Channeling my grandfather...

About 4 years ago, when I was training for the Austin marathon, my eating habits and the way I looked at food changed dramatically. It started off with my brother and I making a deal to eat no fried food/fast food and no Cokes (i.e. soda or pop) for a month. As I trained, I began to see food more as fuel than something to purely enjoy and really started reading labels and paying attention to what I was eating. Well, you can guess where that goes. I began eating more whole foods and vegetarian, steering clear of partially hydrogenated oils and high fructose corn syrup whenever I could. There was a difference! I was the healthiest I have ever been, I dropped about 25 lbs (mind you, this was in conjunction with marathon training, but most of the weight came off about 2 months following the marathon), and I was sleeping better and feeling better. Now, I'm not a purist or holy roller. I love coffee, and never gave up caffeine, nor did I have any desire to do so. I love food. As most people who love food, I love cheese, love a rich creamy gratin, love pasta, love bread, love a good steak, love cheeseburgers and milkshakes. Still, I paid attention to what was going in, and only ate that stuff sometimes.

Moving to Minneapolis I was kind of in hog heaven. I lived right down the street from The Wedge and became a member the day I moved to Uptown. The weekly newsletters got me even more in touch with holistic approaches to everything from high cholesterol to aching joints. The Wedge also got me more turned on to local, that and the St. Paul farmer's market. The freshness and difference in taste and quality made me appreciate local bounty, and start to pay more attention to where food was coming from and the idea that you could actually talk to the farmer that grew those tomatoes, or buy your Thanksgiving turkey from the guy who slaughtered it on Tuesday (and it was roaming his farm before that). When I moved back to Texas, to Houston, I was sure that I would never be able to find what I had in Minneapolis, or what is available in Austin. I was wrong.

The local food/whole foods movement is big here in Houston, which is great considering there are so many restaurants. It's kind of a foodie (hot) paradise, if you know where to look. While I thought I'd have to start my own co-op, I found Central City Coop, already 7 years into it and growing quickly. Now I'm on the board of directors, which is offering all types of opportunities to meet other like minded folk, from foodies to farmers. As the outreach committee head, I attended a meeting this week for a collaborative project called Urban Farm Belt. It was at Emile Farm/Last Organic Outpost in the 5th Ward and everyone was trying to figure out the best ways to bring and encourage urban farming in Houston, much like the Emile street farm. Right up my alley, since the goal is to increase access to healthy foods, while beautifying lower income neighborhoods. Of course, there is a long way to go. And, as all my old HHH profs would be glad to know, all I could think about was community buy-in, community buy-in, community buy-in. For the first time in my life, I was walking around that farm thinking, man, I can't wait til the day when I have my own garden and I can farm. Huh?? I hate tending to stuff, hate being out in the heat, am an urban woman through and through. Last Sunday I bought lettuce from an organic farmer who had pulled it out of the ground that morning. All of a sudden I'm so intrigued by the idea of being able to grow my own food and eat it that day. I just wish my Grandad was around when I had this epiphany. He would be so proud.

This is a picture of Emile street farm, go to this article published in the Chronicle on Thursday to learn more about Joe (in the picture) and the farm!