Avoiding Reality Edition

I'm on overload from the Marine situation, it breaks my heart as I see their reputation being tarnished in this way. Every time I look at a news site there is a new story about some new atrocity that was perptrated in the name of war. So I'll do what I always do when under stress, food. Unlike most people the distraction for me is the prep. From deciding to shopping to the actual cooking, I love food. The eating part gets boring after the first few bites.

ABC News: 'Better Butter ... From Happy Cows':As he opens a recent shipment at Per Se, Keller says, "Immediately, when you open the bag, this aroma of fresh butter just envelops you."

Keller complains that so much food is the same these days that it has produced "palate fatigue."

"Diane St. Clair is an extraordinary person who has a true desire to produce a product that has no parallel," he says.

Keller, standing in Per Se's sparkling tile-and-stainless-steel kitchen, says he loves the way St. Clair's butter changes with the seasons, both in color and flavor, to reflect what the cows are eating.

"We look for consistency in our society," he says. "But you know what? That evolution of the year is something that I really cherish."

In that regard, St. Clair and Keller are soul mates.

"Food has been channeled to be like a factory," she declares. "And that's how it stays cheap. If you want cheap food, that's what you're going to get."

That's the truth. How about a little music for a Friday morning? What kind of mood is my Ipod in today?

1. Mad World by Gary Jules (snicker)
2. Every Ship Must Sail Away by Blue Merle
3. Cold As Ice by Foreigner
4. Smokin In The Boys Room by Brownsville Station
5. Ride My See-Saw by The Moody Blues: A Night at Red Rock
6. Let Me Up (I've Had Enough) by Kenny Wayne Shepherd
7. Keep It Simple by Keb' Mo'
8. Piece Of My Heart by Janis Joplin
9. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes by The Platters
10. Spanish Flea by Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass

Fortunately, I don't have this channel. You would think it would set off a little bit of a firestorm. Wow, real bedroom scenes! This should be quite popular behind closed doors. The show people watch and won't admit to.

The FDA wants restaurants to be the fat police. Whatever happened to personal responsibility? You don't have to finish everything on your plate. I would like the choice of smaller portions because I don't want to pay for what I don't eat.

The WaahPoo has a yearlong story on the plight of black men in America that looks promising, so far.

The percentage of black men graduating from college has nearly quadrupled since the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, and yet more black men earn their high school equivalency diplomas in prison each year than graduate from college. Black families where men are in the home earn median incomes that approach those of white families. Yet more than half of the nation's 5.6 million black boys live in fatherless households, 40 percent of which are impoverished. The ranks of professional black men have exploded over four decades -- there were 78,000 black male engineers in 2004, a 33 percent increase in 10 years. And yet 840,000 black men are incarcerated, and the chances of a black boy serving time has nearly tripled in three decades, Justice Department projections show.

Interesting stats. Meanwhile other people try to get organized. Have a great day!

Tags: Ipod, Marines, atrocities, black men, better butter, organizing, fat police