Fashion.Poetry.Lalanii

She said: give me more space. I said: don’t you love me anymore? She said: give me more space. I said: why? Did I do something wrong? Is there something wrong? Is there someone else? When did you stop loving me? In what precise moment? In what room? What city?

She grabbed me tight as one who’s about to lose her life holds on. Then I said: give me more space. She said: no.

Via wears heart on sleeve

3pm

Ecclesiastes

The trick is that you’re willing to help them.
The rule is to sound like you’re doing them a favor.

The rule is to create a commission system.
The trick is to get their number.

The trick is to make it personal:
No one in the world suffers like you.

The trick is that you’re providing a service.
The rule is to keep the conversation going.

The rule is their parents were foolish,
their children are greedy or insane.

The rule is to make them feel they’ve come too late.
The trick is that you’re willing to make exceptions.

The rule is to assume their parents abused them.
The trick is to sound like the one teacher they loved.

And when they say “too much,”
give them a plan.

And when they say “anger” or “rage” or “love,”
say “give me an example.”

The rule is everyone is a gypsy now.
Everyone is searching for his tribe.

The rule is you don’t care if they ever find it.
The trick is that they feel they can.


-Khaled Mattawa, from Tocqueville

2010 New Issues/Western Michigan University Press, Appeared recently on Verse Daily and Poetry Daily.

with love to another poet and graduate of the University of Michigan’s MFA program: D’ANNE

2pm

The Worst of the Worst

nutritionista:

boopabelle asked: What are the “worst” chemicals/additives in foods one should watch out for?

I love this question! It can be so daunting to read the label and analyze every single ingredient. But if there are a few ingredients you can watch for (and then avoid), that makes the process a bit easier.
Here are some of my red flags:

• Trans fat. On the label: partially hydrogenated oil (of any kind), shortening. There’s just nothing good at all about this nasty fat — it’s totally processed and only does bad things to your body (for one, it can lower good cholesterol and raise the bad).
• Sweetener. On the label: corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, sorbitol, maltitol, isomalt, maltodextrin, dextrose, glucose, fructose, maltose, aspartame, sucralose, sorbitol, saccharin, and others. Artificial sweeteners (the last four names on the list) can negatively impact metabolism and have been linked to headaches and other symptoms. Of course, unless you cut out sweet stuff completely, you’re going to want to eat some form of sugar at SOME point. Plain ol’ sugar, honey, or evaporated cane juice are slightly less processed options.
• MSG. On the label: monosodium glutamate, monopotassium glutamate, glutamic acid, vegetable protein extract, maltodextrin, carrageenan, and others (see this for a full list). MSG can cause headaches, nausea, edema, and burning sensations. Fun times!
• Benzoate preservatives. On the label: BHT, BHA, TBHQ. This chemical compound can actually affect estrogen balance and levels (a big no-no for women!).
• Brominated Vegetable Oil. On the label: BVO. I remember seeing this on the label of the Diet Mountain Dew I used to drink. It grosses me out so much now. This chemical can actually increase triglycerides and damage liver, testicles, thyroid, heart, and kidney. Plus it just sounds nasty!
• Any food ingredient with a color for the name (e.g., “Yellow #5). These additives have been linked to allergic reactions, rashes, and headaches. They can be particularly bad for kids.

Of course, there are other ingredients that won’t do you any favors. But avoiding those biggies is a huge step!

Via Your Nutritionista

12pm

If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn’t. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn’t be. And what it wouldn’t be, it would. You see?

Via Pleasure in the Details

10am

Memory takes a lot of poetic license. It omits some details; others are exaggerated, according to the emotional value of the articles it touches, for memory is seated predominantly in the heart.

Via wears heart on sleeve

11am