Archive for the ‘current events’ Category
weighty issues
I normally don’t discuss such things here, but I’m truly curious to hear your take on this.
I read an article on Msnbc.com called “With Friends Like These” about a study that found that obesity is contagious and that it spreads through social networks of friends even if those friends live thousands of miles apart.
Seriously.
Let me give you my take:
Until we start accepting responsibility for our actions, owning all of our experiences and choices (good and bad), and really, truly respecting and honoring our bodies through our choices of what we put in them and do to them, the obesity problem will continue–and I’m not just talking about the United States here as it’s becoming a problem in many countries around the world, including Italy.
Let’s leave aside drug and alcohol issues for the moment while we also recognize that there are absolutely similarities in all types of addictions that harm the body.
I share the following as background, so you can understand where I’m coming from on this one:
You can’t tell much from my little head shot up there, but I’m not skinny. I don’t think I ever was (doctors put me on a diet when I was less than a year old–how’s that for setting someone up for life?), and I don’t imagine I ever will be. And that’s fine with me because I feel good and healthy and know that I’m doing my best to be good to my body.
Over the last few years, I’ve been working on developing a better relationship with food, understanding nutrition, listening to what my body tells me it needs, and doing more physical exercise than I’ve ever done in my life. I’ve lost a good bit of weight, but the best thing about all this is that I feel like I’m taking better care of the only thing that’s really mine in the world.
And it feels wonderful.
And no, I’m not perfect–last night for dinner I had a big ole steak and french fries. And it was delicious. I’ll probably have a gelato later. And I’ll probably never lose the last 5-10 pounds I should, according to the Body Mass Index because of it. So be it. A lot of people are at so-called healthy weights but they aren’t healthy in the least (so many skinnies that I know smoke more than the Marlboro Man), so who’s really to say what’s best for me but me?
But enough about me. I’m interested in what you think about the study.
Was it worth studying? Do friends make somebody fat? Family? How much influence do your family and friends have over what you do?
Obviously certain medical disorders cause weight gain, but aside from such causes, what are the real reasons for obesity? Who or what really is to blame? How can we stop this epidemic?
Do you care? Should the government care? If so, how should it go about caring, so to speak?
I’d love to hear some of your experiences and opinions on this issue.
This is a touchy subject, so I do ask that you be as kind as possible if you decide to share your thoughts. I look forward to reading them.
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[tags]weight, losing weight, gaining weight[/tags]
Honoring the Fallen: The Unknown Soldier by Billy Rose
When I was in seventh grade, I was assigned to make a poem and picture book. I had to find poems on a subject chosen by me, which ended up being “Cats” because I had a calendar from the previous year providing easy illustration.
It was during my research for that assignment that my love for poetry blossomed, and, indeed, I memorized the first poem that ever touched me. I think of it every so often, but always on Memorial Day:
THE UNKNOWN SOLDIER
There’s a graveyard near the White House
Where the Unknown Soldier lies,
And the flowers there are sprinkled
With the tears from mother’s eyes.
I stood there not so long ago
With roses for the brave,
And suddenly I heard a voice
Speak from out the grave:
‘I am the Unknown Soldier,’
The spirit voice began,
‘And I think I have the right
To ask some questions man to man.
‘Are my buddies taken care of?
Was their victory so sweet?
Is that big reward you offered
Selling pencils on the street?
‘Did they really win the freedom
They battled to achieve?
Do you still respect that Croix de Guerre
Above that empty sleeve?
‘Does a gold star in the window
Now mean anything at all?
I wonder how my old girl feels
When she hears a bugle call.
‘And that baby who sang
“Hello, Central, give me no man’s land”-
Can they replace her daddy
With a military band?
‘I wonder if the profiteers
Have satisfied their greed?
I wonder if a soldier’s mother
Ever is in need?
‘I wonder if the kings, who planned it all
Are really satisfied?
They played their game of checkers
And eleven million died.
‘I am the Unknown Soldier
And maybe I died in vain,
But if I were alive and my country called,
I’d do it all over again.’
BILLY ROSE
At twelve years old, I didn’t have a clue as to what most of it meant, but it spoke to me and to my heart, and I’m sure it’s what started me down the path to a degree in history as I investigated what the references to Croix de Guerre, bugle calls, military bands, and profiteers were all about.
Today I’m remembering all who have given their lives in our country’s numerous wars–and although I may not agree with the current war, the troops and their families remain in my prayers. Thank you, and may we remember your service every day and not only a few times a year.
sharing a wonderful discovery
In honor of the Ultimate Blog Party, I’m going to direct you to one of my newest favorite blogs, The Life of Riley.
Now before you mistake “Riley” for one Mr. Bill O’Reilly (and me for a right-winger), let me show you a picture of the blog’s author:
Meet Olive Riley, a 107-year-old Aussie who has been graciously sharing her life and memories with the blogosphere since mid-February. Her friend does the typing for her “blob” as she has called it, and what comes out is nothing short of brilliant.
This is the beginning of Olive’s first post:
Good Morning everyone. My name is Olive Riley. I live in Australia near Sydney. I was born in Broken Hill on Oct. 20th 1899. Broken Hill is a mining town, far away in the centre of Australia. My Friend, Mike, has arranged this blog for me. He is doing the typing and I am telling the stories. He thinks it’s a good idea to tell what’s going on. He already made a film about me a few years back and people liked that, so they might like this blog too, he says. We’ll see.
What we’re seeing is that Mike was right. By its Third Post, The Life of Riley had amassed over 190,000 visits from all over the world.
With photos and stories from the last 100 years and topics ranging from Olive’s sipping shandy on a trip to Brisbane to see her son to her campaigning for a local “lettuces”-grower being kicked off his land to how she ended up with the same set of teeth since 1930, how could we do anything but read, read, and read (and want!) some more?
Olive’s blog is beautiful and inspiring, and if you don’ t contract a severe case of warm fuzzies from seeing how much she enjoys life, well, I doubt you’re human. It would be wonderful if more of our elders follow Olive’s lead and record their thoughts on this international forum; too much oral history has already been lost.
And especially during a time of war, we could all use a course in real human history.
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[tags]olive riley, world’s oldest blogger[/tags]
drowning our sorrows
As many of you may know, Italy is currently without a Prime Minister. Some of my expat blogging friends have written about it as it is currently our biggest news story.
Far be it from me to be the one to understand educate you on Italian politics, but let’s just say that this is a frequent occurrence (over 60 changes in power since World War II), so no one should be scared.
We still have a president after all.
Feel better? No?
How about a Kinder treat?
P threw one of these in my bag yesterday as I set off for school, knowing that I get peckish mid-afternoon. I’ve always avoided these Kinder snacks (although the little chocolate eggs are heavenly), but just as P guessed, I hit it around 4 p.m.
It was love at first bite with its orange and chocolate flavors mixed together in cakey deliciousness. And then I tasted a little tinge of…something…alcoholic?
Was it possible that these children’s treats are laced with Jesus Juice?
And there it is in plain Italian. Third line down.
If you don’t speak Italian, “liquore” means “liquor,” “vino liquoroso” is a port-like wine, Marsala for instance, and “alcool” indeed means “alcohol,” and in this Kinder snack, you’ll find 8.5%.
Again, like the resignation of Prodi, I don’t really know what that percentage means, but I do know that I felt really nice after the Kinder fiesta bar, that I no longer cared about the government’s status, that yesterday’s lesson went swimmingly, and that I’ve already requested a box full for next week.
Now let’s hope we’ll soon be able to raise our Kinders and salute the new (or old, as it may be) governo.
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[tags]italian government, romano prodi, kinder snacks, italy[/tags]
Michelle Kaminsky is an American attorney-turned-freelance writer who lived in her family's ancestral village in Calabria, Italy for 15 years. This blog is now archived.
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