Jeff's Food Stuff

Well folks, as the title suggests, today I have some random silliness.

The Church Van
The other day, I was out with the family, when we came upon the van pictured below. Now, I have always suspected that religion was a dangerous thing. Still, I never thought that they would actually admit it. I certainly didn't think they would include a warning sign like this one.

I always suspected that religion was a dangerous thing. Now I guess I have proof.

Now, I realize that the warning was not meant as a caution against religion. Still, I fail to see what the warning is for. I mean, are church bus drivers as a group, more reckless than other drivers? Are church bus riders more likely to throw projectiles at the other cars? Are church vans somehow likely to spontaneously explode?

The answer to this is obviously "no", "no" and "I hope not". Still, I wonder about such things. Why the warning? Do the owners/occupants of the van feel that because they are in a church vehicle that they are somehow entitled to more consideration on the road? Do they feel that I should be a more careful driver because of who they are?

Well that seems just as silly as the first three ideas. It reminds me a lot of the obnoxious "baby on board" signs that used to grace every SUV and minivan on the road. It seems to me that, since the van is occupied by "believers", they should need less protection from me since they are clearly obtaining it through divine intervention. If God is looking out for them, I can spend more time looking out for the other cars. Now, if the car said something like, "Atheist on Board" I might cut the guy a little more slack. After all, nobody is looking out for him.

The 101.89% Solution

My son and I went into the woods the other day for a short hike. I strongly recommend this to other parents as it is much healthier than sitting around eating chips and playing video games (like way too many children today do). Anyway, after about 10 minutes, I realized that some insect repellent would've been a really good idea. Unfortunately, it was a really good idea that I didn't have until 10 minutes into the trip.

Continued...

I'm a little confused. I was at the food store the other day, and while shopping for butter, I noticed something odd.

Do you remember margarine ? I do. My parents used it instead of butter throughout my childhood. Personally, I can't stand the stuff. It has about as much in common with butter at steak has with cinder blocks.

Still, many people still prefer margarine over butter. One reason of course is cost. Margarine is substantially cheaper than butter. Another reason is the dreaded cholesterol. Of course now, we know about trans fats, and realize that butter isn't so bad for you after all. At least, it's a natural product not one that's manufactured in a lab.

Anyway,the thing that surprised me at the supermarket was the fact that nothing was labeled margarine. They had things like, "butter flavored spread", "country spread", "light, soft, spread".

I understand that margarine has a certain stigma to it. Nonetheless, is anyone really fooled? Does anyone think that "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" is anything other than margarine? Does anyone think that "country spread" or "butter flavored spread" is different than margarine?

Once again, marketing goes nuts. We, the consumer, are treated like idiots. What's wrong with putting on the label, what's in the box? Why not just tell us what it is? Let us decide if we want to buy it or not.

For my money, my choices are easy to define.

Olive oil: Good
Butter: Good
Margarine: Not interested

Cable television has brought us a plethora of cooking shows. I'm sad to say that many of these just don't impress me. For example, I would rather eat rancid cat food, than be forced to sit through any show hosted by Rachael Ray!
A few of these shows do actually have value. Today I would like to talk about the one cooking show that I watch without fail.

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