Food Diary

A full Serving of Mozzarella pasta, i only ate 1/4 of a serving. Dinner At home Sept 29,2010 Calories 86.12

Wendy's Spicy Chicken nuggets. I ate a full serving. Lunch on sept 30th 2010, Calories 230

Tomato Calamari Soup, I ate half a serving, Dinner Sept 30, 2010, Calories 150.7

All of these Foods have a low calorie count compared to the recommendation of consuming 2800 calories a day. Non of these foods were neccesarily nutritious but they also werent very unhealthy. The tomato soup contained absolutely no fat and had 7 grams of protein and 27 grams of vitamin C. I picked these foods because they were all cost very little money. i fell realativly good about the food i chose, i didnt feel like there was anything wrong with them, they did not give me a bad feeling afterwards however the also didnt give me a good feeling.

The food you eat is alot like the people you let into my life, they could be good or bad for you or maybe not have an affect at all. is it possible for food not to have any affect at all. My theory is that food always affects you but it is up to you and your body to make up for the lack of nutritioun. food can be unhealthy but it doesnt have to be unhealthy for you. if you have a fast metabolism than the fat in food wont affect you. However it is still unhealthy because it may have a negative effect on someone else.

Dominant Discourses Regarding Contemporary Foodways in the U.S.

Discourse is an expression used for critisism, It is a way for people to be able to look at topics and find the Why?Who?What?Why not? and Perspectives. The Dominant Discourse is the critique of the people who are so called "experts" on the topic, which in this case is food. Today the contemporary dominant discourses in the U.S. regarding foodways is that Green food is better than fast food, the reason so many people are behind this is because of doctors. Doctors have always been a well respected source for almost any topic that involves your health so why not food. Dr. Preston Maring a well respected doctor at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in oakland stated that "I like to put doctors on the spot,” he said, referring to his penchant for hauling a senior clinician up to the front of the room to chop vegetables with him. We tend to be exalted, and I want to show the staffs that many of us don’t know how to mince garlic." Doctors Orders: Eat well to Be Well By Katrina Heron. The quote shows that even doctors know that the only reason they are exalted is because they are doctors. Dr.Maring is a gynecologist and obstetrician both of which do not specify in nutrition or food.

A Frequently discussed food topic is healthy or "Green" food as some people call it. Today more and more people are becoming concerned with what they eat. Today most people have the idea that if you get something from a farm it is Fresher than when you get something from the grocery store which is why green markets are becoming more and more popular. One market set in the Freeport-Roosevelt Health Center parking lot in Long island is doing very well for itself. "Honestly, this is a blessing,” said Mr. Freeland, a 45-year-old Navy veteran, who does two janitorial jobs, formerly owned a janitorial business in Atlanta and has been homeless since his apartment was flooded out this year. You get the food direct from the farm — they’re still cleaning it off when I get there. You can’t get more fresh than that." Fresh Vegetables Where Fast Food Reigns by Peter Applebome. This Market alone went from $260 a week to $1,400 a week.

This supports the idea that the dominant discourse for Foodways in the U.S. is Green food is more popular and better for you than fast food. Statistics from the Organic Trade Association's 2010 Organic Industry Survey show that U.S. sales of organic food and beverages have grown from $1 billion in 1990 to $24.8 billion in 2009. Sales in 2009 showed a 5.1 percent growth over 2008 sales. Experiencing the highest growth in sales during 2009 were organic fruits and vegetables, up to 11.4 percent over 2008 sales.

My parents grew up in different countries both in the middle east. When they came to America my parents naturally started to eat american food.  They both however still eat middle eastern food and since my mother is a cook she cooks middle eastern food for my family every night. The reason that i enjoy eating middle eastern food is because i grew up eating it, even though i grew up in the U.S. i didnt eat alot of american food as a child. However as i got older my parents allowed me to explore different types of cuisine such as, Italian, Chinese, and American. Since these cuisines are popular in the U.S. they are easier to access, so me and my family started to eat them more and more.

 I haven't seen my grandparents because they live in countries outside the U.S. so i am not directly influenced by what they eat but since my parents grew up with my grandparents they were directly influenced. My parents told me that my Grandparents love middle eastern food. My grandmother was a great cook and would grow her own vegetables on the roof of the building they lived in back home in egypt. She also raised her own chickens which means most of her food was homemade so my parents were not used to eating burgers,fries, and hot dogs. When they came here everything was strange and almost unnatural so it took time before they got used to the food.

The way i eat and what i eat is mostly influenced by what is cheapest, what i know is good, or what my parents usually eat. My dad really enjoys italian food so i really enjoy italian food. My mother always cooks middle eastern food like falafal, sharwirma, and hummus which are also foods i enjoy but nobody makes it the way my mother makes it so i do not buy it that often. I approach food with the same state of mind that my dad does which is what food is good but also what food is cheap. if i can buy  something that is good but also not expensive then ill buy it.

Fast Food Insights and Green Market Realizations

 Both the Green Market and Fast Food promote health or "Freshness" but they both have different ways of doing so. While Fast Food promotes its cheap prices the green market uses its own name as a promotion. When you think of somethign green, you think healthy or environmentally friendly because of the way the media presents it but when you think of fast food, you think of greasy burgers and fries which isnt all that true. Wendy's had a number of healthy salads and their burgers are grilled instead of frozen and then microwaved. The Green Market also had a number of healthy foods like Mushrooms grown by Mulach farms the last mushroom farm in NY state. Michelle Mulach says that her mushrooms are all organic and grown in a mixture of horse manure and reak moss.

Food from my fridge

Fast food chains sell convenience and taste which is why they are so succesful. People choose from the menu, servers immediately place them on a tray, and off the customer goes. This, pairing with the very fast pace of life in the modern world makes fast food a regular dining choices for more and more people. Majority of fast food chains also offer drive-through services. Driving to school or work in a hurry? Getting food is just as easy as driving down the street. Fast food chains recognize that some nice crispy fries taste better than a salad, and capitalize on their this. Burgers, fries and other selections from fast foods are cooked in fat. This makes their food tastier and more attractive.

Food is beauty. The way you prepare it, the way it tastes everything about it is beautiful. It can say alot about a person. Someone who eats caviar might have more money than someone who eats a sloppy joe. Food is the basis of our life. Most people are always concerned about things such as, "When am i going to get my next meal", "What do you want for dinner tonight honey", etc... Food and eating are just a natural process for us, it is considered "normal" you don't question it because its not new or something you think about because not a lot of people put thought into it.

My favorite foods are foods that have a fulling and pleasing taste something that isn't plain. However i do not prioritize the food i like the most because it is difficult to obtain them and not to forget, expensive. The ideal meal would be eating fresh made pasta in italy, however my everyday meals fail to meet the desires because i don't live in italy and eating pasta everyday would be unhealthy. Food isnt as sacred as it is necessary. Without food we would not get the nutrients that we need to survive so in some sense it is sacred but only because without it we would die. In Brazilian Candomble by example, fishes are sacred for their connection to Yemaja (A Deity.)This takes place in other religions too. Some examples:

• coconut: Ganeshin Hinduism
• Bread: representing the body of christ in Catholicism
• Wine: representing the blood of christ in Catholicism
• The challah in Judaism is symbol of divine presence in shabat
• Chestnut: Befana
• Coca leaf: for the Andean cultures