Roger Ebert, on eating and dining

[ckd]

Roger Ebert has posted a thoughtful piece on food and dining and memory, discussing his experiences since surgery left him unable to eat normally and what he truly misses most about no longer being able to do so.

He's managed to express in words something I could never quite get right: how I feel about the difference between a meal eaten in company and a mere refueling stop, and why I take the convention rule of 5-2-1 (5 hours of sleep, 2 meals, 1 shower each day) and add the stipulation (in my own case) that the two meals should be eaten with other people if at all possible.

Read the whole thing.

(via cristalia)

Comments

[ron_newman]

Oh poor Roger! I had no idea any of this had happened to him until I just now read his Wikipedia entry. Sure puts my everyday problems in perspective.

[aamcnamara.livejournal.com]

That really is an excellent post.

It also hits on why I hate having food allergies; it's less that I can't eat particular foods, than that there are food-y situations in which I cannot participate. I love baking, but if my friends decide to have a baking adventure, I can't even hang around and chat--too many allergens in the air.

[skogkatt.livejournal.com]

Having had very little appetite for the past few months, I heartily concur. I am thankful that I can still eat a bit and talk, though. Ebert's not being able to speak sucks hard.

[treebones.livejournal.com]

Yes. I thought I'd make use of the nice small restaurant up the street from me a couple of times a week as a stress reliever, since historically, eating out does that for me.

I went several weeks without going once, and I figured out much of the reason: without someone to go with, what was the point? More to it than that, of course. But it lost the forward momentum that would have turned it from and idea to something likely to happen.

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

That's the nice thing about the diner down the street from me. Even if I go there without Lis, I can still chat with the waitresses, grill cooks, and owner. Or the other people eating there.

Some bars are like that, too. They provide their own "people to be with".

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

Ebert actually knows how to THINK, doesn't he?

[weegoddess.livejournal.com]

I was a speech-language pathologist for 12 years and specialized in swallowing disorders. I worked with people like Roger Ebert every day. I had to quit (or at least take an indefinite break) because emotionally it was getting to be too much. I admit, when i read Ebert's posting I cried. It brought back so much memory of my patients' sadness and fear and loss.

And yet, the post makes me wonder if I really should consider doing that sort of work again someday. If I can help even one more person...I've toyed with the idea of volunteering at nursing homes and doing that same work but without the paperwork and pressure, etc. Also without the paycheck, so, yeah, not sure how well it would work. Would I be able to volunteer and still put enough time towards paying work?

But thank you for posting this. I've bookmarked the article and will no doubt go back to it many times.

[ckd]

Thank you for having done this work, as tough as it was for you.

*blinks*

[dawnwolf.livejournal.com]

FIVE hours' sleep?

*bows*

I'd like some of that particular fu.

Sorry, I'll get to the article, but ... wow.

[buymeaclue.livejournal.com]

I had a friend in college who liked to quiz people: eat/sleep/shower. If you had to give up one (you wouldn't get hungry/tired/smelly--you just wouldn't have/get to do that thing anymore), which would it be? It was surprisingly difficult for most people to choose. The social component of eating was often a Thing.

[ckd]

Yeah, "eat" wouldn't be in the running for me either. "Sleep" is tempting, though I'd worry that it risked adding several hours a day of boredom.

[mmcirvin.livejournal.com]

Definitely not "eat".

"Shower" is the safest answer, since it's the smallest component of one's life of the three.

But "sleep" brings the most interesting combination of advantages and drawbacks. I'd probably have immediately chosen to give up sleep when I was single. Now, I'd hesitate.

Thanks for the link

[drwex]

I was similarly unaware of his situation.

I agree with the point about eating with company - it's excellent. But I also enjoy dining by myself. I bring a book for company and take the time to enjoy both the book and the meal.

[carbonel]

Thanks for the link. I used to get Ebert's blog via LJ feed, but it seems to have stopped working, along with the Straight Dope one.