Have You Wondered About This Too?

Let’s talk about allergies.  Can you BELIEVE how bad they are right now?  From Boston to Atlanta, from California to Texas, everyone I know is S-U-F-F-E-R-I-N-G right now with headaches, earaches, breathing struggles, sore throats and everything puny in between.  This, as you know, is a reaction to Mother Nature doing her thang.  And there’s not much to do but just wait it out and keep saline spray for your nose very close to your ibuprofin bottle!

But that brings me to another topic, related to food, naturally.  I’m sorta fascinated by this new phase of food phobia around gluten.  “Gluten free” are the new buzz words for guaranteed commercial success.  I tweet now (do you?  It’s such fun...follow me at alicia_haley and I’ll follow you back!) and one of the gals I follow, recipegirl was talking about a conference she’s going to in May.  Nosy rosy here googled the conference details, and the top billing for the whole dang thing was “Gluten Free Weekend.”  Huh?

Now you may know this already, but let me give me just a little background about what gluten is.

Gluten is a mixture of plant proteins found in cereal grains such as corn and wheat, and that gives dough its cohesiveness. Sensitivity to gluten can cause damage to the intestines.

I have worked with people who have a severe gluten intolerance, and believe me, my heart goes out to these celiacs.  (I apologize for the label, friends.)  I am very, very respectful of the special dietary needs these folks require, and am thankful therefore for the new “gluten free” craze sweeping the country.

But for the regular ole Joe (as opposed to my sweet Joe) who is going gluten free, I ask you, “Why?”  “What is your motivation?”  These are things I do not know.  And I want to.  

See.  My approach to food is simple.  I have to live in this world.  I have to feed myself 3 times a day, and my goal is to not feel like the ultimate food freak while doing it.  (I admit, compared to most, I’m pretty freakish already what with my no meat and no nut status!)  The moment you tell most people they CAN’T eat something, that something takes on a life of its own and oozes into the prohibited obsession category.  Ummm, like Pavlov’s dog, you say peanut butter and I start drooling.  I’m very bitter about this sad state of affairs....

I’ve said this before but no one has any power over you.  You make all the decisions, and thus, live with all the consequences.  If you can only decide what your goals are, then the rest is easy.  These goals might be to stop with the sugar junk, or to put down the cokes.  Or maybe your goal is to save money and eat better by reducing the number of times you go out to eat each week by half. 

It’s time to introduce one of my favorite words.  MODERATION.  Means no deprivation, yet no gluttony.  It’s such a simple concept, but is such a difficult thing to really own. Do you remember that old school Lay’s potato chip commercial that taunted us?  “Betcha can’t eat just one?”  Uh huh.  Mr. Lay’s was brilliant.  They played on this very topic of our inability to moderate ourselves.  One potato chip is nothing.  It’s a blip on the screen of your calorie and fat counters.  But the whole bag?  Another story altogether.  Same with a bite of cinnabon or 2 or 3 Dodie’s fries..  Likewise, 6 Hershey’s kisses or 2 cups of coffee would certainly never be considered excessive.  

The trick is, can you practice moderation around these things?  If not, don’t put your hand on the red hot burner.  It will burn you every single time.

Now I’m going to leave you pondering gluten and deprivation.  Moderation vs gluttony.  

But I have to share this with you.  This has nothing to do with anything other than I’ve “discovered” the best tasting apple in the whole wide world.  (Actually Joe brought them home from CM for me as a sussy because I love apples and he’s the nicest man in the world...)

Honey Crisp.  (Quite possibly just one word.)  Oh my.  Oh my!  Go find you one.  You’re welcome.