Someone Should Complain to Her Soup-ervisor
Bag lady: Ladies and gentlemen, my husband and I are homeless. We can't stay at our shelter during the day so we come on the train to get food. Today we are asking for money so we can do laundry. Anything you can give will help.
Hobo: Why don't you just admit that you're gonna buy crack? I'm in the same line of work, don't believe her.
--N train
http://www.overheardinnewyork.com/archives/2005_07.html
Thursday, July 14, 2005
No one wants to hear you!
Is it possible to emphasize enough how utterly annoying it is to pay $76/mo for NYC MTA Subway fare and not, in exchange, ever have a peaceful ride to or from work?
Yesterday, to my surprise, I left work a few minutes early and got a seat. Just as I started to unwind and start reading my book, in comes a bum, begging for money. Does he do a short speech asking for everyone's assistance? Noooo of course not. He spends 3 stops explaining how he's in some organization or other and trying to get on his feet. Does it get him anywhere? Nope. He didn't get a dime, and some woman at the end of the car yelled at him on his way out.
This morning, coming in at a far more crowded time, I was smooshed into the usual crowd of commuters. Who comes in but Annoying Minister Guy. I've had the "pleasure" of his presence before, but usually he changes cars at the next stop. Ohhhh no. Not this morning. I got to hear his "God loves you, he died for us, the devil makes war, divorce, and gay people" tirade for 5 express stops (that's like 4 minutes between stops), leaving me only one short stop in relative peace. It's ok, I didn't want to read that chapter of my book yet anyway.
Am I the only one that gets irritated at these things? What is it with people? If you don't have anything useful to say, leave the rest of us alone.
Yesterday, to my surprise, I left work a few minutes early and got a seat. Just as I started to unwind and start reading my book, in comes a bum, begging for money. Does he do a short speech asking for everyone's assistance? Noooo of course not. He spends 3 stops explaining how he's in some organization or other and trying to get on his feet. Does it get him anywhere? Nope. He didn't get a dime, and some woman at the end of the car yelled at him on his way out.
This morning, coming in at a far more crowded time, I was smooshed into the usual crowd of commuters. Who comes in but Annoying Minister Guy. I've had the "pleasure" of his presence before, but usually he changes cars at the next stop. Ohhhh no. Not this morning. I got to hear his "God loves you, he died for us, the devil makes war, divorce, and gay people" tirade for 5 express stops (that's like 4 minutes between stops), leaving me only one short stop in relative peace. It's ok, I didn't want to read that chapter of my book yet anyway.
Am I the only one that gets irritated at these things? What is it with people? If you don't have anything useful to say, leave the rest of us alone.
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
Meet the world's newest health nut...
Latest book on the reading list: Fat Land by Greg Critser
Describing the modern history of fat in the US, Critser leads you quickly through the government-induced increase in accessibility of fattening products and the evil marketing geniuses who created value meals. He follows this up with a detailed description of what excessive fat actually does to your body parts, which is guaranteed to scare the bejeezus out of anyone who's ever had a sip of coke.
What is interesting about the book are the facts provided about how the government changed agriculture/trade regulations to allow for the reduction in price of fattier foods (also, assumedly, healthier foods, but that's beside the point). I also never knew that the adult value meal also came before the kids' happy meal, or that the physical fitness test in physical education class was derived from two different ideals, one of which focuses on physical activities and the other on flexibility and BMI. The apathy towards controlling obesity, at least as presented by Critser, is appalling.
The one major disagreement I have with Critser is his argument that people will go out and eat fast food simply because it's cheaper and they can have more of it. Personally, if I could spend $6 on a McDonald's value meal, or $6 on a salad from Cafe Metro, I'd go for the salad 9 times out of 10. For one, I won't feel like a giant grease ball after my meal, and two, my body may actually process and use some of it, rather than eject it almost immediately. Don't any other people in the world have this kind of common sense? It should not take a genius to figure out a portion of greasy potato sticks fried in lard will make you fatter than eating the same size portion of baked potato (which is readily available at Wendy's for about the same price as the bag of fries). Does every consumer, regardless of class, have an option to eat better? I believe so. Will the healthy option taste as good? Probably not, but isn't that what makes the bad stuff so appealing?
I found this book to be more informational than the Super Size Me documentary because it's not only about the evils of fast food. Overall, I recommend the read.
Describing the modern history of fat in the US, Critser leads you quickly through the government-induced increase in accessibility of fattening products and the evil marketing geniuses who created value meals. He follows this up with a detailed description of what excessive fat actually does to your body parts, which is guaranteed to scare the bejeezus out of anyone who's ever had a sip of coke.
What is interesting about the book are the facts provided about how the government changed agriculture/trade regulations to allow for the reduction in price of fattier foods (also, assumedly, healthier foods, but that's beside the point). I also never knew that the adult value meal also came before the kids' happy meal, or that the physical fitness test in physical education class was derived from two different ideals, one of which focuses on physical activities and the other on flexibility and BMI. The apathy towards controlling obesity, at least as presented by Critser, is appalling.
The one major disagreement I have with Critser is his argument that people will go out and eat fast food simply because it's cheaper and they can have more of it. Personally, if I could spend $6 on a McDonald's value meal, or $6 on a salad from Cafe Metro, I'd go for the salad 9 times out of 10. For one, I won't feel like a giant grease ball after my meal, and two, my body may actually process and use some of it, rather than eject it almost immediately. Don't any other people in the world have this kind of common sense? It should not take a genius to figure out a portion of greasy potato sticks fried in lard will make you fatter than eating the same size portion of baked potato (which is readily available at Wendy's for about the same price as the bag of fries). Does every consumer, regardless of class, have an option to eat better? I believe so. Will the healthy option taste as good? Probably not, but isn't that what makes the bad stuff so appealing?
I found this book to be more informational than the Super Size Me documentary because it's not only about the evils of fast food. Overall, I recommend the read.
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