Au Cochonnet Marin

“We all eat, and it would be a sad waste of an opportunity to eat badly.” –Anna Thomas

Yes, but unfortunately many of us eat badly, or more precisely unwholesomely. Enticing dishes are often Trojan horses bent on sabotaging your health from the inside.
And no matter what it says, Big Food (despite its reassuring labels) is not your friend. Few people bother anyway to read the (minuscule) stickers, and if they did, they would be horrified. Basically, everything that tastes good is unhealthy and vice versa.

In order to better control my blood sugar (and my girlish figure), I decided a while ago to scrutinize my food more carefully and eat more reasonably. This measure will alas deprive me of almost everything I like.

I acquired a phone app called MyNetDiary with the idea of keeping me (nutritionally) on the straight and narrow. I admit that it is a great app… and an eye-opener.
It is also easy to use and the guarantor of your commitment.

One of the great features of this product is that it includes a scanner that can identify immediately what you are about to purchase or consume. You just expose the package’s barcode to the built-in scanner and it will tell you instantly… what you did not want to know.

Are you aware by the way of your daily calorie intake? I bet that you don’t.

Would you believe that a friendly “pain au chocolat” contains 470 calories?  And that one ounce (28 grams) of walnuts contains a whopping 185 calories. What about French fries or butter? The truth is often ugly and hard to digest.

“The secret of success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside.” –Mark Twain

This is what I thought, but it is not “medically correct” and this damn correctness is popping up everywhere nowadays to spoil our fun. Curse you correctness!

Despite a careful tracking of my food intake, my blood glucose (and my weight) are putting up a stubborn fight; they don’t want to change. I should confess though that I am not too fond of veggies. Dead cooked veggies that is. The abominable Brussels Sprouts taste (and smell) horrible, but it is GOOD for you! And I don’t talk to me about cauliflower either… Confidentially, I am more of a carbohydrates type of guy. I love bread, cereals, oats, pasta, cookies… all the bad boys of the food chain.

But being aware and keeping track of what you eat is the first step. Will power is a close second.

In my youth life was simpler:

“As a child my family’s menu consisted of two choices: take it or leave it.” Buddy Hackett

Ta ta for now…

Alain

We all have our likes and dislikes… it is human nature and we would not be honest if we denied it.
But there is a difference between disliking and hating. Hate is much more intense and toxic than dislike. Today we are so polarized that we are unable (or unwilling) to differentiate between these two emotions. If we dislike something or somebody, we simply “hate” it.

Well, I am personally averse to many things and many people… without really hating them. I might have a strong dislike to them, but I don’t wish them to swim with the fish…

For my part, I object to people who are dishonest, cruel, ignorant, vulgar, irresponsible, rude, susceptible… In addition, I also dislike braggarts, liars, extremists, religious zealots, and humorless people… and I cannot mention everybody, the list would be too long.

It seems that I am not fond of too many people… but hey, it is my right to like or dislike anybody.

“Do you like people? Most people claim that they like people with, of course, a “few exceptions.” When the exceptions are added together it becomes clear that they include a vast majority of the people. It becomes equally clear that most people like just a few people, their kind of people, and either do not actively care for or actively dislike most of the “other” people.” Saul Alinsky

 As you can see, I am an equal opportunity “disliker.” I equally dislike many people, regardless of race, sex, age or religion.
Now, if I disapprove of a person of color, does that make me a racist? If so, yes, I am a racist. But I never dislike anybody for the color of their skin, I just object to their offensive behavior.

Do I hate some people? Of course.
This does not mean that I want them dead. It just means that I have an intense dislike of them and would like them to magically vanish into thin air… Or maybe like Dorothy and Toto, to be snatched by a cyclone and dropped hundreds of miles from where I live.

It’s not impossible… and one can dream… can’t he?

Alain

 What do I dislike about death? Must be the hours. Woody Allen

“All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit.” Thomas Paine 

Exactly my thoughts.

 Thomas Paine, if you care to remember, was an interesting fellow.

 “Born in England in 1737, moved to America in 1774. In 1776 he pleaded for American independence in a famous pamphlet called Common Sense. During the War of Independence, he served in the Continental Army and continued writing.

In 1777 he became Secretary of the Committee of Foreign Affairs in Congress, but in 1779 he was forced to resign because he had disclosed secret information. 

In 1787 he went back to England and to France where he became deeply involved in the French Revolution.  Although he didn’t speak French, he was elected to the National Convention.”

 If I lived in that era, I would definitely have rooted for this fellow.

It annoys me to no end when an individual tries to weave religion into politics, but it becomes intolerable when an elected official uses that ploy.

Religion has no place in politics! It is a private matter and like genitals, it should remain private. Worship on your own if you must, but never bring this up in government affairs. If you do, you are bound to hear ridiculous statements such as this:

 The idea that religion and politics don’t mix was invented by the Devil to keep Christians from running their own country. Jerry Falwell

 Any display of religious symbols should be banned in Congress. They are lighting rods begging to be struck.

You should not rely on anybody flaunting a cross, a star of David or a crescent. Those people are not to be depended on; they are biased and don’t seek to protect your interests. They owe allegiance to another entity that does not include you.

Wearing a hijab in Congress is equally offensive. It is a religious symbol and it is as provocative as wearing any other religious badge. It should not be condoned or excused.

Alain

 “I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do, because I notice it always coincides with their own desires.” Susan B. Anthony