Yes. Kitties and puppies are undeniably the cutest things on Earth, but I’ve decided my passion isn’t fluffy sad balls of undeserved abuse. Though, it’s something I would never ignore I also have another, more urgent, interest.

Nutrition.

Recently I’ve started attending a college course on nutrition. It’s exactly what you’d imagine a class whose sole purpose is to educate on the subject of nutrition: not engaging but definitely practical.

Anyways, so that got me to think about nutrition specifically in Vermont. Which is weird really because Vermont doesn’t seem to be a particularly unhealthy state. Or in an unhealthy state (hah, please don’t laugh that wasn’t funny). I wanted to engage in that topic though because nutrition does genuinely interest me and whether people acknowledge it or not, nutrition is life. Literally!

Now that I’ve picked my topic, I had to conduct a few interviews.

Not just any interviews though. Interviews that hit home specifically.

I first asked Dad to be my guinea pig (as I’ve never really hosted a productive interview) and this is what happened…

[Enter Keira, emerged from her pink hermit cave. Determination set on her face to sit in front of the TV and interrupt the Dad because she can.]

“Hey Dad, I need to ask you a few questions.” She shifted in the spinning leather chair, noting that her voice sounded demanding. Not that she cared, but maybe mob boss gang leader was in her future. Before her imagination ran to wild her dad chimed in distractedly.

“Okay…” His fingers tapped away on his phone. Ugh, pay attention! Keira cleared her throat.

“Ahem, okidokie then.” She frowned at her computer screen where fifteen questions await to be spoken. Where they in the right order? Ah, oh well, it’ll make sense some how. “Dad! Psst, Dad! Okay, so, first question: What’s your favorite food and why?” Keira waited.

And waited. No answer.

“Dad! What’s your favorite food and why?” Her patience waned as she watched her dad hunched over and more spell bound apparently by his device than her understandably boring Q and A. “Dad! Dad! Dad! Da-”

“What?” He remained clueless after all of her pestering. Ugh. “Oh, right, ahm, the egg. There’s so many things you can do with eggs. It’s versatile and comes in it’s own case. Its completely renewable. The cholesterol the egg has is good cholesterol. I don’t know, it’s just one of those things you can prepare in more than fifty ways. I’ve never had an egg prepared in a way I didn’t like; even raw eggs I’ve liked.” Her fingers clacked hurriedly keeping up with the pace of conversation via keyboard. One question, fourteen to go.

[Scene fades out. Poor Keira is left to battle her father’s easily-side-tracked-by-technology attention span so she can complete an assignment she ought to have started way earlier that week.]

I learned many things from continuing my interviews with my friend, brother, and of course, dad.

One: I should really not postpone anything work, especially What’s The Story assignments. Consider lesson burned frantically in my head.

Two: Since my interviews were from three very different people who have different perspectives on nutrition itself, they seemed to also have a common denomination. Generations now appear to be less healthy than the ones before them.

Dad said, “Yes. With out a doubt.” James said, “Yes because they didn’t have much and everything was more less developed and they didn’t have phones like we do and our technology effects how we eat as well.” My friend said, “Not necessarily. Society has definitely changed during the past generations and we face a lot of different challenges today. So I would say just different if not less healthy.”

From these alone I can tell that already there’s evidence that yeah, today’s thinking about nutrition has evolved, but how far have we really gone? In fact, have we back tracked? Judging by what is advertised in stores and the media currently I feel it’s safe to say that time has not made us any wiser about what to eat and why we should eat it.

I intend to further investigate of course since this is now my chosen topic: Nutrition in Vermont and how today’s advancements may mean nothing in progress toward better health. Something like that at least.

—Citation—

“I Enjoy The Routine.” Online interview. 24 Sept. 2016.

“Everything Was More Less Developed.” Personal interview. 25 Sept. 2016.

“There’s No Such Thing As Knowing Too Much Nutrition.” Personal interview. 24 Sept. 2016.