A whole year of half of me, omnivore Q's, and Wilma, where are you?

One year ... that's terrific, Jenette. Congratulations and here's to another year, and another and another.

Congratulations! The first year of many! :)

I am a fan of Michael Pollan after hearing him just the once, being interviewed on radio following the publication of his latest book. I have also not read it.. but I'd like to hear what you have to say after attending his lecture.

Well done on that year - you rock!

Hi PQ,
Congratulations on your latest milestone.

Here's the URL for the magazine article by Michael Pollan that eventually became his latest book. The first line pretty much sums up the thesis:

New York Times article

PQ - Oooh, it's like Cliffs Notes! Thanks, barbara.

Congrats on your anniversary. I envy you the chance to see Michael Pollan. I "read" his book Omnivore's Dilemma on audio CD in my car, but I skipped the gory stuff about feedlots because what I already know makes me sick enough.

His big thing in that book was food that was not only organic, but local and sustainably farmed (according to his book, a lot of the big-name organic stuff is high-volume farming in a way that is fossil-fuel-intensive). So you might ask him about how to create a realistic, local food supply that could work on a large scale, and not just for a few do-gooder foodies. I try to eat locally-farmed produce and meat when I can, but it's not as easy as you'd think, even in an agricultural state like Ohio. How can we make it easier for this kind of food network to grow?

I am currently reading In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto. He talks about the difference between food and "nutrients" and how the market is currently trying to sell us on nutrients instead of food, which really confuses the issue. Ever since I read that section, I've seen signs of it everywhere. He is absolutely right. The biggest, most colorful print on any packaging is not "bread," which would tell you what it is, but "No trans fats!" or "High in Omega-3!" We don't enjoy pomegranate for its tartness and taste, but for its "antioxidants."

I, too, try to buy local, organic produce when I can, and I buy as little prepackaged foods as possible. I bake every week and make my own soups every week. Buying local and healthy is challenging in the northeast, at this time of year, since our growing season doesn't start for several months. I froze a lot of foods this summer and fall, but most of it is gone now---just a few more peaches and some spaghetti sauce. I bought grass-fed biodynamically grown beef the other day, only to discover that it came from New Zealand---talk about fossil fuel waste!!!

We have a small network of farmer's markets in my area from June until early October, but beyond that it is a challenge. I am looking into a CSA, but even that is temporary and would require a great deal of self-discipline (to can and otherwise preserve the abundance week after week during the summer so that I'd have stores for the leaner months). I work full time and got to graduate school 1/2 time, so there isn't a lot of "free time" in my schedule... I'd be interested to hear what Pollan thinks is a solution to a consistent food source for those of us who want to eat more earth-friendly (and therefore human friendly!). I love his "motto" ~ "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." It is a perfect little reminder without being preachy. Read the book when you get a chance---or just skim certain sections----You don't need to read every word to get his message. It is written from a journalist perspective, not a Nutritionist perspective (but he is a real "foody" so he knows a lot...). It is worth the effort.

Delurking to say congratulations on your amazing achievement.

I have recently lost about a third of my body weight by counting calories. Everything the dietitians say is true: it's not about cabbage soup or cutting carbs.

I just finished reading *Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto*.
If you read *Omnivore* don't bother reading *Food*, it's just the same stuff again in a very boring way.
I loved *Omnivore* because it was fun to read, but *Food* is just statistics.

My question for Micheal Pollen would be....

You advocate eating minimally processed, locally produced food and that the reductionist view of food to nutrients results in the marketing of highly processed foods as nutritious. However, if you take the non-reductionist attitude towards the societal problems of obesity and disease, you are forced to confront the fact that the most convenient food sources are both processed and unhealthy and that making healthier eating convenient is a crucial component to improving people's health. Thus, processed, convenient food that actually contains some nutrients enters the market. How can you reconcile these two view points and make eating non-processed food more accessible to more people?

Congratu-freaking-lations.

I don't feel like I really need to say much more than that. I'm pretty sure you already know just how huge of an accomplishment everything that you have done is.

Ugh. That sentence was so horrible. I can't believe I write for a living. I just live blogged the Oscars and I think that basically just sucked all the grammar right out of me. So sorry, there's none left for this comment.

congratulations, thank you for being such an imspiration!

i'm here, i'm here!!! please don't draw again!! the reason i didn't check my email is because i basically don't check my hotmail account (can't access it at work and don't have a computer at home), and i don't usually give out my work email, because, well...that's not usually the best idea. but i'm going to email you from my work address right now! it's almost the same as this email address, so i hope that's okay...yayayayayayay i never win anything, this is so cool :)

Congrats on a fantastic year of continued success with your amazing weight loss maintenance! :)

I read Omnivore's Dilemma (well, most of it). I didn't read the last section of the book because I'd had enough at that point. I felt like a lot of the book was just too scientific for me; it didn't hold my interest. I learned a lot from what I DID read of the book. And I look forward to reading (or listening to) your interview with him. I don't have a new question for him though--mine would be similar to those already posted.

You GO! So glad I came across your blog. Congrats.

I haven't read the Pollen books but another great, down to earth book on eating locally is Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. She also weaves in how eating locally is good for reducing our carbon footprint. The family takes a year and eats only things from within a certain radius of their home with the exception of one thing they can each choose.

Congrats on the great milestone!