A cat and fast food restaurants
I found this cat, sitting on a wall with in the golden late-afternoon sun reflected in its fur, when I was taking a walk in a new neighbourhood. You don’t think this has to do with food but it has. I was waiting for my youngest daughter (10 going on 11) who was attending a birthday party held an one of the worlds biggest fast food chains, it is very popular here now for children to give their birthday parties there and I am sure the parents find it nice and painless too. Fast food and fast parties because you have one hour and thirty minutes to party on but every one seems to be happy about it. Except me who find it saddening. I will not rant about why, suffice to say that I refuse to personally give money to that kind of fast food restaurants here in Italy because I don’t want to ruin its gastronomy, Italy has so much wonderful street food on its own and I don’t want to see this country go the same way as Sweden where the fast food seems to reign supreme. With a bit of exaggeration of course. but there is truth in what I say. Now Italy has a stronger culinary identity than Sweden, it is possibly the only common identity this strangely divided country has and it is probably strong enough to hold up to that kind of restaurants but I still refuse to eat there, I only bring my children to eat fast food when we are in Sweden and then only once (maybe twice if we are staying there long) because I want them to know what it is all about. I need to point out that I don’t mind the food in itself, I just prefer it to be made with more care, better ingredients and not streamlined and commercialized in the way it is. If I sound preachy I can tell you that I can get just as annoyed with talk about eating local, eating seasonal, eating ecological too – I just wish one could be allowed to find a small path in the middle where we are allowed to eat well, behave well towards food and its producers and eat without feeling guilty. Without feeling that we have to do what others do. Just eating our own way.
But as much as I might not like birthday parties in fast food restaurants, without it, I wouldn’t have seen this cat…
I would just like to say: amen sister
And the cat looks beautiful. I’m a little jealous too. I would so like to sit in the sun!
I so wish we could find that “small path in the middle” too. Being aware, give food the extra attention, but without obsessing and over-analyzing. Totally agree with you, as usual:) xoxo
You are beautiful. So’s the cat.
I too feel sad about children’s parties in fast food restaurants. Less because of the food (which I don’t like either) than because it is so impersonal and packaged, a conveyer belt with no soul. It never seems to be very much fun for the kids either, just sugar highs and e-numbers!
A beautiful click and cat.
I am totally with you on that subject!
Cheers,
Rosa
Thank you for being supportive, I need that considering what I just found: http://djia.tv/al-jazeera/mcdonalds-plans-big-expansion-in-italy/
Children carry with them what they learn about good food in the home. I believe it’s the novel experience (carousels, ballrooms) that is the draw, not the food itself. On-site restaurant parties became the rage in North America decades ago, and we of course tried it in due time as our kids were ‘that age’. And I assure you that not one of them would choose fast food over a healthy meal today.
My first job as a teenager was at the counter of ‘the clown’ (as my kids called it) and in fact it’s where I met my husband! Our training included the origin of the ingredients and they do really source local and quality. Commercialized? Yes, astoundingly so. How do they manage to get the food to taste the same worldwide! Their restaurant formula is a classic business model studied in universities everywhere.
In my opinion, it’s not how they do it, but their choice of what to sell that is not sustainable outside of adolescence. Why so few fresh or low-fat options?
The ‘small path in the middle’ you seek does exist, Ilva. It leads right past the doors of any fast food establishment in our freedom to choose a fresher, healthier option.
The one spot of hope is that children will have a reversal of opinion when they go through the period of distancing themselves from their parents. I am older and most of the parties, if we had parties we had cake, possibly hot dogs and we ran around entertaining ourselves being hellions.
Verkligen en fin bild på katten Ilva! Jag älskar katter och vet hur svårt det är att få bra bilder – har en ‘fosterkatt’ eller rättare sagt, vi har blivit utvald till fosterfamilj av en snäll, svartvit katt som heter Malte och har två vita fläckar vid nosen (liknar Chaplins mustasch fast tvärtom). Håller med dig om att Sverige har alldeles för mycket snabbmatställen men alltför få restauranger med närproducerad, vällagad mat. Tänker alltid på Italien som ett föregångsland när det gäller det senare, även om Slow food bildades i Italien som en reaktion på snabbmatens utbredning.
I so fully agree with you on the subject of Fast Food….we never eat there….I had the same experience as you have when we raised our son…he could go to parties to one of these restaurants with friends…because I could not shelter him from this world we live in….
I really love the look of this cat.
LOVE that cat, and the light is gorgeous! We use to have a cat like that when I was growing up and she would sit and pose all the time! Have to say … saddens me that kids in Europe are into crappy food now! So not romantic …
this kind of cat actually I don’t like it but it looks diff in you shot…
it is so sad to hear there still enough people supporting the fast food chains…..they are so powerfull has so big infuent to eat habbit of people…even sadder to hear that the kids have a party there!