Food Thoughts

Eating is not a sin. Gluttony is, but that law was written in a time when one person's gluttony meant someone else in the tribe starved. Nowadays, we celebrate every holiday with food, which is an age-old tradition. But in the old times, they didn't serve a turkey, a ham, stuffing, taters, green beans, carrots, cranberry sauce, gravy and top off that little meal with a slice of 4 kinds of pie and 3 cakes!

We have passed the point of diminishing return. We have so much food available to us, and have been conditioned to eat to celebrate everything, that we don't have built in controls for our eating. Famine and bad crops kept many an old-timer lean and mean. Nowadays, we have grandma feeding everyone in sight because that's what makes her feel useful.

 Jeff Foxworthy makes a joke about it "Didjaeet?", but southerners are the worst. I'm guilty of this. The minute someone walks in my door I am offering up food, a beverage, a "little snack" maybe some crackers and cheese or we made cookies this morning, still hot!  Southern women make "sweet tea" that qualifies as dessert all on it's own!  I once had a glass of sweet tea from my Ex's aunt. I took one sip and thought I'd need insulin to counteract the effects!!!  She was so proud of her "receipt for sweet tea, straight from my momma" that I drank a few more sips before putting it down. I think Karo Syrup has less sugar!

So, we eat and we eat and we drink "sweet tea" made by all the aunties out there until we become the aunties and try to force feed everyone we meet either tons of food or gallons of sweet tea. It's a sad commentary on our nation that every occasion calls for food. I can remember cleaning out my car after a long week and finding tons of fast food bags. Sometimes I'd be brave and look inside them. Then I'd wonder "Hmmm, when did I eat at Ta*o B*ll?"  I wouldn't even be able to remember what I ate because I was doing so many other things while eating.

I'm afraid that America itself is getting to that point, where we eat everything in the world and then sit there wondering "What's in the fridge?"