"Feeding the Hole in the Soul"

Just stumbled upon an incredible article on The Huffington Post that suggests that a spiritual malady, a "hole in one's soul" if you will, is the deepest and truest cause of addictive eating and dieting for so many Americans. In preparation for Eating Disorders Awareness Week Dr. Judi Hollis writes:

"...Despite our extensive knowledge of calorie counts, food combining, pulse rates and fat content, we keep putting on more weight. Instead of focusing on food plans, our time would be better served in FEAR ... Face Everything and Recover. Cultural expectations of unnatural thinness have created this national epidemic. Yes, advertisers have contributed to the anorexia-bulimia-obesity continuum, but there is more to it than the model culture, fitness crazes, heart disease, diabetes, or arthritis.

We are facing a spiritual crisis, where striving and competition are our mantras. On national television shows, we pit obese sufferers against each other, to tragically compete at weight loss...

...Overeaters are the "miner's canary" for a society trying desperately to ignore it's softer side. When excess eating is curtailed, senses are heightened, and we feel and notice in a much deeper and more vibrant way. But, many would rather keep focusing on dieting....

...Even though we have a super-sized appetite for fast foods, the national malady has more to do with our spiritual connections: how we live, who we are, how we think, how we fight, how we love, how we face fear, how we die. Genetics might load the gun, but environment pulls the trigger.

Simply put, it's not a battle, but a surrender. It's a surrender to a more spiritual way of living. But, the spiritual life is not for sissies. Some think that wearing Birkenstocks or lighting incense gets it. You can't just hang out with the "metaphysical maniacs" for six months, become your own personal prom queen, and then get back into the fray. Spirituality is not thinking less of yourself. It's thinking of yourself less..."

I urge you to read the entire article here. These excerpts offer an overveiw but the message weaved throughout Hollis' words is too important to skim. Hollis has a remarkable grasp on addiction.

"Ninja Deer"

Another fun pic. This one is circa 2003 National Geographic but has popped back up on the feeds today.

Just for fun

Saw this pic at Wild Birds Unlimited today but pretty sure I see this squirrel daily...

Toxins: Not Just in Plastics Anymore

If you've spent much time here on JustSaying, you already know that plastics marked "7" are a big no-no. And if you've spent much time shopping or sharing space with yours truly, you already know that perfume is a no-no (and have likely had your eau de toilette yanked out of your hands and heard, "Don't use that! That stuff is carcinogenic with a capitol "C." The perfume industry is going to go down in history like the tobacco industry. Just promise you'll at least stay away from it when your pregnant?!")

So why do I bring this up today, you wonder? Because Nicholas D. Kristof wrote a must-read Op-Ed in response to the rise of autism disorders, an article posted in Current Opinion on Pediactrics linking the rise to environmental exposures experienced prenatally, and the Environmental Health Perspectives article about suspect chemicals called phthalates (unregulated and commonly found in fragrances, nail polish, cosmetics, etc).

Read Kristof's Op-Ed here.

Our advice: Do some research on your beauty products before slathering and spraying them onto your body, and keep your distance from plastics marked 3, 6, and 7.

Diggin' Stew Leonard's

Stew Leonard's has been in the dairy biz since 1921 and praised by the press for decades now, yet somehow JustSaying only learned of the Connecticut-based, family-owned, fresh food grocer because it was featured on the History Channel's Modern Marvels episode "The Supermarket."

In 1960, brothers Jim and Stew Leonard inherited Clover Farms milk delivery business and nine short years later they opened their first store in Norfolk with two registers and seven items. In the following decades a little advertising (and some trademark cow trucks equipped with "moo" horns) went a long way. Their product line expanded to include meat direct from Colorado, an in-store bakery and our fave: Newman's Own Salad Dressing.

Now they've got a store in New York, a wine shop, and a steady position on FORTUNE magazine's "Top 100 Companies to Work For."

And as far as food safety goes, Stew Leonard's mottos is: "If you wouldn't take it home to your mother, don't put it out for our customers."

While I obviously admire their practices and natural/organic product line, truth be told, it was the happy cow costumes and giggling children that really sold me. As pointed out in the Modern Marvels episode, so many supermarkets use calming music and dim lighting to create a certain type of desired shopping experience but Stew Leonard's is rather the opposite. They're the Southwest of supermarkets - fun, lively, and uber-customer-focused.

There are only a handful of Stew Leonard's stores so far (three in CT and one in NY), but with revenues hitting $300 million a year expansion is in the works.

Check out their website for more information (and the awesometastical live Cow-Cam!) and join me in suggesting they expand right on down the East Coast!!

"These are a few of my favorite things..."

Frogs and dinosaurs!!! A reconstruction of the dino-eating, beach ball sized armored devil toad (Beelzebufo ampinga) based on the fossils unearthed in Madagascar by paleontologist David Krause, is on display in the lobby of Stony Brook University Medical Center on Long Island in hopes to raise public awareness of science and draw attention to Dr. Krause’s non-profit - The Madagascar Ankizy Fund - that finances health clinics and schools in rural Madagascar.

Perhaps this isn't the kind of frog I'd like to find, bring home and snuggle for days on end but nonetheless - they were freakin' cool creatures.

The NY Times reports:

“This was undoubtedly the heaviest frog ever, we estimate about 10 pounds,” said David Krause... “It probably ate any available prey — lizards and snakes and mammals. It was large enough to maybe even eat hatchling dinosaurs.”

(Photo by Ozier Muhammad/The New York Times)

Additional consequences of winter weather

My sister sent me the link to this article about the unfortunate toll the recent storms have taken on the tens of thousands of Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania children who rely on the nutrition from reduced-priced school lunches, and I've been meaning to post it.

(thnx Bec)

somewhat topical...

Apparently the sales of CJ Corporation's snack sausages are on the rise in South Korea because they are close approximations of the human finger and therefore make for a great stylus for iPhone users unwilling to remove their gloves in cold weather. Ew. Real all about it on kottke.org

Not so cheery, cherry trees

With little more than a month until the kickoff of the 2010 Cherry Blossom Festival in the District, damage from record breaking snowfall this winter is causing concern. National Park Service spokesman Bill Line told WTOP that the recent storms have caused "the worst damage to the cherry trees that he has seen in nine years."

Although there are reports that branches as thick as six inches have snapped and others are still pinned down by remaining snow cover, the festival is slated to kick off March 27th as planned.

(thnx Neeks)

Dogs in China

Adam Minter wrote an interesting albeit disturbing article for Foreign Policy about the newest class struggle in China between rich dogs and poor dogs. The debate on whether to care for or to eat dogs pits younger, educated pet owners against the traditional rural Chinese. I am far too biased to offer an opinion on this issue but nonethessless it is a topic worth following and if you can stomach it, find the article here.