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| Fast Talk |
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| Written by Ron Swift / Fast Talk | |
| Saturday, 05 July 2008 | |
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What to do about America’s rapidly expanding waistline Americans are getting bigger. Taller. Heavier. Fatter. And there’s a reason for it: We eat too much.  Ron Swift / Fast Talk Some of us are old enough to remember when our mothers threw hamburgers in the skillet. Mine usually got six burgers to the pound. And we didn’t get seconds. Even the better restaurants serve portions that are far too large. Yet, most of us sit there and try to wolf down all we can. If you disagree that restaurant offerings are too large, then check out the number of doggie bags being hauled out the door by diners too stuffed to finish their meals. With most of us, it’s habit-forming. We overeat three times a day and think nothing of it. As an example, the other night Housemate (HM) was stumped for what to prepare for dinner. (In the Midwest, it’s supper in the evening and dinner at noon.) She made it simple — pancakes. Now, I’ve always liked pancakes, mostly because I’m a sucker for sweets and will devour vast quantities of syrup if given the opportunity. I would drink it straight from the bottle if no one were looking. She set out four different flavors of syrup, and, sure enough, here came four large pancakes. Like a fool, I wolfed ’em all down. My mother always prepared one pancake per person, and if I wanted two, I had to beg and make silly promises I didn’t want to keep. HM then served up some sausage. Not one or two, but keep counting. Professional football linemen are now deemed “too small” if they weigh less than 325 pounds. Seven-foot basketball giants are pushing 300. We may someday run out of room on this planet just because of human size. As you may know, the diet business in the United States is a billion-dollar industry. But it wouldn’t be if we all ate about half as much. Come to think of it, that might become a necessity when most of California’s rich ag land is paved over. FROM THE MAILBAG Swifty: We all know of your dislike of cell phones. But don’t you think HM, your sweetie pie live-in, should have a cell along on her many drives to Oregon to visit relatives? — Cautious Dear Cau: The above-mentioned HM has for the past three or four years carried her own obnoxious, intrusive device (OID). But before then, for more than 40 years, she made the 550-mile Oregon trip twice — and then as many as five times — a year, all without incident. What did people used to do when they had car trouble on the roadway? They raised the hood and locked the doors. She can do that and throw away the OID. I know she can. Besides, I’m told that OIDs never work when you need them. — RS FOR THE SPORTS FAN Ahhh, the Olympic Games in Beijing are almost here. All that remains is to clear away enough smog for the officials to see the finish line. I’ve overnighted in the Chinese capital on five occasions. It’s a very interesting city, if you can see it, for its smog is the worst I’ve ever experienced. You could cut it with a knife. Driving with the lights on during daylight hours is advised. But the Chinese government is about to deal with the problem — at least for the Games. Motor vehicle traffic will be cut drastically for a few weeks, and polluting industries will be closed for a time. People won’t have to get to work, because the work will be eliminated for a spell. Very practical, those Chinese leaders. AND FINALLY … Here’s a thought: If four out of five people suffer from diarrhea, does that mean one in five actually enjoys it?
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