorities, values, cost of living, racism, sexism, classism, are all out of whack. We live in a culture that is quietly spinning out of control and for most of us what works is putting on blinders and dealing with getting through the day to day as best we can at whatever level of life we lead. I think as an American society not very many of us are really connected to the ills that surround us everyday. Until we are able to fix the big problem, I think we can expect things to progress as they are.

Sorry to be a doomsayer, but I think the food industry is a symptom. And frankly, thank God it exists because if you are poor in this country, you need that industry to survive - to put food on the table. It is IMPOSSIBLE to live in my area earning minimum wage. A one bedroom apartment in a crappy neighborhood is generally over 1,000 per month. In the area in which I teach a one bedroom is $1,800-2,200 per month. A 2 bedroom starts at 2,500 a month. Think about it. We NEED that cheap food for the poor to survive.

Muddling through a majorly muggy Monday and trying, unsuccessfully, to stay away from the lure of Amazon ! It is days like this that I REALLY miss my pool. On HOT nights, I used to love to hop in and cool off, right before bed. I would run my central air to dry the moisture in the air and create a cool sleeping environment. DH can't sleep with the AC on because the white noise makes him paranoid that he won't hear something amiss. Oh, to negotiate and synchronize sleep hygiene. Preparing ingredients for a cold plate dinner (chicken salad, shrimp salad, hard boiled eggs, and veggies). It is way too hot to cook or grill later !! BB, my hanging baskets require weekly fertilizer to keep them from burning... this is such challenging weather to try to keep a garden going. Shel.. you can have rotating spirit animals. I'm thinking the goat was there for a reason... be open for an ah ha moment, in retrospect ! Ann, great to have you back ! Carbon, I admire the way you faced your fear ! Cecily, I'll bet you are looking forward to Michigan ! Dave, hope the weather and ear issues let up ! Diane, congratulations on the show success ! Devon, time for more pictures ! I'm so glad they are great sleepers ! Paula, it sounds like you are making some progress and remembering to layer in some self care. How is Xander ? Miss Bonnie, I always love your posts, so honest and insightful ! Sorry if I overlooked anyone ! You are all so important to me !!

Xander is only doing okay. He sleeps most of the day, goes out with friends every once in a while and stays up all night. He doesn't have use of his car since he isn't making car payments (to me). He stole some of the memorial money last week. Made me so mad! I got the money back but he of course denied it at first and then returned it without so much as a "I'm sorry" his lack of regret irks me to no end! He has until mid August to either get a job, return to counseling or enroll in school. If he doesn't do 1 of the 3, he is out of this house. Time to stop enabling him. Hardest things to do but I know it is for his best.

So sorry Xander is having issues. You don't need this on top of everything else. We are all your "phone-a-friends" if you need to unload. Wishing you the best. ds

Tough love is the hardest (even harder on the parent than the child sometimes).

Greetings Monday Travelers

148 today. This weekend it was what passes for hot here. Like 70 degrees and everyone is complaining. Today the cooling fog has rolled in which is what happens on the coast when its hot inland. And the fog nourishes the redwoods that can take in water from the air. I can see why crime wave**** big cities in the hot summers - heat makes you cranky and crazy. Diane O, sorry you don't have your pool to chill in. No clue how I survived 50 midwestern summers.

Liz glad the cookout went well. Tarts sound great. So does bottled adrenalin.

Carbon I wonder what brought on that panic attack? Good for you for retracing the route. Reminds us all how food was an anxiety treatment for all of us. I sure hope you can figure it out and move beyond it.

Ann Welcome back. Glad you had a good trip. Sounds perfect. We did the lake district in northern Italy a few years ago and loved it. Not hot and crowded. We hope you will tell little tales everyday of your experiences. And yeah, Europeans know how to eat and not eat. I don't know what they have tv commercials about but I bet its not big macs. The American food industry truly is f----ed up!

Well Tesla comes home in a few hours. Didn't get all the way home last night. My friend was too tired to drive back after all that winning! I told her she would go broke after buying all the professional photos they take at dog shows. Gotta take them out to dinner to celebrate. Is there any way to celebrate without eating? Thought not.

Shel, now I have to make some goat sculptures. With the stink eye.

Kiln opens today but I don't have much in there. Must make more stuff. Diane S