Skinny-freak Organicals!

[storytimewithjoe]

The other day, I found myself shopping at Whole Foods in Irvine. I don’t really know what it is about Whole Foods, but shopping frequently turns into an “interesting” experience. Now don’t get me wrong, I really do enjoy the items on offer at that store. The produce is just BEAUTIFUL, as is the ready-food areas. And don’t even get me raving about their beer and wine selections! But, as I begin to wander around the store, inevitably it occurs to me that I’m not shopping in Kansas anymore. Trying to find regular everyday items interspersed among the rows of bee pollen, nutritional yeast, and soap-you-can-see-through can be quite the challenge. Yet, even more of a challenge, is dealing with the people.

 

As I wander through the store like a lost pilgrim without a whole-foods-sherpa, I can’t help but notice the other people who shop there. Unlike the vast sampling of humanity that I find in most grocery stores, the hemp-weavin’, Birkenstock-wearin’ granola-guys and gals who shop at whole foods seem to have one thing in common. (well… besides the need for a serious fashion make-over, real shampoo, and some shared experiences at a Phish fest). They are all thin. Not just thin, but skinny. Actually, not even skinny – just as obese is to overweight, that is how rail-thin and unhealthy-looking a lot of these people are. And walking around the store, I quickly realized something – I seemed to be the heaviest person around.

 

Now this isn’t to say that I’m about to go on a typical guppy-lament about weight (although I really AM pissed off about losing two of my workouts a week, and gaining 15 pounds since switching to a County job!). It is to point out something – these people were really, really thin! WTF? I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – I just don’t subscribe to that whole zero-body-fat-equals-beauty philosophy that is so rampant in American society. I think that men really SHOULD have just a wee-bit of a belly. (not a “Dunlop”, per se, but a “Wee-bit”) It is not just normal, but (I tend to think) healthy. And women – I got news for you - you SHOULD have hips! (Not gedonkadonk-hips. Think J-Lo Junk-in-the-trunk) Women SHOULD have boobs! (Not hangin’ down to the knees like deflated volleyballs, but, you know, perky boobies). But when a guy and a girl go walking by me, and I can’t tell which is which based on the profile, I think there’s a problem. 

 

Leaving the store, I cracked open a bottle of sparkling blood orange soda and contemplated the surreal nature of the shoppers in Irvine. I may not be rail-thin, but I prefer looking like a human being. Besides, can one REALLY trust a skinny cook? 

 

You be the judge.

Comments

[legolas18.livejournal.com]

As a dedicated Whole Foods shopper, let me assure you that we are not all rail thin.

And I buy staples like soap, dishwasher stuff, cat litter, paper towels, tp, etc. at a normal store!

[redsquirrel.livejournal.com]

Aaah, that's just SoCal. When I shopped at Whole Foods in the Research Triangle area in NC, there was a range of normal sized people doing their shopping there. Maybe even a bit greater percentage of larger sized people, because Durham is Diet Central - there's a bunch of weight-loss programs affiliated with Duke U. Medical Ctr. And IIRC Whole Foods isn't exactly a place dedicated to diet food, they sold some mighty darn sinful stuff at the ones I used to patronize. (Alas, the closest one to me here in FL is across the bay in Tampa and it's just not worth the 45-50 min + traffic drive to get there.)

[relaxgettoit.livejournal.com]

I just think it's your location..

[(Anonymous)]

"Whenever I watch TV and see those poor starving kids all over the world, I can’t help but cry. I mean,
I’d love to be skinny like that but not with all those flies and death and stuff".
— MARIAH CAREY, expressing compassion

Thought you'd appreciate this one.

Love,

Diego