Ginger ale is the cure for all my ale-ments

Nothing like a bad pun in the title of my blog to start this post off with a fizzy bang! Fizzy, you know, like ginger ale is fizzy. Haha. Oh dear. Well, the "tone" of my blog thus far can be explained by the fact that I am suffering from: a) fatigue, b) cold, c) awful headache, d) weakness, and e) general overall grumpiness. But, strangely enough, I now all of a sudden feel nicely tired, don't have a headache, and am not so grumpy (between this sentence and the former, I went to go use the washroom and the magic of relieving oneself did the trick). Knock on wood. 

I wanted to post about ginger ale because it is my go-to cure-all, feel-good drink. When I feel nauseous as hell after a bad car or airplane ride, all I want, all I can possibly imagine stomaching, is a bottle of Canada Dry (only Canada Dry!) Ginger Ale (w/ or w/o Green Tea) and a bag of Original Doritos. That's it. And it always makes me feel better. Spotless record with 100% success rate. Whether that is just a placebo-type effect or an emotional one or a real physical cure, it doesen't matter (however the carbonation in the ginger ale makes you burp and that helps nausea). After not eating for almost 9 hours (and oddly not feeling that hungry), suffering from a horrific three-point headache, exhaustion, and cold-caused blah-iness, I went to Shoppers Drug Mart with one purpose and one purpose only: buy juice, Doritos, and ginger ale. And I did. And I had some, and I feel better. So this whole thing makes me think about comfort food: cold pizza for one, grilled cheese for another, homemade pie, vanilla ice cream, whatever it is, everyone has a go-to comfort food. My mum cannot live without her tea and sausage rolls. Anthony loves his cookies. I'm sure there is a book out there on the philosophy and psychology behind comfort food and why it is so good at what it does: comfort. Childhood links, culinary tastes, knowing what works for you and what doesen't work for you; the reasons must be multiple and complex, just as we are. 

To end this post, I ask that if you have been/want to help with the situation in Haiti, don't forget there are many animals who have suffered as well and they desperately need your help as well, and you can help them. Thank you.

Junk Food

No matter how hard I try I am always drawn back to two things: Coca-Cola and chips. The cheesy kind of chips. Doritos. Cheetos. Cheezies. If I have the chips, I have to have the coke. If I have pizza, I have to have coke. It would seem wrong to say that I am addicted to Coca-Cola, belittling those of us who actually have real live addictions, but I cannot seem to get it off my mind of late. I seem to have shaken the chocolate obsession. I'm no longer obsessing over chocolate cake. But, Coca-Cola persists. I feel like I did when I smoked regularly for a few months back in 2007/2008. Even though I knew how horribly bad and disgusting smoking cigarettes was for me-I knew it-I continued to smoke. Now, even though I know how bad Coca-Cola is for me-it dissolves rust and is used to clean up blood at crime scenes!-I continue to drink it. Well, I kicked that cigarette habit ages ago and only very rarely do I get a craving for a smoke, and I never give in. Can I kick the Coca-Cola habit? I'd like to say 'yes' with resounding resoluteness, but I'm skeptical. You know, they say your eating habits are 'set' by the age of 12. And it is true that bad eating habits are hard to kick, just like any other ones. Oh well, for the vast majority of the time, I eat exceptionally better than most people out there, even though I am desperate for cash, eating into my savings again, and have increased my credit card limit. I do so because I care about food, I love food, I value taste and quality, I appreciate the art of good cooking.
It feels good to be able to write about food again. I was in a creative rut, lack of confidence and interest in life. Forgetting how things are great and I can never forget that.
What's on the menu for tomorrow: Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers. Yum!