Americana

I am not a poetry person. In fact, I resisted violently every time my educators throughout my academic career attempted to force me to study it. However, I have always had a bit of a soft spot in my heart for Walt Whitman. Maybe it's because my grandfather liked him... Regardless, I love that classic sense of Americana his poems evoke. Sitting in a professor's office waiting for a conference to start, Leaves of Grass caught my eye, and I opened it up to a random page, to this passage:

I know a man, a common farmer—the father of five sons;
And in them were the fathers of sons—and in them were the fathers of sons.
This man was of wonderful vigor, calmness, beauty of person;
The shape of his head, the pale yellow and white of his hair and beard, and the immeasurable meaning of his black eyes—the richness and breadth of his manners,
These I used to go and visit him to see—he was wise also;
He was six feet tall, he was over eighty years old—his sons were massive, clean, bearded, tan-faced, handsome;
They and his daughters loved him—all who saw him loved him;
They did not love him by allowance—they loved him with personal love;
He drank water only—the blood show’d like scarlet through the clear-brown skin of his face;
He was a frequent gunner and fisher—he sail’d his boat himself—he had a fine one presented to him by a ship-joiner—he had fowling-pieces, presented to him by men that loved him;
When he went with his five sons and many grand-sons to hunt or fish, you would pick him out as the most beautiful and vigorous of the gang.
You would wish long and long to be with him—you would wish to sit by him in the boat, that you and he might touch each other. This is an excerpt from the poem "I Sing the Body Electric"(lines 33-44). It is truly incredible the way Whitman manages to evoke the sense that this nameless farmer is a noble, honest, wise man worthy of admiration. He is not a hick, redneck, or hoosier, and furthermore, his identity is not defined solely by his livelihood, but at the same time, his characterization suggests that there is dignity in what he does for a living. Whitman's description also paints a portrait of Americana, you get a sense of the land, and the kind of people that live off it: strong-willed, strapping, handsome, wise, vigorous, resourceful.  I envision this man standing in a field of wheat, examining the grains and letting them drift away in the wind and then looking proudly over the land he cultivated with his own hands. A major component of the battle against Agribusiness lies in restoring the integrity of farming, especially on a smaller, more sustainable level. America was founded as a nation of farmers whether it be the Pilgrims surviving from the products of their co-ops, southern plantation owners, or the Pioneers starting anew in the fertile fields of the Midwest. We need to not only make it socially acceptable to farm for a living, but encourage it, especially in areas where it would be a viable career option. Landgrant Universities in the South and Midwest therefore need to shift their agriculture curriculum to teach a  sustainable yet still economically profitable method. Companies such as Monsanto should not be allowed to shut down farms who try to save their seeds for planting in the next season. Measures such as these can help restore the farmer to his rightful place in the social spectrum, and allow us all to view him in the light that Whitman sheds on him in "I Sing the Body Electric."

Toot-a-loo Food Pyramid

That's right, as of June 2, 2011 the Food Pyramid, that ubiquitous paradigm, the staple of elementary school lunchrooms everywhere was officially abandoned by the USDA as part of the Lets Move! initiative.


Let's Move! was started by First Lady Michelle Obama in February 2010 and is aimed at curbing the childhood obesity epidemic by "combining comprehensive strategies with common sense: Giving parents helpful information and fostering environments that support healthy choices; Providing healthier foods in our schools. Ensuring that every family has access to healthy, affordable food; and, helping kids become more physically active."


The new model is called "MyPlate," (somewhat reminiscent of the now everywhere i___ marketing model) and focuses on how to divide your plate as opposed to how many servings per day a person is supposed to have.  Their press release says "MyPlate offers a visual reminder to make healthy food choices when you choose your next meal. MyPlate can help prioritize food choices by reminding us to make half of our plate fruits and vegetables and shows us the other important food groups for a well-balanced meal: whole grains, lean proteins, and low fat dairy."


MyPlate is a much better tool to mesure how calories are distributed amongst fats, carbohydrates, sugars, etc. because it gives a visual marker instead of a calorie counter-esque pyramid that says that carbohydrates should be the cornerstone of the American diet. The food pyramid, originally conceived in 1992, was due for an update because so very much has changed in the last ten years with regard to how aware we are about the way we eat, how it's made, and where it comes from.


Now the issue is implementation: I very much hope that the government pushes the introduction of this new method into schools.

Great Minds Think Alike...

For the record, I thought of it first...

Read This:

Mark Bittman at the New York Times wrote a wonderful Op-Ed in this morning's paper. Here's the link: http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/11/19/no-turkeys-here/#

What would you consider to be a vegetable?

What would you consider to be a vegetable?

Some people use it as a word to describe people who are lazy, or worse, someone who is kept alive on a respirator and feeding tube. The dictionary defines it as a “plant or part of a plant used as food.” Most commonly, though, it is used to refer to the latter.

Like carrots.

Broccoli.

Brussels Sprouts.

Potatoes.

Lettuce.

Tomato Sauce.

Yes, tomato sauce. Much to my own personal dismay Congress has passed a bill that legally classifies tomato sauce as a vegetable so that it can be counted towards the percentage of federally funded school lunches required to be composed of vegetables.  This provision is part of a larger bill that would:

1. Block the Department of Agriculture from limiting starchy vegetables, including potatoes, corn and peas, to two servings per week. The two-serving limit was first proposed to cut down on french fries.
2. Maintain two tablespoons of tomato paste as the limit necessary to categorize it as a vegetable. The USDA had previously tried to require a half-cup of tomato paste to be counted as a vegetable, which was argued to be too large of an amount to make a pizza. Federally subsidized lunches must include a certain number of vegetables to be served.
3. Require more studies on the long-term sodium requirements set forth by the USDA guidelines.
4. Require the USDA to define "whole grains" before regulating them.

When this story showed up on my Twitter feed (Yes, I do get a large amount of my food news from my Twitter feed… don’t judge. It’s the information age.) my first reaction was somewhat similar to David’s, coming back from the dentist combined with a segment of “Really?” on Weekend Update with Seth Meyers.

Is this real life? Is this what we have come to that we are considering pizza sauce a vegetable? Really? Really Congress? We want to teach our children that eating processed pizza for dinner is the same as eating Brussels sprouts? Really? That’s like saying that broccoli-cheddar soup with a side of nacho cheese in a bread bowl is a vegetable. Really? Didn’t you ever hear that tomatoes aren’t even technically classified as a vegetable? It has seeds inside, which makes it a fruit!

Republicans on the House Appropriation Committee said the changes would "prevent overly burdensome and costly regulations and to provide greater flexibility for local school districts to improve the nutritional quality of meals." However I fail to see how pizza and spaghetti improve the nutritional quality of meals. Tomato paste is made of tomatoes, but in order to become the consistency of paste, they have to cook for hours, which then eliminates the vitamins and minerals that are a part of the untouched tomato. This bill further creates an incentive to cheapen the quality of school lunches, so that school districts can increase the profitability of their food service programs, thereby compromising the nutritional value of the meals they serve and the health of their students.

This is the first step down a dangerous road. Next thing you know, the Ag Industry will be lobbying for Congress to consider French fries a vegetable. Hey they’re made from potatoes… so why not?

For at least two-thirds of my life, my family has shopped at the Clayton Farmers Market, about fifteen minutes from my childhood home in the suburbs of St. Louis, Missouri.  My mother has made friends with all of her favorite farmers and is fiercely loyal to them. She has been known to say, "There is nothin better than a MISSOURI FARMER TOMATA." The same goes for peaches, apples, melons, cherries, blackberries, broccoli, brussel sprouts, beets, lettuce, grass-fed beef, and clover-fed pork.

Over the years some of her farmers have decided to stop coming to market for various reasons. Some transition to restaurant supply, go to other markets, others drop off the grid completely. She called me the other day saying that one of the farmers who has been there from the beginning, Brett from Biver Farms, isn't coming back next year. When I asked her why she forwarded me this letter from him:

Dear Friends and Patrons,

            I am saddened to say that I must retire from my half of Biver Farms. I sincerely appreciate the many bonds that have been made over the last 15 years and I feel as if I could not have had a better clientele. While my reasons are divers, I came to a realization this past April that my occupation is both financially and emotionally unjustifiable. I have since known that this would be my final season.

            I encourage all of you to support the Clayton Farmers Market, and the talented growers and artisans that participate.  I know that the kind words of support that so many of you shared with me over the years truly helped me and believe it iperitive that you support me the other vendors in a similar way. I am sure that if given enough support, the market can achieve the potential that it possesses.

            I hope to somehow, someway keep in touch with many of you who have never failed to impress or inspire me over these many years. I ask that you provide contact information to help me to do so on the sheet provided.  I do not yet have a firm bearing on my future, but I believe that it will be agriculturally or educationally orientated.  While I greatly appreciate the rich experiences of my past, I look forward with a good deal of excitement and anticipation.

Thank you all so much,

Brett Palmier

I would be lying if I said I didn't get a little misty-eyed reading it through.  In order to purchase anything Brett brought to market, you had to get in line right at 8am when the market opened. He was one of the most popular stands, with a line 30 people deep at any given time, all eager to buy his fresh organic produce.  It's heartbreaking that good people trying to make an honest living cannot because of extraneous circumstances. I wish Brett the very best and know he will be dearly missed.

(Off-Topic) Op-Ed: The Upset

           Today, number two ranked Alabama will face the number one ranked Louisana State University in what ESPN commentators are calling the “Game of the Century,” the“Super Bowl of College Football.”

Yawn.

           

The Alabama-LSU matchup is going to be a great game, however I’m of the opinion that the “duel between giants” is vastly overrated, even boring.  Performances are almost always solid, but the big plays, the “Hail Mary” moments are rarely a possibility. Though Alabama may be favored, because of their home field advantage among other reasons, no one would be particularly surprised if LSU took them down. Victory is always so much sweeter when you’re rooting for a true underdog.  Nothing can compare to that feeling of accomplishment and pride, knowing that your team, who was thought to have no chance of winning, fought hard and took down a giant.  Culture conditions us to think this way because that very notion has worked itself into the idea of the American Dream.

From the goody-goody-two-shoes in elementary school, to the seemingly infallible athletes like Roger Federer or the Yankees, perfection is irritating.  It makes watching them stumble somewhat of a guilty pleasure and watching their opponents succeed a joy. World Series Champions, The St. Louis Cardinals, were 10 ½ games behind Atlanta at the beginning of September and clinched the National League Wildcard spot on the last game of the season on their loss to the Phillies. They then charged through the Division Series, League Series, and went on to take the Texas Rangers—who had the third-best record in Major League Baseball—in a nail biting, record smashing, seven games. Watching World Series MVP and hometown hero David Freese hit the homerun in the eleventh inning (with two outs no less) to force a Game 7 was a semi-divine experience for any member of Cardinal Nation. When NCAA March Madness rolls around, some of the most exciting, bracket-destroying games happen in the first and second rounds, where lower seeded teams are given the chance to oust some of the best teams in the nation. In last year’s tournament the 12th seeded University of Richmond eliminated the number five Vanderbilt by only three points, and two years ago, Northern Iowa University upset the number one ranked Kansas. These are the games that come down to the last seconds, that require heart more than skill, where as a player you have to really want it.

The triumph of the underdog is a theme that dates back to the Old Testament with the story of David and Goliath. This paradigm has manifested itself as part of the American Dream: The immigrant arrives in New York harbor from the old country with nothing but lint in his pocket, and overcomes the odds by pulling himself up by his bootstraps and making a successful living for himself. We were the underdogs in our own war for independence for goodness sake! History, literature, film—examples run the gamut. Practically every sports movie ever made is about a downtrodden team finding success.  Moneyball, the most recent example, may earn its star Brad Pitt an Oscar nod.

Maybe it is culture, then, that conditions us to root for the underdog. Or perhaps it’s just human nature.  So many Americans treasure the success of their teams, stay a fan through the losing seasons as well as the winning. But watching a downtrodden team hit that 11^th hour (or inning) homerun soar outta the park, or sink the buzzer-shot with a resounding “swish,” is like watching the American Dream take place right before your eyes.  It represents what’s great about this country: with hard work, a lotta heart, and a little luck, anything is possible.