Food Traditions

Thinking about my childhood growing up and through present day I realized my family doesn't really have many traditions with food.  There are not any religious (or non-religious) holidays that we celebrate in any particular way, except Thanksgiving.  Even with Thanksgiving though, we do the typical feast that most people do like with turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, graving, the works...  But aside from that we do not have any specific foods for any other holidays.  The only thing that I could really say is a tradition is just who we spend our holidays with, for example every Christmas Eve we go out to dinner with my aunt and uncle, we either meet somewhere near West Bloomfield, where they live, or we meet near my hometown.  I have always really enjoyed going out on Christmas Eve because we always get really dressed up and have a grand time with the family.  Christmas day is usually spent with a close family either at our house or theirs.  I think I enjoy this time the most because this is my best friends family and her parents are my parents best friends so we always have a lot of fun!  But regardless, no matter where we spend our holiday time, the food is always different.  I do not mind this though, I actually enjoy not knowing what is going to be for dinner every holiday, it is nice to be able to decide with my parents what we would like to make each year or order at the different restaurant.  Having Thanksgiving the only meal set in stone is enough for me because that one is definitely my favorite, I mean I'm already looking forward to this years feast! 

One thing that is kind of a tradition, I suppose, is that my mom likes to always make corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick's Day and we usually dye all of our drinks for the day green for fun!  I love doing this because I enjoy my Irish heritage and like to celebrate it while I can on St. Patrick's Day!

Global Climate Change

Throughout my time here at Western Michigan University I have learned a lot about global climate change.  My freshman year I took, what I thought was the generic version everyone took, a first year experience (FYE) course and its main objective was about climate change.  At first I was slightly bummed to find out I enrolled for this course and not the typical one that everyone takes, however I ended up gaining a lot of knowledge from the semester.  Our class split up into groups to work on separate semester long projects, mine was based on the wind turbine located at the engineering campus.  I learned a lot through this course about global climate change and the effects it has on our planet.  The biggest thing I took from this class was how important it is to be energy efficient, the actions of just one person can make a huge impact in the long run!

Currently, in my microbiology course, we have been learning about how the change in our climate can impact many microorganisms.  For example, an increase in CO2 emissions causes the acidity of our oceans to increase, therefore causing shellfish to become more susceptible to attack by many microorganisms.  The impact on shellfish can lead to many gastrointestinal infections when the shellfish is consumed, this will only get worse as CO2 emissions increase.  Also, a 2ºC increase in global temperature will lead to a 20% increase in Malaria cases in certain regions of the world.  These are just two of the many disturbances that can occur from an increase in global temperature.  
The main thing about global climate change is that the future of it is in OUR hands, this sounds intimidating, however the truth is we can make change happen.  Little things like being more efficient with heating our homes will help decrease CO2 emissions as well as other things like limiting unnecessary driving and recycling more often.  Everyone can take part in the small aspects that will help as well as getting involved in researching ways to find more renewable resources!  

El Inka

On Friday 4/4/14, I visited El Inka for lunch, I went with a couple of my friends.  A few days ago I was telling them about the assignment to go to a restaurant of another culture and one of my friends, Lucia, immediately recommended El Inka.  El Inka is a Peruvian restaurant, the only one in Michigan actually.  Lucia is from Peru and told me all about the cuisine before we went, it sounded really good so I was pretty excited!  The restaurant was small inside and the atmosphere was cool, it definitely spoke Peru!  I was slightly taken aback by the menu because all of the headings were in Spanish so I was confused but Lucia and the waitress were helpful.  Unfortunately, with it being Lent and I went on a Friday, I could not eat anything that had meat in it, so this limited my choices even more...  I ended up deciding to order the papa a la huancaina, which was sliced steamed potatoes topped with huancaina cream, egg and an olive.  I love trying new foods and drinks, however I don't always enjoy what I try, that was the case at El Inka.  The food was prepared great and the prices were reasonable, but I do not think Peruvian food is for me.  I enjoy spice and the dish I ordered definitely had a kick which was nice, but it was also very salty which I didn't care for.  
Overall, I did really enjoy my experience at El Inka, the owners have done a nice job with this restaurant.  The owners ordered a rotisserie oven from Peru to specially cook their chicken, this ended up costing the family $18,000 because of shipping and delays!!  Also, they offer Inka Kola, which is a banana cream soda, and I was excited to try this drink but they did not have any when I went... :(  I might have to go back just to check that out!

27 Reasons to Avoid Farmers Markets

We have learned a lot about the food industry in ENGL 1100 and how it influences our society in so many different ways.  We have read about and discussed the meat packing industry, the fast food industry, the life of farmers and consumers, the cultural impact food can have, and the influence of food  on our economy.  The Kalamazoo Public Library event that I attended was about organic farmers and one of the main points to that event was about buying local produce and getting out to the farmers market.  After this event I really felt the urge to go out to the first farmers market that opens this season and I cannot wait to do so.  With this in mind while searching for satires about food I stumbled upon a great article called 27 Reasons to Avoid Farmers Markets by Valerie Comer.  In this article she gives twenty-seven statements about food that, if agreed with, will make you never want to venture out to a farmers market.  Thankfully, I do NOT agree with any of the statements she provides however I do find them to be quite entertaining!  

Here is a couple of my favorite statements:
#3. I love factory-farmed meat, dairy, and eggs.  All animals belong in little boxes.
#4. I love eating chemicals and pesticides.  After all, if this stuff preserves food, it will preserve me, too.  Won't it?
#8. I like being ignored by my growers.  Why would I want better service and people paying attention to my needs?  Someone trying to understand makes me uncomfortable.
#10. I love paying the middleman.  Why should farmers get actual wages when we could support commodity traders instead?
#13. I adore excessive packaging.  If I didn't have so much plastic to get rid of, how would I ever fill my garbage bins?
#18. I love being at the mercy of chain supermarkets, because I know they have my best interests at heart. 
#25. I want to suffer from fun things like cancer, heart disease or diabetes.  Maybe I'll get to die young.
and finally,
#27. I don't approve of seasons.  Food is dumb if it can't figure out how to be grown 12 months of the year on all 6 continents.  And in Antarctica, come to think of it.




HA!  Well as you can see I found quite a few of the statements quite enjoyable....!  Honestly, I really hope no one would agree with anything in this article, it would be seriously ignorant, but I would not be surprised if some people do.  I mean, in reality, even though the way these statements are written in a way to make them sound ridiculous they make a great point, by choosing processed and factory produced food over organic and locally grown food we are kind of agreeing with the absurdity of these statements, right?  

The overall ethical standpoint on how large companies produce food is never positive, it is horrible to think of innocent animals being locked up in cages just to get fat and then butchered so we can eat them, #3 in the article makes that point clearly.
#4 and #25 go hand in hand, of course food with preservatives will not preserve us, in fact they do the opposite.  Always eating preservatives in food is terrible for our bodies.
The best part about having local farmers and an interactive community is that everyones interests are taken into account.  Just like the farmers need our support, they are here to support us!  I mean why would someone put all of their time and money into producing delicious and healthy food for their community if they did not care about the people buying their products, it just doesn't make sense.  On the other hand, these large, food producing companies do not have the consumer in mind, it is all about money.  #8 and #18 make this point pretty clear.
The final statement, #27, is just hilarious to me!  The world is not meant to work perfectly, nothing is, but some people really do believe that they should be able to have whatever they want whenever they want it and this is just simple ignorance.  

I believe, the whole point of this article is to snap people back into reality.  So many people are so consumed by their daily lives and lifestyles that it doesn't occur to them that little things, like frequenting Walmart, can impact our world in such a drastic way.  It is easy to do things the quick and simple way, save money, and make a quick meal, when in the long run it can severely damage our environment, economy, and overall societal values. 

The Farming Life

 On Tuesday March 18, 2014 I attended the Oshtemo Branch Library for the discussion The Farming Life a farmers perspective with Sarah Lee.  I found this to be extremely interesting given everything we have discussed in this course to date.  The discussion was with three female organic farmers from the area.  The first woman was Heather Colburn who owns Elderfire Farm in Dowling Michigan.  Heather explained that she was inspired by her grandmother, whom had grown up on a farm.  Her inspiration continues with her children who, as she explained, started enjoying healthy organic food at a young age.
 The second woman was Laurie Arboreal who owns Eaters Guild Farm in Bangor, Michigan.  Laurie's inspiration started at a young age when she realized how much she loved to cook, her mother did not care for cooking rather she would clean, so they made a great team in the kitchen!  Laurie met her husband and joined him on an internship in agriculture which finally led them to starting their farm.  Laurie grew up with a nice garden and continues that lifestyle now with her large vegetable farm, including a large herd of goats.  She realizes the importance of raising a family with healthy eating habits ands would like to continue that for her daughter!
 The third woman was Shauna, owner of Blue Dog Family Farm located in Bangor, Michigan.  Shauna grew up on a dairy farm, which is much different from her current vegetable farm, and has kept the lifestyle going.  Shaunas job on the farm includes preserving the food, the business work, keeping the children busy, and so much more that goes into being a farm wife.
 All three of the farms offer CSA, community supported agriculture, shares which allow the community to help the farm.  These shares are bought before the season in which they are wanted for and the money goes to the local farm, meanwhile the share holders receive a box of produce every week that is hand picked from the farm.  This is a great opportunity for the community to get involved while helping out the local farmers!
 One really interesting topic during the evening was about how organic farmers become certified.  I personally had no previous knowledge about organic farming aside from the bits that were discussed earlier in ENGL 1100.  I learned that a third party certifier comes in for inspection and grants the certification.  Inspections take place once a year to ensure that the farm is still following the organic guidelines.  As far as following the guidelines for chemical usage is concerned, a lot of record keeping must be done by the organic farmers, it is all about tracking such as back to the plants origin, when it was planted, transplanted, harvested, etc.  Luckily, most organic farms do not need chemically enhanced soil or sprays because their soil is so rich in nutrients already!
 Another interesting concept, trailing certification, was about how organic farmers nurture their soil.  The three farmers explained that crop rotation is key, don't plant a leafy green plant after planting a different leafy green plant, there must be changes in what's planted in order to ensure the soils nutrients aren't becoming over used.  Also, they explained that compost is hard to come by however it is necessary to keep the organic matter high, soil testing must be done to ensure the right compost is used.
 We, especially those who read The Omnivore's Dilemma, learned a lot about the large commercial farms throughout the world.  One big question for the local, organic farmers was how do they get around the commercial farmers who spray a lot of chemicals that cannot contaminate their land.  They explained that there are buffer zones around the organic farms that cannot be farmed, however these zones ensure that the land they encompass is free from contamination.  Also, they explained that if a farmer wants to switch to organic there is a three year transition period.
 For the upcoming season the women explained what they are most looking forward to growing, Heather said she was really excited to grow melons however she is reconsidering now because of the lack of warm weather.  Laurie is going to try a hot house approach to growing a tropical strain of mushrooms!  Shauna said that she would really like to put together a baby kale salad mix.
 The whole discussion that took place was really interesting, above I have just listed some of the topics that I found personally interesting, especially for this course.  I definitely want to check out the farmers market around here this summer and try to find produce from the three local farms.  I have never been big on organic foods, mostly because of the price, however I learned a lot about organic farming from this experience and I think I would like to try to incorporate more organic foods into my grocery list and diet!
 One final note about the evening, a woman from the audience spoke up at one point to tell everyone about her farm, Tabitha Farm off of South Burdick street, because from May to November they provide a free farm stand with foods from local farms!

Truth Behind Five Quarters of the Orange

Well, the book Five Quarters of the Orange has really begun to twist around a lot!  I have been so intrigued by this novel!  I cannot seem to want to put it down, although I have had to discipline myself due to having a lot of other homework...  Anyway, I would like to begin with the discussing the title of the book.  Mirabelle Dartigen, Framboise's mother, was a very stern woman and did not show very much love toward her three children.  Mirabelle suffered from very intense migraines throughout her adulthood and they worsened after her husband was killed in the war.  These migraines seemed to stem from out of nowhere except she always smelled oranges before they came on...  This was a strange occurrence for there were never any oranges around when she seemed to smell them!  However, this worked to Framboise's advantage one day when she longed to venture into town with her siblings.  Framboise really wanted to explore town and see a cinema and just have some fun with the siblings she had become so distant with over the past few years of them venturing off to college.  She did not like that they had separate lives that she was not apart of, so when the opportunity to go to town with them arose she did everything she could to make it happen.  Framboise had taken an orange and put it under the oven so its scent would fill the house and give her mother the feeling that a migraine was coming on.  This had worked and Mirabelle had gone to bed early and slept into the day they wanted to go to town.  


Now, the reason why Framboise had to change her name when she was an elderly woman going back to live in her hometown was because she was associated with the murder of a German soldier.  This soldiers name was, Tomas Leibniz.  His role in this book was as a soldier stationed in the town of Les Laveuses who had seen Framboise steal the orange that she used against her mother.  After this had happened Tomas seeked out Framboise and had begun to get to know her.  He used his manipulation skills to get information of out Framboise and her two siblings about the different people living in the town.  Tomas would trade little items of value with the kids for information.  However, this did not end well...  Although his agenda did not have to do with that of the other stationed soldiers it still caused havoc among the town.  
Overall, this book was really great and had my interest the whole time!  I would really like to read other books written by Joanne Harris!!  Also, if I didn't already mention in class, this book made me really hungry while I read it because there is so much written about food!  Everything within the album that Mirabelle left for Framboise sounded delicious and I would really enjoy trying out some of the recipes that were described throughout the book!

Five Quarters of the Orange

So as you can see I switched books...  I didn't initially want to because I had made it so far into The Physiology of Taste, however I now am very glad with my decision because although the other book was interesting, Five Quarters of the Orange is definitely a better choice for, not only the pace of this course but, keeping my interest for a long period of time.
Anyway, Five Quarters of the Orange by Joanne Harris is, so far, about a woman who has begun a new life back in her hometown owing a Crepe shop.  She is hiding her identity from the townspeople because she does not want them to realize her relation to her deceased mother.  The book hasn't gotten into much detail as of why except that her mothers reputation had been ruined.  I know, from research, that her mother was to blame for the death of a German soldier, Tomas Leibniz, and this caused a lot of havoc among the town.  
So as the main character, Framboise, aged she decided, especially after losing her husband, that she would return home and rebuild the house she once lived in.  This took a lot of time because it had been abandoned however she made it work and eventually started the crepe shop.  
When Framboise's mother passed away she was left with her album, which was basically a cookbook/diary.  This album was full of her mothers recipes along with random tidbits of information about the recipes as well as very random pieces of information about her mother and her life.  There were poems, words describing her current thoughts and atmosphere she was in, as well as thoughts about her family and previous life before kids.  
Framboise was thought to be the favorite child of her mothers, she had one sister and a brother.  Both her sister and brother had moved away after the death of their mother and the three siblings have very little contact, at least where I am in the book thus far.  Except, however, Framboise's brother, Cassis, has recently spent time with her because his son and daughter in law are very keen on obtaining recipes from Framboise for their restaurant in Paris.  Framboise is not a fan of this idea, only because she does not want the publicity, seeing as how she is hiding her identity and all.  
The book just started to bring the title into it where I have recently stopped reading.  I am very curious to continue to read because I would like to find out more about the background of the title, for it seems quite intriguing from what I just recently read.  I will save that information, however, for my next blog when I, myself, have a better understanding of what is going on!

Physiology of Taste

The Physiology of Taste is a book that was written in 1948 in France.  I chose to read this book because it sounded interesting and I thought that from the sounds of the description my background in physiology would benefit me reading this book.  So far that is accurate however I am sure that no scientific background would really be needed in reading this for the author explains what he is writing in great detail.  The only difficult part of reading this book is the wording that is used and the sentence structure, this has been translated from French so I am not surprised that it is a bit of a challenge to read.  
Anyway, the book begins with the author describing the senses that we all possess, he explains that there are six.  When I first read this I was slightly confused because I only recall having five senses unless you count seeing dead people like from the movie The Sixth Sense...  However, this is not what Brillat-Savarin was referring to when describing the sixth sense, he considered the senses to consist of sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and genesic or physical love.  In the beginning of this book he explains how the senses are the basis of how we live and how they play a huge role in every aspect of our lives.  The reasoning for considering physical love one of the senses is because it is what brings us to the act of reproduction which is in turn how we continue a species to exist.  The continuation of a species is the main goal of life on Earth.  
In the second mediation, or chapter, the definition of taste is described.  I would personally describe taste as being the sensation exhibited after ingesting something, I say "something" because it may not always be a type of food...  However when it boils down to it, really what is food?  Is it really anything we eat or is it only particles that benefit our bodies after digestion?  I don't know the answer but I will not assume that food is anything that is put into our bodies.  Anyway, according to Google the definition of taste is the sensation of flavor perceived in the mouth and throat on contact with a substance.  Brillat-Savarin explains that taste is the one of our senses which places us in relation with sapid bodies by means of the sensation they produce in the organ destined to appreciate them.  
The next few mediations refer to the origin of the sciences, the definition of appetite, on food in general, and special kinds of food.  From these last mediations the most informative piece of information I thought for this blog would be about the explanation of food in the mediation about food in general.  I already said that I was not sure what "food" really is however Brillat-Savarin explains that the popular answer is that food is everything that nourishes us.  He further examines the scientific answer which is: we understand by food the substances which, submitted to the stomach, can be assimilated by digestion, and repair the losses which the human body suffers by the wear and tear of life.  

The Hunger Games

Ohhh the Hunger Games...  This book is full of adventure, friendship, hate, and most of all survival.  We are taken along for the journey of Katniss Everdeen's experience with the Hunger Games and through her eyes we are learning of her experiences with all that is changing every so quickly in her life.  Katniss volunteered as tribute in place of her sister, Primrose, because she could not bear allowing Prim to take part in the games.  This, in the beginning, shows a lot about Katniss's character, she is a very caring individual of the people close to her.  However there are not many people that Katniss is close with, really it is only her sister and best friend, Gale.  She has her guard up with most people because the life she has lived made her callused and standoff-ish.  However once Katniss becomes close with anyone she shows the truest sincerity in her actions and it is obvious that her friendship would be a great one to have.  After the reaping Katniss and Peeta are taken away that day, straight to the capitol to begin the festivities of the Games.  This would be hard for anyone who had to endure this experience but it is especially difficult for Katniss because she fears what will become of her family.  
Once the games began Katniss continues to show her independence in the way she proceeds with her own survival.  However, she becomes very close with another tribute, Rue, from district 11.  Rue and Katniss converse about their own districts and learn a lot about one another.  In district 11 the main job is crop picking, Rue explains that they are not allowed to eat anything they pick for they will be publicly beaten.  This reminds me a lot of slavery and how many migrant workers are treated.  Also, another aspect of Rue's life that reminds me of the migrant workers around the world today is that during the harvest season residents of District 11 are not allowed to go to school.  They spend the entirety of the harvest season working and lose many of the opportunities that they could have if they attend school.  Throughout this period of the games Katniss and Rue develop a comforting friendship, but it is quickly ended when Rue gets killed by other tributes.  This really affects Katniss and she deals with the pain by giving Rue a proper 'funeral' by placing flowers around her body and taking the time to care for her.  This also shows a lot about Katniss, the fact that she is taking the time during a dangerous situation to care for a newly made friend demonstrates that Katniss truly is a caring individual even though the front she puts up seems so tough and selfish in a way.  

The Slaughterhouse

On Friday our class went to the JBS Slaughterhouse in Plainwell, Michigan.  I was unable to attend because I had class but luckily I was able to hear all about the experience on Monday from my classmates.  Also, we had a guest speaker come in who was able to tell us about his past experiences working at JBS.  I found all of this to be really interesting and I really wish I could have attended the trip.  A lot of people I say that to think it is weird that I wish I could have gone, but in reality when will I ever have that opportunity again?  I know that going on that trip could very well have skewed my outlook on eating meat but sometimes I think that is what we need to happen in order to realize certain things in life.  I am not saying I want to be grossed out but it is one thing to hear about what I am eating and it is another thing to see first hand where my food comes from.  There were many pieces of information that my classmates spoke of from the trip that sounded awful, such as still being able to smell the scent of the blood at the slaughterhouse, I definitely would not want that memory to stick.  Also, hearing about how the cows died was sad to hear, but at the same time it is somewhat what I expected to happen and I was happy to know that it was being handled in a humane manner.  However, I would not have necessarily wanted to see that...
There were many really interesting questions posed by my classmates during our discussion about the trip.  One student brought up how all of the employees are given knives and what would happen if a strike broke out, would that be really dangerous?  Also, we discussed how the employees are affected by the constant killing of animals and how do they deal with doing and being around that all day everyday...  Another thing I did not realize is that every part of the cows is sold somewhere, even the blood!  I could not think of what they did with the blood, but then our guest speaker informed us that it is used in cosmetics and many other things that we use on a regular basis.  It is so interesting to hear about stuff that I use and would have never guessed some of the ingredients.  I am slightly bothered by some of what I have learned but I am also happy to have gained a better understanding of everything too.  I would rather know where my food and other products come from and be appalled than be completely clueless.
I really hope that the next trip my class takes I will be able to attend because I really felt like I missed out and I would like to gain more from these experiences!

The end of The Jungle

I read the beginning and the very end of The Jungle, reading the end was a bit difficult at first because I did not know the reasons behind why certain things were happening to Jurgis and also I was confused as to where the rest of the characters had gone to because it seemed as if Jurgis was the only person left in the beginning of chapter 27.  As the chapters progressed I obtained a better understanding of what was happening, also reading blogs from my classmates that read earlier chapters gave me a great insight as to what was going on!  
Anyway, from my own reading I learned of the new hardships Jurgis had to deal with.  Jurgis had become unemployed and was searching for a new job but did not have any luck.  He originally lost his job for three months due to an injury and was then not welcomed back after his injury healed.  This caused great difficulty for Jurgis for he was barely finding ways to obtain food everyday.  
I learned that in earlier chapters Jurgis and Ona had finally had the chance to have a proper wedding and then gave birth to a healthy child.  After some time, Ona had died during the birth of their second child and, if that was not enough, Jurgis' son had drowned.  Once it had seemed like things could not get worse Jurgis decided to leave Marija and Elzbieta, this all happened before chapter 27.
Where I picked up Jurgis had become a beggar and a thief, he of course did not have a choice for it was not his fault that he could not find work.  After he had spent his last pennies on stale beer he was left to literally beg at people on the street for money for a meal or whatever he could get out of them.  One evening he was going to beg from a woman and then realized that he knew her!  After a short conversation between the two, the woman gave Jurgis directions to the home that Marija was living at and he immediately went to see her...  After arrival to the home, the police had showed up and were arresting everyone.  This was confusing at first for Jurgis, and myself, but it soon became clear that Marija was living in a brothel.  Jurgis was, of course, taken aback by this new job Marija had attained, but she claimed that it was fine and that she was making plenty of money and that she needed to in order to put her family to sleep at night with food in their bellies and a roof over their heads.  I found this segment to be the most interesting and the most difficult to understand.  I was sickened to learn that the women in the brothel were drugged everyday and made victim to the madame who ran the house.  Some girls were drugged up so much that they literally had no idea as to what was going on and most became so drugged that their addictions took place and caused them to go into much debt.  The debt the women faced was so great that they were basically blackmailed into staying at the house.  It really does sadden me to know that there are places like that, even now, where women are taken complete advantage of and most of the time drawn into because they think they will be doing something different or they were kidnapped.  
There were many other things that happened at the end of this book but I really found the prostitution and the lifestyles of these poor begging people to be so sad and important to understand.  

The Jungle

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair is about immigrants coming to the United States and the hardships that they faced when trying to find work, a home to live in, establishing themselves in a new community, and much more.  
Chapter two is where we started our reading for this book and it begins with a family from Lithuania moving to Chicago, United States.  They moved there because they heard about the glories of America and wanted to experience the freedom and lifestyles they heard they could obtain there.  Once the family of twelve moved to America they instantly faced difficult times, at first they could not find their destination, Chicago, and when they did, it was not what they were expecting.  Luckily, after brief searching, the family found Jokubas Szedvilas, a Lithuanian immigrant who owns a deli on Halsted Street in Chicago.  They were searching for Szedvilas because they had heard about how he moved here and became very well off in America and he was partially their inspiration to leave their homeland.  In the beginning of their time in Chicago they were renting a small place to live, however they were paying $9.00 a month to live in conditions that were not suitable for such a large family.  Once most of the family had found work they learned about the potential of buying a home and having the option of paying it off in increments of $12.00 a month after the initial $300.00 down payment.  This sounded like such a great deal at first that they jumped on it and went to speak with the man they could purchase a home from.  He explained to them that the houses would not be on the market for very long so they had to make their decision quickly, this stressed the family out because they had difficulty communicating with English speaking people and they also did not have very much money to work with at first.  Finally, the family decided to look at a home and, although it was not everything that they had hoped for, decided to make the purchase.  However, the actual time of deed signing was very stressful, they were very afraid that they were being mislead and had trouble deciding if this was a good idea, until they acquired a lawyer, who ended up making the decision more of a stressor than something exciting, and they accepted the offer.  Afterwards, the decision seemed like a terrible idea and there was a lot of regret, until another lawyer was consulted and they realized that the deal was accurate to what they were told in the beginning and the home was theirs, they actually had a home of their own!  
Finding work was another big obstacle that the family faced, they had to take jobs that did not pay the best but they were happy to have obtained anything they could get.  One of the main characters, Jurgis Rudkus, acquired a job fairly quickly at the Durham meatpacking industry.  This was a good job for him at first because, for one it was a job and he needed one desperately, it payed okay and he was able to work a lot of hours.  However, after a short period of time he began to realize the many downfalls of the meatpacking industry and this started to affect his outlook on the wonders of living in America...  The industry was dirty, dangerous, and the employers were not very kind to the immigrant workers.  
Overall, the first few chapters of this book really emphasize the struggles that immigrants faced when coming to America and the difficult adjustments they had to overcome.  

A Proposal to End Hunger

Here we are in this wonderful country, sitting in our warm homes and probably thinking about what delicious item might be for dinner tonight.  Well, this is not the case for everyone, there are many people in America who are also wondering what might be for dinner but that is because they do not know how they may eat tonight.  In 2012, 49 million American lived in food insecure homes, this is a very large number when you consider how many people there are that waste food on a regular basis...  
The topic of my main concern is the health and lifestyle of college students, the future people of our country, my own fellow classmates, and the people who are facing such tough times only because they are following the role that society puts upon them.  In our generation it is taught that going to college is crucial and this is pretty accurate.  If one does not have a college degree the chances of having a career that will support them and potential family is very limited.  However, college students are becoming more and more poor just to attain this degree that seems to determine their future.  The increase in tuition for colleges is decreasing but what students are actually paying to attend college is on the rise.  The average student loan debt of a college student is $29,400, this is a hefty amount of debt for someone coming out of school and jumping into a career that they will likely have to climb up the pay scale in.  With most students having this in mind they are trying to save their money, but saving is hard when there are fees such as book costs, supplies for school, room and board, transportation, and the big one, food.  So many students are struggling to afford the necessities of college and are then left at the end of the night wondering how they will afford food for the week ahead...  
For the sake of my fellow peers and the future leaders of our country, I propose an act to alleviate hunger among college students nation wide.  Since there is so much food that is wasted everyday by those who can afford an abundance of food and because there are many students that find it easier and cheaper to retrieve their meals from restaurants and fast food joints, I propose the restaurant waste smoothie. 

This is a very simple strategy and would help many people who find cost and time difficult things to overcome in their everyday lives.  What would take place is as follows: when a meal is ordered at a restaurant and not finished the server is to empty the scraps off of the plates and dispose of them into the 'student waste box' and then every few hours, or when the box is full, the scraps within it will be blended together to make a smoothie.  These smoothies will be distributed to the college students who are facing difficulty in acquiring meals that week.  

There are many benefits to this program; first of all food waste will be diminished, second students can put their money towards school related necessities and not have to worry about becoming malnourished, and finally every meal is a surprise!  Chances are that every smoothie will be packed with protein and other nutritional benefits that a striving student would need.

And the Earth Did not Devour Him & Cajas de carton

There are many times that it seems like 'bad things happen to good people', the story And the Earth Did not Devour Him portrays this relatable feeling in an eye opening way.  Often I feel like the world is against me, there are many times that are very difficult, whether it be from the tedious tasks in school that I face every week or the hardships I face in my personal life.  But in reality I have it pretty good.  Yes, school is extremely tough at times but I know that is because I chose a very hard major and I realize that in choosing such a difficult career path I have to be able to face and endure tasks that I don't always want to do.  Also, there are many hardships that make life seem really tough at times, but it is important to remember that we are not alone and that everyone has days where life seems a bit more difficult than others.
Last summer a friend of mine, one of the kindest and most giving people I know, was diagnosed with leukemia...  I remember when I received the call giving me the terrible news, I had the biggest pit in my stomach and I immediately broke down, however after the feeling of sadness dissipated, I was left with a feeling of anger.  My initial angry thought was "Why her? Why does someone, who is so sweet and full of kindness, deserve to be stricken with such a terrible illness?"  It wasn't fair.  It took me a while to get over that feeling of anger, I could not wrap my head around the reason my friend had leukemia...  I realized after a while that it doesn't matter who you are or how you act in life, sometimes bad things just happen and we must take from that what we can.  After finding out about my friends cancer I became more aware and thankful for my own health and the health of the rest of my friends and family, it made me realize that life cannot be taken for granted because we never know what is coming around the corner.
And the Earth Did not Devour Him is about a boy who faces the ever pondered question of why bad things really do happen to those who don't deserve them.  His aunt and uncle had fallen ill and then his father and brother, he did not understand that sometimes things are out of our hands.  This story saddend me because not only were good people getting sick but it was because they were forced to work in conditions that were not safe.  They were not only undeserving of illness but I felt that they did not deserve to have to live the way they were.  The life of these migrant workers is sad, they face hardships that I could not imagine entirely, no matter how hard I tried.  I really did enjoy this story though because it brought those feelings I face into another perspective, I understand that although bad things can happen to anyone, no matter how much good karma should be on your side, when I face my own hardships that I do not think I deserve I should just be thankful for the good things I do have in my life.  Also, I especially enjoyed the final paragraph to this story, it was about a boy wishing his life away just to know the ending.  There are quite a few things that I am facing currently that I wish I knew the outcome of, such as what is going to happen in a couple months when I graduate from college and where will I be, literally I have no idea where graduation will take me.  However, as much as I long to know what is going to happen in my near future, I also want to be sure not to wish the time I have now away.  Time is a very precious thing, it is baffling to realize that we really do not know what kind of time we are dealing with, our lives could change drastically any day and there is no way of  predicting what could happen.  I interpreted this particular reading in my own way and took from it that it is important to be thankful for what I have right now in my present life and for the people I love and care about, for anything could happen tomorrow.
The story Cajas de carton by Francisco Jimenez was about him and his family and how they had to move around for work.  It has been made clear to me, from all of the literature in this course, that in order for many of these people to make ends meet they have to constantly search for work and many times move from place to place.  There are many people who choose careers that require them to move around and they are happy with that, but the difference between those people and this family is that the Jimenez family did not choose this life, they are forced to live this way, and they are not happy.  The thought of having to pick up everything and leave at any moment saddens me, I could not imagine coming home from school one day and having my whole house packed up into boxes and having to just leave!  The worst part of this story was when Francisco had finally felt happy and his teacher was going to teach him how to play the trumpet and then he was so excited to tell his family but when he arrived home he was sadly surprised with everything being packed up and it was time for them to move again...  

Rigoberta Menchú

Rigoberta Menchú writes a testimony of herself and her people, she stresses that it is not only her life that she illustrates to us because she did not learn throughout her life alone and she explains that her personal experience is the reality of a whole people.  Growing up in Guatemala was very tough for the residents there that did not have much money, they were not able to attend school, in order to get to town they would have to walk very long distances, and they weren't even guaranteed their own home.  Rigoberta's parents moved to Chimel in 1960 but were unable to build a home there at the time because of funding so they cultivated the land but remained at their small home in town.  Eventually they were forced out of their small home in town by some  ladino families, further in her writings Rigoberta explains that not all ladinos are bad and that the bad ones are the ones that know how to talk and steal from the people, and they had to move to the land they found in Chimel.  Unfortunately after clearing the land they were unable to get a good yield of crops for about eight or nine years, during this time they had to work in the fincas, where times were very tough.

Working in the fincas brought great hardship to many people, even the ride there was brutal during the time they were stuck in the lorry and could not use the bathroom or bathe and everyone became dirty and were burned from the sun.  Rigoberta tells about her first day picking cotton and how afterwards, that night, she discovered that everyone's faces, including her own, were covered in Mosquitos and this made her panic.  She says, "That was our world. I felt that it would always be the same, always the same. It hadn't ever changed."  This makes me feel so terrible for her, her family, and all of her people that she is able to speak for...  Of course we are all aware of the different hardships that people around the world are facing but to read just how awful it really is, it is quite troubling.  She carried on to explain how everything was deducted from their pay at the fincas and that they would have to stay to work extra days for resting or times they could not work whether it was their choice or not.  When Rigoberta was a bit older she was sent to the capital after the landowner of the finca had asked her parents for her.  To think that someone could just be sent away is a terrible thought...  I could not imagine someone asking my parents for me and to then actually be taken away!  I think that this story has a lot to teach everyone and it brings a lot of different things into a new perspective.  
The biggest lesson I took from reading about Rigoberta and her people is to be thankful for everything I have and to try my hardest not to take anything for granted because I really am very fortunate in so many different aspects.  As of right now my biggest stressor is school, most of the people in Guatemala could not even attend school, and this makes me realize that I have it really good and I need to always remember that before I complain about something silly and not worthy of a complaint at all!

A Modest Proposal...

"I do therefore humbly offer it to publick consideration, that of the hundred and twenty thousand children, already computed, twenty thousand may be reserved for breed, whereof only one fourth part to be males; which is more than we allow to sheep, black cattle, or swine, and my reason is, that these children are seldom the fruits of marriage, a circumstance not much regarded by our savages, therefore, one male will be sufficient to serve four females."  What...?  As I started reading A Modest Proposal, by Dr. Jonathan Swift, I was confused due to the way it was worded, it is from 1729 after all, but then I reached the above quote and thought that there was no way I was interpreting this correctly.  The beginning of the reading stated, "For preventing the children of poor people in Ireland, from being a burden on their parents or country, and for making them beneficial to the publick."  After reading this I thought perhaps this reading would be about finding a way for children to work or help their parents, I certainly did not think that it would be about eating them...  
I did not realize at first that this was a satire...  I thought this was some sick joke, but not really a joke, I honestly believed as I was reading this story that the author was twisted and was actually proposing that people should sell their children as food...  I was baffled.  Actually I was so shocked by what I was reading that I stopped and looked at my friend, whom I was studying with, and started to explain what I was reading with utter disgust.  Luckily, before writing this blog post, I researched Jonathan Swift and his "Modern Proposal" and realized that, thankfully, he was not serious about everything he shared and that he actually was trying to make a point.
 After I understood the meaning of this story I, not only felt a lot better but, was able to make sense of what he was trying to get at.  Without previous knowledge, about the mistreatment England posed upon Ireland, I can understand why many folks would be confused and sickened by this satire, however once the background behind this satire is understood it is obvious why Jonathan Swift wrote the way he did.  He explained his proposal in this satire in such a way to make jabs at England and to express the absurdities that people considered solutions to many problems that were being faced at the time.  He was especially insulted by projects that tried to fix population and labour issues with a simple cure-all solution, according to the information I found on Wikipedia.  I normally do not ever use Wikipedia for information because it is not always accurate, however I found it to be quite helpful to better understand the different viewpoints on this reading.  

Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes

Kalamazoo Loaves and Fishes is an organization built upon the vision of working toward a hunger-free community.  This organization was started in 1982 by churches in downtown Kalamazoo in order to feed people who were in need of assistance.  Since 1982 they have expanded tremendously and now serve all of Kalamazoo county.  The mission of Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes is to feed hungry people and engage the community in the fight to end hunger.  I think this is such a wonderful thing to have in any area, especially where there are people in need.  The values of KLF include respect, diversity and inclusion, stewardship and accountability, integrity, collaboration, urgency, and service.  The strategic commitments of KLF are to provide high quality food, to develop high quality client access and support, to nurture the volunteer base, to market their services and their mission, and to improve their efficiency and effectiveness.  

In order for food dollars to be stretched further which secures a multitude of food resources at a minimal cost, KLF works with local partners such as the Food Bank of South Central Michigan, this partnership procures low-cost foods.  The way that KLF works is really awesome, they receive food from donations through the community and large drives throughout the year.  They distribute over 2 million pounds of food annually, including nutritious food.  Money is needed to run this wonderful organization because they need to pay their staff, pay for electricity, and pay for the operations of their trucks each week.  Also, in order to have nutritious food readily available money is needed.  They offer volunteer opportunities and other events throughout the year.  An upcoming event is the Good Food Roundtable, which is hosted by Good Food Kalamazoo, a coalition of food and hunger organizations.  This event is taking place on Tuesday, February 11, 2014.  
What KLF does is really amazing because there are so many people out there in need and to have an organization that cares so much about their community is really great.  The organization seems to try very hard to better themselves every year, for example in 2012 nearly 127,000 people received food through the Grocery Pantry Program, which is the largest of their programs.  The amount of people that received food in 2012 increased by 13% since 2011, this just goes to show how much hard work KLF is putting in, and it is all to help out their community!!
On the site for Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes there is a spot where it displays Hunger Stories which are quotes from people who have been helped by this organization.  There are many people who find it difficult to ask for help in times of need but KLF makes it easy for them to find the help they need and to feel welcomed.  One person wrote, "KLF volunteers always made me feel like somebody instead of nothing."  To read this on their site it really amazing, it just goes to show how caring the people there are even on top of already doing such a good deed.

The Dinner of Trimalchio

The Dinner of Trimalchio was a very interesting story within The Satyricon.  I started reading this with much difficulty due to the way it was written and the vocabulary used throughout the story, however once I got through the first few pages I got the hang of the reading.  I found this story to be very interesting in how it was told and how I could relate the present to it.  
Trimalchio was the host of the dinner and he was a man of great riches and a heavy lack of manners.  He put on a great feast for his noble guests however he did not pay much attention to them for he seemed to think that he was better than everyone.  I am sure this is what he felt.  Trimalchio did not act to please people with anything but to show off what riches he possessed.  He did a very good job of this, for example he served wine that was hundreds of years old and used slaves to serve everything.  
The dinner itself was exquisite beyond belief, there were six courses made up of extravagant dishes.  The first course consisted of a bronze donkey bearing olives flanked by a gridiron of sausages, damsons and dormice coated with poppy seeds and honey.  The second course was peahens' eggs presented underneath a perched wooden hen, they sucked on the eggs.  I found this dish to be odd however the eggs contained garden warblers cooked in spiced egg yolk.  The third course was winged hare surrounded by stuffed capons and sows' bellied in a zodiacal arrangement.  The fourth course was a wild boar accompanied by pastry suckling piglets and filled with live thrushes.  The fifth course was a hog stuffed with sausages and meat puddings.  Finally, the sixth course was a boiled calf wearing a helmet, which was sliced up by a slave dressed as the hero Ajax.  
This short story brought up a few realizations about our present day festivities, I realized as I read this that some of the richest people I know are the ones with the worst manners and the most rude and boastful about what they own.  It seems sad that there are people who only care to show off what they possess rather than actually form relationships with others.  

Food and Me, take two!

This personal essay has really helped me look deeper into the questions this course has brought up.  I have been reading the book The Omnivore's Dilemma and this book alone has had me thinking so much and asking myself so many questions, however in class discussion I find myself thinking of new questions every time we meet.  Due to all of these questions and different topics I have found this essay to be sort of difficult to write.  I have so many different ideas and ways I want to go with it that I feel as if it is becoming a complete ramble.  Although I am not used to writing ramble type of papers, because I usually write research papers and normally on pretty boring material, I think that for this assignment I will allow myself to ramble.  I'm becoming okay with rambling to an extent because when I consider the heading "food and me" my mind simply races now.  At the beginning of this course, especially our first blog post, I could only think of about two things to relate food to myself and my relationship with food, however now my eyes have been opened and I have read, heard, and seen so many different aspects of life that are affected by food.  
I think the main focus of my essay is addressing the concern I have with the food industry and what can be done to change some of the awful things that are happening, such as to the farmers, at slaughterhouses, and even at grocery stores.  I have really pondered Michael Pollan's question "What should we have for dinner?" and I have found not even a single answer but many theories leading to answers and more that lead to more questions similar to his.   

There is so much more I want to learn about the food industry and what we are putting in our bodies, I really believe that this is one of the most important topics I have ever had covered in a course before.  Not only is food something we need to survive, but on top of that it amazes me how it affects many other aspects of our lives such as the economy, the need for new vaccines because new bacteria is being introduced through foods, the environment which is being destroyed by these corporations, and even my future career as a dentist because what we eat affects our teeth and what can affect our teeth can certainly affect other parts of our bodies!

As you can see, I will probably ramble, it's too difficult to choose only one aspect only to discuss.  But since this is a personal essay and my personal mind is racing with

thoughts about this topic I think my ramble will be okay and hopefully it will really express everything that is on my mind now that I have learned so much.

 

Food Inc.

I chose to watch the movie Food Inc. this week and I cannot believe some of the information that I learned during this film.  We spoke in class on Wednesday about how some companies can "own" the crops that they are selling to the farmers and I think this was one of the most interesting things I took from the film.  When I say that they own the crops, what I mean is that even once the farmers have purchased the seeds and grown them they are still under ownership of the companies that have genetically modified them to be the type of seeds that they are.  But what I found the most interesting from this film is that even if the farmer chooses not to purchase a crop from a company, such as Monsanto, they are basically doomed because once their neighbors plant the crops and the pollen is spread, the non-purchasing farmers own crops are contaminated with the genetically modified Monsanto pollen and then those crops are considered property of Monsanto.  This can really affect the farmers because this is now considered stealing in a way and Monsanto can have them lose their farms, the farms they barely really own anyway.  

On another note, the film really brings into perspective how the food industry is all about money.  As most industries are anyway, however it is kind of scary that an industry that we cannot hide from or shun away has so much power and all they care about is getting more and more food out for higher prices.  This movie illustrates however, that we can try to change this.  We certainly cannot hide but we can try our best to be the change we want to see.  After seeing this film, it makes me realize that if something is so bothersome to me, which the food industry has certainly become, I need to do what I personally can to change it.  It may not seem like what one person does will make a difference however that is how change starts, one person standing up for what they believe and the rest will soon follow if it is something worthwhile enough, which I would say our health and safety is.  

The Dilemma Persists

Before coming even close to being able to write this blog post, I faced my own dilemma, ironically.  I have been so intrigued by this book that I could not decide whether to read on another 100 pages or to skip to the third and final section of the book which sounded very interesting.  Since I desired to read the whole book I chose to move on to the next one-hundred pages, however this was just taking so long and the final section just kept grabbing my eye so last minute I started reading the end.  Anyway, I’m glad I did for it has been a much quicker read and very, very interesting.  

First of all, the final section of The Omnivore’s Dilemma is called Personal: The Forest and as the title suggests it is personal to the author.  In this section Michael Pollan decides to take his meal into his own hands, literally hunting and gathering all items of his meal himself.  However, he quickly realizes that although he desires to take on this task, it is somewhat unrealistic because he does not have any background in hunting, never even having shot a firearm!  Also, ever since he was young he steered away from gathering plants for food because his mom had always made him aware of how dangerous wild plants could potentially be to someone.  With this said, Pollan decided to find someone who would be able to help him on this journey of preparing his own meal, which was a good idea, for Pollan’s initial knowledge of the natural foods was much like my own, not very extensive.  However, the experiences he was soon to face and research about brought him great knowledge of what the natural environment had to offer and why.  

Pollan describes in the beginning of this third section some of what lies behind the phrase ‘the omnivore’s dilemma’, he writes about the differences between animals who eat different things and the correlation between the size of the brain and stomach.  One part I found very interesting in this chapter was about the sensory and mental tools omnivores have developed and how these tools, specifically cooking, are thought to be the reason for the increase of the hominid brain 1.9 million years ago.  He describes also, how taste is an important tool to the omnivore because we are predisposed to have certain feelings about certain tastes.  Sweets, for example, tend to be a taste that most of us enjoy, the reasoning is far more extensive than what I would have ever thought.  I always thought I liked chocolate because it tasted good, I never considered why it tasted good, however now I know that sweet flavors signify sugar which signifies glucose, which is a very important factor to our brains.  Glucose is the form of energy that the brain uses and to have such a craving for sweets, as humans, it shows how important brain energy is for us.  

In the following chapters Pollan discusses the ethics of eating animals and how this led him to become a temporary vegetarian and the dilemma’s that comes along with that life style as well.  Further through the pages, he writes about the day 534’s, the steer he had been paying for to be raised and slaughtered, life would end and what that might hold for him.  Finally, I reached the part where Pollan entered the forest and began to hunt.  This was a very intriguing section of the book, for I come from an area where hunting is all that is spoken about around November 15th and to read about someones first experience is very interesting.  

Overall, where I left off in this book has me on the edge of my seat and ready to finish it up, including the middle section I unfortunately skipped for the time being, and also has me thinking a lot about what I eat and if I would like to change of that.  Even, perhaps, attempt to experience as Pollan did gathering a meal of my own...  We shall see.